The Linkielist

Linking ideas with the world

Study finding persistent chemical in European wines raises doubts and concerns

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A report by the Pesticides Action Network (PAN Europe) and other NGOs that uncovered high concentrations of a forever chemical in wines from across the EU – including organic – is sparking debate about the causes of contamination and restrictions on the substance.  The report found some wines had trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) levels 100 times Read more about Study finding persistent chemical in European wines raises doubts and concerns[…]

Spacetop AR is now an expensive Windows app instead of a useless screenless laptop

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The Spacetop AR laptop made a splash when it debuted a few years ago with an intriguing pitch: What if you could have a notebook that works entirely through augmented reality glasses, without a built-in screen of its own? Unfortunately, we found the Spacetop experience to be underwhelming, and the hardware seemed like a tough Read more about Spacetop AR is now an expensive Windows app instead of a useless screenless laptop[…]

EC fines Meta, Apple €700M for DMA compliance failures

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Meta and Apple have earned the dubious honor of being the first companies fined for non-compliance with the EU’s Digital Markets Act, which experts say could inflame tensions between US President Donald Trump and the European bloc. Apple was penalised to the tune of €500 million ($570 million) for violating anti-steering rules and Meta by Read more about EC fines Meta, Apple €700M for DMA compliance failures[…]

Blue Shield of California Exposed the Data of 4.7 Million People to Google for targeted advertising

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Blue Shield of California shared the protected health information of 4.7 million individuals with Google over a nearly three-year period, a data breach that impacts the majority of its nearly 6 million members, according to reporting from Bleeping Computer. This isn’t the only large data breach to affect a healthcare organization the last year alone. Read more about Blue Shield of California Exposed the Data of 4.7 Million People to Google for targeted advertising[…]

Tesla now seems to be remote hacking odometers to weasel out of warranty repairs. Time to stop DMCA type laws globally.

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A lawsuit filed in February accuses Tesla of remotely altering odometer values on failure-prone cars, in a bid to push these lemons beyond the 50,000 mile warranty limit: https://www.thestreet.com/automotive/tesla-accused-of-using-sneaky-tactic-to-dodge-car-repairs The suit was filed by a California driver who bought a used Tesla with 36,772 miles on it. The car’s suspension kept failing, necessitating multiple servicings, Read more about Tesla now seems to be remote hacking odometers to weasel out of warranty repairs. Time to stop DMCA type laws globally.[…]

Discord Wants Your Face: Begins Testing Facial Scans for Age Verification

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Discord has begun requiring some users in the United Kingdom and Australia to verify their age through a facial scan before being permitted to access sensitive content. The chat app’s new process has been described as an “experiment,” and comes in response to laws passed in those countries that place guardrails on youth access to Read more about Discord Wants Your Face: Begins Testing Facial Scans for Age Verification[…]

Your TV is watching you better: LG TVs’ integrated ads get more personal with tech that analyzes viewer emotions

Posted on by Robin Edgar

LG TVs will soon leverage an AI model built for showing advertisements that more closely align with viewers’ personal beliefs and emotions. The company plans to incorporate a partner company’s AI tech into its TV software in order to interpret psychological factors impacting a viewer, such as personal interests, personality traits, and lifestyle choices. The Read more about Your TV is watching you better: LG TVs’ integrated ads get more personal with tech that analyzes viewer emotions[…]

Google Found Guilty of Illegal Ad Tech Monopoly in US Federal Court Ruling

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A federal judge has ruled that Google maintained illegal monopolies in the digital advertising technology market. In a landmark case, the Department of Justice and 17 states found Google liable for antitrust violations. Federal Court Finds Google Violated Sherman Act U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema ruled that Google illegally monopolized two key markets in digital Read more about Google Found Guilty of Illegal Ad Tech Monopoly in US Federal Court Ruling[…]

OpenDNS Quits Belgium Under Threat of Piracy Blocks or Fines of €100K Per Day after having quit France

Posted on by Robin Edgar

In a brief statement citing a court order in Belgium but providing no other details, Cisco says that its OpenDNS service is no longer available to users in Belgium. Cisco’s withdrawal is almost certainly linked to an IPTV piracy blocking order obtained by DAZN; itt requires OpenDNS, Cloudflare and Google to block over 100 pirate Read more about OpenDNS Quits Belgium Under Threat of Piracy Blocks or Fines of €100K Per Day after having quit France[…]

Toothpaste widely contaminated with lead and other metals, US research finds

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Toothpaste can be widely contaminated with lead and other dangerous heavy metals, new research shows. Most of 51 brands of toothpaste tested for lead contained the dangerous heavy metal, including those for children or those marketed as green. The testing, conducted by Lead Safe Mama, also found concerning levels of highly toxic arsenic, mercury and Read more about Toothpaste widely contaminated with lead and other metals, US research finds[…]

LaLiga Piracy Blocks Randomly Take Down huge innocent segments of internet with no recourse or warning, slammed as “Unaccountable Internet Censorship”

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Cloud-based web application platform Vercel is among the latest companies to find their servers blocked in Spain due to LaLiga’s ongoing IPTV anti-piracy campaign. In a statement, Vercel’s CEO and the company’s principal engineer slam “indiscriminate” blocking as an “unaccountable form of internet censorship” that has prevented legitimate customers from conducting their daily business. Since Read more about LaLiga Piracy Blocks Randomly Take Down huge innocent segments of internet with no recourse or warning, slammed as “Unaccountable Internet Censorship”[…]

Early childhood antibiotics increases risk of asthma, food allergies, allergic rhinitis, and intellectual disability

Posted on by Robin Edgar

[…] Among 1,091,449 children, antibiotic exposure before age 2 was positively associated with asthma (hazard ratio 1.24, 1.22-1.26), food allergy (hazard ratio 1.33, 1.26-1.40), and allergic rhinitis (hazard ratio 1.06, 1.03-1.10), with stronger associations observed following multiple antibiotic courses. Findings from sibling-matched analyses were similar. Early-childhood antibiotic exposure was also dose-dependently associated with intellectual disability Read more about Early childhood antibiotics increases risk of asthma, food allergies, allergic rhinitis, and intellectual disability[…]

British soldiers take down drone swarm in groundbreaking use of radio wave weapon

Posted on by Robin Edgar

UK-made, invisible radio wave weapon knocks out drone swarms for the first time. Weapon has potential to help protect against drone threats as nature of warfare changes. The project supports more than 135 highly skilled jobs across the UK. The trial was completed at a weapons range in West Wales and was the largest counter-drone swarm Read more about British soldiers take down drone swarm in groundbreaking use of radio wave weapon[…]

Synology confirms that higher-end NAS products will require its branded drives

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Popular NAS-maker Synology has confirmed and slightly clarified a policy that appeared on its German website earlier this week: Its “Plus” tier of devices, starting with the 2025 series, will require Synology-branded hard drives for full compatibility, at least at first. “Synology-branded drives will be needed for use in the newly announced Plus series, with Read more about Synology confirms that higher-end NAS products will require its branded drives[…]

Don’t delete your new inetpub folder. It’s a Windows security fix

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Canny Windows users who’ve spotted a mysterious folder on hard drives after applying last week’s security patches for the operating system can rest assured – it’s perfectly benign. In fact, it’s recommended you leave the directory there. The folder, typically C:\inetpub, is empty and related to Microsoft’s Internet Information Services (IIS). It will be created Read more about Don’t delete your new inetpub folder. It’s a Windows security fix[…]

Apple to Spy on User Emails and other Data on Devices to Bolster AI Technology

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Apple Inc. will begin analyzing data on customers’ devices in a bid to improve its artificial intelligence platform, a move designed to safeguard user information while still helping it catch up with AI rivals. Today, Apple typically trains AI models using synthetic data — information that’s meant to mimic real-world inputs without any personal details. Read more about Apple to Spy on User Emails and other Data on Devices to Bolster AI Technology[…]

EU gives burner phones and laptops on visits to U.S. (as well as they have been doing for China)

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The European Commission has started issuing burner phones and stripped-down laptops to staff visiting the U.S. over concerns that the treatment of visitors to the country has become a security risk, according to a new report from the Financial Times. And it’s just the latest news that America’s slide into fascism under Donald Trump is Read more about EU gives burner phones and laptops on visits to U.S. (as well as they have been doing for China)[…]

Cholera Outbreak Traced to Holy Water From Ethiopia

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A sacred pilgrimage ended up in the toilet for several travelers earlier this year. Health officials in Europe have reported an outbreak of superbug cholera traced back to tainted holy water sourced from Ethiopia. Health officials in Germany and the UK detailed the strange outbreak in a report published Thursday in the journal Eurosurveillance. At least Read more about Cholera Outbreak Traced to Holy Water From Ethiopia[…]

VMware revives its free ESXi hypervisor

Posted on by Robin Edgar

News of the offering emerged in a throwaway line in the Release Notes for version 8.0 Update 3e of the Broadcom business unit’s ESXi hypervisor. Just below the “What’s New” section of that document is the statement: “Broadcom makes available the VMware vSphere Hypervisor version 8, an entry-level hypervisor. You can download it free of Read more about VMware revives its free ESXi hypervisor[…]

Windows’ Recall Spyware Is Back—Here’s How to Control It

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Remember Recall? It’s been close to full trip around the sun since Microsoft announced then suddenly pulled its AI-powered, auto-screenshotting “photographic memory” software for Copilot+ PCs. Whether you want it or not, the feature is coming back, and you should be prepared for it not just if you’re planning to use it, but if you imagine Read more about Windows’ Recall Spyware Is Back—Here’s How to Control It[…]

Germany’s ‘Universal Basic Income’ Experiment Proves It Doesn’t Encourage Unmployment

Posted on by Robin Edgar

People “are likely to continue working full-time even if they receive no-strings-attached universal basic income payments,” reports CNN, citing results from a recent experiment in Germany (discussed on Slashdot in 2020): Mein Grundeinkommen (My Basic Income), the Berlin-based non-profit that ran the German study, followed 122 people for three years. From June 2021 to May Read more about Germany’s ‘Universal Basic Income’ Experiment Proves It Doesn’t Encourage Unmployment[…]

Quasicrystals found to increase the strength of 3D-printed metal

Posted on by Robin Edgar

[…] The alloy formed under the extreme conditions of metal 3D printing, a new way to make metal parts. Understanding this aluminum on the atomic scale will enable a whole new category of 3D-printed parts such as airplane components, heat exchangers and car chassis. It will also open the door to research on new aluminum Read more about Quasicrystals found to increase the strength of 3D-printed metal[…]

Zeiss Smart glass windows would beam in-flight info over scenic views

Posted on by Robin Edgar

[…] According to an announcement earlier this month, Zeiss wants to upgrade commercial jets with touch-free holographic Multifunctional Smart Glass systems. The new technology is on display from April 8-10 during the Aircraft Interiors Expo  2025 in Hamburg, Germany. The company wants to move beyond the showroom floor and into more planes within the coming Read more about Zeiss Smart glass windows would beam in-flight info over scenic views[…]