ICT news

• Google DeepMind Develops a 'Solidly Amateur' Table Tennis Robot

  08-08-2024 23:20 via hardware.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from TechCrunch: In a newly published paper titled "Achieving Human Level Competitive Robot Table Tennis," Google's DeepMind Robotics team is showcasing its own work on the game. The researchers have effectively developed a "solidly amateur human-level player" when pitted against a human component. During testing, the table tennis bot was able to beat all of the beginner-level players it faced. With intermediate players, the robot won 55% of matches. It's not
  
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• Apple Revises EU App Store Rules Amid Ongoing Investigation

  08-08-2024 22:41 via apple.slashdot.org
  
  Apple on Thursday announced changes to its Digital Markets Act (DMA) compliance plan for the European Union, as the tech giant faces an ongoing investigation by the European Commission for suspected non-compliance. The revised rules, set to roll out this fall, ease restrictions on developers' ability to promote external offers within iOS apps. Developers can now inform users about offers available beyond their own websites, including on other apps and marketplaces, without adhering to Apple-mand
  
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• China's Drivers Fret as Robotaxis Pick Up Pace and Passengers

  08-08-2024 22:01 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  China's rapid deployment of robotaxis is raising concerns among the country's 7 million ride-hailing drivers, who fear job losses as autonomous vehicles hit the streets, according to a Reuters report. At least 19 Chinese cities are conducting robotaxi trials, with seven approving tests without human monitors. Baidu's Apollo Go plans to deploy 1,000 vehicles in Wuhan by year-end and operate in 100 cities by 2030. The push for self-driving technology aligns with President Xi Jinping's call for "ne
  
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• Common Low-Calorie Sweetener May Be Riskier For the Heart Than Sugar, Study Suggests

  08-08-2024 21:20 via science.slashdot.org
  
  Another study is raising concern about the safety of the widely used sugar alcohol sweetener erythritol, a low-calorie sugar substitute found in "keto-friendly" foods, baked goods and candies. From a report: Researchers from the Cleveland Clinic compared erythritol to typical sugar and found only erythritol caused worrisome cardiovascular effects. Although the study was small, it's the first head-to-head look at people's blood levels after they consume products with erythritol or sugar (glucose)
  
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• Paying To Be Removed From People-Search is 'Largely Ineffective,' Says Study

  08-08-2024 20:40 via search.slashdot.org
  
  Privacy removal services fail to effectively scrub personal data from people-search websites, a Consumer Reports (CR) study [PDF] revealed Thursday. The four-month investigation found these services eliminated only 35% of volunteers' identifying information profiles across 13 people-search sites. Manual opt-outs proved most effective, removing 70% of profiles within a week.Read more of this story at Slashdot.
  
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• World's Largest 3D-Printed Neighborhood Nears Completion in Texas

  08-08-2024 20:01 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  ICON, a construction technology company, is nearing completion of 100 3D-printed homes in Wolf Ranch, Texas, using a massive robotic printer. The 45-foot-wide, 4.75-ton Vulcan printer began constructing the walls of what ICON claims is the world's largest 3D-printed community in November 2022. The printer extrudes a concrete mixture layer by layer, creating corduroy-textured walls. ICON senior project manager Conner Jenkins told Reuters the process is faster and more efficient than traditional c
  
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• macOS Sequoia Adds Weekly Permission Prompt For Screenshot and Screen Recording Apps

  08-08-2024 19:22 via apple.slashdot.org
  
  Apple is set to implement stricter controls on screen recording permissions in its upcoming macOS Sequoia release this fall. Users will be required to grant explicit permission weekly and after each reboot for apps needing screen access, 9to5Mac reports. From the report: Multiple developers who spoke to 9to5Mac say that they've received confirmation from Apple that this is not a bug. Instead, Apple is indeed adding a new system prompt reminding users when an app has permission to access their co
  
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• Palantir CTO Urges Pentagon To Prioritize Speed in Defense Spending

  08-08-2024 18:42 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  Palantir Chief Technology Officer Shyam Sankar has called for faster defense spending, arguing the Pentagon should focus on rapid deployment over higher budgets. "The biggest challenge is speed," Sankar told Axios in an interview. "The Department of Defense would be better off spending half as much money twice as quickly."
  The U.S. military has "lost our ability to value time," he said. The Denver-based software company, known for its work in areas ranging from vaccine logistics to Ukraine demin
  
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• Video Game Adaptation 'Borderlands' Hits Theaters With Rare 0% on Rotten Tomatoes

  08-08-2024 18:02 via entertainment.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader shares a report: I'm not sure I knew of anyone, Borderlands fan or not, who believed that the movie adaptation of the game was going to be good, based on everything from casting to trailers. Now as reviews come in ahead of its release tomorrow, those fears have been validated. And then some. As I write this, the Borderlands movie has a flat 0% on Rotten Tomatoes. No positive reviews whatsoever, and the ones that are in are not just negative, but brutal.Read more of this story
  
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• Nasdaq Has Hundreds of Penny Stocks. Now It's Trying to Purge Them.

  08-08-2024 17:22 via news.slashdot.org
  
  Nasdaq is taking steps to purge itself of dubious companies whose shares trade below $1 each, following criticism that the exchange has become home to hundreds of risky penny stocks. From a report: [...] When a stock closes below $1 for 30 consecutive trading days, Nasdaq deems the company to be noncompliant and gives it 180 days to remedy the situation. After 180 days, if the stock hasn't climbed above $1, the company can request another 180-day grace period. At the end of that second period, t
  
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• Home Security Giant ADT Says It Was Hacked

  08-08-2024 16:48 via it.slashdot.org
  
  ADT confirmed this week that it was recently hacked, compromising some customer data. From a report: The home security company did not say when the cyberattack and data breach occurred, but disclosed that the attackers accessed the company's databases containing customer home addresses, email addresses, and phone numbers.
  In a brief regulatory filing published late Wednesday, ADT said it has "no reason to believe" that customer home security systems were compromised during the incident, but ADT
  
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• ICANN Reserves .Internal For Private Use at the DNS Level

  08-08-2024 16:05 via it.slashdot.org
  
  The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has agreed to reserve the .internal top-level domain so it can become the equivalent to using the 10.0.0.0, 172.16.0.0 and 192.168.0.0 IPv4 address blocks for internal networks. From a report: Those blocks are reserved for private use by the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority, which requires they never appear on the public internet. As The Register reported when we spotted the proposal last January, ICANN wanted something similar b
  
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• Mayor Shows Pirated Movie On Town Square Big Screen In Brazil

  08-08-2024 15:00 via yro.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from TorrentFreak: In Brazil, there was a [...] unbelievable display of public piracy last week that went on to make national headlines. The mayor of the municipality Acopiara, in the north-east of the country, invited citizens of the small town Trussu to join a screening of the blockbuster "Inside Out 2" at the local town square. With little more than a thousand inhabitants, many of whom have limited means, this appeared to be a kind gesture. The mayor, Antho
  
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• Best Practices for Cisco Device Configuration

  08-08-2024 14:00 via cisa.gov
  In recent incidents, CISA has seen malicious cyber actors acquire system configuration files by leveraging available protocols or software on devices, such as abusing the legacy Cisco Smart Install feature. CISA recommends organizations disable Smart Install and review NSA’s Smart Install Protocol Misuse advisory and Network Infrastructure Security Guide for configuration guidance. 
  CISA also continues to see weak password types used on Cisco network devices. A Cisco password type is
  
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• Judge Fines Ripple $125 Million, Bans Future Securities Law Violations

  08-08-2024 12:00 via slashdot.org
  
  Nikhilesh De writes via CoinDesk: A federal judge ordered Ripple to pay $125 million in civil penalties and imposed an injunction against future securities law violations on Wednesday. District Judge Analisa Torres, of the Southern District of New York, imposed the fine (PDF) after finding that 1,278 institutional sale transactions by Ripple violated securities law, leading to the fine. The $125.035 million fine is well below the $1 billion in disgorgement and prejudgment interest and $900 milli
  
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• After AI, Quantum Computing Eyes Its 'Sputnik' Moment

  08-08-2024 09:00 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  The founder of Cambridge-based Riverlane, Steve Brierley, predicts quantum computing will have its "Sputnik" breakthrough within years. "Quantum computing is not going to be just slightly better than the previous computer, it's going to be a huge step forward," he said. Phys.org reports: His company produces the world's first dedicated quantum decoder chip, which detects and corrects the errors currently holding the technology back. In a sign of confidence in Riverlane's work and the sector in g
  
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• China Launches Satellites For Major Network To Rival Starlink

  08-08-2024 05:30 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report originally published by Business Insider: A Chinese state-backed company has launched its first 18 satellites in its bid to build a vast orbital network aimed at rivaling Starlink, according to local media. The launch on Monday by Shanghai Spacecom Satellite Technology involved 18 satellites and one rocket, per The China Securities Journal, which is run by state news agency Xinhua. According to the outlet, the rocket lifted off from the Taiyuan satellite and m
  
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• UK Royal Mint To Extract Gold From E-Waste

  08-08-2024 03:20 via news.slashdot.org
  
  "The Royal Mint, which has produced coins since the 9th Century, has begun to recover gold from electronic waste as the use of cash has declined and fewer new coins are needed," writes Slashdot reader newcastlejon. "In 2022, construction began on a new site in Llantrisant, Wales. This facility will now be used to initially produce gold for jewelry and later for commemorative coins." The BBC reports: At the Royal Mint plant, piles of circuit boards are being fed into the new facility. First, they
  
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• Crunchyroll Passes 15 Million Monthly Paid Subscribers

  08-08-2024 02:45 via entertainment.slashdot.org
  
  Sony's Crunchyroll streaming service dedicated to anime has passed 15 million monthly paid subscribers. "Today marks an exciting milestone not only for Crunchyroll, but for the entire anime industry," Rahul Purini, president of Crunchyroll, said in a press release. "It is proof that the rich stories, characters and experiences that our partners create are resonating deeply with fans at record numbers all over the world. As the number of people excited about anime continues to explode and the bre
  
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• Dell Reportedly Laying Off 12,500 Employees

  08-08-2024 02:02 via slashdot.org
  
  "We are getting leaner," said Dell's Bill Scannell and John Byrne in an internal memo to employees on Monday. "We're streamlining layers of management and reprioritizing where we invest." While no official numbers have been confirmed, a source close to the matter told SiliconANGLE that 12,500 layoffs, or about 10% of Dell's worldwide workforce, were planned across the company starting Tuesday. However, that number could be high. "It's unlikely the number is that high because that would typically
  
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• Australian State Orders Public Servants To Stop Remote Working After a Newspaper Campaign Against It

  08-08-2024 01:20 via it.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from the Associated Press: The government of Australia's most populous state ordered all public employees to work from their offices by default beginning Tuesday and urged stricter limits on remote work, after news outlets provoked a fraught debate about work-from-home habits established during the pandemic. Chris Minns, the New South Wales premier, said in a notice to agencies Monday that jobs could be made flexible by means other than remote working, such as
  
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• macOS Sequoia Makes It Harder To Run Apps That Aren't Properly Signed or Notarized

  08-08-2024 00:40 via apple.slashdot.org
  
  Ryan Christoffel writes via 9to5Mac: Since the Mac doesn't have the same locked-down app distribution system of iOS and iPadOS, Apple has created other tools meant to protect users. Some of those tools include app signing and notarization. Essentially, these provide a way for Apple to perform a level of vetting for macOS apps, even ones that don't hit the Mac App Store. The intent is to ultimately prevent harmful software from being inadvertently opened by Mac users. Trying to open an app that i
  
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• Morgan Stanley Tells Wealth Advisors They Can Pitch Bitcoin ETFs

  08-08-2024 00:00 via news.slashdot.org
  
  Starting today, Morgan Stanley's advisors are allowed to offer bitcoin ETFs to some clients -- a first among major Wall Street banks. "Those funds are BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust and Fidelity's Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund," reports CNBC. From the report: Morgan Stanley made the move in response to demand from clients and in an attempt to follow an evolving marketplace for digital assets [...].The bank is still striking a note of caution, however, in the rollout: Only clients with a net worth
  
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