ICT news

• Russia Blocks Roblox, Apple's FaceTime

  04-12-2025 23:22 via yro.slashdot.org
  Russia has blocked Apple's FaceTime and the gaming platform Roblox as part of a broader crackdown on foreign tech platforms. CBC News reports: Both restrictions are part of an accelerating clampdown on foreign tech platforms: In the case of FaceTime, Russian authorities allege it is being used for criminal activity, while Roblox was accused of distributing extremist materials and "LGBT propaganda." The move follows restrictions against Google's YouTube, Meta's WhatsApp and the Telegram messaging
  
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• EU Hits Meta With Antitrust Probe Over Plans To Block AI Rivals From WhatsApp

  04-12-2025 22:21 via yro.slashdot.org
  The EU has opened an antitrust investigation into Meta over a new WhatsApp policy that could block rival AI assistants from accessing the platform. Complaints from smaller AI developers triggered the probe, which could lead to fines of up to 10% of Meta's global revenue if the company is found to have abused its dominance. Reuters reports: EU antitrust chief Teresa Ribera said the move was to prevent dominant firms from "abusing their power to crowd out innovative competitors." She added interim
  
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• Bending Spoons Buys Eventbrite For $500 Million

  04-12-2025 21:20 via news.slashdot.org
  Longtime Slashdot reader williamyf writes: The Italian company Bending Spoons seems to be on an acquisitions spree. Their recent acquisitions of AOL and Vimeo are not yet finalized, yet on Dec. 2 they announced they are buying Eventbrite, a company specializing in publicizing and organizing local events, for just half a milliard USD. Bending Spoons' portfolio also includes other companies like Evernote and WeTransfer. Further reading: Private Equity Hipsters Are Coming For Your Favorite Apps (20
  
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• Microsoft 'Mitigates' Windows LNK Flaw Exploited As Zero-Day

  04-12-2025 20:19 via it.slashdot.org
  joshuark shares a report from BleepingComputer: Microsoft has silently "mitigated" a high-severity Windows LNK vulnerability exploited by multiple state-backed and cybercrime hacking groups in zero-day attacks. Tracked as CVE-2025-9491, this security flaw allows attackers to hide malicious commands within Windows LNK files, which can be used to deploy malware and gain persistence on compromised devices. However, the attacks require user interaction to succeed, as they involve tricking potential
  
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• RAM Is So Expensive, Samsung Won't Even Sell It To Samsung

  04-12-2025 19:18 via hardware.slashdot.org
  A severe spike in global DRAM prices has pushed Samsung Semiconductor to refuse a long-term RAM order from its own sibling, Samsung Electronics. The move is forcing the smartphone division into short, expensive renegotiations, which will likely mean higher costs for consumer devices. PCWorld reports: Samsung subsidiaries are, naturally, going to look to Samsung Semiconductor first when they need parts. Such was reportedly the case for Samsung Electronics, in search of memory supplies for its new
  
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• 30% of Doctors In UK Use AI Tools In Patient Consultations, Study Finds

  04-12-2025 18:17 via science.slashdot.org
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from the Guardian: Almost three in 10 GPs in the UK are using AI tools such as ChatGPT in consultations with patients, even though it could lead to them making mistakes and being sued, a study reveals. The rapid adoption of AI to ease workloads is happening alongside a "wild west" lack of regulation of the technology, which is leaving GPs unaware which tools are safe to use. That is the conclusion of research by the Nuffield Trust thinktank, based on a survey
  
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• Subaru Owners Are Ticked About In-Car Pop-Up Ads For SiriusXM

  04-12-2025 17:16 via tech.slashdot.org
  Subaru owners are reporting full-screen SiriusXM pop-up ads appearing on their infotainment systems while driving -- sometimes even overriding Apple CarPlay. Subaru says the ads appear only twice a year, but frustrated drivers argue the practice is distracting, unsafe, and a sign of an industry trend that's likely to get worse. The Drive reports: At least one 2024 Crosstrek owner reported that the pop-up took over their screen even though they were using Apple CarPlay. To force-close an applicat
  
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• Meta Poaches Apple Design Exec Alan Dye

  04-12-2025 16:15 via tech.slashdot.org
  Apple's longtime human-interface chief Alan Dye is leaving to lead a new creative studio at Meta's Reality Labs, where he'll shape AI-driven design for devices like smart glasses and VR headsets. Dye will be replaced by Steve Lemay, who has had "a key role in the design of every major Apple interface since 1999," according to a statement Apple CEO Tim Cook gave Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. TechCrunch reports: Shortly after the news broke of Dye's departure, Zuckerberg announced a new creative studio
  
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• New Homes In London Were Delayed By 'Energy-Hungry' Data Centers

  04-12-2025 15:14 via news.slashdot.org
  A London Assembly report warns that surging demand from "energy-hungry" data centers is straining the electricity grid and delaying new housing developments. With data-center electricity use expected to rise up to 600% by 2050, officials fear London's housing crisis could worsen without coordinated action. The BBC reports: According to the report (PDF) from the London Assembly Planning and Regeneration Committee, some new housing developments in west London were temporarily delayed after the ele
  
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• 'End-To-End Encrypted' Smart Toilet Camera Is Not Actually End-To-End Encrypted

  04-12-2025 14:13 via it.slashdot.org
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from TechCrunch: Earlier this year, home goods maker Kohler launched a smart camera called the Dekoda that attaches to your toilet bowl, takes pictures of it, and analyzes the images to advise you on your gut health. Anticipating privacy fears, Kohler said on its website that the Dekoda's sensors only see down into the toilet, and claimed that all data is secured with "end-to-end encryption." The company's use of the expression "end-to-end encryption" is, howe
  
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• PRC State-Sponsored Actors Use BRICKSTORM Malware Across Public Sector and Information Technology Systems

  04-12-2025 13:00 via cisa.gov
  The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) is aware of ongoing intrusions by People’s Republic of China (PRC) state-sponsored cyber actors using BRICKSTORM malware for long-term persistence on victim systems. BRICKSTORM is a sophisticated backdoor for VMware vSphere1,2 and Windows environments.3 Victim organizations are primarily in the Government Services and Facilities and Information Technology Sectors. BRICKSTORM enables cyber threat actors to maintain stealthy access
  
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• Top Journal Retracts Study Predicting Catastrophic Climate Toll

  04-12-2025 11:10 via news.slashdot.org
  Nature has retracted a headline-grabbing climate-economics study after critics found flawed data that massively inflated its predicted global economic collapse. The New York Times reports: The decision came after a team of economists noticed problems with the data for one country, Uzbekistan, that significantly skewed the results. If Uzbekistan were excluded, they found, the damages would look similar to earlier research (PDF). Instead of a 62 percent decline in economic output by 2100 in a worl
  
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• Russian Astronaut Kicked Out of the US For Stealing Proprietary SpaceX Designs

  04-12-2025 08:07 via slashdot.org
  Slashdot readers jmurtari and schwit1 shares news that a Russian astronaut slated for the next Dragon mission to the ISS has been removed after being caught photographing proprietary SpaceX hardware. UNITED24 reports: Russian cosmonaut Oleg Artemyev has been removed from the prime crew of SpaceX's Crew-12 mission to the International Space Station and replaced by fellow Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev after sources alleged he photographed confidential SpaceX materials in California in violati
  
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• Valve Reveals Its the Architect Behind a Push To Bring Windows Games To Arm

  04-12-2025 04:03 via games.slashdot.org
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Verge's Sean Hollister If you wrote off the Steam Frame as yet another VR headset few will want to wear, I guarantee you're not alone. But the Steam Frame isn't just a headset; it's a Trojan horse that contains the tech gamers need to play Steam games on the next Samsung Galaxy, the next Google Pixel, perhaps Arm gaming notebooks to come. I know, because I'm already using that tech on my Samsung Galaxy. There is no official Android version of Hollow K
  
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• AT&T and Verizon Are Fighting Back Against T-Mobile's Easy Switch Tool

  04-12-2025 03:02 via mobile.slashdot.org
  AT&T and Verizon are blocking T-Mobile's new "Switching Made Easy" tool that scans their customer accounts to recommend comparable plans. AT&T is also suing, alleging T-Mobile used bots to scrape over 100 fields of sensitive customer data. From The Mobile Report: According to a lawsuit, which AT&T has shared directly with us, T-Mobile updated the T-Life app's scraping abilities three separate times in an attempt to bypass AT&T's detection. Essentially, T-Mobile and AT&T have
  
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• OpenAI Loses Fight To Keep ChatGPT Logs Secret In Copyright Case

  04-12-2025 02:01 via yro.slashdot.org
  A federal judge has ordered OpenAI to hand over 20 million anonymized ChatGPT logs in its copyright battle with the New York Times and other outlets. Reuters reports: U.S. Magistrate Judge Ona Wang in a decision made public on Wednesday said that the 20 million logs were relevant to the outlets' claims and that handing them over would not risk violating users' privacy. The judge rejected OpenAI's privacy-related objections to an earlier order requiring the artificial intelligence startup to subm
  
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• White House Rolls Back Fuel Economy Standards

  04-12-2025 01:00 via tech.slashdot.org
  Longtime Slashdot reader sinij shares a report from Car and Driver: [T]he Trump administration announced less stringent Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards in an effort to bring down the price of new vehicles. The administration says that rules put in place by the Biden administration broke the law by going beyond the requirements mandated by Congress when the CAFE program was started. The new regulations will require automakers to meet an average fuel-economy figure of 34.5 mpg acro
  
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• The Last Video Rental Store Is Your Public Library

  04-12-2025 00:23 via hardware.slashdot.org
  404 Media's Claire Woodcock writes: As prices for streaming subscriptions continue to soar and finding movies to watch, new and old, is becoming harder as the number of streaming services continues to grow, people are turning to the unexpected last stronghold of physical media: the public library. Some libraries are now intentionally using iconic Blockbuster branding to recall the hours visitors once spent looking for something to rent on Friday and Saturday nights.John Scalzo, audiovisual colle
  
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