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    Former Google CEO slams federal government’s coronavirus response, saying it ‘cost us lives’

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    The former CEO of Google said that he hopes Americans will be “grateful” for how Silicon Valley has stepped up during the coronavirus pandemic as he also took a veiled swipe at the federal government’s response.

    “Think about what your life would be like in America without Amazon, for example. The benefit of these corporations — which we love to malign — in terms of the ability to communicate … the ability to get information, is profound — and I hope people will remember that when this thing is finally over,” Eric Schmidt said during a Tuesday speech to the Economic Club of New York that was livestreamed.

    “So let’s be a little bit grateful that these companies got the capital, did the investment, built the tools that we’re using now and have really helped us out. Imagine having the same reality of this pandemic without these tools,” he continued.

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    Eric Schmidt , former chairman and CEO of Google, commented on the COVID-19 pandemic during a Tuesday speech.
    (Getty Images)

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    Google, along with Apple and Facebook, have stepped in to harness the power of their collective technological know-how — and their significant wealth — to address testing capacity, contact tracing, overloaded websites, sharing fact-based information and providing tens of millions of masks to frontline workers.

    The tech mogul, worth an estimated $14.2 billion, according to Forbes, also seemed to be taking a swipe at the federal response to the COVID-19 outbreak — albeit without naming President Trump or the White House specifically.

    Schmidt said it was “amazing” and he was “curious” as to why the government had not acted more quickly to allocate money to scientists, organize research priorities and ramp up testing capabilities in the first two months of 2020.

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    “We probably were one month late in the way we organized ourselves,” Schmidt said. “That month cost us lives.”

    As of Wednesday afternoon, over 614,000 people in the U.S. were infected with COVID-19, and the virus had killed more than 27,000.

    Schmidt also noted that the re-opening of the U.S. economy may take longer than people realize.

    “This will change our society for much longer than we think,” he said. “It’s not going to be a quick recovery back to the hugging and kissing and restaurants and all the behaviors that were perfectly fine before the pandemic.”

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    Google takes heat about coronavirus data from Democratic senators

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    Two prominent Democratic senators called on Google to prioritize privacy in its decision to use anonymized location data to track peoples’ movements in an effort to help battle the coronavirus pandemic.

    The tech giant’s reports use location data from users who have opted in to share such data to chart movement trends over time across 131 countries and regions, examining categories like retail, groceries, transit stations, workplaces and residential.

    “An individual’s location data can reveal other sensitive information, such as a place of employment, religious affiliation, or political preferences. Access to this type of information can pose risks to both individuals’ civil liberties and their physical safety,” Sens. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., and Ed Markey, D-Mass., wrote in the letter.

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    The tech giant stressed in its blog post announcing the report that no personally identifiable information, like an individual’s location, contacts or movement, is made available at any point.

    However, the senators gave Google until April 14 to answer a half-dozen questions, including: “Does Google plan to use datasets other than Location History for its Community Mobility Reports? Does Google plan to share with any government entities, researchers, or private sector partners any users’ coronavirus-related personal data or pseudonymous information?”

    The senators also asked the tech company to explain: “What guidance has Google provided to public health officials about how to interpret the reports, including how Google accounts for common social patterns and categorizes locations?”

    Fox News reached out to Google for comment.

    The data released by Google reveals a wide range of behaviors, depending on the state, what rules have been put in place and how much COVID-10 is impacting the population.

    As of Wednesday afternoon, there were more than 1.4 million cases of COVID-19 worldwide; of those, 402,923 are in the United States.

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    Google data reveals massive plunge in movement, the communities obeying coronavirus orders

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    Google location data released Friday presents a stark picture of how the coronavirus pandemic has upended the lives of more than 3.9 billion people — half the world’s population — who are under some form of lockdown, causing massive shifts in human behavior.

    The report uses location data from users who have opted in to share such data to chart movement trends over time across 131 countries and regions, examining categories like retail, groceries, transit stations, workplaces and residential. Looking at America as a whole, the largest declines have come in retail and recreation and transit stations, according to the Google data.

    “As global communities respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been an increasing emphasis on public health strategies, like social distancing measures, to slow the rate of transmission. In Google Maps, we use aggregated, anonymized data showing how busy certain types of places are — helping identify when a local business tends to be the most crowded,” the company said in a blog post. “We have heard from public health officials that this same type of aggregated, anonymized data could be helpful as they make critical decisions to combat COVID-19.”

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    Data supplied by Google shows a dramatic drop in a wide range of daily activities across the U.S.

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    The tech giant stressed that no personally identifiable information, like an individual’s location, contacts or movement, is made available at any point.

    The data reveals a wide range of behaviors, depending on the state, what rules have been put in place and how much COVID-10 is impacting the population.

    For instance, in New York, which is the deadly virus’ epicenter and is operating under Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s PAUSE policy, retail and recreation dropped 62 percent, transit dropped 68 percent and workplaces dropped 46 percent.

    However, in states like Wyoming and North Dakota, both of which have very small numbers of confirmed coronavirus cases and are not under mandatory shelter-in-place orders as of Friday afternoon, the data tells a different story.

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    Wyoming has seen workplace and transit trips drop 29 and 14 percent, respectively. North Dakota has seen retail and recreation drop 44 percent and transit drop 36 percent.

    President Trump has not issued a nationwide shelter-in-place order. This week, in response to a reporter’s question on CNN, Dr. Anthony Fauci said he ‘didn’t understand why’ every state had not issued stay-at-home orders.

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    Google to lift ban on coronavirus-related advertising

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    Google will begin to lift its ban on coronavirus-related advertising this week in the wake of criticism from some Democrats that the company was helping the Trump administration spread false information about the pandemic.

    In the coming days, Google will begin to allow “government entities, hospitals, medical providers, and NGOs” to run ads related to the novel coronavirus on its platforms.

    Since February, most nongovernmental advertisers have been barred from running ads related to the COVID-19 pandemic to stifle organizations seeking to spread misinformation or profiteer off of the panic.

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    “This policy was designed to protect users and block ads that try to capitalize on short-term events like natural disasters. As the COVID-19 situation evolves, we’ve been adjusting our enforcement to ensure that we are protecting users while prioritizing critical information. We first started allowing health information PSA ads from government entities and supported these efforts with $250 million in donated ad grants. Now, we are looking at ways to support limited COVID-19-related ads from hospitals, medical providers, government entities, and NGOs,” a Google spokesperson told Fox News via email.

    “We also realize that COVID-19 is becoming an important part of everyday conversation, including a relevant topic in political discourse and for many advertisers in different sectors, and we’re planning to allow more advertisers to run ads related to COVID-19 as soon as we’re able to do so safely,” the spokesperson explained.

    Democratic lawmakers and operatives have said the Google advertising ban was a gift to Trump’s reelection campaign.

    “To not allow political candidates to mention or discuss COVID-19 is something that has the potential to dramatically bolster Trump’s and Republicans’ chances of reelection,” Mark Jablonowski, the chief technology officer and managing partner of DSPolitical, a top digital ad firm that works with Democratic campaigns and progressive causes, told Protocol.

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    In a note sent out to advertisers that was viewed by Fox News, Google Head of Industry Mark Beatty explained the decision.

    “This week, we’re allowing ads from government entities, hospitals, medical providers, and NGOs who want to get relevant information out to the public,” Beatty wrote in the email. “Soon, we’re planning to allow other advertisers, including political organizations, to run ads related to COVID-19. We will have more information to share on this in the next few days.”

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    Coronavirus pandemic forces HHS to allow Apple FaceTime, Zoom, other apps for telehealth services

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    With the coronavirus pandemic upending everyday life, the Dept. of Health and Human Services has made the extraordinary announcement to allow video chat apps such as Apple’s FaceTime and Zoom for medical consultations.

    “During the COVID-19 national emergency, which also constitutes a nationwide public health emergency, covered health care providers subject to the HIPAA Rules may seek to communicate with patients, and provide telehealth services, through remote communications technologies,” the HHS wrote in an announcement on its website.

    Also included on the list are Facebook Messenger video chat, Google Hangouts and Microsoft’s Skype.

    In this photo illustration the American video Communications company Zoom logo seen displayed on a smartphone with a computer model of the COVID-19 coronavirus on the background.
    (Photo Illustration by Budrul Chukrut/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

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    Using these programs brings privacy concerns and the issue they may not be “fully compliant” with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). However, the HHS added that providers should notify patients there are privacy risks with these apps, while noting “providers should enable all available encryption and privacy modes when using such applications.”

    Several video chat apps, including Facebook Live, Twitch and TikTok, as well as “similar video communication applications,” are not available for use in telehealth, the HHS added.

    According to Teladoc, a telehealth company, demand for telehealth and telemedicine services are rising rapidly, as patient visit volume recently spiked 50 percent week-over-week in the week ending March 14.

    Traditionally, the HHS has not allowed these types of apps for telehealth for care decisions, primarily because of privacy concerns. Instead, Epic medical software has been used, but the pandemic has significantly altered that for the time being.

    “The traditional health care system simply does not have the capacity to address a worst-case scenario when it comes to the coronavirus,” Dr. Mark Smith, professor of clinical medicine at the University of California at San Francisco (UCSF) and member of the Teladoc Health board of directors, said in a statement.

    The World Health Organization (WHO) recently recommended using telemedicine to evaluate suspected cases of COVID-19 disease, “thus minimizing the need for these individuals to go to health care facilities for evaluation.”

    On March 17, the Trump administration announced what it called “unprecedented steps” to expand Americans’ access to telehealth and telemedicine services during the COVID-19 outbreak.

    CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE  CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE

    As of Wednesday morning, at least 874,000 coronavirus cases have been diagnosed worldwide, 189,633 of which are in the U.S. The disease has accounted for at least 43,291 deaths around the world, including at least 4,000 people in the U.S.

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    Fox News’ Brooke Crothers contributed to this story.

    Google commits over $800 million for coronavirus crisis response

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    Google is committing over $800 million to support health organizations and workers, small- and medium-sized businesses, and governments, to battle the global coronavirus pandemic.

    The tech giant’s CEO Sundar Pichai made the announcement on Friday.

    “Together, we’ll continue to help our communities—including our businesses, educators, researchers and nonprofits—to navigate the challenges ahead,” Pichai said in a press statement.

    The initiative includes $250 million in ad grants to help the World Health Organization and more than 100 government agencies globally provide critical information on how to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and other measures to help local communities — a significant increase from the company’s previously announced $25 million commitment last month.

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    Google will create a $200 million investment fund that will support NGOs and financial institutions worldwide to help provide small businesses with access to capital amid the economic fallout from the pandemic.

    The search giant is providing $340 million in Google Ads credits to small and medium-sized businesses with active accounts over the past year as a way to alleviate some of the cost of staying in touch with customers.

    In addition, the California-based company is working to provide first responders and medical workers with access to more personal protective equipment (PPE). Shortages in these critical materials have been happening in hospitals across the country. Google is working with Magid Glove & Safety with the goal of ramping up production of 2 to 3 million face masks in the coming weeks.

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    Employees from across Alphabet, including Google, Verily and X, are using their engineering, supply chain and healthcare expertise to facilitate increased production of ventilators, working with manufacturers, distributors and the government in that effort.

    Silicon Valley has been stepping up in a range of ways to assist with production or donation of masks and ventilators and in other ways.

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    Map shows America’s social distancing behavior state by state

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    In the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, new data shows how the behavior of Americans has shifted dramatically in some states.

    Unacast, a company that tracks where people go and why — so-called “social mobility,” has created a Social Distancing Scoreboard based on tens of millions of anonymous mobile phones. It uses that data to build the maps that show changes in the “average distance traveled” by Americans as they respond to calls for social distancing.

    Social distancing — avoiding mass gatherings and maintaining approximately 6 feet from others — is considered one of the most effective ways to prevent the spread of the virus.

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    The scoreboard, updated daily, is a way to “measure and understand the efficacy of social distancing initiatives at the local level,” according to the company. The goal is to show how people adapt their everyday behavior in the wake of the virus outbreak.

    Change in distance traveled in the U.S. compared to pre-outbreak travel. The blueish states show the largest decrease in travel distance. (Credit: Unacast/Mapbox/OpenStreetMap)

    For example, switching to your home office or not going to entertainment venues reduces the daily travel distance and boosts social distancing, according to Unacast. Also, canceling travel and vacations contributes to a decrease in travel distance.

    State by state

    Broken down by states and counties, the scores range from “A” for the most change to “F” for the least amount of change compared to pre-outbreak travel distance. Areas that see at least a 40 percent decrease in average distance traveled get an A, while those that exhibit less than a 10 percent decrease or increase are assigned an F, according to Unacast.

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    As of Thursday, most of the states with the biggest changes in average distance traveled (those that receive the highest grade) are the most populous ones such as New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Texas and California, according to the interactive map.

    The states with the lowest grades tend to be less-populated states such as Wyoming (which received an F), Montana (graded a D) and New Mexico (garnering a C grade).

    The counties and localities with the top ratings include San Juan County, Colo; Kalawo County, Hawaii, and three areas in Alaska including Haines Borough and Skagway Municipality.

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    The counties and localities with the lowest ratings include Wheeler County, Texas; Blaine County, Mont., and Baca County, Colo.

    Google Maps does it, too

    Though unrelated to the Unacast map, Google Maps can also help with social distancing. Maps can show you popular times for places like supermarkets and drug stores.

    “Google may show information including popular times, live visit information, wait times and typical visit duration,” according to the search giant.

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    The popular times graph, for example, shows how busy a location typically is during different times of the day. And live visit data show how active a location is at the moment.

    Google sees 350 percent increase in phishing websites during COVID-19 pandemic, report reveals

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    Hackers have been trying to take advantage of the coronavirus crisis, with a new report revealing a 350 percent increase in phishing websites over the last three months.

    Atlas VPN gathered the numbers of phishing websites detected by Google and compared them.

    In January, Google registered a total of 149,195 active phishing websites, according to the report. That number increased to 293,235 the following month. When looking at March versus January, the number of total phishing websites skyrocketed by 350 percent, hitting 522,495.

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    Thousands of malicious websites are being created on a daily basis.

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    Rachel Welsh, COO of Atlas VPN, explained why the number of phishing sites jumped so dramatically during the COVID-19 outbreak.

    “I believe that hackers identified coronavirus as something users are desperate to find information on. Panic leads to irrational thinking and people forget the basics of cybersecurity. Users then download malicious files or try to purchase in-demand items from unsafe websites, in result becoming victims of scams,” Welsh said in a statement provided to Fox News.

    Since more people are spending time online while they are quarantined at home, hackers and cybercriminals are all able to take advantage of the coronavirus pandemic.

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    To maintain bandwidth amid coronavirus pandemic, YouTube limits video quality

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    n an effort to ensure that sufficient bandwidth is available amid the coronavirus outbreak, YouTube has announced that it is temporarily shifting video quality to standard definition on its platform.

    “We continue to work closely with governments and network operators around the globe to do our part to minimize stress on the system during this unprecedented situation,” a Google spokeswoman told Fox News via email. “Last week, we announced that we were temporarily defaulting all videos on YouTube to standard definition in the EU. Given the global nature of this crisis, we will expand that change globally.”

    The Google-owned video-sharing site is making the change in a gradual rollout that started Tuesday. The change is expected to last for approximately 30 days, although users can manually adjust the video quality on YouTube.

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    YouTube says that it has seen little change in the peaks of demand during the pandemic, but has seen changes in usage patterns as more people at home expand their use of the platform across additional hours and lower usage peaks.

    (REUTERS/Dado Ruvic)

    More than 2 billion users visit YouTube every month, according to Google, which notes that people watch over a billion hours of video on the platform every day.

    Other services have been throttled in parts of the world in response to the bandwidth demands caused by the coronavirus outbreak.

    Netflix, for example, recently throttled down its video quality in Europe at the request of authorities there who want to ensure that sufficient Internet capacity is available during the crisis.

    On Tuesday, the Disney+ streaming service launched in the U.K., Ireland, Germany, Italy, Spain, Austria and Switzerland. “In light of concerns regarding the current ability of certain broadband infrastructure to handle the anticipated consumer demand for Disney+, the service will now feature a lower overall bandwidth utilisation by at least 25 percent,” Disney explained in a statement.

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    As of Wednesday morning, at least 425,000 coronavirus cases had been diagnosed worldwide, more than 55,000 of which were in the U.S. The disease has accounted for at least 18,000 deaths around the world, including more than 800 in the U.S.

    The Associated Press contributed to this article.

    Follow James Rogers on Twitter @jamesjrogers

    5 ways tech can help you stay sane while you stay home

    I can’t stop thinking that I am in the middle of a thriller about a sinister virus that causes a global pandemic. But this is no made-for-Hollywood screenplay. It’s a real catastrophe.

    Many people are dealing with frustrating tech challenges while trying to find a new normal. You can Google anything; it’s just that you never know if the search results are legit. That’s why I am giving anyone who needs tech help a free 90-day trial to my Komando Community.

    Whether it’s an issue you’re having trouble with working remotely or trying to figure something out, you can leave questions on our forum for myself and a team of experts to answer. You’ll also be able to listen to my most recent national radio show and have access to the past three months of shows. Once your free trial expires, the service costs $4.99 per month. Tap or click here to get your free 90-day trial. Use discount code Kim when setting up your profile.

    Tech will do wonders to bring back some semblance of your previous life. Let me show you how you can use certain apps, sites, and tools.

    Reach out and see someone

    To flatten the curve, we’re all staying home. This drastic change is tough, especially for close-knit families and people accustomed to working as a team. Remember, a text is nice but seeing someone’s face takes communication to a different level.

    If you have an Apple device, there’s FaceTime. It’s straightforward to use. Simply select your contact’s phone number or Apple ID and then Video. You can connect to up to 32 people at once. The bummer is that it only works with other Apple devices.

    For times when everyone is not in the Apple camp, there are options. Microsoft’s Skype has been synonymous with video calling for many years and supports calls up to 10 people. It’s simple to set up and works on Mac, Windows, Android, and even some Linux machines.

    Google Duo works on Android and iOS devices and supports calls up to eight people. Know that it has a feature called Knock Knock. When you make a call, the person you’re calling sees a live video preview of you before they answer the call—just something to keep in mind.

    Facebook Messenger works well because probably everyone you know is already on Facebook. You can group video chat up to six people. But, 50 more people can listen in on the call and send emojis, GIFs, and stickers during the call. In the Messenger app, tap Groups to get started.

    You’ll find the apps above in Apple’s App Store or Google Play. Since the kids are home, schedule regular daily or weekly calls with any elderly family members, friends, and neighbors. If you’re working from home, have a morning video call with your team members to start the day and maybe another one later on.

    Related: Stay up-to-date on the Coronavirus with my free newsletter. No ads. Just news. Tap or click here to get The Current.

    Get in shape for free

    Many fitness companies are responding to the Coronavirus with freebies to help get or keep you in shape while home. The megahit Peloton is offering a 90-day free trial to their at-home workout app that includes yoga, HIIT, stretching, and best of all, no bike required. Gold’s Gym has over 600 audio and video workouts in their Amp app. It’s free until May 31, 2020.

    Planet Fitness is streaming classes live on Facebook every day at 7 p.m. ET. If you’re a morning person, Blink Fitness streams live on Facebook at 8 a.m. ET.

    Play games virtually together

    Instead of firing up a game to play by yourself, break out of your shell. Truly, there are multiplayer games for everyone from Fortnite, Monopoly to Words with Friends. Ask your friends to name a game they like and start playing with them. Or check the charts in Apple’s App Store or Google Play for inspiration.

    I play Scrabble on my phone with my family. You can play with up to three people using the app or online at Pogo.com. Promise that you will not use any of the Scrabble Word Finder sites because that would be cheating. These little gems let you enter up to 12 letters to come up with possible words.

    Expand your horizons

    Maybe you’re like me. With all this time at home, I’ve finally cleaned out my office, twice. I’m ready for stimulation. Here, the internet is a true goldmine, whether you want to learn a new skill or you’re ready to branch out to a different career.

    CodeAcademy is the place for you to learn software development along with HTML, Javascript, Python, Ruby on Rails, and CSS for free. But if you’ve ever wanted to take a class at Yale, Stanford, MIT, or Harvard, check out OpenCulture. You’ll find free on-demand audio and video courses from the world’s leading universities.

    For all those times you couldn’t remember why something was the way it was or how to solve a math problem, every parent in the world should know about Khan Academy. It’s a good place to brush up on anything that you needed to know in school.

    There are also several subscription-based learning sites. LinkedIn Learning offers thousands of classes in business, design, tech, web development, and more for $19.99 per month. Udemy is a similar site that offers a more diverse range in business and hobby classes. You pay by the class, usually under $20.

    MasterClass is different in that they offer over 80 classes from names you know for $15 per month. Wolfgang Puck will teach you how to cook, Neil deGrasse Tyson will bestow his knowledge of Scientific Thinking and Communication, or have Bob Iger give you tips on Business Strategy and Leadership. Regrettably, even though Christina Aquilera offers singing lessons, I know that’s not for me.

    Keep in touch

    Why watch Netflix alone when you can have a Netflix Party? After you install the Chrome Extension, play the video you’d like to watch with friends. Click “Start Party” and share the party URL to invite friends. The video is synced with your friend’s devices, and a chat box lets you all talk about the movie, or whatever, in real-time.

    To stay sane, some people are using video chats that I mentioned earlier to digitally hangout with friends for after-work happy hours, birthday parties, and poker games. It’s a great way to beat self-isolation and take your mind off everything.

    Remember, we need social interaction for our health. So stay home and use tech to stay sane.

    What digital lifestyle questions do you have? Call Kim’s national radio show and tap or click here to find it on your local radio station. You can listen to The Kim Komando Show on your phone, tablet, television or computer. Or tap or click here for Kim’s free podcasts.

    Copyright 2020, WestStar Multimedia Entertainment. All rights reserved.

    Learn about all the latest technology on The Kim Komando Show, the nation’s largest weekend radio talk show. Kim takes calls and dispenses advice on today’s digital lifestyle, from smartphones and tablets to online privacy and data hacks. For her daily tips, free newsletters and more, visit her website at Komando.com.