108 JANUARY2021|COMPUTER SHOPPER|ISSUE395
CambridgeAnalytica,thedataanalyticsfirmthatworkedwith
DonaldTrump’selectionteamandthewinningBrexitcampaign,is
foundtohaveharvestedmillionsofFacebookprofileswithoutuser
knowledgeorconsent.
MicrosoftreleasestheAzureSphere,asoftwareandhardwarestack
withacustomLinuxkernel.ThemovemarksamajorshiftforMicrosoft–
former CEO SteveBallmer once called Linux “a cancer”onMicrosoft’s
intellectual property.
AnUbercarinautonomousdrivingmodekillsapedestrianinArizona.
It’sthefirstknownpedestrianfatalityforthetechnology.
⬅Applebecomesthefirstcompanytosurpassamarket
capitalisationofmorethan$1trillion.
Computer researchers discover two major vulnerabilities
in CPUs named Spectre and Meltdown, allowing attackers to
potentially read sensitive information such as passwords.
TheEuropeanUnionimplementstheGeneralData
ProtectionRegulation(GDPR),bringingstrictsafeguardsanddisclosures
overpersonaldata,72-hourbreachreportingrequirements,andhefty
finesfornon-compliance.
➡Thetruepurposeofcomputingisrevealedatlast,as
millionswatchonlinefootageofarevengeprankstaged
byanex-Nasaengineer.Afterhavingapackagestolen
from his porch, Mark Roberused acentrifugal motor,
lots of glitter,fart sprayand several smartphones to
devise a‘bomb’, whichhehid in an Apple Homepod
speaker box. When thieves subsequently stole it, it
recorded the moment it sprayed them with its contents.
➡After more than adecade
of work, scientists publish the
first photoofablack hole,put
together using the Event
Horizon Telescope.
The Boeing 737 Max aeroplane model
is grounded after two planes crash within five
months, killing 346 people.The crashes are blamed
on software errors.
⬅American astronauts Christina
Koch and Jessica Meir make
history when theyembarkonthe
first all-female spacewalk.
The iPhone 11 range gets more
cameras, longer-lasting batteries
and anew ‘pro’moniker forthe
top-of-the-range models. But there’s no 5G, despite
Samsung, Huawei and other rivals having already
launched 5G-compatible smartphones.
Facebookisfined$5bnbytheFederalTrade
CommissionfortheCambridgeAnalyticascandal,asit
continues to deal with misinformation on its platforms.
➡The year of foldable phonest
outtobeaveryexpensivedud.
Samsung’s experimental
$2,000 Galaxy Fold
smartphone broke as soon as
reviewers got their hands on it.
⬆The Covid-19 pandemic hits. As well
as more than amillion deaths, the world
as we know it disappears. Countless
businesses go under,unemployment
skyrockets, and economies across
the globe tank.
Technology’s role in fighting
coronavirus in the UK and aiding the
recovery doesn’t get off to the best
start, with adelayed and underperforming
test and trace system derailed by an
Excel spreadsheet.
⬇But tech also proves an invaluable
lifeline forpeopleunable to see their
friends and family during the various
lockdowns, as video chat services such
as Zoom and Houseparty
come intotheir own.
➡Computer Shopper
publishes its final
magazine after 395
issues and almost
33 years of bringing
the best technology
news, reviews,
projects, advice
and opinion to
its readers. Thanks
forsupporting
us forall these
years.
2018 2019 2020
turns
