Category Archives: Technology

Elon Musk’s X circumvents court-ordered block in Brazil

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Social media platform routes internet traffic outside of Brazil using a communications network update

Social media platform Twitter/X became accessible to many users in Brazil on Wednesday as an update to its communications network circumvented a block order by the country’s supreme court.

The X update used cloud services offered by third parties, allowing some Brazilian users to take a route outside of the country to reach X, even without a virtual private network, according to Abrint, the Brazilian Association of Internet and Telecommunications Providers.

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Albanese government forging ahead with social media age restrictions despite Meta’s new Instagram teen accounts

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Communications minister Michelle Rowland welcomes Meta’s announcement but suggests it doesn’t strongly enforce its present age limit on Instagram

The Albanese government is forging ahead with its plans for an age restriction on social media despite Meta announcing new restrictions for teens on Instagram, with the communications minister arguing children’s use of social media is unbalanced.

On Wednesday Instagram announced changes to teen accounts, including giving parents the ability to set daily time limits for using the app, block teens from using Instagram at certain times and to see accounts their child is exchanging messages with and the content categories they are viewing.

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Users of ‘throuples’ dating app Feeld may have had intimate photos accessed

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Alternative relationships site says it has resolved concerns about data security that tech firm claims to have uncovered

Users of Feeld, a dating app aimed at alternative relationships, could have had sensitive data including messages, private photos and details of their sexuality accessed or even edited, it has emerged, after cybersecurity experts exposed a string of security “vulnerabilities”.

Feeld, registered in the UK, reported soaring revenues and profits this month, thanks to millions of downloads from non-monogamous, queer and kinky users across the world.

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White House blasts Elon Musk for X post about Biden and Harris assassination

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‘No one is even trying to assassinate Biden/Kamala,’ X owner tweeted after apparent Trump assassination attempt

The White House has condemned Elon Musk for tweeting “no one is even trying to assassinate Biden/Kamala” in response to an X user asking “Why they want to kill Donald Trump?”

The president’s office issued a statement Monday criticizing the “irresponsible” post, which was accompanied by an emoji face with a raised eyebrow. The White House said: “Violence should only be condemned, never encouraged or joked about. This rhetoric is irresponsible.” The statement added that there should be “no place for political violence or for any violence ever in our country”.

This article was amended on 16 September 2024. An earlier version stated that Elon Musk had tweeted “Why they want to kill Donald Trump?” It was later corrected to make clear he was replying to that tweet.

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Australians pay more than anyone in the world to sell their homes online

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Prices at the News Corp-controlled realestate.com.au can be as high as $4,000 for a single listing, prompting complaints from vendors, agents and industry disruptors

Australians are paying the most expensive advertising fees in the world to sell their homes online as a result of the market dominance of realestate.com.au and Domain, with the cost rising to as much as $4,000 for an inner-city listing.

The dominance of the News Corp-controlled realestate.com.au has prompted more than a dozen complaints to Australia’s competition watchdog, the Australian Consumer and Competition Commission, over the past decade from agents and industry disruptors, Guardian Australia can reveal.

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Real v fake: how the Harris-Trump debate laid out different takes on AI

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One candidate revels in AI-generated images of cats and geese, while the other posts real photos of her grandparents

In their first, and likely only debate, Kamala Harris and Donald Trump argued about artificial intelligence. They spoke of China, chips and “domestic innovation”. The country learned how Harris, Trump and their allies would – or intentionally wouldn’t – use artificial intelligence for their own ends.

But the real lessons were in the aftermath. The online furor over the IRL confrontation revealed that Republicans use AI to illustrate their political points. Democrats do not.

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Documentary producers release new ethical AI guidelines for film-makers

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Controversies over AI-generated material spurred release of guidelines addressing transparency and historical accuracy

Over a year after the dual Hollywood strikes put a spotlight on the industry’s adoption of AI, film-makers have often found themselves at a crossroads – how to use generative AI ethically, if at all? Where to draw the line on synthetic material? Documentary film-makers, in particular, have faced mounting concerns over “fake archival” materials such as AI-generated voices, photos or video.

As Hollywood continues to adopt artificial intelligence in production, a group of documentary producers have published a groundbreaking set of ethical guidelines to help producers, film-makers, studios, broadcasters and streamers address questions over use of the technology.

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Meta to push on with plan to use UK Facebook and Instagram posts to train AI

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Move to use shared posts follows information commissioner concerns and sets collision course with EU over privacy

Mark Zuckberg’s Meta is to go ahead with controversial plans to use millions of UK Facebook and Instagram posts to train its artificial intelligence (AI) technology, in a practice that is effectively outlawed under EU privacy laws.

Meta said it had “engaged positively” with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) over the plan, after it paused similar proposals in June in the UK and EU. The pause came after the ICO warned tech firms to respect the privacy of users when building generative AI.

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Labour and Starmer suffer sharp fall in popularity since election, poll suggests – UK politics live

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Labour still more popular with voters than Conservative party but those saying they view party and leaders unfavourably has risen

The government’s defence review should consider the importance of Britain being able to “wage peace” as well as war, Justin Welby, the archbishop of Canterbury, told peers.

In a debate in the House of Lords on Sudan this morning, Welby said the strategic defence review (SDR) announced by Labour should include a “peace-building option”, to stop conflict before it happens.

A peace-building option, well developed and acting in areas of fragility, would extend our influence, protect our interests and guard against fresh waves of migration …

In other words, the SDR should be full spectrum, preparing this nation not only to wage war but to wage peace as well. I fear that may not be the case …

No, absolutely not

And let’s just try to quash this now. The budget is on October 30. So, between now and then, you are all going to ask me questions, as you did before the election, ‘will you rule out X, Y, Z?

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OpenAI to launch models with ‘reasoning’ abilities that are ‘much like a person’

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‘Strawberry’ models can break down complex problems into smaller logical steps, an area where other AIs stumble

OpenAI said on Thursday it was launching its “Strawberry” series of AI models designed to spend more time processing answers to queries in order to solve hard problems.

The models are capable of reasoning through complex tasks and can solve more challenging problems than previous models in science, coding and math, the AI firm said in a blog post.

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Parents ‘don’t use’ parental controls on Facebook and Instagram, says Nick Clegg

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Meta’s global affairs chief points to ‘behavioural issue’ around child safety tools on the social media platforms

Parents do not use parental controls on Facebook and Instagram, according to Meta’s Nick Clegg, with adults failing to embrace the 50 child safety tools the company has introduced in recent years.

Meta’s global affairs chief said there was a “behavioural issue” around using the tools, after admitting they were being ignored by parents. Regulatory pressure is building on tech companies to protect children from harmful content, with the Australian government announcing plans this week to ban younger teenagers from accessing social media.

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Sausage rolls and Oasis: ‘Britishcore’ Tiktok trend drives interest in UK culture

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From crummy pubs to a ‘cheeky Tesco run’, some of the most mundane aspects of British life are going viral

Think of British cultural exports in the 21st century and you might reach for the familiar examples: James Bond, Downton Abbey, Adele.

But in the algorithm-driven universe of TikTok where a trend known as “Britishcore” is one of the most in demand movements of the moment, it’s the mundane aspects of life in the UK which are going viral.

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Social media age limits to go before parliament ahead of next election, Albanese says

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Draft bill requires social media platforms to stop children in the restricted age range from accessing their services

The Albanese government plans to impose a minimum age for teenagers accessing social media and gaming platforms, with legislation to be introduced into parliament before the next election.

The prime minister will announce the nationwide move on Tuesday but will stop short of specifying the age, arguing the government wants to wait for the conclusion of an age-verification trial which begins its final phase this week.

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‘Going back in time’: the schools across Europe banning mobile phones

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Calvijn College was one of the first schools in the Netherlands to ban mobile phones. Four years on, officials report its culture has been transformed

Six years ago, as officials at the Netherlands’ Calvijn College began considering whether to ban phones from their schools, the idea left some students aghast.

“We were asked whether we thought we were living in the 1800s,” said Jan Bakker, the chair of the college, whose students range in age from 12 to 18 years.

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M&S using AI as personalised style guru in hopes to boost sales

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Shoppers can use technology to advise them on outfit choices based on their body shape and style preferences

Marks & Spencer is using artificial intelligence to advise shoppers on their outfit choices based on their body shape and style preferences, as part of efforts to increase online sales.

The 130-year-old retailer is using the technology to personalise consumers’ online experience, and suggest items to buy.

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YouTube to restrict teenagers’ exposure to videos about weight and fitness

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Platform will ensure algorithms do not keep pushing similar content to young viewers, even though it does not breach guidelines

YouTube is to stop recommending videos to teenagers that idealise specific fitness levels, body weights or physical features, after experts warned such content could be harmful if viewed repeatedly.

The platform will still allow 13- to 17-year-olds to view the videos, but its algorithms will not push young users down related content “rabbit holes” afterwards.

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Elon Musk’s Starlink backtracks to comply with Brazil’s ban on X

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After judge freezes assets of billionaire’s internet service provider, company flip-flops to block social media platform

Elon Musk’s satellite-based internet service provider Starlink backtracked late on Tuesday and said it would accept and enforce a Brazilian supreme court justice’s order to block the billionaire’s social media platform, X, formerly Twitter.

Previously, Starlink informally told the telecommunications regulator Anatel that it would not comply until Justice Alexandre de Moraes reversed course. Now, Starlink has said in a statement posted on X that it will heed de Moraes’s order despite him having frozen the company’s assets.

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Labor considers an Artificial Intelligence Act to impose ‘mandatory guardrails’ on use of AI

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‘We need more people to use AI and to do that we need to build trust’, says industry and science minister Ed Husic

The Australian government is considering a European Union style Artificial Intelligence Act to regulate minimum standards on high-risk AI across the whole economy.

On Wednesday the industry and science minister, Ed Husic, released a discussion paper proposing 10 “mandatory guardrails” for high-risk AI including human oversight and the ability to challenge the use of AI or outcomes of automated decision-making.

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Lula says Elon Musk’s wealth does not mean world must accept his ‘far-right free-for-all’

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Brazilian president makes comments after supreme court votes to uphold X ban over refusal to obey court orders

The Brazilian president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, has said he hopes the crisis surrounding the social network X in Brazil might teach the world that “it isn’t obliged to put up with [Elon] Musk’s far-right free-for-all just because he is rich”.

Lula’s comments to the network CNN Brasil came after the supreme court voted unanimously on Monday to uphold the ban on X, which is now largely inaccessible in one of its biggest global markets.

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Publish data on ride-hailing apps ‘to cut exploitation and emissions’, say campaigners

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Campaign group says firms such as Uber should reveal data on driver miles to help boost wages

Uber and other ride-hailing apps should be forced to publish data on drivers’ workloads so that regulators can tackle exploitation and cut carbon emissions, campaigners argue.

Analysis by the pressure group Worker Info Exchange suggests drivers for Uber and its smaller rivals may have missed out on more than £1.2bn in wages and costs last year because of the way they are compensated.

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