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A Taiwan-based company is planning a $12 billion semiconductor factory in the U.S. state of Arizona.Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. is the world’s largest contract manufacturer of computer chips.The firm said Friday the factory will create as many as 1,600 jobs. Thousands more jobs are expected to be created along the supply lines to support production of the 5-nanometer chips.The factory will be able to produce 20,000 of the wafers each month. They’re used in an array of consumer electronics, including the iPhones and defense equipment.Construction of the facility is to begin next year, and the location in Arizona has not been determined.“This project,” the company said, “is of critical, strategic importance to a vibrant and competitive U.S. semiconductor ecosystem that enables leading U.S. companies to fabricate their cutting-edge semiconductor products within the United States.”The firm has another U.S. factory in Washington state.U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross lauded the plan as showing the success of President Donald Trump’s programs.The company’s plan to set up the facility, he said, “is yet another indication that President Trump’s policy agenda has led to a renaissance in American manufacturing and made the United States the most attractive place in the world to invest.”Also praising the move was Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who said the facility will “increase U.S. economic independence, bolster our safety and competitiveness, and strengthen our leadership in high-tech manufacturing.”“This historic deal also strengthens our relationship with Taiwan, a vibrant democracy and force for good in the world,” he said.TSMC’s stock rose more than 1.5 percent Friday morning which outperformed the 0.8 percent gain in the main Taiwan stock market.  
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An Australian parliamentary report has debunked a conspiracy theory linking COVID-19 to 5G technology. Anti-lockdown protesters in Australia and beyond have claimed a connection between the new coronavirus and the rollout of the mobile communications standard.The COVID-19 pandemic has brought disparate groups of conspiracy theorists together. Some believe the disease was deliberately spread around the world to force vaccines on to the population as a form of control. Others assert that a Harvard University professor was arrested for creating and selling the coronavirus to China. Still others insist that 5G technology is the true cause of COVID-19. It was a view that was reportedly first promoted in a social media video in March and has been shared widely on the internet.However, linking the new coronavirus to radio waves simply is not true, according to a report by an Australian parliamentary communications committee. It found that 5G technology was safe. E-communications experts said linking COVID-19 to radio waves “has no basis in science” and is “biologically and physically impossible.” This is a view shared by the World Health Organization and other authorities. They have found that 5G radiation can’t penetrate skin or allow a virus to penetrate skin.In Australia, New South Wales state health officials have asserted that COVID-19 was not spread through mobile networks or wireless technology but through infected droplets from coughing or sneezing, or by contact with contaminated hands, surfaces or objects.Australia’s chief medical officer, Brendan Murphy, has also dismissed a link between 5G networks and the disease.“There is unfortunately a lot of very silly misinformation out there,” Murphy said. “There is absolutely no evidence about 5G doing anything in the coronavirus space. I have unfortunately received a lot of communication from these conspiracy theorists myself. It is complete nonsense. 5G has got nothing at all to do with coronavirus.”Academics say that fake news and misinformation seem to be spreading as fast and as far as the virus itself. Uncertainty and fear breed confusion, and, as one expert said, “conspiracy theories offer an emotionally satisfying narrative” if even they are not true.There have been small protests in Australia by groups angry at lockdown measures, and at the government’s coronavirus mobile phone tracing app. Demonstrators in Melbourne also sought to link an outbreak of the virus at a meat plant to a nearby telephone tower.Efforts are being made to sort the truth from the misinformation. YouTube has said it will do more to remove content linking 5G technology to COVID-19.
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An Australian parliamentary report has debunked a conspiracy theory linking COVID-19 to 5G technology. Anti-lockdown protesters in Australia and beyond have claimed a connection between the new coronavirus and the rollout of the mobile communications standard.The COVID-19 pandemic has brought disparate groups of conspiracy theorists together. Some believe the disease was deliberately spread around the world to force vaccines on to the population as a form of control. Others assert that a Harvard University professor was arrested for creating and selling the coronavirus to China. Still others insist that 5G technology is the true cause of COVID-19. It was a view that was reportedly first promoted in a social media video in March and has been shared widely on the internet.However, linking the new coronavirus to radio waves simply is not true, according to a report by an Australian parliamentary communications committee. It found that 5G technology was safe. E-communications experts said linking COVID-19 to radio waves “has no basis in science” and is “biologically and physically impossible.” This is a view shared by the World Health Organization and other authorities. They have found that 5G radiation can’t penetrate skin or allow a virus to penetrate skin.In Australia, New South Wales state health officials have asserted that COVID-19 was not spread through mobile networks or wireless technology but through infected droplets from coughing or sneezing, or by contact with contaminated hands, surfaces or objects.Australia’s chief medical officer, Brendan Murphy, has also dismissed a link between 5G networks and the disease.“There is unfortunately a lot of very silly misinformation out there,” Murphy said. “There is absolutely no evidence about 5G doing anything in the coronavirus space. I have unfortunately received a lot of communication from these conspiracy theorists myself. It is complete nonsense. 5G has got nothing at all to do with coronavirus.”Academics say that fake news and misinformation seem to be spreading as fast and as far as the virus itself. Uncertainty and fear breed confusion, and, as one expert said, “conspiracy theories offer an emotionally satisfying narrative” if even they are not true.There have been small protests in Australia by groups angry at lockdown measures, and at the government’s coronavirus mobile phone tracing app. Demonstrators in Melbourne also sought to link an outbreak of the virus at a meat plant to a nearby telephone tower.Efforts are being made to sort the truth from the misinformation. YouTube has said it will do more to remove content linking 5G technology to COVID-19.
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Retailers are turning to robots to perform essential tasks that employees are no longer able to do because of social distancing regulations. The robots are cutting costs and helping to reduce the spread of infections. But as VOA correspondent Mariama Diallo reports, some fear the growing use of automation threatens jobs just as unemployment soars.
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Colombia’s commerce regulator will be investigating whether Chinese-owned social media app TikTok complies with laws on the collection and treatment of children’s and adolescents’ personal data.The announcement Tuesday came four days after the Dutch Data Protection Authority (DPA) said it would begin looking into how TikTok handles the data of its millions of young users.TikTok has achieved monumental success during the COVID-19 outbreak, with millions of people worldwide using the platform for entertainment and content creation during the crisis.Owned by Chinese company ByteDance, TikTok is estimated to have between 500 million and 1 billion users. The platform allows these users to create and share short videos using filters and effects provided by the app.The app has come under increasing scrutiny by governments across the globe.”The superintendency is seeking to establish if TikTok Pte Ltd. has demonstrably implemented the principle of responsibility in the treatment of data from Colombian citizens who use its services,” the Columbian Superintendency of Industry and Commerce said in a statement posted on its website.Minors, who are the app’s largest demographic, are afforded special protections under Colombia’s constitution, the statement said.The Dutch watchdog, DPA, has also expressed concerns about TikTok’s protection of its users’ private information.  “For many users, this is an important way of staying in touch with friends and spending time together, particularly during the current coronavirus crisis,” the DPA said. “The rise of TikTok has led to growing concerns about privacy.”The DPA highlighted the vulnerability of minors online and is poised to investigate if the app clearly states how it uses data and whether “parental consent is required for TikTok to collect, store and use children’s personal data,” and “examine whether TikTok adequately protects the privacy of Dutch children,” it said in a statement.
 
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As governments and communities around the world respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, Google and other tech giants have been tracking the dramatic changes in the mobility of people as they cope with lockdown measures.  Reporter Veronica Balderas Iglesias talked to residents in and around Washington, D.C., to find out where people are going these days, and why.
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As governments and communities around the world respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, Google and other tech giants have been tracking the dramatic changes in the mobility of people as they cope with lockdown measures.  Reporter Veronica Balderas Iglesias talked to residents in and around Washington, D.C., to find out where people are going these days, and why.
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If the coronavirus pandemic forces large-scale events to be either discouraged or cancelled this summer, American political conventions may be among the country’s cultural casualties. Instead of the four-day festival that fills sports arenas, a virtual convention would connect thousands of delegates from all 50 states, plus U.S. territories, to cast votes on everything from political party rules to selecting who will run for president – all on a Zoom-like platform.  Currently, the two parties are scheduled to hold back-to-back conventions in mid- to late August, with the Democrats convening in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, followed by the Republicans gathering in Charlotte, North Carolina. Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden has hinted that his party may opt for a virtual convention if the pandemic continues to rage on, while President Donald Trump has been emphatic in saying his party would gather to nominate him for a second term.FILE PHOTO: Democratic U.S. presidential candidate and former Vice President Joe Biden speaks about responses to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic at an event in Wilmington, Delaware, U.S., March 12, 2020.But there’s no way of knowing at this point how the conventions will play out, and politicians and political analysts are intensely speculating on what a virtual convention might look like.   “There’s two aspects to this. There’s the legal and the political,” says President Donald Trump walks onstage to speak at a campaign rally, Feb. 28, 2020, in North Charleston, S.C.Virtual or conventional convention? Former Vice President Joe Biden suggested the idea of a virtual convention in early April, days after Democrats moved the dates of their convention in Milwaukee from July 13-16 to August 17-20. That is one week prior to the Republican convention in Charlotte, August 24-27.   Trump has mocked Biden’s virtual convention suggestion. Both Republican and Democratic party chairpersons recently said plans for live, in-person conventions are proceeding.    If circumstances force a change, Brown is interested to see which party produces a better virtual experience. “We have watched parties do national conventions for years. They know what are the best ways to gain attention and excite their partisans. But this would be a whole new world. And what that means in terms of the creativity and the ingenuity is really an unknown. And there might be a differential advantage for one party or another as they proceed down this path.” Kamarck notes the final decision on how to hold the convention is not necessarily in the parties’ control. “If, in fact, we are still in this kind of very difficult situation, there’s going to be people in Milwaukee who don’t want to work at the convention. There will be people at Charlotte who don’t want to work at the convention. There will be people in both cities who do not look forward to having 20 to 30 thousand people from all over the country,” Kamarck observed. 
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Events and event planning are among the societal casualties of the coronavirus pandemic. In 2020, in the United States, the biggest among them could be national political nominating conventions. VOA’s Steve Redisch examines what a virtual political convention might look like and how it may change the way American politics is conducted.
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In a world suddenly fearful of touch, voice technology is getting a fresh look.Voice-activated systems such as Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa and Apple’s Siri have seen strong growth in recent years, and the virus pandemic could accelerate that, analysts say.Voice assistants are not only answering queries and shopping, but also being used for smart home control and for a range of business and medical applications which could see increased interest as people seek to limit personal contact.”Voice has already made significant inroads into the smart home space, and voice control can mean avoiding commonly touched surfaces around the home from smartphones, to TV remotes, light switches, thermostats, door handles and more,” said analyst Jonathan Collins of ABI Research.The pandemic is likely to provide “additional motivation and incentive for voice control in the home that will help drive awareness and adoption for a range of additional smart home devices and applications,” Collins said.ABI estimates that voice control device shipments for smart home devices hit 141 million last year, and in 2020 will grow globally by close to 30 percent.For the broader market of voice assistants, Juniper Research estimates 4.2 billion devices in use this year, growing to 8.4 billion by 2024, with much of the interactions on smartphones.Smart locks, doorbellsCollins said he expected to see growing interest in smart locks and doorbells, along with other smart home systems, to eliminate the need for personal contact and face-to-face interaction as a result of the pandemic.Avi Greengart, a technology analyst and consultant with Techsponential, said data is not yet available but that “anecdotally, voice assistant usage is way up” as a result of lockdowns.Greengart said he expects a wider range of business applications for voice technologies in response to health and safety concerns.”Looking forward, office spaces will need move towards more touch-free controls; voice can be a solution, although motion triggers for lighting is often easier and more friction-free,” he said.”However, I do expect smart speakers — along with an emailed list of commands — to be a common feature at hotels and other rental properties. The fewer touch points, the better.”Post-pandemic outlookJulian Issa of Futuresource Consulting said there appears to be “an uptick in the use of voice assistants since the virus outbreak” during the pandemic.”Whilst avoiding touching surfaces may play a small part in this, it is mainly due to consumers spending far more time at home with their devices,” Issa said.Chris Pennell, another Futuresource analyst, said he expects adoption of digital assistants is likely to accelerate, “especially in client facing areas such as healthcare, retail and entertainment.”One example of this already in use is a Mayo Clinic tool using Amazon Alexa which allows people to assess their symptoms and access information on the virus.Other medical applications are also in the works for voice technologies.Veton Kepuska, a Florida Tech computer engineering professor who specializes in speech recognition technologies, is seeking to develop voice-activated medical robots that can help limit physical contact and contagion.”If we had this infrastructure in place, we would have been better off today,” said Kepuska, who was spurred by the COVID-19 outbreak to seek funding for the research effort.Kepuska said this effort could lead to a “humanoid” medical robot which can take over many tasks from doctors or nurses with voice interaction.”The pandemic has created a situation where we need to think about how to deliver services to people who need our help without putting ourselves in danger,” he said. 
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Fiumicino International Airport in Rome is the first one in Europe to use “smart helmets” to check the temperature of travelers from a safe distance. VOA Correspondent Mariama Diallo explains how the helmets are helping fight against the coronavirus pandemic.
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More than four million Australians have downloaded the government’s CovidSafe tracing App, but officials insist many more need to sign on to make it effective. Australia has had 6,800 COVID-19 cases, 5,800 patients have recovered, and 95 people have died with the virus.  The CovidSafe App was launched in Australia just over a week ago.  4.25 million Australians have downloaded it, but officials say a greater uptake of the coronavirus tracing software would give political leaders the ability to be more “bold” in easing restrictions.  The government has said that about 10 million Australians – or 40 % of the population – need to join the program to make it an effective tool to trace COVID-19 cases.   Civil liberties groups say the technology breaches privacy, while some experts have questioned its ability to accurately trace users. But the Chief Medical Officer Brendan Murphy is urging more Australians to take part. “The other very important precondition we have talked about on many occasions is the App.  4.25 million Australians have now downloaded the App and clearly, we need to keep downloads and registrations increasing.  We think there are about 16 million adults with Smartphones.  They are our target population.  They are the people we want to get to download App because they are the people are likely to be contacts of cases, and we want as many of them as possible to download the App,” Murphy said.Sorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can
download this video to view it offline. Embed” />CopyThe federal government says it will announce later in the week if more COVID-19 controls will be relaxed following moves by some state and territory authorities to ease some public gathering and recreational restrictions. More than 630,000 tests have been carried out across the country. Australia also shut its borders to foreigners in March to stop the spread of imported cases of the disease.   A New Zealand rugby team are the first foreign nationals to be allowed into Australia since international borders were closed.  The New Zealand Warriors will stay in quarantine for 14 days before the planned resumption of the Australian National Rugby League on May 28.  The Auckland-based Warriors are the only overseas side to play in the 16-team competition.  In Sydney, another elderly resident has died at a care home that has become an epicenter for COVID-19 in Australia.  14 people have now died after a staff member caused an outbreak by working several shifts despite having mild coronavirus symptoms.  The New South Wales state government said the situation at the facility was “horrific” and “unacceptable.”   
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House lawmakers investigating the market dominance of Big Tech are asking Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos to testify to address possible misleading statements by the company on its competition practices. In a letter to Bezos, leaders of the House Judiciary Committee are holding out the threat of a subpoena if he doesn’t agree voluntarily to appear. 
 
Amazon used sensitive information about sellers on its marketplace, their products and transactions to develop its own competing products, according to a recent Wall Street Journal report. An Amazon executive denied such a practice in statements at a committee hearing last July, saying the company has a formal policy against it. 
 
Amazon spokesmen had no immediate comment. 
 
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The smartphone in your pocket may soon let you know if you’ve been exposed to COVID-19.As communities around the world consider the first steps toward reopening, there is fear that once people begin moving, the virus will spread. But COVID-19 presents unique challenges to stop its spread. Some who are infected never had symptoms; those who do fall ill can spread the disease for a day or two before experiencing a cough or body chills, some of the common COVID-19 symptoms.Apple, Google and others are working on a plan to use smartphones to inform those who have crossed paths with an infected person. They call it “exposure notification.” A digital tool for health authoritiesNext month, Apple, the maker of the iPhone, and Google, whose Android operating system powers the majority of smartphones in the world, will release software tools that will allow devices to exchange information via Bluetooth. Public health authorities and their partners will build apps that they will use to notify people if they’ve been exposed to someone who has tested positive for the virus.But will it work? There are many hurdles ahead. Many people will need to download the app for it to work properly, and many may want to be reassured that their privacy won’t be compromised, their data won’t be hacked. And there are many technical challenges. For example, if the app reduces the phone’s ability to function.“This is complicated because it’s untested speculative technology,” said Harper Reed, an entrepreneur and former chief technology officer for the Obama campaign. “If it doesn’t work, we can put people in danger. But if it does work, early notification of exposure can dramatically help our communities limit and survive COVID-19.”WATCH: Here’s how contact tracing works Sorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can
download this video to view it offline. Embed” />CopyWhere does the data live?Around the world, there’s a debate about technology and policy. Should government health authorities collect data or should the data live on smartphones? Apple, Google and some groups in the U.S. insist the data should live on phones — to protect people’s privacy but also to make the data less of a target for hackers.Some governments are working on apps that use global positioning system (GPS) data. The Apple and Google technology does not. If the app is private and secure, people are more likely to use it, said Henry de Valence with the TCN Coalition, a coalition of app developers and others working on the technology and policies underlying exposure notification.“People want to be able to help out and contain the spread of disease,” he said. “And so if you give them an option that poses no risk to them, but allows them to help themselves and others, people are just going to opt into that without having to be required to.”There are many unknowns still about how an exposure notification app will work and whether it will see widespread adoption. But there’s hope that technology may play a role in slowing down the virus’s spread.
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YouTube, the video service of Alphabet Inc’s Google, said on Tuesday it would start showing text and links from third-party fact checkers to U.S. viewers, part of efforts to curb misinformation on the site during the COVID-19 pandemic. The information panels, launched in Brazil and India last year, will highlight third-party, fact-checked articles above search results for specific topics such as “covid and ibuprofen.” Social media sites including Facebook are under pressure to combat misinformation relating to the pandemic caused by the new coronavirus, from false cures to conspiracy theories. YouTube said in a blog post that more than a dozen U.S. publishers are participating in its fact-checking network.
 
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Communities in the United States and around the world are talking about when and how to ease lockdown measures as they grapple with the COVID-19 pandemic. This disease and how it spreads presents some unique challenges. People without symptoms can infect others, and for some, it can be deadly. What if a smartphone app could let you know if you have been exposed? Michelle Quinn reports.
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More than a million Australians have downloaded a coronavirus contact tracing app within hours of it being released by the government.  Officials have said the technology would help Australia get back to normal and help lift restrictions, but it has been criticized by civil liberties groups.  Australia has managed to control its coronavirus outbreak, but officials worry about the risk of another flareup.  There are 6,713 confirmed Covid-19 infections in Australia.  83 people have died.  The Australian government says the voluntary app will help to save lives.  It is designed to enable health officials to trace people potentially exposed to COVID-19.  Smartphone users who download the app will be notified if they have had contact with another user who has tested positive for coronavirus.  It uses Bluetooth signals to log when people have been close to one another.   Officials believe it could help to trace undiagnosed COVID-19 infections.  They have insisted the data will only be used by state health authorities.   
 
“No Australian should have any concerns about downloading this app.  It is only for one purpose; to help contact tracing if someone becomes positive,” says Australia’s chief medical officer Brendan Murphy. “I think Australians will rise to the challenge because they have risen to the challenge of distancing, they have risen to the challenge of testing.” The CovidSafe app is based on software used in Singapore.  But civil liberties campaigners say it is an invasion of privacy.   Pauline Wright from the Law Council of Australia says data protection safeguards are needed. “If there are problems then people need to have the assurance that it will be overseen by an independent authority,”  she said.
 
The government wants at least 40% of Australians — roughly 10 million people — to sign up to make the Covid-19 digital tracking measure effective.   
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Seventy-five-year-old Eileen Higa loves to travel and has visited many countries, but she never got a chance to see the Indonesian island of Bali. After moving into Silverado Beverly Place, a memory care community in Los Angeles, she thought she would never have a chance to see exotic places again.  But on a sunny day before lunch, Higa’s dream came true, with virtual reality (VR). When she placed a VR headset over her eyes, the four walls around her disappeared, and she was transported to Bali, where a tour guide showed her key sites around the island.“I like to travel, so for me, it’s great,” Higa said.Sorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can
The second image: Eileen Higa feels happy and excited after an adventurous, action-filled virtual reality experience. (E. Lee)“Increasingly over the last few years, noticing first minor memory issues and then bigger things and even bigger things,” said Kevin Higa, who remembered his mother getting increasingly isolated at home.“A lot of concerns and a lot of worries with her living alone with the Alzheimer’s and the dementia.”Signs of promise with VREileen Higa is not the only person who has experienced benefits after a session of virtual reality.In a small pilot study with VR company MyndVR, a few participants felt dizzy, but others responded positively to the experience.“It seemed like it improved their mood,” said Kim Butrum, a gerontological nurse practitioner and senior vice president for clinical services at Silverado. “We saw less depression, a little less anxiety later in the day.”
Researchers are looking into the benefits of virtual reality as a tool to fight isolation and loneliness linked to physical and mental conditions such as cognitive decline. Studies have found social isolation to be associated with a higher risk of mortality. VR for seniors during the pandemicFeelings of loneliness and social isolation could be exacerbated during the pandemic.   Older adults are believed to be at a higher risk of life-threatening complications if infected with COVID-19. As a result, many senior living facilities have been on lockdown, not allowing visitors inside and limiting activities in the facilities to protect the residents. MyndVR is donating VR headsets to senior living communities across the U.S., along with access to its library of content for a year to keep seniors engaged.The communities see VR as a way of treating the symptoms of dementia without having to use antipsychotic drugs, which come with side effects including stiffness, a higher tendency of falling, abnormal movements and confusion.   Could VR improve quality of life for seniors? Butrum said the possibility is there. “We’re not sure where it’s (VR) going to lead, and that’s why we’re excited to be moving forward with this.  “Even to someone living on hospice, what if when they’re in bed and maybe too frail to get up and participate in the life of the community, but that they could see somewhere they went with their loved one and a trip to Paris again. What would that do in terms of improving their quality of life? We do think we’re going to see impact.”Eileen Higa liked her virtual reality experience because it allowed her to do an activity she otherwise would not be able to do.   Through the magic of VR, Higa can continue to experience new things and travel to exotic places in this next chapter of her life.   
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Amazon.com Inc is piloting the use of video conference calls to verify the identity of merchants who wish to sell goods on its websites, in a new plan to counter fraud without in-person meetings in the pandemic, the company said on Sunday. The world’s largest online retailer has long faced scrutiny over how it polices counterfeits and allegedly unsafe products on its platform. Fakes have frustrated top labels like Apple Inc and Nike Inc and discouraged some from selling via Amazon at all. Amazon said its pilot began early this year and included in-person appointments with prospective sellers. However, it switched exclusively to video conferencing in February because of social distancing requirements related to the highly contagious coronavirus, which has infected more than 2.9 million people globally. The interview vetting, on top of other risk-screening performed by Amazon, has been piloted with more than 1,000 merchant applicants based in China, the United States, United Kingdom and Japan, Amazon said. The extra scrutiny by Amazon could make it harder for some China-based sellers, who have registered multiple accounts using private internet networks or fake utility bills. China-based merchants accounted for 40% of the top 10,000 Amazon sellers in Europe, according to 2019 research from firm Marketplace Pulse.
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Elderly people are believed to be especially susceptible to the coronavirus. As a result, many senior living facilities have been on lockdown mode, not allowing visitors in order to protect the residents. But experts say this social isolation could lead to feelings of loneliness for many seniors.  One virtual reality company, MyndVR, is donating VR headsets to all 50 U.S. states to keep seniors engaged.  VOA’s Elizabeth Lee reports on the potential benefits of a virtual reality experience.
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The cancellation of marathons and major races because of coronavirus lockdown measures doesn’t mean sports lovers can’t compete. Racing and breaking records is still possible – it’s just a bit more complicated. Maxim Moskalkov reports. 
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Outside of rural areas and some medical practices, telemedicine in the U.S. has been slow to catch on. But the pandemic’s social-distancing requirement has accelerated the use of telemedicine worldwide, particularly primary care visits over video chat. Doctor and patient alike are learning that a lot can be accomplished remotely. Michelle Quinn takes a look.
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Google said Thursday it would expand its program of verification of advertisers on its platform as part of an effort to weed out fraud and “bad actors.”   The internet giant and global leader in digital advertising said it would start by verifying advertisers in phases in the United States and expand the program globally.   The move builds on Google’s efforts launched in 2018 to verify political advertisers with a requirement to indicate where they are located.    Google’s action comes amid growing concerns over ads promoting fraud or fake treatment for coronavirus, among other things.   “As part of this initiative, advertisers will be required to complete a verification program in order to buy ads on our network,” Google’s ads integrity chief John Canfield said in a blog post.   “Advertisers will need to submit personal identification, business incorporation documents or other information that proves who they are and the country in which they operate.”   With the change, which will take “a few years” to complete, according to Canfield, users will be able to click on a link to get information about specific advertisers.   “This change will make it easier for people to understand who the advertiser is behind the ads they see from Google and help them make more informed decisions when using our advertising controls,” he said.   “It will also help support the health of the digital advertising ecosystem by detecting bad actors and limiting their attempts to misrepresent themselves.” 
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Apple Inc. plans to sell Mac computers with its own main processors by next year based on the chip designs currently used in its iPhones and iPads, Bloomberg reported Thursday.The iPhone maker is working on three Mac processors based on the A14 processor in its next iPhone, suggesting the company will transition more of its Mac lineup away from current supplier Intel Corp., the report added, citing people familiar with the matter.Apple started using Intel’s processors in 2006 and a year later all Mac computers featured its chips. Since then, Intel has made chips for other Apple products such as modem chips for its iPhones.Apple has always relied on outside suppliers for its modem chips, a crucial part that connects devices like the iPhone to wireless data networks.In a bid to make its own chips, Apple bought a majority of Intel’s modem business last July for $1 billion and settled a long legal battle with supplier Qualcomm Inc. over the chipmaker’s patent licensing practices.Apple’s Mac computers generated $7.16 billion in revenue in the last reported quarter while Intel’s PC unit that includes modem chip sales recorded $10 billion in sales in the last quarter.Apple was planning to use its own chips in Mac computers beginning as early as 2020, Bloomberg reported in April 2018.Apple and Intel did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comments.
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Zoom Video Communications Inc. said Wednesday it was upgrading the encryption features on its video conferencing app to quell safety concerns as its users surged by 50 percent in the past three weeks.Zoom now has over 300 million daily users after adding 100 million in the last 22 days, the company said, even as it faces a barrage of criticism from cyber security experts and users alike over bugs in its codes and the lack of end-to-end encryption of its chat sessions.The use of Zoom has soared with corporate offices, political parties, school districts, organizations and millions across the world working from home after lockdowns were enforced to slow the spread of the coronavirus.The app’s issues, including “Zoombombing” incidents where uninvited guests crash meetings, led to several companies, schools and governments to stop using the platform.In response, the company said it would be rolling out a new version of the app, Zoom 5.0 within the week.The company, which competes with Microsoft Teams and Cisco’s Webex has also launched a 90-day plan to improve the app and appointed former Facebook security chief Alex Stamos as an adviser.Zoom said it had made several changes to its user interface, including offering password protection and giving more controls to meeting hosts to check unruly participants.To account for criticism that the company had routed some data through Chinese servers, Zoom said an account admin can now choose data center regions for their meetings.Zoom shares closed up nearly 5 percent at $150.25 on Wednesday. 
  
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Far-right computer hackers have published nearly 25,000 email addresses allegedly belonging to several major organizations fighting the coronavirus pandemic, including the World Health Organization, the U.S. National Institutes of Health and the World Bank.The SITE Intelligence Group, which monitors extremist activities, has yet to confirm the addresses are genuine but said that the hackers posted the email addresses across far-right messaging and chat sites, as well as Twitter, this week.“Using the data, far-right extremists were calling for a harassment campaign while sharing conspiracy theories about the coronavirus pandemic,” SITE Executive Director Rita Katz said. “The distribution of these alleged email credentials was just another part of a monthslong initiative across the far right to weaponize the COVID-19 pandemic.”It is unclear where the hackers got the email addresses. Other victims of the hacks include the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; the Gates Foundation; and the Wuhan Institute of Virology, a research center in the Chinese city where the COVID-19 outbreak began in December.While those affected by the security breach did not comment on the specifics of the case, NIH and the Gates Foundation both said they consistently monitor data security and take appropriate action.A Twitter spokeswoman said the company is taking action to remove in bulk any links that send users to far-right websites where the alleged email addresses can be found.An Australian cybersecurity expert, Robert Potter, told The Washington Post that the WHO’s password security is appalling and that he was able to get into its computer system simply by using email addresses the WHO posted on the internet.“Forty-eight people have ‘password’ as their password,” Potter said, adding that others used their own first name or the word “changeme.”He said the right-wingers may have been able to buy the WHO passwords on what is called the dark web, a part of the internet that is not seen by search engines.Megan Squire, a computer science professor at Elon College in North Carolina who monitors right-wing extremism online, said neo-Nazis and white supremacists are looking to exploit the coronavirus pandemic to stir up violence, chaos and anti-Semitism, hoping it will all lead to a collapse of society and a white power takeover.“The fantasizing about it is not limited. They are really doing that to a great extent — openly fantasizing about how this is the event they’ve been waiting for, this is going to bring about the societal collapse they all hope for … bringing down infrastructure and so on. That’s all fantasy/hopefulness on their part.”Squire said the password hack may be part of an effort to get people to read the WHO or Gates Foundation emails to look for what the extremists believe are conspiracies surrounding the pandemic, including far-right theories that the coronavirus was created and deliberately released from the Chinese or that COVID-19 is part of a Jewish plot.Masood Farivar contributed to this report.
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