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Submission + - County With 37 Data Centers Asks Schools to 'Conserve Electricity'

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: County With 37 Data Centers Asks Schools to ‘Conserve Electricity’

‘On June 26, the County Manager of Henrico County, Virginia, John Vithoulkas, sent an email to thousands of county employees asking them to help the local government conserve electricity.

“Beginning July 1st, the rate we pay for electricity used in all Henrico County government and school facilities will increase dramatically — by 25%, increasing costs by an estimated $5 million next fiscal year. We anticipate more rate increases for electricity in the years ahead,” a copy of the email obtained by 404 Media said (emphasis his).’

Submission + - Privacy wins at SCOTUS on geofence warrants (supremecourt.gov)

Submitted by schwit1
schwit1 writes: The case Chatrie v. United States (No. 25-112), decided by the Supreme Court on June 29, 2026, centers on the constitutionality of "geofence warrants" under the Fourth Amendment.

The Background
The case originated from a 2019 armed robbery of a credit union in Midlothian, Virginia. Lacking leads, law enforcement obtained a "geofence warrant" directed at Google. This warrant required Google to provide location data for all mobile devices within a 150-meter radius of the bank during a one-hour window around the time of the robbery.

Through a three-step process, Google provided anonymized data for devices in the area, then narrowed the data to specific users, and finally "de-anonymized" three individuals. Okello Chatrie was one of those individuals, and the resulting location history was used to identify him as the suspect and secure his conviction.

The Supreme Court's Ruling
On June 29, 2026, the Supreme Court ruled (6–3) that the government's use of a geofence warrant to acquire this location data constitutes a "search" under the Fourth Amendment.

Reasonable Expectation of Privacy: Writing for the Court, Justice Elena Kagan held that an individual has a reasonable expectation of privacy in their cell phone location information, even when that data is held by a third party like Google.

Rejection of the Third-Party Doctrine: The Court rejected the government's argument that users "voluntarily" shared their location data with Google, noting that modern cell phone use essentially requires this data collection and that such sensitive, detailed tracking creates an expectation of privacy that the Fourth Amendment protects.

The Outcome: By establishing that these actions constitute a search, the Court essentially determined that such warrants must meet constitutional standards of probable cause and particularity. The Court vacated the lower court's decision and remanded the case, instructing the lower courts to determine if the specific warrant in this instance met those Fourth Amendment requirements.

In short, the decision represents a significant victory for privacy advocates, clarifying that the digital "sweeping" of location data through geofence warrants is subject to the same constitutional protections as other government searches.

Submission + - Microsoft fake Windows error ended in a $280 million secret settlement (makeuseof.com)

Submitted by joshuark
joshuark writes: Facing real competition from Digital Research's DR DOS, Microsoft secretly embedded a sabotaging mechanism known as "AARD code" into beta versions of Windows 3.1 to prevent it from running on Digital Research's competing DR DOS operating system.
This code triggered fake, alarming error messages to convince developers that DR DOS was unstable, effectively eliminating a significant market threat through fear, uncertainty, and doubt. Although the company disabled the feature in the final retail release, the California-based firm Caldera, Inc., which had acquired DR DOS assets, sued Microsoft for anti-competitive practices.
Microsoft settled the lawsuit out of court in 2000 for $280 million, a figure that remained sealed until it was unsealed in 2009. Nothing says taking ownership and responsibility than keeping it a sealed secret for a decade. Microsoft paid for being clumsy enough to write the intent down in an email. The lesson the industry took away wasn't "don't do it." It was "don't put it in writing." Something Bill Gates forgot with Epstein.

Submission + - Americans Now Spend More Than 52 Hours Online Every Week, Survey Finds (nerds.xyz)

Submitted by BrianFagioli
BrianFagioli writes: A new NordVPN survey found that Americans now spend an average of 52 hours and 12 minutes online each week. The study also found that people spend about 45 minutes per week using AI chatbots, highlighting how quickly AI tools have become part of everyday internet use.

While the headline figure is a projection that Americans could spend nearly 25 years of their lives online, the more notable finding may be the emergence of AI as a regular online activity alongside streaming video, social media, and other digital entertainment. What online activity consumes most of your time today, and has AI become part of your daily routine?

Submission + - Trump Tears Up Part Of EU Tariff Deal To Raise Import Duties On Cars And Lorries

Submitted by hcs_$reboot
hcs_$reboot writes: Trump has unilaterally raised U.S. tariffs on EU cars and trucks from 15% to 25%, effectively tearing up part of a 2025 transatlantic trade deal, claiming the EU failed to implement it fast enough.
The move blindsided European officials, who say they were still completing the formal ratification process and accuse Washington of acting unpredictably.
The higher tariffs, set to take effect within days, exempt vehicles built in U.S. factories and are intended to pressure European automakers to shift production stateside.
EU leaders have condemned the decision as a breach of trust and are weighing retaliation, raising the risk of a renewed transatlantic trade conflict.

Submission + - How is it that Youtube's auto-generated subtitles are so appallingly bad?

Submitted by Anne Thwacks
Anne Thwacks writes: I frequently use the subtitles on YouTube — either not to disturb others in the room, or because my hearing is not very good.
The subtitling is terrible! Almost every sentence has a huge error. Proper names are more often wrong than right. Non-English place names are almost always mangled to barely recognizable, and no effort whatever is made to use context to figure out whether a place name is Russian or Arabic, and often complete garbage is used in place of a common French, Spanish or Italian name.
If AI actually works (I have my doubts about this), surely it would be possible to figure out language contexts: it it is about an event in Italy, then expect a lot of Italian names. If it is about the Russia-Ukraine war, then expect places in Russia or Ukraine to be more plausible than mindless gobbledegook!
Does YouTube not know that there are places in the world that are not in America?
However, plenty of names of people and places famous in America are also regularly screwed up.
I am sure that the vast majority of the foul-ups could be fixed by the use of a dictionary — available from a very popular book retailer who would be happy to have some free publicity. (But they will get nothing free from me).
However, the situation seems to be getting worse!
Do Americans sue people for spelling their names right?
Is there another reason for this appalling stupidity?
Enquiring minds want to know!

Submission + - Delivery Robot Drives Through Bus Stop Shelter, Shattering Glass Everywhere (404media.co)

Submitted by joshuark
joshuark writes: A Serve Robotics food delivery robot crashed through the glass wall of a bus stop shelter in Chicago earlier this week, shattering the glass all over the sidewalk.

“We’re aware of the incident involving one of our robots in Chicago. No injuries were reported, our team responded quickly to clean up, and we’re reviewing what happened to make improvements,” the spokesperson said. “We have also been in contact with local stakeholders and are committed to addressing any concerns directly. We take this matter very seriously.”

Serve deployed its robots to Chicago in September under a partnership with Uber Eats. The company operates in a few cities around the country, including in Los Angeles, where activists have been filming the robots in various compromising positions or after they have been knocked over by passersby.

Footage of the aftermath of the crash went viral on social media, with one of the company’s robots shaking shards of glass onto the sidewalk. The crash comes amid a protest against delivery robots in Chicago. Delivery robots have been controversial in Chicago, where at least 3,600 Chicago residents have signed a “No Sidewalk Bots” petition asking the city to ban the robots. The Chicago Department of Transportation did not respond to a request for comment.

Submission + - Cyberattack On Iowa Breathalyzer Company Impacts Devices In 45 States (kcrg.com) 1

Submitted by schwit1
schwit1 writes: A Des Moines-based breathalyzer test company is recovering after a cyberattack impacted drivers in 45 states, KCCI reports.

Intoxalock makes ignition devices that people use to start their vehicles after an OWI. People with the devices have to provide a breath sample to prove they have not been drinking before the car starts.

The company said many customers are locked out of their devices or that the device is giving misread calculations.

Submission + - Solar in poor countries is creating a huge lead hazard (slowboring.com)

Submitted by schwit1
schwit1 writes: Off-grid systems use cheap old-fashioned batteries that aren’t recycled properly.

A new report from the Center for Global Development documents that most of these systems use lead-acid batteries, like Americans use in cars. Lead-acid batteries work for a while and then need to be recycled. If they're recycled safely, that's fine. But in poor countries, most lead-acid batteries are not recycled safely and they become a huge source of toxic lead poisoning.

C.G.D. believes that decentralized solar systems are currently generating somewhere between 250,000 and 1.5 million tons of unsafe lead-acid battery waste per year, a number that could grow much higher.

Americans have mostly heard about lead issues in recent years due to the tragic situation in Flint, Michigan. But on the whole, lead exposure via faulty water pipes is a relatively minor issue. Across American history, the biggest culprits for lead exposure have been lead paint and leaded gasoline. Both were phased out decades ago, but old paint chips and lingering lead in soil have remained problems for years, albeit at diminishing rates.

The global situation is quite different and much worse, to the point that in low- and middle-income countries, half of children have blood lead levels above the threshold that would trigger emergency action in the United States.

It sounds fantastical to cite numbers this high. But there is credible (albeit somewhat uncertain) research indicating that five million people per year die as a result of lead-induced cardiovascular impairments. And roughly 20 percent of the gap in academic achievement between poor and rich countries is due to lead's impact on kids' cognitive development.

Submission + - Chinese biolab found inside Las Vegas home. (go.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Local and federal investigators in Las Vegas are actively working to determine what substances were found inside a home described as a possible biological lab, with over 1,000 samples sent for testing, authorities said.

In the garage, investigators found multiple refrigerators with vials of unknown liquids, unknown liquids in gallon-size containers, a centrifuge and other laboratory equipment, authorities said.

In an open refrigerator and freezer, investigators saw a "significant volume of material," including vials and storage containers "with liquids of different colors and compositions," McMahill said.

The person arrested on Saturday — identified as Ori Solomon, 55 — is believed to be the property manager at the location, according to McMahill.

Solomon has been charged with felony disposal/ discharge of hazardous waste in an unauthorized manner and remains in custody, according to court records.

The owner of the property was arrested and charged in 2023 in connection with an investigation into an illegal bio lab in Reedley, California, authorities said. The owner, a Chinese national, remains in federal custody and has pleaded not guilty.

Submission + - HAM Radio Operators In Belarus Arrested, Face the Death Penalty (404media.co)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: The Belarusian government is threatening three HAM radio operators with the death penalty, detained at least seven people, and has accused them of “intercepting state secrets,” according to Belarusian state media, independent media outside of Belarus, and the Belarusian human rights organization Viasna. The arrests are an extreme attack on what is most often a wholesome hobby that has a history of being vilified by authoritarian governments in part because the technology is quite censorship resistant.

The detentions were announced last week on Belarusian state TV, which claimed the men were part of a network of more than 50 people participating in the amateur radio hobby and have been accused of both “espionage” and “treason.” Authorities there said they seized more than 500 pieces of radio equipment. The men were accused on state TV of using radio to spy on the movement of government planes, though no actual evidence of this has been produced. State TV claimed they were associated with the Belarusian Federation of Radioamateurs and Radiosportsmen (BFRR), a long-running amateur radio club and nonprofit that holds amateur radio competitions, meetups, trainings, and forums.

Submission + - DOGE shared social security data, DoJ court filing reveals (theguardian.com)

Submitted by 2phar
2phar writes: The Guardian reports that after months of denials, the Trump administration has acknowledged in a federal court filing that employees working for Elon Musk’s supposed cost-cutting operation accessed and improperly shared Americans’ sensitive social security data.

The justice department court filing, submitted on Friday in an ongoing lawsuit, reveals that a member of the so-called “department of government efficiency” (Doge) signed a secret data-sharing agreement with an unidentified political advocacy group.

“Based on its review of records obtained during or after October 2025,” the filing said, “SSA identified communications, use of data, and other actions by the then-SSA DOGE Team that were potentially outside of SSA policy and/or noncompliant with the District Court’s March 20, 2025, temporary restraining order.”

The court filing added that Doge members shared data with each other using Cloudflare, an unauthorized third-party server, and that the agency had been unable to determine what information was transmitted or whether it still exists on the server. In one instance, a Doge staffer sent an encrypted, password-protected file to Steve Davis, described as a senior adviser to the Doge operation, that the agency believes contained names and addresses of approximately 1,000 people derived from social security systems. Officials have been unable to access the file to confirm its contents.

Submission + - De-identified public data can be linked to social media profiles (acm.org)

Submitted by rezoG
rezoG writes: Abstract

Can online trackers and network adversaries de-anonymize web browsing data readily available to them? We show---theoretically, via simulation, and through experiments on real user data---that de-identified web browsing histories can be linked to social media profiles using only publicly available data. Our approach is based on a simple observation: each person has a distinctive social network, and thus the set of links appearing in one's feed is unique. Assuming users visit links in their feed with higher probability than a random user, browsing histories contain tell-tale marks of identity. We formalize this intuition by specifying a model of web browsing behavior and then deriving the maximum likelihood estimate of a user's social profile. We evaluate this strategy on simulated browsing histories, and show that given a history with 30 links originating from Twitter, we can deduce the corresponding Twitter profile more than 50% of the time.To gauge the real-world effectiveness of this approach, we recruited nearly 400 people to donate their web browsing histories, and we were able to correctly identify more than 70% of them. We further show that several online trackers are embedded on sufficiently many websites to carry out this attack with high accuracy. Our theoretical contribution applies to any type of transactional data and is robust to noisy observations, generalizing a wide range of previous de-anonymization attacks. Finally, since our attack attempts to find the correct Twitter profile out of over 300 million candidates, it is---to our knowledge---the largest-scale demonstrated de-anonymization to date.

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