Facebook data collection fallout continues

THE DAILY CRUNCH FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 1 2019 By Anthony Ha Facebook defends its data-collection app, Amazon pulls products to comply with Indian law and Apple fixes the FaceTime security bug. Here's your Daily Crunch for February 1, 2019. 1. We dismantle Facebook's memo defending its 'Research' The fallout continues following TechCrunch reporting about a Facebook app that was paying people to collect a huge swath of data from their phones. For one thing, a new memo from Facebook's VP of production engineering and security provides more detail about exactly what data Facebook was trying to collect from teens and adults in the U.S. and India. We also learned that like Facebook, Google was using Apple enterprise certificates to circulate a consumer-facing data collection app — leading Apple to shut down, then restore access to Google's internal iOS apps. 2. Amazon and Flipkart pull 100,000s of products to comply with new Indian law Amazon has been forced to pull an estimated 400,000 products in India after new regulation limiting e-commerce businesses went into force in the country. And Flipkart could pull as many as one-quarter of its products in order to comply with the rule, according to analysis from consulting firm Technopak. Sponsored By: TechCrunch: Robotics+AI Tickets On Sale Now TechCrunch: Robotics+AI Tickets On Sale Now Join TechCrunch on April 18 for a day full of robots, AI, and thought leadership at UC Berkeley. The single-day event will bring together over 1000 of the industry's leading minds to discover the future of robotics/AI. Book your Early Bird Tickets today! Learn More… 3. Apple fixes FaceTime eavesdrop bug, with software update incoming "We have fixed the Group FaceTime security bug on Apple's servers and we will issue a software update to re-enable the feature for users next week," the company said. 4. H-1B changes will simplify application process Danny Crichton does some table-napkin math to conclude that the changes will likely benefit advanced degree holders, while diminishing the chances for regular applicants. 5. Kleiner Perkins gets back to early-stage with its $600M 18th fund The firm, which was recently rocked by the departure of legendary investor Mary Meeker, says it's going "back to the future" with a focus on early-stage deals. 6. Amazon reports better than expected Q4, but lowers Q1 guidance The online retail giant reported $72.4 billion in Q4 revenue, topping last year's $60.45 billion and besting the analysts' forecast of $71.92 billion. Amazon Web Services also played a key role, with a massive $2.2 billion operating income. 7. Vice Media will lay off 10 percent of its staff Vice is the latest digital media company to announce major cuts. The goal is to allow Vice to focus on growth areas like branded content and film and TV production. Get more stories at techcrunch.com  Newest Jobs From CrunchBoard: Wed Developer at CompuSystems, Inc. (Downers Grove, IL, USA) Manager, Tech Experience at Achievement Network (ANet) (Boston, MA, USA) DevOps Engineer at W.W. Norton (New York, NY, United States) Senior Backend Engineer at Game Closure (Tokyo, Japan) Lead UI/Front End Engineer at W.W. Norton (New York, NY, United States) SEE MORE JOBS ON CRUNCHBOARD Post your tech jobs and reach millions of TechCrunch readers for only $200 per month View this email online in your browser Privacy Policy | Terms of Service | Unsubscribe © 2019 Oath Tech Network. All rights reserved. 410 Townsend Street, San Francisco, CA 94107

                                                           

Facebook beats Wall Street estimates

THE DAILY CRUNCH THURSDAY, JANUARY 31 2019 By Anthony Ha Facebook has a strong Q4, Intel announces a new CEO and New York is cracking down on companies that sell fake followers. Here's your Daily Crunch for January 31, 2019. 1. Facebook shares shoot up after strong Q4 earnings despite data breach Facebook managed to beat Wall Street's estimates in its Q4 earnings despite a seemingly constant beatdown in the press. The company said it hit 2.32 billion monthly users, up 2.2 percent from 2.27 billion last quarter, speeding up its growth rate. And it earned $16.91 billion off all those users, with $2.38 in GAAP earnings per share. 2. Robert Swan named Intel CEO Half a year after being named interim CEO, Bob Swan is taking the job full-time. He stepped into the interim role as word emerged of then-CEO Brian Krzanich's "past consensual relationship" with an employee. Sponsored By: Impact RIP Affiliate Marketing More and more retailers are saying goodbye to affiliate marketing and using a new approach based on each partner's unique strengths and weaknesses. Learn how partner marketing can deliver sustainable growth. Get free eBook. Learn More… 3. New York cracks down on companies that sell fake followers The office of New York Attorney General Letitia James has reached a settlement with Devumi, a company that made millions selling fake followers to unsuspecting customers. The state of New York found that Devumi had engaged in illegal deception and illegal impersonation in the course of fluffing up social media profiles with its automated accounts. 4. Google will stop peddling a data collector through Apple's back door It looks like Facebook wasn't the only one abusing Apple's system for distributing employee-only apps to sidestep the App Store and collect extensive data on users. 5. Google+ for consumers will shut down on April 2nd Speaking of Google: It's no secret that the company planned to pull life support from the consumer version of Google+ in April. Until now, though, we didn't know the exact date. 6. Cheap Internet of Things gadgets betray you even after you toss them in the trash It's not just while they're plugged in that these slapdash gadgets are a security risk — even from the garbage can, they can still compromise your network. 7. Hulu announces a new ad unit that appears when you pause Yes, Hulu is introducing an ad unit that will show up when you pause a video. But no, the ad won't be a video. Get more stories at techcrunch.com  Newest Jobs From CrunchBoard: DevOps Engineer at W.W. Norton (New York, NY, United States) Senior Backend Engineer at Game Closure (Tokyo, Japan) Lead UI/Front End Engineer at W.W. Norton (New York, NY, United States) Tech Lead, Web Engineering at W.W. Norton (New York, NY, United States) Director, Loyalty and Retention at Madison Reed (San Francisco, CA, USA) SEE MORE JOBS ON CRUNCHBOARD Post your tech jobs and reach millions of TechCrunch readers for only $200 per month View this email online in your browser Privacy Policy | Terms of Service | Unsubscribe © 2019 Oath Tech Network. All rights reserved. 410 Townsend Street, San Francisco, CA 94107