Month: January 2024

Court Services Victoria says hackers accessed years’ worth of recorded hearings across several courts and attack was much worse than initially thought Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcast The cyber attack that hit Victoria’s court system last year was worse than officials first thought, with hackers accessing years’ …

Victorian courts reveal cyber attack targeted files dating back as far as 2016 Read More »

California Forever, which bought 60,000 acres, has received fierce opposition from local officials and environmental groups The controversial plan backed by Silicon Valley billionaires to build a new city in northern California farmland could come before voters later this year. California Forever, the company that quietly acquired 60,000 acres of land in Solano county and …

Tech billionaires want to build a new city in rural California. Will voters go for it? Read More »

Law enforcement are prohibited from viewing leads of alleged child sexual abuse without a warrant if it was generated by AI Social media companies relying on artificial intelligence software to moderate their platforms are generating unviable reports on cases of child sexual abuse, preventing US police from seeing potential leads and delaying investigations of alleged …

Revealed: majority of online child sexual abuse reports go uninvestigated, lawyers say Read More »

Tech giant said it would delete entries for locations deemed ‘personal’ or sensitive, but 18 months later, it’s still retaining data in some cases A year and a half has passed since Google first pledged to delete all location data on users’ visits to abortion clinics with minimal progress. The move would have made it …

Google promised to delete location data on abortion clinic visits. It didn’t, study says Read More »

International community has no strategy to deal with risks, António Guterres tells Davos meeting Business live – latest updates Big technology companies are recklessly pursuing profits from artificial intelligence and urgent action is needed to mitigate the risks from the rapidly growing sector, the head of the United Nations has warned. In a fierce attack …

Big tech firms recklessly pursuing profits from AI, says UN head Read More »

Mysticism has long found a home online, but the rise of generative AI through services like ChatGPT is making it easier than ever to project a sense of magic upon technology A TikTok tarot card reader gazes at me through the screen and draws a card. “If you’re seeing this,” she coos, “it was meant …

It’s possible to find spirituality in technology, but beware those who misuse it for personal gain | Samantha Floreani Read More »

We asked the podcaster and writer to share her comedy diet. Like anyone who was online in the 2000s, her list includes fanfic I grew up in an era where pre-pubescent friendships were formed by gathering around a desktop computer watching video after YouTube video. Charlie the Unicorn (funnier than I remember) and Harry Potter …

Maggie Zhou: the 10 funniest things I have ever seen (on the internet) Read More »

Is there a gentler way of thinking about vices – one that doesn’t make us feel like villains? Between her 430 million Instagram followers, reported $800m net worth and close friendship with Taylor Swift, it’s rare that I feel a kinship with pop star Selena Gomez. But 11 days into the new year, a headline …

Beer, vaping and scrolling: my bad habits make me feel good. What do I do? Read More »

Instruction manuals died out as video games introduced tutorials instead. But now games such as Tunic and The Banished Vault are bringing them back Players of a certain age will no doubt have fond memories of the paper instruction manuals that once came with every video game. Dan Marshall, creator of The Swindle and Lair …

The revenge of the video game manual Read More »

Teachers say mobile phones make their lives a living hell – so one Massachusetts school barred them • Sign up to our free coaching newsletter to help you spend less time on your phone When the weather is nice, the Buxton boarding school moves lunch outside. Students, faculty and guests grab their food from the …

What happens when a school bans smartphones? A complete transformation Read More »