❌

Normal view

How a Legal Backlash Against Big Tech Is Forcing Big Changes

22 October 2026 at 15:33
A series of lawsuits has created a new de facto regulatory regime as courts order companies like Meta and Google to change their business practices — and pay up.

© Gabriela Bhaskar/The New York Times

Meta’s chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg. On Wednesday, a New Mexico judge ordered Meta to pay a record $25 billion penalty for abusing consumer privacy.

The Brief, Messy Political Career of Paolo Zampolli, a Trump Ally

22 October 2026 at 15:15
He had an unlikely rise, from modeling agent to presidential special envoy. After his firing, he was unrepentant: “I need to make money.”

© Maurizio Fiorino for The New York Times

Paolo Zampolli at his Milan apartment in 2024. President Trump fired him from his administration this month.

In Wake of Riots, French Authorities Ban Some Protests

22 October 2026 at 13:54
President Emmanuel Macron said the move was necessary “so that calm prevails.”

© Simon Wohlfahrt/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Police officers in Paris on Tuesday during a partial curfew put in place after last weekend’s demonstrations.

PHP Security Flaw Sets Off Global Rush to Patch, Leaving Websites Offline

22 October 2026 at 12:48
Governments and businesses in Kenya, the Netherlands and elsewhere were scrambling to prevent hackers from exploiting a vulnerability in PHP, a widely used programming language.

© Geert Vanden Wijngaert/Associated Press

Prime Minister Rob Jetten of the Netherlands in Brussels last week. He said that his cabinet was closely monitoring the online vulnerability caused by a security flaw in PHP.

Google Eyes Large ‘Virtual Power Plant’ for Data Centers

22 October 2026 at 12:30
The tech giant is funding one of the nation’s largest “virtual power plants,” which would pay homes and businesses to adjust their energy use when grids are strained.

© Bizuayehu Tesfaye/Las Vegas Review-Journal/Tribune News Service, via Getty Images

A Google data center in Nevada.

METRO with Sarah Koenig: Episode 2

In New York’s diamond district, there’s a war on: real vs. fake. It’s hard to know which side is which.

© Graham Dickie for The New York Times

❌