Submission + - Gov. DeSantis bans Flock cameras from state highways (www.wctv.tv)

Submitted by schwit1
schwit1 writes: Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said he’s removing Flock camera from state roadways.

The announcement comes amid a growing concern over the misuse of automated license plate readers.

On Monday, DeSantis ordered all Flock cameras removed from what he calls the “state highway system” within the next 30 days, which would include interstates like I-10 and I-75.

That order led to several sheriff’s departments like in Franklin, Liberty and Putnam Counties to announce they’re ending their own license plate reader programs.

Submission + - Coral bleaching occurring too frequently for reefs to recover (reuters.com)

Submitted by walterbyrd
walterbyrd writes: Coral reefs are experiencing bleaching events so frequently that they no longer have time to recover before the next one strikes, with global coral cover now well below normal levels and at risk of irreversible decline, scientists said on Monday.

The world's coral reefs sustain a quarter of all marine life, make coastlines more resilient and provide food and livelihoods for millions of people, but their survival has been threatened by pollution and increasingly frequent mass bleaching caused by soaring ocean heat.

Submission + - SNICKERS wants you to prompt inject your AI chatbot with a digital candy bar (nerds.xyz)

Submitted by BrianFagioli
BrianFagioli writes: SNICKERS has launched Digital SNICKERS, a promotion that asks users to feed a virtual candy bar to an AI chatbot when it starts hallucinating, becoming overly agreeable, or otherwise acting strangely. The joke goes considerably deeper than an image of candy. The Digital SNICKERS directs the AI to a lengthy set of instructions for a one-turn role-play game, including looking back at the previous conversation, reconsidering its last answer, adopting a temporary personality, and answering again after supposedly taking a bite.

The campaign is essentially a user-initiated form of prompt injection turned into advertising. Mars even includes an extensive safety gate and acknowledges that its instructions cannot override an LLMs existing policies. It is a strange example of an AI security concept entering mainstream marketing, complete with free physical SNICKERS bars available through a related promotion.

Submission + - Bringing modern USB xHCI support to Windows 98/2000 (yeokhengmeng.com)

Submitted by yeokm1
yeokm1 writes: USB is something we usually take for granted on our modern machines. However it is one of those things that is very complicated under the hood.

Sometime in the mid 2010s, Intel broke compatibility with the previous USB host standards by mandating USB 3.0 xHCI and no longer supporting older USB standards in their modern chipsets.

This meant that older operating systems like Win 98 lost all USB functionality even if they could be installed on modern machines.

The vintage OS will work, but you cannot connect anything to it. Even USB 1 and 2 ports and devices will not work. BIOS support can mitigate this somewhat but only basic devices like keyboard, mouse and storage will work but you cannot hotplug them. All other devices will not work.

With AI's help, I decided to address this gap to create an xHCI miniport driver so Windows 98 will work better on modern machine.

Submission + - Berlin Is Being Blackmailed By Hackers (bbc.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Berlin is being blackmailed by hackers who were able to compromise city systems and steal data earlier this month, its mayor has said. Kai Wegner said officials would not cave in to the ransom demand, which came on Thursday evening. He did not say how much was being sought, though Der Spiegel reports the hackers are demanding 30 bitcoin, worth around 2 million euros. Some of the German capital's online systems were forced to close down as a result of the attack, while investigators were working to understand what data had been taken.

The Rhysida group, which is thought to operate from Russia and eastern Europe, and was behind a previous attack on the British Museum, has reportedly taken responsibility. It has said on its website it intends to begin auctioning the 5.79 terabytes of data it was able to steal from Berlin in seven days' time, according to news agency Reuters. [...] Officials for the city-state said an initial data leak occurred between August 7 and 12. Then, on August 14, two department networks were shut down, making applications for housing benefits and payments impossible for several days.

Submission + - Amazon HR Chief Boasts of Creating 100K LOC With AI, Says 'Everyone Can Code'

Submitted by theodp
theodp writes: "I'm an Amazon SVP who hadn't coded in 25 years," reads the headline. "Then I wrote 100,000 lines of code with AI." In an Amazon News post, Amazon HR leader Beth Galetti on Tuesday offered her own personal experience with Amazon AI development tools as evidence that 'everyone can build' now.

So, what compelling problems prompted Galetti to come out of coding retirement to develop solutions for using AI after a quarter century? "My first project was a family calendaring app so we could all stay coordinated," Galetti explains. "That confidence carried me forward. On a flight back to Seattle, I opened Kiro, our AI-powered development tool, and started building. By the time I landed, I had built the submission app for what would become our internal team competition 'Everyone Can Build.' The challenge was to build an app or tool that solves a real problem in your work or everyday life using AI. No technical background required."

Galetti continued, "A few years ago, if a non-technical employee wanted to build something at Amazon, they needed a tech team and a spot on a roadmap. That's changed. As non-technical employees build more internally, our tech teams are freed up to move even faster, think bigger, and deliver even more for our customers. [...] This is one of the most exciting times in my career. When you give people the tools to build, they will surprise you with what they create. I can’t wait to see what we all build next."

Last January, Galetti also took to Amazon News to announce the elimination of 16,000 corporate jobs that coincided with the company's push to invest heavily in AI. "I'm grateful for how our teams continue to deliver," Galetti said in her layoff announcement post, "for customers, for each other, and for the incredible things we're building together."

Submission + - Debian Developers Reject AI Ban and Vote for Responsible Use of Generative AI (nerds.xyz)

Submitted by BrianFagioli
BrianFagioli writes: Debian developers have rejected proposals that would have banned or strongly discouraged the use of artificial intelligence within the project. Instead, members selected a proposal called Responsible Use of Generative AI, which says Debian neither endorses nor prohibits generative AI for software development, packaging, documentation, and other project work.

Under the new policy, contributors remain responsible for the quality, correctness, maintainability, licensing, and legal compliance of anything they submit, including AI-assisted work. Human review and testing are expected, while disclosure of AI use is encouraged but not required. The ballot included several more restrictive alternatives, including proposals to ban LLM contributions through the Debian Social Contract and to declare that Debian is created by humans.

Submission + - Debian's LLM resolution: Responsible Use of Generative AI passes (debian.org)

Submitted by Robbat2
Robbat2 writes: Debian's LLM usage general resolution results in a middle-ground outcome: Responsible Use of Generative AI. Quote: "This resolution therefore affirms that generative AI is neither exempt from nor subject to special rules beyond the standards already expected of Debian contributors. The responsibility for every contribution rests with the contributor who submits it, who remains accountable for its technical quality, legal acceptability, and suitability for inclusion in Debian."

Submission + - SourceHut changes terms of service limiting LLM use (sourcehut.org)

Submitted by bjoast
bjoast writes: The SourceHut Git hosting provider recently changed its terms of service to limit how users may make of use of LLMs in their work, citing resource constraints and ethical concerns. From the the new terms of service:

The new terms of service, which will go into effect for new projects after the usual two week notice period (i.e. September 10th), will now include the following under the list of prohibited content:

  • original content written with or which facilitates the use of LLMs (large language models) or other generative AI technologies

The use of LLMs or other generative AI tools to produce or assist with the production of source code, assets, tickets, emails, and so on, will no longer be permitted on SourceHut once these terms take effect. As with our other policy changes, the intention is to roll this out slowly and thoughtfully. Each possible violation will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis and we are open to making exceptions.

Submission + - Xylitol Linked to Strokes and Heart Attacks, Study Finds (theguardian.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: A common sweetener used in products such as chewing gum, toothpaste, jam, yoghurts and ice-cream has been linked to an increased risk of strokes, heart attacks and death. Xylitol is a sugar alcohol present in some natural foods in very low amounts. It is also added – often in amounts 1,000 times higher – to artificially sweeten foods, beverages and oral care products. Despite its growing use, the long-term health impacts of xylitol have never been widely studied.

In the largest study of its kind, researchers found high blood levels of xylitol were associated with an increased risk of major adverse cardiovascular events. The findings were presented in Munich at the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) annual congress, the world’s largest heart conference. Researchers looked at 17,710 people and compared the 25% with the highest levels of xylitol in their blood against the 25% with the lowest. Those who had the highest amount were 57% more likely to die or suffer a heart attack or stroke, than those with the least, within six years. Even after 30 years, they were still 18% more likely to have suffered one of these cardiac events.

Taken with data from the middle quartiles, the results from both cohorts suggested a dose-dependent relationship: the higher the xylitol blood levels, the higher the cardiovascular event rate. Furthermore, the researchers showed that there was consistent increase in cardiovascular events with xylitol irrespective of baseline characteristics, such as age and sex. The researchers also highlighted that the association was independent of underlying factors such as body mass index, hypertension, diabetes and lipid levels, which might predispose people to low-calorie products.

Submission + - President Trump signs order to create US Space Academy (space.com) 1

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes:

President Donald Trump today signed an executive order creating the U.S. Space Academy, an institution of higher learning that will train students for a career studying, exploring, exploiting or helping to protect the final frontier.

"It'll serve both the United States Space Force as well as NASA and the civilian spaceflight industry, and it'll attract, train and graduate the very very best of our nation," Trump said today during a ceremony at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, at which he awarded the Artemis II moon astronauts the nation's highest space honor.

Within the next 120 days, the commission will submit a report "with recommendations on governance framework, service obligations for graduates, physical location of the academy, legislative requirements and more," NASA officials wrote in today's statement.

It's a shame the name Starfleet Academy is sullied.

Submission + - OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, and 100 Others Call For Action to Defense Against AI (techcrunch.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Over a hundred tech companies — including OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, and Microsoft — have signed an open letter urging both the private and public sectors to work together to defend themselves from AI-related cyber threats. The letter — which was also signed by prominent cyber firms like CrowdStrike, Okta, and Fortinet, as well as prominent financial institutions and internet infrastructure firms — calls for the adoption of new forms of cyber defense, while also encouraging governments at the “local, national, and international levels” to collaborate on security. “In the coming months, AI-enabled cyber attacks will become far more widespread and sophisticated as models around the world become increasingly capable,” the letter states. “The companies and public services our communities depend on — from hospitals to water treatment plants to the infrastructure that powers the internet — are at risk.”

[...] The letter further suggests the mobilization of a “collective response,” one in which “new partnerships” are formed “to raise security standards and find new solutions to emerging cyber threats.” Several of the AI companies that have signed the letter are still actively developing ever more advanced AI models, highlighting their conflicted position. At the same time, they are also offering programs to use frontier AI models for defensive purposes, including OpenAI’s Daybreak program, Anthropic’s Mythos, and Microsoft’s new cyber platform Perception.

Submission + - China is secretly fueling America's data center rage (axios.com)

Submitted by alternative_right
alternative_right writes: The X Safety team probed suspected Chinese accounts involved in influence operations and identified 200,000 accounts, including 200 accounts "posting in a manner that could manipulate a legitimate debate about American AI and energy policy," the team said in a tweet.

The posts included content on how AI strains the electricity grid and increases utility prices and "cartoons that depicted data-center operators enriching themselves at the public's expense."
It's unclear what, if any, action X will take to suspend or delete accounts from the bot farm.
X, owned by Elon Musk, whose billions rely on data centers to boost his AI enterprises, did not respond to Axios' request for comment.

Submission + - The world's busiest spaceport is about to get a lot quieter, at least for now (arstechnica.com)

Submitted by schwit1
schwit1 writes:

A Falcon 9 launch early Tuesday was the last planned Starlink mission from Cape Canaveral until SpaceX begins flying Starship missions from Florida, according to Kiko Dontchev, the company’s vice president of launch. For at least the rest of the year, and maybe longer, this means the launch rate at the Florida spaceport will drop from eight or nine per month to perhaps two per month.

It wasn’t long ago when two launches per month was the norm, an indication of just how quickly SpaceX’s launch cadence has grown. Cape Canaveral and Kennedy Space Center sit on adjoining property and share the same range on Florida’s east coast, so it is worth considering them a single spaceport. The last time the Florida spaceport did not lead the world in space launches was in 2015.

“From here on, Starlink missions out of Florida will fly on Starship,” Dontchev wrote on X. “The West Coast team will continue regularly launching Starlink from Vandenberg.”

Yep, that'll be louder — but everybody knows the real action will be in Louisiana, starting in 2029 or so.

Musk’s other unstated reasons for shutting down Falcon 9 in Florida.

Submission + - Pentagon's Blacklisting of Anthropic Was Unlawful, US Judge Rules (theguardian.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: A US judge ruled on Thursday that the Trump administration broke the law when it designated Anthropic as a supply chain risk earlier this year, finding that the government had unlawfully targeted the AI firm for refusing to comply with defense department demands. “The empty invocation of national security is not a blank check to punish and retaliate against government critics,” Judge Rita Lin said in a 59-page decision.

Lin’s ruling barred the federal agencies named in the lawsuit from enforcing Donald Trump’s order to stop using Anthropic’s tools and overturned the designation of the company as a “supply chain risk” by the defense secretary, Pete Hegseth. The status, usually reserved for foreign firms, would have blocked government agencies from doing business with Anthropic. The case emerged out of a months-long feud between Anthropic and the Pentagon at the start of the year. Anthropic refused to allow the government to use its Claude AI model for fully autonomous lethal weapons or domestic mass surveillance, resulting in Hegseth accusing the company of “arrogance and betrayal”.

Lin put a temporary pause on the government’s punitive measures in March, stating that the government’s actions looked like an attempt to “cripple Anthropic” for exercising its first amendment rights. The ruling this week makes that temporary suspension permanent, although the government may appeal. “We welcome the court’s ruling that this supply chain risk designation was unlawful,” an Anthropic spokesperson said.

Submission + - US sanctions Italian leftwing net infrastructure provider (wewillfreeus.org)

Submitted by Elektroschock
Elektroschock writes: The United States put an Italian hacktivism group providing net infrastructure on a terror list and revoked their domain name. On August 26, 2026, the United States State Department designated Autistici/Inventati a Specially Designated Global Terrorist and placed it on the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons list.

Submission + - Think You've Eliminated Chinese AI? Check the Model's Lineage, Cisco Says (securityweek.com)

Submitted by wiredmikey
wiredmikey writes: New research shows that country-of-origin labels may reveal little about an AI model’s true lineage. Analyzing Nvidia’s Nemotron and Alibaba’s Qwen families, researchers found that models can retain detectable similarities to upstream models even after post-training and rebranding.

The findings suggest that a US-labeled model could inherit behaviors, vulnerabilities, or biases from a Chinese base model. Cisco is calling for a model bill of materials documenting upstream dependencies.

As the researchers put it: “Models do not have passports. They have supply chains.”

Submission + - New York City 911 system missed 1700 calls due to software update

Submitted by belmolis
belmolis writes: Part of the New York City 911 emergency system was off-line from 3am to 10am on August 18th due to a software update according to Medical Daily. Of 5,659 calls to the Bronx call center, 1,700 calls connected but could not be heard by emergency operators. Some were rerouted to other call centers, but an estimated 400 human callers never got through. The potentially serious consequences of delayed response to emergencies are not yet known. The City did not notify the public and only released information when journalists inquired. How buggy software came to be installed on a running system is not yet known.

Submission + - By 2028, One in Four Job Applicants Will Be Fake (nbcnews.com) 1

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Hiring pipelines are drowning in applicants who do not exist. Generative AI has made it trivial to mass-produce tailored resumes, fabricate work histories, and even run deepfake video interviews, and the research firm Gartner projects that by 2028, one in four job candidate profiles worldwide will be fake. Cybersecurity and crypto firms hiring for remote roles report surges of fraudulent applicants, some traced to state-linked schemes. Detection is an arms race the generation side keeps winning: one study found 63 percent of AI-using applicants still clear initial screening. LinkedIn rolled out real-time AI-detection for applications in March 2026. Employers now average around 180 applications per hire, pushing some back toward manual candidate vetting to confirm a candidate is even real.

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