Apple Pay and Others Mean Banks Could be Squeezed Out, French Authorities Warn

Payment services from tech firms like Apple and Google risk squeezing out traditional banks and need monitoring. Authorities in France raised the concern that these firms can make money from these services but avoid much of the regulation, Bloomberg News reported.

The French authority also highlights access to near-field communication on smartphones used for contactless payment, an issue that has already triggered EU and Dutch antitrust probes and potential legislation to respond to banks’ complaints that Apple unfairly blocks their access on its devices. The companies that the French agency calls “les BigTech” are armed with “considerable financial power” to invest in new technologies and will have lower marginal costs compared to banks. Access to large volumes of data and processing power may allow them better assess customers financial health and offer them targeted services, the authority said. Integrating payments in other services allows them to offer a “customer journey” that can’t be matched or replaced easily by competitors, the authority said

IRS Asks For Help to Hack Hardware Cryptocurrency Wallets

The IRS is asking for help to hack into hardware cryptocurrency wallets that could be useful in criminal investigations.

The decentralization and anonymity provided by cryptocurrencies has fostered an environment for the storage and exchange of something of value, outside of the traditional purview of law enforcement and regulatory organizations. There is a portion of this cryptographic puzzle that continues to elude organizations—millions, perhaps even billions of dollars, exist within cryptowallets.

Spotify Rolling Out New Features for Music and Podcast Library

It’s not just Apple Music and Podcasts that are getting an upgrade. Spotify too announced some upgrades for both its iOS and Android apps, with the rollout starting Thursday.

Starting today, we are rolling out a new version of Your Library to all Spotify mobile users. Now, you’ll have a more streamlined way to easily explore your collection and find your saved music and podcasts faster. Your Library’s updated design and added features will enable you to spend less time looking for content and organizing your collection, and more time rediscovering the music and podcasts you’ve loved over the years. And as always, keep adding even more content for a library that grows alongside you into the future. The new Your Library is packed with a new layout and features that make browsing your music and podcast collection easier than ever.

Experian’s API Exposed Credit Scores for Anyone to Discover

Credit bureau Experian recently fixed a flaw in its API that let anyone find a credit score of a person by typing in their name and mailing address.

Demirkapi declined to share with Experian the name of the lender or the website where the API was exposed. He refused because he said he suspects there may be hundreds or even thousands of companies using the same API, and that many of those lenders could be similarly leaking access to Experian’s consumer data.