Zimbabwean High School Girl Develops Messenger App, Facebook Deletes Russian Propaganda Pages, And Boeing Knew of Max 737 Problems Before Crash

Africa

Solar-powered kiosks to provide digital services in Uganda

Rwanda’s smart solar kiosk provider, ARED, has set up 10 solar-powered kiosks to offer digital services to women groups in Uganda, it has been reported. The kiosks, known as Shiriki Hubs, will offer low income groups the chance to access the internet through Wi-Fi connectivity while also charging their phones and buying airtime. The move represents the Rwandan company’s first forays into foreign markets since its inception. The move was funded by Gray Matters Capital, an impact investment foundation that focuses on women in low income communities.

High school girl develops messenger app

A Zimbabwean high school student, Felistas Zvavamwe, has developed a school messenger app, according to Tech in Africa. The student of Cowdary Park High School in Bulawayo developed the app to facilitate parent-teacher communication. Felistas developed the app because she realised “most of the children do not pass important information from the school to their parents.” The app, therefore solves the break in communication between school leadership and parents even when school kids forget to relay information from school to home.

Europe

Facebook deletes Russian propaganda pages

Facebook announced that it had deleted more than a hundred pages based in Russia which were being used to spread misleading information. Ninety-seven of the pages talked about Ukraine, while a another twenty-one focused on the Baltics, Spain, UK, and other countries in Western Europe, a Reuters report said. This is in addition to more than 2,000 pages linked to Iran, Russia, Macedonia, and Kosovo that were removed in March, 2019. Facebook is trying to comply with regulatory demands as elections take off in Europe and abroad.

UK Electoral Commission wants law change for online political ads

The Electoral Commission of UK wants a law change that would force advertisers to clearly show paid for political ads on online platforms. By displaying who paid for the ad, the Commission is hoping to improve transparency, the BBC reported. “What we need and what we’re calling for, is a very clear change in the law to make parties and campaigners say on the face of their advert, who they are, who’s paid for that advert and who is promoted,” director of regulations Louise Edwards said.

The Americas

Google to help curb online tracking

Google is looking to introduce tools in its Chrome browser that allows users to control the actions of tracking cookies, it has been revealed. Cookies are snippets of code that are used to track a user’s behaviour online, and marketers use them to understand customers better. The new tools will give users the ability to detect and deny trackers in the browser. The plan, which has been in development for six years, would limit the influence of advertisers who target users on third-party websites.

YouTuber gets 10 year jail sentence for child pornography

YouTuber, Austin Jones, has been sentenced to 10 years in jail for receiving indecent images of underage girls. Austin, who became popular by doing cover versions of popular songs, admitted to having solicited for explicit videos from 6 underage girls to prove that they were his true fans. He had built up a massive following of over 700,000 followers across YouTube and Twitter. The incident raised more questions about child safety on online platforms. Austin’s accounts have since been blocked, according to a BBC report.

Boeing knew about 737 Max problems before crash

Boeing has admitted to knowing about a problem with its 737 Max jets at least a year before two fatal accidents, the BBC has reported. The aircraft manufacturer said it had made an alarm feature optional instead of making it standard. The feature was designed to alert pilots when two sensors were giving conflicting reports. Boeing said it only realized the feature was not in standard models after deliveries had started. The company also said the issue didn’t adversely affect airplane operation. After 157 passengers of an Ethiopian Airline flight died in an accident in March, all three hundred and eighty three 737 Max jets were grounded around the world.

Asia

Toyota and Panasonic to develop connected houses

Toyota and Panasonic are planning to set up a joint company that would develop connected services for urban homes. The company will be set up in 2020 according to Reuters, and will focus on providing personalized services for homes and urban centres. “We will put our respective strengths together to offer new value in everyday life,” Panasonic’s President
Kazuhiro Tsuga said in a statement about the partnership.

Cybercriminals steal $41 million in bitcoin from Binance

Hackers have stolen $41 million worth of bitcoin from Hong Kong’s Binanhttps://www.binance.com/ence, Reuters has reported. Up to 7,000 bitcoins were stolen through phishing and virus attacks. Binance, one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world, has said it would use its secure asset fund to cover the losses suffered by its users. News of the hack caused bitcoin’s price to tumble 4.2% when trading opened in Asia. Binance has suspended exchanges until a thorough security review is completed.