TWEAKS AND UPDATES

Los Angeles Times: Twitter is suspending 70 pro-Bloomberg accounts, citing ‘platform manipulation’. “Michael R. Bloomberg’s presidential campaign has been experimenting with novel tactics to cultivate an online following, or at least the appearance of one. But one of the strategies — deploying a large number of Twitter accounts to push out identical messages — has backfired. On Friday, Twitter began suspending 70 accounts posting pro-Bloomberg content in a pattern that violates company rules.”

9to5Google: Google Docs autocorrect widely rolling out as Smart Compose exits G Suite beta. “Last November, Google Docs started testing autocorrect and Smart Compose as part of leveraging machine learning to improve user productivity. Those two features are now widely rolling out, though availability is tiered.”

The Register: Yo, Imma let you finish, but for the 6,000 people still using that app on a daily basis … we have a question: why? . “Yo was a joke that quickly died down. Users moved on. [Moshe] Hogeg moved on. Except, it wasn’t. Not quite. According to mobile analytics house Apptopia, 6,000 people still use Yo on a daily basis. More curiously, the app was downloaded 16,200 times in the month of January across the Apple and Android app stores.”

USEFUL STUFF

PopSugar: You Can Put Physical Photos Onto Your Phone’s Camera Roll Using the Notes App — Here’s How. “Everyone loves a good Polaroid. It’s perfect for keeping a memory in a compact and cute way, but the struggle starts when you want to get said Polaroids onto your phone’s camera roll. Taking photos of your photos just makes them less clear, and the Polaroids are usually covered in glares. But the good news is there’s an easy fix for this!”

AROUND THE SEARCH AND SOCIAL MEDIA WORLD

Nieman Journalism Lab: There are lots of ways to combat misinformation. Here are some creative ones from across three continents. “There are many studies on misinformation and ways to combat it, but they’re often focused on traditional reporters and editors. In four new reports published today, Full Fact, an independent fact-checking charity in the United Kingdom, partnered with Africa Check (which fact checks in several countries on the continent) and Argentina’s Chequeado analyzed academic research and fact-checking experiments in the three regions, and recommends how members of the public sector (politicians, health officials, educators, etc.) can contribute to correcting and limiting the spread of bad information.”

Florida International University News: FIU, UF scholars awarded grant to increase accessibility to Caribbean primary research data. “FIU Libraries, in partnership with the Digital Library of the Caribbean and the University of Florida George A. Smathers Libraries, has received $50,000 to support dLOC (Digital Library of the Caribbean) as Data: A Thematic Approach to Caribbean Newspapers….From analyzing topical trends in newspaper coverage to visualizing photojournalism across time and space, the project will provide scholars with insights into Caribbean culture and society, enabling them to delineate a more complete story.”

Reuters: Exclusive: Google users in UK to lose EU data protection – sources. “Google is planning to move its British users’ accounts out of the control of European Union privacy regulators, placing them under U.S. jurisdiction instead, sources said.”

SECURITY & LEGAL

ProPakistani: Maroof International Hospital Hit with Severe Ransomware Attack. “Maroof International Hospital Islamabad’s entire computer network has been compromised in the wake of a massive ransomware attack. Maroof is one of the most expensive private hospitals in Islamabad.”

The Next Web: The US takes Facebook to court over $9 billion in (allegedly) unpaid taxes. “Facebook is squaring off against the US over more than $9 billion in allegedly unpaid taxes, Financial Times reports. The US‘ Internal Revenue Service (IRS) says Facebook intentionally ‘downplayed’ intellectual property (IP) it transferred to a subsidiary in Ireland in 2010.”

New York Times: Google Reaches Document Protection Deal in Antitrust Fight. “Google reached an agreement with a group of state attorneys general on Thursday over how officials will handle information it provides during their antitrust investigation into the company. Settling an early dispute in the case, the agreement requires the states to protect confidential information provided by Google and governs how it can be shared, according to a copy reviewed by The New York Times.”

BDaily News: Over 27 Million People Affected in Healthcare Data Breaches Last Year. “Bitglass has released its sixth annual Healthcare Breach Report. Each year, Bitglass analyses data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ ‘Wall of Shame,’ a database containing information about breaches of protected health information (PHI). In 2019, these breaches collectively affected over 27 million individuals. Bitglass’ latest report analyses the breaches of 2019, compares them to those of previous years, and reveals key trends and cybersecurity challenges facing the healthcare industry.”

RESEARCH & OPINION

DigitalHealth: Dr Google causes concern for Macmillan Cancer Support. “Charity Macmillan Cancer Support has said it is concerned patients are turning to the internet for information about the disease, leaving them feeling confused and depressed. Research from the charity, based on a YouGov survey of 2,000 people with cancer in the UK, revealed 39% look online for information about their diagnosis, and of these 27% feel anxious, depressed or confused afterwards.” Good morning, Internet…

Do you like ResearchBuzz? Does it help you out? Please consider supporting it on Patreon. Not interested in commitment? Perhaps you’d buy me an iced tea. I love your comments, I love your site suggestions, and I love you. Feel free to comment on the blog, or @ResearchBuzz on Twitter. Thanks!