Technology

KARACHI: In light of the coronavirus pandemic, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Wednesday waived all charges on fund transfers through online banking channels to avoid the use of cash. The move aims to minimise use of cash to contain the spread of virus amongst the bank staff and customers. Moreover, under the guidelines issued by the SBP, customers …

KARACHI/CALIFORNIA: Some posts, as well as coronavirus-related news, removed earlier from Facebook after its anti-spam system glitched were successfully “restored”, the social media giant’s safety and integrity head said on Wednesday. A screenshot showing the warning received by a Facebook user over their post related to Aurat March 2020. Facebook/Screenshot/via Geo.tv Posts mistakenly taken down by the social media platform …

WASHINGTON: The large US internet platforms have unveiled a joint effort to root out misinformation about the coronavirus pandemic, while Facebook announced a $100 million programme to aid small firms impacted by the crisis. A joint statement was issued late on Monday by Facebook, Google, Twitter, Microsoft and Reddit along with Google-owned YouTube and Microsoft-owned LinkedIn. “We are working closely …

KARACHI: The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) government has decided to set up a 23-member media team to devise and lead strategy around digital diplomacy, Dawn has learned. According to prime minister’s focal person on digital media Dr Arslan Khalid, the cabinet had three weeks ago approved the allocation of a supplementary grant of Rs42.791 million during the current financial year for creation of …

KARACHI: Head of the prime minister’s ‘Digital Pakistan’ initiative Tania Aidrus on Monday announ­ced that the government has launched a chatbot to address common concerns and give information regarding the COVID-19 outbreak. The Digital Pakistan team has created the tool to support the health emergency efforts by providing an online triage in infection diagnostics. “Our team wanted to build an …

PARIS: France’s competition watchdog on Monday fined iPhone maker Apple 1.1 billion euros ($ 1.23 billion), saying it was guilty of anti-competitive behaviour towards its distribution and retail network. The fine, the biggest ever levied by the French antitrust body, comes at a time of heightened scrutiny on US tech giants by European regulators, who have been delving into the …

Alphabet Inc’s YouTube, Facebook Inc and Twitter Inc warned on Monday that more videos and other content could be erroneously removed for policy violations, as the companies empty offices and rely on automated takedown software during the coronavirus pandemic. In a blog post, Google said that to reduce the need for people to come into offices, YouTube and other business …

NEWYORK: Apple Inc said late on Friday it will close all its retail stores, except those in Greater China, for the next two weeks to minimise the risk of coronavirus transmission. “We will be closing all of our retail stores outside of Greater China until March 27,” Apple CEO Tim Cook wrote in a letter posted on the company’s website. …

Microsoft on Friday announced that co-founder Bill Gates has left its board of directors to devote more time to philanthropy. The 64-year-old stopped being involved in day-to-day operations at the firm more than a decade ago, turning his attention to the foundation he launched with his wife, Melinda. Gates served as chairman of Microsoft’s board of directors until early in …

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday issued notice to the chairman and members of Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) for not framing rules as provided in the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (Peca) 2016. Awami Workers Party (AWP) filed the petition seeking initiation of contempt proceedings against PTA Chairman Amir Azeem Bajwa and members Mohammad Naveed and Khawar Siddique. …