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Sudharma Times
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{2 august 2020 ~ 8 august 2020} |
Health
News
~by NIKHIL
1.Passive immunity: re-engineering antibodies may help in fight against
Covid-19
3,August,2020
With millions of
COVID-19 cases reported across the globe, people are turning to antibody tests
to find out whether they have been exposed to the coronavirus that causes the
disease.
Antibody tests
look for the presence of antibodies, which are specific proteins made in
response to infections. Antibodies are disease specific. For example, measles
antibodies will protect you from getting measles if you are exposed to it
again, but they won’t protect you from getting mumps if you are exposed to
mumps.
“Antibodies are
important because they prevent infection and heal patients affected by
diseases,” said Victor Padilla-Sanchez, a researcher at The Catholic University
of America in Washington D.C.
“If we have
antibodies, we are immune to disease, as long as they are in your system, you
are protected. If you don’t have antibodies, then infection proceeds and the
pandemic continues,” added Sanchez.
This form of
foreign-antibody-based protection is called passive immunity -- short-term
immunity provided when a person is given antibodies to a disease rather than
producing these antibodies through their own immune system.
“We’re at the
initial steps of this now, and this is where I’m hoping my work might help,”
Padilla-Sanchez said.
Padilla-Sanchez
specializes in viruses. Specifically, he uses computer models to understand the
structure of viruses on the molecular level and uses this information to try to
figure out how the virus functions.
Severe acute
respiratory syndrome (SARS) was the first new infectious disease identified in
the 21st century. This respiratory illness originated in the Guangdong province
of China in November 2002. The World Health Organization identified this new
coronavirus (SARS-CoV) as the agent that caused the outbreak.
Now we’re in the
middle of yet another new coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2), which emerged in Wuhan,
China in 2019. COVID-19, the disease caused by SARS-CoV-2, has become a rapidly
spreading pandemic that has reached most countries in the world. As of July
2020, COVID-19 has infected more than 15.5 million people worldwide with more
than 630,000 deaths.
To date, there
are not any vaccines or therapeutics to fight the illness.
2. Covid-19:
Face mask by Japan startup helps you speak in 8 languages
4,August,2020
C-Mask, a
smart mask by a Japanese robotic startup, has unveiled a tech face mask that
lets users stay connected to their smartphones, make calls remotely, send text
messages and more without accessing their smartphones.
The white
silicone C-mask fits over standard face masks and connects via Bluetooth to a
smartphone and tablet application that can transcribe speech into text
messages, make calls, or amplify the mask wearer’s voice.“We worked hard for
years to develop a robot and we have used that technology to create a product
that responds to how the coronavirus has reshaped society,” said Taisuke Ono,
the chief executive of Donut Robotics when speaking with Reuters.
Engineers at
Donut Robotics came up with the idea of this mask as they were looking to work
on a product that would keep the startup, launched in 2014, afloat amid the
pandemic. It had secured a contract to supply robot guides and translators at
Tokyo’s Haneda Airport, just shy of when the virus outbreak began. The
translation software being created for a robot called Cinnamon has since been
put on hold as it’ll be a while before air travel is able to resuscitate with
full gusto in the post-pandemic world.
3.
Hope for Covid-19 vaccine: Novel
coronavirus strains show little variability
4,August,2020
In some “good
news” for scientists working on a viable vaccine for COVID-19, a latest study
has found that the SARS-CoV-2 virus behind the disease shows little
variability, despite having at least six strains.
Published in the
journal Frontiers in Microbiology, the “most extensive” study ever carried out
on SARS-CoV-2 sequencing drew from the analysis of 48,635 coronavirus genomes,
which were isolated by researchers in labs all over the world.
The researchers
at the University of Bologna in Italy mapped the spread and the mutations of
the virus during its journey to all continents.
The findings
show that the novel coronavirus presents little variability, approximately
seven mutations per sample.
Common influenza
has a variability rate that is more than double, the researchers said.
“The SARS-CoV-2
coronavirus is presumably already optimised to affect human beings, and this
explains its low evolutionary change,” said Federico Giorgi, a researcher at
University of Bologna, and coordinator of the study.
“This means that
the treatments we are developing, including a vaccine, might be effective
against all the virus strains,” Giorgi said.
The researchers
noted that currently there are six strains of the novel coronavirus.
The original one
is the L strain, that appeared in Wuhan in December 2019. Its first mutation --
the S strain -- appeared at the beginning of 2020, while, since mid-January, we
have had strains V and G, they said.
To date strain G
is the most widespread: it mutated into strains GR and GH at the end of
February, according to the researchers.
“Strain G and
its related strains GR and GH are by far the most widespread, representing 74
per cent of all gene sequences we analysed,” said Giorgi.
“They present
four mutations, two of which are able to change the sequence of the RNA
polymerase and Spike proteins of the virus. This characteristic probably
facilitates the spread of the virus,” he said.
Besides the six
main coronavirus strains, researchers identified some infrequent mutations
that, they said, are not worrying at the moment but should be monitored.
4.
Good sleep quality may helps us for
forgetting old memories, says study
5,August,2020
While getting proper sleep has been
proven to play a critical role in our health, in a new study, researchers
report that sleep may also help people to learn continuously through their
lifetime.
The study led by researchers at the
University of California San Diego School of Medicine was published in the
journal eLife. In the study, researchers used computational models capable of
simulating different brain states, such as sleep and awake, to examine how
sleep consolidates newly encoded memories and prevents damage to old memories.
“The brain is very busy when we
sleep, repeating what we have learned during the day. Sleep helps reorganise
memories and presents them in the most efficient way. Our findings suggest that
memories are dynamic, not static. In other words, memories, even old memories,
are not final. Sleep constantly updates them,” said Maksim Bazhenov, PhD, lead
author of the study and professor of medicine at UC San Diego. “We predict that
during the sleep cycle, both old and new memories are spontaneously replayed,
which prevents forgetting and increases recall performance.”
Bazhenov said that memory replay
during sleep plays a protective role against forgetting by allowing the same
populations of neurons to store multiple interfering memories. “We learn many
new things on a daily basis and those memories compete with old memories. To
accommodate all memories, we need to sleep.”
5.
how common cold infection may train the
body to recognise novel coronavirus
6,August,2020
The immune system’s memory helper T
cells which recognise the common cold virus and help the body fight it off,
also identifies some parts of the novel coronavirus, according to a study whose
findings may explain why some people have milder COVID-19 cases than others.
The research, published in the
journal Science, noted that the immune system’s memory T cells keep track of
the viruses they have seen before, giving the cells a headstart in recognising
and fighting off repeat invaders.
However, the scientists, including
those from La Jolla Institute (LJI) in the US, cautioned that it is too soon to
say whether such pre-existing immune cell memory affects COVID-19 clinical
outcomes.
“We have now proven that, in some
people, pre-existing T cell memory against common cold coronaviruses can
cross-recognise SARS-CoV-2, down to the exact molecular structures,” said
Daniela Weiskopf, a co-author of the study from LJI. “This could help explain
why some people show milder symptoms of disease while others get severely
sick,” Weiskopf said.
Alessandro Sette, another co-author
of the study from LJI, noted that the reactivity of the immune system may
translate to different degrees of protection.
“Having a strong T cell response, or
a better T cell response may give you the opportunity to mount a much quicker
and stronger response,” Sette said.
An earlier study by Sette and his
team had shown that 40 to 60 per cent of people who were never exposed to the
novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 had T cells that reacted to the virus.
According to the study, the immune
systems in these individuals recognised fragments of the virus it had never
seen before -- a finding which was also reported among people in the
Netherlands, Germany, Singapore, and the UK.
In the current research, the
scientists assessed samples collected from study participants who had never
been exposed to SARS-CoV-2.
They defined the exact parts of the
virus that are responsible for the cross-reactive T cell response. Their
analysis showed that unexposed individuals can produce a range of memory T
cells that are equally reactive against SARS-CoV-2, and four types of common
cold corona viruses.
Based on the finding, the scientists
said fighting off a common cold corona virus could teach the T cell compartment
to recognise some parts of SARS-CoV-2 as well. They believe this process
provides evidence for the hypothesis that common cold viruses can, in fact,
induce cross-reactive T cell memory against SARS-CoV-2.
“We knew there was pre-existing
reactivity, and this study provides very strong direct molecular evidence that
memory T cells can ‘see’ sequences that are very similar between common cold
coronaviruses and SARS-CoV-2,” Sette said.
The scientists found that while some
cross-reactive T cells targeted the SARS-CoV-2’s spike protein -- the region of
the virus that recognises and binds to human cells -- pre-existing immune
memory was also directed to other SARS-CoV-2 proteins. Sette noted that the
finding is relevant since most vaccine candidates target the spike protein. The
findings, according to the researchers, suggest the hypothesis that inclusion
of additional SARS-CoV-2 targets might enhance the potential to take advantage
of this cross reactivity, and could further enhance vaccine potency.
6. Worried about your kids’ mental health
7,August,2020
It has been over a hundred days
since the nationwide lockdown was imposed, in lieu of the corona virus scare.
While restrictions have been eased, certain things are still a big no-no, one
of these being reopening of educational institutions. Keeping in mind the
well-being of children, most state governments announced that schools would
remain closed for the foreseeable future. While the decision came as a sigh of
relief for parents, the threat of dipping mental health of children looms large.
School has and will always remain
the most memorable part of life for most of us. But for children these days,
classrooms have turned into mobile phones, and teachers into virtual
assistants. And this lack of exposure to the outside world has put parents in a
fix.
“Society plays a major role in a
child’s development,” asserts Maanwi Malik Sharma, a city-based psychologist,
adding, “Children learn through mimicry and observation. What we show is what a
child will repeat. When they are constantly surrounded by caregivers and do not
interact with the society, they lack the connection to understand others, their
ability to explore and apply problem-solving skills, leading to dependency and
doubt. Additionally, they lack the ability to manipulate self and others.”
What’s more, increased exposure to
gadgets amid the lockdown has led to addiction in children. “Since many
children have not stepped out from their homes from long, behavioural changes
are quite obvious. Kids can’t express their emotions in words, so they throw
temper tantrums,” observes Dr Shanu Srivastava, a senior psychologist.
To minimise the impact of the
pandemic, Dr Srivastava believes parents should pay keen attention to what
their children have to say. “Listen to them, so that they can vent out their
anger, anxiety or negativity. Also, schools should organise fun activity
classes every day online, which includes various forms of dance, music, etc.”
Echoing similar sentiments, Dr
Prerna Kohli, a clinical psychologist, feels parents need to ensure their
children spend adequate time on three domains, that is, academic, social and
physical (exercise).
“While children are at home,
teachers need to modify the curriculum to a more practical, experience-based
learning. Parents need to step up in providing social and physical outlets to
children. For example, if parents and children together practised bhangra for
60 minutes daily, this would be a fun activity to address both social and
physical exercise needs of school-going children,” she suggests, adding that
the key is to create a schedule and adhere to it.
Business
News
~by
JATIN
1. Mark Zuckerberg becomes a
centibillionaire as anticipation grows over TikTok rivalry
-8 August 2020
· Being a centibillionaire
Mark Zuckerberg’s net worth passed
$100 billion for the first time Thursday after Facebook Inc. hit a record high
on optimism about the release of its TikTok competitor Reels, reports
Bloomberg. The 36-year-old joins fellow tech titans Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates
as the only people in the world who currently have centibillionaire status,
according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Zuckerberg’s fortune is largely
derived from his 13% stake in Facebook.
· Mind-boggling wealth
The
founders of America’s largest technology companies have enjoyed a mind-boggling
accumulation of wealth this year as the coronavirus pandemic drives more people
online, despite the U.S. economy contracting at its fastest pace on record.
Zuckerberg has gained about $22 billion this year, while Bezos is up more than
$75 billion.
· Big tech
The staggering numbers have put Big
Tech under increased scrutiny, with Zuckerberg, Bezos, Apple Inc. Chief
Executive Officer Tim Cook and Alphabet Inc. head Sundar Pichai testifying
before Congress last month to defend allegations that their power and influence
are out of control.
· phere of influence
The five largest American tech
companies -- Apple, Amazon.com Inc., Alphabet, Facebook, and Microsoft Corp. --
currently have market valuations equivalent to about 30% of U.S. gross domestic
product, nearly double what they were at the end of 2018.
· Philanthropic largesse
Zuckerberg, who founded the social
media giant from his Harvard University dorm room in 2004, has said he plans to
give away 99% of his Facebook shares over his lifetime.
· Global phenomenon
Even overseas, tech giants are
among the top gainers this year. Tencent Holdings Ltd. CEO Pony Ma has added
$17 billion, taking his fortune to more than $55 billion, while the wealth of
Pinduoduo Inc.’s Colin Huang has gained $13 billion to $32 billion. India’s
Mukesh Ambani has become $22 billion richer as the digital unit of his Reliance
Industries Ltd. got investments from firms including Facebook and Silver Lake.
He’s now worth $80.3 billion.
2.Donald Trump’s orders on WeChat and TikTok are uncertain. That may be the point.
-7
August 2020
President Donald
Trump’s sudden decision late Thursday to restrict two popular Chinese social
media services from the United States has created confusion about how broad the
bans on doing business with China could ultimately be.
That confusion may
be part of the point.
Citing national
security concerns, the Trump administration announced that it would bar people
and property within U.S. jurisdictions from carrying out “transactions” with WeChat
and TikTok, the two Chinese-owned apps, after 45 days. But the White House did
not define what those transactions included, leaving companies bewildered about
whether they may be forced to fundamentally change their business within a
matter of weeks.
Stoking this kind
of uncertainty is something that the Trump administration has not been
apologetic about in the past. Some White House advisers see it as a feature
rather than a bug of their policy process, arguing that the risk of further
crackdowns will dissuade U.S. companies from operating in China.
That, they said,
is a good thing because Chinese policies like “civil-military fusion” have
undermined the ability of both Chinese and U.S. companies to operate
independently in China.
“Mobile apps like
TikTok and WeChat that collect your personal or business information and that
can track, surveil or monitor your movements put you and your family in the
crosshairs of an Orwellian regime,” Peter Navarro, White House director of
trade and manufacturing policy, said in an interview. He posed a question to
mothers in the U.S.: “It’s 10 p.m. Does the Chinese Communist Party know where
your children are at?”
Navarro
acknowledged that some multinationals might oppose the measures but said that
“the American public is tired of the corporate greed that, before the Age of
Trump, sent our jobs overseas and now endangers our national security and
privacy.”
Critics countered
that the Trump administration’s unpredictable actions threaten to compromise
the secure business environment that the United States is known for, in which
rule of law prevails and the government rarely interferes in the market.
“The government
inserting this much uncertainty into the business landscape and into the user
landscape is deeply problematic,” said Matt Perrault, a professor of Duke
University’s Center for Science & Technology Policy.
On Friday, TikTok,
which is owned by Chinese internet conglomerate Byte Dance, said in a statement
that it was “shocked by the recent executive order, which was issued without
any due process.” It said it had sought to work with the U.S. government for
nearly a year but instead found the White House “paid no attention to facts,
dictated terms of an agreement without going through standard legal processes,
and tried to insert itself into negotiations between private businesses.”
A spokesman for
Tencent, the parent company of WeChat, which is widely used in China and around
the world as a messaging and payments app, said it was “reviewing the executive
order to get a full understanding.”
The Trump administration has steadily ramped up its actions in a broader economic and geopolitical fight with China, starting with a trade war that put tariffs on hundreds of billions of dollars of Chinese products in 2018 and 2019. It also introduced restrictions on other kinds of Chinese technology, including clamping down on exports to Chinese telecom giant Huawei.
3.Philippine economy dives into recession in worst slump on record as cases continue to rise
-6
August 2020
The Philippine
economy plunged by much more than expected in the second quarter, falling into
recession for the first time in 29 years, as economic activity was hammered by
one of the world's longest and strictest coronavirus lockdowns.
The Southeast Asian
nation's economy shrank by 16.5% in April-June from the same period last year -
the biggest slump in the government's quarterly GDP data dating back to 1981,
the Philippine Statistics Authority said on Thursday.
Gross domestic
product fell by much more than the 9% contraction forecast in a Reuters poll
and was worse than a revised slump of 0.7% in the first quarter. Seasonally
adjusted GDP fell 15.2% in the second quarter from the first three months of
the year.
The economic hit
from the pandemic could worsen with the government reimposing tighter
quarantine controls in the capital Manila and nearby provinces for two weeks
from Tuesday amid resurging coronavirus cases.
"The
Philippine economy crash-landed into recession with the 2Q GDP meltdown showcasing
the destructive impact of lockdowns on the consumption-dependent economy,"
said ING senior economist Nicholas Antonio Mapa.
"With
record-high unemployment expected to climb in the coming months, we do not
expect a quick turnaround in consumption behaviour, all the more with COVID-19
cases still on the rise."
The Philippines
main share index showed little reaction to the data.
Some businesses have been ordered shut and
movement restricted again in Manila and nearby provinces, which accounts for a
quarter of the country's population and most of its economic activity.
The Philippines
recorded 115,980 confirmed infections as of Wednesday, just behind Indonesia's
116,871 cases, which is the highest in East Asia.
With inflation expected to remain subdued
throughout the year, the central bank has room for further policy easing if
needed, analysts say.
It has slashed the benchmark interest rate by a
total of 175 basis points this year to a record-low of 2.25%.
4.Apple replaces Phil Schiller with Greg Joswiak as its top marketing executive
-5
August 2020
Apple announced
Tuesday that its long-serving chief marketing officer, Phil Schiller, would
step down and be replaced by Greg Joswiak, a prominent product marketing
executive at the company.
The company said
that Schiller would continue to work at the company as an “Apple Fellow” and
oversee the Apple App Store and the company’s communications, among other
duties. He will continue to report to Apple’s chief executive, Tim Cook.
“Phil has helped
make Apple the company it is today, and his contributions are broad, vast, and
run deep,” Cook said in a statement. He added that Joswiak’s many years of
leadership at the company made him “perfectly suited to this new role.”
The move follows
the departure of some prominent company leaders in the last few years,
including Jony Ive, Apple’s former head of design, and Angela Ahrendts, who
once served as the company’s head of retail.
“I’ll keep working
here as long as they will have me,” Schiller, 60, said in the company’s
statement. “I also want to make some time in the years ahead for my family,
friends and a few personal projects I care deeply about.”
Schiller’s title
as head of marketing was, in some ways, an understatement for his actual role
at the company. The Apple executive was involved in the conception and design
of the company’s most important products, including the iPhone and iPad,
working closely with Steve Jobs, Ive and Scott Forstall, the former head of
software. Schiller has worked at Apple since 1987.
In an interview in
October, Schiller reflected on the development of the original iPad. Around
2005, he and other Apple executives watched a demonstration from Bas Ording, an
interface designer, on multitouch technology, in which he pretended to scroll
on the screen and the screen moved up and down, mimicking realistic physics.
The team decided to table the development of a tablet and focus on bringing
multitouch technology to a smartphone, which would eventually become the
iPhone. The iPhone’s success, followed by the introduction of the App Store,
laid a foundation for Apple to develop the iPad.
“We all got
excited because when you think of all of the best products from Apple through
history, usually the user interface model is essential to that departure from
the past — whether it’s the mouse and the Mac, the click wheel on the iPod —
this was going to be one of those moments,” he said.
When Jobs took a
leave of absence from the company before his death, Schiller hosted the
company’s marketing events to introduce new products. Some believed Schiller
was among those who could succeed Jobs, though it eventually became clear that
Cook would take over.
Schiller has long
overseen the App Store, which faces scrutiny for taking a 30% cut of app sales
and in-app purchases. Lawmakers questioned Cook about the store last week on
Capitol Hill, arguing that the policy was anti-competitive and asking why Apple
ranked its own apps ahead of rivals’ offerings. Among other issues, they noted
that Apple tried to collect its commission on the sales from businesses like
Class Pass and Airbnb when they began selling virtual classes during the
coronavirus pandemic.
Joswiak, 56,
another longtime Apple veteran known for his gregariousness, oversaw marketing
for the iPhone and the iPod. He has worked more often behind the scenes, giving
presentations of new products to media professionals. He made few onstage
appearances but became more actively involved in events over the last few
years.
5.Aviation sector has biggest pandemic default risk: Insurance survey
-4 August 2020
The aviation
sector carries the biggest risk of corporate default as a result of the
coronavirus pandemic, according to a survey of insurers published by broker
Gallagher on Tuesday.
Only 29% of credit
and political risk insurers had seen claims directly related to the virus so
far, the survey of underwriters, conducted in June and July, showed.
Companies or
lenders buy credit insurance to get cover for non-payment for goods or
services.
Pandemic-related
credit insurance claims are, however, likely to rise later this year or early
next year, as businesses struggle to stave off default, said Matthew Solley,
managing director of structured credit and political risks at Gallagher.
Aviation, oil and
energy, and tourism were the three sectors in their portfolios that concerned
insurers the most.
Virgin Australia,
Air Mauritius and Colombia-based Avianca are among airlines to have ceased
operations in the past few months, with planes grounded by lockdowns around the
world.
Insurers also
worry about non-payment by governments, with Zambia seen the biggest risk.
In the broader
political risk insurance market, which can cover issues ranging from
expropriation to war, Argentina was seen as the biggest concern.
The survey of 76
underwriters from 46 firms in Lloyd's of London and the broader London
commercial insurance market was carried out between June 24 and July 9.
6.German laser tech company Mynaric says government blocked exports to China
-3
August 2020
A German company
that specializes in laser communication says it is pulling out of uncompleted
deals in China after the German government barred it from delivering hardware
to the country. Mynaric said on Friday that it had requested official clearance
of a planned export of products to a Chinese customer, which it didn't
identify.
It said it
received a notification "that clearly prohibits Mynaric from delivering
laser communication hardware to China."
Asked on Monday
about the company's announcement, Economy Ministry spokesman Korbinian Wagner
had no immediate comment and said the government typically doesn't confirm,
deny or comment on individual cases.
Mynaric, which
said it hadn't yet delivered any laser communication hardware to China, said it
is ceasing business in China immediately and would start extricating itself
from uncompleted transactions.
It said it
"considers its clear commitment to national interests of its core markets
as critical to its business success."
"This
commitment is even more important now, considering pending governmental
opportunities in the US - a market that is currently gaining significant
momentum," it added, citing as one example the Space Development Agency's
current examination of proposals related to a U.S. government communication
network.
Mynaric said it
"has received high interest from numerous international actors."
Increasing antagonism between the United States and China is rattling
governments and companies around the world, with the role of China's Huawei in
5G telecommunications networks one major source of tension.
7.More than 1,000 companies boycotted Facebook. Did it produce any noticeable results?
-2 August 2020
The advertiser
boycott of Facebook took a toll on the social media giant, but it may have
caused more damage to the company’s reputation than to its bottom line.
The boycott,
called #StopHateForProfit by the civil rights groups that organized it, urged
companies to stop paying for ads on Facebook in July to protest the platform’s
handling of hate speech and misinformation. More than 1,000 advertisers
publicly joined, out of a total pool of more than 9 million, while others
quietly scaled back their spending.
The 100
advertisers that spent the most on Facebook in the first half of the year spent
$221.4 million from July 1 through July 29, 12% less than the $251.4 million
spent by the top 100 advertisers a year earlier, according to estimates from
the advertising analytics platform Pathmatics. Of those 100, nine companies
formally announced a pullback in paid advertising, cutting their spending to
$507,500 from $26.2 million.
Many of the
companies that stayed away from Facebook said they planned to return, and many
are mom-and-pop enterprises and individuals that depend on the platform for promotion.
Facebook said that
the top 100 spenders contributed 16% of its $18.7 billion in revenue in the
second quarter, which ended June 30. During the first three weeks of July,
Facebook said, overall ad revenue grew 10% over last year, a rate the company
expects to continue for the full quarter.
Still, the boycott
helped amplify discussion of toxic content on Facebook. The issue was raised in
a congressional hearing this past week and in repeated meetings between ad
industry representatives and Facebook leaders. In the face of the pressure,
Facebook released the results of a civil rights audit last month and agreed to
hire a civil rights executive.
Sheryl Sandberg,
Facebook’s chief operating officer, said during the company’s earnings call
that, like the boycott’s organizers, “we don’t want hate on our platforms, and
we stand firmly against it.”
Companies like
Beam Suntory and Coca-Cola have vowed to continue pressuring Facebook,
especially as the presidential race heats up. On Thursday, ice cream company
Ben & Jerry’s said it planned to keep withholding spending on product
promotions through the end of the year “to send a message.”
Technology News
~by GAURAV
1.Intel investigating apparent leak of 20GB of
classified documents
-7 August 2020
Intel is looking into
how more than 20GB of its classified files ended up being uploaded onto a
public platform allegedly after being accessed on an unsecured server on Akamai
CDN.
The documents were
published on file sharing platform MEGA by swiss software engineer Tillie
kottmann who said that they had been passed to them by an anonymous hacker.
kottmann manages a telegram channel (@deletescape) for acquiring and
subsequently sharing leaked confidential materials with the public.
The hacker claimed to
have breached Intel earlier this year. According to kottmann: “most of the
things here have NOT been published ANYWHERE before and are classified as
confidential under NDA or Intel restricted secret.”
They said that this
release contained documents relating to a range of products such as its cabby
lake CPUs, which will launch in September and a sensor package developed for SpaceX.
the materials included internal presentations,” very horrible training videos
marketing materials and source code for various platforms.
2.Trump orders ban on transaction with TikTok
and TenCent
-5 August 2020
US president Donald trump has signed a pair of executive orders
forbidding transactions with Tik tok parent company byte dance and WeChat
parent company TenCent. trump claims that the Chinese app are national security
threats. trump described Tik Tok (a video-sharing app wildly popular among
young Americans) and WeChat (a messaging, social media and payment app widely
used in china and by the Chinese diaspora) as posing a “national Chinese apps
threaten national security foreign policy and the economy of the US.
The executive orders
come amid escalating tensions between the white house and Beijing. trump has
specifically targeted tech companies such as Huawei. ZTE and byte dance in his
attacks on china restricting their freedom to do business the US and US allies.
3.India's move to protect citizens data is resonating
globally say Ravi Shankar prasad
-4 August 2020
NEW DELHI: India has the lead in ensuring data security and sovereignty
of its citizens by blocking apps such as TikTok and US president Donald trump
has taken note of this move in his executive orders said telecom and IT
minister Ravi Shankar prasad on Friday.
“India has been pursuing
all means to protect the digital security privacy and rights of its citizens.
it has exercised sovereign power for defense and security of India while
blocking apps including TikTok and the move is now resonating globally, “prasad
told ET.
He was speaking a day
after US president Donald Trump issued separate executive orders banning US
residents from transacting with Byte Dance, owner of popular video – sharing
app TikTok as well as with TenCent -owned We chat app. the order takes effect
in 45 days.
4.ITI, Ilantus team up to deliver make in India
Identity Access Management solutions
-3 August 2020
ITI a state -run telecoms and defense equipment manufacturing Company on Saturday joined hand with ILantus technologies to deliver identity and access management solution to government agencies defense and public sector firms amid rising concerns of cyber threats in India.
Under the partnership the two companies will deliver a single IAM product comprising all the features required to address the challenges
of fragment identity landscape further, ITI will market the solution to government organization in the country the PSU said in a release.
5.With reels launch mark Zuckerberg’s personal
wealth hits $100 billon
-2 August 2020
The personal wealth of Facebook founder and CEO mark Zuckerberg
has touched $100 billion after the social network launched a Tik Tok rival
called Instagram reels this week.
With the launch of the
short -video making app Facebook stock rose by more than 6% (Zuckerberg holds a
13 per cent stake in the social networking giant).
This rise, Zuckerberg
has joined Amazona founder and CEO jeff Bezos and Microsoft’s bill gates in
the exclusive the BBC.
Zuckerberg plant to
donate 99 per cent of his Facebook share over his lifetime through the
charitable foundation he set up with his wife priscilla Chan.
Amid uncertainties surround Tik Tok business in the US Facebook has introduced Instagram reels that will allow people to create and discover short entertaining videos.
