As part of its continuing efforts to regain trust following a series of privacy and security scandals, Zoom has announced that it is introducing the option for users to choose which countries their data is routed through.

The move comes after concerns were voiced at Zoom's admission that some US calls were being routed through China. The new option will allow users to opt in or out of specific data center regions; unfortunately, this feature will not be made available to everyone.

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Cloudflare has moved away from using Google's reCAPTCHA, opting instead for the independent hCaptcha bot detector.

The company explains the reasons behind the change, citing not only the fact that Google would now like to charge Cloudflare for what used to be a free service, but also the privacy concerns that stem from anything to do with Google.

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There are privacy concerns following the revelation that confidential data from UK coronavirus patients is being used by technology firms and government to build predictive computer models to help fight the pandemic.

US big data firm Palantir and UK AI startup Faculty are working together to put together what has been described as a "COVID-19 datastore". Pulling together information from government databases as well as information from health services, the project also makes use of highly personal data relating to individual patients according to documents seen by the Guardian.

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The fallout from the coronavirus pandemic has been incredibly varied, but few people would have considered that the spread of the disease around the world would lead to a delay in the release of new emoji. But that's precisely what's happening.

If you were looking forward to a new batch of emoji from the Unicode Consortium early next year, you're going to have to wait a little longer. Unicode 14.0 has been delayed by half a year. But while this delay is a disappointment, there are a couple of pieces of good news.

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The various security and privacy issues that have plagued Zoom in recent weeks have not only caused users to look at the video conferencing software differently, but also forced the company to take a long, hard look at itself.

Having already apologized for the numerous issues people have experienced, as well as making changes to the way the service works, Zoom has now also taken steps to prevent users from being Zoombombed. The change is a relatively minor one in the scheme of things, but it's an important one.

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We are in the midst of a worldwide pandemic, so Americans should allow their rights to be trampled if it means beating the virus, right? Hell no! Not at all. Look, everyone wants to see the COVID-19 virus eradicated, but we shouldn't allow the tragedy to be amplified by allowing governments and corporations to take away our rights.

Sadly, Google and Apple are teaming up to do just that. You see, as a way to help governments, the two companies are planning to spy on smartphone users to help fight the Coronavirus. It will first be done with an optional app, but later integrated into both Android and iOS. Essentially, Bluetooth will be leveraged in tracking those infected with COVID-19 and warning those that come near them. While it sounds good on the surface, you are not wrong to be very worried.

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Social networks are a blessing and a curse, simultaneously making it easier to keep in touch with people, while bombarding us with endless notifications about what's going on in the world. Now, at last, Facebook has come up with something of a solution.

The company has introduced a new Quiet Mode option that makes it possible to silence notifications so you can get on with life without being constantly pestered. But is it enough?

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Coronavirus, or COVID-19 as it is also known, is playing havoc with the world. Worldwide there are over 1.5 million cases and just under 100,000 deaths to date. Although measures are in place, it's going to be a rough ride for some time to come.

Not helping is the disinformation that is being used to scam the people who have the virus or are afraid of it. Most are existing scams repurposed for a new fear.

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Last month, we told you that System76 was bringing back the iconic Lemur Pro laptop. The company's Lemur laptops are legendary for being sensible, durable, and well balanced. In other words, the computer is a consistent workhorse that is ideal for everyday use and beyond. You can have either Ubuntu or System76's own Ubuntu-based Pop!_OS pre-installed. Best of all, it is reasonably priced too, allowing anyone to own one of the company's computers. Look, If you love Linux, it makes sense to support the community by purchasing a System76 machine.

Sadly, System76 only told us that the Lemur Pro laptop would be available in April. We had no idea of a specific date, leaving many would-be buyers chomping at the bit for more concrete availability information. I am happy to say, we now know exactly when you can but it -- today, as in right now! Yes, you may immediately trade your money for the System76 Lemur Pro.

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Solid state drives are great for home consumers and PC enthusiasts, but that is not the extent of their usefulness. Actually, the improved performance of SSDs over mechanical hard disk drives is beneficial for business use too. In particular, industrial applications can benefit from the fact that SSDs have no moving parts, making them less likely to fail from hardcore vibration or excessive jostling.

Today, ADATA launches an all-new industrial-grade SSD. Called "IM2S3314," it uses the diminutive M.2 2242 form factor and the SATA 3 interface. The drive can be had in several capacities ranging from 16GB to 256GB, with two memory types -- MLC (multi-level cell) and A+ SLC (single-level cell). But wait, what is this "A+" variant of SLC? ADATA explains that its proprietary A+ SLC technology, "utilizes custom NAND Flash firmware with an A+ sorting algorithm to emulate SLC performance." And now you know!

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We're generating more data than ever before, but of course that means we need to have somewhere to store all of it.

Backup specialist Acronis has produced an infographic looking at how storage and backup has evolved.

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If you were hoping to get your hands on a Surface Neo or try out Windows 10X this year on a dual-screen device, you will be disappointed to hear that Microsoft has apparently delayed things until 2021.

While Microsoft has not made an official announcement to this effect, insiders say that not only will Microsoft not be releasing the highly anticipated Surface Neo before the end of 2020, the company will also not allow any other dual-screen devices running Windows 10X to ship.

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A new survey finds that 85 percent of companies believe embracing the public cloud is critical to fuel innovation. But of those who have already adopted public cloud, only 40 percent have in place an approach to managing cloud and container security.

The study by DivvyCloud finds only 58 percent say their organization has clear guidelines and policies in place for developers building applications and operating in the public cloud. Of those, 25 percent say these policies are not enforced, while 17 percent confirm their organization lacks clear guidelines entirely.

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With the current COVID-19 pandemic leading to increased demand for online services there have been concerns about the web's ability to cope.

New analysis by Fastly of traffic patterns between January and March looks at regional trends for key US states and countries around the globe that are some of the most impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Twitter has announced that it is now going to share more information about its users with business partners. In an update to its privacy policy, the company says that it is removing the ability for users to block the sharing of non-public information with advertisers.

While for many people this represents something of a compromise in privacy, the change does not apply to users in the EU, an EFTA state or the UK; users in these locations will have to opt into data sharing.

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