Tuesday, 30 June 2020

COVID‑19 contact tracing – technology panacea or privacy nightmare?

Can a technological intervention stem the pandemic while avoiding the privacy pitfalls of location tracking?

The post COVID‑19 contact tracing – technology panacea or privacy nightmare? appeared first on WeLiveSecurity



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Facebook is shutting down its Pinterest-like experimental app

Hobbi, Facebook’s experimental app for hobbyists, is shutting down. According to TechCrunch, the social network sent a push notification to users to let them know that the application will only be around until July 10th, 2020, and that they can expor...

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EV maker Byton halts operations for six months amid financial woes

Another luxury electric car maker is taking drastic action in light of financial trouble. Chinese firm Byton has told The Detroit Bureau and The Verge that it’s stopping operations for “at least” six months due to financial struggles exacerbated by t...

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Oculus co-founder Nate Mitchell launches a game studio

It’s been a while since Oculus co-founder Nate Mitchell left Facebook, and now it’s clear what he’s doing next. TechCrunch reports that Mitchell has launched a new game studio, Mountaintop, with the help of industry veterans who’ve worked at Double F...

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NASA delays Mars rover launch until at least July 30th

You’ll have to wait longer than you might like to see the Perseverance rover begin its journey to Mars. NASA and United Launch Alliance have delayed blast-off for the Mars 2020 mission from July 22nd to “no earlier than” July 30th. Processing problem...

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Advertisers are running from Facebook. What's next?

The advertiser boycott is quickly spiraling into an even bigger headache for Facebook. The boycott, organized by civil rights groups, has more than 300 participants, and isn’t slowing down. The group has called for an international expansion, and bra...

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Scribd expands its subscription catalog with over 1,000 magazines

Scribd has been pioneering its “all you can read” publication subscription service for some years now. Back in 2016 it added New York and Time magazine to its line-up, followed by a host of major newspaper titles in 2017. Now it’s expanding its magaz...

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OnePlus's next phone will be the sub-$500 Nord

OnePlus made its name launching affordable flagship devices that made more established rivals look greedy by comparison. In recent years, however, its prices have crept closer towards the high-end in the same territory as its ostensible rivals. That’...

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Disney's face-swap technology is as impressive as it is unsettling

Deepfakes have courted a fair amount of controversy in recent times, and with the technology expected to pose major challenges within the political arena — and notably the upcoming presidential election — platforms including Google, Twitter and Faceb...

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'Fortnite' finally sheds its Early Access label

Fortnite: Battle Royale will celebrate its three-year anniversary at the end of July, and in a symbolic gesture recognizing its immense popularity, it’s going to shed its Early Access label. As a multi-billion dollar title with hundreds of millions o...

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Google's Stadia controller gains basic Assistant functionality

Google said from the get-go that its Stadia controller would completely switch up the gaming experience. A button on the controller has been designed to link players directly to the Google Assistant AI helper, meaning you could pull up tips and info...

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LG's latest Bluetooth speakers have passive radiators for extra bass

LG has released the XBoom Go PL lineup that may give you pause for your next Bluetooth speaker buying decision. The higher-end PL7 and PL5 models come with passive radiators for improved bass and the speakers are tuned by HiFi brand Meridian with a “...

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Microsoft and Bridgestone launch real-time tire damage system

As vehicle diagnostics and real-time safety advisories get smarter, there’s not much your car (assuming it’s a newer model, of course) can’t tell you about what’s going on under the hood. Until now, however, there has been one element of vehicle main...

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The Morning After: Facebook revealed its sunglasses-like VR prototype

More than 10 years after we tried out group watching with the Netflix app’s Movie Party feature on Xbox 360, Amazon is delivering its own version. Instead of using some third-party browser extension to keep everything synced, it allows viewers to wat...

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Boeing successfully tests Starliner's parachutes ahead of second flight attempt

Boeing has a lot to prove before Starliner can make its second attempt to reach the ISS. One of the tests it has recently conducted focused on parachute reliability — in particular, the company wanted validate that the vehicle’s parachute system can...

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Telegram to pay $18.5 million and return $1.2 billion following SEC crypto charges

Telegram’s initial bid to launch its “Gram” cryptocurrency has failed. The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced today that in order to resolve charges of violating federal securities laws, it has ordered Telegram to return more than...

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Lenovo's Google-powered Smart Clock drops to $40 at Best Buy

Best Buy dropped the price of Lenovo’s Smart Clock with Google Assistant to $40 today. This brings the price closer to that of a “regular” alarm clock, but the Smart Clock offers so much more. For $40, you get features like a sunrise alarm, an ambien...

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Google Photos will no longer back up WhatsApp and Instagram images by default

Google Photos will no longer back up images from WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram and other messaging and social media services, the service announced (via Android Police). According to a community message, Google is doing it to save resources because “...

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Monday, 29 June 2020

Amazon will let you co-watch Prime videos with friends in the US

Amazon’s new Prime Video feature could help you stay connected with friends even while social distancing. If you’re in the US, you can now host and attend a Prime Video Watch Party, a new option for desktop that lets you co-watch with friends and fel...

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What's on TV: 'Hamilton,' 'Baby-Sitter's Club' and 'Unsolved Mysteries'

This week Disney+ will finally bring another highly-anticipated debut to bear as it starts streaming Hamilton, captured on stage starring the original cast. Meanwhile Netflix has a slew of programming lined up including the first season of its Baby-S...

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Uber is reportedly trying to buy Postmates

Uber might have missed its chance to buy Grubhub, but it might not go away empty-handed. New York Times sources claim Uber has made an offer to buy Postmates. The talks are still in progress and aren’t guaranteed to lead to a union, but negotiations...

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Safari in macOS Big Sur will stream Netflix in 4K HDR

MacOS Big Sur may be a worthwhile upgrade if you love to marathon TV shows. As 9to5Mac reports, users have discovered that Safari in Big Sur will play Netflix videos in 4K with HDR, whether you’re using Dolby Vision or HDR10. You won’t have to switch...

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Lululemon buys interactive home gym startup Mirror for $500 million

Lululemon is best-known for gym clothes, but the gym isn’t an option in areas hard-hit by the pandemic — so it’s finding a way to foster workouts at home. The company has bought home fitness startup Mirror for $500 million to “accelerate the growth o...

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Facebook envisions using holographics for super-slim VR glasses

Facebook and Oculus have been trying to make slimmer and more comfortable VR headsets for a while, but their latest experiment get close to the ideal: displays that are as easy to wear as a pair of sunglasses. Facebook’s Reality Labs has developed a...

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Stadia-exclusive 'Crayta' feels like Google Docs for game creation

Crayta is complicated and simple at the same time. The Stadia exclusive, launching on Wednesday July 1st, is a game-making platform where you can create your own levels, rules and games and share them with other Crayta players. It looks like Fortnite...

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Waze lets drivers display their moods in the app

In the past year, Waze has added a handful of useful features like lane guidance, COVID-19 info, alerts when a road is unplowed, YouTube Music integration and Google Assistant compatibility. But it’s been several years since Waze updated its design....

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Here’s a first look at Netflix’s ‘Cuphead’ series

We knew that the beautifully-styled and devilishly difficult Cuphead was heading to Netflix, now we’ve got a sneak peek at what the animated show will look (and sound) like. Relative newcomer Tru Valentino is set to voice Cuphead himself, while broth...

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Professional cyclists will compete in a virtual Tour de France

The Tour de France, the toughest and most prestigious competition in professional road cycling, is usually held in July. The coronavirus pandemic, however, has forced the time-honoured sport to delay major events such as the Giro d'Italia and cancel...

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The Morning After: COVID-19 delays Super Nintendo World theme park indefinitely

The week starts without any Microsoft news bombs — it was busy enough last week for the company. So, instead, my attention is was drawn to Super Nintendo World. Universal Studios’ theme park in Japan tentatively reopened to visitors on June 8th, but...

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Apple Watch Series 3 discounted to its lowest ever price on Amazon

The Apple Watch Series 3 keeps getting cheaper. Back at the start of June Amazon had it on sale for $179, now the black GPS model has been discounted to $169 — that’s $30 off the usual $199 list price and the lowest we’ve seen since last year’s Black...

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How UK fans can watch the first ever Premier League stream on Twitch

The first ever Premier league football match to stream on Twitch will air tonight, with Crystal Palace versus Burnley at 7:30pm BST. The game — which will be streamed on Twitch by Amazon UK — marks a significant evolution for the platform, which unti...

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Amazon's brand new Fire HD 8 tablets are $30 off for today only

If you’re on the fence about purchasing the latest Fire HD tablets, Amazon has a deal that might sway you. For today only, it’s offering the all-new Fire HD for $60 and the Fire HD Plus for $80, or $30 each off the regular prices. Both models come wi...

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EU will speed up its spaceflight plans in response to SpaceX and China

The modern space race is heating up, and the European Union is acutely aware that it needs to keep pace. Space chief Thierry Breton told Reuters in an interview that the EU is accelerating its plans in light of rapid progress by private companies lik...

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Sunday, 28 June 2020

Autonomous robot uses UVC light to disinfect warehouses

Researchers from MIT have developed a new way to keep shared spaces free of the coronavirus and other pathogens: a UVC light-equipped robot. UVC light is capable of disinfecting surfaces and neutralizing aerosolized virus particles, but it’s dangerou...

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Toyota recalls 752,000 Prius cars over flawed hybrid software

If you drive a Prius from the past several years, there’s a distinct chance you’ll have to take it in for service. Autoblog reports that Toyota has begun a safety recall for 752,000 of the vehicles worldwide, 267,000 of them in the US, due to a flaw...

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Amazon workers in Germany plan two-day strike over COVID-19 infections

Amazon’s efforts to deal with COVID-19 at its warehouses haven’t been enough to sway at least some workers. The labor union Verdi has announced that staff at six sites in Germany will strike for a minimum of two days over a claimed lack of transparen...

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UK contact tracing app may warn you about areas with high infection rates

The UK might have a simple way to spur adoption of its long-in-development contact tracing app: load it with features that are useful beyond exposure warnings. A Financial Times source claims that the NHS’ innovation wing is developing a number of ad...

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This year's iPhones might not include a charger in the box

You might not find much in the box for this year’s iPhone besides the handset itself. Historically trustworthy analyst Ming-Chi Kuo claims in a research note that 2020 iPhone models not only won’t include the usual wired earbuds, but won’t include th...

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Starbucks pauses all social media ads over hate speech concerns

Starbucks is joining the chorus of major brands withdrawing ads from social networks to highlight complaints about online hate speech. The coffee chain announced it would “pause” ads on all social networking platforms, not just Facebook, while it hel...

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Boeing poised to start crucial 737 Max flight safety tests tomorrow

Boeing’s troubled 737 Max is reportedly close to a key round of test flights. Reuters and BBC News sources understand Boeing and the FAA are due to start a three-day set of flight safety tests for the airliner on June 29th. The aircraft crew will run...

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US pushes Europe to reject Chinese baggage screening tech over spying fears

The US fight against Chinese technology appears to be extending to another category: the security screening you normally see at the airport or border. Wall Street Journal sources understand the National Security Council and other US agencies are push...

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Another 53 iOS apps besides TikTok are grabbing clipboard data

TikTok may be ending its nosy clipboard reading on iOS, but that doesn’t mean other app developers are mending their ways. Security researcher Tommy Mysk told Ars Technica in an interview that an additional 53 apps identified in March are still indis...

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Microsoft makes it harder for businesses to avoid Windows 10 updates

The business-focused versions of Windows 10 have normally let you avoid major updates for up to a year, which can be helpful if you either value stability at all costs or just don’t like change. You might not have quite so much breathing room going f...

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After Math: Space toilets and long-haul hybrid pickups

It never fails. You’re just a few precious miles from home when heavy traffic and those three cups of coffee hit at the same moment. There isn’t a bottle mouth big enough to handle the cold brew you’ve got gurgling in your gut. While we’ve all been c...

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Astronomers may have spotted light from colliding black holes

Black hole collisions tend not to produce light by their very nature — you may catch gravitational waves, but that’s about it. However, scientists might have just found one of those rare instances where a collision was visible. A team using May 2019...

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Are There Purposeless Behaviours?

Are habits goal-free behaviours, or does every habit actually serve a purpose?

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Saturday, 27 June 2020

PlayStation 2 can play homebrew games by using DVD player exploits

The PlayStation 2 is over 20 years old, but it’s still difficult to hack if you want to run homebrew games without tweaking the hardware. You usually need to install a modchip, buy a specially-configured memory card or even pry the system open to blo...

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Google's Phone app will tell you why businesses are calling

If you’re using Google’s Phone app, you’ll soon be able to know why a business establishment is calling before you even pick up. In a new support page discovered by Android Police, the tech giant goes into detail about a feature called “Verified Call...

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Dreadbox's portable Typhon analog synth is loaded with effects

It’s not hard to find portable synths, but they typically have one or two effects at most — even larger models (with some exceptions) tend to only have a few. You won’t have that issue with Dreadbox’s just-introduced Typhon, however. As Synth Anatomy...

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Blackpink breaks YouTube's 24-hour viewing record

BTS’ YouTube viewership record has been broken over a year later — although it might not surprise you to hear who managed the feat. Variety reports that K-pop band Blackpink managed to break the record for the most views in 24 hours, racking up 82.4...

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Super Nintendo World theme park opening delayed due to COVID-19

Universal Studios’ theme park in Japan tentatively reopened to visitors on June 8th, but that doesn’t mean its upcoming Super Nintendo World section will be open on time. NHK says company has indefinitely delayed the Nintendo area’s debut after origi...

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