Technology | The Guardian

Google’s role in university artificial intelligence courses alarms Sheila HaymanYour article (Hi-tech brain drain threatens British university research, 2 November) contains one particularly chilling revelation: that Google DeepMind now runs artificial intelligence courses at UCL and Oxford.Having met the DeepMind people in my role with the MIT Media Lab, I know that their definition of “intelligence” is so impoverished that it doesn’t extend beyond the abstract calculations that an algorithm can achieve, and completely fails to understand that human intelligence is embodied and distributed throughout our physical selves – and indeed between them, in the mirror neurons that fire in sympathy when we watch a dancer or help an injured friend. In short, it’s not just depressing, it’s bad science. Continue reading...

Digital, culture, media and sport committee wants to see lists of suspect Russian-related accountsA parliamentary committee is demanding Twitter hands over lists of Russian-related accounts that may have attempted to interfere in the UK’s democratic process.

This darling of the alt-right gained 70,000 followers and was quoted by numerous media organisations – despite being the creation of a Russia-based troll farmName: Jenna Abrams.Age: Looks about 35 in pictures online. Continue reading...

Demand for the £999 ‘future’ of the iPhone bucks the trend of recent years, with large crowds and some fans queuing for days to get their hands on oneThousands of people formed queues outside stores in London, Tokyo, Sydney and around the world on Friday as eager buyers tried to get their hands on Apple’s most expensive smartphone to date, the hotly anticipated £999 iPhone X.

With its stunning visuals, the Xbox One X is the closest thing to a good PC gaming experience in console form. But is it worth a £100 upgrade?Four years after the launch of the original machine, Microsoft’s Xbox One family is now finally complete. Although the Xbox One X has been hailed as the most powerful console ever made, it very much remains an Xbox One derivative, running all the same games and working with all the accessories with no Xbox One X exclusives. What you get is improved audio-visual performance – rather like the difference between playing a PC game on a regular mid-range home computer versus a high-end gaming monster.

Yellow-crested cockatoos have already caused $80,000 in damage to Australia’s national broadband network wiringAustralia’s $36bn national broadband network, already under attack from underwhelmed customers, has found a new and formidable enemy – cockatoos are chewing through cables across the country.Repairing the damage wrought on the broadband system, including replacing steel-braid wires that the pesky parrots have gnawed, has already cost $80,000, NBN Co said on Friday. Continue reading...

Ronald rarely uses his Nokia phone, but his grandchildren are pressuring him to get a smartphone. What’s the cheapest good option?I am 72 years old and currently use a non-smart Nokia phone on Asda’s pay-as-you-go network. I put £10 on it a year ago and still have about £3 left, as I only use it for emergencies. My grandkids keep on at me to get a smartphone, but I need one that is unlocked and works with my Asda sim or at least a similar PAYG deal. I already have an Android tablet, but it does need to be connected to wifi, which I have at home. Any suggestions for a cheap smartphone that would be suitable for my needs? RonaldYou don’t have any needs, so you really don’t need to spend any money on a smartphone. If your grandkids want you to have one, try suggesting that they give you one. They could club together for a Christmas present, but it doesn’t even need to be new. I expect many if not most of the people you know have at least one Android phone sitting around in a drawer.

Banning these tech giants from buying any more companies would prevent them from entrenching their monopoly position – and help protect our freedom

Latest in series of powerhouse devices is best yet, with dual cameras, latest Android, fast performance and excellent stamina between chargesHuawei’s Mate smartphones have made a bit of a name for themselves as powerhouse devices that come with long battery life and a big screen. With a 50-hour battery life and premium design, the Mate 10 Pro is no exception.

Special minister of state meets social media giant’s executives in Australia to discuss political advertising concernsFacebook took more than four weeks to remove one page that violated the same-sex marriage safeguard laws, according to an Australian Electoral Commission official.Guardian Australia can also reveal that Australia’s special minister of state, Scott Ryan, met Facebook executives this week to discuss political advertising concerns. Continue reading...

Social network beats expectations with $10.33bn, but Mark Zuckerberg says efforts to fight foreign political interference could hurt future profitsFacebook posted a better-than-expected quarterly revenue of $10.33bn, up 47% from the previous year, on the same day that the social network faced a grilling from US lawmakers over Russian interference in the 2016 US elections.However, Facebook’s CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, warned that his company’s efforts to clamp down on foreign interference in elections could damage future profits. Continue reading...

Razer has shoehorned performance laptop technology into its 8mm device, targeting young consumers who want to play quality games on the goGaming on smartphones is big business. So big that hardcore gaming firm Razer reckons there’s a better way to make a smartphone that’s good for games, but that you won’t be embarrassed to use in public.

A nationwide poll reveals ‘jury is still out’ on Silicon Valley’s big corporations, while a separate survey of Guardian readers reveals the challenge Facebook faces in convincing users it is a force for goodVoters in the US are evenly divided over whether to regulate technology companies like Google, Twitter and Facebook that enable the targeting of users based on their political interests, according to a survey that suggests many Americans remain undecided over whether Silicon Valley is a force for good.Forty-nine per cent of people said they would support regulating the targeting of news feeds, search engine results or advertising based on political affiliations or viewpoints, while 51% said they would oppose such regulation.

Volunteers in Melbourne have had microchips inserted for three months, designed to unlock doors and carry out other tasks. Will they really be any use?The microchip is about the size of a grain of rice and usually inserted in the webbing between the thumb and forefinger using a needle the same thickness as used in body piercing.It feels, says insertable technology expert Kayla Heffernan, like getting a drip. Continue reading...

The tech giants went before Senate judiciary committee to explain how and why Russian operatives were given free rein to tamper with 2016 US election

First reviews are in and the consensus is positive, particularly around the new OLED screen, but some flaws in both design and software have been notedApple’s most expensive smartphone, the £999 iPhone X, is almost ready to land in stores and a few publications specially selected by Apple have been given early access to the phone. So what do they think? Is the iPhone X really the “future of smartphones”?The iPhone X has an all-screen front design with a 5.8in OLED screen, no home button and an odd looking notch at the top for front-facing camera and sensors. The rest of the device resembles the the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus, with a dual camera on the glass back. When it was made available for pre-order it sold out in minutes. Continue reading...

As executives from Facebook, Google and Twitter prepare to testify on Capitol Hill, one Democrat has emerged as a formidable criticLast month, Senator Mark Warner left a closed-door briefing with Twitter visibly frustrated. He said he doubted whether the tech titan grasped the gravity of the investigation into Russian election meddling, and fumed to reporters that the company’s presentation to congressional investigators about how Russia used its platform to influence the 2016 race was “frankly, inadequate on every level”.The public scolding was yet another sign of Washington’s growing impatience at Silicon Valley, with the Virginia senator emerging as one of the loudest critics in Congress. This month he co-authored new legislation that would require internet companies to disclose who purchased online political ads on their platforms, the most aggressive attempt yet to regulate big tech. Continue reading...

For decades, tech companies promised to make the world better. As that dream falls apart, disillusioned insiders are trying to take back control. By Moira WeigelBig Tech is broken. Suddenly, a wide range of journalists and politicians agree on this. For decades, most of the media and political establishment accepted Silicon Valley’s promise that it would not “be evil,” as the first Google code of corporate conduct put it. But the past few months have brought a constant stream of negative stories about both the internal culture of the tech industry and the effect it is having on society.It is difficult to know where to begin. How about the rampant sexual harassment at companies such as Uber, which fired 20 employees in June after receiving hundreds of sexual harassment claims? Or the growing body of evidence that women and people of colour are not only dramatically underrepresented at tech firms, but also systematically underpaid, as three Google employees alleged in a lawsuit last month? Should we focus on the fact that Facebook allowed advertisers to target users who listed “Jew hater” as one of their interests? Or that they and Google have helped clients to spread fake news? Continue reading...

A recent survey shows that young people are using their smartphones less for the first time. We asked the public whether they are keen for a digital detox

Social network’s head of ads dismisses rumours that Facebook app uses smartphone mics to listen in, serving ads against what it hearsFacebook has again denied eavesdropping on conversations to target adverts, following persistent speculation on the part of users who have received suspiciously timed promotional messages.Rob Goldman, the head of advertising at the social network, issued the denial in response to a question from the host of tech podcast Reply All. “I run ads product at Facebook. We don’t – and have never – used your microphone for ads. Just not true,” Goldman tweeted. He later added that the denial holds true for Facebook’s other social network, Instagram, as well. Continue reading...

Nintendo’s Switch gets an instant-classic Mario instalment and a quirky golf-adventure oddity, while Sony’s venerable racing series slims down and revs upSwitch, Nintendo, cert: 7

Company says it will ‘fully co-operate’ with police after three men charged with Ramis Jonuzi’s murderA customer who booked into a Melbourne house on Airbnb was allegedly murdered by three men who live there.Ramis Jonuzi, 36, was reportedly paying $30 a night to stay at the Brighton East home where he was allegedly raped and murdered on Wednesday night. Three men were charged with his murder. Continue reading...

At the borderline of technology and biology, ‘bodyhacking’ pioneers are defying nature to redesign their own bodies. Is this really the future?Earlier this year I went to an event in Austin, Texas, billed as a sneak preview of the evolution of our species. The #Bdyhax Conference, which took place in a downtown exhibition complex, promised a front-row insight into the coming “singularity” – that nirvana foretold by science fiction in which biology and technology would fuse and revolutionise human capability and experience.The headline acts of the conference were mostly bodyhackers – DIY experimenters who, in their basements and garages, seek to enhance their own flesh and blood with biometric implants and cognitive enablers. These brave pioneers were extending their senses, overcoming physical limitation, Dan-Daring themselves and the rest of us into the future. Continue reading...

The new version of Volvo’s bestselling model ticks every conceivable box (and some you didn’t know you had)

Demand for new flagship iPhone causes month-long shipping delays, contrasting with muted iPhone 8 sales and reportedly causing Apple concern about supplyApple’s most expensive smartphone, the iPhone X, sold out in less than 10 minutes upon being made available for pre-order on Friday morning.The iPhone X – officially pronounced “10” – costs from £999 with 64GB of storage, topping out at £1,149 with 256GB of storage, which is higher than the starting cost of three of Apple’s fully fledged computers. Continue reading...

Leeds University scientists found 20-minute game risked vision and balance problems for players aged eight to 12Researchers have warned that virtual reality headsets could pose risks to users, particularly children. The scientists, based at Leeds University, believe continued use of VR sets could trigger eyesight and balance problems in young people unless changes are made to devices.The warning comes as major companies including Facebook and Google outline plans to expand heavily in the field, while hardware companies have started promoting devices that turn mobile phones into head-mounted VR viewers. Continue reading...

Music streaming service continues to boom ahead of expected IPO, as subscription income rises by 26%Revenues at Spotify’s UK business soared to almost £240m last year, as the popularity of the music streaming service continues to boom ahead of the expected stock market listing of the Stockholm-based company.Total UK revenues at Spotify, which is expected to go public later this year or early in 2018 with a valuation of as much as $20bn (£15bn), rose by 27% to £237m last year. The main driver was a 26% growth in subscription revenues to £215m. Continue reading...

Nor does Finland. Or the Beatles. And Nasa never sent robots to Mars. Just some of the intrigues other than JFK the internet lovesThe much anticipated release of new files about the assassination of John F Kennedy have again thrown a spotlight on the conspiracy theories surrounding the US president’s death. And the internet loves nothing more than a conspiracy theory. Here is a selection of controversial claims that the web especially seems to love. Continue reading...

National Audit Office says NHS and Department of Health must ‘get their act together’ or suffer ‘far worse’ than chaos experienced in MayThe NHS could have avoided the crippling effects of the “relatively unsophisticated” WannaCry ransomware outbreak in May with “basic IT security”, according to an independent investigation into the cyber-attack.The National Audit Office (NAO) said that 19,500 medical appointments were cancelled, computers at 600 GP surgeries were locked and five hospitals had to divert ambulances elsewhere. Continue reading...

Speech by company executive contradicts denial by Trump campaign that claimed the company used its own data and Facebook data to help the campaignCambridge Analytica used its own database and voter information collected from Facebook and news publishers in its effort to help elect Donald Trump, despite a claim by a top campaign official who has downplayed the company’s role in the election.Related: Did Cambridge Analytica influence the Brexit vote and the US election? Continue reading...

Company announced decision following US intelligence community’s conclusion that RT and Sputnik attempted to interfere with the US electionTwitter has announced that it will stop taking advertising from all accounts owned by Russia Today (RT) and Sputnik, effective immediately as US lawmakers continue to investigate the impact of foreign-sponsored fake news on the 2016 election.Related: Twitter plans to make political ads more transparent amid Russia revelations Continue reading...

New sidekick Cappy could have been just another annoying sidekick, but its inclusion only adds to the playfulness of Nintendo Switch’s first Mario adventureIn life, a few things are inevitable: death, taxes and the continual kidnapping of Princess Peach. But after more than 30 years of at least one new Mario adventure per Nintendo console, it helps to have a feature that differentiates the latest from the last. For Super Mario Odyssey, the first proper Mario adventure on the Nintendo Switch, it’s a new sentient hat.

Article 29 Working Party steps up action over user consent and privacy following Facebook’s failure to address breaches of EU lawThe European Union’s data regulator group is again focusing its attention on WhatsApp for the messaging app’s sharing of user data with parent company Facebook, launching a taskforce to implement “a clear, comprehensive resolution” to comply with EU law.The taskforce has been set up by the pan-European data regulator, the Article 29 Working Party (WP29), a year after it first issued a warning to the chat app over its sharing of user data with the wider group of Facebook companies, forcing it to pause data transfer. The taskforce will be lead by the UK’s information commissioner office. Continue reading...

Jamie likes to watch his favourite shows via an HDMI cable, but it might be worth adding a streaming device to the mixWe are replacing an old laptop. We use it, almost exclusively, to watch online TV via an HDMI cable. What would be the best machine to purchase going forward, or would we be better off buying a PC? Jamie

User downloaded malware while pirating Microsoft Office before running virus scan on machine containing confidential software, says Russian firm’s founderAn incredible sequence of security mistakes led to a US National Security Agency contractor leaking his own confidential hacking tools to Russian cybersecurity firm Kaspersky Lab, the Moscow-based company has alleged.The claim comes as part of an internal investigation into allegations that the company helped Russian spies discover and steal the NSA files, by locating and flagging the contractor. Continue reading...

Couriers will be able to gain entry to properties, watched by the recipient on their mobile phoneWould you let Amazon unlock your front door? That will be the question facing consumers after the online retailer launched a service allowing couriers to open customers’ front doors and leave deliveries inside.

Introducing one of this year’s stupidest tech inventions: a mirror for people with the disease which only reflects if you smile at itIn your regular update on awful tech products, may I present the “Smile mirror”, a mirror designed for cancer patients that becomes reflective only when the user smiles.Designed by someone actually called Berk, the idea behind the mirror is that smiling, even if faked, can make us genuinely feel better (known as the facial feedback hypothesis), and that laughter can improve immune function and even ostensibly make us live longer. Continue reading...

Hawaiian city police design punitive fee for when distracted walkers won’t stop staring at their smartphonesOur smartphone obsession has reached a new low. The Hawaiian city of Honolulu has resorted to fining people up to $99 for staring at the devices, to try and force people to look up from their phones while crossing the road.The new law gives police the power to fine people up to $35 (£26.41) for their first offence, $75 for their second and $99 thereafter, perhaps expecting it to take quite some effort to get people to take notice. Continue reading...

NotPetya-style malware infects Kiev’s metro system, Odessa airport and Russian media, demanding bitcoin for decryption keyA major ransomware attack is hitting computers in Russia and Ukraine, bearing similarities to the NotPetya outbreak that caused billions of pounds of damage in June.The self-titled “Bad Rabbit” malware encrypts data on infected machines before demanding a payment of 0.05 bitcoin (£250) for the decryption key. The ransom demand is phrased similarly to that of June’s outbreak, and researchers at Russian security firm Kaspersky say that the malware uses “methods similar to those used” during the NotPetya attack. Continue reading...

Cracking camera, good battery life and great performance are offset by disappointingly big bezels, making it feel like a missed opportunityGoogle’s smaller 5in Pixel 2 offers the same features of its bigger 6in sibling, but looks more like the second coming of the Nexus 5X from 2015.

‘Transparency center’ offers visibility into who is behind ads as Senate investigates Russia’s used of social media to spread propaganda during electionTwitter has announced the launch of an advertising “transparency center” with stricter rules for political ads in the wake of revelations that social media sites were used to spread Russian propaganda during the 2016 US presidential election.“In the coming weeks, we will launch an industry-leading transparency center that will offer everyone visibility into who is advertising on Twitter, details behind those ads, and tools to share your feedback with us,” said Twitter’s Bruce Falck in a blogpost. Continue reading...

The nature of Facebook ads makes it difficult to see when political ads go out, which groups are campaigning for which cause and fact-check what they’re saying

This database shows posts that organisations and individuals have paid to push into Facebook news feeds.Unless you are the one targeted, there is no way know that these posts appeared as ads, which is why Guardian Australia has partnered with ProPublica to track and publish them.

Company’s head of news feed says test is to see if users prefer only friends’ posts in timeline, but journalists in affected countries warn of danger to democracyFacebook is testing whether or not people prefer “personal and public content” being separated as part of its test in which it hid all non-paid posts, said the company’s head of news feed, Adam Mosseri.Speaking after a Guardian report revealed the radical change, forced on six small nations around the world, Mosseri said Facebook “currently” has no plans to roll the experiment out further. But he did not address whether or not the test would become general policy worldwide if the results show that Facebook users do prefer the news-free news feed.

Tory MP writes to Mark Zuckerberg over suspicions that Russia-linked accounts interfered in EU vote and general electionMark Zuckerberg has been asked to search for evidence that Russia-linked Facebook accounts were used to interfere in the EU referendum and the general election as part of a parliamentary inquiry into “fake news”.Damian Collins, the chair of the digital, culture, media and sport committee, has written to the Facebook founder after suspicions that Russian “actors” used the platform to interfere in British politics. Facebook has 32 million users in Britain.

Palestinian man questioned by Israeli police after embarrassing mistranslation of caption under photo of him leaning against bulldozerFacebook has apologised after an error in its machine-translation service saw Israeli police arrest a Palestinian man for posting “good morning” on his social media profile.The man, a construction worker in the West Bank settlement of Beitar Illit, near Jerusalem, posted a picture of himself leaning against a bulldozer with the caption “يصبحهم”, or “yusbihuhum”, which translates as “good morning”. Continue reading...

Consumer organisation Which? is calling for an amendment to the data protection bill to create new rightsConsumer organisation Which? is calling on the government to create new rights for people who have been the victims of a corporate data breach.The group wants the data protection bill, currently being debated in Parliament, to be amended so that independent organisations, such as Which? itself, can fight for collective redress for corporate wrongs. Continue reading...

Making a career out of a hobby might look easy, but living the dream online comes at a cost. Six influencers reveal what it’s like to be a woman on Instagram, and the truth behind their artfully stylised feedsInterviews and portraits by Sophie WedgwoodIn her 1970s book On Photography, Susan Sontag describes the role of the camera in everyday life as a means to construct “a portrait-chronicle of itself – a portable kit of images that bears witness to its connectedness”. She could, of course, be talking about Instagram in 2017, except that we are becoming increasingly less connected to the images themselves. Through filters, colour washes and crops, the images we post can be little more than projections of how we want to be seen by the outside world; an ideal self. And in many cases this image bears only a passing resemblance to the reality.But what happens when Instagram becomes more than just a pastime? When it becomes a way to make a living? What happens when your followers start to objectify you, or your friends unfollow you because of what you post, or it starts to affect your mental health? What happens when you realise you’ve become “content”? Do you stop? Do you heck. From the biomedical scientist who tries to balance university life with makeup posts to the model who is asked to promote slimming pills, Instagram has a very real, often dark side. And these women should know. Morwenna Ferrier Continue reading...