The Linkielist

Linking ideas with the world

We are losing vast swathes of our digital past, and copyright stops us saving it

It is hard to imagine the world without the Web. Collectively, we routinely access billions of Web pages without thinking about it. But we often take it for granted that the material we want to access will be there, both now and in the future. We all hit the dreaded “404 not found” error from Read more about We are losing vast swathes of our digital past, and copyright stops us saving it[…]

First-mover advantage found in the arts shows copyright isn’t necessary to protect innovative creativity

One of the arguments sometimes made in defence of copyright is that without it, creators would be unable to compete with the hordes of copycats that would spring up as soon as their works became popular. Copyright is needed, supporters say, to prevent less innovative creators from producing works that are closely based on new, Read more about First-mover advantage found in the arts shows copyright isn’t necessary to protect innovative creativity[…]

The world’s first tooth-regrowing drug has been approved for human trials

[…] medicine quite literally regrows teeth and was developed by a team of Japanese researchers, as reported by New Atlas. The research has been led by Katsu Takahashi, head of dentistry and oral surgery at Kitano Hospital. The intravenous drug deactivates the uterine sensitization-associated gene-1 (USAG-1) protein that suppresses tooth growth. Blocking USAG-1 from interacting Read more about The world’s first tooth-regrowing drug has been approved for human trials[…]

What’s Actually In Tattoo Ink? No One Really Knows

Nearly a third of U.S. adults have tattoos, so plenty of you listeners can probably rattle off the basic guidelines of tattoo safety: Make sure you go to a reputable tattoo artist who uses new, sterile needles. Stay out of the ocean while you’re healing so you don’t pick up a smidgen of flesh-eating bacteria. Read more about What’s Actually In Tattoo Ink? No One Really Knows[…]

Over 165 Snowflake customers didn’t use MFA, says Mandiant

An unknown financially motivated crime crew has swiped a “significant volume of records” from Snowflake customers’ databases using stolen credentials, according to Mandiant. “To date, Mandiant and Snowflake have notified approximately 165 potentially exposed organizations,” the Google-owned threat hunters wrote on Monday, and noted they track the perps as “UNC5537.” The crew behind the Snowflake Read more about Over 165 Snowflake customers didn’t use MFA, says Mandiant[…]

Finnish startup Flow claims it can 100x any CPU’s power with its companion chip

A Finnish startup called Flow Computing is making one of the wildest claims ever heard in silicon engineering: by adding its proprietary companion chip, any CPU can instantly double its performance, increasing to as much as 100x with software tweaks. If it works, it could help the industry keep up with the insatiable compute demand Read more about Finnish startup Flow claims it can 100x any CPU’s power with its companion chip[…]

China state hackers infected 20,000 govt and defence Fortinet VPNs, due to at least 2 month unfixed critical vulnerability

Hackers working for the Chinese government gained access to more than 20,000 VPN appliances sold by Fortinet using a critical vulnerability that the company failed to disclose for two weeks after fixing it, Netherlands government officials said. The vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2022-42475, is a heap-based buffer overflow that allows hackers to remotely execute malicious code. Read more about China state hackers infected 20,000 govt and defence Fortinet VPNs, due to at least 2 month unfixed critical vulnerability[…]

lg-55UH850V lies about refresh rates

So… LG lies about TV Framerates on their site

The LG55UH850V, a 4K is mentioned online as having a framerate of 120Hz at specification sites on Google LG’s Finnish website puts the framerate at a staggering 200Hz So does the South African website – this also boasts a “Billion Rich Colors” – color depth is only 8 bit. After having upgraded to a graphics Read more about So… LG lies about TV Framerates on their site[…]

Crooks threaten to leak 2.9B records of personal info from National Public Data, a “small” US information broker

Billions of records detailing people’s personal information may soon be dumped online after being allegedly obtained from a Florida firm that handles background checks and other requests for folks’ private info. A criminal gang that goes by the handle USDoD put the database up for sale for $3.5 million on an underworld forum in April, Read more about Crooks threaten to leak 2.9B records of personal info from National Public Data, a “small” US information broker[…]

Cooler Master hit by data breach exposing 500,000 customers

Computer hardware manufacturer Cooler Master has suffered a data breach after a threat actor breached the company’s website and claimed to steal the Fanzone member information of 500,000 customers. Cooler Master is a hardware manufacturer based in Taiwan that is known for its computer cases, cooling devices, gaming chairs, and other computer peripherals. Yesterday, a threat actor Read more about Cooler Master hit by data breach exposing 500,000 customers[…]

Japan’s Push To Make All Research Open Access is Taking Shape

The Japanese government is pushing ahead with a plan to make Japan’s publicly funded research output free to read. From a report: In June, the science ministry will assign funding to universities to build the infrastructure needed to make research papers free to read on a national scale. The move follows the ministry’s announcement in Read more about Japan’s Push To Make All Research Open Access is Taking Shape[…]

documents scattered

Google Leak Reveals Thousands of Privacy Incidents

Google has accidentally collected childrens’ voice data, leaked the trips and home addresses of car pool users, and made YouTube recommendations based on users’ deleted watch history, among thousands of other employee-reported privacy incidents, according to a copy of an internal Google database which tracks six years worth of potential privacy and security issues obtained Read more about Google Leak Reveals Thousands of Privacy Incidents[…]

Adobe changes TOS, says it can republish what you made for free

Adobe has decided that if you use its software, it can re-use anything you create. Considering you pay to use the software, that’s a bit grating. 4.2 Licenses to Your Content. Solely for the purposes of operating or improving the Services and Software, you grant us a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free sublicensable, license, to use, reproduce, publicly display, Read more about Adobe changes TOS, says it can republish what you made for free[…]

Ticketmaster 560m+ account hack confirmed in what seems to be a spree hitting Snowflake customers

Cloud storage provider Snowflake said that accounts belonging to multiple customers have been hacked after threat actors obtained credentials through info-stealing malware or by purchasing them on online crime forums. Ticketmaster parent Live Nation—which disclosed Friday that hackers gained access to data it stored through an unnamed third-party provider—told TechCrunch the provider was Snowflake. The Read more about Ticketmaster 560m+ account hack confirmed in what seems to be a spree hitting Snowflake customers[…]

Spotify Says It Will Refund Car Thing Purchases with a valid receipt

If you contact Spotify’s customer service with a valid receipt, the company will refund your Car Thing purchase. That’s the latest development reported by Engadget. When Spotify first announced that it would brick every Car Thing device on December 9, 2024, it said that it wouldn’t offer owners any subscription credit or automatic refund. From Read more about Spotify Says It Will Refund Car Thing Purchases with a valid receipt[…]

Largest ever operation by Europol against botnets hits dropper malware ecosystem

Between 27 and 29 May 2024 Operation Endgame, coordinated from Europol’s headquarters, targeted droppers including, IcedID, SystemBC, Pikabot, Smokeloader, Bumblebee and Trickbot. The actions focused on disrupting criminal services through arresting High Value Targets, taking down the criminal infrastructures and freezing illegal proceeds. This approach had a global impact on the dropper ecosystem. The malware, Read more about Largest ever operation by Europol against botnets hits dropper malware ecosystem[…]

How Researchers Cracked an 11-Year-Old Password to a $3 Million Crypto Wallet

Two years ago when “Michael,” an owner of cryptocurrency, contacted Joe Grand to help recover access to about $2 million worth of bitcoin he stored in encrypted format on his computer, Grand turned him down. Michael, who is based in Europe and asked to remain anonymous, stored the cryptocurrency in a password-protected digital wallet. He Read more about How Researchers Cracked an 11-Year-Old Password to a $3 Million Crypto Wallet[…]

“Deny, denounce, delay”: ultra-processed food companies fighting using big tobacco type tactics

When the Brazilian nutritional scientist Carlos Monteiro coined the term “ultra-processed foods” 15 years ago, he established what he calls a “new paradigm” for assessing the impact of diet on health. Monteiro had noticed that although Brazilian households were spending less on sugar and oil, obesity rates were going up. The paradox could be explained Read more about “Deny, denounce, delay”: ultra-processed food companies fighting using big tobacco type tactics[…]

2.8M US folks’ personal info swiped in Sav-Rx IT heist – 8 months ago

Sav-Rx has started notifying about 2.8 million people that their personal information was likely stolen during an IT intrusion that happened more than seven months ago. The biz provides prescription drug management services to more than 10 million US workers and their families, via their employers or unions. It first spotted the network “interruption” on Read more about 2.8M US folks’ personal info swiped in Sav-Rx IT heist – 8 months ago[…]

Google’s technical info about search ranking leaks online

A trove of documents that appear to describe how Google ranks search results has appeared online, likely as the result of accidental publication by an in-house bot. The leaked documentation describes an old version of Google’s Content Warehouse API and provides a glimpse of Google Search’s inner workings. The material appears to have been inadvertently Read more about Google’s technical info about search ranking leaks online[…]

Lawyers To Plastic Makers: Prepare For ‘Astronomical’ PFAS Lawsuits

An anonymous reader quotes a report from the New York Times: The defense lawyer minced no words as he addressed a room full of plastic-industry executives. Prepare for a wave of lawsuits with potentially “astronomical” costs. Speaking at a conference earlier this year, the lawyer, Brian Gross, said the coming litigation could “dwarf anything related Read more about Lawyers To Plastic Makers: Prepare For ‘Astronomical’ PFAS Lawsuits[…]

YouTube’s Crackdown on Adblockers Makes Videos Unwatchable – now skips to end of video

YouTube has been at war with adblockers for quite some time now and has employed various tactics to keep users off those extensions. Its most recent defense strategy is to skip right to the end of the video you’re playing. If you try replaying it, it’ll do that again. If you tap anywhere on the Read more about YouTube’s Crackdown on Adblockers Makes Videos Unwatchable – now skips to end of video[…]

Samsung Requires Independent Repair Shops to Share Customer Data, Snitch on People and destroy phones Using Aftermarket Parts, Leaked Contract Shows

In exchange for selling them repair parts, Samsung requires independent repair shops to give Samsung the name, contact information, phone identifier, and customer complaint details of everyone who gets their phone repaired at these shops, according to a contract obtained by 404 Media. Stunningly, it also requires these nominally independent shops to “immediately disassemble” any Read more about Samsung Requires Independent Repair Shops to Share Customer Data, Snitch on People and destroy phones Using Aftermarket Parts, Leaked Contract Shows[…]

Spotify to brick every Car Thing gadget it ever sold only 2 – 3 years ago

Spotify’s brief attempt at being a hardware company wasn’t all that successful: the company stopped producing its Car Thing dashboard accessory less than a year after it went on sale to the public. And now, two years later, the device is about to be rendered completely inoperable. Customers who bought the Car Thing are receiving Read more about Spotify to brick every Car Thing gadget it ever sold only 2 – 3 years ago[…]

Crooks plant backdoor in software used by courtrooms around the world

A software maker serving more than 10,000 courtrooms throughout the world hosted an application update containing a hidden backdoor that maintained persistent communication with a malicious website, researchers reported Thursday, in the latest episode of a supply-chain attack. The software, known as the JAVS Viewer 8, is a component of the JAVS Suite 8, an Read more about Crooks plant backdoor in software used by courtrooms around the world[…]