The tech world was full of exciting and important news in the previous week. Here are some of the main events that you may have missed:
- Microsoft had a huge impact on the S&P 500’s performance last week. The tech giant’s stock price increased by 7% in the week, adding more than $150 billion to its market value. Microsoft announced strong earnings for its first quarter of fiscal 2023, surpassing analysts’ expectations and showing growth in all its segments, including cloud, gaming, and productivity. Microsoft also revealed several new products and initiatives, such as the Surface Laptop Studio, Windows 11, and a $60 billion share buyback program.
- SpaceX received some questions from the FCC about its Starlink direct to cell service. The service, which was disclosed in a filing last month, would allow Starlink satellites to communicate directly with cell phones, eliminating the need for ground stations. However, the FCC is asking SpaceX for a more detailed analysis about whether the service could interfere with other satellite and ground-based services, such as GPS, aviation, and public safety. SpaceX has until Nov. 15 to reply to the FCC’s inquiry.
- Google issued a security update that fixes a local storage bug on Pixel devices. The bug, which was found by security researchers, could allow an attacker to access the local storage of a Pixel device without unlocking it, potentially exposing sensitive data, such as photos, contacts, and messages. The update, which is part of the November security patch, also resolves a glitch that was occasionally causing a green flash on the Pixel 7 Pro display, among other fixes.
- Google also warned about a new technique that hackers could use to control malware using Google Calendar. The technique, which was demonstrated by Google’s Project Zero team, involves creating malicious events on Google Calendar and embedding commands in the event description. The commands would then be executed by the malware on the victim’s device, using legitimate software processes, making the activities hard to detect. Google advised users to be careful about accepting calendar invitations from unknown sources and to report any suspicious events.
These are some of the tech news that made the headlines last week. Stay tuned for more updates and insights from the tech world.
