Via LLRX – Professor Richard Forno highlights the fragility of our enterprise IT systems against the backdrop of the global information technology outage on July 19, 2024 that paralyzed organizations ranging from airlines to hospitals and the delivery of uniforms for the Olympic Games, representing a growing concern for cybersecurity professionals, businesses and governments. Continue Reading
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Monthly Archives: July 2024
Academic authors ‘shocked’ after Taylor & Francis sells access to their research to Microsoft AI
The Bookseller: “Authors have expressed their shock after the news that academic publisher Taylor & Francis, which owns Routledge, had sold access to its authors’ research as part of an Artificial Intelligence (AI) partnership with Microsoft—a deal worth almost £8m ($10m) in its first year. The agreement with Microsoft was included in a trading update… Continue Reading
Donald Trump wants to reinstate a spoils system in federal government by hiring political loyalists regardless of competence
Via LLRX – Donald Trump wants to reinstate a spoils system in federal government by hiring political loyalists regardless of competence – If elected to serve a second term, Donald Trump says he supports a spoils system, a plan that would give him the authority to fire as many as 50,000 civil servants and replace them… Continue Reading
UN Cybercrime Draft Convention Dangerously Expands State Surveillance Powers
EFF –This is the third post in a series highlighting flaws in the proposed UN Cybercrime Convention. Check out Part I, our detailed analysis on the criminalization of security research activities, and Part II, an analysis of the human rights safeguards. “As we near the final negotiating session for the proposed UN Cybercrime Treaty, countries… Continue Reading
Font Interceptor downloads all fonts in use on a target website
Font Interceptor – Will you use it? Should you steal fonts? Should you buy fonts? Reasons to buy a font always override reasons to steal a font. Q: What’s the font used on this site? A: Group by Group Font. We bought it. Continue Reading
Tell Congress: Don’t Let Anyone Own The Law
EFF: “Court after court has recognized that no one can own the text of the law. But the Pro Codes Act is a deceptive power grab that will help giant industry associations ration access to huge swaths of U.S. laws. Tell Congress not to fall for it. A large portion of the regulations we all… Continue Reading
What the data says about immigrants in the U.S.
“The United States has long had more immigrants than any other country. In fact, the U.S. is home to one-fifth of the world’s international migrants. These immigrants have come from just about every country in the world. Pew Research Center regularly publishes research on U.S. immigrants. Based on this research, here are answers to some… Continue Reading
A week of nonstop breaking political news stumps AI chatbots
Washington Post [unpaywalled]: “In the hour after President Biden announced he would withdraw from the 2024 campaign on Sunday, most popular AI chatbots seemed oblivious to the news. Asked directly whether he had dropped out, almost all said no or declined to give an answer. Asked who was running for president of the United States,… Continue Reading
The FOIA.gov Search Tool Updated
“FOIA.gov, the government’s central resource for information about the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) now includes additional functionality to help users locate commonly requested law enforcement and related records. The FOIA.gov Search Tool was updated to add a “Law Enforcement records” pre-defined user journey that helps the public more quickly locate commonly requested information. This user journey… Continue Reading
Voice-cloning technology brings key Supreme Court moment to ‘life’
AP: “Seventy years ago on Friday, no one outside of the U.S. Supreme Court building heard it when Chief Justice Earl Warren announced the historic Brown v. Board of Education decision on school desegregation. Now, through the use of an innovative voice-cloning technology, it is becoming possible for people to “hear” Warren read the decision… Continue Reading
A terrific primer on all things Long Covid
Via Boing Boing: “If you have an hour to spare and want to learn more about Long Covid, here’s a great, thorough overview by a public health and science communicator who goes by the name of “Lola Germs” on social media. They describe their educational project on their YouTube: “I’m a public health and science… Continue Reading
Ransomware Attack Takes Down Computer System for America’s Largest Trial Court
AP: “A ransomware attack has shut down the computer system of the largest trial court in the country, officials with the Superior Court of Los Angeles County said. The cybersecurity attack began early Friday and is not believed to be related to the faulty CrowdStrike software update that has disrupted airlines, hospitals and governments around… Continue Reading
