FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2019 The Boston Globe Business B
TALKING POINTSTECHNOLOGY Agenda
CYBERSECURITY
FIRM BOUGHT
BYEMC-DELL
AFFILIATE
Carbon Black, one of Greater Boston’s newest public tech companies, has reached a deal to
be sold to VMware, the Silicon Valley enterprise software company. VMware announced the
deal on Thursday afternoon alongside a separate acquisition of Pivotal Software, and values
both deals together at $4.8 billion. Waltham-based Carbon Black, a cybersecurity company
originally known as Bit9, wentpublic in May 2018. Bit9 eventually adopted the name after
acquiring Carbon Black, then a startup based in Texas, in 2014. VMware said Carbon
Black’s software will provide important protection services that can be sold to clients.
Carbon Black shareholders will get $26 per share, a payout fromVMware that totals $1.
billion. Dell Technologies ownsa majority stake in VMware as well as a stake in Pivotal,
both obtained through its acquisition of Hopkinton-based EMC in 2016. Pivotal, a
California software firm formed as a spinout in 2012of both VMware and EMC, became
publicly traded in April 2018. Both transactions are supposed to close by the end of
January. “These acquisitions address two critical technology priorities of all businesses
today – building modern, enterprise-grade applications and protecting enterprise
workloads and clients,” said Pat Gelsinger, chief executive of VMware. — JON CHESTOFINANCE
NEW
APPLE
CREDIT
CARDIS
DELICATE
Apple tried to make the new Apple-branded credit card attractive, copying the heft and
sleekness of higher-end cards like the Chase Sapphire. But cardholders are
discovering that with such a design, they'll have to give it special care.
Leather wallets and loosechange pose danger for new Apple Card, for
instance. In fact, Apple says its Apple Card shouldn’t comeinto contact
with other credit cards for fear of scratchingthe white finish.Apple issued
special instructions this week: Keep away from‘‘hard surfaces or
materials.’’ Your leather wallet or jeans pocket ‘‘might cause permanent
discoloration.’’ Don’t let it touch anothercredit card or ‘‘potentially abrasive
objects’’ like coins or keys. There’s also a two-step cleaning process
involving microfiber cloths and isopropyl alcohol and a list of inappropriate
cleaners. — ASSOCIATED PRESSTELECOMMUNICATIONS
PHONEINDUSTRY
AGREES TOBLOCK
ROBOCALLS
All 50 states are teaming up with a dozen phone companies in a partnershipto tackle the
epidemic of illegal robocalls that can often lead to fraud, New York Attorney General Letitia
James said. The companies, whichinclude the biggest telecom providers in the country,
agreed to adopt eight principles that will help protect consumers and make it easier for law
enforcement to investigate and prosecute, James said Thursday in a statement. The
principles include offering customers free call-blocking, confirming the identity of
commercial customers, and cooperating in so-called traceback investigations, according to
James. Americans get nearly 5 billion calls from scammers, telemarketers, debt collectors,
and others every month. The agreementechoes some steps already taken by regulators and
Congress, which is working on anti-robocall bills. The Federal Communications
Commission has called on phone companies to block unwanted calls and expects carriers
not to charge. It also calls on themto make sure caller ID numbers are real, not faked. The
agreement doesn’t have a timeline. — GLOBE WIRE SERVICESTELECOMMUNICATIONS
A ROCKET’S LASTRIDE
A rocket that’s the last of its kind
delivered the newest, most powerful GPS
satellite to orbit for the Air Force on
Thursday. United Launch Alliance’s Delta
IV medium-class rocket blasted into a
hazy morning sky from CapeCanaveral
Air Force Station. It was a fitting swan
song for the rocket. Company President
Tory Bruno tweeted that the liftoff was
‘‘hot, straight and normal.’’ Two hours
later, the satellite separated from the
upper stage and the company declared
success. The Delta IV Mediumended its
17-year run with 29 launches. Denver-
based United Launch Alliance said it will be replaced by the still-in-development Vulcan
rocket. The newly launched GPS satellite is the second in a series of next-generation
navigation spacecraft. It’s nicknamed Magellan after the 16th-century Portugueseexplorer.
Lockheed Martin, also based in Colorado, built the satellite. — ASSOCIATED PRESSFINANCIALCRIME
FEDS CLAIMBUST
OFHUGEFRAUD RING
US authorities on Thursday unsealed a 252-count grand jury indictment charging 80
people in a major conspiracy to steal millions of dollars through fraud schemes and launder
the money through a Los Angeles-based network. Most of the defendants are Nigerians, the
US Attorney’s Office said. ‘‘We believe this is one of the largest cases of its kind in US
history,’’ US Attorney Nick Hanna told a news conference. The conspiracy included frauds
involving business e-mail, romance scams, and schemes targeting elderly people. Victims
were targeted in the United States and around the world, and some lost hundreds of
thousands of dollars. Fourteen defendants werearrested, mostly in the Los Angeles region.
FBI agents could be seen processing suspects in a downtownLos Angeles parking lot. Six
other defendants are believed to be fugitives in the United States and the others are abroad,
mostly in Nigeria. Authorities said they hope to extradite them. The investigation beganin
2016 with one victim and a single bank account, said Paul Delacourt, assistant director in
charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles office. —ASSOCIATED PRESSRETAIL
CEO
CAUGHT
UPIN
RUSSIAN
SCANDAL
RESIGNS
The chief executive of Overstock.com resigned Thursday, saying he was ‘‘far too
controversial’’ after disclosing he had aided in a ‘‘deep state’’ investigation into the 2016
election and was romantically involved with a Russian agent. Patrick Byrne, who had led
the e-commerce retailer for two decades, disclosed last week that he had been romantically
involved with Russian agent Maria Butina, who is in prison for allegedly plotting to gain
access to the conservative elite. He also said he had beenaiding federal authorities, since
2015 in their ‘‘Clintoninvestigation’’ and ‘‘Russia investigation.’’ The investigation ‘‘turned
out to be less about law enforcement and more about political espionage conducted against
Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump (and to a lesser degree, Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz),’’ he
said in a statement last week. He did not provide more specifics. Overstock got its start in
1997 as an Internet marketplace for excess inventory. Byrne took it over in 1999and turned
it into an e-commerce giantthat specializes in home goods, furniture, and decor. The Salt
Lake City-based company posted sales of $1.8 billion in 2018. — WASHINGTON POSTAUTOMOTIVE
VOLKSWAGENCHIEF
NOT CHASINGTESLA
Volkswagen AG denied a report that its chief executive officer would be interested in buying
a stake in Tesla Inc., calling it unfounded speculation. A VW spokesman rejected the report
by Manager Magazin, which had said the company’s CEO, Herbert Diess, would invest in
Tesla immediately if he could, citing unidentified managers at the German carmaker.
Buying a stake in Tesla would undercut Diess’ stated aim to compete head-on with the
electric-car maker. Volkswagen’s namesake brand alone is targeting sales of 1 million
battery-powered vehicles by 2025, an executive reiterated earlier Thursday. The Volkswagen
group has budgeted at least 30 billion eurosin spending on electric cars. “We see
Volkswagen as the company that can stop Tesla, because we have abilities Tesla doesn’t have
today,” Diess said in a July 2017 interview. This isn’t the first time Volkswagen has denied
reported interest in Tesla. Chief financial officer Frank Witter said in September that there
was “no substance” to a Wall Street Journal report a month earlier that said the company
was one of the potential investors bankers had lined up to support Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s
short-lived effort to take the carmaker private. — BLOOMBERG NEWSSaturday➔WORKSHOPHow tomake itin America
Learn how to translate your non-US
college degree and work experience into
success at this workshop for immigrants
from the African Bridge Network. Experts
will be on hand to discuss topics
including finding work, becoming a part
of the local biotech industry, navigating
the US immigration system and accessing
health care. Saturday, 10:30 a.m. to 2:
p.m., Boston Public Library, 700 Boylston
St., Boston. Free. Register online or go to
the business agenda at bostonglobe.com.➔CLASSPodcast like a proFind out if a podcast could help advance
your business at this info session from
Podcasting Classes in Boston. Attendees
will learn about how podcasts can be
used as marketing. Saturday, 10 to 11
a.m., Americal Civic Center (Heritage
Room), 467 Main St., Wakefield. Free.
Register online or go to the business
agenda at bostonglobe.com.Sunday➔EQUIPMENTGIVEAWAYReboot yourcareerGet a leg up on Boston’s burgeoning tech
scene with a free up-cycled computer
preinstalled with the versatile Linux
operating system at this event from
Artisan’s Asylum Inc. Laptops and
desktops will be available. Experts will be
present to help with the installation
process. Sunday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.,
Artisan’s Asylum, 10 Tyler St., Somerville.
Free with suggested donation of $25.
Register online or go to the business
agenda at bostonglobe.com.Events ofnote? E-mail usat
[email protected]