ICT news

• Sci-Hub's Alexandra Elbakyan Receives EFF Award For Providing Access To Scientific Knowledge

  29-07-2023 00:00 via yro.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from TorrentFreak: The Electronic Frontier Foundation will award Alexandra Elbakyan, founder of the 'pirate' library Sci-Hub, for her efforts to provide access to scientific knowledge. According to EFF, Elbakyan's site is a vital resource for millions of students and researchers. Some medical professionals have even argued that the site helped to save lives. [...] "When I was working on my research project, I found out that all research papers I needed for wor
  
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• Spotify Is Now an AI Chatbot, Too

  16-07-2026 00:00 via entertainment.slashdot.org
  Spotify is testing a new "Talk to Spotify" AI feature for Premium subscribers that will let them chat with an AI assistant to explore music, podcasts, and audiobooks. The feature can answer questions about what users are listening to, adjust playback through follow-up prompts, and offer more personalized recommendations. The Verge reports: Amazon Music introduced a similar feature last year when it integrated Alexa Plus into the service. Spotify's chatbot goes a step beyond providing AI-powered
  
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• Hack Reveals Suno AI Music Generator Scraped YouTube, Deezer, and Genius

  15-07-2026 23:00 via news.slashdot.org
  A hacker who breached Suno reportedly revealed source code and training-library details showing the AI music generator scraped millions of songs and lyrics from sources including YouTube Music, Deezer, Genius, Pond5, Jamendo, Freesound, and podcast RSS feeds. "The hacked data is a rare look at exactly how AI models and tools are built," reports 404 Media. "Suno is one of the largest AI music generation tools on the internet, and has been the subject of several major lawsuits from the record indu
  
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• FCC Plans To Repeal 39% TV Ownership Cap

  15-07-2026 22:00 via entertainment.slashdot.org
  The FCC plans to vote on repealing local TV ownership limits, including the 39% national audience cap that currently restricts how much of the U.S. market a single broadcast group can reach. Engadget reports: On August 6, commissioners will hold a ballot to repeal Section 303 of the Communications Act, and with it the 39 percent rule. In essence, the rule limits the reach of a local TV network to no more than 39 percent of the U.S.' total audience market. In its place, the FCC would move to a sy
  
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• Google and Epic Cancel Settlement; Third-Party App Stores Coming To Google Play

  15-07-2026 21:00 via yro.slashdot.org
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: Big changes are coming to Android apps, but they're not the changes Google wanted. The settlement between Google and Epic that aimed to put to rest the companies' long-running antitrust battle is being withdrawn, and that means third-party app stores are coming to the Play Store. Google has confirmed that it will begin distributing rival app stores next week, setting the stage for competing platforms to take a bite out of Google's Android re
  
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• FreeBSD 16 Retires the Last of Its GPL Code

  15-07-2026 20:00 via bsd.slashdot.org
  FreeBSD 16 has removed the last GPL-licensed code from its base system, retiring the old GNU 'dialog' implementation after the installer moved to 'bsddialog' and the final dependency was disabled. Phoronix reports: This ticket to retire dialog was opened back in February while is now merged to the FreeBSD source tree for what will become FreeBSD 16.0. With dialog removed, the latest FreeBSD code now retires the GNU sub-tree of the FreeBSD base system now that no more GNU code remains. FreeBSD 16
  
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• OpenAI Launches a Keypad for AI Agents

  15-07-2026 19:00 via hardware.slashdot.org
  OpenAI's first hardware device is a limited-edition desktop keypad called the Codex Micro that lets users monitor and control AI coding agents. Axios reports: Codex Micro is a collaboration with Work Louder, a boutique hardware company known for customizable mechanical keyboards and shortcut controllers for developers and designers. The small, square macro pad -- with backlit keys, a rotary knob and a tiny joystick -- sits beside your regular keyboard as a physical shortcut box for common Codex
  
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• Stripe, Advent Offer to Buy PayPal For More Than $53 Billion

  15-07-2026 18:00 via news.slashdot.org
  Stripe and private equity firm Advent International have reportedly made a joint $60.50-per-share offer to buy PayPal, valuing the payments company at more than $53 billion. The bid is said to represent a 28% premium to PayPal's latest closing price and is backed by roughly $50 billion in committed bank financing.Read more of this story at Slashdot.
  
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• Microsoft Patches a Record 570 Security Flaws

  15-07-2026 17:00 via tech.slashdot.org
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from Krebs on Security: Microsoft today released software updates to plug at least 570 security holes in its Windows operating systems and other software, almost triple the number of vulnerabilities the software giant fixed in its record-smashing Patch Tuesday release last month. Microsoft attributed the burgeoning patch counts to vulnerability discoveries aided by artificial intelligence. Nearly 60 of the bugs quashed in July's Patch Tuesday earned a "critica
  
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• Astronauts Take First X-Rays In Space

  15-07-2026 13:00 via science.slashdot.org
  Astronauts on SpaceX's Fram2 mission successfully captured diagnostic X-ray images in orbit for the first time. The milestone gives space medicine a second imaging option beyond ultrasound and could help future crews diagnose injuries, inspect equipment, and support longer missions to the moon or beyond. Popular Science reports: Commercial off-the-shelf X-ray machines like the ice cooler-sized MinXray TR90BH now allow users to perform scans on subjects far away from traditional facilities. In 20
  
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• House Votes For Permanent Daylight Saving Time

  15-07-2026 09:00 via yro.slashdot.org
  The House voted 308-117 to pass the Sunshine Protection Act, which would make daylight saving time permanent nationwide and end the twice-yearly clock change. The bill faces an uncertain future in the Senate, "where one G.O.P. leader said it was unclear whether it could move ahead and at least one Republican appears inclined to try to block it," reports The New York Times. Some sleep experts oppose permanent daylight saving time, arguing that year-round standard time better aligns with circadian
  
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• Iran Abused Mobile Networks' Vulnerabilities To Locate US Military In Middle East

  15-07-2026 05:30 via tech.slashdot.org
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from TechCrunch: The Iranian government abused well-known vulnerabilities in the global telecoms infrastructure to locate U.S. military personnel in the build-up to the Iran War, as well as in the early days of the conflict, according to Financial Times. The Iranian government exploited Signaling System 7, or SS7, a set of protocols for 2G and 3G networks that has long been the backbone of how cellular networks connect to each other to route subscribers' calls
  
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• OpenAI's First Device Will Be Moveable, Screenless Speaker Built as AI Companion

  15-07-2026 01:00 via hardware.slashdot.org
  OpenAI is reportedly developing a screen-free, portable smart speaker meant to act as a personalized home computer and humanlike AI companion. "It will help control smart-home appliances, play media, answer questions, respond to messages and tap into the range of capabilities offered by OpenAI's ChatGPT," reports Bloomberg, citing people familiar with the matter. The device, expected to be unveiled this year and released in 2027, would mark OpenAI's first major hardware push after acquiring Jony
  
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• Google Images Gets a Pinterest-Like Redesign Focused On Discovery

  15-07-2026 00:00 via tech.slashdot.org
  Google Images is getting a Pinterest-like redesign that turns image search into a personalized discovery feed, with "For You" galleries, real-time updates, and collections for saving visual ideas. "Google is also adding a way for users to create AI images right in Search, as it celebrates 25 years since the debut of Google Images," reports TechCrunch. From the report: After navigating to the redesigned Google Images, users will see a "For You" gallery of images tailored to their interests and br
  
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• Lawsuit Claims Meta's Layoff Decisions Were Made By AI, Not Humans

  14-07-2026 23:00 via yro.slashdot.org
  A lawsuit from 26 Meta employees alleges the company used AI-driven scoring and monitoring systems to select workers for layoffs, disproportionately targeting employees with disabilities or those who had taken protected medical, family, pregnancy, or parental leave. "Meta did not assemble the termination list through the considered judgment of managers who knew the work. Instead, Meta used a constellation of internal artificial-intelligence systems -- including a system referred to internally as
  
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• Google DeepMind Calls For US To Spearhead AI Standards Body

  14-07-2026 22:00 via yro.slashdot.org
  Google DeepMind chief Demis Hassabis is calling for a U.S.-led AI standards body to review frontier models for national security risks such as cybersecurity and biological threats. His proposal would create a federally overseen public-private organization, initially voluntary and eventually mandatory for U.S. deployment. CNBC reports: Google DeepMind boss Demis Hassabis, a Nobel laureate, said in an article posted on X on Tuesday that "urgent action" was needed to address risks associated with a
  
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• Linux Foundation's Latest Foray Is To Standardize Internet-Native Payments For AI Agents

  14-07-2026 21:00 via linux.slashdot.org
  Today, the Linux Foundation launched the x402 Foundation to standardize internet-native payments for AI agents, APIs, and applications, based on Coinbase's contributed x402 protocol. Backed by companies including AWS, American Express, Cloudflare, Google, Mastercard, Stripe, and Visa, the effort aims to make payments work directly over HTTP (assuming users are comfortable letting AI agents handle financial transactions)."The whole idea is to give agents access to money and, through that financia
  
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• OnePlus Is Reportedly Shutting Down In the US, Europe

  14-07-2026 20:00 via mobile.slashdot.org
  OnePlus will reportedly announce this week that it is shutting down its brand in the U.S. and Europe, following months of signs that parent company Oppo was winding down the brand's global presence. India and China are reportedly unaffected, but it's unclear whether Oppo will replace the brand directly in those markets. The move also raises questions about future support for existing OnePlus users. 9to5Google reports: WinFuture reports that OnePlus is gearing up for an official withdrawal from t
  
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• IBM Stock Collapses After a Grave Warning About AI

  14-07-2026 19:00 via hardware.slashdot.org
  IBM shares plunged after the company warned that Q2 revenue and earnings would miss expectations, blaming customers' sudden shift in spending toward AI hardware instead of software services. However, CEO Arvind Krishna did not place all the blame on IBM's customers. The CEO also said it "faltered" by failing to "anticipate the magnitude of the capex reprioritization.""These conditions require our teams to execute perfectly, and this quarter we faltered. We did not adapt and move quickly enough,
  
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• New York Becomes First State To Impose Data Center Moratorium

  14-07-2026 18:00 via news.slashdot.org
  New York has become the first U.S. state to impose a moratorium on large new data centers, pausing construction for one year over concerns that AI-driven data center growth is raising utility bills, straining water supplies, and burdening communities. "As data center development threatens to hike up utility bills, deplete our natural resources, and create uncertainty for New Yorkers, it's my responsibility to take action and lead," said New York Governor Kathy Hochul. She will also pursue legisl
  
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• StubHub, CEO Hit With 'Deceptive Practices' Class Action Over Mass Scalping

  14-07-2026 17:00 via yro.slashdot.org
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from the BBC: StubHub and its CEO, Eric Baker, have been hit with a proposed $5-million class-action lawsuit in the United States over the company's ties to large-scale scalpers -- connections reported by CBC News last week. The suit, filed Monday by New York ticket buyer Louis Sanquini, alleges deceptive practices and fraudulent misrepresentation over StubHub's promoting itself as a "marketplace for fans to buy and sell tickets." The online ticket resale gian
  
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• CISA Urges SharePoint Hardening After New Exploitations

  14-07-2026 14:00 via cisa.gov
  CISA is aware of active exploitation of vulnerabilities CVE-2026-32201, CVE-2026-45659, and CVE-2026-56164, enabling cyber threat actors to gain unauthorized access to on-premises SharePoint Server instances. These vulnerabilities affect all supported on-premises SharePoint Server versions (Subscription Edition, 2019, and 2016) and involve establishing remote code execution (RCE) and post-exploitation activities, such as stealing Internet Information Services (IIS) machine keys and performing de
  
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• Indian Scientists Produce Most Detailed 3D Atlas of the Human Brainstem

  14-07-2026 13:00 via science.slashdot.org
  Scientists at the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras (IIT-M) have created what they describe as the world's most detailed 3D cellular atlas of the human brainstem, linking whole-brain MRI views to individual neurons across more than 500 tissue sections. The free online atlas, called Anchor, could help researchers better understand diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, stroke, and SIDS by showing how healthy and diseased brain tissue differs cell by cell. The BBC reports: Built from high
  
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• Scientists Find Sugar Deep In Our Galaxy

  14-07-2026 09:05 via science.slashdot.org
  Astronomers have detected erythrulose, a sugar found in raspberries and self-tanners, in a gas cloud near the center of the Milky Way. While not essential for life itself, the molecule can convert into a form thought to be important for life's origins, adding evidence that key prebiotic ingredients may be widespread across the galaxy. The Associated Press reports: Using two dish-shaped radio telescopes in Spain, researchers collected data from a large gas cloud near the center of the Milky Way.
  
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• Over 200 Economists Say 'We Must Act Now' On AI's Economic Impact

  14-07-2026 05:30 via slashdot.org
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from the Associated Press: Hundreds of economists say in an open letter that institutions "must act now" to address how artificial intelligence could transform the economy and could put many people out of work. The statement released Monday was signed by top economists, along with computer scientists and some executives at tech companies including Anthropic, Google and OpenAI."AI may become radically more powerful over the next 10 years," says the letter organ
  
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• Microsoft Promises To Fix Search With Major Windows 11 Overhaul

  14-07-2026 01:00 via tech.slashdot.org
  Microsoft is overhauling Windows 11 search to prioritize local apps, files, and settings over web results while removing ads, promotions, MSN/Bing clutter, and other distractions. "You've have been asking for search that is faster, more relevant, and easier to use -- whether you're opening an app, finding a file, or changing a setting," Microsoft says in a new blog post. "Because the Windows Search Box is where many people start, we focused first on making results more dependable, easier to scan
  
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• US Government Warns That Russia State Hackers Are Coming After Your Router

  14-07-2026 00:00 via it.slashdot.org
  CISA and allied governments are warning users to secure their routers as Russian state-backed hackers continue compromising the devices and turning them into proxy nodes to disguise attacks against critical infrastructure. The advisory urges users to disable outdated SNMP versions, use strong passwords, update firmware, and turn off unnecessary router services to reduce the risk of being swept into these botnets. Ars Technica reports: "Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) Center 16 cyber actor
  
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• German Firm Files For Insolvency After Cybercriminals Shut Down Production For 6 Weeks

  13-07-2026 23:12 via slashdot.org
  German textile firm ZEGO has filed for insolvency and is blaming a March cyberattack that shut down production for nearly six weeks. "ZEGO's filing adds another name to the short but growing list of companies that say a digital break-in was commercially fatal to their business," reports The Register. From the report: In a notice to customers and suppliers, the organization said it had exhausted every available option before seeking insolvency protection. Managing director Johannes Zenglein descr
  
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• States Sue to Block Paramount-Warner Bros Merger, Defying DOJ

  13-07-2026 22:00 via yro.slashdot.org
  A coalition of 12 states led by California is suing to block the $111 billion Paramount Skydance-Warner Bros. merger, arguing it would reduce competition in theatrical distribution, blockbuster films, and basic cable licensing. The challenge (PDF) defies the DOJ's approval of the deal. Variety reports: The coalition, led by California Attorney General Rob Bonta, alleges that the $111 billion transaction violates the Clayton Act by lessening competition in three distinct markets: wide-release the
  
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• Apple Reportedly Agreed to Intel Chips To Avoid White House Tariffs

  13-07-2026 21:00 via yro.slashdot.org
  According to the Wall Street Journal (paywalled), Apple agreed to use Intel's U.S. chipmaking plants after White House officials pressured Tim Cook during tariff-relief talks last summer. MacRumors reports: In August 2025, Apple CEO Tim Cook was in Washington to lobby the Trump administration to drop its proposed 100 percent tariff on semiconductor imports -- a levy that would have raised costs across Apple's product line. Apple reportedly secured an exemption after pledging to invest hundreds o
  
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