Author: Techman

A software vulnerability exploited in the online game Minecraft is rapidly emerging as a major threat to internet-connected devices around the world. "The internet's on fire right now," said Adam Meyers, senior vice president of intelligence at the cybersecurity firm Crowdstrike. "People are scrambling to…

Robotic vacuum cleaners halted in their tracks. Doorbell cameras stopped watching for package thieves, though some of those deliveries were canceled anyway. Netflix and Disney movies were interrupted, and The Associated Press had trouble publishing the news. A major outage in Amazon's cloud computing network…

While the COVID-19 pandemic lingers on, one might not know it by looking at 2021’s most searched items on Google.  According to the list released by Google Wednesday, “NBA” was the most searched term in the U.S., but it’s unclear why.  Other most searched topics…

A major outage disrupted Amazon's cloud services on Tuesday, temporarily knocking out streaming platforms Netflix and Disney+, Robinhood, a wide range of apps, and Amazon.com Inc.'s e-commerce website as consumers shopped ahead of Christmas.  "Many services have already recovered; however, we are working towards full…

Two computer scientists at the University of Maryland have developed a new artificial intelligence system that evolves to detect and evade internet censorship in repressive countries. VOA’s Julie Taboh has more. ...

Rohingya refugees from Myanmar are suing Meta Platforms Inc, formerly known as Facebook, for $150 billion over allegations that the social media company did not take action against anti-Rohingya hate speech that contributed to violence.  A U.S. class-action complaint, filed in California on Monday by law firms Edelson PC and…

In the shadows of the coronavirus pandemic, violence against women has been on the rise around the world, including in South Africa, where half of the country’s women report at least one incident of violence in their lifetime. Now, a local tech company has developed…

As the world races to vaccinate billions more people against COVID-19 while the virus’ new omicron variant spreads, India is testing using drones to deliver vaccines to people in mountainous Jammu and Kashmir, where more than 70% of the population lives in rural areas. It…

Apple Inc. iPhones of at least nine U.S. State Department employees were hacked by an unknown assailant using sophisticated spyware developed by the Israel-based NSO Group, according to four people familiar with the matter. The hacks, which took place in the last several months, hit…

To make Black history more accessible, an Oakland, California man designed his own augmented reality app. Matt Dibble has the story. ...

Newly named Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal has emerged from behind the scenes to take over one of Silicon Valley's highest-profile and politically volatile jobs.  But his prior lack of name recognition, coupled with a solid technical background, appears to be what some big company backers…

Twitter founder and CEO Jack Dorsey is stepping down as the company’s leader.   In a news release, Twitter said Dorsey would be replaced by Parag Agrawal, who has been the company’s chief technology officer since 2017. The move is effective immediately.   "I've decided…

Australia's government said Sunday it will introduce legislation to unmask online trolls and hold social media giants like Facebook and Twitter responsible for identifying them. Prime Minister Scott Morrison, whose conservative coalition government faces an election in the first half of 2022, said the law…

China was behind one of the biggest hacks of all time, quietly stealing email and data from organizations, according to the U.S. and other nations' governments. Experts say China-orchestrated attacks on strategic targets have increased in recent years. Michelle Quinn reports. Producer: Michelle Quinn. Camera:…

Apple says it is suing Israeli NSO Group, maker of the controversial Pegasus spyware.  Apple will be the second company to sue NSO after Facebook, now Meta, sued over similar concerns that Pegasus was targeting WhatsApp users. Meta owns WhatsApp. The case is still working…

The shutdown of internet access via mobile phone networks that began Saturday dragged on for a fourth day Tuesday. The government said in a statement the shutdown is in the interest of national defense and public security and will last until around 10 p.m. tonight. VOA talked to some Burkinabes on the streets of Ouagadougou to ask how…

A Sydney restaurant is using a Chinese-made, multi-lingual hospitality robot to address chronic staff shortages as Australia’s economy begins to recover from COVID-19 lockdowns and border closures.  The robot waiter is programmed to know the layout of the tables and delivers food from the kitchen. It is…

Australian mining billionaire Andrew Forrest's philanthropic organization will help 18 small news publishers in the country to negotiate collectively with Google and Facebook to secure licensing deals for the supply of news content. Forrest's Minderoo Foundation on Monday said it would submit an application with…

Frustrated with slow or no action, some Americans are using Bluetooth trackers to retrieve stolen items themselves. It’s a risky strategy that isn’t endorsed by police and could put users in harm’s way, as VOA’s Veronica Balderas Iglesias reports. ...

As researchers at U.S space agency NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory prepare for the 16th flight of Ingenuity, the Mars helicopter, the team has used recently downloaded data from the Mars mission to create the best video yet of one of Ingenuity’s previous flights.  The 1.8-kilogram…

After making a promise on Twitter, Tesla CEO Elon Musk has sold about 900,000 shares of the electric car maker's stock, netting over $1.1 billion that will go toward paying tax obligations for stock options.  The sales, disclosed in two regulatory filings late Wednesday, will…

The United States and China surprised the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow on Wednesday with a joint declaration to take action to limit global warming over the next decade. The declaration came as delegates entered the final hours of negotiations to agree on a final…

A coalition of 19 countries including Britain and the United States on Wednesday agreed to create zero emissions shipping trade routes between ports to speed up the decarbonization of the global maritime industry, officials involved said.  Shipping, which transports about 90% of world trade, accounts…

U.S.-based drugmaker Pfizer is seeking to make a booster shot of its COVID-19 vaccine available to all adult Americans 18 years of age and older. Pfizer filed the request Tuesday with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, citing a new clinical trial involving 10,000 volunteers who…

White House officials are on a development-minded world tour and have been scouting several corners of the globe to identify about 50 projects that focus on topics such as climate, health, digital technology and gender equality.  Daleep Singh, the deputy national security adviser for international…

Facebook Inc. said on Tuesday it plans to remove detailed ad-targeting options that refer to "sensitive" topics, such as ads based on interactions with content around race, health, religious practices, political beliefs or sexual orientation.  The company, which recently changed its name to Meta and…

Four astronauts returned to Earth on Monday, riding home with SpaceX to end a 200-day space station mission that began last spring. Their capsule streaked through the late night sky like a dazzling meteor before parachuting into the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Pensacola, Florida.…

Australia's electric car industry has criticized the government's new policy to build thousands of charging stations as "far too little, too late." The Australian government Tuesday pledged $132 million to speed up the rollout of hydrogen refueling and electric charging stations.  The Electric Vehicles Council says an Australian government plan to build electric vehicle charging stations and hydrogen-powered…