On Feb. 6, 2018, Apple received a grand jury subpoena for the names and phone records connected to 109 email addresses and phone numbers. It was one of the more than 250 data requests that the company received on average from US law enforcement each week at the time. An Apple paralegal complied and provided the information.

This year, a gag order on the subpoena expired. Apple said it alerted the people who were the subjects of the subpoena, just as it does with dozens of customers each day. But this request was out of the ordinary.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/trump-officials-seized-apple-data-of-two-democratic-lawmakers-new-york-times-390716">Trump officials seized Apple data of two Democratic lawmakers: New York Times</a>

Without knowing it, Apple said, it had handed over the data of congressional staffers, their families and at least two members of Congress, including Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., then the House Intelligence Committee’s ranking member and now its chair. It turned out the subpoena was part of a wide-ranging investigation by the Trump administration into leaks of classified information.

The revelations have now plunged Apple into the middle of a firestorm over the Trump administration’s efforts to find the sources of news stories, and the handling underscores the flood of law enforcement requests that tech companies increasingly contend with. The number of these requests has soared in recent years to thousands a week, putting Apple and other tech giants like Google and Microsoft in an uncomfortable position between law enforcement, the courts and the customers whose privacy they have promised to protect.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/technology/apple-google-and-a-deal-that-controls-the-internet-337885">Apple, Google and a deal that controls the internet</a>

The companies regularly comply with the requests because they are legally required to do so. The subpoenas can be vague, so Apple, Google and others are often unclear on the nature or subject of an investigation. They can challenge some subpoenas if they are too broad or if they relate to a corporate client. In the first six months of 2020, Apple challenged 238 demands from the government for its customers’ account data or 4 per cent of such requests.

As part of the same leak investigation by the Trump administration, Google fought a gag order this year on a subpoena to turn over data on the emails of four New York Times reporters. Google argued that its contract as The Times’ corporate email provider required it to inform the newspaper of any government requests for its emails, said Ted Boutrous, an outside lawyer for The Times.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/technology/privacy-for-sale-as-apple-and-facebook-fight-for-consumers-354932">Privacy for sale as Apple and Facebook fight for consumers</a>

But more frequently than not, the companies comply with law enforcement demands. And that underlines an awkward truth: As their products become more central to people’s lives, the world’s largest tech companies have become surveillance intermediaries and crucial partners to authorities, with the power to arbitrate which requests to honour and which to reject.

Fred Sainz, an Apple spokesman, said in a statement that the company regularly challenged government data requests and informed affected customers as soon as it legally could.

“In this case, the subpoena, which was issued by a federal grand jury and included a nondisclosure order signed by a federal magistrate judge, provided no information on the nature of the investigation and it would have been virtually impossible for Apple to understand the intent of the desired information without digging through users’ accounts,” he said. “Consistent with the request, Apple limited the information it provided to account subscriber information and did not provide any content such as emails or pictures.”

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-lawmakers-question-google-twitter-and-others-over-auction-of-user-data-375266">US lawmakers question Google, Twitter and others over auction of user data</a>

In a statement, Microsoft said it received a subpoena in 2017 related to a personal email account. It said it notified the customer after the gag order expired and learned that the person was a congressional staff member. “We will continue to aggressively seek reform that imposes reasonable limits on government secrecy in cases like this,” the company said.

Google declined to comment on whether it received a subpoena related to the investigation on the House Intelligence Committee.

The Justice Department has not commented publicly on Apple’s turning over House Intelligence Committee records. In congressional testimony this week, Attorney General Merrick Garland sidestepped criticism of the Trump administration’s decisions and said the seizure of records was made “under a set of policies that have existed for decades.”

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-defense-intelligence-agency-admits-it-bought-peoples-location-data-report-358741">US Defense Intelligence Agency admits it bought people's location data: Report</a>

In the Justice Department’s leak investigation, Apple and Microsoft turned over the so-called metadata of people who worked in Congress, including phone records, device information, and addresses. It is not unusual for the Justice Department to subpoena such metadata, because the information can be used to establish whether someone had contact with a member of the media or whether the person’s work or home accounts were tied to anonymous accounts that were used to disseminate classified information.

Under the gag orders that authorities placed on the subpoenas, Apple and Microsoft also agreed to not tell those people whose information was being demanded. In Apple’s case, a yearlong gag order was renewed three separate times. That contrasted with Google, which resisted the gag order on a subpoena to turn over data on the four Times reporters.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/trump-surveillance-of-democrats-sparks-abuse-of-power-claims-390987">Trump surveillance of Democrats sparks abuse of power claims</a>

The differing responses are largely explained by the different relationships the companies had with their customers in the case. Apple and Microsoft were ordered to hand over data related to individual accounts, while the subpoena to Google affected a corporate customer, which was governed by a contract. That contract gave Google a more specific basis on which to challenge the gag order, lawyers said.

The subpoena to Apple was also more opaque, it simply asked for information about a series of email addresses and phone numbers, and the company said it did not know it related to an investigation into Congress. For Google, it was clear that the Justice Department sought records from The Times because the email addresses were clearly those of Times reporters.

Google said it generally did not handle requests for customer information differently for individual accounts and corporate customers. But the company has a strong argument to redirect requests for data of corporate customers based on the Justice Department’s own recommendations.

In guidelines released in 2017, the Justice Department urged prosecutors to “seek data directly” from companies instead of going through a technology provider, unless doing so was impractical or would compromise the investigation. By going to Google to seize information about the reporters, the Justice Department sought to circumvent The Times. Google declined to say whether it used the Justice Department guidelines to fight the gag order.

Google said it produced some data in 83 per cent of the nearly 40,000 requests for information from US government agencies it received in the first half of 2020. By comparison, it produced some data in 39 per cent of requests for information on 398 paying corporate customers of Google Cloud, including its email and web-hosting offerings, during the same time period.

Law enforcement requests for data from American tech companies have more than doubled in recent years. Facebook said it received nearly 123,000 data requests from the US government last year, up from 37,000 in 2015.

Apple said that in the first half of 2020, it received an average of 400 requests a week for customer data from US law enforcement, more than double the rate five years prior. The company’s compliance rate has remained roughly between 80 per cent and 85 per cent for years.

Authorities are also demanding information about more accounts in each request. In the first half of 2020, each US government subpoena or warrant to Apple requested data for 11 accounts or devices on average, up from fewer than three accounts or devices in the first half of 2015, the company said.

Apple said that after the government began including more than 100 accounts in some subpoenas, as it did in the leak investigation in 2018, it asked law enforcement to limit requests to 25 accounts each. Police did not always comply, the company said.

Apple has often challenged subpoenas that included so many accounts because they were too broad, said a former senior lawyer for the company, who spoke on the condition of confidentiality. This person said that it would not have been surprising for Apple to challenge the 2018 Justice Department subpoena but that whether a request was challenged often depended on whether a paralegal handling the subpoena elevated it to more senior lawyers.

On Feb. 6, 2018, Apple received a grand jury subpoena for the names and phone records connected to 109 email addresses and phone numbers. It was one of the more than 250 data requests that the company received on average from US law enforcement each week at the time.

On Feb. 6, 2018, Apple received a grand jury subpoena for the names and phone records connected to 109 email addresses and phone numbers. It was one of the more than 250 data requests that the company received on average from US law enforcement each week at the time. An Apple paralegal complied and provided the information. This year, a gag order on the subpoena expired. Apple said it alerted the people who were the subjects of the subpoena, just as it does with dozens of customers each day. But this request was out of the ordinary. Also read | Trump officials seized Apple data of two Democratic lawmakers: New York Times Without knowing it, Apple said, it had handed over the data of congressional staffers, their families and at least two members of Congress, including Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., then the House Intelligence Committee’s ranking member and now its chair. It turned out the subpoena was part of a wide-ranging investigation by the Trump administration into leaks of classified information. The revelations have now plunged Apple into the middle of a firestorm over the Trump administration’s efforts to find the sources of news stories, and the handling underscores the flood of law enforcement requests that tech companies increasingly contend with. The number of these requests has soared in recent years to thousands a week, putting Apple and other tech giants like Google and Microsoft in an uncomfortable position between law enforcement, the courts and the customers whose privacy they have promised to protect. Also read | Apple, Google and a deal that controls the internet The companies regularly comply with the requests because they are legally required to do so. The subpoenas can be vague, so Apple, Google and others are often unclear on the nature or subject of an investigation. They can challenge some subpoenas if they are too broad or if they relate to a corporate client. In the first six months of 2020, Apple challenged 238 demands from the government for its customers’ account data or 4 per cent of such requests. As part of the same leak investigation by the Trump administration, Google fought a gag order this year on a subpoena to turn over data on the emails of four New York Times reporters. Google argued that its contract as The Times’ corporate email provider required it to inform the newspaper of any government requests for its emails, said Ted Boutrous, an outside lawyer for The Times. Also read | Privacy for sale as Apple and Facebook fight for consumers But more frequently than not, the companies comply with law enforcement demands. And that underlines an awkward truth: As their products become more central to people’s lives, the world’s largest tech companies have become surveillance intermediaries and crucial partners to authorities, with the power to arbitrate which requests to honour and which to reject. Fred Sainz, an Apple spokesman, said in a statement that the company regularly challenged government data requests and informed affected customers as soon as it legally could. “In this case, the subpoena, which was issued by a federal grand jury and included a nondisclosure order signed by a federal magistrate judge, provided no information on the nature of the investigation and it would have been virtually impossible for Apple to understand the intent of the desired information without digging through users’ accounts,” he said. “Consistent with the request, Apple limited the information it provided to account subscriber information and did not provide any content such as emails or pictures.” Also read | US lawmakers question Google, Twitter and others over auction of user data In a statement, Microsoft said it received a subpoena in 2017 related to a personal email account. It said it notified the customer after the gag order expired and learned that the person was a congressional staff member. “We will continue to aggressively seek reform that imposes reasonable limits on government secrecy in cases like this,” the company said. Google declined to comment on whether it received a subpoena related to the investigation on the House Intelligence Committee. The Justice Department has not commented publicly on Apple’s turning over House Intelligence Committee records. In congressional testimony this week, Attorney General Merrick Garland sidestepped criticism of the Trump administration’s decisions and said the seizure of records was made “under a set of policies that have existed for decades.” Also read | US Defense Intelligence Agency admits it bought people's location data: Report In the Justice Department’s leak investigation, Apple and Microsoft turned over the so-called metadata of people who worked in Congress, including phone records, device information, and addresses. It is not unusual for the Justice Department to subpoena such metadata, because the information can be used to establish whether someone had contact with a member of the media or whether the person’s work or home accounts were tied to anonymous accounts that were used to disseminate classified information. Under the gag orders that authorities placed on the subpoenas, Apple and Microsoft also agreed to not tell those people whose information was being demanded. In Apple’s case, a yearlong gag order was renewed three separate times. That contrasted with Google, which resisted the gag order on a subpoena to turn over data on the four Times reporters. Also read | Trump surveillance of Democrats sparks abuse of power claims The differing responses are largely explained by the different relationships the companies had with their customers in the case. Apple and Microsoft were ordered to hand over data related to individual accounts, while the subpoena to Google affected a corporate customer, which was governed by a contract. That contract gave Google a more specific basis on which to challenge the gag order, lawyers said. The subpoena to Apple was also more opaque, it simply asked for information about a series of email addresses and phone numbers, and the company said it did not know it related to an investigation into Congress. For Google, it was clear that the Justice Department sought records from The Times because the email addresses were clearly those of Times reporters. Google said it generally did not handle requests for customer information differently for individual accounts and corporate customers. But the company has a strong argument to redirect requests for data of corporate customers based on the Justice Department’s own recommendations. In guidelines released in 2017, the Justice Department urged prosecutors to “seek data directly” from companies instead of going through a technology provider, unless doing so was impractical or would compromise the investigation. By going to Google to seize information about the reporters, the Justice Department sought to circumvent The Times. Google declined to say whether it used the Justice Department guidelines to fight the gag order. Google said it produced some data in 83 per cent of the nearly 40,000 requests for information from US government agencies it received in the first half of 2020. By comparison, it produced some data in 39 per cent of requests for information on 398 paying corporate customers of Google Cloud, including its email and web-hosting offerings, during the same time period. Law enforcement requests for data from American tech companies have more than doubled in recent years. Facebook said it received nearly 123,000 data requests from the US government last year, up from 37,000 in 2015. Apple said that in the first half of 2020, it received an average of 400 requests a week for customer data from US law enforcement, more than double the rate five years prior. The company’s compliance rate has remained roughly between 80 per cent and 85 per cent for years. Authorities are also demanding information about more accounts in each request. In the first half of 2020, each US government subpoena or warrant to Apple requested data for 11 accounts or devices on average, up from fewer than three accounts or devices in the first half of 2015, the company said. Apple said that after the government began including more than 100 accounts in some subpoenas, as it did in the leak investigation in 2018, it asked law enforcement to limit requests to 25 accounts each. Police did not always comply, the company said. Apple has often challenged subpoenas that included so many accounts because they were too broad, said a former senior lawyer for the company, who spoke on the condition of confidentiality. This person said that it would not have been surprising for Apple to challenge the 2018 Justice Department subpoena but that whether a request was challenged often depended on whether a paralegal handling the subpoena elevated it to more senior lawyers.

Tech giants are plunged into political firestorm

Microsoft&nbsp;Corp on Friday blamed "accidental human error" for its Bing search engine not showing image results for the query "tank man" in the United States and elsewhere after users raised concerns about possible censorship around the Tiananmen Square crackdown anniversary.

Users, including those in the United Kingdom, Germany and Singapore, reported Friday that when they performed the search Bing returned the message, "There are no results for tank man."

Also Read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/famed-tank-man-photo-vanishes-from-bing-search-engine-389574">Famed 'Tank Man' photo vanishes from Bing search engine</a>

David Greene, civil liberties director at the nonprofit Electronic Frontier Foundation, said that content moderation was impossible to do perfectly and "egregious mistakes are made all the time."

But he said it could be more sinister: "At worst, this was purposeful suppression at the request of a powerful state."

Also Read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/tiananmen-square-massacre-what-really-happened-in-1989-389384">Tiananmen Square Massacre: What really happened in 1989?</a>

Hours after&nbsp;Microsoft&nbsp;acknowledged the issue, the "tank man" search returned only pictures of tanks elsewhere in the world.

"Tank man" is often used to describe an unidentified person famously pictured standing before tanks in China's Tiananmen Square during pro-democracy demonstrations in June 1989.

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/tianamen-tank-man-cameraman-charlie-cole-passes-away-249653/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

Microsoft&nbsp;said the issue was "due to an accidental human error and we are actively working to resolve this."

Smaller search engines such as DuckDuckGo that license results from&nbsp;Microsoft&nbsp;faced similar issues around "tank man" searches and said they expected a fix soon.

Also Read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/photos/timeline-32-years-of-chinas-brutal-tiananmen-crackdown-389474">Timeline: 32 years of China's brutal Tiananmen crackdown</a>

Rival Google showed many results for the famous image when the "tank man" search was performed on Friday.

A significant percentage of the&nbsp;Microsoft&nbsp;employees who work on Bing are based in China, including some who work on image-recognition software, according to a former employee.

Also Read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/hong-kong-officials-ramp-up-security-ahead-of-tiananmen-square-anniversary-389234">Hong Kong officials ramp up security ahead of Tiananmen Square anniversary</a>

China is known to require search engines operating in its jurisdiction to censor results, but those restrictions are rarely applied elsewhere.

Microsoft Corp on Friday blamed "accidental human error" for its Bing search engine not showing image results for the query "tank man" in the United States and elsewhere after users raised concerns about possible censorship around the Tiananmen Square crackdown anniversary.

Microsoft Corp on Friday blamed "accidental human error" for its Bing search engine not showing image results for the query "tank man" in the United States and elsewhere after users raised concerns about possible censorship around the Tiananmen Square crackdown anniversary. Users, including those in the United Kingdom, Germany and Singapore, reported Friday that when they performed the search Bing returned the message, "There are no results for tank man." Also Read | Famed 'Tank Man' photo vanishes from Bing search engine David Greene, civil liberties director at the nonprofit Electronic Frontier Foundation, said that content moderation was impossible to do perfectly and "egregious mistakes are made all the time." But he said it could be more sinister: "At worst, this was purposeful suppression at the request of a powerful state." Also Read | Tiananmen Square Massacre: What really happened in 1989? Hours after Microsoft acknowledged the issue, the "tank man" search returned only pictures of tanks elsewhere in the world. "Tank man" is often used to describe an unidentified person famously pictured standing before tanks in China's Tiananmen Square during pro-democracy demonstrations in June 1989. Microsoft said the issue was "due to an accidental human error and we are actively working to resolve this." Smaller search engines such as DuckDuckGo that license results from Microsoft faced similar issues around "tank man" searches and said they expected a fix soon. Also Read | Timeline: 32 years of China's brutal Tiananmen crackdown Rival Google showed many results for the famous image when the "tank man" search was performed on Friday. A significant percentage of the Microsoft employees who work on Bing are based in China, including some who work on image-recognition software, according to a former employee. Also Read | Hong Kong officials ramp up security ahead of Tiananmen Square anniversary China is known to require search engines operating in its jurisdiction to censor results, but those restrictions are rarely applied elsewhere.

Microsoft says error led to no matching Bing images for Tiananmen 'tank man'

India's Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) partners with Microsoft to introduce coding and data science in schools as part of a new education policy which was announced last year. The handbook focuses on data analysis, coding and AI.

India rolls out new education policy, teams up with Microsoft

Microsoft&nbsp;Corp has said that a group behind the SolarWinds cyber attack identified late last year is now targeting government agencies, think tanks, consultants, and non-governmental organisations.

The effort targeted about 3,000 email accounts at more than 150 different organisations, at least a quarter of them involved in international development, humanitarian and human rights work, Microsoft Vice President Tom Burt said in a blog post on Thursday.

The comments come weeks after a May 7 ransomware attack on Colonial Pipeline shut the United States' largest fuel pipeline network for several days, disrupting the country's supply.

The cybersecurity firm Volexity, which also tracked the campaign but has less visibility into email systems than Microsoft, said in a post that relatively low detection rates of the phishing emails suggest the attacker was ''likely having some success in breaching targets.''

Burt said the campaign appeared to be a continuation of multiple efforts by the Russian hackers to ''target government agencies involved in foreign policy as part of intelligence gathering efforts.''&nbsp;He said the targets spanned at least 24 countries.

This month, Russia's spy chief denied responsibility for the SolarWinds cyber attack but said he was "flattered" by the accusations from the United States and Britain that Russian foreign intelligence was behind such a sophisticated hack.

The United States and Britain have blamed Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), successor to the foreign spying operations of the KGB, for the hack which compromised nine US&nbsp;federal agencies and hundreds of private sector companies.

The attacks disclosed by&nbsp;Microsoft&nbsp;on Thursday appeared to be a continuation of multiple efforts to target government agencies involved in foreign policy as part of intelligence gathering efforts,&nbsp;Microsoft&nbsp;said.

The company said it was in the process of notifying all of its targeted customers and had "no reason to believe" these attacks involved any exploitation or vulnerability in&nbsp;Microsoft's products or services.

(With inputs from agencies)

Microsoft Corp has said that a group behind the SolarWinds cyber attack identified late last year is now targeting government agencies, think tanks, consultants, and non-governmental organisations.

Microsoft Corp has said that a group behind the SolarWinds cyber attack identified late last year is now targeting government agencies, think tanks, consultants, and non-governmental organisations. The effort targeted about 3,000 email accounts at more than 150 different organisations, at least a quarter of them involved in international development, humanitarian and human rights work, Microsoft Vice President Tom Burt said in a blog post on Thursday. The comments come weeks after a May 7 ransomware attack on Colonial Pipeline shut the United States' largest fuel pipeline network for several days, disrupting the country's supply. The cybersecurity firm Volexity, which also tracked the campaign but has less visibility into email systems than Microsoft, said in a post that relatively low detection rates of the phishing emails suggest the attacker was ''likely having some success in breaching targets.'' Burt said the campaign appeared to be a continuation of multiple efforts by the Russian hackers to ''target government agencies involved in foreign policy as part of intelligence gathering efforts.'' He said the targets spanned at least 24 countries. This month, Russia's spy chief denied responsibility for the SolarWinds cyber attack but said he was "flattered" by the accusations from the United States and Britain that Russian foreign intelligence was behind such a sophisticated hack. The United States and Britain have blamed Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), successor to the foreign spying operations of the KGB, for the hack which compromised nine US federal agencies and hundreds of private sector companies. The attacks disclosed by Microsoft on Thursday appeared to be a continuation of multiple efforts to target government agencies involved in foreign policy as part of intelligence gathering efforts, Microsoft said. The company said it was in the process of notifying all of its targeted customers and had "no reason to believe" these attacks involved any exploitation or vulnerability in Microsoft's products or services. (With inputs from agencies)

Microsoft says SolarWinds hackers again targetting government agencies with phishing

China's internet watchdog said on Friday that companies including ByteDance, Baidu and Kuaishou had improperly collected user data. 
 
China Cyberspace Administration also named American tech giant Microsoft and its two products Bing and LinkedIn in a statement.

China's internet watchdog said on Friday that companies including ByteDance, Baidu and Kuaishou had improperly collected user data. China Cyberspace Administration also named American tech giant Microsoft and its two products Bing and LinkedIn in a statement.

China says ByteDance, Baidu, Microsoft improperly collected user data

Bill Gates was the poster boy of philanthropy. When he wasn't fighting polio in Africa, he was spending quality time with his wife. But as it turns out, Bill Gates isn't the perfect guy.

From allegedly starting an affair with his employee to secret meetings with Jeffery Epstein, the dirt is piling on Bill Gates. After 45 years of leading and mentoring Microsoft, Bill Gates was walking away. Better things like philanthropy and battling climate change awaited him, he said. 
 
Watch: The Bill Gates affair

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/gravitas-bill-gates-quit-microsoft-amid-probe-into-affair-with-staffer-385721/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

Turns out, he wasn't running towards better things but away from a chequered past. Bill Gates, an all-American family man, began an affair with his employee. It would stay hidden for nearly two decades. During this time, Gates built on his loveable grandpa image. He founded the Gates Foundation, toured Africa to eradicate polio and pledged to donate half his wealth to charity.

His secret affair would have most likely remained a secret, if not for the MeToo movement. In 2019, Microsoft received a complaint from an employee. She accused Gates of trying to initiate an affair. This violated company policy and the skewed power dynamics. Microsoft roped in a law firm to investigate. But before they could finish the probe, Gates resigned. Was this a coincidence or a backdoor deal? Reports say the company's directors wanted Gates out. They felt his relationship with the employee was inappropriate.

The company isn't talking much about the controversy and Gates denies any link between the affair and his exit. A spokeswoman for Gates had this to say: “There was an affair almost 20 years ago which ended amicably. The decision to transition off the board was in no way related to this matter."

Bill and Melinda Gates announced their divorce earlier this month. Some reports say Melinda was unsettled by her husband's connections with Jeffrey Epstein. Gates is said to have met Epstein multiple times including at Epstein's notorious New York townhouse. Gates's spokeswoman did not deny the meetings but she says they have been wrongly characterised.

Bill Gates's loveable grandpa image has been shredded. So it's time we ask the uncomfortable question - Was the world's biggest charity drive a shot at redemption?

Bill Gates was the poster boy of philanthropy. When he wasn't fighting polio in Africa, he was spending quality time with his wife. But as it turns out, Bill Gates isn't the perfect guy.

Bill Gates was the poster boy of philanthropy. When he wasn't fighting polio in Africa, he was spending quality time with his wife. But as it turns out, Bill Gates isn't the perfect guy. From allegedly starting an affair with his employee to secret meetings with Jeffery Epstein, the dirt is piling on Bill Gates. After 45 years of leading and mentoring Microsoft, Bill Gates was walking away. Better things like philanthropy and battling climate change awaited him, he said. Watch: The Bill Gates affair Turns out, he wasn't running towards better things but away from a chequered past. Bill Gates, an all-American family man, began an affair with his employee. It would stay hidden for nearly two decades. During this time, Gates built on his loveable grandpa image. He founded the Gates Foundation, toured Africa to eradicate polio and pledged to donate half his wealth to charity. His secret affair would have most likely remained a secret, if not for the MeToo movement. In 2019, Microsoft received a complaint from an employee. She accused Gates of trying to initiate an affair. This violated company policy and the skewed power dynamics. Microsoft roped in a law firm to investigate. But before they could finish the probe, Gates resigned. Was this a coincidence or a backdoor deal? Reports say the company's directors wanted Gates out. They felt his relationship with the employee was inappropriate. The company isn't talking much about the controversy and Gates denies any link between the affair and his exit. A spokeswoman for Gates had this to say: “There was an affair almost 20 years ago which ended amicably. The decision to transition off the board was in no way related to this matter." Bill and Melinda Gates announced their divorce earlier this month. Some reports say Melinda was unsettled by her husband's connections with Jeffrey Epstein. Gates is said to have met Epstein multiple times including at Epstein's notorious New York townhouse. Gates's spokeswoman did not deny the meetings but she says they have been wrongly characterised. Bill Gates's loveable grandpa image has been shredded. So it's time we ask the uncomfortable question - Was the world's biggest charity drive a shot at redemption?

The dirt is piling on Bill Gates, America's loveable grandpa

A reportedly sour divorce, an 'inappropriate' affair with his employee and secret meetings with Jeffrey Epstein. With dirt piling on Bill Gates, Palki Sharma asks whether the Gates charity show was actually a whitewashing campaign.

Gravitas: Bill Gates quit Microsoft amid probe into affair with staffer

Some of France`s most sensitive state and corporate data can be safely stored using the cloud computing technology developed by Alphabet`s Google and Microsoft, if it is licensed to French companies, the government said on Monday. 
 
The comment, part of strategic plan laid out by French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire and two other ministers, acknowledges US&nbsp;technological superiority in the field and contrasts with previous calls from European politicians for fully homegrown alternatives. 
 
Google and Microsoft, along with market leader Amazon, dominate the realm of data storage worldwide, fuelling concerns in Europe over the risk of surveillance by the United States in the wake of the adoption of the US&nbsp;CLOUD Act of 2018. 
 
Yet a "trustworthy" cloud computing alternative can be developed within Europe, Le Maire said, by guaranteeing the location of servers on French soil as well as European ownership of the companies that store and process the data. 
 
"We therefore decided that the best companies - I`m thinking in particular of Microsoft or Google - could license all or part of their technology to French companies," Le Maire said at a news conference. He did not mention Amazon. 
 
Google said it welcomed the "clarification" provided by the French government, adding that it supported "the need for the greatest security levels". 
 
Microsoft said this was good news for France`s digital transformation "in complete independence". 
 
Amazon`s cloud unit has been collaborating via partnerships with several major French companies, including state-controlled telecoms firm Orange, its general manager in France Julien Groues told Reuters. 
 
"This is something that we`ve been doing for many years," he said. 
 
Le Maire compared the licences he mentioned with the ones seen in the 1960s in the field of the civil nuclear energy between France and the United States. 
 
A so-called "trustworthy cloud" label would be delivered to the companies that offer cloud computing services that respect the principles spoken of by Le Maire, and other conditions set by France`s cybersecurity agency ANSSI. 
 
OVHcloud and Dassault Systemes` Outscale are two French companies that already fulfil these criteria. OVHcloud said late last year it had partnered with Google to build its cloud computing capacities. 
 
"We... hope that other Franco-American alliances will emerge in this area, which will allow us to have the best technology while guaranteeing the independence of French data," said Minister for Digital Affairs Cedric O.

Some of France`s most sensitive state and corporate data can be safely stored using the cloud computing technology developed by Alphabet`s Google and Microsoft, if it is licensed to French companies, the government said on Monday.

Some of France`s most sensitive state and corporate data can be safely stored using the cloud computing technology developed by Alphabet`s Google and Microsoft, if it is licensed to French companies, the government said on Monday. The comment, part of strategic plan laid out by French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire and two other ministers, acknowledges US technological superiority in the field and contrasts with previous calls from European politicians for fully homegrown alternatives. Google and Microsoft, along with market leader Amazon, dominate the realm of data storage worldwide, fuelling concerns in Europe over the risk of surveillance by the United States in the wake of the adoption of the US CLOUD Act of 2018. Yet a "trustworthy" cloud computing alternative can be developed within Europe, Le Maire said, by guaranteeing the location of servers on French soil as well as European ownership of the companies that store and process the data. "We therefore decided that the best companies - I`m thinking in particular of Microsoft or Google - could license all or part of their technology to French companies," Le Maire said at a news conference. He did not mention Amazon. Google said it welcomed the "clarification" provided by the French government, adding that it supported "the need for the greatest security levels". Microsoft said this was good news for France`s digital transformation "in complete independence". Amazon`s cloud unit has been collaborating via partnerships with several major French companies, including state-controlled telecoms firm Orange, its general manager in France Julien Groues told Reuters. "This is something that we`ve been doing for many years," he said. Le Maire compared the licences he mentioned with the ones seen in the 1960s in the field of the civil nuclear energy between France and the United States. A so-called "trustworthy cloud" label would be delivered to the companies that offer cloud computing services that respect the principles spoken of by Le Maire, and other conditions set by France`s cybersecurity agency ANSSI. OVHcloud and Dassault Systemes` Outscale are two French companies that already fulfil these criteria. OVHcloud said late last year it had partnered with Google to build its cloud computing capacities. "We... hope that other Franco-American alliances will emerge in this area, which will allow us to have the best technology while guaranteeing the independence of French data," said Minister for Digital Affairs Cedric O.

France embraces Google, Microsoft in quest to safeguard sensitive data

Bill Gates left the Microsoft board in 2020 as the board pursued an investigation into the billionaire's romantic relationship with a female employee, the Wall Street Journal reported Sunday.

The founder and former head of the US technology giant stepped down as board chair in March 2020.

"Microsoft Corp. board members decided that Bill Gates needed to step down from its board in 2020 as they pursued an investigation into the billionaire's prior romantic relationship with a female Microsoft employee that was deemed inappropriate," the Journal reported, citing people close to the matter.

This was "an affair almost 20 years ago which ended amicably," a spokeswoman for Gates told the Journal.

According to the spokeswoman, Gates left Microsoft to focus more on his philanthropic organization, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Gates and his wife Melinda, who co-founded their charity two decades ago to battle global poverty and disease, announced their divorce on May 3 after 27 years of marriage.

A spokesperson for Microsoft told AFP that the company was alerted in the second half of 2019 that "Bill Gates sought to initiate an intimate relationship with a company employee in the year 2000. A committee of the Board reviewed the concern, aided by an outside law firm, to conduct a thorough investigation."

The employee, an engineer, claimed in a letter to have had a sexual relationship with Gates "over years," the Journal reported.

According to the Journal, some board members also asked about links between Gates and disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, who killed himself in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial for allegedly trafficking minors.

Gates's team assured the board the Microsoft founder had met Epstein for "philanthropic reasons" and "regretted doing so," the Journal said.

Gates, who founded Microsoft in 1975, stepped down as the company's CEO in 2000, saying he wanted to focus on his foundation.

He left his full-time role at Microsoft in 2008.

His seat as a board director, which he left in March 2020, was the last position that officially linked him to the company.

Bill Gates left the Microsoft board in 2020 as the board pursued an investigation into the billionaire's romantic relationship with a female employee, the Wall Street Journal reported Sunday.

Bill Gates left the Microsoft board in 2020 as the board pursued an investigation into the billionaire's romantic relationship with a female employee, the Wall Street Journal reported Sunday. The founder and former head of the US technology giant stepped down as board chair in March 2020. "Microsoft Corp. board members decided that Bill Gates needed to step down from its board in 2020 as they pursued an investigation into the billionaire's prior romantic relationship with a female Microsoft employee that was deemed inappropriate," the Journal reported, citing people close to the matter. This was "an affair almost 20 years ago which ended amicably," a spokeswoman for Gates told the Journal. According to the spokeswoman, Gates left Microsoft to focus more on his philanthropic organization, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Gates and his wife Melinda, who co-founded their charity two decades ago to battle global poverty and disease, announced their divorce on May 3 after 27 years of marriage. A spokesperson for Microsoft told AFP that the company was alerted in the second half of 2019 that "Bill Gates sought to initiate an intimate relationship with a company employee in the year 2000. A committee of the Board reviewed the concern, aided by an outside law firm, to conduct a thorough investigation." The employee, an engineer, claimed in a letter to have had a sexual relationship with Gates "over years," the Journal reported. According to the Journal, some board members also asked about links between Gates and disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, who killed himself in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial for allegedly trafficking minors. Gates's team assured the board the Microsoft founder had met Epstein for "philanthropic reasons" and "regretted doing so," the Journal said. Gates, who founded Microsoft in 1975, stepped down as the company's CEO in 2000, saying he wanted to focus on his foundation. He left his full-time role at Microsoft in 2008. His seat as a board director, which he left in March 2020, was the last position that officially linked him to the company.

Bill Gates left Microsoft board amid probe into relationship with an employee: Report

US tech giant Microsoft on Thursday pledged to store all European cloud-based client data in Europe amid unease on the continent over the reach of US legislation on personal data collection.

Microsoft's European clients have long been concerned over the legal status of data they store with US companies in the cloud and the extent to which they could be scrutinised by US authorities.

Those worries came to a head last July when the European Court of Justice struck down the EU-US Privacy Shield, a framework allowing firms to transfer personal data to the United States in compliance with Brussels' General Data Protection Regulation.

The court found the mechanism did not adequately protect EU data from US authorities over which Europe has neither control nor right of redress.

In a blog post on Thursday, Microsoft president Brad Smith said: "If you are a commercial or public sector customer in the EU, we will go beyond our existing data storage commitments and enable you to process and store all your data in the EU.

"In other words, we will not need to move your data outside the EU."

He said the commitment -- dubbed the EU Data Boundary for the Microsoft Cloud -- would apply across all of Microsoft's core cloud services -– Azure, Microsoft 365, and Dynamics 365 and would take effect by the end of next year.

US tech giant Microsoft on Thursday pledged to store all European cloud-based client data in Europe amid unease on the continent over the reach of US legislation on personal data collection.

US tech giant Microsoft on Thursday pledged to store all European cloud-based client data in Europe amid unease on the continent over the reach of US legislation on personal data collection. Microsoft's European clients have long been concerned over the legal status of data they store with US companies in the cloud and the extent to which they could be scrutinised by US authorities. Those worries came to a head last July when the European Court of Justice struck down the EU-US Privacy Shield, a framework allowing firms to transfer personal data to the United States in compliance with Brussels' General Data Protection Regulation. The court found the mechanism did not adequately protect EU data from US authorities over which Europe has neither control nor right of redress. In a blog post on Thursday, Microsoft president Brad Smith said: "If you are a commercial or public sector customer in the EU, we will go beyond our existing data storage commitments and enable you to process and store all your data in the EU. "In other words, we will not need to move your data outside the EU." He said the commitment -- dubbed the EU Data Boundary for the Microsoft Cloud -- would apply across all of Microsoft's core cloud services -– Azure, Microsoft 365, and Dynamics 365 and would take effect by the end of next year.

Microsoft pledges to store European cloud data in Europe

Since 2007,&nbsp;Calibri has served as Microsoft Office’s default font. Fourteen years since it took the helm from Times New Roman, now it is time for Calibri to vacate the throne and make way for a new leader to take charge.

The company has urged netizens to come forward and suggest the new font which would be treated as default across Microsoft Office.

“It has served us all well, but we believe it’s time to evolve. To help us set a new direction, we’ve commissioned five original, custom fonts to eventually replace Calibri as the default.”, writes Microsoft.

According to a post on Microsoft’s website, there are five contenders&nbsp;but only one can win. Here’s presenting the competition:

In corner ‘A’ we have ‘Tenorite’ a font by Erin McLaughlin and Wei Huang. In the ‘B’ corner is ‘Bierstadt’ by Steve Matteson. Defending corner ‘C’ is ‘Skeena’ by John Hudson and Paul Hanslow. Champion for the corner ‘D’ is ‘Seaford’ by Tobias Frere-Jones, Nina Stössinger, and Fred Shallcrass and lastly in corner ‘E’ is ‘Grandview’ by Aaron Bell.

The evaluation of these five fonts will be done over the next few months, and everyone on the internet gets a say. The fonts are already available via the cloud on MS Office, and netizens are invited to use them and then vote for their favourite font via feedback and comments on Microsoft’s social media accounts.

Once finalised, Calibri will be officially dethroned as the official font for Microsoft Office. So, which among the contenders is your favourite?

Since 2007, Calibri has served as Microsoft Office’s default font. Fourteen years since it took the helm from Times New Roman, now it is time for Calibri to vacate the throne and make way for a new leader to take charge.

Since 2007, Calibri has served as Microsoft Office’s default font. Fourteen years since it took the helm from Times New Roman, now it is time for Calibri to vacate the throne and make way for a new leader to take charge. The company has urged netizens to come forward and suggest the new font which would be treated as default across Microsoft Office. “It has served us all well, but we believe it’s time to evolve. To help us set a new direction, we’ve commissioned five original, custom fonts to eventually replace Calibri as the default.”, writes Microsoft. According to a post on Microsoft’s website, there are five contenders but only one can win. Here’s presenting the competition: In corner ‘A’ we have ‘Tenorite’ a font by Erin McLaughlin and Wei Huang. In the ‘B’ corner is ‘Bierstadt’ by Steve Matteson. Defending corner ‘C’ is ‘Skeena’ by John Hudson and Paul Hanslow. Champion for the corner ‘D’ is ‘Seaford’ by Tobias Frere-Jones, Nina Stössinger, and Fred Shallcrass and lastly in corner ‘E’ is ‘Grandview’ by Aaron Bell. The evaluation of these five fonts will be done over the next few months, and everyone on the internet gets a say. The fonts are already available via the cloud on MS Office, and netizens are invited to use them and then vote for their favourite font via feedback and comments on Microsoft’s social media accounts. Once finalised, Calibri will be officially dethroned as the official font for Microsoft Office. So, which among the contenders is your favourite?

Move over Calibri! Microsoft invites netizens to vote on new default font

Google CEO Sundar Pichai and his Microsoft counterpart Satya Nadella have assured help to India as the country grapples with a ravaging coronavirus crisis that has put enormous pressure on its hospitals due to a shortage of beds, oxygen, and medical supplies.

India logged a record of 3,52,991 new coronavirus infections in a day on Monday, taking its total tally of COVID-19 cases to 1,73,13,163. The death toll increased to 1,95,123 with a record 2,812 daily new fatalities, according to the Union Health Ministry data.

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Devastated to see the worsening Covid crisis in India. Google &amp; Googlers are providing Rs 135 Crore in funding to <a href="https://twitter.com/GiveIndia?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@GiveIndia</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/UNICEF?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@UNICEF</a> for medical supplies, orgs supporting high-risk communities, and grants to help spread critical information.<a href="https://t.co/OHJ79iEzZH">https://t.co/OHJ79iEzZH</a>
— Sundar Pichai (@sundarpichai) <a href="https://twitter.com/sundarpichai/status/1386528938889908231?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 26, 2021</a></blockquote>
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I am heartbroken by the current situation in India. I’m grateful the U.S. government is mobilizing to help. Microsoft will continue to use its voice, resources, and technology to aid relief efforts, and support the purchase of critical oxygen concentration devices.
— Satya Nadella (@satyanadella) <a href="https://twitter.com/satyanadella/status/1386500849740902403?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 26, 2021</a></blockquote>
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US President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris have assured India and its people of providing all assistance, including urgently sending necessary medical life-saving supplies and equipment, to help the country combat the deadly coronavirus crisis.

Also read|&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/us-will-immediately-send-vaccine-components-medical-supplies-to-india-says-biden-380291">US will 'immediately' send vaccine components, medical supplies to India</a>

''Just as India sent assistance to the United States as our hospitals were strained early in the pandemic, we are determined to help India in its time of need,''&nbsp;Biden said in a tweet.

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The U.S. is working closely with the Indian government to rapidly deploy additional support and supplies during an alarming COVID-19 outbreak. As we provide assistance, we pray for the people of India—including its courageous healthcare workers.
— Vice President Kamala Harris (@VP) <a href="https://twitter.com/VP/status/1386407377956573186?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 25, 2021</a></blockquote>
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At the JFK Airport in New York, 318 Philips Oxygen Concentrators were loaded at the Air Indian plane headed to New Delhi.

This week, the US Chambers of Commerce has scheduled to host a CEO delegation meeting with Secretary of State Tony Blinken, followed by an industry briefing on April 27 on India's COVID-19 crisis and how the business community can help.

The US Chamber and Chamber Foundation has set up a Resources for India's COVID Crisis page, which lists urgently needed supplies and links to humanitarian organisations doing work on the ground.

"We are also working to set up a portal through which American companies can offer direct support and resources. Look out for more details shortly,? Chambers said in an email to its members on Sunday.

In this crisis period, the US Chamber of Commerce and the larger business community are stepping up to help.

Last week Chambers urged the administration to "release the millions of AstraZeneca vaccine doses in storage&nbsp;as well as other life-saving support&nbsp;for shipment to India, Brazil, and other nations hard-hit by the pandemic.?

Following a conversation between National Security Advisors Jake Sullivan and Ajit Doval on Sunday, the US pledged to provide raw materials required for manufacturing of the Covishield vaccine in India, as well as supplies of therapeutics, rapid diagnostic test kits, ventilators, and Personal Protective Equipment.

On Sunday, US Chamber President and&nbsp;CEO Suzanne Clark and SVP for International Strategy and Global Initiatives Nisha Biswal joined a call with the Business Roundtable and American CEOs on supporting India's COVID response.

Meanwhile, several Indian-American organisations have launched fundraising campaigns to fight the pandemic in India.

Indian-American Milan Vaishnav from Carnegie Endowment for International Peace think-tank said there are at least four key elements to a response.

"First, we need to see senior US leadership express solidarity with the Indian people. To Indians and Indian Americans, empathy will be welcome. Second, the US has the capacity to provide oxygen, ventilators, medication &amp; emergency supplies. The public sector can galvanise private support. If the optics of the US Defense Dept delivering relief is problematic, there are other workarounds, including via 3rd countries,''&nbsp;he said.

"Third, access to essential vaccine materials. The Defense Production Act issue is real but hardly black and white. The Government of India, US Government, Serum Institute -- their stories don't match up. Here's the good news: The Government of India has finally delivered a list of what it needs. Now the US Government can work on the problem. It's messy but doable,''&nbsp;Vaishnav said.

The goal of addressing India's DPA (&amp; related) concerns should be to ensure that future vaccine production in India (for India and for the world) is not adversely impacted in any way. From the outside, it appears that both sides agree on this," he said.

India is struggling with a second wave of the pandemic with more than 3,00,000 daily new coronavirus cases being reported in the past few days, and hospitals in several states are reeling under a shortage of medical oxygen and beds.

To address the growing demand for oxygen in India, the government has reached out to various countries to procure containers and oxygen cylinders.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)

Google CEO Sundar Pichai and his Microsoft counterpart Satya Nadella have assured help to India as the country grapples with a ravaging coronavirus crisis that has put enormous pressure on its hospitals due to a shortage of beds, oxygen, and medical supplies.

Google CEO Sundar Pichai and his Microsoft counterpart Satya Nadella have assured help to India as the country grapples with a ravaging coronavirus crisis that has put enormous pressure on its hospitals due to a shortage of beds, oxygen, and medical supplies. India logged a record of 3,52,991 new coronavirus infections in a day on Monday, taking its total tally of COVID-19 cases to 1,73,13,163. The death toll increased to 1,95,123 with a record 2,812 daily new fatalities, according to the Union Health Ministry data. Devastated to see the worsening Covid crisis in India. Google & Googlers are providing Rs 135 Crore in funding to @GiveIndia, @UNICEF for medical supplies, orgs supporting high-risk communities, and grants to help spread critical information.https://t.co/OHJ79iEzZH — Sundar Pichai (@sundarpichai) April 26, 2021 × I am heartbroken by the current situation in India. I’m grateful the U.S. government is mobilizing to help. Microsoft will continue to use its voice, resources, and technology to aid relief efforts, and support the purchase of critical oxygen concentration devices. — Satya Nadella (@satyanadella) April 26, 2021 × US President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris have assured India and its people of providing all assistance, including urgently sending necessary medical life-saving supplies and equipment, to help the country combat the deadly coronavirus crisis. Also read| US will 'immediately' send vaccine components, medical supplies to India ''Just as India sent assistance to the United States as our hospitals were strained early in the pandemic, we are determined to help India in its time of need,'' Biden said in a tweet. The U.S. is working closely with the Indian government to rapidly deploy additional support and supplies during an alarming COVID-19 outbreak. As we provide assistance, we pray for the people of India—including its courageous healthcare workers. — Vice President Kamala Harris (@VP) April 25, 2021 × At the JFK Airport in New York, 318 Philips Oxygen Concentrators were loaded at the Air Indian plane headed to New Delhi. This week, the US Chambers of Commerce has scheduled to host a CEO delegation meeting with Secretary of State Tony Blinken, followed by an industry briefing on April 27 on India's COVID-19 crisis and how the business community can help. The US Chamber and Chamber Foundation has set up a Resources for India's COVID Crisis page, which lists urgently needed supplies and links to humanitarian organisations doing work on the ground. "We are also working to set up a portal through which American companies can offer direct support and resources. Look out for more details shortly,? Chambers said in an email to its members on Sunday. In this crisis period, the US Chamber of Commerce and the larger business community are stepping up to help. Last week Chambers urged the administration to "release the millions of AstraZeneca vaccine doses in storage as well as other life-saving support for shipment to India, Brazil, and other nations hard-hit by the pandemic.? Following a conversation between National Security Advisors Jake Sullivan and Ajit Doval on Sunday, the US pledged to provide raw materials required for manufacturing of the Covishield vaccine in India, as well as supplies of therapeutics, rapid diagnostic test kits, ventilators, and Personal Protective Equipment. On Sunday, US Chamber President and CEO Suzanne Clark and SVP for International Strategy and Global Initiatives Nisha Biswal joined a call with the Business Roundtable and American CEOs on supporting India's COVID response. Meanwhile, several Indian-American organisations have launched fundraising campaigns to fight the pandemic in India. Indian-American Milan Vaishnav from Carnegie Endowment for International Peace think-tank said there are at least four key elements to a response. "First, we need to see senior US leadership express solidarity with the Indian people. To Indians and Indian Americans, empathy will be welcome. Second, the US has the capacity to provide oxygen, ventilators, medication & emergency supplies. The public sector can galvanise private support. If the optics of the US Defense Dept delivering relief is problematic, there are other workarounds, including via 3rd countries,'' he said. "Third, access to essential vaccine materials. The Defense Production Act issue is real but hardly black and white. The Government of India, US Government, Serum Institute -- their stories don't match up. Here's the good news: The Government of India has finally delivered a list of what it needs. Now the US Government can work on the problem. It's messy but doable,'' Vaishnav said. The goal of addressing India's DPA (& related) concerns should be to ensure that future vaccine production in India (for India and for the world) is not adversely impacted in any way. From the outside, it appears that both sides agree on this," he said. India is struggling with a second wave of the pandemic with more than 3,00,000 daily new coronavirus cases being reported in the past few days, and hospitals in several states are reeling under a shortage of medical oxygen and beds. To address the growing demand for oxygen in India, the government has reached out to various countries to procure containers and oxygen cylinders. (With inputs from agencies)

Google, Microsoft's Indian-American CEOs pledge support in India's fight against COVID-19

A US court has authorised Federal Bureau of Investigation to directly investigate backdoors into hundreds of Microsoft Exchange email servers across the US. Four months ago, hackers had used vulnerabilities in the server&nbsp;to attack multiple networks.

As part of this move, the FBI will be allowed to copy and remove backdoors, as announced by the Justice Department on Tuesday, TechCrunch first reported.

Microsoft had discovered a new hacking group from China in March called “Hafnium” which targeted Exchange servers on company networks. Clubbed together, the four vulnerabilities allowed hackers to get access to a vulnerable Exchange server and successfully steal its contents.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://13.235.153.162/world/putins-chef-urges-fbi-to-remove-his-name-from-wanted-list-of-criminals-372814" hreflang="en">'Putin's chef' urges FBI to remove his name from wanted list of criminals</a>

Even though Microsoft claimed that the vulnerabilities were patched, but the patches from backdoors did not close. After the loopholes became public, multiple hacking groups began capitalising on servers and installing ransomware.

According to a Justice Department statement, hundreds of Microsoft Exchange servers continue to remain vulnerable as backdoors remain difficult to identify and to get rid of.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://13.235.153.162/world/fbi-releases-new-footage-of-washington-pipe-bomb-suspect-369262" hreflang="en">FBI releases new footage of Washington pipe bomb suspect</a>

The FBI is attempting to inform owners of servers via email after removal of backdoors. According to the Justice Department, the operation only removed the backdoors, but failed to fix the loopholes in place. In addition, the malware installed by hackers has not been removed. This marks the first FBI intervening in private networks after a cyberattack.&nbsp;

A US court has authorised Federal Bureau of Investigation to directly investigate backdoors into hundreds of Microsoft Exchange email servers across the US. Four months ago, hackers had used vulnerabilities in the server to attack multiple networks.

A US court has authorised Federal Bureau of Investigation to directly investigate backdoors into hundreds of Microsoft Exchange email servers across the US. Four months ago, hackers had used vulnerabilities in the server to attack multiple networks. As part of this move, the FBI will be allowed to copy and remove backdoors, as announced by the Justice Department on Tuesday, TechCrunch first reported. Microsoft had discovered a new hacking group from China in March called “Hafnium” which targeted Exchange servers on company networks. Clubbed together, the four vulnerabilities allowed hackers to get access to a vulnerable Exchange server and successfully steal its contents. Also read: 'Putin's chef' urges FBI to remove his name from wanted list of criminals Even though Microsoft claimed that the vulnerabilities were patched, but the patches from backdoors did not close. After the loopholes became public, multiple hacking groups began capitalising on servers and installing ransomware. According to a Justice Department statement, hundreds of Microsoft Exchange servers continue to remain vulnerable as backdoors remain difficult to identify and to get rid of. Also read: FBI releases new footage of Washington pipe bomb suspect The FBI is attempting to inform owners of servers via email after removal of backdoors. According to the Justice Department, the operation only removed the backdoors, but failed to fix the loopholes in place. In addition, the malware installed by hackers has not been removed. This marks the first FBI intervening in private networks after a cyberattack.

FBI to remove backdoors from hacked Microsoft Exchange servers, in a first for federal agency

Microsoft&nbsp;Corp said on Monday it would buy artificial intelligence and speech technology firm Nuance Communications Inc for about $16 billion, as it expands cloud solutions for healthcare customers.

The deal comes after the companies partnered in 2019 to automate clinical administrative work such as documentation. It shows&nbsp;Microsoft's ambition to extend its leadership into an industry where digital transformation has picked up speed during the pandemic. Healthcare providers have invested more in technology to improve productivity and digital health services.

"This acquisition brings our technology directly into the physician and patient loop, which is central to all healthcare delivery. The acquisition will also expand our leadership in cross-industry enterprise AI and biometric security,"&nbsp;Microsoft&nbsp;CEO Satya Nadella said on an investor call.

Nuance's technology includes a conversational AI tool versed in specialised medical terms, freeing physicians from note-taking and allowing better patient-physician interactions in person or in the telemedicine appointments that have taken off during the pandemic, executives said.

Microsoft's offer of $56 per share represents a premium of 22.86 per cent&nbsp;to Nuance's closing price on Friday. The shares gained 16 per cent&nbsp;to close at $52.85 on Monday.

Nuance, known for pioneering speech technology and helping launch Apple Inc's virtual assistant, Siri, has gone through strategic reviews led by Chief Executive Mark Benjamin.

Once offering voice recognition technologies across industries, the company now focuses on healthcare and enterprise AI after spinning off and selling a number of less profitable business units.

The company said it serves 77 per cent&nbsp;of US&nbsp;hospitals, providing intelligent solutions including clinical speech recognition, medical transcription, and medical imaging.

"Nuance's strong position at the edge (medical dictation and transcription) will ultimately tie healthcare customers more strongly into&nbsp;Microsoft's Azure Cloud and intelligent services,” Forrester analyst J.P. Gownder wrote in a note on Monday.

With operations in 28 countries, the Burlington, Massachusetts-based company reported $1.5 billion in revenue in fiscal-year 2020, with two-thirds of it coming from healthcare.

Benjamin will remain CEO of Nuance and will report to Scott Guthrie, executive vice president of Cloud and&nbsp;AI at&nbsp;Microsoft, the company said.&nbsp;

The deal follows&nbsp;Microsoft's recent $7.5 billion acquisition of gaming company ZeniMax Media, and reports that&nbsp;Microsoft&nbsp;was in talks to buy messaging platform Discord, which also allows live audio events.

Once closed, the deal for Nuance would be&nbsp;Microsoft's second-biggest, after its $26.2 billion acquisition of LinkedIn in 2016. Including net debt, the all-cash transaction is valued at $19.7 billion.

Goldman Sachs is the financial adviser to&nbsp;Microsoft, while Evercore advised Nuance.

Last year, the Redmond, Washington-based giant integrated Nuance Communication's Dragon Ambient eXperience program into its Teams communications software, which enables remote transcription of medical conversations."

'No brainer'

Like other technology heavyweights,&nbsp;Microsoft&nbsp;has been a big beneficiary of the economic dislocations during Covid-19.

The company's earnings jumped by 33 percent in the latest quarter to $15.5 billion and included a boost from cloud computing and personal computing, including its Xbox video games.&nbsp;

Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives called the Nuance tie-up a "trophy" deal for the company founded by Bill Gates, which is on a "strategic offensive" in search of targets to buy.

"For Nadella &amp; Co, this is the right acquisition at the right time with&nbsp;Microsoft&nbsp;doubling down on its healthcare initiatives over the coming years," he said in an analysis. "The Nuance deal is a strategic no brainer in our opinion for MSFT and fits like a glove into its healthcare endeavors."

(With inputs from agencies)

Microsoft Corp said on Monday it would buy artificial intelligence and speech technology firm Nuance Communications Inc for about $16 billion, as it expands cloud solutions for healthcare customers.

Microsoft Corp said on Monday it would buy artificial intelligence and speech technology firm Nuance Communications Inc for about $16 billion, as it expands cloud solutions for healthcare customers. The deal comes after the companies partnered in 2019 to automate clinical administrative work such as documentation. It shows Microsoft's ambition to extend its leadership into an industry where digital transformation has picked up speed during the pandemic. Healthcare providers have invested more in technology to improve productivity and digital health services. "This acquisition brings our technology directly into the physician and patient loop, which is central to all healthcare delivery. The acquisition will also expand our leadership in cross-industry enterprise AI and biometric security," Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said on an investor call. Nuance's technology includes a conversational AI tool versed in specialised medical terms, freeing physicians from note-taking and allowing better patient-physician interactions in person or in the telemedicine appointments that have taken off during the pandemic, executives said. Microsoft's offer of $56 per share represents a premium of 22.86 per cent to Nuance's closing price on Friday. The shares gained 16 per cent to close at $52.85 on Monday. Nuance, known for pioneering speech technology and helping launch Apple Inc's virtual assistant, Siri, has gone through strategic reviews led by Chief Executive Mark Benjamin. Once offering voice recognition technologies across industries, the company now focuses on healthcare and enterprise AI after spinning off and selling a number of less profitable business units. The company said it serves 77 per cent of US hospitals, providing intelligent solutions including clinical speech recognition, medical transcription, and medical imaging. "Nuance's strong position at the edge (medical dictation and transcription) will ultimately tie healthcare customers more strongly into Microsoft's Azure Cloud and intelligent services,” Forrester analyst J.P. Gownder wrote in a note on Monday. With operations in 28 countries, the Burlington, Massachusetts-based company reported $1.5 billion in revenue in fiscal-year 2020, with two-thirds of it coming from healthcare. Benjamin will remain CEO of Nuance and will report to Scott Guthrie, executive vice president of Cloud and AI at Microsoft, the company said. The deal follows Microsoft's recent $7.5 billion acquisition of gaming company ZeniMax Media, and reports that Microsoft was in talks to buy messaging platform Discord, which also allows live audio events. Once closed, the deal for Nuance would be Microsoft's second-biggest, after its $26.2 billion acquisition of LinkedIn in 2016. Including net debt, the all-cash transaction is valued at $19.7 billion. Goldman Sachs is the financial adviser to Microsoft, while Evercore advised Nuance. Last year, the Redmond, Washington-based giant integrated Nuance Communication's Dragon Ambient eXperience program into its Teams communications software, which enables remote transcription of medical conversations." 'No brainer' Like other technology heavyweights, Microsoft has been a big beneficiary of the economic dislocations during Covid-19. The company's earnings jumped by 33 percent in the latest quarter to $15.5 billion and included a boost from cloud computing and personal computing, including its Xbox video games. Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives called the Nuance tie-up a "trophy" deal for the company founded by Bill Gates, which is on a "strategic offensive" in search of targets to buy. "For Nadella & Co, this is the right acquisition at the right time with Microsoft doubling down on its healthcare initiatives over the coming years," he said in an analysis. "The Nuance deal is a strategic no brainer in our opinion for MSFT and fits like a glove into its healthcare endeavors." (With inputs from agencies)

Microsoft bets big on health with $19.7 billion purchase of Nuance

Microsoft Corp on Wednesday said it has won a deal to sell the US&nbsp;Army augmented reality headsets based on its HoloLens product and backed by Azure cloud computing services.

The contract could be worth up to $21.88 billion over 10 years, a Microsoft spokesman said.

Over the past two years, Microsoft has worked with the Army on the prototyping phase of what is called the Integrated Visual Augmentation System, or IVAS. The company said on Wednesday that the Army had moved into the production phase of the project.

In a blog post, Microsoft&nbsp;Technical Fellow Alex Kipman said the headsets are designed to deliver "enhanced situational awareness, enabling information sharing and decision-making in a variety of scenarios."

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The headsets will be manufactured in the United States, a Microsoft spokesman told Reuters.Microsoft was also in line to win the $10 billion JEDI cloud computing contract with the Pentagon, but the contract remains in dispute in a lawsuit filed by Amazon.com Inc. Pentagon officials told U.S. lawmakers in February that the Defense Department may jettison the contract if the dispute lingers in the courts.

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We would much rather Microsoft used today to stand up for Transgender people everywhere on Transgender Day of Visibility, instead of building weapons of war. <a href="https://t.co/kHZycRhpvM">https://t.co/kHZycRhpvM</a>
— Microsoft Workers 4 Good (@MsWorkers4) <a href="https://twitter.com/MsWorkers4/status/1377487512050921474?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 1, 2021</a></blockquote>
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After Microsoft announced a $480 million contract in 2018 to supply prototypes to the Army, at least 94 workers petitioned the company to cancel the deal and stop developing "any and all weapons&nbsp;technologies."&nbsp;

On Wednesday, the workers' group said on Twitter, "We would much rather Microsoft used today to stand up for Transgender people everywhere on Transgender Day of Visibility, instead of building weapons of war."

(With inputs from Agencies)

Microsoft Corp on Wednesday said it has won a deal to sell the US Army augmented reality headsets based on its HoloLens product and backed by Azure cloud computing services.

Microsoft Corp on Wednesday said it has won a deal to sell the US Army augmented reality headsets based on its HoloLens product and backed by Azure cloud computing services. The contract could be worth up to $21.88 billion over 10 years, a Microsoft spokesman said. Over the past two years, Microsoft has worked with the Army on the prototyping phase of what is called the Integrated Visual Augmentation System, or IVAS. The company said on Wednesday that the Army had moved into the production phase of the project. In a blog post, Microsoft Technical Fellow Alex Kipman said the headsets are designed to deliver "enhanced situational awareness, enabling information sharing and decision-making in a variety of scenarios." The headsets will be manufactured in the United States, a Microsoft spokesman told Reuters.Microsoft was also in line to win the $10 billion JEDI cloud computing contract with the Pentagon, but the contract remains in dispute in a lawsuit filed by Amazon.com Inc. Pentagon officials told U.S. lawmakers in February that the Defense Department may jettison the contract if the dispute lingers in the courts. We would much rather Microsoft used today to stand up for Transgender people everywhere on Transgender Day of Visibility, instead of building weapons of war. https://t.co/kHZycRhpvM — Microsoft Workers 4 Good (@MsWorkers4) April 1, 2021 × After Microsoft announced a $480 million contract in 2018 to supply prototypes to the Army, at least 94 workers petitioned the company to cancel the deal and stop developing "any and all weapons technologies." On Wednesday, the workers' group said on Twitter, "We would much rather Microsoft used today to stand up for Transgender people everywhere on Transgender Day of Visibility, instead of building weapons of war." (With inputs from Agencies)

Microsoft wins $21.9 billion deal to sell AR headsets to US Army

Microsoft Corp is in talks to buy messaging platform Discord Inc for more than $10 billion, Bloomberg News reported, citing people familiar with the matter. 
 
Discord has reached out to potential buyers and Microsoft is one of them, the report said, citing people familiar with the matter. One person said it was more likely to go public than sell itself. 
 
Earlier in the day, VentureBeat reported that Discord was exploring a sale and it was in final talks with a party.&nbsp; 
 
Microsoft declined to comment, while Discord did not immediately respond to Reuters request. 
 
Discord, which is valued at around $7 billion as of last December, is a platform on which users coordinate group activities such as games, discussions and even virtual parties. 
 
The Xbox maker has been seeking to strengthen its video game offerings with $7.5 billion acquisition of ZeniMax Media last year, its biggest gaming acquisition ever. 
 
The COVID-19 pandemic has boosted the prospects of gaming companies as people stayed at home and turned to video games for entertainment during lockdowns. 
 
With its strong gaming business, Microsoft has also been looking to own mass social media platforms. Its last big social media deal was the $26.2 billion acquisition of LinkedIn in 2016, while it failed in its bid for short video app TikTok`s US&nbsp;assets in September last year. 
 
Recently, the Financial Times reported about Microsoft`s interest in buying social media platform Pinterest Inc.

Microsoft Corp is in talks to buy messaging platform Discord Inc for more than $10 billion, Bloomberg News reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Discord has reached out to potential buyers and Microsoft is one of them, the report said, citing people familiar with the matter.

Microsoft Corp is in talks to buy messaging platform Discord Inc for more than $10 billion, Bloomberg News reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Discord has reached out to potential buyers and Microsoft is one of them, the report said, citing people familiar with the matter. One person said it was more likely to go public than sell itself. Earlier in the day, VentureBeat reported that Discord was exploring a sale and it was in final talks with a party. Microsoft declined to comment, while Discord did not immediately respond to Reuters request. Discord, which is valued at around $7 billion as of last December, is a platform on which users coordinate group activities such as games, discussions and even virtual parties. The Xbox maker has been seeking to strengthen its video game offerings with $7.5 billion acquisition of ZeniMax Media last year, its biggest gaming acquisition ever. The COVID-19 pandemic has boosted the prospects of gaming companies as people stayed at home and turned to video games for entertainment during lockdowns. With its strong gaming business, Microsoft has also been looking to own mass social media platforms. Its last big social media deal was the $26.2 billion acquisition of LinkedIn in 2016, while it failed in its bid for short video app TikTok`s US assets in September last year. Recently, the Financial Times reported about Microsoft`s interest in buying social media platform Pinterest Inc.

Microsoft in talks to acquire Discord for more than $10 billion: Report

LinkedIn has been the lone major American social network allowed to operate in China. To do so, the Microsoft-owned service for professionals censors the posts made by its millions of Chinese users.

Now, it’s in hot water for not censoring enough.

China’s internet regulator rebuked LinkedIn executives earlier this month for failing to control political content, according to three people briefed on the matter. Though it isn’t clear precisely what material got the company into trouble, the regulator said it found objectionable posts circulating in the period around an annual meeting of China’s lawmakers, said these people, who asked for anonymity because the issue isn’t public.

As a punishment, the people said, officials are requiring LinkedIn to perform a self-evaluation and offer a report to the Cyberspace Administration of China, the country’s internet regulator. The service was also forced to suspend new sign-ups of users inside China for 30 days, one of the people added, although that time period could change depending on the administration’s judgment.

The CAC did not immediately respond to a faxed request for comment.

LinkedIn’s presence in China has long drawn interest across Silicon Valley as a potential path into the country’s walled-off internet, home to the world’s largest group of web users. The punishment underscores deep divisions between the United States and China over how the internet should work.

For years, China’s government has blocked major U.S. services like Facebook, Twitter and Google over its inability to control what is posted there. In Washington, critics say such barriers are symptomatic of China’s unwillingness to follow global norms governing the internet and technology more broadly.

LinkedIn’s China service, which has more than 50 million members, makes it vulnerable to tensions between the two powers. The run-in with the regulator came just weeks before Thursday’s scheduled meeting between Chinese and American officials in Alaska, the first face-to-face sit down of the Biden administration.

Competition over technology has been a key sticking point between the two countries. The Biden administration has said it will turn to allies to help pressure China on tech policies it deems unfair. Chinese officials have pushed new plans for technological self-reliance, which involve developing its own versions of everything from computer chips to jetliners.

Anxieties in Washington were recently heightened by a hack that Microsoft has tentatively linked to China aimed at businesses and government agencies that used the company’s email services.

On March 9, LinkedIn posted a statement saying it had “temporarily” stopped registering new users in China.

“We’re a global platform with an obligation to respect the laws that apply to us, including adhering to Chinese government regulations for our localized version of LinkedIn in China,” the statement added.

Local Chinese firms regularly endure similar scoldings, indicating how difficult it can be to navigate an internet market characterized by ever-tightening speech controls. On the Chinese internet, an agreement to censor doesn’t guarantee smooth sailing for any firm, foreign or local.

When it first announced it would be opening a Chinese site nearly seven years ago, LinkedIn drew curiosity from a U.S. internet industry perennially banned by the country’s Great Firewall, as China’s censorship system is nicknamed. To ensure its presence, LinkedIn sold a stake to well-connected Chinese venture capital partners and pledged to follow local laws, including censorship guidelines.

The company has used a combination of software algorithms and human reviewers to flag posts that could offend Beijing. Users who run afoul of the speech rules have generally received emails informing them that their post is not viewable by LinkedIn members in China.

Its early efforts drew ire from users whose content was blocked even if they had been posting from outside the country. Still, unlike its peers, LinkedIn has remained in China and offered a tantalizing case study in market access.

That perseverance hasn’t always translated into success. LinkedIn has had a hard time competing with WeChat, the ubiquitous Chinese chat and social media service, and remains a relatively small player.

The environment has become more difficult, too. Since he took the reins of the Communist Party in late 2012, Xi Jinping, China’s leader, has implemented a series of crackdowns on the internet. Xi’s policies have also called for deeper economic self-sufficiency and eschewing Western culture, a blow to a service whose appeal has been to connect Chinese professionals to the world.

Xi has presided over the rising power of the CAC, the regulator that punished LinkedIn. It has become a de facto ministry of censorship, poring over memes and complaints across the country’s internet, and calling for takedowns when companies’ censors miss something.

LinkedIn has been the lone major American social network allowed to operate in China. To do so, the Microsoft-owned service for professionals censors the posts made by its millions of Chinese users.

LinkedIn has been the lone major American social network allowed to operate in China. To do so, the Microsoft-owned service for professionals censors the posts made by its millions of Chinese users. Now, it’s in hot water for not censoring enough. China’s internet regulator rebuked LinkedIn executives earlier this month for failing to control political content, according to three people briefed on the matter. Though it isn’t clear precisely what material got the company into trouble, the regulator said it found objectionable posts circulating in the period around an annual meeting of China’s lawmakers, said these people, who asked for anonymity because the issue isn’t public. As a punishment, the people said, officials are requiring LinkedIn to perform a self-evaluation and offer a report to the Cyberspace Administration of China, the country’s internet regulator. The service was also forced to suspend new sign-ups of users inside China for 30 days, one of the people added, although that time period could change depending on the administration’s judgment. The CAC did not immediately respond to a faxed request for comment. LinkedIn’s presence in China has long drawn interest across Silicon Valley as a potential path into the country’s walled-off internet, home to the world’s largest group of web users. The punishment underscores deep divisions between the United States and China over how the internet should work. For years, China’s government has blocked major U.S. services like Facebook, Twitter and Google over its inability to control what is posted there. In Washington, critics say such barriers are symptomatic of China’s unwillingness to follow global norms governing the internet and technology more broadly. LinkedIn’s China service, which has more than 50 million members, makes it vulnerable to tensions between the two powers. The run-in with the regulator came just weeks before Thursday’s scheduled meeting between Chinese and American officials in Alaska, the first face-to-face sit down of the Biden administration. Competition over technology has been a key sticking point between the two countries. The Biden administration has said it will turn to allies to help pressure China on tech policies it deems unfair. Chinese officials have pushed new plans for technological self-reliance, which involve developing its own versions of everything from computer chips to jetliners. Anxieties in Washington were recently heightened by a hack that Microsoft has tentatively linked to China aimed at businesses and government agencies that used the company’s email services. On March 9, LinkedIn posted a statement saying it had “temporarily” stopped registering new users in China. “We’re a global platform with an obligation to respect the laws that apply to us, including adhering to Chinese government regulations for our localized version of LinkedIn in China,” the statement added. Local Chinese firms regularly endure similar scoldings, indicating how difficult it can be to navigate an internet market characterized by ever-tightening speech controls. On the Chinese internet, an agreement to censor doesn’t guarantee smooth sailing for any firm, foreign or local. When it first announced it would be opening a Chinese site nearly seven years ago, LinkedIn drew curiosity from a U.S. internet industry perennially banned by the country’s Great Firewall, as China’s censorship system is nicknamed. To ensure its presence, LinkedIn sold a stake to well-connected Chinese venture capital partners and pledged to follow local laws, including censorship guidelines. The company has used a combination of software algorithms and human reviewers to flag posts that could offend Beijing. Users who run afoul of the speech rules have generally received emails informing them that their post is not viewable by LinkedIn members in China. Its early efforts drew ire from users whose content was blocked even if they had been posting from outside the country. Still, unlike its peers, LinkedIn has remained in China and offered a tantalizing case study in market access. That perseverance hasn’t always translated into success. LinkedIn has had a hard time competing with WeChat, the ubiquitous Chinese chat and social media service, and remains a relatively small player. The environment has become more difficult, too. Since he took the reins of the Communist Party in late 2012, Xi Jinping, China’s leader, has implemented a series of crackdowns on the internet. Xi’s policies have also called for deeper economic self-sufficiency and eschewing Western culture, a blow to a service whose appeal has been to connect Chinese professionals to the world. Xi has presided over the rising power of the CAC, the regulator that punished LinkedIn. It has become a de facto ministry of censorship, poring over memes and complaints across the country’s internet, and calling for takedowns when companies’ censors miss something.

China punishes Microsoft’s LinkedIn over lax censorship

Alphabet Inc's&nbsp;Google has announced&nbsp;that it will&nbsp;cut the service fee it charges developers on its app store by half on the first $1 million they earn in revenue in a year, after a similar move by rival Apple Inc last year.

Both the companies have come under fire from large firms such as Microsoft Corp, Spotify Technology SA, as well as startups and smaller companies, that allege the fees deprive consumers of choices and push up app prices.

Also read|&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/four-more-us-states-join-texas-led-antitrust-lawsuit-against-google-371008" hreflang="en">Four more US states join Texas-led antitrust lawsuit against Google</a>

Google&nbsp;said in a blog post on Tuesday that it would cut app store fees to 15 per cent&nbsp;from 30 per cent&nbsp;effective July 1, a move that would impact most of the developers on its app store.&nbsp;

In contrast, Apple said in November it planned to lower its commissions only for developers who make $1 million or less in proceeds in a year from its app store.

Fortnite creator Epic Games said in a statement to Reuters that&nbsp;Google's move only alleviates some of the financial burden of developers.

"Whether it's 15 per cent&nbsp;or 30 per cent, for apps obtained through the&nbsp;Google&nbsp;Play Store, developers are forced to use&nbsp;Google's in-app payment services," Epic said.

Epic has been at loggerheads with Apple since August when the game maker tried to avoid paying fees on the iPhone maker's app store by launching its own in-app payment system, which prompted Apple to ban Fortnite from its store.

Data analytics firm Sensor Tower estimated that it could have cost&nbsp;Google&nbsp;about $587 million&nbsp;or about 5 per cent&nbsp;of the $11.6 billion it earned from&nbsp;Google&nbsp;Play last year had the service fee cut come into effect in 2020.

Alphabet Inc's Google has announced that it will cut the service fee it charges developers on its app store by half on the first $1 million they earn in revenue in a year, after a similar move by rival Apple Inc last year.

Alphabet Inc's Google has announced that it will cut the service fee it charges developers on its app store by half on the first $1 million they earn in revenue in a year, after a similar move by rival Apple Inc last year. Both the companies have come under fire from large firms such as Microsoft Corp, Spotify Technology SA, as well as startups and smaller companies, that allege the fees deprive consumers of choices and push up app prices. Also read| Four more US states join Texas-led antitrust lawsuit against Google Google said in a blog post on Tuesday that it would cut app store fees to 15 per cent from 30 per cent effective July 1, a move that would impact most of the developers on its app store. In contrast, Apple said in November it planned to lower its commissions only for developers who make $1 million or less in proceeds in a year from its app store. Fortnite creator Epic Games said in a statement to Reuters that Google's move only alleviates some of the financial burden of developers. "Whether it's 15 per cent or 30 per cent, for apps obtained through the Google Play Store, developers are forced to use Google's in-app payment services," Epic said. Epic has been at loggerheads with Apple since August when the game maker tried to avoid paying fees on the iPhone maker's app store by launching its own in-app payment system, which prompted Apple to ban Fortnite from its store. Data analytics firm Sensor Tower estimated that it could have cost Google about $587 million or about 5 per cent of the $11.6 billion it earned from Google Play last year had the service fee cut come into effect in 2020.

Google announces cut in app store fee by half on developers' first $1 million in sales

Following recent reports of increased hatred and racism towards the Asian-Americans in the US, technology giant Microsoft Corporation and its CEO, <a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/satya-nadella">Satya Nadella</a>, have taken a stand against this reported ill-treatment.

Microsoft took to Twitter to openly condemn "hate, racial discrimination, and violence in all forms".

Also read |&nbsp;<a data-ctorig="https://www.wionews.com/world/google-slams-microsoft-over-stance-in-media-payments-370105" data-cturl="https://www.google.com/url?client=internal-element-cse&amp;cx=006054055338965708568:09spwrlibei&amp;q=https://www.wionews.com/world/google-slams-microsoft-over-stance-in-media-payments-370105&amp;sa=U&amp;ved=2ahUKEwjk-rXVwa3vAhXDX3wKHRT_BpgQFjAAegQIBRAC&amp;usg=AOvVaw20cFtSXiAUEvLgmjamzZuL" dir="ltr" href="https://www.wionews.com/world/google-slams-microsoft-over-stance-in-media-payments-370105" target="_blank">Google slams&nbsp;Microsoft&nbsp;over stance in media payments</a>

With a caption stating the popular hashtag '#StopAsianHate', the tech giant wrote, "the Asian American Pacific Islander community, and the Asian community in regions around the world — including at Microsoft — continue to experience acts of hate and violence," the statement read.

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Microsoft condemns hate, racial discrimination, and violence in all forms. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/StopAsianHate?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#StopAsianHate</a> <a href="https://t.co/RIVsoLxiv7">pic.twitter.com/RIVsoLxiv7</a>
— Microsoft (@Microsoft) <a href="https://twitter.com/Microsoft/status/1370503857608998920?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 12, 2021</a></blockquote>
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"Microsoft is united with the Asian community globally and is committed to taking action to help confront racial injustice," it added.

This statement by Microsoft has come after the US' Department of Justice reported an alarming increase in hate crime towards the Asian-American and Asian communities in the US. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) claimed that more than 3,000 cases of abuse were reported between March and December 2020 — during the lockdown period — which is alarmingly high in comparison to 216 cases reported in 2019.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/first-indian-woman-president-of-oxford-student-union-resigns-over-offensive-posts-370039">First Indian woman President of Oxford student union resigns over 'offensive' posts</a>

"No one in America should fear violence because of who they are, what they look like or what part of the world they or their families came from," said Acting Deputy Attorney General John Carlin, who hosted a meeting with more than a dozen Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community groups.&nbsp;

"The Department of Justice and our component agencies are committed to bringing all of our tools to bear in supporting AAPI communities as we address the horrific rise in hate and bias incidents occurring across the country."

Following this, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, who belongs to the Indian-American community, also raised concerns over the increase in racial injustice.

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I am appalled by the ongoing acts of hate against Asian Americans and the Asian community globally. Racism, hate and violence have no place in our society. I am united with the Asian and Asian American community in standing against this injustice. <a href="https://t.co/77z6gQqgBt">https://t.co/77z6gQqgBt</a>
— Satya Nadella (@satyanadella) <a href="https://twitter.com/satyanadella/status/1370510338760744961?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 12, 2021</a></blockquote>
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"I am appalled by the ongoing acts of hate against Asian Americans and the Asian community globally. Racism, hate and violence have no place in our society. I am united with the Asian and Asian American community in standing against this injustice," he tweeted.

Following recent reports of increased hatred and racism towards the Asian-Americans in the US, technology giant Microsoft Corporation and its CEO, Satya Nadella, have taken a stand against this reported ill-treatment.

Following recent reports of increased hatred and racism towards the Asian-Americans in the US, technology giant Microsoft Corporation and its CEO, Satya Nadella, have taken a stand against this reported ill-treatment. Microsoft took to Twitter to openly condemn "hate, racial discrimination, and violence in all forms". Also read | Google slams Microsoft over stance in media payments With a caption stating the popular hashtag '#StopAsianHate', the tech giant wrote, "the Asian American Pacific Islander community, and the Asian community in regions around the world — including at Microsoft — continue to experience acts of hate and violence," the statement read. Microsoft condemns hate, racial discrimination, and violence in all forms. #StopAsianHate pic.twitter.com/RIVsoLxiv7 — Microsoft (@Microsoft) March 12, 2021 × "Microsoft is united with the Asian community globally and is committed to taking action to help confront racial injustice," it added. This statement by Microsoft has come after the US' Department of Justice reported an alarming increase in hate crime towards the Asian-American and Asian communities in the US. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) claimed that more than 3,000 cases of abuse were reported between March and December 2020 — during the lockdown period — which is alarmingly high in comparison to 216 cases reported in 2019. Also read | First Indian woman President of Oxford student union resigns over 'offensive' posts "No one in America should fear violence because of who they are, what they look like or what part of the world they or their families came from," said Acting Deputy Attorney General John Carlin, who hosted a meeting with more than a dozen Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community groups. "The Department of Justice and our component agencies are committed to bringing all of our tools to bear in supporting AAPI communities as we address the horrific rise in hate and bias incidents occurring across the country." Following this, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, who belongs to the Indian-American community, also raised concerns over the increase in racial injustice. I am appalled by the ongoing acts of hate against Asian Americans and the Asian community globally. Racism, hate and violence have no place in our society. I am united with the Asian and Asian American community in standing against this injustice. https://t.co/77z6gQqgBt — Satya Nadella (@satyanadella) March 12, 2021 × "I am appalled by the ongoing acts of hate against Asian Americans and the Asian community globally. Racism, hate and violence have no place in our society. I am united with the Asian and Asian American community in standing against this injustice," he tweeted.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella says 'appalled' by hate crime against Asian-Americans

Google has accused&nbsp;Microsoft of "distraction" for siding with governments seeking to force tech platforms to pay media organizations for news content.

Google and Facebook have resisted mandatory payments, while Microsoft has taken a more collaborative stance.

In a blog post on Friday, Google argued that Microsoft was trying to divert attention from a potentially devastating attack on Exchange emails servers by hackers taking advantage of software vulnerabilities.

The comments came amid a heated battle of words over efforts in Australia and elsewhere to require digital services to negotiate payments for news content.

Microsoft president Brad Smith, in a letter to a congressional subcommittee hearing, blamed Google's business model for "devouring" ad revenue on which news groups rely.

Google senior vice president of global affairs Kent Walker fired back in the blog post, saying, "[Microsoft is] now making self-serving claims and are even willing to break the way the open web works in an effort to undercut a rival."&nbsp;

Walker added, "This important debate should be about the substance of the issue, and not derailed by naked corporate opportunism."

In his letter, Smith lauded the role news organisations play in defending democracy and contended that the "internet gutted the already ailing local news business by devouring advertising revenue and luring away paid subscribers."

Microsoft has lobbied for other countries to follow Australia's lead in calling for news outlets to be paid for stories published online, a move opposed by Facebook and Google.

Backers of Google and Facebook have claimed that mandatory payments for news links would fundamentally change the way the internet works and ultimately be detrimental to free online services.

Google has accused Microsoft of "distraction" for siding with governments seeking to force tech platforms to pay media organizations for news content. Google and Facebook have resisted mandatory payments, while Microsoft has taken a more collaborative stance.

Google has accused Microsoft of "distraction" for siding with governments seeking to force tech platforms to pay media organizations for news content. Google and Facebook have resisted mandatory payments, while Microsoft has taken a more collaborative stance. In a blog post on Friday, Google argued that Microsoft was trying to divert attention from a potentially devastating attack on Exchange emails servers by hackers taking advantage of software vulnerabilities. The comments came amid a heated battle of words over efforts in Australia and elsewhere to require digital services to negotiate payments for news content. Microsoft president Brad Smith, in a letter to a congressional subcommittee hearing, blamed Google's business model for "devouring" ad revenue on which news groups rely. Google senior vice president of global affairs Kent Walker fired back in the blog post, saying, "[Microsoft is] now making self-serving claims and are even willing to break the way the open web works in an effort to undercut a rival." Walker added, "This important debate should be about the substance of the issue, and not derailed by naked corporate opportunism." In his letter, Smith lauded the role news organisations play in defending democracy and contended that the "internet gutted the already ailing local news business by devouring advertising revenue and luring away paid subscribers." Microsoft has lobbied for other countries to follow Australia's lead in calling for news outlets to be paid for stories published online, a move opposed by Facebook and Google. Backers of Google and Facebook have claimed that mandatory payments for news links would fundamentally change the way the internet works and ultimately be detrimental to free online services.

Google slams Microsoft over stance in media payments

At least 10 different hacking groups are using recently discovered flaws in Microsoft Corp`s mail server software to break in to targets around the world, cybersecurity company ESET said in a blog post on Wednesday.

The breadth of the exploitation adds to the urgency of the warnings being issued by authorities in the United States and Europe about the weaknesses found in Microsoft`s Exchange software.

The security holes in the widely used mail and calendaring solution leave the door open to industrial-scale cyber espionage, allowing malicious actors to steal emails virtually at will from vulnerable servers or move elsewhere in the network. Tens of thousands of organizations have already been compromised, Reuters reported last week, and new victims are being made public daily.

Earlier on Wednesday, for example, Norway`s parliament announced data had been "extracted" in a breach linked to the Microsoft flaws. Germany`s cybersecurity watchdog agency also said on Wednesday two federal authorities had been affected by the hack, although it declined to identify them.

While Microsoft has issued fixes, the sluggish pace of many customers` updates - which experts attribute in part to the complexity of Exchange`s architecture - means the field remains at least partially open to hackers of all stripes. The patches do not remove any back door access that has already been left on the machines.

In addition, some of the back doors left on compromised machines have passwords that are easily guessed, so that newcomers can take them over.

Microsoft declined comment on the pace of customers` updates. In previous announcements pertaining to the flaws, the company has emphasized the importance of "patching all affected systems immediately."

Although the hacking has appeared to be focused on cyber espionage, experts are concerned about the prospect of ransom-seeking cybercriminals taking advantage of the flaws because it could lead to widespread disruption.

ESET`s blog post said there were already signs of cybercriminal exploitation, with one group that specializes in stealing computer resources to mine cryptocurrency breaking in to previously vulnerable Exchange servers to spread its malicious software.

ESET named nine other espionage-focused groups it said were taking advantage of the flaws to break in to targeted networks - several of which other researchers have tied to China. Microsoft has blamed the hack on China. The Chinese government denies any role.

Intriguingly, several of the groups appeared to know about the vulnerability before it was announced by Microsoft on March 2.

Ben Read, a director with cybersecurity company FireEye Inc , said he could not confirm the exact details in the ESET post but said his company had also seen "multiple likely-China groups" using the Microsoft flaws in different waves.

ESET researcher Matthieu Faou said in an email it was "very uncommon" for so many different cyber espionage groups to have access to the same information before it is made public.

He speculated that either the information "somehow leaked" ahead of the Microsoft announcement or it was found by a third party that supplies vulnerability information to cyber spies.

Taiwan-based researchers reported to Microsoft on Jan. 5 that they had found two new flaws which need patching. Those two were among those that began being used by the attackers shortly before or after the friendly report.

They said were investigating whether there had been a theft or leak on their side, since exploitation was discovered in the wild the same week later. So far, the group called Devcore said, they had found no evidence.

Top-flight hackers are also commonly targeted by other hackers. Just this week, Microsoft patched one of the flaws used by suspected North Koreans in attempts to steal information from Western researchers.

But simultaneous discovery happens fairly often, in part because researchers use the same or similar tools to hunt for serious flaws, and many eyes are looking at the same high-value targets.

"It is very likely that some actor groups may have being using these vulnerabilities and led to the result of the attacks being observed by other information security vendors," Devcore member Bowen Hsu told Reuters.

But the security industry has been abuzz with other theories, including a hack of Microsoft`s systems for tracking bugs, which has happened in the past.

At least 10 different hacking groups are using recently discovered flaws in Microsoft Corp`s mail server software to break in to targets around the world, cybersecurity company ESET said in a blog post on Wednesday.

At least 10 different hacking groups are using recently discovered flaws in Microsoft Corp`s mail server software to break in to targets around the world, cybersecurity company ESET said in a blog post on Wednesday. The breadth of the exploitation adds to the urgency of the warnings being issued by authorities in the United States and Europe about the weaknesses found in Microsoft`s Exchange software. The security holes in the widely used mail and calendaring solution leave the door open to industrial-scale cyber espionage, allowing malicious actors to steal emails virtually at will from vulnerable servers or move elsewhere in the network. Tens of thousands of organizations have already been compromised, Reuters reported last week, and new victims are being made public daily. Earlier on Wednesday, for example, Norway`s parliament announced data had been "extracted" in a breach linked to the Microsoft flaws. Germany`s cybersecurity watchdog agency also said on Wednesday two federal authorities had been affected by the hack, although it declined to identify them. While Microsoft has issued fixes, the sluggish pace of many customers` updates - which experts attribute in part to the complexity of Exchange`s architecture - means the field remains at least partially open to hackers of all stripes. The patches do not remove any back door access that has already been left on the machines. In addition, some of the back doors left on compromised machines have passwords that are easily guessed, so that newcomers can take them over. Microsoft declined comment on the pace of customers` updates. In previous announcements pertaining to the flaws, the company has emphasized the importance of "patching all affected systems immediately." Although the hacking has appeared to be focused on cyber espionage, experts are concerned about the prospect of ransom-seeking cybercriminals taking advantage of the flaws because it could lead to widespread disruption. ESET`s blog post said there were already signs of cybercriminal exploitation, with one group that specializes in stealing computer resources to mine cryptocurrency breaking in to previously vulnerable Exchange servers to spread its malicious software. ESET named nine other espionage-focused groups it said were taking advantage of the flaws to break in to targeted networks - several of which other researchers have tied to China. Microsoft has blamed the hack on China. The Chinese government denies any role. Intriguingly, several of the groups appeared to know about the vulnerability before it was announced by Microsoft on March 2. Ben Read, a director with cybersecurity company FireEye Inc , said he could not confirm the exact details in the ESET post but said his company had also seen "multiple likely-China groups" using the Microsoft flaws in different waves. ESET researcher Matthieu Faou said in an email it was "very uncommon" for so many different cyber espionage groups to have access to the same information before it is made public. He speculated that either the information "somehow leaked" ahead of the Microsoft announcement or it was found by a third party that supplies vulnerability information to cyber spies. Taiwan-based researchers reported to Microsoft on Jan. 5 that they had found two new flaws which need patching. Those two were among those that began being used by the attackers shortly before or after the friendly report. They said were investigating whether there had been a theft or leak on their side, since exploitation was discovered in the wild the same week later. So far, the group called Devcore said, they had found no evidence. Top-flight hackers are also commonly targeted by other hackers. Just this week, Microsoft patched one of the flaws used by suspected North Koreans in attempts to steal information from Western researchers. But simultaneous discovery happens fairly often, in part because researchers use the same or similar tools to hunt for serious flaws, and many eyes are looking at the same high-value targets. "It is very likely that some actor groups may have being using these vulnerabilities and led to the result of the attacks being observed by other information security vendors," Devcore member Bowen Hsu told Reuters. But the security industry has been abuzz with other theories, including a hack of Microsoft`s systems for tracking bugs, which has happened in the past.

At least 10 hacking groups using Microsoft software flaw

With a rise in technology-driven work all around the world, cybersecurity has become more important now. With Microsoft being one of the front runners of the tech world, a brach in its system can lead to a massive leak of sources.

In such a scenario, at least 10 different hacking groups have identified flaws in Microsoft Corp's mail server and are now utilising the resources to break into several targets around the world.&nbsp;

The breach was highlighted by the cybersecurity company ESET which also highlighted that the limit of exploitation shows the urgency of these warnings issued by authorities in the US and Europe about the weaknesses found in Microsoft's Exchange software.

Also read |<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/while-slowing-down-twitter-russia-ends-up-shutting-down-its-own-state-websites-reports-369506">&nbsp;While slowing down Twitter, Russia ends up shutting down its own state websites: Reports</a>

This warning has also come after, on Wednesday, Norway's parliament announced that confidential data had been "extracted" in a breach which was linked to these flaws of Microsoft.

In addition to this, Germany's cybersecurity watchdog agency also reported that two federal authorities have been negatively affected by this hack.

While Microsoft claimed that the issues have been fixed, the slow speed at which many customers' updates are happening is leaving the wires partially open to hackers of all stripes, and the patches are not removing any back door access that has already been left on the machines.

In addition, some of the back doors left on compromised machines have passwords that are easily guessed, so that newcomers can take them over.

However, despite this, Microsoft has declined to comment on the pace of customers' updates, but had previously thrust the importance of "patching all affected systems immediately."

While for now, the hack has concentrated on cyber espionage, many fear that the ransom-seeking cybercriminals could also benefit from this hack.

For now, ESEThas named nine espionage-focused groups that it claimed are taking advantage of the flaws of Microsoft to break into targeted networks, many of whom are related to China. The Chinese government, however, has denied any involvement in this.

It has also been reported that some of these groups were aware of the flaws even before they were announced by Microsoft on March 02.

With a rise in technology-driven work all around the world, cybersecurity has become more important now. With Microsoft being one of the front runners of the tech world, a brach in its system can lead to a massive leak of sources.

With a rise in technology-driven work all around the world, cybersecurity has become more important now. With Microsoft being one of the front runners of the tech world, a brach in its system can lead to a massive leak of sources. In such a scenario, at least 10 different hacking groups have identified flaws in Microsoft Corp's mail server and are now utilising the resources to break into several targets around the world. The breach was highlighted by the cybersecurity company ESET which also highlighted that the limit of exploitation shows the urgency of these warnings issued by authorities in the US and Europe about the weaknesses found in Microsoft's Exchange software. Also read | While slowing down Twitter, Russia ends up shutting down its own state websites: Reports This warning has also come after, on Wednesday, Norway's parliament announced that confidential data had been "extracted" in a breach which was linked to these flaws of Microsoft. In addition to this, Germany's cybersecurity watchdog agency also reported that two federal authorities have been negatively affected by this hack. While Microsoft claimed that the issues have been fixed, the slow speed at which many customers' updates are happening is leaving the wires partially open to hackers of all stripes, and the patches are not removing any back door access that has already been left on the machines. In addition, some of the back doors left on compromised machines have passwords that are easily guessed, so that newcomers can take them over. However, despite this, Microsoft has declined to comment on the pace of customers' updates, but had previously thrust the importance of "patching all affected systems immediately." While for now, the hack has concentrated on cyber espionage, many fear that the ransom-seeking cybercriminals could also benefit from this hack. For now, ESEThas named nine espionage-focused groups that it claimed are taking advantage of the flaws of Microsoft to break into targeted networks, many of whom are related to China. The Chinese government, however, has denied any involvement in this. It has also been reported that some of these groups were aware of the flaws even before they were announced by Microsoft on March 02.

Microsoft software flaw being misused by at least 10 hacking groups: Researchers

Microsoft-owned social network LinkedIn has halted new member sign-ups for its service in China while it reviews its compliance with local laws, the company said in a statement.

The careers-focused site has had a Chinese-language presence since 2014, when it decided to expand by agreeing to stick to strict censorship laws, and now has over 50 million users in the country.

It is one of few international tech platforms to enjoy access to China, where all subjects considered politically sensitive are censored in the name of stability and internet giants are urged to block unwanted content online.

"We're a global platform with an obligation to respect the laws that apply to us, including adhering to Chinese government regulations for our localized version of LinkedIn in China," the firm said in a notice dated Tuesday, without providing further details.

Tech giants who refuse to comply with the smothering censorship laws, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube, have long been blocked behind the country's "Great Firewall".

Microsoft, however, operates LinkedIn by complying with the rules through a local joint venture.

LinkedIn has been criticised in China for pulling the professional accounts of dissidents -- which it later said was in error -- and scratching politically sensitive content from its pages.

It was not immediately clear which laws had prodded LinkedIn's suspension of sign-ups.

Last week, Microsoft said a state-sponsored hacking group operating out of China was exploiting previously unknown security flaws in its Exchange email services to steal data from business users -- although Beijing has previously hit back at US accusations of state-sponsored cybertheft.

A LinkedIn spokesperson told Bloomberg that the move was not related to the hack.

Microsoft's journey in China has not been entirely smooth-sailing, with the company's search engine Bing temporarily taken offline in 2019 -- prompting speculation it had been blocked by censors.

In 2014, Chinese competition authorities opened an anti-monopoly investigation against Microsoft and its Windows software, with inspectors raiding the group's offices in four Chinese cities, confiscating files and questioning employees.

Microsoft-owned social network LinkedIn has halted new member sign-ups for its service in China while it reviews its compliance with local laws, the company said in a statement.

Microsoft-owned social network LinkedIn has halted new member sign-ups for its service in China while it reviews its compliance with local laws, the company said in a statement. The careers-focused site has had a Chinese-language presence since 2014, when it decided to expand by agreeing to stick to strict censorship laws, and now has over 50 million users in the country. It is one of few international tech platforms to enjoy access to China, where all subjects considered politically sensitive are censored in the name of stability and internet giants are urged to block unwanted content online. "We're a global platform with an obligation to respect the laws that apply to us, including adhering to Chinese government regulations for our localized version of LinkedIn in China," the firm said in a notice dated Tuesday, without providing further details. Tech giants who refuse to comply with the smothering censorship laws, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube, have long been blocked behind the country's "Great Firewall". Microsoft, however, operates LinkedIn by complying with the rules through a local joint venture. LinkedIn has been criticised in China for pulling the professional accounts of dissidents -- which it later said was in error -- and scratching politically sensitive content from its pages. It was not immediately clear which laws had prodded LinkedIn's suspension of sign-ups. Last week, Microsoft said a state-sponsored hacking group operating out of China was exploiting previously unknown security flaws in its Exchange email services to steal data from business users -- although Beijing has previously hit back at US accusations of state-sponsored cybertheft. A LinkedIn spokesperson told Bloomberg that the move was not related to the hack. Microsoft's journey in China has not been entirely smooth-sailing, with the company's search engine Bing temporarily taken offline in 2019 -- prompting speculation it had been blocked by censors. In 2014, Chinese competition authorities opened an anti-monopoly investigation against Microsoft and its Windows software, with inspectors raiding the group's offices in four Chinese cities, confiscating files and questioning employees.

LinkedIn China suspends new sign-ups to 'respect law'

A House Judiciary panel focused on antitrust will hear from three witnesses on Friday who represent a range of news organizations with concerns about how big tech platforms like Facebook and Alphabet`s Google increasingly dominate their industry. 
 
The antitrust subcommittee leading the charge against tech platforms, and in this instance focusing on their relations with news organizations, will also hear from Microsoft President Brad Smith. 
 
Social media companies use news to attract customers and have been accused by news publishers of not sharing enough advertising revenue with them. 
 
Witnesses for Friday`s hearing include David Chavern, head of the News Media Alliance which includes News Corp and USA Today among others; Emily Barr, who represents the National Association of Broadcasters and Graham Media Group, which has 7 local TV stations; and Jonathan Schleuss, president of the NewsGuild-CWA, a union representing journalists, the statement said. 
 
Bipartisan members of Congress are expected to introduce a bill in the near future that will make it easier for smaller news organizations to negotiate better deals with Big Tech platforms and increase their revenues.

A House Judiciary panel focused on antitrust will hear from three witnesses on Friday who represent a range of news organizations with concerns about how big tech platforms like Facebook and Alphabet`s Google increasingly dominate their industry.

A House Judiciary panel focused on antitrust will hear from three witnesses on Friday who represent a range of news organizations with concerns about how big tech platforms like Facebook and Alphabet`s Google increasingly dominate their industry. The antitrust subcommittee leading the charge against tech platforms, and in this instance focusing on their relations with news organizations, will also hear from Microsoft President Brad Smith. Social media companies use news to attract customers and have been accused by news publishers of not sharing enough advertising revenue with them. Witnesses for Friday`s hearing include David Chavern, head of the News Media Alliance which includes News Corp and USA Today among others; Emily Barr, who represents the National Association of Broadcasters and Graham Media Group, which has 7 local TV stations; and Jonathan Schleuss, president of the NewsGuild-CWA, a union representing journalists, the statement said. Bipartisan members of Congress are expected to introduce a bill in the near future that will make it easier for smaller news organizations to negotiate better deals with Big Tech platforms and increase their revenues.

US hearing on tech dominance of news outlets will include Microsoft

A US official said that President Joe Biden`s administration is expected to put together a task force to deal with major cyber intrusions that Microsoft said this week were linked to China as relations between the two -- Washington and Beijing -- continues to spiral downwards.CNN, citing the US official, reported that there are an estimated 30,000 affected customers in the US and 250,000 globally, though those numbers are expected to increase.&nbsp;

However, the White House declined to comment on the number of victims affected.

"We are undertaking a whole of government response to assess and address the impact. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) issued an emergency directive to agencies and we`re now working with our partners and looking closely at the next steps we need to take. This is an active threat still developing and we urge network operators to take it very seriously," a White House official said.

The US official said that the task force or, "Unified Coordination Group" (UCG), is a multi-agency effort initiated by the National Security Council, that includes FBI, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and others.The National Security Agency also has a role in the response, though it`s not clear if its involvement is codified as part of the UCG directive, according to another source familiar with the situation."

"This has the potential to simultaneously affect organizations that are critical to everyday life in the US," a source familiar with the investigation into the attack told CNN, noting that state and local government agencies were among those affected.

The Hill reported that Cybersecurity group FireEye on Thursday night announced it had found evidence that hackers had exploited a flaw in a popular Microsoft email application since as early as January to target groups across a variety of sectors.

FireEye analysts wrote in a blog post that the company had observed the hackers -- who Microsoft announced earlier this week were a Chinese state-sponsored hacking group known as "Hafnium" -- exploiting vulnerabilities in Microsoft`s Exchange Server email program to target at least one FireEye client beginning in January.

The news outlet further reported that Microsoft said the Chinese hacking group was actively exploiting previously unknown security flaws in Exchange Server to go after groups running the program.The company noted that Hafnium had previously been known to steal information from organizations including infectious disease researchers, law firms, higher education institutions, defense contractors, policy think tanks and non-governmental organizations.

In February, the National Counterintelligence and Security Center (NCSC) warned that the efforts made by the Chinese Communist Party to obtain US health data, particularly DNA, through hacking had stepped up during the COVID-19 pandemic.According to The Hill, the agency noted that these efforts had increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, with Chinese biotech group BGI offering COVID-19 testing kits to the majority of countries and establishing 18 testing labs over the past six months alone, allegedly as part of an effort to obtain health data.

The NCSC wrote that US health data was an attractive target for the Chinese government due to the diversity of the population and because of the nation`s comparably lax safeguards for personal data.Under the Trump administration, ties between the two countries had deteriorated over issues such as human rights violations in Xinjiang, encroachment on the special status of Hong Kong, accusations of unfair trade practices by Beijing, lack of transparency concerning the pandemic and China`s military aggression in various parts of the world.

Meanwhile, Chinese hackers also have been trying hard to crack Indian cyberspace. There have been more aggressive attempts of hacking by Chinese hackers since last one year.Various government organisations like the Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-IN) and the National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre (NCIIPC) are following trends and keeping a track of attempts made by the Chinese post the Galwan clash.

A US official said that President Joe Biden`s administration is expected to put together a task force to deal with major cyber intrusions that Microsoft said this week were linked to China as relations between the two -- Washington and Beijing -- continues to spiral downwards.

A US official said that President Joe Biden`s administration is expected to put together a task force to deal with major cyber intrusions that Microsoft said this week were linked to China as relations between the two -- Washington and Beijing -- continues to spiral downwards.CNN, citing the US official, reported that there are an estimated 30,000 affected customers in the US and 250,000 globally, though those numbers are expected to increase. However, the White House declined to comment on the number of victims affected. "We are undertaking a whole of government response to assess and address the impact. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) issued an emergency directive to agencies and we`re now working with our partners and looking closely at the next steps we need to take. This is an active threat still developing and we urge network operators to take it very seriously," a White House official said. The US official said that the task force or, "Unified Coordination Group" (UCG), is a multi-agency effort initiated by the National Security Council, that includes FBI, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and others.The National Security Agency also has a role in the response, though it`s not clear if its involvement is codified as part of the UCG directive, according to another source familiar with the situation." "This has the potential to simultaneously affect organizations that are critical to everyday life in the US," a source familiar with the investigation into the attack told CNN, noting that state and local government agencies were among those affected. The Hill reported that Cybersecurity group FireEye on Thursday night announced it had found evidence that hackers had exploited a flaw in a popular Microsoft email application since as early as January to target groups across a variety of sectors. FireEye analysts wrote in a blog post that the company had observed the hackers -- who Microsoft announced earlier this week were a Chinese state-sponsored hacking group known as "Hafnium" -- exploiting vulnerabilities in Microsoft`s Exchange Server email program to target at least one FireEye client beginning in January. The news outlet further reported that Microsoft said the Chinese hacking group was actively exploiting previously unknown security flaws in Exchange Server to go after groups running the program.The company noted that Hafnium had previously been known to steal information from organizations including infectious disease researchers, law firms, higher education institutions, defense contractors, policy think tanks and non-governmental organizations. In February, the National Counterintelligence and Security Center (NCSC) warned that the efforts made by the Chinese Communist Party to obtain US health data, particularly DNA, through hacking had stepped up during the COVID-19 pandemic.According to The Hill, the agency noted that these efforts had increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, with Chinese biotech group BGI offering COVID-19 testing kits to the majority of countries and establishing 18 testing labs over the past six months alone, allegedly as part of an effort to obtain health data. The NCSC wrote that US health data was an attractive target for the Chinese government due to the diversity of the population and because of the nation`s comparably lax safeguards for personal data.Under the Trump administration, ties between the two countries had deteriorated over issues such as human rights violations in Xinjiang, encroachment on the special status of Hong Kong, accusations of unfair trade practices by Beijing, lack of transparency concerning the pandemic and China`s military aggression in various parts of the world. Meanwhile, Chinese hackers also have been trying hard to crack Indian cyberspace. There have been more aggressive attempts of hacking by Chinese hackers since last one year.Various government organisations like the Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-IN) and the National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre (NCIIPC) are following trends and keeping a track of attempts made by the Chinese post the Galwan clash.

Biden admin to form task force to deal with Microsoft hack linked to China

Over 20,000 United States organisations have been compromised in the aftermath of an attack on Microsoft's email software.

According to media reports, the hack has affected more than the download from SolarWinds Corp, which witnessed a massive hack in December 2020.&nbsp;Reuters cited a person familiar with the US government's response on Friday as saying that the organisations suffered after a back door was installed, capitalising on pre-existing flaws in the software.

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="http://www.wionews.com/videos/microsoft-chinese-government-accountable-for-cyber-attacks-on-exchange-server-367883/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

In addition, the hack has affected thousands of organisations across Asia and Europe. Even then, despite emergency patches, the hacks continue to plague the company. Initially, Microsoft claimed that the hacks consisted of "limited and targeted attacks", but did not comment on the intensity of the issue.

It added, "impacted customers should contact our support teams for additional help and resources." A scan of the connected devices showed that only 10 per cent of the vulnerable had installed the patches by Friday.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://13.235.153.162/world/solarwinds-hack-was-work-of-more-than-1000-engineers-microsoft-365845" hreflang="en">SolarWinds hack was work of more than 1,000 engineers: Microsoft</a> 
 
On Tuesday, the company claimed that the hacking group infiltrated the email inboxes. Microsoft claimed in a blog post that hackers took advantage of vulnerabilities that were previously unknown. Reportedly, four vulnerabilities were found in Microsoft's email software. The group which hacked the company is being referred to as HAFNIUM, which Microsoft claims is linked to China.

In another post, Volexity - a cybersecurity firm - claimed that it observed hackers using one of the four software loopholes to steal "full contents of several user mailboxes". The hackers only required details of an exchange server, and information about the account they intended to hack.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://13.235.153.162/world/microsoft-planned-to-buy-social-media-firm-pinterest-report-362914" hreflang="en">Microsoft planned to buy social media firm Pinterest: Report</a> 
 
Over the years, many countries including the United States have accused China of overseeing cyber espionage activities, something Chinese authorities continue to deny. &nbsp;Even before Microsoft officially acknowledged the hack, the activities of hackers had begun to garner attention from analysts in the cybersecurity community.

Mike McLellan, the director of intelligence for Dell Technologies Inc's Secureworks, was cited by Reuters as saying that they witnessed a spike in activity on Exchange servers over Sunday. Even at that firm, 10 customers have been affected. According to McLellan, hacking activity had gone up with focus on seeding malicious software, which could also highlight potential intrusions that could infect Microsoft's networks. 
 
According to Microsoft, the targets of the Chinese hackers included researchers for infectious diseases, education institutions, defence contractors, policy think tanks, and NGOs.

Over 20,000 United States organisations have been compromised in the aftermath of an attack on Microsoft's email software. According to media reports, the hack has affected more than the download from SolarWinds Corp, which witnessed a massive hack in December 2020.

Over 20,000 United States organisations have been compromised in the aftermath of an attack on Microsoft's email software. According to media reports, the hack has affected more than the download from SolarWinds Corp, which witnessed a massive hack in December 2020. Reuters cited a person familiar with the US government's response on Friday as saying that the organisations suffered after a back door was installed, capitalising on pre-existing flaws in the software. In addition, the hack has affected thousands of organisations across Asia and Europe. Even then, despite emergency patches, the hacks continue to plague the company. Initially, Microsoft claimed that the hacks consisted of "limited and targeted attacks", but did not comment on the intensity of the issue. It added, "impacted customers should contact our support teams for additional help and resources." A scan of the connected devices showed that only 10 per cent of the vulnerable had installed the patches by Friday. Also read: SolarWinds hack was work of more than 1,000 engineers: Microsoft On Tuesday, the company claimed that the hacking group infiltrated the email inboxes. Microsoft claimed in a blog post that hackers took advantage of vulnerabilities that were previously unknown. Reportedly, four vulnerabilities were found in Microsoft's email software. The group which hacked the company is being referred to as HAFNIUM, which Microsoft claims is linked to China. In another post, Volexity - a cybersecurity firm - claimed that it observed hackers using one of the four software loopholes to steal "full contents of several user mailboxes". The hackers only required details of an exchange server, and information about the account they intended to hack. Also read: Microsoft planned to buy social media firm Pinterest: Report Over the years, many countries including the United States have accused China of overseeing cyber espionage activities, something Chinese authorities continue to deny. Even before Microsoft officially acknowledged the hack, the activities of hackers had begun to garner attention from analysts in the cybersecurity community. Mike McLellan, the director of intelligence for Dell Technologies Inc's Secureworks, was cited by Reuters as saying that they witnessed a spike in activity on Exchange servers over Sunday. Even at that firm, 10 customers have been affected. According to McLellan, hacking activity had gone up with focus on seeding malicious software, which could also highlight potential intrusions that could infect Microsoft's networks. According to Microsoft, the targets of the Chinese hackers included researchers for infectious diseases, education institutions, defence contractors, policy think tanks, and NGOs.

Over 20,000 US organisations affected by China's Microsoft hack: Reports

American tech giant Microsoft has blamed the Chinese government for the cyber attacks. These Chinese hackers have targeted important US government functionaries and servers.

Microsoft: Chinese government accountable for cyber attacks on 'exchange server'

Microsoft on Tuesday said that a cyber espionage group linked to China has been exploiting newly found flaws in the company's mail server software.

On Tuesday, the company claimed that the hacking group infiltrated the email inboxes. Microsoft claimed in a blog post that hackers took advantage of vulnerabilities that were previously unknown. Reportedly, four vulnerabilities were found in Microsoft's email software. The group which hacked the company is being referred to as HAFNIUM, which Microsoft claims is linked to China. 
 
In another post, Volexity - a cybersecurity firm - claimed that it observed hackers using one of the four software loopholes to steal "full contents of several user mailboxes". The hackers only required details of an exchange&nbsp;server, and information about the account they intended to hack.

Over the years, many countries including the United States have accused China of overseeing cyber espionage activities, something Chinese authorities continue to deny.&nbsp; Even before Microsoft officially acknowledged the hack, the activities of hackers had begun to garner attention from analysts in the cybersecurity community.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://13.235.153.162/world/solarwinds-hack-was-work-of-more-than-1000-engineers-microsoft-365845" hreflang="en">SolarWinds hack was work of more than 1,000 engineers: Microsoft</a>

Mike McLellan, the director of intelligence for Dell Technologies Inc's Secureworks, was cited by Reuters as saying that they witnessed a spike in activity on Exchange servers over Sunday. Even at that firm, 10 customers have been affected. According to McLellan, hacking activity had gone up with focus on seeding malicious software, which could also highlight potential intrusions that could infect Microsoft's networks.

"We haven't seen any follow-on activity yet," he said.&nbsp; "We're going to find a lot of companies affected but a smaller number of companies actually exploited", Reuters quoted him as saying.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://13.235.153.162/world/us-intel-agencies-say-russia-likely-behind-hacking-of-govt-agencies-354752" hreflang="en">US intel agencies say Russia likely behind hacking of govt agencies</a>

According to Microsoft, the targets of the Chinese hackers included researchers for infectious diseases, education institutions, defense contractors, policy think tanks, and NGOs. 
&nbsp;

Microsoft on Tuesday said that a cyber espionage group linked to China has been exploiting newly found flaws in the company's mail server software. On Tuesday, the company claimed that the hacking group infiltrated the email inboxes.

Microsoft on Tuesday said that a cyber espionage group linked to China has been exploiting newly found flaws in the company's mail server software. On Tuesday, the company claimed that the hacking group infiltrated the email inboxes. Microsoft claimed in a blog post that hackers took advantage of vulnerabilities that were previously unknown. Reportedly, four vulnerabilities were found in Microsoft's email software. The group which hacked the company is being referred to as HAFNIUM, which Microsoft claims is linked to China. In another post, Volexity - a cybersecurity firm - claimed that it observed hackers using one of the four software loopholes to steal "full contents of several user mailboxes". The hackers only required details of an exchange server, and information about the account they intended to hack. Over the years, many countries including the United States have accused China of overseeing cyber espionage activities, something Chinese authorities continue to deny. Even before Microsoft officially acknowledged the hack, the activities of hackers had begun to garner attention from analysts in the cybersecurity community. Also read: SolarWinds hack was work of more than 1,000 engineers: Microsoft Mike McLellan, the director of intelligence for Dell Technologies Inc's Secureworks, was cited by Reuters as saying that they witnessed a spike in activity on Exchange servers over Sunday. Even at that firm, 10 customers have been affected. According to McLellan, hacking activity had gone up with focus on seeding malicious software, which could also highlight potential intrusions that could infect Microsoft's networks. "We haven't seen any follow-on activity yet," he said. "We're going to find a lot of companies affected but a smaller number of companies actually exploited", Reuters quoted him as saying. Also read: US intel agencies say Russia likely behind hacking of govt agencies According to Microsoft, the targets of the Chinese hackers included researchers for infectious diseases, education institutions, defense contractors, policy think tanks, and NGOs.

Hackers linked to China attack Microsoft's email server, exploit new vulnerabilities

The infamous SolarWinds hack that has been blamed on Russia may have used the help of a massive, disciplined and highly skilled workforce of more than 1,000 software engineers, Microsoft President Brad Smith revealed.

In a hearing of the Senate Intelligence Committee, Smith said that other than Russian intelligence, no other organisation in the world has the ability to carry out such a sophisticated hack.

Describing it as "reckless", Smith said this SolarWinds hack acted as a great threat to the world.

Also read|&nbsp;<a data-ctorig="https://www.wionews.com/world/with-more-solarwinds-fallout-biden-enlists-his-cybersecurity-team-358590" data-cturl="https://www.google.com/url?client=internal-element-cse&amp;cx=006054055338965708568:09spwrlibei&amp;q=https://www.wionews.com/world/with-more-solarwinds-fallout-biden-enlists-his-cybersecurity-team-358590&amp;sa=U&amp;ved=2ahUKEwjr2c_0j4LvAhVv7HMBHVsDBIgQFjAIegQIBhAC&amp;usg=AOvVaw1-fxCxxeeUlk0_W2BjW9wQ" dir="ltr" href="https://www.google.com/url?client=internal-element-cse&amp;cx=006054055338965708568:09spwrlibei&amp;q=https://www.wionews.com/world/with-more-solarwinds-fallout-biden-enlists-his-cybersecurity-team-358590&amp;sa=U&amp;ved=2ahUKEwjr2c_0j4LvAhVv7HMBHVsDBIgQFjAIegQIBhAC&amp;usg=AOvVaw1-fxCxxeeUlk0_W2BjW9wQ" target="_blank">With more&nbsp;SolarWinds&nbsp;fallout, Biden enlists his cybersecurity team</a>

Microsoft was one of the 100 companies that were targetted in this attack, which left 18,000 vulnerable. The tech giant analysed the effort and the kind of work it took to insert the malware into the widely used security software created by SolarWinds.

"We asked ourselves how many engineers do we believe had worked on this collective effort. And the answer we came to was... at least 1,000, very skilled, capable engineers," Smith said. "We haven't seen this kind of sophistication matched with this kind of scale."

Using the metaphor of a burglar breaking into a single apartment, Smith compared a previous Russian hack to this one. The SolarWinds hack was different as this was like a burglar who "manages to turn off the alarm system for every home and every building in the entire city."

"Everybody's safety is put at risk. And that is what we're grappling with here," he added.

Also read|<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/russian-hackers-used-microsoft-vendors-to-breach-customers-investigators-say-352175">&nbsp;Russian hackers used Microsoft vendors to breach customers, investigators say</a>

The hack was discovered by a private security firm, FireEye, in December, after it had already affected several computers around the world. US government agencies such as the National Security Agency, the State Department, Commerce Department and the Treasury were also affected by the hack.

This statement by the Microsoft President has come after a US media house reported that the Biden administration was analysing its options to punish Russia for the cyberattack.&nbsp;

"This isn't the only case of malicious cyber activity of likely Russian origin, either for us or for our allies and partners," said Anne Neuberger, the senior White House cybersecurity advisor.

Even the FireEye chief executive Kevin Mandia had stressed the gravity of this hack in the Senate hearing claiming that it took thousands of hours for his staff to discover the bug.&nbsp;

"This was not the first place you look, this was the last place you look for an insertion," he said.

The infamous SolarWinds hack that has been blamed on Russia may have used the help of a massive, disciplined and highly skilled workforce of more than 1,000 software engineers, Microsoft President Brad Smith revealed.

The infamous SolarWinds hack that has been blamed on Russia may have used the help of a massive, disciplined and highly skilled workforce of more than 1,000 software engineers, Microsoft President Brad Smith revealed. In a hearing of the Senate Intelligence Committee, Smith said that other than Russian intelligence, no other organisation in the world has the ability to carry out such a sophisticated hack. Describing it as "reckless", Smith said this SolarWinds hack acted as a great threat to the world. Also read| With more SolarWinds fallout, Biden enlists his cybersecurity team Microsoft was one of the 100 companies that were targetted in this attack, which left 18,000 vulnerable. The tech giant analysed the effort and the kind of work it took to insert the malware into the widely used security software created by SolarWinds. "We asked ourselves how many engineers do we believe had worked on this collective effort. And the answer we came to was... at least 1,000, very skilled, capable engineers," Smith said. "We haven't seen this kind of sophistication matched with this kind of scale." Using the metaphor of a burglar breaking into a single apartment, Smith compared a previous Russian hack to this one. The SolarWinds hack was different as this was like a burglar who "manages to turn off the alarm system for every home and every building in the entire city." "Everybody's safety is put at risk. And that is what we're grappling with here," he added. Also read| Russian hackers used Microsoft vendors to breach customers, investigators say The hack was discovered by a private security firm, FireEye, in December, after it had already affected several computers around the world. US government agencies such as the National Security Agency, the State Department, Commerce Department and the Treasury were also affected by the hack. This statement by the Microsoft President has come after a US media house reported that the Biden administration was analysing its options to punish Russia for the cyberattack. "This isn't the only case of malicious cyber activity of likely Russian origin, either for us or for our allies and partners," said Anne Neuberger, the senior White House cybersecurity advisor. Even the FireEye chief executive Kevin Mandia had stressed the gravity of this hack in the Senate hearing claiming that it took thousands of hours for his staff to discover the bug. "This was not the first place you look, this was the last place you look for an insertion," he said.

SolarWinds hack was work of more than 1,000 engineers: Microsoft

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Saturday said that social media giant Facebook has&nbsp;"tentatively friended us again."&nbsp;

Facebook's abrupt decision to stop Australians from sharing news on the site and strip the pages of domestic and foreign news outlets also erased several state government and emergency department accounts, causing widespread anger.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-australia-hold-talks-following-news-ban-364938" hreflang="en">Facebook, Australia hold talks following news ban</a>

Morrison told a news conference in Sydney, "What I'm pleased about it that Facebook is back at the table again."

Facebook has publicly indicated no change in its opposition to a proposed law requiring social media platforms to pay for links to news content.&nbsp;

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/australia-and-facebook-held-high-stake-talks-on-content-law-365003/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

Australia and Facebook conducted talks on Friday after the social media giant blacked out news for Australian netizens.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said he had spoken with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg to resolve the issue at the earliest and negotiations would continue in the weekend.&nbsp;

The stand-off comes as Australia's vows to press ahead with the landmark legislation, which could set a global precedent as countries like Canada express interest in taking similar action.

The Australian law, which would force Facebook and Alphabet Inc's Google to reach commercial deals with Australian publishers or face compulsory arbitration, has cleared the lower house of parliament and is expected to be passed by the Senate within the next week.

Simon Milner, Facebook’s Asia-Pacific policy director of policy for the Asia-Pacific region, was quoted on Saturday as telling the Sydney Morning Herald the company had three main objections to the legislation.

Facebook objects to being barred from discriminating between different news outlets that ask for money, to arbitration models that allow an independent body to select one payment over another, and to the obligation to enter commercial negotiations with Australian media companies, Milner said.

Google, which has initially threatened to close its search engine in Australia, has announced host of preemptive licensing deals over the past week, including a global agreement with News Corp.

Facebook's move had an immediate impact on traffic to Australian new sites, according to early data from New York-based analytics firm Chartbeat.

Total traffic to the Australian news sites from various platforms fell from the day before the ban by around 13 per cent&nbsp;within the country.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Saturday said that social media giant Facebook has "tentatively friended us again." Facebook's abrupt decision to stop Australians from sharing news on the site and strip the pages of domestic and foreign news outlets also erased several state government and emergency department accounts, causing widespread anger.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Saturday said that social media giant Facebook has "tentatively friended us again." Facebook's abrupt decision to stop Australians from sharing news on the site and strip the pages of domestic and foreign news outlets also erased several state government and emergency department accounts, causing widespread anger. Also read: Facebook, Australia hold talks following news ban Morrison told a news conference in Sydney, "What I'm pleased about it that Facebook is back at the table again." Facebook has publicly indicated no change in its opposition to a proposed law requiring social media platforms to pay for links to news content. Australia and Facebook conducted talks on Friday after the social media giant blacked out news for Australian netizens. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said he had spoken with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg to resolve the issue at the earliest and negotiations would continue in the weekend. The stand-off comes as Australia's vows to press ahead with the landmark legislation, which could set a global precedent as countries like Canada express interest in taking similar action. The Australian law, which would force Facebook and Alphabet Inc's Google to reach commercial deals with Australian publishers or face compulsory arbitration, has cleared the lower house of parliament and is expected to be passed by the Senate within the next week. Simon Milner, Facebook’s Asia-Pacific policy director of policy for the Asia-Pacific region, was quoted on Saturday as telling the Sydney Morning Herald the company had three main objections to the legislation. Facebook objects to being barred from discriminating between different news outlets that ask for money, to arbitration models that allow an independent body to select one payment over another, and to the obligation to enter commercial negotiations with Australian media companies, Milner said. Google, which has initially threatened to close its search engine in Australia, has announced host of preemptive licensing deals over the past week, including a global agreement with News Corp. Facebook's move had an immediate impact on traffic to Australian new sites, according to early data from New York-based analytics firm Chartbeat. Total traffic to the Australian news sites from various platforms fell from the day before the ban by around 13 per cent within the country.

Australia says Facebook has 'tentatively friended' them again

Microsoft reportedly held talks in recent months to acquire the $51-billion social media firm Pinterest, the media reported on Thursday. 
 
According to The Financial Times, the tech giant aimed to acquire Pinterest, a platform popular for sharing and discovering recipes, home ideas, style inspiration and other ideas, to create a portfolio of active online communities that could run on its Cloud computing platform. 
 
"The talks were currently not active, said one of the people briefed," the report said. 
 
Both Microsoft and Pinterest declined to comment on the report. 
 
Pinterest, whose market value increased more than 600 per cent during the pandemic, plans to remain an independent company. 
 
Microsoft earlier made an attempt to acquire TikTok but the deal did not materialise. 
 
The tech giant has acquired some significant companies under CEO Satya Nadella, like LinkedIn for $26 billionand open source code repository GitHub for $7.5 billion. 
 
Microsoft also cacquired private gaming company ZeniMax for $7.5 billion last year. 
 
Pinterest reported strong fourth quarter financial results last week, with $706 million in revenue. 
 
The company`s US revenue jumped 67 per cent (year over year) to $582 million while its international revenue was up 145 per cent year over year to $123 million. 
 
Pinterest said its international user base expanded 46 per cent to 361 million.

Microsoft reportedly held talks in recent months to acquire the $51-billion social media firm Pinterest, the media reported on Thursday. According to The Financial Times, the tech giant aimed to acquire Pinterest, a platform popular for sharing and discovering recipes, home ideas, style inspiration and other ideas, to create a portfolio of active online communities that could run on its Cloud computing platform.

Microsoft reportedly held talks in recent months to acquire the $51-billion social media firm Pinterest, the media reported on Thursday. According to The Financial Times, the tech giant aimed to acquire Pinterest, a platform popular for sharing and discovering recipes, home ideas, style inspiration and other ideas, to create a portfolio of active online communities that could run on its Cloud computing platform. "The talks were currently not active, said one of the people briefed," the report said. Both Microsoft and Pinterest declined to comment on the report. Pinterest, whose market value increased more than 600 per cent during the pandemic, plans to remain an independent company. Microsoft earlier made an attempt to acquire TikTok but the deal did not materialise. The tech giant has acquired some significant companies under CEO Satya Nadella, like LinkedIn for $26 billionand open source code repository GitHub for $7.5 billion. Microsoft also cacquired private gaming company ZeniMax for $7.5 billion last year. Pinterest reported strong fourth quarter financial results last week, with $706 million in revenue. The company`s US revenue jumped 67 per cent (year over year) to $582 million while its international revenue was up 145 per cent year over year to $123 million. Pinterest said its international user base expanded 46 per cent to 361 million.

Microsoft planned to buy social media firm Pinterest: Report

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