10 things in tech you need to know today

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

1. A huge data leak showed the inner workings of how China surveils and detains its Uighur population using an AI-powered policing platform that claims to be able to predict criminality. The system amasses enormous amounts of personal data including facial recognition data.
2. Facebook built a facial-recognition app that let employees identify people by pointing a phone at them. The app was not released publicly, and Facebook told Business Insider that it worked only on company employees and any of their friends who opted in to the social network's facial-recognition system.
3. Elon Musk said Tesla has already received 200,000 orders for the Cybertruck. The passenger pickup truck was unveiled Thursday night and immediately sparked headlines and viral reactions.
4. A member of the gang suspected of hacking Jack Dorsey's Twitter has been arrested. Motherboard reported that law enforcement officials and another member of the group confirmed the arrest, which came after the unidentified minor was suspected to be involved in hacking Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey's account.
5. HP rejected Xerox's $33.5 billion bid ahead of a Monday deadline to accept a merger or face a hostile takeover bid, setting the stage for a possible proxy war between the two tech companies. Xerox had offered to buy HP for $22 a share, but HP rejected that offer last week, prompting Xerox CEO John Visentin to write back with an ultimatum.
6. Juul is reportedly selling a 29-story tower which it bought just four months ago for $400 million. The news follows growing scrutiny, federal investigations, and company layoffs as officials crack down on Juul for its role in the youth vaping crisis.
7. San Francisco is launching an office entirely dedicated to regulating new tech before it enters public areas. The Office of Emerging Technology will scrutinize new technological arrivals arriving on San Francisco's streets such as electric scooters, delivery robots, and ride-sharing cars.
8. Creator of the Web Sir Tim Berners-Lee has come up with a scheme to "fix" the internet and has the backing of Facebook, Google, and Microsoft, CNBC reports. Berners-Lee's project is called the "contract for the web," and he is due to explain the plan in more detail at a speech in Berlin today.
9. The US army is investigating TikTok over national security concerns, Forbes reports. Army secretary Ryan McCarthy confirmed the review on Thursday after Senator Chuck Schumer wrote him a letter asking that the app be scrutinized.
10. The FCC voted to cut Huawei and ZTE off from billions of dollars' worth in federal subsidies, The Verge reports. The FCC decreed that wireless carriers can't dip into the government's Universal Service Fund (USF) to buy from companies designated a national security threat — which rules out Huawei.

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Contributer : Tech Insider https://ift.tt/2QUnNmW

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