Social

An Indian parliamentary panel has recommended treating social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook as publishers and setting up a regulatory body to oversee them, potentially opening the companies up to more liability for user-generated content. The high-level committee made those recommendations as it reviewed the personal data protection bill introduced in 2019 that seeks

WhatsApp has introduced a new tool to allow users to make their own custom stickers. This feature is rolling out for WhatsApp Web and WhatsApp for Desktop platform users on Mac and PC. The sticker maker feature can be accessed on WhatsApp Web right away and WhatsApp for Desktop users are likely to get it

WhatsApp is reportedly working on allowing users to create their own stickers. Currently, it only allows users to send stickers using packs provided by the Meta-owned instant messaging platform or through third party apps. The sticker-creating feature was spotted in the beta version of WhatsApp and is likely to reach the stable version of the

Zoom has reportedly withdrawn its original Chrome OS extension. With this, users will have the Zoom Progressive Web App (PWA) as the only option. The video conferencing service had launched a dedicated app for Chromebook users in June this year. The PWA functions as a normal app but won’t perform all functions natively. The features

Hate speech on social media is a rising concern across the globe. Now, researchers have found a way to temporarily dissuade people from indulging in hate speech on Twitter. According to a study by New York University’s Center for Social Media and Politics, warning Twitter users about the serious consequences of hateful language can significantly

Twitter is teaming up with Walmart to launch an online shopping initiative via livestreams. The latest feature will allow users to make purchases from businesses directly on the microblogging platform, while watching a live broadcast at the same time. The company will hold its first test of live shopping stream on November 28. The show

WhatsApp is adding more details to its privacy policy and flagging that information for European users, after Irish regulators slapped the chat service with a record fine for breaching strict EU data privacy rules. Starting Monday, WhatsApp’s privacy policy will be reorganised to provide more information on the data it collects and how it’s used.

WhatsApp has introduced two new safety features in India – flash calls and message level reporting. The latter enables users to report accounts by flagging a specific message. The flash call feature is an addition to the SMS verification option mandated on the registration process on WhatsApp. WhatsApp says that these two features have been

WhatsApp has released new beta updates for desktop and Android users. The desktop beta brings along new Privacy Settings feature for WhatsApp Web and WhatsApp for Desktop users. Privacy Settings have been available on the WhatsApp app since a very long time and now the feature has been introduced on the desktop version as well.

Nike on Thursday revealed a virtual world modelled after its headquarters on video game platform Roblox, becoming one of the first big brands to enter the “metaverse”. The digital space, called “Nikeland”, allows players to outfit their avatar with special Nike products and is free for anyone to visit on Roblox. Visitors can currently play Tag,

Clubhouse has started rolling out the closed captioning feature for the app on iOS. The much-awaited functionality auto-generates live transcriptions during an audio session and allows users to follow the speaker along with in-text format. People who are differently-abled can also access the audio-only social networking platform following the latest update. In that way, the

Telegram has announced the launch of Sponsored Messages on its platform — a tool that will allow anyone to promote their channels and bots. Sponsored Messages will be visible to in public channels on Telegram that have more than a thousand subscribers. It will be limited to 160 characters as well. Currently, the feature is

Twitter is bringing its tipping feature that allows users to send money to their favourite content creators to Android devices. The microblogging platform introduced the Tip Jar functionality earlier this year to the iOS platform to let creators, journalists, and nonprofits monetise their tweets in the form of tips. Users can share links to their Bandcamp, Cash App,

A group of state attorneys general are investigating the photo-sharing platform Instagram and its effects on children and young adults, saying its parent company Facebook — now called Meta Platforms — ignored internal research about the physical and mental health dangers it posed to young people. The investigation is led by a bipartisan coalition of

Twitter users will soon see new warning labels on false and misleading tweets, redesigned to make them more effective and less confusing. The labels, which the company has been testing since July, are an update from those Twitter used for election misinformation before and after the 2020 presidential contest. Those labels drew criticism for not

Instagram is discontinuing its Snapchat-like messaging app Threads that was launched in 2019. As a result of the update, users will start seeing a prompt to move back to the original Instagram app. Instagram has separately started allowing select users to add music to their feed posts — just like how it’s already possible with

Looking to adding more privacy to your Facebook account by locking your profile? By locking your profile, people who are not on your Facebook friends list will only see a limited view of the profile. A locked profile will show photos and posts on the timeline, profile picture and cover photo, stories, and new posts

Instagram Badges has now officially started rolling out. The feature allows creators to earn money from their followers. Badges allow users to show support for creators during a Live video on the platform. Starting Wednesday, users aged 18 and above with more than 10,000 followers in select regions will be able to use Instagram Badges. Once