LONDON — Meta was fined more than $100 million by the social media giant’s European Union privacy regulator on Friday for a security breach involving Facebook users’ passwords.

Following an inquiry, the Irish Data Protection Commission imposed a penalty of 91 million euros ($101.6 million) on the US software company.

The watchdog launched an investigation in 2019 after Meta informed it that certain passwords had been unintentionally saved internally in plain text, which meant they weren’t secured and staff could look for them.

Meta Hit With $102 Million Privacy Fine From European Union Over 2019 Password Security Lapse

Meta Hit With $102 Million Privacy Fine From European Union Over 2019 Password Security Lapse

Deputy Commissioner Graham Doyle stated that it is “widely accepted” that user passwords should not be retained in plain text “considering the risks of abuse.”

According to Meta, a security review revealed that a “subset” of Facebook users’ credentials were “temporarily logged in readable format.”

Meta Hit With $102 Million Privacy Fine From European Union Over 2019 Password Security Lapse

“We took immediate action to fix this error, and there is no evidence that these passwords were abused or accessed improperly,” the company stated in a statement. “We proactively flagged this issue to our lead regulator, the Irish Data Protection Commission, and have engaged constructively with them throughout this inquiry.”

It’s the latest in a run of large fines for Meta and its social networking platforms imposed by the Dublin-based watchdog, the company’s primary regulator under the EU’s rigorous data privacy rules. They include a 405 million euro fine for Instagram for mishandling teen data, a 5.5 million euro penalty for WhatsApp, and a 1.2 billion euro charge for Meta for transatlantic data transfers.

SOURCE | AP

(VOR News) – Following the announcement by China’s central bank of measures to stimulate Alibaba, the world’s second-largest economy, Chinese technology stocks, including names that have been on the decline such as Alibaba, have recovered this week, reaching highs that have not been seen in more than a year on the market.

The announcement of measures was made by the Chinese central bank, which led to this event.

The Hang Seng Tech Index in Hong Kong, which is Alibaba comprised of the majority of the main Chinese technology firms, closed the day with an almost 6% increase, reaching its highest level since the beginning of August 2023.

This index is made up of the majority of key Chinese technology stocks. The index has seen a twenty percent spike throughout the course of this week.

Alibaba is a multinational corporation

During the trading session, the price of a share in the United States reached a high of more than $100 for the first time since August of the previous year. This occurred on Thursday, marking the first time that this had occurred since August of the previous year.

On Friday, the Hong Kong-listed shares of the corporation reached 102.50 Hong Kong dollars, which was over 5% higher than their Alibaba previous closing price of February 2023.

This was the highest closing price. Since February 2023, this was the highest finish that there has been. At this point in time, the shares of the e-commerce powerhouse in Hong Kong had significantly climbed by almost 18%.

The name is Tencent.

The proprietor of WeChat, the preeminent messaging application in China and one of the top gaming enterprises globally, concluded the day with an approximate two percent rise in share price, attaining 437.80 Hong Kong dollars each share. WeChat is the preeminent messaging application in China.

This was the highest closing price for Alibaba in over two and a half years, following a nearly 49% surge in Tencent’s shares this year due to a recovery in its core gaming sector.

The Biggie Meituan is a service that delivers food.

By the time the trading session came to a close, the share price of the company had reached 164.60 Hong Kong dollars, which is the highest close level it had reached since February of the previous year.

The People’s Bank of China issued an announcement this week that they will cut the amount of cash that banks are obliged to maintain on hand. As a result of this announcement, the market has experienced a boom.

The extension of measures for a period of two years and the decrease of interest rates on mortgages that are already in place are two of the actions that the central bank aims to take in order to further support the real estate sector, which is now experiencing a great deal of difficulty.

The implementation of these measures has been announced by the Chinese government with the intention that they will revive the economy of the country.

Previously, investors had been cautious about purchasing Chinese technology stocks such as Alibaba and Meituan because to the fact that these businesses are subject to changes in the Chinese economy and consumer spending. However, the reduction has allowed investors to reconsider their decision.

On the other hand, a number of notable investors have started to express a bullish stance on Chinese stocks on the market.

With the Federal Reserve of the United States lowering interest rates earlier this month, David Tepper, the founder of a hedge fund that is worth a billion dollars, reportedly increased his acquisitions of Chinese stocks, including businesses such as Alibaba and Baidu, according to statements that he made to CNBC on Thursday.

Additionally, this week saw an increase in the number of shares traded.

Despite the most recent uptick, Chinese technology stocks are still a significant way from their all-time highs, which were set in 2021. This is the case despite the previous increase.

SOURCE: CNBC

SEE ALSO:

Amazon Contributes $180 Million. Brazil Carbon Credits Deal with Companies

(VOR News) – Amazon, the preeminent online retailer globally, has secured an agreement to engage in a carbon offset credits program valued at 180 million dollars.

This is undertaken to contribute to the conservation of the Brazilian rainforest associated with the enterprise.

Amazon, in conjunction with five other groups, will execute the acquisition via the LEAF Coalition forest conservation project. This effort was initiated in 2021 with the support of Amazon, alongside many corporations and countries, including the United States and the United Kingdom.

First Amazon agreement by Latin American and Caribbean Foundation (LEAF).

The Amazon rainforest is a crucial element in combating climate change due to its substantial absorption of greenhouse emissions.

The LEAF Coalition and the administration of Para state were the first to disclose the specifics of the contract to Reuters exclusively. On Tuesday, Governor Helder Barbalho of Pará announced the deal. This statement occurred during New York Climate Week, coinciding with about 900 events alongside the United Nations General Assembly.

In his statement, Barbalho asserted that the state would only accept a fraction of the sales proceeds essential for sustaining its initiatives to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions. Indigenous peoples, communities historically subjected to extractivism and past slavery, and family farms will each receive a share of the remaining one percent of the earnings from the property sale.

Barbalho made the allegation in a distinct interview with Reuters. “It unequivocally conveys a significant message: a corporation named after Amazon executed its inaugural transaction with a state in Amazon,” Barbalho stated.

Amazon confirmed the acquisition in a statement.

The statement emphasised the imperative of safeguarding tropical forests in relation to the battle against climate change.

This year, notable firms such as Microsoft, Meta, and Google have all acquired carbon offsets in Brazil. This persists despite the fact that demand for carbon credits globally has remained constant.

Amazon, Bayer, the consulting firms BCG and Capgemini, the retail store H&M, and the Walmart Foundation will collectively acquire five million credits at a price of fifteen dollars per credit.

The cost of each credit will be fifteen dollars. Allied Offsets, a data provider, reveals a significant gain compared to the current average for nature-associated carbon credits, which was $4.49 during the preceding week.

COP30 Climate Change Conference

Each credit corresponds to a reduction of one metric tonne of carbon emissions. From 2023 to 2026, the state of Pará witnessed a decrease in deforestation, resulting in this decline.

An additional seven million credits will be accessible for acquisition by other companies upon their availability. A specific quantity of these credits has been assured by the governments of the United States, the United Kingdom, and Norway, and should corporations refrain from acquiring them, the governments will acquire them.

Para will host the United Nations Conference of Parties 30 (COP30) climate summit next year, a pivotal initiative in President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s efforts to restore Brazil’s environmental reputation following years of escalating deforestation.

Despite a decline in the rate of damage in Para since 2021, it has consistently maintained the highest deforestation rate among states since 2005. This occurs despite the decreasing rate of devastation in Para.

A territory in Para, exceeding the size of New York City, saw deforestation from January to August of this year, as per preliminary governmental statistics. This represents a 20% decrease compared to the corresponding period last year, when the same region lost its forest cover.

During Climate Week, Barbalho said that by 2026, the government would achieve comprehensive traceability of cattle supply chains. This was articulated concerning the livestock industry. Cattle is a major contributor to deforestation in Para.

SOURCE: AF

SEE ALSO:

Strike By More Than 1,000 Samsung Workers Enters A Third Week In India

CrowdStrike Executive Apologizes To Congress For July Global Tech Outage