Discussion platform takes fifth place in rankings and is the fastest growing large social media platform in the UK
Reddit, the American online discussion platform, has overtaken X to become the fifth most popular social media platform in the UK, according to the communications watchdog.
Ofcom said Reddit, where users post on discussion threads within topic-based communities, was visited by 22.9 million UK adults in May this year, compared with 22.1 million on X.
Continue reading...Far-right, pro-Moscow candidate Călin Georgescu came from 5% in polls to win presidential election’s first round
Romania’s telecoms regulator is asking for TikTok to be suspended as the country’s defence council prepares to discuss cyber risks to its elections, after a little-known ultranationalist came from nowhere to win the first round of the presidential vote.
The country’s constitutional court will also examine two allegations of electoral fraud after Călin Georgescu, a Moscow-friendly, EU-sceptic and anti-Nato independent, topped the ballot in a result that upended Romanian politics.
Continue reading...Company’s shares sink with revised revenue outlook in wake of former CEO’s high-profile resignation last month
A company-ordered review into Richard White, the embattled billionaire founder of Australian software giant WiseTech, has cleared the former chief executive of bullying and intimidation allegations.
The law firms that reviewed a series of allegations against White, including alleged misuse of company funds, also concluded that their investigations had uncovered “no impropriety”, according to an update presented to shareholders on Friday.
Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email
Continue reading...Peter’s chapel in Lucerne swaps out its priest to set up a computer and cables in confessional booth
The small, unadorned church has long ranked as the oldest in the Swiss city of Lucerne. But Peter’s chapel has become synonymous with all that is new after it installed an artificial intelligence-powered Jesus capable of dialoguing in 100 different languages.
“It was really an experiment,” said Marco Schmid, a theologian with the church. “We wanted to see and understand how people react to an AI Jesus. What would they talk with him about? Would there be interest in talking to him? We’re probably pioneers in this.”
Continue reading...Court filing comes after landmark ruling in August and judge will consider arguments from both sides next year
The US Department of Justice has proposed a far-reaching overhaul of Google’s structure and business practices, including the sale of its Chrome browser, in a bid to end its monopoly on internet search.
The DoJ proposals follow a landmark court ruling in August in which a federal judge ruled that Google maintained an illegal monopoly over search services.
Continue reading...This blog is now closed
New South Wales MPs condemned for ‘part-time’ parliamentary year
Scores of NSW MPs will earn the equivalent of more than $10,000 per sitting week in 2025 after a bid to increase the year’s 16-week calendar was rejected, AAP reports.
To do this, government MPs have to turn up to parliament and discuss matters. Voters won’t be happy that government MPs would prefer to hide in their electorate offices rather than turning up to parliament, where they face scrutiny.
Continue reading...Joe Biden gave the green light for the US-made weapon to be used inside Russia. How will it affect the war?
Senior US and Ukrainian officials have confirmed that US-made Atacms missiles have been fired into Russian territory for the first time during the Ukraine war.
The attack in Russia’s south-western Bryansk region came two days after Joe Biden’s administration permitted their use, and on the 1,000th day of the war since Russia launched its full-scale invasion.
Continue reading...Australian Signals Directorate sounds alarm on ‘shifting tactics’ by state-sponsored hackers and cybercriminals, and targeting of critical infrastructure
Cybercriminals are using fake QR codes or sophisticated artificial intelligence scams to trick Australians into giving up their private details or downloading dangerous files, the nation’s signals intelligence agency has warned, as fraudsters take advantage of the technology’s popularity.
The Australian Signals Directorate also sounded the alarm on the “shifting tactics” of state-sponsored hackers and cybercriminals, who they said are burrowing into computer systems of businesses and other organisations and then sitting quietly to avoid detection until they choose to strike.
Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email
Continue reading...Hardware chain breached law by scanning faces of everyone entering the store against a database of banned customers
Bunnings breached the privacy of potentially hundreds of thousands of Australians through the use of facial recognition technologies in stores to scan every customer on entry that were aimed at addressing theft or store safety, the Australian privacy commissioner has ruled.
In 2022, it was revealed the hardware chain was one of a number of retailers using facial recognition tech in stores to check the face of every customer entering the store against a database of banned customers.
Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email
Continue reading...Exclusive: Rights group expresses concerns as it emerges US spy tech company has been lobbying UK ministers
The US spy tech company Palantir has been in talks with the Ministry of Justice about using its technology to calculate prisoners’ “reoffending risks”, it has emerged.
The proposals emerged in correspondence released under the Freedom of Information Act which showed how the company has also been lobbying new UK government ministers, including the chancellor, Rachel Reeves.
Continue reading...General Motors unit to pay $500,000 fine after failing to disclose key details of 2023 San Francisco crash to NHTSA
General Motors’ self-driving car unit, Cruise, admitted on Thursday to submitting a false report to influence a federal investigation and will pay a $500,000 criminal fine as part of a deferred prosecution agreement, the justice department said.
The department said Cruise failed to disclose key details of an October 2023 crash to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in which one of its robotaxis in San Francisco struck a pedestrian after she was hit by another vehicle and dragged her 20ft (6.1 meters).
Continue reading...Humanoid called Digit fuelled boosterism at Web Summit, but also raised concerns about jobs, safety and climate
This year’s Web Summit, in Lisbon, was all about artificial intelligence – and a robot sorting laundry.
Digit, a humanoid built by the US firm Agility Robotics, demonstrated how far AI has come in a few years by responding to voice commands – filtered through Google’s Gemini AI model – to sift through a pile of coloured T-shirts and place them in a basket.
Continue reading...World’s richest man solicits applications for ‘tedious work’ in newly formed Department of Government Efficiency
Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy are asking Americans who are “high-IQ small-government revolutionaries” and willing to work over 80 hours a week to join their new Department of Government Efficiency – at zero pay.
In a new X post on Thursday that doubled as a job announcement and another one of Musk’s trolling attempts, the account for the newly formed Doge wrote: “We don’t need more part-time idea generators. We need super high-IQ small-government revolutionaries willing to work 80+ hours per week on unglamorous cost-cutting.”
Continue reading...Details of emerge in sworn depositions by employees of Israeli company as part of lawsuit brought by WhatsApp
Legal documents released in ongoing US litigation between NSO Group and WhatsApp have revealed for the first time that the Israeli cyberweapons maker – and not its government customers – is the party that “installs and extracts” information from mobile phones targeted by the company’s hacking software.
The new details were contained in sworn depositions from NSO Group employees, portions of which were published for the first time on Thursday.
Continue reading...Alleged criminal ring is the biggest cryptocurrency investment scam in country’s history, according to police
South Korean police have arrested 215 people on suspicion of stealing 320 billion won ($228.4m) in the biggest cryptocurrency investment scam in the country.
Gyeonggi Nambu provincial police said on Wednesday that the arrests included the alleged mastermind of the organised crime group accused of selling 28 types of virtual tokens to about 15,000 people by promising high returns. Referred to as Mr A, he had fled to Australia but was arrested and extradited. Police have confiscated 22 Bitcoin from his accounts and have applied to seize some $34m more. Just 12 people of the 215 remain in custody, according to Yonhap.
Continue reading...World’s richest man has been an enthusiastic cost-cutter – but he may find the public sector an entirely different beast
Donald Trump, president-elect of the US, announced on Tuesday that he has selected Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, and Vivek Ramaswamy to lead the Department of Government Efficiency, with plans to reduce bureaucracy in the federal government by roughly a third.
Musk had pushed for a government efficiency department and has since relentlessly promoted it, emphasizing the acronym for the agency: Doge, a reference to a meme of an expressive Shiba Inu. Trump said the agency will be conducting a “complete financial and performance audit of the entire federal government, and making recommendations for drastic reforms”.
Continue reading...Musk and ex-presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy to head up Department of Government Efficiency (Doge)
Elon Musk and former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy will lead the newly created Department of Government Efficiency, Donald Trump said on Tuesday.
Despite the name, the department will not be a government agency. Trump said in a statement that Musk and Ramaswamy will work from outside the government to offer the White House “advice and guidance” and will partner with the Office of Management and Budget to “drive large scale structural reform, and create an entrepreneurial approach to government never seen before.” He added that the move would shock government systems.
Continue reading...No reason given for departure of Nadhmi al-Nasr, longtime CEO of $500bn project launched by Mohammed bin Salman
Nadhmi al-Nasr, the longtime chief executive of the $500bn Saudi development project Neom launched by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has departed, according to a Neom statement issued on Tuesday that did not give a reason for the departure.
Prince Mohammed has poured hundreds of billions of dollars into development projects through the kingdom’s PIF sovereign wealth fund.
Continue reading...Tycoon might help president-elect realise race for artificial general intelligence is a ‘suicide race’, says Max Tegmark
Elon Musk’s influence on a Donald Trump administration could lead to tougher safety standards for artificial intelligence, according to a leading scientist who has worked closely with the world’s richest person on addressing AI’s dangers.
Max Tegmark said Musk’s support for a failed AI bill in California underlined the billionaire’s continued concern over an issue that did not feature prominently in Trump’s campaign.
Continue reading...Gabriel Kay hopes his design can help tackle the problems caused by discarded electrical goods
Gabriel Kay really understands his target audience. As a student of industrial and product design at De Montfort University, he focused on the kettle.
“Everyone can relate to a kettle, right?” says the 22-year-old graduate. “It’s easy to understand and associated with comfort. It’s a friendly introduction to design.”
Continue reading...