Companies that sell refrigerators, washers, hairdryers, or TVs in the European Union will need to ensure those appliances can be repaired for up to 10 years, to help reduce the vast mountain of electrical waste that piles up each year on the continent. Euronews reports: The “right to repair,” as it is sometimes called, comes into force across the 27-nation bloc…
Tag: EU
America Authorizes Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 Vaccine For Emergency Use
America’s Food and Drug Administration just authorized Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use, according to CBS News. “The vaccine is the third to be approved for use in the United States, and the first that requires only one shot…” Among people who got the vaccine in clinical trials, there were no COVID-related deaths. Phase 3 clinical trials also showed…
America Has Vaccinated More People Than Any Other Country in the World
Despite America’s vast population of nearly 330 million people, 42.8 million Americans have already received one or both doses of a Covid-19 vaccine. Axios writes: The U.S. has carried out more vaccinations than any country in the world, and given a first dose to a higher percentage of its population (12%) than all but five countries: Israel, the Seychelles, the UAE,…
TikTok Hit With Consumer, Child Safety and Privacy Complaints in Europe
TikTok is facing a fresh round of regulatory complaints in Europe where consumer protection groups have filed a series of coordinated complaints alleging multiple breaches of EU law. From a report: The European Consumer Organisation (BEUC) has lodged a complaint against the video sharing site with the European Commission and the bloc’s network of consumer protection authorities, while consumer organisations in…
Facebook Sued for ‘Losing Control’ of Users’ Data
Facebook is being sued for “losing control” of the data of about a million users in England and Wales. From a report: The alleged failings were revealed in the Cambridge Analytica scandal, where harvested data was used for advertising during elections. Journalist Peter Jukes, leading the action, claims his data was compromised. Facebook told BBC News there was “no evidence” UK…
Sputnik V vaccine is 91.6% effective against symptomatic covid-19
Preliminary results from more than 20,000 people show the two-shot Russian vaccine is effective against symptomatic coronavirus, and has been submitted for EU approval Source: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2266475-sputnik-v-vaccine-is-91-6-effective-against-symptomatic-covid-19/?utm_campaign=RSS%7CNSNS&utm_source=NSNS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_content=home…
ProtonMail, Threema, Tresorit and Tutanota Warn EU Lawmakers Over ‘Anti-Encryption’ Push
Four European apps which secure user data via end-to-end encryption, ProtonMail, Threema, Tresorit and Tutanota, have issued a joint-statement warning over recent moves by EU institutions that they say are setting lawmakers on a dangerous path to backdooring encryption. From a report: Last month the EU Council passed a resolution on encryption that’s riven with contradiction — calling for “security through…
EU begins to clamp down on vaccine exports as supplies fall short
Vaccine makers are set to deliver fewer coronavirus vaccine doses to the European Union than expected, leading the bloc to require pharmaceutical firms to notify it before exporting vaccines Source: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2265818-eu-begins-to-clamp-down-on-vaccine-exports-as-supplies-fall-short/?utm_campaign=RSS%7CNSNS&utm_source=NSNS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_content=home…
Valve and Five PC Games Publishers Fined $9.4M for Illegal Geo-Blocking
A four-year antitrust investigation into PC games geo-blocking in the European Union by distribution platform Valve and five games publishers has led to fines totalling $9.4 million after the Commission confirmed today that the bloc’s rules had been breached. From a report: The geo-blocking practices investigated since 2017 concerned around 100 PC video games of different genres, including sports, simulation and…
Google Closes the Fitbit Acquisition, Pledges To Not Use Data For Ads
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: Today Google’s senior VP of Hardware, Rick Osterloh, announced Google has closed its acquisition of Fitbit. The $2.1 billion deal was announced back in November 2019, which kicked off a regulatory review process from governments around the world concerned about Google’s influence over the Internet and the data it can collect on…