Developers who want to sideload apps on Android, or offer apps outside the Play Store, will have to pay for this .
It has been possible to have so-called apk files installed on Android smartphones and tablets for some time, but now Google is going to charge money for this. The company does this on the basis of the new European Digital Markets Act (DMA).
Firstly, there is a 10 percent purchase fee for in-app purchases or 5 percent for two-year subscriptions. In addition, there will be an ongoing fee for processing in-app purchases. This amounts to 17 percent (7 percent for subscriptions).
The European Commission has been reprimanded for infringing data protection regulations when using Microsoft 365.
The rebuke came from the European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) and is the culmination of an investigation that kicked off in May 2021, following the Schrems II judgement.
According to the EDPS, the EC infringed several data protection regulations, including rules around transferring personal data outside the EU / European Economic Area (EEA.)
According to the organization, “In particular, the Commission has failed to provide appropriate safeguards to ensure that personal data transferred outside the EU/EEA are afforded an essentially equivalent level of protection as guaranteed in the EU/EEA.
“Furthermore, in its contract with Microsoft, the Commission did not sufficiently specify what types of personal data are to be collected and for which explicit and specified purposes when using Microsoft 365.”
While the concerns are more about EU institutions and transparency, they should also serve as notice to any company doing business in the EU / EEA to take a very close look at how it has configured Microsoft 365 regarding the EU Data Protection Regulations.
Who knew? An American Company running an American cloud product on American Servers and the EU was putting it’s data on it. Who would have thought that might end up in America?!
India has waded into global AI debate by issuing an advisory that requires “significant” tech firms to get government permission before launching new models.
India’s Ministry of Electronics and IT issued the advisory to firms on Friday. The advisory — not published on public domain but a copy of which TechCrunch has reviewed — also asks tech firms to ensure that their services or products “do not permit any bias or discrimination or threaten the integrity of the electoral process.”
Though the ministry admits the advisory is not legally binding, India’s IT Deputy Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar says the notice is “signalling that this is the future of regulation.” He adds: “We are doing it as an advisory today asking you to comply with it.”
In a tweet Monday, Chandrasekhar said the advisory is aimed at “untested AI platforms deploying on the India internet” and doesn’t apply to startups.
The ministry cites power granted to it through the IT Act, 2000 and IT Rules, 2021 in its advisory. It seeks compliance with “immediate effect” and asks tech firms to submit “Action Taken-cum-Status Report” to the ministry within 15 days.
The new advisory, which also asks tech firms to “appropriately” label the “possible and inherent fallibility or unreliability” of the output their AI models generate, marks a reversal from India’s previous hands-off approach to AI regulation. Less than a year ago, the ministry had declined to regulate AI growth, instead identifying the sector as vital to India’s strategic interests.
Donald Trump supporters are creating and sharing AI-generated images of the former president with Black voters. The photos appear to be an attempt to inflate Trump’s popularity with the Black community, which may be irreparably harmed by his ties to white supremacist groups, but the photos are nothing but fakes.
In the leadup to the 2024 Presidential Election, several of these AI-generated dupes of Black Trump supporters have popped up on social media. One image is a holiday photo depicting Trump embracing several Black people. However, it’s an AI dupe created by The Mark Kaye Show, a conservative talk show, and distributed on Facebook to over one million of Kaye’s Facebook followers. The post from November, first reported by the BBC, was not labeled as being AI-generated in any way.
“I never thought I would read the words ‘BLM Leader endorses Donald Trump,’ but then again, Christmas is the time for miracles,” said Kaye in a Facebook post.
The image is obviously an AI fake. Trump’s hands look deformed, and the person on the far left is missing a ring finger.
Over the last 48 hours, Roku has slowly been rolling out a mandatory update to its terms of service. In this terms it changes the dispute resolution terms but it is not clear exactly why. When the new terms and conditions message shows up on a Roku Player or TV, your only option is to accept them or turn off your Roku and stop using it.
[…]
Roku does offer a way to opt out of these new arbitration rules if you write them a letter to an address listed in the terms of service. You do need to hurry though as you only get 30 days to write a letter to Roku to opt out. Though it is unclear if that is from when you buy your Roku or agree to these new terms.
Customers are understandably confused by these new terms of service that have appeared in recent days. Raising questions about why now and why such an aggressive messaging about them that forces you to manually accept them or stop using your device.
[…] X began rolling out the audio and video calling feature, which was previously restricted to paid users, to everyone last week. However, hawk-eyed sleuths quickly noticed that the feature was automatically turned on, meaning that users had to manually go to their settings to turn it off. Only your mutuals or someone you’ve exchanged DMs with can call you by default, but that’s still potentially a lot of people.
Privacy researchers also sounded the alarm on the feature after learning that it revealed users’ IP address during calls. Notably, the option to protect users’ IP addresses is toggled off, which frankly makes no sense.
Zach Edwards, an independent privacy researcher, told Gizmodo that an IP address can allow third parties to track down your location and get their hands on other details of your online life.
“In major cities, an IP address can sometimes identify someone’s exact location, but usually it’s just close enough to be creepy. Like a 1 block radius around your house,” Edwards said via X direct messages. However, “sometimes if in a remote/rural location, the IP address 1000% identifies you.”
Law enforcement can use IP addresses to track down illegal behavior, such as child sexual abuse material or pirating online content. Meanwhile, hackers can launch DDoS attacks to take down your internet connection or even steal your data.
How to turn off audio and video calls on X
Luckily, you can avoid potential IP security nightmares by turning off audio and video calls on X. As you’ll see in the screenshots below, it’s pretty straightforward:
– First, go to Settings and Support. Then click on Settings and Privacy. (If you’re on desktop, click on the More button and then go to Settings and Privacy).
– Next, click on Privacy and Safety. Select Direct Messages from the menu that pops up.
– Toggle off the option that says Enable audio and video calling.
Screenshot: Oscar Gonzalez
And that’s it. Some may not see the Enable audio and video calling option in their settings yet, which means the feature hasn’t been rolled out to them. That doesn’t mean they won’t eventually get it in a future update.
Key dashboard touchscreen functions will soon be kicked into touch and physical switches will be required instead for car manufacturers to be granted the highest safety ratings.
Euro NCAP, the automotive safety industry body for Europe, is introducing new guidance for 2026 which means that five important tasks in every car will have to be performed by actual buttons instead of by accessing a screen.
Indicators, hazard warning lights, windscreen wipers, horn, and SOS features will have to be controlled by proper switches in order for cars to be granted Euro NCAP’s coveted five star safety rating.
“The overuse of touchscreens is an industry-wide problem, with almost every vehicle-maker moving key controls onto central touchscreens, obliging drivers to take their eyes off the road and raising the risk of distraction crashes,” explained Matthew Avery, director of strategic development at Euro NCAP.
“New Euro NCAP tests due in 2026 will encourage manufacturers to use separate, physical controls for basic functions in an intuitive manner, limiting eyes-off-road time and therefore promoting safer driving.
Several manufacturers have already come under fire for excessively complex touch screen controls forcing drivers to access menu after menu to adjust seats, mirrors and ventilation—we’re especially looking at you Tesla and VW.
Although it won’t be mandatory to comply with Euro NCAP’s new rules car makers that don’t will lose valuable points in their safety ratings. It sounds like a sensible idea—a positive move in the battle against distracted driving—and one, that, hopefully, the NHTSA will follow.
Microsoft is coming out swinging over claims by the New York Times that the Windows giant and OpenAI infringed copyright by using its articles to build ChatGPT and other models.
In yesterday’s filing [PDF], Microsoft’s lawyers recall the early 1980s efforts of the Motion Picture Association to stifle the growth of VCR technology, likening it to the legal efforts of the New York Times (NYT) to stop OpenAI in their work on the “latest profound technological advance.”
The motion describes the NYT’s allegations that the use of GPT-based products “harms The Times,” and “poses a mortal threat to independent journalism” as “doomsday futurology.”
[…]
Microsoft’s response doesn’t appear to suggest that content has not been lifted. Instead, it says: “Despite The Times’s contentions, copyright law is no more an obstacle to the LLM than it was to the VCR (or the player piano, copy machine, personal computer, internet, or search engine.)”
[…]
In its demands for the dismissal of the three claims in particular, the motion points out that Microsoft shouldn’t be held liable for end-user copyright infringement through GPT-based tools. It also says that to get the NYT content regurgitated, a user would need to know the “genesis of that content.”
“And in any event, the outputs the Complaint cites are not copies of works at all, but mere snippets.”
Finally, the filing delves into the murky world of “fair use,” the American copyright law, which is relatively permissive in the US compared to other legal jurisdictions.
OpenAI hit back at the NYT last month and accused the company of paying someone to “hack” ChatGPT in order to persuade it to spit out those irritatingly verbatim copies of NYT content.
Rooster Teeth, a Warner Bros. Discovery Global Streaming & Interactive Entertainment subsidiary, is ending operations after 20+ years. The news was announced on March 6 in a company memo and blog post on the digital content creator’s site.
Earlier today, the news of Rooster Teeth shutting down was first shared at an all-hands company meeting followed by an internal memo from RT’s general manager, Jordan Levin. This memo was then posted alongside a message from community director Chelsea Atkinson confirming that the site was winding down, and adding that a livestream about the shutdown was planned for tomorrow, March 7.
“Since inheriting ownership and control of Rooster Teeth from AT&T following its acquisition of TimeWarner, Warner Bros. Discovery continued its investment in our company, content, and community,” said Levin in the memo.
“Now however, it’s with a heavy heart I announce that Rooster Teeth is shutting down due to challenges facing digital media resulting from fundamental shifts in consumer behavior and monetization across platforms, advertising, and patronage.”
[…]
Rooster Teeth started back in 2003 in Texas. It was founded by Burnie Burns, Matt Hullum, Geoff Ramsey, Jason Saldaña, Gus Sorola, and Joel Heyman. The company’s first big hit was the Halo machinima series, Red Vs. Blue. That show would become incredibly popular, leading to millions of views, DVDs, spin-offs, and loads of merchandise. Elijah Wood even had a role in one season. The show’s 19th and final season is still set to arrive later this year.
iOS 17.4 is the first version of Apple’s operating system to comply with the regulatory framework of the European Digital Markets Act. Apple must also support alternative app stores, where apps can be installed around the App Store.
The availability of this functionality is only geographically limited to the EU, and Apple has revealed for the first time that alternative app stores will stop working if you leave the EU for too long.
Furthermore, your Apple ID must be set to one of the following countries: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden.
The exact period during which you can travel outside the EU is not specified.
