The AI community suffered ethical setbacks in 2020, but there's reason to think that 2021 might be different.Read More
from Social – VentureBeat https://ift.tt/38UQFDa
Monday, 4 January 2021
AI Weekly: The argument in favor of regulation in 2021
The AI community suffered ethical setbacks in 2020, but there's reason to think that 2021 might be different.Read More
from Social – VentureBeat https://ift.tt/38UQFDa
Apple Testing Two Different Foldable iPhone Designs
WebProNews
Apple Testing Two Different Foldable iPhone Designs
Apple has tasked its top supplier, Foxconn, with producing two different prototype designs for a foldable iPhone.
Foldable phones are considered the next evolution of modern smartphones. Foldable designs allow for phones that can more easily be carried in a pocket, yet expand to offer the screen real estate of a small tablet. While Microsoft, Motorola and Samsung have released foldable phones, Apple has yet to embrace the trend. Many believe Apple has been working to perfect the design and avoid the problems other companies have faced.
Apple’s plans may be closer to fruition, if the rumors are to be believed. According to TechRadar, citing Taiwanese website United Daily News, two prototype designs have passed the necessary durability tests to be considered for production.
One design is evidently the traditional clamshell style, such as those sold by Motorola and Samsung. The other design is reminiscent of the Microsoft Surface Duo’s dual-screen design. It’s unknown whether Apple will eventually release both designs, or consolidate around a single one.
Obviously, Apple testing foldable designs doesn’t provide a lot of concrete information, but it’s further evidence that Apple will likely enter the market once they are convinced they can do so with their usual panache.
Apple Testing Two Different Foldable iPhone Designs
Matt Milano
from WebProNews https://ift.tt/2Mytebi
Alphabet and Google Employees Form Union
WebProNews
Alphabet and Google Employees Form Union
Alphabet and Google employees have formed a union in response to missteps by management.
The Alphabet Workers Union (AWU) has been formed with support from the Communications Workers of America (CWA). The union is the first in the company’s history, and one of just a few in the tech industry at large.
Support for unionization has been growing within Alphabet/Google for some time, and management’s actions have only increased that support. In late 2020, the company was accused of illegally spying on, and eventually firing, employees who were trying to form a union, leading to a complaint by the National Labor Relations Board.
Google also landed in hot water for firing Dr. Timnit Gebru, one of the world’s leading AI ethics researchers. While the company maintains Dr. Gebru resigned, her colleagues insist the company forced her out. The move drew condemnation from experts inside and outside the company. While CEO Sundar Pichai tried to address the issue in an email to employees, it was widely criticized as being tone-deaf.
Dr. Gebru’s firing was directly referenced in a statement announcing the formation of the AWU:
Most recently, the company fired Dr. Timnit Gebru, a leading artificial intelligence researcher, for no reason whatsoever. The firing has caused outrage from thousands of us, including Black and Brown workers who are heartbroken by the company’s actions and unsure of their future at Google.
The statement also addressed the company’s “Don’t Be Evil” slogan. Once a motto the company proudly displayed and adhered to, it has increasingly become an afterthought, as the company has worked with China, accepted military contracts, mishandled sexual abuse allegations, intimidated workers and more, issues that have further alienated workers:
Workers who have organized to stop these trends have been met by intimidation, suppression, and blatantly illegal firings, as recently confirmed by the National Labor Relations Board. Instead of listening to workers, Google hired IRI, a notorious anti-union firm, to suppress their organizing. This is how Google’s executives have chosen to interact with workers.
The only tactic that has ensured workers are respected and heard is collective action. Project Maven was cancelled when thousands of Googlers pledged they would not work on unethical tech. Forced arbitration was ended when Googlers walked out across the globe.
Employees made it clear the AWU would work to address these issues, and use their collective power to force Google’s hand into making better decisions.
“This union builds upon years of courageous organizing by Google workers,” said Nicki Anselmo, Program Manager. “From fighting the ‘real names’ policy, to opposing Project Maven, to protesting the egregious, multi-million dollar payouts that have been given to executives who’ve committed sexual harassment, we’ve seen first-hand that Alphabet responds when we act collectively. Our new union provides a sustainable structure to ensure that our shared values as Alphabet employees are respected even after the headlines fade.”
“This is historic—the first union at a major tech company by and for all tech workers,” said Dylan Baker, Software Engineer. “We will elect representatives, we will make decisions democratically, we will pay dues, and we will hire skilled organizers to ensure all workers at Google know they can work with us if they actually want to see their company reflect their values.”
It remains to be seen how Alphabet/Google will respond, but management has an opportunity to reset relations with employees and regain some of the respect it has squandered.
Alphabet and Google Employees Form Union
Matt Milano
from WebProNews https://ift.tt/3pLuo1q
Slack Outage To Start 2021 Workweek
WebProNews
Slack Outage To Start 2021 Workweek
Slack has been down since 10:14 AM ET which puts millions of remote working employees in a difficult situation. Most Slack users worldwide are having issues connecting to their accounts and sending messages.
Slack has posted on Twitter that they are working on the issue.
“Customers may be experiencing issues connecting and using Slack at this time. Our team is currently investigating and we’re sorry for any troubles this may be causing. Please see https://status.slack.com for updates.”
When users tried to read messages Slack gave them this notification:
Slack Outage To Start 2021 Workweek
Rich Ord
from WebProNews https://ift.tt/356wf94
Exposed Credentials Leave 100,000+ Zyxel Firewalls and VPNS Vulnerable
WebProNews
Exposed Credentials Leave 100,000+ Zyxel Firewalls and VPNS Vulnerable
A researcher at Dutch security firm EYE has discovered a critical vulnerability in Zyxel’s firewall and VPN gateways, as a result of exposed credentials.
Zyxel sells a line of popular firewall and VPN gateway devices. Niels Teusink, a researcher with EYE, discovered a major issues that leaves over 100,000 devices vulnerable.
When doing some research (rooting) on my Zyxel USG40, I was surprised to find a user account ‘zyfwp’ with a password hash in the latest firmware version (4.60 patch 0). The plaintext password was visible in one of the binaries on the system. I was even more surprised that this account seemed to work on both the SSH and web interface.
Teusink goes on to highlight why this vulnerability is so dangerous.
As the zyfwp user has admin privileges, this is a serious vulnerability. An attacker could completely compromise the confidentiality, integrity and availability of the device. Someone could for example change firewall settings to allow or block certain traffic. They could also intercept traffic or create VPN accounts to gain access to the network behind the device. Combined with a vulnerability like Zerologon this could be devastating to small and medium businesses.
Teusink recommends updating to the latest firmware version immediately.
Exposed Credentials Leave 100,000+ Zyxel Firewalls and VPNS Vulnerable
Matt Milano
from WebProNews https://ift.tt/3b5QBD7
Sunday, 3 January 2021
Mozilla Working On Major Firefox Design Refresh
WebProNews
Mozilla Working On Major Firefox Design Refresh
Mozilla is planning on a design refresh of its flagship browser, the first such refresh since 2017.
Once one of the most popular web browsers on the market, and the main competitor to Microsoft’s Internet Explorer, Firefox has since fallen to roughly 7.5% as of December 2020. Nonetheless, Firefox remains an important option, given Mozilla’s focus on security and privacy.
According to Ghacks, Mozilla is calling this refresh Photon, as opposed to the last one, which was called Proton. The company has not provided any details, screenshots or mockups, but has posted a meta bug on Bugzilla that provides clues regarding what elements are slated for change. In particular, the following items are covered:
- The Firefox address bar and tabs bar
- The main Firefox menu
- Infobars
- Doorhangers
- Context Menus
- Modals
A design refresh may be just what Firefox needs to prompt people to give it another look and help it regain some market share.
Mozilla Working On Major Firefox Design Refresh
Matt Milano
from WebProNews https://ift.tt/387I3tJ
Saturday, 2 January 2021
Massachusetts Set to Ban New Gasoline Vehicles by 2035
WebProNews
Massachusetts Set to Ban New Gasoline Vehicles by 2035
Massachusetts is joining California and New Jersey in its efforts to ban the sale of new gas-powered vehicles by 2035.
California became the first state to ban the sale of new gas-powered vehicles in September. New Jersey soon followed with a recommendation by its governor that the state implement a similar ban by 2035.
Massachusetts has now taken a similar step, according to Car and Driver, implementing a ban nearly identical to California’s. The state’s goal is to achieve net-zero fossil-fuel emissions by 2050. Since 27% of emissions in the state come from passenger vehicles, the ban will be a big step toward that goal.
The bans coincide with a number of major automakers setting the 2030s as their goal for exclusive electric vehicle (EV) production. Bentley announced its plans to build only EVs by 2030, Subaru has announced it will sell only EVs by the mid-2030s and numerous other manufacturers are accelerating their own transitions.
Massachusetts Set to Ban New Gasoline Vehicles by 2035
Matt Milano
from WebProNews https://ift.tt/39acXkD
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)