Facebook building privacy-focussed social platform, says Zuckerberg
San Jose: Social networking giant Facebook Tuesday said it is committed to building a "privacy-focussed" social platform to ensure that conversations stay private, and that user data is secure across its products like Messenger, WhatsApp and Instagram.
Speaking at its flagship event F8 here, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg acknowledged that there are privacy concerns related to its platform, but asserted that he remains committed to bringing in changes and "starting a new chapter".
"As the world gets bigger and more connected, we need that sense of intimacy more than ever. So that is why I believe the future is private. This is the next chapter for our services... We don't exactly have the strongest reputation on privacy right now, to put it lightly. But I'm committed to doing this well and starting a new chapter for our product," he said.
More than 5,000 developers, creators and entrepreneurs from across the world are participating at this year's edition of F8 - Facebook's annual technology conference.
Facebook, which has drawn flak globally over instances of data breaches, is re-hauling its main platform as well as introducing new features across its family of apps.
Zuckerberg outlined that the vision is based on six principles - private interactions, encryption, reducing permanence, safety, interoperability and secure data storage - across features like private messaging, groups, payments, and even location sharing.
"...if we get this right, using all of these services is going to be a fundamentally different experience a few years from now. At the end of the day, it's not just about building new products, it's a major shift in how we run this company because we believe that for the future, people want a privacy-focussed social platform," he added.
He explained that the intention is to build in the tools that "we need to keep us safe from the beginning and prevent harm and we then are able to focus on all the good people are able to do both in private and in public, both the living room and the town squares".
Facebook, which counts India as among its biggest markets, has also been ramping up efforts to ensure that its platform aren't misused to spread misinformation.
As part of its efforts to bring in transparency as elections progress in India, Facebook has started providing details of political ads on its platform. It is also strengthening its team of fact checkers and deploying technology tools to flag fake news.
Ahead of the general elections, the Indian government had warned social media platforms of strong action if any attempt was made to influence the country's electoral process through undesirable means.
Talking about the changes being made, Zuckerberg Tuesday said a fresh design for the social networking platform is being rolled out globally.
Terming it 'FB5', Zuckerberg said the new design is simpler, faster, more immersive and puts communities at the centre. People will start seeing some of these updates in the Facebook app right away, and the new desktop site will come in the next few months.
It will also introduce a new feature 'Secret Crush' in Facebook Dating that is currently available in a few geographies. The new opt-in feature will allow users to discover potential matches within their own Facebook communities. He/she can select up to nine friends from their list and if any of these people (who also use Facebook Dating) puts the user's name in their own list, it will be a match.
Facebook Dating is currently available in Colombia, Thailand, Canada, Argentina, and Mexico, and is now being expanded to 14 new countries. This includes Philippines, Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia, Laos, Brazil, Peru, Chile, Bolivia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Uruguay, Guyana, and Suriname.
The US-based company is also working on re-building the architecture of 'Messenger' from the ground up to be faster and lighter and it will begin to roll out later this year. Besides, it will also make it easier for businesses to connect with potential customers by adding lead generation templates to Ads Manager.
For WhatsApp - which has its biggest userbase in India- a new catalogue feature is being added for Business users to help small and medium enterprises using the platform to showcase their goods.
Zuckerberg said the payments feature on WhatsApp - currently being tested in India with about one million users - will be rolled out in some other countries by the end of the year.
The company will also start shipping two new virtual reality headsets — Oculus Quest (all-in-one VR gaming system) and Oculus Rift S — from May 21 with prices starting USD 399. A new Oculus for Business will be launched later this year.
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Allu Arjun didn't leave theatre despite being told about woman's death: Hyderabad police
Hyderabad, Dec 22: Top Telugu actor Allu Arjun did not leave the theatre during the screening of 'Pushpa-2' on December 4 despite being told to do so in view of a stampede in which a woman died, police officials claimed on on Sunday.
Speaking at a press conference on the annual round-up of 2024, city police commissioner C V Anand showed a video, made by police, on the situation that prevailed when the stampede occurred.
The video was made by collating footage, including from news channels and cell phone clips. It suggests the actor remained in the theatre till the midnight.
Anand did not make any comment on the video, but said the media can draw its own conclusions.
A police official talked about the sequence of events on the fateful night of December 4.
He said that he and other police officials informed a manager of Allu Arjun about the death of the woman and told him that the situation was out of control. He indicated that they were not allowed to meet the actor.
Allu Arjun's staff members told them that they would convey the matter to the actor but did not do so, he said.
The official said he later managed to reach the actor, told him about the woman's death and asked him to leave the theatre so that the fans don't harm each other while trying to catch a glimpse of him.
The official also told the actor that security arrangements would be made for his exit.
However, the actor said he would go only after watching the film, the police official said.
Later, accompanied by a senior officer, the official went inside and brought the actor out, he said.
Amid allegations that bouncers hired by Allu Arjun pushed crowds as well as policemen when the stampede occurred at the cinema hall, the police commissioner warned that stringent action as per law would be taken if THE bouncers indeed misbehaved with the police on duty.
The VIPs would be made responsible for the behaviour of the bouncers hired by them, he said.
Asked if the police would appeal against the interim bail granted to Allu Arjun, the commissioner refused to give a direct response, just saying it is part of the investigation.
What course of action is taken would be known in the days to come, he said.
He also declined to comment when asked if the family of the deceased told him about Allu Arjun's team or film production team allegedly threatening them not to speak on the issue.
Meanwhile, state Cinematography Minister Komatireddy Venkat Reddy found fault with Allu Arjun responding on Saturday to the debate in the Legislative Assembly.
The minister, who observed that the actor should have respect for the government and the chief minister, demanded an apology from Allu Arjun to the government and the CM.
"This government is never vindictive. As Cinematography Minister, we allowed benefit shows and hiking ticket prices to promote the film industry," he said.
However, Union Minister of State for Home Bandi Sanjay Kumar found fault with CM Revanth Reddy for his comments on Allu Arjun in the Assembly on Saturday.
The comments of the CM sounded like character assassination of Allu Arjun and hurting the Telugu film industry, he alleged in a statement.
Later in the day, Sanjay Kumar visited a boy who is undergoing treatment in a hospital after being injured in the stampede.
"Consoled his father over the heartbreaking loss of his wife, Revathi. I pray to god that Sritej recovers at the earliest. Assured support to the family in this difficult time," Kumar said on X.
Earlier in the day, state DGP Jitender told reporters in Karimnagar district that film personalities and all others should understand that safety and security of citizens is utmost important, and also conduct themselves accordingly.
