Author: Robin Edgar

Spotify CEO Daniel Ek says working musicians may no longer be able to release music only “once every three to four years” – they will have to work just like the rest of us

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Spotify CEO Daniel Ek discussed streaming and sustainability in a recent interview with Music Ally published on Thursday. Ek denied criticisms that Spotify pays insufficient royalties to artists, and insisted that the role of the musician had changed in today’s “future landscape.” Ek claimed that a “narrative fallacy” had been created and caused music fans Read more about Spotify CEO Daniel Ek says working musicians may no longer be able to release music only “once every three to four years” – they will have to work just like the rest of us[…]

Google victory in German top court over right to be forgotten means you can’t just delete the evil stuff you did

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A German court has sided with Google and rejected requests to wipe entries from search results. The cases hinged on whether the right to be forgotten outweighed the public’s right to know. Germany’s highest court agreed on Monday with lower courts and rejected the two plaintiffs’ appeals over privacy concerns. In the first case, a Read more about Google victory in German top court over right to be forgotten means you can’t just delete the evil stuff you did[…]

YouTube threatens to remove music videos in Denmark over songwriter royalty fallout

Posted on by Robin Edgar

YouTube is embroiled in a very public spat with songwriters and music publishers in Denmark, via local collection society Koda. According to Koda – Denmark’s equivalent of ASCAP/BMI (US) or PRS For Music (UK) – YouTube has threatened to remove “Danish music content” (ie. music written by Danish songwriters) from its service. The cause of Read more about YouTube threatens to remove music videos in Denmark over songwriter royalty fallout[…]

AI tracks drone pilot’s location through the small movements the drone makes

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The minute details of rogue drone’s movements in the air may unwittingly reveal the drone pilot’s location—possibly enabling authorities to bring the drone down before, say, it has the opportunity to disrupt air traffic or cause an accident. And it’s possible without requiring expensive arrays of radio triangulation and signal-location antennas. So says a team Read more about AI tracks drone pilot’s location through the small movements the drone makes[…]

Libraries lend books, and must continue to lend books: Internet Archive responds to greedy publishers’ lawsuit

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Yesterday, the Internet Archive filed our response to the lawsuit brought by four commercial publishers to end the practice of Controlled Digital Lending (CDL), the digital equivalent of traditional library lending. CDL is a respectful and secure way to bring the breadth of our library collections to digital learners. Commercial ebooks, while useful, only cover Read more about Libraries lend books, and must continue to lend books: Internet Archive responds to greedy publishers’ lawsuit[…]

Telegram hits out at Apple’s app store ‘tax’ in latest EU antitrust complaint

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Apple has another antitrust charge on its plate. Messaging app Telegram has joined Spotify in filing a formal complaint against the iOS App Store in Europe — adding its voice to a growing number of developers willing to publicly rail against what they decry as Apple’s app “tax”. A spokesperson for Telegram confirmed the complaint Read more about Telegram hits out at Apple’s app store ‘tax’ in latest EU antitrust complaint[…]

Top antitrust Democrat: There’s a case to break up Facebook – The guys were rambling, the women clear. Apple dodges most bullets, CEOs acting like confused guilty schoolboys

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Rep. David Cicilline (D-R.I.), who ended Wednesday’s hearing by saying some Big Tech companies need to be broken up, told Axios that Facebook in particular lacks significant competitors and should not have been allowed to buy Instagram and WhatsApp. Why it matters: Cicilline chairs the antitrust subcommittee, which has been looking into competition issues in Read more about Top antitrust Democrat: There’s a case to break up Facebook – The guys were rambling, the women clear. Apple dodges most bullets, CEOs acting like confused guilty schoolboys[…]

NASA sends Perseverance Rover to Mars – with a little helicopter on it!

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The Mars 2020 mission with its Perseverance rover is part of NASA’s Mars Exploration Program, a long-term effort of robotic exploration of the Red Planet. The Mars 2020 mission addresses high-priority science goals for Mars exploration, including key Astrobiology questions about the potential for life on Mars. The mission takes the next step by not Read more about NASA sends Perseverance Rover to Mars – with a little helicopter on it![…]

secret police Federal officer louts to pull out of Portland in a major reversal for Trump administration

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The Trump administration is to pull federal paramilitaries out of Portland starting on Thursday in a major reversal after weeks of escalating protests and violence. Oregon’s governor, Kate Brown, said she agreed to the pullout in talks with Vice-President Mike Pence. Brown said state and city police officers will replace Department of Homeland Security agents Read more about secret police Federal officer louts to pull out of Portland in a major reversal for Trump administration[…]

Australian government sues Google for misleading consumers in Doubleclick data collection

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The Australian government has filed its second lawsuit against Google in less than a year over privacy concerns, this time alleging the tech giant misled Australian consumers in an attempt to gather information for targeted ads. The Australian Competition and Consumers Commission (ACCC), the country’s consumer watchdog, says Google didn’t obtain explicit consent from consumers Read more about Australian government sues Google for misleading consumers in Doubleclick data collection[…]

Google offers refunds after North smart glasses stop working or why cloud sucks and you want things running locally

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Smart glasses company North has told customers that their $600 (£460) purchases will stop working in a few days’ time. The Canadian company, recently purchased by Google, says its Focals glasses will cease functioning on Friday. From then, owners will not be able to use “any features” of the glasses, or connect to the companion Read more about Google offers refunds after North smart glasses stop working or why cloud sucks and you want things running locally[…]

When a Customer Gets Refunded For a Paid App, Apple Doesn’t Refund the 30% Cut They Took From The Developer

Posted on by Robin Edgar

When a customer gets refunded for an app they purchased, Apple doesn’t refund the 30% cut they took from the developer, says developer Simeon Saens of Two Lives Left. While [online] payment processors generally don’t refund fees on refunded payments, “the App Store doesn’t position itself as a payments processor the way Stripe does, so Read more about When a Customer Gets Refunded For a Paid App, Apple Doesn’t Refund the 30% Cut They Took From The Developer[…]

Hackers Broke Into Real News Sites to Plant Fake Stories

Posted on by Robin Edgar

On Wednesday, security firm FireEye released a report on a disinformation-focused group it’s calling Ghostwriter. The propagandists have created and disseminated disinformation since at least March 2017, with a focus on undermining NATO and the US troops in Poland and the Baltics; they’ve posted fake content on everything from social media to pro-Russian news websites. Read more about Hackers Broke Into Real News Sites to Plant Fake Stories[…]

If you own one of these 45 Netgear devices, replace it: Firm won’t patch vulnerable gear despite live proof-of-concept code

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Netgear has quietly decided not to patch more than 40 home routers to plug a remote code execution vulnerability – despite security researchers having published proof-of-concept exploit code. The vuln was revealed publicly in June by Trend Micro’s Zero Day Initiative (ZDI) following six months spent chivvying Netgear behind the scenes to take it seriously. Read more about If you own one of these 45 Netgear devices, replace it: Firm won’t patch vulnerable gear despite live proof-of-concept code[…]

See When Other Apps Use Your Microphone or Camera With This Android App

Posted on by Robin Edgar

you can get this functionality by downloading and installing a simple app from the Google Play Store: Access Dots. It’s free, it’s easy, and it helps you up your Android’s security game. I would almost call it a must-install for anyone, because it’s as unobtrusive as it is helpful. Download and launch the app, and Read more about See When Other Apps Use Your Microphone or Camera With This Android App[…]

Hackers stole GitHub and GitLab OAuth tokens from Git analytics firm Waydev – this is why you don’t give cloud access to your crown jewels

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Waydev, a San Francisco-based company, runs a platform that can be used to track software engineers’ work output by analyzing Git-based codebases. To do this, Waydev runs a special app listed on the GitHub and GitLab app stores. When users install the app, Waydev receives an OAuth token that it can use to access its Read more about Hackers stole GitHub and GitLab OAuth tokens from Git analytics firm Waydev – this is why you don’t give cloud access to your crown jewels[…]

GRUB2, you’re getting too bug for your boots: Config file buffer overflow is a boon for malware seeking to drill deeper into a system

Posted on by Robin Edgar

An annoying vulnerability in the widely used GRUB2 bootloader can be potentially exploited by malware or a rogue insider already on a machine to thoroughly compromise the operating system or hypervisor while evading detection by users and security tools. […] Designated CVE-2020-10713, the vulnerability allows a miscreant to achieve code execution within the open-source bootloader, Read more about GRUB2, you’re getting too bug for your boots: Config file buffer overflow is a boon for malware seeking to drill deeper into a system[…]

Origins of the sarsen megaliths at Stonehenge

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The sources of the stone used to construct Stonehenge around 2500 BCE have been debated for over four centuries. The smaller “bluestones” near the center of the monument have been traced to Wales, but the origins of the sarsen (silcrete) megaliths that form the primary architecture of Stonehenge remain unknown. Here, we use geochemical data Read more about Origins of the sarsen megaliths at Stonehenge[…]

We’re suing Google for harvesting our personal info even though we opted out of Chrome sync – netizens

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A handful of Chrome users have sued Google, accusing the browser maker of collecting personal information despite their decision not to sync data stored in Chrome with a Google Account. The lawsuit [PDF], filed on Monday in a US federal district court in San Jose, California, claimed Google promises not to collect personal information from Read more about We’re suing Google for harvesting our personal info even though we opted out of Chrome sync – netizens[…]

Scientists are 3-D printing miniature human organs to test coronavirus drugs

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Whether the goal is to find a treatment for COVID-19 or another disease, scientists often have to conduct preliminary tests on animals to determine whether the drug is safe or effective in people. It’s not always a one-for-one comparison, but The New York Times reports there may be a new way around that step going Read more about Scientists are 3-D printing miniature human organs to test coronavirus drugs[…]

Twitter Contractors Abused Access to Beyoncé’s Account: Report

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Twitter contractors with high-level administrative access to accounts regularly abused their privileges to spy on celebrities including Beyoncé, including approximating their movements via internet protocol addresses, according to a report by Bloomberg. Over 1,500 workers and contractors at Twitter who handle internal support requests and manage user accounts have high-level privileges that enable them to Read more about Twitter Contractors Abused Access to Beyoncé’s Account: Report[…]

Microsoft raised Apple’s app store with US house antitrust group

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A US House antitrust committee is getting set to grill tech’s biggest CEOs, but Microsoft wants them to focus on one in particular: Apple’s Tim Cook. Microsoft President Brad Smith met with the committee several weeks ago and relayed concerns about how Apple manages its App Store, according to the The Information (via Bloomberg). Smith Read more about Microsoft raised Apple’s app store with US house antitrust group[…]

Epic Games CEO speaks out against Apple, Google app store monopoly

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Tim Sweeney, CEO of Fortnite developer Epic Games, criticized Apple and Google for having an “absolute monopoly” on app stores in a Friday interview with CNBC. There aren’t many viable options for distributing mobile software outside the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store, and Sweeney chides both for taking a 30 percent fee Read more about Epic Games CEO speaks out against Apple, Google app store monopoly[…]

Will Garmin Pay $10 Million Ransom To End Two-Day Outage?

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Garmin is reportedly being asked to pay a $10 million ransom to free its systems from a cyberattack that has taken down many of its services for two days. The navigation company was hit by a ransomware attack on Thursday, leaving customers unable to log fitness sessions in Garmin apps and pilots unable to download Read more about Will Garmin Pay $10 Million Ransom To End Two-Day Outage?[…]

Cognitive Radios Will Go Where No Deep-Space Mission Has Gone Before

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Space seems empty and therefore the perfect environment for radio communications. Don’t let that fool you: There’s still plenty that can disrupt radio communications. Earth’s fluctuating ionosphere can impair a link between a satellite and a ground station. The materials of the antenna can be distorted as it heats and cools. And the near-vacuum of Read more about Cognitive Radios Will Go Where No Deep-Space Mission Has Gone Before[…]