DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ The Wildly Popular Men’s Shirt to Avoid This Summer—and What to Wear Instead
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Ashley Ogawa Clarke | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

NECK AND NECK Two shirts, two collars—a sturdy design (left) and a flat camp style (right). Even if none ring a bell, chances are you’ve seen the style, distinguished by a splayed, notched collar that exposes clavicles and lies pancake-flat against the chest. Today’s camp styles range from $990 Celine designs with palm-tree accents right through to $33 Old Navy takes. Athleisure giant Lululemon offers a head-scratching version in a sweat-wicking fabric better suited to gym clothes. Countless trendy brands sell few other collar styles come spring and summer.

The incident exposes vulnerabilities in Japan's security system and a failure to institute changes following the killing of former prime minister Shinzo Abe during an election campaign last year, four experts interviewed by Reuters said. Fukuda said for such big, international events, authorities are able to provide solid security by mobilising a huge police presence. The government has instructed authorities to strengthen security measures and to ensure safety precautions at gatherings of VIPs, he added. read moreIn Saturday's attack, the suspect was about 10 metres from Kishida, according to media reports. He said it showed that a review of security plans by the National Police Agency could only go so far.

☆ Jack Teixeira's alleged Discord leaks show why the US should not give Top Secret clearances to 21-year-olds
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-15 | by ( Mattathias Schwartz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Nevertheless, that looks to be the US intelligence community's approach to handling classified information. The tangled views of Jack Teixeira, who was indicted Friday in connection with leaking hundreds of classified documents to a private Discord server, are still coming into focus. There are classified phone systems, email systems, fiber optic cables, and a Wikipedia clone. Aside from the question of how many people have access to secrets, it's also worth considering how many of those supposed secrets belong on classified systems at all. Who was tracking the whereabouts of the volume of secret files he appears to have sent to the printer?

☆ Analysis: 21-year-old's arrest exposes larger classified documents problem
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Zachary B. Wolf | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

If the many earlier and ongoing scandals regarding classified information aren’t a wakeup call that the US government has a problem, maybe the arrest of Jack Teixeira will do the trick. Classified material scandals aplentyOne thing that should be abundantly clear from the string of leaks and improperly handled pieces of classified information beyond this story is that the system has problems. The New York Times reported Wednesday that witnesses questioned as part of the Trump investigation have been asked if he was showing off a map with sensitive intelligence information. There are additional people who have security clearance but don’t currently have access to information. Gen. Pat Ryder, compared the method by which classified information is stored to a locked house where people with clearance can get a key.

☆ Zero Carbon Capital just reached third close on its $37 million fund dedicated to hardware and science-based companies. We got an exclusive look at the LP deck it used to raise from Isomer and Extanti
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Tasmin Lockwood | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Zero Carbon Capital reached third close on its £30 million ($37 million) fund. We got an exclusive look at the 10-slide LP deck the climate tech firm used to raise the funds. UK-based Zero Carbon Capital has closed £13 million, around $16.2 million, of its £30 million, about $37.5 million, second fund. Zero Carbon Capital wants to be the first check to lead pre-seed and smaller seed rounds, with tickets ranging £100,000 to £1 million. Isomer has previously backed hardware funds but Zero Carbon Capital is its first dedicated climate fund.

☆ Healthcare, college education, and childcare started getting worse decades ago. Now we're all finally feeling it.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-08 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +16 min

Americans are accruing billions in debt to pay for things like education and healthcare. But that would require shifting the idea of childcare, education, and healthcare and thinking of them as public goods — not businesses. That ultimately meant millions in funding for public childcare. "If the US health system was a country, it would be about the fourth-largest country in the world," Cooper said. There's much less government involvement in the US healthcare system than in other countries, Cooper said.

"Wow, the PRC (People's Republic of China) just sanctioned me again, for the second time," Hsiao tweeted in response to the announcement. Taiwan's Foreign Ministry reacted angrily, saying China had no right to "butt in" when it came to Tsai's overseas trips and that Beijing was "deceiving itself" if it thought the sanctions would have any effect. China has also banned the leaders from entering the country, and frozen any properties they have in China, it said. Chinese sanctions will have little practical impact as senior Taiwanese officials do not visit China while Chinese courts do not have jurisdiction in Taiwan. Others on the August sanctions list include Taiwan Foreign Minister Joseph Wu; Wellington Koo, Secretary-General of Taiwan's National Security Council; and DPP politicians.

☆ Tim Cook and Bob Iger to meet with House China committee members
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

L to R: Microsoft President Brad Smith, Apple CEO Tim Cook, Disney CEO Bob Iger. Lawmakers will also dine with entertainment producers and screenwriters who have been critical of the industry’s approach to wooing Chinese viewers, the source said. On Friday, lawmakers will have conversations with former Defense Secretary James Mattis as well as Apple CEO Tim Cook. China is Apple’s third-largest geographic business segment after the Americas and Europe, accounting for more than $74 billion in company revenues last year. “This committee was set up to build out the bipartisan consensus on the CCP and the actions we need to take to defend ourselves,” the source said.

☆ You may face a 'stealth tax' on Social Security benefits, expert warns. These steps can help
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Lorie Konish | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The reason: More of their Social Security benefits may be taxed following a higher 5.9% cost-of-living adjustment in 2022. Unlike other tax thresholds, the Social Security income levels have not been adjusted for inflation since taxation of benefits began in 1984. Not moving the brackets or indexing them gradually exposes more and more people to income taxes on their Social Security benefits, according to David Freitag, a financial planning consultant and Social Security expert at MassMutual. The result is a "stealth tax," Freitag said. How Social Security benefits are taxedUp to 85% of Social Security benefits may be taxed, based on current tax rules.

☆ Portuguese NGO sues TikTok, says platform 'profits from children'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The lawsuit came a day after Britain's data watchdog said it had fined TikTok 12.7 million pounds ($15.81 million) for breaching data protection law, including by using the personal data of children without parental consent. TikTok did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but told Portuguese newspaper Publico in a statement that protecting its users and their data was of "utmost importance". Ius Omnibus claims TikTok ends up collecting and processing children's personal data in breach of Portugal's constitution, the European Union's general data protection regulation and the unfair commercial practices law. Despite TikTok's age limit, it "does not implement mechanisms to prevent registration" by users aged below 13, the group said. In a separate lawsuit, it claims users older than 13 are also victims of "misleading business practices" and that certain personal data is used without their full consent.

☆ Inside Nike: Sources share claims of sexism, cheating, abuse at the world's wokest brand
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Joshua Hunt | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +51 min

The conservative blowback came as no surprise to Parker, who told Nike's board of directors to expect some short-term backlash. In late 2014, the BBC sent a film crew to Portland to interview several former Oregon Project employees. "He would be at the side of the track calling out runners' splits but wouldn't call Kara's out," Adam Goucher told me. When people asked why she left the Oregon Project, she said it was a "personal decision." "I don't think it has anything to do with who the CEO is," Goucher told me.

☆ InfoWars' Alex Jones purchased a $4,000 cryogenic chamber and spent $100,000 on guns, filing shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-02 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Alex Jones spent bought a cryogenic-freezing chamber that can help with mental disorders, it is claimedThe revelations were made in a new filing in a Texas bankruptcy court. Jones has been accused of trying to shield his wealth from paying $1.5 billion to Sandy Hook families. Jones claimed on his InfoWars show in December that he was "officially out of money, personally," per CBS News. Jones reported earning roughly $38 million from InfoWars in 2021 and 2022. The judge presiding over the bankruptcy case of InfoWars' parent company said he was "troubled" on Monday after discovering that Jones had redirected $157,000, initially intended for InfoWars, for personal use.

☆ Twitter Shares Some of the Secret Sauce Behind How It Works
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-01 | by ( Sarah E. Needleman | Alexa Corse | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Twitter Inc. opened up a significant portion of its source code, an uncommon move for a large social-media company and one that owner Elon Musk said will make the platform more trustworthy. The code, posted Friday on the code-sharing site GitHub Inc., exposes how Twitter recommends posts and identifies problems such as hate speech. It doesn’t provide private user data or a road map for creating a replica of the platform. One expert likened the strategy to a chef sharing a recipe for ingredients that only he or she has.

London CNN —Regulators in Italy issued a temporary ban on ChatGPT Friday, effective immediately, due to privacy concerns and said they had opened an investigation into how OpenAI, the US company behind the popular chatbot, uses data. Italy’s data protection agency said users lacked information about the collection of their data and that a breach at ChatGPT had been reported on March 20. The Italian regulator also expressed concerns over the lack of age verification for ChatGPT users. In the meantime, EU companies must comply with the General Data Protection Regulation, or GDPR, as well as the Digital Services Act and Digital Markets Act, which apply to tech platforms. Earlier this month, OpenAI released GPT-4, a new version of the technology underpinning ChatGPT that is even more powerful.

☆ ChatGPT banned by regulator in Italy, which says there's no legal basis for using personal data to train the chatbot following data breach
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Italy's data protection regulator announced a ban on ChatGPT, and investigation into OpenAI. It cited a March 20 data breach, and no "legal basis" for using people's data to train the chatbot. Italy's national data protection agency (DPA) said it would block access to ChatGPT immediately, and is starting an investigation into its creator, OpenAI. It added that the restriction was temporary, until the company can abide by the European Union's data protection laws, known as General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). The Italian authority also cited a data breach on March 20, where a bug allowed some ChatGPT users to see the titles of other users' conversations.

But learning how to give an authentic apology can do wonders for yourself and for the other person. As communication experts and co-authors of "Say the Right Thing," we've found that people who are good at saying "sorry" avoid two words: "if" and "but." At its worse, "if" seeks to shift the blame, effectively saying: "I'm sorry if you're so tightly wound that you can't see your reaction is overblown." For example, if you say, "I'm sorry, but I was having a miserable morning," the other person could wonder if you'll repeat your behavior when you have another bad day. Another classic form of a "butpology" that attempts to excuse wrongdoing is, "I'm sorry, but I didn't mean it."

BNAI BRAK, Israel—Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is rapidly moving ahead with a judicial-overhaul plan that could begin final passage through parliament next week, as the debate over the legislation exposes deep fissures between Israel’s secular and religious communities. Over the past three months, protests against the legislation have brought out hundreds of thousands of people in a country of nine million.

☆ Mistakes the Fed Keeps Making
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Mickey D. Levy | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

Every time the Federal Reserve has maintained easy monetary policy too long and then raised rates abruptly, the consequences have been jarring. Even when the economy managed to avoid recessions, it couldn’t avoid bumps on the road. Every episode is different, but every episode exposes the weak links. Martin Gruenberg , chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., recently estimated that banks faced $620 billion in paper losses at year-end 2022. The Fed’s misleading forecasts have contributed to the costs of reducing inflation and risk a banking crisis.

The NYSE FANG+ index is headed for its best week in one year. Semiconductor maker AMD is up 17.8% week to date, headed for its best week since July 24, 2020, when AMD jumped 26.1%. Facebook-parent Meta advanced 12.3% this week, on pace for its best week since Feb. 3, when the social media stock gained 22.9%. AMD 5D mountain AMD shares 5-day Microsoft shares are 11.4% higher week to date, headed for its best week since Nov 11, 2022 when the Xbox maker jumped 11.6%. Amazon shares are up 10% this week, headed for its best week since Jan. 13, when AMZN soared 14%.

☆ Venture investors, U.S. lawmakers join forces to fight Tiktok & Chinese influence: WSJ
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Rohan Goswami | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

A star-studded array of Silicon Valley venture investors have joined forces with a bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers as part of a working group that has one aim: Combatting China's influence in the U.S. technology industry, the Wall Street Journal reported Friday. The consortium is named the Hill & Valley Forum, the Journal reported, a nod to the group's bicoastal origins. The Forum will host a dinner ahead of TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew's Congressional testimony next week, with speakers including prominent venture capitalists Peter Thiel and Vinod Khosla, the Journal reported. Now, lawmakers, venture investors, and lobbyists are pushing for the government to ban or curtail the app's influence, citing a potent threat from the Chinese government. The ultimatum came weeks after lawmakers urged the Committee to complete its yearslong probe into TikTok.

☆ CNBC Daily Open: After First Republic rescue, the banking crisis looks contained (again)
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Yeo Boon Ping | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

This report is from today's CNBC Daily Open, our new, international markets newsletter. CNBC Daily Open brings investors up to speed on everything they need to know, no matter where they are. At the risk of jinxing the situation, the banking crisis, which has now spread from the U.S. to Europe, appears contained (again). Wall Street was cheered by the rapid response to the banking crisis. It would also benefit the overall economy, which according to Goldman Sachs has a 35% chance of entering a recession in the coming 12 months — up from 25% before the banking crisis happened.

☆ CNBC Daily Open: After First Republic rescue, fears of contagion are allayed (again)
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Yeo Boon Ping | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

This report is from today's CNBC Daily Open, our new, international markets newsletter. CNBC Daily Open brings investors up to speed on everything they need to know, no matter where they are. At the risk of jinxing the situation, fears of a wider meltdown in the banking industry, which yesterday spread from the U.S. to Europe, appear allayed (again). The Fed's two mandates, to stabilize the economy and to fight inflation, are looking increasingly at odds with each other. Subscribe here to get this report sent directly to your inbox each morning before markets open.

☆ Why Won’t the West Let Ukraine Win Against Russia?
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( John Bolton | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

New intelligence suggesting that a “pro-Ukraine group” sabotaged the Nord Stream pipelines in September triggered surprising political blowback in Europe. But even if Ukraine masterminded the raid, why would successfully disrupting Nord Stream imperil foreign assistance? Such a potentially harmful reaction exposes a larger problem, which has repeatedly manifested itself since Russia’s unprovoked aggression. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization has been spooked by Moscow’s threats to “escalate” the conflict if Ukraine isn’t kept on a tight leash. Although President Biden failed, indeed barely tried, to deter Russia’s war, Vladimir Putin has masterfully deterred NATO from responding robustly enough to end the conflict promptly and victoriously.

☆ U.S. FTC asks social media, video streaming firms info on misleading ads
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 16 (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on Thursday issued orders to eight social media and video streaming firms including Meta Platforms Inc (META.O), Twitter, TikTok and YouTube seeking information on how the platforms screen for misleading advertisements. The companies did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment. "Social media has been a gold mine for scammers who tout sham products and other scams that have cost consumers enormously in recent years," said Samuel Levine, director of the FTC's consumer protection bureau. "This study will help the FTC ensure that social media and video streaming companies are doing everything they can to keep scammers and deceptive ads off their platforms." read moreReporting by Eva Mathews in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju SamuelOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Consumer inflation may have cooled in February but only slightly
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( Patti Domm | In | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Consumer inflation may have cooled off a little in February, but economists expect it is still running at a high pace. The consumer price index, expected Tuesday morning, is forecast to show headline inflation rose 0.4% last month, or 6% from the prior year, according to economists polled by Dow Jones. Core inflation, excluding food and energy, is expected to be higher by 0.4% and the annual pace is expected to be 5.5%. Tom Simons, money market economist at Jefferies, expects the Fed to stick with a quarter-point rate hike in March. By stopping here, it exposes them to risk of inflation expectations reaccelerating," said Simons.

Search resuls for: "exposés"

25 mentions found