Day: June 29, 2018

Google opens its human-sounding Duplex AI to public testing

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Google is moving ahead with Duplex, the stunningly human-sounding artificial intelligence software behind its new automated system that places phone calls on your behalf with a natural-sounding voice instead of a robotic one. The search giant said Wednesday it’s beginning public testing of the software, which debuted in May and which is designed to make calls to businesses and Read more about Google opens its human-sounding Duplex AI to public testing[…]

The Discovery of Complex Organic Molecules on Saturn’s Moon Enceladus Is a Huge Deal

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Using data collected by NASA’s late-great Cassini space probe, scientists have detected traces of complex organic molecules seeping out from Enceladus’ ice-covered ocean. It’s yet another sign that this intriguing Saturnian moon has what it takes to sustain life. If life exists elsewhere in our Solar System, chances are it’s on Enceladus. The moon features Read more about The Discovery of Complex Organic Molecules on Saturn’s Moon Enceladus Is a Huge Deal[…]

Not OK Google: Massive outage turns smart home kit utterly dumb

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Google’s entire Home infrastructure has suffered a serious outage, with millions of customers on Wednesday morning complaining that their smart devices have stopped working. At the time of writing, the cloud-connected gadgets are still hosed, the service is still down, and the system appears to have been knackered for at least the past 10 hours. Read more about Not OK Google: Massive outage turns smart home kit utterly dumb[…]

Facebook Patent Imagines Triggering Your Phone’s Mic When a Hidden Signal Plays on TV

Posted on by Robin Edgar

You may have seen the ads that Facebook has been running on TV in a full-court press to apologize for abusing users privacy. They’re embarrassing. And, it turns out, they may be a sign of things to come. Based on a recently published patent application, Facebook could one day use ads on television to further Read more about Facebook Patent Imagines Triggering Your Phone’s Mic When a Hidden Signal Plays on TV[…]

Facebook, Google, Microsoft scolded for tricking people into spilling their private info

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Five consumer privacy groups have asked the European Data Protection Board to investigate how Facebook, Google, and Microsoft design their software to see whether it complies with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Essentially, the tech giants are accused of crafting their user interfaces so that netizens are fooled into clicking away their privacy, and Read more about Facebook, Google, Microsoft scolded for tricking people into spilling their private info[…]

Ticketmaster Discloses Breach That Impacts Nearly 5 Percent of Its Customers

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Ticketmaster on Wednesday disclosed a data breach reportedly caused by malware infecting a customer support system outsourced to an external company. In a statement, Ticketmaster said some of its customer data may have been accessed by an unknown intruder. Email notifications were sent to customers who purchased tickets between February and June 23, 2018, the Read more about Ticketmaster Discloses Breach That Impacts Nearly 5 Percent of Its Customers[…]

Personal Information of 340 Million People and Businesses Leaked By Florida Marketing Firm Exactis

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A little-known, Florida-based marketing firm called Exactis may be responsible for a significant amount of personal data being exposed. According to a report from Wired, the firm left 340 million individual records on a publicly accessible server that any person could have gotten ahold of. The leak was discovered earlier this month by security researcher Read more about Personal Information of 340 Million People and Businesses Leaked By Florida Marketing Firm Exactis[…]

Enabling new Google photo face and people search in UK, Europe, Germany

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Virtual Private Networks, a.k.a. VPN, are very handy to make your internet traffic to appear from a different location than you are. All your traffic is tunneled to an exit point of your choosing, for example a data center in New York City. To Google Photos service you then seem to be located in New Read more about Enabling new Google photo face and people search in UK, Europe, Germany[…]