10 things in tech you need to know today

AP Photo/Mark Lennihan

Good morning! This is the tech news you need to know this Thursday.

1. Magic Leap, the much-hyped smart glasses startup, is pivoting away from consumer tech and laying off half its staff. CEO Rony Abovitz announced that the company was making 'targeted' changes to the way it operates, with layoffs happening at 'every level' of the company.
2. Facebook's $6 billion Jio deal has made it a major threat overnight to Amazon's growth in India. The deal is likely to supercharge JioMart, Jio's foray into online grocery and a competitor to Amazon and Flipkart.
3. Zoom has skyrocketed to 300 million daily users, up 50% from the beginning of April, even as the company battles a privacy backlash. CEO Eric Yuan said the video conferencing company had seen a 50% increase in users since the beginning of April.
4. Facebook is scrambling to squash online groups that are planning anti-quarantine protests in states that are in lockdown. Despite Facebook's ban on content that urges people to break stay-at-home orders or stop social distancing, protesters have found a space to organize.
5. Zoom has rolled out updates to stop Zoombombers hijacking video chats and terrorizing marginalized groups. With new features, like being able to lock meetings and report participants, Zoom hopes to stop racist, homophobic, and anti-Semitic attacks.
6. Neo-Nazis got hold of 20,000 leaked email addresses and passwords thought to belong to WHO and the Gates Foundation, researchers said. Organizations on the front lines of dealing with the pandemic have been compromised, according to the SITE Intelligence Group.
7. Fake text messages claiming the US military would enforce a country-wide lockdown were spread by Chinese agents, according to a new report. US intelligence officials believe Chinese agents helped spread the misinformation in order to incite panic. 
8. Struggling video game retailer GameStop is preparing to fully reopen some stores even as most of the US remains in quarantine. Video game sales are surging while millions of people are stuck indoors due to the coronavirus pandemic and the retailer is now planning to reopen.
9. Hackers may be attacking iPhones by sending emails that can infect phones without victims even opening the email. The flaw allows attackers to send a message containing malicious software that doesn't need to be clicked on in order to infect a device.
10. Legendary tech investor Bill Gurley will not be involved in Benchmark's newest fund, ending a track record that lasted more than 20 years. Gurley, known for his savvy bets on Uber and Stitch Fix, has been actively involved in the firm's funds ever since he joined Benchmark in 1999.

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