Submission + - AI Avatar Tries To Argue Case Before a New York Court (apnews.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: It took only seconds for the judges on a New York appeals court to realize that the man addressing them from a video screen — a person about to present an argument in a lawsuit — not only had no law degree, but didn’t exist at all. The latest bizarre chapter in the awkward arrival of artificial intelligence in the legal world unfolded March 26 under the stained-glass dome of New York State Supreme Court Appellate Division’s First Judicial Department, where a panel of judges was set to hear from Jerome Dewald, a plaintiff in an employment dispute. “The appellant has submitted a video for his argument,” said Justice Sallie Manzanet-Daniels. “Ok. We will hear that video now.”

On the video screen appeared a smiling, youthful-looking man with a sculpted hairdo, button-down shirt and sweater. “May it please the court,” the man began. “I come here today a humble pro se before a panel of five distinguished justices.” “Ok, hold on,” Manzanet-Daniels said. “Is that counsel for the case?” “I generated that. That’s not a real person,” Dewald answered. It was, in fact, an avatar generated by artificial intelligence. The judge was not pleased. “It would have been nice to know that when you made your application. You did not tell me that sir,” Manzanet-Daniels said before yelling across the room for the video to be shut off. “I don’t appreciate being misled,” she said before letting Dewald continue with his argument.

Dewald later penned an apology to the court, saying he hadn’t intended any harm. He didn’t have a lawyer representing him in the lawsuit, so he had to present his legal arguments himself. And he felt the avatar would be able to deliver the presentation without his own usual mumbling, stumbling and tripping over words. In an interview with The Associated Press, Dewald said he applied to the court for permission to play a prerecorded video, then used a product created by a San Francisco tech company to create the avatar. Originally, he tried to generate a digital replica that looked like him, but he was unable to accomplish that before the hearing. “The court was really upset about it,” Dewald conceded. “They chewed me up pretty good.” [...] As for Dewald’s case, it was still pending before the appeals court as of Thursday.

Submission + - Visa Bids $100 Million To Replace Mastercard As Apple's New Credit Card Partner (msn.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Visa has offered Apple roughly $100 million to take over the tech giant's credit card partnership from Mastercard, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday, citing sources familiar with the matter. Visa has made a bold push to secure the Apple Card, offering an upfront payment typically reserved for the largest card programs, WSJ reported. American Express is also trying to unseat Mastercard to win the Apple card. Amex is looking to become the card's issuer as well as the network, the report said, citing the sources.

Submission + - The Affidavit of a Rippling Employee Caught Spying For Deel Reads Like a Movie (techcrunch.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: On Wednesday, Rippling publicly released the affidavit of the Rippling employee who testified that he was working as a spy for the HR tech company’s arch rival Deel. And the account, coupled with Rippling’s lawsuit filed against Deel last week, reads like a corporate espionage movie script, complete with a sting operation and a smashed phone. It’s the latest escapade between the two. TechCrunch has documented the most Hollywood-esque parts of the testimony below, but be aware that this is only one side of the story — the side Rippling wants everyone to know, as its PR machine has blasted it out, and CEO Parker Conrad tweet-stormed about it. [...]

Submission + - Vast Pedophile Network Shut Down In Europol's Largest CSAM Operation (arstechnica.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Europol has shut down one of the largest dark web pedophile networks in the world, prompting dozens of arrests worldwide and threatening that more are to follow. Launched in 2021, KidFlix allowed users to join for free to preview low-quality videos depicting child sex abuse materials (CSAM). To see higher-resolution videos, users had to earn credits by sending cryptocurrency payments, uploading CSAM, or "verifying video titles and descriptions and assigning categories to videos."

Europol seized the servers and found a total of 91,000 unique videos depicting child abuse, "many of which were previously unknown to law enforcement," the agency said in a press release. KidFlix going dark was the result of the biggest child sexual exploitation operation in Europol's history, the agency said. Operation Stream, as it was dubbed, was supported by law enforcement in more than 35 countries, including the United States. Nearly 1,400 suspected consumers of CSAM have been identified among 1.8 million global KidFlix users, and 79 have been arrested so far. According to Europol, 39 child victims were protected as a result of the sting, and more than 3,000 devices were seized.

Police identified suspects through payment data after seizing the server. Despite cryptocurrencies offering a veneer of anonymity, cops were apparently able to use sophisticated methods to trace transactions to bank details. And in some cases cops defeated user attempts to hide their identities—such as a man who made payments using his mother's name in Spain, a local news outlet, Todo Alicante, reported. It likely helped that most suspects were already known offenders, Europol noted. Arrests spanned the globe, including 16 in Spain, where one computer scientist was found with an "abundant" amount of CSAM and payment receipts, Todo Alicante reported. Police also arrested a "serial" child abuser in the US, CBS News reported.

Submission + - Honda China Replaces 30% of Workforce with Robots and AI (interestingengineering.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Honda is all in on automation and artificial intelligence and aims to transform its EV production process in China by reducing the need for floor staff by 30%. Their new Chinese EV factory began production of the all-electric Ye P7 crossover and uses AI to optimize welding to lower fixed costs and improve production efficiency.

The factory also employs automated guided vehicles that require manual labor to transport heavy components such as battery packs. While robots have not truly replaced human workers in factories, the kind of tech that Honda and companies like Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and Dongfeng are rolling out suggests a problematic future for blue-collar workers.

The Guangzhou factory utilizes automated guided vehicles (AGVs) to move heavy car components across the factory floor. Historically, this work has been done by humans. In partnership with local joint venture partner Guangzhou Automobile Group (GAC), the Japanese automaker has recently started production of the all-electric Ye P7 at this factory.

Submission + - First Fatal Accident Involving Xiaomi EV With Autopilot Engaged (yahoo.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: China's Xiaomi said on Tuesday that it was actively cooperating with police after a fatal accident involving a SU7 electric vehicle on March 29 and that it had handed over driving and system data. The incident marks the first major accident involving the SU7 sedan, which Xiaomi launched in March last year and since December has outsold Tesla's Model 3 on a monthly basis. Xiaomi's shares, which had risen by 34.8% year to date, closed down 5.5% on Wednesday, underperforming a 0.2% gain in the Hang Seng Tech index. Xiaomi did not disclose the number of casualties but said initial information showed the car was in the Navigate on Autopilot intelligent-assisted driving mode before the accident and was moving at 116 kph (72 mph).

A driver inside the car took over and tried to slow it down but then collided with a cement pole at a speed of 97 kph, Xiaomi said. The accident in Tongling in the eastern Chinese province of Anhui killed the driver and two passengers, Chinese financial publication Caixin reported on Tuesday citing friends of the victims. In a rundown of the data submitted to local police posted on a Weibo account of the company, Xiaomi said NOA issued a risk warning of obstacles ahead and its subsequent immediate takeover only happened seconds before the collision. Local media reported that the car caught fire after the collision. Xiaomi did not mention the fire in the statement.

Submission + - Copilot Can't Duplicate 2013 TouchDevelop and Windows Phone Code Generation Demo

Submitted by theodp
theodp writes: "The devil is in the details," Ross Perot famously said of President Clinton's economic plan back in 1993. Such, too, is the case with code generation, now personified by the much-hyped coding capabilities of Copilot and other GenAI LLMs.

But ask Copilot to "write a program that can be run on an iPhone 16 to select 15 random photos from the phone, tint them to random colors, and display the photos on the phone" in 2025 like TouchDevelop did for the long-discontinued Windows Phone in a 2013 Microsoft Research 'SmartSynth' natural language code generation demo (ACM paper, demo video), and you'll get lots of code and caveats from Copilot, but nothing that you can execute as is (compare to functioning 10 lines of code TouchDevelop program). It's a good reminder that just because GenAI can generate code, it doesn't necessarily mean it will generate the least amount of code, the most understandable or appropriate code for the requestor, or code that runs unchanged and produces the desired results.

TouchDevelop — a programming environment and language that enabled schoolchildren and expert programmers alike to write applications directly on mobile devices and in the browser — was (like BASIC) abandoned by Microsoft, who explained: "We determined we needed to replace Touch Develop with MakeCode in order to provide a more holistic, hands-on computing education platform that will bring computer science to life through physical computing devices like the micro:bit and immersive experiences like [Microsoft-owned] Minecraft." It marked an abrupt change in direction from the "Don't just play on your phone, program it" learn-to-code messaging for K-12 students that was promoted for years by the tech giants and even President Obama.

Interestingly, a Microsoft Research video from CS Education Week 2011 shows enthusiastic Washington high school students participating in an hour-long TouchDevelop coding lesson and demonstrating the apps they created that tapped into music, photos, the Internet, and yes, even their phone's functionality, showing us how lacking iPhone and Android still are today as far as easy programmability-for-the-masses goes (when asked, Copilot replied that Apple's Shortcuts app wasn't up to the task). Two years later during CSEdWeek 2013, the new Hour of Code (TM) was launched by tech-backed nonprofit Code.org with a decidedly dumbed-down approach to introducing kids to coding, with Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg teaching 30+ million schoolkids how to drag-and-drop puzzle pieces to advance an Angry Bird character up, down, left, and right, the same concepts a 5-year-old might learn by playing Pop-O-Matic Trouble.

Submission + - Microsoft President Calls for a National Talent Strategy for Electricians

Submitted by theodp
theodp writes: "As I prepared for a White House meeting last fall on the nation’s electricity needs," begins Microsoft President Brad Smith in The Country Needs More Electricity — And More Electricians, a Fox Business op-ed. "I met with the leaders at Microsoft who are building our AI infrastructure across the country. During our discussion, I asked them to identify the single biggest challenge for data center expansion in the U.S. I expected they would mention slow permitting, delays in bringing more power online or supply chain constraints — all significant challenges. But instead, they highlighted a national shortage of people. Electricians, to be precise."

Much as Smith has done in the past as he declared crisis-level shortages of Computer Science, Cybersecurity, and AI talent, he's calling for the nation's politicians and educators to step up to the plate and deliver students trained to address the data center expansion plans of Microsoft and Big Tech.

"How many new electricians must the U.S. recruit and train over the next decade?" Smith asks. "Probably half a million. [...] The good news is that these are good jobs. The bad news is that we don’t have a national strategy to recruit and train the people to fill these jobs. Given the Trump administration’s commitment to supporting American workers, American jobs and American innovation, we believe that recruiting and training more electricians should rise to its list of priorities. There are several ways to address this issue, and they deserve consideration. For example, we need to do more as a nation to revitalize the industrial arts and shop classes in American high schools. [...] This should be a priority for local school boards, state governors and appropriate federal support. [..] We must also adopt a broad perspective on where new technology is taking us. The tech sector is most often focused on computer and data science — people who code. But the future will also be built in critical ways by a new generation of engineers, electricians, plumbers, pipefitters, iron workers, carpenters and other skilled trades.

So, is 'Learn to Wire' the new 'Learn to Code'?

Submission + - Qualcomm Launches Global Antitrust Campaign Against Arm (tomshardware.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Qualcomm has reportedly filed secret complaints against Arm with the European Commission, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and the Korea Fair Trade Commission. Qualcomm argues that Arm's open licensing approach helped build a robust hardware and software ecosystem. However, this ecosystem is under threat now as Arm moves to restrict that access to benefit its chip design business, namely compute subsystems (CSS) reference designs for client and datacenter processors and custom silicon based on CSS for large-scale clients.

Qualcomm has presented its case to the EC, U.S. FTC, and Korea FTC behind closed doors and through formal filings, so it does not comment on the matter now. Arm rejected the accusations, stating that it is committed to innovation, competition, and upholding contract terms. The company called Qualcomm's move an attempt to shift attention from a wider commercial dispute between the two companies and use regulatory pressure for its benefit.

Indeed, the antitrust complaints align with Qualcomm's arguments in a recent legal clash with Arm in Delaware. Qualcomm won that trial, as the court ruled that the company did not break the terms of its architecture license agreement (ALA) and technology license agreement (TLA) by acquiring Nuvia and using its IP in its Snapdragon X processors for client PCs. Arm said it would seek a retrial. However, Qualcomm seems to want to ensure that it will have access to Arm's instruction set architecture and technologies by filing complaints with antitrust regulators.

Submission + - College Board Launches AP Cybersecurity Career Course for Non-College-Bound Kids

Submitted by theodp
theodp writes: "For decades," Education Week reports, "the College Board partnered with college and universities to design courses for its sprawling Advanced Placement program [...] Now the nonprofit is putting a new twist on AP: It is crafting courses not just with higher education at the table, but industry partners such as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the technology giant IBM. The organization hopes the effort will make high school content more meaningful to students by connecting it to in-demand job skills. It believes the approach may entice a new kind of AP student: those who may not be immediately college-bound. [...] The first two classes developed through this career-driven model—dubbed AP Career Kickstart—focus on cybersecurity and business principles/personal finance, two fast-growing areas in the workforce."

"What we are doing is giving employers an equal voice,” explained David Coleman, the CEO of the College Board. “It’s a really good way for corporations and companies to help shape the curriculum and the future workforce,” said Carol Kim, the director of technology, data and AI, which is also reportedly helping shape the future workforce by laying off thousands of employees across the U.S.

The cybersecurity course is being piloted in 200 schools this school year and is expected to expand to 800 schools next school year. The College Board is planning to invest heavily in training K-12 teachers to lead the cybersecurity course, a model used for AP Computer Science Principles, the AP program’s introductory CS course. “I’m not saying [these teachers will] be experts in cyber” by the end of their training, Coleman said. “I’m saying they’ll know enough about the structure of the cyber course and have the resources that they’ll be able to stay a step ahead of their kids.”

Facing heat over high-profile security breaches in 2021, tech-backed K-12 nonprofit Code.org founder Hadi Partovi said he told President Joe Biden at his Presidential Summit on Cybersecurity that "America's cybersecurity problem is an education problem" as CEOs from Microsoft, Amazon, Google, Apple, and IBM nodded in agreement. In 2022, Microsoft Philanthropies announced it was expanding its cybersecurity skilling initiative in anticipation of 3.5 million cybersecurity jobs being open globally by 2025. And in 2023, following lobbying from Microsoft and Code.org (Microsoft President Brad Smith, who declared a cybersecurity skills crisis in 2021 and a CS skills crisis in 2012 and hinted at an AI skills crisis earlier this year, was a founding Board member of Code.org), North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum (who as a Microsoft employee once reported to Steve Ballmer and managed Satya Nadella) signed into law a bill requiring instruction in CS and cybersecurity for high school graduation.

Interestingly, Reuters last week reported The White House urged federal agencies to refrain from laying off their cybersecurity teams as they scrambled to comply with a deadline to submit mass layoff plans to slash their budgets.

Submission + - CCIA lobby Trump to use tariffs agaist social media regulatation (abc.net.au)

Submitted by Dinjay
Dinjay writes: The CCIA is lobbying the Trump administration to use tariffs as a bargaining tool against the Australian government's planned scheme to force large social media and search companies to pay news outlets for news content, according to the Australian ABC article.

The Computer and Communications Industry Association (CCIA) represents big tech companies including X, Meta, Google, Apple and Amazon.

Submission + - VW's Cheapest EV Is First To Use Rivian Software (techcrunch.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Volkswagen’s ultra-cheap EV called the ID EVERY1 — a small four-door hatchback revealed Wednesday — will be the first to roll out with software and architecture from Rivian, according to a source familiar with the new model. The EV is expected to go into production in 2027 with a starting price of 20,000 euros ($21,500). A second EV called the ID.2all, which will be priced in the 25,000 euro price category, will be available in 2026. Both vehicles are part of the automaker’s new category of electric urban front-wheel-drive cars that are being developed under the “Brand Group Core” that makes up the volume brands in the VW Group. And both vehicles are for the European market.

The EVERY1 will be the first to ship with Rivian’s vehicle architecture and software as part of a $5.8 billion joint venture struck last year between the German automaker and U.S. EV maker. The ID.2all is based on the E3 1.1 architecture and software developed by VW’s software unit Cariad. VW didn’t name Rivian in its reveal Wednesday, although there were numerous nods to next-generation software. Kai Grunitz, member of the Volkswagen Brand Board of Management responsible for technical development, noted it would be the first model in the entire VW Group to use a “fundamentally new, particularly powerful software architecture.” “This means the future entry-level Volkswagen can be equipped with new functions throughout its entire life cycle,” he said. “Even after purchase of a new car, the small Volkswagen can still be individually adapted to customer needs.”

Submission + - BYD unveils new super-charging EV tech w/peak of 1,000 kW (reuters.com)

Submitted by fahrbot-bot
fahrbot-bot writes: Reuters is reporting that BYD unveiled on Monday a new platform for electric vehicles (EVs) that it said could charge EVs as quickly as it takes to pump gas and announced for the first time that it would build a charging network across China.

The so-called "super e-platform" will be capable of peak charging speeds of 1,000 kilowatts (kW), enabling cars that use it to travel 400 km (249 miles) on a 5-minute charge, founder Wang Chuanfu said at an event livestreamed from the company's Shenzhen headquarters.

Charging speeds of 1,000 kW would be twice as fast as Tesla's (TSLA.O), opens new tab superchargers whose latest version offers up to 500 kw charging speeds.

The new charging architecture will be initially available in two new EVs — Han L sedan and Tang L SUV priced from 270,000 yuan ($37,328.91) and BYD said it would build over 4,000 ultra-fast charging piles, or units, across China to match the new platform.

Submission + - Consumer Groups Push New Law To Reign In Zombie Devices (substack.com)

Submitted by chicksdaddy
chicksdaddy writes: You bought a smart refrigerator with cool new AI features (https://www.ces.tech/ces-innovation-awards/2025/4-door-refrigerator-with-ai-home-and-ai-vision-inside-20/). The hardware that keeps your food from spoiling has a useful life that is measured in decades. But 6 months after you buy it, the manufacturer declares that it is ending support for the fridge's software and shutting down the cloud services that power its smart features — a big reason you purchased the device. What can you do? Currently, not a thing. But that may soon change. A group of consumer advocacy groups on Thursday introduced model legislation to address the growing epidemic of “zombie” Internet of Things (IoT) devices that have had software support cut off by their manufacturer, Fight To Repair News reports https://open.substack.com/pub/...

The Connected Consumer Product End of Life Disclosure Act (https://advocacy.consumerreports.org/press_release/consumer-reports-us-pirg-and-secure-resilient-future-foundation-propose-connected-consumer-products-end-of-life-disclosure-act-to-address-iot-security-risks/) is a collaboration between Consumer Reports (https://consumerreports.org/), US PIRG (https://pirg.org/), SRFF, the Secure Resilient Future Foundation (https://secure-resilient.org/) and the Center for Democracy and Technology (https://cdt.org/). It requires manufacturers of connected consumer products to disclose for how long they will provide technical support, security updates, or bug fixes for the software and hardware that are necessary for the product to operate securely.

“Consumers deserve to know how long their connected devices will be supported,” said Justin Brookman, director of technology policy for Consumer Reports in a statement. “Currently, it’s nearly impossible for most people to figure out if their devices are still receiving critical updates. This lack of transparency leaves consumers vulnerable and creates significant security risks.”

Submission + - Google considering bringing back in-person job interviews (cnbc.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: In late 2022 came the boom in generative AI, with the release of OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Since then, tech companies have laid off tens of thousands of programmers while touting the use of AI to write code. At Google
, for example, more than 25% of new code is written by AI, CEO Sundar Pichai told investors in October.

The combination of rapid advancements in AI, mass layoffs of software developers, and a continuing world of remote and hybrid work has created a novel conundrum for recruiters.

The problem has become so prevalent that Pichai suggested during a Google town hall in February that his hiring managers consider returning to in-person job interviews.

Google isn’t the only tech company weighing that idea.

But engineers aren’t slowing down.

Lee has turned his cheating into a business. His company, Interview Coder, markets itself as a service that helps software developers cheat during job interviews. The internship offers that he landed are the proof he uses to show that his technology works.

AI assistants for virtual interviews can provide written code, make code improvements, and generate detailed explanations of results that candidates can read. The AI tools all work quickly, which is helpful for timed interviews.

Submission + - Where are the Open-Source Local-Only AI Solutions?

Submitted by BrendaEM
BrendaEM writes: Do you remember how it was portrayed in movies when people would just talk to their computer, and it would do things? As implemented, as perverted, why does AI have to take the work of others? Why can't we each have our own AI software that runs locally, doesn't take anything from anyone else? It doesn't spy on us, and no one else owns it. We download it, from souce-code if you like, install it, if we want. It assists: us. For now, it's yours. No one gate-keeps it. It's not out to get us--and this is important: because no one owns it but our indebted gratitude, the AI software is ours and leaks no data anywhere, to no one, no company, for no political nor financial purpose. No one profits--but you! Though, that's not what is happening--is it?

Why cannot we have software--without AI. While it upsets me that a company such as Microsoft, who seems to have had legal problems from with taking another company's code--banner intact and all, implementing machine-learning in computers for legally defenseless masses, but it was just heartbreaking to read that Firefox has updated their legalese to further go upstream from their often-self proclaimed privacy motto for likely the sake of adding AI. I have used Firefox since it split from the Netscape suite, now I am likely going to leave it--because I am losing my remaining trust for Mozilla. Why is AMD stamping AI on local-processors--when most of the AI is done on external company servers? And if there is local AI processing--with what is it processing? To whom is it processing for? Having grown board with the elusive fusion reactor, the memsistor, the battery tech that will spare our remorseless wastefulness, having nosed its way past blockchain--should AI be crowned the ultimate hype?

We read about falsified naked pictures and video of society's beloved actors and performers. Have they not given enough of themselves? We see photos undiscerningly mangled to where most people can no longer trust what was once de-facto proof. We are at a point that anyone can be placed in any crime scene. Perhaps we have for some time, but now anyone can do it to any one

Beyond the deliberate targeted assassination of our sense of morality, lies the withering of society's intellect, as AI, as used, feeds on everything--including ingesting its own corrupted data--until the AI purveyors will have no choice but to use AI-free content, which it at first it was. As time goes on, finding AI-untouched data will be as difficult to find--as vintage wine without isotopes from nuclear tests.

Why ever would computer bugs be called, "hallucinations?" In reference to a comparison to the human intelligence of a six year old human, why are we being told that we just have to redefine intelligence in favor of the marketer's of AI? If AI is not really intelligent, nor is it mortal, nor feeling, nor capable of empathy, living or dying--then why ever should it be allowed to say, "I" Why should we allow it.

What future will anyone have if anything they really wanted to do when you--could be mimicked and sold by the ill-gotten work of others?

Could local, open-source, AI software be the only answer to dishearten billionaire companies from taking and selling back to their customers--everything we have done? Could we not...instead--steal their dream!

Submission + - Meta Plans To Test and Tinker With X's Community Notes Algorithm (arstechnica.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Meta plans to test out X's algorithm for Community Notes to crowdsource fact-checks that will appear across Facebook, Instagram, and Threads. In a blog, Meta said the testing in the U.S. would begin March 18, with about 200,000 potential contributors already signed up. Anyone over 18 with a Meta account more than six months old can also join a waitlist of users who will "gradually" and "randomly" be admitted to write and rate cross-platform notes during initial beta testing.

Meta claimed that borrowing X's approach would result in "less biased" fact-checking than relying on experts alone. But the social media company will delay publicly posting any notes until it's confident that the system is working. For users of Meta platforms, notes could help flag misleading content overlooked by prior fact-checking efforts. However, Meta confirmed that users will not be allowed to add notes correcting misleading advertisements, which means notes won't help reduce scam ads that The Guardian reported last August have been spreading on Facebook for years.

Submission + - Hardware Security Key Shootout! (k9.io)

Submitted by Beave
Beave writes: The standard hardware security key in the tech space is typically a YubiKey. While I’m sure we all appreciate YubiKeys, there are many other key manufacturers out there. Each manufacturer and key has different capabilities, and are not all equal. This article will explore the various hardware security keys that can be used to store Passkeys and SSH keys. We will focus on usability, operating system compatibility, and costs. This article will likely help, whether you're looking for a personal key for projects or seeking to implement a passwordless solution at work.

Submission + - Elon Musk Says X Outages Were Caused by a Cyberattack From Ukraine 1

Submitted by hcs_$reboot
hcs_$reboot writes: Elon Musk’s X hit by waves of outages in what he claims is a massive cyberattack from Ukraine[paywall]. Mr. Musk on Monday quickly blamed Ukraine[no paywall] without providing evidence. X, which Mr. Musk purchased in 2022, experienced intermittent outages on Monday, mostly on its app, according to Downdetector, which tracks reports of problems from users on websites. The first outages were reported before 6 a.m. Eastern time, after which the site and app seemed to resume functioning. But about 10 a.m. more problems arose, and there were 41,000 reports of outages on X, according to Downdetector. Shortly after 11 a.m., a third spike of reported outages emerged, and the site remained down for many users.

“There was a massive cyberattack to try to bring down the X system with IP addresses originating in the Ukraine area,” Mr. Musk said during a Monday interview with Fox’s Larry Kudlow.

Submission + - Code.org Campaign Calls on Girls to 'Reclaim Space in the [CS] Space We Started'

Submitted by theodp
theodp writes: Timed to coincide with International Women's Day, AdAge and others report that tech-backed nonprofit Code.org is launching Computer Science is Everything (CSiE), which a press release describes as "the first-ever national campaign to increase enrollment among high school girls in computer science courses." In a Medium post announcing the campaign, Code.org explains that "The challenge isn’t ability or access. The biggest barrier is interest. [...] Many young women don’t see CS as relevant to their lives."

To support the campaign, Code.org is encouraging parents, teachers, and mentors to "share our videos, play them in classrooms, and direct students to CSisEverything.org," a girl-focused spinoff site operated by Code.org that has its own donation page seeking contributions to 'Empower the next generation of female leaders.'

The campaign's launch video opens by challenging young women's disinterest in CS ("You say computer science isn’t your style? Impossible. Because computer science is everything. It’s Sports. Art. Fashion. Cats.") and closes with an odd talking portrait of Ada Lovelace referencing the CS patriarchy ("Is it [CS] the patriarchy? Well, it wasn’t when I started it all.") that leads to a call for girls to "reclaim space in the space we started."

That, plus scenes showing young women how they might be able to use computer science to prevent themselves from being roofied or assaulted, may help explain some negative feedback on the video noted in brand research conducted for the campaign ("The patriarchy part was distasteful and trying too hard to be woke", "It seemed anti-men and unrelatable as a boy."), somewhat ironic complaints considering that Elon Musk is one of Code.org's biggest donors.

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