Tech NewsPrivacy and Security

Georgia Could Pass a Vaguely Written ‘Unauthorized Computer Access’ Law This Week

Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal has until Tuesday to decide whether to approve a dubious bill that would make it illegal to access a computer or network “without authority,” Wired reported, in what looks an awful lot like legislators trying to make something they don’t understand a crime. Here’s the backstory: The state government and its … Continued

Tech NewsApple

It’s Not Just You: Apple’s Latest iOS Update Can Disable Microphone on iPhone 7 and 7 Plus

Apple’s recent updates to iOS have left some owners of the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus speechless…because the microphone is disabled. The company confirmed the issue is plaguing some devices in internal documents obtained by MacRumors. Starting with the release of iOS 11.3 and still present in subsequent versions of the operating system, a handful … Continued

Tech NewsGoogle

Placing Election Ads on Google Will Require a Government ID

If you want to place a political advertisement through Google’s massive advertising network during the upcoming US elections, you’re going to have to show some ID first. The search giant announced new policies Friday that will require advertisers prove they are a US citizen or permanent resident when buying election ads. Under the new guidelines, … Continued

Tech NewsPrivacy and Security

The NSA Managed to Collect 500 Million US Call Records in 2017 Despite Targeting Just 40 People

In the first full year of the Trump administration, the National Security Agency really went all out in efforts to surveil Americans. According to a new report released Friday, the agency sucked up more than 534 million US phone records in 2017, three times the amount it collected in 2016. The report from the Office … Continued

Tech News

What’s Proper Smartphone Etiquette When Watching a Movie at Home?

A little over a decade after the release of the original iPhone, it seems we have arrived at some basic grounds rules for phone use in movie theaters: calls are verboten, texting is a major offense, and checking your screen in anything but the most surreptitious manner is frowned upon. But what about when watching … Continued

Tech News

Don’t Panic, But Idaho State University Lost Some Weapons-Grade Plutonium

Just in time for the weekend, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) proposed an $8,500 fine to Idaho State University for losing track of a single gram of weapons-grade plutonium missing since 2004. Great. The commission’s statement detailed the loss of the plutonium, which, according to the Associated Press, is enough to make a dirty … Continued

Tech NewsNews

America’s Shittiest Concert Ticket Company Wants to Collect Your Face Data

Concerts used to be one of the most analog activities a person could do. But those days are going the way of the paper ticket, and now the gatekeepers of live events are determined to inject some digital anxiety into your drug-fueled Phish party. Ticketmaster is jumping into the facial recognition business Ticketmaster already had … Continued

Tech NewsGoogle

Here’s Hoping Google Fixes Lens Next Week—Because Right Now It’s a Bit Disappointing

Google I/O is around the corner, and while the company has already teased us with some revamped services, we’re expecting to see a lot more. Personally, I’m hoping to see improvements to Google Lens, the image recognition tool the company has put into a few of its apps. Because right now, my friend, it ain’t … Continued

Tech NewsNews

Suspect In Bitcoin Mining Heist Who Broke Out of Icelandic Prison Realizes Icelandic Prison Ain’t So Bad

Everyone wants to go to Iceland to get that perfect selfie for their dating profile and briefly feel what it’s like to exist in an actual paradise. But last month, a man who is suspected in a heist of $2 million-worth of bitcoin mining gear only wanted to get out. After pulling off a daring … Continued

Tech NewsNews

The Rebirth of Vine Just Isn’t Going to Happen, Is It?

Vine is dead, again. On Friday, Dan Hoffman, a co-founder of the defunct six-second video app, announced via Twitter that v2, his Vine sequel, is now indefinitely on hold. Hoffman said his vision of a small passion project was engulfed by too much attention, and that he would need a larger team and potential investors … Continued

Tech NewsApple

I Knew Buying a Newly Redesigned MacBook Pro Was Stupid And I Did It Anyway

Do not be me. I was desperate for a new Apple laptop to replace my dying 2012 one and as soon as the 2016 Macbook Pro with Touch Bar was available to buy I ordered it. This was a major redesign for Apple, and experience with other products told me that buying the first generation … Continued

Tech NewsNews

What’s Going on With US Cyber Command’s Twitter Account? [Updated]

NORAD, the agency that tracks missile threats to the US and Canada, just sent out a tweet welcoming the US Cyber Command to the big leagues. The US Cyber Command was elevated to a combatant command today, the country’s 10th, after previously working under the US Strategic Command since 2009. But we have just one … Continued

Tech NewsPrivacy and Security

Equifax Board Members Keep Their Jobs Despite Data Breach Blunders

After a calamitous data breach exposing the personal information of more than 145 million U.S. citizens, Equifax shareholders this week voted to re-elect all of the company’s board members following its first annual shareholder meeting since the incident. MarketWatch reports that several board members, including Chairman Mark Feidler, faced a significant, albeit futile, resistance. Sixty-four … Continued

Tech NewsGoogle

What to Expect at Google I/O 2018 

Google’s big once-a-year developer conference kicks off Tuesday May 8th. While much of Google I/O is meant to support coders and the people who create apps and software for Google’s various platforms, what gets announced at the event will impact anyone who uses Android, Chrome OS, Wear OS, or any of Google’s many first-party apps—so … Continued

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Now-Worthless Theranos Investments Reportedly Cost Walton Family, Betsy DeVos Hundreds of Millions

Wealthy elites sank more than $600 million into Theranos, the rapidly flatlining blood-testing startup, according to a new Wall Street Journal report. The startup’s CEO and founder Elizabeth Homes, once dubbed “the next Steve Jobs,” brought in multi-million dollar investments from big names like Education Secretary Besty DeVos and the Walton family. Now, newly unsealed … Continued

Tech NewsSploid

Wait, My Lego Toys Could Have Been Making Me Breakfast All These Years?

Breakfast may or may not be the most important meal of the day, but it’s also arguably hardest to make. Can you really trust yourself to safely use a hot stove while you’re still half asleep? Obviously not, and why go to all that effort when you can build a Lego machine to make you … Continued

Tech NewsNews

Pentagon Accuses China of Striking US Military Aircraft With Blinding Lasers

The Department of Defense has accused China of hitting US military aircraft with blinding lasers. The laser beams, which allegedly came from China’s military base in the African nation of Djibouti, have been striking aircraft landing at the nearby US military base. Pentagon spokesperson Dana White said in a news conference on Thursday that the … Continued

Tech NewsFacebook

Facebook Has a ‘Sauron Alert’ to Protect Employees’ Privacy—But Not Yours

Earlier this week, Facebook fired an employee who was accused of abusing their access users’ profiles to stalk women. Had that employee’s alleged victims worked at Facebook, they would have been alerted by a special internal tool, according to a new report. The rest of us, however, get no such protection. According to the Wall … Continued

Tech News

This Futuristic Color TV Set Concept From 1922 Was Way Ahead of Its Time

This TV set was the futuristic vision of illustrator Frank R. Paul in 1922. And I absolutely love it. I’m pretty obsessed with the ideas that illustrators, writers, and technologists had for television in the 1920s. It was a decade when radio broadcasting went from niche to mainstream. So the ideas that people had for … Continued

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Eruption of Kilauea Volcano Triggers Mandatory Evacuations on Hawaii’s Big Island

The governor of Hawaii has declared a local state of emergency in the vicinity of the Mount Kilauea volcano following an eruption late yesterday on the state’s Big Island. Dramatic video footage of the eruption showed plumes of magma shooting into the air, while lava poured from a fissure that opened up near a residential … Continued