Ethiopian Airlines’ Former Chief Says Airlines Went Into Records After Crash

Ethiopian Airlines’ former chief engineer says in a whistleblower complaint filed with regulators that the carrier went into maintenance records on a Boeing 737 Max jet after it crashed this year, a breach he contends was part of a pattern of corruption that included routinely signing off on shoddy repairs.Yonas Yeshanew, who is seeking asylum …

Astronauts Replacing Old Batteries in 1st of 5 Spacewalks

Astronauts hustled through the first of five spacewalks to replace old batteries at the International Space Station on Sunday.Christina Koch and Andrew Morgan removed three old batteries and installed two new ones delivered just a week ago, getting a jump on future work. These new lithium-ion batteries are so powerful that only one is needed …

Microsoft: Hackers Linked to Iran Targeted US Presidential Campaign

Jeff Seldin contributed to this report.Microsoft said hackers linked to the Iranian government targeted a U.S. presidential campaign, but were not successful.The company said in a blogpost Friday that the hackers attempted to penetrate 241 accounts, including a U.S. presidential campaign, current and former U.S. government officials, media targets and prominent expatriate Iranians.It said the …

US, UK Seizing on Facebook Inc’s Plan to Apply End-to-End Encryption

The United States and the United Kingdom are seizing on Facebook Inc’s plan to apply end-to-end encryption across its messaging services to press for major changes to a practice long opposed by law enforcement, saying it hinders the fight against child abuse and terrorism.The two countries plan to sign a special data agreement on Thursday …

No new Measles Cases Reported in Fading US Outbreak

The nation’s worst measles epidemic in 27 years could be in its final stages as a week went by with no new reported cases. “To get to zero is tremendously encouraging,” said Jason Schwartz, a Yale University expert on vaccination policy. The current epidemic emerged about a year ago and took off earlier this year, …

Global Nuclear Threat ‘Highest Since Cuban Missile Crisis’

World leaders meeting at the United Nations General Assembly, which begins Tuesday in New York, must make nuclear arms control a priority, according to a group of over 100 political, military and diplomatic figures. They have issued a statement warning that the risks of nuclear accident, misjudgment or miscalculation have not been higher since the …

IS Says it Releases News Audio of Leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi

The Islamic State terror group has issued a new audio recording , claiming to show the group’s reclusive leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi encouraging his supporters and fighters to conduct more military operations and engage in more propaganda. The recording, posted to the internet Monday by IS’s al-Furqan media division, also calls on IS supporters not …

US Recruits Next Generation of Cybersecurity Professionals

Online data is at risk. Hackers are getting smarter and companies across the globe are facing a shortage of trained professionals who can help protect their data. To fill this gap, the U.S. government is beefing up its efforts to recruit the next generation of cybersecurity professionals. VOA’s Sahar Majid has more. …

Research: Russian Disinformation on YouTube Draws Ads, Lacks Warnings

Fourteen Russia-backed YouTube channels spreading disinformation have been generating billions of views and millions of dollars in advertising revenue, according to researchers, and had not been labeled as state-sponsored, contrary to the world’s most popular streaming service’s policy. The channels, including news outlets NTV and Russia-24, carried false reports ranging from a U.S. politician covering …

Facebook Stops Huawei From Pre-Installing Its Apps on Phones

Facebook has stopped letting its apps come pre-installed on smartphones sold by Huawei in order to comply with U.S. restrictions, dealing a fresh blow to the Chinese tech giant. The social network said Friday that it has suspended providing software for Huawei to put on its devices while it reviews recently introduced U.S. sanctions. Owners …

Google Cloud Gaming Service to Launch in 14 Countries This Year

Google on Thursday released new details about its video game streaming service Stadia, which will be available in 14 countries starting in November. For the launch, Google will sell its “founders edition bundle” hardware pack for $129, with a monthly subscription price of $9.99. In Europe, the price will be 129 euros and 9.99 euros …

Ai-Da, Humanoid Robot Artist, Gears Up for First Solo Exhibition

Wearing a white blouse and her dark hair hanging loose, Ai-Da looks like any artist at work as she studies her subject and puts pencil to paper. But the beeping from her bionic arm gives her away – Ai-Da is a robot. Described as “the world’s first ultra-realistic AI humanoid robot artist,” Ai-Da opens her …

Canada Details Plans for 5G Internet Rollout

Canada on Wednesday said it was preparing for the arrival of ultra-fast 5G internet service as it outlined plans to make more 5G spectrum available starting next year. The federal Innovation Ministry released a paper outlining changes to an auction expected next year, a decision on a higher frequency millimeter wave spectrum in 2021, and …

Apple to Preview New Software as It Makes Big Transition

Apple will preview upcoming changes to its phone and computer software Monday as it undergoes a major transition intended to offset eroding sales of its bedrock iPhone. The company’s software showcase is an annual rite. But Apple is currently grappling with its biggest challenge since its visionary co-founder, Steve Jobs, died nearly eight years ago. …

Google Server Trouble Snarls YouTube, Snapchat

Congested Google servers in the eastern United States caused problems for users of Snapchat and YouTube on Sunday, with complaints on social media that the popular apps weren’t accessible. Google acknowledged the issue, writing in a statement on its Cloud Platform status page that it was dealing with “high levels of network congestion in the …

Report: US Regulators Divide up Scrutiny of Google, Amazon

U.S. antitrust regulators have divided oversight of Amazon.com Inc. and Alphabet Inc.’s Google, putting Amazon under the watch of the Federal Trade Commission and Google under the Justice Department, the Washington Post said Saturday. Amazon could face heightened antitrust scrutiny under a new agreement between U.S. regulators that puts the e-commerce giant under the watch …

Report: US to Launch Google Antitrust Inquiry

The U.S. Justice Department is preparing an investigation of Alphabet Inc.’s Google to determine whether the tech giant broke antitrust law in operating its sprawling online businesses, two sources familiar with the matter said. Officials from the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division and Federal Trade Commission, which both enforce antitrust law, met in recent weeks to …

Study: Kids Who Play Violent Video Games May Be More Likely to Handle Guns

Children who either played or watched a video game that included gun violence were more likely afterward to handle a gun and pull the trigger, a new study finds. More than 200 children were randomly assigned to play either a non-violent video game or a game with firearm violence. Soon after, more than 60% of …

Telecoms Giant EE Launches Britain’s First 5G Services

British mobile phone operator EE on Thursday became the first in the country to launch a high-speed 5G service, but without smartphones from controversial Chinese technology giant Huawei. EE, which is a division of British telecoms giant BT, has launched 5G in six major cities comprising Belfast, Birmingham, Cardiff, Edinburgh, London and Manchester — and more …

Should Facebook Delete Fake Pelosi Video?

When a doctored video of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi — one altered to show the Democratic leader slurring her words — began making the rounds on Facebook last week, the social network didn’t take it down. Instead, it “downranked” the video, a behind-the-scenes move intended to limit its spread. That outraged some people who believe …

How One Pollution-Weary Asian Island Adopted Electric Vehicles

Electric vehicles have struggled to gain mass appeal in much of the world despite the fanfare surrounding Tesla Motors, the world’s best-selling brand of plug-in cars last year. Drivers worry about prices, comfort and what happens when a battery expires in the middle of a trip. But in Taiwan, scooter vendor Gogoro doubles its sales …

MacKenzie Bezos Pledges to Give Away Half Her Fortune

MacKenzie Bezos, who just months ago divorced the world’s richest man, has pledged to give away half her fortune to charity.  The former wife of Amazon founder and chief executive Jeff Bezos is one of the 19 new signatories to the Giving Pledge who have promised to donate more than 50% of their wealth, the organization …

AI Phones, PCs Edging Into Global Consumer Technology

Artificial intelligence-driven phones that turn photos into 3D images and PCs with interactive speakers will come a step closer to reality this week during Asia’s biggest consumer technology show.   Organizers of the Computex Taipei show with 1,685 exhibitors — including a who’s who of global high tech companies — call artificial intelligence one of …