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AP Technology NewsBrief at 3:30 p.m. EDT(Associated Press Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Skype buying group message system GroupMeNEW YORK (AP) _ Skype is expanding even before it gets absorbed by Microsoft Corp. The online communications service said Monday that it plans to buy GroupMe, which provides group text messaging. $103M to expand broadband Internet in rural USRICHMOND, Va. (AP) _ Telecommunications companies in 16 states will share more than $103 million in federal funding to help expand broadband Internet access to those areas of rural America that haven't been reached by the high-speed service or are underserved, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced Monday. Policymakers, public interest groups and telecom companies are seeking to bridge the digital divide by reaching even the most remote pockets of the U.S. with broadband internet, hoping to improve economic and educational opportunities there. New data spill shows risk of online health recordsSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ Until recently, medical files belonging to nearly 300,000 Californians sat unsecured on the Internet for the entire world to see. There were insurance forms, Social Security numbers and doctors' notes. Among the files were summaries that spelled out, in painstaking detail, a trucker's crushed fingers, a maintenance worker's broken ribs and one man's bout with sexual dysfunction. Verizon workers return to work, without a dealNEW YORK (AP) _ Thousands of striking Verizon workers will return to work starting Monday night, though their contract dispute isn't over yet. Both the company and the union say they have agreed to narrow the issues in dispute and have set up a process to negotiate a new contract. But the talks are likely to be contentious. The two sides still disagree on touchy subjects such as health care benefits, pensions, and work rules. Facebook's spam program catches innocent usersPITTSBURGH (AP) _ Facebook has sent notes of apology and is changing automated systems that blocked environmental activists and other people from posting on like-minded Facebook pages. The activists weren't victims of censorship, but rather an anti-spam computer algorithm that was impersonally doing what it was designed to do. Texting, grand theft auto style; alarms pose riskSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ Texting and driving don't go well together _ though not in the way you might think. Computer hackers can force some cars to unlock their doors and start their engines without a key by sending specially crafted messages to a car's anti-theft system. They can also snoop at where you've been by tapping the car's GPS system. In nod to IBM, HP overhaul minimizes consumersSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ Hewlett-Packard's decision to surrender in smartphones and tablet computers and possibly get rid of its personal computer business underscores how Apple has transformed consumer electronics in just four years. HP's new CEO Leo Apotheker is now trying to turn the Silicon Valley stalwart into a twin of East Coast archrival IBM Corp. In doing so, he is acknowledging that his company has failed to balance the demands of both the consumer and corporate markets. As a result, it needs to exit most of its consumer businesses, just as IBM did six years ago. Hewlett-Packard overhaul exposes underdog statusSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ Hewlett-Packard, one of the world's largest technology companies, finds itself the underdog as it ditches most of its consumer businesses to become more like the well-oiled, corporate-focused machines of rivals IBM and Oracle. HP will no longer make smartphones and tablet computers and wants to leave the PC business after spending a decade assembling itself into a technology conglomerate by buying such companies as computer maker Compaq Computer for $19 billion in 2002 and smartphone pioneer Palm for $1.8 billion last year. After insulin pump hacking, lawmakers seek reviewSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ Two lawmakers are requesting a review of the government's security standards for wireless medical devices after a diabetic discovered how to remotely reprogram his and other people's insulin pumps. Reps. Anna Eshoo of California and Edward Markey of Massachusetts, both Democrats, asked the Government Accountability Office, the investigative arm of Congress, to evaluate the Federal Communications Commission's efforts to identify the risks of implants and other medical devices that use wireless communications technologies. Palm largely dead as HP shuts phone, tablet unitSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ When Hewlett-Packard Co. snapped up Palm Inc. last year for $1.8 billion, it looked like the smartphone pioneer's last chance. Palm was a year into a major turnaround effort but gaining little traction despite a hip, new CEO known for making the iPod a household name. It had high hopes for its latest handset, the Pre, which ran on the company's new, intuitive operating software, known as webOS. It needed a savior, and HP, which itself needed a boost in the mobile technology market, seemed like its best bet for survival. (c) 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |