ICT news

• Terraform Labs Founder Do Kwon Arrested In Montenegro

  23-03-2023 23:40 via yro.slashdot.org
  
  The founder of Terraform Labs, Do Kwon, appears to have been arrested in Montenegro, according to a tweet by the country's minister of interior, Filip Adzic. CoinDesk reports: "Montenegrin police have detained a person suspected of being one of the most wanted fugitives, South Korean citizen Do Kwon, co-founder and CEO of Singapore-based Terraform Labs," Adzic tweeted. Kwon has been the target of several investigations and was even on Interpol's red notice after stablecoin terraUSD (UST) and its
  
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• Framework's First Gaming Laptop Features Upgradeable GPUs, Swappable Keyboards

  23-03-2023 23:00 via hardware.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: Framework has delivered on the promise of its original 13-inch laptop. Three product generations in, the company has made a respectable competitor for the Dell XPS 13 or MacBook Air that can be repaired, modified, and upgraded, and owners of the original laptop can easily give themselves a significant performance boost by upgrading to the new 13th-generation Intel or AMD Ryzen-based boards the company announced today. Framework is now lookin
  
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• Millions of 'Extremely' Polluting Cars Still on Europe's Roads, Says Report

  23-03-2023 22:20 via news.slashdot.org
  
  Thirteen million diesel cars producing "extreme" levels of toxic air pollution are still on the roads in Europe and the UK, according to a report, seven years after the Dieselgate scandal first exploded. From a report: The non-profit research group, the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT), revealed in 2015 that many diesel cars were highly polluting, emitting far more nitrogen oxides on the road than in official testing. The scandal led to a more rigorous test being introduced i
  
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• Chipmakers Fight Spread of US Crackdowns on 'Forever Chemicals'

  23-03-2023 21:40 via news.slashdot.org
  
  Intel and other semiconductor companies have joined together with industrial materials businesses to fight US clampdowns on "forever chemicals," substances used in myriad products that are slow to break down in the environment. From a report: The lobbying push from chipmakers broadens the opposition to new rules and bans for the chemicals known as PFAS. The substances have been found in the blood of 97 per cent of Americans, according to the US government. More than 30 US states this year are co
  
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• 'Click-to-Cancel' Rule Would Penalize Companies That Make You Cancel By Phone

  23-03-2023 21:00 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  Canceling a subscription should be just as easy as signing up for the service, the Federal Trade Commission said in a proposed "click-to-cancel" rule announced today. If approved, the plan "would put an end to companies requiring you to call customer service to cancel an account that you opened on their website," FTC commissioners said. From a report: The FTC said the click-to-cancel rule would require sellers "to make it as easy for consumers to cancel their enrollment as it was to sign up," an
  
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• Linus Tech Tips' YouTube Channel Was Hacked

  23-03-2023 20:20 via it.slashdot.org
  
  New submitter Kitkoan writes: Hackers had gained control of Linus Tech Tips' YouTube channel to promote a cryptocurrency scam. Earlier on Thursday, hackers had gained control of the Linus Tech Tips YouTube channel and used it to promote a fake crypto giveaway that falsely used the name of Elon Musk and the Tesla brand (obviously without the permission of either party). Thankfully, the Linus Tech Tips crew quickly worked to re-establish control of the channel, but not before the channel had start
  
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• OpenAI is Massively Expanding ChatGPT's Capabilities To Let It Browse the Web

  23-03-2023 19:41 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  OpenAI is adding support for plug-ins to ChatGPT -- an upgrade that massively expands the chatbot's capabilities and gives it access for the first time to live data from the web. From a report: Up until now, ChatGPT has been limited by the fact it can only pull information from its training data, which ends in 2021. OpenAI says plug-ins will not only allow the bot to browse the web but also interact with specific websites, potentially turning the system into a wide-ranging interface for all sort
  
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• China Reminds US That It Can and Will Kill a Forced TikTok Sale

  23-03-2023 19:05 via news.slashdot.org
  
  China pushed back against the U.S. government's proposal to force a sale of TikTok on Thursday, rejecting the possible solution to ongoing national security concerns around the app. From a report: TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew appeared before Congress on Thursday morning, facing questions from U.S. lawmakers that centered around concerns that the Chinese government could leverage the app's data to surveil American citizens or otherwise undermine national interests. In a press conference hours before t
  
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• Arm Seeks To Raise Prices Ahead of Hotly Anticipated IPO

  23-03-2023 18:20 via slashdot.org
  
  Arm is seeking to raise prices for its chip designs as the SoftBank-owned group aims to boost revenues ahead of a hotly anticipated initial public offering in New York this year. From a report: The UK-based group, which designs blueprints for semiconductors found in more than 95 per cent of all smartphones, has recently informed several of its biggest customers of a radical shift to its business model, according to several industry executives and former employees. These people said Arm planned t
  
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• Accenture To Cut 19,000 Jobs

  23-03-2023 17:40 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  Tech consultancy giant Accenture plans to cut 19,000 jobs, or 2.5% of its workforce, and has lowered its annual revenue and profit forecasts, becoming the latest behemoth to trim expenses in the wake of dwindling global economic conditions. From a report: The reduction in jobs, over half of which affects individuals in non-billable corporate functions, will be undertaken in the next 18 months, Accenture said in an SEC filing Thursday. The company had increased its workforce by 38,000 in the year
  
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• Risk of 'Industrial Capture' Looms Over AI Revolution

  23-03-2023 17:00 via slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader shares a report: There's a colossal shift going on in artificial intelligence -- but it's not the one some may think. While advanced language-generating systems and chatbots have dominated news headlines, private AI companies have quietly entrenched their power. Recent developments mean that a handful of individuals and corporations now control much of the resources and knowledge in the sector -- and will ultimately shape its impact on our collective future. The phenomenon, w
  
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• JPMorgan Test Will Ditch Cards To Let Consumers Pay with Palm or Face Instead

  23-03-2023 16:20 via news.slashdot.org
  
  JPMorgan Chase is planning to test new technology that would let consumers pay with their palms or faces at certain US merchants. From a report: The bank, home to one of the world's biggest payment-processing businesses, plans to roll out the service to its broader base of US merchant clients if the pilot program goes well, according to a statement Thursday. The pilot may include a Formula 1 race in Miami as well as some brick-and-mortar stores. "The evolution of consumer technology has created
  
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• Apple To Splash $1 Billion a Year on Films To Break Into Cinemas

  23-03-2023 15:40 via apple.slashdot.org
  
  Apple plans to spend $1 billion a year to produce movies that will be released in theaters, Bloomberg News reported Thursday, citing people familiar with the company's plans, part of an ambitious effort to raise its profile in Hollywood and lure subscribers to its streaming service. From the report: Apple has approached movie studios about partnering to release a few titles in theaters this year and a slate of more films in the future, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the
  
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• Google Suspends Chinese E-Commerce App Pinduoduo Over Malware Used To Gain Competitive Advantage

  23-03-2023 14:00 via it.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from KrebsOnSecurity: Google says it has suspended the app for the Chinese e-commerce giant Pinduoduo after malware was found in versions of the app. The move comes just weeks after Chinese security researchers published an analysis suggesting the popular e-commerce app sought to seize total control over affected devices by exploiting multiple security vulnerabilities in a variety of Android-based smartphones. In November 2022, researchers at Google's Project
  
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• Hindenburg: Block Has Inflated User Metrics and Enabled Insiders To Cash Out Over $1 Billion

  23-03-2023 13:40 via slashdot.org
  
  Short seller Hindenburg Research, on Block: Block, formerly known as Square, is a $44 billion market cap company that claims to have developed a "frictionless" and "magical" financial technology with a mission to empower the "unbanked" and the "underbanked." Our 2-year investigation has concluded that Block has systematically taken advantage of the demographics it claims to be helping. The "magic" behind Block's business has not been disruptive innovation, but rather the company's willingness to
  
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• Untitled Goose Tool Aids Hunt and Incident Response in Azure, Azure Active Directory, and Microsoft 365 Environments

  23-03-2023 13:00 via cisa.gov
  Today, CISA released the Untitled Goose Tool to help network defenders detect potentially malicious activity in Microsoft Azure, Azure Active Directory (AAD), and Microsoft 365 (M365) environments. The Untitled Goose Tool offers novel authentication and data gathering methods for network defenders to use as they interrogate and analyze their Microsoft cloud services. The tool enables users to:
  Export and review AAD sign-in and audit logs, M365 unified audit log (UAL), Azure activity logs, Micros
  
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• JCDC Cultivates Pre-Ransomware Notification Capability

  23-03-2023 13:00 via cisa.gov
  In today’s blog post, Associate Director of the Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative (JCDC) Clayton Romans highlighted recent successes of pre-ransomware notification and its impact in reducing harm from ransomware intrusions. With pre-ransomware notifications, organizations can receive early warning and potentially evict threat actors before they can encrypt and hold critical data and systems for ransom. Using this proactive cyber defense capability, CISA has notified more than 60 entit
  
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• Europe's Right-To-Repair Law Asks Hardware Makers For Fixes For Up To 10 Years

  23-03-2023 11:00 via hardware.slashdot.org
  
  The European Commission has adopted a new set of right to repair rules (PDF) that, among other things, will add electronic devices like smartphones and tablets to a list of goods that must be built with repairability in mind. The Register reports: The new rules will need to be need to be negotiated between the European Parliament and member states before they can be turned into law. If they are, a lot more than just repairability requirements will change. One provision will require companies sel
  
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• DART Mission Reveals Asteroid Dimorphos Contains No Water

  23-03-2023 08:00 via science.slashdot.org
  
  Careful scrutiny of the debris from the impact of NASA's DART mission into Dimorphos has not found any evidence for water-ice on the asteroid, nor the residue of thruster fuel from the spacecraft, new results from the European Southern Observatory (ESO) show. Space.com reports: However, the data from the MUSE (Multi-Unit Spectroscopic Explorer) instrument on ESO's Very Large Telescope in Chile does indicate differences in the size of particles in the debris, and show how the polarization of the
  
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• Hackers Drain Bitcoin ATMs of $1.5 Million By Exploiting 0-Day Bug

  23-03-2023 04:30 via it.slashdot.org
  
  turp182 shares a report from Ars Technica: Hackers drained millions of dollars in digital coins from cryptocurrency ATMs by exploiting a zero-day vulnerability, leaving customers on the hook for losses that can't be reversed, the kiosk manufacturer has revealed. The heist targeted ATMs sold by General Bytes, a company with multiple locations throughout the world. These BATMs, short for bitcoin ATMs, can be set up in convenience stores and other businesses to allow people to exchange bitcoin for
  
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• GNOME 44 Released

  23-03-2023 03:02 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  "9to5Linux.com reports that the GNOME 44 desktop environment is officially released and gives a detailed look at the major new features and improvements," writes Slashdot reader prisoninmate. From the report: Code-named "Kuala Lumpur" in recognition of the work done by the organizers of GNOME.Asia Summit 2022 conference, GNOME 44 introduces a GTK4 port of the Epihaphy (GNOME Web) web browser, a file chooser grid view for apps that use the standard GTK file chooser, as well as support for adding
  
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• Coinbase Warned By SEC of Potential Securities Charges

  23-03-2023 02:25 via slashdot.org
  
  The Securities and Exchange Commission issued crypto exchange Coinbase a Wells notice, warning the company that it identified potential violations of U.S. securities law. CNBC reports: "Based on discussions with the Staff, the Company believes these potential enforcement actions would relate to aspects of the Company's spot market, staking service Coinbase Earn, Coinbase Prime and Coinbase Wallet," Coinbase said in a regulatory filing. "The potential civil action may seek injunctive relief, disg
  
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• Epic Is Merging Its Digital Asset Stores Into One Huge Marketplace

  23-03-2023 01:45 via games.slashdot.org
  
  Epic Games' next big plan for the metaverse is to unify all of its disparate asset marketplaces under one brand, Fab. The Verge reports: The new store will include assets from the Unreal Engine Marketplace, Quixel Bridge, Artstation Marketplace, and Sketchfab, and Epic will give creators 88 percent of earnings on the store, like it does for the Epic Games Store. On Fab, you'll be able to get a vast amount of digital assets, including "3D models, materials, sound, VFX, digital humans, and more,"
  
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• FCC Fines 15 Year-Old Pirate Radio Station In NYC $2 Million

  23-03-2023 01:02 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from Motherboard: The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is using a new law to fine a pirate radio station operating in New York City for more than $2 million. For 15 years, Impacto 2, which has been operated by two brothers, has broadcast Ecuadorian news, culture, sports, and talk-radio on 105.5 FM in Queens. The feds have tried to shut it down repeatedly, but have never succeeded. The FCC announced the fine in a press release (PDF) last week. "The Commi
  
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• Duolingo Is Working On a Music App

  23-03-2023 00:20 via news.slashdot.org
  
  Duolingo, a language learning app with over 500 million users, is working on a music app, TechCrunch has learned. From the report: The Pittsburgh-based tech company currently has a small team working on a music product and is hiring a learning scientist who is an "expert in music education who combines both theoretical knowledge of relevant learning science research and hands-on teaching experience," according to a job posting listed on Duolingo's career page. The company also posted a job that
  
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