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Submission + - Signal braces for quantum age with SPQR encryption upgrade (nerds.xyz)

Submitted by BrianFagioli
BrianFagioli writes: Signal has introduced the Sparse Post Quantum Ratchet (SPQR), a new upgrade to its encryption protocol that mixes quantum safe cryptography into its existing Double Ratchet. The result, which Signal calls the Triple Ratchet, makes it much harder for even future quantum computers to break private chats. The change happens silently in the background, meaning users do not need to do anything, but once fully rolled out it will make harvested messages useless even to adversaries with quantum power.

The company worked with researchers and used formal verification tools to prove the new protocolâ(TM)s security. Signal says the upgrade preserves its guarantees of forward secrecy and post compromise security while adding protection against harvest now, decrypt later attacks. The move raises a bigger question: will this be enough when large scale quantum computers arrive, or will secure messaging need to evolve yet again?

Submission + - Apple removes ICEBlock from its App Store 2

Submitted by davidwr
davidwr writes: The Hill reports

Apple has removed ICEBlock, which allows users to track and report the location of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers, from its App Store. "We created the App Store to be a safe and trusted place to discover apps," Apple said in a statement to NewsNation, The Hill’s sister company. "Based on information we've received from law enforcement about the safety risks associated with ICEBlock, we have removed it and similar apps from the App Store."

The app, created in April, allows users to track where ICE officers are and pin their locations. Those within a five-mile radius of the pinned officers would receive a notification. Fox Business reported Thursday that Attorney General Pam Bondi asked Apple to remove ICEBlock from the App Store. The Hill has reached out to the Justice Department (DOJ) for comment.

Submission + - OpenAI files motion to dismiss Elon Muskâ(TM)s weak xAI lawsuit (nerds.xyz)

Submitted by BrianFagioli
BrianFagioli writes: OpenAI has filed a motion to dismiss Elon Muskâ(TM)s xAI trade secret lawsuit in federal court, arguing the case is built on speculation rather than evidence. The filings contend that xAI never actually alleged OpenAI received or used any confidential code, and point out that one of the key engineers, Xuechen Li, never even joined OpenAI. Another engineer, Jimmy Fraiture, deleted files before his first day. OpenAI says Musk is trying to spin normal recruiting into theft while ignoring California law that lets employees freely change jobs.

In its answer, OpenAI calls the lawsuit âoegroundlessâ and says it is part of Muskâ(TM)s broader campaign to attack the company he helped found but no longer controls. The filing emphasizes that many recent xAI departures had nothing to do with OpenAI, but were driven by dissatisfaction with Muskâ(TM)s leadership. The case will get its first test on November 18, when a judge will decide if the lawsuit should proceed or be thrown out.

Submission + - AMD in early talks to make chips at Intel foundry (tomshardware.com)

Submitted by DesScorp
DesScorp writes: Your AMD chips may have Intel Inside soon. Discussions are underway between the two companies to move an undisclosed amount of AMD's chip business to Intel foundries. AMD currently does their production through TSMC. The talks come hot on the heels of a flurry of other Intel investments.

In the past several weeks, Intel has seen a flurry of activity and investments. The United States announced a 9.9% ownership stake in Intel, while Softbank bought $2 billion worth of shares. Alongside Nvidia, Intel announced new x86 chips using Nvidia graphics technology, with the graphics giant also purchasing $5 billion in Intel shares. There have also been reports that Intel and Apple have been exploring ways to work together.

The article notes that there is a trade/political dimension to an AMD-Intel deal as well:

It makes sense for Intel's former rivals — especially American companies — to consider coming to the table. The White House is pushing for 50% of chips bound for America to be built domestically, and tariffs on chips aren't off the table. Additionally, doing business with Intel could make the US government, Intel's largest shareholder, happy, which can be good for business. AMD faced export restrictions on its GPUs earlier this year as the US attempted to throttle China's AI business.

Submission + - Autism should not be seen as single condition with one cause, say scientists (theguardian.com)

Submitted by Bruce66423
Bruce66423 writes: 'Those diagnosed as small children typically have distinct genetic profile from those diagnosed later, study finds'

So there's more than one condition out there that's being diagnosed as 'autism'. This, of course, messes with the debate about causes; one version of autism may be caused by something for which the evidence is very weak overall... ;)

Submission + - Scam GPT GenAI and the Automation of Fraud (datasociety.net)

Submitted by alternative_right
alternative_right writes: Scams are not a new phenomenon. But generative AI is making scamming even easier, faster, and more accessible, fueling a surge in scams and misinformation at a global scale. This primer maps what we currently know about generative AI’s role in scams, the communities most at risk, and the broader economic and cultural shifts that are making people more willing to take risks, more vulnerable to deception, and more likely to either perpetuate scams or fall victim to them.

AI-enhanced scams are not merely financial or technological crimes; they also exploit social vulnerabilities — whether short-term, like travel, or structural, like precarious employment. This means they require social solutions in addition to technical ones. By examining how scammers are changing and accelerating their methods, we hope to show that defending against them will require a constellation of cultural shifts, corporate interventions, and effective legislation.

Submission + - Cops: Accused Vandal Confessed To ChatGPT (thesmokinggun.com)

Submitted by alternative_right
alternative_right writes: Minutes after vandalizing 17 cars in a Missouri college parking lot, a 19-year-old sophomore had a lengthy ChatGPT conversation during which he confessed to the crime, asked about the possibility of getting caught, and wondered, “is there any way they could know it was me,” according to a police probable cause statement.

Ryan Schaefer was arrested yesterday and charged with felony property damage for a rampage early Sunday at a Missouri State University parking lot. Investigators allege that Schaefer shattered car windows, ripped off side mirrors, dented hoods, and broke windshield wipers during the 3 AM spree.

When confronted with surveillance footage and other evidence, Schaefer said that he could see the resemblance between the suspect and himself. At that point, Schaefer reportedly consented to a search of his iPhone.

A subsequent review of the device revealed location data placing Schaefer “at or near the scene of the crime,” as well as a “troubling dialogue exchange this defendant seems to have had with artificial intelligence software installed on his phone,” prosecutors reported.

Submission + - Hundreds of celebrities relaunch a McCarthy-era committee to defend free speech (npr.org)

Submitted by alternative_right
alternative_right writes: On Wednesday, over 550 celebrities relaunched a group first organized during the post-World War II Red Scare: the Committee for the First Amendment. Their intent is to stand up in what they call a "defense of our constitutional rights," adding: "The federal government is once again engaged in a coordinated campaign to silence critics in the government, the media, the judiciary, academia, and the entertainment industry."

Submission + - French troops boarded Russian tanker (dailymail.co.uk)

Submitted by schwit1
schwit1 writes: French troops have boarded the deck of a tanker alleged to be from Russia's 'shadow fleet' and suspected of involvement in drone flights over Denmark last month.

Submission + - A Bullet Crashed the Internet in Texas (404media.co) 2

Submitted by alternative_right
alternative_right writes: The outage hit cities all across the state, including Dallas, Irving, Plano, Arlington, Austin, and San Antonio. The outage affected Spectrum customers and took down their phone lines and TV services as well as the internet.

“The outage stemmed from a fiber optic cable that was damaged by a stray bullet,” Spectrum told 404 Media. “Our teams worked quickly to make the necessary repairs and get customers back online. We apologize for the inconvenience.”

Spectrum told 404 Media that it didn’t have any further details to share about the incident so we have no idea how the company learned a bullet hit its equipment, where the bullet was found, and if the police are involved.

Submission + - UK police force stops WFH after 'key jamming' revealed (bbc.co.uk)

Submitted by Bruce66423
Bruce66423 writes: 'Greater Manchester Police have suspended home working privileges following an investigation into so-called "key-jamming", which can allow people to falsely appear to be working.

'Twenty-six police officers, staff and contractors are facing misconduct proceedings following the probe, the force said.

'It comes after the anti-corruption unit identified what it called "abnormal key stroke behaviour" on GMP-issued devices.

'Key-jamming can see items left on a computer keypad or the device otherwise manipulated to make someone appear to be active.'

This is why we can't have the nice things...

Comment Re:The value in AI friendships :o (Score 2) 22

by JustAnotherOldGuy (#65695068) Attached to: OpenAI's New Social Video App Will Let You Deepfake Your Friends

“Or, ‘I need to have a hard conversation with my boss at work. How do I have that conversation?’ That's pretty helpful. As the personalization loop kicks in and the AI starts to get to know you better and better, that will just be really compelling,”

And your boss can use an AI too, then the AIs can babble to each other and let you know later whether or not you've been fired.

Comment Re:Because they'll be my friends forever (Score 1) 22

by JustAnotherOldGuy (#65695060) Attached to: OpenAI's New Social Video App Will Let You Deepfake Your Friends

They'll never get pissed off,. break my phone, make a fake kidnapping video and extort money from my family. Just like they wouldn't murder me and automate sending convincing video postcards so everyone thinks I'm doing fine on my vacation.

I'm intrigued by your business model and would like to learn more.

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