Twitter owner promises to abide by the results of the poll, less than two months after appointing himself CEOElon Musk has asked Twitter users whether he should step down as the head of the company, promising to abide by the results of his poll.Musk assumed the role of CEO at the end of October after firing a host of senior executives and dissolving its board of directors. Within minutes of posting the poll, more than one million people had voted. Continue reading...
From moon missions to fast-charging batteries and AI-sourced antibiotics, in no particular order, the year’s significant scientific developmentsThe year opened with a bang. Or rather, it didn’t. The successful film Don’t Look Up, in which a comet is found to be on a collision course with Earth, had been released just before Christmas 2021. In the bleak days of post-festive gloom, the news media were on an adrenaline high, chasing any and every story about potential asteroid collisions to cheer us all up. Five asteroids were to pass close to the Earth in January alone! Happily for the health and wellbeing of humanity, none was predicted to come within a whisker of hitting the planet. Nonetheless, the possibility of an asteroid colliding with Earth is a reality – the globe is covered in craters from previous impacts, and it is well known that 65m years ago, dinosaurs became extinct following the impact of an asteroid about 10km across. Can anything be done about saving us from this existential extraterrestrial threat? Fortunately, the international space community has taken the first steps towards reducing the risk of an asteroid catching us unawares. The joint Nasa- Esa mission Dart (Double Asteroid Re-Direction Test) was an ambitious attempt to alter the trajectory of a small asteroid (Dimorphos) as it orbited a slightly larger asteroid (Didymos), by sending a spacecraft to crash into it. In October, we learned that the mission had been even more successful than anticipated, and that the orbit of Dimorphos had changed – showing that we could, if given sufficient time, alter the path of an asteroid if it were on a collision course with Earth. Continue reading...
On the one hand, he’s a creative genius. On the other, he’s destroying a key debating chamberWatching what’s going on at Twitter is like watching a guy losing his mind in slow motion. The guy in question is Elon Musk, who once upon a time was the world’s richest man and now isn’t. (That slot is apparently occupied by Bernard Arnault, the luxury goods mogul.)Musk is in a hole but apparently doesn’t know Denis Healey’s First Law of Holes: when you’re in one, stop digging. The funny thing is that he dug the hole himself. First, he paid way over the odds for Twitter. Then, when Tesla shares (the main source of his wealth) tanked, and Twitter’s share price dropped, he tried to get out of the deal. That failed, so he was forced to borrow a lot of money – incurring interest payments of around a billion dollars a year – thereby becoming the reluctant owner of a loss-making company. And he hasn’t the faintest idea of how to make it work. Continue reading...
The cameraman captured the three girls bickering in a perfect movie-style shot. The next moment, they were smiling againThe argument broke out a few minutes into the rickety tram ride from Port de Sóller in Mallorca. Sisters Rosa, four, on the right, and Lois, seven, nearest the camera, were bickering with their friend Bibi, eight, all three a little cranky after a busy day on the beach. Their parents sat opposite, and Rosa and Lois’s dad, Joe Macdonald, used his iPhone 13 Pro Max to capture the scene.“It was late afternoon, maybe five or six, so the lighting was just right,” Macdonald says. “I work with camera and lighting for film and TV, so spend a lot of time looking at monitors, and know how fortunate it is to capture a moment that has drama but is also real. Continue reading...
The UN has said Twitter's decision to ban the accounts of a number of prominent US tech reporters sets a dangerous precedent and that it is 'very disturbed' by the move. The organisation's spokesperson, Stéphane Dujarric, said on Friday: 'Media voices should not be silenced on a platform that professes to be a space for freedom of speech.' After conducting a public poll on how to proceed, Twitter's owner, Elon Musk, decided to reinstate the accounts shortly after their suspension for what he said was their doxxing of his location
by Kari Paul in San Juan, Puerto Rico, with photograp on (#66Y9S)
Blockchain aficionados have long flocked to the island for its favorable tax laws. But as the industry wobbles, local residents are pushing backOn a humid December evening in Puerto Rico, more than 100 cryptocurrency and blockchain aficionados gathered at a mansion within a gated, jungle-like enclave of San Juan. A local band played softly while waiters served hors d’oeuvres to attendees who paid as much as $3,000 to attend CoinAgenda Caribbean, a three-day conference promising a VIP experience of networking opportunities and fireside chats about the future of the industry.The crypto crowd arrived in chartered buses to the party, where they sipped on cocktails from an open bar around a pristine white pool, frogs singing in the trees surrounding the property owned by Michael Terpin, founder of CoinAgenda. A private chef from Lyon, France, provided a five-course meal – a fusion of French dishes and Puerto Rican staples like a pig roast and rice and beans. Continue reading...
On a wild day of bans, sudden U-turns and chaotic messaging, Musk abides by Twitter poll result that favoured restoring the accounts of reporters he accused of ‘doxxing’ himElon Musk has lifted the suspensions of the Twitter accounts of several journalists he had banned a day earlier, after the second poll he conducted on the topic went against his preferred outcome.On Thursday, Musk suspended a group of tech journalists from the website, including Ryan Mac from the New York Times, Drew Harwell of the Washington Post and CNN’s Donie O’Sullivan, for what he said were breaches of the company’s new rule about revealing people’s locations. Continue reading...
The former hedge fund manager warns the Twitter CEO – who also runs Tesla and SpaceX – could be in for a rough 2023Elon Musk’s chaotic management of the social media platform Twitter is hurting his brand, and investors should stay away from stock in his electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla, former hedge fund manager Danny Moses of The Big Short fame said this week.Moses’s remarks late Thursday came in an interview with CNBC on the same day that Twitter appeared to have at least temporarily suspended a number of prominent journalists who had reported on Musk and the operations of the platform which he acquired in October for $44bn. Continue reading...
by Dan Milmo, Rowena Mason and Alex Hern on (#66XQH)
Pressure grows on Elon Musk as EU says social media platform could face sanctions over suspensionsThe United Nations is “very disturbed” by Twitter’s abrupt suspension of a group of US journalists, a spokesperson has said, warning that the move sets a “dangerous precedent” – as the EU said the social media platform could fall foul of forthcoming digital regulations.Stéphane Dujarric said on Friday the UN was “very disturbed” by the barring of prominent tech reporters at news organisations including CNN, the Washington Post and the New York Times who have written about Musk and the tech company he owns. Continue reading...
The site’s recent actions, such as banning critical journalists, appear to indicate policy is made on a whimFacebook’s community standards is a sprawling document, broken down into six top-level categories and 24 subcategories, distinguishing between content that is allowed and that which requires extra context, replete with examples of breaches and justifications for its choices. It is treated with quasi-legalistic power by the company’s oversight board, which incorporates its own precedent, as well as international human rights standards, to occasionally overrule Facebook’s own moderation choices.Twitter’s rulebook is simpler: don’t annoy Elon Musk. Continue reading...
by Hannah J Davies, Hollie Richardson, Alexi Duggins, on (#66VWD)
In this week’s newsletter: Working It from the Financial Times investigates how four businesses are trialling the perhaps revolutionary shorter work week. Plus: five podcasts to lift your spirits
After shedding thousands of jobs with Elon Musk’s takeover, the company is apparently shedding office furniture – and high-end cooking equipmentGreat news, holiday shoppers: you can finally get your hands on a 100% authentic, 3ft-tall statue of the Twitter bird.An online auction next month will feature hundreds of the company’s “surplus corporate office assets” that could add a certain je ne sais quoi to any home or workplace, from bizarre decor to high-end cooking equipment.A 6ft-tall planter in the shape of the @ symbol. Sure to be a hit with the tech-obsessed gardener in your life, this piece marries the ancient art of horticulture with a ubiquitous symbol of decaying public discourse. Expect heads to turn when you install this in front of your home, announcing to passersby that you have no soul. Continue reading...
Charges against Bankman-Fried include violation of campaign finance laws, as new CEO slams FTX in congressional hearing on the collapse of the cryptocurrency exchange
I’ve been playing Dungeons and Dragons since I was a kid, but my first time directing the action was daunting. I certainly wasn’t expecting what came nextFour bedraggled adventurers stand together on the shore of a desolate island, shivering in the evening mist. They don’t know each other, and their motives for being here are unclear. But as they make stilted conversation they see, emerging from the briny waters, figures dressed in the rags of sailor outfits, moaning and shuffling and horrible. The adventurers stand around, roll some dice and chat some more, as the undead seamen lurch ever closer. Looking on at this desperate scene, I think to myself, “What the hell? Why can’t anyone make a decision? We’ve been here for half an hour! We’ve not even begun the proper adventure yet!”Dungeons and Dragons has always been there in the background of my life. When I was a kid in the late 70s, my dad’s best friend got into it; he’d show me the rule books and dice and tried to explain to me that this was a game about imagination, about pretending to be elves and wizards and warriors on a completely made up adventure. In the 1980s, as I got into video games, we saw the first fantasy adventures based around D&D lore – games with lots of stats on screen, and monsters inspired by Lord of the Rings. Then finally in the 90s I played with a group of friends at university. We huddled in cold rooms with rulebooks, character sheets and cheap supermarket cider and quested into the night. But I was never the Dungeon Master. Continue reading...
In this week’s newsletter: The leaks don’t reveal a hotbed of leftwing bias at the social media company – just a thin-skinned billionaire rehashing culture wars of years past
by Samuel Gibbs Consumer technology editor on (#66S6B)
We test what devices consume, with households increasingly worried about rising energy pricesHow much does it cost to charge your phone or your toothbrush? Is it really cheaper to use the microwave to cook your food, as has been suggested? With the cost of electricity putting the squeeze on all our finances, and a house full of tech, I decided it was time to see how power-hungry everyday devices really are.We are constantly told that all manner of appliances chew through electricity, and that you can make huge savings by switching off “vampire devices” at the wall. But is that really true? To cut through the fug and find out myself, I grabbed a power meter and spent the last two months testing everything I could. Continue reading...
The firm’s turmoil appears to deepen since Elon Musk’s takeover with Yoel Roth forced to flee home amid personal attacksElon Musk’s Twitter abruptly dissolved its Trust and Safety Council on Monday night, just moments before it was scheduled to meet with company representatives.The council was an advisory group of nearly 100 independent civil, human rights and other organizations that the company formed in 2016 to address hate speech, child exploitation, suicide, self-harm and other problems on the platform. But Twitter informed the group via email that it was disbanding shortly before the meeting was to take place on Monday, according to multiple members. Continue reading...
The new Twitter owner, Elon Musk, was booed for almost 10 minutes after he was introduced on stage by comedian Dave Chappelle on Sunday at the Chase Center in San Francisco. 'Ladies and gentleman make some noise for the richest man in the world,' said Chappelle, as Musk walked on stage with his two arms in the air expecting cheers to ring out. The footage, originally posted to Twitter by a deleted account, showed Musk appearing caught off-guard as the crowd booed continuously, preventing him from getting a word in. 'Cheers and boos, I see,' said Chappelle in response to the crowd's reaction. 'It sounds like some of the people you fired are in the audience,' added the comedian shortly after
Those willing to pay $8 on the web or $11 a month via Apple’s app store will get more prominenceTwitter is relaunching its subscription service on Monday, offering users verified status for $8 (£6.50) a month or $11 a month on their iPhone.The move follows a botched revamp of the service last month that resulted in a host of impersonator accounts appearing on the platform as some users took advantage of the chance to launch bogus “verified” accounts for major companies and public figures. Continue reading...
Machine learning research into changing attitudes to women in the US reveals it’s not just technology that has progressedPeople love new technology. Last week, half the internet was experimenting with ChatGPT, a new artificial intelligence chatbot that can write text on almost any subject under the sun with only the most basic of instructions. You should have a go. Reactions so far focus on predicting the end of education (it can churn out an essay in seconds) or arguing that it’s fun but irrelevant to human progress.Sceptics should note that machine learning and big data analysis is supporting social science progress. Take the debate about cultural norms, where some emphasise the persistence of views passed between generations, while others argue ideas converge between places over time. We struggle to know which view is accurate (surveys of public attitudes are relatively recent or only national).Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a letter of up to 250 words to be considered for publication, email it to us at observer.letters@observer.co.uk Continue reading...
Light infrastructure has expanded alongside population growth but it’s not only star gazing in jeopardy – cultures, wildlife, science and human health are all threatenedOn a clear dark Queensland night in 1997, Brendan Downs was staring up into the cosmos alongside a band of other amateur astronomers. He trained his telescope on a galaxy called NGC 6769, floating more than 169m light years away, and took a picture.“I had a reference image that I had in a book at the time, and I visually compared the object on the screen to the object in the book,” he says. “I counted the number of stars I was looking at.” Continue reading...
The impressive and wildly popular ChatGPT is the latest instalment in a long-running debate about whether we’re creating machines to help us or replace usThose who, like this columnist, spend too much time online will have noticed a kind of feeding frenzy over the past two weeks. The cause has been the release of an interesting chatbot – a software application capable of conducting an online conversation. The particular bot creating the fuss is ChatGPT, a prototype artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot that focuses on usability and dialogue and was developed by OpenAI, an AI research laboratory based in San Francisco.ChatGPT uses a large language model built via machine-learning methods and is based on OpenAI’s GPT-3 model, which is capable of producing human-like text when given a prompt in natural language. It’s an example of what has come to be called “generative AI”: software that uses machine-learning algorithms to enable machines to generate artificial content – text, images, audio and video content based on its training data – in a way that might persuade a human user into believing that its outputs are “real”. Continue reading...
by Vanessa Thorpe Arts and media correspondent on (#66Q06)
As ITVX launches and the BBC gets ready to stream not beam, will event viewing become a thing of the past?Hard to miss the huge television events of the last fortnight. There was Matt Hancock emoting away in the jungle on ITV, England scoring actual goals in the World Cup, and then the former royal couple telling it their way in an orchestrated “drop” of the first episodes of an intimate documentary series on Netflix. And even if none of these offerings registered as a personal “appointment to view”, the noise created has certainly been insistent.All the same, there are strong hints that the days of the large, live TV audience, with everybody sharing a scheduled broadcast at the same time, are numbered. The plan, after years of rumour, is for all TV output to be available online only within the next 10 years or so. Broadcast channels, with their daily line-up of shows, are doomed. Programmes (originally so-called because they were “programmed”) will come into our homes as streamed, branded products, rather than being beamed to viewers on a pre-ordained timetable. Continue reading...
Former boss of collapsed crypto-exchange says he has duty to try to recoup investors’ lost moneySam Bankman-Fried, the former boss of the failed crypto-exchange FTX, has said he hopes to start a new business to help pay back the victims of his old firm’s collapse.Speaking to the BBC from the Bahamas, he said he would “give anything” to be able to begin a new venture in order to recoup his users’ lost investments. Continue reading...
Wider economic uncertainty is behind cuts at companies including CNN, BuzzFeed and Gannett, executives sayA wave of layoffs have hit the beleaguered American media industry as several major companies, including CNN, BuzzFeed and Gannett, have laid off hundreds of workers in recent weeks citing economic volatility and uncertainty.The job losses are the first major slate of cuts since the beginning of the pandemic, when a handful of companies laid off workers over the unpredictability of Covid’s impact on the economy. As the economy rebounded with the introduction of the Covid vaccine in 2021, the news industry saw the lowest number of layoffs in years. Continue reading...
Supermodels, an extraordinary immersive show in London, uses animatronics and meticulous construction to create a hybrid digital-analogue beautyWhen the eerily accurate AI image generator Dall-E 2 was released for public experimentation by OpenAI this summer, most people immediately used it to create whimsical scenes such as “samurai dolphin painted in the style of Rembrandt” or “Bruce Willis angrily devouring a cheeseburger on the moon”. True, if you looked too closely at Bruce’s left ear you might have noticed it wasn’t there – but the freaky glitches were, though somewhat unsettling, part of the fun, not to mention a calming reminder that AI cannot entirely trick us that its images are real – yet.But more than one panicked architect also typed in, “Four-storey family home in forest in the style of Mies van der Rohe” or “Japanese-Scandi lounge area in office building lobby”, and let out a tiny scream when the results resembled the renders of projects that architects otherwise spend long hours churning out. If an AI could knock out a decent interior in seconds, did it promise to be a fabulous time-saver – or would it put everyone out of a job? Continue reading...
Founder’s net worth down about $70bn after fall in electric car maker’s share price since he bid for TwitterTesla has lost nearly half its market value since its founder, Elon Musk, bid for Twitter in April, reducing his net worth by about $70bn and putting his title as world’s richest person at risk.Shares in the electric car company traded at $340.79 on 13 April, the day before Twitter revealed in a securities filing that the billionaire had made a hostile bid to buy the social media company for $43.4bn. Since then the Tesla share price has plunged by 49% to $173.44 (£141.29), also due to concerns around disruptions at one of its factories in Shanghai. Continue reading...
by Vikram Dodd Police and crime correspondent on (#66MRP)
Development of technology and tactics of groups like Islamic State have led to rise in online extremismMost convicted terrorists in Britain were turned to extremism by the internet, with half of those radicalised online having some problems with mental health, personality disorders, depression, or autism, the most authoritative study of its kind has found.The study for the Ministry of Justice, released on Thursday, examined official risk assessments of every convicted terrorist in prison since 2010 in England and Wales. The majority were radicalised at least in part online – a trend caused by technology and the tactics of groups such as Islamic State. Continue reading...
by Alexi Duggins, Hollie Richardson, Hannah Verdier a on (#66MG1)
In this week’s newsletter: Over the course of 60 hours of interviews from 1993, the revolutionary leader opens up in Mandela: The Lost Tapes. Plus: five of the best podcasts with massive archives
Draw the curtains, pull up your weighted blanket and hunker down with these cosy sims, expansive fantasies or, for actual goblins, subterranean dungeon crawlersEarlier this week, “goblin mode” was announced as Oxford’s word of the year, bringing a new level of awareness – and hopefully acceptance – to this previously misunderstood and maligned lifestyle choice. It is defined as “a type of behaviour which is unapologetically self-indulgent, lazy, slovenly, or greedy, typically in a way that rejects social norms or expectations” (also known, throughout lockdown, as simply “existing”), though the exact parameters of the term have been much discussed. But one thing is certain: video games are the perfect goblin mode entertainment. They can be enjoyed from bed, they require little energy and yet they simulate a lot of real-world activities so you can at least pretend to be a functioning member of the human race.But not all games are suitable for goblin mode. Pokémon Go is an absolute no-go (you have to go outside) as are Just Dance (you have to stand up) and driving sims such as Gran Turismo 7 (waaaaay too intense). It is important to play games that complement your slovenly state of mind. Here, then, are some perfect picks for those dank, dungeon-dwelling days of duvet exile. Continue reading...
Term slightly longer than one given to Elizabeth Holmes for defrauding investors in now-defunct blood testing firmSunny Balwani, the former Theranos executive and ex-romantic partner of Elizabeth Holmes, has been sentenced to nearly 13 years in prison over his role in the now-defunct blood testing firm.The sentence is slightly longer than that given to Holmes, who was his accomplice in one of Silicon Valley’s biggest scandals, just a few weeks ago. Continue reading...
About 12,000 people reported facing difficulty using the shopping portal, according to Downdetector, a site that tracks outagesAmazon said it has resolved an issue that prevented some users from accessing the shopping site on Wednesday.“We’re sorry that some customers may have temporarily experienced issues while shopping. We have resolved the issue,” a company spokesperson said, but did not provide any details on what caused the outage. Continue reading...
For a generation of players, these colourful cabinets house not just ailing electronics, but formative memories. Meet the people who save them from landfillOn a rural industrial estate five miles outside Honiton, under the flight path of a nearby aerodrome, sits a rather nondescript warehouse. Only one feature marks it out: in front is a graveyard of stripped arcade cabinets, slowly rotting in the cold and damp.I am here to visit Play Leisure, a company that restores and sells old arcade games. It has a compelling TikTok account where it shares new discoveries – a recent post showed off a Deadstorm Pirates machine with its enormous sit-in cabinet and giant cinematic display. I’ve dragged my friend and fellow arcade fanatic Joao Sanches along, and now I’m feeling nervous and responsible because, walking up to the unmarked entrance, I’ve no idea if they will have anything interesting in stock after our 90-minute drive. Continue reading...
The company now known as Meta has spent staggering amounts on creating an immersive successor to the traditional 2D internet. But what has it got to show for it, apart from 11,000 job losses?What a difference a year makes. Last October, Facebook supremo Mark Zuckerberg could barely wait to show the world what he was up to. “Today, we’re going to talk about the metaverse,” he enthused in a slick video presentation. “I want to share what we imagine is possible.” Transitioning almost seamlessly from his real self into a computer-generated avatar, Zuckerberg guided us through his vision for the virtual-reality future: playing poker in space with your buddies; sharing cool stuff; having work meetings and birthday parties with people on the other side of the world; customising your avatar (the avatars had no legs, which was weird). Zuckerberg was so all-in on the metaverse, he even rechristened his company Meta.This month, we saw a more subdued Zuckerberg on display: “I wanna say upfront that I take full responsibility for this decision,” he told employees morosely. “This was ultimately my call and it was one of the hardest calls that I’ve had to make in the 18 years of running the company.” Meta was laying off 11,000 people – 13% of its workforce. Poor third-quarter results had seen Meta’s share price drop by 25%, wiping $80bn off the company’s value. Reality Labs, Meta’s metaverse division, had lost $3.7bn in the past three months, with worse expected to come. It wasn’t all bad news, though: Zuckerberg announced last month that Meta avatars would at last be getting legs. Continue reading...
‘Cross-check’ system appears to protect users who generate high revenue from content moderation more than ordinary usersA policy designed to protect high-profile Facebook and Instagram users from moderation was structured to satisfy their parent company’s business interests, Meta’s “supreme court” has found, and did not prioritise protecting free speech and civil rights.The oversight board, which scrutinises moderation decisions on Facebook and Instagram, said the platforms’ “cross-check” system appeared to favour “business partners” – such as users including celebrities who generate money for the company – while journalists and civil society organisations had “less clear paths” to access the programme. Continue reading...
by Stephanie Kirchgaessner in Washington on (#66HSQ)
Exiled protest organiser Yusuf al-Jamri is beginning legal action against Bahrain and NSO Group after finding Pegasus spyware on his phoneYusuf al-Jamri had every reason to believe he was safe when he arrived in Britain in October 2017 and applied for asylum protection.The 41-year-old Bahraini activist had experienced sporadic periods of detention and torture beginning at the age of 16, when he was first held for five months without charge. In 2011, during the Arab spring, al-Jamri faced regular questioning and harassment by authorities because of his work as a protest organiser. But it wasn’t until 2017 – after multiple episodes of detention; alleged torture by Bahrain’s notorious intelligence agency, the National Security Apparatus; sexual assault; interrogations; and threats of rape – that he decided to flee Bahrain with his family. Continue reading...
Brain-implant company accused of causing needless suffering and deaths amid pressure from CEOElon Musk’s Neuralink, a medical device company, is under federal investigation for potential animal-welfare violations amid internal staff complaints that its animal testing is being rushed, causing needless suffering and deaths, according to documents reviewed by Reuters and sources familiar with the investigation and company operations.Neuralink Corp is developing a brain implant it hopes will help paralyzed people walk again and cure other neurological ailments. The federal investigation, which has not been previously reported, was opened in recent months by the US Department of Agriculture’s inspector general at the request of a federal prosecutor, according to two sources with knowledge of the investigation. The inquiry, one of the sources said, focuses on violations of the Animal Welfare Act, which governs how researchers treat and test some animals. Continue reading...
The attempt to bring big tech to heel promised much but, three years on, pleases no one – it’s the Brexit disaster writ largeThe online safety bill was tabled for discussion in parliament on Monday, resuscitating it from its deathbed and adding yet another chapter to this controversial attempt to bring the internet to heel. But rather than celebrate its return, we should greet it with a groan: an already unwieldy attempt to regulate the internet has become a confusing mishmash of competing interests.The bill has become a Frankenstein’s monster of legislation, in part thanks to the chaotic recent history of UK politics. Successive governments and successive culture secretaries have tried to put their stamp on the legislation, pulling it this way and that until it becomes meaningless. We are now on our fourth prime minister and fifth secretary of state since the idea of legislating the digital sphere was first introduced. Continue reading...
When you’re infected by Pegasus, spies effectively hold a clone of your phone – we’re fighting backI was warned in August 2020. A source told me to meet him at six o’clock at night in an empty parking lot in San Salvador. He had my number, but he contacted me through a mutual acquaintance instead; he didn’t want to leave a trace. When I arrived, he told me to leave my phone in the car. As we walked, he warned me that my colleagues at El Faro, the Salvadoran news organization, were being followed because of a story they were pursuing about negotiations between the president of El Salvador and the notorious MS-13 gang.This may read like an eerie movie scene, but there are many Central American journalists who have lived it for real. The suspicion you’re being followed, ditching your phone before meetings, using encrypted messaging and email apps, speaking in code, never publishing your live location – these are ordinary routines for many in my profession. Continue reading...
by Samuel Gibbs Consumer technology editor on (#66GFW)
Live and on-demand pay-TV delivered over wifi to an easy-to-use box is let down by some crummy appsSky has taken its satellite-free pay-TV service from the Glass television and shoved it into a tiny streaming box that you can plug into your existing kit and hook up to wifi.The Sky Stream box subscription starts at £25 a month with a £20 fee upfront, which gives you Sky’s entertainment package for 18 months plus a basic Netflix account. It then rises in price depending on any other channels or content you add. Alternatively, you can subscribe on a 31-day rolling contract and chop and change as you see fit, although without an active subscription the box becomes useless. Continue reading...
Flagship internet regulation has survived four PMs, shifting its focus to child protection and free speechThe online safety bill, the government’s flagship internet regulation, returns to parliament on Monday, after a five-month delay prompted by Conservative party factional warfare threatened to kill it off.The bill was postponed until after the summer recess in July in order to make room for Boris Johnson’s unusual decision to call a confidence vote in his own government, and its return has since been put back multiple times. An anticipated revival in late October was delayed to December, while this week’s return will not see the bill progress rapidly through parliament, the digital minister Paul Scully has said, as it will instead be sent back to committee stage for deeper scrutiny. Continue reading...
Technology | The Guardian