Internet news

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OpenAI to challenge Google with new search functionality

OpenAI on Thursday said it was putting its artificial intelligence engine to work in a challenge to Google's market-dominating search engine.

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Google's brand ads are a 'sham,' but companies have to buy them anyway, report finds

If you use Google—and chances are you do—then you're used to seeing ads when searching online. But how do those ads get on Google search and, more importantly, who is paying for them? It's easy to assume Nike pays for ...

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Meta takes down thousands of Facebook, Instagram accounts running sextortion scams from Nigeria

Meta said Wednesday that it has taken down about 63,000 Instagram accounts in Nigeria running sexual extortion scams and has removed thousands of Facebook groups and pages that were trying to organize, recruit and train new ...

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US Senate to vote on kids online safety bills

The US Senate will vote on a pair of bills this week designed to protect children online which would be the first major legislation targeting the tech industry in a generation.

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In U-turn, Google sticks with tracking 'cookies'

Google on Monday said it was ditching its long mooted plan to block tracking "cookies" on its Chrome browser after years of resistance from online publishers and questions from regulators.

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Conspiracy theories take off after global IT crash

From fearmongering about a looming "World War III" to false narratives linking a cabal of global elite to a cyberattack, a torrent of online conspiracy theories took off Friday after a major IT crash.

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Musk's X misleads users with blue checks, EU charges

Tech billionaire Elon Musk's X platform is deceiving users with its blue checkmarks for certified accounts, and is also violating EU content rules, Brussels said Friday, in a finding that could lead to hefty fines.

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Bot can spot depressed Twitter users in 9 out of 10 cases

A newly developed algorithm can spot depression in Twitter users with 88.39% accuracy. Developed by researchers at Brunel University London and the University of Leicester, the algorithm determines someone's mental state ...

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Twitter says it's testing an 'edit' button

Twitter tweeted Tuesday that it is indeed working on a way for users to edit their 280-character messages, although it says the project has nothing to do with the fact that edit-function fan Elon Musk was just revealed as ...

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EXPLAINER: What Elon Musk at Twitter might mean for users

Tesla CEO Elon Musk now has a 9% stake in Twitter and a seat on its corporate board of directors, raising questions about how the billionaire business magnate could reshape the social media platform. He is now Twitter's biggest ...

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New Twitter biggie Musk may have thoughts on edit button

Elon Musk, the billionaire Tesla CEO and power Twitter user who is now Twitter's largest shareholder and newly appointed board member, may have thoughts on a long-standing request from users: Should there be an edit button?

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Five fact-checking tips from disinformation experts

For International Fact Checking Day (April 2), we met with the European Digital Media Observatory, which is an EU-wide platform for combatting disinformation while protecting the core value of freedom of expression.

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Why doesn't the metaverse look as disruptive as it should?

Virtual real estate is booming. In December 2021, one buyer spent US$450,000 (around £332,500) on a plot of land in rapper Snoop Dogg's virtual world. Which begs the question of what will be built there.

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Hackers got user data from Meta with forged request

Facebook owner Meta gave user information to hackers who pretended to be law enforcement officials last year, a company source said Wednesday, highlighting the risks of a measure used in urgent cases.

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New study reveals why Facebook ads can miss target

New research from North Carolina State University offers insight into why Facebook's targeted advertising can sometimes be more like a wild pitch. Researchers already knew Facebook creates interest profiles for users based ...

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How European rulings imperil flagship Google product

Lax laws and sweetheart deals are becoming a thing of the past for big tech firms, particularly in Europe where a series of rulings is posing a major threat to one of Google's flagship products.

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Bitcoin ETFs: What are they and how to invest in them?

As the price of Bitcoin soared since first being introduced, investors have sought ways to get a piece of the cryptocurrency action. Financial firms have rushed to come up with products that feed investors' crypto appetite, ...

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YouTube offers thousands of free TV episodes—with ads

YouTube on Wednesday began streaming some 4,000 television episodes from shows like "Hell's Kitchen" and "Heartland" to US viewers as the site tries to capture viewers in a fiercely competitive market.

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'Kill more': Facebook fails to detect hate against Rohingya

A new report has found that Facebook failed to detect blatant hate speech and calls to violence against Myanmar's Rohingya Muslim minority years after such behavior was found to have played a determining role in the genocide ...