VARINDIA IT MAGAZINE

Google, Microsoft plan to spend billions on cybersecurity:  The whole globe is struggling into the issue of   Cyber security   and   cyber crime.   The White House hosted a cybersecurity summit Wednesday with CEOs in sectors ranging from tech to insurance. Technology giants including Google,   Microsoft   and   IBM   committed to spending billions on cybersecurity following the meeting, they are going to strengthen cybersecurity defences and to train skilled workers, the White House has announced, following President Joe Biden's private meeting with top executives. The gathering on Wednesday during a relentless stretch of ransomware attacks that have targeted critical infrastructure, in some cases with the attackers extorting multimillion-dollar payments from major corporations, as well as other illicit cyber operations that US authorities have linked to foreign hackers.... Read More

Google is working on the way users enter OTPs:  Google   is working on   WebOTP API . This will allow websites the ability to programmatically obtain the one-time password from a SMS message and automatically fill the form for users with just one tap without switching apps.   Google is working on a feature to enable transferring SMS One Time Passwords (OTPs) from phones to PC with Chrome 93 update. Chrome 93 will support WebOTP (Web One Time Password) interface, this means that the web browser will automatically detect and read the code received on to users’ phone and enter it. The condition being that users need an Android phone, and both the handset and desktop browser must be signed into the same Google account. Another critical requirement is that the website they are using should support WebOTP technology. The reason that the feature is for now dependent on the Chromium web engine is why it does not support Apple devices.... Read More

Amazon extends work-from-home period until January 2022:  Due to the surge in COVID-19 cases across the nation because of the more contagious delta variant,   Amazon   has delayed its return-to-office date for technology and corporate workers until January.   Before returning to office Amazon will not mandate employees receive the  COVID-19 vaccine . The company said that the employees who are not vaccinated will be required to wear masks in the office.   The surge of the delta variant of the coronavirus has upended many companies’ plans to bring office workers back this fall, a drive already complicated by efforts to accommodate widespread employee preference for flexible remote work policies, and debates over how to handle vaccine and masking policies.   Companies like  Microsoft ,  Google ,  Twitter , Lyft etc. have postponed the plans of reopening offices.   As per news source, Amazon earlier set September 7 as return date and t...

Google to curb online harassment brings Search algorithms:  Google   has updated its Search algorithms to protect people who are dealing with extraordinary cases of repeated harassment online.   Pandu Nayak, Google Fellow and Vice President, Search , said, “We’re also looking to expand these protections further, as part of our ongoing work in this space. The change was inspired by a similar approach we’ve taken with victims of non-consensual explicit content, commonly known as revenge porn. While no solution is perfect, our evaluations show that these changes meaningfully improve the quality of our results.”   Now, once someone has requested a removal from one site with predatory practices, Google will automatically apply  ranking protections  to help prevent content from other similar low-quality sites appearing in search results for people’s names... Read More

Enact a law to make Facebook, Google, Apple to pay publishers for news: sushil Modi:  BJP MP Sushil Kumar Modi   has urged the government to enact a law to make tech companies pay local news publishers for their content. He said traditional and print medias in the country are passing through their worst phase with deep financial crisis in recent history as ads have shifted to tech platforms of Facebook, Google and YouTube. The government should enact a law on the pattern of Australian Code," Modi further said.   Taking a cue from Australia, India should enact a law to make tech giants such as Facebook and Google pay local publishers of news content, senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi demanded in  Rajya Sabha  on Wednesday. All the media fraternity has welcomed this statement of Sushil Modi.   Raising the issue through a Zero Hour mention, the  former deputy chief minister of Bihar  said, "The government must make Google, Facebook and YouTube pay ...

Infosys wins $500 mn deal from Google:  After a $500 million deal from the   Global search giant Google   is really its remarkable and once again brought the limelight back on Infosys, strengthening the belief that large deal momentum continues to be strong for this Indian IT bellwether, which could translate into a windfall for its shareholders. The deal from Google to provide customer experience and engineering support for its product. In FY2021, Infosys has bagged deals worth $12 billion as against $9 billion in FY20. Out of the deals signed in the nine months to FY21, net new large deals stood at $8 billion.   Varun Ahuja and Krati Sankhlecha, research analysts at Credit Suisse, note that the deal with Google has strengthened the company's positioning in the technology vertical which has been one of the fastest-growing segments for the company over the past 12-24 months.   We believe the pace of deal signings would remain strong in the coming quarters, as it...

100 loan apps face shut down on Google in Dec-Jan: Dhotre:  The   parliament   was recently informed that   Google   removed about 100 money lending apps that were "possibly not in compliance with the applicable legal and regulatory framework" from December 2020 till January 20, 2021.   The  Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY)  has received a number of public grievances against frauds and the malpractices by few online instant loan applications available on internet, including Google Playstore, Minister of State for Electronics and IT Sanjay Dhotre said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.   He also added that the complaints are mainly related to high interest rates, alleged collection of personal data and its misuse, fraudulent and unlawful practices of physical threats and use of other coercive methods for recovery of loan and that few cases have also been filed in the courts.   "Upon being notified by law enfo...

Google announces to support Google Calendar offline only for workspace users:  Google Calendar   has offered offline support for desktop users once again. The offline feature was rolled back when Google released a new UI for the Calendar app in 2018. Users will now be able to see their Google Calendar from four weeks prior or any time in the future, by day, week, or month offline when accessed through a computer. With the relaunch, the tech giant aims to make Google Calendar more useful, particularly when users are offline or have unreliable Internet connections. But the support is limited to Google workspace customers for now.   The offline Calendar feature will be available on all tiers including  Google Workspace Essentials , Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, and Enterprise Plus, as well as G Suite Basic, Business, Education, Enterprise for Education, and non-profits customers.   Google announced t...

US Guv asks Australia to scrap proposed laws to make Facebook, Google pay for news: A Australia has been instructed by the U.S. government to scrap proposed laws that will make it the first country in the world to force   Facebook Inc   and   Alphabet Inc’s Google   to pay for news sourced from local media outlets. In a submission asking the government to “suspend” the plans, assistant U.S. trade representatives Daniel Bahar and Karl Ehlers, suggested Australia instead “further study the markets, and if appropriate, develop a voluntary code.”   As per the law, which has broad political support and is currently before a senate committee, Google and Facebook will be subject to mandatory price arbitration if a commercial agreement on payments to Australian media cannot be reached.   “The  U.S. Government  is concerned that an attempt, through legislation, to regulate the competitive positions of specific players ... to the clear detriment of two U.S....

Zoom to start its own email service in the coming year:  After making leadership position in the video calling market during the pandemic,   Zoom   is now planning to develop an email service and release it next year, along with working on a calendar application, to take on giants like Google and Microsoft.   Expert says that ,it is a straight competition among the Google, Hotmail yahoo and others. Zoom Video Communications has begun developing a web email service and might offer a very early version of the product to some customers next year . Sources said, the company also is looking into building a calendar application.   Recently in October, Zoom made its new end-to-end encryption (E2EE) feature available to users globally, free and paid, for meetings with up to 200 participants and the company has had a super year, with its stock price rising more than 500% owing to the unprecedented surge in remote work and learning. The two big players are Microsoft with ...

Josh gains $100 Million funding from Google and Microsoft Josh gains $100 Million funding from Google and Microsoft :  Josh, Indian TikTok Clone   has raised more than $100 million from investors including   Google   and   Microsoft , months after the Chinese-owned short-video app was banned in the country.   Bengaluru-based  VerSe Innovation , which owns Josh, is valued at more than $1 billion following the investment, it said in a statement.  AlphaWave  also invested in VerSe, as did existing investors Sofina Group and Lupa Systems, VerSe said, adding that it would use the funds to scale up Josh. VerSe also owns news and content platform Dailyhunt.   In September, Indian content-sharing platform  ShareChat  raised $40 million from investors including Twitter Inc and Lightspeed Ventures, in an effort to drive growth for its new short-video app Moj.   Both Josh and Moj have been installed on more than 50 million devices ea...

Google has acquired Where Is My Train, a multilingual app that provides live updates on trains, offering offline integration of Indian Railways and IRCTC timetables, using cell-tower information to locate trains. The app also helps coustomers zero on trains with just the source and destination or even partial train name. The search giant has not disclosed the acquisition details. Where is My Train app was founded by Five former executives of TiVo Corporation, a technology entertainment company in US. The start up has a team of about 10 members and is based out of Bengaluru. In late August, Google was reportedly in talks to acquire the company for $30-40 million. Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi was also in the edge to invest in the Bengaluru-based startup. This is Google’s second acquisition on Indian turf. Last year, the firm had acquired another Bengaluru-based artificial intelligence startup Halli Labs. Where Is My Train will leverage Google’s ‘Next Billion User...

Warning ! If you are using Chrome browser extension from the MEGA file storage service, uninstall it right now. The most popular Mega chrome extension is being hacked by an attacker's server located at megaopac host in Ukraine and replaced with a bundle of PUP Malware for Stealing your Security Information Most of us are popular with the chrome browser and it occupies 59% Browser share world wide with complairsion to other browsers like Internet Explorer, Safari, Firefox and Opera.Google's strong marketing strategy for Chrome certainly contributed (and continues to contribute) to the browser's success. Besides actively stimulating interest in Chrome through marketing, Google's own credibility and reputation passively attract attention to Chrome. Chrome itself famous for its Simplicity and Technologies. Chrome wants the user to focus on the web content without distraction from the browser's UI. But two days ago, on 4th of September an insi...

VARINDIA- INDIA'S FRONTLINE IT MAGAZINE Warning ! If you are using Chrome browser extension from the MEGA file storage service, uninstall it right now. The most popular Mega chrome extension is being hacked by an attacker's server located at megaopac host in Ukraine and replaced with a bundle of PUP Malware for Stealing your Security Information Most of us are popular with the chrome browser and it occupies 59% Browser share world wide with complairsion to other browsers like Internet Explorer, Safari, Firefox and Opera.Google's strong marketing strategy for Chrome certainly contributed (and continues to contribute) to the browser's success. Besides actively stimulating interest in Chrome through marketing, Google's own credibility and reputation passively attract attention to Chrome. Chrome itself famous for its Simplicity and Technologies. Chrome wants the user to focus on the web content without distraction from the browser's UI. But two day...

In an attempt to make inroads into the Chinese market, which it had been unable to past several years, Google is reportedly launching a censored version of its search engine in the country. Code-named ‘Dragonfly’, the product has been secretly planned by the tech giant for almost a year. China has blocked Google's search engine, Gmail and YouTube since 2010, when federal regulators, often referred to as China's 'Great Firewall,' shut down more than 1.3 million websites. Development of the search engine sped up after Google CEO Sundar Pichai met with a top Chinese government official in December 2017, as revealed by sources. Several versions of an Android app, called 'Maotai' and 'Longfei' have been created by Programmers and engineers Google and presented to the Chinese government for review. The app would have to comply with China's rigid censorship laws, which would mean restricting access to content that government officials ...