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Der Staat als Überwacher: Nicht nur mit der NSO-Software – Microsoft verweist auf eine Spyware der Firma Candiru, die von Regierungen eingesetzt wurde
The Renaissance artist and scientist’s youngest living relative is 1 year old.
Enlarge / Analysis of the reputed self-portrait drawing by Leonardo da Vinci (~1515, Biblioteca Reale, Turin). (credit: C. Tyler/Saiko, Creative Commons)
A recently assembled Leonardo da Vinci family tree, spanning 21 generations from 1331 to the present, could pave the way for DNA testing that might confirm whether the bones interred in da Vinci’s grave are actually his. Two art historians’ hopes of uncovering a genetic explanation for the Renaissance artist’s brilliance, however, will probably be doomed by scientific reality.
To construct the family tree, art historians Alessandro Vezzosi and Agnese Sabato dug through birth, death, and property records spanning the last 690 years. They also interviewed surviving relatives to learn more about the famous artist, scientist, and inventor’s modern extended family. In the end, they traced da Vinci’s family from his grandfather, born in 1331, to the 14 relatives living today. Leonardo da Vinci himself had no children, and his modern relatives all descend from his 22 (!) half-siblings.
The present family played an essential role in the new study. “Many of them have collaborated, together with their relatives, to the collection and verification of information,” wrote Vezzosi and Sabato, “helping enthusiastically to contact other family members and retrieve new documents and images.” Those many-times-great nieces and nephews include several office workers (one of whom served as a naval gunner in the 1960s), a retired upholsterer, a surveyor, and a state employee who is “passionate about motorcycling and music.” The oldest is now 85 years old, and the youngest is just one year old.
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The process of installing apps on Android devices hasn’t changed all that much since the operating system first debuted well over a decade ago. Whether you’re installing an app from the Google Play Store or from another source, what you…
The process of installing apps on Android devices hasn’t changed all that much since the operating system first debuted well over a decade ago. Whether you’re installing an app from the Google Play Store or from another source, what you’re basically doing is downloading and installing an APK (Android Package) file. But a few years […]
The post Amazon Appstore will support Android Apple Bundles (but they’ll be optional for developers) appeared first on Liliputing.
NSO Group says its spyware targets only criminals and terrorists. Critics disagree.
Enlarge (credit: Getty Images)
Smartphones belonging to more than three dozen journalists, human rights activists, and business executives have been infected with powerful spyware that an Israeli firm sells, purportedly to catch terrorists and criminals, The Washington Post and other publications reported.
The handsets were infected with Pegasus, full-featured spyware developed by NSO Group. The Israel-based exploit seller has come under intense scrutiny in recent years after repressive governments in the United Arab Emirates, Mexico, and other countries have been found using the malware against journalists, activists, and other groups not affiliated with terrorism or crime.
Pegasus is frequently installed through “zero-click” exploits, such as those sent by text messages, which require no interaction from victims. After the exploits surreptitiously jailbreak or root a target's iPhone or Android device, Pegasus immediately trawls through a wealth of the device's resources. It copies call histories, text messages, calendar entries, and contacts. It is capable of activating the cameras and microphones of compromised phones to eavesdrop on nearby activities. It can also track a target's movements and steal messages from end-to-end encrypted chat apps.
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Amazon’s Fire and Fire HD tablets ship with a fork of Google’s Android operating system called Fire OS. For the most part that means they have a custom user interface that’s designed to highlight Amazon apps and services. But it also…
Amazon’s Fire and Fire HD tablets ship with a fork of Google’s Android operating system called Fire OS. For the most part that means they have a custom user interface that’s designed to highlight Amazon apps and services. But it also means that instead of the Google Play Store, they ship with the Amazon Appstore […]
The post How to install apps from unknown sources on Amazon Fire tablets (sideloading) appeared first on Liliputing.
The IIPA, which represents the MPA, RIAA, and other entertainment industry groups, is calling for stricter anti-piracy enforcement in South Africa and a thorough redraft of the country’s Copyright Act. These measures are needed to deter copyright infringement, the groups argue, noting that the country shouldn’t be eligible for trade benefits if it fails to show progress.
From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.
The American copyright industry generates billions of dollars in annual revenue and is generally seen as one of the primary export products.
Whether it’s movies, music, software or other goods, US companies are among the market leaders.
To protect the interests of these businesses around the globe, copyright holder groups can count on help from the US Government. The yearly list of ‘notorious markets,’ for example, is a well known diplomatic pressure mechanism to encourage other countries to up their enforcement actions and improve laws.
The same is true for trade deals and other policies, which often require trade partners to take actions in favor of copyright holder interests.
The International Intellectual Property Alliance (IIPA), which represents the ESA, MPA, and RIAA, among others, has been the voice of major entertainment industries on this front. The Alliance regularly encourages the U.S. to further the international interests of its members, Africa included.
A few days ago the IIPA published its views on the latest eligibility review of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). This process, led by the US Trade Representative (USTR), determines which sub-Saharan African countries can enjoy certain trade benefits.
The idea behind AGOA is to improve economic relations between the African region and the US. However, African countries first have to qualify and that comes with certain restrictions, including a clause that prohibits states from opposing US foreign policy.
The IIPA, for its part, would like to use the legislation to improve copyright laws and strengthen anti-piracy measures. While copyright holders support growth in African countries, they say that the growth of Internet access comes with a major downside; piracy.
“To effectively ensure a safe, healthy, and sustainable digital marketplace, AGOA-eligible countries should assess whether their legal regimes are capable of responding to today’s challenges, including rampant online piracy,” IIPA writes.
The group’s submission for the USTR’s 2022 AGOA eligibility review discusses problematic issues in a variety of countries, but most ink is dedicated to South Africa.
The IIPA writes that South Africa must update and improve its laws to bring these in line with international standards such as the TRIPS Agreement and the WIPO Internet Treaties.
“South Africa’s current legal regime fails to provide adequate and effective protection of copyrighted materials. Significant reforms are needed to South Africa’s Copyright Act and Performers’ Protection Act in order to bring the country’s laws into compliance with international agreements,” IIPA notes.
This is particularly important now that the country is recovering from the COVID pandemic.
“At a time when South Africa is endeavoring to rebound from the economic impacts of the global pandemic, the stakes are extremely high. Parliament should redraft these bills to avoid destabilizing the creative industries and to support a thriving copyright sector.”
This strong warning comes with a list of possible improvements. For example, South Africa should have stricter rules to prevent people from circumventing technical protection measures.
In addition, copyright holders should have more options to recover damages from pirates, while the authorities should be able to enforce tougher criminal penalties for copyright infringements.
“South Africa’s legal regime does not provide adequate civil remedies or criminal penalties to allow rights holders to recover their losses from infringement or to deter piracy. Without an adequate means to remedy infringement or deter piracy, the path for legitimate services to operate is difficult,” IIPA notes.
This isn’t the first time that U.S. copyright holders have criticized South Africa’s copyright law. IIPA and others uttered similar complaints last year. At the time, they were particularly concerned about fair use provisions, which they believe are too broad.
The legislation, which was just a signature away from becoming law last year, was subsequently sent back to Parliament by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, who requested a do-over.
In their recommendation, IIPA stresses that this do-over should be done carefully. “It is critical that the National Assembly does not rush reconsideration of the bills and make only cosmetic revisions,” it writes.
Among other things, the various copyright exceptions and “fair use” rules, which are largely modeled after US law, should be tightened up. This should take place “in full consultation” with copyright holders and other relevant parties.
The fact that both bills were pulled at the last minute suggests that South Africa is sensitive to these and other complaints. With that in mind, it will be interesting to see what the final versions will look like and if IIPA and others are indeed heard.
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A copy of IIPA’s submission for the US Trade Representative’s 2022 AGOA eligibility review is available here (pdf)
From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.
All good things must end—come take one more look at a special collection.
At the Museum of Pinball in Southern California, you rarely had to wait long for any particular game, but attendance was solid. (They had 700 machines when we visited in 2015; they've added roughly 400 since.) [credit: Steve Tsubota ]
In 2015, we took you on a photo tour of the Museum of Pinball, home to one of the world's largest collections of pinball and arcade games under one roof. Since then, the number of games grew by hundreds; the last official count was "over 1,100."
Sadly, the museum is closing for good (and being replaced by a cannabis-growing operation). An attempt to relocate the museum to Palm Springs, California, failed, and the entire collection of games will be going up for auction soon.
Lead tech for the museum Chuck Casey posted this update:
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The iPhone, Apple TV, and Apple Watch each got new software updates today.
Enlarge / The MagSafe Battery pack attached to iPhone 12 Pro models. (credit: Apple)
Apple pushed out new versions of its iOS, tvOS, and watchOS operating systems for iPhone, Apple TV, and Apple Watch devices on Monday. Dubbed iOS 14.7, tvOS 14.7, and watchOS 7.6, the updates are relatively small and include tweaks, bug fixes, and a minor new feature or two.
The primary impetus for the iOS update seems to be added support for the recently launched MagSafe Battery Pack that is compatible with the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro lines.
Additionally, Apple Card holders can now "combine credit limits and share one account with an existing Apple Card user," a new option that Apple first announced earlier this year.
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US: Chinese state-backed hackers perpetrated “massive cyber espionage operation.”
Enlarge (credit: Getty Images | cbarnesphotography)
The US government blamed the Chinese government on Monday for attacks on thousands of Microsoft Exchange servers.
China's Ministry of State Security (MSS) "has fostered an ecosystem of criminal contract hackers who carry out both state-sponsored activities and cybercrime for their own financial gain," US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement that blamed the MSS for the Microsoft Exchange hacks. The US government and its allies "formally confirmed that cyber actors affiliated with the MSS exploited vulnerabilities in Microsoft Exchange Server in a massive cyber espionage operation that indiscriminately compromised thousands of computers and networks, mostly belonging to private sector victims," Blinken said.
Blinken's statement was released alongside a Justice Department announcement that three MSS officers and one other Chinese national were indicted by a federal grand jury on charges related to a different series of hacks into the "computer systems of dozens of victim companies, universities, and government entities in the United States and abroad between 2011 and 2018." Blinken said that the US "and countries around the world are holding the People's Republic of China (PRC) accountable for its pattern of irresponsible, disruptive, and destabilizing behavior in cyberspace, which poses a major threat to our economic and national security."
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SDK preview explains what is, isn’t Windows 11-exclusive about new load-boosting tech.
Enlarge / Microsoft has advertised "Xbox Velocity Architecture" to summarize a range of game-loading boosts for its newest consoles. The upcoming DirectStorage API is primed to bring some of those benefits to Windows PCs, but now that it is spread across two OSes, with varying speed expectations on each, will it have the same impact? (credit: Microsoft)
Microsoft's Windows 11 unveiling in June came with announcements across the company's many departments, including a warning from the company's gaming division: you'll need Windows 11 to play games that employ select "next-gen" APIs, particularly the new DirectStorage API.
On Friday, the company's DirectX team walked that OS restriction back.
"Microsoft is committed to ensuring that when game developers adopt a new API, they can reach as many gamers as possible," DirectX Program Manager Hassan Uraizee writes in explaining that the upcoming DirectStorage API will no longer be Windows 11-exclusive. This statement comes alongside Microsoft's launch of a DirectStorage preview program that will let developers immediately begin testing this feature in intensive 3D software. The API, among other things, redirects I/O calls for 3D graphical assets directly to a computer's GPU.
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