The Linkielist

Linking ideas with the world

Apple’s Independent Repair Program Is Invasive to Shops and Their Customers, Contract Shows

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Last August, in what was widely hailed a victory for the right-to-repair movement, Apple announced it would begin selling parts, tools, and diagnostic services to independent repair shops in addition to its “authorized” repair partners. Apple’s so-called Independent Repair Provider (IRP) program had its limitations, but was still seen as a step forward for a Read more about Apple’s Independent Repair Program Is Invasive to Shops and Their Customers, Contract Shows[…]

Wacom tablet drivers phone home with names, times of every app opened on your computer

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Wacom’s official tablet drivers leak to the manufacturer the names of every application opened, and when, on the computers they are connected to. Software engineer Robert Heaton made this discovery after noticing his drawing board’s fine-print included a privacy policy that gave Wacom permission to, effectively, snoop on him. Looking deeper, he found that the Read more about Wacom tablet drivers phone home with names, times of every app opened on your computer[…]

Japanese robot could call last orders on human bartenders

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The repurposed industrial robot serves drinks in is own corner of a Japanese pub operated by restaurant chain Yoronotaki. An attached tablet computer face smiles as it chats about the weather while preparing orders. The robot, made by the company QBIT Robotics, can pour a beer in 40 seconds and mix a cocktail in a Read more about Japanese robot could call last orders on human bartenders[…]

Neural Networks Upscale Film from 1896 to 4K, Make It Look Like It Was Shot on a Modern Smartphone

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Denis Shiryaev wondered if it could be made more compelling by using neural network powered algorithms (including Topaz Labs’ Gigapixel AI and DAIN) to not only upscale the footage to 4K, but also increase the frame rate to 60 frames per second. You might yell at your parents for using the motion smoothing setting on Read more about Neural Networks Upscale Film from 1896 to 4K, Make It Look Like It Was Shot on a Modern Smartphone[…]

Google’s Takeout App Leaked Videos To Unrelated Users

Posted on by Robin Edgar

In a new privacy-related fuckup, Google told users today that it might’ve accidentally imported your personal photos into another Google user’s account. Whoopsie! First flagged by Duo Security CTO Jon Oberheide, Google seems to be emailing users who plugged into the company’s native Takeout app to backup their videos, warning that a bug resulted in Read more about Google’s Takeout App Leaked Videos To Unrelated Users[…]

Google Says Developers Can Now Purchase Latest Smart Glasses, still look stupid

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Google is making it easier for developers to purchase the latest version of its smart glasses, with the company saying on Tuesday that the Glass Enterprise Edition 2 is now available from some hardware resellers. “We’ve seen strong demand from developers and businesses who are interested in building new, helpful enterprise solutions for Glass,“ Google Read more about Google Says Developers Can Now Purchase Latest Smart Glasses, still look stupid[…]

Iowa has already won the worst IT rollout award of 2020: Rap for crap caucus app chaps in vote zap flap

Posted on by Robin Edgar

It’s all so painfully familiar: with a crunch date of February 3, the Democratic Party in Iowa decided to charge ahead with an IT rollout that comprised an entirely new software system spread out across thousands of sites to record the result of the Democratic caucus for its presidential nominee. It was, inevitably, a complete Read more about Iowa has already won the worst IT rollout award of 2020: Rap for crap caucus app chaps in vote zap flap[…]

Researchers Find ‘Anonymized’ Data Is Even Less Anonymous Than We Thought

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Dasha Metropolitansky and Kian Attari, two students at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, recently built a tool that combs through vast troves of consumer datasets exposed from breaches for a class paper they’ve yet to publish. “The program takes in a list of personally identifiable information, such as a Read more about Researchers Find ‘Anonymized’ Data Is Even Less Anonymous Than We Thought[…]

Firefox now shows what telemetry data it’s collecting about you (if any)

Posted on by Robin Edgar

There is now a special page in the Firefox browser where users can see what telemetry data Mozilla is collecting from their browser. Accessible by typing about:telemetry in the browser’s URL address bar, this new section is a recent addition to Firefox. The page shows deeply technical information about browser settings, installed add-ons, OS/hardware information, Read more about Firefox now shows what telemetry data it’s collecting about you (if any)[…]

CIA Employee Accused Of Leaking Vault 7 cyber security tooling To WikiLeaks in 2017 Goes On Trial

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The trial of a former Central Intelligence Agency software engineer who allegedly leaked thousands of pages of documents to WikiLeaks was set to begin Monday in federal court in New York. The leak has been described as one of the largest in the CIA’s history. Joshua Schulte has pleaded not guilty to 11 criminal counts, Read more about CIA Employee Accused Of Leaking Vault 7 cyber security tooling To WikiLeaks in 2017 Goes On Trial[…]

Twitter Helps Spread Disinformation During Iowa Caucuses

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The Washington Post’s Tony Romm reported on Monday night that Twitter has decided it will allow certain right-wing accounts to spread disinformation about the Iowa Democratic Caucuses, including tweets that suggest the results are being “rigged.” Trump campaign manager Brad Pascal tweeted on Monday, “Quality control = rigged?,” citing a second Trump campaign official who Read more about Twitter Helps Spread Disinformation During Iowa Caucuses[…]

Twitter had a flaw allowing the discovery of phone numbers attached to accounts en masse. And it’s been used in the wild multiple times.

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Twitter has admitted a flaw in its backend systems was exploited to discover the cellphone numbers of potentially millions of twits en masse, which could lead to their de-anonymization. In an advisory on Monday, the social network noted it had “became aware that someone was using a large network of fake accounts to exploit our Read more about Twitter had a flaw allowing the discovery of phone numbers attached to accounts en masse. And it’s been used in the wild multiple times.[…]

F-35: a $400 Billion Stealth Fighter That Can’t Climb, accellerate, shoot straight or be resupplied using the mandatory software

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Here’s something the public didn’t know until today: If one of the U.S. military’s new F-35 stealth fighters has to climb at a steep angle in order to dodge an enemy attack, design flaws mean the plane might suddenly tumble out of control and crash. Also, some versions of the F-35 can’t accelerate to supersonic Read more about F-35: a $400 Billion Stealth Fighter That Can’t Climb, accellerate, shoot straight or be resupplied using the mandatory software[…]

US’s secret spy payload offloaded: Rocket Lab demos missile muscle with second Electron guided home

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Small-sat flinger Rocket Lab beat the winds to get the mysterious National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) payload off the New Zealand launchpad this morning. After multiple holds due to ground winds, the Electron lifted off at 02:56 UTC on 31 January from the company’s Launch Complex 1 on the New Zealand Mahia Peninsula. Dubbed “Birds of Read more about US’s secret spy payload offloaded: Rocket Lab demos missile muscle with second Electron guided home[…]

Alias Privacy “Parasite” 2.0 Adds a Layer of Security to Your Home Assistant

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Alias is a teachable “parasite” that gives you more control over your smart assistant’s customization and privacy. Through a simple app, you can train Alias to react to a self-chosen wake-word; once trained, Alias takes control over your home assistant by activating it for you. When you’re not using it, Alias makes sure the assistant Read more about Alias Privacy “Parasite” 2.0 Adds a Layer of Security to Your Home Assistant[…]

Top Streamers Are Leaving Twitch Amidst Big Money And Shady Deals

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Let’s say you’re an up-and-coming streamer. You’ve done it for a while and you make decent money, although you’re no Tyler “Ninja” Blevins. But you’re on your way there, or so you hope. A while back, you got the opportunity to sign with an agency that promised to help you set up deals to advertise Read more about Top Streamers Are Leaving Twitch Amidst Big Money And Shady Deals[…]

NSF’s newest solar telescope produces first images, most detailed images of the sun

Posted on by Robin Edgar

This first images from NSF’s Inouye Solar Telescope show a close-up view of the sun’s surface, which can provide important detail for scientists. The image shows a pattern of turbulent “boiling” plasma that covers the entire sun. The cell-like structures—each about the size of Texas—are the signature of violent motions that transport heat from the Read more about NSF’s newest solar telescope produces first images, most detailed images of the sun[…]

Don’t use online DNA tests! If You Ever Used Promethease, Your DNA Data Might Be on MyHeritage – and so will your family’s

Posted on by Robin Edgar

When it comes to ways to learn about your DNA, Promethease’s service seemed like one of the safest. They promised anonymity, and to delete your report after 45 days. But now that MyHeritage has bought the company, users are being notified that their DNA data is now on MyHeritage. Wait, what? It turns out that Read more about Don’t use online DNA tests! If You Ever Used Promethease, Your DNA Data Might Be on MyHeritage – and so will your family’s[…]

UN didn’t patch SharePoint, got mega-hacked, covered it up, kept most staff in the dark, finally forced to admit it, accident waiting to happen

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The United Nations’ European headquarters in Geneva and Vienna were hacked last summer, putting thousands of staff records at miscreants’ fingertips. Incredibly, the organization decided to cover it up without informing those affected nor the public. […] A senior IT official dubbed the attack a “major meltdown,” in which personnel records – as well as Read more about UN didn’t patch SharePoint, got mega-hacked, covered it up, kept most staff in the dark, finally forced to admit it, accident waiting to happen[…]

Lab-Grown Heart Muscles Have Been Transplanted Into a Human For The First Time

Posted on by Robin Edgar

On Monday, researchers from Japan’s Osaka University announced the successful completion of a first-of-its-kind heart transplant. Rather than replacing their patient’s entire heart with a new organ, these researchers placed degradable sheets containing heart muscle cells onto the heart’s damaged areas – and if the procedure has the desired effect, it could eventually eliminate the Read more about Lab-Grown Heart Muscles Have Been Transplanted Into a Human For The First Time[…]

Swarm Drones Demonstrate Tactics to Conduct Urban Raid

Posted on by Robin Edgar

In its third field experiment, DARPA’s OFFensive Swarm-Enabled Tactics (OFFSET) program deployed swarms of autonomous air and ground vehicles to demonstrate a raid in an urban area. The OFFSET program envisions swarms of up to 250 collaborative autonomous systems providing critical insights to small ground units in urban areas where limited sight lines and tight Read more about Swarm Drones Demonstrate Tactics to Conduct Urban Raid[…]

In ‘Sophisticated’ Incident, Dozens of U.N. Servers Hacked including their active directory server

Posted on by Robin Edgar

An internal confidential document from the United Nations, leaked to The New Humanitarian and seen by The Associated Press, says that dozens of servers were “compromised” at offices in Geneva and Vienna. Those include the U.N. human rights office, which has often been a lightning rod of criticism from autocratic governments for its calling-out of Read more about In ‘Sophisticated’ Incident, Dozens of U.N. Servers Hacked including their active directory server[…]

Social media scrapers Clearview Lied About Its Crime-Solving Power In Pitches To Law Enforcement Agencies

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A very questionable facial recognition tool being offered to law enforcement was recently exposed by Kashmir Hill for the New York Times. Clearview — created by a developer previously best known for an app that let people put Trump’s “hair” on their own photos — is being pitched to law enforcement agencies as a better Read more about Social media scrapers Clearview Lied About Its Crime-Solving Power In Pitches To Law Enforcement Agencies[…]

MIDI 2.0 overhauls the music interface for the first time in 35 years

Posted on by Robin Edgar

About 35 years after the MIDI 1.0 Detailed Specification was established, instrument manufacturers voted unanimously on January 18th to adopt the new MIDI 2.0 spec. So what’s changing for audio interfaces? The “biggest advance in music technology in decades” brings two-way communication, among many other new features while remaining backwards compatible with the old spec. Read more about MIDI 2.0 overhauls the music interface for the first time in 35 years[…]