Alan Lorenz, Author at Zoom News

Verstappen Third Behind Mercedes in First Training

18Jun

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Sports, News

Verstappen Third Behind Mercedes in First Training

Max Verstappen has set the third-fastest time in the first free practice for the Grand Prix of France in Formula 1. The Dutch driver, the leader in the world title, had to tolerate the two Mercedes at Circuit Paul Ricard in southern France... Valtteri Bottas set the best time with 1.33.448. The Finn damaged the front wing and floor of his Mercedes at the start of practice when he drove a little too much over the curbstones along the track. Verstappen also did that later in training. The Dutchman immediately went back to the pit lane to have the underside of his Red Bull car examined. Briton Lewis Hamilton conceded 0.335 seconds to his teammate Bottas. Verstappen was 0.432 seconds slower than the Finn. His Mexican teammate Sergio Pérez, winner of the Azerbaijan GP two weeks ago, f...

Tennis Player Nadal Skips Wimbledon and Olympics

17Jun

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Sports, News

Tennis Player Nadal Skips Wimbledon and Olympics

Spanish tennis player Rafael Nadal skips Wimbledon and will not participate in the Tokyo Olympics. The number 3 in the world announced this via Twitter. "It's never an easy decision, but after listening to my body and talking to my staff, I understand it's the best decision," Nadal said. The 35-year-old Spaniard has won twenty Grand Slam titles in his career, as many as Roger Federer. They thus share the record. Novak Djokovic came to nineteen titles by winning Roland Garros last week. The Serbian number 1 in the world was too strong for Nadal in the semifinals, with thirteen titles the record champion in Paris. Wimbledon starts at the end of this month, on the 'sacred' grass in London. Nadal won Wimbledon twice, in 2008 and 2010. In the last two editions, in 2018 and 2019, the ...

Emaciated Kim Jong-Un: Food Shortage Threatens North Korea

16Jun

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

North Korea, News

Emaciated Kim Jong-Un: Food Shortage Threatens North Korea

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un warns his people of food shortages and famine. A severe typhoon would cause a failed grain harvest, but the consequences of the corona pandemic and the closed borders with China may also be responsible for a shortage of food. Kim Jong-Un also looks a lot thinner compared to a few months ago. In a rather unusual warning, North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un speaks of a "tense" food situation in his country due to major flooding after a typhoon, the corona pandemic and international sanctions. The country's difficult economic situation is well known, but Kim's now openly mentioning the food shortage is highly unusual. Kim called on the Central Committee of his ruling Workers' Party to make eliminating that food shortage "a top priority": "The population'...

British Regulator Investigates Apple and Google Power

15Jun

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Technology, News, UK

British Regulator Investigates Apple and Google Power

The British market regulator Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) will further investigate the strong dominant position of the tech companies Apple and Google in mobile phone operating systems and app stores. According to the CMA, consumers can be disadvantaged by this dominant position in various areas. The competition watchdog is examining the iOS operating system from Apple and Android from Google and the App Store and Play Store and the web browsers Safari and Chrome. It looks at whether the two companies' control over these so-called "mobile ecosystems" undermines competition. The CMA is concerned that, for example, innovation will be reduced, and consumers will have to pay more for mobile devices, apps and other services. The study, lasting up to 12 months, will also l...

Indian Regions Relax Measures Against Coronavirus

14Jun

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

India, News

Indian Regions Relax Measures Against Coronavirus

Several Indian regions relaxed various corona measures on Monday as the number of infections fell to the lowest level in more than two months. In the capital, New Delhi, all shops and shopping centres are allowed to open again. The cafes, gyms, cinemas and parks in New Delhi will remain closed. Furthermore, the state of Tamil Nadu, for example, allows more people to be in the workplace and liquor stores can open their doors again. If the number of infections rises again, India wants to reintroduce the restrictions. The second wave of infection in India started in April and peaked in early May, with more than 400,000 confirmed cases per day. Authorities reported just over 70,000 new cases on Monday, the lowest number since March 31. The pressure to relax is great as many millions ...

Trump Administration Seized Democrats Data From Apple

11Jun

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

US, News

Trump Administration Seized Democrats Data From Apple

During the early days of Donald Trump's presidency, the US Department of Justice has subpoenaed Apple to obtain information about at least two Democratic representatives, their employees and their families. One of them was leading Democrat Adam Schiff and The New York Times reports citing insiders. According to the paper, prosecutors were trying to identify the media sources, which at the time reported contacts between Trump associates and Russia. The Justice Department's suspicions focused on Democratic members of the House Intelligence Committee. Schiff is now chairman and was its leading Democrat at the time. The files of at least twelve people - including a minor child - who had a link with the committee were seized in 2017 and early 2018. Apple would only have handed over m...

Joe Biden Talks to Boris Johnson about Special Relationship

10Jun

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

US, News, UK

Joe Biden Talks to Boris Johnson about Special Relationship

US President Joe Biden will meet British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Thursday in Carbis Bay in Cornwall, England. It is the first leader to speak to Biden on his first foreign trip as president. It will be a man-to-man conversation with no officials or ministers, which is pretty much a tradition in US-UK relations that presidents and prime ministers invariably refer to as a special relationship. Biden will give the impression that his country is entirely back and reliable in world politics after his predecessor Donald Trump. The latter wanted to focus on domestic affairs. Biden and Johnson have not met as far as is known, and previously Biden dismissed British Conservative politician Johnson as a "physical and emotional clone of Trump". Biden will also reportedly elaborate o...

Volkswagen Settles With Former Executives

9Jun

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Business, News

Volkswagen Settles With Former Executives

Volkswagen has reached a settlement with former company executives over the diesel scandal. Together, the directors, including ex-CEO Martin Winterkorn, coughed 288 million euros to buy off claims related to the scandal. The agreement mainly consists of a payment of 270 million euros from the directors' liability insurance. Former Audi boss Rupert Stadler will also have to contribute. The deal still needs to be approved at the annual shareholders' meeting on July 22. At the end of March, Volkswagen said it would demand compensation from Winterkorn and Stadler for violating the duty of care. As part of the deal, Winterkorn and Stadler will pay 11.2 million and 4.1 million euros correspondingly. Previous Audi board member Stefan Knirsch agreed to a settlement of 1 million euros. ...

US Recovers Most Ransom After Major Cyber Attack on Oil Pipeline Company

8Jun

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

US, Business, News, Technology

US Recovers Most Ransom After Major Cyber Attack on Oil Pipeline Company

The US government has recovered much of the ransom paid after the cyber attack on oil pipeline company Colonial Pipeline. The FBI found 63.7 bitcoins, which is worth about 1.7 million euros today. The unprecedented cyber attack forced Colonial Pipeline to shut down its network and endanger the fuel supply of large parts of the US. The US Justice Department "found and recovered most" of the ransom paid by Colonial Pipeline, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said at a news conference. It concerns 63.7 bitcoins! At the time of the hacking, bitcoin was worth a lot more. The company paid the cybercriminals nearly $5 million. The FBI was able to recover the bitcoins because it is in possession of the "private key" (the password) to open the hackers' bitcoin wallet. How the FBI got ...

7Jun

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Finance

How to Get Hire and Reward Insurance?

A search online for “hire and reward insurance” will show that there are a number of different aggregators, insurers and brokers who provide quotes for vehicle insurance for drivers being paid for making trips with their vehicle. Hire and reward insurance for food delivery, taxi drivers, driving instructors, and more is a must-have for anyone using their vehicle in return for payment. Depending on the tier of cover, it can help protect the driver, the vehicle and other road users from the additional risks that professional drivers can face. Finding hire and reward insurance doesn’t need to cause headaches; however, there are conflicting reports online as to what exactly hire and reward is (and the coverage levels required for certain work that does require hire and reward), so it’s good t...