ICT news

• Google Is Making It Easier To Remove Personal Info On Search

  26-02-2025 23:20 via yro.slashdot.org
  
  Google has updated its Results About You tool with a redesigned hub, easier removal requests directly from Search, and the ability to refresh outdated results. Engadget reports: Today, the tech giant is announcing the latest changes, including a redesigned hub and the ability to update outdated search results to reflect the latest changes.The redesign isn't only for show. You can now submit removal requests directly from Search with fewer actions by clicking or tapping the three dots beside a se
  
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• ExpressVPN Gets Faster and More Secure, Thanks To Rust

  26-02-2025 22:40 via developers.slashdot.org
  
  ZDNet's Steven Vaughan-Nichols shares some of the latest improvements to ExpressVPN following its codebase transition from C to Rust. An anonymous reader quotes an excerpt from the report: ExpressVPN is one of ZDNET's favorite Virtual Private Networks (VPNs). The popular VPN's transformation of its Lightway codebase from C to Rust promises to make the service faster and more secure. For now, the updated Lightway 2.0 is only available via ExpressVPN's Aircove router with the February 4 AircoveOS
  
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• Cellebrite Suspends Serbia as Customer After Claims Police Used Firm's Tech To Plant Spyware

  26-02-2025 21:04 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  Cellebrite says it has stopped Serbia from using its technology following allegations that Serbian police and intelligence used Cellebrite's technology to unlock the phones of a journalist and an activist, and then plant spyware. From a report: In December 2024, Amnesty International published a report that accused Serbian police of using Cellebrite's forensics tools to hack into the cellphones of a local journalist and an activist. Once their phones were unlocked, Serbian authorities then insta
  
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• Who's Watching What on TV? Who's To Say?

  26-02-2025 20:25 via entertainment.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader shares a report: People now watch so many programs at so many different times in so many different ways -- with an antenna, on cable, in an app or from a website, as well as live, recorded or on demand -- that it is increasingly challenging for the industry to agree on the best way to measure viewership. In some cases, media executives and advertisers are even uncertain whether a competitor's show is a hit or something well short of that.
  The scramble to sort out a suitable s
  
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• YouTube Reaches 1 Billion Monthly Podcast Viewers

  26-02-2025 19:45 via news.slashdot.org
  
  YouTube has surpassed 1 billion monthly active viewers of podcast content, the video platform announced on Wednesday, cementing its position as the most frequently used podcast service in the United States. The Google-owned platform reported viewers watched over 400 million hours of podcasts monthly on living room devices last year.Read more of this story at Slashdot.
  
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• US Intelligence Chief Opposes UK Order for Apple Encryption Backdoor

  26-02-2025 19:08 via news.slashdot.org
  
  U.S. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard has condemned a British order requiring Apple to break its encrypted storage worldwide as an "egregious" violation of American rights that could breach the CLOUD Act facilitating cross-border investigations. In a letter [PDF] to Senator Ron Wyden and Representative Andy Biggs, Gabbard revealed she has directed a legal review of the secret order, which she learned about through media reports.
  "This would be a clear and egregious violation of Am
  
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• A Disney Worker Downloaded an AI Tool. It Led To a Hack That Ruined His Life.

  26-02-2025 18:24 via it.slashdot.org
  
  A Disney employee's download of an AI image generation tool from GitHub led to a massive data breach in July 2024, exposing over 44 million internal Slack messages. The software contained infostealer malware that compromised Matthew Van Andel's computer [non-paywalled source] for five months, giving hackers access to his 1Password manager.
  The attackers used the stolen credentials to access Disney's corporate systems, publishing sensitive information including customer data, employee passport nu
  
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• BP Shuns Renewables in Return To Oil and Gas

  26-02-2025 17:40 via news.slashdot.org
  
  BP has announced it will cut its renewable energy investments and instead focus on increasing oil and gas production. The energy giant revealed the shift in strategy on Wednesday following pressure from some investors unhappy its profits and share price have been lower than its rivals. From a report: BP said it would increase its investments in oil and gas by about 20% to $10bn a year, while decreasing previously planned funding for renewables by more than $5bn. The move comes as rivals Shell an
  
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• Amazon Revamps Alexa With Generative AI After Year-Long Delay

  26-02-2025 17:00 via slashdot.org
  
  Amazon has launched a comprehensive AI overhaul of Alexa, representing the voice assistant's most significant update since its 2014 debut. The new "Alexa Plus" enables multi-turn conversations without repeating wake words, replacing the previous command-response interaction model.
  The system now handles complex tasks including booking concert tickets, making restaurant reservations via Yelp integration, and creating smart home routines autonomously. Technical capabilities include image analysis,
  
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• Surge in UK University Students Using AI To Complete Work

  26-02-2025 16:22 via news.slashdot.org
  
  More than 90% of UK undergraduate students now use AI in their studies, up from two-thirds a year ago, according to a Higher Education Policy Institute survey released Wednesday. The poll of 1,041 full-time undergraduates found 88% used generative AI such as ChatGPT for assessments, compared with 53% in 2024, with science students more likely to use the technology than humanities peers. Half of students cited "saving time" and "improving work quality" as their primary motivations.
  The proportion
  
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• Indian Cinema Chain Sued By Film-goer Over Lengthy Pre-film Ads

  26-02-2025 15:40 via entertainment.slashdot.org
  
  The Guardian: For some, the adverts that precede the start of a film are the bane of a trip to the cinema; for others, they are a useful buffer as you stand in the popcorn queue. But for one man in India, the lengthy marathon of cinema advertising was so infuriating that he took the matter to the courts -- and won. Abhishek MR, a 30-year-old man from the southern city of Bangalore, had booked a trip to the cinema with friends in December last year to watch wartime drama Sam Bahadur.
  But while th
  
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• UK Users Show Little Concern as Apple Removes iCloud Encryption

  26-02-2025 15:00 via news.slashdot.org
  
  British iPhone users have shown minimal reaction to Apple's decision to disable end-to-end encryption for UK iCloud customers, challenging the company's assumption about privacy priorities, a Bloomberg columnist notes. Rather than create a government-accessible backdoor demanded under Britain's Investigatory Powers Act, Apple chose to eliminate its Advanced Data Protection feature entirely for UK customers, effectively giving both authorities and potential hackers easier access to stored emails,
  
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• Meta In Talks For $200 Billion AI Data Center Project

  26-02-2025 14:00 via news.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from Reuters: Meta Platforms is in discussions to construct a new data center campus for its artificial intelligence projects, with potential costs exceeding $200 billion, The Information reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter. Meta executives have informed data center developers that the company is considering building the campus in states including Louisiana, Wyoming or Texas, with senior leaders having visited potential sites this month
  
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• North Korea's Unprecedented $1.5 Billion Crypto Heist Exploited Human Element, Not Code

  26-02-2025 13:00 via it.slashdot.org
  
  North Korean hackers have executed the largest cryptocurrency theft in history, draining $1.5 billion from Dubai-based exchange Bybit by compromising its multisignature cold wallet system. The attackers stole over 400,000 ethereum and staked ethereum coins without exploiting code vulnerabilities or infrastructure.
  Security researchers from Elliptic identified North Korean signatures in the subsequent laundering operations, consistent with the nation's ongoing cryptocurrency theft operations that
  
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• Fruits and Flowers May Counteract Harmful Effects of Microplastics

  26-02-2025 11:00 via science.slashdot.org
  
  New research suggests that anthocyanins, the antioxidants responsible for the vibrant colors of fruits and flowers, may help counteract reproductive harm caused by microplastics. The Guardian reports: The new review of scientific literature on anthocyanins found that the compounds are probably protective against a range of plastic-induced impacts on hormones, reductions in testosterone and estrogen, decreased sperm counts, lower sperm quality, erectile dysfunction and ovarian damage. [...] Resea
  
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• Earth Safe From 'City-Killer' Asteroid 2024 YR4

  26-02-2025 08:00 via science.slashdot.org
  
  Asteroid 2024 YR4, once considered a significant impact risk, has been reassigned to Torino Scale Level Zero and therefore poses no hazard to Earth. "The NASA JPL Center for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS) now lists the 2024 YR4 impact probability as 0.00005 (0.005%) or 1-in-20,000 for its passage by Earth in 2032," Richard Binzel, Professor of Planetary Science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and creator of the Torino scale exclusively told Space.com. "That's impact probabi
  
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• To Identify Suspect In Idaho Killings, FBI Used Restricted Consumer DNA Data

  26-02-2025 04:33 via yro.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from the New York Times: As investigators struggled for weeks to find who might have committed the brutal stabbings of four University of Idaho students in the fall of 2022, they were focused on a key piece of evidence: DNA on a knife sheath that was found at the scene of the crime. At first they tried checking the DNA with law enforcement databases, but that did not provide a hit. They turned next to the more expansive DNA profiles available in some consumer
  
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• World's First Front-Flippin' Humanoid Robot

  26-02-2025 02:40 via hardware.slashdot.org
  
  Chinese robotics company Zhongqing Robotics (also known as Engine AI) posted a video of what is claimed to be the world's first humanoid robot front flip. New Atlas reports: Ten years ago, this kind of stuff simply did not exist. And now you can buy your very own open-source PM01 robot for US$13,700, according to EngineAI's website. Its specs aren't bad: 5-DoF (degrees of freedom) in each arm and six per leg. That's 23-DoF in body movement in total. The bot also boasts 221 lb-ft of torque (300 N
  
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• Denmark To Ban Mobile Phones In Schools and After-School Clubs

  26-02-2025 02:00 via mobile.slashdot.org
  
  Denmark is set to ban mobile phones in schools and after-school clubs, following a government commission's recommendation that children under 13 should not have their own smartphones. The Guardian reports: The government said it would change existing legislation to force all folkeskole -- comprehensive primary and lower secondary schools -- to become phone-free, meaning that almost all children aged between seven and 16-17 will be required by law not to bring their phones into school. The announ
  
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• A Major Blackout Hits Chile, Leaving Millions Without Power

  26-02-2025 01:20 via hardware.slashdot.org
  
  A massive blackout has hit Chile, leaving millions without power and disrupting transportation, businesses, and essential services across 14 of the country's 16 regions. The Associated Press reports: The National Electrical Coordinator, Chile's grid operator, said a disruption had occurred in a high-voltage transmission line that carries power from the Atacama Desert of northern Chile to the capital of Santiago in the country's central valley. It did not say what actually caused the disruption t
  
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• DoorDash Paying Drivers $17 Million For Stolen Tips

  26-02-2025 00:30 via news.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from Gizmodo: As part of a settlement announced by the state of New York's Attorney General, Letitia James, DoorDash has agreed to pay $16.75 million to more than 60,000 Dashers who were supposed to receive that money in the form of tips but instead, the company used it to cover base pay and pocketed the rest. New York's lawsuit alleged that between May 2017 and September 2019, tens of thousands of Dashers were misled by DoorDash's pay model. At the time, the
  
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