The bill passed 352-65 in a lopsided bipartisan vote, but it faces a more uncertain path in the Senate where some favor a different approach to regulating foreign-owned apps posing security concerns. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said the Senate will review the legislation.

“This is a critical national security issue. The Senate must take this up and pass it,” No. 2 House Republican Steve Scalise said on social media platform X.

The fate of TikTok, used by about 170 million Americans, has become a major issue in Washington. Lawmakers said their offices had received large volumes of calls from teenage TikTok users who oppose the legislation.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Wednesday “we want to see the Senate take swift action.”

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew said in a video posted Wednesday the legislation if signed into law “will lead to a ban on TikTok in the United States… and would take billions of dollars out of the pockets of creators and small businesses. It will put 300,000 American jobs at risk.”

He added the company will “not stop fighting” and will exercise its legal rights to prevent a ban.

He visited Capitol Hill on Wednesday on a previously scheduled trip and plans to return Thursday, a source briefed on the matter said, amid popular support for the app.

The measure is the latest in a series of moves in Washington to respond to US national security concerns about China, from connected vehicles to advanced artificial intelligence chips to cranes at US ports.

The political climate is growing in favor of the bill. President Joe Biden said last week he would sign it and White Hous national security adviser Jake Sullivan on Tuesday asked “Do we want TikTok, as a platform, to be owned by an American company or owned by China? Do we want the data from TikTok – children’s data, adults’ data – to be going, to be staying here in America or going to China?”

The Chinese Foreign Ministry criticized the legislation Tuesday, arguing “though the U.S. has never found any evidence of TikTok posing a threat to the US’s national security, it has never stopped going after TikTok.”

A number of prominent Democrats in the House voted against the bill including House Democratic Whip Kathleen Clark, Arizona Senate candidate Ruben Gallego, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez as well as the top Democrats on the Judiciary, Ways and Means, Transportation and Intelligence committees.

“There are serious antitrust and privacy questions here, and any national security concerns should be laid out to the public prior to a vote,” Ocasio-Cortez said.

Senate Commerce Committee chair Maria Cantwell, who will play an important role in the Senate’s next move, said she wants legislation “that could hold up in court,” and is considering a separate bill, but is not sure what her next step is.

The vote comes just over a week since the bill was proposed following one public hearing with little debate, and after action in Congress had stalled for more than a year. Last month, President Joe Biden’s re-election campaign joined TikTok, raising hopes among TikTok officials that legislation was unlikely this year.

The House Energy and Commerce Committee last week voted 50-0 in favor of the bill, setting it up for a vote before the full House.

Several dozen TikTok users rallied outside the Capitol before the vote. The company paid for their travel to Washington and accommodations, a TikTok spokesperson said.

But the political climate is growing in favor of the bill. Biden said last week he would sign it and White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan on Tuesday said the goal was ending Chinese ownership, not banning TikTok.

“Do we want TikTok, as a platform, to be owned by an American company or owned by China? Do we want the data from TikTok – children’s data, adults’ data – to be going, to be staying here in America or going to China?” he said.

It is unclear whether China would approve any sale or if TikTok’s U.S. assets could be divested in six months.

If ByteDance failed to do so, app stores operated by Apple, Alphabet’s Google, and others could not legally offer TikTok or provide web hosting services to ByteDance-controlled applications.

In 2020, then-President Donald Trump sought to ban TikTok and Chinese-owned WeChat but was blocked by the courts. In recent days he had raised concerns about a ban but nearly all House Republicans shrugged those off.

Representative Mike Gallagher, one of the bill’s authors, said they don’t want a ban but divestiture and said Trump if re-elected in November “may have an opportunity to consummate the deal of the century” in a TikTok sale.

It remains unclear if Tencent’s WeChat or other high-profile Chinese-owned apps could face a ban under the legislation.

Any forced TikTok divestment from the US would almost certainly face legal challenges, which the company would need to file within 165 days of the bill being signed by the president.

There are still potential legal issues with the American Civil Liberties Union and other advocacy groups arguing the bill is unconstitutional on free speech and other grounds.

In November, a US judge blocked a Montana state ban on TikTok use after the company sued. – Rappler.com

Apple announced the changes to comply with the European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), which kicked in last week. The changes could dent the high profit margins and steady stream of revenue that Apple has come to rely on from its App store, where it charges developers fees of up to 30%.

The changes, which affect only the European Union, come amid continuing criticism from rivals that Apple’s compliance efforts are falling short.

Beginning this spring, software developers operating in Europe will be able to distribute apps to EU customers directly from their own websites instead of through the App Store.

“While the App Store won’t be able to be milked as freely, it’s still likely to remain a considerable cash cow for some time as there are strings attached to this peace offering from Apple,” said Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown.

Developers must still meet terms and conditions set by Apple and be authorized developers. Apple has also introduced a “core technology fee” of 50 euro cents per user account each year, even if developers opt not to use Apple’s App Store or payment system.

The DMA aims to rein in Apple, Amazon, TikTok owner ByteDance, Meta Platforms, Alphabet’s Google and Microsoft, and create a level playing field for smaller rivals and ultimately more competition for Europeans.

“To reflect the DMA’s changes, users in the EU can install apps from alternative app marketplaces in iOS 17.4 and later. Users will be able to download an alternative marketplace app from the marketplace developer’s website,” Apple said on its website. IOS refers to the software platform that runs Apple’s iPhones and iPads.

The opening in Europe of Apple’s ecosystem, which the company has long guarded as a highly profitable “walled garden,” comes at a sensitive time for the tech giant.

The iPhone maker is struggling with shrinking revenue and weak demand for its smartphones in China. In January, Microsoft dethroned Apple as the world’s most valuable company, with investors viewing Apple as lagging its Big Tech rivals in their race to dominate artificial-intelligence technology.

Apple’s stock was up 0.6% on Tuesday afternoon, reducing its loss in 2024 to 10%.

Changes announced on Tuesday include letting developers set up alternative app marketplaces to offer a catalogue solely made up of the developer’s own apps with immediate effect.

Developers can choose how to design in-app promotions, discounts and other deals when directing users to complete a transaction on their website instead of using Apple’s template.

Under pressure from regulators and the DMA, Apple last week took a step back in its feud with Epic Games, allowing it to put its own game store on iPhones and iPads in Europe. DMA violations can cost companies fines as much as 10% of their global turnover.

Apple has also said it will appeal an EU antitrust fine of 1.84 billion euros ($2.01 billion) handed to it last week for thwarting competition from Spotify SPOT.N and other music streaming rivals via restrictions on the App Store. – Rappler.com

The vote is expected around 10 am under fast-track rules that require support by two-thirds of House members for the measure to pass.

The vote comes just over a week since the bill was proposed and after one public hearing with little debate. The House Energy and Commerce Committee last week voted 50-0 in favor of the bill, setting it up for a vote before the full House.

The FBI, Justice Department, and Office of the director of national intelligence held a classified briefing for House members on Tuesday.

“We’ve answered a lot of questions from members. We had a classified briefing today. So that members can see even more details about what’s at risk and how the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) can jeopardize the risk to American families,” said House Majority Leader Steve Scalise.

Tiktok CEO Shou Zi Chew will visit Capitol Hill on Wednesday on a previously scheduled trip to talk to senators, a source briefed on the matter said.

“This legislation has a predetermined outcome: a total ban of TikTok in the United States,” the company said. “The government is attempting to strip 170 million Americans of their Constitutional right to free expression,” it added.

Some opponents of the legislation, including Democratic Representative Maxwell Frost, think the bill will pass in the House. Frost said many lawmakers who will vote for the bill are motivated by a desire to protect users, which he supports. Frost was among four lawmakers out of the 432-member House that held a press conference opposing the bill.

“The problem is the process here, the fact that it’s been steamrolled and people really can’t digest the consequences,” Frost said. “I would like to see TikTok ownership changed, but not at the expense of our First Amendment rights, business owners, and content creators.”

The fate of the legislation is uncertain in the US Senate, where some senators want to take a different approach.

President Joe Biden said last week that he would sign the bill.

White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Tuesday that the goal is ending Chinese ownership – not banning TikTok. “Do we want TikTok, as a platform, to be owned by an American company or owned by China? Do we want the data from TikTok — children’s data, adults’ data — to be going, to be staying here in America or going to China?”

It is unclear if China would approve any sale or if TikTok could be divested in six months

The bill would give ByteDance 165 days to divest TikTok. If it failed to do so, app stores operated by Apple, Alphabet’s Google and others could not legally offer TikTok or provide web hosting services to ByteDance-controlled applications.

In 2020, then-President Donald Trump sought to ban TikTok and Chinese-owned WeChat but was blocked by the courts. In recent days he had raised concerns about a ban. – Rappler.com

The IIHS, a safety research arm of the insurance industry, also said there is no evidence that Autopilot or other assisted-driving systems have real-world safety benefits, based on crash data.

“We are able to look at insurance claims data. We have been able to look at vehicles with and without these (systems) and determine there is no reduction in claims as a result of these more advanced systems,” IIHS President David Harkey told Reuters.

By comparison, there is evidence that automatic emergency braking systems cut rear-end collisions by 50% and cut incidents of a vehicle hitting a pedestrian by 30%, he said.

Tesla and its chief executive, Elon Musk, have said that a Tesla operating with Autopilot engaged is about 10 times safer than the US average and five times safer than a Tesla without the technology enabled.

Federal regulators are investigating nearly 1,000 accidents in which Tesla’s Autopilot was in use. A civil case scheduled to go to trial next week in California will be the latest test of Tesla’s strategy of blaming crashes on drivers who fail to heed the EV maker’s warnings to pay attention to the road when Autopilot or Full Self Driving technology are engaged.

Tesla did not reply to an email seeking comment.

The IIHS study rated 14 assisted-driving systems from nine automakers against standards it developed. The US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has no formal standards governing advanced-driver assistance systems, or ADAS in industry terminology.

“There are no federal regulations, nor is there good consistent guidance,” Harkey said. “That was our reason for putting these safeguards together.”

Of the systems IIHS tested, only one earned an acceptable rating: The Lexus Teammate with Advanced Drive, offered last year on a small number of Toyota Motor’s luxury Lexus LS hybrid sedans.

“Toyota continuously aims to increase vehicle safety,” Toyota said in a statement. “As a part of that effort, Toyota, among other things, considers performance in third-party testing programs like NHTSA’s New Car Assessment Program and IIHS’s Top Safety Pick program.”

GM’s Super Cruise and Nissan’s “ProPILOT Assist with Navi-link” offered on the 2023-2024 Ariya electric vehicle received “marginal” overall ratings.

“We are evaluating the results from the first-ever Partial Automation Safeguards test and will continue to work with IIHS in all matters related to customer safety,” Nissan said.

GM said in a statement that Super Cruise “is meant to serve as an enhancement to the driving experience,” not as a safety feature.

Different assisted-driving systems from Tesla, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Nissan, Ford, GM, Hyundai’s Genesis brand and Geely’s Volvo Cars brand received “poor” overall ratings, although all achieved “good” scores on certain elements of the IIHS tests, the group said.

“This new IIHS testing methodology does not assess the performance of the driver assistance systems, instead it focuses on safeguards to prevent misuse,” Mercedes said in a statement. “We take the findings of the IIHS partial driving automation safeguard ratings very seriously.”

Automakers could boost safety ratings by adopting existing technology for functions such as driver-monitoring or attention warnings that achieved “good” scores, Harkey said.

Tesla and other automakers are improving the capabilities of their systems, the IIHS said. Tesla revised its Autopilot software following a federal recall agreement, and IIHS will test the updated system, Harkey said.

“We are certainly going to take in the results of these tests as our cars and these systems continue to evolve,” BMW spokesman Jay Hanson said on Monday. BMW now offers in certain U.S. models a more sophisticated driving-assistance system than the one tested by the IIHS.

The Genesis GV80 SUV that launches in the U.S. this spring will the first model in the Hyundai luxury brand with an in-cabin camera to monitor the driver’s face and eyes while assisted driving is engaged. “This enhancement will also be rolling out to future Genesis products in the coming months and years,” the company said. – Rappler.com

Trump reiterated his concerns as lawmakers weigh a bill this week that would give TikTok’s Chinese owner ByteDance about six months to divest the short video app used by 170 million Americans.

The US House of Representatives is set to vote on Wednesday under fast-track rules that require two-thirds of members to vote “yes” for the measure to win passage.

TikTok told Congress late Monday in a letter seen by Reuters it is “not owned or controlled by the Chinese government” and argued if the company was sold another buyer would not continue TikTok’s $1.5 billion effort to protect US data.

“Ironically, US user data could be less secure under a divestment scheme,” the company said.

The FBI, Justice Department, and Office of the Director of National Intelligence plan to hold on Tuesday a classified briefing for House members, two sources said. FBI Director Chris Wray reiterated concerns about TikTok at a hearing on Monday.

The 2024 Annual Threat Assessment of the US Intelligence Community released on Monday said “TikTok accounts run by a PRC propaganda arm reportedly targeted candidates from both political parties during the US midterm election cycle in 2022.”

The Justice Department detailed its security concerns about TikTok in a document last week first reported by Reuters.

“I’m not looking to make Facebook double the size,” Trump told CNBC on Monday. “And if you if you ban TikTok, (then) Facebook and others, but mostly Facebook, will be a big beneficiary. And I think Facebook has been very dishonest.”

Trump met recently with investor Jeff Yass, whose investment firm Susquehanna International Group has a stake in ByteDance, he confirmed on CNBC. Trump said they did not talk about TikTok.

Meta Platforms shares closed down 4.4% at $483.59 on Monday. The company declined to comment.

‘Kids will go crazy’

Trump previously criticized the company now called Meta Platforms for revoking his access to Facebook and Instagram after removing two of his posts during the January 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol riot. His accounts were reinstated in February 2023.

Trump also said a TikTok ban could impact young people. “There are a lot of young kids on TikTok who will go crazy without it,” he said. “There’s a lot of good and there’s a lot of bad with TikTok.”

Tiktok CEO Shou Zi Chew will visit Capitol Hill later this week on a previously scheduled trip to talk to senators, a source briefed on the matter said.

President Joe Biden said last week he would sign the bill after a committee unanimously approved the measure.

TikTok, which says it has not and would not share US user data with the Chinese government, argues the House bill amounts to a ban. It is unclear if China would approve any sale or if TikTok could be divested in six months.

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise said “we must ensure the Chinese government cannot weaponize TikTok against American users and our government through data collection and propaganda.”

The bill would give ByteDance 165 days to divest TikTok. If it failed to do so, app stores operated by Apple, Alphabet’s Google and others could not legally offer TikTok or provide Web hosting services to ByteDance-controlled applications.

In 2020, Trump sought to ban TikTok and Chinese-owned WeChat but was blocked by the courts.

The app is popular and getting legislation approved by both the House and Senate in an election year may be difficult. Last month, Biden’s re-election campaign joined TikTok.

Trump’s campaign has not joined TikTok. – Rappler.com

In development since 2015 by Team Ninja, in collaboration with Sony’s London-based XDev Studio, the PS5-exclusive finally comes out on March 22. 

Here’s what you need to know about it. Just something to note: this is a first impressions article based on just a few hours of playtime, and our views may change as we continue to play, and understand the game’s systems better.

1. Parrying, called “Countersparks,” is a big part of the gameplay. It’s my favorite part of the combat mechanic so far, as successful parries, especially when you’re able to parry multiple hits or an enemy’s special attack is, as you might expect, very satisfying.
   
   So far, the difficulty level feels like it’s an open-world “Souls-lite” and not a Souls-like game. You’ll find some success just by evading and mashing the attack button, as the game’s enemies, at least in the first 3 or 4 hours, have been forgiving in terms of giving you windows of opportunities, and are not very aggressive in parrying your attacks. 
   
   It’s fun to observe and learn how to parry an opponent so you can build up your opponent’s panic level to the point where you can unleash flashy, violent special attacks for major damage, but so far, I’ve had success just being aggressive with my attacks – which is to say, parrying hasn’t been extremely necessary.  
   
   Evading has also been more effecting for me as blocking depletes your stamina gauge known as “Ki” pretty quickly. 
   
   Team Ninja has been known though for difficult games like Ninja Gaiden and Nioh (although of course From Software has become the king of masochistic games) so I wonder if these early stages are just a teaser for what’s to come.
   
   The game also appears to have a great emphasis on narrative and story so I wonder also if they did hold back on the difficulty for this game, so that more players can experience the story. In their press materials, it is noted that accessibility is part of the game.
   
   There is some Souls similarity though as you earn a type of experience points called “Karma” that you lose after dying, but are able to recover in vendetta mode where you go after your last killer. Die though, and you lose those points. You also have a stamina bar, and a similar item-use user interface, and save spots where you can “deposit” earned karma.

2. It’s set in Japan’s “Bakumatsu” period, a real historical time period set between 1853 and 1868 wherein the country’s isolationist policies came to an end after the Perry Expedition led by US Commodore Matthew Perry.

By comparison, Ghost of Tsushima was set hundreds of years back in 1274.

3. There’s a strong emphasis on “Bonds.” Your bond with a region or a specific character can grow as you complete side quests for people in that region or complete missions with another character.
   
   The game’s characters may be its strongest suit so far. We’re just a few hours in, and we’re already invested in the characters we have met such as a fellow wandering ronin Ryoma Sakamoto, the bandit chief Gonzo, inventor Igashichi Iizuka, and famed geisha Taka Murayama. 
   
   They offer engaging dialogue, are visually interesting, and you just get this motivation to do missions with or for them, so you get to know them more. And there are also in-game rewards for doing so, as you raise your bond level. Your character is the silent protagonist type, by the way. 
   
   The same goes for the game’s many areas. Do the missions in the area, and your bond with that area goes up, which brings with it several rewards. I’m looking forward to see whether the people in the area will interact with you differently as you raise your bond level with the area. 
   
   I’m usually not the biggest fan of sidequests, and I often just focus on the main storyline, but raising that bond level with characters and areas has been an effective carrot-on-a-stick for me. 
   
   One of the mission types as well is you go around certain areas to “restore public order,” which is basically safespeak for “kill every bad guy in the area to free it.” It’s a familiar open-world game mechanic that Ghost of Tsushima also had.
   
   But one thing that the game may have over Tsushima is some measure of choice over events. Game Informer noted in its December preview, including an interview with lead designers: “Don’t expect a large number of these branches to present themselves during the main story, but completing certain side missions related to the main narrative or centering on an important character will help steer the overall adventure toward one of several endings.” 
   
   I’ve had one of those moments already where I had to decide whether to kill or let a target live, and it felt indeed like a weighty decision on how my character will proceed in the game. 

4. You’ll see a mishmash of both Japanese and Western equipment. The game wants to depict a transition period for Japan as Western influence comes along, and we see that in the items you can equip. You can equip a kimono with a Western-style hat while wearing boots. Or Japanese sandals paired with vests and Western pants. It’s a funny sight but one that I’m enjoying, and is a design element that helps set this game apart. I’m really intrigued by this initial East-meets-West setting. 
   
   The game’s loot system is also quite generous with weapon and armor drops, and these have various effects like higher night time damage or quicker Ki regeneration. There are some more unique items too that offer more unique effects on the character. 
   
   In spite of this being sort of like a revenge quest, the atmosphere isn’t that heavy, and seems to be in a less serious mood than Ghost of Tsushima. Or if we’re going to compare it to the Souls games, the tone is definitely less intimidating and oppressing than Elden Ring or the Souls games. I, for one, like it’s a little bit more relaxed. 

5. So far, there really seems to be a lot of interesting things to do here, and the combat mechanic seems fun to master. The stealth kills and the grappling hook also remind me of that old PlayStation ninja game series Tenchu. The assassinations from falling from the glider are amazing.
   
   Grappling to a high spot, and seamlessly transitioning to gliding is very cool too.
   
   But aside from that, Ronin has some rough spots. The roughest is the AI enemy scripting, specifically how far an enemy is supposed to go away from their area. When you’re at what appears to be the set border for their character, they repeatedly go back to their area, and then chase you again when you go a little bit nearer. 
   
   This includes at least one boss I’ve fought so far. He kept shuffling between attempting to go back to his original area, and to where I was – which really wasn’t that far from his area. The combat can be engaging, but these moments break the illusion.
   
   I’ve been able to exploit this as well, letting me pick off one enemy at a time. 
   
   And don’t expect Ghost of Tsushima-type eye candy. While the facial texture, hair, some locations, and characters do look great, and the art direction looks great, with unique East-meets-West settings, the graphical rendering of environments can sometimes have spots with rough or dull textures. Something to note in case you were wondering if it’s as visually stunning as Tsushima.
   
   I’m guessing that part of it is also due to Tsushima’s visual art direction going for a glossier, dreamier look, while Ronin feels more raw, and more grounded. 
   
   There’s also one part in the beginning where I just suddenly seemed to have a horse. I restored public order to an area, and suddenly I had a horse – no in-game scene where it was shown that I was rewarded with it. 

6. If you love cats, you’ll love Rise of the Ronin. My favorite minigame or side quest so far is tracking down cats. Cat areas are marked on the map, and you can sneak up on them, catch them, and pet them. So cute!

– Rappler.com

The billionaire has warned on several occasions against the use of technology for profit by big technology companies such as Google.

He filed the lawsuit against Microsoft-backed OpenAI, which he co-founded in 2015 but left three years later, earlier this month. In response, OpenAI publicized emails that showed the Tesla CEO supported a plan to create a for-profit entity and wanted a merger with the EV maker to make the combined company a “cash cow.”

“This week, @xAI will open source Grok,” Musk said in a post on X, the social media firm he owns.

The move could give the public free access to experiment with the code behind the technology and aligns xAI with firms such as Meta and France’s Mistral, both of which have open-source AI models.

Google has also released an AI model called Gemma that outside developers can potentially fashion according to their needs.

Tech investors including OpenAI backer Vinod Khosla and Marc Andreessen, co-founder of venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, have been debating about open-sourcing in AI since Musk filed the lawsuit against the ChatGPT maker.

While open-sourcing technology can help speed up innovations, some experts have warned that open-source AI models could be used by terrorists to create chemical weapons or even develop a conscious super-intelligence beyond human control.

Musk said at Britain’s AI Safety Summit last year that he wanted to establish a “third-party referee” that could oversee firms developing AI and sound the alarm if they have concerns.

Seeking an alternative to OpenAI and Google, Musk launched xAI last year to create what he said would be a “maximum truth-seeking AI”. In December, the startup rolled out Grok for Premium+ subscribers of X.

In a podcast episode with computer scientist and podcaster Lex Fridman, Musk suggested in November that he favored the concept of open-source AI.

“The name, the open in open AI, is supposed to mean open source, and it was created as a nonprofit open source. And now it is a closed source for maximum profit,” Musk had said. – Rappler.com

Play Video

The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse, and Reuters, alongside Getty Images, released kill notifications, or instructions for retracting the photo, which was released by Kensington Palace on Sunday, March 10.

The image came alongside her first public message since undergoing abdominal surgery in January.

According to the Associated Press’ kill notification shared by Chris Ship of ITV News, “at closer inspection it appears the source has manipulated the image.”

The Associated Press added in a report, “The photo shows an inconsistency in the alignment of Princess Charlotte’s left hand.” 

In a social media post on March 11, Middleton, who also goes by Catherine, apologized for “any confusion” caused by the photograph posting.

The post, bearing her initial C, said, “Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused. I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother’s Day.”

The BBC earlier reported the image of Middleton and her children – Prince George, Prince Louis, and Princess Charlotte – was taken by Prince William, and is the first official photo released of her since she was last publicly seen on December 25.

News organizations hold strict guidelines on the usage of manipulated photographs, such as adding notices if a photograph has been altered or changed from its original, or allowing only minor touch-ups for quality or image visibility purposes, depending on the organization. – Rappler.com

Rating: FALSE

Why we fact-checked this: The claim was made in a YouTube video that has garnered 8,991 views, 440 likes, and 61 comments as of writing. 

At the 3:42 mark of the video, the narrator says: “Ngunit sa aking inaakala, hindi ito basta basta isang shutdown, dahil hanggang ngayon hindi pa rin naglalabas ang Meta patungkol sa ano talaga ang rason kung bakit nangyari ito. Ngunit para sa akin, ito’y parang may kinalaman sa nangyari nito-nito lamang linggo, na ang pinaka malakas sa solar flare sa loob ng anim na taon ay nangyari sa ating planeta.” 

(In my view, this was not just any shutdown because until now Meta has not explained the cause of the outage. To me, it seems to have something to do with what happened just this week, when the strongest solar flare in six years happened on our planet.)

The bottom line: The outage of Meta’s social media platforms was caused by “technical issues,” according to Meta Communications Director Andy Stone in an X (formerly Twitter) post on March 6. 

“Earlier today, a technical issue caused people to have difficulty accessing some of our services. We resolved the issue as quickly as possible for everyone who was impacted, and we apologize for any inconvenience,” the post said.

The outage lasted for over two hours and affected 550,000 Facebook users and about 92,000 Instagram users at its peak. There have been no reports from reputable sources that stated that a solar flare or solar superstorm had anything to do with the almost two-hour-long outage. 

Meta’s services also previously suffered a prolonged disruption in 2021, when Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp were down for more than six hours. At the time, the outage was caused by “configuration changes on backbone routers.” 

Solar storms explained: Solar magnetic storms, also known as coronal mass ejections, occur when the sun releases bursts of plasma. The strongest flares, when directed at the Earth, can disrupt satellites, communication systems, and even power grids. Solar activity is at its peak during a period known as the solar maximum. According to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)’s Space Weather Prediction Center, the sun will reach its peak activity between January and October 2024, in the 25th solar cycle. 

Recent solar activity: Two major solar flares occurred earlier this year. The flares erupted from the sun beginning in the late afternoon of February 21 until February 22. The levels of the flares reached an R3 (Strong) rating, according to NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center.

In a post on February 26, NOAA said: “While solar flares can affect communication systems, radar, and the Global Positioning System, based on the intensity of the eruption and associated phenomena, it is highly unlikely that these flares contributed to the widely reported cellular network outages.”

However, the February 21 and 22 solar flares had nothing to do with the Meta outage that occurred on March 5.

Solar flares can reach Earth in minutes while its accompanying coronal mass ejections (CMEs) usually take at least a day to reach the planet, a Washington Post article said. Both solar flares and CMEs can affect communication systems here on Earth.

Rappler has debunked a similar claim from the same user that a solar superstorm would cause a global internet shutdown in 2024. – Katarina Ruflo/Rappler.com

Katarina Ruflo is a graduate of Rappler’s fact-checking mentorship program. This fact check was reviewed by a member of Rappler’s research team and a senior editor. Learn more about Rappler’s fact-checking mentorship program here.

Keep us aware of suspicious Facebook pages, groups, accounts, websites, articles, or photos in your network by contacting us at factcheck@rappler.com. Let us battle disinformation one Fact Check at a time.

And most likely, if you’re the type of gamer who wants to blast through large chunks of the main quest first before trying out the side quests like me, odds are, Midgardsormr absolutely crushed your behind. He was surprisingly tough, and I don’t remember the last time I was surprised by how tough a JRPG boss is. 

My giant-scaled friend was so tough that, during our interview with director Naoki Hamaguchi, I had to ask him about it. And he said that yes, they deliberately made the boss harder to encourage the players to explore the map first, fight a few more battles, and check out some of the sidequests in the area. It was a way to instruct players that exploration really has an important role in this game.

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Q&A: ‘FFVII Rebirth’ director Naoki Hamaguchi on challenges, inspiring future game creators

(Plus, Hamaguchi felt like he was really emphasizing that they worked hard on the game’s sidequests, and thus, would want players to see them.)

He added as well that some, who are more familiar with the game, will be able to move through that first boss battle with little issue. But for people “that are not very familiar,” it’s best to explore, level up, and basically, as gamers would say “git gud” (get good). 

My gamer pride was hurt a bit. I thought I was a pretty good FFVII Remake player! 

But anyway, git gud I did. I raised my level by maybe 2 or 3, fixed my equipment and materia, and finally went out to meet my serpentine sweetheart…and proceeded to get my rear handed to me again. What in the name of Demon’s Souls is this?

Anyway, I finally did it in the next try, so take that Midgardsormr. It’s always so satisfying to take down a boss after having a tough time, yes? Here’s my video of that:

Play Video

Now, I’m 14 hours in, and currently at Chapter 7. There has been a lot of bosses, and most of them really offer a fun challenge, and I’ve died a few times against them, but Midgardsormr has been the hardest still. 

On that note, I would just like to commend how great the boss fights in this game are. The game’s been a great boss run for me. They’re quite varied, the designs are amazing, and so far, no two bosses have been the same. 

And the oldest rule in FFVII still applies: if you’re fighting a mechanical robot boss, use lightning. I’ve yet to see an exception to the rule.

Every boss you fight, you need to figure out their attack patterns, and when to dodge and when to block, like a traditional action game. And of course, along with that, there’s the menu-based combat options that you need to find the right timing for.

In difficult boss battles, making just one wrong menu choice in combat spells the difference between winning and losing, and that’s part of the reason why they’re so fun and exciting.

The new synergy abilities, which let two characters do team-up actions and attacks, are a wonderful new addition, that among other reasons, really give you a sense that your characters are working with one another.

Sometimes, bosses have multiple phases too, and a short in-game cinematic plays out to show you that you’re moving on to a next part in the battle. 

I’ve always been a great enjoyer of the battle system introduced in Remake, and it returns with a little more depth, and more customization options – and it showcases best during the boss battles. It challenges you to think. What’s the best way to deal with this boss? Or when it’s possible to select party members, which combination of characters might be best to use? 

It’s just fun, and the bosses are one of the things that have kept me glued. One of the things I dislike though is that the characters don’t seem to acknowledge that they’ve just gone through a big boss battle. 

There’s nothing like an epic “Midgardsormr vanquished” message on the screen like Final Fantasy XVI, or the characters being depicted as having had a tough time. After a boss, they often move on too quickly like nothing happened, and in doing that, well, winning the battle is just a little bit less satisfying. 

Even the classic victory music would have been great after a boss battle! I’d understand why playing that music might have been repetitive in normal battles, but maybe they should’ve used it for after-boss battles. That would’ve been nice. 

And Rebirth has a lot of minigames, doesn’t it? They’re mostly simple affairs (although I love the piano playing mechanic, shown below, and I’m excited to get more sheet music) but I think they’re a nice palate cleanser from the primary exploration and battle sequences. I do think that there are moments when they break the momentum of the game. 

Play Video

I’ve come to accept that it’s kind of a goofy game too, a little more so than Remake (see: Red XIII cosplaying as a human). Sometimes, it feels off, because along with the minigames, it overshadows the urgency in a mission involving the impending death of a planet.

I understand that maybe the developers didn’t want this to be an all-too-serious affair, but the tonal shift sometimes gives me whiplash. It can sometimes vascillate wildly between heavy, existential, doomsday scenes often involving main antagonist Sephiroth, and scenes that just feel a tad too cartoony.

I think, partly, the original FFVII got away with such a tone because the old graphics were blocky, chibi-style renditions. These remake titles are obviously much more realistic, so it feels like the cartoony moments could have maybe used some toning down, perhaps? But that’s me, so what did you think?

What else? I think the pacing so far in Rebirth is better. The dungeon runs are just the right size, ending with a boss before getting too repetitive. For exploration, I like the button memorization minigame for gathering intel on summons. The chocobos are also, I’m happy to report, as cute as ever, and just as fun to ride. And I’ve been playing in graphics mode to avoid the blurry textures issue. 

See you in entry two! And do share your thoughts to angelo.gonzales@rappler.com! – Rappler.com