Legal

• DISH Wireless hooks up with Helium's decentralised 5G network via FreedomFi gear

  Connecting data and rewarding people with cryptocash, if they want it
  Richard Speed Tue 26 Oct 2021 // 20:51 UTC

  US carrier DISH Wireless has buddied up with Helium blockchain crew and FreedomFi to permit users to roam onto the Helium network, built with the latter's 5G CBRS hotspots.

  The deal is similar to that announced with GigSky back in September, although DISH Wireless is a considerably larger fish in the US carrier pond.

  DISH has big plans for 5G, and last year announced it was to build out "the first virtualized, standalone 5G network in America." It is also no stranger to blockchain, first accepting payments in Bitcoin from television subscribers back in 2014.

  Continue reading

• These couldn't wait for Patch Tuesday: Adobe issues bonus fixes for 92 security holes in 14 products

  It's 2021 and of course code with classic buffer overflows is still shipping
  Thomas Claburn in San Francisco Tue 26 Oct 2021 // 19:57 UTC 1

  A mere two weeks after its most recent set of security patches, Adobe has issued another 14 security bulletins covering 92 CVE-listed bugs.

  Nonetheless, Adobe's repairs apparently represent planned maintenance rather than an out-of-band release, even though October's Patch Tuesday – the second Tuesday of the month – has come and gone.

  "While we strive to release regularly scheduled updates on Patch Tuesday, occasionally these regularly scheduled security updates are released on non-Patch Tuesday dates," a company spokesperson said.

  Continue reading

• Russia leads the world in one thing – number of content-removal demands to Google

  China still in the toilet for internet freedom with 'draconian prison terms for online dissent'
  Laura Dobberstein Tue 26 Oct 2021 // 19:17 UTC

  Google has published its semi-annual set of stats revealing how many content takedown requests it receives from courts and governments worldwide.

  The tech giant said in a blog post it is open to takedown requests but vets them to ensure a local law has been violated.

  "Because we value access to information, we work to minimize over-reaching removals whenever possible by seeking to narrow the scope of government demands and ensure that they are authorized by relevant laws," said David Graff, Google's veep of Trust & Safety.

  Continue reading

• Cisco to face trial over trade secrets theft, NDA breach claims after losing attempt to swat Leadfactors lawsuit

  Startup alleges IP wound up in Switchzilla's Quad product
  Gareth Corfield Tue 26 Oct 2021 // 18:13 UTC 3

  Cisco will face trial in a long-running case over claims that it stole trade secrets from an enterprise collaboration startup, a US judge has ruled.

  As per the October 18 order by Judge Sunil Kulkarni at the Superior Court of California, County of Santa Clara, Switchzilla lost its attempt to have the lawsuit dismissed, meaning the case will – barring some unforseen circumstances, proceed to trial.

  Leadfactors LLC sued Cisco claiming Cisco's collaboration Quad platform was built using trade secrets that Leadfactors owned. It bought the intellectual property from a bank after company founder Puneet Gupta's previous venture, ConnectBeam, failed – allegedly because of Cisco's actions.

  Continue reading

• Sovereignty? We've heard of it. UK government gives contract to store MI5, MI6 and GCHQ's data to AWS

  Hands up who wants to do that info migration
  Chris Mellor Tue 26 Oct 2021 // 15:15 UTC 31

  The UK's intelligence services are to store their secret files in the AWS cloud in a deal inked earlier this year, according to reports.

  The GCHQ organisation (electrical/radio communications eavesdropping), MI5 (domestic UK intelligence matters), MI6 (external UK intel) and also the Ministry of Defence (MoD) will access their data in the cloud, albeit in UK-located AWS data centres.

  The news was first reported in the Financial Times newspaper (paywall), which said GCHQ drove the deal that was signed earlier this year, and the data will be stored in a high-security way. It is claimed by unknown sources that AWS itself will not have access to the data. 

  Continue reading

• Ever wondered where the 'cloud' was in Adobe Creative Cloud? Here it is in beta form

  In-browser editing previewed for Photoshop and Illustrator
  Tim Anderson Tue 26 Oct 2021 // 14:33 UTC 10

  Adobe has introduced a beta of Creative Cloud Web at its virtual Max event, which kicked off today.

  When Creative Cloud was introduced in 2011, it was something of a misnomer. There was a cloud storage element, but the core applications like Photoshop, Illustrator, and Premier Pro remained desktop applications for Windows and Mac.

  It was more Creative Subscription than Creative Cloud since it marked the move to subscription pricing.

  Continue reading

• UK schools slap a hold on facial scanning of children amid fierce criticism

  'Consent cannot be truly freely given' says privacy campaigner
  Paul Kunert Tue 26 Oct 2021 // 13:45 UTC 32

  The use of facial recognition technology deployed in a number of school canteens across the UK has been put on hold for the time being after the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) intervened to ask some questions.

  Some nine schools in North Ayrshire, which is a Scottish authority that includes the Isle of Arran, were scheduled to start processing payments for school meals via facial scanning technology.

  This was intended to speed up the delivery of lunches from an average of 25 seconds to five, and potentially reduce COVID-19 infections compared to card payments and fingerprint scanners.

  Continue reading

• EU digital rules must consider anti-competitive licensing terms, say cloud sellers

  *cough* Microsoft and Oracle *cough*
  Richard Speed Tue 26 Oct 2021 // 12:59 UTC

  Cloud Infrastructure Service Providers in Europe (CISPE) has published a report on how the licensing antics of legacy software firms could distort the cloud marketplace.

  The industry group is keen that protection from some of the chicanery turn up in the upcoming EU Digital Markets Act (DMA) and said: "It is imperative that the bad practices and unfair, anti-competitive behaviours of those that wield power to set licence terms are considered as part of the DMA."

  The DMA was proposed in December 2020 in order to tackle "large, systemic online platforms" that legislators believe act as "gatekeepers" to new market entrants. The act will be implemented in 2023, at the earliest.

  Continue reading

• Microsoft's UWP = Unwanted Windows Platform?

  Company recommends migration for those unhappy with current functionality
  Tim Anderson Tue 26 Oct 2021 // 12:15 UTC 15

  Microsoft has further clarified its plans for the Universal Windows Platform, a desktop application framework which at the launch of Windows 10 was said to be the future but now looks headed for oblivion.

  Principal program manager lead Thomas Fennel has posted on GitHub about the choices facing developers invested in UWP applications.

  He explained that the new Windows App SDK – formerly known as Project Reunion – is "using the existing desktop project types as the foundation of the Windows App SDK, due to the vast amount of existing desktop APIs and compatibility that desktop project types provide."

  Continue reading

• Matrix for the masses platform Element One goes live: $5 a month with WhatsApp, Signal, Telegram bridges

  New package aimed at consumers
  Richard Speed Tue 26 Oct 2021 // 11:41 UTC 5

  Element, which makes Matrix-based communications and collaboration tools, has launched a consumer-oriented version of its messaging platform, complete with bridges for WhatsApp, Signal and Telegram.

  The firm's Matrix Services (EMS) has been the acceptable corporate face of the Matrix network for some time now, charging customers reluctant to roll their own open source a fee for its wares. Over the months it has introduced supported bridging tech to allow enterprise users to message users on other platforms such as Slack, Teams and WhatsApp.

  The company's new product – Element One – effectively bundles three of the bridges that EMS reckons will appeal most to consumers – WhatsApp, Signal and Telegram – into a $5-a-month package.

  Continue reading

• 31-year-old piece of hardware not working very well: Hubble telescope back in safe mode over 'synchronization issues'

  James Webb Space Telescope in line for a December flight
  Richard Speed Tue 26 Oct 2021 // 11:03 UTC 59

  The veteran Hubble Space Telescope (HST) tripped back into safe mode yesterday, leaving science operations suspended while the latest technical woe is investigated.

  The problem this time is "synchronization issues with internal spacecraft communications," according to the observatory's social media orifice, normally awash with stunning imagery snapped by the telescope.

  Continue reading