The Linkielist

Linking ideas with the world

Data Protection Authority Investigates Avast for Selling Users’ Browsing and Maps History

Posted on by Robin Edgar

On Tuesday, the Czech data protection authority announced an investigation into antivirus company Avast, which was harvesting the browsing history of over 100 million users and then selling products based on that data to a slew of different companies including Google, Microsoft, and Home Depot. The move comes after a joint Motherboard and PCMag investigation Read more about Data Protection Authority Investigates Avast for Selling Users’ Browsing and Maps History[…]

A Map of Every Object in Our Solar System

Posted on by Robin Edgar

View the high resolution version of this incredible map by clicking here In this stunning visualization, biologist Eleanor Lutz painstakingly mapped out every known object in Earth’s solar system (>10km in diameter), hopefully helping you on your next journey through space. Data-Driven Solar System This particular visualization combines five different data sets from NASA: Source: Read more about A Map of Every Object in Our Solar System[…]

FTC finally wakes up: American watchdog to probe decade of Big Tech takeovers

Posted on by Robin Edgar

An American biz watchdog has stepped up its probe into possible market abuse by Big Tech – Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Google and Microsoft – by demanding information on all acquisitions not reported to antitrust authorities in the past decade. The FTC issued “special orders” to the big five on Tuesday requesting “the terms, scope, structure, Read more about FTC finally wakes up: American watchdog to probe decade of Big Tech takeovers[…]

Aftermarket $998,- Self-Driving Tech vs. Tesla Auto­pilot, Cadillac Super Cruise

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Thanks to recent software updates, the most sophisticated systems—Cadillac‘s Super Cruise and Tesla‘s Autopilot—are more capable today than they were initially. This report on those systems includes a lesser known third player. For $998, upstart Comma.ai sells an aftermarket dash cam and wiring harness that taps into and overrides the factory-installed assistance systems in many Read more about Aftermarket $998,- Self-Driving Tech vs. Tesla Auto­pilot, Cadillac Super Cruise[…]

Deterrence in the Age of Thinking Machines – they escalate a whole lot quicker than people

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The greater use of artificial intelligence (AI) and autonomous systems by the militaries of the world has the potential to affect deterrence strategies and escalation dynamics in crises and conflicts. Up until now, deterrence has involved humans trying to dissuade other humans from taking particular courses of action. What happens when the thinking and decision Read more about Deterrence in the Age of Thinking Machines – they escalate a whole lot quicker than people[…]

Tens of millions of biz Dell PCs smacked by privilege-escalation bug in bundled troubleshooting tool

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Dell has copped to a flaw in SupportAssist – a Windows-based troubleshooting program preinstalled on nearly every one of its newer devices running the OS – that allows local hackers to load malicious files with admin privileges. The company has issued an advisory about the flaw, warning that a locally authenticated low-privilege user could exploit Read more about Tens of millions of biz Dell PCs smacked by privilege-escalation bug in bundled troubleshooting tool[…]

Super-leaker Snowden punts free PDF* of tell-all NSA book with censored parts about China restored, underlined

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Snowden’s bestseller Permanent Record is now available as a free download in Chinese after Communist Party censors cut out all the parts of the former IT admin’s memoir referring to China’s Great Firewall censorship system. The Great Firewall is one of the main means, in the digital era, by which the party maintains its iron Read more about Super-leaker Snowden punts free PDF* of tell-all NSA book with censored parts about China restored, underlined[…]

Antarctica Just Set a New Temperature Record

Posted on by Robin Edgar

It’s positively balmy in Antarctica. The National Meteorological Service of Argentina announced on Twitter that its Esperanza weather station recorded a new high for the continent: 18.3 degrees Celsius (64.9 degrees Fahrenheit). The previous temperature record for Antarctica was set on March 24, 2015, when this same weather station recorded 17.5 degrees Celsius (63.5 degrees Read more about Antarctica Just Set a New Temperature Record[…]

Uncle Sam tells F-35B allies they probably won’t make minimum viable product unless they fly them a whole lot more

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The US Department of Defense’s Director of Operational Test and Evaluation (DOTE) warned that the multinational F-35B fighter jet fleet is lagging behind a key flight-hours metric needed to show maintenance maturity. On top of that, the supersonic stealth jet project’s move towards Agile methodology for “minimum viable product” (MVP)-phased development of critical flight and Read more about Uncle Sam tells F-35B allies they probably won’t make minimum viable product unless they fly them a whole lot more[…]

Instagram-Scraping Clearview AI Wants To Sell Its Facial Recognition Software To Authoritarian Regimes

Posted on by Robin Edgar

As legal pressures and US lawmaker scrutiny mounts, Clearview AI, the facial recognition company that claims to have a database of more than 3 billion photos scraped from websites and social media, is looking to grow around the world. A document obtained via a public records request reveals that Clearview has been touting a “rapid Read more about Instagram-Scraping Clearview AI Wants To Sell Its Facial Recognition Software To Authoritarian Regimes[…]

Almost Every Website You Visit Records Exactly How Your Mouse Moves

Posted on by Robin Edgar

When you visit any website, its owner will know where you click, what you type, and how you move your mouse. That’s how websites work: In order to perform actions based on user input, they have to know what that input is. On its own, that information isn’t all that useful, but many websites today Read more about Almost Every Website You Visit Records Exactly How Your Mouse Moves[…]

US gov buys all US cell phone location data, wants to use it for deportations

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The American Civil Liberties Union plans to fight newly revealed practices by the Department of Homeland Security which used commercially available cell phone location data to track suspected illegal immigrants. “DHS should not be accessing our location information without a warrant, regardless whether they obtain it by paying or for free. The failure to get Read more about US gov buys all US cell phone location data, wants to use it for deportations[…]

Software error exposes the ID numbers, birthdays and genders for 1.26 million Danish citizens, 1/5th of the population

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A software error in Denmark’s government tax portal has accidentally exposed the personal identification (CPR) numbers for 1.26 million Danish citizens, a fifth of the country’s total population. The error lasted for five years (between February 2, 2015, and January 24, 2020) before it was discovered, Danish media reported last week. The software error and Read more about Software error exposes the ID numbers, birthdays and genders for 1.26 million Danish citizens, 1/5th of the population[…]

How to Remove Windows 10’s Annoying Ads Masquerading as ‘Suggestions’

Posted on by Robin Edgar

In a perfect world, every new computer with Windows 10 on it—or every new installation of Windows 10—would arrive free of annoying applications and other bloatware that few people need. (Sorry, Candy Crush Saga.) It would also be free of annoying advertising. While that’s not to say that Microsoft is dropping big banners for Coke Read more about How to Remove Windows 10’s Annoying Ads Masquerading as ‘Suggestions’[…]

Israeli Voters: Data of All 6.5 Million Voters Leaked

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A software flaw exposed the personal data of every eligible voter in Israel — including full names, addresses and identity card numbers for 6.5 million people — raising concerns about identity theft and electoral manipulation, three weeks before the country’s national election. The security lapse was tied to a mobile app used by Prime Minister Read more about Israeli Voters: Data of All 6.5 Million Voters Leaked[…]

Tesla Remotely Removes Autopilot Features From Customer’s Used Tesla Without Any Notice

Posted on by Robin Edgar

One of the less-considered side effects of car features moving from hardware to software is that important features and abilities of a car can now be removed without any actual contact with a given car. Where once de-contenting involved at least a screwdriver (or, if you were in a hurry, a hammer), now thousands of Read more about Tesla Remotely Removes Autopilot Features From Customer’s Used Tesla Without Any Notice[…]

Facial recognition fails in China as people wear masks to avoid coronavirus – Face ID fails users as the China coronavirus outbreak sparks widespread adoption of surgical masks

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Residents donning surgical face masks while venturing outside their homes or meeting strangers have found themselves in an unfamiliar conundrum. With their faces half-covered, some are unable to unlock their phones or use mobile payments with their faces. People wearing protective masks to help stop the spread of a deadly virus, which began in Wuhan, Read more about Facial recognition fails in China as people wear masks to avoid coronavirus – Face ID fails users as the China coronavirus outbreak sparks widespread adoption of surgical masks[…]

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[…]