gizmodo.com
> > > The Android phone maker says go ahead, fix your own phone. > > > > The right-to-repair movement continues to gain steam as another big tech company shows its support for letting people fix their own broken devices. > > > > Google endorsed an Oregon right-to-repair legislation Thursday calling it a “common sense repair bill” and saying it would be a “win for consumers.” This marks the first time the Android phone maker has officially backed any right-to-repair law. > > > > The ability to repair a phone, for example, empowers people by saving money on devices while creating less waste,” said Steven Nickel, devices and services director of operations for Google, in a blog post Thursday. “It also critically supports sustainability in manufacturing. Repair must be easy enough for anyone to do, whether they are technicians or do-it-yourselfers.” > > > > In the Oregon repair bill, manufacturers will be required to provide replacement parts, software, physical tools, documentation and schematics needed for repair to authorized repair providers or individuals. The legislation covers any digital electronics with a computer chip although cars, farm equipment, medical devices, solar power systems, and any heavy or industrial equipment that is not sold to consumers are exempt from the bill. > > > > Google has made strides in making its Pixel phones easier to fix. The company enabled a Repair Mode for the phones last month allowing the protection of data on the device while it’s being serviced. There’s also a diagnostic feature that helps determine if your Pixel phone is working properly or not. That said, Google’s Pixel Watch is another story as the company said in October it will not provide parts to repair its smartwatch. > > > > Apple jumped on the right-to-repair bandwagon back in October. The iPhone maker showed its support for a federal law to make it easier to repair its phones after years of being a staunch opponent. > >
gizmodo.com
> > > The Android phone maker says go ahead, fix your own phone. > > > > The right-to-repair movement continues to gain steam as another big tech company shows its support for letting people fix their own broken devices. > > > > Google endorsed an Oregon right-to-repair legislation Thursday calling it a “common sense repair bill” and saying it would be a “win for consumers.” This marks the first time the Android phone maker has officially backed any right-to-repair law. > > > > The ability to repair a phone, for example, empowers people by saving money on devices while creating less waste,” said Steven Nickel, devices and services director of operations for Google, in a blog post Thursday. “It also critically supports sustainability in manufacturing. Repair must be easy enough for anyone to do, whether they are technicians or do-it-yourselfers.” > > > > In the Oregon repair bill, manufacturers will be required to provide replacement parts, software, physical tools, documentation and schematics needed for repair to authorized repair providers or individuals. The legislation covers any digital electronics with a computer chip although cars, farm equipment, medical devices, solar power systems, and any heavy or industrial equipment that is not sold to consumers are exempt from the bill. > > > > Google has made strides in making its Pixel phones easier to fix. The company enabled a Repair Mode for the phones last month allowing the protection of data on the device while it’s being serviced. There’s also a diagnostic feature that helps determine if your Pixel phone is working properly or not. That said, Google’s Pixel Watch is another story as the company said in October it will not provide parts to repair its smartwatch. > > > > Apple jumped on the right-to-repair bandwagon back in October. The iPhone maker showed its support for a federal law to make it easier to repair its phones after years of being a staunch opponent. > >
gizmodo.com
> > > The Android phone maker says go ahead, fix your own phone. > > > > The right-to-repair movement continues to gain steam as another big tech company shows its support for letting people fix their own broken devices. > > > > Google endorsed an Oregon right-to-repair legislation Thursday calling it a “common sense repair bill” and saying it would be a “win for consumers.” This marks the first time the Android phone maker has officially backed any right-to-repair law. > > > > The ability to repair a phone, for example, empowers people by saving money on devices while creating less waste,” said Steven Nickel, devices and services director of operations for Google, in a blog post Thursday. “It also critically supports sustainability in manufacturing. Repair must be easy enough for anyone to do, whether they are technicians or do-it-yourselfers.” > > > > In the Oregon repair bill, manufacturers will be required to provide replacement parts, software, physical tools, documentation and schematics needed for repair to authorized repair providers or individuals. The legislation covers any digital electronics with a computer chip although cars, farm equipment, medical devices, solar power systems, and any heavy or industrial equipment that is not sold to consumers are exempt from the bill. > > > > Google has made strides in making its Pixel phones easier to fix. The company enabled a Repair Mode for the phones last month allowing the protection of data on the device while it’s being serviced. There’s also a diagnostic feature that helps determine if your Pixel phone is working properly or not. That said, Google’s Pixel Watch is another story as the company said in October it will not provide parts to repair its smartwatch. > > > > Apple jumped on the right-to-repair bandwagon back in October. The iPhone maker showed its support for a federal law to make it easier to repair its phones after years of being a staunch opponent. > >
gizmodo.com
> > > The Android phone maker says go ahead, fix your own phone. > > > > The right-to-repair movement continues to gain steam as another big tech company shows its support for letting people fix their own broken devices. > > > > Google endorsed an Oregon right-to-repair legislation Thursday calling it a “common sense repair bill” and saying it would be a “win for consumers.” This marks the first time the Android phone maker has officially backed any right-to-repair law. > > > > The ability to repair a phone, for example, empowers people by saving money on devices while creating less waste,” said Steven Nickel, devices and services director of operations for Google, in a blog post Thursday. “It also critically supports sustainability in manufacturing. Repair must be easy enough for anyone to do, whether they are technicians or do-it-yourselfers.” > > > > In the Oregon repair bill, manufacturers will be required to provide replacement parts, software, physical tools, documentation and schematics needed for repair to authorized repair providers or individuals. The legislation covers any digital electronics with a computer chip although cars, farm equipment, medical devices, solar power systems, and any heavy or industrial equipment that is not sold to consumers are exempt from the bill. > > > > Google has made strides in making its Pixel phones easier to fix. The company enabled a Repair Mode for the phones last month allowing the protection of data on the device while it’s being serviced. There’s also a diagnostic feature that helps determine if your Pixel phone is working properly or not. That said, Google’s Pixel Watch is another story as the company said in October it will not provide parts to repair its smartwatch. > > > > Apple jumped on the right-to-repair bandwagon back in October. The iPhone maker showed its support for a federal law to make it easier to repair its phones after years of being a staunch opponent. > >
www.youtube.com
Director of Photography - Nate Valdez
www.theverge.com
> > > The New York Times is suing OpenAI and Microsoft for copyright infringement, claiming the two companies built their AI models by “copying and using millions” of the publication’s articles and now “directly compete” with its content as a result. > > > > As outlined in the lawsuit, the Times alleges OpenAI and Microsoft’s large language models (LLMs), which power ChatGPT and Copilot, “can generate output that recites Times content verbatim, closely summarizes it, and mimics its expressive style.” This “undermine[s] and damage[s]” the Times’ relationship with readers, the outlet alleges, while also depriving it of “subscription, licensing, advertising, and affiliate revenue.” > > > > The complaint also argues that these AI models “threaten high-quality journalism” by hurting the ability of news outlets to protect and monetize content. “Through Microsoft’s Bing Chat (recently rebranded as “Copilot”) and OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Defendants seek to free-ride on The Times’s massive investment in its journalism by using it to build substitutive products without permission or payment,” the lawsuit states. > > The full text of the lawsuit can be found [here](https://nytco-assets.nytimes.com/2023/12/NYT_Complaint_Dec2023.pdf)
www.theverge.com
> > > The New York Times is suing OpenAI and Microsoft for copyright infringement, claiming the two companies built their AI models by “copying and using millions” of the publication’s articles and now “directly compete” with its content as a result. > > > > As outlined in the lawsuit, the Times alleges OpenAI and Microsoft’s large language models (LLMs), which power ChatGPT and Copilot, “can generate output that recites Times content verbatim, closely summarizes it, and mimics its expressive style.” This “undermine[s] and damage[s]” the Times’ relationship with readers, the outlet alleges, while also depriving it of “subscription, licensing, advertising, and affiliate revenue.” > > > > The complaint also argues that these AI models “threaten high-quality journalism” by hurting the ability of news outlets to protect and monetize content. “Through Microsoft’s Bing Chat (recently rebranded as “Copilot”) and OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Defendants seek to free-ride on The Times’s massive investment in its journalism by using it to build substitutive products without permission or payment,” the lawsuit states. > > The full text of the lawsuit can be found [here](https://nytco-assets.nytimes.com/2023/12/NYT_Complaint_Dec2023.pdf)
www.theverge.com
> > > The New York Times is suing OpenAI and Microsoft for copyright infringement, claiming the two companies built their AI models by “copying and using millions” of the publication’s articles and now “directly compete” with its content as a result. > > > > As outlined in the lawsuit, the Times alleges OpenAI and Microsoft’s large language models (LLMs), which power ChatGPT and Copilot, “can generate output that recites Times content verbatim, closely summarizes it, and mimics its expressive style.” This “undermine[s] and damage[s]” the Times’ relationship with readers, the outlet alleges, while also depriving it of “subscription, licensing, advertising, and affiliate revenue.” > > > > The complaint also argues that these AI models “threaten high-quality journalism” by hurting the ability of news outlets to protect and monetize content. “Through Microsoft’s Bing Chat (recently rebranded as “Copilot”) and OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Defendants seek to free-ride on The Times’s massive investment in its journalism by using it to build substitutive products without permission or payment,” the lawsuit states. > > The full text of the lawsuit can be found [here](https://nytco-assets.nytimes.com/2023/12/NYT_Complaint_Dec2023.pdf)
wedistribute.org
> > > A controversial developer circumvented one of Mastodon's primary tools for blocking bad actors, all so that his servers could connect to Threads. > > > > We’ve criticized the security and privacy mechanisms of Mastodon in the past, but this new development should be eye-opening. Alex Gleason, the former Truth Social developer behind Soapbox and Rebased, has come up with a sneaky workaround to how Authorized Fetch functions: if your domain is blocked for a fetch, just [sign it with a different domain name instead](https://gitlab.com/soapbox-pub/rebased/-/snippets/3634512). > > > > Gleason was originally investigating Threads federation to determine whether or not a failure to fetch posts indicated a software compatibility issue, or if Threads had blocked his server. After checking some logs and experimenting, he came to a conclusion. > > > > “Fellas,” Gleason writes, “I think threads.net might be blocking some servers already.” > > > > What Alex found was that Threads attempts to verify domain names before allowing access to a resource, a very similar approach to what Authorized Fetch does in Mastodon. > > > > > > > > You can see Threads fetching your own server by looking at the `facebookexternalua` user agent. Try this command on your server: > > > > > > > > `grep facebookexternalua /var/log/nginx/access.log` > > > > > > > > If you see logs there, that means Threads is attempting to verify your signatures and allow you to access their data. > > > > > >
> > > I got interested in this question a few years ago, when I started writing about the “[denominator problem](https://theconversation.com/facebook-has-a-misinformation-problem-and-is-blocking-access-to-data-about-how-much-there-is-and-who-is-affected-164838)”. A great deal of social media research focuses on finding unwanted behavior – mis/disinformation, hate speech – on platforms. This isn’t that hard to do: search for “white genocide” or “ivermectin” and count the results. Indeed, a lot of eye-catching research does just this – consider [Avaaz’s August 2020 report about COVID misinformation](https://secure.avaaz.org/campaign/en/facebook_threat_health/). It reports 3.8 billion views of COVID misinfo in a year, which is a very big number. But it’s a numerator without a denominator – Facebook generates dozens or hundreds of views a day for each of its 3 billion users – 3.8 billion views is actually a very small number, contextualized with a denominator. > > The paper this post describes can be found [here](https://journalqd.org/article/view/4066) Abstract: > > > YouTube is one of the largest, most important communication platforms in the world, but while there is a great deal of research about the site, many of its fundamental characteristics remain unknown. To better understand YouTube as a whole, we created a random sample of videos using a new method. Through a description of the sample’s metadata, we provide answers to many essential questions about, for example, the distribution of views, comments, likes, subscribers, and categories. Our method also allows us to estimate the total number of publicly visible videos on YouTube and its growth over time. To learn more about video content, we hand-coded a subsample to answer questions like how many are primarily music, video games, or still images. Finally, we processed the videos’ audio using language detection software to determine the distribution of spoken languages. In providing basic information about YouTube as a whole, we not only learn more about an influential platform, but also provide baseline context against which samples in more focused studies can be compared. > >
> > > I got interested in this question a few years ago, when I started writing about the “[denominator problem](https://theconversation.com/facebook-has-a-misinformation-problem-and-is-blocking-access-to-data-about-how-much-there-is-and-who-is-affected-164838)”. A great deal of social media research focuses on finding unwanted behavior – mis/disinformation, hate speech – on platforms. This isn’t that hard to do: search for “white genocide” or “ivermectin” and count the results. Indeed, a lot of eye-catching research does just this – consider [Avaaz’s August 2020 report about COVID misinformation](https://secure.avaaz.org/campaign/en/facebook_threat_health/). It reports 3.8 billion views of COVID misinfo in a year, which is a very big number. But it’s a numerator without a denominator – Facebook generates dozens or hundreds of views a day for each of its 3 billion users – 3.8 billion views is actually a very small number, contextualized with a denominator. > > The paper this post describes can be found [here](https://journalqd.org/article/view/4066) Abstract: > > > YouTube is one of the largest, most important communication platforms in the world, but while there is a great deal of research about the site, many of its fundamental characteristics remain unknown. To better understand YouTube as a whole, we created a random sample of videos using a new method. Through a description of the sample’s metadata, we provide answers to many essential questions about, for example, the distribution of views, comments, likes, subscribers, and categories. Our method also allows us to estimate the total number of publicly visible videos on YouTube and its growth over time. To learn more about video content, we hand-coded a subsample to answer questions like how many are primarily music, video games, or still images. Finally, we processed the videos’ audio using language detection software to determine the distribution of spoken languages. In providing basic information about YouTube as a whole, we not only learn more about an influential platform, but also provide baseline context against which samples in more focused studies can be compared. > >
> > > I got interested in this question a few years ago, when I started writing about the “[denominator problem](https://theconversation.com/facebook-has-a-misinformation-problem-and-is-blocking-access-to-data-about-how-much-there-is-and-who-is-affected-164838)”. A great deal of social media research focuses on finding unwanted behavior – mis/disinformation, hate speech – on platforms. This isn’t that hard to do: search for “white genocide” or “ivermectin” and count the results. Indeed, a lot of eye-catching research does just this – consider [Avaaz’s August 2020 report about COVID misinformation](https://secure.avaaz.org/campaign/en/facebook_threat_health/). It reports 3.8 billion views of COVID misinfo in a year, which is a very big number. But it’s a numerator without a denominator – Facebook generates dozens or hundreds of views a day for each of its 3 billion users – 3.8 billion views is actually a very small number, contextualized with a denominator. > > The paper this post describes can be found [here](https://journalqd.org/article/view/4066) Abstract: > > > YouTube is one of the largest, most important communication platforms in the world, but while there is a great deal of research about the site, many of its fundamental characteristics remain unknown. To better understand YouTube as a whole, we created a random sample of videos using a new method. Through a description of the sample’s metadata, we provide answers to many essential questions about, for example, the distribution of views, comments, likes, subscribers, and categories. Our method also allows us to estimate the total number of publicly visible videos on YouTube and its growth over time. To learn more about video content, we hand-coded a subsample to answer questions like how many are primarily music, video games, or still images. Finally, we processed the videos’ audio using language detection software to determine the distribution of spoken languages. In providing basic information about YouTube as a whole, we not only learn more about an influential platform, but also provide baseline context against which samples in more focused studies can be compared. > >
> > > I got interested in this question a few years ago, when I started writing about the “[denominator problem](https://theconversation.com/facebook-has-a-misinformation-problem-and-is-blocking-access-to-data-about-how-much-there-is-and-who-is-affected-164838)”. A great deal of social media research focuses on finding unwanted behavior – mis/disinformation, hate speech – on platforms. This isn’t that hard to do: search for “white genocide” or “ivermectin” and count the results. Indeed, a lot of eye-catching research does just this – consider [Avaaz’s August 2020 report about COVID misinformation](https://secure.avaaz.org/campaign/en/facebook_threat_health/). It reports 3.8 billion views of COVID misinfo in a year, which is a very big number. But it’s a numerator without a denominator – Facebook generates dozens or hundreds of views a day for each of its 3 billion users – 3.8 billion views is actually a very small number, contextualized with a denominator. > > The paper this post describes can be found [here](https://journalqd.org/article/view/4066) Abstract: > > > YouTube is one of the largest, most important communication platforms in the world, but while there is a great deal of research about the site, many of its fundamental characteristics remain unknown. To better understand YouTube as a whole, we created a random sample of videos using a new method. Through a description of the sample’s metadata, we provide answers to many essential questions about, for example, the distribution of views, comments, likes, subscribers, and categories. Our method also allows us to estimate the total number of publicly visible videos on YouTube and its growth over time. To learn more about video content, we hand-coded a subsample to answer questions like how many are primarily music, video games, or still images. Finally, we processed the videos’ audio using language detection software to determine the distribution of spoken languages. In providing basic information about YouTube as a whole, we not only learn more about an influential platform, but also provide baseline context against which samples in more focused studies can be compared. > >
www.whitehouse.gov
> > > In Proclamation 10467 of October 6, 2022 (Granting Pardon for the Offense of Simple Possession of Marijuana), I exercised my authority under the Constitution to pardon individuals who committed or were convicted of the offense of simple possession of marijuana in violation of the Controlled Substances Act and section 48–904.01(d)(1) of the Code of the District of Columbia (D.C. Code). As I have said before, convictions for simple possession of marijuana have imposed needless barriers to employment, housing, and educational opportunities. Through this proclamation, consistent with the grant of Proclamation 10467, I am pardoning additional individuals who may continue to experience the unnecessary collateral consequences of a conviction for simple possession of marijuana, attempted simple possession of marijuana, or use of marijuana. Therefore, acting pursuant to the grant of authority in Article II, Section 2, of the Constitution of the United States, I, Joseph R. Biden Jr., do hereby grant a full, complete, and unconditional pardon to all current United States citizens and lawful permanent residents who, on or before the date of this proclamation, committed or were convicted of the offense of simple possession of marijuana, attempted simple possession of marijuana, or use of marijuana, regardless of whether they have been charged with or prosecuted for these offenses on or before the date of this proclamation, in violation of: > > > > (1) section 844 of title 21, United States Code, section 846 of title 21, United States Code, and previous provisions in the United States Code that prohibited simple possession of marijuana or attempted simple possession of marijuana; > > > > (2) section 48-904.01(d)(1) of the D.C. Code and previous provisions in the D.C. Code that prohibited simple possession of marijuana; > > > > (3) section 48-904.09 of the D.C. Code and previous provisions in the D.C. Code that prohibited attempted simple possession of marijuana; and > > > > (4) provisions in the Code of Federal Regulations, including as enforced under the United States Code, that prohibit only the simple possession or use of marijuana on Federal properties or installations, or in other locales, as currently or previously codified, including but not limited to 25 C.F.R. 11.452(a); 32 C.F.R. 1903.12(b)(2); 36 C.F.R. 2.35(b)(2); 36 C.F.R. 1002.35(b)(2); 36 C.F.R. 1280.16(a)(1); 36 C.F.R. 702.6(b); 41 C.F.R. 102-74.400(a); 43 C.F.R. 8365.1-4(b)(2); and 50 C.F.R. 27.82(b)(2). > > > > My intent by this proclamation is to pardon only the offenses of simple possession of marijuana, attempted simple possession of marijuana, or use of marijuana in violation of the Federal and D.C. laws set forth in paragraphs (1) through (3) of this proclamation, as well as the provisions in the Code of Federal Regulations consistent with paragraph (4) of this proclamation, and not any other offenses involving other controlled substances or activity beyond simple possession of marijuana, attempted simple possession of marijuana, or use of marijuana, such as possession of marijuana with intent to distribute or driving offenses committed while under the influence of marijuana. This pardon does not apply to individuals who were non-citizens not lawfully present in the United States at the time of their offense. > > > > Pursuant to the procedures in Proclamation 10467, the Attorney General, acting through the Pardon Attorney, shall review all properly submitted applications for certificates of pardon and shall issue such certificates of pardon to eligible applicants in due course. > > > > IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-second day of December, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-three, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-eighth. > >
www.nbcnews.com
> > > In the 24 hours since the Colorado Supreme Court kicked former President Donald Trump off the state's Republican primary ballot, social media outlets have been flooded with threats against the justices who ruled in the case, according to a report obtained by NBC News. > > > > Advance Democracy, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that conducts public interest research, identified "significant violent rhetoric" against the justices and Democrats, often in direct response to Trump's posts about the ruling on his platform Truth Social. They found that some social media users posted justices' email addresses, phone numbers and office building addresses. > >
apnews.com
> > > NEW YORK (AP) — New York’s attorney general filed suit Wednesday against SiriusXM, accusing the satellite radio and streaming service of making it intentionally difficult for its customers to cancel their subscriptions. > > > > Attorney General Latitia James’ office said an investigation into complaints from customers found that SiriusXM forced subscribers to wait in an automated system before often lengthy interactions with agents who were trained in ways to avoid accepting a request to cancel service. > > > > “Having to endure a lengthy and frustrating process to cancel a subscription is a stressful burden no one looks forward to, and when companies make it hard to cancel subscriptions, it’s illegal,” the attorney general said in a statement. > > > > The company disputed the claims, arguing that many of the lengthy interaction times cited in the lawsuit were based on a 2020 inquiry and were caused in part by the effects of the pandemic on their operations. The company said many of its plans can be canceled with a simple click of a button online. > > [Attorney General Letitia James' Statement](https://ag.ny.gov/press-release/2023/attorney-general-james-sues-siriusxm-radio-trapping-consumers-unwanted)
apnews.com
> > > NEW YORK (AP) — New York’s attorney general filed suit Wednesday against SiriusXM, accusing the satellite radio and streaming service of making it intentionally difficult for its customers to cancel their subscriptions. > > > > Attorney General Latitia James’ office said an investigation into complaints from customers found that SiriusXM forced subscribers to wait in an automated system before often lengthy interactions with agents who were trained in ways to avoid accepting a request to cancel service. > > > > “Having to endure a lengthy and frustrating process to cancel a subscription is a stressful burden no one looks forward to, and when companies make it hard to cancel subscriptions, it’s illegal,” the attorney general said in a statement. > > > > The company disputed the claims, arguing that many of the lengthy interaction times cited in the lawsuit were based on a 2020 inquiry and were caused in part by the effects of the pandemic on their operations. The company said many of its plans can be canceled with a simple click of a button online. > > [Attorney General Letitia James' Statement](https://ag.ny.gov/press-release/2023/attorney-general-james-sues-siriusxm-radio-trapping-consumers-unwanted)
www.nytimes.com
[Full text of the decision found here](https://www.courts.state.co.us/userfiles/file/Court_Probation/Supreme_Court/Opinions/2023/23SA300.pdf) From the article: > > > Former President Donald J. Trump is ineligible to hold office again, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday, accepting the argument that the 14th Amendment disqualifies him in an explosive decision that could upend the 2024 election. > > > > In a lengthy ruling ordering the Colorado secretary of state to exclude Mr. Trump from the state’s Republican primary ballot, the justices reversed a Denver district judge’s finding last month that Section 3 of the 14th Amendment — which disqualifies people who have engaged in insurrection against the Constitution after having taken an oath to support it from holding office — did not apply to the presidency. > > > > They affirmed the district judge’s other key conclusions: that Mr. Trump’s actions before and on Jan. 6, 2021, constituted engaging in insurrection, and that courts had the authority to enforce Section 3 against a person whom Congress had not specifically designated. > > > > “A majority of the court holds that President Trump is disqualified from holding the office of president under Section Three of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution,” the court wrote in a 4-to-3 ruling. “Because he is disqualified, it would be a wrongful act under the Election Code for the Colorado Secretary of State to list him as a candidate on the presidential primary ballot.” > > > > “We do not reach these conclusions lightly,” the majority wrote. “We are mindful of the magnitude and weight of the questions now before us. We are likewise mindful of our solemn duty to apply the law, without fear or favor, and without being swayed by public reaction to the decisions that the law mandates we reach.” > >
www.404media.co
> > > “Verizon royally fucked up,” Poppy told me in a phone call. “There’s no way around it.” Verizon, she added, was “100% at fault.” > > > > Verizon handed Poppy’s personal data, including the address on file and phone logs, to a stalker who later directly threatened her and drove to an address armed with a knife. Police then arrested the suspect, Robert Michael Glauner, who is charged with fraud and stalking offenses, but not before he harassed Poppy, her family, friends, workplace, and daughter’s therapist, Poppy added. 404 Media has changed Poppy’s name to protect her identity. > > > > Glauner’s alleged scheme was not sophisticated in the slightest: he used a ProtonMail account, not a government email, to make the request, and used the name of a police officer that didn’t actually work for the police department he impersonated, according to court records. Despite those red flags, Verizon still provided the sensitive data to Glauner. > > > > Remarkably, in a text message to Poppy sent during the fallout of the data transfer, a Verizon representative told Poppy that the corporation was a victim too. “Whoever this is also victimized us,” the Verizon representative wrote, according to a copy of the message Poppy shared with 404 Media. “We are taking every step possible to work with the police so they can identify them.” > > > > In the interview with 404 Media, Poppy pointed out that Verizon is a multi-billion dollar company and yet still made this mistake. “They need to get their shit together,” she said. > >
abcnews.go.com
> > > A federal judge in New York has ordered a vast unsealing of court documents in early 2024 that will make public the names of scores of Jeffrey Epstein's associates. > > > > The documents are part of a settled civil lawsuit alleging Epstein's one-time paramour Ghislaine Maxwell facilitated the sexual abuse of Virginia Giuffre. Terms of the 2017 settlement were not disclosed. > >
techcrunch.com
> > > Comcast has confirmed that hackers exploiting a critical-rated security vulnerability accessed the sensitive information of almost 36 million Xfinity customers. > > > > This vulnerability, known as “CitrixBleed,” is found in Citrix networking devices often used by big corporations and has been under mass-exploitation by hackers since late August. Citrix made patches available in early October, but many organizations did not patch in time. Hackers have used the CitrixBleed vulnerability to hack into big-name victims, including aerospace giant Boeing, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, and international law firm Allen & Overy. > > [Comcast's statement](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20231218979935/en/Notice-To-Customers-of-Data-Security-Incident/) > > > Notice To Customers of Data Security Incident > December 18, 2023 04:30 PM Eastern Standard Time > > > > PHILADELPHIA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Xfinity is providing notice of a recent data security incident. Starting today, customers are being notified through a variety of channels, including through the Xfinity website, email, and news media. > > > > On October 10, 2023, Citrix announced a vulnerability in software used by Xfinity and thousands of other companies worldwide. Citrix issued additional mitigation guidance on October 23, 2023. Xfinity promptly patched and mitigated the Citrix vulnerability within its systems. However, during a routine cybersecurity exercise on October 25, Xfinity discovered suspicious activity and subsequently determined that between October 16 and October 19, 2023, there was unauthorized access to its internal systems that was concluded to be a result of this vulnerability. > > > > Xfinity notified federal law enforcement and initiated an investigation into the nature and scope of the incident. On November 16, Xfinity determined that information was likely acquired. After additional review of the affected systems and data, Xfinity concluded on December 6, 2023, that the customer information in scope included usernames and hashed passwords; for some customers, other information may also have been included, such as names, contact information, last four digits of social security numbers, dates of birth and/or secret questions and answers. However, the data analysis is continuing. > > > > Xfinity has required customers to reset their passwords to protect affected accounts. In addition, Xfinity strongly recommends that customers enable two-factor or multi-factor authentication to secure their Xfinity account, as many Xfinity customers already do. While Xfinity advises customers not to re-use passwords across multiple accounts, the company is recommending that customers change passwords for other accounts for which they use the same username and password or security question. > > > > Customers with questions can contact Xfinity’s dedicated call center at 888-799-2560 toll-free 24 hours a day, seven days a week. More information is available on the Xfinity website at [www.xfinity.com/dataincident](http://www.xfinity.com/dataincident). > > > > Customers trust Xfinity to protect their information, and the company takes this responsibility seriously. Xfinity remains committed to continued investment in technology, protocols and experts dedicated to helping to protect its customers. > >
> > > Today we are beginning to open Flipboard to the Fediverse, a rapidly emerging part of the Web which includes social services like Mastodon, Threads, Pixelfed, Firefish and PeerTube all built on a revolutionary open protocol called ActivityPub. > > Here's their rollout plan: > > > Federation in Three Phases > > > > When and how is this going to happen? The process of opening Flipboard to the Fediverse is called “federation” and it will happen in three distinct phases between now and April: > > > > * Phase 1 (Today): We are federating 25 publishers and creators so that we can test and gather feedback > * Phase 2 (January): We will enable anyone in the Fediverse to follow and engage with any public curator on Flipboard > * Phase 3 (April): We will enable anyone on Flipboard to follow and engage with any public account in the Fediverse > > This is the list of publishers that are being federated today: [The Verge, Fast Company, Semafor, Spin, News Literacy Project, Medium, Digiday, Science Alert, Polygon, Frommers, Pitchfork, Refinery29, Mental Floss, The Root, Kotaku, The 74, Joy Sauce, Indie Wire, LGBTQ Nation, Smithsonian Magazine, AFAR, The Christian Science Monitor, Erin Brockovich, Canada's National Observer, The Conversation](https://miro.medium.com/v2/resize:fit:720/format:webp/1*ND2nzgFo4gA5vS0e8WWKOg.png)
Technology
Wikimedia Foundation calls on US Supreme Court to strike laws that threaten Wikipedia
btp
9 months ago
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66%
Checks and balances. Plus, the U.S. is a very large country, with a large population that has their own priorities and values. Local municipalities can also vary largely within state governments. The federal system allows these communities to self-determine, while also enacting a foundation of basic rights and government function.
www.nature.com
> > > The number of retractions issued for research articles in 2023 has passed 10,000 — smashing annual records — as publishers struggle to clean up a slew of sham papers and peer-review fraud. Among large research-producing nations, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Russia and China have the highest retraction rates over the past two decades, a Nature analysis has found. > > > > The bulk of 2023’s retractions were from journals owned by Hindawi, a London-based subsidiary of the publisher Wiley (see ‘A bumper year for retractions’). So far this year, Hindawi journals have pulled more than 8,000 articles, citing factors such as “concerns that the peer review process has been compromised” and “systematic manipulation of the publication and peer-review process”, after investigations prompted by internal editors and by research-integrity sleuths who raised questions about incoherent text and irrelevant references in thousands of papers. > >
themarkup.org
> > > We answer the questions readers asked in response to our guide to anonymizing your phone > > > > > About the [LevelUp series](https://themarkup.org/series/levelup): At The Markup, we’re committed to doing everything we can to protect our readers from digital harm, write about the processes we develop, and share our work. We’re constantly working on improving digital security, respecting reader privacy, creating ethical and responsible user experiences, and making sure our site and tools are accessible. > > This is a follow-up article. [Here's the first piece, if you'd like to read that one as well](https://themarkup.org/levelup/2023/10/25/without-a-trace-how-to-take-your-phone-off-the-grid)
www.theverge.com
> > > Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg posted on Threads that the platform is beginning to test making Threads posts available on Mastodon and other ActivityPub-supporting services. Zuckerberg wrote that making Threads work with the interoperable standard “will give people more choice over how they interact and it will help content reach more people.” > >
www.thestack.technology
> > > Broadcom is killing off VMware’s on-premises perpetual licenses – and getting set to strong-arm VMware customers onto subscriptions, by also ending the sale of Support and Subscription renewals for such customers. > > > > VMware described this to customers as part of its plan to “complete the transition of all VMware by Broadcom solutions to subscription licenses.” > > > > “We are [also] ending the sale of Support and Subscription (SnS) renewals for perpetual offerings beginning today” SVP Krish Prasad said in a FAQ. > > > > > Which VMware products are affected? > > > > ``` > VMware Cloud Foundation > VMware vSphere > VMware vSAN > VMware NSX > VMware HCX > VMware Site Recovery Manager > VMware vCloud Suite > VMware Aria Suite > VMware Aria Universal > VMware Aria Automation > VMware Aria Operations > VMware Aria Operations for Logs > VMware Aria Operations for Networks > > ``` > >
www.404media.co
> > > In one of the coolest and more outrageous repair stories in quite some time, three white-hat hackers helped a regional rail company in southwest Poland unbrick a train that had been artificially rendered inoperable by the train’s manufacturer after an independent maintenance company worked on it. The train’s manufacturer is now threatening to sue the hackers who were hired by the independent repair company to fix it. > > > > > After breaking trains simply because an independent repair shop had worked on them, NEWAG is now demanding that trains fixed by hackers be removed from service. > >
www.404media.co
> > > In one of the coolest and more outrageous repair stories in quite some time, three white-hat hackers helped a regional rail company in southwest Poland unbrick a train that had been artificially rendered inoperable by the train’s manufacturer after an independent maintenance company worked on it. The train’s manufacturer is now threatening to sue the hackers who were hired by the independent repair company to fix it. > > > > > After breaking trains simply because an independent repair shop had worked on them, NEWAG is now demanding that trains fixed by hackers be removed from service. > >
www.404media.co
> > > In one of the coolest and more outrageous repair stories in quite some time, three white-hat hackers helped a regional rail company in southwest Poland unbrick a train that had been artificially rendered inoperable by the train’s manufacturer after an independent maintenance company worked on it. The train’s manufacturer is now threatening to sue the hackers who were hired by the independent repair company to fix it. > > > > > After breaking trains simply because an independent repair shop had worked on them, NEWAG is now demanding that trains fixed by hackers be removed from service. > >
www.404media.co
> > > In one of the coolest and more outrageous repair stories in quite some time, three white-hat hackers helped a regional rail company in southwest Poland unbrick a train that had been artificially rendered inoperable by the train’s manufacturer after an independent maintenance company worked on it. The train’s manufacturer is now threatening to sue the hackers who were hired by the independent repair company to fix it. > > > > > After breaking trains simply because an independent repair shop had worked on them, NEWAG is now demanding that trains fixed by hackers be removed from service. > >
btp
9 months ago
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88%
First, a quick primer on the tech: ACR identifies what’s displayed on your television, including content served through a cable TV box, streaming service, or game console, by continuously grabbing screenshots and comparing them to a massive database of media and advertisements. Think of it as a Shazam-like service constantly running in the background while your TV is on.
All of this is in the second paragraph of the article.
Random
It's kind of funny how many 1:1 clones of popular subreddits were created on kbin after the big Reddit api debacle earlier this year that were posted in by like one or two people for a month or so,
btp
9 months ago
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100%
I'm gunna keep sticking around and posting regularly for the time being. Still really enjoying the experience and communities that are still here.
themarkup.org
> > > These TVs can capture and identify 7,200 images per hour, or approximately two every second. The data is then used for content recommendations and ad targeting, which is a huge business; advertisers spent an estimated $18.6 billion on smart TV ads in 2022, according to market research firm eMarketer. > >
techcrunch.com
> > > Despite delays, the plan to connect Tumblr's blogging site to the wider world of decentralized social media, also known as the "fediverse," is still on. > > > > > Now, CEO Matt Mullenweg is clearing up the status of Tumblr’s fediverse ambitions in an AMA (Ask Me Anything) shared on his own Tumblr blog. In response to a question from TechCrunch, Mullenweg explained that despite the re-org, which will see many Tumblr employees move to other projects at the end of the year, Automattic did switch someone over to Tumblr to work on the fediverse integration, which will continue in the new year. > > > > Still, Mullenweg cautioned that, so far, Automattic hadn’t yet seen outsized user demand for federated social media. > > > > “The Activity Pub and Friends plugins for WordPress are both from Automatticians, and have allowed us space to play in this space and understand the community and protocols, and also gauge user demand,” Mullenweg wrote. “Right now both have under ten thousand users, so there hasn’t been a big user push for this yet,” he noted. > > > > But he said that folks will “dig into Tumblr’s codebase” to see what it can do about moving forward with federation. > > [Matt Mullenweg's Tumblr post](https://www.tumblr.com/photomatt/736181522416205824/what-is-the-status-of-tumblr-being-connected-to)
abcnews.go.com
> > > The Biden administration has announced a proposal to “strengthen its Lead and Copper Rule that would require water systems to replace lead service lines within 10 years,” the White House said in a statement on Thursday. > > > > According to the White House, more than 9.2 million American households connect to water through lead pipes and lead service lines and, due to “decades of inequitable infrastructure development and underinvestment,” many Americans are at risk of lead exposure. > >
[https://micronews.debian.org/2023/1702150551.html](https://micronews.debian.org/2023/1702150551.html) > > > Due to an issue in ext4 with data corruption in kernel 6.1.64-1, we are pausing the 12.3 image release for today while we attend to fixes. Please do not update any systems at this time, we urge caution for users with UnattendedUpgrades configured. Please see bug# 1057843: [https://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=1057843](https://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=1057843) > >
[https://micronews.debian.org/2023/1702150551.html](https://micronews.debian.org/2023/1702150551.html) > > > Due to an issue in ext4 with data corruption in kernel 6.1.64-1, we are pausing the 12.3 image release for today while we attend to fixes. Please do not update any systems at this time, we urge caution for users with UnattendedUpgrades configured. Please see bug# 1057843: [https://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=1057843](https://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=1057843) > >
wikimediafoundation.org
> > > The Foundation supports challenges to laws in Texas and Florida that jeopardize Wikipedia's community-led governance model and the right to freedom of expression. > > > > > An amicus brief, also known as a “friend-of-the-court” brief, is a document filed by individuals or organizations who are not part of a lawsuit, but who have an interest in the outcome of the case and want to raise awareness about their concerns. The Wikimedia Foundation’s amicus brief calls upon the Supreme Court to strike down laws passed in 2021 by Texas and Florida state legislatures. Texas House Bill 20 and Florida Senate Bill 7072 prohibit website operators from banning users or removing speech and content based on the viewpoints and opinions of the users in question. > > > > > “These laws expose residents of Florida and Texas who edit Wikipedia to lawsuits by people who disagree with their work,” said Stephen LaPorte, General Counsel for the Wikimedia Foundation. “For over twenty years, a community of volunteers from around the world have designed, debated, and deployed a range of content moderation policies to ensure the information on Wikipedia is reliable and neutral. We urge the Supreme Court to rule in favor of NetChoice to protect Wikipedia’s unique model of community-led governance, as well as the free expression rights of the encyclopedia’s dedicated editors.” > > > > “The quality of Wikipedia as an online encyclopedia depends entirely on the ability of volunteers to develop and enforce nuanced rules for well-sourced, encyclopedic content,” said Rebecca MacKinnon, Vice President of Global Advocacy at the Wikimedia Foundation. “Without the discretion to make editorial decisions in line with established policies around verifiability and neutrality, Wikipedia would be overwhelmed with opinions, conspiracies, and irrelevant information that would jeopardize the project’s reason for existing.” > >
wikimediafoundation.org
> > > The Foundation supports challenges to laws in Texas and Florida that jeopardize Wikipedia's community-led governance model and the right to freedom of expression. > > > > > An amicus brief, also known as a “friend-of-the-court” brief, is a document filed by individuals or organizations who are not part of a lawsuit, but who have an interest in the outcome of the case and want to raise awareness about their concerns. The Wikimedia Foundation’s amicus brief calls upon the Supreme Court to strike down laws passed in 2021 by Texas and Florida state legislatures. Texas House Bill 20 and Florida Senate Bill 7072 prohibit website operators from banning users or removing speech and content based on the viewpoints and opinions of the users in question. > > > > > “These laws expose residents of Florida and Texas who edit Wikipedia to lawsuits by people who disagree with their work,” said Stephen LaPorte, General Counsel for the Wikimedia Foundation. “For over twenty years, a community of volunteers from around the world have designed, debated, and deployed a range of content moderation policies to ensure the information on Wikipedia is reliable and neutral. We urge the Supreme Court to rule in favor of NetChoice to protect Wikipedia’s unique model of community-led governance, as well as the free expression rights of the encyclopedia’s dedicated editors.” > > > > “The quality of Wikipedia as an online encyclopedia depends entirely on the ability of volunteers to develop and enforce nuanced rules for well-sourced, encyclopedic content,” said Rebecca MacKinnon, Vice President of Global Advocacy at the Wikimedia Foundation. “Without the discretion to make editorial decisions in line with established policies around verifiability and neutrality, Wikipedia would be overwhelmed with opinions, conspiracies, and irrelevant information that would jeopardize the project’s reason for existing.” > >
wikimediafoundation.org
> > > The Foundation supports challenges to laws in Texas and Florida that jeopardize Wikipedia's community-led governance model and the right to freedom of expression. > > > > > An amicus brief, also known as a “friend-of-the-court” brief, is a document filed by individuals or organizations who are not part of a lawsuit, but who have an interest in the outcome of the case and want to raise awareness about their concerns. The Wikimedia Foundation’s amicus brief calls upon the Supreme Court to strike down laws passed in 2021 by Texas and Florida state legislatures. Texas House Bill 20 and Florida Senate Bill 7072 prohibit website operators from banning users or removing speech and content based on the viewpoints and opinions of the users in question. > > > > > “These laws expose residents of Florida and Texas who edit Wikipedia to lawsuits by people who disagree with their work,” said Stephen LaPorte, General Counsel for the Wikimedia Foundation. “For over twenty years, a community of volunteers from around the world have designed, debated, and deployed a range of content moderation policies to ensure the information on Wikipedia is reliable and neutral. We urge the Supreme Court to rule in favor of NetChoice to protect Wikipedia’s unique model of community-led governance, as well as the free expression rights of the encyclopedia’s dedicated editors.” > > > > “The quality of Wikipedia as an online encyclopedia depends entirely on the ability of volunteers to develop and enforce nuanced rules for well-sourced, encyclopedic content,” said Rebecca MacKinnon, Vice President of Global Advocacy at the Wikimedia Foundation. “Without the discretion to make editorial decisions in line with established policies around verifiability and neutrality, Wikipedia would be overwhelmed with opinions, conspiracies, and irrelevant information that would jeopardize the project’s reason for existing.” > >
www.sorbonne-universite.fr
> > > Sorbonne University has been deeply committed to the promotion and the development of open science for many years. According to its commitment to open research information, it has decided to discontinue its subscription to the Web of Science publication database and Clarivate bibliometric tools in 2024. By resolutely abandoning the use of proprietary bibliometric products, it is opening the way for open, free and participative tools. > >
> > > The Breakthrough Listen search for intelligent life is, to date, the most extensive technosignature search of nearby celestial objects. We present a radio technosignature search of the centers of 97 nearby galaxies, observed by Breakthrough Listen at the Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope. We performed a narrowband Doppler drift search using the turboSETI pipeline with a minimum signal-to-noise parameter threshold of 10, across a drift rate range of $\\pm$ 4 Hz\\ $s^{-1}$, with a spectral resolution of 3 Hz and a time resolution of $\\sim$ 18.25 s. We removed radio frequency interference by using an on-source/off-source cadence pattern of six observations and discarding signals with Doppler drift rates of 0. We assess factors affecting the sensitivity of the Breakthrough Listen data reduction and search pipeline using signal injection and recovery techniques and apply new methods for the investigation of the RFI environment. We present results in four frequency bands covering 1 -- 11 GHz, and place constraints on the presence of transmitters with equivalent isotropic radiated power on the order of $10^{26}$ W, corresponding to the theoretical power consumption of Kardashev Type II civilizations. > >
Technology
Physicists May Have Found a Hard Limit on The Performance of Large Quantum Computers
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10 months ago
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100%
A newly discovered trade-off in the way time-keeping devices operate on a fundamental level could set a hard limit on the performance of large-scale quantum computers, according to researchers from the Vienna University of Technology.
While the issue isn't exactly pressing, our ability to grow systems based on quantum operations from backroom prototypes into practical number-crunching behemoths will depend on how well we can reliably dissect the days into ever finer portions. This is a feat the researchers say will become increasingly more challenging.
Whether you're counting the seconds with whispers of Mississippi or dividing them up with the pendulum-swing of an electron in atomic confinement, the measure of time is bound by the limits of physics itself.
One of these limits involves the resolution with which time can be split. Measures of any event shorter than 5.39 x 10-44 seconds, for example, run afoul of theories on the basic functions of the Universe. They just don't make any sense, in other words.
Yet even before we get to that hard line in the sands of time, physicists think there is a toll to be paid that could prevent us from continuing to measure ever smaller units.
Sooner or later, every clock winds down. The pendulum slows, the battery dies, the atomic laser needs resetting. This isn't merely an engineering challenge – the march of time itself is a feature of the Universe's progress from a highly ordered state to an entangled, chaotic mess in what is known as entropy.
"Time measurement always has to do with entropy," says senior author Marcus Huber, a systems engineer who leads a research group in the intersection of Quantum Information and Quantum Thermodynamics at the Vienna University of Technology.
In their recently published theorem, Huber and his team lay out the logic that connects entropy as a thermodynamic phenomenon with resolution, demonstrating that unless you've got infinite energy at your fingertips, your fast-ticking clock will eventually run into precision problems.
Or as the study's first author, theoretical physicist Florian Meier puts it, "That means: Either the clock works quickly or it works precisely – both are not possible at the same time."
This might not be a major problem if you want to count out seconds that won't deviate over the lifetime of our Universe. But for technologies like quantum computing, which rely on the temperamental nature of particles hovering on the edge of existence, timing is everything.
This isn't a big problem when the number of particles is small. As they increase in number, the risk any one of them could be knocked out of their quantum critical state rises, leaving less and less time to carry out the necessary computations.
Plenty of research has gone into exploring the potential for errors in quantum technology caused by a noisy, imperfect Universe. This appears to be the first time researchers have looked at the physics of timekeeping itself as a potential obstacle.
"Currently, the accuracy of quantum computers is still limited by other factors, for example the precision of the components used or electromagnetic fields," says Huber.
"But our calculations also show that today we are not far from the regime in which the fundamental limits of time measurement play the decisive role."
It's likely other advances in quantum computing will improve stability, reduce errors, and 'buy time' for scaled-up devices to operate in optimal ways. But whether entropy will have the final say on just how powerful quantum computers can get, only time will tell.
This research was published in Physical Review Letters.
Technology
GitHub: Can no longer search code without being logged in.
btp
10 months ago
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60%
Microsoft purchased GitHub in 2018. This change happened this year.
Technology
GitHub: Can no longer search code without being logged in.
btp
10 months ago
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85%
I think it kind of flies in the face of what Open Source Software should be. They're walling off code behind accounts in the Microsoft ecosystem.
btp
10 months ago
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97%
"References illicit drugs" lol
Technology
OpenAI announces leadership transition Sam Altman departs the company
btp
10 months ago
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20%
Technology
OpenAI announces leadership transition Sam Altman departs the company
btp
10 months ago
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100%
Technology
OpenAI announces leadership transition Sam Altman departs the company
btp
10 months ago
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100%
Random
Is it just me, or should the "boost" and "favorite" functions on kbin be swapped? I feel like the "up arrow" should be the "boost", and the "boost" link on a post, thread, or comment should be "favori
btp
10 months ago
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100%
Ah, okay, I see. Thanks for clearing that up.
Technology
The FCC can now punish telecom providers for charging customers more for less
btp
10 months ago
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100%
I haven't read through all the rules proper yet, but it looks like his specific circumstance you're mentioning here has already been taken into account by the FCC. From the article:
Under the new rules, the FCC can fine telecom companies for not providing equal connectivity to different communities “without adequate justification,” such as financial or technical challenges of building out service in a particular area. The rules are specifically designed to address correlations between household income, race, and internet speed.
Technology
WordPress now offers official support for ActivityPub
btp
11 months ago
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100%
One of us!