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Category Archives: Microsoft

Pete Recommends – Weekly highlights on cyber security issues, May 4, 2024

Via LLRX – Pete Recommends – Weekly highlights on cyber security issues, May 4, 2024 – Privacy and cybersecurity issues impact every aspect of our lives – home, work, travel, education, finance, health and medical records – to name but a few. On a weekly basis Pete Weiss highlights articles and information that focus on the… Continue Reading

Microsoft is changing how you log in to your accounts

Washington Post [unpaywalled]: “As passwords slowly go extinct, Microsoft is introducing another way to log in to your consumer account. The company said Thursday that users logging in to Microsoft 365 workplace software, Copilot, Xbox and Skype can now use “passkeys” rather than traditional passwords or an authenticator app. That means whatever biometric authentication (such… Continue Reading

Microsoft’s “responsible AI” chief worries about the open web

Washington Post: “…Natasha Crampton, Microsoft’s chief Responsible AI officer, spoke with The Technology 202 ahead of Microsoft’s release today of its first “Responsible AI Transparency Report.” The 39-page report, which the company is billing as the first of its kind from a major tech firm, details how Microsoft plans to keep its rapidly expanding stable… Continue Reading

Major US newspapers sue OpenAI, Microsoft for copyright infringement

Axios: “Eight prominent U.S. newspapers owned by investment giant Alden Global Capital are suing OpenAI and Microsoft for copyright infringement, in a complaint filed Tuesday in the Southern District of New York. Why it matters: On top of a similar case filed by the New York Times against both companies, the new suits add heft… Continue Reading

New bill would try to make tools like Zoom and Teams work together securely

The Verge: “A new proposal from Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) would require videoconferencing and messaging tools used by the federal government to be able to communicate with each other, even if made by different companies. It would also enforce high security standards for government collaboration tools, including end-to-end encryption. The Secure and Interoperable Government Collaboration… Continue Reading

Did One Guy Just Stop a Huge Cyberattack?

The New York Times [unpaywalled] – “A Microsoft engineer noticed something was off on a piece of software he worked on. He soon discovered someone was probably trying to gain access to computers all over the world…Recently, while doing some routine maintenance, Mr. Freund inadvertently found a backdoor hidden in a piece of software that… Continue Reading

Cyber review slams Microsoft

Cyber Safety Review Board Releases Report on Microsoft Online Exchange Incident from Summer 2023: “Today, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released the Cyber Safety Review Board’s (CSRB) findings and recommendations following its independent review of the Summer 2023 Microsoft Exchange Online intrusion. The review detailed operational and strategic decisions that led to the… Continue Reading

US House Bans Staffers From Using Microsoft Copilot at Work

PCMag: “The US House has reportedly banned staffers from using Microsoft Copilot on any government-owned devices. According to Axios, House Chief Administrative Officer Catherine Szpindor sent a memo to congressional officers telling them that the AI chatbot is prohibited from use of government-owned devices, “due to the threat of leaking House data to non-House approved cloud… Continue Reading

How to Type in Multiple Languages in a Word Document

How to Geek: “Key Takeaways Use Microsoft Word’s styles to effectively change the language and prevent frustrations with the default language. Define your Normal style before applying the language, and modify the Heading styles for titles. Create and modify language styles for each language you want to use in your document, and easily change styles… Continue Reading

The Lifeblood of the AI Boom

The Atlantic – The Lifeblood of the AI Boom – [unpaywalled]  “Applications such as ChatGPT and DALL-E have captured the world’s imagination—but AI companies are focused on something else. Artificial intelligence can appear to be many different things—a whole host of programs with seemingly little common ground. Sometimes AI is a conversation partner, an illustrator,… Continue Reading

Generative AI Might Finally Bend Copyright Past the Breaking Point

The Atlantic [unpaywalled] – For more than 200 years, copyright law has promoted a creative society. The chatbots could change everything. “It took Ralph Ellison seven years to write Invisible Man. It took J. D. Salinger about 10 to write The Catcher in the Rye. J. K. Rowling spent at least five years on the… Continue Reading