In-app browsers on TikTok and other apps include code that could potentially track user activity on websites. (Photo Illustration by Thiago Prudêncio/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
SOPA IMAGES/LIGHTROCKET VIA GETTY IMAGES
President Joe Biden will make a decision on student loans this week as a majority of Americans worry about how loan forgiveness could affect inflation. Many people who retired early during the pandemic are now choosing to return to work. Higher-education institutions across the country are experiencing record freshman class sizes this back-to-school season.
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In The News Today
- Anthony Fauci plans to step down in December from his 35-year tenure as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, a post through which he’s led the United States through the AIDS and Covid-19 pandemics. Fauci, 81, will also step down from his role of chief medical adviser to Biden, though he says he won’t fully retire.
- The National Institutes of Health will launch a clinical trial evaluating a new method of administering a monkeypox vaccine. The new technique and smaller dose, already approved by the Food and Drug Administration, would expand the number of available vaccines as case counts rise.
Top Take-Aways
A cohort of Apple employees self-identified as a “solidarity union” started a petition opposing the company’s new policy mandating corporate workers return to the office three days per week beginning September 5. The return-to-office guidance departs from the increasingly flexible policies of other tech titans including Twitter and Meta.
With Biden committed to making a decision on the future of student loans this week, here’s what that means for your own tuition debts. Biden’s announcement comes as a majority 59% of Americans have concerns about how loan forgiveness could affect already high inflation.
Authorities in Qatar reportedly arrested at least 60 foreign workers setting up for the FIFA World Cup after they said they went unpaid for months. It’s not the first time Qatar’s treatment of migrant laborers—who it’s relying on to build seven new stadiums, a new airport and other multibillion-dollar infrastructure projects ahead of November’s sporting event—has been questioned.
The pandemic-spurred Great Resignation left millions of Americans retiring earlier than expected, breaking a long-term trend where the average retirement age gradually increased. Now that trend is reversing course, with many pandemic retirees ultimately returning to work or considering doing so.
A new dashboard that will help travelers determine what they are owed if a flight is delayed or canceled is slated to launch on September 2, just in time for Labor Day weekend jetsetting. The brainchild of Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, the tool aims to promote transparency in the airline industry as widespread flight disruptions trickle into fall.
The value of the Euro slid below that of the U.S. dollar on Monday for the second time this year as the Eurozone struggles with rising inflation while trying to ward off a winter energy crisis. Those worries are only compounded by Russia continuing to squeeze Europe’s supply of natural gas. More: The slump comes as the Eurozone’s private sector economy shrunk for the second consecutive month in August, led by the manufacturing and tourism and recreation sectors.
Today’s Must-Read
TikTok’s In-App Browser Includes Code That Can Monitor Your Keystrokes, Researcher Says
When users tap on TikTok ads or visit links on a creator’s profile, the app opens the page via a house-made, in-app web browser that uses code capable of tracking keystrokes, a Vienna-based researcher found. That means TikTok could discern a person’s credit card information or password entered on the platform. And while TikTok confirmed to Forbes that the feature exists, the company insisted it’s not using it.
In Case You Missed It
After a decade of steady decline in undergraduate enrollment across the country, which was exacerbated by Covid-19, higher-education institutions from HBCUs to large research universities are reporting record freshman class sizes this year. To top it off, many schools are setting new records for student diversity among incoming students.
Tips You Can Trust
- “Ghost quitting”—the trend where workers are mentally checking out of jobs without formally throwing in the towel—is only a temporary solution to long term problems. If you (or your employees) are trapped in a cycle of low motivation and engagement in the workplace, try using these strategies, like preemptive “stay” interviews and improving time-off policies, to right the course.
- It’s all too easy for first-time founders to get bogged down in perfecting all the details before launching a startup, attaching out-of-proportion importance on the debut while over-investing time, capital and effort. This blueprint lays out how to effectively launch an early-stage startup project in order to get necessary feedback that will make your offering better.
Must-Watch Video
The Secret To Calendly’s Billion Dollar Success
Before Tope Awotona founded Calendly, he started three other businesses that all failed: a dating website that never launched, plus two e-commerce startups. Awotona reflects on the origin story of Calendly, a firm now valued at $3 billion, and how learning from past failures ultimately set him up for success.
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