Author: Robin Edgar

Organisational Structures | Technology and Science | Military, IT and Lifestyle consultancy | Social, Broadcast & Cross Media | Flying aircraft

Book Publishing Giant Wiley Pulls Nearly 1400 Ebook Titles From GW Library Forcing Students To Buy Them Instead

Posted on by Robin Edgar

[…] George Washington University libraries have put out an alert to students and faculty that Wiley, one of the largest textbook publishers, has now removed 1,379 textbook titles that the library can lend out. They won’t even let the library purchase a license to lend out the ebooks. They will only let students buy the Read more about Book Publishing Giant Wiley Pulls Nearly 1400 Ebook Titles From GW Library Forcing Students To Buy Them Instead[…]

A Methodology for Quantifying the Value of Cybersecurity Investments in the Navy

Posted on by Robin Edgar

RAND Corporation researchers developed and supported the implementation of a methodology to assess the value of resource options for U.S. Navy cybersecurity investments. The proposed methodology features 12 scales in two categories (impact and exploitability) that allow the Navy to score potential cybersecurity investments in the Program Objective Memorandum (POM) process. The authors include a Read more about A Methodology for Quantifying the Value of Cybersecurity Investments in the Navy[…]

Why Reddit Is Losing It Over Samsung’s New Privacy Policy – it’s an incredible data grab

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Samsung recently updated it privacy policy for all users with a Samsung account, effective Oct. 1. One Redditor read the policy, did not like what they saw, and shared it to r/android, highlighting what they consider to be the doc’s worst policy points. The thread blew up, with Android users aplenty decrying Samsung’s new policy. Read more about Why Reddit Is Losing It Over Samsung’s New Privacy Policy – it’s an incredible data grab[…]

The Onion defends right to parody in very real supreme court brief supporting local satirist vs Police who were made fun of

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The Onion, the long-running satirical publication, has filed a very real legal document with the US supreme court, urging it to take on a case centered on the right to parody. And in order to make a serious legal point, the filing does what the Onion does best, offering a big helping of total nonsense. Read more about The Onion defends right to parody in very real supreme court brief supporting local satirist vs Police who were made fun of[…]

Publishers Lose Their Shit After Authors Push Back On Their Attack On Libraries, start fake newsing

Posted on by Robin Edgar

On Friday, we wrote about hundreds of authors signing a letter calling out the big publishers’ attacks on libraries (in many, many different ways). The publishers pretend to represent the best interests of the authors, but history has shown over and over again that they do not. They represent themselves, and use the names of Read more about Publishers Lose Their Shit After Authors Push Back On Their Attack On Libraries, start fake newsing[…]

EA Announces New Anti-Cheat Tech That Operates At The Kernel Level ie takes over your PC, can read and write everything on it

Posted on by Robin Edgar

It seems anti-cheat technology is the new DRM. By that I mean that, with the gaming industry diving headfirst into the competitive online gaming scene, the concern over piracy has shifted into a concern over cheating making those online games less attractive to gamers. And because the anti-cheat tech that companies are using is starting Read more about EA Announces New Anti-Cheat Tech That Operates At The Kernel Level ie takes over your PC, can read and write everything on it[…]

Firefly Aerospace reaches orbit with new Alpha rocket

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A new aerospace company reached orbit with its second rocket launch and deployed multiple small satellites on Saturday. Firefly Aerospace’s Alpha rocket lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base, California, in early morning darkness and arced over the Pacific. “100% mission success,” Firefly tweeted later. A day earlier, an attempt to launch abruptly ended when Read more about Firefly Aerospace reaches orbit with new Alpha rocket[…]

Australian Optus telco data debacle gets worse and worse – non-existent security and no govt regulation

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[…] The alleged hacker – who threatened to sell the data unless a ransom was paid – took names, birth dates, phone numbers, addresses, and passport, healthcare and drivers’ license details from Optus, the country’s second-largest telecommunications company. Of the 10 million people whose data was exposed, almost 3 million had crucial identity documents accessed. Read more about Australian Optus telco data debacle gets worse and worse – non-existent security and no govt regulation[…]

Blizzard really really wants your phone number to play its games – personal data grab and security risk

Posted on by Robin Edgar

When Overwatch 2 replaces the original Overwatch on Oct. 4, players will be required to link a phone number to their Battle.net accounts. If you don’t, you won’t be able to play Overwatch 2 — even if you’ve already purchased Overwatch. The same two-factor step, called SMS Protect, will also be used on all Call Read more about Blizzard really really wants your phone number to play its games – personal data grab and security risk[…]

FCC rules Satellites must be deorbited within five years of completing missions instead of 25 years

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has adopted new rules to address the growing risk of “space junk” or abandoned satellites, rockets and other debris. The new “5-year-rule” will require low-Earth operators to deorbit their satellites within five years following the completion of missions. That’s significantly less time than the previous guideline of 25 years. Read more about FCC rules Satellites must be deorbited within five years of completing missions instead of 25 years[…]

Researchers detect the first definitive proof of elusive sea level fingerprints

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When ice sheets melt, something strange and highly counterintuitive happens to sea levels. It works basically like a seesaw. In the area close to where theses masses of glacial ice melt, ocean levels fall. Yet thousands of miles away, they actually rise. It largely happens because of the loss of a gravitational pull toward the Read more about Researchers detect the first definitive proof of elusive sea level fingerprints[…]

EU proposes rules making it easier to sue AI systems

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BRUSSELS, Sept 28 (Reuters) – The European Commission on Wednesday proposed rules making it easier for individuals and companies to sue makers of drones, robots and other products equipped with artificial intelligence software for compensation for harm caused by them. The AI Liability Directive aims to address the increasing use of AI-enabled products and services Read more about EU proposes rules making it easier to sue AI systems[…]

Hackers Are Hypervisor Hijacking in the wild now

Posted on by Robin Edgar

For decades, virtualization software has offered a way to vastly multiply computers’ efficiency, hosting entire collections of computers as “virtual machines” on just one physical machine. And for almost as long, security researchers have warned about the potential dark side of that technology: theoretical “hyperjacking” and “Blue Pill” attacks, where hackers hijack virtualization to spy Read more about Hackers Are Hypervisor Hijacking in the wild now[…]

CIA betrayed informants with shoddy covert comms websites

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For almost a decade, the US Central Intelligence Agency communicated with informants abroad using a network of websites with hidden communications capabilities. The idea being: informants could use secret features within innocent-looking sites to quietly pass back information to American agents. So poorly were these 885 front websites designed, though, according to security research group Read more about CIA betrayed informants with shoddy covert comms websites[…]

Neil Gaiman, Cory Doctorow And Other Authors Publish Letter Protesting Lawsuit Against Internet Library

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A group of authors and other creative professionals are lending their names to an open letter protesting publishers’ lawsuit against the Internet Archive Library, characterizing it as one of a number of efforts to curb libraries’ lending of ebooks. Authors including Neil Gaiman, Naomi Klein, and Cory Doctorow lent their names to the letter, which Read more about Neil Gaiman, Cory Doctorow And Other Authors Publish Letter Protesting Lawsuit Against Internet Library[…]

Open internet at stake in UN ITU secretary-general election

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[…]  this year’s event has become a geopolitical football – and possibly a turning point for internet governance – thanks to the two candidates running in an election for the position of ITU secretary-general. […] The USA has put forward Doreen Bogdan-Martin for the gig. […] Russia has nominated Rashid Ismailov for the job. A Read more about Open internet at stake in UN ITU secretary-general election[…]

Subreddit Discriminates Against Anyone Who Doesn’t Call Texas Governor Greg Abbott ‘A Little Piss Baby’ To Highlight Absurdity Of Content Moderation Law Designed for White Supremacists

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Last year, I tried to create a “test suite” of websites that any new internet regulation ought to be “tested” against. The idea was that regulators were so obsessively focused on the biggest of the big guys (i.e., Google, Meta) that they never bothered to realize how it might impact other decently large websites that Read more about Subreddit Discriminates Against Anyone Who Doesn’t Call Texas Governor Greg Abbott ‘A Little Piss Baby’ To Highlight Absurdity Of Content Moderation Law Designed for White Supremacists[…]

New theory concludes that the origin of life on Earth-like planets is likely

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Does the existence of life on Earth tell us anything about the probability of abiogenesis—the origin of life from inorganic substances—arising elsewhere? That’s a question that has confounded scientists, and anyone else inclined to ponder it, for some time. A widely accepted argument from Australian-born astrophysicist Brandon Carter argues that the selection effect of our Read more about New theory concludes that the origin of life on Earth-like planets is likely[…]

Australia To Overhaul Privacy Laws After Optus data breach exposes 40% of AU population

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Following one of the biggest data breaches in Australian history, the government of Australia is planning to get stricter on requirements for disclosure of cyber attacks. From a report: On Monday, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told Australian radio station 4BC that the government intended to overhaul privacy legislation so that any company suffering a data Read more about Australia To Overhaul Privacy Laws After Optus data breach exposes 40% of AU population[…]

NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden granted Russian citizenship

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On Monday, Vladimir Putin, President of the Russian Federation, issued a decree [PDF, not secure] naming Snowden (#53), among others, as being granted the boon of Russian citizenship. […] While Snowden’s status as a whistleblower is disputed by the US government, the surveillance apparatus he exposed – the bulk collection of US phone records – Read more about NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden granted Russian citizenship[…]

Charted: 40 Years of Global Energy Production, by Country

Posted on by Robin Edgar

1. Fossil Fuels View the full-size infographic While the U.S. is a dominant player in both oil and natural gas production, China holds the top spot as the world’s largest fossil fuel producer, largely because of its significant production and consumption of coal. Over the last decade, China has used more coal than the rest Read more about Charted: 40 Years of Global Energy Production, by Country[…]

This Controversial Artist Matches Influencer Photoshoots With Surveillance Footage

Posted on by Robin Edgar

It’s an increasingly common sight on vacation, particularly in tourist destinations: An influencer sets up in front of a popular local landmark, sometimes even using props (coffee, beer, pets) or changing outfits, as a photographer or self-timed camera snaps away. Others are milling around, sometimes watching. But often, unbeknownst to everyone involved, another device is Read more about This Controversial Artist Matches Influencer Photoshoots With Surveillance Footage[…]

Cybersickness Could Spell an Early Death for the Metaverse and Virtual Reality

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Luis Eduardo Garrido couldn’t wait to test out his colleague’s newest creation. Garrido, a psychology and methodology researcher at Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra in the Dominican Republic, drove two hours between his university’s campuses to try a virtual reality experience that was designed to treat obsessive-compulsive disorder and different types of phobias. But Read more about Cybersickness Could Spell an Early Death for the Metaverse and Virtual Reality[…]

NVIDIA Builds AI That Creates 3D Objects for Virtual Worlds

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The massive virtual worlds created by growing numbers of companies and creators could be more easily populated with a diverse array of 3D buildings, vehicles, characters and more — thanks to a new AI model from NVIDIA Research. Trained using only 2D images, NVIDIA GET3D generates 3D shapes with high-fidelity textures and complex geometric details. Read more about NVIDIA Builds AI That Creates 3D Objects for Virtual Worlds[…]