Technology

President Obama, seen at a cybersecurity summit in Palo Alto, Calif., in February. The White House has called the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act an "important building block."

National

Senate Approves Cybersecurity Bill: What You Need To Know

8:42pm October 27, 2015

by Aarti Shahani

The Senate approved a measure that's meant to stop hackers, but opponents cite privacy concerns. The bill would create a pipeline for firms to share information on attacks with the government.

Asma Khan of Chicago at the booth for her business, Soap Ethics.

Startups Cater To Muslim Millennials With Dating Apps And Vegan Halal Soap

7:15pm October 27, 2015

by Monique Parsons

Across the U.S., the Muslim population is booming, which spells opportunity for a new generation of Muslim entrepreneurs.

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Fans Offer Legos To Ai Weiwei After Company Refuses To Donate Its Toy Bricks

9:28pm October 26, 2015

by Jim Zarroli

The Internet has exploded in support of Chinese artist and activist Ai Weiwei after Lego refused to donate its toy bricks for an upcoming exhibition in Melbourne, Australia.

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Joining Amazon, Google and other companies, Walmart will test drones for commercial uses like home deliveries.

National

Ready, Set, Drone: Walmart Joins Amazon, Google In Testing Delivery Drones

7:50pm October 26, 2015

by Laura Wagner

Walmart has applied to U.S. regulators for permission to test drones for home delivery and curbside pick up.

Amazon is struggling to track down and eliminate catfishing scams on Kindle e-books and is suing people who allegedly wrote fake reviews on its site.

Books

Don't Necessarily Judge Your Next E-Book By Its Online Review

7:16pm October 26, 2015

Online scams known as catfishing and astroturfing produce fake reviews for e-books published under fake names or generate false praise for restaurants. In either case, it pays to be skeptical.

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Map of submarine cable systems and their landing stations.

World News

What Would It Take To Cut U.S. Data Cables And Halt Internet Access?

5:06pm October 26, 2015

by Alina Selyukh

What would happen if Russia cut U.S. undersea telecom cables, as a New York Times report suggests? It may require a massive, hyper-organized operation to hurt Americans' access to the Internet.

The social networking site's ads are becoming increasingly sophisticated at targeting users based on their political affiliations.

Like It Or Not, Political Campaigns Are Using Facebook To Target You

1:59pm October 26, 2015

by Scott Detrow

If you're seeing a political ad in your Facebook feed, there's probably a very specific reason that candidate is interested in you.

Donald Trump speaks to guests at an Oct. 21 campaign rally in Burlington, Iowa. Trump leads most polls in the race for the Republican presidential nomination, but his retweets are — to some extent — still a mystery.

Donald Trump, Retweetin' Like It's 2008 — But How?

1:19pm October 25, 2015

by Scott Detrow

Who exactly is behind Trump's prodigious Twitter account — and how is he retweeting Trump supporters? The recent hubbub over a deleted tweet has merely deepened the mystery.

Researchers at the University of Southern California have developed a system to create poems as secure passwords.

Arts

I Think That I Shall Never See / A Password As Secure As ... Poetry?

10:25am October 25, 2015

by Camila Domonoske

It's a thoroughly modern problem: crafting a password that's both secure and memorable. But two computational linguists see a very old answer — one written in iambic pentameter and end rhyme.

The Unicode Consortium announced earlier this month that they are considering 67 new emojis to be released next summer.

National

Who Decides Which Emojis Get The Thumbs Up?

9:58am October 25, 2015

by NPR Staff

The Unicode Consortium decides which emojis live or die. As they prepare to release the next batch of emojis, we ask the emoji gatekeeper's president about the approval process.

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