Innholdsfortegnelse for #516 i Techlife News

For Jared Anderman, of Croton-on-Hudson, New York, switching from gasoline-powered tools to electric ones for lawn care was a no-brainer. “I’m concerned about climate change and wanted tools that are more eco-friendly, and also quieter. I like listening to music when I do yardwork and this way I can enjoy music or a podcast while I work,” he said. “I could never do that with gas-powered equipment.” The biggest advantage of all, he says, is maintenance. “Gas mowers are a pain. With electric tools, they boot right up and there’s really no maintenance at all. It’s just about keeping the batteries charged.” First, he bought an electric lawnmower. Then an electric string trimmer, hedge trimmer and leaf blower. “I don’t have an electric snowblower, yet. But when I do replace…

A divided federal appeals court has upheld the dismissal of an ACLU lawsuit challenging a portion of the National Security Agency’s warrantless surveillance of Americans’ international email and phone communications. The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled this week that the lawsuit must be dismissed after the government invoked the “state secrets privilege,” meaning that a full exploration of the issue in a court of law would damage national security. In the lawsuit the Wikimedia Foundation, which runs Wikipedia, said that the National Security Agency’s “Upstream” surveillance program necessarily captures some of its international communications and is a violation of free-speech rights and its Fourth Amendment rights against unreasonable search and seizure. Details of the Upstream program are classified, but it collects data from transmissions over high-speed cables that…

In recent years, our iPhones have become much more than just our iPhones: they’re where we work, where we hang out with friends, and where we relax and unwind after a long day. It is no surprise, therefore, to learn that we’re listening to more music and engaging with more content on our devices, too, from the latest series of The Morning Show on Apple TV+ to the long-awaited DONDA album from Kayne West, there’s so much going on that we need to listen to. Add into the mix the rise of audiobooks as well as podcasts, fueled by platforms like Apple Podcasts Subscriptions, and it’s clear why millions are buying AirPods and Beats. And though those headphones offer a great listening experience, whether we’re at home or on the…

This year’s iPhone upgrades were never going to be as dramatic as last year’s when Apple overhauled the smartphone and introduced 5G connectivity for the first time, but that’s not to say the iPhone 13 series doesn’t pack its punch. With improved cameras, more storage, and a bunch of under-the-hood features, the world’s greatest smartphone just got even better. INTRODUCING THE iPHONE 13 FAMILY At a virtual event titled California Streaming, Tim Cook and Co took to the stage to show off what they had been working on over the past year. True to form, this year’s iPhone upgrades aren’t quite as dramatic as the year prior - in fact, this year’s iPhone could very much be sold under an iPhone 12S moniker - but they’re still worthy additions. Apple…

Apple released a critical software patch to fix a security vulnerability that researchers said could allow hackers to directly infect iPhones and other Apple devices without any user action. Researchers at the University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab said the security issue was exploited to plant spyware on a Saudi activist’s iPhone. They said they had high confidence that the world’s most infamous hacker-for-hire firm, Israel’s NSO Group, was behind that attack. The previously unknown vulnerability affected all major Apple devices — iPhones, Macs and Apple Watches, the researchers said. NSO Group responded with a one-sentence statement saying it will continue providing tools for fighting“terror and crime.” It was the first time a so-called“zero-click” exploit — one that doesn’t require users to click on suspect links or open infected files —…

A cryptocurrency company launched by partners of a major Wall Street trading firm said Tuesday that it has snagged the support of billionaire investor Steven A. Cohen, as big names from the traditional financial world continue to embrace the industry surrounding crypto. Cohen, a hedge-fund manager and owner of the New York Mets, has agreed in principle to invest in Radkl, a crypto trading firm, though the deal is not final. The company is being launched by partners of GTS, a firm that trades as much as a billion shares of U.S. stocks on a given day. Radkl, which is pronounced like “radical,” plans to trade across cryptocurrency coins and exchanges, said Ryan Sheftel, the company’s CEO and a partner at GTS. As the crypto industry expands, Radkl plans to…

The timing was perfect. The very moment I sat down to write about “Queenpins,” the inspired-by-actual-events tale of a coupon scheme gone awry, a tantalizing coupon popped up on my screen. It offered 20 percent off, for a popular brand of socks. I didn’t need socks. But 20 percent? Maybe I did need socks? I suddenly recalled what Ken, the hapless “loss prevention officer” played by a terrific Paul Walter Hauser, said in the film about why people use coupons: It’s not usually because they need the stuff. It’s the buzz — the “coupon high” they get when they score a deal. This alone could have made the germ of a movie: the psychology of discount shopping. But like many themes here, it gets muddled into a confusing — though…

The joy of shouting to your friends over the roar of a crowded bar, the giddiness of seeing the world rushing by below you from the seat of an airplane, the weirdly constricting sensation of wearing pants that aren’t elastic — the summer of 2021 brought back many experiences we had forgone during the past year and a half of the pandemic. But this push to re-create a world that felt something like “normal” may have brought back another familiar feeling: the anxiety of racking up debt. If your summer of “revenge” spending has come for a payback of its own in the form of lingering debt, make a plan for paying it off. Then, think about how to prevent yourself from getting into more debt as you navigate progress…

A court in Amsterdam ruled this week that Uber drivers fall under the Dutch taxi drivers’ collective labor agreement — meaning they are entitled to the same employment benefits as taxi drivers. Uber said it would appeal the ruling. The Amsterdam civil court said in a statement that three judges ruled that the legal relationship between Uber and its drivers “conforms to all the characteristics of an employment contract.” The Dutch workers’ organization that brought the case called the decision a major victory for Uber drivers. “This verdict shows what we have been saying for years: Uber is an employer and the drivers are employees, so Uber has to abide by the taxi traffic collective labor agreement,” Zakaria Boufangacha, vice-chair of the Federation of Dutch Unions, said in a statement.…

Most Americans don’t believe their personal information is secure online and aren’t satisfied with the federal government’s efforts to protect it, according to a poll. The poll by AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and MeriTalk shows that 64% of Americans say their social media activity is not very or not at all secure. About as many have the same security doubts about online information revealing their physical location. Half of Americans believe their private text conversations lack security. And they’re not just concerned. They want something done about it. Nearly three-quarters of Americans say they support establishing national standards for how companies can collect, process and share personal data. “What is surprising to me is that there is a great deal of support for more government action to protect…

Carmaker Tesla has opened a store and repair shop on Native American land for the first time, marking a new approach to its yearslong fight to sell cars directly to consumers and cut car dealerships out of the process. The white-walled, silver-lettered Tesla store, which opened last week, sits in Nambé Pueblo, north of Santa Fe, on tribal land that’s not subject to state laws. The electric car company can only sell and service its vehicles freely in about a dozen states, while it faces restrictions in others. Some, like New Mexico, ban Tesla from offering sales or repairs without going through a dealership. In January, the company struck a deal with Michigan to resolve a 2016 lawsuit, a symbolic victory that allowed it to sell in the backyard of…

Teams working on two continents have marked similar milestones in their respective efforts to tap an energy source key to the fight against climate change: They’ve each produced very impressive magnets. Scientists at the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor in southern France took delivery of the first part of a massive magnet so strong its American manufacturer claims it can lift an aircraft carrier. Almost 60 feet (nearly 20 meters) tall and 14 feet (more than four meters) in diameter when fully assembled, the magnet is a crucial component in the attempt by 35 nations to master nuclear fusion. Massachusetts Institute of Technology scientists and a private company announced separately this week that they, too, have hit a milestone with the successful test of the world’s strongest high temperature superconducting magnet…

Your palm could soon be your ticket into a concert. Amazon says it is bringing its palm-recognition technology to the Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Denver and it will be available at other venues in the coming months. It’s the first time the technology, called Amazon One, will be used outside some of Amazon’s stores, where shoppers can pay for groceries and snacks by swiping their palms. Starting Tuesday, concertgoers at Red Rocks can sign up to connect their palm to a ticketing account by hovering their hand over a device. They only need to sign up once and then can use their palm to get into other shows and events at the venue. An Amazon account is not needed to use it. Amazon signed a deal with entertainment company AEG…

Walmart denied any partnership with the digital currency Litecoin after a fake news release led to a brief flurry of inaccurate reports from national news outlets and social media users. A news release claiming a partnership between Walmart and Litecoin is “not real,” according to Walmart spokesperson Molly Blakeman. Charlie Lee, creator of Litecoin and managing director of the Litecoin Foundation, confirmed the release was fake. The false announcement was temporarily featured on a major press release wire and in outlets including Reuters, CNBC and Yahoo Finance, before being deleted and corrected. It wasn’t immediately clear who created it. Here’s a closer look at the facts. CLAIM: Walmart announced a major partnership with the digital currency Litecoin. THE FACTS: The nation’s largest retailer is not partnering with Litecoin, despite a…

Three of the nation’s largest food delivery companies are suing New York City over a limit on fees it put in place during the pandemic to protect restaurants devastated by the forced closure of their dining rooms. The city has continued to extend those caps even as vaccinations allow more indoor dining which, according to the companies, cost them millions of dollars over the summer. In the suit filed last week the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, DoorDash, Grubhub and Uber Eats call the fee caps government overreach. The companies say they were “instrumental in keeping restaurants afloat and food industry workers employed” after investing millions of dollars in relief for those businesses. They are filing for an injunction that would prevent the city from…

You would have to shuffle a lot of movie ideas to come up with one that pairs a card sharp with the horrors of Abu Ghraib. But writer-director Paul Schrader has for some time known his cards, playing variations of the same hand over and over again. The protagonist of his “The Card Counter” — William Tell (Oscar Isaac) — is the latest in a long line of Schrader’s tortured, self-hating, deeply habitual, solitary men going back to Travis Bickle in “Taxi Driver.” This repeating figure of Schrader’s — one also seen in his previous film, “First Reformed,” and in another he wrote for Martin Scorsese, “Bringing Out the Dead” — has never seemed like a rerun. It’s more like a spiritual condition that Schrader, raised a Calvinist, can’t rid…

The European Union’s top official outlined ambitious plans to help beef up the bloc’s chipmaking capability in the face of intensifying global competition for semiconductors. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen unveiled the European Chips Act to provide official support for the bloc’s “chip ecosystem” so that the continent can stand on its own when it comes to producing the vital technology. Semiconductors are the tiny microchips that act as the brains for everything from smartphones to cars, and an extended shortage has highlighted the importance of chipmakers, most of which are based in Asia, to global supply chains. Automakers have been among the hardest hit by the shortage, which has slowed or halted production. “While global demand has exploded (for chips), Europe’s share across the entire value chain,…

South Korea’s competition watchdog plans to fine Google at least 207.4 billion won ($177 million) for allegedly blocking smartphone makers like Samsung from using other operating systems, in what would be one of the country’s biggest antitrust penalties ever. Google said it plans to challenge the fine. It has accused South Korean authorities of disregarding how its software policy benefits hardware partners and consumers. The announcement came as South Korea also began enforcing a revised telecommunications law that prohibits app market operators like Google and Apple from requiring smartphone users to pay with their in-app purchasing systems. It is the first nation to adopt such regulations. South Korea has always closely scrutinized how foreign technology companies behave in its market. Much of the focus in recent years has been on…

The U.S., Britain and Australia have announced they’re forming a new security alliance that will help equip Australia with nuclear-powered submarines. The alliance will see a reshaping of relations in the Indo-Pacific region and beyond. Here’s what it might mean for various players: THE UNITED STATES Ten years ago under President Barack Obama, the U.S. began discussing the need to focus more attention on the Indo-Pacific region while pivoting away from conflicts in the Middle East. Under President Joe Biden, the U.S. has now withdrawn its troops from Afghanistan while finding that tensions with China have only grown. In the Pacific, the U.S. and others have been concerned about China’s aggressive actions in the South China Sea and its antipathy toward Japan, Taiwan and Australia. In announcing the deal, none…

TikTok is facing two EU data privacy investigations, one into its handling of children’s personal data and another over its data transfers to China. Ireland’s data privacy watchdog, which is TikTok’s lead regulator in the European Union, said this week that it has started two inquiries to examine whether the popular short video app has breached stringent EU data privacy regulations. The Data Protection Commission’s first investigation will look at whether TikTok complies with the General Data Protection Regulation, or GDPR, when it handles children’s data, including the platform’s settings for people under 18 and age verification measures for kids under 13. The second investigation focuses on whether TikTok complies with GDPR when it transfers data to China, where its owner, ByteDance, is based. TikTok has faced accusations that it’s…

The U.N. human rights chief is calling for a moratorium on the use of artificial intelligence technology that poses a serious risk to human rights, including face-scanning systems that track people in public spaces. Michelle Bachelet, the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, also said that countries should expressly ban AI applications which don’t comply with international human rights law. Applications that should be prohibited include government“social scoring”systems that judge people based on their behavior and certain AIbased tools that categorize people into clusters such as by ethnicity or gender. AI-based technologies can be a force for good but they can also “have negative, even catastrophic, effects if they are used without sufficient regard to how they affect people’s human rights,” Bachelet said in a statement. Her comments came along…

Cities and urban counties across the U.S. are raising concerns that a recent rule from President Joe Biden’s administration could preclude them from tapping into $350 billion of coronavirus relief aid to expand high-speed internet connections. Biden has set a goal of delivering fast, affordable internet to every American household. The massive American Rescue Plan took a step toward that by including broadband infrastructure among the primary uses for pandemic aid flowing to each city, county and state. But an interim rule published by the U.S. Treasury Department has narrowed the broadband eligibility. It focuses on areas that lack reliable broadband, which connects devices to the internet through a cable or data line, at download speeds of at least 25 megabits per second and upload speeds of at least 3…

The general who leads U.S. efforts to thwart foreign-based cyberattacks, and punish those responsible, says he’s mounting a “surge” to fight incursions that have debilitated government agencies and companies responsible for critical infrastructure. In an interview, Gen. Paul Nakasone broadly described “an intense focus” by government specialists to better find and share information about cyberattacks and “impose costs when necessary.”Those costs include publicly linking adversarial countries to high-profile attacks and exposing the means by which those attacks were carried out, he said. “Even six months ago, we probably would have said, ‘Ransomware, that’s criminal activity,’” Nakasone said. “But if it has an impact on a nation, like we’ve seen, then it becomes a national security issue. If it’s a national security issue, then certainly we’re going to surge toward it.”…

Three former U.S. intelligence and military officials have admitted providing sophisticated computer hacking technology to the United Arab Emirates and agreed to pay nearly $1.7 million to resolve criminal charges in an agreement that the Justice Department described as the first of its kind. The defendants — Marc Baier, Ryan Adams and Daniel Gericke — are accused of working as senior managers at a UAE-based company that conducted hacking operations on behalf of the government. Prosecutors say the men provided hacking and intelligence-gathering systems that were used to break into computers in the United States and elsewhere in the world. The Justice Department alleges that the men committed computer fraud and violated export control laws by providing defense services without the required license. The case also appears to be part…

Epic Games filed notice that is appealing a federal judge’s decision in a lawsuit alleging that Apple has been running an illegal monopoly that stifles competition. The maker of the popular Fortnite video game said in a court filing this week that it will take the ruling to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco. In a 185-page decision rendered last week, U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ordered Apple to dismantle a lucrative part of the competitive barricade guarding its closely run iPhone app store, but she rejected Epic’s allegations that Apple ran a monopoly. Epic’s notice of appeal said it would appeal the final judgment “and all orders leading to or producing that judgment.” The ruling continues to chip away at the so-called “walled garden” that…

Boeing said this week that the airline industry is showing signs of recovering from the pandemic, and it raised its bullish prediction about demand for airline and military planes and other aerospace products and services. The company predicted that the aerospace market will be worth $9 trillion over the next decade. That is up from Boeing’s prediction of $8.5 trillion last year and $8.7 trillion in 2019, before the pandemic torpedoed demand for airline jets. Separately, Boeing reported a small gain in new airliner orders during August, underscoring the fragile nature of the recovery in air travel. The company posted net orders for 23 commercial jets after accounting for 30 cancellations — 28 of them for the 737 Max. As recently as 2018, Boeing booked more than 1,000 orders. That…