*By Mike Teich*
A sweeping data privacy bill has been approved in California, but it may be too late for internet users to protect their information, said former National Counterterrorism Center officer Dave White.
"You have to consider yourself compromised," he said. "You’ve already given your data away."
Experts are calling it the nation's most far-reaching law to give consumers more control over their personal data. Under the law, customers can request what personal data companies have collected and what third parties have received it.
The passing of the historical bill didn't come without criticism. The ACLU of Northern California said the legislation falls "woefully short" in defending individuals' rights.
"It's a great first step," White said. However, “it doesn’t go far enough."
Companies that collect user data, from Amazon to Microsoft to Uber, lobbied aggressively against the law, pouring millions into a [opposition campaigns](https://www.theverge.com/2018/6/15/17468292/amazon-microsoft-uber-california-consumer-privacy-act).
But consumer advocates called it a milestone victory. "Today was a [huge win](http://money.cnn.com/2018/06/28/technology/california-consumer-privacy-act/index.html) and gives consumer privacy advocates a blueprint for success," James P. Steyer, CEO and founder of Common Sense Media. "We look forward to working together with lawmakers across the nation to ensure robust data privacy protections for all Americans."
For full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/california-passes-historic-privacy-bill).
Soothe's new CEO Simon Heyrick says the company is working on new tools to increase its clients' safety after an assault accusation by a Kentucky woman. The massage on-demand app recently raised $31 million in a new round of funding.
Rachio is a smart sprinkler that can schedule waterings and also help homeowners control how much water is used, says Chris Klein, the company's co-founder and CEO. That functionality has helped conserve about 28 billion gallons of water to date.
For the first time in eight years, the social site is rolling out a redesign that reduces white space and increases flexibility in how users view content. Many of the changes were careful and based on user feedback, says Chris Slowe, the site's chief technology officer, because "Reddit exists as a platform to criticize Reddit."
The live streaming platform, primarily used for video game streaming, has 15 million daily users who spend an average of two hours a day watching content there. That's because Twitch has turned the traditionally "solitary exercise" of gaming into a more social experience, says co-founder Kevin Lin.
The humanoid robot was designed with an eye toward businesses before homes, says Steve Carlin, Softbank Robotics chief strategy officer. That way American users can interact and "get used to" the four-foot-tall robots before letting them into their personal spaces.
One of the ways to turn the company around is a change in management, says Michael Pachter, an analyst from Wedbush Securities. Shares of the social media company took a hit Wednesday, a day after it delivered disappointing quarterly results.
Though the music streaming platform posted results in-line with expectations on revenue and paid subscribers, the company is still losing money, and revenue growth for the current quarter looks uninspiring. Spotify's shares fell about eight percent after the bell Wednesday.
The electric carmaker brought in more revenue than expected in the first quarter but posted a net loss of over $780 million. It said it would reverse that by the second half of the year, if it's able to meet its production goals.
The video sharing platform is deliberately staying away from original content because there's already "billions of dollars being invested in that," said CEO Anjali Sud. Instead, she added, Vimeo is focused on being a tool for creators.
Apple and Snap reported earnings with wildly different results. Apple beat expectations on earnings and revenue, bolstered by strong iPhone sales, international growth, and an increase in wearables. The iPhone X was Apple's best-selling phone last quarter, putting rumors to rest that it would discontinue the phone.
On the other hand, Snap had a pretty disappointing quarter, missing Wall Street estimates on revenue and user growth. The unpopular redesign to the Snapchat app likely contributed to slower than expected daily active user growth.
Facebook's F8 developer conference is underway in San Jose, California. Cheddar's Alex Heath sat down with Ime Archibong, Facebook's VP of Partnerships, at the conference to discuss how the company is changing its data practices in the wake of the Cambridge Analytica scandal.
