IT’S no secret that online trolling can be disruptive. Some of its most extreme forms like swatting — where a harasser fakes an emergency to get police to raid a victim’s home — are real world safety threats. Now a insurer is offering some customers in the United Kingdom benefits to help offset the costs of trolling. Chubb insurance will include cyberbullying coverage as part of its personal insurance package — providing up to 50,000 pounds, or roughly $75,000, that could be used for things like help from online experts for victims and counseling, or even covering lost income if the victim is off work for more than a week due to the harassment — according to the Telegraph.
The company defines cyberbullying as “three or more acts by the same person or group to harass, threaten or intimidate a customer,” the Financial Times reported. The company did not immediately respond to a Washington Post inquiry about the coverage.
The Internet can sometimes be a pretty nasty place — 73 percent of American adults online have seen someone be harassed online and 40 percent have personally experienced it, according Pew Research center study released last year.
In extreme cases, trolling can almost take over a victim’s life. “I feel helpless,” Amy Stater, the victim of a sustained campaign of online harassment apparently linked to her son’s online activities, told Fusion earlier this year. “I can’t get a job, my marriage is over. Not a day goes by that I don’t wonder if it would be easier if I take my own life,” she said.
This new insurance benefit seems to be a shift toward acknowledging just how damaging that type of situation can be.
“We see insurance as helping our clients get back to how they were before the incident occurred — whether it’s an incident that affects their home or as a person,” Tara Parchment, UK and Ireland private clients manager, told the Telegraph. “So we still help to restore homes, cars and belongings that have suffered physical harm or damage, but increasingly it’s about the person and how they cope.”
Cyberbullying insurance: A real thing a firm is offering
Cyberbullying insurance: A real thing a firm is offering
Apple to update EU browser options, make more apps deletable
- iPhone maker came under pressure from regulators to make changes after the EU’s sweeping Digital Markets Act took effect on March 7
- Apple users will be able to select a default browser directly from the choice screen after going through a mandatory list of options
STOCKHOLM: Apple will change how users choose browser options in the European Union, add a dedicated section for changing default apps, and make more apps deletable, the company said on Thursday.
The iPhone maker came under pressure from regulators to make changes after the EU’s sweeping Digital Markets Act took effect on March 7, forcing big tech companies to offer mobile users the ability to select from a list of available web browsers on a “choice screen.”
The new rules require mobile software makers to show the choice screen where users can select a browser, search engine and virtual assistant as they set up their phones, which earlier came with preferred options from Apple and Google.
In an update later this year, Apple users will be able to select a default browser directly from the choice screen after going through a mandatory list of options.
A randomly ordered list of 12 browsers per EU country will be shown to the user with short descriptions, and the chosen one will be automatically downloaded, Apple said. The choice screen will also be available on iPads through an update later this year.
Apple released a previous update in response to the new rules in March, but browser companies criticized the design of its choice screen, and the Commission opened an investigation on March 25 saying it suspected that the measures fell short of effective compliance.
The company said it has been in dialogue with the European Commission and believes the new changes will address regulators’ concerns.
It also plans to introduce a dedicated area for default apps where a user will be able to set defaults for messaging, phone calls, spam filters, password managers and keyboards.
Users will also be able to delete certain Apple-made apps such as App Store, Messages, Camera, Photos and Safari. Only Settings and Phone apps would not be deletable.
