Moscow
Twilio hackers breached over 130 organizations during months-long hacking spree
The hackers that breached Twilio earlier this month also compromised more than 130 organizations during their hacking spree that netted the credentials of close to 10,000 employees. Twilio’s recent network…
Kremlin critic Navalny calls for Google and Meta to turn their adtech into an anti-war weapon
Jailed Kremlin critic Alexey Navalny has called on tech giants Google and Meta/Facebook to help circumvent Putin’s grip on the media and get information out to ordinary Russians about what’s…
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Tech workers describe detentions and interrogations as they flee Russia
Russia’s interrogation of fleeing tech workers became commonplace after the war in Ukraine began. One Russian said his devices were taken away at the border: “Let’s leave the motherland’s secrets in the motherland.”
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Tech talent flees Russia as Western sanctions bite
Russia is seeing an exodus of entrepreneurs, computer programmers and other educated middle-class citizens as Western sanctions and political instability make it impossible to run an international business in the country. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has forced millions to flee their homes, fearing for their lives. But the war is also leading to Russians moving…
Germany warns against using Kaspersky software, citing ‘considerable’ cyber risk after Russia’s invasion
The German Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) warned organizations against using Kaspersky antivirus software over fears it could be exploited for cyber-espionage or launching cyberattacks amid Russia’s ongoing war…
China’s social media giants remove ‘inappropriate’ Ukraine content
China has stuck to its position of refusing to call Russia’s military actions in Ukraine an “invasion” or condemn Moscow, but its people are taking to social media to express…
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How the tech industry is responding to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
As the situation in Ukraine develops, TechCrunch will continue to bring news and analysis on how the conflict unfolds across the tech and startup community.
Bumble makes its first acquisition with deal for French Gen Z dating app, Fruitz
Dating app company Bumble, Inc. is making its first acquisition with today’s news that it’s adding the fast-growing French dating app Fruitz to its family of applications. Though Bumble, Inc.…
Austria’s PlanRadar, which digitizes construction and real estate docs, raises $70M Series B
Back in March Vienna-based PlanRadar snapped up a €30 million Series A to digitize construction and real estate projects. The Austrian startup — a platform for documentation and communication in…
The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) announced on Friday that it has raided and shut down the operations of the notorious REvil ransomware gang. The unprecedented move — which will…
REvil ransomware group goes dark after its Tor sites were hijacked
REvil, the notorious Russian-linked ransomware gang responsible for the high-profile cyberattacks on Kaseya, Travelex and JBS earlier this year, has disappeared again after its Tor payment portal and data leak…
Russian authorities arrest cybersecurity giant Group-IB’s CEO on treason charges
Russian authorities have arrested and detained Ilya Sachkov, the co-founder and chief executive of Group-IB — one of the biggest cybersecurity companies in the country — on charges of treason.…
Clop ransomware gang doxes two new victims days after police raids
The notorious Clop ransomware operation appears to be back in business, just days after Ukrainian police arrested six alleged members of the gang. Last week, a law enforcement operation conducted…
Deepfake video app Avatarify, which processes on-phone, plans digital watermark for videos
Making deepfake videos used to be hard. Now all you need is a smartphone. Avatarify, a startup that allows people to make deepfake videos directly on their phone rather than…
S16 Angel Fund launches a community of founders to invest in other founders
Ten years ago a group of young tech founders in Moscow decided to get an apartment together, at Shmitovskiy Lane 16. In time, the ecosystem around the group swelled to…
From bioprinting lab-grown meat in Russia to Beyond Meat in the US, KFC is embracing the future of food
From a partnership with the Russian company 3D Bioprinting Solutions to make chicken meat replacement using plant material and lab-cultured chicken cells to an expansion of its Beyond Fried Chicken…
Why is Eugene Kaspersky funding a travel accelerator during COVID-19?
Eugene Kaspersky made a name for himself in cybersecurity as CEO of Kaspersky Labs, but the Russian security expert has a new passion project: he’s funding an online accelerator that…
Russia’s push back against big tech has major consequences for Apple
Tech companies are getting so large that Russia is fast-tracking laws aimed at developing “digital sovereignty.” How will these regulations affect tech companies looking to do business in the country?
Instreamatic signs deals to allow people to talk to adverts on streaming services like an Alexa
Most in tech would agree that following the launch of Alexa and Google Home devices, the “Voice Era” is here. Voice assistant usage is at 3.3 billion right now; by…
Yandex is now testing a self-driving sidewalk cargo delivery robot
Add another one to the list of companies piloting small, wheeled, autonomous robots for small-package and food delivery: Yandex. Russia’s search and services giant has expanded its ambitions in the…
American Cancer Society’s online store infected with credit card stealing malware
The American Cancer Society’s online store has become the latest victim of credit card-stealing malware. Security researcher Willem de Groot found the malware on the organization’s store website, buried in…
Pan-European VC fund Target Global is opening an office in Barcelona
Hola Barcelona. Target Global, a pan-European VC firm with €700 million under management and a broad investment canvas spanning SaaS, marketplaces, fintech, insurtech and mobility, is opening an office in…
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Cyber threats from the US and Russia are now focusing on civilian infrastructure
Cyber-confrontation between the U.S. and Russia is increasingly turning to critical civilian infrastructure, particularly power grids, judging from recent press reports.
Prisma Labs raises $6M for its AI-powered approach to visual editing
Remember Prisma? The Moscow-based team behind the app that sparked a style transfer craze in 2016 has raised a $6 million Series A, led by early stage artificial intelligence focused…
Target Global, the Berlin-headquartered VC, opens London office
Target Global, the Berlin-headquartered VC that has backed the likes of Auto1, Delivery Hero, Omio (formerly GoEuro) and Wefox, is opening up its first U.K. office — undeterred by Brexit…
Messaging platform Telegram claims to have had a surge in signups during a period of downtime for Facebook’s rival messaging services. In a message sent to his Telegram channel, founder…
Russia has told internet providers to enforce a block against encrypted email provider ProtonMail, the company’s chief has confirmed. The block was ordered by the state Federal Security Service, formerly…
UK parliament calls for antitrust, data abuse probe of Facebook
A final report by a British parliamentary committee which spent months last year investigating online political disinformation makes very uncomfortable reading for Facebook — with the company singled out for…
Facebook finds and kills another 512 Kremlin-linked fake accounts
Two years on from the U.S. presidential election, Facebook continues to have a major problem with Russian disinformation being megaphoned via its social tools. In a blog post today the company reveals…
Kaspersky starts processing threat data in Europe as part of trust reboot
Security firm Kaspersky Labs has opened its first self-styled ‘Transparency Center’ and begun processing threat-related data from European users in data centers located in Switzerland — flipping the switch on…
