Insights

Communication and Technology news
Facebook’s Disaster Maps Help Rescuers Know Where They’re Needed Most
2018-04-09

By giving data about where people end up after natural disasters to aid workers, the social networking site has helped streamline the process of getting relief to victims. When natural disasters strike, people generally have two options: stay or flee. Either way, you can bet they’re keeping their phone with...

The 2018 World Changing Ideas Awards Finalists
2018-04-09

Fast Company’s second-annual World Changing Ideas Awards drew nearly 1,400 submissions in 12 categories. These 240 entries made it to the final round of judging. GENERAL EXCELLENCE AeroFarms, AeroFarms Aidbox, Aidbox AI-powered aeroponics, GrowX Automated cricket farms, Aspire Food Group The Children’s...

Facebook has suspended a quiz app maker for Cambridge Analytica-like tactics
2018-04-09

New York-based CubeYou was using personality quizzes on Facebook to harvest user data for marketing purposes, despite stating its quizzes were for “nonprofit academic research that has no connection whatsoever to any commercial or profit-making purpose or entity,” reports CNBC. Facebook apparently had no...

This Bathroom Innovation Eases Period Pain–And Builds Community
2018-04-09

The Warm Wall–the winner of the students category in Fast Company’s 2018 World Changing Ideas Awards–is designed to offer a soothing presence in public restrooms. Last year, while working on her thesis project for her master’s degree at Pratt in New York City, Lauren Lee–an...

You can now find out if Cambridge Analytica accessed your Facebook data
2018-04-09

Facebook has begun sending out notifications to users who were affected by the Cambridge Analytica data scandal, reports the BBC. To find out if you are 1 of the (at least) 87 million users affected, simply log on to your Facebook account via the app or web browser after 7 a.m. ET today. If you … Continue...

FTC complaint says YouTube should be fined billions for harvesting children’s data
2018-04-09

More than 20 advocacy, consumer, and privacy groups have filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission alleging that YouTube parent company Google has violated U.S. child protection laws by collecting personal data on children under 13 years old, reports CNBC. Specifically, the complaint alleges that Google...

This clever new font combines braille with Latin and Japanese alphabets
2018-04-09

In an effort to make braille more accessible for the visually impaired in signage and printed media, Tokyo-based designer Kosuke Takahashi has hit upon a novel solution that merges those characters with English and Japanese alphabets, so they appear in the same place. Essentially, the fonts in Takahashi’s Braille...

Twitter takes away @bitcoin from BCH fans and Roger Ver is crying free speech
2018-04-09

Yesterday, Twitter briefly suspended the @bitcoin handle on its platform, sparking an outrage among Bitcoin Cash (BCH) supporters. The micro-blogging service has since reinstated the account, but it remains unclear who is in control of it. One thing is for sure though: It no longer belongs to Bitcoin.com CEO Roger...

When Jack Dorsey’s Fight Against Twitter Trolls Got Personal
2018-04-09

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey has taken an increasingly aggressive approach to policing the social media platform. Last November, Twitter stripped Richard Spencer, the high-profile white nationalist, of his blue checkmark, his verified status on the social media platform. His badge’s removal, coinciding with a purge...

Twitter thinks it can stop abuse by teaching trolls the rules
2018-04-09

While Facebook is off fighting a number of fires caused by its failure to protect users’ privacy, Twitter still hasn’t yet solved its abuse problem. However, it now has a grand plan: show trolls a list of rules they must abide by on the platform to avoid being booted out. Susan Benesch and J. Nathan Matias, who...

YouTube Kids may soon feature handpicked videos that are safe to watch
2018-04-09

In the past three years since its launch, YouTube’s Kids app, which is designed to surface child-friendly content, has come under fire numerous times for featuring videos that are inappropriate – and in some cases, downright disturbing – for young viewers. Over the weekend, BuzzFeed News reported that the...

Facebook will alert you if Cambridge Analytica grabbed your data
2018-04-09

Facebook says it will notify 87 million users of its service that they affected by the Cambridge Analytica scandal, which saw the data analytics firm snap up their personal information through the social network to influence voters. The news comes ahead of Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s appointment to testify before...

Duolingo Suddenly Has Over Twice As Much Language Learning Material
2018-04-09

The free app’s new leveling-up design lets enthusiasts start developing advanced skills even when they are just starting out. With 25 million monthly active users, Duolingo has become an immensely popular language-learning app, for good reason. It offers free instruction in 31 tongues, and it’s genuinely...

An academic ethical review could have prevented the Cambridge Analytica breach
2018-04-08

When the Facebook data of 50m users was collected by Cambridge academic Aleksandr Kogan, his actions reportedly came to the attention of colleagues who regarded his subsequent use of the data as unethical. The university revealed that Kogan had unsuccessfully applied for ethics approval in 2015 to use data collected...

Avoid this privacy fuck-up when sharing Google Docs
2018-04-07

Out of the numerous companies I’ve worked with in the past years, most use Google Docs to submit and collaborate on draft articles and documents. Google’s productivity suite has become the defacto work platform for millions of people and organizations across the world. And with good reason: It’s free, it’s...

Facebook Messenger will soon let you ‘unsend’ messages just like Mark Zuckerberg
2018-04-06

Earlier today, TechCrunch broke the news that Facebook had wiped messages Mark Zuckerberg and other executives had sent on Messenger. While Facebook said deleting messages from top management was a security issue, it felt kind of shady, especially considering the company recently admitted its automated systems...

Facebook Will Soon Find Out If All Those Campaign Contributions Bought It Any Friends In Congress
2018-04-06

A MapLight analysis found that the social network and its employees have given more than $3.1 million to federal candidates during the last decade. MapLight is a nonprofit organization that reveals the influence of money in politics.Read Full Story

This company aims to solve coder gender gap by getting girls hooked early
2018-04-06

Every year, major tech companies publish their diversity reports, with special attention paid to their gender diversity. The lack of female employees in technical or engineering positions has become a yardstick for measuring efforts towards parity. For 10 Degrees, a company of WordPress specialists in the UK, it...

Scam Alert: ElectrumPro is not an upgrade to Electrum
2018-04-06

If you are starting a new brand, remember to buy all the domains associated with that name. Electrum is learning this the hard way. Electrum, a popular bitcoin wallet service, uses electrum.org as its primary web address. “An alleged scammer has since bought the similar-sounding .com domain, which they’re using...

As Facebook ignores memes, even fake news about Mark Zuckerberg spreads like wildfire
2018-04-06

A few days ago, the Columbia Journalism Review published a thorough and frightening look into Facebook’s fact-checking program. The social network enlists organizations like Snopes and PolitiFact to scroll through thousands of contested articles and deem how factual they are. As CJR writes, the news...

Amy Schumer just canceled an interview with a Sinclair station. Will other celebs follow?
2018-04-06

Last week, Deadspin published an alarming video that quickly went viral and had an explosive impact. The video showed anchors from local news stations owned by the Trump-friendly Sinclair Broadcast Group, all repeating the same scripted warning about bias in mainstream media. After spreading online for several days,...

Inside The Never-Ending Trump-Clinton Twitter Psychodrama
2018-04-06

Never-reported details reveal how the social network and presidential campaigns stumbled in real time in 2016. Will Twitter learn from the past to do better in the elections ahead? The morning after U.S. voters elected Donald Trump president, Twitter headquarters looked nearly deserted. Many employees, shocked by his...

Here’s how Deliveroo plans to just eat its competitors
2018-04-06

This interview is part of our series of Growth Stories. We interviewed the founders and CEOs of 20 of the fastest growing startups in Europe. We asked them about their companies, their companies’ culture, and their lives, trying to understand how these three factors played a role in the achievement of such...

Google Glass makes you a worse driver (and look absolutely ridiculous)
2018-04-06

Face-mounted computers like Google’s ill-fated Glass project are often feted as safe alternatives to using your phone while behind the wheel. However, new research from the University of Texas at San Antonio has proved that isn’t the case. Google Glass doesn’t just make you look utterly ridiculous, but also...

Do you need software for social media management automation?

We recommend SocialPilot