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Submission + - Starlink tries to block Virginia's plan to bring fiber Internet to residents (arstechnica.com)

Submitted by AmiMoJo
AmiMoJo writes: Starlink operator SpaceX is fighting Virginia's plan to deploy fiber Internet service to residents, claiming that federal grant money should be given to Starlink instead. SpaceX is already in line to win over $3 million in grant money in the state but is seeking $60 million.

Starlink is poised to benefit from the Trump administration rewriting rules for the $42 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) grant program. While the Biden administration decided that states should prioritize fiber in order to build more future-proof networks, the Trump administration ordered states to revise their plans with a "tech-neutral approach" and lower the average cost of serving each location.

Submission + - Plex users urged to update Media Server after security flaw exposed (nerds.xyz)

Submitted by BrianFagioli
BrianFagioli writes: If you run Plex Media Server, itâ(TM)s time to drop everything and update. The company has quietly patched a security issue that affects recent versions of its software, and users are being told to upgrade as soon as possible.

According to an email Plex sent to affected customers, versions 1.41.7.x through 1.42.0.x are vulnerable. The newly released build, 1.42.1.10060 or later, contains the fix. Plex says the flaw was found through its bug bounty program, but sadly, it has not publicly shared details about how severe the issue is or whether it could be exploited remotely.

Plex isnâ(TM)t saying whether this vulnerability could be used to run code on a server or gain unauthorized access, but its urgency in contacting users directly suggests itâ(TM)s not something to ignore. If your Plex instance is exposed to the internet for remote streaming, the risk could be even greater.

Updating is straightforward: you can do it through the serverâ(TM)s management page or by downloading the installer from Plexâ(TM)s official site. If you self-host, itâ(TM)s also a good moment to review your setup, disable outside access if you donâ(TM)t need it, and check your logs for anything suspicious.

Plex has had its share of security incidents in the past, including a 2022 breach that forced a password reset for all users. While thereâ(TM)s no evidence this latest issue has been exploited in the wild, the best move is to patch now and ask questions later.

The update is available today, and if you havenâ(TM)t installed it yet, you should make it your next click.

Submission + - Ultra-high energy neutrino detected by KM3NeT

Submitted by JoeRobe
JoeRobe writes: Scientists associated with the Kilometer Cube Neutrino Telescope, or KM3NeT, have reported detection of an ultra-high energy neutrino deep in the Mediterranean sea. The neutrino reportedly had an energy of 120 million billion electron volts (1.2x10^17 eV, or 120 PeV). This is similar to the energy of ping-pong ball travelling ~5 m/s, but all that energy was packed into a single subatomic particle. According to the New York Times, "Here, squeezed into one of the tiniest flecks of matter in our universe, that energy amounted to tens of thousands of times more than what can be achieved by the world’s premier particle accelerator, the Large Hadron Collider at CERN."

According to the authors of the Nature paper, the direction of the neutrino "is compatible with the extension of the galactic interstellar medium", but they did not find any catalogued source that would produce such a high energy neutrino, within the Milky Way or from about 40 other galaxies that could be candidates.

Phys.org describes the impressive scale of the KM3NeT detector array:

"It is located at 3,450 m depth, about 80 km from the coast of Portopalo di Capo Passero, Sicily. Its 700 m high detection units (DUs) are anchored to the seabed and positioned about 100 m apart.

Every DU is equipped with 18 Digital Optical Modules (DOM) each containing 31 photomultipliers (PMTs). In its final configuration, ARCA will comprise 230 DUs. The data collected are transmitted via a submarine cable to the shore station at the INFN Laboratori Nazionali del Sud."

Submission + - ASML and TSMC Can Disable Chip Machines If China Invades Taiwan (yahoo.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: ASML Holding NV and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. have ways to disable the world’s most sophisticated chipmaking machines in the event that China invades Taiwan, according to people familiar with the matter. Officials from the US government have privately expressed concerns to both their Dutch and Taiwanese counterparts about what happens if Chinese aggression escalates into an attack on the island responsible for producing the vast majority of the world’s advanced semiconductors, two of the people said, speaking on condition of anonymity. ASML reassured officials about its ability to remotely disable the machines when the Dutch government met with the company on the threat, two others said. The Netherlands has run simulations on a possible invasion in order to better assess the risks, they added.

The remote shut-off applies to Netherlands-based ASML’s line of extreme ultraviolet machines, known within the industry as EUVs, for which TSMC is its single biggest client. EUVs harness high-frequency light waves to print the smallest microchip transistors in existence — creating chips that have artificial-intelligence uses as well as more sensitive military applications. About the size of a city bus, an EUV requires regular servicing and updates. As part of that, the company can remotely force a shut-off which would act as a kill switch, the people said, speaking on condition of anonymity. The Veldhoven-based company is the world’s only manufacturer of these machines, which sell for more than $217 million apiece. [...] TSMC Chairman Mark Liu hinted in a September interview with CNN that any invader of Taiwan would find his company’s chipmaking machines out of order. “Nobody can control TSMC by force,” Liu said. “If there is a military invasion you will render TSMC factory non-operable."

Submission + - EU Sets Benchmark For Rest of the World With Landmark AI Laws (reuters.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Europe's landmark rules on artificial intelligence will enter into force next month after EU countries endorsed on Tuesday a political deal reached in December, setting a potential global benchmark for a technology used in business and everyday life. The European Union's AI Act is more comprehensive than the United States' light-touch voluntary compliance approach while China's approach aims to maintain social stability and state control. The vote by EU countries came two months after EU lawmakers backed the AI legislation drafted by the European Commission in 2021 after making a number of key changes. [...]

The AI Act imposes strict transparency obligations on high-risk AI systems while such requirements for general-purpose AI models will be lighter. It restricts governments' use of real-time biometric surveillance in public spaces to cases of certain crimes, prevention of terrorist attacks and searches for people suspected of the most serious crimes. The new legislation will have an impact beyond the 27-country bloc, said Patrick van Eecke at law firm Cooley. "The Act will have global reach. Companies outside the EU who use EU customer data in their AI platforms will need to comply. Other countries and regions are likely to use the AI Act as a blueprint, just as they did with the GDPR," he said, referring to EU privacy rules.

While the new legislation will apply in 2026, bans on the use of artificial intelligence in social scoring, predictive policing and untargeted scraping of facial images from the internet or CCTV footage will kick in in six months once the new regulation enters into force. Obligations for general purpose AI models will apply after 12 months and rules for AI systems embedded into regulated products in 36 months. Fines for violations range from $8.2 million or 1.5% of turnover to 35 million euros or 7% of global turnover depending on the type of violations.

Submission + - Britain covered up tainted blood scandal that killed thousands, report finds (upi.com)

Submitted by schwit1
schwit1 writes: The British government "did not put patient safety first" while covering up a multi-decade tainted blood scandal, leading to thousands of related deaths, a report published Monday found.

Britain's National Health Service allowed blood tainted with HIV and Hepatitis to be used on patients without their knowledge, leading to 3,000 deaths and more than 30,000 infections, according to the 2,527-page final report by Justice Brian Justice Langstaff, a former judge on the High Court of England and Wales.

Langstaff oversaw a five-year investigation into the use of tainted blood and blood products in Britain's healthcare system between 1970 and 1991.

The report blames multiple administrations over the time period for knowingly exposing victims to unacceptable risks.

Patients were exposed through a variety of methods, including blood transfusions or being given blood plasma or other blood products to treat conditions like hemophilia.

Comment Re:PS - A serious question (Score 1) 50

by Demonix (#62856658) Attached to: India Summons Wikipedia Officials Over Edits To Cricketer's Page

Because as dumb as politicians are, the people that vote for them are even dumber. Making decisions is HARD, being responsible is no fun!

These people would rather be told what to do, how to do it, and where to do it because its less work than making your own decisions and living your own life. They want someone to care for them and keep them safe from all the bad things the media talks about 24/7.

You could call it a conspiracy I guess, but its really just the end result of a bunch of systems coming together; unintended but welcome by those who stand to gain from it.

Comment Re:Immigration is necessary (Score 1) 119

by Demonix (#62408458) Attached to: As Russia Sees Tech Brain Drain, Other Nations Hope To Gain

The one time I wish i had mod points...

This is it right here - the entire institution of marriage is full of obligation and responsibility for men without any social or economic reward. What man with his wits about him would enter into such an arrangement?

There is no respect to be gained, or position to be won - just an eventual tossing aside by the mother of your children to 'find herself' and crushing child support payments for children you get to see once a month, if you're lucky.

No, marriage is dead to men. There's nothing in it for us.

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