Meta Celebrates Its Unique One Million Avatar Creation Milestone With The Launch Of New Personalization Options

Meta is on a roll as it recently confirmed reaching a milestone that it’s celebrating in full swing.

The company says it has managed to design more than one million avatars through its platforms and that includes a combination of Instagram, Messenger, and Facebook. Therefore, it’s celebrating by launching a new set of options for personalization.

For those who might not be aware, the term avatar is exclusively restricted to setting out graphical representations of a certain user’s looks or persona. This was launched in 2019 and while many people may have been skeptical about the launch in the past, we see how it’s doing some good now.

But the tech giant still feels there is a lot of room for improvement in terms of personalization. The option that is now up for grabs includes the chance to equip avatars with more assistive devices and some NFL shirts in certain regions where it has rolled out clothing stores through digital means.

And for those who might be underestimating the potential of such a project, well, leading fashion labels like Prada, Thom Browne, and even Balenciaga are already on their way to setting up shops across Meta’s Avatar Store. And now, we’re hearing about Puma joining in on the fun too with the launch of seven new outfits that would be up for grabs starting Monday.

The announcement was made to the public recently where it was outlined how such endeavors would freshen up people’s looks as they make way for the spring season. It similarly mentioned how Shakira’s hit track, ‘Hips Don’t Lie’ was a way to express yourself as equivalent to dancing to the tune.

Meta has been working hard in terms of making room for improvements in both small but noticeable details that continue to arise amid huge changes. Such endeavors assist personalities in shining through.

From a tinkle to the eyes for a touch of sparkle to an array of various kinds of volumes to the hair, it’s the subtle changes that make all the difference. Did we mention how it turns the whole endeavor into something more appealing too?

It’s quite like including details with textures to the wardrobe so as to turn the whole thing into something that’s closer to reality. What do you think?

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by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

Here’s How Long it Takes to Turn a Behavior Into a Habit

The process by which habits are formed has been a prime focus of research for quite some time now. Studies have sought to crack the code behind how frequently something must be done in order to make it habitual, since this can make it easier to replace bad habits with good ones than might have been the case otherwise. In spite of the fact that this is the case, there is a lot of variation with respect to how long it takes for a habit to become innate.

Researchers working at Caltech, the University of Chicago as well as the University of Pennsylvania tried to uncover the secrets behind habit formation. With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that the time required to form the habit largely relies on what the activity in question involves.

For example, when going to the gym was analyzed, the researchers discovered that it took as long as six months for it to stop being a chore and become a habit that you don’t have to think too much about. They also found that Mondays and Tuesdays were the most popular days for people to go to the gym.

However, when healthcare workers were put under the microscope, it was revealed that it only took them a few weeks to get into the habit of regularly washing their hands. This might have something to do with the enormous task of going to the gym and working out compared to the relatively simple process of washing one’s hands.

One thing that this research did confirm was that consistency is essential because of the fact that this is the sort of thing that could potentially end up increasing the likelihood of a habit being created. The longer you spend between visits to the gym, the harder it will be to make it a habit. There is no one size fits all solution, and more studies will be required before any definitive conclusions can be reached with all things having been considered and taken into account.

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by Zia Muhammad via Digital Information World

Wikipedia Confirms It Will Not Comply With Any Age Checks Needed Under The Online Safety Bill

Wikipedia has recently come out with a shocking statement on how it refuses to comply with any checks needed for age verification under the Online Safety Bill.

The news comes to us thanks to Rebecca MacKinnon who is a part of the foundation that shows support for the site.

Meanwhile, one senior member of Wikimedia UK claims that might be a signal that the website could soon be blocked. But the current government mentioned how those services serving as the biggest risk for kids would need proper verification of their ages.

For those who may not be aware, the site entails millions of different articles that come in hundreds of different types of languages. These are produced and even edited by so many volunteers situated in different places around the globe.

This makes this site a part of the top 8 most visited locations in the United Kingdom as per data arising from SimiarWeb, which is a top analytics firm.

This online safety bill is currently put in front of the Parliament and is known to place huge duties across different tech giants so they would do everything to provide protection to users from various types of harm or illegal content online. And that is known to come into existence by the year 2024.

Meanwhile, one solicitor by the name of Neil Brown is mentioning how such a bill means these kinds of services would be easily accessed by young audiences and therefore some sort of a proportionate system must be in place. After all, it needs to offer protection from users coming across dangerous content online. And age verification should be a part of that.

One of the chief executives of Wikimedia in the UK sent out a new warning about the content and material found on the webpage that may give rise to the need for age verification. For instance, even educational messages and pictures regarding sexuality may be misunderstood as explicit content.

But still, The Wikimedia Foundation admits that it will not verify the age of readers and contributors across the country. They similarly spoke about how the need for Wikipedia to put together information about different users and check their ages would need a huge overhaul of the entire tech system.

If a particular service doesn’t fit into some bill out there, that can bring with it plenty of consequences that entail huge penalties, senior staff being sanctioned for crime, and even complete restriction of the website for users in the UK region.

Today, Wikimedia UK says it has so much fear about the webpage getting blocked thanks to this Bill and there is a huge risk that it would make age checks mandatory.

So just the thought of one of the world’s leading and most popular web pages that provides free knowledge and data for so many individuals can’t be a source of free knowledge and data for millions.

Today, the site entails 6.6 million articles through Wikipedia and it’s just beyond impossible to think that it could function without verifying content to comply with regulations like this bill.

Read next: 65% of Chinese Consumers Will Boycott American Products if TikTok is Banned
by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

First Ever Call to Space Marks a New Chapter in Telecommunications

Whenever you make a call to someone, your call is routed through a series of cell towers that are placed on the Earth’s surface. However, companies like AT&T as well as AST SpaceMobile have been trying to user satellites since they can provide higher quality than might have been the case otherwise. On the 20th of April 2023, the first ever call was routed through a satellite, and it might mark the beginning of a new chapter in telecom history.

With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that this call was made to a Japanese company by the name of Rakuten. The call was initiated by a Samsung Galaxy S22 smartphone which was using an AT&T SIM card. Engineers working at Vodafone assisted with the call, and it was routed through the BlueWalker 3 Satellite owned by AST.

There is currently no use on what type of bandwidth the call used, but given how 5G is still only usable by T-Mobile and Vodafone was the company involved, it is likely that it was conducted over the 3G network with all things having been considered and taken into account. In spite of the fact that this is the case, it marks the first time ever that a call was sent to space and then rerouted back to Earth, which might allow for lower latency as well as making on the ground cell towers obsolete.

Also, while the call was not 5G enabled, AST stated that the tests confirmed that 5G could be used in the future. It will be interesting to see where things go from here on out, since a huge number of competitors would want to throw their hat in the ring as well.

Five more BlueBird satellites are going to be launched next year in 2024, and when that happens, we may start to see the global telecommunications industry expanding beyond Earth’s borders. This might also help facilitate communication between Earth and the Space Station allowing conversations to occur in real time rather than with a delay.

Read next: What Companies Offer the Highest Paying Internships?
by Zia Muhammad via Digital Information World

What Companies Offer the Highest Paying Internships?

Internships are meant to provide recent or soon to be graduates with some real world experience that can help them land jobs later on. Hence, they generally don’t tend to pay very well, and many of them don’t offer any kind of stipend whatsoever. In spite of the fact that this is the case, some companies offer internships that are actually very well paid. Glassdoor recently compiled a list of the companies whose lucky interns receive hefty paydays throughout their tenure.

First up, we have Microsoft. The tech juggernaut only hires the most accomplished graduates to take part in their internship and it pays its interns nearly $7,000 a month or $6,934 to be precise. With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that Uber does even better, with interns working at the major start up receiving an average of $7,080 on a monthly basis.

Following this, we have the global management consulting firm known as McKinsey & Company. Interns working at this firm receive a monthly salary of $7,170. The finance sector in general is known for offering very high paying internships with all things having been considered and taken into account. For example, JP Morgan and BlackRock pay their interns $7,188 and $7,270 respectively.

Other finance companies like Earnst and Young $7,651 per month, with Bain & Company paying $7,873 and Credit Suisse offering just under $8,000 or $7,947 to be precise. Internships in the crypto space are also quite valuable, with Coinbase’s internships offering a monthly salary of $8,206, far higher than that of traditional finance companies like the ones we have already mentioned!

Twitter also does extremely well here, with the social media platform offering interns a pay package of $7,290 per month. However, its internship is the lowest paying one when compared to other social media platforms. Interns working at LinkedIn receive an average of $7,360 per month, with Snap going even further with its $7,520 per month salary package. These companies also set up long term careers, so the salary packages are the icing on top.

Now, the social media platform that has the highest paying internship is unsurprisingly Meta. Interns working at this massive social media juggernaut earn close to 6 figures a year thanks, with monthly salaries of $8,160 all in all.

As for the company offering the highest paying internship of all, it turned out to be none other than Stripe! With a salary package of $9,064 per month, Stripe’s internships are highly coveted among recent graduates because of the fact that this is the sort of thing that could potentially end up netting them a six figure salary before they even get a full time position.

The only other internship that offers more than $9,000 per month is with Roblox, with the metaverse and gaming company’s internships netting around $9,017 or so.

The purpose of internships is to set up future careers, but people still need to earn money in order to be able to eat. High paying internships make it easier for such individuals to make ends meet than might have been the case otherwise, and any of these companies would be excellent options for people who are looking for internships.

Read next: The Hidden Costs of Holding onto Outdated Tech in the Workplace
by Zia Muhammad via Digital Information World

65% of Chinese Consumers Will Boycott American Products if TikTok is Banned

The US government has been arguing that TikTok poses a threat to national security for quite some time now. According to legislators who are responsible for creating laws in the US, TikTok’s ownership by a Chinese concern is the problem because of the fact that this is the sort of thing that could potentially end up allowing the app to spy on Americans.

The CCP government is notorious for being involved in all Chinese companies, so many would say that these concerns are well warranted. In spite of the fact that this is the case, Chinese consumers don’t seem to think that this behavior from American legislators is fair in the slightest.

According to data coming out of the Morning Consult, it appears that majority of consumers who are residing within China are keeping up to date with reports of a potential TikTok ban in the US. 52% of consumers in China who responded to a survey said that they are watching the news surrounding this ban in order to find out what’s going on.

With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that Chinese consumers tend to have a different view of the looming ban on TikTok. This ban is starting to seem more and more likely by the day. In the opinion of Chinese consumers, America is only trying to ban TikTok in order to curtail China’s growing soft power around the globe.

Suspicion among Chinese consumers has a definite root cause. America has a reputation for stopping at nothing to preserve its own seemingly unassailable global hegemony. Banning an app that threatens to upset the supremacy of its own social media platforms, many of which are struggling right now, seems to be right of out America’s playbook.

It should be mentioned that there is still a long way to go before a ban can be passed. However, should the ban come into fruition, American companies might find that fewer Chinese consumers are buying their products than might have been the case otherwise.

According to the data that has been presented, nearly two out of every three Chinese consumers are saying that they will start boycotting American products if a ban on TikTok ever gets imposed. Losing access to 65% of the Chinese market will be a death blow to many American corporations that rely on the sizeable consumer sector in the East Asian nation for a hefty chunk of their quarterly revenues.

However, the numbers might be exaggerating the story. For example, just 15% of Chinese consumers stated that they are hearing a huge quantity of news regarding this issue. What’s more, interest in a potential TikTok ban in the US is virtually nonexistent among Gen Z consumers on the Chinese mainland.

This seems to indicate that the most prized sector of China’s consumer market, namely Gen Z, will be unperturbed by any kind of ban. It will be interesting to see if the ban is imposed in the near future, as well as what the fallout from such a ban might look like. There is a chance that it may increase tensions between the two global superpowers.

Read next: The Hidden Costs of Holding onto Outdated Tech in the Workplace
by Zia Muhammad via Digital Information World

New Android Malware 'Daam' Discovered: Steals Sensitive Information and Spreads Ransomware

The IT industry has been battling cyber attacks and malware for a long time. However, with the advancement of technology, cybercriminals have become more sophisticated in creating malicious software. This has led to an increase in cyber attacks and data breaches, posing a significant threat to individuals and organizations worldwide.

Recently, CloudSEK's Threat Intelligence Research Team discovered a new strain of Android malware known as "Daam" that poses a severe threat to users' data security. Daam spreads through various Android APK files, which serve as a possible source of infection. Once installed on a device, Daam attempts to evade security checks and gain sensitive permissions, such as audio recording, call log access, and reading browsing history bookmarks.

The malware can also record all active calls, including mobile and VoIP calls, and transmit the recordings to a command and control server. Additionally, Daam can collect contacts from the victim's phone and encrypt data using AES algorithms located in the root directory and SD card. It drops a ransom note in the form of a "readme_now.txt" file and erases all other files from local storage, except for the encrypted files.

The researchers found that Daam spreads through third-party websites, and it currently uses three programs to infect devices, namely Currency Pro, Boulders, and Psiphon Client for Android and Windows. Currency Pro is a money converter app, while Boulders is a smartphone game. Psiphon Client for Android and Windows is a circumvention tool that can bypass paywalls and restricted content.

To protect themselves from Daam and other similar malware, users are advised to download software only from trusted sources and to read reviews before installation. It is also critical to keep antivirus software up to date and exercise caution when granting application permissions.

In conclusion, Daam is a highly dangerous Android malware that can steal confidential data, record phone calls, and spread ransomware. Users must remain vigilant when downloading and installing apps and only download software from reputable sources. They should also keep their antivirus software up to date and carefully consider the permissions they grant to applications. By taking these precautions, users can safeguard their devices and data from this type of cyber attack.

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by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World