Online private-messaging service Wickr has announced it is splitting in two, The New York Times reports. Mark Fields will take over as chief executive of the for-profit wing, allowing Wickr Cofounder Nico Sell to lead its new nonprofit initiative. The Wickr Foundation aims to promote privacy and share online communication best practices with teenagers, dissidents, journalists and human rights activists. Fields said he plans to bring Wickr’s core technology to more businesses, the report states. Meanwhile, AVG Technologies has acquired Privax, which currently has 250,000 paying subscribers who use its encrypted VPN service. AVG CEO Gary Kovacs said, “With this acquisition, we will immediately be able to provide new and innovative privacy and security services to hundreds of millions of users worldwide.” (Registration may be required to access this story.)
Full Story