Zoom, the company behind the popular videoconferencing software of the same name, has agreed to pay $85 million to settle a lawsuit regarding its privacy and security practices.
The suit was brought by users who accused California-based Zoom of sharing their data with third-party companies such as Facebook, Google, and LinkedIn without permission, as well as lax security that led to so-called “zoombombing” incidents where trolls would suddenly drop shocking images or other distasteful content into meetings.
The settlement, announced on Saturday, still needs the approval of U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh in San Jose, California, but assuming it goes through, Zoom customers can expect to receive a 15% refund on a portion of their subscription fee or $25, whichever is greater. Zoom subscribers outside of the suit could receive a payment of up to $15.
Besides the payment, the terms of the settlement also require Zoom to put in place more robust security measures and provide Zoom employees with special training geared toward improving privacy measures and data handling, Reuters reported.
A number of class-action complaints were brought against Zoom in the spring of 2020 over zoombombing incidents and alleged malpractice. Zoom tried to persuade the court to throw out the suits, and while the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California agreed to dismiss some, it consolidated the remaining ones into a single lawsuit at the center of the agreement announced at the weekend.
Commenting on the case, Zoom said, “The privacy and security of our users are top priorities for Zoom, and we take seriously the trust our users place in us.”
Highlighting a series of software updates issued last year in a bid to block zoombombing attacks, as well as changes that it made to address privacy and security concerns, the company added, “We are proud of the advancements we have made to our platform, and look forward to continuing to innovate with privacy and security at the forefront.”
Before the pandemic, Zoom’s videoconferencing software, which launched in 2012, was largely confined to the workplace. But as a rapid spread in coronavirus infections in early 2020 forced many people to stay home, Zoom downloads quickly went off the charts, with millions around the world using it not only for remote working, but also to stay in touch with friends and family. The sudden uptick in users appeared to take the company by surprise, with the increase in demand exposing software vulnerabilities while at the same time shining a light on its broader operations.
The absolutely absurd idea of putting a touchscreen display on a mouse isn't exactly new. Turtle Beach already did it with its Command Series MC7, which features a 2.25-inch control screen. But apparently, even that wasn't ridiculous enough for Arctic Fox Technologies. Its new Super Mouse looks like someone took the chunky old Atari ST mouse, slapped a touchscreen and scroll wheel on it, and called it an upgrade.
The result is a rather unusual-looking mouse that is now on Kickstarter, starting at $199. And as ridiculous as it looks, some of its features are genuinely intriguing.
Apple is less than a day away from launching its highly anticipated OLED MacBook Pro with a touch-sensitive screen. But it appears that the upgrade is going to cost a pretty penny. According to a report by Bloomberg, Apple is reportedly eyeing a starting price of $2,899 for the 14-inch MacBook Pro, while the 16-inch version could start at $3,399 in the US.
"At $2,899, the 14-inch model would mark the highest starting price for a new MacBook Pro model, surpassing the $2,799 Apple charged for a 17-inch version introduced in 2006," says the report. The report claims that Apple is targeting a minimum price hike of $400 for its upcoming redesigned 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models.
I've spent a good amount of time digging into the spec sheet of the new M6 MacBook Pro (14-inch), and for all intents and purposes, this is a classic Apple "chip and connectivity" refresh. It's not a full redesign. The chassis, Liquid Retina XDR panel, speakers, ports, and battery, all of them carry over unchanged.
However, the M6 brings more cores, stronger on-device AI, higher memory bandwidth on the larger configs, and modern wireless. Here’s the practical rundown of what actually improved, and whether those gains are worth your money.