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Computer programmers can still qualify for H-1B visas
Yes, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is cracking down on the controversial H-1B category of work visas with new anti-fraud and anti-abuse measures. But it is not disqualifying computer programmers from getting the visa, contrary to reports you may have read. A recently issued "Policy Memorandum" instructs employees to stop relying on what it calls an outdated handbook to determine if an applicant's job qualifies as a specialty occupation, but it does not deny them altogether. Not only that, the memo is really only meant to bring specifically the USCIS' Nebraska Service Center, which stopped processing H-1B paperwork for close to ten years, up to speed. Other service centers had already been using the updated policies for assessing a candidate's qualifications.
US suspends 'premium processing' for H-1B visas
In a move that could restrict access to foreign engineers, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced tonight that it will "temporarily suspend premium processing for all H-1B petitions." In a statement, the department said this suspension "may" last six months, and pitched it as an administrative move to speed up all applications. The suspension takes effect April 3rd (the day applications open) nixing a $1,225 option that allowed highly skilled workers to find out if their application for an H-1B visa is approved in as little as a month.
The Engadget Podcast Ep 27: American Tune
Managing editor Dana Wollman and reviews editor Cherlynn Low join host Terrence O'Brien to discuss the biggest tech news of the week. First they'll debate OnePlus' benchmark scandal, then try to sort out why the ACLU is partnering with startup incubator Y Combinator and take the "artists" behind the Tinder for baby adoption Kickstarter to task. Finally it's another week of Trump talk as the panel addresses the impact of the recent immigration ban on the tech industry and how the political climate is impacting our social media habits.
Microsoft asks for exceptions process in Trump's immigration ban
Trump's immigration (read: Muslim) ban has already negatively impacted America's tech industry. Microsoft alone has 76 employees, along with their 41 dependents, who are subject to the president's executive order. And while the rest of the industry has slowly begun rumbling in opposition, Microsoft is taking the lead. The company has not only thrown its support behind Washington State's lawsuit against the federal government. On Thursday, Brad Smith, Microsoft's President and Chief Legal Officer, called on the State Department and HHS for specific exemptions to the immigration ban.
Devolver will highlight games from banned nations at GDC
At the end of the month, developers from around the world will congregate in San Francisco for the annual Game Developers Conference (GDC). Or rather, that was the plan. This year that's not going to happen: President Trump's executive order on immigration established a blanket ban on residents from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen, which was initially interpreted as including those with permanent residency in the US or dual citizenship. While courts have slowly been ruling against the order, the situation is still in flux, and the Trump administration has indicated it will continue to pursue the order's underlying aims. The political situation has left several developers unable to attend GDC, unwilling to enter the US or unable to leave. Shahid Kamal Ahmad, current independent developer and PlayStation's former director for strategic content, said over the weekend that he was not going to the conference. He later clarified that "so long as any Muslim is banned from the US for no reason other than their religion," he would not attend.
Thieves can use web bots to guess your Visa card details
If you've punched in credit card details while shopping online, you've probably wondered how secure those digits are. According to Newcastle University, the answer is: not very. Its researchers have discovered that thieves are using web bots to guess Visa credit and debit card info thanks to a flaw in the company's payment system. The biggest challenge is obtaining valid 16-digit card numbers, usually by buying them or using an algorithm to generate valid examples. After that, the bots find expiration dates and CVVs (that three-digit number on the back) by spreading guesses across hundreds of shopping sites, plugging numbers into fields until they hit the jackpot. While that sounds like a painstaking process, the bots can figure things out in 6 seconds.
Chat bot helps immigrants complete their visas
Legal-minded chat bots are useful for more than just fighting parking tickets -- they might just start your life in a new land. Visabot has launched a namesake Facebook Messenger chat AI that helps you complete US visa applications. After you answer a slew of questions, the bot fills out the relevant forms and gives you instructions on how to send those documents to immigration officials. And it should learn over time -- if you voluntarily report officials' decisions on those forms, you can improve the bot's approach for future applications.
Samsung Pay starts rolling out in Canada
Canadian iPhone owners have had Apple Pay for a while, but what if a Samsung phone is your weapon of choice? You might be set after today. Just a couple of weeks after the company revealed that Samsung Pay was coming to Canada in November, Galaxy phone owners are reporting that the tap-to-pay service is going live. You currently have to sideload the Samsung Pay app and framework on a compatible phone (typically a Galaxy S6, S7 or Note 5), but you may not have to take your wallet out after that. A formal launch should come soon.
Uber gives you ride discounts for shopping with a Visa card
Uber is no stranger to promos that discount rides when you use a specific credit card, but it's kicking things up a notch. It's introducing a permanent Local Offers feature that, in its current incarnation, offers ridesharing discounts when you shop at participating stores using a Visa credit card linked to your Uber account. Every dollar you spend counts as a point, and 100 points will give you a $10 discount for an Uber trip. While it's not the same as getting a free ride, the deals could add up quickly if you regularly break out your Visa when out on the town.
Visa-powered payment ring is now available to everyone (update: separate product)
That Visa-based payment ring is no longer limited to athletes who made it to the Olympics in Rio. Anyone can now pre-order an NFC Ring that lets you tap to pay at many store terminals without pulling out your phone or twisting your wrist. Plunk down about $53 (£40) and you can get one in your size around its expected December ship date. As with the Apple Watch, you don't need your phone around once you've set it up -- it uses anonymizing tokens to make payments all by itself. It's not flawless (we found that you have to hold it at an angle for best results), but it's far subtler than many existing payment methods. Update 8/26: Visa tells us that the payment-capable NFC Ring isn't the same product as what athletes tried. It just happens to embody the same general concept. With that said, Visa says it has "future plans" for the tech it showed off -- you'll just have to wait longer to see that.
Homeland Security wants social media info from foreign visitors
Someday, departure and arrival forms in the US might have a new section asking foreign nationals for their Facebook and Twitter accounts. The Department of Homeland Security has submitted a proposal to add a section in those forms that reads: "Please enter information associated with your online presence--Provider/Platform--Social media identifier." According to the info published by the Federal Register, it would be an optional field and would only ask for people's usernames on social media platforms, not their passwords.
ICYMI: Raining tiny satellites and the laundry-folding machine
Today on In Case You Missed It: A company called FoldiMate is selling a standalone machine to sit alongside a washing and dryer and fold about 20 garments at a time for $850. Cornell University engineers are sending tiny interstellar computers to the ISS this summer, there they will act as satellites and, eventually, collect information from our nearest neighboring star system, Alpha Centauri. We also round up the week in our TL; DR segment. If you grew up playing The Sims, this piece of news might interest you. We're also very interested in the Visa payment ring the Olympic athletes can wear in Rio. As always, please share any great tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
Olympic athletes will sport Visa's new payment ring in Rio
For those making their way to this year's Olympic games in Rio this August, Visa will be the only card accepted at official venues -- a pretty sweet deal for the payment provider. But, rather than be satisfied with exclusive access to the wallets of a half million tourists, the company is using the event to introduce a new ring that will let people pay with a wave of their hand: No phone, wallet or even battery needed.
Walmart takes Visa to court over debit card payments
Walmart isn't happy that Visa still allows customers to sign for purchases made with their chip-equipped debit cards. The retail giant has filed a lawsuit against Visa in New York in an effort to compel the credit card brand to require PIN verification when paying in its stores. Walmart argues that PINs are a lot more secure than signatures and can help prevent fraud. It used to only allow debit card payments verified by PINs when it first started accepting chip cards, but Visa forced the company to allow signature verifications.
Apple Pay finally becomes useful in Canada
Apple Pay technically launched in Canada back in November, but it might as well have been non-existent -- you could only use a directly-issued American Express card, which isn't all that common in the country. At last, though, things are opening up. Apple has announced that its tap-to-pay service is now available through a much, much wider range of providers. Right now, you can use it through heavyweights CIBC and RBC (both credit and debit cards) as well as smaller providers ATB (initially MasterCard-only) and Canadian Tire (MasterCard). The other big three (BMO, Scotiabank and TD) aren't ready yet, but they've all committed to letting you pay with your iPhone or Apple Watch in the months ahead.
Visa thinks your car should pay for its own fuel
The jury may still be out on the usefulness of the Internet of Things, but payments giant Visa is 100 percent sure it doesn't want to miss out. Today it announced plans to push Visa payments into numerous fields. We're talking "wearables, automobiles, appliances, public transportation services, clothing and almost any other connected device" -- basically, anything that can or will soon connect to the internet.
Visa reveals its stake in rival Square (updated)
Visa has purchased 10 percent of Square's trading shares according to documents seen by the WSJ. Square is best known for its smartphone-attached readers that make it easy for merchants (and even panhandlers) to accept credit cards. The company was started and is still headed by Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey. Though Square's Jack Dorsey revealed that Visa had taken a piece of it several years back, the credit card giant only recently revealed the amount of the stake. Visa recently launched Visa Developer, software that will help merchants accept Visa payments more easily.
Visa wakes up to the sound of the internet
If you had to name the pre-eminent internet payments platform, you'd probably say PayPal -- a fact that sends Visa executives into a frenzy. That's why the big V has announced that it's embracing this new-fangled interweb thing that it's just now heard about. The firm has announced the launch of Visa Developer, a way to open up the financial giant's infrastructure to anyone who wants to use it. If you're a company that wants to sell stuff, you can hook your products up to Visa's back end and get all of its skills with very little effort.
Australian securities market set to begin trading Bitcoin
The Australian securities exchange (ASX) is preparing to publicly trade shares of the Bitcoin Group on February 9th, under the BCG handle. Bitcoin Group currently operates 6,000 "mining" rigs spread across seven international locations (though mostly in China where the cost of electricity is most affordable). The company hopes to raise more than $20 million on the sale of 100 million, $0.20 shares during its initial public offering.
Samsung Pay works with 19 more banks in the US
Samsung has signed a deal that'll get its smartphone-based payments system accepted with 19 more banks in the US. The agreement means that you'll now be able to use your Galaxy smartphone as a substitute for a PNC Visa and KeyBank MasterCard credit and debit card. In addition, the partnership means that plenty of regional issuers are now signed up, including TCF Bank, Utah Community Credit Union and USC Credit Union. If you've yet to make a splash into the realm of Samsung Pay, you'll need to grab a Galaxy S6 variant or a Note 5 and download the app from Google Play and dash to your nearest franchise coffee house.
