Meta wants EU users to apply for permission to opt out of data collection

Meta announced that starting next Wednesday, some Facebook and Instagram users in the European Union will for the first time be able to opt out of sharing first-party data used to serve highly personalized ads, The Wall Street Journal reported. The move marks a big change from Meta's current business model, where every video and piece of content clicked on its platforms provides a data point for its online advertisers.
Read more: https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2023/03/facebook-gets-to-decide-whether-eu-users-can-object-to-invasive-targeted-ads/?source=Snapzu

Apple illegally fired five labor activists, union says

The workers, who were disciplined and fired for attendance-related issues, believe they were let go because of their union organizing.
Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/03/28/apple-union-firings/?source=Snapzu

Some laid-off staff at Google's Irish office could be given severance packages worth $320,000, report says

Google staffers in Ireland made redundant as part of the company's 12,000 global cuts could be offered severance packages worth more than €300,000 ($320,000), British newspaper the Sunday Times reported this week. The tech giant announced plans to lay off over 12,000 workers globally in January, in a major cost-cutting drive. Some 240 workers at its Irish offices were affected including 85 in sales, 80 in technology, and 75 in support services, according to the Sunday Times.
Read more: https://www.businessinsider.com/google-layoffs-irish-workers-320000-severance-report-2023-3?source=Snapzu

A Scammer Tricked Instagram Into Banning Influencers With Millions of Followers. Then He Made Them Pay to Recover Their Accounts.

Just after midnight on Sept. 13, Kristian “Murda” Murphy was watching TV at home in Boca Raton, Florida, when his phone began buzzing. “Murda u always outside we gon see you,” read a message from an account he didn’t recognize.
Read more: https://www.propublica.org/article/instagram-fraudster-ban-influencer-accounts?source=Snapzu

At Apple, Rare Dissent Over a New Product: Interactive Goggles

The company is expected to unveil an augmented reality headset in a few months. Some employees wonder if the device makes sense for Apple.
Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/26/technology/apple-augmented-reality-dissent.html?source=Snapzu

When Writing for Your Website, F Is the Magic Letter

Some say that the flowery prose for which Charles Dickens is so famous is because they thought he was paid by how much he wrote.
Read more: https://vitalytennant.com/when-writing-for-your-website-f-is-the-magic-letter/?source=Snapzu

Apple 'Tracking Employee Attendance' in Crackdown on Remote Working

Apple is tracking the attendance of its employees at offices using badge records in order to ensure they are coming in at least three times a week, according to Platformer's Zoë Schiffer. Since April 2022, Apple employees have been operating on a hybrid home/office work policy as part of a gradual return strategy following the pandemic, with staff required to work from the office at least three days per week.
Read more: https://www.macrumors.com/2023/03/23/apple-tracking-staff-office-attendance/?source=Snapzu