WhatsApp now lets users encrypt their chat backups in the cloud

WhatsApp is beginning to roll out a new feature that will provide its two billion users the option to encrypt their chat history backup in iCloud or Google Drive, patching a major loophole that has been exploited by governments to obtain and review private communication between individuals. WhatsApp has long encrypted chats between users on […]

Twitter testing an easier way to switch to your reverse-chronological feed

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge

Twitter is testing a new way to switch to your reverse-chronological feed a bit more easily, the company announced Tuesday. Right now, when you tap the three-star icon at the top of your feed to switch between the Home feed (which sorts tweets for you) or the Latest feed (which shows them in reverse chronological order), a small menu shows up that prompts you to switch to whichever feed you’re not on. For some users on iOS, though, when you tap the three-star icon, Twitter is testing new Home or Latest tabs at the top of your screen instead.

Here’s what the change will look like, according to Twitter. If you’ve pinned lists, the tabs should look familiar:

This change does feel like it will be an improvement since it will mean fewer taps to switch between feeds and make it easier to know at a glance which feed you’re looking at. That said, it’s unclear if Twitter plans to roll this test out more broadly and, if so, when that might happen.

One-time TikTok rival Byte relaunches as Clash, an app for video creators and their top fans

When the Trump administration announced it would ban TikTok in the U.S., a number of alternative short-form video apps began to flourish, as users hedged their bets on a potential TikTok exit. Among these was Byte, an app co-created by Vine co-founder Dom Hofmann, which topped 1.3 million downloads in its first week alone. But […]

The Humble Vegetable

I have started volunteering once a week at a local farm stand. This is for many reasons — not least of which is I get a box of free vegetables in exchange for my time, which I will admit is what drew me to the gig in the first place — but I’d be lying …

South Africa’s Telkom ditches Netflix

South Africa’s telecommunication provider Telkom SA SOC Ltd has since October discontinued Netflix Inc. from its phone and internet set-top box, said a Bloomberg report. Telkom’s Content Executive Wanda Mkhize said in a statement that the partnership between the two firms would not be renewed and declined to provide further details, Bloomberg reported. We have […]

mPharma, a telehealth pioneer out of Ghana, gets physical with 100 virtual centers across Africa

The potential for telehealth across Africa is vast and promising as mobile connectivity deepens, and innovations that could potentially bridge the doctor-patient ratio gap increase, according to a Deloitte report. One company that is planning to drive the wave of telemedicine across the continent, as the COVID-19 pandemic rages on, is mPharma, a Ghanaian health […]

WhatsApp’s underdeveloped feature leaked

 Photo by Anton from PexelsWhatsApp had been planning to introduce a feature called “Community”; however, someone leaked the underdevelopment, WABetainfo reported Monday.”We wanted to wait for some screenshots to introduce it,” it…

Facebook’s Oversight Board will meet with the Facebook whistleblower

Facebook’s external policy review board will meet with Frances Haugen, a former Facebook employee who went public with her concerns about the company last week. Facebook’s Oversight Board announced Monday that it would meet with Haugen “in the coming weeks” after the whistleblower accepted the board’s invitation to speak. “Board members appreciate the chance to […]