European Commission says Apple breaks competition rules and charges too much
Apple's practices with its App Store and the policies relating to it means that the company is in breach of European Union laws. The European Commission says that Apple fails to comply with the Digital Markets Act (DMA).
The iPhone-maker has been criticized following an investigation by the Commission, and the findings say that App Store rules "prevent app developers from freely steering consumers to alternatives channels for offers and content".
Microsoft is still facing EU antitrust charges despite unbundling Teams from Office
It seems that Microsoft’s attempts to sidestep anticompetition legal action over its Teams software has failed. Although Teams has been -- begrudgingly -- unbundled from Office, the European Commission is believed to be forging ahead with antitrust charges.
Many rivals to Teams, including the likes of Slack, have expressed concern about what they believe to be anticompetitive behavior by Microsoft. Despite Microsoft decoupling Teams from Office and other software, EU officials are of the opinion that the company has not gone far enough to level the playing field.
Companies not ready for new European accessibility regulations
In 2025, a new European Accessibility Act comes into force with the aim of ensuring equal access to digital products and services across the EU.
This will apply to all businesses that wish to trade in Europe, but a new report from testing specialist Applause shows that while a third of global companies are on track to comply with the EAA, over third of European companies are trailing behind.
Microsoft releases KB5035845 update for Windows 10, with security fixes, new Windows share features and more
Windows 10 users have a new security update to install in the form of the KB5035845 update. In addition to addressing a number of security issues, this mandatory update also kills the Windows Backup app for many people and introduces various other changes.
One of the most interesting additions to be found in the KB5035845 update are improvements to Windows share. There are also fixes for various issues in Windows 10 including Windows Hello problems.
Meta adds a new label to show whether third-party WhatsApp chats are secure
New rules in Europe means that WhatsApp will have to offer interoperability with other messaging apps and platforms. This is something that Meta has already been talking about, having published its preference for third parties to use the Signal Protocol as the foundation for these E2EE communications.
Use of the Signal Protocol will not be a requirement for interoperability, but whatever protocol is used by a third-party messaging app or platform, it will need to show they offer "the same security guarantees as Signal". To communicate security to users, WhatsApp is introducing a new "end-to-end encrypted" label that will be added to secure chats.
Europe now has a better version of iOS than the rest of the world
Apple has released iOS 17.4, with the company pointing to the arrival of podcast transcripts as the highlight. There are also new emoji, improvements to CarPlay, and a number of bug fixes, but things are rather more interesting for users in the European Union.
With the EU's Digital Market Act coming into force today, March 6, Apple has delivered different versions of iOS 17.4 to this market compared to the rest of the world. And by different, we mean better.
TikTok under investigation for failing to protect minors and using algorithms that promote addiction
The latest online service to find itself facing scrutiny from the European Commission is TikTok. The Chinese-owned, video-based social media platform faces a probe from the Commission after an initial investigation into whether the company had breached the Digital Services Act (DSA).
Particular areas interest are TikTok's use of algorithms to surface content, with investigators worried about whether they create a "rabbit hole effect" and encourage addictive behavior. TikTok also faces criticisms for various failures to protect younger users, but there are concerns about the overall transparency of the platform, but especially in relation to advertising.
The EU's AI Act: Good regulation, bad regulation or somewhere in between?
History is littered with knee-jerk legislation, enacted with good intentions and often in response to genuine public fear. If you have ever traveled to the USA, you may be familiar with the I-94W Nonimmigrant Visa Waiver form that must be completed before entry. Among a number of questions asked, one is ‘Have you ever been or are you now involved in espionage or sabotage; or in terrorist activities -- Yes or No’. I’m sure many have often wondered whether those actually involved in such activities would be inclined to tick the ‘Yes’ box. This example effectively illustrates the challenges that all regulators and legislators should ask themselves at the outset, namely:
Are we doing this to address the problem or is it just a knee-jerk reaction to placate journalists and voters? (Remember that line from BBC political comedy Yes Minister -- “He’s suffering from Politician’s Logic. Something must be done, this is something, therefore we must do it.”)
Microsoft will give Europeans the option to remove Edge and Bing from Windows
Microsoft is giving users of Windows 10 and Windows 11 living in the European Economic Area (EEA) greater control over their software. The company will soon be making it possible to extricate Microsoft Edge and Bing from the operating system.
This is not really by choice, however. Microsoft is introducing the changes in order to comply with the EEA's Digital Markets Act (DMA). The removal options will be rolling out to Windows 11 users in preview first followed by Windows 10. Microsoft says that both Windows 10 22H2 and Winodws 11 23H2 will be fully compliant by March next year.
France bans the sale of some iPhone models for exceeding European radiation limits
Regulators in France have ordered Apple to stop selling its iPhone 12 after the handset was found to produce electromagnetic radiation levels that are higher than permitted by EU safety rules.
The Agence nationale des fréquences (ANFR) has demanded that Apple withdraw the iPhone 12 from the French market until it is able to "adopt all necessary corrective measures" to bring it in line with regulations. Failure to do so will result in Apple being forced to recall all iPhone 12 handsets.
Soon you will be able to use WhatsApp to chat with people on other platforms
WhatsApp not only remains astoundingly popular, developers continue to refine existing features and add new capabilities at an astonishing rate. The latest beta version of the messaging app shows exciting signs that it may soon be possible to use WhatsApp to send and receive messages between other platforms.
This is an important -- and much-requested -- development because while WhatsApp has a colossal userbase, it is not yet ubiquitous. The fact remains that not everyone you may want to chat with is necessarily a WhatsApp user. In the future, this should not be a problem with the arrival of support for third-party chats.
Half of European enterprises have no formal BYOD policy
The shift to remote and hybrid working has led to many more people using their personal devices for work purposes.
Yet a new survey, from Apple device management specialist Jamf, reveals that 49 percent of enterprises across Europe currently have no formal Bring-Your-Own-Device (BYOD) policy in place, meaning they have no visibility into or control over if and how employees are connecting personal devices to corporate resources.
How can Europe create a thriving deep tech economy?
Europe possesses tremendous potential in the field of deep tech. Boston Consulting Group reports that European deep-tech investment has grown by approximately 50 percent annually since 2015. It stands as one of Europe's most promising areas for growth, with leading start-ups in AI, quantum computing, automation, and more.
Nevertheless, Europe faces a dilemma as an increasing number of deep-tech firms redirect their focus to the United States to accelerate their expansion. The decision of chip designer ARM to list on the US Stock Exchange was a particularly painful blow. State-backed initiatives in the US and China present a formidable challenge for European governments, with multi-trillion-dollar investment packages providing significant opportunities for American tech firms. Europe now has an opportunity to foster the growth of deep tech firms by developing a clear strategy that drives innovation and maximizes the continent's existing strength in STEM.
Europe stays on top for broadband speeds
Comparison site Cable.co.uk has released its annual analysis of broadband speed tests around the globe.
As in last year's report Western Europe tops the regional charts with an average download speed of 118.69Mbps, with North America second on an average of 94.02Mbps.
Email attacks grow faster in Europe than the US
Email attacks in the US grew by five times between June 2022 and May 2023. However, Europe saw total attacks increase seven-fold during the same period -- to an average of 2,842 attacks per 1,000 mailboxes in May.
Data released today by Abnormal Security shows that where business email compromise (BEC) attacks are concerned, the disparity is even greater.
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