Month: May 2020

Apple’s T2 Security Chip ensure used laptops become unrecyclable junk, a Nightmare for MacBook Refurbishers

Posted on by Robin Edgar

As predicted, the proprietary locking system Apple rolled out with its 2018 MacBook Pros is hurting independent repair stores, refurbishers, and electronics recyclers. A combination of secure software locks, diagnostic requirements, and Apple’s new T2 security chip are making it hard to breathe new life into old MacBook Pros that have been recycled but could Read more about Apple’s T2 Security Chip ensure used laptops become unrecyclable junk, a Nightmare for MacBook Refurbishers[…]

Iceland Has Tested 13% of Its Population for Coronavirus. They have days with 0 deaths. Here’s What It Found

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Iceland’s testing yielded new leads for scientists about how the virus behaves. Early results suggested 0.6 percent of the population were “silent carriers” of the disease with no symptoms or only a mild cough and runny nose. Preliminary research suggests one-third of those who tested positive at deCODE infected someone around them, providing evidence that Read more about Iceland Has Tested 13% of Its Population for Coronavirus. They have days with 0 deaths. Here’s What It Found[…]

Researchers create a new system to protect users’ online data by checking if data entered is consistent with the privacy policy

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Researchers have created a new a new system that helps Internet users ensure their online data is secure. The software-based system, called Mitigator, includes a plugin users can install in their browser that will give them a secure signal when they visit a website verified to process its data in compliance with the site’s privacy Read more about Researchers create a new system to protect users’ online data by checking if data entered is consistent with the privacy policy[…]

Antwerpen Uni bans video app Zoom – city of Antwerp is stupid enough to keep using it

Posted on by Robin Edgar

De Universiteit Antwerpen verbiedt het gebruik van videobelapp Zoom. De applicatie zou niet veilig genoeg en de universiteit wil geen risico’s nemen nadat men vorig jaar al eens het slachtoffer is geworden van een cyberaanval. Ook Google en de Amerikaanse ruimtevaartorganisatie NASA namen onlangs het besluit om Zoom niet meer te gebruiken. Bij de stad Read more about Antwerpen Uni bans video app Zoom – city of Antwerp is stupid enough to keep using it[…]

UK COVID-19 contact tracing app data may be kept for ‘research’ after crisis ends, MPs told

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Britons will not be able to ask NHS admins to delete their COVID-19 tracking data from government servers, digital arm NHSX’s chief exec Matthew Gould admitted to MPs this afternoon. Gould also told Parliament’s Human Rights Committee that data harvested from Britons through NHSX’s COVID-19 contact tracing app would be “pseudonymised” – and appeared to Read more about UK COVID-19 contact tracing app data may be kept for ‘research’ after crisis ends, MPs told[…]

Why smartphones are digital truth serum

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Do smartphones alter what people are willing to disclose about themselves to others? A new study in the Journal of Marketing suggests that they might. The research indicates that people are more willing to reveal personal information about themselves online using their smartphones compared to desktop computers. For example, Tweets and reviews composed on smartphones Read more about Why smartphones are digital truth serum[…]

OK, Landlord: If Copyright Supporters Are Going To Insist Copyright Is Property, Why Are They So Mad About Being Called Landlords?

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Law professor Brian Frye has spent the last month or so making a really important point regarding the never-ending “is copyright property” debate — saying that if copyright is property, then copyright holders should be seen and treated as landlords. This whole approach can be summed up in the slightly snarky and trollish phrase: “OK, Read more about OK, Landlord: If Copyright Supporters Are Going To Insist Copyright Is Property, Why Are They So Mad About Being Called Landlords?[…]

Scientists can 3D print insect-like robots in minutes

Posted on by Robin Edgar

It might soon be relatively trivial to make soft robots — at least, if you have a 3D printer handy. UC San Diego researchers have devised a way to 3D-print insect-like flexible robots cheaply, quickly and without using exotic equipment. The trick was to print “flexoskeletons,” or rigid materials 3D-printed on to flexible and thin Read more about Scientists can 3D print insect-like robots in minutes[…]

Facebook releases Blender AI Chatbot sources

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Facebook AI has built and open-sourced Blender, the largest-ever open-domain chatbot. It outperforms others in terms of engagement and also feels more human, according to human evaluators. The culmination of years of research in conversational AI, this is the first chatbot to blend a diverse set of conversational skills — including empathy, knowledge, and personality Read more about Facebook releases Blender AI Chatbot sources[…]

AI can’t be legally credited as an inventor, says US Patent Office

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Artificial intelligence has myriad use cases, but it turns out inventing devices isn’t one of them — at least in the eyes of the US Patent and Trademark Office. The agency issued a decision on two patent applications for devices created by an AI system, determining that only humans can legally be credited as inventors. Read more about AI can’t be legally credited as an inventor, says US Patent Office[…]

Virgin Galactic’s spaceship flies from its new home base for the first time

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The pieces are finally starting to come together for Virgin Galactic’s space tourism — the company has flown SpaceShipTwo from Spaceport America for the first time. It was just a glide test from 50,000 feet up, but the flight let the spaceport fulfill its intended purpose and gave pilots familiarity with the New Mexico airspace. Read more about Virgin Galactic’s spaceship flies from its new home base for the first time[…]

Trolls, bots flooding social media with anti-quarantine disinformation

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Christopher Bouzy, the founder of bot tracking platform Bot Sentinel, conducted a Twitter analysis for Business Insider and found bots and trolls are using hashtags like #ReOpenNC, #ReopenAmericaNow, #StopTheMadness, #ENDTHESHUTDOWN, and #OperationGridlock to spread disinformation. According to Bouzy, the bots and trolls are spreading conspiracy theories about Democrats wanting to hurt the economy to make Read more about Trolls, bots flooding social media with anti-quarantine disinformation[…]

New Firefox service will generate unique email aliases to enter in online forms

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Browser maker Mozilla is working on a new service called Private Relay that generates unique aliases to hide a user’s email address from advertisers and spam operators when filling in online forms. The service entered testing last month and is currently in a closed beta, with a public beta currently scheduled for later this year, Read more about New Firefox service will generate unique email aliases to enter in online forms[…]

Tesla shares fall on Elon Musk “stock price too high” tweet

Posted on by Robin Edgar

CEO Elon Musk tweeted Friday that the company’s stock price was “too high” in his opinion, immediately sending shares into a free fall and in possible violation of an agreement reached with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission last year. Tesla shares fell nearly 12% in the half hour following his stock price tweets — Read more about Tesla shares fall on Elon Musk “stock price too high” tweet[…]

Elon Musk Tweets ‘FREE AMERICA NOW’ As His Coronavirus Predictions Prove Very Wrong

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Billionaire Elon Musk, America’s dumbest smart guy, spent the night tweeting about how America needs to “reopen” its economy, despite Musk’s failed predictions about the trajectory of the coronavirus crisis. A month ago, Musk insisted that new coronavirus cases in the U.S. would be “close to zero” by the end of April. Well, it’s the Read more about Elon Musk Tweets ‘FREE AMERICA NOW’ As His Coronavirus Predictions Prove Very Wrong[…]

Brave accuses European governments of GDPR resourcing failure

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Brave, a maker of a pro-privacy browser, has lodged complaints with the European Commission against 27 EU Member States for under resourcing their national data protection watchdogs. It’s asking the European Union’s executive body to launch an infringement procedure against Member State governments, and even refer them to the bloc’s top court, the European Court Read more about Brave accuses European governments of GDPR resourcing failure[…]

ThinkPad’s Iconic Nub and Keyboard Comes to Your Desktop – but not mechanical

Posted on by Robin Edgar

ThinkPad’s keyboards have a fiercely loyal following, and for $100 you can keep using the design that time forgot with this detached wireless version that will work any other laptop or computer. The ThinkPad TrackPoint Keyboard II is now available on Lenovo’s website, and it looks like a piece of hardware that dates back over Read more about ThinkPad’s Iconic Nub and Keyboard Comes to Your Desktop – but not mechanical[…]

Three things in life are certain: Death, taxes, and cloud-based IoT gear bricked by vendors. Looking at you, Belkin

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Oh look, here’s another cautionary tale about buying cloud-based IoT kit. On 29 May, global peripheral giant Belkin will flick the “off” switch on its Wemo NetCam IP cameras, turning the popular security devices into paperweights. It’s not unusual for a manufacturer to call time on physical hardware. Like software, it has a lifespan where, Read more about Three things in life are certain: Death, taxes, and cloud-based IoT gear bricked by vendors. Looking at you, Belkin[…]

Apple chucks $3 at iPhone users after killing FaceTime on iOS 6 because it didn’t want to pay connectivity charges after 6 year legal fight

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Apple has agreed to settle a class-action lawsuit brought by folks upset the iGiant broke FaceTime overnight on millions of iPhones. The settlement amounts to a few bucks a device, meaning the Cupertino giant almost certainly made a net profit in the process. This week the Tim Cook-led corporation said it would pay $18m [PDF] Read more about Apple chucks $3 at iPhone users after killing FaceTime on iOS 6 because it didn’t want to pay connectivity charges after 6 year legal fight[…]

Zoom admits it doesn’t have 300 million users, corrects misleading claims

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Zoom has admitted it doesn’t have 300 million daily active users. The admission came after The Verge noticed the company had quietly edited a blog post making the claim earlier this month. Zoom originally stated it had “more than 300 million daily users” and that “more than 300 million people around the world are using Read more about Zoom admits it doesn’t have 300 million users, corrects misleading claims[…]

Surprise surprise, Xiaomi web browser and music player are sending data about you to China

Posted on by Robin Edgar

When he looked around the Web on the device’s default Xiaomi browser, it recorded all the websites he visited, including search engine queries whether with Google or the privacy-focused DuckDuckGo, and every item viewed on a news feed feature of the Xiaomi software. That tracking appeared to be happening even if he used the supposedly Read more about Surprise surprise, Xiaomi web browser and music player are sending data about you to China[…]

Sense prevails over money! ICANN finally halts $1.1bn sale of .org registry, says it’s ‘the right thing to do’ after months of controversy

Posted on by Robin Edgar

ICANN has vetoed the proposed $1.1bn sale of the .org registry to an unknown private equity firm, saying this was “the right thing to do.” The DNS overseer has been under growing pressure to use its authority to refuse the planned transfer of the top-level domain from the Internet Society to Ethos Capital, most recently Read more about Sense prevails over money! ICANN finally halts $1.1bn sale of .org registry, says it’s ‘the right thing to do’ after months of controversy[…]

annoying Netsweeper internet filter comes with a pre-auth remote-command execution hole and there’s no patch

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Netsweeper’s internet filter has a nasty security vulnerability that can be exploited to hijack the host server and tamper with lists of blocked websites. There are no known fixes right now. For those unfamiliar, Netsweeper makes software that monitors and blocks connections to undesirable websites and servers. It’s aimed at parents, schools, government offices, and Read more about annoying Netsweeper internet filter comes with a pre-auth remote-command execution hole and there’s no patch[…]