Feed aggregator

The key presidential states of Georgia and North Carolina were hit particularly hard by Hurricane Helene. NPR compared which counties qualify for FEMA aid with 2020 election results. The area is largely Republican.

(Image credit: Michael M. Santiago)

The $4.4 billion in crypto is set to be the largest pile of criminal proceeds ever sold off by the US. The former IRS agent who seized the recording-breaking sum, meanwhile, languishes in a Nigerian jail cell.

Prime members can grab the Theragun Elite for just $279 right now -- a $120 discount.

LinkedIn is passing the responsibility onto users for sharing misleading or inaccurate information made by its own AI tools, instead of the tools themselves.

A November 2024 update to its Service Agreement will hold users accountable for sharing any misinformation created by AI tools that violate the privacy agreement.

Since no one can guarantee that the content generative AI produces is truthful or correct, companies are covering themselves by putting the onus on users to moderate the content they share.

Inaccurate, misleading, or not fit for purpose

ThE update follows the footsteps of LinkedIn's parent company Microsoft, who earlier in 2024 updated its terms of service to remind users not to take AI services too seriously, and to address limitations to the AI, advising it is ‘not designed intended, or to be used as substitutes for professional advice’.

LinkedIn will continue to provide features which can generate automated content, but with the caveat that it may not be trustworthy.

“Generative AI Features: By using the Services, you may interact with features we offer that automate content generation for you. The content that is generated might be inaccurate, incomplete, delayed, misleading or not suitable for your purposes," the updated passage will read.

The new policy reminds users to double check any information and make edits where necessary to adhere to community guidelines,

“Please review and edit such content before sharing with others. Like all content you share on our Services, you are responsible for ensuring it complies with our Professional Community Policies, including not sharing misleading information.”

The social network site is probably expecting its genAI models to improve in future, especially since it now uses user data to train its models by default, requiring users to opt out if they don’t want their data used.

There was pretty significant backlash against this move, as GDPR concerns clash with generative AI models across the board, but the recent policy update shows the models still have a fair bit of training needed.

Via The Register

More from TechRadar Pro

• Check out our pick of the best AI writers around today
• AI-written malware is here, and going after victims already
• Take a look at our pick of the best UK job sites

Why wait nine months? Artificial intelligence will give you pictures in seconds.

If you’ve been following the latest AI news then you’ll know that chatbots that you can talk to using your voice are here. OpenAI was one of the first to demo the technology with its ChatGPT Advanced Voice mode (currently only free for 10 minutes a month), but Google got to market first with Gemini Live (now free to all Android users), and recently Microsoft joined in by revamping its Copilot website and app (which is free to everyone) to include voice conversations.

The ability to talk to AI using our voice, and have it talk back like a human, has been the sci-fi dream ever since Captain James T. Kirk addressed the ship’s computer in Star Trek, but it was later sci-fi creations that proved indistinguishable from human beings, like HAL 9000 and the Blade Runner replicants, that ignited our imaginations about the possibilities of an AI that could interact like a human.

Now we appear to be living in the future, because you can, right now, have a conversation with AI using the smartphone or computer you’re reading this on. But while we’ve made huge progress towards a human-like companion, there’s still a long way to go, as I discovered recently by putting the latest voice-controlled AIs – ChatGPT Advanced Voice mode, Gemini Live, and Copilot – through their paces for a couple of weeks. Here are my top three takeaways:

(Image credit: OpenAI) 1. Interruptions are a great idea, but don’t work properly

The biggest problem I find with talking AIs is being able to interrupt them successfully, or their ability to interrupt you when you don’t want them to. It's great that ChatGPT, Gemini Live, and Copilot all let you interrupt, mainly because they tend to give long and ponderous answers to everything you ask them, and without that ability, you wouldn’t bother using them. That process, however, is often flawed; either they miss your interruption or they then respond to your interruption with more talking. Usually, it’s some version of, “Ok, what would you like to know about instead?”, when all you want them to do is stop talking so you can begin to talk. The result is usually a messy series of jumps and starts that kills the natural flow of the conversation and stops it from feeling human.

Quite often this week I found myself yelling, “Just stop talking!”, at my phone, just so I could get a word in, which isn’t a good look. Especially since I sit in an office surrounded by people for most of the day.

Another problem I frequently encountered with all of the chatbots is thinking I had finished talking when in fact I was just pausing to consider my thoughts and was still halfway through a sentence. The whole AI experience needs to be as smooth as butter for you to have confidence in it, or the spell breaks.

2. There's not enough local information

Ask any of the current crop of chatbots where the best place to get a pizza is locally and apart from Gemini Live, you get told that they can’t search the web. Gemini Live is massively ahead here – it will make a recommendation for somewhere good to get pizza. The recommendations aren’t bad, and although it can't make a reservation for you it will get you the phone number of the restaurant.

Voice-activated chatbots obviously need to be able to browse the web, just like text-based chatbots currently can, but right now ChatGPT Advanced Voice mode and Copilot can’t, and that’s a huge drawback when it comes to delivering relevant information.

(Image credit: OpenAI) 3. They're not personal enough

For voice AI to be useful it needs to know a lot of information about you. It also needs to be able to access your important apps like your inbox and your calendar. At the moment it can’t do that. If you ask it, “Hey, am I free at 4 pm this Friday?”, or, “When is the next family birthday coming up?”, you get told that it can’t do that right now, and without that kind of ability, the usefulness of voice AI just falls off a cliff.

(Image credit: Future / Apple ) So, what is a talking AI good for?

Right now the best use of Voice AI is for asking questions, giving you some motivation to do something, or coming up with ideas that you wouldn’t think of on your own. Pick a subject and get AI to engage with you in a conversation and you’ll find that it knows a surprising amount about a lot of things. It’s fascinating! For example, one of the things I actually know a lot about is Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and I found I could engage each of the chatbots in a pretty good conversation about it, even down to a surprising level of detail regarding techniques and positions. Based on my experience I’d say that Copilot gave me the best answers and that Gemini seemed more likely to hallucinate things that weren’t true.

In terms of the interface, I think ChatGPT is leading the way. I really like the way its swirling orb seems to react with a pulse that’s in time with whatever you say, which gives you confidence it’s actually listening. Gemini Live in contrast has a mainly dark screen with a glowing area at the bottom, which doesn’t give you a focus point to look at, leading to a slightly more soulless experience.

The AI you can talk to right now is great for delving into research topics, but it also feels a bit half-finished, and it's going to need a lot more integration with our smartphones before it can perform at the level we’d naturally like it to. Of course, it will get better over time. Right now the elephant in the room is Apple Intelligence and its associated Siri, who are both late to the party. We’re still waiting for an Apple Intelligence release date, and even then we won’t get the full all-singing, all-dancing Siri until next year.

Right now the promise of an AI we can talk to just like a friend or a real virtual assistant seems tantalizingly close, but also still a long way off.

You might also like...

• Gemini Live is here, free, and feeling chatty
• ChatGPT's new 'Canvas' is the AI collaborator you didn't know you needed
• I've been using a work laptop with a dedicated Microsoft Copilot key for months now — and it's made me realize one thing

While Nvidia hasn’t confirmed the release of its rumored new flagship GPU, the company’s recently shared news that CEO Jensen Huang is to deliver the keynote at CES 2025 – that’s 6:30 PM January 6 2025 – could hint at the highly-anticipated debut of the RTX 5090.

Rumors have been swirling about the RTX 5090’s specs, but Nvidia has remained excruciatingly tight-lipped. Huang’s CES keynote, his first for the major tech event held annually every January in Las Vegas, might be the moment we find out more. CES has long been the prime stage for major Nvidia announcements.

Nvidia cards are not always debuted in Las Vegas, of course. The GeForce RTX 40 series, for instance, debuted in September 2022. But the RTX 40 Super series and mobile versions did debut at (or around) CES, in 2023 and CES 2024 respectively. This pattern, plus Nvidia’s announcement of Huang’s keynote, could indicate that the rumors of a CES 2025 reveal for its new flagship series are in fact true.

Tune in to the #CES2025 opening keynote by our CEO Jensen Huang live in Las Vegas on Monday, January 6, at 6:30 p.m. PT. https://t.co/kMkKNXvRge pic.twitter.com/Adv1WfVPvjOctober 7, 2024

All aboard the hype train...

The RTX 5090 is rumored to feature the Blackwell GB202-300-A1 GPU with 21,760 CUDA cores – that’s over 30% more than the ultra-powerful RTX 4090’s 16,384 cores. Memory-wise, it could include 32GB of GDDR7 RAM on a 512-bit bus. Combined with a possible 28Gbps memory chip, this could result in a staggering 1.78TB/s of memory bandwidth, a 68% increase over the 1TB/s you get with the RTX 4090.

Another point of speculation is power consumption. Leaker kopite7kimi suggests the RTX 5090 could require up to a 600 Watt PSU (Power Supply Unit), significantly higher than the 4090’s 450W demands. That’s not wholly bad, since the 5090 is shaping up to be Nvidia’s most powerful GPU yet, but it does also mean gamers may have to shell out even more on a new PSU for their PC, and maybe even a new cooling system as well. And since the GPU itself is rumored to cost up to $2,000, you could be looking at an extremely expensive upgrade.

You might also like

• The best 4K graphics card of 2024
• I tried to break Nvidia ACE for laughs, but instead I got to see the strange new future of story-driven PC gaming
• I watched Nvidia's Computex 2024 keynote and it made my blood run cold

We've rounded up the best deals NOT on Amazon: outdoor gear, mobile photography, organic mattresses, and more.

Prime Video's latest crime comedy series The Sticky is based on real-life maple syrup heist that happened in Canada in 2011, which is as wild as it sounds. And if you're a Breaking Bad fan, you're going to spot some similarities between this and the hit HBO series when it hits our screens on December 6.

If you need further convincing, this series has some seriously impressive names attached. It's produced by Blumhouse, known for making some of the best horror movies, and stars huge names such as Margo Martindale and Jamie Lee Curtis. I don't know about you, but I'm ready to sit down and get this watched right now. Maybe it'll even join our big best Prime Video shows list.

Take a look at these first-look images from Blumhouse to give you a taste of what's to come.

A plan so wickedly good, it’s sweet.Here’s your first look at The Sticky, a new Blumhouse Television dark-comedy series executive produced by Jamie Lee Curtis and inspired by the true story of the Great Canadian Maple Syrup Heist. Coming soon to @PrimeVideo pic.twitter.com/yG0A7CblcVOctober 9, 2024

What should we know about The Sticky?

As mentioned, The Sticky is loosely based on a real-life heist involving the theft of nearly 3,000 tonnes of maple syrup from a storage facility in Quebec. During this illegal operation, thieves used trucks to transport barrels to a remote sugar shack, where they siphoned off the maple syrup, refilled the barrels with water, and returned them to the facility. They then sold the syrup to legitimate syrup distributors to make a profit.

The Sticky will dramatize these events with a comedic twist and Prime Video has teased that the series follows Ruth Landry (Margo Martindale), a tough maple syrup farmer who turns to crime when the authorities threaten to take away everything she loves. She teams up with a hot-tempered Bostonian mobster (Chris Diamantopoulos), and a mild-mannered French-Canadian security guard (Guillaume Cyr), so we've already got ourselves a wild group of misfits. Meanwhile, Jamie Lee Curtis appears as an unnamed guest character.

This heist has previously been covered in the Netflix documentary series Dirty Money, but the six-episode series will depict the events like you've never seen before.

You might also like

• Just got Prime Video? Here are 3 shows with 100% on Rotten Tomatoes to watch first
• 5 Prime Video thriller movies with over 80% on Rotten Tomatoes
• Prime Video is going to be filled with even more ads, because people didn't complain enough about the last

Microsoft is warning of a new phishing campaign that abuses different privacy settings in cloud-based file hosting services to bypass security solutions and steal login credentials, deploy malware, and more.

In a blog post, the company outlined how crooks have been seen abusing SharePoint, OneDrive, and Dropbox services in their attacks.

First, the attackers would compromise a person’s cloud hosting account - they can either purchase an account on the black market, or obtain the login credentials elsewhere. Then, they would use these credentials to upload a document to one of these services. The document is usually a fake Microsoft 365 login page, which serves not only to steal people’s credentials, but also to grab MFA codes and one-time passwords, too. Alternatively, the file can contain a link to a malicious site, where victims would share their login credentials, download malware to their devices, or similar.

Abusing privacy settings

Here is where it gets interesting - cloud-based file hosting services have security solutions that scan for malicious links and files. However, depending on the document’s privacy settings, security solutions may not be allowed to scan it.

“To bypass analysis by email detonation systems, the files shared in these phishing attacks are set to ‘view-only’ mode, disabling the ability to download and consequently, the detection of embedded URLs within the file,” Microsoft explained.

Alternatively, the hackers would restrict access to the document only to designated recipients, to the same result.

To make matters worse - the threat actors are not distributing these files in the traditional phishing way. Instead, when they grant access to the document only to specific accounts, the cloud service sends an email notification to those accounts. Consequently, the victims get an email from a reputable source, further boosting the perceived legitimacy of the email.

The best way to defend against such attacks is to use common sense and be extra careful when receiving email messages, regardless of who they’re coming from.

Via The Hacker News

More from TechRadar Pro

• Microsoft 365 accounts targeted by dangerous new phishing scam
• Here's a list of the best firewalls today
• These are the best endpoint protection tools right now

Whether for emergencies or to recharge while camping, now's a good time to buy a power bank or power station.

Google’s Recorder app on the Google Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Pro is one of its best AI-enhanced apps – we say as much in our Google Pixel 9 Pro review – thanks to its up to 40-minute-long real-time transcriptions. And soon a version of it will be coming to the best Chromebooks via the next ChromeOS 130 update.

That’s according to 9to5Google, which has revealed that the tool won’t just be coming to top-of-the-line Chromebook Plus devices – although these will get a few unique AI features, reportedly including a helpful offline speech-to-text tool that can function in real time on top of the usual voice-recording capabilities.

With a Chromebook Plus machine you’ll also get access to an on-device AI that can generate transcript summaries so It’s easier for you to flick through your notes later. To use these transcription tools on a Chromebook Plus you’ll apparently need to download an approximately 2GB AI model, while users of non-Plus Chromebooks will need to download a 100MB model to access the more limited recorder tools.

ChromeOS 130 doesn’t yet have a firm release date, but it's “Expected October 2024” per Google’s official ChromeOS releases page. So we hopefully won’t be waiting long for this new feature and update 130’s other upgrades.

Will ChromeOS get the Pixel 9's best feature? (Image credit: Peter Hoffmann) More ChromeOS Recorder details

Best of all, because it looks like the transcriptions and recordings happen on-device, it should be more private and secure than sending your voice notes to a server to have an AI type them up, though if you do want to export your recordings and transcriptions manually you can.

The only downside of the ChromeOS Recorder app will be that at launch it’ll only understand US English – so it won’t be able to help you if you speak a different language, and there’s no word yet on when support for more languages will be added.

It’s also unclear if one of ChromeOS 130’s other features for Chromebook Plus devices – ‘Studio-style mic’, which uses AI to make you sound clearer by reducing noise from your microphone – will be used by the recorder tool. It’s possible, but currently it’s only linked to new video-call tools, so it could be that it won’t help clean up your voice recordings for now – we’ll have to wait and see when ChromeOS 130 rolls out later this month.

You might also like

• This Samsung Galaxy S25 leak seemingly shows all three models
• Nvidia RTX 5080 might get speedier video RAM than we expected
• Best PC games: must-play titles you don't want to miss

Hackers have managed to steal sensitive information from air-gapped systems belonging to different European governments on at least three separate occasions, experts have warned.

A new report from ESET. explained how the threat actor, called GoldenJackal, is a sophisticated cyber-espionage group known for targeting governments in South Asia and Europe over the last five years.

Air-gapped systems seem to be their inner specialty, targeting them with USB drives. GoldenJackal's affiliation remains unclear, but it is suspected to be a state-sponsored group, potentially from Eastern Europe or Asia. An air-gapped system is a computer or network that is physically isolated from unsecured networks, such as the internet, to prevent unauthorized access and enhance security. Still, crooks managed to steal data from these endpoints by means of self-propagating malware.

GoldenJackal

As per BleepingComputer, GoldenJackal was so far observed targeting an embassy of a South Asian country in Belarus on two occasions - once in September 2019, and once in July 2021. It was also seen going after a European government organization between May 2022 and March 2024.

The attack starts with a USB drive infected with a piece of malware. It is notable that the group built multiple variants for different victims which, for ESET’s experts, is a testament to the group’s resourcefulness. In some instances, it used malware called GoldenDealer, and in others - GoldenAce.

This malware is tasked with copying itself, together with other malware, onto air-gapped devices, as soon as the USB drive is plugged in. Other malware includes a backdoor called GoldenHowl, and an infostealer called GoldenRobo (or GoldenUsbCopy and GoldenUsbGo, respectively). The latter’s task is to copy documents, images, encryption keys, OpenVPN configuration files, and other important data, into a hidden directory on the USB drive.

Then, when the USB drive is reconnected to an internet-enabled device, the malware sends everything it stole to the C2 server.

More from TechRadar Pro

• Devious new cyberattack leaks secrets from LCD screen noise on air-gapped computers
• Here's a list of the best firewalls today
• These are the best endpoint protection tools right now

When you're planning a drive in Google Maps, the app can cover pretty much every part of the journey except parking. Well, thanks to a new partnership with SpotHero, it can now handle that, too.

SpotHero has just announced that its parking system will be coming to Google Maps users in the US and Canada, enabling you to reserve parking spots at over 8,000 locations in over 300 cities.

When you're planning a trip you'll be able to find nearby parking, and the app will then redirect you to SpotHero from inside the app. To see the option, you'll just need to type a venue's name plus 'parking' into the Google Maps search bar in the app or on desktop. You'll then see options shown as pins on the map, which you can also view by clicking 'show list'.

Once you've chosen a location with bookable parking, you can then tap 'book' or 'book online'. This takes you to a SpotHero landing page within Google Maps, where you can drill down to available dates and time slots – if you're happy with the fee, you'll be able to book it without setting up an account (thanks to a 'continue as guest' option).

Not just for last-minute parking

(Image credit: SpotHero)

The parking feature isn't just for here and now: you'll be able to plan your trip and book parking in advance, too. And in addition to parking spaces the feature will also enable you to look for specific must-haves such as wheelchair accessibility, EV charging and even valet services.

This actually isn't the first time Google has teamed up with a parking provider: it did the same with ParkMobile in the past. But it's part of a wider push to make Maps more useful, and should tie in nicely with the Destination Guidance feature announced in the summer: that included "showing you nearby parking lots" close to your destination.

It's part of a bigger push for SpotHero, too: it's already partnered with Apple to bring the same features to US and Canadian users of Apple Maps.

SpotHero says that it's already serving over 10 million American and Canadian drivers, and that it's already sold more than $1.5 billion in parking reservations. If you happen to own a parking lot, SpotHero will happily consider you for inclusion in exchange for a 35% cut: there's more about that on the SpotHero website [PDF].

We asked SpotHero if it's considering an expansion outside of the US and Canada, but a spokesperson simply told us that "right now we plan to continue expanding in the US and Canada".

You might also like...

• Google Maps will now warn you about businesses with fake reviews
• Google Maps, Street View, and Google Earth all get major updates – including a time travel feature
• Google Maps and Android Auto are making it easier for you to find the right lane

Wimbledon, the oldest tennis tournament in the world, is replacing around 300 line judges with artificial intelligence at next year’s tournament - saying goodbye to a 147-year tradition.

The line judges at Wimbledon have for years stood around the court watching the lines with laser focus to determine whether a tennis ball is in or out. But at Wimbledon in 2025, you’ll not spot the cream berets and navy blazers. The system the All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) has opted for instead is an evolution of the Hawk-Eye technology that has been used for tight calls since 2007. The technology is called electronic line calling (ELC) and will be used on all of Wimbledon’s 18 courts throughout the 2025 competition.

The AELTC confirmed in a statement on Wednesday, ‘officiating technology will be in place for all Championships and qualifying match courts and cover the ‘out’ and ‘fault’ calls that have previously been made by line umpires.’

This artificial intelligence technology is nothing new to tennis, having been implemented following the COVID pandemic at other major tournaments like the US Open. The Australian Open was the first grand slam to ever remove line judges on all courts back in 2021 and the ATP Tour will bring in the technology in 2025.

Wimbledon is founded on tradition, so today’s announcement, while not surprising, is indicative of the new AI-driven world we now live in. Back in 2014, IBM, one of Wimbledon’s major sponsors, didn’t think we’d be replacing humans at Wimbledon anytime soon. But a lot can change in 10 years, and now we’ll have an AI on Centre Court.

What is ELC and how does it work?

The system that is set to be implemented at Wimbledon for the 2025 tournament works by tracking the ball’s movement through 12 cameras strategically placed on every court. There are also microphones on the court to listen for the sound of the ball as well as a computer to interpret the ball’s location in real time. A video operator, similar to the Video Assistant Referee in soccer will oversee the technology from an external room, communicating with the Chair umpire on the court.

This isn’t the first AI technology introduced at Wimbledon, earlier this year the AELTC unveiled a new Catch Me Up tool, powered by IBM’s Watson generative AI platform. Catch Me Up allows fans to watch highlights from games on a second screen, ideal for the perfect couch tennis companion.

You might also like...

• How IBM is making Wimbledon the smartest-ever tournament
• Apple Intelligence release date leaked – here's when the first AI features are set to arrive on your iPhone
• Fitbit’s new Gemini-powered AI assistant can answer questions about your health – here’s how to try it

Amazon feeds its large language models vast quantities of retail data. It says its AI agents might someday be smart enough to buy you stuff without you even having to ask.

The Nectar Classic Hybrid is an affordable bed with a more accommodating firmness and feel than the previous model. Is it the budget-friendly coil mattress you've been looking for?

Shokz are my all-time headphones for outdoor use and Amazon has them discounted for today's Prime Big Deal Days.

The election and Atlantic hurricane seasons are overlapping with dramatic effect, and not for the first time. Here's what we can learn from other storms that shaped elections, from Katrina to Maria.

(Image credit: Carolyn Kaster/AP; Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) has submitted a court filing to break up Alphabet’s Google search business on the grounds that its other consumer businesses give it an unfair advantage.

In a 32-page filing to the US District Court in Washington D.C. (via Bloomberg), the government agency said it, “is considering behavioural and structural remedies that would prevent Google from using products such as Chrome, Play and Android to advantage Google search and Google search-related products and features - including emerging search access points and features, such as artificial intelligence - over rivals or new entrants.”

It’s unclear as yet whether the DOJ will be successful, after failing to break up Microsoft over similar accusations of a web browser monopoly all the way back in 2001. In August 2024, the agency also sued Apple for creating a monopoly by suppressing third-party services, apps and wallets.

US v Google

The DoJ accuses Google of making its search engine the default on smartphones and a number of web browsers owing to its illegal distribution agreements with their operators. Given that Android is a popular Google-owned operating system, it’s easy to see how a conflict of interest may have developed.

Google has described the filing as “radical”, though I’d even stretch to “tubular”, based on how the DoJ also takes a dim view of Google leveraging its search engine to give prominence to Gemini, the name for its AI tool. It wants assurance that websites will be allowed more control over opting out of incorporating its AI products, and over where their ads appear on Google-owned services.

Google’s VP of Regulatory Affairs, Anne Mulholland wrote in a blog post that “[Google believes] that today’s blueprint goes well beyond the legal scope of the Court’s decision about Search distribution contracts”, and that the “sweeping agenda” will pose “significant unintended consequences, businesses and American competitiveness.”

Yes, yes, God bless the American search engine industry, but it’s worth noting that the European Union has been gunning for a breakup of Google since 2023 in a case that comes after a veritable slew of fines issued for data privacy breaches. And if Google’s search breakup is beyond even the power of a bloc of states, the American government might not have any hope.

Read more

• Google Photos is rolling out AI-powered search now – and it could be its biggest upgrade in years
• I've been using Google Search for 25 years and AI overview is the one thing that could ruin it for me
• Judge rules Google has illegal search monopoly and you might not like what comes next