Month: February 2022

Enlarge / A vial containing Moderna COVID-19 booster vaccine at a vaccination center. (credit: Getty | SOPA Images)

COVID-19 booster doses are largely holding up against the ultratransmissible omicron variant, despite the fact that protection inevitably wanes over time, according to a recent study published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Still, with the boosters' inevitable waning and omicron's ability to dodge some immune responses, fourth doses may be needed in the future to sustain or improve protection against COVID-19, the study authors note.

The study, published in the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, estimated booster effectiveness against severe disease and hospitalizations. It charted a slight decline in booster effectiveness from less than two months after a booster dose to over four or five months after the third jab. The latter time frame is the latest for which there is available booster data, based on when the shots became widely offered. The study collected data from patients in 10 states, including from over 240,000 visits to emergency rooms or urgent care centers and more than 93,000 hospitalizations.

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Windows 11 may be getting native support for running Android apps thanks to a new Windows Subsystem for Android. But it’s not a Google-approved system, which means you may have to jump through some hoops if you want access to the Google Play Store and all the apps in it.

But it looks like Google is working on its own solution that may allow you to stream apps from an Android phone not only to a Windows PC, but also to Chromebooks or Macs thanks to a web app.

The folks at 9to5Google found two apps related to “cross device services” in the recently released Android 13 Developer Preview for Pixel devices, and discovered that not only does it allow you to stream apps from your phone… but it does it without old school screen mirroring.

Basically the Pixel treats your web browser like a separate display, which means you can keep using your phone for other things, while also viewing notifications or interacting with apps on your computer. The apps are actually running on your phone, but they’re visible in your computer’s web browser, which means you can use chat apps or any other app you want to use with a big screen, keyboard, and mouse.

It’s likely that Chromebook users will eventually get deeper integration into the operating system, without the need to open a web browser. This will allow you to, for example, see smartphone notifications on a Chromebook and then click the notification to open and interact with the related app… something that would be tough to implement with a web browser.

You can see more images plus some short videos showing the cross-device services in action at 9to5Google.

Pixel will be able to stream Android apps to your Chromebook/PC, here’s how it works [9to5Google]

Android 13 may allow you to stream Android apps to a Chromebook, allowing you to do things like chat with contacts using phone apps to a Windows, Mac, or Chrome OS device without installing a Chrome OS version. Here’s an early version in action.

New features coming to Windows 11 Insider Preview Dev Channel [Windows Central]

Microsoft will roll out new features to Windows Insiders on the Windows 11 Dev Channel in the coming weeks, including support for app folders in the Start Menu, Taskbar tweaks, and tablet-friendly gestures for opening Start & Quick Settings by swiping up.

AMD Completes Acquisition of Xilinx [AMD]

As expected, AMD has completed its acquisition of FPGA maker Xilinx ins a $35 billion deal first announced in October, 2020.

Mobile Linux news roundup (Plasma Mobile, postmarketOS, and FOSDM talks) [Linux on Mobile]

FOSDEM 2022 took place earlier this month, and there was a whole track ad the open source developer conference focused on mobile devices. Many of the presentations are now online, and LINMOB has a great run-down of talks worth checking out… plus a links to a bunch of other recent developments in the mobile Linux space.

Keep up on the latest headlines by following Liliputing on Twitter and Facebook and follow @LinuxSmartphone on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news on open source mobile phones.

The post Lilbits: Streaming Android apps to a PC, new Windows 11 features, and mobile Linux updates appeared first on Liliputing.

Enlarge / Earl Sinclair and Baby Sinclair (not actual IBM employees). (credit: Disney)

A former high-level IBM executive wrote an internal message calling older workers "dinobabies" who should go "extinct," according to a plaintiff's filing in an age-discrimination lawsuit against IBM.

"In arbitration, Plaintiff's counsel have obtained evidence showing high level executive communications demonstrating highly incriminating animus against older workers by" two former IBM executives who left the company in 2020, said the court filing submitted on Friday. The executives' names and their positions were redacted. In one communication, an executive "applauds the use of the disparaging term 'dinobabies' to describe the older IBM employees" and described a "plan to oust them from IBM‟s workforce," the court filing said.

In the message, "he describes his plan to 'accelerate change by inviting the "dinobabies" (new species) to leave' and make them an 'Extinct species,'" the filing said. "In another email, [name redacted] describes IBM's 'dated maternal workforce—this is what must change. They really don't understand social or engagement. Not digital natives. A real threat for us,'" the filing said.

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Enlarge (credit: Lee et al.)

Most muscles in our bodies only act in response to incoming nerve signals, which have to trigger each individual muscle cell to contract or relax. But heart muscle is different. The impulses that trigger contraction in heart muscle are passed from one muscle cell to its neighbors, leading to a rhythmic wave of contractions. This is so thoroughly built into the system that a sheet of heart muscle cells in a culture dish will start contracting spontaneously.

Now, researchers have taken advantage of some of the unique properties of cardiac cells to build a swimming robot fish powered by nothing but sugar. And while they tried to craft the heart's equivalent of a pacemaker, it turned out not to be needed: the right arrangement of muscle cells got the fish swimming spontaneously.

Building a heart-like muscle

In some ways, the paper describing the new robot fish is a tribute to our growing ability to control stem cell development. The researchers behind the paper, based at Harvard, decided to use cardiac muscle cells to power their robot. A couple of years ago, this would have meant dissecting out a heart from an experimental animal before isolating and growing its cardiac cells in culture.

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Enlarge / An image from 2017's Blade Runner 2049. (credit: Warner Bros.)

Amazon Studios has begun developing a live-action TV series set in the Blade Runner universe, according to reporting from entertainment industry publication Deadline.

The series will be titled Blade Runner 2099, and it will follow 2017's Blade Runner 2049, which was directed by Denis Villeneuve (Arrival, Dune). The Amazon series will be executive-produced by Ridley Scott, who directed the original 1982 Blade Runner film.

Deadline claims that Scott may direct at least some episodes himself once the series moves forward. Currently, 2099 is staffing up its writer's room, so it's not far along yet. Silka Luisa (The Wilding, Strange Angel, Shining Girls) will also write and executive-produce the series. Blade Runner 2049 co-writer Michael Green is among the series' numerous producers.

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(credit: Matteo Ianeselli )

The adorable "insider" avatar that fooled thousands. (credit: Jon Cartwright / Twitter)

Last week, shortly after the latest Nintendo Direct presentation, fans around the web started stumbling upon a seemingly prescient Twitter account called WaddleDeeKnows (named after the ever-present and adorable Kirby enemy). In a series of tweets with an authentic February 7 timestamp, the self-described "industry insider working deep within Nintendo" showed an apparently deep foreknowledge of details that Nintendo wouldn't officially reveal until the evening of February 9, two days later.

Somehow, WaddleDeeKnows seemed to know just about everything about a new Wii Sports and a Super Mario Strikers sequel, as well as specific details about Xenoblade 3 and even "Valve games coming to Switch," all days before the games' official public announcements.

That short track record was enough to get over 2,000 new followers (and countless other watchers) buzzing when WaddleDeeKnows started tweeting about "a few more leaks for the rest of the year" on the morning of Thursday, February 10. That second round of tweets included exciting predictions about coming Switch ports for Goldeneye 007 and Half-Life 2, more Legend of Zelda HD remakes to come, and even "an Encanto game developed by Bandai Namco" that no one had seen coming.

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(credit: Matteo Ianeselli )

The adorable "insider" avatar that fooled thousands. (credit: Jon Cartwright / Twitter)

Last week, shortly after the latest Nintendo Direct presentation, fans around the web started stumbling upon a seemingly prescient Twitter account called WaddleDeeKnows (named after the ever-present and adorable Kirby enemy). In a series of tweets with an authentic February 7 timestamp, the self-described "industry insider working deep within Nintendo" showed an apparently deep foreknowledge of details that Nintendo wouldn't officially reveal until the evening of February 9, two days later.

Somehow, WaddleDeeKnows seemed to know just about everything about a new Wii Sports and a Super Mario Strikers sequel, as well as specific details about Xenoblade 3 and even "Valve games coming to Switch," all days before the games' official public announcements.

That short track record was enough to get over 2,000 new followers (and countless other watchers) buzzing when WaddleDeeKnows started tweeting about "a few more leaks for the rest of the year" on the morning of Thursday, February 10. That second round of tweets included exciting predictions about coming Switch ports for Goldeneye 007 and Half-Life 2, more Legend of Zelda HD remakes to come, and even "an Encanto game developed by Bandai Namco" that no one had seen coming.

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As illegal IPTV subscriptions maintain their popularity among those looking for a cheap live TV fix, rightsholders from all over the world are trying hard to counter the threat.

Broadcasters and sports leagues are applying significant pressure but with VOD services now a part of many pirate IPTV packages, Hollywood studios such as Disney and distributor platforms including Netflix and Apple are playing a leading role.

Yesterday we reported new activity by anti-piracy coalition Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment (ACE) which included seizures of IPTV domains. Today we can report new action, not only by ACE but others in the sports and broadcasting ecosystem utilizing a range of anti-piracy tools.

ACE Takes Down and Seizes Seko IPTV

In a 2020 submission to the United States Trade Representative, Spanish football league La Liga reported several illegal TV services for infringing its rights. Among them was Seko IPTV, a service that now, thanks to ACE, is no longer operational.

Seko IPTV first made an appearance more than five years ago in May of 2016. At the time it offered around 3,200 channels according to its own data, plus a VOD (video-on-demand) service offering movies and TV shows.

Promoted for Mag boxes, Smart TV, Enigma, VLC, Kodi, smartphone, tablets and other devices, more recently the service boasted more than 9,000 live channels and 20,000 videos in its VOD library. However, it now appears to have reached the end of the road after ACE and the MPA took control of its domains.

Sekoiptv.com, sekoiptv.ml, sekoiptv.live and sekoip.tv are now under the administration of the MPA in the United States, which tends to suggest that their operator/s may have reached some kind of shutdown settlement with ACE/MPA. All domains now redirect to the ACE anti-piracy portal so former customers of the service will be getting an unwelcome surprise.

Other IPTV-related domains seized by ACE/MPA in the last few days (in addition to the ones published at the weekend) include srvtekn.com, vpnuser.ws and smarteriptvmanchester.com.

Police Arrest Two For IPTV Piracy

Late Friday, Spanish authorities reported that following complaints made by professional football league La Liga, a Policía Nacional investigation was launched into the supply of set-top devices and subscriptions to an illegal IPTV service.

The region of Navarre was reported as a place of interest and the police investigation subsequently identified two suspects in the Merindad de Estella. Two operations codenamed ‘Lígalo’ and ‘Tyche’ were assigned to the Technological Crime Group of the Provincial Judicial Police Brigade (Grupo de Delincuencia Tecnológica de la Brigada Provincial de Policía Judicial).

After an Estella court authorized warrants, two people were arrested and detained under suspicion of supplying illegal subscription access to otherwise premium TV channels.

In common with other cases involving such services, the name of the platform has not yet been made available but according to local reports, the Policía Nacional has asked a court to issue an order that will compel local ISPs to block its domains to prevent further infringement.

Police Arrest Six, Seize 24,400 Pirate Boxes

This morning, Spain’s national police and the country’s tax agency further announced the arrest of six people and the seizure of 24,430 TV devices in Madrid. According to the authorities, the group sold the devices on various web platforms and via their own forum, from where technical support was provided to customers.

“The analysis of the bank accounts of those investigated has revealed income derived from the illicit activity of 1.2 million euros between 2017 and 2021,” a police statement reads.

Nagravision Takes Down Popular IPTV Repo

In a late January DMCA notice filed at Github, conditional access systems developer Nagravision requested the takedown of IPTV-org, a very popular location for people looking for free IPTV playlists.

Nagra claimed that some of the channels found in a particular playlist infringed the rights of various Discovery channels and as a result, the repo was completely disabled.

Quite what happened in the following days is unclear but potentially after the infringements were addressed, the repo is now back online, providing access to almost 30,000 channels via its own search engine.

In a DMCA notice filed with Github early February, anti-piracy outfit Group-IB demanded the removal of a script that enable users to watch movies for free using the IDs allocated to movies and TV shows via Russia’s official Kinopoisk video database.

“This script provides access to illegal content – a database of pirated players, which can be accessed using this script for any title with the id of Kinopoisk, which is a serious violation of the rights of copyright holders,” the complaint reads.

ISPs Set to Block Pirate IPTV in Malta

Finally, it appears that pirate IPTV subscribers in Malta may soon find access to their services disrupted after a judge ordered local ISPs to block hundreds of IP addresses used by infringing platforms.

Local reports say that a decision was handed down February 2 by the First Hall of the Civil Court in order to protect the rights of Spanish first and second division football league matches.

From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Enlarge (credit: Getty Images)

A couple days after the FBI warned that a ransomware group called BlackByte had compromised critical infrastructure in the US, the group hacked servers belonging to the San Francisco 49ers football team and held some of the team’s data for ransom.

Media representatives for the NFL franchise confirmed a security breach to multiple news outlets following a post on BlackByte’s site on the dark web. The site promises victims that, in exchange for big payouts, BlackByte will not leak data. Instead, the bad actors will provide victims with a decryption key that allows the data to be recovered. The recent post made a 379MB file named “2020 Invoices” available for download. The file appeared to show hundreds of billing statements the 49ers had sent partners including AT&T, Pepsi, and the city of Santa Clara, where the 49ers play home games.

A busy three months

In statements provided to the Associated Press, Bleeping Computer, and The Record, franchise representatives said investigators were still assessing the breach.

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