Tangle Tech

Today's clever cybercriminals use AI to alter videos' audio content, creating convincing deepfake scams, a problem that could only grow, especially in an election year. To try and combat such threats, McAfee has joined forces with Intel to launch an AI-powered Deepfake Detector. Previously known as Project Mockingbird, the tool looks to identify and notify users when a video's audio is likely AI generated or manipulated. McAfee's Deepfake Detector employs state-of-art AI techniques, including transformer-based Deep Neural Network models, so will only run on systems with an Intel Core Ultra processor. McAfee says the NPU in AI PCs improves the app’s performance by up to 300% and allows local deepfake inference, thereby avoiding sending sensitive user data to the cloud. No plans to bring it to older Intel PCs "In a world where seeing is no longer believing, where AI-generated deepfakes have made it harder than ever to tell real from fake, consumers need the late

Hello and welcome to our live coverage of Dell Technologies World 2024! We're in Las Vegas for this year's event, which promises to be packed full of news and announcements. We'll be covering all the keynotes in our live blog, so keep checking back for all the latest updates when the event starts tomorrow (Monday 20 May)! So what can we expect from Dell Technologies World 2024? The show opens with a keynote hosted by company chairman and CEO Michael Dell, who will be joined by some very special guests. Day two is set to focus more on AI, with a keynote hosted by Jeff Clarke, Vice Chairman and Chief Operating Officer, Dell Technologies. But there's also breakout sessions by some very intruiging guests from the musical and entertainment world - stay tuned to find out more.... from TechRadar - All the latest technology news https://ift.tt/n4C1KoH

LattePanda has unveiled its latest single board computer, the LattePanda Mu - and although it is barely larger than a business card at a mere 60mm x 69.6mm, the micro x86 compute module is equipped with an Intel N100 CPU with 4 cores.  LattePanda says the Mu, which can run both Windows and compatible Linux operating systems, is faster than the Raspberry Pi 5, and more configurable. End-users can design custom carrier boards based on specific requirements, with suggestions including a dual-Ethernet port board for a router and a SATA interface for a NAS solution.  The Mu comes with 8GB of memory with IBECC support, 64GB of eMMC 5.1 storage, and a range of expansion pin options including three HDMI/DisplayPort, eight USB 2.0 ports, up to four USB 3.2 ports, up to two SATA 3.0, and 64 expandable GPIOs. Add your own GPU The Mu also offers up to nine PCIe 3.0 lanes, allowing for the addition of dedicated graphics card, so the diminutive device can be put to more demanding computational

With the Google Pixel 8a now out in the world, the next Google phone off the production line should be the Pixel 9 – and we may now know the colors it'll come in, and the wallpapers that will come supplied with the handset. The wallpaper images have been obtained by Android Authority , and there are 28 in total: you can download and use them now, if you want to give your current phone a bit of Pixel 9 flair while you wait for the next flagship phone from Google. As Android Authority points out, the wallpapers supplied with the Pixel phones – often developed in partnership with design studios – have always been of a high quality, and this latest batch look pretty eye-catching too. The theme of these images is apparently "swirling petals", with the description of "a swirling display of abstract florals" attached. No doubt the Pixel 9 will offer AI wallpaper generation capabilities too, just like the latest models . Color options The Pixel 8a in Aloe

Toshiba has announced plans to bring 30TB+ hard drives to the commercial market in 2025. The large capacities have been made possible through two magnetic recording technologies: Heat Assisted Magnetic Recording (HAMR) and Microwave Assisted Magnetic Recording (MAMR).  HAMR technology significantly enhances writing capabilities by heating the disk material with a near-field laser. HAMR does have its critics, with questions regarding the technology’s readiness, quality, reliability and compatibility, but all of the major drive manufactures are adopting it, and Seagate recently announced the results of an experimental test in which one of its Mozaic 3+ HAMR-equipped drives ran continuously, and problem free, for over 6,000 hours . Yo MAMR! Using HAMR, coupled with Shingled Magnetic Recording (SMR), which increases storage capacity by overlapping data tracks, allowed Toshiba to successfully achieve a drive capacity of 32TB over 10 x 3TB platters. The second technology, MAMR, uses mi

Today's Quordle is pretty easy. Not quite as simple as today's NYT Strands game, immediately, but still not too bad. Then again, that comparison isn't entirely fair, because an easy Quordle is still pretty difficult, so you may well need the clues that I've assembled below. Help yourself to as many as you need. S POILER WARNING: Information about Quordle today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers. Quordle today (game #846) - hint #1 - Vowels How many different vowels are in Quordle today? • The number of different vowels in Quordle today is 4 *. * Note that by vowel we mean the five standard vowels (A, E, I, O, U), not Y (which is sometimes counted as a vowel too). Quordle today (game #846) - hint #2 - repeated letters Do any of today's Quordle answers contain repeated letters? • The number of Quordle answers containing a repeated letter today is 0 . Quordle today (game #846) - hint #3 - uncommon letters Do t

If you're looking for an easy Strands puzzle today, then read on, read on… because that's exactly what you'll get. Frankly, I'd be amazed if you needed my clues, but you'll find them below anyway, because I'm helpful like that.  SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers. NYT Strands today (game #77) - hint #1 - today's theme What is the theme of today's NYT Strands? • Today's NYT Strands theme is… ✨🔥🌹💀🤩👀💐 NYT Strands today (game #77) - hint #2 - clue words What are some good clue words today? Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system. • SOCK • MOTE • FIRES • STARE • STRUT • QUOTE NYT Strands today (game #77) - hint #3 - spangram What is a hint for today's spangram? • Pictograms NYT Strands today (game #77) - hint #4 - spangram position What are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?

Images of Samsung’s upcoming laptop, the Galaxy Book4 Edge, have recently surfaced online. Prior leaks mentioned the kind of hardware it’ll run, but this is the first time we've been given an idea of what the device will look like. The first set comes from tech news site WinFuture and appears to be marketing photographs. According to the publication, there will be two models at launch: a base 14-inch laptop and a 16-inch Pro version. What’s interesting about them is they have a lighter color scheme compared to the rest of the Galaxy Book4 lineup. It’s referred to as “Artic Blue” in the report and comes with gray keys. The other devices are a darker shade of silver housing an entirely black keyboard. And sticking true to its “Edge” moniker, the new Galaxy Book4 looks significantly thinner than its counterparts although we don’t know by how much. WinFuture’s leak didn’t include information on the laptop's size. (Image credit: WinFuture) The slimmer design, unsurprisi

According to a new report, AMD may streamline its mobile CPU brand names by discontinuing the HS, H, and U designations for its 15-45W TDP (Thermal Design Power) chips. Instead, the designation will be changed to the ‘Ryzen AI’ name starting with the upcoming Zen 5 Strix Point processor generation, according to Weibo (reported by igor'sLAB ). There are several reasons AMD could be making such a bold move for the branding of its mobile chips, with the biggest one being to promote a better understanding of the tech giant’s products. Simplifying the old branding to ‘Ryzen AI’ makes it easier for consumers and partners to know a chip’s classification, instead of needing to memorize several unrelated letters. Ryzen AI also allows for different performance levels to be covered under the 15-14W range. And using ‘AI’ in the new brand demonstrates that AMD is committing itself to AI-powered APUs. The report states that certain branding will remain the same. For instance, the “successo

Cybersecurity researchers from Intego have discovered new variants of the dreaded Cuckoo malware that targets macOS users. For those unfamiliar with the name, Cuckoo is an infostealer targeting Mac devices running both on Intel and ARM silicon.  Intego’s researchers now say they have found a new variant that was pretending to be Homebrew, a popular macOS software package manager. The attackers set up a fake landing page, seemingly identical to the authentic Homebrew page, which deployed the infostealer. Poisoning Google Ads In early May 2024, Mac security provider Kandji said the malware “queries for specific files associated with specific applications, in an attempt to gather as much information as possible from the system." Apparently, Cuckoo was looking for hardware information, currently running processes, and installed applications.  Among its key features are the ability to take screenshots, harvest data from iCloud Keychains, Apple notes, web browsers , different ap

It's Friday, the sun is shining (where I am at least) and it's a fine day to play Strands, the NYT's new-ish word game. If you haven't played before and have landed here curious to see what it's about, check out my What is NYT Strands? hub. If you already know all about it, read on for my hints and to see how I did today. SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers. NYT Strands today (game #75) - hint #1 - today's theme What is the theme of today's NYT Strands? • Today's NYT Strands theme is… Looking for a mate NYT Strands today (game #75) - hint #2 - clue words What are some good clue words today? Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system. • PRIME • LIME • PREEN • GOING • CHOPS • BETTER NYT Strands today (game #75) - hint #3 - spangram What is a hint for today's spangram? • Singular vision NYT Strands today (game

Disney, Fox, and Warner Bros. Discovery are entering a joint venture as the three companies have revealed their new streaming service Venu. Reportedly pronounced as “venue,” the platform will focus entirely on offering live sports.  Variety states it’ll combine content from ESPN Plus and live events from several of “the three companies’ linear TV networks.” This includes but is not limited to, ABC, ESPN2, FS1, TNT, and TBS. If you look at the initial partnership announcement from February , you’ll see everything Venu will offer at launch. Pro football, baseball, basketball, and even Formula 1 racing are all on the table.  There is still a lot we don’t know about the service. Presumably, it will have a back catalog of past games available on demand. Additionally, no one knows when it’s going to launch. The companies are aiming for a Fall 2024 release when it’ll be available as a standalone app, although this could change.  If you go to the platform’s official website, you’ll see a

Hackers have been observed combining spam, a classic IT tech support scam, and Windows built-in remote control and screen-sharing tool, Quick Assist, to deploy the Black Basta ransomware variant.  Reports from both Microsoft, and cybersecurity researchers Rapid7 outlined how the attack is also quite creative and not something that’s often seen in the cybercrime space.  Before the actual attack, the threat actors (which Microsoft identified as Storm-1811) need to obtain two things: the victim’s email address, and phone number.  Deploying Black Basta After that, the attackers will sign the victim up for countless email subscription services. As a result, the victim’s inbox will get absolutely hammered with newsletters, email notifications, and similar unwanted messages.  Then, they will call them on the phone, and impersonate either a Microsoft IT technician, or the IT help desk of the company the victim works for. They will offer to help sort out the problem, and will ask the vic

NVIDIA GeForce NOW’s claim to fame is its ability to let just about any computing device — a phone, Chromebook, or a smart TV — tap into its cloud gaming hardware to play the latest games with supreme performance. And since the service taps into libraries of games that players already own, there are no extra purchases.  With school about to end for the summer and plenty of extra time to game, NVIDIA has an exciting update in store for GeForce NOW. NVIDIA has acknowledged the prevalence of handheld gaming PCs like the Steam Deck and Asus ROG Ally, both excellent ways to tap into games on the go. However, these portables are making the most of integrated graphics, which conserves power and avoids heat, but there’s still plenty of uplift available through the use of more powerful hardware, which can better deliver the top-notch graphics, high resolutions, and smooth frame rates that gamers crave. So NVIDIA is giving them a helping hand. And since all the heavy lifting for GeForce NOW is

The LG B3 is ranked in our best TV list as the best cheap OLED display, thanks to its stunning picture quality, excellent gaming features, and affordable price. Just ahead of this year's Memorial Day sales event, I spotted the 65-inch model on sale for $1,199.99 (was $1,499.99). That's a new record-low price and a fantastic value for a big-screen OLED TV. Released last year, the LG B3 delivers an exceptional picture, thanks to the OLED display coupled with LG's α7 AI Processor Gen6, which results in deep contrasts and rich colors. You're also getting Dolby Vision IQ and Dolby Atmos for superior sound, excellent gaming features, and smart capabilities with webOS 23. The best part about the LG B3 is, by far, the price. It's not only LG's cheapest OLED TV, but it's also one of the most affordable OLED displays on the market. If you're looking for a premium display on a budget, you can't get much better than today's deal on LG's 65-inch B

SK Hynix, one of the biggest rivals to Samsung, has been making some major announcements recently, including plans to construct the world’s largest chip factory , and a tie up with TSMC to produce the next-generation of High Bandwidth Memory, known as HBM4. The company’s latest move is the development of a next-generation mobile NAND solution called Zoned UFS (ZUFS) 4.0, which is optimized for on-device AI in mobile devices, particularly smartphones. ZUFS technology classifies and stores data generated from smartphones in different zones, based on their characteristics. In contrast to a traditional UFS, ZUFS 4.0 groups and stores data with similar purposes and frequencies, which reportedly boosts the speed of the device’s OS and improves overall storage efficiency. ZUFS production SK Hynix claims “The ZUFS also shortens the time required to run an application from a smartphone in long hours use by 45%, compared with a conventional UFS. With the issue of degradation of read and wr

I didn't expect Google Glass to make a minor comeback at Google I/O 2024 , but it did, thanks to Project Astra.  That's Google's name for a new prototype of AI agents, underpinned by the Gemini multimodal AI, that can make sense of video and speech inputs, and smartly react to what a person is effectively looking at and answer queries about it.  Described as a "universal AI" that can be "truly helpful in everyday life", Project Astra is designed to be proactive, teachable, and able to understand natural language. And in a video ,Google demonstrated this with a person using what looked like a Pixel 8 Pro with the Astra AI running on it.  By pointing the phone's camera at room, the person was able to ask Astra to "tell me when you see something that makes sound", to which the AI will flagged a speaker it can see within the camera's viewfinder. From there the person was able to ask what a certain part of the speaker was, with the AI

More than 26 million people have had their personal data exposed on the dark web following a cyberattack on Post Millennial and Human Events. Post Millennial and Human Events are conservative media publications - the former for the Canadian market, and the latter for the US, owned by the Human Events Media Group. Earlier this month, a threat actor defaced both websites, left a message impersonating the editor, and stole employee and subscriber data, including full names, email addresses, usernames, account passwords, IP addresses, phone numbers, postal addresses, and genders.  Various campaigns Since both websites target those with far-right, or conservative political views, ahead of the US presidential elections, the repercussions of this data breach could be severe, from simple identity theft , to different ways the data can be used to alter the outcome of the elections. In total, 26.8 million people have had their data stolen. Troy Hunt, the owner and maintainer of the Have I

How often do you read through terms and conditions, EULA’s and privacy policies? Although we know we should scour the fine print, it’s something few of us ever bother to do, and certainly not fully. Non-profit organization Tax Policy Associates wanted to prove how pointless these documents are, and so in February 2024 added a line to its privacy policy, offering a “bottle of good wine” to the first person who spotted the offer and got in touch. After three months of nobody noticing the addition, the reward was finally found by someone who chanced upon it after looking at several examples of privacy policies online to get an idea of how to create their own. Not the first time The organization's head, Dan Neidle, shared the story on X and told the BBC it was "my childish protest that all businesses have to have a privacy policy and no one reads it. Every tiny coffee shop has to have a privacy policy on their website, it’s crazy. It’s money that’s being wasted." In it

We've all been there: you remember reading or watching something on your PC, but all attempts to locate the item again prove futile. Repeating past searches yields nothing, and your browser history is of no use either. You’re not sure where you saw the item, and eventually you begin to question whether you might simply have imagined it. There’s an early episode of Black Mirror called "The Entire History of You" in which "grain" technology allows people to record and replay their memories on demand. This episode, along with the Rewind app on macOS and FOMO (the fear of missing out), has led a developer to create a new open-source app. Windrecorder, the “personal memory search engine”, records everything you see and do on your screen and allows you to rewind and search through it. 15 minute blocks The app uses FFmpeg to record screen activity in 15-minute fragments and then indexes them using a Windows local OCR API and image embedding. You can ignore certai

Another week of Strands puzzles kicks off with what I'd say is a nice straightforward one. If you find it a little tougher than I did, though, you can always use my helpful hints below.  SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers. NYT Strands today (game #71) - hint #1 - today's theme What is the theme of today's NYT Strands? • Today's NYT Strands theme is… Best in show NYT Strands today (game #71) - hint #2 - clue words What are some good clue words today? Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system. • BELL • PRIDE • SLEEP • BOLD • HOLD • SLIDE NYT Strands today (game #71) - hint #3 - spangram What is a hint for today's spangram? • Kennel club NYT Strands today (game #71) - hint #4 - spangram position What are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches? • First: left, 6th row • Last: right, 6th row Right, th

AI technology has already proved instrumental in transforming and disrupting a wide range of industries , and really it’s just getting started. Microsoft, which has gone “all-in” on artificial intelligence, has developed a generative AI model designed expressly for U.S. intelligence services. Unlike other AI platforms, such as Microsoft’s own Copilot, this one will be “air gapped” and won’t require a potentially unsafe connection to the internet. Bloomberg notes, “It’s the first time a major large language model has operated fully separated from the internet… Most AI models, including OpenAI’s ChatGPT rely on cloud services to learn and infer patterns from data, but Microsoft wanted to deliver a truly secure system to the US intelligence community.” 18 months of development The tool will allow intelligence services to use AI for tasks such as analyzing vast swathes of classified data without the fear of data leaks or hacks that could potentially compromise national security. Wil