Online protection company McAfee’s Mobile Research Team has identified a list of malicious apps that Android owners should immediately delete. This is because they use Xamalicious malware to build a stealth backdoor, infect, and take over devices. The apps, which have now been removed from the Google Play store, are reported to have been downloaded hundreds of thousands of…
Following the news that Volkswagen (VW) is to add ChatGPT to the IDA voice assistant in its cars and SUVs, we look at what this could mean for the direction of technology for cars. Adding ChatGPT At the current CET in Las Vegas, VW announced that starting in Europe in the second quarter of this year, the famous…
With January 1 being ‘Public Domain Day’, we look at what ‘public domain’ actually means in relation to works of literature, music, art, and science. Public Domain Day New Year’s Day each year is called ‘Public Domain Day’ because it’s the day that the copyright protection on a wide range of creative works such as literature, music, art, and…
In the first change to Microsoft keyboards in 30 years, an AI key is to be added to Microsoft Windows 11 PC keyboards from February. Copilot Key In a move that Microsoft says will make “2024 the year of the AI PC” and to mark a “shift toward a more personal and intelligent computing future where AI will be seamlessly woven into…
A recent Times report highlighted how Phil Douglas, director-general of the UK Border Force, aims to replace the UK’s physical passport-based entry system with an upgraded, frictionless, facial recognition-based e-Gates system. Current eGates System The current eGates system that most UK travellers have experienced involves the use of facial recognition alongside a passport and automated gates. With this system,…
Following a US case dating back to 2017 which led to Apple admitting that it has deliberately slowed down some older models of iPhones (throttling), a settlement for compensation payments to affected iPhone owners has been reached. After agreeing in 2020 to pay, this settlement of the lawsuit means that each of the 5.5 million complainants will receive £72…
An online map from non-profit climate science organisation ‘Climate Central’ shows which areas of the UK could be underwater due to climate change by 2050. Sea Level Rise As highlighted in a 2021 report by Benjamin H Strauss et al, if a high emissions scenario raised global temperatures by 4 ∘C warming, this could produce an 8.9 m global…
If you have a document in Microsoft Word that you’d like to convert to a more readable, book-like format, reducing distractions and allowing you to really focus on the content, here’s how: Open the document in Microsoft Word. Go to the ‘View’ tab (top left) and select ‘Read Mode.’ This tidies away the menus and distractions at the side,…
It’s been reported that The New York Times has sued OpenAI and Microsoft, alleging that they used millions of its articles without permission to help train chatbots. The First It’s understood that the New York Times (NYT) is the first major US media organisation to sue ChatGPT’s creator OpenAI, plus tech giant Microsoft (which is also an OpenAI investor…
Following news that Google may need to pay $5 billion over tracking millions of people who thought they were browsing privately through incognito mode, we look at what incognito mode actually does. Incognito Mode Different browsers have different names for ‘private browsing mode’ including ‘InPrivate browsing’ (Edge), ‘Private’ for Firefox (Mozilla) and Safari, and ‘Incognito’ for Google Chrome. …
