Between Apple, Google and Facebook, app development has become one of the fastest growing industries. A study found that since 2005, nearly half a million U.S. jobs were created just for the development of mobile applications. California holds 25% of all app-related jobs in the United States. In other news, Google announced that its web browser Chrome is now available for mobile devices running Android 4.0. The mobile browser has advanced features like tabbed browsing and can sync open pages between your computer and mobile device. If you have Android 4.0, you can download the beta now. And finally, hackers posted source code for anti-virus company Symantec’s pcAnywhere software online, after a failed extortion attempt. The hacker allegedly tried to obtain $50,000 from an undercover law enforcement agent and posted the source code online after failing to secure the money.

Verizon is partnering with Redbox to offer a subscription-based video rental service. While Verizon will deliver the digital content, the offering will be a stand-alone service available to anyone with a broadband connection. It’s expected to launch in the second half of this year. In other news, the Super Bowl set a record for Tweets per second, but the game itself wasn’t what people were talking about. 75% of Super Bowl conversation on Twitter focused on the commercials and the halftime show. By contrast, 2% of tweets were about the Giant’s victory. And finally, Google is launching a project called Solve for X, aimed at tackling the biggest of global problems. The project is a think tank similar to TED, where you can hear and discuss radical uses of technology. Google hopes the project will encourage what it calls “moonshot” thinking.

A study conducted by Chicago University found that Facebook and Twitter are harder to resist than alcohol and tobacco. Participants were checked in on 7 times a day and 75% of the responses indicated an urge to use social media. As the day wore on, willpower to avoid the temptation was even worse. In other news, deleting a photo on Facebook doesn’t mean that it goes away. A flaw in how the site stores photos leaves them available to anyone with a direct link to the file. Facebook is working on a new system that will permanently delete the photos after a month and a half. And finally, the number of smartphones shipped worldwide eclipsed personal computers. By the end of 2011, vendors shipped 488 million smartphones, outnumbering PCs and tablet combined. 93 million of those devices were iPhones.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement made one of its biggest online crackdowns in history. Federal authorities took down over 300 domain names for illegally streaming NFL games and selling counterfeit sports paraphernalia. Nearly $5 million in fake NFL merchandise was seized. In other news, after an investigation into a filing with the SEC, VeriSign admitted that it was hacked multiple times in 2010. This is particularly troubling because at the time, VeriSign was the primary authority for issuing websites security certificates. The extent of the damage is still being looked into. And finally, Google introduced new security measures to prevent users from downloading viruses through the Android Market. A new service will automatically scan the market and continuously remove apps that try to compromise your phone. Unless you’re downloading apps from third-party sites, don’t worry about your phone getting a virus.

Facebook filed its initial public offering for $5 billion. What makes the company worth so much money? In 2011, Facebook reported having over 845 million active users and raked in revenue of over $3.7 billion. 85% of Facebook’s earnings came from advertisements. In other news, Microsoft launched the Kinect for Windows platform, bringing the motion-sensing device to the PC. While the Kinect is great for playing games, Microsoft is positioning the PC version as a tool to help business. 300 companies worldwide are already making applications through Kinect’s early adoption program. And finally, Sony announced that Kazuo Hirai would take over for Howard Stringer as the company’s new chief executive. Hirai is a veteran of Sony and worked to turn around the company’s videogame business. Sony hopes that Hirai’s success with the PlayStation can translate to its other ailing departments.

The iPad’s success has made Apple the top PC manufacturer worldwide. A report found that Apple sold 15 million iPads last quarter, pushing the company ahead of mainstay manufacturers like HP and Dell. Once a niche product, the tablet is making its case as a popular personal computer. In other news, U.S. lawmakers are making Google defend the changes to its privacy policy, questioning the safety of consumer data. Google stressed that the new policy only streamlines its products and won’t collect any additional user information than before. The amount of data Google is about to have will be unparalleled. And finally, Amazon missed sales expectations for the fourth quarter, but all signs point to the Kindle Fire being an overwhelming success. Downloads on Amazon’s Appstore exceeded every other quarter combined and Instant Video rentals doubled.

Companies including Google, Yahoo, Microsoft and AOL are working on a system to help prevent users from receiving malicious emails. The group’s goal is to make email a more secure messaging system, where sensitive data like bank information can be transmitted safely. In other news, hope isn’t lost if you used Megaupload.com to store personal files. Prosecutors are working on a deal with the companies storing the data and hope to release your files in the near future. If no deal is made, the data could be gone as early as this week. And finally, AT&T announced that the highly anticipated Samsung Note would be available February 19th. The 4G LTE smartphone has a huge 5.3-inch screen and includes a stylus that converts your handwriting to text. It costs $300 with a two-year contract and pre-orders begin February 5^th.

Facebook is expected to file for its initial public offering as early as Wednesday. The social network could be valued as high as $100 billion, putting it among the likes of McDonald’s and Citigroup. No tech company’s IPO has been valued so high since Google’s in 2004. In other news, Twitter is forced to censor tweets when a government requests they do so. In the past, the site was forced to block the content worldwide, but its new system aims to reduce that censorship. Content will still remain blocked in that country, but made available everywhere else. And finally, Nintendo announced that it would soon launch an online gaming platform similar to Xbox Live and PlayStation Network. The Nintendo Network will let 3DS and future Wii U users play against each other online and download digital content, including full games.

Google+ is opening its door to teenagers. If you’re between 13 to 18 years old, Google+ will provide certain safety measures to prevent you from over-sharing your information. The precautions include warning messages about posting publicly and preventing strangers from joining video hangouts. In other news, while AT&T added over 700,000 new subscribers in the fourth quarter of last year, it still suffered tremendous losses. The company took a huge hit following its failed merger with T-Mobile. After a $4 billion break-up fee, AT&T ended up losing $6.7 billion last quarter. And finally, Nintendo’s newest game system, the Wii U, will be released in time for the 2012 holiday season. Once the king of videogames, Nintendo is really struggling to keep up with its competition. The company said it expects to post a loss of over $800 million by March.

After losing over 800,000 subscribers in the third quarter last year, Netflix is finally rebounding. The company made up for much of the loss, adding over 600,000 subscribers in the fourth quarter. Netflix’s stock went up as high as 13% following its earnings report. In other news, Google launched its Crisis Response project that adds emergency alert information to Google Maps.  You can now search for extreme weather, public safety or earthquake alert information specific to your location. Google is partnering with several government agencies to provide the up-to-date advisories. And finally, once you give a website your information, it’s sometimes difficult to know where it lives online. New privacy laws proposed by the European Commission looks to change that. If the rules are approved, users can request that online services like Facebook and Google delete their information.