• Google's YouTube is the world's biggest online video company, and it's making a bigger push into TV and streaming.
• YouTube made $15 billion in advertising revenue and another $3 billion in subscriptions in 2019.
• The video site has also drawn regulators' antitrust and privacy concerns.
• Business Insider identified the 33 executives there with the most power.
• Click here for more BI Prime stories.

Google's $1.65 billion acquisition of YouTube in 2006 has turned into the world's biggest and most powerful online video company.

The platform made user-generated content mainstream, reaching more than two billion people each month. It rivals TV networks, streaming giants including Netflix and Amazon. It's gotten big publishers and advertisers to create videos and helped turn content creators like Lilly Singh and PewDiePie into stars, establishing new business models for Hollywood.

After years of pressing from analysts and investors, Google has started revealing just how much money YouTube is making: It raked in $15 billion in advertising revenue in 2019, and in the first quarter of 2020 made the company $4.04 billion, a notable increase of 33% over the same quarter last year.

In fact, YouTube's 2019 advertising revenue was more than TV networks ABC, NBC, and Fox combined. Another $3 billion came from non-ad revenue in products like YouTube Music and YouTube TV, though YouTube pays a portion of that money back to networks and publishers in distribution rights.

YouTube has also drawn regulators' antitrust and privacy questions. In September, YouTube got hit with a $170 million fee for reportedly violating the Child Online Privacy Protection Act. The company has struggled to keep out extremist content and ads that break its rules against misinformation. Advertisers say YouTube is notorious among ad platforms for not allowing third parties to measure and verify their campaigns.

Business Insider identified 33 executives leading all of YouTube's businesses by combing through organization charts and interviewing sources. They span policy, engineering, content, and advertising.

Below are the executives, listed alphabetically by last name. 

SEE ALSO: The 15 most powerful women at Google

Kevin Allocca, head of culture and trends

Kevin Allocca leads the global culture and trends team focused on analyzing and tracking trending content at YouTube.

Projects he has overseen or cocreated include: YouTube Rewind, YouTube Nation (with DreamWorks Animation), YouTube Trends, and YouTube Spotlight.

He spends his time tracking popular videos and explaining trending content on the platform  and he has become an expert on viral videos.

Allocca published the book, "Videocracy: How YouTube Is Changing the World . . . with Double Rainbows, Singing Foxes, and Other Trends We Can't Stop Watching," in 2018, which is a behind-the-scenes look at how the internet and video impact culture. 

Santiago Baranda, head of gaming creators, Americas

Santiago Baranda leads a team of partner managers who manage top gaming creators at YouTube in North America and Latin America.

He has over 10 years of experience in the gaming industry, from working with top creators to brands in strategic partnerships.

Baranda began his role at YouTube in June 2019, and before his current position, he served as a senior manager for the video game series Overwatch and its global community at game publisher Blizzard Entertainment.

Ariel Bardin, VP of creator products

Ariel Bardin is the VP of creator products at YouTube and he joined Google in 2004.

Bardin is responsible for products that creators rely on to be successful on YouTube, working directly with and advocating for the creator community to ensure that the products YouTube builds are creator-first.

His team is responsible for everything from the way creators manage their channels with YouTube Studio and copyright tools to how they make money through the YouTube Partner Program and how they can diversify their revenue sources outside of ads with merchandise, channel memberships, and the self-service influencer marketing platform FameBit. 

Bardin served as VP of Google Payments, prior to moving over to YouTube.

Previously, Ariel spent eight years as a leader in Google AdWords where he helped define, build, and launch many advertiser-facing features.

Ariel earned a bachelor's of science in computer engineering from the University of Southern California and a master's of science in management science and engineering from Stanford University.

Derek Blasberg, fashion and beauty director

Two years ago, YouTube hired Harper's Bazaar and Vanity Fair vet Derek Blasberg to head up the company's fashion and beauty partnerships. He's become a key figure in its goal to cozy up to the fashion world, helping brands and names like Louis Vuitton and Naomi Campbell use the platform more.

Facebook's Instagram has also made a hard push for fashion content, and part of Blasberg's job is to keep ahead of rivals. In September, Blasberg's team launched a fashion vertical to highlight original content.

Cenk Bulbul, director of YouTube ads marketing

Cenk Bulbul works with agencies — a growing important area for YouTube as it makes inroads with advertisers who are spending more on digital video platforms. He helps creative and media agencies make and buy ads that match content that people watch and share. For example, he helps marketers understand trends like creators' coming-out videos.

Bulbul also oversees YouTube's marketing for its business-to-business arm.

He is a former agency and consulting executive. Before joining YouTube in 2012, he held roles at Ogilvy New York, Telecom Italia Mobile, and McKinsey.

Jamie Byrne, director of YouTube creators

Jamie Byrne is the lead exec for issues relating to YouTube creators, working with the product and policy teams on development of commerce and membership features. 

Byrne leads creator partnerships at YouTube and he oversees the global strategy, programs, operations, and partner management for some of YouTube's largest partners. 

He joined YouTube in June 2006 before the company's acquisition by Google.

Prior to YouTube, Byrne worked for Yahoo in Los Angeles. 

He received a bachelor of communications and a bachelor of history from Rutgers University. He lives in Los Angeles. 

Lyor Cohen, global head of music

Lyor Cohen is something of a celebrity figure at YouTube. During his tenure as the president of Def Jam Records, Cohen helped turn names like Run DMC, Kanye West, and Jay-Z into stars.

But since 2016, Cohen has served as YouTube's global head of music, where he was brought aboard to patch up YouTube's increasingly frayed relationships with music labels. 

Cohen was responsible for Warner Music Group signing a deal with YouTube in 2006, the first major label to do so. At the time, Cohen tried to persuade YouTube to create a paid subscription service, something he would go on to develop when he joined YouTube 10 years later.

Cohen has a rich history in managing artists and wrangling label deals, making him a powerful player on YouTube's executive team and key to YouTube's expanding drive into music.

Lori Conkling, global head of partnerships at YouTube TV

Lori Conkling is a longtime TV exec who joined YouTube from NBCUniversal last year to negotiate deals with broadcasters, cable networks, and regional networks for YouTube TV.

She leads YouTube TV's programming strategy and tries to get big media companies like WarnerMedia to distribute content on its streaming service.

Conkling also previously handled partnerships for Google Fiber TV with networks like HBO and Starz that licensed content over Google's broadband service. In February, YouTube dropped TV packages from Google Fiber to focus on internet services.

She previously worked at A+E Networks and Disney in addition to NBCUniversal.

Susanne Daniels, global head of original content

YouTube has long dreamt of competing against Netflix and other content behemoths, and Susanne Daniels is a force behind YouTube's push into original content.

She is an entertainment exec who has developed hit TV shows like "Dawson's Creek," and "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." She joined YouTube in 2015 from MTV and reports to chief business officer Robert Kyncl.

As more companies like Disney, Apple, and WarnerMedia vie for original content, Daniels is charged with developing high-quality programming for YouTube like "Cobra Kai," which follows characters from the popular film "Karate Kid."

YouTube's original content efforts have changed over the years. After building up a subscription-based, ad-free service called YouTube Premium to house its original content, YouTube said it would drop the paywall for that content this year and run ads alongside the videos.

Jerry Dischler, head of advertising

Jerry Dischler is a longtime product management exec who was tapped to lead Google's ad business in June, replacing the role that Prabhakar Raghavan previously held.

Before being promoted to Google's ad boss, he was VP of ads platforms and Google properties and led product and engineering teams for Google's ad business across its own properties including YouTube, search and Maps.

Google last fall broke up its ad business into a buy-side arm focused on how marketers buy digital ads and a sell-side arm focused on how publishers sell ads. Dischler was tapped to lead the buy-side arm, which is geared toward brands and agencies.

He has worked on products like machine-learning tools that advertisers use to target YouTube ads and measurement features that aim to track in-store sales after someone sees an ad.

Before working on the ad side, Dischler led product management for Google's commerce business.

Malik Ducard, vice president of learning, impact, family, film, and TV

Malik Ducard oversees business development efforts for YouTube's learning, social impact, family, film, and TV partnership areas.

Prior to joining YouTube, he served as SVP of digital distribution for the Americas at Paramount Pictures and oversaw distribution of content to digital platforms.

Before Paramount, Ducard led Lionsgate's Home Entertainment Acquisitions group, executive produced a stand-up comedy series for Showtime, led MGM's Home Entertainment's Acquisitions and Business Development division, and drove new business pitches at Young & Rubicam Advertising in New York.

Ducard earned his bachelor's degree from Columbia University and his MBA from UCLA's Anderson School of Management. 

Fred Gilbert, vice president of user experience

As VP of user experience, Fred Gilbert oversees the design and functionality of YouTube on different devices.

Between 2014 and 2019, Gilbert was senior director of UX for YouTube, and before that led design on several of Google's major social products including Hangouts and photos. He was also one of the original designers of Google Maps for mobile.

At YouTube, Gilbert has worked on many of its specialty products including TV, YouTube Kids, YouTube Music, and VR.

He's a veteran Googler, having interned at the company back in 2006 and joining the company full-time in 2007. Fred Gilbert reports to chief product officer Neal Mohan.

Cheryl Gresham, global head of integrated media

Cheryl Gresham works on CMO Danielle Tiedt's team and makes advertising and marketing campaigns to get people to watch YouTube.

She focuses on campaigns for entertainment channels including live, gaming, and original content as well as YouTube's subscription-based services like YouTube Music and YouTube TV. She also works with YouTube's ad agencies.

Gresham joined YouTube in 2018. She previously lead Mattel's global media team and also worked in media roles at Taco Bell and Interpublic Group's agency Initiative.

Matt Halprin, VP, global head of trust and safety

Matt Halprin has a job most people wouldn't envy: He and his team must form policies for what is and isn't allowed on YouTube's platform. That means keeping it safe while allowing creators to express themselves.

Over the past couple of years, Halprin has led an effort inside YouTube to revisit and revise the platform's existing policies to see what makes sense and what needs changing.

Halprin also did a stint at eBay as VP in charge of global trust and safety, protecting users against criminal activity. He joined YouTube in 2017 and reports to chief product officer Neal Mohan.

Martin Kon, VP of strategy

A relative newbie to YouTube's executive ranks, Martin Kon joined the company in 2019 as VP of strategy.

Kon is all about YouTube's long-term play, bringing years of experience as a consultant advising studios and streaming platforms. His job is to help YouTube see beyond near-term revenues and aim for the myriad of ways it can grow in the future.

There's speculation that Kon will be pushing YouTube further into original programming, which is no surprise considering he reports directly to chief business officer Robert Kyncl.

Before joining YouTube, Kon was a senior partner and managing director at Boston Consulting Group.

Matt Kovalakides, creator liaison

Matt Kovalakides started his career in the YouTube space as a content creator and later landed a role as an employee within the company. 

He grew his own YouTube comedy channel after shooting and directing indie films in LA. In 2011, he was selected for YouTube's first "NextUp" grant program and was later hired by Google as a full-time YouTube content strategist.

He serves as a consultant inside of YouTube, advising some of the platform's top partners including creators, studios, celebrities, and brands. He's also written best practices for YouTube, including "The 10 Fundamentals," a material explaining the algorithm, and tips for maintaining creator well-being. 

After two years of leading strategy and production for YouTube's official creators channel and TeamYouTube channel, he is now YouTube's official creator liaison, helping creators understand the platform, and helping YouTube hear creator feedback. 

Robert Kyncl, chief business officer

Robert Kyncl oversees all parts of the YouTube business, and has been instrumental in Google's increasing investment in original content, luring big stars and influencers to the platform.

Before Kyncl joined YouTube, he was president of content acquisitions at Netflix, where he spent several years spearheading the company's efforts to buy up movies and TV shows.

One of Kyncl's primary jobs is ensuring creators have the tools to make and monetize content. In fact, Kyncl is so interested in the rise of YouTube stars that he wrote a book about it, called "Steampunks: YouTube and the Rebels Remaking Media."

He's one of CEO Susan Wojcicki's few direct reports, but also works closely with global head of music Lyor Cohen in deciding how YouTube doles out revenue to artists and labels.

Kelly Merryman, VP of content partnerships

Kelly Merryman is YouTube's key dealmaker behind its push for TV content.

She spearheads programming in YouTube TV, the video giant's subscription-based live service that hit two million subscribers in February and competes with Dish Networks' Sling TV and AT&T's DirecTV.

Merryman is responsible for managing relationships with media companies of all sizes. Her team is broken down into divisions like sports, fashion and news.

She is a former Netflix exec who built out the streaming service's content library in Europe. She joined YouTube in 2014 and reports to YouTube chief business officer Robert Kyncl, who worked with her at Netflix.

Leslie Miller, vice president of government affairs and public policy at YouTube

Leslie Miller leads government affairs and public policy at YouTube to ensure its videos are a reliable source for news and information while still being a place for healthy debate. 

YouTube has faced increasing scrutiny in recent years, with mounting pressure on the platform to curb misinformation and other harmful content.

And 2020 is shaping up to being perhaps the biggest year ever for YouTube's policy team, who are tackling misinformation around the pandemic as well as preparing for a looming US election.

As pressure increases for YouTube to stamp out bad content, Miller has worked to set out clearer guidelines on how the platform will tackle things like manipulated videos of politicians or people making false claims.

Before jumping to YouTube, Miller led public policy at Google. Miller worked in the political sphere before she joined Google, working on various campaigns including Barack Obama's presidential campaign in 2008.

Neal Mohan, chief product officer

Neal Mohan is one of CEO Wojcicki's direct reports, and oversees all of the products on both the viewer and creator side of YouTube. His role runs the gamut of YouTube's mobile and browser offerings, YouTube Kids, Music, Premium, and even VR. 

This also means Mohan is involved with decisions about what is and isn't allowed on YouTube, and has often spoken publicly about how YouTube moderates its content.

Mohan previously worked as Google's senior VR of Display and Video Ads, where he helped shape YouTube's video ad strategy, putting the wheels in motion for his current job.

He's been described as something of a visionary in predicting how brand advertising would fund the internet, one of many reasons Google has paid a considerable fortune in order to keep hold of him.

Christian Oestlien, vice president of product management

Having left Google in 2013 for a stint at Twitter, Christian Oestlien came back aboard in 2015, this time on the YouTube team to help build a platform for the next generation of video creators. 

Oestlien has led teams working on several major products, but YouTube TV may be his most notable launch so far.

He's another of chief product officer Neal Mohan's direct reports, but works very closely with key players like chief business officer Robert Kyncl on building tools for content creators.

Born in Rome, Italy, Oestlien has an MBA in technology, marketing and entrepreneurship from the University of California, Berkeley.

Galit Ptalis, partner manager

Advertisers have criticized YouTube for limiting the measurement data it gives and control over the videos where their ads appear.

Galit Ptalis addresses these concerns by matching third-party companies with advertisers. Those companies include Pixability, Zefr, and Channel Factory that help YouTube advertisers target their ads and keep them away from videos containing objectionable content.

One adtech firm called Ptalis "very helpful in taming the Wild West" for advertisers.

Before joining YouTube four years ago, she worked in sales roles at adtech firm Turn and the Village Voice.

Ben Relles, head of innovation of YouTube Originals

Ben Relles is the head of innovation for YouTube's scripted content and original series. 

Prior to his current role, he oversaw films like "This is Everything: featuring Gigi Gorgeous" and "Demi Lovato: Simply Complicated," along with"Mind Field from Michael Stevens," "Katy Perry: Witness World Wide," and "What the Fit? from Kevin Hart." Before joining the YouTube Originals division, Relles served as YouTube's global head of creative strategy.

Prior to joining YouTube, Ben was VP of programming and content development at Next New Networks where he led content strategy. In March 2011, Next New Networks was acquired by YouTube.

Relles started his career in entertainment when he founded the comedy network Barely Political in 2007. He received his MBA in marketing strategy from the Wharton School of Business in 2004, and was a founding partner of MarketVision, and spent several years at Omnicom agencies.

Vishal Sharma, VP of product management, YouTube ads

Vishal Sharma is another Google veteran who left for other pastures and got pulled back in. Reporting to chief product officer Neal Mohan, Sharma is effectively YouTube's money-maker and has worked to develop and advance the various ways advertisers make money off the platform.

In particular, he's helped YouTube shift to contextual advertising, leveraging Google's machine learning to target ads on a more individual level.

Interestingly, his work to boost YouTube's direct response advertising – which compels users to take an immediate action like clicking a website – is paying dividends, with continued growth during the COVID-19 pandemic while brand advertising has suffered.

Now that Google has started revealing just how much money YouTube's ad business is making, Sharma's work to boost the platform's revenue is more under the spotlight than ever.

Scott Silver, VP of engineering

Another of Susan Wojcicki's small handful of direct reports, Scott Silver got to know the now-CEO of Youtube when they were both working on Google's advertising business. Now, Silver leads YouTube's vast fleet of engineers.

Silver plays a central role in YouTube's efforts to stamp out misinformation, inappropriate content, and copyright-offending material – a task that has grown considerably during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Silver has a long history of building and managing engineering teams. Before his tenure at YouTube and Google, he worked as senior manager of ordering experience at Amazon.

Adam Stewart, VP of sales for Google and YouTube

Adam Stewart joined Google shortly after the company acquired YouTube in 2006 and works with large consumer-goods, entertainment and government clients.

He is credited with signing some of YouTube's early deals with entertainment brands like Lionsgate and now has an expanded role across all of Google's ad platforms. Stewart oversees all partnerships and helps advertisers with areas like managing their first-party data and finding influencers to work with.

Before joining YouTube, Stewart worked in sales at Discovery Communications for properties like Discovery Channel and BBC America.

Danielle Tiedt, VP of marketing

Danielle Tiedt is tasked with marketing YouTube as a hot digital property as it tries to get deeper into pop culture in areas like music and original programming by building relationships with creators and influencers.

Tiedt joined YouTube in 2012 to spearhead the video giant's marketing efforts. She's helped launch ad campaigns on billboards and subway cars aimed at making creators like Hannah Hart and DudePerfect into stars while boosting YouTube's reputation with the creator community.

She has also helped launch ad campaigns that build awareness around products like YouTube Music and YouTube Kids.

Before joining YouTube, Tiedt was general manager of Microsoft's marketing business.

Tara Walpert Levy, VP of agency solutions

Tara Walpert Levy joined YouTube in 2011 to help lead YouTube's big advertising ambitions.

She leads YouTube's relationships with agencies that buy ads and third parties that vet measurement and steer ads away from objectionable content. Walpert Levy is a main player in YouTube's goal to rival TV networks, helping negotiate yearly upfront deals with big advertisers.

Walpert Levy comes from a media and TV background and was previously the president of TV ad-targeting firm Visible World, which was acquired by Comcast in 2015. She also worked in McKinsey's media and marketing practice. She is a board member for advertising and marketing companies including Braze and Bloomin' Brands.

Debbie Weinstein, VP of global video solutions

Debbie Weinstein wants big TV advertisers to put more money into YouTube ads.

She sits between the product and sales teams and rolls out OTT ad products that mimic the performance and measurements of TV ads and solve issues like people being served the same ad repeatedly.

For example, her team helped develop ad sequencing technology that stitches a series of different ads together. She also helped roll out a version of YouTube's masthead — a prominent and expensive web ad format — in its TV app. And her team has developed ad-targeting tactics that zero in on people specifically watching YouTube on a TV screen.

Before joining YouTube in 2014, she worked at Unilever as VP of global media and at Viacom.

Christina Wire, VP of global operations

One of chief business officer Robert Kyncl's reports, Christina Wire is YouTube's VP of Global Operations, overseeing all aspects of the business and shaping YouTube's financial strategy.

Wire is responsible for keeping the entire business ecosystem running as smoothly as possible, working with the various business teams that power daily operations, from subscriptions growth to trust and safety operations.

Wire is another key player in making YouTube money, also working to ensure content creators can keep building and monetizing their content.

She's another Google veteran, having joined the search giant in 2007. Before YouTube, Wire worked as the director of sales and business operations for Google Fiber, as well as a few other business units under Alphabet.

Susan Wojcicki, chief executive officer

Susan Wojcicki has served as the CEO of YouTube since 2014, but she's had a starring role in Google's success story from the very start.

It was Wojcicki's garage where Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin set up their first office, making her something of a founding figure. When she officially joined the company in 1999, she was just the 13th member.

Not only has she spearheaded YouTube's tremendous growth to two billion monthly users, Wojcicki proposed that Google acquire the video site in 2006 after she saw how much buzz it was generating. She's overseen the launch of all of YouTube's major products since the acquisition, including YouTube Premium, YouTube TV, and YouTube Gaming. 

Wojcicki attended Harvard University, where she studied history and literature, and went on to receive a master's degree in economic from the Univerity of California at Santa Cruz.

Wojcicki is married to Dennis Troper, who leads product management for Google's Wear OS platform.

Johanna Wright, vice president of product management

Johanna Wright works in product management for search and discovery, kids, gaming, and VR content. 

She works to help the platform enforce guidelines for videos aimed at children by monitoring content and changing community guidelines. By doing so, her team is able to flag and remove inappropriate content or propaganda, and stop running ads on these videos or remove user channels. This is particularly important now with the recent coronavirus pandemic, which has raised concerns over misinformation being spread online. 

She joined YouTube in 2015. Prior to that, she was an employee at Google for over a decade, working with Google's search product. 

Wright has a bachelor's degree in math from Barnard College and an MBA in marketing and entrepreneurship from UCLA.

Ryan Wyatt, director of gaming, tech, and VR

Ryan Wyatt oversees several entertainment departments at YouTube, including gaming, commerce, brands, and immersive content partnerships. 

His teams help connect brands with creators and are focused on working globally with game publishers, top gaming content creators, livestreamers, and esports leagues.

Wyatt joined YouTube in 2014 to create the gaming vertical. He is a former esports commentator and a former executive at the now-defunct multi-channel network Machinima and Major League Gaming.

• In a sweep of disinformation networks in five nations, Facebook on Wednesday removed accounts linked to Brazil's president. 
• Jair Bolsonaro has continually downplayed the coronavirus pandemic – despite recently testing positive for it.
•  Example posts show the accounts posted information that claimed the virus death rate is "fabricated" by the media. 
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Facebook removed disinformation accounts linked to Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro that downplayed the coronavirus, the company said in a blog post. 

"They posted about local news and events including domestic politics and elections, political memes, criticism of the political opposition, media organizations and journalists, and most recently they posted about the coronavirus pandemic," Facebook said of the 35 Facebook accounts, 14 Pages, 1 Group and 38 Instagram accounts. 

Bolsonaro has been embattled as Brazil struggles with one of the world's worst COVID-19 outbreaks, which he has downplayed. The president has tested positive for what he calls the "little flu" on Monday after contracting a cough and fever over the weekend.

In an example post included in the Facebook blog post, a video posted by the network is titled "Globo Lies," and contains text that accuses media outlet Globo of "fabricating the coronavirus deaths/death rate."

"We found this activity as part of our investigation into suspected coordinated inauthentic behavior in Brazil reported on by press and referenced in recent congressional testimony in Brazil. Although the people behind this activity attempted to conceal their identities and coordination, our investigation found links to individuals associated with the Social Liberal Party and some of the employees of the offices of Anderson Moraes, Alana Passos, Eduardo Bolsonaro, Flavio Bolsonaro and Jair Bolsonaro," Facebook wrote in the blog post. 

Eduardo Bolsonaro and Flavio Bolsonaro are the president's sons.

Facebook also removed a disinformation network connected to Roger Stone, the longtime ally of President Trump, as well as networks that originated in Canada and Ecuador, Brazil, Ukraine, and the US. 

"The majority of the activity we removed today focused on domestic audiences in each country and was linked to commercial entities and individuals associated with political campaigns and political offices," the blog post says. 

Also on Wednesday, a lengthy new civil rights audit done with the cooperation of Facebook blasted the company's refusal to fact-check what it deems "political speech" on its platform. "We have grave concerns that the combination of the company's decision to exempt politicians from fact-checking and the precedents set by its recent decisions on President Trump's posts, leaves the door open for the platform to be used by other politicians to interfere with voting," the audit says.

SEE ALSO: Facebook removes political disinformation accounts linked to President Trump's longtime ally Roger Stone

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• A company called SpyCloud is selling personal data originally obtained by hackers to law enforcement agencies, Vice reported Wednesday.
• Experts told Vice that, while the practice isn't illegal, it effectively lets police bypass processes they normally must go through to obtain private information.
• SpyCloud's chief product officer told Business Insider that the data is already public and that selling the data to law enforcement helps them track down cybercriminals and terrorists faster.
• Tech companies have found a lucrative business working with law enforcement, and while they argue their tools help catch criminals, critics are increasingly raising concerns about civil rights violations and innocent people being swept up in the process.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Law enforcement agencies have been buying up data originally obtained by hackers, including people's emails, usernames, passwords, internet addresses, and phone numbers, from a cybersecurity company called SpyCloud, allowing them to bypass normal legal processes, Vice first reported on Wednesday.

SpyCloud's primary business is selling software that helps companies and individuals prevent online fraud and account takeovers. The company's website says that software is powered by a massive database of "stolen credentials and [personally identifiable information]" that allows it to more quickly warn customers about exposed accounts.

But SpyCloud's clients also include federal law enforcement agencies, chief product officer David Engler confirmed to Business Insider in an email.

According to Vice, the company said in a webinar slide that its tools "empower investigators from law enforcement agencies and enterprises around the world to more quickly and efficiently bring malicious actors to justice."

While SpyCloud presents its tools as a way to help law enforcement investigators (and companies) catch cybercriminals, it also raises concerns about enabling them to collect information on innocent people that would have been private had it not been accessed through a data breach.

Investigators often need permission from a court to obtain certain types of digital information, but buying breach data from a private company gives them a more efficient — and less accountable — way to scoop up data.

Riana Pfefferkorn, a cybersecurity expert at the Stanford Center for Internet and Society, told Vice that this method of collecting data is "disturbing" and "an end-run around the usual legal processes" imposed on law enforcement officials who want to access people's digital information.

Engler told Business Insider that SpyCloud considers breach data public because it's already "circulating within criminal communities," adding that the company "enables investigators to use public data to shorten the legal process, not eliminate it."

While some breach data is more widely available, many of those criminal communities are far from public. Additionally, more than 15 billion records were exposed in nearly 8,000 breaches in 2019, according to Risk Based Security, giving law enforcement a treasure trove of personal data.

"We are aware that breach data is sensitive," Engler said, adding that SpyCloud takes "serious precautions to ensure that it is not misused." That includes practices like vetting customers and uses of its products, as well as limiting customers' queries of its database.

Technology and data companies have developed lucrative businesses selling tools to law enforcement agencies and the military. Research published this week by the nonprofit Tech Inquiry found that companies including Google, Amazon, and Microsoft have secured more than 5,000 subcontracts with agencies such as the Department of Defense, Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, the Drug Enforcement Agency, and the FBI.

While companies argue their products play a vital role in helping the government track down criminals and terrorists, they've also sparked backlash from civil rights and privacy advocates — and increasingly, from employees — who worry about their ethical and legal implications, citing concerns such as companies selling data collected without people's permission to police and racial bias in facial recognition software.

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• According to new data from CB Insights, 2,267 investor-backed startups that applied for federal assistance through the Paycheck Protection Program had raised outside funding in 2019. That was the largest single group of applicants.
• Three of the top five investors whose portfolio companies applied for loans were startup accelerators, which could indicate that many applicants were early-stage companies.
• The investor-backed companies that had applied for or received investor funding in 2018, 2019, or 2020 exceeded the number of applicants compared with any other year.  Critics have argued that companies with access to investor funding should not have applied for the PPP loans. 
• Although internet startups comprised the large majority of investor-backed PPP applicants, those in the healthcare and telecommunications industries also made up a large portion of PPP applicants.
• Click here for more BI Prime stories.

Thousands of investor-backed startups applied for federal loan relief during the coronavirus-led economic downturn. Of those, more than 4,800 had raised outside funding between 2018 and this year, with the highest number having scored investor funding in 2019.

Critics have claimed that companies able to draw on funding from their equity shareholders should not have tried to access federal financial assistance through the Paycheck Protection Program. Loans from the program were meant to tide struggling companies over during the business shutdowns ordered due to the coronavirus pandemic, and allow them to keep their employees on payroll.

It could be argued, however, that the young companies fueled by venture capital receive the money to execute aggressive and costly growth plans. Those that received investor backing, even in recent years, might already have spent much of their reserves by the time the pandemic hit. At the same time, fewer venture firms have been investing in new companies while they reserved a significant percentage of their money to help support existing portfolio companies, a Pitchbook survey from June 25 found.  

According to new data from CB Insights, 2,267 investor-backed startups that applied for federal assistance through the Paycheck Protection Program had raised outside funding in 2019. In 2018, 1,363 startups completed fundraisings, and 1,216 of the loan applicants had raised in 2020. The research firm based its report on data released on Monday by the US Treasury.

Three of the top five investors whose portfolio companies applied for loans were startup accelerators like Techstars and Y Combinator, suggesting that many of their PPP loan applicants may have been startups at the earliest stages of growth.

Early-stage startups, especially those that graduate from an accelerator program, typically receive a one-time investment from the organization that runs the program before they pitch to investors at massive Demo Day presentation events. Y Combinator's Demo Day in September 2019, its last in-person event after the first 2020 Demo Day was moved online, showcased its largest cohort ever and had to be spread over two full days to accommodate everyone.

Although many startups leave Demo Day with term sheets in hand, much of the prospective investor funding has already been committed for pricey office leases and hires of top talent. That can contribute to a higher burn rate at early startups, a term that refers to a startup's expenses relative to cash reserves and incoming revenue.

Still, despite the arguable need for venture-backed startups to grasp at government relief when the pandemic upended all their plans, their participation in the PPP program has been hotly argued, even among VCs and entrepreneurs.

"It's a little vague in the rules, and you have to think about answering this question — am I doing this in good faith?" Erica Dorfman, VP of cash at fintech startup Brex, said in a webinar about the PPP program in April. "If that's the case, you likely do need this to keep payroll up. You have to ask, does this make sense and is it something you need based on your budgeting needs for the next year."

Dorfman explained that 75% of the funds, once allocated, must be used for payroll costs if founders want to be eligible for loan forgiveness down the road. The remainder can be used for operational needs, like lease payments or service costs, that keep the business operating as normal.

Back in April, Dorfman emphasized that whether or not startups should apply for PPP loans needed to be a case-by-case decision. She said that all teams should meet with board members and any additional stakeholders to evaluate all the options, and get started on gathering the mountains of information needed to complete the PPP application if that's what's decided.

Whatever decision a startup made on the PPP program, investors have been warning them to re-think their growth spending plans and hunker down.

"You can always easily dial back up the aggressiveness and risk profile if we get more optimistic visibility, but if you don't take action right away — to preserve capital, cut your burn rate, have fundamentally attractive unit economics, edit the product to make more sense in the new world order — if you don't do those right away, the opportunity to do those things and survive is probably lost forever," Founders Fund general partner Keith Rabois said in a podcast in May.

CB Insights warned that the data released by the Treasury on Monday needed to be checked, because some venture firms and startups tallied in the government data have denied applying for or accepting PPP loans.

In all, more than 9,600 investor-backed startups applied for PPP loans, CB Insights says, although it is not clear how many of those companies received the loans. Of those, roughly 1,600 were internet startups, which includes everything from enterprise software to consumer e-commerce companies. Healthcare and telecommunications companies also made up a sizable portion of applicants, according to CB Insights. Roughly 1 in 4 companies were based in California, with other tech hubs like New York and Texas rounding out the top five markets.

SEE ALSO: VCs no longer value a founding team's background as much as profitability, and that could be yet another blow to waning founder-friendly terms in Silicon Valley

Join the conversation about this story »

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• UFC 251 will stream live through ESPN+ on Saturday, July 11.
• The prelims start at 8 p.m. ET, and the main card is set to begin at 10 p.m. ET.
• A pair of title fights headline the night's match card — Kamaru Usman will defend the welterweight championship against Jorge Masvidal; and Alexander Volkanovski will face Max Holloway in a featherweight championship rematch.
• UFC 251 is the first in a series of four UFC events that UFC president Dana White has dubbed "Fight Island."
• You'll need an ESPN+ subscription to watch UFC 251 in full — the main card is a $64.99 pay-per-view event, plus the price of your subscription.

Welterweight champion Kamaru Usman will face 2019 Fighter of the Year Jorge Masvidal, and Max Holloway will attempt to reclaim the featherweight championship in a rematch against Alexander Volkanovski in the headlining matches of this Saturday's UFC 251 pay-per-view event.

UFC 251 will be the organization's first event outside the United States since March 14, held on a private resort in Abu Dhabi that UFC president Dana White has dubbed "Fight Island." Securing the private Yas Island allows UFC's international fighters to circumvent travel restrictions implemented by the United States and other countries amid the coronavirus pandemic. A total of four UFC events are scheduled to take place on Fight Island through July 25.

Usman will enter the ring for his second title defense with a 15-fight win streak. Usman has been undefeated in UFC since winning The Ultimate Fighter 21 in 2015; his first title defense ended in a TKO after Usman broke the jaw of top-ranked welterweight Colby Covington at UFC 245.

Masvidal was the 2019 Fighter of the Year, recording the fastest knockout in UFC history with a five second victory over Ben Askrin at UFC 239. Masvidal replaced top-ranked welterweight Gilbert Burns in the main event of UFC 251 with just six days notice after Burns tested positive for COVID-19.

Masvidal's coach, Mike Brown, has also tested positive for COVID-19, leaving him unable to work Masvidal's corner during UFC 251. Masvidal tested negative on the same day as Brown before flying to Yas Island in Abu Dhabi for Saturday's fight.

Fans will not be in attendance for UFC 251 or any of the other events due to the pandemic. UFC has implemented at least 18 different safety precautions for staff, including advanced medical screenings, temperature checks, and social distancing guidelines.

Here's the match schedule for UFC 251: Usman vs Masvidal

Early Prelims — 6 p.m. ET, 3 p.m. PT only on UFC Fight Pass

• Martin Day versus Davey Grant [Bantamweight]
• Karol Rosa versus Vanessa Melo [Women's Bantamweight]
• Raulian Paiva versus Zhalgas Zhumagulov [Flyweight]
• Marcin Tybura versus Maxim Grishin [Heavyweight]

Prelims — 8 p.m. ET, 5 p.m. PT on ESPN+ and ESPN

• Volkan Oezdemir versus Jiri Prochazka [Light Heavyweight]
• Elizeu Dos Santos versus Muslim Salikhov [Welterweight]
• Makwan Amirkhani versus Danny Henry [Featherweight]
• Leonardo Santos versus Roman Bogatov [Lightweight]

Main Card  — 10 p.m. ET, 7 p.m. PT only on ESPN+ for $64.99

• Amanda Ribas versus Paige Vanzant [Women's Flyweight]
• Jessica Andrade versus Rose Namajunas [Women's Strawweight]
• Peter Yan versus Jose Aldo [Bantamweight]
• Alexander Volkanovski versus Max Holloway [Featherweight Title Match]
• Kamaru Usman versus Jorge Masvidal [Welterweight Title Match]

How to watch UFC 251

UFC 251 is separated into three portions: the early prelims, the prelims, and the main card.

The early prelims are only available to UFC Fight Pass subscribers, while the prelims will air on ESPN+ and the ESPN cable channel. The main card, meanwhile, is an ESPN+ exclusive pay-per-view event. This means that you have to subscribe to the ESPN+ sports-streaming service before you're able to purchase the PPV fight.

An ESPN+ membership costs $4.99 per month or $49.99 per year. The UFC 251 PPV event costs $64.99 for ESPN+ subscribers.

You can access the ESPN+ app on all major mobile and connected TV devices, including Amazon Fire, Apple, Android, Chromecast, PS4, Xbox One, Roku, Samsung Smart TVs, and more.

Ways to save on the UFC 251 pay-per-view price

If you plan on signing up for ESPN+ to watch UFC 251, you can take advantage of a special discounted package.

New subscribers can purchase a year-long ESPN+ membership with access to UFC 251 included for a total of $84.98. That's over 25% off the standard price. Following your first year of service, ESPN+ will then renew for the regular annual price of $49.99.

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Tax Day is now July 15 — this is what it's like to do your own taxes for the very first time

• Kanye West announced on July 4 he plans to run for president, and now, he says he's being advised by his longtime friend, Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk. 
• "We've been talking about this for years," West said in an interview with Forbes. "I proposed to him to be the head of our space program."
• Musk and West have been friends since at least 2011, when the musician and fashion designer toured a SpaceX facility with Musk. 
• Since then, Musk has called West his biggest inspiration and has praised him in Time magazine, while West has defended Musk and tweeted about how much he loves his Tesla Model S. 
• The pair hung out at Musk's house last week, and now, Musk has told West that he has Musk's "full support" to run for president. 
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Kanye West has said he's running for president in 2020, and he has the support of his longtime friend and one of the most powerful people in tech: Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk. 

The two moguls from different industries have a long-standing friendship, publicly admiring each other's work and buying each other's products — and, in Musk's case, even writing about West in Time magazine.

While it's unclear how serious West's bid for the presidency is — he has already missed the deadline in four states to file as an independent candidate, and nine other states have deadlines in July — Musk appears to be on board. 

Here's how Musk and West went from fans of each other's work to potentially launching a bid for the presidency together. 

SEE ALSO: Tech billionaire Elon Musk and musician Grimes have had their first child together. Here's where their relationship began and everything that's happened since.

Musk and West have been friends since at least 2011, when West stopped by SpaceX headquarters.

In December 2011, Musk shared a photo of him and West in front of what appears to be a SpaceX capsule with the caption, "Kanye stopped by the SpaceX rocket factory today."

In July 2020, Musk responded to an account that reposted the picture, tweeting, "Hell of a decade."

Musk praised West for Time 100 in 2015, writing that "the dude doesn't believe in false modesty, and he shouldn't."

"Kanye's belief in himself and his incredible tenacity — he performed his first single with his jaw wired shut — got him to where he is today. And he fought for his place in the cultural pantheon with a purpose," Musk wrote at the time. 

In fact, Musk may have unwittingly predicted West's recent exploits, writing that West wants everyone to "engage, question, push boundaries." 

"He's not afraid of being judged or ridiculed in the process," Musk wrote. "Kanye's been playing the long game all along, and we're only just beginning to see why."

For his part, West is an avid Tesla fan, tweeting in 2018 to thank Musk and say that he loves his vehicle.

Tweet Embed:
//twitter.com/mims/statuses/988239336788279296?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
I really love my Tesla. I'm in the future. Thank you Elon.

West bought a Tesla Model S in 2018 that has a custom, matte-silver finish. While some claimed the car was a gift from Musk himself, Musk tweeted at the time that the rumors were false. 

At a SXSW panel that same year, Musk was asked who inspires him. He responded: "Kanye West, obviously."

Source: Inverse

During a visit to Detroit that October, West was filmed giving an impassioned defense of Musk following the CEO's "funding secured" fiasco.

During a stop at Detroit's College for Creative Studies, West jumped on a classroom table and delivered a seemingly impromptu speech to the students present. 

"Elon Musk, I don't give a f--- who's over at his house," West said. "Leave that man the f--- alone. Leave that man the f--- alone."

West's comments were likely in response to Musk's scandal from the previous summer, when he tweeted, "Am considering taking Tesla private at $420. Funding secured." The tweet sparked a Securities and Exchange Commission investigation and a public spat with the rapper Azealia Banks, who claimed to be at Musk's house in Los Angeles during that weekend while he was "scrounging for investors" following his tweet. 

In December 2019, Musk and his girlfriend, the musician Grimes, stopped by the annual Kardashian-Jenner family Christmas Eve party, posing for a photo with West, Kim Kardashian West, and rappers Travis Scott, Quavo, and Saweetie.

Instagram Embed:
//instagram.com/p/B6moc53AGgv/embed
Width: 540px

During a visit to Musk's house in July, West tweeted a photo of them with the caption, "When you go to your boys house and you're both wearing orange," followed by the orange emoji.

Tweet Embed:
//twitter.com/mims/statuses/1278353774671802369?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
When you go to your boys house and you're both wearing orange 🍊pic.twitter.com/IyPOdEKaVY

Musk donned shoes from West's Adidas Yeezy line for the occasion. He wore the Yeezy 500 Slate High, which initially retailed for $200 when the shoe was released in December 2019, according to sneaker marketplace StockX. (West appears to be wearing the Yeezy Quantum "Barium" shoe.)

On July 4, West announced on Twitter he was running for president, with Musk quickly chiming in to support him.

Mere minutes after West's tweet, Musk responded, publicly backing West.

Now, Musk is advising West on his presidential campaign, West told Forbes.

In an interview with Forbes on July 8, West said his presidential campaign has only two advisers: his wife, Kardashian West, and Musk. 

In fact, the idea to run for president has apparently been percolating between the two moguls for some time, according to West. 

"We've been talking about this for years," West told Forbes. "I proposed to him to be the head of our space program."

• Business Insider looked back at Netflix's most popular movies of the year so far to determine which ones have been the streamer's biggest hits in 2020, and what critics thought of them.
• Netflix originals like the action movie "Extraction" and the comedy "Spenser Confidential" have been huge, but so have the Adam Sandler drama "Uncut Gems" and the animated hit "Despicable Me."
• Netflix introduced daily top 10 lists of its most popular titles in February and the streaming search engine Reelgood has provided Business Insider with weekly lists of Netflix's most popular movies, based on the streaming giant's own daily lists, since March.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

When Netflix began displaying daily top 10 lists of its most popular titles on the service in February, it acted as a way to highlight some of its original content. 

From the Chris Hemsworth action movie "Extraction" to the animated "Willoughbys," Netflix's original movies have surged up these lists over the past few months.

Reelgood, the streaming search engine, has provided Business Insider with weekly rundown of the most popular movies on Netflix since March, based on the streaming giant's own daily lists. Netflix counts a view if an account watches at least two minutes of a show or movie and that's how it calculates the lists, which update every 24 hours.

To understand the movies that have been Netflix's biggest hits, we looked at the 13 movies that appeared most frequently on the lists. Then we ranked them by their Rotten Tomatoes critic scores to see how they fared with the press. We only included movies that appeared on the list for three or more weeks. We made an exception for some movies that appeared fewer times but hit the No. 1 spot.

It wasn't just Netflix originals that did well.

When last year's Adam Sandler drama "Uncut Gems" debuted on Netflix in May, it shot up the popularity charts. 2011's "The Help" was also popular for a few weeks last month, though critics offered other movies to watch on Netflix about race from Black creators, as protests against racism and police violence spread across the US ("The Help" was directed by Tate Taylor, who is white).

The most popular movies on Netflix so far this year ranged from animated hits like "Despicable Me" to critically reviled movies like Netflix's "The Last Days of American Crime," which has a 0% critic score (and it's not the only movie with that score to show up on the list).

Most of the movies are recent releases from this year or last year.

Below are the 13 most popular movies on Netflix so far this year, ranked by critics:

SEE ALSO: Disney Plus got a huge boost in app downloads from the 'Hamilton' movie

13. "The Last Days of American Crime" (2020, Netflix original)

Highest ranking: 1

Number of appearances: 2

Description: "A bank robber joins a plot to commit one final, historic heist before the government turns on a mind-altering signal that will end all criminal behavior."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 0%

Audience score: 23%

What critics said: "Instantly forgettable tough-guy fantasia." — Hollywood Reporter

12. "365 Days" (2020)

Highest ranking: 1 (twice)

Number of appearances: 4

Description: "A fiery executive in a spiritless relationship falls victim to a dominant mafia boss, who imprisons her and gives her one year to fall in love with him."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 0%

Audience score: 30%

What critics said: "Thoroughly terrible, politically objectionable, occasionally hilarious." — Variety

11. "Coffee and Kareem" (2020, Netflix original)

Highest ranking: 1

Number of appearances: 2

Netflix description: "An inept Detroit cop must team up with his girlfriend's foul-mouthed young son when their first crack at bonding time uncovers a criminal conspiracy."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 20%

What critics said: "There just isn't much of a movie here, or even much of an homage movie when you compare it to its clear influences like 48 Hours and Lethal Weapon." — RogerEbert.com

10. "The Wrong Missy" (2020, Netflix original)

Highest ranking: 1

Number of appearances: 3

Description: "Tim thinks he's invited the woman of his dreams on a work retreat to Hawaii, realizing too late he mistakenly texted someone from a nightmare blind date."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 36%

What critics said: "'The Wrong Missy' is a lightweight throwaway, the kind of movie it is difficult to suggest one actually choose to watch, but if your algorithm somehow lands on it provides a certain harmless diversion." — Los Angeles Times

9. "Spenser Confidential" (2020, Netflix original)

Highest ranking: 1 (twice)

Number of appearances: 3

Netflix description: "Spenser, an ex-cop and ex-con, teams up with aspiring fighter Hawk to uncover a sinister conspiracy tied to the deaths of two Boston police officers."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 37%

What critics said: "An ending that teases the possibility of sequels, with Wahlberg's Spenser tackling more cases of police officers and emergency personnel who have been falsely accused of crimes, should elicit nothing but groans." — AV Club

8. "Angel Has Fallen" (2019)

Highest ranking: 1

Number of appearances: 4

Netflix description: "Secret Service agent Mike Banning is caught in the crossfire when he's framed for a deadly attack on the president and forced to run for his life." 

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 39%

What critics said: "There's no thrill to this thriller. Nor is there nuance to the characters." — Globe and Mail

7. "Extraction" (2020, Netflix original)

Highest ranking: 1

Number of appearances: 3

Netflix description: "A hardened mercenary's mission becomes a soul-searching race to survive when he's sent into Bangladesh to rescue a drug lord's kidnapped son."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 69%

What critics said: "No judgments here if you just want to hang back and let nonstop gore, gunfire, explosions and a gung-ho Chris Hemsworth numb you into submission." — Rolling Stone

6. "The Angry Birds Movie 2" (2019)

Highest ranking: 4

Number of appearances: 4

Netflix description: "Enemies turn into frenemies when the Pigs call for a truce with the Birds to unite against a formidable new foe that's threatening all of their homes."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 73% 

What critics said: "Things move along at such an agreeably fast clip — particularly in the second half, when the mission gets underway — that it'll be a pleasurable experience for kids and adults alike." — RogerEbert.com

5. "The Help" (2011)

Highest ranking: 3

Number of appearances: 3

Description: "A young, white writer stirs up the status quo in 1960s Mississippi by interviewing Black housemaids and bringing their stories to the masses."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 76%

What critics said: "Suffers from an obsequious lust for stereotypes." — Financial Times

4. "Clueless" (1995)

Highest ranking: 5

Number of appearances: 3

Description: "Meddlesome Beverly Hills high school student Cher gets more than she bargained for when she gives a fashion-challenged student a makeover."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 80%

What critics said: "The summer's most compelling movie about teenagers." — Newsweek

3. "Despicable Me" (2010)

Highest ranking: 1

Number of appearances: 7

Netflix description: "Villainous Gru hatches a plan to steal the moon from the sky. But he has a tough time staying on task after three orphans land in his care."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 81%

What critics said: "The Steve Carell-starring animated comedy is an instant classic, and for anyone with kids, this might buy you a couple hours' peace." — Daily Beast

2. "The Willoughbys" (2020, Netflix original)

Highest ranking: 2

Number of appearances: 5

Netflix description: "Four siblings with horribly selfish parents hatch a plan to get rid of them for good and form a perfectly imperfect family of their own."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 90%

What critics said: "There's a lot going on in The Willoughbys, yet if you can get on board with its manic energy and accelerated plotting, the Netflix animated family comedy-adventure has an oddball charm that works surprisingly well." — Hollywood Reporter

1. "Uncut Gems" (2019)

Highest ranking: 1

Number of appearances: 3

Netflix description: "With his debts mounting and angry collectors closing in, a fast-talking New York City jeweler risks everything in hopes of staying afloat and alive."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 92%

What critics said: "It all ends up to be a film in which both Sandler and the Safdies are pulling out all the stops, and it works." — USA Today

• Palantir, the secretive big-data startup which sells technology to corporations, governments, law enforcement and spy agencies, filed confidential paperwork to go public.
• With a $20 billion valuation as a private company, should its IPO be successful, this could be the biggest Silicon Valley IPO in years.
• The paperwork revealing who its biggest share owners are is not yet public.

• But here are the founders, longest-term executives and board members who stand to gain handsomely should the company please public-market investors.

• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Palantir announced late Monday night that it has filed confidential paperwork to the SEC to go public. Such paperwork doesn't guarantee an IPO will happen, but it is the first step, allowing the SEC to review the paperwork and  the company to test interest among a small number of investors before opening up its books to the public.

Meanwhile, Palantir is also attempting to raise an additional almost $1 billion from private investors, it said in an SEC filing last week. It reached half that goal this month when Sompo Japan Nipponkoa Holdings, a Japanese insurance holdings company, invested, according to estimates from Pitchbook.

Palantir's IPO is interesting in Silicon Valley for a lot of reasons. The company, founded in 2004, is notoriously secretive. It's claim to fame is big data projects for corporations and governments, including spy agencies. It has long resisted an IPO — and the kind of public scrutiny that comes with it. 

Because the paperwork is still confidential, and the company doesn't have a public web page where it shares information about its leadership, we don't know who the company lists as its named executives or its biggest shareholders. (Palantir declined to comment for this story).

But through the estimates and disclosures on Pitchbook and Crunchbase, here are the people most likely to win big should the IPO be a success.

SEE ALSO: How to get a $100,000-plus career in cloud computing without a college degree, from a guy who did it and now coaches others

Peter Thiel, founder

In 2003, while running his hedge fund firm, Clarium Capital Management, Peter Thiel had an idea for a company. Two years after 9/11, he wanted governments to have access to the same kind of big data analysis that his former company, PayPal, used to stop fraud, he told Forbes' Andy Greenberg back in 2013.

This could be a way to help them prevent terrorists attacks, he reasoned. So he gathered a few of the young programmers he had on staff and told them to build him a prototype. Palantir was born and he was its chief cofounder.

Thiel is already a billionaire, in large part thanks to his early investment in Facebook, worth an estimated $2.3 billion,according to Forbes.

Alex Karp, CEO

Alex Karp holds a PhD in philosophy and is known for being a deeply intellectual influence at Palantir, and described himself like this: "He doesn't have a technical degree. He doesn't have any cultural affiliation with the government or commercial areas. His parents are hippies," he told Forbes.

Still, he became founding CEO when Thiel, his longtime friend from college, asked him to join the company. 

With Palantir's $20 billion valuation, some estimate that Karp may already be a billionaire.

Joe Lonsdale, cofounder

Joe Lonsdale was an intern at PayPal and then later an intern/early employee for Thiel's first investment company after PayPal sold, Lonsdale told Business Insider in 2017.

When Thiel had the idea for Palantir, he tasked Lonsdale to help build the initial product along with another new Stanford computer science grad, Stephen Cohen, and PayPal engineer Nathan Gettings.

Lonsdale has long since moved on to other things like his own VC firm. But he remains a visible face and defender of Palantir who has reportedly been urging the company to go public.

Stephen Cohen, cofounder

The legend goes that Stephen Cohen and Lonsdale spent 8 weeks working and sleeping at the office to create the first prototype to take to their first investor meeting.

That meeting was with Gilman Louie, a former video game designer and founding CEO of In-Q-Tel, the CIA's investment firm, The Washingtonian's Shane Harris reported back in 2012.

It worked: In-Q-Tel agreed to fund the new company.

Cohen remains at Palantir on its senior leadership team.

Nathan Gettings, cofounder

Nathan Gettings is also a member of that original cofounding team and was, for many years, the CTO at Palantir.

However, he also went on to become CEO of another Thiel idea: RoboteX, a company that builds robots for police and SWAT teams.

He also was called into to help another PayPal Mafia member, Max Levchin, working for a while as founder and chief risk officer at Levchin's fintech company Affirm.

Gettings is unusual in Silicon Valley because, for all his highly visible success, he's so secretive that neither his name nor his photo appears on any of the corporate websites of the companies he's cofounded. 

Shyam Sankar, director

Shyam Sankar joined Palantir in 2006, as employee No. 13, when it was still small and stealthy, he wrote on Quora back in 2012. 

As the company grew to thousands of employees he retained his senior leadership position, running "Forward Deployed Engineering" according to his personal website and overseeing "all customer engagements worldwide and manages day-to-day operations for the entire company," according to his LinkedIn profile.

Colin Anderson, early employee

Colin Anderson has been at Palantir for 11 years, according to his LinkedIn profile,  and is another secretive executive.

He came to Palantir though Wall Street, hired away from the trading desk at Morgan Stanley to join Thiel's hedge fund, Clarium, back when Thiel hatched the plan for Palantir. He was revealed as the CFO in a 2015 filing with the SEC.

As a ramp-up to going public, a company typically hires an experienced financier as CFO to implement all the financial controls required by regulators. As the IPO paperwork is not yet public, its not likely that Anderson is still CFO. He calls himself "entrepreneur" on his LinkedIn profile.

Sean Stenstrom, lawyer

Sean Stenstrom is Palantir's self-described "Legal Ninja"aka one of its lawyer.

Although he's not the head lawyer, he's been with the company for 10 years, hired away from Cooley Godward.

He is also an adjunct professor a Columbia Law School teaching a technology and venture capital course.

Adam Ross, board member

Adam Ross joined the board of directors at Palantir in 2015, according to the Wall Street Journal, the first non-founder to join the board. He took the seat vacated by Gettings.

He's the founder of Texas-based venture firm Goldcrest Capital and a longtime friend of Thiel's from their Stanford college days. In fact, he was editor in chief of the "Stanford Review," the conservative/libertarian Stanford publication founded by Thiel and Norman Book just a few years earlier.

Alex Moore, board member

Alex Moore was Palantir's first employee. He left the company after five years to found a couple of other startups, one of which did well enough to be acquired by Ericsson for an undisclosed sum. He then joined his old Palantir buddy Londsdale at Londsdale's venture firm 8VC.

But in 2020, Moore came back to Palantir as a board member when Palantir beefed up its board by adding four people on its path to an IPO, reported the Silicon Valley Business Journal. 

Spencer Rascoff, board member

Spencer Rascoff is another new member of the Palantir board added in June, 2020. Rascoff is best known for his former role as cofounder and CEO of Zillow, and as one of the cofounders of Hotwire before that.

Today he's an active angel investor and partner at A-list Silicon Valley VC firm Andreessen Horowitz. He is Thiel's neighbor of sorts. Both of them reside in Los Angeles.

Alexandra Wolfe Schiff, board member

Alexandra Wolfe Schiff made headlines in June when Palantir announced that she, too, had become a new board member as of June 2020, making her the company's only female director.

Wolfe Schiff was a journalist who wrote a column for the Wall Street Journal but resigned her role to take the post. The daughter of journalist and novelist Tom Wolfe ("Bonfire of the Vanities"), she is reportedly a friend of Thiel. She wrote a book published in 2017 about  Thiel's first batch of college dropout tech fellows and Silicon Valley called "Valley of the Gods."

The CIA's investment arm, In-Q-Tel and dozens of investors

Palantir has raised $3.35 billion from investors in many fundraising rounds and all of those investors hope their stock will rise once the company goes public.

One of its first backers was In-Q-Tel, the CIA's venture investment firm, which has already seen the stock skyrocket as Palantir's valuation rose to $20 billion. Later investors include Fidelity and Tiger Global Management.

Its angel investors, if they still own the stock, should also do well. According to Pitchbook, they include tech billionaire Michael Dell, Adroll founder Jared Kopf, Theil's pal and super angel investor David Sacks, VC Meyer Malka, VC Stuart Peterson and wealth manager Michael Cheung.

• 70% of companies using big cloud computing vendors were hacked or exposed data last year, according to a new survey of more than 3,200 IT managers by UK cybersecurity company Sophos.
• 98% of companies have not turned on multi-factor authentication to their cloud accounts, the survey found— a stat researchers called "staggering."
• The companies also often misconfigured their accounts with Microsoft, Amazon, and other big cloud providers, Sophos found.
• An increase in remote work makes cloud security more important, "so it's worrisome that many organizations still don't understand their responsibility," the company said. 
• Sophos recommends organizations assume their cloud assets will be hacked and continually monitor them.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

A new survey of 3,200 IT managers found that 70% of companies storing data with Microsoft, Amazon and other big cloud vendors were hacked or leaked data last year – often because of basic security lapses.

In one alarming data point, the survey shows 98% of companies failed to enabled multi-factor authentication on cloud accounts holding massive sets of sensitive data, in a simple security step many consumers take with their own email and social media accounts. 

The survey, conducted by the English cybersecurity company Sophos, found that simple security actions could safeguard sensitive company data, preventing data theft and ransomware.

"It is staggering," said John Shier, a senior security expert at Sophos who worked on the report. "In many cases if all you do is turn on multi-factor authentication, a lot of attackers won't bother. That one step takes a major chunk out of your security vulnerabilities."  

Sophos commissioned research specialist Vanson Bourne to survey 3,521 IT managers currently hosting data and workloads using at least one of the following providers: Azure, Oracle Cloud, AWS, VMware Cloud on AWS, and Alibaba Cloud. In addition, they may also have used Google Cloud and IBM Cloud. Sophos had no role in the selection of respondents and all responses were provided anonymously. The survey was conducted during January and February of this year.

'A harbinger of bad things to come'

Cloud computing, which allows remote users easier access to company data, has been adopted much faster since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Shier said. That means some security steps may have been skipped, and the report's findings are "a harbinger of bad things to come," he said. 

Cloud providers like Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud have historically left the security of the data stored on their platforms up to the user. Failing to properly configure that security can have dire consequences: Last year's high-profile Capital One cloud breach was apparently enabled by a "firewall misconfiguration" in a server hosted on AWS. 

To that point, Sophos found that two-thirds of the attacks stemmed from misconfigured cloud resources, allowing attackers to exploit weaknesses.

Shier notes that the big companies have done more to help their customers secure data: Microsoft Azure now makes it fairly difficult to connect cloud data to the internet without implementing security measures. "After just a massive amount of abuse, and not only abuse but just accidental disclosure of information, Amazon has also started tightening those restrictions," Shier said, referring to hackers abusing the system. Amazon did not immediately reply to a request for comment. 

But he suggests that the providers could still be doing more to help customers avoid the most common security mistakes. The prime example is multi-factor authentication, which many consumers use by getting a text from email or social media companies asking them to verify their identities when the log in. The same step could be taken by companies accessing their cloud-based data, but almost all companies have failed to simply turn the feature on. 

"Maybe it's not required," Shiers said. "It should be. You need the force of law." 

Assume you will be hacked

Sophos recommends organizations assume their cloud assets will be hacked, concentrate on protecting data wherever it is stored rather than keeping attackers out of a perimeter, and continually monitor cloud assets.

Another key concern of The State of Cloud Security 2020 is ransomware, the high-profile crime that locks up companies' data and shuts down operations while demanding payment. Ransomware gangs have recently extended their operations by releasing and even auctioning stolen data as their victims are forced to choose between paying for dubious solutions that may not work, or defying attackers who debilitate their businesses. Ransomware is one of the most widely reported cybercrimes in the public cloud, researchers found. 

Half the security incidents studied by Sophos included ransomware and other malware, 29% involved exposed data, 25% involved compromised accounts, and 17% involved cryptojacking, with some of the incidents including overlapping issues. 

Europeans experienced the lowest percentage of security incidents in the cloud, which Sophos said is an indicator that compliance with General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) guidelines are helping to protect organizations from being compromised. India, on the other hand, fared the worst, with 93% of organizations being hit by an attack in the last year.

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: We tested a machine that brews beer at the push of a button

• Microsoft Teams announced some new features Wednesday, including a new "together mode" that makes it look like people in the same room and an integration with its smart assistant Cortana. 
• The new tools set Microsoft's videoconferencing system apart from competitors like Zoom and Google Meet: "It really highlights Microsoft taking a leadership position in this market in a way that we haven't really seen," CCS analyst Angela Ashenden told Business Insider. 
• Microsoft executive Jared Spataro, who runs Microsoft 365, said Microsoft has been looking closely at any gaps its services had, but that these new features push the market forward based on customer feedback.
• "Together mode" uses artificial intelligence segment people's heads and shoulders and place them in the same shared background on a video call. It's meant to reduce meeting fatigue and make people feel more connected. 
• Click here for more BI Prime stories.

Microsoft announced a handful of new features for its chat and collaboration app Teams on Wednesday that aim to make remote work less cumbersome and which show that it's finally pushing the video conferencing market forward, according to an analyst, instead of just playing catch-up to competitor Zoom. 

The launch includes a new feature called "together mode," which uses artificial intelligence technology segment people's head and shoulders and place them in the same shared background on a video call, and the integration of Microsoft's voice assistant Cortana.

Microsoft Teams has seen its usage grow tremendously during the pandemic as offices had to quickly shift to remote work, reporting 75 million daily active users at the end of April. For many companies, Teams was the most convenient collaboration platform to turn to, but it has still spent the last few months playing catch-up to Zoom by adding features that its competitor already had, like tiled view and background noise suppression.

Microsoft executive Jared Spataro, who runs the Microsoft 365 suite of tools, said he views competition as a way to understand what customers need. His team has been focused on listening to what people want from a video conferencing tools and making sure to close the gaps between Teams and other products. But it also realized that it could do more to push the market forward.

"Competitors are useful as essentially a signal of what customers really want," Spataro told Business Insider. "So we watched them to get those signals, but the things that you see from us this week are based not on competitive signals, but instead on customer signals. We've really been able to roll up our sleeves and ask customers, 'Hey, what would help you deal with the current situation?'" 

The most glaring conclusion from talking to people using Microsoft tools to work remotely: After four months of remote work many workers are feeling video meeting fatigue and less connected to their colleagues, too. 

Video calls don't work as well for an all-hands or big team meeting, which are meant to foster a sense of community. That's where together mode comes in: It attempts to create a more natural setting so people feel less overwhelmed during team meetings, Spataro said. Meanwhile, it's "dynamic views" mode allows users to customize the layout of the video call, so they can easily decide whose screens are emphasized. 

"We started to realize that this idea of having the boxes on the screen was actually pretty mentally taxing," Spataro said. "You're kind of moving from one person to another and having a part of that background and a person. And we realized that that's very different from what people do generally." 

With these new tools Microsoft is finally taking a 'leadership position'

Wednesday's announcement marks Microsoft as finally doing something in the video collaboration market that isn't just playing catch up, Angela Ashenden, an analyst at CCS Insight, told Business Insider. 

"I think it is a really important feature for them, not least because it really highlights Microsoft taking a leadership position in this market in a way that we haven't really seen," Ashenden said. "A lot of the capabilities that it's announced in the last few weeks have been making sure that it's on a par with Zoom." 

Microsoft is taking advantage of the other parts of its business, like artificial intelligence, to inform how it continues to improve and develop Microsoft Teams and rethink video communication in this new remote work environment. The new integration with Cortana will allow people to do things like reply to chats and join and leave meetings with their voice, and will be available on mobile and conference room hardware, though not desktop. As Microsoft continues to evolve Teams, Ashenden said she thinks it will put more focus into adding new features for the chat and collaboration parts of the app, as opposed to just video. 

Microsoft itself thinks that companies will be in a sort of hybrid state of working for the foreseeable future, with some offices reopening for a small number of employees when it's safe to do so and some people continuing to work from home, Spataro said. Microsoft wants Teams to be the digital platform that companies can use for this new style of working, and it goes beyond video meetings. 

"The big opportunity for them going forward is to kind of how they fit that leadership that they're really bringing forth around the video to do the same thing on the chat-based conversational side of house as well," Ashenden said.

Got a tip? Contact this reporter via email at pzaveri@businessinsider.com or Signal at 925-364-4258. (PR pitches by email only, please.) You can also contact Business Insider securely via SecureDrop.

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NOW WATCH: Tax Day is now July 15 — this is what it's like to do your own taxes for the very first time

• You can turn on dark mode on Windows 10 through the "Personalization" menu, which lets you change how your computer looks.
• Some programs in Windows 10 have their own dark mode settings, like Microsoft Office.
• When you turn on dark mode in Windows, many on-screen colors will change from white to gray or black.
• Visit Business Insider's Tech Reference library for more stories.

Android and iOS devices offer a dark mode that dims the on-screen color palette. It's commonly thought to look much more aesthetically pleasing, in addition to extending battery life. 

If you like using dark mode on your mobile device, you might be surprised to learn that Windows 10 has had its own dark mode for several years. Here's how to turn it on.

Check out the products mentioned in the article:

Windows 10 (From $139.99 at Best Buy)

Acer Chromebook 15 (From $179.99 at Walmart)

How to turn on dark mode on Windows

1. Click the Start button and then click the Settings icon, which is shaped like a gear. 

2. Click "Personalization."

3. In the pane on the left, click "Colors." There are two dark mode settings you can enable. You can choose either of both of them:

• Under "Choose your default Windows mode," click "Dark." This will turn on dark mode for many basic parts of Windows — in particular, the task bar at the bottom of the desktop and the Start menu. 
• Under "Choose your default app mode," click "Dark." This has a much more widespread effect, and will automatically activate dark mode in many apps that have it.

How to turn on dark mode in specific Windows apps

If you turn on both dark modes and find that some specific apps still don't turn dark, those apps might have their own independent dark mode settings. 

To find out, open the settings for the app in question and see if there's a settings menu you can enable dark mode in.

For example, here is how to turn on dark mode in Microsoft Office:

1. In any Microsoft Office app (such as Word, Excel, or Outlook), click "File" and then click "Options."

2. In the General tab, go to the section called "Personalize your copy of Microsoft Office."

3. Click the drop-down menu for "Office Theme" and choose either "Dark Gray" or "Black." Click "OK" and the dark mode will take effect. 

Related coverage from Tech Reference:

• How to make Gmail display in dark mode on your computer, to reduce eye strain and give the website a sleek look

• How to make Google Chrome display in 'Dark Mode' in 3 ways on your Mac or PC

• How to add icons to your desktop on a Windows 10 PC to easily access the system folders or apps you use regularly

• How to stop pop-ups on a Windows 10 computer, both from the internet and your system

• How to empty the recycle bin on your Windows 10 computer in 3 ways

SEE ALSO: The best all-in-one PCs you can buy

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: How waste is dealt with on the world's largest cruise ship

Hello, everyone! Welcome to the new edition of Insider Today. Please sign up here.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"This entire crisis would have played out so differently with leadership and a national plan from the federal government. If the Trump administration in January had started to stockpile PPE, get serious about testing, put together a plan, we would have far fewer deaths, far fewer people out of work, far fewer sick people."  — Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo, whose state is one of the few that has handled the coronavirus well.

WHAT'S HAPPENING

• Supreme Court rules against Trump in two cases involving his tax documents, but... Americans still won't see them before the election. In one case, the justices said Congress may have the right to subpoena his tax documents, but a lower court will need to do a "balancing test" to see if Congress' inquiry is permitted, which could take months. In another, SCOTUS found that New York's District Attorney has the right to subpoena the documents, but Trump can contest the subpoena in court, and they would probably be kept secret even if they are eventually handed over. 
• 1.3 million new unemployment claims. That's the 16th week in a row with more than one million new claims. The number was slightly less than economists expected, and marks the 14th consecutive week of declining claims. 
• George Floyd repeatedly begged for his life. New transcripts from the officers' body cameras reveal some excruciating details of Floyd's killing at the hands of Minneapolis PD officer Derek Chauvin, including the fact that Floyd appeared to be trying to cooperate and that he was terrified over his breathing because he was still recovering from COVID-19.
• Dr. Anthony Fauci said that surging states should seriously consider shutting down again. President Trump criticized Fauci and insisted the US is "in a good place." 
• Glee actress Naya Rivera is missing in a California lake. Her young son was found wearing a life vest. The Glee cast has been haunted by tragedies. 
• Seoul's mayor was found dead. Park Won-soon had disappeared shortly after an employee filed a sexual harassment complaint against him.

VIEWS OF THE DAY

Let's stop pretending Facebook will fix Facebook

After a two-year investigation, civil rights groups published their thoughts on hate speech and civil rights abuses on Facebook. Their findings, summarized by the NYT, won't surprise anyone. In the name of "free speech" Facebook has  privileged and empowered anti-democratic, anti-social speech. The report also raised concerns that Facebook itself has become a tool for radicalizing people who wouldn't otherwise find their way to hate groups.

In other words, we, as a society, are allowing activity to fester on Facebook that we would consider anti-social in real life. Facebook knows this too. That's another takeaway from the report. 

Facebook knows that its algorithm pushes hate groups. Facebook knows that — when it fails to fight misinformation from political actors like Donald Trump — it is engaging in voter suppression. It knows that its platform encourages anti-social behavior, it makes promises to correct it, and then it does nothing. The NYT says the report called Facebook's attempts at internal reform a "seesaw of progress and setbacks."

It's time for us to come to terms with the fact that Facebook won't fix itself. For reasons both financial and political, the company is simply not incentivized to do so. That means we, as a society, need to have the difficult discussion of deciding what we will and will not tolerate from Facebook.

Instead of thinking of it as a question of what people are free to say, we should consider it a question of what people are free from seeing and experiencing on the platform, just as we do offline. Should Facebook users (most of civil society) be free from hate speech? Targeted Harassment? Public health misinformation? 

It's time for us to engage this discussion, because it's clear Facebook can't do it alone. — Linette Lopez

Arizona teacher dies from coronavirus while following CDC guidelines

As the Trump administration tries to force schools to open despite surging coronavirus cases, Americans are understandably worried about the risks. 

The risk that an individual child will die of COVID is much less than the risk that an older person will die, especially if the older person has "comorbidities." But if many children are infected, some will die or get seriously sick. And because children live with parents and grandparents, children may also infect people who are much more at risk.

Meanwhile, children aren't the only people in school communities. There are also teachers, administrators, and staff —  many of whom are at high risk from dying or getting seriously sick.

Underscoring this risk, a teacher in Arizona, Kim Byrd, died of COVID last week. She and two other teachers were teaching virtual summer school from the same room. The three teachers reportedly followed all the CDC guidelines — distancing, masks, hand-washing. But all three of them still got sick. 

The Trump administration's "ignore the virus" strategy has led to one of the worst coronavirus outbreaks in the developed world. Opening schools everywhere in about six weeks will almost certainly kill or sicken many more Americans. 

Yes, not being able to open schools this fall is a tragedy, one this country could have avoided with competent federal leadership. But prolonging the epidemic and sickening and killing many more Americans is worse.  — HB

The "Harper's letter" should spark a truly honest argument about free speech

The fallout from what's come to be known as the "Harper's letter" — an essay co-signed by over 150 writers and academics in defense of the liberal norms of free expression and open debate — proved why it needed to be written. There's a gulf in understanding about what free expression is, what its value is, and why even diehard free speech advocates struggle with some of its inconvenient aspects. 

Some critics of the concept of free speech argue that it only favors the powerful and has outlived whatever usefulness it had. In a new Insider column, I argue that free speech is the most effective tool available for marginalized voices and that no meaningful positive social change could occur without it. 

It took millennia to establish the norm that you can piss people off, especially the powerful, with your speech, and it should generally be tolerated. If it's jettisoned in the name of a certain definition of justice, what happens at the next injustice? You can't use free speech to fight it anymore.

If the presidency of Donald Trump has taught us anything, it's that certain liberal norms must be defended, if only to keep people with tyrannical instincts — like him — from determining what should and shouldn't be acceptable forms of expression. If the worst could happen — and it always could — the right to express unpopular opinions is the best weapon available to beat back the tyrant.

Free speech skeptics should clearly articulate what their vision of justice looks like in a world where they're the censor. — Anthony Fisher

Amy Cooper's victim doesn't want to see her prosecuted

David Plotz argued earlier this week that Amy Cooper — the white woman who falsely reported that a Black birdwatcher was threatening her life in Central Park — should not go to jail. Her victim, Christian Cooper, agrees. 

Manhattan's DA charged Amy Cooper with filing a false police report, but Christian Cooper will not cooperate with the prosecution. He said in a statement: "She's already paid a steep price ...That's not enough of a deterrent to others? Bringing her more misery just seems like piling on."

The arguments against prosecution include the fact that Amy Cooper has lost her career, anonymity, and reputation — perhaps for the rest of her life. And at a moment when national attitudes about criminal justice reform are belatedly and thankfully evolving, punishment for the sake of it seems more like vengeance than justice. 

I've expressed similar sentiments, including that rather than embracing zero tolerance across the board, we need to be more empathetic as a nation, we need to train police to stop behaving like an occupying army in constant fear of the people, and we need to arrest and imprison far fewer people in general. - AF

The Trump administration keeps coming up with impotent ideas to punish China for the Hong Kong security law

Bloomberg reports that the aides to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo are considering a move to limit Hong Kong's access to US dollars as punishment for China's new Hong Kong security law. It's an idea that experts recognize would do more harm to the global financial system than China itself.

And it's an idea that shows us how feeble our State Department is. Instead of working with our allies to find a way to respond to China's dismantling of Hong Kong civil rights, they're going it alone. That makes it much harder to find a punishment that really matters to Beijing.

Finding a solution here will require the real work of the State Department — diplomacy and coalition building. Since the Trump administration doesn't really do that, we'll continue to see feeble angry gestures aimed at Beijing like this. 

It's clear that Trump is still wary of taking real action against China because he believes a trade deal will help him shore up his base. His advisers still say the deal is ongoing. That likely suits China's President Xi Jinping just fine. — LL

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

US 30-year-fixed mortgages dropped to 3.03%. That's the lowest they've ever been, and the sixth record-low set during the coronavirus pandemic.

LIFE

A dentist's ingenious hack for making a facemask fit better. It just involves a couple of knots and twists. 

THE BIG 3*

She did 100 pushups a day for 100 days of lockdown. Insider's Rachel Hosie gave herself a lockdown challenge, and it changed her body. 

A Marine's M107 sniper rifle failed during a firefight — so he called customer service.

10 stunning photos of birds from around the world. See the winners of the Audubon Photography Awards.

*The most popular stories on Insider today.

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Inside London during COVID-19 lockdown

• You can charge a laptop in your car in several different ways, although laptops are typically charged from a wall outlet. 
• Most laptops charge using either a power inverter or a laptop charger, and both options are relatively inexpensive. 
• If you have a new laptop that uses a USB-C port to charge, you can charge it in your car with a USB-C-enabled Power Delivery power bank.
• Visit Business Insider's Tech Reference library for more stories.

With today's ubiquity of phones and tablets, you might not rely on your laptop as much as you used to, but there are still times when it's essential to be able to charge it while on the go. 

Whether you've got to finish a presentation on the way into work or just want to watch some Netflix while on a road trip, it is possible to charge a laptop while in the car. 

Check out the products mentioned in this article:

Apple Macbook Pro (From $1,299.00 at Apple)

Acer Chromebook 15 (From $179.99 at Walmart)

Elecjet PowerPie (From $59.99 at Amazon)

Jackery Explorer 240 Portable Power Station (From $357.49 at Walmart)

How to charge a laptop in your car

You'll need to get some accessories, such as a power inverter, laptop charger, or power bank to charge your laptop in your car. Here's how to use all three accessories to charge your laptop. 

Use a power inverter

A power inverter is generally a universal solution – it'll work in any car and with any laptop. As a bonus, most power inverters are relatively inexpensive. 

A model like the Betek 300 watt power inverter plugs into the car's outlet and includes two ordinary three-prong plugs and a pair of USB ports to plug your laptop's power adapter directly into the inverter. You'll also have a couple of USB ports for your other portable gear). 

There are some disadvantages to power inverters, though. For example, they can be bulky, and inexpensive models don't generate pure sine waves, which could damage sensitive electronics.  

Use a laptop charger

Another approach is to use a laptop car charger, which, rather than having a three-prong outlet, is made specifically for a particular model laptop. You can find laptop chargers online for most laptop models, and they're generally quite affordable. Plug the charger into your car's outlet, connect the other end to your laptop, and start charging. 

Use a power bank

If you have a new laptop with a USB-C or Thunderbolt charging port, you can charge your computer in the car without involving the car at all. All you'll need is a Power Delivery (PD) power bank. Power Delivery power banks can deliver enough power to charge a laptop via a USB-C port. Unfortunately, this solution isn't an option if your laptop uses a proprietary charging port. 

ZMI's Power Delivery power bank is an excellent example of a unit with enough power to charge compatible laptops.  

Related coverage from Tech Reference:

• 7 ways to charge your iPhone if you can't or don't want to use the typical wall charger

• 'Why won't my iPhone charge?': How to diagnose and fix common iPhone charging problems

• 'Why won't my Samsung Galaxy S10 charge?': 7 ways to fix your Galaxy S10 if it isn't charging properly

• The best ways to charge your MacBook Pro if you want a faster, lasting charge

• Here's why your phone is taking so long to charge, and how to speed up its charging time

SEE ALSO: The best portable power stations for working while you're off the grid

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Why YETI coolers are so expensive

• Peacock is a new streaming service featuring NBCUniversal TV shows, movies, original series, live sports, and news programs.
• The platform launched with an early trial for Xfinity X1 and Flex customers on April 15, and the streaming service will be available for everyone on July 15.
• Peacock's base plan is ad-supported, offering a limited catalog of titles at no cost. 
• A premium version of Peacock's ad-supported service is available for $4.99 per month, giving subscribers the ability to stream even more content, including original series and films.
• For those who don't want to sit through commercials, Peacock premium is also available in an ad-free tier for $9.99 per month. 

Peacock is a new streaming service that makes hundreds of NBC TV shows and Universal films available for free. Comcast, NBCUniversal's parent company, will officially launch free and premium versions of Peacock on July 15, though some Comcast internet and cable customers can already access an early trial of Peacock Premium.

Peacock was intended to launch alongside the 2020 Olympics to provide a live stream for the Summer Games in Tokyo, but the linchpin event has been postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic. Despite the major disruption, NBCUniversal is still proceeding with plans to launch Peacock as scheduled.

Peacock has brokered deals for new original series produced by Tina Fey and Kevin Hart, as well as rights to stream classic series like "Law & Order" and "Will and Grace." "The Office," a perennial Netflix favorite and one of  NBC's most beloved series, will move to Peacock in January 2021. 

In anticipation of the wide launch later this month, we've broken down some of the basics related to this new streaming service, including full details on pricing, plans, and content.

Updated on 7/9/2020 by Kevin Webb: Added new details about supported devices and discounted pre-order pricing for Peacock.

What is Peacock?

Peacock is a new streaming service created by NBCUniversal with three subscription plans: free, premium, and premium ad-free. The platform offers a collection of TV shows, movies,  and original series, along with live sports and news updates. 

Content can be viewed via an on-demand library or via special streaming channels broken down by genres and franchises.

Peacock's catalog includes a mix of new and classic NBC shows, like "Saturday Night Live" and "Parks and Recreation," and Universal films, like the "Fast & Furious" franchise. Original programs will also be offered in the higher-priced tiers.

When can I sign up for Peacock?

Peacock will officially launch nationwide on July 15. With that said, an early preview of the service is currently available as an exclusive to Xfinity X1 and Xfinity Flex owners. X1 and Flex are streaming devices created by Comcast, NBCUniversal's parent company.

If you're not a Comcast subscriber, you'll have to wait until the Peacock app expands to more devices on July 15. You can pre-order a premium or premium ad-free subscription right now through the Peacock website.  

Where can I watch Peacock?

Though a full list of supported devices is still forthcoming, Peacock's streaming app will be available on many smart TVs, including Vizio and LG models, as well as iOS and Android mobile devices, Android TV, and Chromecast. The service will also be available through its official website. You can sign up at Peacocktv.com to receive an email when the service goes live on July 15.

If you have an Xfinity X1 or Flex device you can access Peacock's early trial now by searching for the app and entering your email.

How much does Peacock cost?

The base version of Peacock is free, but there are commercials. Peacock promises more than 7,500 hours worth of movies and TV with Peacock Free, but you can get access to twice as much content by upgrading to a Peacock Premium plan.

The Peacock Premium catalog includes new original series, gives subscribers access to exclusive content from NBC shows, like "The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon," and lets you watch ongoing shows, like "Saturday Night Live," the day after they air on TV.

Peacock Premium costs $4.99 per month or $49.99 per year. People who pre-order a Peacock Premium subscription can get a 40% discount if they sign up for a full year, dropping the annual price to $29.99. The pre-order discount is available until July 14. Meanwhile, if you already subscribe to Xfinity internet or cable you get Peacock Premium for free with your current subscription. 

However, Peacock Premium still has commercials. If you want to watch Peacock Premium without ads, you need to upgrade to the Peacock Premium ad-free plan for $9.99 per month or $99.99 per year. If you pre-order an annual Peacock Premium ad-free subscription, you can receive a 20% discount on your first year, bringing the price down to $79.99. This promotion will be available until July 14.

What shows and movies are on Peacock?

Peacock features more than 15,000 hours worth of TV and movies, though you'll need a Premium subscription to access the full catalog. NBCUniversal says about half of the catalog, more than 7,500 hours worth, will be be available with Peacock Free.

You'll be able to stream classic NBC shows, like "Law & Order," "30 Rock," "Parks & Recreation," "Friday Night Lights," and "Saturday Night Live." Peacock Premium users will also be able to access new episodes of ongoing NBC shows the day after they air. One of the most anticipated Peacock shows, "The Office," wont be available until January 2021, due to a prior agreement with Netflix.

Daily broadcasts from NBC News and MSNBC will stream on Peacock too, and subscribers can access past documentaries and "Dateline" investigations.

Universal film franchises, like "Fast & Furious," "Jurassic Park" and "The Bourne Trilogy," will be available in full on Peacock, along with classic movies like "E.T.," "Reservoir Dogs," "Schindler's List," and "Lost in Translation."

Peacock Premium subscribers will be able to watch new original shows, including a new Tina Fey-produced series called "Girls5Eva". A new comedy special and an interview series from comedian Kevin Hart are also in the works for Peacock.

Peacock will include exclusive children's content with new episodes of shows like "Curious George," "Where's Waldo," and "Cleopatra in Space." Universal kids films, like "Shrek", "Despicable Me," and "Trolls World Tour," will be part of the Peacock library as well.

Peacock will also feature live sports. Though the platform's launch was meant to coincide with the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, the coronavirus pandemic has led to the postponement of the Summer Games until next year. Instead, Peacock will offer past Olympic highlights and exclusive interviews with Olympic athletes.

Eventually, the platform will also incorporate live NBC Sports broadcasts, like the "Premiere League," when sporting events resume. 

For more streaming coverage, be sure to check out our guides to the best streaming services and the best streaming sticks and devices.

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Leslie Odom, Jr.'s $500,000 gamble that led to a starring role in 'Hamilton'

• German authorities have seized a server that hosted thousands of sensitive police documents published as part of the BlueLeaks data dump.
• The German prosecutors behind the seizure were acting at the request of the US government, they told the Associated Press. The FBI and other US officials have not commented on the seizure.
• The takedown comes after DDoSecrets, the publisher that hosted the BlueLeaks files after they were obtained by an anonymous hacker, was permanently banned from Twitter.
• Hacking the government to steal information is illegal, but DDoSecrets says it was merely acting as a publisher — and the Supreme Court has upheld the right of journalists to publish stolen material.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The site that hosted hundreds of thousands of leaked police files — dubbed BlueLeaks — has been taken offline after its servers were confiscated by German authorities acting at the request of the US government.

The police files were published by DDoSecrets, a transparency-focused group that said it obtained the files from an anonymous hacker last month. DDoSecrets founder Emma Best said German prosecutors in the town of Zwickau seized their servers on Tuesday, but added that the publisher has not been given an explanation.

"Unsurprisingly, German authorities won't say why the server was seized or what #DDoSecrets is accused of," Best tweeted on Tuesday.

German prosecutors said in a statement Wednesday that they seized the servers at the behest of the US government.

It's not clear what legal grounds the US has to take the server offline. Hacking the government is a crime, but the Supreme Court has upheld the right of journalists to publish leaked documents as long as they weren't involved in their theft. DDoSecrets maintains that it's a publisher without any ties to the hacker who first obtained the BlueLeaks files.

A spokesperson for the Zwickau prosecutor's office told the German outlet Zeit Online that they were aware DDoSecrets is a journalistic project, but declined to provide any further information.

US authorities have yet to make a statement about BlueLeaks or the takedown. An FBI spokesperson declined to comment.

After BlueLeaks' publication, DDoSecrets' official Twitter account was permanently banned from the site. Twitter said DDoSecrets broke Twitter's rules against sharing hacked material, but similar enforcement has not been taken against other news outlets who published information gleaned from BlueLeaks.

DDoSecrets members remain undeterred by the seizure of their servers — Best said that the BlueLeaks files will remain available via torrent networks, which decentralize file hosting and make takedowns more difficult.

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: 7 secrets about Washington, DC landmarks you probably didn't know

• TikTok users reported Thursday afternoon video views and like counts had suddenly reset to zero on the app.
• Within minutes, users took to social media to panic and try to figure out what was going on. 
• TikTok wrote on Twitter it's aware of the issue, and "working quickly to fix things." Users have started to report seeing the affected numbers reappear on TikTok.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Video views and like counts on TikTok briefly disappeared from the app Thursday, causing millions of its fervent users to panic.

TikTok users on Thursday afternoon noticed the numbers within the app indicating likes and views on videos had all reset to zero. Some users also reported their "For You" feeds going dark or appearing to reset, meaning that users were no longer shown videos recommended to them by TikTok's famed algorithm.

Down Detector, a website tracking internet outages, showed nearly 20,000 reports from users experiencing issues with the app.

TikTok has since acknowledged in a statement on Twitter it's aware of the reported issues, and said it's "working to quickly fix things." Some users are starting to report their view and like counts have reappeared, and that the app is again working normally for them.

As reports of TikTok's outage surfaced, people took to Instagram, Twitter, and other social media platforms in droves to panic and hypothesize about the situation. Within minutes of the first reports coming in, TikTok became the No. 1 trend on Twitter in the US.

Discussion around TikTok's issues are also taking place on TikTok itself. Some users noticed swarms of accounts they follow going live within minutes of each other to share their confusion in real-time.

Some users leveled the theory that TikTok's issues indicated the app had been banned in the US, something President Donald Trump said this week he was considering as an option to punish China regarding the coronavirus pandemic. Since March, Trump has repeatedly referred to coronavirus as the "Chinese virus" and asserted China was "the source" of the pandemic.

TikTok has grown to become a social media powerhouse within the last couple of years, particularly among Generation Z teens. Since it was launched globally in 2017 — and then a year later in the U.S. — TikTok has generated more than two billion downloads worldwide. The app saw its most popular quarter ever in the first three months of 2020, as millions went into lockdown to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

This story is developing...

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• Early Facebook investor Roger McNamee urged presidential hopeful Joe Biden not to trust Silicon Valley's leaders for guidance on tech policy, per a Wired op-ed published Thursday.
• The businessman said tech's leaders "are part of the problem, not the solution."
• McNamee was once a mentor to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and has since become an outspoken critic of Silicon Valley.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Early Facebook investor Roger McNamee urged presidential hopeful Joe Biden not to seek policy guidance from Silicon Valley's top leaders in an op-ed published in Wired Thursday.

As the presumptive Democratic candidate for the upcoming presidential election, Biden will need to work with tech policy experts, but McNamee said they shouldn't be the tech industry's top execs. McNamee cautioned that "today's leaders of Silicon Valley are part of the problem, not the solution," and issues within big tech aren't isolated incidents but are "systemic and intentional." He specifically named companies such as Google, Facebook, Twitter, Amazon, and Uber in his critique.

"In the era of George Floyd, Silicon Valley's leaders are the last people to provide you with guidance on technology policy," McNamee wrote. "Their companies and their community should instead be targets for reform."

The businessman critiqued Silicon Valley's "elitist and authoritarian" culture and its business models. He wrote of how companies have provided a platform for conspiracy theorists and extremists, harbored an excess of power, and prioritized profit without consideration for moral and environmental ramifications, among other transgressions.

McNamee stressed that Biden has an opportunity to change for the better how the US tech industry operates, a cause that "should" define his legacy.

McNamee was an early mentor to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg. He's since been openly critical about tech's negative impact on various industries and on society as a whole.

Read McNamee's full letter in Wired here.

SEE ALSO: Mark Zuckerberg's former mentor: Facebook's 'surveillance capitalism' business model is toxic for democracy

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• Sony is making a $250 million "strategic investment" in Epic Games, the company behind "Fortnite," the two announced on Thursday.
• That $250 million buys Sony a 1.4% stake in Epic Games, which puts Epic's current valuation at just shy of $18 billion.
• The big-money investment "cements an already close relationship between the two companies and reinforces the shared mission to advance the state of the art in technology, entertainment, and socially-connected online services," a press release said.
• It's unclear what impact, if any, the investment will have on Sony's PlayStation group.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Sony, the company behind PlayStation, now owns part of the company behind "Fortnite."

For $250 million, Sony now owns a stake in Epic Games – the North Carolina-based, independently-owned game studio. Besides Sony, Epic Games counts Chinese conglomerate Tencent as an investor. The company remains majority-owned by its original founder and current president, Tim Sweeney.

It's unclear what impact, if any, Sony's investment will have on "Fortnite," or on the upcoming PlayStation 5 console, but it's clear that the two companies are getting cozier.

The press release announcing the deal described its impact broadly:

"The investment allows Sony and Epic to aim to broaden their collaboration across Sony's leading portfolio of entertainment assets and technology, and Epic's social entertainment platform and digital ecosystem to create unique experiences for consumers and creators."

Sony president and CEO Kenichiro Yoshida offered a bit more detail.

"Through our investment, we will explore opportunities for further collaboration with Epic to delight and bring value to consumers and the industry at large," he said, "not only in games, but also across the rapidly evolving digital entertainment landscape."

Epic will continue to publish games for a variety of different gaming platforms, a company rep confirmed, and the $250 million investment is a 1.4% stake in the company. That values Epic at just shy of $18 billion.

Just like Sony makes many more products beyond PlayStation game consoles, Epic make many products beyond "Fortnite." 

The company is responsible for the Unreal Engine software suite, a widely-used tool for building video games, and also runs the Epic Game Store, a digital storefront for Mac and PC gaming. In addition to "Fortnite," Epic also owns and operates "Rocket League," another popular online multiplayer game.

It's also worth noting that "Fortnite" has played host to several online social events, including a very well-attended virtual concert by Travis Scott. 

Got a tip? Contact Business Insider senior correspondent Ben Gilbert via email (bgilbert@businessinsider.com), or Twitter DM (@realbengilbert). We can keep sources anonymous. Use a non-work device to reach out. PR pitches by email only, please.

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• You can rent movies and shows on Amazon Prime even if you aren't a subscriber — all you need is an ordinary Amazon account. 
• Find the movie or TV show you want to rent on the Prime Video web site or app and select the display quality, such as SD or HD.
• You have 30 days to start watching, but as soon as you do, you have unlimited access to the video for 48 hours.  
• Visit Business Insider's Tech Reference library for more stories.

While Amazon Prime members get exclusive access to a library of free TV shows and movies, anyone with an Amazon account can rent videos on Prime Video using the website, mobile app, or any Prime Video TV app.

When you rent something on Prime Video, you have up to 30 days to start watching it. Once you click play for the first time, you have unlimited access for 48 hours to pause and resume playback or to watch it as many times you like, as long as you do it within the two-day rental window.

Check out the products mentioned in this article:

Amazon Prime Video ($8.99 from Amazon)

TCL 65" 6 Series 4K TV ($799.99 from Amazon)

How to rent videos on Amazon Prime Video

The process to rent a video is the same whether you're using the web site, a mobile app, or the Prime Video app on a smart TV or streaming device. And no matter where you rent it, you can watch the video on any device. 

1. Start by opening the Prime Video website and logging in or starting the Prime Video app on the device of your choice. 

2. Find the show or movie you want to watch. You can browse Prime Video's categories or use the search tool to find videos by name, genre, actor, or director. 

3. On the video's details page, choose the display quality you want to rent. You can sometimes select "More purchase options" to see additional choices, which might include standard definition (SD), high definition (HD), and 4K UHD. Higher quality rentals usually cost a little more. 

4. If you've enabled a Prime Video PIN, you need to enter your PIN to complete the purchase and confirm you want to rent the video.  

As soon as you choose a video, it's rented and available for immediate viewing.

Two ways to start watching a video you've rented

• Choose "Watch Now."
• Click "My Stuff" and find the movie in the list of videos you have purchased or rented. On some smart TVs and streaming media players, this might be called "Purchases and Rentals."

How to cancel a mistaken rental on Amazon Prime Video

If you select a video for rental by accident, you have a few minutes to undo the purchase. Immediately after choosing to rent the video, click "Cancel Purchase." You'll be immediately refunded the cost of the rental. 

Related coverage from Tech Reference:

• How to return rented books on Amazon
  

• How to cancel your Amazon Prime Video subscription through Amazon's website

• How to delete your Amazon Prime Video history and prevent watched videos from being used in recommendations

• How to search on Amazon Prime Video for movies and TV shows on any device

• How to share an Amazon Prime Video account with others by adding adults, teens, or children to your Amazon Household

SEE ALSO: The best 4K TVs

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• "Palm Springs" will be available to stream exclusively on Hulu starting July 10.
• The romantic comedy stars Andy Samberg and Cristin Milioti as two strangers who get trapped in a time loop.
• A Hulu subscription costs $5.99 per month with ads, or $11.99 per month without ads.
• You can also bundle Hulu with Disney Plus and ESPN+ for $12.99 a month.
• Read more: A complete price breakdown for Hulu and Hulu Live TV packages

"Palm Springs," Hulu's latest original film, is set to start streaming on Friday, July 10. The movie originally premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on January 26, 2020. Production company Neon and Hulu then purchased the distribution rights for the film.

Andy Samberg stars as Nyles in the film, alongside Cristin Milioti who plays Sarah. The two characters meet at a wedding in Palm Springs, and soon find themselves trapped in a time loop. No matter what they do, every morning they wake up in Palm Springs living the same day over and over again. 

The movie has received critical acclaim, and currently holds a 98% "Certified Fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and a score of 82 out of 100 on Metacritic. Jason Guerrasio, senior entertainment reporter at Insider, gave the film an A- grade in his full review.

Below, we've detailed everything you need to know about watching "Palm Springs" on Hulu.

How to watch "Palm Springs" on Hulu

To watch "Palm Springs" you'll need a subscription to Hulu. The movie will start streaming exclusively through the service on July 10.

The cheapest way to subscribe to Hulu is via its ad-supported plan for $5.99 per month. This option gives you access to all of the platform's on-demand programs, including "Palm Springs." If you're sick of commercials, an ad-free Hulu plan is available for $11.99 per month. 

Meanwhile, cord-cutters looking for live TV streaming to go along with Hulu's on-demand library, can opt for Hulu + Live TV. This plan adds access to over 65 channels for a starting price of $54.99 a month.   

Finally, If you want even more on-demand streaming content, the ad-supported version of Hulu is also available as part of a discounted bundle with Disney Plus and ESPN+ for a total of $12.99 per month. That's about $5 less per month than you'd pay if you signed up for each service separately.

Once you subscribe to Hulu, you can watch "Palm Springs" through the Hulu app or website. Hulu is supported on most connected devices, including iOS and Android smartphones, Xbox One and PlayStation 4, smart TVs, and streaming players from Apple, Roku, Amazon, and Chromecast. You'll need an internet connection to stream "Palm Springs," and subscribers with a Hulu ad-free plan should also be able to download the movie to a mobile device for offline viewing.

What other exclusive movies and shows can I watch on Hulu?

Hulu features a sizable library of original films and series. Other exclusive movies recently released on Hulu include the thriller "Delivered", the comedy "Big Time Adolescence," and the horror film "Little Monsters."

Popular Hulu original series include "The Handmaid's Tale," "Little Fires Everywhere," "The Great," "Castle Rock," "Ramy", "Future Man," and more. In addition to exclusive titles developed just for Hulu, the streaming service also includes access to many current and classic network shows and Hollywood films. 

For more streaming recommendations, be sure to check out our guide to the best streaming services.

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