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What really happened at Equifax
Your five-minute guide to what's happening in tech this Tuesday, from the future of digital banking to a report card for the web.
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Your five-minute guide to what's happening in tech this Tuesday, from the future of digital banking to a report card for the web.
Good morning! This Tuesday, the DOJ blames China for Equifax, Uber and Postmates fail to temporarily block AB 5, and the Vision Fund takes its first official loss.
The FTC needs an overhaul to take on big tech, Senator Josh Hawley said:
Amazon wants Trump to testify in its JEDI case, along with other White House officials:
Also, Amazon is already the company politicians want it to be, according to … its global affairs head Jay Carney:
The case against Theranos' Elizabeth Holmes should be dismissed, her attorney said:
It was the hack everyone heard about, leading to the settlement that caused us all to naively try to claim our $125. Equifax remains one of the biggest data breaches ever — and now we know what allegedly happened.
Our friends at POLITICO have a good rundown of exactly how the hack worked, if you want more details.
I asked Protocol's security reporter, Adam Janofsky, what he thought of it. Here's what he said:
Equifax might naturally want everyone to move on: One Equifax employee described the day to me as "drinking from a firehose," but also said that it's "like one of those traumatic experiences we can put behind us."
How much time is your business spending thinking about China, or hackers at all? Or, actually, here's my real question: Did anyone reading this email ever get their $125? If so, please send me an email: david@protocol.com. I want to learn your ways.
Varo Money took a big step to becoming a national, digital-only bank, announcing Monday that it's set to receive the first-ever "de novo national bank charter" for a banking startup. It means the company will soon be able to operate as a full-fledged bank, instead of relying on a partner to handle some services.
This is a key moment for Varo, and for the fintech industry as a whole, Varo CEO Colin Walsh told me.
Varo's been working with regulators since the company's early days in 2016. Walsh says the process hasn't been easy: Varo filed 5,000 pages in applications, had FDIC employees prowling its offices for weeks, and had to build new teams and new systems to satisfy regulatory requirements.
But now Varo, which focuses on lower- and middle-income customers, can offer more to users. "We're not going to open branches, we're not going to open cash vaults, we're not planning to buy an ATM network anytime soon," Walsh said. But it does plan to have a pretty complete product line soon after it becomes an official national bank in the second quarter of this year.
Do you use an app like Varo, Robinhood, or Chime? What would entice you to switch? Let me know: david@protocol.com.
Nasdaq Technology is reshaping the future of global markets by redefining what a marketplace can be.
SimilarWeb published its annual report on the state of the web on Monday, and it's full of interesting tidbits.
First, the not-so-surprising stuff:
Then there's the somewhat-surprising stuff:
The report hits on everything from President Trump's continuing reign as the most popular search term on the planet to the remarkable rise of Google Flights and what it means for the online travel business. Flip through this and Benedict Evans' 2020 tech trends, and you'll have 2020 pretty much in focus.
Facebook is hiring a communications manager for its new Oversight Board. Key requirements: lots of experience, good relationships, and (I'm guessing) a remarkable tolerance for chaos.
Eileen Naughton, Google's head of HR, is leaving the company later this year. She's been involved in many of the company's high-profile internal clashes over the last few years.
Amazon's video efforts have a new leader: Mike Hopkins. Previously the chairman of Sony Pictures Television and before that the CEO of Hulu, Hopkins will oversee Prime Video and Amazon Studios.
One time, I rented a car only to find the windshield had been shattered. Turns out that was nothing: NBC News reports that users of car-sharing services like Getaround and Turo are increasingly finding their cars have been broken into — and even used to commit crimes. Why? Because as NBC puts it, "the app gives precise locations of cars, even for people just browsing without a reservation — and the keys are always left inside." Getaround responded to the story, explaining all the new and existing safety measures it's taking for people's cars.
Nasdaq Technology is daring to think differently.
Thoughts, questions, tips? Send them to me, david@protocol.com, or our tips line, tips@protocol.com. Enjoy your Tuesday, see you tomorrow.
David Pierce ( @pierce) is Protocol's editor at large. Prior to joining Protocol, he was a columnist at The Wall Street Journal, a senior writer with Wired, and deputy editor at The Verge. He owns all the phones.