The Linkielist

Linking ideas with the world

Chinese e-tailer beats Amazon to the skies with one-ton delivery drones as FAA sleeps through everything

Posted on by Robin Edgar

JD.com, China’s largest online retailer, has announced it is beginning trials of a new delivery drone capable of carrying a ton of cargo to rural Chinese customers. Just like Amazon, JD.com (also known as “Jingdong”) has a vast network of warehouses and delivery networks crisscrossing the Middle Kingdom and, like Amazon, it sees drones as Read more about Chinese e-tailer beats Amazon to the skies with one-ton delivery drones as FAA sleeps through everything[…]

CCC | Chaos Computer Clubs breaks iris recognition system of the Samsung Galaxy S8

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A new test conducted by CCC hackers shows that this promise cannot be kept: With a simple to make dummy-eye the phone can be fooled into believing that it sees the eye of the legitimate owner. A video shows the simplicity of the method. [0] Iris recognition may be barely sufficient to protect a phone Read more about CCC | Chaos Computer Clubs breaks iris recognition system of the Samsung Galaxy S8[…]

AI-powered dynamic pricing turns its gaze to the fuel pumps

Posted on by Robin Edgar

With the use of Artificial Intelligence PriceCast Fuel detects behavioral patterns in Big Data (all available data relevant to the sale) and relates to customer and competitor reactions with a frequency and level of accuracy that users of traditional pricing systems only can dream about,” the company explains in a brochure [PDF]. “Dynamically mapping customer Read more about AI-powered dynamic pricing turns its gaze to the fuel pumps[…]

Google now mingles everything you’ve bought with everywhere you’ve been

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The credit card companies began to monetise the histories a few years ago. Facebook signed deals with data companies including Experian, allowing it to mingle third party offline and online data, something it also calls “closing the loop”. Last year Facebook was reported to combine six or seven data sources to create its “Facebook Graph”. Read more about Google now mingles everything you’ve bought with everywhere you’ve been[…]

Malicious Subtitles Threaten Kodi, VLC and Popcorn Time Users

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Millions of people risk having their devices and systems compromised by malicious subtitles, Check Point researchers revealed today. The threat comes from a previously undocumented vulnerability which affects users of popular streaming software, including Kodi, Popcorn-Time, and VLC. Developers of the applications have already applied fixes or will do so soon. […] By conducting attacks Read more about Malicious Subtitles Threaten Kodi, VLC and Popcorn Time Users[…]

Paul Allen Shows Off the World’s Largest Airplane For the First Time

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The Stratolaunch has a wingspan of 385 feet (wider than the Spruce Goose), it uses six 747 jet engines, sits on 26 wheels, can carry 250,000 pounds of fuel and weighs half a million pounds without fuel. In order to take off, it needs about 12,000 feet of runway. Source: Paul Allen Shows Off the Read more about Paul Allen Shows Off the World’s Largest Airplane For the First Time[…]

In the US Net Neutrality race, fake comments are being placed in their thousands, supporting the inane idea of getting rid of net neutrality.

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Fourteen Americans (with the help of an advocacy group) are complaining to the FCC that their names were used without permission to file fake comments on the proposed net neutrality overhaul. A letter [PDF] sent to FCC Chairman Ajit Pai and signed by the 14 people claims that their names and addresses were used to Read more about In the US Net Neutrality race, fake comments are being placed in their thousands, supporting the inane idea of getting rid of net neutrality.[…]

‘Do not tell Elon’: Ex-SpaceX man claims firm cut corners on NASA part tests

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A fired SpaceX worker has accused the company of leaning on its employees to forge test records for parts destined for NASA. Jason Blasdell told his wrongful firing court hearing in California that although he complained to the HR department about being pressured into creating false test passes, the company ignored him – and he Read more about ‘Do not tell Elon’: Ex-SpaceX man claims firm cut corners on NASA part tests[…]

Researchers Discover a Method That Could Triple Our Screen Resolutions

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The researchers have outlined the technical details in a new study published in Nature. Basically, what they’ve done is figure out a method to control subpixels with voltage. Each pixel on an LCD screen contains three subpixels. Each of those subpixels handles one of three colors: red, green or blue. A white backlight shines through Read more about Researchers Discover a Method That Could Triple Our Screen Resolutions[…]

Leaked Documents Reveal Counterterrorism Tactics Used by private contractor on US soil, Standing Rock to “Defeat Pipeline Insurgencies”

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A shadowy international mercenary and security firm known as TigerSwan targeted the movement opposed to the Dakota Access Pipeline with military-style counterterrorism measures, collaborating closely with police in at least five states, according to internal documents obtained by The Intercept. The documents provide the first detailed picture of how TigerSwan, which originated as a U.S. Read more about Leaked Documents Reveal Counterterrorism Tactics Used by private contractor on US soil, Standing Rock to “Defeat Pipeline Insurgencies”[…]

EU axes geo-blocking: Upsets studios, delights consumers

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The European Parliament has approved a draft law that geo-blocking, the act of offering an online content service in one European Union (EU) country and that country alone, will be scrapped in the first half of next year. Coupled with the recent law to end mobile roaming charges in the EU as of next month, Read more about EU axes geo-blocking: Upsets studios, delights consumers[…]

EU wants content filtering by entertainment industry on everything posted online

Posted on by Robin Edgar

De Europese Commissie wil dat internetaanbieders en hostingpartijen, maar ook platformen zoals Facebook, monitoren wat hun gebruikers publiceren. Elke tekst, foto en filmpje dat gebruikers wil zetten zou dan eerst door een filter van de entertainmentindustrie gehaald moeten worden. Hoe zoiets in de praktijk zou moeten werken is volstrekt onduidelijk. Source: Massaal verzet tegen omstreden Read more about EU wants content filtering by entertainment industry on everything posted online[…]

Supreme Court rules Lexmark sales exhausted patent rights domestically and internationally

Posted on by Robin Edgar

When a patent owner sells a product the sale exhausted patent rights regardless of any restrictions the patentee attempts to impose on location of the sale. Source: Supreme Court rules Lexmark sales exhausted patent rights domestically and internationally – IPWatchdog.com | Patents & Patent Law Earlier this morning the United States Supreme Court issued an Read more about Supreme Court rules Lexmark sales exhausted patent rights domestically and internationally[…]

New Vampire Battery Technology Draws Energy Directly From Human Body

Posted on by Robin Edgar

According to a research paper published earlier this month, the supercapacitor is made up by a device called a “harvester” that operates by using the body’s heat and movements to extract electrical charges from ions found in human body fluids, such as blood, serum, or urine. As electrodes, the harvester uses a carbon nanomaterial called Read more about New Vampire Battery Technology Draws Energy Directly From Human Body[…]

Netgear ‘fixes’ Nighthawk router by adding phone-home features that record your IP and MAC address

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Netgear NightHawk R7000 users who ran last week’s firmware upgrade need to check their settings, because the company added a remote data collection feature to the units. A sharp-eyed user posted the T&Cs change to Slashdot. Netgear lumps the slurp as routine diagnostic data. “Such data may include information regarding the router’s running status, number Read more about Netgear ‘fixes’ Nighthawk router by adding phone-home features that record your IP and MAC address[…]

Lib Dems pledge to end ‘Orwellian’ snooping powers in manifesto

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The Liberal Democrats have pledged to end the “Orwellian nightmare” of mass-snooping powers in the Investigatory Powers Act ahead of their manifesto launch. They will propose to roll back state surveillance powers by ending the indiscriminate bulk collection of communications data and internet connection records. The party also committed to fighting Conservative attempts to undermine Read more about Lib Dems pledge to end ‘Orwellian’ snooping powers in manifesto[…]

1.9 million Bell customer email addresses stolen by ‘anonymous hacker’

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Bell is apologizing to its customers after 1.9 million email addresses and approximately 1,700 names and phone numbers were stolen from a company database. The information appears to have been posted online, but the company could not confirm the leaked data was one and the same. Bell, the country’s largest telecommunications company, attributed the incident Read more about 1.9 million Bell customer email addresses stolen by ‘anonymous hacker’[…]

Google AI has access to 1.6m NHS patients data – without permission

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The document – a data-sharing agreement between Google-owned artificial intelligence company DeepMind and the Royal Free NHS Trust – gives the clearest picture yet of what the company is doing and what sensitive data it now has access to. The agreement gives DeepMind access to a wide range of healthcare data on the 1.6 million Read more about Google AI has access to 1.6m NHS patients data – without permission[…]

Bloke charged under UK terror law for refusing to cough up passwords without cause

Posted on by Robin Edgar

British police have charged a man under antiterror laws after he refused to hand over his phone and laptop passwords. Muhammad Rabbani, international director of CAGE, was arrested at Heathrow in November after declining to unlock his devices, claiming they contained confidential testimony describing torture in Afghanistan as well as information on high-ranking officials. CAGE Read more about Bloke charged under UK terror law for refusing to cough up passwords without cause[…]

Banking association calls for end of ‘screen-scraping’

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The European Banking Federation (EBF) has asked the EU Commission to support a ban on “screen scraping”. Screen-scraping services, seen as a first-generation direct access technology, allow third parties to access bank accounts on a client’s behalf using the client’s access credentials. The Revised Directive on Payment Services (PSD2) introduces a general security upgrade for Read more about Banking association calls for end of ‘screen-scraping’[…]

Real-Time User-Guided Image Colorization with Learned Deep Priors within minutes

Posted on by Robin Edgar

We train on a million images, with simulated user inputs. To guide the user towards efficient input selection, the system recommends likely colors based on the input image and current user inputs. The colorization is performed in a single feed-forward pass, enabling real-time use. Even with randomly simulated user inputs, we show that the proposed Read more about Real-Time User-Guided Image Colorization with Learned Deep Priors within minutes[…]

Tesla factory workers reveal pain, injury and stress: ‘Everything feels like the future but us’

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Ambulances have been called more than 100 times since 2014 for workers experiencing fainting spells, dizziness, seizures, abnormal breathing and chest pains, according to incident reports obtained by the Guardian. Hundreds more were called for injuries and other medical issues. […] However, some Tesla workers argue the company’s treatment of injured workers discourages them from Read more about Tesla factory workers reveal pain, injury and stress: ‘Everything feels like the future but us’[…]

Uber Doesn’t Want You to See This Document About Its Vast Data Surveillance System

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The ever-expanding operations of Uber are defined by two interlocking and zealously guarded sets of information: the things the world-dominating ride-hailing company knows about you, and the things it doesn’t want you to know about it. Both kinds of secrets have been in play in the Superior Court of California in San Francisco, as Ward Read more about Uber Doesn’t Want You to See This Document About Its Vast Data Surveillance System[…]