Phone calls have made a comeback in the pandemic. While the nation’s biggest telecommunications providers prepared for a huge shift toward more internet use from home, what they didn’t expect was an even greater surge in plain old voice calls, a medium that had been going out of fashion for years. From a report: Verizon said it was now handling an…
Tag: verizon
Verizon Is Cancelling Home Internet Installations During the Pandemic
According to The Verge, Verizon is canceling scheduled appointments for internet installation and repairs, “[leaving] Fios subscribers without wired internet at a time when they’re likely relying on it for work and to see friends and family during the COVID-19 pandemic.” From the report: “We are minimizing our in-home installation work to critical needs to keep our employees and customers safe…
Working From Home Hasn’t Broken the Internet
sixoh1 shared this story from the Wall Street Journal: Home internet and wireless connectivity in the U.S. have largely withstood unprecedented demands as more Americans work and learn remotely. Broadband and wireless service providers say traffic has jumped in residential areas at times of the day when families would typically head to offices and schools. Still, that surge in usage hasn’t…
Videogames Are Setting New Records For Simultaneous Users
Forbes reports that in a world filled with school closings and social isolation, gaming has surged:
– Steam, the most popular digital PC gaming marketplace, reached new heights Sunday, drawing a record 20,313,451 concurrent users to the 16-year-old service, according to third-party database SteamDB – Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, released by Steam-owner Valve in 2012, seems to be the top beneficiary of the…
Coronavirus Could Force ISPs To Abandon Data Caps Forever
An anonymous reader quotes a report from TechCrunch: The coronavirus threat and official policies of “social distancing” are leading millions to stay home, doing meetings via video chat and probably watching Netflix and YouTube the rest of the time. That means a big uptick in bytes going through the tubes, both simultaneously and cumulatively. ISPs, leery of repeating Verizon’s memorable gaffe…
Major U.S. Internet Firms Agree To Not Cancel Service Over Next 60 Days
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) said Friday that major internet providers — including Comcast, AT&T and Verizon Communications — have agreed to not terminate service for the next 60 days if they are unable to pay their bills due to the disruptions caused by the coronavirus. From a report: FCC Chairman Ajit Pai said after calls with companies and associations the…
FCC Proposes Hefty Fines To Carriers for Not Protecting Consumer Location Data
The Federal Communications Commission announced Friday that it has proposed fining the nation’s four largest wireless carriers $200 million for selling access to their customers’ location information without taking reasonable measures to protect customers’ real-time location information. From a report: The agency is proposing T-Mobile face a fine of more than $91 million. AT&T will be fined more than $57 million….
FCC Approves Plan To Pay Satellite Companies To Give Up Airwaves
U.S. regulators approved a plan to pay Intelsat SA and other satellite providers to give up airwaves so they can be redeployed for the fast 5G mobile networks being rolled out. From a report: The Federal Communications Commission on a 3-2 vote Friday approved Chairman Ajit Pai’s plan for as much as $9.7 billion to clear the frequencies, with the money…
Watch Out: This Verizon Smishing Scam Is Crazy Realistic
Slashdot reader Iwastheone shared a warning from the editor-in-chief at How-To Geek about a “shockingly convincing” scam:
The scam text message says, “Your Verizon account security needs validation” and invites you to tap a link to “validate your account.” Once you do, you end up at a phishing website that looks almost exactly like Verizon’s real website. The fake website asks for…
T-Mobile/Sprint Merger Wins Approval From US Judge
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Reuters: T-Mobile’s edged closer to a takeover of Sprint after a federal judge on Tuesday approved the deal, rejecting a claim by a group of states that said the deal would violate antitrust laws and raise prices. During a two-week trial in December, T-Mobile and Sprint argued the merger will better equip the new…