Online&Social
Microsoft Reportedly Suspending Advertising on Facebook and Instagram
Sourced from Getty Images. Microsoft has reportedly paused advertising on Facebook and Instagram worldwide due to growing concerns about the content that is accompanying its adverts. Interestingly, the company isn’t participating in the industry-wide Facebook advertising boycott alongside mega-corporations like Coca-Cola and Unilever. Instead, Microsoft is more worried that their adverts might be shown with “inappropriate content” such as hate speech or pornography, according to internal communication viewed by Axios. Microsoft distances itself from larger boycott “Based on concerns we had back in May we suspended all media spending on Facebook/Instagram in the US and we’ve subsequently suspended all spending on Facebook/Instagram worldwide,” Microsoft CMO Chris Capossela said in an intern...
eCommerce Activity Reaches Record High – Offering Hope for Local Economy
Sourced from IOL. eCommerce is said to be providing a ray of hope for South Africa’s local economy with transactions hitting a record high in May and June. And, while there will be some levelling off, DPO South Africa says the new love affair with digital commerce is unlikely to fade in coming months, offering some relief in an otherwise grim economy. “The last weekend in May saw transactions per minute hit four times that of the busiest minute experienced during Black Friday last year. June was similar to May and we expect our monthly volumes for the rest of the year to settle at around 40 per cent higher than last year,” explains Peter Harvey, MD of DPO South Africa. According to Harvey, the adoption of eCommerce should be seen as a very positive sign after the depressing financial metri...
Twitter Flags Tweets Unrelated to 5G or COVID-19 as Misleading
Image sourced from Mission Statement Academy Twitter has confirmed that a number of tweets – unrelated to conspiracy theories surrounding COVID-19 and 5G – were flagged as misinformation. And now the social media platform says that it will do more to improve how it labels content. “In the last few weeks, you may have seen Tweets with labels linking to additional info about COVID-19,” tweeted Twitter Support. “Not all of those Tweets had potentially misleading content associating COVID-19 and 5G. We apologize for any confusion and we’re working to improve our labelling process.” Our policies prohibit sharing false or misleading content related to COVID-19, as this could lead to harm. More on this: https://t.co/h8rRHrn2xj (2/4) — Twitter Support (@TwitterSupport) June 26, 2020 According to T...
Facebook’s Dark Mode is Now Being Tested on Mobile
Sourced from The New York Times Social media colossus Facebook has confirmed that some of the platform’s users are now able to switch to dark mode on their mobile app. So I have dark mode on Facebook now. 😍 #darkmode #facebook #iOS14 pic.twitter.com/AuC5uYoMJ2 — 🐍🏀💜💛 (@NotFridayCraig) June 26, 2020 These users have begun to post their reactions to the new dark mode on Twitter, showing off screenshots of the new UI. The option is now appearing in the ‘Settings & Privacy’ section of the mobile app of certain users. Facebook has said that, while they have only started rolling out dark mode for mobile users, as of right now the mode is only available for a “small percentage of users globally,” according to Social Media Today. /* custom css */ .tdi_3_...
Mark Zuckerberg Down $7 Billion as Huge Companies Continue to Boycott Facebook
Image sourced from Inc Facebook’s stock price is being hammered by a massive boycott of the social media giant’s major advertisers. CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s personal wealth is also feeling the brunt of the stand-off. As of Saturday last week, Zuckerberg’s net wealth is down around $7 billion, while Facebook’s share price dropped by more than 8% at the close of trading on Friday. Advertising is Facebook’s largest source of income, with the company making $17.4 billion in ad sales alone in the first three months of 2020. Coca-Cola Backs #StopHateforProfit /* custom css */ .tdi_3_83f.td-a-rec-img{ text-align: left; }.tdi_3_83f.td-a-rec-img img{ margin: 0 auto 0 0; } Soft-drink juggernaut Coca-Cola is one of the latest brands to halt all of its social media advertising, backing the #StopHateforPr...
Need a Culture Fix? Here are 5 French Museums You Can Visit Virtually
Sourced from Flickr. As the global COVID-19 pandemic continues to restrict international travel, many wanderlust travellers around the world are craving their next trip. Wouter Vermeulen, GM of Southern Africa for Air France KLM notes that while we are all being responsible citizens practising social distancing, people across the world are finding creative ways to bring the world to them. “During this time of lockdown, we have seen people embracing virtual travel to their dream destinations. And while it is no replacement for the real thing, it helps keep that travel dream alive. Another way we have seen people bringing the world to them is through virtual tourism! Many tourist hotspots and museums have created interactive versions of their offering to give travellers a glimpse into their ...
Sony’s Music Portal Launches Two New Features for African Artists
Sony Music Entertainment Africa has just unveiled two state-of-the-art features – Real-Time Earnings and Cash-Out – that allow their artists to view and withdraw earnings faster than ever before through the Sony Music Artist Portal. In these unprecedented times where artists need immediate access to funds, the Real-Time Earnings element of the Sony Music Artist Portal is available anytime, anywhere and provides artists with immediate updates about their global earnings and account balances, while also giving them faster insights into their earnings trends. The Cash-Out element gives artists even greater control over their money by providing them with the ability to request a withdrawal of all, or part, of their payable balance, and there are no hidden fees or charges that are incurred when...
Operation In(ter)ception: How a LinkedIn Message can Result in Espionage
Sourced from Republic Title ESET researchers have discovered highly targeted cyberattacks that are notable for using LinkedIn-based spearphishing, employing effective tricks to stay under the radar and apparently having financial gain, in addition to espionage, as a goal. The attacks, which ESET researchers dubbed Operation In(ter)ception based on a related malware sample named “Inception.dll,” took place from September to December 2019. The attacks that ESET researchers investigated started with a LinkedIn message. “The message was a quite believable job offer, seemingly from a well-known company in a relevant sector. Of course, the LinkedIn profile was fake, and the files sent within the communication were malicious,” comments Dominik Breitenbacher, the ESET malware researcher who analyz...
Twitter Addresses Potentially Harmful Data Breach
Image sourced from Mission Statement Academy In an email sent to potentially affected clients, Twitter has confirmed that sensitive data regarding their business customers may have been compromised. The company says that some clients billing information was unknowingly stored in their browser’s cache, making it ‘possible’ for others to access. The data in question includes personal email addresses, phone numbers as well as the last four digits of credit card numbers. “We became aware of an incident where if you viewed your billing information on ads.twitter.com or analytics.twitter.com the billing information may have been stored in the browser’s cache,” a Twitter spokesperson said. “As soon as we discovered this was happening, we resolved the issue and communicated to potentially impacted...
Facebook Commits to African SMBs Through Virtual Programmes
Sourced from Dialogue Pakistan Facebook has announced that all its Economic Impact Programmes are officially available, and will be offered virtually, in an attempt to equip small African businesses with digital marketing skills to help them stay open, connect with and acquire new customers to survive challenges presented by Coronavirus. Facebook’s Economic Impact Programmes include: Boost with Facebook – currently implemented in 11 African countries, targeting over 41,000 small businesses. SheMeansBusiness – available in Nigeria, South Africa and Senegal reaching 7,500 participants. Digify Pro – offered in Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa with 230 participants. Aspiring Entrepreneurs Programme – which works with 360 participants in Nigeria. These programmes will include 90 minute long...
Microsoft Teams Now Available for Personal Use
Sourced from Tech Republic. Microsoft has launched the personal version of Microsoft Teams, as a part of a broader effort by Microsoft to remain relevant with its consumers after a series of moves away from consumer-friendly products. The company is adding new features to the existing Microsoft Teams app that might appeal to a set of people looking to do more than just chat. The Verge writes that this is not meant to be a way to begin to compete with the likes of WhatsApp or Facebook Messenger, but simply a repositioning of Teams as more friendly to individuals and their families, and not just meant for corporations or businesses. Sourced from The Verge. Launched initially as a preview for iOS and Android, Microsoft Teams for personal use includes the basics of text chat and video calling,...
How COVID-19 has Influenced Online Shopping Habits
Sourced from Innovation Village. All things considered, it’s no surprise that eCommerce has fundamentally changed over the past few months. The COVID-19 pandemic has encouraged consumers to switch to online shopping and contactless payment alternatives to abide with social distancing practices and lockdown regulations. Stats released by online payment gateway, PayFast show that Generation Z, aged 18 to 24, is paving the way for innovation in the eCommerce space, with Baby Boomers aged 55 to 64, not far behind. “The eCommerce boom was bound to happen, but COVID-19 definitely accelerated industry growth. We’ve seen adoption rates soar following on from the lockdown, this has occurred across age groups. Habits formed now are going to continue in the future,” says Jonathan Smit, MD and Founder...
