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Tech News : 9th October 2024

AI Safety-Bill Killed (Well, Blocked)

Following California Governor Gavin Newsom vetoing a landmark AI safety bill aimed at regulating the development and deployment of advanced AI systems, we look at the reasons why it was blocked and the implications of doing so.

What Bill?

US Senate ‘Bill 1047’ relates to regulating AI systems with the focus specifically around frontier AI models (highly advanced/cutting edge and large) with the potential for large-scale impact.

Tech News : 9th October 2024

New Ways To Search

Search technology has transformed significantly from text-based queries back in the nineties to now, where there’s a wide range of interactive methods like voice, visual, and AI-driven tools. Here, we look at how these advancements are reshaping the way we search, with a focus on the latest innovations and trends in the search landscape.

The Changing Landscape of Search

Search technology is currently undergoing a rapid transformation, driven by fierce competition between major tech companies like Google, Microsoft, and Amazon. While Google remains the dominant force (processing over 8.5 billion searches per day), other players are innovating and closing the gap by integrating advanced AI capabilities and new features. Microsoft’s Bing AI is increasingly incorporating AI-driven results to enhance search relevance, while Amazon focuses on evolving its product search and recommendation algorithms, positioning itself as a major contender in the e-commerce space.

Tech News : 9th October 2024

Ebay : Fees Scrapped For UK Private Sellers

Online marketplace eBay has announced that starting Tuesday 1 October 2024, private sellers will not pay transaction fees when they sell items on eBay.co.uk.

Like Germany

In its online announcement of the change, eBay highlighted how it recently launched a similar free-to-sell programme in Germany, with the result reportedly being that many new customers joined eBay to start selling (and buying). In fact, eBay says, “Hundreds of thousands of them started buying” and that “they ended up buying twice as much as buyers who don’t sell”.

Tech News : 2nd October 2024

WordPress At War!

Following a (very public) recent spat between WordPress founder and Automattic CEO Matt Mullenweg, and WP Engine, we look at what’s happened and why, and what the effects have been WordPress users.

WordPress and WP Engine

To better understand the story, it may be a good idea to first look at the two sides in the dispute – who (and what) they are, and why they’re different.

Tech News : 2nd October 2024

Meta’s Smarter Specs

Following Mark Zuckerberg’s recent announcement of new AI features for the company’s (Ray-Ban) Meta glasses, we look at where we’re at and where things are heading with Meta’s VR/AR glasses.

What VR/AR Glasses?

Meta’s VR/AR glasses are part of the company’s push into the immersive world of virtual and augmented reality, which it envisions as a key part of the “metaverse.” The metaverse concept, which many of us will remember, was first announced back in October 2021 (when Facebook rebranded as Meta and caused stock values to fall as investors didn’t understand it), was Meta’s vision of a shared, immersive virtual space where people can interact, work, play, and socialise using VR, AR, and other digital technologies.

The VR/AR glasses are part of a range of products representing Meta’s attempt to lead in the next generation of computing by combining the physical and digital worlds. Meta aims to integrate AR glasses into everyday life, much like smartphones today, thereby enabling users to interact with virtual worlds alongside the real world. Consequently, Meta is investing heavily in AR and VR development.

Tech News : 2nd October 2024

Sending WhatsApp Messages To Other Messaging Apps

In response to changes in the European Union’s Digital Markets Act (which came into force in March), WhatsApp users will soon be able to send messages from WhatsApp to people using other messaging apps, e.g. Messenger, Telegram, and Signal.

What Change In The Digital Marketing Act?

Meta-owned WhatsApp is making this major change because the EU’s Digital Markets Act – DMA (a regulation aimed at promoting competition and reducing monopolistic practices in the tech industry) requires major platforms like WhatsApp to become interoperable with other messaging services, i.e. there must be interoperability between WhatsApp and other third-party apps.

Tech News : 25th September 2024

Would You Be Filmed Working At Your Desk All Day?

Following a recent report in the Metro that BT is carrying out research into continuous authentication software, we look at some of the pros and cons and the issues around employees potentially being filmed all day at their desks … under the guise of cyber-security.

Why Use Continuous Authentication Technology?

Businesses use continuous authentication technology to enhance security, i.e. to add an extra layer of protection. As the name suggests, this type of software continuously verifies users throughout their session, rather than relying solely on traditional one-time authentication methods like passwords or PINs. This approach is designed to mitigate risks such as session hijacking, whereby unauthorised users gain access after the initial login, or insider threats where someone might misuse another’s logged-in session. Continuous authentication essentially helps detect abnormal behavior in real-time, flagging up potential breaches or fraud by monitoring unique patterns such as typing style, mouse movements, or facial recognition. By integrating this technology, businesses may hope to reduce security vulnerabilities, safeguard sensitive data, and improve compliance with industry regulations, all while maintaining a seamless user experience, i.e. it’s happening automatically in the background.

Tech News : 25th September 2024

The Rising Cost Of API & Bot Attacks

Following a recent report by cyber-security company Imperva about the rising costs to businesses of bot attacks and vulnerable APIs, we look at why it’s happening and what can be done.

Vulnerable APIs & Bot Attacks Costing Businesses $186 Billion

Imperva’s report was based on Marsh McLennan Cyber Risk Intelligence Centre’s study of data from 161,000 cybersecurity incidents related to vulnerable APIs and bot attacks. The key findings were that businesses face an annual (estimated) economic burden of up to $186 billion due to vulnerable APIs and automated bot attacks. Also, the study found that these two security threats often work in tandem, are becoming increasingly prevalent, and pose significant risks to organisations worldwide.

Tech News : 25th September 2024

Human Right Abuses Linked To Lithium Batteries

New research compiled from AI-powered supply chain risk platform Infyos has revealed that 75 per cent of the lithium-ion battery supply chain may be linked to severe human rights abuses.

Human Rights Abuses – Forced (and Child) Labour

Infyos’s analysis, which drew on government datasets, NGO reports, news articles, social media, and proprietary data, has revealed widespread human rights abuses in resource-rich countries where raw materials such as lithium and cobalt are mined and refined for lithium-ion batteries. These abuses, particularly involving forced and child labour, were found to be most prevalent in the early stages of the supply chain, notably during the extraction and processing of these critical materials.

Tech News : 18th September 2024

ChatGPT Now Offers Complex Reasoning

ChatGPT’s maker, OpenAI, has announced the introduction of its new OpenAI o1 large language model that can use “complex reasoning” to fact-check its own answers before giving them.

ChatGPT Plus and Teams Users Can Try It Now

The new o1 model is already available to ChatGPT Plus or Team users, and in OpenAI’s API. OpenAI o1 is a series of AI models, currently comprising of a ‘Preview’ version, which Open says uses “advanced reasoning”, or the o1-mini (lighter version), which OpenAI says is “Faster at reasoning” (than its other models), and is particularly good for coding tasks.

Tech News : 18th September 2024

Personal Activities ... On Work Laptops (Part 2)

In this second part article, where we review the issues around employees engaging in personal activities on company-issued devices, we look deeper into the legal and compliance implications and provide real-world case studies of security breaches. We also examine how businesses can protect themselves against these growing threats.

Last Week

In the previous article, with the help of an ESET study, we explored the risks of employees using their work laptops for personal activities and the potential consequences for both the employee and the business. Continuing along those lines, legal and compliance issues are the next area for serious consideration for businesses whose laptops may be used by employees for risky purposes.

Tech News : 18th September 2024

Data Centres Now 'Critical National Infrastructure'

Prompted by the effects of the global IT outage caused by CrowdStrike, the UK has moved to protect UK data-centres by classing them as ‘Critical National Infrastructure’ (CNI).

CrowdStrike

Back in July, a global IT outage caused by a faulty update (impacting Windows systems) from the cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike significantly affected multiple sectors in the UK, including data-centres, the NHS, and the financial industry. It led to widespread disruptions and, although it was not a cyberattack, it does appear to be a motivating factor for the UK government’s announcement of a change classification of UK data-centres.

Tech News : 11th September 2024

Musical Misconduct

In a first-of-its-kind case, a US musician has been charged with fraud for allegedly using thousands of automated bot accounts to stream AI-generated tracks from which he made more than $10m in royalty payments.

Which Tracks?

The music tracks that 52-year-old Michael Smith from North Carolina in the US allegedly used came from a co-conspirator, a music promoter, and the CEO of an AI music company, who (from 2018) supplied him with hundreds of thousands of AI-generated songs – songs described as “instant music” by the alleged co-conspirator.

Tech News : 11th September 2024

Personal Activities ... On Work Laptops (Part 1)