DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

Fourteen of the top 30 advertisers on Twitter stopped all advertising on the platform after Musk took charge on October 27, according to the Pathmatics estimates. Pathmatics said the previously unreported figures on Twitter advertising are estimates. read moreThe Pathmatics estimates show continued upheaval in Twitter's main revenue stream heading into 2023, led by a pullback from top consumer brands. Among consumer brands, Heinz ketchup maker Kraft Heinz Co(KHC.O) and Stouffers meal manufacturer Nestle SA (NESN.S) stopped all advertising, according to the Pathmatics estimates. Financial technology provider SmartAsset and Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) said Pathmatics estimates showing an increase in advertising were inaccurate.

☆ Over half of millennials expect to inherit money: Take 3 steps to be ready
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Kamaron Mcnair | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Over half of millennials are expecting to receive an inheritance, recent research shows. Aside from potential tax obligations, a cash inheritance may sound like a sweet deal for the recipient. "Many people don't realize that as they're going through the grieving process, they may make unfortunate decisions," Miura says. Along with the expected emotions around the death of a loved one, feelings about the money itself can create an emotional conundrum for an inheritance recipient. Sometimes people feel guilty about receiving an inheritance based on the assumption that you should work hard to earn money, Miura says.

☆ 37 million T-Mobile customers were hacked
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( David Goldman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

New York CNN —T-Mobile said a “bad actor” accessed personal data from 37 million current customers in a November data breach. T-Mobile said no social security numbers, credit card information, government ID numbers, passwords, PINs or financial information were exposed in the hack. T-Mobile said it is working with law enforcement and has begun to notify customers whose information may have been breached. After T-Mobile (TMUS) learned about the data breach, the company said it hired an external cybersecurity team to investigate. “Protecting our customers’ data remains a top priority,” T-Mobile said in a statement.

☆ Over 500 advertisers have paused spending on Twitter- The Information
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 18 (Reuters) - More than 500 of Twitter's advertisers have paused spending on the micro blogging site since Elon Musk's takeover last year, The Information reported on Wednesday, citing a person familiar with its ad business. The social media company's daily revenue on Jan. 17 was 40% lower than the same day a year ago, the report added. The drop in the company's revenue was first reported by technology newsletter Platformer on Tuesday. Since Musk took over Twitter last October, corporate advertisers have fled in response to the billionaire laying off thousands of employees and rushing a paid verification feature that resulted in scammers impersonating companies on Twitter. Reporting by Juby Babu and Lavanya Ahire in Bengaluru; editing by Uttaresh.V, Nivedita BhattacharjeeOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ The most-popular big tech default email programs are old and vulnerable
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-15 | by ( Elizabeth Macbride | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +13 min

All over the world, organizations of all sizes, including small businesses, scrambled to upload patches and to figure out if they'd been infiltrated. Each time big software companies have changed default settings or made blanket changes with cybersecurity in mind, he points out, cybercrime fell measurably. Some of its donors are big technology companies. "Microsoft takes email security very seriously," said Girish Chander, head of Microsoft Defender for Office, in a statement to CNBC. Updating email software default settings.

☆ Cloudflare Takes Aim at a Top Security Threat: Your Inbox
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Belle Lin | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +5 min

Cloud-infrastructure company Cloudflare Inc. announced Wednesday new email security capabilities aimed at helping businesses defend against phishing, malware and other cyberattacks commonly targeting corporate email accounts. It provides web performance, cybersecurity and other services to millions of customers, of which more than 156,000 pay for its services. Matthew Prince, co-founder and CEO of Cloudflare Photo: Cloudflare Inc.Chief Executive Matthew Prince said the new security functions are also in response to an increase in ransomware and other sophisticated cyberattacks, some of which are perpetrated by relatively unsophisticated hackers. Prince said, referring to the growth of so-called “ransomware-as-a-service,” where ransomware operators provide malware programs to affiliates to launch attacks. Prince said Cloudflare, which was itself a customer of Area 1 before pursuing an acquisition, has more closely integrated its existing cybersecurity services with Area 1’s email security platform.

☆ In the era of online scams, here's how to not get tricked when starting a digital business
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Alexandra York | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

An entrepreneurship professor shares her advice on avoiding potential online scams. Business coaches — a community that's also growing on social media — provide guidance and mentorship. Meanwhile, "business opportunities," which often focus on instant financial success, "have a more significant potential for abuse," Franklin said. "Business opportunities are focused on a financial outcome in a relatively short period," Franklin said. It becomes especially important to verify all claims and customer reviews for potential coaches.

☆ Potential employees looking for remote work say they've been targeted by scammers offering them fake jobs: 'They prey on people who are vulnerable'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Samantha Delouya | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Scammers are targeting remote job seekers and luring them into fake jobs. Insider spoke to several people who said they were nearly duped into sending away money, believing it was for at-home work equipment. The business consultant job was high-paying and seemed like the type of role she envisioned amid her career pivot. Insider spoke with several people who told similar stories: A recruiter approached them with the perfect remote job. Reid said she thought the email address looked legitimate, and the job description matched one posted on the company's LinkedIn page.

☆ How to Block Scam Calls, the Top Source of Fraud Against Older Adults
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-07 | by ( Julie Jargon | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Scammers are always finding new ways to dupe people out of money. In the U.S., phone calls remain the primary way swindlers hook older victims. A study published last month by the Federal Trade Commission found that 24% of adults over age 60 who reported losing money to a scam in 2021 said it started with a phone call—the largest percentage of any method, including email, text and mail. For victims 80 and older, phone calls were behind 40% of scams.

☆ Here's what's next for the tech sector in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-03 | by ( Jordan Parker Erb | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

I'm your host, Jordan Parker Erb, and I've got some news: Today is my last edition of 10 Things in Tech. Below, we're taking a look ahead at the new year, and discussing what's next for the tech sector. Wall Street analysts explain why they think tech is headed for a huge rebound in 2023. Tech companies saw a challenging 2022, but analysts at Wedbush say the industry will grow in the coming year, with nowhere to go but up. The past 12 months have been volatile for the ad industry — and it foreshadows even more change in 2023.

☆ Twitter to expand permitted political advertising
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-03 | by ( Sheila Dang | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 3 (Reuters) - Twitter Inc on Tuesday said it would expand the types of political ads allowed on the social media platform, an apparent reversal of its 2019 global ban on political ads, as the Elon Musk-owned company seeks to grow revenue. The company tweeted it would also relax its advertising policy for "cause-based ads" in the United States, and moving forward would align its advertising policy "with that of TV and other media outlets." Twitter banned political ads in 2019 after it and other social media companies like Facebook faced widespread criticism for allowing election misinformation to spread across its services. "We believe political message reach should be earned, not bought," tweeted Jack Dorsey, Twitter's then-chief executive, in announcing the move. Last month, Musk defended his deep cost-cutting measures, and said Twitter had been facing "negative cash flow" of $3 billion next year.

☆ Elon Musk's Twitter lifts ban on political ads
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-03 | by ( Sheila Dang | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Jan 4 (Reuters) - Twitter Inc will reverse its 2019 ban on political ads, the company's head of trust and safety confirmed to Reuters on Wednesday, as the Elon Musk-owned company seeks to grow revenue. The change brings Twitter's policies closer to Meta Platform's (META.O) Facebook and Alphabet Inc's (GOOGL.O) YouTube, which allow political advertising. One platform that still bans political ads is Chinese video app TikTok. "We believe that cause-based advertising can facilitate public conversation around important topics," the social media company tweeted. Twitter banned political ads in 2019 after it and other social media companies faced widespread criticism for allowing election misinformation to spread.

☆ The Mega Millions jackpot is $640 million. These are 4 key things to do if you actually win
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-30 | by ( Sarah O'Brien | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

That's the Mega Millions jackpot amount for the next drawing, set for Friday night. The top prize has been growing since Oct. 14 when it was reset to $20 million after two tickets — sold in Florida and California — matched all six numbers to split a $502 million jackpot. "People can lose tickets, and no ticket means no money." Build a team of advisorsWinning such a large amount of money means having some pretty weighty financial decisions to make. For this $640 million Mega Millions jackpot, the cash option — which most jackpot winners choose — is $328.3 million.

☆ I fell for a Facebook Marketplace scam and lost $300. Here are the red flags I wish I'd caught right off the bat.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-28 | by ( Sam Silverman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

That's right: I, an editor at a business publication that often warns our readers about the dangers of online scams, fell victim to an online scam. Screenshot courtesy of Sam SilvermanI turned to Facebook Marketplace, something I've done numerous times before. Data provider BeenVerified analyzed 165,000 scam complaints over the past three years and found that Facebook Marketplace scams grew 184.8% in the past year. In one instance, a Michigan woman lost her $15,000 life savings in a Facebook Marketplace car scam. Additionally, Zelle scams were listed as the second fastest-growing scams by BeenVerified, with Zelle scams up 86% this year, many of which were tied to Facebook Marketplace listings.

☆ Beware the ‘pig butchering’ crypto scam sweeping across America
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-26 | by ( Josh Campbell | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

New York CNN —The FBI says America has a “pig butchering” problem. “We’re talking about a cryptocurrency investment scam that is sweeping the country.”The term pig butchering refers to an unsuspecting victim — the “pig” — being tricked by scammers into forking over money for a promised high rate of return. Once criminals “fatten up” their victims’ digital wallets, they steal the money, Rosen says. “Online criminals’ scams are only limited by their imagination, and they have an impeccable sense of timing,” says Fisher. “They will not make you pay in advance to collect your money.”There were approximately 60 fake sweepstakes victims in New Mexico alone last year whose collective losses totaled $1 million, he says.

☆ A hacker's tips on how to spot a phishing attack
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( Sponsor Post | Created Ibm With Insider Studios | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

When it comes to cybersecurity attacks, phishing continues to be effective for hackers and costly for organizations. The 2022 IBM X-Force Threat Intelligence Index research showed that phishing is the way attackers are getting into organizations 41% of the time. "I cannot emphasize enough how important it is for organizations to not only develop an incident response plan, but to test it regularly." According to the Cost of a Data Breach Report 2022, organizations with an incident response team that tested their incident response plan (versus those who did not) saved on average $2.66M in data breach costs. Learn more about incident response planning and threat intelligence here.

☆ How this HR director almost got scammed by a fake job: 'If it seems too good to be true, it probably is'
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-19 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The new job opportunity was at Novum, a pharmaceutical research company, and after being out of work for several months, Baustert, an HR director, was elated to reenter the workforce. However, when a "concerning" check arrived in the mail, she knew it was too good to be true. "After doing my research, I found out they were a legit, good company." After receiving a follow-up letter asking to set up an interview, Baustert agreed. She downloaded RingCentral, a video conferencing and messaging app, at the interviewer's request and seemingly had a good interview.

☆ Former hacker: 6 email 'red flags' that can mean someone's trying to scam you over the holidays
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-19 | by ( Tom Huddleston Jr. | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

'To'Look closely at any other recipients of the email: Scammers will sometimes spam multiple email addresses at once to save time, Mitnick says. Hyperlinks and attachmentsIf you're suspicious of an email, be wary of clicking on any links contained in the message. Another red flag: if the email contains an unexpected attachment, or an attached file that seems unrelated to the subject of the email. 'Subject'Be suspicious if the email's subject line is irrelevant or doesn't match the message in the body of the email. Be extra suspicious if the email is unexpected or unusual looking, perhaps with poor grammar and spelling mistakes.

☆ Scammers are using Biden's student-loan forgiveness as a 'cover for fraud' to get borrowers' personal information. The federal government is cracking down.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Ayelet Sheffey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The scams were directly related to Biden's announcement of broad debt relief in August. Last week, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced it would be cracking down on a scam robocall campaign that used Biden's announcement of up to $20,000 in debt relief to get information from borrowers. The FCC identified Urth Access, LLC as the group responsible for generating upwards of 40% of student debt robocalls in October. "Today we're cutting these scammers off so they can't use efforts to provide student loan debt relief as cover for fraud." A generic script of the call is typically as follows, per the FCC:"Hello this is to inform you that the Student Loan payment suspension has been extended to December 31 of this year.

☆ Why you've been getting so much Gmail spam about Yeti coolers
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Kif Leswing | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Over the past few months, Americans have been receiving emails promising them a free Yeti backpack cooler from Dick's Sporting Goods — a $325 value. These emails have gotten a lot of attention because they are sometimes able to evade sophisticated spam filters, like those built into Google 's Gmail, but they are spam emails. The spam campaign is an example of how scammers are getting increasingly sophisticated at targeting consumers to give up their private information, said Or Katz, principal security researcher at Akamai , which recently published a look into how the recent spam campaign works. A Google representative called the phishing campaign "widespread" and "particularly aggressive." The spam campaign hitting user inboxes is another reminder that online fraud is a major industry, driven by money, that continues to evolve.

The Federal Communications Commission said Thursday that it had blocked all U.S. phone companies from taking calls from a tiny communications company accused of sending robocalls that push fraudulent student loan relief services. “Today we’re cutting these scammers off so they can’t use efforts to provide student loan debt relief as cover for fraud,” FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel said in an emailed statement. It identified a single company, UrthAccess, as the central origin for a substantial amount of student loan spam. UrthAccess was by far the single biggest provider of student loan robocalls in recent months, Quilici said. It was responsible for more than 40% of all student loan robocalls in October, the FCC said.

☆ College Students Could Fall Victim to These Targeted Online Scams
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Cheryl Winokur Munk | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Scammers like to target young people because they are more likely to trust information they receive through text, email or social media. College students and other young adults are a ripe target for online scams. There are bogus loan-forgiveness and fake scholarship “opportunities.” There are online-shopping and credit-card scams. There is social-media account takeover fraud. And now, with the Biden administration’s student-loan cancellation program making headlines, officials worry young people are becoming even bigger targets.

☆ Eight Questions to Ask Your Aging Parents (and Yourself) to Keep Their Phones Safe From Hackers
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Dalvin Brown | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Scammers have a lot of opportunities to bilk people during the holiday season. How do you make sure they aren’t tricking someone you love—particularly someone who is especially vulnerable to scams? While swindlers will target people of all ages, older Americans have become the favored mark. Adults 60 and over lose the most money to fraud each year, and phone scams do the most financial damage, according to a Federal Trade Commission report released in October 2022.

☆ Ex-'socialite heiressblogger' Emily Brill is back — and she's terrorizing the pet industry
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Kate Taylor | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Emily Brill might be the most hated woman in the pet industry. Now, Brill — the preppy blond daughter of the media magnate Steven Brill — is reinventing herself as the founder of the dog-centric publication The Canine Review. Courtesy of Emily Brill Show less One reader even threatened to cancel their subscription because of the so-called bird-massacre photo shoot. Courtesy of Emily Brill Show less Brill says the photos reassure readers that "I'm not a stereotypical sort of Manhattan, head-up-my-ass, agenda, PETA person." It isn't a bad start, but "she's got a long way to go to make it really thrive," Steven Brill told Insider.

☆ Congress wants to grill Live Nation’s CEO over the Taylor Swift Ticketmaster fiasco
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( David Goldman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

It also wants answers about how Ticketmaster plans to improve in the future. Swift’s Eras tour kicks off March 17 and will have 52 concerts in multiple stadiums across the United States over five months. In its letter to Rapino, the committee also said it wants information about the fees Ticketmaster charges customers. Rapino and Live Nation have caught the ire of Congress before. Senator Amy Klobuchar criticized Ticketmaster in an open letter Rapino in the days following the ticket snafu, saying she has “serious concerns” about the company’s operations.

Search resuls for: "Scammers"

25 mentions found