Czech cybersecurity firm Avast, which disclosed the vulnerabilities, said it informed the manufacturer about the flaws on June 24, 2019, but added they never got a response to their repeated messages. The trackers — 31 models in all that are made by Chinese IoT manufacturer Shenzhen i365 Tech — allowed users to keep tabs on their childrens’ whereabouts through a companion app and a web portal, while the trackers uploaded the location information to a cloud server that communicated with the apps....

What is school going to be like next year? As school systems scramble to put post-COVID procedures in place in anticipation of what’s bound to be an unprecedented new world in the classroom, students are prepping for…well, virtually anything. The new normal could involve continued virtual learning, alternating school days, or even rotating teachers rather than students to different classrooms to cut down on people in the hallways between classes....

What? Traditionally delineated into male and female, many species can be split into two majority groups consisting of those with XY chromosomes and those with XX chromosomes. Scientists have long suspected that either the presence of the Y chromosome or the absence of the X was responsible for an observed difference in lifespans between the two DNA types. As it turns out, certain properties of the Y chromosome may ultimately be responsible....

“Hey everybody…we’re going to keep this meeting brief. 15, 20 minutes, tops.” You’ve heard that line a million times. And you roll your eyes. Because 30, 45, 60 minutes later, you know with absolute assurance that you’ll still be in that godforsaken meeting. Meetings that go off the rails and soak up your time like a bone-dry sponge are the scourge of any organization. Pinstriped is dedicated to the proposition that if you want a meeting to last only 30 minutes, they are the tool to make that happen....

Developer Niantic told Polygon it’s “prioritizing updates to Pokémon GO features and experiences that can be enjoyed in individual settings.” There will soon be more habitats so trainers can see more monsters without having to stray too far away from home. [Read: This ‘pirate radio’ pays for Netflix, HBO, and Disney+ so you don’t have to] Incense packs, which generate more monster spawns, will also be discounted by 99%, and will last an hour when active....

The “Netflix for piracy,” which used the BitTorrent protocol to let users (illegally) stream films and TV shows, has passed on to the digital afterlife. At least, so it would seem to visitors of popcorn-time.tw. A message was this week posted to the website, emblazoned with the letters “R.I.P.” Alongside the fatal abbreviation was a macabre revamp of the service’s iconic logo. Underneath the gruesome image, a Google Trends screenshot illustrated the declining interest in the service — a clue, perhaps, that its tragic end was caused by cruel neglect....

The adult content company announced Italian users can claim premium subscriptions without entering any of their credit card details throughout March. Pornhub is also donating a percentage all of its proceeds from Modelhub — a subsidiary that helps creators sell content — to local hospitals. [Read: This ‘pirate radio’ pays for Netflix, HBO, and Disney+ so you don’t have to] “Pornhub has decided to donate its Modelhub March revenue to help Italy overcome the emergency,” a message (translated from Italian) reads when you open the site in Italy....

The Porsche Taycan Cross Turismo seems more confused than a chameleon at a carnival. First off, is its name. The Taycan part makes sense. It’s what Porsche called its high-performance EV, so that needs no explaining. This car is also an EV. I think you’re following. The Cross Turismo bit, that’s more of a head-scratcher. It seems Porsche is designing this version of the Taycan for light off-roading and for those that want to travel further afield — that explains the Cross and Turismo part....

At this time of year, most races take place across Northern Europe in many of the regions affected by the virus. As such, races are being canceled left, right, and center and many professional teams, like Mitchelton-Scott and INEOS, are actively avoiding the ones that were scheduled. But professional cyclists aren’t letting the situation stop them — they’re taking racing online. [Read: How this VR video game is transforming indoor cycle training] Throughout March, top flight pros from Mitchelton-Scott’s men’s and women’s squads are taking to online bike racing game Zwift to keep their racing form....

The decoupling comes in the wake of revelations that the social blogging platform “accidentally” targeted ads at some users by way of their email addresses and phone numbers, which they provided only for account security purposes. Twitter admitted it didn’t know exactly how many were impacted by the inadvertent error, but said the issue was fixed as of September. To setup your Twitter account for 2FA, all you need to do is download an authenticator app — such as Authy — that generates randomized six-digit one-time passwords to authenticate your identity when signing in....

But is it one of the most energy-efficient coding languages out there? Not really. A study from researchers of Universidade do Minho, Portugal (first spotted by hackaday) says that Python is just better than Perl in terms of energy consumed while performing certain tasks. It notes that C tops the chart followed by Rust, C++, and Ada. Researchers used 10 popular algorithms from the Computer Language Benchmarks Game (CLBG), to measure the energy consumption, runtime, and memory usage of 27 well-known coding languages....

Fans of cinema from the 1980s may recognize that query as the plot to the classic science-fiction film “Wargames” starring a young Matthew Broderick. It was a great but terribly silly movie that paired nicely with popcorn and suspended disbelief. Nevertheless, the question it asked remains valid. [Note: Spoilers ahead because the movie is more than 30 years old] In the film, the AI is eventually stymied by Boolean logic after attempting to “win” against itself at Tic-Tac-Toe....

Huffman was responding to a question about what startups could learn from TikTok’s success, saying, “I can’t even get to that level of thinking with them.” He also said, “I actively tell people, ‘Don’t install that spyware on your phone.’” [Read: TikTok addict? Slow your scroll with time limit settings] There is some merit to his concerns. Rufposten reported on TikTok using audio and browser-based trackers, which parent company Bytedance says is to “identify malicious browser behaviour....

— Reddit (@reddit) March 4, 2020 Once the tools roll out next week, then Reddit users concerned about another user can flag them for potential self-harm. When they do, Reddit will ask if the reporting user would like Reddit to “reach out” to the affected person. This is where the partnership with Crisis Text Line comes in, as Reddit will reach out to the user to connect them with a counselor from that service....

Last week, things seemed to substantiate after a number of reports claimed to have solid insight into who Apple was talking to, to produce its vehicle. All eyes were on the semi-conjoined South Korean automakers, Hyundai and Kia. However, an article from Bloomberg published this morning has cast new light on the situation saying that the South Korean carmakers deny being in talks with the Cupertino tech giant. Citing people familiar with the matter, Bloomberg says Apple, Hyundai, and Kia stopped talking about a deal to build an autonomous vehicle together weeks ago....

When those bricks – actually, more like interlocking snowflakes – get done being a bridge, they could be autonomously reconfigured to suit another need such as becoming a boat or a glider. They could also simply disassemble themselves and return to storage. This might sound like something out of Neural’s Guide to the Glorious Future of AI, but it’s actually completely grounded in present-day technology. MIT and a US Army think-tank recently published a research paper detailing the development of a mass-producible, reconfigurable, metamaterial that could be used to create robots made out of robots....

The RAT, written in .NET and available for sale on the dark web, also looks for information relating to other activities involving credit cards, business, social media, gaming, and online shopping. For context, a RAT is a type of malware that features a backdoor, enabling perpetrators to remotely control a device. By remotely controlling a device, the intruder is able to surreptitiously monitor user behavior, access confidential information, activate a webcam, take screenshots, and format drives, among other things....

The DeepScribe system will initially focus on transcribing the Cuneiform writing system used in the ancient Iranian Achaemenid Empire (550–330 BC), the University of Chicago News reports. Existing computer systems struggle to translate this script, due to its complex characters and the 3D form of the tablets on which they’re written. The team of researchers from the University of Chicago’s Oriental Institute and its Department of Computer Science thinks their system could do better....

Some cyclists do everything to minimize the weight and maximize the aerodynamics of their two-wheel machines. But as someone who uses e-bikes as veritable car (and subway) replacements rather, I need to be able to run most of the errands I’d regularly do using a larger vehicle. The Burley Travoy makes it so I needn’t have to choose. An ingenious cross between a bike trailer, a handtruck, and a granny cart, the Travoy has helped me haul all sorts of things I’d never imagined I’d be able to carry on a bike — from several weeks worth of groceries to large packages and even some furniture....

Rybkin, who was sentenced by the Sarov City Court on Thursday, was one of three people involved in the illicit mining operation, according to Russian news outlet Meduza. Alongside the prison sentence, Rybkin has also been ordered to pay a $3,122 (200,000 ruble) fine. Specific charges relating to the case include propagating viruses and gaining illegal access to information by using a professional position. Andrei Shatokhin, and Denis Baykov, who worked with Rybkin, were also implicated....