Microsoft Security Issues and Layoffs (Yes, Again) (UPDATED)

posted by Roy Schestowitz on May 09, 2023,
updated May 10, 2023

• Cyberattacks on health care are increasing. Inside one hospital's fight to recover

  Johnson Memorial was just one victim in a rising wave of cyberattacks on hospitals across the country. One study found that cyberattacks on U.S. health care facilities more than doubled between 2016 and 2022.

• AI Hacking Village at DEF CON This Year

  At DEF CON this year, Anthropic, Google, Hugging Face, Microsoft, NVIDIA, OpenAI and Stability AI will all open up their models for attack.

• New Cactus ransomware encrypts itself to avoid detection by security software

  Discovered by security researchers at Kroll LLC, the ransomware, dubbed “Cactus,” is believed to have first been deployed in March. The ransomware targets known vulnerabilities in Fortinet Inc. VPN appliances to gain access to major organizations before getting to work.

• LinkedIn lays off 700 employees, exits China app as demand wavers

  LinkedIn, which has 20,000 employees, has grown revenue each quarter during the last year, but it joins other major technology companies including its parent in laying off workers amid a weakening global economic outlook.

• LinkedIn To Begin Layoffs, Shuts China App Amid Intense Competition

  In a letter to employees, LinkedIn CEO Ryan Roslansky said that the company will invest in opportunities for “profitable growth and capture share amidst the current cycle”. He added that this would involve reducing roles and also opening up 250 new roles in the segments of operations, new business and account management teams starting on 15 May.

• LinkedIn lays off 716 staffers, to shut China job app

  Employment-focused social media platform LinkedIn on Tuesday said it would let go of 716 staffers as it shuts down a job search app in China and prepares for tapering revenue growth [sic].

UPDATE

More on the layoffs:

• LinkedIn axes 716 jobs in fresh tech cuts, shuts China app

  Professional networking platform LinkedIn says it’s laying off more than 700 workers and shuttering its China jobs app, in the latest round of tech industry downsizing.

• LinkedIn links out of China with 716 roles for the chop

  Microsoft's social network for suits, LinkedIn, announced on Tuesday that its localized Chinese app is shutting down and the company is embarking on a layoff process.

  "As we guide LinkedIn through this rapidly changing landscape, we are making changes to our Global Business Organization (GBO) and our China strategy that will result in a reduction of roles for 716 employees," read a message from CEO Ryan Roslansky.

• Tech layoffs: LinkedIn announce a second round of job cuts impacting more than 700 people

  LinkedIn, owned by Microsoft, has announced it will cut 716 jobs from its global workforce (4 per cent of its staff).

• Microsoft-Owned LinkedIn Announces 100s of Layoffs

  The professional network and career development tool, LinkedIn, is laying off 716 workers and terminating its Chinese app, ‘InCareers', amid a ‘weakening global economic outlook' and a ‘drop in demand.'

  This makes the Microsoft-owned app the latest in a long line of tech companies to slash headcounts — with Amazon and Meta taking similar actions just last month.

  Sales, operations, and support teams have been impacted the most. However, LinkedIn's CEO, Ryan Roslansky, claims that affected workers will be able to apply for 250 new roles that will be created within the company.

• Tech layoffs: LinkedIn cuts 700 jobs and closes China app

  LinkedIn has become the latest tech firm to axe jobs, closing 716 roles out of a 20,000 workforce.

  The social media network which focuses on business professionals will also phase out its local jobs app in China.

  In a letter by the company's chief executive Ryan Roslansky, he said the move was aimed at streamlining the firm's operations.

  In the last six months, firms including Amazon, LinkedIn's parent Microsoft, and Alphabet have announced layoffs.

• LinkedIn mass layoffs: Jobs platform cuts more staff after celebrating its 20th anniversary

  It’s more bad news for the tech industry as another major platform has announced layoffs. LinkedIn, which is owned by Microsoft, is cutting 716 positions. The cuts come after LinkedIn laid off an undisclosed number of workers on its talent acquisition team back in February, as reported then by The Information. The new cuts also follow the massive layoffs that owner Microsoft made across its other divisions in January.

• LinkedIn layoffs: Microsoft-owned company to fire 716 employees, shut down China-focused job search app

  LinkedIn is set to cut 716 jobs and close down its China-focused job application. The move by the Microsoft-owned company comes amid a weakening global economic outlook and a drop in demand. Although LinkedIn has grown revenue every quarter for the last year, it has joined a host of major technology companies in laying off workers, including its parent company, Microsoft. LinkedIn employs around 20,000 employees, which takes translates to job cuts of around 3.5 per cent.

  LinkedIn generates income through ad sales and subscriptions to recruiting and sales professionals using the network to find potential employees. CEO Ryan Roslansky wrote a letter to employees stating that the job cuts were aimed at streamlining the company's operations and would remove layers to make faster decisions.

  Although the China-focused job application will be closed, LinkedIn will still have a presence in China to assist companies operating there to hire and train employees outside the country.

  In the past six months, over 2,70,000 tech jobs worldwide have been cut, with large companies such as Amazon, Facebook and Google parent company Alphabet accounting for the bulk of the layoffs.

Some more:

• LinkedIn axing 716 jobs and closing China app in fresh tech cuts

• LinkedIn Slashes Over 700 Jobs, Closes China App Amid 'Evolving Market'

  Employment platform LinkedIn has announced it is slashing hundreds of jobs and phasing out its app in China...

• Tech layoffs: Microsoft-owned LinkedIn cuts over 700 jobs, shuts down China app InCareer

  With this move, LinkedIn joins a slew of tech companies including Meta, Google, Amazon, and Twitter that have announced a stream of layoffs. Amid the wavering global economic outlook and a looming recession, LinkedIn has joined the of companies that have massively cut down jobs in the past six months.

  In a statement released Monday, the company announced that it would be laying off 716 people from its workforce of over 19,000.

• LinkedIn Sinks In China: Plans to cut 716 jobs and Kill the InCareer App Amidst Stiff Competition | Technology - Science News, Times Now

  The layoffs and InCareer's phasing out are part of LinkedIn's efforts to revamp its Global Business Organization (GBO) and China strategy.

3 more about layoffs:

• LinkedIn Displaces 716 Positions, Pulls Out Its China App

  LinkedIn is eliminating 716 jobs and will begin winding down its local jobs app in China as part of the company’s restructuring. In a letter that was sent out today, LinkedIn CEO Ryan Roslanky explained the decision to discontinue the separate China app known as InCareer by citing “fierce competition and a challenging macroeconomic climate.”

• LinkedIn announced layoffs and the closure of its Chinese jobs app InCareer

  LinkedIn became the latest tech company to lay off employees to rein back costs.

• Microsoft's Share Prices Drop Ahead of Inflation Report and LinkedIn Layoffs

  On May 9, 2023, Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ: MSFT) experienced a decrease in share prices prior to the release of the April Consumer Price Index inflation report on Wednesday. Investors are concerned about the possibility of unexpectedly strong inflation data, as it can lead to higher expenses, lower pricing power, and lower consumer spending, particularly for tech-related equities.

  Earlier that day, LinkedIn, Microsoft’s business and employment-focused social media platform, had to let go of 716 employees as part of changes to its Global Business Organization (GBO) and China strategy. LinkedIn aims to sunset its Business Productivity team and reduce management roles while utilizing more vendors to “serve emerging and growth markets more effectively.”

4 more:

• LinkedIn Layoffs: Woman Hired by Microsoft-Owned Job Platform Laid Off Before Joining, Shares Ordeal Online

  LinkedIn has announced layoffs in its sales, operations, and support department. The move by the Microsoft-owned company comes amid a weakening global economic outlook and a drop in demand. Some employees have already started receiving termination letter.

• Microsoft culls 700 jobs from LinkedIn, shutters China services

  LinkedIn is everybody's favorite work-oriented social network, where we go to brag about our achievements in this weird, pacified, and ingenuine way we think employers might find to be professional and potentially desirable. Sadly, it seems some of LinkedIn's own employees may also be heading to the service to job hunt in the near term.

  As part of Microsoft's cost-cutting measures for the year, its social network LinkedIn is shedding approximately 700 staff from its 20,000-strong team. In a note shared (opens in new tab) on LinkedIn itself, CEO Ryan Roslansky outlined the firm's "need" to cut costs and streamline, echoing phrasing used by many other tech companies in recent months, describing a challenging "macroeconomic environment." A big part of the restructuring effort is to wind down operations in China, owing to "fierce" competition from local rivals. LinkedIn will instead focus on helping firms hiring in China from outside of China, according to the note, while closing its local teams for marketing, operations, and development.

• LinkedIn cutting 716 jobs in latest round of tech layoffs

  LinkedIn, the social media network owned by Microsoft Corp that focuses on business professionals, said on Monday it would cut 716 jobs as demand wavers, while also shutting down its China-focused job application.

• LinkedIn Cutting 716 Employees [Ed: How Microsoft's longtime propagandist Kurt Mackie covered it]

  LinkedIn CEO Ryan Roslansky described the layoffs as a hard decision to address a rapidly changing business landscape. As part of the job cuts, the company is ending its Global Business Organization. The existing Product and Engineering teams at LinkedIn will be the company's replacement for that organization.