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Social media and online
The latest social media news and insight on the changing internet. Verdict covers the developing technology of social media and the online world, from regulations to innovations and the business beyond. Social media has seen dramatic maturation in recent years, but has faced an increasingly challenging time as its true impact is felt. So what does the future hold?
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5 Nov
Online freedom declines for ninth year due to mass surveillance and political manipulation
Freedom on the internet has declined for the ninth year running, with mass surveillance and political manipulation key contributing factors.
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4 Nov
Researchers analyse tweets to predict loneliness
Estimated to affect around one in five adults in the United States, with young people more likely to be affected, the problem of loneliness is a public health issue that urgently needs addressing.
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31 Oct
Twitter bans political ads, but has bigger bots to fry
Twitter’s decision to ban all political adverts has been widely welcomed, but the prevalence of fake bot accounts will remain its biggest challenge in upcoming elections.
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30 Oct
Facebook agrees to pay £500k Cambridge Analytica fine
Social media giant Facebook has agreed to pay the UK’s data regulator a £500,000 fine for its role in the Cambridge Analytica scandal.
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23 Oct
Snapchat results: Despite growing user numbers, Snapchat “faces fierce competition”
Shares in Snap, the parent company of Snapchat, dropped following the release of the company’s third quarter results, despite growing user numbers.
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22 Oct
Firefox 70 lets you see the companies tracking you online
Firefox has launched a feature that lets users view the companies tracking them as they browse online.
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21 Oct
Podcasts get search and monitoring capabilities for first time
For the first time, it will be possible for brands and marketers to search and monitor what is said on podcasts with the launch of a new product from media monitoring service TVEyes.
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17 Oct
Brits more likely to ditch Facebook than Huawei, survey finds
UK consumers are more likely to stop using Facebook’s products and services than Huawei’s, according to a survey conducted by open-source communications software provider Open-Xchange.
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2 Oct
Is Twitter down? Users in Europe and Asia report issues
Is Twitter down?
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1 Oct
What’s a deepfake? 72% of Brits don’t know
Do you know what a deepfake is?
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30 Sep
Norwegian Refugee Council: The importance of internet and tech training for displaced people
During the Syrian crisis, people fleeing the conflict travelled to Turkey and on to Europe via the Greek islands.
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27 Sep
Google is 21: What could the next 21 years mean for the company?
The 27th of September is Google’s birthday, with the company reaching the age of 21, marking the occasion with the now customary Google Doogle.
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25 Sep
Trump tweets show systematic campaign ahead of 2016 elections: Study
Researchers from the University of Birmingham have published a study showing that Donald Trump’s tweets were part of a systematic campaign to promote his political efforts, attack opponents and communicate policy goals, even prior to his announcement to run for president.
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25 Sep
Instagram users targeted in ‘copyright notice’ phishing campaign
Instagram users are being targeted by a new phishing campaign that uses fake copyright infringement alerts to obtain credentials.
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19 Sep
WordPress creator Automattic raises $300m as it bids to ‘power the internet’
Automattic, the creator of internet publishing platform WordPress, has raised $300m in a Series D funding round.
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6 Sep
It’s Facebook official: The social media network’s foray into online dating
In 2003, student Mark Zuckerberg launched Facesmash, a website that allowed his fellow students at Harvard University to choose the “hottest” of two people based on photos.
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6 Sep
Have you heard the Amazon is on fire? The power of social media in awareness raising
Forest fires happen annually in the Amazon as a result of forest life cycles, but this year the Amazon rainforest is burning at 84% the rate it did last year, according to the Brazilian Space Agency.
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5 Sep
@Boris Johnson has left the group: WhatsApp in Westminster
From fake news to Facebook, WhatsApp has attracted the media spotlight for a number of reasons.
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5 Sep
Exposed Facebook phone numbers risk SIM jacking and robocalls
An unprotected online server has exposed more than 419 million phone numbers linked to Facebook accounts, potentially putting users at risk of cyberattacks.
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5 Sep
Social networks have “profound effects on voting outcomes”, study finds
Social networks can have “profound effects on voting outcomes”, according a study by researchers at The University of Houston and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
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3 Sep
Firefox doubles down on privacy with default cookie tracking blocker
Firefox has strengthened its position as the browser for online privacy protection with a new default feature that not only blocks third-party tracking cookies but also prevents web-hosted cryptominers.
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3 Sep
Facebook ‘hide likes’ feature: Part of the social media giant’s privacy offensive?
Social media platform Facebook is reportedly building a feature to hide ‘likes’ in a bid to discourage users from comparing the popularity of their posts with other users.
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2 Sep
Gab social media study: Alt-right users show elitism and extreme social hierarchy
Alt-right-linked social media platform Gab has been found to show extreme social hierarchy and elitism among its users, when compared to Twitter, according to research published by online journal First Monday.
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23 Aug
Technology and the contemporary artist: An interview with Bryan The Girl
New Haven, Connecticut-based professional artist and educator Bryan Schiavone, known by her huge online following as Bryan The Girl, is recognised for her pen-and-ink crosshatching style, a method that dates back to the Renaissance to add depth and texture to drawings.
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21 Aug
New Instagram rule post is a hoax… It can already use your pictures
A viral post has spread across Instagram claiming that the social media platform will be able to “use your photos” from tomorrow.
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16 Aug
Sorry Facebook, you can’t claw back the public’s trust with a pop-up café
Facebook has announced that it will be opening pop-up Facebook Cafés across the United Kingdom, in an apparent bid to improve its image in the wake of numerous privacy scandals.
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15 Aug
This tool tracks how Elon Musk’s tweets impact the Tesla stock price
From announcing his ambitious plan to build a cyborg dragon, to telling the world that he would take Tesla private at $420 a share – a reference to cannabis culture – Elon Musk’s Twitter feed offers plenty of amusement.
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12 Aug
Facebook increases investment in Meesho in $125m funding round
Social media giant Facebook has increased its investment in reselling platform Meesho, as India’s ecommerce market continues its rapid growth.
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5 Aug
Cloudflare drops 8chan as thorny topic of online freedoms returns
Internet infrastructure provider Cloudflare has terminated the service it provides for far-right imageboard site 8chan in response to it being used to publish the manifesto of the alleged El Paso shooter.
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31 Jul
Full Fact asks Facebook to clarify machine learning fact-checking plans
Fact-checking charity Full Fact has recommended that Facebook be more open about how it intends to use artificial intelligence (AI) to flag fake content on its platform.