Australia issues warning to Twitter over online hate
June 22: Australia's cyber regulator has called on Twitter, which is owned by multi-billionaire Elon Musk, to explain its handling of online hate.
The country's online safety commissioner says Twitter has become the most complained-about platform.
CALIFORNIA: Instagram’s Twitter/X rival, Threads, is getting more aggressive by bringing its keyword search function to every area where the app is accessible. Before being rolled out to the majority of other English- and Spanish-speaking nations, including the United States, in September, the feature was first tested in English-speaking regions, such as Australia and New […]
Feb 20: Meta Verified will cost $11.99 (£9.96) a month on web, or $14.99 for iPhone users.
It will be available in Australia and New Zealand this week.
Mark Zuckerberg, Meta chief executive, said the move will improve security and authenticity on the social media apps.
The move comes after Elon Musk, owner of Twitter, implemented the premium Twitter Blue subscription in November 2022.
Meta's paid subscription service is not yet available for businesses, but any individual can pay for verification.
Badges - or "blue ticks"- have been used as verification tools for high-profile accounts...
Nov 6: In an update for Apple devices, the company said the feature would be open to users in certain countries who sign up to its Twitter Blue service for $7.99 (£7) per month.
The policy change is controversial, amid concerns that the platform could be swamped with fake accounts.
It follows Twitter's takeover by Elon Musk, who on Friday laid off around half of the company's workforce.
The sought-after blue tick was previously only available to high-profile or influential individuals and organisations - who were asked to prove their identity.
It has been used as a sign that a profile is authentic, and is a key tool to help users identify reliable information on the platform.
The policy change may fuel worries that government figures, celebrities, journalists and brands could be impersonated by any user willing to pay a monthly fee.
Mr Musk, the world's richest person, appears to be looking to diversify Twitter's income, following his acquisition of the firm late last month in a $44bn (£39bn) deal.
On Friday, the billionaire said Twitter was losing more than $4m (£3.5m) per day, insisting that this gave him "no choice" over culling around half the company's 7,500-strong workforce.
The cuts - as well as Mr Musk's fierce advocacy of free speech - have caused speculation that Twitter could water down its efforts on content moderation.
However, Mr Musk has insisted that the firm's stance towards harmful material remains "absolutely unchanged".
On Saturday a top United Nations official, Human Rights Commissioner Volker Türk, urged Mr Musk to "ensure that human rights are central to the management of Twitter".
The unusual UN intervention pointed to the sacking of Twitter's whole human rights team, saying this was "not an encouraging start" under Mr Musk's ownership.
There was no immediate response from Twitter.
Few details were publicised relating to the change in verification policy, and a Twitter Blue subscription reportedly remained at its old price of £4.99 in the UK following Saturday's announcement.
Twitter's update said the changes would apply only in the UK, US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand at first.
A flurry of tweets from Mr Musk himself suggested the changes would be rolled out worldwide after they were observed in the initial handful of countries.
It was not clear what would happen to those profiles which already had a blue tick - or if Twitter still planned to "verify" a user other than by charging them a subscription.
Responding to one user who asked what would happen to existing verified profiles, Mr Musk said the timeline for changes to be implemented was a "couple [of] months".
Answering another question about the risk of users pretending to be notable figures, he said Twitter would "suspend the account attempting impersonation and keep the money".
Previewing other upcoming changes, Mr Musk said Twitter would soon allow users to attach long-form text to tweets, "ending [the] absurdity of notepad screenshots".
Earlier on Saturday, Twitter co-founder and ex-CEO Jack Dorsey addressed the mass sackings, saying sorry to employees for what had unfolded at his former firm.
Mr Dorsey - who quit as CEO in November and left the board of directors in May - said he was aware Twitter staff were "angry with me".
His statement continued: "I own the responsibility for why everyone is in this situation: I grew the company size too quickly. I apologise for that."
Mr Dorsey appeared to endorse the need for dismissals. Earlier this year, he expressed support for Mr Musk's takeover.
A host of major brands have halted advertising spending with Twitter in recent days amid the company's upheaval.
Mr Musk has been looking to decrease the platform's reliance on adverts - and Saturday's update also promised "half the ads". (With inputs from BBC)
Indian off-spinner Harbhajan Singh has announced his retirement from all formats of the game.
In a video message on Twitter, the former India off-spinner said that "in many ways, I had already retired", but because of his commitments with Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL, he was forced to delay the announcement.
Harbhajan last turned out for India in March 2016, in a T20I against UAE in Dhaka in that year's Asia Cup.
Harbhajan, now 41, made his international debut back in March 1998, in a Test match against Australia in Bengaluru, picking up two wickets in an eight-wicket defeat. He went on to play 103 Tests, for a haul of 417 wickets - still the fourth-highest for India - at an average of 32.46, with an innings best of 8 for 84 and a match-best of 15 for 217, both recorded in India's two-wicket win over Australia in the Chennai Test of 2001, which gave them a 2-1 win in an iconic series. In the previous Test in Kolkata, made famous due to VVS Laxman and Rahul Dravid's batting all day while following-on - Harbhajan had played a major role too in India's stunning come-from-behind win, bagging 13 wickets in the match.
Harbhajan also turned out in 236 ODIs from 1998 to 2015, taking 269 wickets at 33.35 and an economy rate of 4.31. He played 28 T20Is, taking 25 wickets at an average of 25.32 and an economy rate of 6.20. His overall tally of 707 international wickets is the second-highest for India, behind Anil Kumble's 953.
Espncricinfo
Prime Minister Scott Morrison of Australia is proposing new defamation legislation that will require web sites to identify the identity of trolls or face defamation charges. The legislation, according to ABC News Australia, would make social media firms like Facebook and Twitter liable for defamatory statements made against individuals. Platforms will also be required to set up a complaint procedure for anyone who believe they have been defamed. The individual who uploaded the possibly defamatory information will be requested to remove it as part of this procedure.
If they decline, or if the victim wishes to pursue legal action, the platform may lawfully request permission from the poster to divulge their contact information. What if the platform is unable to obtain the consent of the poster? The legislation would create a "end-user information disclosure order," allowing internet companies to expose a user's identify without their consent. If the platforms are...
NEW DELHI, April 26: The US and Britain rushed ventilators and vaccine materials to India Monday as the country battles a catastrophic, record-breaking coronavirus wave that has overwhelmed hospitals and set crematoriums working at full capacity.
A surge in recent days has seen patients' families taking to social media to beg for oxygen supplies and locations of available hospital beds, and has forced the capital New Delhi to extend a week-long lockdown.
The country of 1.3 billion has become the latest hotspot of a pandemic that has killed more than three million people, even as richer countries take steps towards normality with quickening innoculation programmes.
"He was gasping for air, we removed his face mask and he was crying and saying 'save me, please save me'," Mohan Sharma, 17, said of his father, who died outside a Delhi hospital.
"But I could do nothing. I just watched him die," Sharma told AFP. France, Germany and Canada have also pledged support to India, which has driven increases in global case numbers in recent days, recording 352,991 new infections and 2,812 deaths on Monday -- its highest tolls since the start of the pandemic.
Creaking health facilities in poorer countries were exposed Sunday when more than 80 people died as fire ripped through a Baghdad hospital for Covid-19 patients, sparking outrage and the suspension of top Iraqi officials.
- Vaccine surplus -
The first of nine airline container-loads of supplies from the UK, including ventilators and oxygen concentrators, was set to arrive in India early Tuesday, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said, pledging the UK would do "all it can" to help.
The White House said it was making vaccine-production material, therapeutics, tests, ventilators and protective equipment immediately available to India.
But it did not mention whether it would send any of the 30 million AstraZeneca vaccine doses it currently holds in surplus, sparking accusations of hoarding.
India's Hindu-nationalist government is facing growing criticism for allowing mass gatherings across the country in recent weeks, with millions attending religious festivals and thronging political rallies.
The glitzy Indian Premier League is also under pressure, with a leading newspaper suspending coverage over the IPL's decision to keep playing cricket during the latest wave, and star spinner Ravichandran Ashwin withdrawing to support his family during the pandemic.
On Sunday, Twitter confirmed it withheld dozens of tweets -- including from opposition lawmakers -- critical of the government's handling crisis after a legal demand from New Delhi.
- Fiji funeral -
Japan's annual "Golden Week" holiday got underway with new restrictions in Tokyo and Osaka, where shopping malls and department stores were asked to close and residents urged avoid non-essential travel.
Bars and restaurants selling alcohol have also been asked to shut early during the week -- usually Japan's busiest travel period -- which comes just under three months before the pandemic-postponed Olympics are due to get under way.
Fiji's capital Suva entered a 14-day lockdown Monday after detecting the first community transmission cases in 12 months following a funeral.
The tourism-dependent islands have recorded fewer than 100 cases and just two deaths in a population of 930,000, and the moves comes as a huge blow for hopes of opening quarantine-free travel bubbles with Australia and New Zealand.
But Americans dreaming of Paris or Florence were given some hope when EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said US tourists vaccinated against Covid-19 would be able to visit the European Union in the coming months.
She gave no timetable, but told the New York Times that the new rules could be in place by this summer.
- 'In the flesh!' -
Motor racing fans also got a boost with the news a limited number of spectators could be allowed to attend the Monaco Grand Prix in May, Formula One chief executive officer Stefano Domenicali said Sunday.
And another limited glimpse of pre-pandemic life was on display in the US, at an Oscars ceremony reuniting some of Hollywood's A-listers -- unmasked and vaccinated -- for the first time in more than a year.
"We're here, isn't it crazy?" said best actor nominee and "Sound of Metal" star Riz Ahmed. "Human beings in the flesh!"
