Trump is back -- here’s what it means for IoT


On January 20, Donald Trump was inaugurated to the highest office in the United States of America. If his last four-year term contains hints about his next four-year term, the tech sector can expect more protectionist policies reflected in tariffs, trade wars, and production.
For connected devices in the Internet of Things, this means flow-on effects in manufacturing supply chains and potentially stricter cybersecurity oversight. Let’s explore.
2021 Prediction #1: Trump will do fine without Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook


I’m no Trumper. This prediction has nothing to do with politics and everything to do with how social media actually works. Following the U.S. Capitol riot of January 6th, President Trump was bumped from nearly all social media, even YouTube, with many of those changes subsequently made permanent. These moves led to speculation that Trump would be hobbled without his beloved accounts, his immediate impact on public discourse muted without the ability to tweet. While this may be true in the very immediate sense, it won’t last. Even Trump, the technical luddite, will figure it out and roar back shortly with or without those accounts.
This prediction is very similar in thinking to a column I wrote last August -- President Trump thinks he can shut down WeChat: It won’t work. That column made the simple point that such bans are hard to make stick, even for a U.S. President, simply because of the international nature and foreign hosting of the WeChat service.
Users flock to decentralized social media platforms in the wake of Trump ban


The fallout from Donald Trump's ban from Twitter and suspension from Facebook, and Amazon's de-platforming of Parler continues as large numbers of users have been signing up to alternative social networks.
Many of these like Gab and Mastodon are decentralized in that they run on their own servers rather than relying on the public cloud so they are not at the mercy of larger businesses.
Facebook is banning all mentions of 'stop the steal'


In the run-up to Inauguration Day, and in the wake of violent events at the Capitol last week, tensions are running high in the US. With numerous social media platforms having banned outgoing president Trump from using their services, Facebook has now announced that it is banning a phrase that has become strongly associated with right-wing conspiracy theories about election fraud.
Having already removed a group called Stop the Steal a couple of months ago, Facebook is now going to be removing all content that uses these words. The phrase "stop the steal" is effectively banned on both Facebook and Instagram, and the company says that it will be working around the clock to enforce its policies until after president-elect Joe Biden is inaugurated.
What do Trump, Biden, COVID and your dog have in common?


They're all likely to be part of your password according to a new survey from security.org which asked 750 Americans to share their password strategies and security habits.
It reveals some worrying trends, 45 percent of Americans are using passwords that are eight characters or less, with only 15 percent using strong password generators.
Facebook removes Nazi Trump ads while Twitter flags up 'racist baby' tweet


The Trump administration has been dealt a double blow on social media after Twitter flagged a tweet from the president as "manipulated media" and Facebook remove election ads that featured a Nazi symbol and called for Antifa to be declared a terrorist organization.
On Twitter, Trump retweeted a video labelled as depicting a "racist baby" and made to look like a CNN news clip. In the case of Facebook, an ad that violated the company's policies against organized hate was taken down.
Twitter hides Trump tweet for violating rules about glorifying violence


Donald Trump's war with Twitter looks likely to heat up after the social media site hid one of the president's tweets for "glorifying violence".
Tweeting about people in people in Minneapolis protesting about the killing of George Floyd by a police officer, Trump referred to the protestors as "thugs". He then went on to say "any difficulty and we will assume control but, when the looting starts, the shooting starts" -- and it was this phrase which fell foul of Twitter rules.
Trump threatens to close social media platforms following Twitter spat


There have long been complaints from the right that online platforms censor conservative opinions because of a liberal bias. Now after being fact-checked by Twitter, Donald Trump has threatened to close down social media platforms.
In the last 24 hours, Twitter added a "Get the facts" link to a false claim made in a tweet by the president about mail-in votes. Clearly incensed, Trump tweeted that "we will strongly regulate, or close them down".
Twitter slaps 'manipulated media' label on deceptively edited video of Biden retweeted by Trump


Just last month, Twitter announced new rules as it tries to stem the flow of "synthetic and manipulated media" on the platform. The company only started using the "manipulated media" label on March 5, and it was White House social media director Dan Scavino who earned the questionable honor of being the first recipient.
Over the weekend, he shared a video clip of Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden that was edited in such a way as to make it seem as though Biden was endorsing Trump. But the clip had been carefully edited to change the meaning of what was actually said.
You can't have Google apps on your Huawei phone because Donald Trump says so


If you have a Huawei phone launched after May 16 last year, you're going to have to live without Google app such as Gmail, YouTube and Google Maps -- even the Play Store.
Known collectively as Google Mobile Services, Huawei is banned from gaining a license from Google to use its software. In a post on its support website, Google has revealed more about what is going on, and advises people against bypassing the ban by sideloading apps.
Election scams get creative and voters take the bait


The upcoming US presidential election is wrought with emotions. That makes it the perfect ruse for email scams targeting citizens, politicians, and government organizations. While election phishing is the top concern, there are a host of other scams that are making the rounds.
Your favorite politician -- or the one you’re most likely to vote for -- needs money to successfully run their campaign. Hackers are relying on our devotion not only to politicians but to our affiliated political party to lure us into a trap.
Tensions between the US and Iran expected to lead to a Bitcoin surge


When news broke that the Iranian general Qassem Suleimani had been killed in a drone strike ordered by Donald Trump, the value of Bitcoin jumped by 5 percent.
With tensions between Iran and the US now at an all-time high, the price surge is expected to continue. This is the belief of Nigel Green, the CEO and founder of deVere Group, one of the world’s largest independent financial services and advisory organizations, who says that the cryptocurrency is increasingly seen as being as safe as gold.
US sanctions force Adobe to close down user accounts in Venezuela with no refunds


Adobe is in the process of closing down services in Venezuela in line with US sanctions. Back in August, president Trump barred pretty much all trade with the country (Executive Order 13884).
Adobe's compliance with the sanctions means that Venezuelans will soon lose access to products such as Photoshop and -- more importantly -- have only until October 28 to save their files before they are deleted and accounts are closed.
Microsoft promises to provide security updates for federally certified voting Windows 7 systems


Windows 7 is certainly rather long in the tooth now, but it is still very widely used. As such, despite the general end of support coming in January, Microsoft has committed to keep Windows 7-based voted machine secure.
The company say that it will "provide free security updates for federally certified voting systems running Windows 7 through the 2020 elections, even after Microsoft ends Windows 7 support". Given the problematic nature of recent Windows 10 updates, this may come as little comfort as the Trump 2020 campaign continues.
Apple tariff exemptions approved by US trade regulators


Donald Trump has been using the threat of tariffs as a way to force companies to produce goods within the US rather than manufacturing them abroad cheaply and importing them.
Now US trade regulators have now approved exemptions for the Mac Pro, with the possibility of wider implications. Apple had requested a total of 15 exemptions, and according to a public docket published by the US Trade Representative and a Federal Register notice, 10 of these have been approved.
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