10 things in tech you need to know today

Good morning! This is the tech news you need to know this Tuesday.

1. Amazon is acquiring WiFi router company Eero. Eero makes "mesh" Wi-Fi routers, which help blanket even the largest spaces with a strong wireless internet signal. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.
2. Apple and Google accused of helping "enforce gender apartheid" by hosting a Saudi government app that tracks women and stops them leaving the country. Under Saudi law, every woman has a legal "guardian" who can restrict her travel to specific airports and routes and get automated alerts when they cross borders.
3. Saudi Arabia denies role in Jeff Bezos affair, as the National Enquirer's attorney let slip details about its source. The Enquirer's lawyer refused to name the source who leaked Bezos' texts but said he was known to Bezos and the recipient of the texts, Lauren Sanchez.
4. Apple is so secretive that its contractors reportedly work at 'black sites.' Contractors from the office told Bloomberg they faced a constant threat of termination and did not have access to Apple perks like its gym or cafeteria.
5. One of Tesla's largest institutional shareholders cut its stake in half during the fourth quarter. Tesla shareholder T. Rowe Price Group had a 5.2% stake in the electric car maker as of the end of December, roughly half its earlier stake.
6. Apple's new iPhones in 2019 reportedly won't include a type of charger that's become standard on Android phones. It looks like Apple won't be switching over to the universal USB-C port for its 2019 iPhones and it'll stick with its proprietary Lightning port and cables.
7. Elon Musk says he is "confident" people could afford to "sell their home on Earth" and move to Mars on a SpaceX rocket. SpaceX is designing a new rocket ship, called Starship, to send about 100 people to Mars at a time.
8. There's a viral Facebook post making the rounds that claims the News Feed is restricting what you see to just 25 friends. The post is a hoax.
9. Apple's iPhone sales in China collapsed last quarter, and it's because they cost too much. iPhone shipments in China dropped nearly 20% on an annual basis during the fourth quarter of 2018, according to a new estimate.
10. A gamer who made and sold cheat software for "Grand Theft Auto V" now owes the game's creators $150,000 for copyright infringement. A complaint filed in US District Court accuses Jhonny Perez of creating and selling a program called Elusive that let players generate unlimited amounts of money and manipulate other parts of the game.

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Contributer : Tech Insider https://read.bi/2GE8sCe

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