ICT news

• Researchers Hack Electronic Shifters With a Few Hundred Dollars of Hardware

  15-08-2024 23:20 via it.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from Wired: Professional cycling has, in its recent history, been prone to a shocking variety of cheating methods and dirty tricks.Performance-enhancing drugs.Tacks strewn on race courses. Even stealthy motors hidden inside of wheel hubs. Now, for those who fail to download a software patch for their gear shifters -- yes, bike components now get software updates -- there may be hacker saboteurs to contend with, too. At the Usenix Workshop on Offensive Technolo
  
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• Climate Activists Stop Air Traffic After Breaking Into Four Airport Sites

  15-08-2024 22:40 via news.slashdot.org
  
  Climate activists have broken into four German airport sites, briefly bringing air traffic to a halt at two of those before police made arrests. From a report: Protesters from Letzte Generation -- Germany's equivalent to Just Stop Oil -- gained access on Thursday to airfields in areas near the takeoff and landing strips of Cologne-Bonn, Nuremberg, Berlin Brandenburg and Stuttgart airports at dawn. Air traffic was suspended for a short time at Nuremberg and Cologne-Bonn due to police operations.
  
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• ISPs Ask Supreme Court To Kill New York Law That Requires $15 Broadband Plans

  15-08-2024 22:01 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  ISPs have asked the US Supreme Court to strike down a New York law that requires broadband providers to offer $15-per-month service to people with low incomes. From a report: On Monday, a Supreme Court petition challenging the state law was filed by six trade groups representing the cable, telecom, mobile, and satellite industries. Although ISPs were recently able to block the FCC's net neutrality rules, this week's petition shows the firms are worried about states stepping into the regulatory v
  
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• Apple, Google Wallets To Carry California Driver's Licenses

  15-08-2024 21:20 via apple.slashdot.org
  
  Californians' driver's licenses are going digital as people will soon be able to carry them in their Apple or Google wallets. From a report: The governor's office says it's a secure and convenient tool that will allow users to more easily undergo ID verification, such as airport screenings. The virtual wallet capabilities, which are set to roll out "in the coming weeks," will allow users to add and access California driver's licenses and ID cards on their iPhones, Apple Watch and Android devices
  
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• Microsoft Tweaks Fine Print To Warn Everyone Not To Take Its AI Seriously

  15-08-2024 20:09 via it.slashdot.org
  
  Microsoft is notifying folks that its AI services should not be taken too seriously, echoing prior service-specific disclaimers. From a report: In an update to the IT giant's Service Agreement, which takes effect on September 30, 2024, Redmond has declared that its Assistive AI isn't suitable for matters of consequence. "AI services are not designed, intended, or to be used as substitutes for professional advice," Microsoft's revised legalese explains. The changes to Microsoft's rules of engagem
  
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• German Cyber Agency Wants Changes in Microsoft, CrowdStrike Products After Tech Outage

  15-08-2024 19:25 via it.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader shares a report: Since last month's blue-screen deluge, CrowdStrike has published analyses of what went wrong and said it hired third-party security companies to review its product. Now, Germany's powerful cybersecurity agency is seizing the moment and hoping to rattle tech and cyber companies into altering their products to head off another mega-meltdown. In particular, the Bonn-based Federal Office for Information Security is taking aim at the access Microsoft gives securit
  
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• Redbox App Axed, Dashing People's Hopes of Keeping Purchased Content

  15-08-2024 18:48 via entertainment.slashdot.org
  
  Roku has removed the Redbox app from its platform, effectively cutting off users' access to purchased content following Redbox parent company Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment's bankruptcy filing. The move signals the likely end of Redbox's digital streaming service, which launched in 2017 to complement its DVD rental kiosks. Customers attempting to use the Redbox app on Roku devices now receive an error message directing them to other streaming services. While the app remains downloadable
  
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• Google Sold Android Phones With Hidden Insecure Feature, Companies Find

  15-08-2024 18:04 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  Google's master software for some Android phones includes a hidden feature that is insecure and could be activated to allow remote control or spying on users, according to a security company that found it inside phones at a U.S. intelligence contractor. From a report: The feature appears intended to give employees at stores selling Pixel phones and other models deep access to the devices so they can demonstrate how they work, according to researchers at iVerify who shared their findings with The
  
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• Eric Schmidt Walks Back Claim Google Is Behind on AI Because of Remote Work

  15-08-2024 17:20 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  Eric Schmidt, ex-CEO and executive chairman at Google, walked back remarks in which he said his former company was losing the AI race because of its remote-work policies. From a report: "I misspoke about Google and their work hours," Schmidt said Wednesday in an email to The Wall Street Journal. "I regret my error." Schmidt, who left Google parent Alphabet's board more than five years ago, spoke earlier at a wide-ranging discussion at Stanford University. He criticized Google's remote-work polic
  
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• Kim Dotcom To Be Extradited From New Zealand To US

  15-08-2024 16:45 via news.slashdot.org
  
  EmagGeek writes: Kim Dotcom, who is facing criminal charges relating to the defunct filesharing website Megaupload, is to be extradited to the US, the New Zealand justice minister says, which could end more than a decade of legal wrangling. German-born Dotcom has New Zealand residency and has been fighting extradition to the US since 2012 after an FBI-ordered raid on his Auckland mansion. The high court in New Zealand first approved his extradition in 2017, with an appeal court reaffirming the f
  
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• Epic Judge Says He'll 'Tear the Barriers Down' on Google's App Store Monopoly

  15-08-2024 16:04 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  Judge James Donato just made it crystal clear: Google will pay. From a report: Eight months after a federal jury unanimously decided that Google's Android app store is an illegal monopoly in Epic v. Google, Donato held his final hearing on remedies today. While we don't yet know what will happen, he repeatedly shut down any suggestion that Google shouldn't have to open up its store to rival stores, that it'd be too much work or cost too much, or that the proposed remedies go too far.
  "We're goin
  
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• Cisco Slashes Thousands of Workers As It Announces Yearly Profit of $10.3 Billion

  15-08-2024 15:00 via slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from SFGATE: Cisco Systems is laying off 7% of its workforce, the company announced in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday. It's the San Jose tech giant's second time slashing thousands of jobs this year. The networking and telecommunications company is vast, reporting to have 84,900 employees in July 2023 before it chopped at least 4,000 in February. That means the new 7% cut will likely affect at least 5,500 workers. Cisco spoke
  
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• Magic: The Gathering Community Fears Generative AI Will Replace Talented Artists

  15-08-2024 12:00 via games.slashdot.org
  
  Slate's Derek Heckman, an avid fan of Magic: The Gathering since the age of 10, expresses concern about the potential replacement of the game's distinctive hand-drawn art with generative AI -- and he's not alone. "I think we're all pretty afraid of what the potential is, given what we've seen from the generative image side," Sam, a YouTube creator who runs the channel Rhystic Studies, told him. "It's staggeringly powerful. And it's only in its infancy.""Magic's greatest asset has always been its
  
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• Researchers Figure Out How To Keep Clocks On the Earth, Moon In Sync

  15-08-2024 09:00 via science.slashdot.org
  
  Ars Technica's John Timmer reports: [T]he International Astronomical Union has a resolution that calls for a "Lunar Celestial Reference System" and "Lunar Coordinate Time" to handle things there. On Monday, two researchers at the National institute of Standards and Technology, Neil Ashby and Bijunath Patla, did the math to show how this might work. [...] Ashby and Patla worked on developing a system where anything can be calculated in reference to the center of mass of the Earth/Moon system. Or,
  
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• Scientists Find Humans Age Dramatically In Two Bursts: At 44, Then 60

  15-08-2024 05:30 via science.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Guardian: The study, which tracked thousands of different molecules in people aged 25 to 75, detected two major waves of age-related changes at around ages 44 and again at 60. The findings could explain why spikes in certain health issues including musculoskeletal problems and cardiovascular disease occur at certain ages. [...] The research tracked 108 volunteers, who submitted blood and stool samples and skin, oral and nasal swabs every few months fo
  
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• NIST Finalizes Trio of Post-Quantum Encryption Standards

  15-08-2024 04:02 via it.slashdot.org
  
  "NIST has formally accepted three algorithms for post-quantum cryptography," writes ancient Slashdot reader jd. "Two more backup algorithms are being worked on. The idea is to have backup algorithms using very different maths, just in case a flaw in the original approach is discovered later." The Register reports: The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) today released the long-awaited post-quantum encryption standards, designed to protect electronic information long into the fu
  
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• Artists Claim 'Big' Win In Copyright Suit Fighting AI Image Generators

  15-08-2024 03:25 via yro.slashdot.org
  
  Ars Technica's Ashley Belanger reports: Artists defending a class-action lawsuit are claiming a major win this week in their fight to stop the most sophisticated AI image generators from copying billions of artworks to train AI models and replicate their styles without compensating artists. In an order on Monday, US district judge William Orrick denied key parts of motions to dismiss from Stability AI, Midjourney, Runway AI, and DeviantArt. The court will now allow artists to proceed with discov
  
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• FTC Finalizes Rule Banning Fake Reviews, Including Those Made With AI

  15-08-2024 02:45 via yro.slashdot.org
  
  TechCrunch's Lauren Forristal reports: The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced on Wednesday a final rule that will tackle several types of fake reviews and prohibit marketers from using deceptive practices, such as AI-generated reviews, censoring honest negative reviews and compensating third parties for positive reviews. The decision was the result of a 5-to-0 vote. The new rule will start being enforced 60 days after it's published in the official government publication called Federa
  
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• 'Gemini Is Replacing Google Assistant On Pixel Phones, and It's a Trainwreck'

  15-08-2024 02:02 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from Fast Company's Jared Newman: With its new Pixel 9 phones, Google Assistant is getting a demotion. In its place, Google's will ship Gemini as the default voice assistant on its flagship phones. Gemini uses large language models to interpret questions and generate answers, which means it can respond in a more conversational way. But while Google is eager to showcase Gemini as an answer to OpenAI's ChatGPT, tossing out Assistant is a mistake. Too often, Gemi
  
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• Paramount Global To Lay Off 15% of US Workforce, Close TV Studio

  15-08-2024 01:20 via news.slashdot.org
  
  Paramount Global will lay off 15% of its U.S. workforce, close Paramount Television Studios, and transfer its projects to CBS Studios as part of a massive restructuring plan. According to Reuters, the media company "aims to reduce annual costs by $500 million and return to profitable growth ahead of its merger with David Ellison's Skydance Media." From the report: In an internal memo, Paramount's co-CEOs stated that the company is at an "inflection point" where changes are necessary to strengthe
  
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• Intel Sells $147 Million Stake In Arm

  15-08-2024 00:40 via slashdot.org
  
  In a regulatory filing on Tuesday, Intel revealed it has sold its entire stake in Arm Holdings, generating an estimated $147 million. "The company also sold its stake in ZeroFox, a cybersecurity company, and reduced stake in Astera Labs, a developer of connectivity platforms for enterprise," adds Tom's Hardware. From the report: Intel's recent regulatory filing revealed that it no longer holds the 1.18 million shares of Arm it owned three months ago, as noticed by Bloomberg. The average price of
  
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• Research AI Model Unexpectedly Modified Its Own Code To Extend Runtime

  15-08-2024 00:02 via developers.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: On Tuesday, Tokyo-based AI research firm Sakana AI announced a new AI system called "The AI Scientist" that attempts to conduct scientific research autonomously using AI language models (LLMs) similar to what powers ChatGPT. During testing, Sakana found that its system began unexpectedly modifying its own code to extend the time it had to work on a problem. "In one run, it edited the code to perform a system call to run itself," wrote the re
  
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