There's a new report out on cyberattacks against the US. 

The US is at risk for cyberattacks both small and catastrophic, according to a report out Wednesday by a US congressional panel. After months of study, the bipartisan Cyberspace Solarium Commission is calling for wide-ranging cybersecurity changes, including government reforms and better collaboration with the private sector.

"A major cyberattack on the nation's critical infrastructure and economic system would create chaos and lasting damage exceeding that wreaked by fires in California, floods in the Midwest, and hurricanes in the Southeast," read a letter from the organization's co-chairmen, Sen. Angus King of Maine and Rep. Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin.

The solution is to deter more attacks to begin with, the lawmakers said. That means encouraging better norms around the world, taking away easy targets in US infrastructure, and finding new ways to retaliate against hacks. To get there, the roughly 182-page report makes more 80 recommendations around a six core pillars. Among the recommendations are establishing a National Cyber Director and that Congress should pass a national data security and privacy protection law.

The report addresses ongoing concerns that the US is vulnerable to destabilizing cyberattacks. More than stealing data or spying on US businesses and government agencies, cyberattacks cause destruction. Ransomware, for example, can lock up valuable systems that keep hospitals or cities running, and often permanently destroys valuable data. Other attacks could take out utilities like electricity or water but would be limited to specific regions because the US has a fragmented system for delivering these services.

To deter these attacks, the US needs to build up resilience, the lawmakers said, or "the capacity to withstand and quickly recover from attacks that could cause harm or coerce, deter, restrain, or otherwise shape U.S. behavior."

The Cyberspace Solarium Commission was founded in 2019 to "develop a consensus on a strategic approach to defending the United States in cyberspace against cyber attacks of significant consequences," according to its website.

The world's biggest gaming event, E3, has been cancelled over fears surrounding the spread of coronavirus.

The event, due to take place 9-11 June in Los Angeles, had been highly anticipated, ahead of PlayStation and Xbox console launches later this year.

Organisers said it had been cancelled "after careful consultation" over "the health and safety of everyone in our industry".

And they were "exploring options" for an "online experience" in June.

Image Copyright @E3

"This might lead to some permanent change to events like E3," said Piers Harding-Roll, from Ampere Analysis.

Such major expos "were already struggling to define themselves in the rapidly changing landscape of games" he said.

"Next year, E3 may well be quite different."

The hype train derailed

Analysis by Marc Cieslak, gaming reporter

Got a new game to tell people about? Do it at E3. Got a new console to flog? E3 is the first stop the hype train calls at.

Over the course of its life, E3 has morphed from a trade-only event that helped retailers to figure how many physical copies of a game they wanted to buy, into a circus of organised chaos.

In recent years, the public has been allowed in, hoping to catch a glimpse of (or spend hours queuing to play) a pre-release game demo on the show floor. Multi-million dollar press conferences became the norm.

But industry observers have suggested that E3 has struggled to remain relevant in the last few years.

Opening up to the public was part of an attempt to regain some former glory. But the harsh reality is that E3 is an expensive show to exhibit at, costing many millions of dollars for those that do.

Sony, which is launching its Playstation 5 console in time for the Christmas season, had already decided not to attend, for the second year in a row.

Nintendo has also shifted to making its announcements in a global online live-stream - but, like many developers, it has maintained a presence at E3 for hands-on demonstrations.

Those are open to the public - and often involve game controllers being passed from person to person as thousands mingle on the show floor.

Microsoft's Head of Xbox, Phil Spencer, tweeted that while the company had planned on appearing at E3, it would now hold a digital event.

Latest casualty

Dozens of major technology events have been cancelled in recent weeks as the virus has spread around the world and public health officials have warned people against gathering in large numbers.

The Game Developers Conference, SXSW, Mobile World Congress, and Google and Facebook's major conferences are among the casualties.

Major events that have yet to be cancelled include:

• Bafta Games Awards: The British Academy awards ceremony, on 2 April, in London
• WWDC: Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference, on 3-7 June, in San Jose, California
• NAB: The annual broadcaster and media trade show, on 18-22 April, in Las Vegas,

Other events, such as the Ted talks series, have been postponed or shifted online.

'Upload demos'

The gaming media was left frustrated with organisers after the personal information of more than 2,000 journalists was published on E3's website last year.

Media captionE3 2019 round-up: Keanu, Xbox and more

And, on Wednesday, gaming journalist Laura Kate Dale tweeted: "With last year's E3 scaring away press... many publishers [are] likely to learn this year how cost-effective live-streamed events can be.

"I wouldn't be shocked if we look back at 2020 as the year E3 died."

Meanwhile, Brian Crecente, a former games journalist turned consultant, said: "Why not have E3 without the E3?"

"All of the big companies stream their press conferences anyway.

Google's parent company Alphabet has asked its North American staff to work from home to reduce the potential spread of the coronavirus.

Last week the tech giant sent a memo to staff recommending that employees in Washington state work from home.

It has now expanded that request to all of its almost 100,000 workers across 11 office in the US and Canada.

Alphabet is the latest company to make such an announcement as US coronavirus cases have risen to almost 1,000.

"Out of an abundance of caution, and for the protection of Alphabet and the broader community, we now recommend you work from home if your role allows," Chris Rackow, Google's vice president of global security, wrote in an email to workers.

Alphabet said its offices in North America will remain open for those whose jobs require them to come in.

Last week, Google, along with many of the world's other major tech companies, including Apple, Amazon, Microsoft and Facebook, began recommending that staff in Seattle should work from home as the coronavirus spreads in Washington state.

The state had more than 160 cases as of Monday night. California and New York, where Alphabet has large offices, are also experiencing spikes in the number of cases.

An employee at Amazon and an employee at Facebook have been diagnosed with the coronavirus.

On Sunday, Apple chief executive Tim Cook asked employees at several of its global offices to work remotely this week "if your job allows".

Last week Twitter told its employees to work from home to help stop the spread of the virus. In a blog post, the social media giant said it was mandatory for staff in Hong Kong, Japan and South Korea to work remotely.

Twitter also said it was "strongly encouraging" all of its 5,000 employees around the world to not to go into their offices.'

In other moves to combat coronavirus, Google has:

• temporarily banned ads for medical face masks

• established a Covid-19 fund, so temporary staff and vendors can take paid sick leave if they have symptoms of the virus

• teamed up with the UK's NHS to help prevent the spread of misinformation about the outbreak, by promoting correct health and travel advice when people search for coronavirus treatments or symptoms

The government is providing mask inventory data of pharmacies as an open API to help developers launch apps that notify civilians about the inventory statuses of pharmacy goods amid shortages from the COVID-19 outbreak:

The South Korean government has released its mask sales data to the public by providing it as an open API to encourage developers to create apps that notify people about the inventory statuses of pharmacies nationwide.

The government hopes that the opening up of data will help address the long queues at pharmacies and complaints that have arisen due to the shortage of masks caused by the COVID-19 outbreak.

Vice Minister Jang Seokyoung of the Ministry of Science and I CT told a press briefing Wednesday that the decision to open up the data was made as the government believes collaborating with the private sector would provide more efficient and innovative services that can better serve public demand, as compared to if the government were to develop these apps itself. 

Since Monday, the government has imposed onto citizens a two per week limit for masks purchased from pharmacies    

Around 23,000 pharmacies nationwide are selling masks and around 22,000 of these pharmacies have agreed to hand over their data. Information regarding the pharmacies that declined to hand over their data will not appear on the apps, Jang said. 

Around 10 app developers have used the data so far. They launched their apps on Wednesday, with more expected to follow, the minister added.

Naver, South Korea's largest search portal, and Kakao, the country's largest chat app, are also planning to use the data to provide mask inventory services within their respective map apps. 

The outbreak has caused local tech giants such as Samsung and LG to suspend production and close down facilities due to employees contracting the virus.

South Korea has 7,755 cases of the virus and 60 dead as of Wednesday. 

Amazon is offering its till-less technology to other High Street shops, just over two years after launching it via its own Go Grocery chain.

Go Grocery shoppers scan a smartphone app as they arrive, allowing them to pay via their main Amazon accounts.

It has now adapted its Just Walk Out system for other retailers so shoppers register a payment card on entry and are automatically billed as they leave.

But, unlike at Go Grocery, users' Amazon accounts will not be involved.

And the firm has said that information collected about consumers will only be used to support the retailers it has partnered with.

"We only collect the data needed to provide shoppers with an accurate receipt," Amazon's website says.

"Shoppers can think of this as similar to typical security camera footage."

The system involves fitting a shop with hundreds of cameras and depth-sensors, whose data is then remotely analysed on Amazon's computer servers.

The software can distinguish whether a shopper has picked up and kept a product for purchase or if they have only examined an item before replacing it back on a shelf.

Amazon says it can install the required equipment in "as little as a few weeks"

NBK Retail consultancy founder Natalie Berg said the move had been long-expected.

"It's far more lucrative for Amazon to license the technology to other retailers than to just use it in its own grocery stores," she said.

"What Amazon does very well is cut out friction and of course the biggest source or friction in the grocery stores and supermarkets is the checkout.

"But there will still be opportunities for other vendors [with rival solutions] because you're never going to see Walmart implement Amazon's checkout-free tech."

'Job losses'

The announcement comes two weeks after Amazon opened its largest Go Grocery shop.

The Seattle-based shop stocks about 5,000 items and covers more than 10,000 sq ft (929 sq m), making it about five times bigger than the average Go outlet.

But UK supermarkets can be up to 185,500 sq ft and questions remain about how long it will take before Amazon or any of its rivals' technologies can be reliably deployed at such scale.