Interesting news from around the World

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Belgium is constructing the world’s first artificial island to harness offshore wind

Set to be completed by 2027, the island, dubbed Princess Elisabeth, will integrate an impressive 3.5 gigawatts of offshore wind capacity into the Belgian power grid. That’s enough clean electricity to power over three million homes.

Dropbox is laying off 20% of its staff

In a letter to staff, CEO Drew Houston said the reduction in headcount would impact 528 people. The goal, he added, was to make cuts in areas where Dropbox has “over-invested” while designing a “flatter, more efficient” team structure.

Free, France’s second largest ISP, confirms data breach after leak

The company, which says it had over 22.9 million mobile and fixed subscribers at the end of June, is the second-largest telecommunications company in France and a subsidiary of the Iliad Group.

More than a quarter of new code at Google is generated by AI

Google is building a bunch of AI products, and it’s using AI as part of building those products, too. “More than a quarter of all new code at Google is generated by AI, then reviewed and accepted by engineers,” CEO Sundar Pichai said.

Instagram reveals it lowers quality of less popular videos

Instagram has revealed that it lowers the quality of older, less popular videos – reserving higher quality for more popular content.

“I can’t run a business like this”: Why the WordPress row matters

One of the world’s biggest web publishing platforms – used by a large chunk of the internet – is locked in a spat which is affecting thousands of businesses worldwide.

Microsoft boss gets 63% pay rise despite asking for reduction

Microsoft’s chief executive Satya Nadella earned $79.1m (£61m) last year, a rise of 63% compared to his compensation the year before.

TikTok owner sacks intern for sabotaging AI project

TikTok owner, ByteDance, says it has sacked an intern for “maliciously interfering” with the training of one of its artificial intelligence (AI) models.

Firm hacked after accidentally hiring North Korean cyber criminal

The unidentified firm hired the technician after he faked his employment history and personal details. Once given access to the company’s computer network, the hacker downloaded sensitive company data and sent a ransom demand.

How does WhatsApp make money? It’s free – with some tricks

Individual, personal WhatsApp accounts like mine are free because Whatsapp makes money from corporate customers wanting to communicate with users like me.

Microsoft will end Windows 10 support in one year

Ironically, Windows 10 remains the most widely used operating system worldwide.

Zoom will let AI avatars talk to your team for you

Zoom is getting one step closer to letting AI avatars attend meetings for you. As part of a broader AI expansion, Zoom announced it will soon let you create an AI avatar of yourself that you can use to send brief messages to your team.

Photos of a vast e-waste dumping ground and those who make a living off it

For years, a site called Agbogbloshie in Accra was one of the largest e-waste processing sites in Africa, getting 15,000 tons of discarded phones, computers and other used electronics each year.

Customers of failed crypto firm FTX set for refunds

The deal will allow former customers to recover a sum worth about 119% of what they had in their accounts at the time of bankruptcy, according to FTX.

Google introduces new way to search by filming video

Video search will let people point their camera at something, ask a question about it, and get search results.

UK reveals father and son at heart of ‘Evil Corp’ hackers

The UK, US and Australia have announced sanctions against 16 people authorities accuse of being part of the most wanted cyber-crime gang in the world.

AI’s solution to the ‘cocktail party problem’ used in court

It’s the perennial “cocktail party problem” – standing in a room full of people, drink in hand, trying to hear what your fellow guest is saying.

Klarna: AI lets us cut thousands of jobs – but pay more

The firm has already cut its workforce from 5,000 to 3,800 in the past year, and wants to reduce that to 2,000 employees by using AI in marketing and customer service.

Full-time workers in UK could get right to four-day week

Employees would still have to work their full hours to receive their full pay but could request to compress their contracted hours into a shorter working week

Australians get ‘right to disconnect’ after hours

A ‘right to disconnect’ rule has come into effect in Australia, offering relief to people who feel forced to take calls or read messages from employers after they finish their day’s work.

Uber fined £246m for personal data transfer to the USA

The Dutch Data Protection Authority (DPA) said the transfers were a “serious violation” of the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), as they failed to appropriately protect driver information.

Binance hiring 1,000 people as compliance costs hit $200M

Binance CEO Richard Teng says the company will expand its compliance team to 700 in 2024, up from 500 currently.

China scam run from Isle of Man

A seaside hotel and former bank offices on the Isle of Man have been used by scammers conning victims in China out of millions of dollars, a BBC World Service investigation has found.

Rise in number of firms going bust, Insolvency Service says

Company insolvency levels remain much higher than those seen during both the COVID-19 pandemic and in the years following the 2008/09 financial crisis, officials say.

Switching off from job boosts productivity

The right to switch off when outside work is key to productivity and could boost the UK’s economic growth, Downing Street has said. The government has promised to introduce a ‘right to switch off’ so people’s homes do not become ’24/7 offices’.

Zoom can now handle one million simultaneous participants

This is happening after various political groups used the video conferencing platform to raise money for Vice President Kamala Harris’ election campaign, often by hosting calls with hundreds of thousands of people.

Can your smartwatch get hacked? Study shows what information is at risk

Smartwatches might be good for tracking steps and heart rates, but they can also offer hackers a wealth of personal information to exploit, according to a new Charles Darwin University (CDU) study.

Microsoft launches its Face Check facial recognition tech for businesses

Microsoft revealed that Face Check is now generally available for all of its business customers to offer better and more secure identikit certification with the combination of a person’s phone selfie and their verified photo ID.

Data protection watchdog to fine NHS IT firm £6m after medical records hack

The breach took place in 2022 and included sensitive personal information including medical records and ‘how to gain entry to the homes of 890 people’.

ChatGPT reveals search feature in its Google challenge

OpenAI is working on adding new powers to its artificial intelligence (AI) bot, as it seeks to edge out Google as the go-to search engine.

CrowdStrike backlash over $10 apology voucher for IT chaos

CrowdStrike is facing fresh backlash after giving staff and firms they work with a $10 UberEats voucher to say sorry for a global IT outage that caused chaos across airlines, banks and hospitals last week.

Cyber-security firm rejects $23bn Google takeover

Israeli cyber-security firm Wiz has rejected a $23bn (£17.8bn) takeover offer from Google parent company Alphabet, in what would have been its largest-ever acquisition.

Google U-turn over long-running plan to ditch cookies

In a surprise move Google has abandoned a plan it first announced four years ago to block third-party cookies from its Chrome internet browser.

Metaverse: What happened to Mark Zuckerberg’s next big thing?

There was a time before ChatGPT when the tech world was talking about something entirely different. Remember the metaverse?

AI is confusing — here’s your cheat sheet

If you can’t tell the difference between AGI and RAG, don’t worry! We’re here for you.

Microsoft releases recovery tool to help repair Windows machines hit by CrowdStrike issue

Microsoft has released a recovery tool that’s designed to help IT admins repair Windows machines that were impacted by CrowdStrike’s faulty update that crashed 8.5 million Windows devices on Friday.

Google is turning off its goo.gl shortener links next year

Starting on August 23rd 2024, when someone clicks on a goo.gl link, it could first take them to a page with a warning that says the link “will no longer work in the near future” before taking them to the website they want to visit.

What you can learn from a failed IT project

Here’s to failure! You can learn an awful lot by carefully studying an unsuccessful project.

Russian antivirus firm Kaspersky quits US after ban

Russian antivirus giant Kaspersky Labs has told BBC News that it is leaving the US after the Biden administration banned sales and distribution of the firm’s software.

Microsoft and Google consume more power than some countries

In 2023, Google and Microsoft each consumed 24 TWh of electricity, surpassing the consumption of over 100 nations, including places like Iceland, Ghana, and Tunisia.

Google parent in talks to buy cybersecurity startup Wiz for $23 billion

Google parent Alphabet, is in advanced talks to acquire cybersecurity startup Wiz for roughly $23 billion, a person familiar with the matter said on Sunday, in a deal that would represent the technology giant’s biggest acquisition ever.

Saying “No” is a powerful tool

Whether you’re at a consultancy or a product company, from development to management, you have a hidden superpower: saying “no”.

Goldman Sachs says AI is too expensive and unreliable

The firm asks if ‘overhyped’ AI processing will ever pay off massive investments

The AI Act compliance countdown begins

Tech companies will have until August 2nd, 2026, to comply with new EU rules for AI around copyright, transparency, and uses like predictive policing.

After initially rejecting it, Apple has approved the first PC emulator for iOS

UTM SE can ‘run classic software and old-school games’ for Windows, Mac OS 9, and Linux on your iPhone.

German Navy still uses 8-inch floppy disks, working on emulating a replacement

Four Brandenburg-class F123 warships employ floppies for data-acquisition systems.

Hackers steal call records of ‘nearly all’ AT&T customers

The breach comes months after AT&T disclosed that data from 2019 of 73 million former and current customers had been stolen and placed on the “dark web” by fraudsters.

Ticketmaster warns customers to take action after hack

The personal details of 560 million Ticketmaster customers worldwide were stolen in the hack – with cyber criminals then attempting to sell that information online.

Strangers ‘eavesdropped’ on confidential corporate wellbeing helpline

The UK provider of workplace mental health services, Health Assured, let corporate clients listen in to confidential helpline calls without the knowledge or permission of callers, a BBC investigation has found.

Google’s dark web monitoring service will soon be free for all users

Since last year, Google has monitored dark web leaks of stolen account information for Google One subscribers, such as phone numbers and physical addresses. But, starting later this month, Google’s dark web reports will be available to anyone with a Google account.

You can’t mess-up Arduino’s new DIY electronics kit

Arduino’s new starter kit features electronic components that can be connected without having to know anything about soldering or wiring. It’s similar to LittleBits’ electronic building blocks that make it easy for kids to learn about electronics but targets an older audience of beginners who eventually aspire to do more with an Arduino.

HP discontinues Instant Ink subscription and online-only LaserJet printers in response to backlash

HP has finally been forced to discontinue its cheaper e-series LaserJet printers due to customers experiencing problems with their online-only and always tied to HP+ subscription requirements.

Mapping just 1 cubic millimeter of human brain tissue required an astounding 1.4 petabytes of data

Researchers on Google’s Connectomics team have achieved the largest AI-assisted digital reconstruction of human brain tissue to date. Now, they are turning their attention to the mouse brain to further unravel the mysteries of neural connections.

Microsoft explains why it’s better to use a local account on Windows 11

Microsoft has restored its guide on how to switch from a Microsoft account to a local account on Windows 11.

The quantum physics behind fireworks displays

From the explosions themselves to their unique and vibrant colors, the fireworks displays we adore require quantum physics.

Japan declares victory in ‘war’ on floppy disks

Up until last month, people were still asked to submit documents to the government using the outdated storage devices, with more than 1,000 regulations requiring their use.

AI washing: Silicon Valley’s big new lie

“Can you go through all the old pitch decks and replace the word ‘crypto’ with ‘A.I.’?”

Greece starts six-day working week for some industries

Greece has introduced a six-day working week for certain industries in a bid to boost economic growth.

Fox to launch ‘free’ Netflix rival in UK

Rupert Murdoch’s Fox Corporation is entering the UK’s highly competitive free, ad-supported video streaming market.

The Valve.Computer (apologies – this is a bit geeky)

A modern 8 bit design, built using 1950s thermionic valves  that glow and heat the entire room.

Microsoft informs customers that Russian hackers spied on emails

Russian hackers who broke into Microsoft’s systems and spied on staff inboxes earlier this year also stole emails from its customers, the tech giant said on Thursday, around six months after it first disclosed the intrusion.

Microsoft waves goodbye to underwater data centres

Microsoft has stopped using its underwater data centres that were part of an experiment to study conditions around machinery.

Biden bans US sales of Kaspersky software over Russia ties

The Biden administration has announced plans to bar the sale of antivirus software made by Russia’s Kaspersky Lab in the United States, with Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo saying that Russia’s influence over the company poses a significant security risk.

Mouse jigglers pretending to work fired by bank

Wells Fargo has conducted a rash of sackings in recent weeks after claims some of its employees were faking keyboard activity to fool the firm into thinking they were working.

Apple brings ChatGPT to iPhones in AI overhaul

Apple is to boost its Siri voice assistant and operating systems with OpenAI’s ChatGPT as it seeks to catch up in the AI race.

British tech tycoon cleared in US fraud trial

British tech tycoon Mike Lynch has been cleared of fraud charges he faced in the US over the $11bn (£8.6bn) sale of his software firm Autonomy to Hewlett-Packard in 2011.

Kaspersky releases free tool that scans Linux for known threats

The security firm notes that despite the common misconception that Linux systems are intrinsically secure from threats, there has been a constant supply of “in the wild” examples that prove otherwise, most recently, the XZ Utils backdoor.

Lord Kelvin and his analog computer

This tide-predicting machine was one of many advances he made to maritime tech.

Is AI all a fad? Report suggests few are using tools like ChatGPT and the hype is being misconstrued for actual public interest

Interestingly, a new report by the Reuters Institute and Oxford University indicates very few people are using AI, despite the overwhelming hype around the technology and its advances.

NSA advises you to turn your phone off and on once a week

Powering off your phone regularly, disabling Bluetooth when it’s not needed, and using only trusted accessories are just some of the NSA’s security recommendations.

Could you be a successful entrepreneur? Three intriguing attributes might help

You want to step out of the world of wage slavery, and set up a business of your own? Preferably a business that will be more than a mere lifestyle for you – one that you can sell and from which you can retire on the proceeds?

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