Intel open-sources AI-powered tool to spot bugs in code

Intel today open-sourced ControlFlag, a tool that uses machine learning to detect problems in computer code — ideally to reduce the time required to debug apps and software. In tests, the company’s machine programming research team says that ControlFlag has found hundreds of defects in proprietary, “production-quality” software, demonstrating its usefulness. […] ControlFlag, which works Read more about Intel open-sources AI-powered tool to spot bugs in code[…]

Internet Service Providers Collect, Sell Horrifying Amount of Sensitive Data, Government Study Concludes

The new FTC report studied the privacy practices of six unnamed broadband ISPs and their advertising arms, and found that the companies routinely collect an ocean of consumer location, browsing, and behavioral data. They then share this data with dodgy middlemen via elaborate business arrangements that often aren’t adequately disclosed to broadband consumers. “Even though Read more about Internet Service Providers Collect, Sell Horrifying Amount of Sensitive Data, Government Study Concludes[…]

Researchers design antibodies that destroy old cells, slowing down aging

No one knows why some people age worse than others and develop diseases -such as Alzheimer’s, fibrosis, type 2 diabetes or some types of cancer- associated with this aging process. One explanation for this could be the degree of efficiency of each organism’s response to the damage sustained by its cells during its life, which Read more about Researchers design antibodies that destroy old cells, slowing down aging[…]

Study: Recycled Lithium Batteries as Good as Newly Mined

[…] while the EV battery recycling industry is starting to take off, getting carmakers to use recycled materials remains a hard sell. “In general, people’s impression is that recycled material is not as good as virgin material,” says Yan Wang, a professor of mechanical engineering at Worcester Polytechnic Institute. “Battery companies still hesitate to use Read more about Study: Recycled Lithium Batteries as Good as Newly Mined[…]

Client-Side Scanning Is An Insecure Nightmare Just Waiting To Be Exploited By Governments or companies. Apple basically installing spyware under a nice name.

In August, Apple declared that combating the spread of CSAM (child sexual abuse material) was more important than protecting millions of users who’ve never used their devices to store or share illegal material. While encryption would still protect users’ data and communications (in transit and at rest), Apple had given itself permission to inspect data Read more about Client-Side Scanning Is An Insecure Nightmare Just Waiting To Be Exploited By Governments or companies. Apple basically installing spyware under a nice name.[…]

‘Flight Simulator: GOTY Edition’ adds new aircraft and locations on November 18th

Microsoft is spicing up Flight Simulator with an expanded re-release, although this one may be more ambitious than some. It’s releasing Flight Simulator: Game of the Year Edition on November 18th with both a heaping of new content as well as some meaningful feature upgrades. To start, there are five new stand-out aircraft, including the Read more about ‘Flight Simulator: GOTY Edition’ adds new aircraft and locations on November 18th[…]

Facial recognition scheme in place in some British schools – more to come

Facial recognition technology is being employed in more UK schools to allow pupils to pay for their meals, according to reports today. In North Ayrshire Council, a Scottish authority encompassing the Isle of Arran, nine schools are set to begin processing meal payments for school lunches using facial scanning technology. The authority and the company Read more about Facial recognition scheme in place in some British schools – more to come[…]

Hacker steals government ID database for Argentina’s entire population

A hacker has breached the Argentinian government’s IT network and stolen ID card details for the country’s entire population, data that is now being sold in private circles. The hack, which took place last month, targeted RENAPER, which stands for Registro Nacional de las Personas, translated as National Registry of Persons. The agency is a crucial cog Read more about Hacker steals government ID database for Argentina’s entire population[…]

Cybercrime Group Has Hacked Telecoms All Over the World since at least 2016

[…]A hacker gang, […] has been infiltrating telecoms throughout the world to steal phone records, text messages, and associated metadata directly from carrier users. That’s according to a new report from cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike, which published a technical analysis of the mysterious group’s hacking campaign on Tuesday. The report, which goes into a significant amount Read more about Cybercrime Group Has Hacked Telecoms All Over the World since at least 2016[…]

Facebook fined GBP 50m by UK for not supplying correct info on giphy takeover

The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has smacked Facebook with a £50m ($68.7m) fine for “deliberately” not giving it the full picture about its ongoing $400m acquisition of gif-slinger Giphy. The move  – fingered by the CMA as a “major breach” – comes just weeks after the antisocial network dismissed the UK’s regulator’s initial findings as Read more about Facebook fined GBP 50m by UK for not supplying correct info on giphy takeover[…]

Why does dutch supermarket Albert Heijn have camera’s looking at you at the self check out?

The Party for the Animals (PvdD) wants clarity from outgoing minister Dekker for Legal Protection about a camera on Albert Heijn’s self-scanner. It concerns the PS20 from manufacturer Zebra. According to this company, the camera on the self-scanner supports facial recognition to automatically identify customers. PvdD MPs Van Raan and Wassenberg want to know whether Read more about Why does dutch supermarket Albert Heijn have camera’s looking at you at the self check out?[…]

Canon Sued for Disabling All-in-One Printer When Ink Runs Out

A customer fed up with the tyranny of home printers is suing Canon for disabling multiple functions on an all-in-one printer when it runs out of ink. Consumer printer makers have long used the razor blade business model—so named after companies who sell razor handles for cheap, but the compatible replacement blades at much higher Read more about Canon Sued for Disabling All-in-One Printer When Ink Runs Out[…]

At Amazon, Some Brands Get More Protection From Fakes Than Others

There are two classes of merchant on Amazon.com: those who get special protection from counterfeiters and those who don’t. From a report: The first category includes sellers of some big-name brands, such as Adidas, Apple and even Amazon itself. They benefit from digital fortifications that prevent unauthorized sellers from listing certain products — an iPhone, Read more about At Amazon, Some Brands Get More Protection From Fakes Than Others[…]

WhatsApp begins rolling out end-to-end encryption for chat backups

The wait is over. It’s now possible to encrypt your WhatsApp chat history on both Android and iOS, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced on Thursday. The company plans to roll out the feature slowly to ensure it can deliver a consistent and reliable experience to all users. However, once you can access the feature, it Read more about WhatsApp begins rolling out end-to-end encryption for chat backups[…]

Moscow metro launches facial recognition payment system despite privacy concerns

More than 240 metro stations across Moscow now allow passengers to pay for a ride by looking at a camera. The Moscow metro has launched what authorities say is the first mass-scale deployment of a facial recognition payment system. According to The Guardian, passengers can access the payment option called FacePay by linking their photo, Read more about Moscow metro launches facial recognition payment system despite privacy concerns[…]

New crew docks at China’s first permanent space station

Chinese astronauts began Saturday their six-month mission on China’s first permanent space station, after successfully docking aboard their spacecraft. The astronauts, two men and a woman, were seen floating around the module before speaking via a live-streamed video. […] The space travelers’ Shenzhou-13 spacecraft was launched by a Long March-2F rocket at 12:23 a.m. Saturday Read more about New crew docks at China’s first permanent space station[…]

Missouri governor demands prosecution for data breach report – in HTML source code of state website

A Missouri politician has been relentlessly mocked on Twitter after demanding the prosecution of a journalist who found and responsibly reported a vulnerability in a state website. Mike Parson, governor of Missouri, described reporters for local newspaper the St Louis Post Dispatch (SLPD) as “hackers” after they discovered a web app for the state’s Department Read more about Missouri governor demands prosecution for data breach report – in HTML source code of state website[…]

Tesla’s Bringing Car Insurance to Texas W/ New ‘Safety Score’ by eating and selling your location data

After two years of offering car insurance to drivers across California, Tesla’s officially bringing a similar offering to clientele in its new home state of Texas. As Electrek first reported, the big difference between the two is how drivers’ premiums are calculated: in California, the prices were largely determined by statistical evaluations. In Texas, your Read more about Tesla’s Bringing Car Insurance to Texas W/ New ‘Safety Score’ by eating and selling your location data[…]

Researchers show Facebook’s ad tools can target a single specific user

A new research paper written by a team of academics and computer scientists from Spain and Austria has demonstrated that it’s possible to use Facebook’s targeting tools to deliver an ad exclusively to a single individual if you know enough about the interests Facebook’s platform assigns them. The paper — entitled “Unique on Facebook: Formulation Read more about Researchers show Facebook’s ad tools can target a single specific user[…]

OAK-D Depth Sensing AI Camera Gets Smaller And Lighter

The OAK-D is an open-source, full-color depth sensing camera with embedded AI capabilities, and there is now a crowdfunding campaign for a newer, lighter version called the OAK-D Lite. The new model does everything the previous one could do, combining machine vision with stereo depth sensing and an ability to run highly complex image processing Read more about OAK-D Depth Sensing AI Camera Gets Smaller And Lighter[…]

Criminals use fake AI voice to swindle UAE bank out of $35m

Authorities in the United Arab Emirates have requested the US Department of Justice’s help in probing a case involving a bank manager who was swindled into transferring $35m to criminals by someone using a fake AI-generated voice. The employee received a call to move the company-owned funds by someone purporting to be a director from Read more about Criminals use fake AI voice to swindle UAE bank out of $35m[…]

Amazon copied products and rigged search results, documents show

Amazon.com Inc has been repeatedly accused of knocking off products it sells on its website and of exploiting its vast trove of internal data to promote its own merchandise at the expense of other sellers. The company has denied the accusations. But thousands of pages of internal Amazon documents examined by Reuters – including emails, Read more about Amazon copied products and rigged search results, documents show[…]

LANtenna attack reveals Ethernet cable traffic contents from a distance

An Israeli researcher has demonstrated that LAN cables’ radio frequency emissions can be read by using a $30 off-the-shelf setup, potentially opening the door to fully developed cable-sniffing attacks. Mordechai Guri of Israel’s Ben Gurion University of the Negev described the disarmingly simple technique to The Register, which consists of putting an ordinary radio antenna Read more about LANtenna attack reveals Ethernet cable traffic contents from a distance[…]

Amazon accused of copying merchant products in India

When asked in July, 2020, by US Representative Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) whether Amazon ever mined data from its third-party vendors to launch competing products, founder and then CEO Jeff Bezos said he couldn’t answer “yes” or “no,” but insisted Amazon had rules disallowing the practice. “What I can tell you is we have a policy Read more about Amazon accused of copying merchant products in India[…]

AI Fake-Face Generators Can Be Rewound To Reveal the Real Faces They Trained On

Load up the website This Person Does Not Exist and it’ll show you a human face, near-perfect in its realism yet totally fake. Refresh and the neural network behind the site will generate another, and another, and another. The endless sequence of AI-crafted faces is produced by a generative adversarial network (GAN) — a type Read more about AI Fake-Face Generators Can Be Rewound To Reveal the Real Faces They Trained On[…]