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Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp make their post global outage comeback

Oct 5 2021 Share

Facebook, alongside Instagram and WhatsApp, experienced one of the worst outages in its history on Monday,  coming back slowly with spotty coverage after six hours. Facebook tweeted out, apologising to the huge community of people and businesses around the world who depend on them. A later blog post revealed that faulty configuration changes on its routers were the root cause of the outage, but Facebook claimed it had no evidence that user data was compromised. 

Facebook’s own site would not load at all, with Instagram and WhatsApp being accessible but unable to load new content or send messages. Meanwhile, Twitter was having some fun at its rival’s expense, tweeting out ‘Hello literally everyone’. However, businesses were impacted by this outage, with some claiming that they lost large amounts of income. The outage was so strong that, allegedly, Facebook staff could not enter their own company buildings because their passes were not working. 

Before the outage hit, whistleblower Frances Haugen, a former Facebook employee, accused the company of putting profit over safety in a major TV interview. Despite Facebook stating that there was no evidence the outage occurred because of malicious activity,  Zuckerberg’s net worth fell by more than $6bn on Monday, with shares to Facebook opening lower after the interview. Not a good week for Facebook at all…

#MaltaDaily

Squid Game tracksuits number one adult costume on Amazon

Squid Game tracksuits number one adult costume on Amazon
Oct 4 2021 Share

Following the massive hit Netflix’s Squid Game made internationally, the tracksuits donned by the tortured players have ranked at the top of Amazon’s adult costume category. As Halloween closes in, it seems as though a massive portion of the series fanbase will be running around in track suits inspired by the series. The red guard jumpsuit is also another bestseller at the moment, featuring the black sinister mask. You can choose from a triangle, square or circle logo, meaning you and your mates can wear one of each. 

The Frontman mask is also being sold on Amazon starting from £7.99. The most popular one is the black mask, despite the frontman in the series donning the golden mask. A set is not available for this costume however, so you’ll have to dig deeper into Amazon a bit. And we bet that we’ll be getting some dressed up as the sinister Red Light Green Light doll by the weirder among us. 

#MaltaDaily

Photo Source: Amazon, CheatSheet, Cosmopolitan

Primary school registrations increase from past years

Primary school registrations increase from past years
Oct 4 2021 Share

Figures released by the Education Ministry show that 36,000 students are attending State schools for the upcoming academic year. Kindergarten has 5,981 students, primary schools have 15,827 and secondary schools 12,143. 

1,987 students are attending post-secondary education, with the education ministry stating registration for primary school was higher than in previous years. The students were distributed in 106 schools and educational centres. 

A total of 7,071 heads, educators, LSEs, KGEs and administrative staff are involved. Education Minister Justyne Caruana stated that the determination and commitment of educators to ensure that children receive their education physically in schools is clear as this is the best place for education to take place. The ministry also confirmed that attendance for the upcoming academic year will be compulsory. 

#MaltaDaily

Photo Source: Justyne Caruana FB, Europass Teacher Academy

Metro-tram hybrid transport system proposed by green ADPD

Metro-tram hybrid transport system proposed by green ADPD
Oct 4 2021 Share

The Maltese Green Party ADPD suggested creating a hybrid metro-tram system at street level instead of the underground metro. The ADPD proposed transportation system would serve to avoid generating huge amounts of waste and result in massive land reclamation through dumping at sea. Apart from causing less environmental damage, their proposal would also be less costly and be implemented in a shorter time frame. 

This comes after Transport Minister Ian Borg and Prime Minister Robert Abela unveiled a proposal to develop a 25-station and €6.2 billion underground metro system. For the ADPD however, the announcement only conveyed ‘scant information’, stating that it is clear the government has reports by international consultancy firm Arup explaining their metro proposals in detail. 

The ADPD stated that these reports have not yet been published and it is impossible to have a serious public consultation exercise if these reports are not made public. The party added that the project’s website does not contain detailed information explaining the proposals being made. 

The main issue to be considered seriously is whether the proposed metro should be mainly above ground or underground due to the amount of waste generated, primarily excavation waste. ADPD said the country needs a clear vision on transport and not a blurred proposal.

#MaltaDaily

Photo Source: Indra Infra Hub