Virus Diary: Moving Closer To Grandsons They Can Barely See

A child’s swing twists forlornly in the breeze beneath the behemoth maple tree that shades our home. It’s become a symbol of our sad coronavirus exile.

EUROPEAN POLICE CRACK ENCRYPTED PHONES, ARREST HUNDREDS

European police delivered a major blow to organized crime after cracking an encrypted communications network, allowing them to covertly watch “over the shoulder” of criminals in real-time as they planned drug trafficking, arms sales, assassinations and torture, officers announced.

WIRECARD HEADQUARTERS RAIDED IN PROBE OF ACCOUNTING SCANDAL

Investigators searched the headquarters of German payment systems provider Wirecard and four other locations Wednesday as part of their probe of an accounting scandal that led to the arrest of the company’s longtime CEO and forced the firm to file for bankruptcy protection.

AMERICAN AND 4 OTHER AIRLINES REACH LOAN AGREEMENTS WITH US

American Airlines and four smaller carriers have reached agreement with the government for billions more in federal loans, a sign of the industry’s desperate fight to survive a downturn in air travel caused by the virus pandemic.

LULULEMON BUYS AT-HOME EXERCISE STARTUP FOR $500 MILLION

Athletic apparel maker Lululemon Athletica Inc. said it’s acquiring at-home exercise startup Mirror for $500 million.

Disney Plans To Reopen California Theme Parks in July

Disney is proposing to reopen its Southern California theme parks in mid-July after what will be a four-month closure due to the coronavirus, the company said.

OFFICIAL: US MIGHT HELP OTHERS BUY NON-HUAWEI TELECOM GEAR

The United States is willing to help other countries finance purchases of next-generation telecom technology from Western providers so they can avoid Chinese tech giant Huawei, which Washington sees as a security threat, an American official said Thursday.

‘GRIEF MODE': WHAT THE LOSS OF SUMMER CAMP MEANS FOR KIDS

It wasn’t just the leadership opportunities or seeing his best friends or even escaping months stuck at home because of the coronavirus pandemic that had Rory Sederoff thinking 2020 would be one of his best summers ever.

UK WATCHDOG GIVES AMAZON DELIVEROO DEAL TENTATIVE APPROVAL

Britain’s competition watchdog has provisionally approved Amazon’s plan to buy a stake in food delivery company Deliveroo, saying it would not have a negative impact on customers by reducing choice or raising prices.

TWITTER GIVES WORKERS DAY OFF TO VOTE IN NATIONAL ELECTIONS

Twitter says it will give its U.S. employees Election Day off going forward and employees around the world paid time off to vote in national elections.

ORDERS FOR US BIG-TICKET FACTORY GOODS SURGE 15.8% IN MAY

Orders to American factories for big-ticket goods rebounded last month from a disastrous April and March as the U.S. economy began to slowly reopen.

PETER JACKSON TO MAKE ORIGINAL ANIMATED CONTENT FOR WETA

Weta Digital, the Academy Award-winning visual effects company that made “The Lord of the Rings” and “Avatar” possible, is making original animated content for cinemas and streaming for the first time in its 25-year history. The company also said that L0had joined the New Zealand-based shop as CEO.

MAKING THE MOST OF YOUR OUTDOOR SPACE, NO MATTER HOW SMALL

Coronavirus quarantine had many people rethinking the interiors of their homes this spring. DIY projects were tackled, and rooms reorganized.

LAX TESTS THERMAL CAMERAS FOR DETECTING FEVERS IN TRAVELERS

Los Angeles International Airport is testing thermal camera technology designed to identify travelers with elevated body temperatures.

GOOGLE TO START PAYING SOME NEWS PUBLISHERS FOR CONTENT

Google says it will start paying some publishers for their news content, in a move that could pave the way for reduced tensions between the internet search giant and the beleaguered news industry.

DISNEY DELAYS SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA THEME PARK REOPENINGS

Disney is postponing the mid-July reopening of its Southern California theme parks until it receives guidelines from the state, the company announced.

Administration Seeking To Roll Back Tech Company Protections

The Justice Department proposed that Congress roll back long-held legal protections for online platforms such as Facebook, Google and Twitter, putting down a legislative marker in President Donald Trump’s drive against the social media giants.

Britain Scraps Virus Tracing App For Google-Apple System

Britain is scrapping plans to launch its own coronavirus contact tracing smartphone app because of technical problems and will now work on building one using technology supplied by Apple and Google, health authorities said.

NASA'S NEXT MARS ROVER HONORS MEDICAL TEAMS FIGHTING VIRUS

NASA’s next Mars rover is honoring all the medical workers on the front lines of the coronavirus battle around the world.

FDA APPROVES VIDEO GAME FOR TREATING ADHD IN KIDS

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has for the first time approved a video game for treating attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in children.

INTERNSHIPS GET CANCELED OR GO VIRTUAL BECAUSE OF PANDEMIC

Yadeen Rashid was flying high in February. He’d just earned stellar grades in his latest semester at Virginia Tech university, where he’s in his third year double majoring in economics and political science. And he’d just landed a summer internship at a data analysis company.

DRIVER FREE BUT VIRUS FREE? ROBO CARS HIT NEW SPEED BUMP

The latest challenge for the autonomous vehicle industry: How to assure passengers that the car they are getting in is virus-free, even if it doesn’t have a driver.

IS IT SAFE TO STAY IN HOTELS AS REOPENINGS GET UNDERWAY?

Is it safe to stay in hotels as reopenings get underway?

RUSSIA LIFTS INEFFECTIVE BAN ON TELEGRAM MESSAGING APP

Russia’s communications watchdog said it would lift a ban on the popular messaging app Telegram after two years of unsuccessful attempts to block it.

PANDEMIC GIVES BUSINESSES LESSONS IN SURVIVAL, INNOVATION

When the coronavirus outbreak forced Sean Giovanni to shut down his recording studio in for two months, he dropped off mobile equipment at staffers’ and artists’ homes. He hoped remote recording would bring in some revenue.

‘ADAPT OR DIE' RESTAURANTS FIND WAYS TO EVOLVE AMID VIRUS

When the coronavirus roared into New York, chef Anna Klinger wouldn’t let it put a fork in her restaurant.

Ban The Confederate Flag? NASCAR Could See The End Of An Era

The familiar scene of Confederate flags waved by fans at NASCAR tracks could soon be a relic of racing’s good ol’ boy roots.

1.5 Million More Laid-Off Workers Seek Unemployment Benefits

About 1.5 million laid-off workers applied for U.S. unemployment benefits last week, evidence that many Americans are still losing their jobs even as the economy appears to be slowly recovering with more businesses partially reopening.

Zoom Caught in China Censorship Crossfire As Meetings Foiled

Video app company Zoom said it regretted that some meetings involving U.S.-based Chinese dissidents were disrupted, as meanwhile a prominent Hong Kong activist said his account was blocked despite the city’s guarantees of free speech.

Amazon Bans Police Use Of Its Face Recognition For a Year

Amazon banned police use of its face-recognition technology for a year, making it the latest tech giant to step back from law-enforcement use of systems that have faced criticism for incorrectly identifying people with darker skin.