Kremlin denies Putin cancer rumors, so is CIA director

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Refuting the rumors that Russian President Vladimir Putin is fighting cancer, the Kremlin has stoutly denied such reports once again.

The Kremlin routinely rejected any speculation about Putin’s health. Last week, spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Putin felt “fine” and in “good health” before describing speculation to the contrary as “nothing but hoaxes”.

But the US intelligence community believes that Putin is suffering and he’s being treated for cancer, according to an assessment by the Newsweek. “Putin is definitely sick,” an official from the office of the Director of National Intelligence told the outlet, while noting, whether he’s going to die soon is “mere speculation”.

Two other officials, one from the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) and a retired Air Force officer, also claimed to have access to a comprehensive intelligence assessment of Putin’s health, and said the outlook for the Russian leader is bleak, according to the report.

Missing from world stage

The assessment supports the theory that Putin was missing from the world stage for much of April because he was undergoing treatment for advanced cancer, the report said.

“Is Putin sick? Absolutely,” the retired Air Force officer said. “But we shouldn’t let waiting for his death drive proactive actions on our part. A power vacuum after Putin could be very dangerous for the world.”

The intelligence community also reportedly believes that Putin is increasingly paranoid about his hold on power and that he may have survived an assassination attempt in March.

File photo: The Prime Minister, Mr Narendra Modi formally welcomes the President of Russian Federation, Mr. Vladimir Putin to the BRICS Summit venue, in Goa on October 16, 2016.(PIB Photo)

“Putin’s grip is strong but no longer absolute,” one of the senior intelligence officers said. “The jockeying inside the Kremlin has never been more intense during his rule, everyone sensing that the end is near.”

The officials also warned that as Putin has become increasingly isolated, access to credible intelligence has become more difficult to obtain. “One source of our best intelligence, which is contact with outsiders, largely dried up as a result of the Ukraine war,” the senior DIA official said, noting that as Putin has fewer meetings with foreign leaders, there are fewer opportunities to learn about his condition.

Meanwhile, CIA Director Bill Burns merely said at the Aspen Institute’s annual security confab that Putin is “entirely too healthy”. He further said the rumors didn’t constitute “a formal intelligence judgment.” But asked directly if Putin was unhealthy or unstable, he said: “There are lots of rumours about President Putin’s health and as far as we can tell, he’s entirely too healthy.”

Chiranjeevi turns 67, promises new hospital in 1 year for cine workers

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Telugu superstar Chiranjeevi turned 67 on Monday and Jana Sena Party founder Pawan Kalyan joined scores of fans from across the country in wishing his elder brother a very happy birthday.

Taking to Twitter to express his birthday wishes to Chiranjeevi, who celebrates his 67th birthday on Monday, Pawan Kalyan wrote: “My wholehearted birthday wishes to my beloved brother whom I love, respect and adore. Wishing you good health, success and glory on this special day.”

Telugu actor Sai Dharam Tej, who’s also Chiranjeevi’s nephew, tweeted: “Wishing my constant inspiration and dearest mama a very Happy Birthday. May you continue to be the happy soul you are and inspire us in every sphere of life.”

Well-known production house PVP was among the scores of entities that greeted the Telugu Megastar on his birthday bringing into focus his next movie “Godfather”.

On their timeline, the popular production house wrote: “God to millions and Godfather to many! To a living legend, inspiration to one and all. May the force be with you Sir. A blessed year ahead, happy birthday!”

Chiranjeevi has announced on the occasion that he intends to build a hospital for the welfare of cine workers at Chitrapuri Colony in Hyderabad. Participating in an event earlier associated with Celebrity Cricket, the actor assured that the hospital would be operational by the time his birthday arrives next year.

Addressing the gathering, Chiranjeevi said, “I’ve got this desire to build a hospital at Chitrapuri Colony. I have been nurturing this thought for some time now. I want to build a hospital at least with 10 beds…This hospital should be beneficial to all cine workers, who come under the BPL category or who get daily wage.”

To be named in memory of his father, the actor promised:”I give you my word on this birthday of mine. It will be operational by the time my next birthday arrives. No matter how many crores it costs, I will do it. If someone is willing to partner this initiative, I will be happy to accomodate,” the actor said, explaining that he intended to undertake this mission as a mean to give back to the industry that had given him so much.

Meanwhile, Chiranjeevi’s upcoming action-entertainer ‘Bhola Shankar’ will hit screens on April 14, 2023, its makers announced on the eve of his 67th birthday. Taking to Twitter, the unit tweeted on the film’s timeline: “Wishing the swagster of Indian cinema Megastar K Chiranjeevi a very happy birthday. ‘Bhola Shankar’ arriving in theatres worldwide on 14th April 2023.”

Believed to be a remake of the Tamil blockbuster ‘Vedalam’, which featured Ajith, Shruti Haasan and Lakshmi Menon in the lead, sources say that the makers of ‘Bholaa Shankar’ have made small changes to the script to suit the tastes of the Telugu audience.

Keerthy Suresh reprises Lakshmi Menon’s role in the Telugu version and Tamannaah Bhatia replaces Shruti Haasan. The film is about the bond between a brother and a sister.

 

Global warming behind the rise of reptiles 250 million years ago: Study

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Sixty million years of climate change triggered the meteoric rise of reptiles around 250 million years ago, not a mass extinction of mammals as previously thought,said a new study.

Just over 250 million years ago, during the end of the Permian period, and start of the Triassic, reptiles’ rates of evolution and diversity started exploding, leading to a dizzying variety of abilities, body plans, and traits.

For the longest time, this flourish was explained by their competition being wiped out by two of the biggest mass extinction events (around 261 and 252 million years ago) in the history of the planet.

Harvard University palaeontologist Stephanie Pierce’s research shows that the evolution and diversification, seen in early reptiles, not only started years before these mass extinction events, but instead were directly driven by what caused them in the first place, rising global temperatures due to climate change.

“Climate change actually directly triggered the adaptive response of reptiles to help build this vast array of new body plans and the explosion of groups that we see in the Triassic,” said Tiago R. Simoes, a postdoctoral fellow in the Pierce lab and lead author on the study.

In the paper, published in the journal Science Advances, the researchers provided a close look at how a large group of organisms evolve because of climate change, which is especially pertinent today as temperatures continually rise.

In fact, the rate of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere today is about nine times what they were during the timeframe that culminated in the biggest climate change-driven mass extinction of all time, 252 million years ago: the Permian-Triassic mass extinction.

Artistic reconstruction of the reptile adaptive radiation in a terrestrial ecosystem during the warmest period in Earth’s history. Image depicts a massive, big-headed, carnivorous erythrosuchid (close relative to crocodiles and dinosaurs) and a tiny gliding reptile at about 240 million years ago. The erythrosuchid is chasing the gliding reptile and it is propelling itself using a fossilized skull of the extinct Dimetrodon (early mammalian ancestor) in a hot and dry river valley / Henry Sharpe

“Major shifts in global temperature can have dramatic and varying impacts on biodiversity,” said Stephanie E. Pierce, curator of vertebrate palaeontology in the Museum of Comparative Zoology.

The study involved close to eight years of data collection as Simees travelled to over 20 countries and more than 50 different museums to take scans and snapshots of more than 1,000 reptilian fossils.

Smaller reptiles, which gave rise to the first lizards and tuataras, went on a different path than their larger reptile brethren, said researchers. Their evolutionary rates slowed down and stabilised in response to the rising temperatures.

It was because the small-bodied reptiles were already better adapted to the rising heat since they can more easily release heat from their bodies compared to larger reptiles when temperatures got hot very quickly all-around Earth.

Kushner narrates Capitol Hill insurrection in new book, distances from Trump

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Former President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner has distanced himself from the January 6 Capitol Hills insurrection and his father-in-law Donald Trump in his new book titled “Breaking History”, as the Congressional committee’s investigations on Trump’s alleged role began.

‘Breaking History’ is the latest memoir from a Trump administration official, this one from the former president’s son-in-law who also served as senior adviser in the White House and on his 2016 and 2020 campaigns.

The book, trashed by the New York Times, said he was flying back to Washington, D.C., from Saudi Arabia when he got a call from attorney Eric Herschman saying rioters had stormed the Capitol. But Kushner’s assessment of the riot, which led to multiple deaths and scores of injuries, is that the White House could not have known there would be violence on that day.

Jared Kushner, married to the Trump’s favourite daughter Ivanka Trump, also distances himself from the events of January 6, 2021, when a pro-Trump mob stormed the Capitol to try to stop Congress’ Electoral College vote count of the 2020 election results.

“The violent storming of the Capitol was wrong and unlawful. It did not represent the hundreds of thousands of peaceful protesters, or the tens of millions of Trump voters, who were good, decent and law-abiding citizens,” Kushner wrote, according to media reports.

“What is clear to me is that no one at the White House expected violence that day. I’m confident that if my colleagues or the president had anticipated violence, they would have prevented it from happening,” he said.

Kushner’s assessment that nobody in the White House expected there to be violence on January 6 stands in stark contrast with the findings of the House committee.

The book highlights a number of rivalries Kushner had with other administration officials, most notably former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and former chief of staff John Kelly, among others.

UK roads to be decked up to welcome self-driving cars in 2025

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As the UK government is gearing up for self-driving cars from next year with a 100 million pound ($118 million) investment, vehicles with self-driving features will become a common sight by 2025.

The government is planning a new legislation which will allow for the safe wider roll-out of self-driving vehicles by 2025. “This enables the UK to take full advantage of the emerging market of self-driving vehicles — which could create up to 38,000 jobs and could be worth an estimated 42 billion pounds,” the UK government said in a statement.

The government’s vision for self-driving vehicles will also include 34 million pounds for research to support safety developments and prepare a more detailed legislation taking into consideration the possible performance of self-driving cars in poor weather conditions. Also how they interact with pedestrians, other vehicles, and cyclists will be looked into.

The government has confirmed 20 million pounds, as part of the overall 100 million pound, to help kick-start commercial self-driving services and enable businesses to grow and create jobs in the UK, following an existing 40 million pound investment.

The government said that self-driving vehicles could revolutionise public transport and passenger travel, especially for those who do not drive, better connect rural communities and reduce road collisions caused by human error. In future, these could be extended to provide tailored on-demand links from rural towns and villages.

 

Facebook losing ranking as ‘Top 10’ apps in US, BeReal in Top 5: Report

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Facebook, owned by Meta, has been loosing its rank among the Top 10 apps on the US App Store in 2022, said a report by TechCrunch.

An analysis of iPhone App Store data shows young consumers are easily shifting to newer social networks such as TikTok and now BeReal, leading to Facebook’s loss of its rank in the App Store’s Top Charts, said the report.

Last year, Facebook only fell out of the Top 10 free iPhone apps in the US seven times but in 2022, it has  already reached 97, indicating that Facebook may be losing ground fast as new apps push their way into the App Store’s top rankings.

Facebook’s app fell out of the App Store’s Top 10 apps just six times during the first half of 2021. In the first half of 2022, however, it has dropped out of this grouping a total of 59 times, per data provided to TechCrunch by app intelligence firm Sensor Tower.

It even once stayed out of the Top 10 for as long as 37 consecutive days in 2022, the firm noted, up from just two consecutive days in 2021.

Another analysis by data.ai, formerly App Annie, also reported similar findings but the number has been put at 4 times drop out of the Top 10 on iPhone in the US in 2021, compared with 110 days in 2022 so far.

April was Facebook’s worst month so far, as the app’s rank fell into the 30s on April 18, and then reached as low as No. 44 on April 21, when BeReal was climbing the App Store’s Top Charts, breaking into the Top 5.

As of now, BeReal is the No. 1 non-gaming app on the US App Store.

Covid raises brain complications, epilepsy risks in kids: Report

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A latest study has shown that not only adults but children who suffered from Covid-19 are prone to risk of cognitive deficit, insomnia, ischaemic stroke, nerve or psychotic disorders and epilepsy or seizures  months later.

The post-Covid risk trajectories differed in children compared with adults, said the team of researchers at the University of Oxford.  Published in The Lancet Psychiatry journal, the findings are based on a  data of 185,748 children found that post-Covid risk trajectories differed in children compared with adults.

In the six months after SARS-CoV-2 infection, children were not at an increased risk of mood or anxiety disorders. However, they developed “an increased risk of cognitive deficit, insomnia, intracranial haemorrhage, ischaemic stroke, nerve, nerve root, and plexus disorders, psychotic disorders, and epilepsy or seizures”.

Unlike adults, cognitive deficit in children had a finite risk horizon (75 days) and a finite time to equal incidence (491 days). “Children have a more benign overall profile of psychiatric risk than do adults and older adults, but their sustained higher risk of some diagnoses is of concern,” said the study.

A sizeable proportion of older adults who received a neurological or psychiatric diagnosis, in either cohort, subsequently died, especially those diagnosed with dementia or epilepsy or seizures.

Just after the emergence of the delta variant, increased risks of ischaemic stroke, epilepsy or seizures, cognitive deficit, insomnia, and anxiety disorders were observed, compounded by an increased death rate.

“With Omicron, there was a lower death rate than just before emergence of the variant, but the risks of neurological and psychiatric outcomes remained similar,” revealed the study.

The observational study extracted data from the ‘TriNetX’ electronic health records network, an international network of de-identified data from health care records of approximately 89 million patients collected from hospital, primary care, and specialist providers from the US, Australia, the UK, Spain, Bulgaria, India, Malaysia, and Taiwan.

Transcription service Otter limits access to archives, free users

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Automated transcription provider Otter has reduced the free hours for transcription from 600 to 300 minutes per month for free users, said the company on Thursday.

The popular tool to record interviews with real-time transcription is now limited for free access to 25 most recent conversations, with older ones available via paid mode only.

The company said it is making some big changes to its offerings for both free and paying customers, applicable from September 27. It will add Otter Assistant which will automatically join meetings (even if you don’t) on Zoom, Microsoft Teams, or Google Meet to capture and share notes and meeting insights.

“We’re also adding our recently launched ‘Automated Outline’ feature. Now you’ll have access to automatic meeting summaries curated and displayed in the Outline panel so you and your colleagues can easily access a summary of what was discussed,” said the company.

The company is also making changes to Otter Pro, including expanding Otter Assistant features, adding Automated Outline, raising the price, and changing other features and usage limits.

While Otter Pro annual pricing will remain the same at $8.33 per month (billed annually), the company will increase Otter Pro monthly pricing from $12.99 a month to $16.99 a month.

Otter Pro users will get 1,200 minutes of transcription per month, 90 minutes per conversation, 10 imports per month, 100 names aling with 100 other terms custom vocabulary with ‘no Dropbox sync’ (available on Otter Business).

TikTok in-app browser on iOS monitoring keystrokes, taps: Cybersecurity researcher

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Chinese short-form video app TikTok may be monitoring all keyboard inputs and taps via its in-app browser on iOS, said independent cyber-security researcher Felix Krause.

Founder of Fastlane that was acquired by Google, Krause said that when the user opens any link on the TikTok iOS app, it’s opened inside their in-app browser leveraging access to other information.

“While you are interacting with the website, TikTok subscribes to all keyboard inputs (including passwords, credit card info) and every tap on the screen, like which buttons and links you click,” Krause claimed in a blog post on Thursday.

From a technical perspective, it amounts to installing a keylogger on third-party websites and the company confirmed those features exist in the code but deneid that it was using them.

It proves that “TikTok injects code into third party websites through their in-app browsers that behaves like a keylogger. However, claims it’s not being used,” said the researcher. “This was an active choice the company made. This is a non-trivial engineering task. This does not happen by mistake or randomly.”

“Like other platforms, we use an in-app browser to provide an optimal user experience, but the Javascript code in question is used only for debugging, troubleshooting and performance monitoring of that experience – like checking how quickly a page loads or whether it crashes,” a company spokesperson was quoted as saying in a Forbes report.

 

BJP MLA detained ahead of comedian Munawar Faruqui’s Hyderabad show

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Hyderabad police on Friday detained BJP MLA T. Raja Singh who had threatened to burn down the venue of stand-up comedian Munawar Faruqui’s show scheduled to be held in Hyderabad on Saturday, just before he prepared to go there.

Raja Singh has been detained and shifted to Bolaram police station in a police vehicle. His supporters raised slogans against the state government and Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao when police officials detained him from his office in Mangalhat. Some of them tried to block the police vehicle but were taken into custody.

Police had tightened the security at the MLA’s office since morning. He represents Goshamahal constituency in Hyderabad and had warned in a video that if the comedian goes ahead with the show, he would beat him up and burn down the venue.

Raja Singh alleged that Faruqui had hurt the religious sentiments of Hindus by making jokes on their gods after Munawar took to his Instagram account to announce his show “Dongri to Nowhere” in Hyderabad on August 20.

He had earlier planned to perform in Hyderabad in January but the show had to be canceled due to a surge in Covid-19 cases.

“In the past too, our idiot minister KTR had offered police protection and invited him, saying his event will be a great success. But even then, when Hindu groups across Telangana united to threaten him, he got scared and cancelled the event,” Raja Singh said, in a reference to state minster K.T. Rama Rao.

“I am seriously telling this. Everybody knows about the law and order in Telangana. I am telling KTR, if you don’t want this to deteriorate further, don’t allow the comedian in Hyderabad,” the MLA from Goshamahal warned KTR.

The BJP leader has also issued an open threat. “See what will happen, If they invite him. Wherever the program is, we will go and beat him up. Whoever offers him a venue, we will burn it down. If something goes wrong, KTR and the government and police officers will be responsible,” Raja Singh said.

Faruqui had announced his Hyderabad show on December 22, 2021, days after KTR had extended him an open invite to perform in Hyderabad, saying the city is truly cosmopolitan. he had also tweeted that he was receiving several calls and mails from Hyderabad to perform in the city.

50% companies planning job cuts amid economic downturn: PwC

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At least half of the companies worldwide are planning to cut jobs or prune bonuses and rescinding job offers due to the onset of a global economic downturn, said global financial monitoring firm PwC in its latest report.

In its “PwC ‘Pulse: Managing business risks in 2022” survey in the US, it said 50 per cent of respondents are reducing their overall headcount. “At the same time, respondents are also taking proactive steps to streamline the workforce and establish the appropriate mix of worker skills for the future,” said the report released on Thursday.

This comes as no surprise, after a frenzy of hiring and a tight labour market over the past few years, as “executives see the distinction between having people and having people with the right skills… For example, 50 per cent of all respondents are reducing their overall headcount, 46 per cent are dropping or reducing signing bonuses and 44 per cent are rescinding offers.”

More than 32,000 tech workers have been laid off in the US till July, including at Big Tech companies like Microsoft and Meta, and the worst has not been over yet, said the report.

India job cuts at 25K

In India, more than 25,000 startup workers have lost jobs since the pandemic and more than 12,000 have been fired this year, said the PwC report. “Consumer markets and technology, media and telecommunications companies, for example, are more likely to invest in automation to address labour shortages,” the PwC report mentioned.

At the same time, healthcare is seeing bigger talent challenges than other industries and is more focused on rehiring employees who have recently left.

The global consulting firm last month polled more than 700 US executives and board members across industries. With increasing economic uncertainty, 83 per cent of executives are focusing their business strategy on growth.

“On the whole, this generation of corporate leaders have minimal experience navigating a recession, yet with the possibility of one looming amid increasing geopolitical divides and skyrocketing inflation, they are bullish on their ability to handle what could be ahead,” said Kathryn Kaminsky, vice chair, trust solutions co-leader, PwC US.

Nearly two-thirds of businesses (63 per cent) have changed or are planning to change processes to address labour shortages, up from 56 per cent in January 2022, the report noted.

Google Search cracks whip on ‘low-quality’, non-original content

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Search giant Google has woken up to crack whip on repeated or copied content which is of low-quality in its search results with the roll out of a new algorithm. The search ranking update called the “Helpful Content Update” will start rolling out globally to English language users on August 22.

“We know people don’t find content helpful if it seems like it was designed to attract clicks rather than inform readers. So starting next week for English users globally, we’re rolling out a series of improvements to Search to make it easier for people to find helpful content made specifically by and for people,” said Danny Sullivan, Public Liaison for Search in Google.

This update will make sure that “unoriginal, low-quality content ” doesn’t rank highly in Search, particularly for online-educational materials, entertainment, shopping, and tech-related searches, he said in a blog post late on Thursday.

Over the past one year, Google has been making efforts to review content and framed the new rules to filter or vet the content online before showing them in search results. “For example, if you search for information about a new movie, you’ll see more results with unique, authentic information, so you’re more likely to read something you haven’t seen before,” Sullivan explained in his blog post.

Last year, Google kicked off a series of updates to show more helpful, in-depth reviews based on first-hand expertise in search results. “We’ve continued to refine these systems, and in the coming weeks, we’ll roll out another update to make it even easier to find high-quality, original reviews,” said the company.

Just ahead of Asia Cup, UAE remove Ahmed Raza as T20 skipper

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Just one week before the opening of a T20 tournament in UAE, the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) has made a huge change by removing Ahmed Raza as skipper of UAE’s T20 side, replacing him with batter CP Rizwan.

Raza. however, will continue to remain UAE’s One-day International captain but the surprising decision just three days before their match against Kuwait in Al-Amerat, and two months before their T20 World Cup tournament in Australia.

A statement issued by the ECB did not reveal the reason but just said: “The committee believes, after extensive discussions, and following a detailed review of the side’s recent 50-over performance, by providing the respective captain’s with a sole-format-focus it creates a strong leadership succession plan, and encourages a singular commitment to fine-tuning strategic on-field components of the game.

“UAE’s High Performance unit believes this presents a solid opportunity to consider and open-up all options – player make-up and Captaincy – to take the game forward,” said the statement.

Raza has an outstanding record as T20I captain of the side, winning 18 of 27 matches. He was appointed as captain in 2019. His winning percentage in the format was an impressive 68 per cent. Raza had even spoken to ICC-cricket.com about his team’s performance in Australia for the T20 World Cup.

Rizwan had played seven T20Is, where he scored just 100 runs at an average of just 16.66. UAE feature on the opening day of the 2022 T20 World Cup action, meeting the Netherlands in Geelong in Group A of the first round.

Streaming platform overtakes cable TV in US first time: Nielsen report

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Streaming viewership in the United States has exceeded cable usage for the first time in the US as traditional television failed to cope up with the new content demand and reduced sports programming, said the industry monitoring agency Nielson.

According to Nielsen, streaming represented a 34.8 per cent share of total TV viewing in the US in July — an increase of 22.6 per cent compared to July 2021. Cable consumption was a little behind at 34.4 per cent, an 8.9 per cent drop from the year prior and a 2 per cent decline compared to June.

“Streaming claimed the largest share of TV viewing in July — a first after four consecutive months of hitting new viewership highs. Streaming viewership in a given month has exceeded broadcast viewing before, but this is the first time it has also surpassed cable viewing,” said Nielsen in a statement.

Overall, streaming usage grew 3.2 per cent from June. In July, Prime Video, Hulu, Netflix and YouTube reached new heights again.

Individually, Netflix gained 8 per cent per cent share, boosted by the nearly 18 billion minutes of ‘Stranger Things’ that viewers watched, complemented by the nearly 11 billion minutes of combined viewing of ‘Virgin River’ and ‘The Umbrella Academy’. Movies such as ‘The Gray Man’ and ‘The Sea Beast’ contributed over 5 billion minutes.

Amazon’s Prime Video reported 3 per cent share with new series ‘The Terminal List’ and new episodes of ‘The Boys’, which netted over 8 billion viewing minutes.

“In addition to claiming the largest viewership share during the month, audiences watched an average of 190.9 billion minutes of streamed content per week — easily surpassing the 169.9 billion minutes that audiences watched during the pandemic lockdown period back in April 2020,” the report said.

India Covid cases rise again to 15K today

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India on Friday reported marginal rise at 15,754 fresh Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours, against 12,608 infections on Thursday, with 47 more Covid deaths, taking the nationwide death toll to 5,27,253 so far.

The active caseload of the country stands at 1,01,830 cases, accounting for 0.23 per cent of the country’s total positive cases. The recovery of 15,220 patients in the last 24 hours took the cumulative tally to 4,36,85,535. Consequently, India’s recovery rate stands at 98.58 per cent, said the Union Health Ministry.

Meanwhile, India’s daily positivity rate has marginally declined to 3.47 per cent, while the weekly positivity rate in the country currently also stands at 3.90 per cent. In the same period, a total of 4,54,491 tests were conducted across the country, increasing the overall tally to over 88.18 crore.

As of Friday morning, India’s Covid-19 vaccination coverage exceeded 209.27 crore, achieved via 2,78,10,025 sessions. More than 3.99 crore adolescents have been administered with a first dose of Covid-19 jab since the beginning of vaccination drive for this age bracket.

Interest rates on small savings schemes remain unchanged

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The government-run small savings schemes remained to provide the same interest rates since the past two years though the bank fixed deposit rates have considerably increased the interest rate.

The small savings schemes’ interest rates were last revised in the first quarter of 2020-21, though banks have drastically hiked their home loan and term deposit rates after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) raised its repo rate by 140 basis points since May 2022.

Small savings schemes like Public Provident Fund (PPF), National Savings Certificate (NSC), Post Office Savings Scheme and Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana are vital savings instruments for the common man, as they provide long-term benefits.

Here are the current interest rates of key small savings schemes:

* Public Provident Fund (PPF): 7.1 per cent

* National Savings Certificate (NSC): 6.8 per cent

* Post Office Monthly Income Scheme: 6.6 per cent

* Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana: 7.6 per cent

* Five-year Senior Citizens Saving Scheme: 7.4 per cent

* Kisan Vikas Patra: 6.9 per cent

 

The RBI had brought down its benchmark repo rate by 75 basis points to 4.40 per cent on March 27, 2020 — just three days after a nationwide lockdown was announced but the government had not reduced interest rates of small savings schemes, keeping in mind the interests of the pensioners.

RBI sources said the government will monitor inflation as well as the liquidity position before taking any decision to raise interest rates of small savings schemes. “Depending on how much inflation rises and whether there is tightening of liquidity position in future, the government may take a call on small savings schemes rates,” said a senior banking official told IANS.

On June 30, 2022, the Finance Ministry had notified that interest rates of small savings schemes have been kept unchanged for the July-September quarter of the current fiscal, effective from July 1.

“The rates of interest on various small saving schemes for the second quarter of the financial year 2022-23, starting July 1, and ending September 30, shall remain unchanged from those notified for the first quarter (April 1 to June 30) for FY 2022-23,” the Finance Ministry notification had said.

Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip4, Z Fold4 sweep market; Specs, Prices, All Details

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Samsung, India’s largest consumer electronics brand, today launched the latest Galaxy Z series in India. The fourth generation foldables, Galaxy Z Fold4 and Galaxy Z Flip4 are now open for pre-book online and across retail stores in the country.

Equipped with flagship camera, the fastest processor and all new design, Galaxy Z Fold4 is the most powerful smartphone yet. Galaxy Z Flip4’s compact clamshell design offers unique experiences and its FlexCam enables shooting hands-free videos.

“At Samsung, we continuously push the boundaries of innovation to create new smartphone experiences for consumers. Our latest Galaxy Z series is a testimony to just that. Now, in its fourth generation,” said Aditya Babbar, Senior Director and Head, Product Marketing, Samsung India.

Galaxy Z Flip4

Galaxy Z Flip4 sports compact clamshell design and offers unique smartphone experiences. The innovative form factor allows you to go truly hands-free and do more without even unfolding the phone, including answering calls and replying to texts.

 

With Quick Shot, users can click selfies in portrait mode and see the preview in actual photo ratio. Additionally, with upgraded camera equipped with 65 percent brighter sensor, Galaxy Z Flip4 comes with Samsung’s flagship Nightography feature ensuring your photos and videos are crisper and more stable through the day or night.

Galaxy Z Flip4 comes with the latest Snapdragon 8+ Gen1 processor and 10% higher battery capacity at 3700mAh, allowing users to capture, watch and connect longer between charges. With Super Fast Charging, users can charge up to 50 percent in around 30 minutes.

With slimmer hinge, straightened edges, contrasting hazed back glass and glossy metal frames, the design is sleeker and the most refined one yet. Additionally, you can customize the cover screen clock with your AR emoji character. With Galaxy Themes on both Cover and Main Screen, users can tailor-make their Galaxy Z Flip4 inside out to complement their style with custom fonts, icons and designs.

Galaxy Z Fold4

The most powerful and productive smartphone in your pocket, Galaxy Z Fold4 combines balanced and premium design, enhanced durability and powerful performance. Galaxy Z Fold4 offers increased functionality whether opened, closed or in Flex mode.

With slimmer hinge, lighter-than-ever body and even narrower bezels, the wider screen enables easier one-handed interactions while using the Cover Screen.

Content is even more immersive and distinctive on the 7.6-inch main screen with improved 1Hz-120Hz adaptive refresh rate and less visible Under Display Camera (UDC).

Take stunning photos and videos with its flagship camera hosting 50MP wide lens, 30X Space Zoom lens and 3x optical zoom – all significant improvements as compared to its predecessor. Galaxy Z Fold4 also gets Samsung’s flagship Nightography feature owing to 23 percent brighter sensor, enhanced Optical Image Stabilization and Video Digital Stabilization (OIS+VDIS) and all new AI Image Signal Processor (AI ISP).

 

Galaxy Z Fold4 comes with the latest Snapdragon 8+ Gen1 processor that among other things improves the output of the flagship camera producing stunning images during the day or at night. Variety of camera modes, including Capture View Mode, Dual Preview and Rear Cam Selfie are also custom-built to take advantage of the unique form factor for increased capturing flexibility.

The new taskbar provides PC-like multitasking enabling smooth switching between apps, easy access to favourite and recently used apps and launch of multiple windows instantly from the task bar. You can also easily switch full-screen apps to pop-up windows or split your screen in half for more ways to multitask.

Galaxy Z Fold4 is the first device to ship with Android 12L, a special version of Android created by Google for large-screen experiences, including foldables.

Samsung’s partnerships with Google and Microsoft take multitasking to the next level. Google apps, including Chrome and Gmail now support drag-and-drop, allowing users to quickly copy and paste links or other files.

With Google Meet, users can now connect with more people while enjoying virtual co-activities, including co-watching videos on YouTube or playing games together on a video call. Microsoft’s full Office suite and Outlook provide more information on the large foldable screen offering faster ways to interact with content.

The useful S Pen coupled with the Flex mode enables on-the-go drawing and note-taking while also simultaneously attending back-to-back calls and meetings. The S Pen also comes with streamlined storage inside the Standing Cover with Pen case.

With Armor Aluminum frames and hinge cover along with exclusive Corning Gorilla Glass Victus+ on the Cover Screen and rear glass, along with IPX8 water resistance, the latest Galaxy Z series are our toughest foldables ever.

Price and Availability

Pre-book for Galaxy Z Flip4 and Galaxy Z Fold4 started on August 16, 2022 across all leading online and offline retails stores. Consumers can also pre-book on Samsung Live at 12 noon on August 16.

Available in Bora Purple, Graphite and Pink Gold colours, Galaxy Z Flip4 is priced at Rs.89,999 for 8GB+128GB variant and Rs.94,999 for 8GB+256GB variant. Bespoke Edition that offers glass colours and frame options will be available on Samsung Live and Samsung Exclusive Stores for Rs.97,999.

Available in Graygreen, Beige and Phantom Black colours, Galaxy Z Fold4 is priced at Rs.154,999 for 12GB+256GB variant and Rs.164,999 for 12GB+512GB variant. Consumers can purchase 12GB+1TB variant exclusively on Samsung Live and Samsung Exclusive Stores for Rs.184,999.

Pre-book customers will also get 1 year Samsung Care Plus worth Rs. 11,999 at just Rs. 6,000. They can also opt for No Cost EMI offer up to 24 months.

 

SPECIFICATION GALAXY Z FLIP4 GALAXY Z FOLD4
Display Main: 6.7’’ Dynamic AMOLED 2X with Adaptive 120Hz FHD+ Infinity-O Display

Cover: 1.9’’ Super AMOLED 60Hz

 Main: 7.6’’ Dynamic AMOLED 2X 1Hz-120Hz with Infinity Flex Display

Cover: 6.2’’ Dynamic AMOLED 2X 48Hz-120Hz with Infinity-O Display
Camera Rear: 12MP (Ultra-wide) + 12MP (Wide)

Front: 10MP

 Rear: 12MP (Ultra-wide) + 50MP (Wide) + 10MP (Tele)

Front: 10MP

UDC: 4MP
Battery 4400mAh 3700mAh
Processor Snapdragon 8+ Gen1 4nm Snapdragon 8+ Gen1 4nm
Memory RAM: 8GB

Storage: 128GB/256GB/512GB

 RAM: 12GB

Storage: 256GB/512GB/1TB

Apple unveils ‘Lockdown Mode’ to protect iPhone users from Pegasus spyware

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Apple has recently unveiled two initiatives to help protect users who may be personally targeted by some of the most sophisticated digital threats, such as those from private companies developing state-sponsored mercenary spyware.

Lockdown Mode — the first major capability of its kind, coming this fall with iOS 16, iPadOS 16, and macOS Ventura — is an extreme, optional protection for the very small number of users who face grave, targeted threats to their digital security. Apple also shared details about the $10 million cybersecurity grant it announced last November to support civil society organizations that conduct mercenary spyware threat research and advocacy.

“Apple makes the most secure mobile devices on the market. Lockdown Mode is a groundbreaking capability that reflects our unwavering commitment to protecting users from even the rarest, most sophisticated attacks,” said Ivan Krstić, Apple’s head of Security Engineering and Architecture. “While the vast majority of users will never be the victims of highly targeted cyberattacks, we will work tirelessly to protect the small number of users who are. That includes continuing to design defenses specifically for these users, as well as supporting researchers and organizations around the world doing critically important work in exposing mercenary companies that create these digital attacks.”

Lockdown Mode offers an extreme, optional level of security for the very few users who, because of who they are or what they do, may be personally targeted by some of the most sophisticated digital threats, such as those from NSO Group and other private companies developing state-sponsored mercenary spyware. Turning on Lockdown Mode in iOS 16, iPadOS 16, and macOS Ventura further hardens device defenses and strictly limits certain functionalities, sharply reducing the attack surface that potentially could be exploited by highly targeted mercenary spyware.

At launch, Lockdown Mode includes the following protections:

  • Messages: Most message attachment types other than images are blocked. Some features, like link previews, are disabled.
  • Web browsing: Certain complex web technologies, like just-in-time (JIT) JavaScript compilation, are disabled unless the user excludes a trusted site from Lockdown Mode.
  • Apple services: Incoming invitations and service requests, including FaceTime calls, are blocked if the user has not previously sent the initiator a call or request.
  • Wired connections with a computer or accessory are blocked when iPhone is locked.
  • Configuration profiles cannot be installed, and the device cannot enroll into mobile device management (MDM), while Lockdown Mode is turned on.

The Lockdown Mode capability further hardens device defenses and strictly limits certain functionalities, sharply reducing the attack surface that could potentially be exploited by highly targeted mercenary spyware.

Apple will continue to strengthen Lockdown Mode and add new protections to it over time. To invite feedback and collaboration from the security research community, Apple has also established a new category within the Apple Security Bounty program to reward researchers who find Lockdown Mode bypasses and help improve its protections. Bounties are doubled for qualifying findings in Lockdown Mode, up to a maximum of $2,000,000 — the highest maximum bounty payout in the industry.

Apple is also making a $10 million grant, in addition to any damages awarded from the lawsuit filed against NSO Group, to support organizations that investigate, expose, and prevent highly targeted cyberattacks, including those created by private companies developing state-sponsored mercenary spyware. The grant will be made to the Dignity and Justice Fund established and advised by the Ford Foundation — a private foundation dedicated to advancing equity worldwide — and designed to pool philanthropic resources to advance social justice globally. The Dignity and Justice Fund is a fiscally sponsored project of the New Venture Fund, a 501(c)(3) public charity.

“The global spyware trade targets human rights defenders, journalists, and dissidents; it facilitates violence, reinforces authoritarianism, and supports political repression,” said Lori McGlinchey, the Ford Foundation’s director of its Technology and Society program. “The Ford Foundation is proud to support this extraordinary initiative to bolster civil society research and advocacy to resist mercenary spyware. We must build on Apple’s commitment, and we invite companies and donors to join the Dignity and Justice Fund and bring additional resources to this collective fight.”

The Dignity and Justice Fund expects to make its first grants in late 2022 or early 2023, initially funding approaches to help expose mercenary spyware and protect potential targets that include:

  • Building organizational capacity and increasing field coordination of new and existing civil society cybersecurity research and advocacy groups.
  • Supporting the development of standardized forensic methods to detect and confirm spyware infiltration that meet evidentiary standards.
  • Enabling civil society to more effectively partner with device manufacturers, software developers, commercial security firms, and other relevant companies to identify and address vulnerabilities.
    Increasing awareness among investors, journalists, and policymakers about the global mercenary spyware industry.
  • Building the capacity of human rights defenders to identify and respond to spyware attacks, including security audits for organizations that face heightened threats to their networks.
  • The Dignity and Justice Fund’s grant-making strategy to research, track, and hold the enhanced cyber weapons trade accountable will be advised by an independent, global Technical Advisory Committee.

“There is now undeniable evidence from the research of the Citizen Lab and other organizations that the mercenary surveillance industry is facilitating the spread of authoritarian practices and massive human rights abuses worldwide,” said Ron Deibert, director of the Citizen Lab, a research group at the University of Toronto. “I applaud Apple for establishing this important grant, which will send a strong message and help nurture independent researchers and advocacy organizations holding mercenary spyware vendors accountable for the harms they are inflicting on innocent people.”

Crypto.com again fires hundreds of employees in 2nd round

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Crypto lending exchange Crypto.com has laid off more employees in the second round and this time, the firing of employees is worse than the previous job cut, as the global crypto meltdown gets deeper.

According to a Decrypt report, the latest round of job cuts has not been announced publicly. During the call, “leadership expressed they had no intention of going public. Top management is unlikely to make an announcement as, after the June layoffs, they claimed that everyone’s job was safe, and that no more layoffs will happen,” the report said, citing sources.

According to the report, the Singapore-based company this time fired people from critical products like exchange, app and wallet. “The company is hiding the fact that they’ve laid off more than 1,000 employees even though they officially announced laying off 260,” a Crypto.com employee had said on LinkedIn.

“They’ve removed the company directory so we can’t see the numbers go down. It’s not good for morale to see that 1/3 of the invitation list on your next meeting is disabled accounts,” the employee had mentioned.

In June, Crypto.com announced it’s laying off around 260 employees, or nearly 5 per cent of its workforce. Its CEO Kris Marszalek said the company’s approach is to stay focused on executing against its roadmap and optimising for profitability.

“That means making difficult and necessary decisions to ensure continued and sustainable growth for the long term by making targeted reductions of approximately 260 or 5 per cent of our corporate workforce,” he had announced.

Netaji Death Anniversary: Bring back remains from Japan, asks Shiv Sena MP Priyanka Chaturvedi

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On the death anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose on August 18, Shiv Sena MP Priyanka Chaturvedi has written a letter to the Centre to bring back the remains of Netaji kept at the Renkoji Temple in Tokyo, Japan.
In her letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, she said: “As we celebrate ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’ and pledge to take pride in our heritage as a part of the ‘Panchpran’, I am writing this letter to you in support of the request of Ms. Anita Bose Pfaff, daughter of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, to bring his last remains back to India.

Netaji’s statue at Renkoji temple in Tokyo where the remains of the Indian leader are preserved.

“It shall be our greatest honour to commemorate Netaji’s sacrifice and dedication towards independence of India by fulfilling his last wish of returning to the Indian soil.

“I request you to make a note of the request of Ms. Anita Bose Pfaff and expeditiously take all such diplomatic and other measures to bring Netaji home and duly acknowledge his insurmountable contributions in India’s freedom. struggle. This shall indeed be a true tribute to our forefathers who sacrificed their lives for India’s freedom.”

Netaji’s remains are kept at the Renkoji Temple in Tokyo.