Day: October 6, 2023

ICE, CBP, Secret Service All Illegally Used Smartphone Location Data

Posted on by Robin Edgar

In a bombshell report, an oversight body for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) found that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Customs and Border Enforcement (CBP), and the Secret Service all broke the law while using location data harvested from ordinary apps installed on smartphones. In one instance, a CBP official also inappropriately used the Read more about ICE, CBP, Secret Service All Illegally Used Smartphone Location Data[…]

EPIC urges FTC to investigate Grindr’s data practices

Posted on by Robin Edgar

On Wednesday, EPIC filed a complaint with the US government watchdog over Grindr’s “apparent failure to safeguard users’ sensitive personal data.” This includes both present and past users who have since deleted their accounts, according to the complaint. Despite promising in its privacy policy to delete personal info if customers remove their account, Grindr allegedly retained Read more about EPIC urges FTC to investigate Grindr’s data practices[…]

Publishing A Book Means No Longer Having Control Over How Others Feel About It, Or How They’re Inspired By It. And That Includes AI.

Posted on by Robin Edgar

[…] I completely understand why some authors are extremely upset about finding out that their works were used to train AI. It feels wrong. It feels exploitive. (I do not understand their lawsuits, because I think they’re very much confused about how copyright law works. ) But, to me, many of the complaints about this Read more about Publishing A Book Means No Longer Having Control Over How Others Feel About It, Or How They’re Inspired By It. And That Includes AI.[…]

JuMBOs Planets – but without stars to orbit. So not planets according to definition

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A team of astronomers have detected over 500 planet-like objects in the inner Orion Nebula and the Trapezium Cluster that they believe could shake up the very definition of a planet. The 4-light-year-wide Trapezium Cluster sits at the heart of the Orion Nebula, or Messier 42, about 1,400 light-years from Earth. The cluster is filled Read more about JuMBOs Planets – but without stars to orbit. So not planets according to definition[…]

Arm patches Mali GPU driver bug exploited by spyware

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Commercial spyware has exploited a security hole in Arm’s Mali GPU drivers to compromise some people’s devices, according to Google today. These graphics processors are used in a ton of gear, from phones and tablets to laptops and cars, so the kernel-level vulnerability may be present in countless equipment. This includes Android handsets made by Read more about Arm patches Mali GPU driver bug exploited by spyware[…]

Amazon Used Secret ‘Project Nessie’ Algorithm To Raise Price

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Amazon used an algorithm code-named “Project Nessie” to test how much it could raise prices in a way that competitors would follow, according to redacted portions of the Federal Trade Commission’s monopoly lawsuit against the company. From a report: The algorithm helped Amazon improve its profit on items across shopping categories, and because of the Read more about Amazon Used Secret ‘Project Nessie’ Algorithm To Raise Price[…]