Month: July 2025

WeTransfer faces open source competition by Sendox after controversy over terms of service

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The collective The New Digital announces the public beta of Sendox: an open source file sharing platform that puts privacy and digital sovereignty at its core. Sendox has been developed as a transparent and independent alternative to services like WeTransfer. “We believe that digital freedom and autonomy are not luxuries, but fundamental rights,” said Frank Read more about WeTransfer faces open source competition by Sendox after controversy over terms of service[…]

WhoFi: Unique ‘fingerprint’ based on Wi-Fi interactions allows reidentification of people being observed

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Researchers in Italy have developed a way to create a biometric identifier for people based on the way the human body interferes with Wi-Fi signal propagation. The scientists claim this identifier, a pattern derived from Wi-Fi Channel State Information, can re-identify a person in other locations most of the time when a Wi-Fi signal can Read more about WhoFi: Unique ‘fingerprint’ based on Wi-Fi interactions allows reidentification of people being observed[…]

More nanoplastics in tiny part of sea than micro- and macroplastics in all world’s oceans

Posted on by Robin Edgar

“This estimate shows that there is more plastic in the form of nanoparticles floating in the this part of the ocean, than there is in larger micro- or macroplastics floating in the Atlantic or even all the world’s oceans!,” said Helge Niemann, researcher at NIOZ and professor of geochemistry at Utrecht University. Mid-June, he received Read more about More nanoplastics in tiny part of sea than micro- and macroplastics in all world’s oceans[…]

Goodbye plastic? Scientists create new supermaterial that outperforms metals and glass

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Scientists at Rice University and the University of Houston have created a powerful new material by guiding bacteria to grow cellulose in aligned patterns, resulting in sheets with the strength of metals and the flexibility of plastic—without the pollution. Using a spinning bioreactor, they’ve turned Earth’s purest biopolymer into a high-performance alternative to plastic, capable Read more about Goodbye plastic? Scientists create new supermaterial that outperforms metals and glass[…]

Hackers exploit a blind spot by hiding malware inside DNS records

Posted on by Robin Edgar

[…]The practice allows malicious scripts and early-stage malware to fetch binary files without having to download them from suspicious sites or attach them to emails, where they frequently get quarantined by antivirus software. That’s because traffic for DNS lookups often goes largely unmonitored by many security tools. […] Researchers from DomainTools on Tuesday said they Read more about Hackers exploit a blind spot by hiding malware inside DNS records[…]

Microsoft warns on-prem SharePoint users of a zero-day, won’t patch it though

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Microsoft has warned users of SharePoint Server that three on-prem versions of the product include a zero-day flaw that is under attack – and that its own failure to completely fix past problems is the cause. In a July 19 security note, the software giant admitted it is “… aware of active attacks targeting on-premises Read more about Microsoft warns on-prem SharePoint users of a zero-day, won’t patch it though[…]

As site blocks pile up, European Commission issues subtle slapdown to Italy’s Piracy Shield

Posted on by Robin Edgar

As numerous Walled Culture posts attest, site blocking is in the vanguard of the actions by copyright companies against sites engaged in the unauthorised sharing of material. Over the past few months, this approach has become even more pervasive, and even more intrusive. For example, in France, the Internet infrastructure company Cloudflare was forced to Read more about As site blocks pile up, European Commission issues subtle slapdown to Italy’s Piracy Shield[…]

Nobel Prize-Winning Physicist Is Stripped of Dutch Citizenship due to stupid xenophobic Dutch rules

Posted on by Robin Edgar

In 2010, he and his colleague Konstantin Novoselov — who were by then working in England — won the Nobel Prize in Physics for their experiments creating graphene, the world’s thinnest and strongest material. His list of honors goes on and on, and Mr. Geim has the unique distinction of having been awarded both a Read more about Nobel Prize-Winning Physicist Is Stripped of Dutch Citizenship due to stupid xenophobic Dutch rules[…]

Better Airplane Navigation Using Quantum Sensing of a map of the Earth’s Crust

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Airbus’s Silicon Valley-based innovation center, Acubed, and artificial intelligence and quantum-focused Google spinout SandboxAQ are on a mission to demonstrate an alternate way. It involves a small, toaster-size box, lasers, a single GPU chip and a deep knowledge of the Earth’s magnetic field. The technology, known as quantum sensing, has been in development for decades Read more about Better Airplane Navigation Using Quantum Sensing of a map of the Earth’s Crust[…]

Cloudflare: Config change borked net access for all

Posted on by Robin Edgar

There was a disturbance in the force on July 14 after Cloudflare borked a configuration change that resulted in an outage, impacting internet services across the planet. In a blog post, the content delivery network services biz detailed the unfortunate series of events that led to Monday’s disruption. On the day itself, “Cloudflare’s 1.1.1.1 Resolver Read more about Cloudflare: Config change borked net access for all[…]

UK F-35 fleet poorly supported, can’t use vital weapons, shows NAO

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The F-35 stealth fighter is not meeting its potential in British service because of availability issues, a shortage of support personnel, and delays in integrating key weapons that are limiting the aircraft’s effectiveness. The various problems are highlighted in a reality check from the UK’s National Audit Office (NAO) that offers a contrast to the Read more about UK F-35 fleet poorly supported, can’t use vital weapons, shows NAO[…]

This ‘Molecular Shield’ Might Stop Pollen Before It Wrecks Your Nose

Posted on by Robin Edgar

what if, by spraying something akin to a nasal spray, you could thwart the onslaught of those pesky allergens before they latch onto your sensitive nasal passages? This was the “simple but powerful idea” that inspired Kaissar Tabynov, who led the efforts to create a “molecular shield” that intercepts allergens the moment they approach our Read more about This ‘Molecular Shield’ Might Stop Pollen Before It Wrecks Your Nose[…]

Bug Hunters Gain Access to 64 Million McDonald’s Job Applicants’ Info by Using the Password ‘123456’

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A recruitment platform used by McDonald’s is alleged to have had such poor cybersecurity that researchers were able to log into it using a non-password and thus gain access to information on tens of millions of job applicants, including contact details and chat logs between the user and the restaurant’s AI bot. The platform in Read more about Bug Hunters Gain Access to 64 Million McDonald’s Job Applicants’ Info by Using the Password ‘123456’[…]

Watch out, another max-severity Cisco bug on the loose

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Cisco has issued a patch for a critical 10 out of 10 severity bug in its Identity Services Engine (ISE) and ISE Passive Identity Connector (ISE-PIC) that could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to run arbitrary code on the operating system with root-level privileges. ISE is a network access control and security policy management platform, Read more about Watch out, another max-severity Cisco bug on the loose[…]

Google Ordered to Pay $314M for Misusing Android Users’ Cellular Data Without Permission – calling home 389 times per day even when completely idle and all google apps closed!

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Google has been ordered by a court in the U.S. state of California to pay $314 million over charges that it misused Android device users’ cellular data when they were idle to passively send information to the company. The verdict marks an end to a legal class-action complaint that was originally filed in August 2019. Read more about Google Ordered to Pay $314M for Misusing Android Users’ Cellular Data Without Permission – calling home 389 times per day even when completely idle and all google apps closed![…]

Synology starts selling overpriced underperforming 1.6 TB SSDs for $535 — self-branded, archaic PCIe 3.0 SSDs the only option to meet ‘certified’ criteria being enforced on newer NAS models

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Synology has begun selling its newest SNV5400 enterprise NAS SSDs, and the asking prices for what you receive are nothing short of shocking. For a 1.6 TB NVMe SSD at PCIe Gen3 speeds, Synology is asking $535 on B&H Photo Video, while many competing devices retail for around $100. The new SNV5400 family, which also Read more about Synology starts selling overpriced underperforming 1.6 TB SSDs for $535 — self-branded, archaic PCIe 3.0 SSDs the only option to meet ‘certified’ criteria being enforced on newer NAS models[…]

Your Samsung phone has a secret Wi-Fi menu. Here’s how to find it

Posted on by Robin Edgar

One such example is the “Connectivity Labs” Wi-Fi settings menu. It’s buried deep in the Settings app on your Samsung phone, and it’s something I didn’t know existed until just the other day. Which is a shame, because there’s some really cool stuff in here. Let me show you. How to find Samsung’s secret Wi-Fi Read more about Your Samsung phone has a secret Wi-Fi menu. Here’s how to find it[…]

Someone Built a Concept Ad Blocker for Real Life, and I Can’t Wait to Try It

Posted on by Robin Edgar

I use as many ad-blocking programs as possible, but no matter how many I install, real-life advertising is still there, grabbing my attention when I’m just trying to go for a walk. Thankfully, there may be a solution on the horizon. Software engineer Stijn Spanhove recently posted a concept video showing what real-time, real-life ad-blocking Read more about Someone Built a Concept Ad Blocker for Real Life, and I Can’t Wait to Try It[…]

Proton joins anti-Apple lawsuit to force App Store changes in the US

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Secure comms biz Proton has joined a lawsuit that alleges Apple’s anticompetitive ways are harming developers, consumers, and privacy. Proton is a Switzerland-based (for now) provider of encrypted communications services and on Monday filed a legal complaint [PDF] against Apple, claiming the iGiant is abusing its control of iOS and the App Store in ways Read more about Proton joins anti-Apple lawsuit to force App Store changes in the US[…]