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Libra Association opens Bug Bounty program to everyone
Facebook's Calibra digital wallet isn't expected to launch until 2020. But, as you might expect, the organization created to protect the Libra cryptocurrency that will be used with Calibra (and other Libra financial services) is already working to ensure it keeps people's data safe. We're talking about the Libra Association, the independent group in charge of governing Libra, which has announced it is now welcoming all researchers who want to help test the security of its blockchain technology -- in exchange for financial rewards, naturally. The Libra Bug Bounty program was announced at the time when the Libra Association became official in June, but now the nonprofit will be opening it to the public.
Facebook’s Libra Association is being investigated by EU antitrust regulators
Facebook's Libra cryptocurrency project is being probed again, this time by European Union antitrust regulators. The European Commission said it is "currently investigating potential anti-competitive behavior," related to the Libra Association, Bloomberg reports. In a questionnaire sent out this month, the EU authority expressed concerns that Libra would unfairly shut out rivals.
US, UK regulators ask Facebook how Libra will protect personal data (updated)
Facebook knew its Libra cryptocurrency would face a regulatory gauntlet, but it might not have expected a united front. Regulators from the US, UK, EU and four other governments have asked Facebook to answer several questions about how it will protect user data. The social network has "not met [regulators'] expectations" of privacy in the past, officials said in a joint statement, and there should be assurances that Libra will do better.
IRS reminds 10,000 taxpayers that cryptocurrency is subject to taxes
By the end of August, an estimated 10,000 taxpayers will receive letters from the IRS warning them that they may owe back taxes on unreported cryptocurrency earnings. While it might not be immediately obvious, you must include cryptocurrency earnings when you file federal taxes. As with tax evasion for traditional currency, anyone convicted of evading crypto taxes could face up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
Facebook is already awash with fraudulent ads about its own cryptocurrency
Facebook revealed its cryptocurrency plans just a month ago, and already it's the subject of a wave of fraudulent ads. As The Washington Post reports, around a dozen fake accounts, pages and groups have appeared on Facebook and Instagram, presenting themselves as official hubs for Facebook's not-yet-available Libra currency.
US Treasury has 'serious concerns' Libra could be used for terrorism
The US government views cryptocurrencies, including Facebook-backed Libra, as a national security issue. In a press conference today, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said the Treasury Department has "very serious concerns" that Libra could be misused by money launderers, terrorist financiers and other bad players. While the concerns are not entirely surprising, they do make the US government's stance on cryptocurrency more than clear.
Lawmakers want to block tech giants from offering digital currency
It's been one month since Facebook (and its partners) announced plans to launch Libra cryptocurrency. Already, US lawmakers are calling for Facebook to pause those plans. Now, some legislators want the company to stop altogether. According to Reuters, the Democratic majority of the House Financial Services Committee drafted legislation that would prevent big tech companies from functioning as financial institutions or issuing digital currencies.
Facebook won't make Libra available until regulators are happy
Facebook is determined to reassure officials that its Libra cryptocurrency is above-board. As part of prepared testimony for a July 16th Senate hearing, Calibra head David Marcus has stressed that the social network won't offer the virtual money until it has "fully addressed" regulators' concerns and received approval. He also reiterated privacy promises. The Libra Association won't keep personal data beyond basic transaction info, Marcus said, and Facebook won't share Calibra wallet info with the rest of the company.
US lawmakers tell Facebook to halt the launch of its Libra cryptocurrency
US lawmakers have asked Facebook to "immediately cease implementation plans" of its Libra cryptocurrency. Before it proceeds any further, the House Financial Services Committee, led by Democrat Maxine Waters, wants to examine risks around cyber security, global financial markets and national security concerns, it said in a letter to Facebook.
Senate panel schedules a hearing on Facebook's cryptocurrency
It didn't even take 48 hours after Facebook announced its cryptocurrency scheme for the government to raise an eyebrow. House Financial Services Committee Chairwoman Maxine Waters called for Facebook to halt development, and now the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs has scheduled a hearing to cover both Libra/Calibra and privacy issues. The committee did not list the names of witnesses it plans to call, but Reuters reports that Facebook's blockchain exec David Marcus is expected to testify. Will it be a worthwhile exercise that reveals more information about the plan and digs up useful information about how Facebook will manage the information generated or will it be another embarassing episode of political grandstanding? We'll find out on July 16th at 10 AM ET.
House chairwoman wants Facebook to pause work on its cryptocurrency
You knew Facebook's Libra cryptocurrency would come under scrutiny as soon as it became official, and the US government isn't wasting any time. House Financial Services Committee Chairwoman Maxine Waters has issued a statement calling on Facebook to pause development of Libra until Congress and regulatory bodies have had a chance to review it. The social network has "repeatedly shown a disregard" for safeguarding user data, Waters said, suggesting that privacy issues could come back to haunt this product.
Facebook's Calibra cryptocurrency wallet launches in 2020
After months of rumors and speculation, Facebook is finally making its cryptocurrency efforts official. This is Calibra, a digital wallet that will use a new cryptocurrency called Libra. Calibra, which is now a subsidiary of Facebook, is designed to "provide financial services that will enable people to access and participate in the Libra network," a blockchain technology developed by Facebook that's getting support from MasterCard, Visa, PayPal, eBay, Uber, Lyft and Spotify, among others. Facebook says it plans to launch Calibra in 2020, and the service will be available in Messenger and WhatsApp, as well as in a standalone app.
Facebook’s Libra currency gets backing from MasterCard, Visa, PayPal and more
Today, Facebook finally announced its long-rumored cryptocurrency platform, Calibra. Some speculated that the company would rely on outside firms and existing cryptocurrency exchanges, like the Winklevoss twins' Gemini. Instead, Facebook's Calibra will use a brand new cryptocurrency, Libra. The cryptocurrency will be governed by the Libra Association -- a purpose-built, independent non-profit headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.
Runtastic's Libra scale tracks bone and muscle mass, ships mid-November for $129
We've seen connected scales that provide oxygen levels and heart rates, but they have nothing on the sheer range of data coming from Runtastic's imminent Libra scale. In addition to basic weight and body fat measurements, the Bluetooth-based sensor can also calculate body mass index, bone mass, muscle mass and body water content. Got all that? As you'd expect, there's a mobile app to process the flood of information; it's iOS-only at launch, but the company promises an Android equivalent in early 2014. Runtastic ships the scale itself in mid-November for $129.
European Parkinson's patients receive first Libra DBS implants to help alleviate symptoms
St. Jude Medical's announced that patients from Austria, Germany, and Greece are among the first to be implanted with Libra Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) devices to alleviate the symptoms of advanced Parkinson's Disease. Specifically, it's able to reduce akinesia, rigidity, tremor, and motor complications associated with taking levodopa.The company's touting Libra and LibraXP as having the longest-lasting battery of any DBS in their class, meaning potentially less surgical procedures needed for for when they gotta be replaced. No word on when they'll be expanding use of the device, but we're sure it's coming.[Via Medgadget]
Driver trouble makes angry mobile owners rush castle HTC with burning torches
We're seeing a serious flow of tips from people upset with supposed performance issues on a good pile of HTC's newest sets. Handsets like the HTC TyTN II, Touch Dual, Touch Cruise, Wings, Titan, Vogue, Libra, and Iris are all apparently affected by underperforming video drivers which in turn slow the device significantly. The list -- and length -- of threads covering this is snow-balling at the well known XDA-Developers forum pages, as is talk of class-action suits. A site has now been set up called HTCClassAction to help people sort through all the buzz and get the nitty gritty details, so hit the read link if you're inspired to learn more. Of course we'll hopefully hear something official from HTC on this in the near term and will be sure to fill you in as we do.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Like the XV6800, but not: shots of Verizon's branded XV5800
We've been patiently waiting for a national US carrier to launch a version of HTC's Libra for nearly a year, and by golly, it looks like it might finally happen (and not in the hideous green Verizon was showing back in the day, either). The UTStarcom-sourced XV5800 lies somewhere between the Vox and the S730; although it shares 3G functionality with the S730, it's from the same vintage as the Vox (its GSM cousin) and has launched on a number of carriers. No word on a price or release date just yet, but it'd be a nice Festivus gift if we got 'er before the end of the year, yeah?[Thanks, anonymous tipster]%Gallery-11137%
Is this Verizon's PDA line-up for November?
With the holidays right around the corner, carriers will pull out all the stops to attract new customers and Verizon's no exception to the rule. First up, it's the Motorola's elusive Q9c -- cousin to the Q9m -- outfitted with a 1.3 megapixel camera, expandable memory via miniSD, 128MB of RAM and 64MB of ROM, Windows Mobile 6 Standard, and Bluetooth 2.0. Next up, it's UTStarcom's QWERTY-sliding SMT5800. The device will rock a 1xEV-DO Rev. A radio (which unfortunately looks like it will be held to Rev. 0 at launch), 2 megapixel shooter, microSD support, 128MB of RAM and 64MB of ROM, Windows Mobile 6 Standard, and Bluetooth 2.0. UTStarcom looks to finally bring the XV6800 running WM6 Professional, too -- but sadly, it will also have the EV-DO Rev. A radio downgraded to Rev. 0 at launch. Rounding out the November launch schedule is the Palm Treo 755p, trailing Sprint by a country mile, but Palm OS faithful are probably thinking it's better to launch this one late than never. Let's hope these dates stick, yeah?[Thanks, HTC Kid]%Gallery-8629%
Bell reels in HTC 5800
Canada and the US regionals are now officially pwning Sprint and Verizon on this one. Bell becomes the latest carrier to offer the Windows Mobile 2006-based QWERTY slider -- Libra -- as the HTC 5800, offering EV-DO, a 2 megapixel cam, stereo Bluetooth, tethering capability, and microSD expansion. Come on Verizon, we're getting impatient! Grab it now north of the border for a nice, round $149.95 CAD (about $141) on a three-year agreement.[Via cell phones etc.]
Qwest picks up HTC S720 as "Fusion"
If our brief time with the GSM variant (the S710 Vox) is any indication, Qwest subscribers should be pretty freakin' stoked about this. The regional carrier has just picked up HTC's S720 Libra, the CDMA radioed version of the manufacturer's slide-out QWERTY smartphone rocking Windows Mobile 6 Standard. The naming is a little confusing -- Qwest calls it the "Fusion HTC 5800" -- but whatever they want to call it, it's pure gold by HTC and Windows Mobile standards. The spec sheet tells of a 2 megapixel cam, A2DP, microSD expansion, and EV-DO all packed into a pleasantly compact (we know from our experiences with the Vox) shell. Grab it now for two bills on contract.[Via Phone Scoop]