You're tuned in to Tech Beat, let's get into it.
The Federal Reserve sent a signal this week that it may hold interest rates steady, and markets moved fast. Bitcoin surged on the news, and short sellers caught the worst of it — four hundred fifteen million dollars in short positions were liquidated in the squeeze. It's another reminder of how tightly crypto now tracks traditional monetary policy.
On the security front, Senator Ron Wyden is pressing the NSA to update its guidance on commercial VPNs. His concern is that standard single-hop VPNs, even encrypted ones, remain vulnerable to foreign bulk traffic analysis. Wyden is pointing to tools like Tor and Apple's iCloud Private Relay as more effective alternatives — a meaningful distinction that most everyday users have never been asked to consider.
And Sony is pushing back hard against a class action lawsuit seeking five hundred eight million dollars in refunds from PS Five buyers. Plaintiffs argue Sony raised console prices after tariffs were struck down, but the company is calling that claim illogical. The case puts a spotlight on how hardware pricing decisions get made — and who ultimately absorbs the cost when trade policy shifts.
Keep surfing. Tech Beat out.
