TecQ is our weekly round up of the technology stories
1. Facebook’s Fine for Data Mishap is FTC’s Biggest Ever in Tech
Federal regulators have fined Facebook $5 billion for privacy violations and are instituting new oversight and restrictions on its business. But they are only holding CEO Mark Zuckerberg personally responsible in a limited fashion.
The fine is the largest the Federal Trade Commission has levied on a tech company, though it won't make much of a dent for a company that had nearly $56 billion in revenue last year.
As part of the agency's settlement with Facebook, Zuckerberg will have to personally certify his company's compliance with its privacy programs. The FTC said that false certifications could expose him to civil or criminal penalties.
Some experts had thought the FTC might fine Zuckerberg directly or seriously limit his authority over the company.
Read the story here.
2. After PCs, Tencent Brings PUBG Lite for Mobile Users in India
PUBG Mobile is a popular game in the Indian market but until now you needed a capable phone to play it.
But that’s changing from Friday onwards, as Tencent has released PUBG Mobile Lite version which will run on basic Android phones, with less than 2GB RAM claimed to be the compatible hardware requirement.
Considering most of the users in the country have phones up to 4GB RAM these days (priced under 15K), the Lite version of the app makes a lot of sense from the company.
This is Tencent’s second ‘Lite’ announcement this month, after the Lite version of PUBG was finally made available for PC users in the country. The app is listed on Google Play store now.
Read the story here.
3. Now There’s an AC That Fits Inside Your Shirt
With the change in climate conditions across the globe, heat has become a hot topic, quite literally.
Which is why, we’re not surprised that technology companies are working on air conditioners which can easily fit inside your shirt, so that you don’t have to worry about carrying them everywhere.
And we’ve come across one such device, from Japanese tech giant Sony which is called the Reon Pocket. It costs cheaper than the regular ACs with a price tag of around Rs 9,000 and has been listed on Kickstarter for funds to make this device. So, if the company doesn’t get the required money, this device will never make it beyond the Japanese market.
Read here to know more about this device.
4. WhatsApp Says ‘Payments’ Will Roll Out in India Later This Year
WhatsApp Global Head Will Cathcart on Wednesday said the company could roll out its payments service to users across India later this year.
The messaging app, which is reportedly said to have 400 million users in India, has been testing its payments in the country since last year with about a million users.
Cathcart said the company’s vision is to make sending money as easy as sending a message on the platform. WhatsApp has partnered with multiple banks in the country, and using the Unified Payment Interface (UPI) ecosystem, its beta roll out has probably gone according to the plan.
WhatsApp’s service would compete against the likes of Paytm, PhonePe and Google Pay.
Read the story here.
5. Google is Collecting People’s Face Data, And That’s Scary!
With the Google Pixel 4 launch expected in the next few months, the search giant is reportedly busy collecting all sorts of user data, to test some of the phone’s capability.
And one of them, according to a ZDNet report is Google’s built-in face-recognition ID that will rival Apple’s Face ID biometric technology. To make it highly capable, Googlers are prowling the streets, hoping to get hold of people who’re willing to let them collect their face data, for which they’ll be paid some money.
This report cites one such person, George, who mistakenly thought one of those people was a market researcher or Scientologist. But as it turns out, Google’s employees are on a mission to test its upcoming face recognition tech which is likely to be equipped on the yet to launch Pixel 4 series this year.
Read the story here.
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)