ICT news

• Irish Privacy Watchdog Fines TikTok $600 Million For China Data Transfers

  02-05-2025 23:20 via yro.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from the Associated Press: A European Union privacy watchdog fined TikTok 530 million euros ($600 million) on Friday after a four-year investigation found that the video sharing app's data transfers to China put users at risk of spying, in breach of strict EU data privacy rules. Ireland's Data Protection Commission also sanctioned TikTok for not being transparent with users about where their personal data was being sent and ordered the company to comply with t
  
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• Eric Schmidt Apparently Bought Relativity Space To Put Data Centers in Orbit

  02-05-2025 22:45 via science.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader shares a report: In the nearly two months since former Google chief executive Eric Schmidt acquired Relativity Space, the billionaire has not said much publicly about his plans for the launch company. However, his intentions for Relativity now appear to be increasingly clear: He wants to have the capability to launch a significant amount of computing infrastructure into space.
  We know this because Schmidt appeared before the House Committee on Energy and Commerce during a hea
  
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• UK Preparing To Ban Consumers From Buying Crypto With Borrowed Funds

  02-05-2025 22:01 via news.slashdot.org
  
  The UK financial regulator is preparing to ban retail investors from using borrowed funds such as credit card balances to invest in cryptocurrency as it seeks to overhaul supervision of the fast-growing digital assets market. The Guardian: The soaring values of virtual currencies such as bitcoin after Donald Trump's election have put pressure on the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to take a tougher line while it also lays the groundwork for the industry to flourish in the UK.
  According to a re
  
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• Apple, Anthropic Team Up To Build AI-Powered 'Vibe-Coding' Platform

  02-05-2025 21:20 via apple.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader shares a report: Apple is teaming up with startup Anthropic on a new "vibe-coding" software platform that will use AI to write, edit and test code on behalf of programmers.
  The system is a new version of Xcode, Apple's programming software, that will integrate Anthropic's Claude Sonnet model, according to people with knowledge of the matter. Apple will roll out the software internally and hasn't yet decided whether to launch it publicly, said the people, who asked not to be i
  
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• Pinterest Users Left Confused By Mass Account Suspensions

  02-05-2025 20:40 via it.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader shares a report: Pinterest is having some weird moderation issues. Reports of sweeping pin removals and account suspensions have appeared across social media platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and X, with many users saying they received no warning or explanation about the ban before being locked out of their accounts.
  The r/Pinterest subreddit is also currently dominated by posts from confused users who claim their accounts have been suspended without evidence explaining how t
  
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• US Approves CRISPR Pigs For Food

  02-05-2025 20:00 via science.slashdot.org
  
  The FDA has approved gene-edited pigs for human consumption, potentially marking the first major commercial application of CRISPR technology in the food chain. Created by British company Genus, these pigs have had their DNA modified to remove the receptor that the porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) virus uses to enter cells, rendering them immune to 99% of known virus variants.
  PRRS causes losses of approximately $300 million annually in the US alone by killing piglets and spre
  
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• Scientists Discover Massive Molecular Cloud Close To Earth

  02-05-2025 19:20 via science.slashdot.org
  
  An invisible molecular cloud that could shed light on how stars and planets form has been detected surprisingly close to Earth. From a report: Named Eos after the Greek goddess of the dawn, the cloud of gas would appear huge in the night sky if visible to the naked eye. It measures roughly 40 moons in width and has a weight about 3,400 times the mass of the sun, researchers reported in a study published Monday in the journal Nature Astronomy.
  "In astronomy, seeing the previously unseen usually m
  
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• Redis Returns To Open Source After Year-Long Proprietary Detour

  02-05-2025 18:40 via news.slashdot.org
  
  Redis, the popular in-memory data store, has returned to open source licensing with Redis 8 now available under the AGPL v3 license. The move reverses last year's controversial shift to proprietary licensing schemes (RSALv2 and SSPLv1) that aimed to force major cloud providers to pay for offering Redis as a managed service.
  The decision follows significant market pressure, including AWS, Google, and Oracle backing the Valkey fork, which gained momentum in the open source community.
  Redis believe
  
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• Solar Panels To Be Fitted On All New-Build Homes in England By 2027

  02-05-2025 18:00 via news.slashdot.org
  
  Almost all new homes in England will be fitted with solar panels during construction within two years, the UK government will announce after Keir Starmer rejected Tony Blair's criticism of net zero policies. From a report: Housebuilders will be legally required to install solar panels on the roofs of new properties by 2027 under the plans. The policy is estimated to add between $4,000 and $5,320 to building a home but homeowners would save more than $1,331 on their annual energy bills, according
  
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• Schrodinger's Cat Paradox Marks 90 Years as Quantum Question Endures

  02-05-2025 17:20 via science.slashdot.org
  
  A thought experiment involving a cat trapped in a steel box with a potentially lethal device, first proposed by physicist Erwin Schrodinger in 1935, remains at the center of scientific and philosophical debate as it marks its 90th anniversary.
  The paradox, initially published in a technical review of quantum mechanics, presented a scenario where a cat could theoretically exist in a superposition of states -- both alive and dead simultaneously -- until observed, highlighting profound questions ab
  
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• Federal Judge Orders Lawyer to Remove Dragon Watermark from Court Filings

  02-05-2025 16:40 via yro.slashdot.org
  
  A Michigan federal magistrate judge has banned a lawyer from using a cartoon dragon watermark on legal filings, calling the practice "juvenile and impertinent." Judge Ray Kent of the Western District of Michigan issued the order on April 28 after receiving a complaint featuring a purple, suit-wearing dragon on every page.
  "Each page of plaintiff's complaint appears on an e-filing which is dominated by a large multi-colored cartoon dragon dressed in a suit," Kent wrote. "The Court is not a cartoo
  
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• Waymo Says Its Driverless Cars Are Better Than Humans At Avoiding Crashes

  02-05-2025 15:00 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from Teslarati: Waymo Driver is already reducing severe crashes and enhancing the safety of vulnerable road users. As per a new research paper set for publication in the Traffic Injury Prevention Journal, Waymo Driver had outperformed human drivers in safety, particularly for vulnerable road users (VRUs). Over 56.7 million miles, compared to human drivers, Waymo Driver achieved a 92% reduction in pedestrian injury crashes. It also saw 82% fewer crashes with in
  
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• GTA 6 Delayed To May 2026

  02-05-2025 13:56 via games.slashdot.org
  
  Rockstar has delayed Grand Theft Auto 6 to May 26, 2026. It was due out fall 2025. From a report: In a statement, Rockstar apologized for the significant delay to the game, expected to be the biggest entertainment launch of all time.
  "We are very sorry that this is later than you expected," Rockstar said. "The interest and excitement surrounding a new Grand Theft Auto has been truly humbling for our entire team. We want to thank you for your support and your patience as we work to finish the gam
  
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• Apple Updates App Store Guidelines To Allow Links To External Payments

  02-05-2025 12:00 via apple.slashdot.org
  
  Apple has updated its App Store Guidelines to comply with a court order from the Epic Games lawsuit, now allowing U.S. apps to include external payment links and buttons without needing special approval. "The App Review Guidelines have been updated for compliance with a United States court decision regarding buttons, external links, and other calls to action in apps. These changes affect apps distributed on the United States storefront of the App Store," Apple said in an email to developers on T
  
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• NASA's SPHEREx Space Telescope Begins Capturing Entire Sky

  02-05-2025 09:00 via science.slashdot.org
  
  NASA's SPHEREx space observatory has officially begun its two-year mission to map the entire sky in 102 infrared wavelengths, capturing about 3,600 images daily to create 3D maps of hundreds of millions of galaxies. Its goal is to unlock new insights into cosmic inflation, the origins of galaxies, and the building blocks of life in the Milky Way by using spectroscopy to analyze light and matter across the universe. From a press release: From its perch in Earth orbit, SPHEREx peers into the darkn
  
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• Spotify Moves To Bypass Apple Payments After Landmark Ruling

  02-05-2025 07:30 via apple.slashdot.org
  
  Spotify has submitted an iOS app update that would allow US customers to use payment options beyond Apple's system, the company said Thursday. The move follows Wednesday's Epic Games v. Apple ruling, which prohibits Apple from taking a cut of non-Apple payment systems and from controlling how developers inform users about alternative payment methods.
  If approved, the update would enable US users to view subscription pricing details and promotions directly in-app, purchase subscriptions via exter
  
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• Army Will Seek Right To Repair Clauses In All Its Contracts

  02-05-2025 05:30 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from 404 Media: A new memo from Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth is calling on defense contractors to grant the Army the right-to-repair. The Wednesday memo is a document about "Army Transformation and Acquisition Reform" that is largely vague but highlights the very real problems with IP constraints that have made it harder for the military to repair damaged equipment.Hegseth made this clear at the bottom of the memo in a subsection about reform and budget o
  
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• Apple Says Most of Its Devices Shipped Into US Will Be From India, Vietnam

  02-05-2025 02:40 via apple.slashdot.org
  Apple said a majority of its devices shipped into the U.S. in the June quarter will originate in India and Vietnam, a move to allay investor concerns about the impact of tariffs on its operations. From a report: The company was among the hardest-hit of the tech giants last month because of its exposure to China, a primary target of the Trump administration's global tariff pressure. Most of Apple's devices are assembled in the country, and investors are closely watching its efforts to shift final
  
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• Microsoft Makes New Accounts Passwordless by Default

  02-05-2025 02:01 via it.slashdot.org
  Microsoft has taken its most significant step yet toward eliminating passwords by making new Microsoft accounts "passwordless by default." The change means new users will never need to create a password, instead using more secure authentication methods like biometrics, PINs, or security keys.
  The move builds on Microsoft's decade-long push toward passwordless authentication that began with Windows Hello in 2015. According to company data, passkey sign-ins are eight times faster than password and
  
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• Trump's Stablecoin Chosen For $2 Billion Abu Dhabi Investment In Binance

  02-05-2025 01:20 via slashdot.org
  Donald Trump's crypto company created a digital dollar called USD1, which is now being used by a big investor in Abu Dhabi to help fund a $2 billion deal with Binance, the world's largest crypto exchange. Reuters reports: Stablecoins are an increasingly lucrative cog in global crypto trading. Their issuers typically profit by earning interest from the Treasuries and other assets that underpin them. The value of USD1 in circulation reached about $2.1 billion on Wednesday, according to CoinMarketC
  
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• Trump's Stablecoin Chose For $2 Billion Abu Dhabi Investment In Binance

  02-05-2025 01:20 via slashdot.org
  Donald Trump's crypto company created a digital dollar called USD1, which is now being used by a big investor in Abu Dhabi to help fund a $2 billion deal with Binance, the world's largest crypto exchange. Reuters reports: Stablecoins are an increasingly lucrative cog in global crypto trading. Their issuers typically profit by earning interest from the Treasuries and other assets that underpin them. The value of USD1 in circulation reached about $2.1 billion on Wednesday, according to CoinMarketC
  
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• Patreon Will Update Its iPhone App To Sidestep Apple's Payment System

  02-05-2025 00:40 via news.slashdot.org
  Following a major court ruling limiting Apple's control over App Store payments, Patreon plans to update its iOS app to allow payments outside Apple's system, letting creators keep more of their earnings. Spotify and Proton are also preparing similar updates. The Verge reports: "This is a huge moment for creators and their businesses," [spokesperson Adiya Taylor] says. "The iOS app is the number one platform for fan engagement on Patreon, and we believe this ruling allows creators to get paid wi
  
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• Epic Games Is Launching Webshops To Circumvent App Store Fees

  02-05-2025 00:00 via games.slashdot.org
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from TechCrunch: Epic Games is taking a victory lap. After notching a big win against Apple in a years-long legal dispute, Epic announced that its Epic Games Store will allow developers to open webshops, which can offer players out-of-app purchases to circumvent fees from Apple and Google. [...] With the Epic Games Store's new webshops feature, other developers will be more easily able to follow suit.Usually, Epic takes a 12% share of a developer's earnings fr
  
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