The UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office was hacked in October, the minister Chris Bryant has said. Bryant, a trade minister in Keir Starmer’s government, told Sky News there was a low risk to “any individual” from the cyber-attack. Details of the hack emerged on Friday in a report by the Sun that claimed a Chinese hacker group was behind the cyber-attack. However, Bryant told broadcasters it was “not clear” who perpetrated the attack and cautioned against speculation. “There certainly has been a hack at the FCDO and we’ve been…
Tag: Technology
TikTok signs Trump-backed deal to sell US entity to American investors
TikTok has signed a deal to sell its US business to three American investors – Oracle, Silver Lake and MGX – ensuring the popular social video platform can continue operating in the United States. The deal is expected to close on 22 January, according to an internal memo seen by he Associated Press and Reuters. The TikTok chief executive officer, Shou Zi Chew, said in the memo that ByteDance and TikTok have signed binding agreements with the three investors. The new TikTok US joint venture will be 50% held by…
Trump clears way for Nvidia to sell powerful AI chips to China
Donald Trump has cleared the way for Nvidia to begin selling its powerful AI computer chips to China, marking a win for the chip maker and its CEO Jensen Huang, who has spent months lobbying the White House to open up sales in the country. Before Monday’s announcement, the US had prohibited sales of Nvidia’s most advanced chips to China over national security concerns. “I have informed President Xi, of China, that the United States will allow NVIDIA to ship its H200 products to approved customers in China, and other…
The man who froze his wife and got a new girlfriend: a stranger, sadder tale than I expected | Imogen West-Knights
One of the last remaining fun things about the internet is getting to pass judgment on the goings-on in households that you would never hear about otherwise. On Reddit, for instance, there is a whole thriving sub for just this purpose called Am I the Asshole?, where people describe conflicts from their lives and ask strangers to adjudicate on them. This week, a story on the BBC threw up a particularly juicy piece of other people’s business that has been sparking debates on Chinese social media. It starts in 2017,…
Trump’s plan to impose semiconductor tariffs may be delayed, sources say
US officials are privately saying that they might not levy long-promised semiconductor tariffs soon, potentially delaying a centerpiece of Donald Trump’s economic agenda. Officials relayed these messages over the last several days to stakeholders in the government and private industry, according to two people with direct knowledge of the matter and a third person briefed on the conversations. A fourth person following the matter also said the administration was taking a more cautious approach to avoid provoking China. The discussions have not been previously reported. Trump aides are taking their…
AI firm claims it stopped Chinese state-sponsored cyber-attack campaign
Anthropic says financial firms and government agencies were attacked ‘largely without human intervention’ A leading artificial intelligence company claims to have stopped a China-backed “cyber espionage” campaign that was able to infiltrate financial firms and government agencies with almost no human oversight. The US-based Anthropic said its coding tool, Claude Code, was “manipulated” by a Chinese state-sponsored group to attack 30 entities around the world in September, achieving a “handful of successful intrusions”. Continue reading… The Guardian
China removes two popular gay dating apps from Apple and Android stores
Two of China’s most popular gay dating apps have disappeared from app stores in the country, raising fears of a further crackdown on LGBT communities. As of Tuesday, Blued and Finka were unavailable on Apple’s app store and several Android platforms. Users who had already downloaded the apps appeared to still be able to use them. Both apps were still available for download from their official websites. The apps have not released public statements about the removals. In a statement to Wired, Apple said: “We follow the laws in the…
The race begins to make the world’s best self-driving cars
Hello, and welcome to TechScape. I’m your host, Blake Montgomery, writing to you from Barcelona, where my diet has transformed at least half my body into ham. Who will dominate the autonomous vehicles market? We are on the verge of the global arrival of self-driving cars. Next year, major firms from both the US and China will deploy their robotaxis to metropolises around the world, in major expansions of their existing operations. These companies are posturing in the press like male birds fighting for the same mate; the dance sets…
UK transport and cyber-security chiefs investigate Chinese-made buses
The UK is to investigate whether hundreds of Chinese-made buses can be controlled remotely by their manufacturer, amid increasing concerns over Beijing’s involvement in British infrastructure. The Department for Transport and the National Cyber Security Centre are examining whether buses made by Yutong could be vulnerable to interference. A spokesperson for the Department for Transport said: “We are looking into the case and working closely with the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre to understand the technical basis for the actions taken by the Norwegian and Danish authorities. “The department takes…
Google to build new AI datacentre on tiny Australian Indian Ocean outpost after signing defence deal
Google plans to build a large AI datacentre on Australia’s remote Indian Ocean outpost of Christmas Island after signing a cloud deal with the Department of Defence earlier this year, according to documents reviewed by Reuters and interviews with officials. Plans for the datacentre on the tiny island located 350km south of Indonesia have not previously been reported, and many details, including its projected size, cost and potential uses, remain secret. However, military experts say such a facility would be a valuable asset on the island, which is increasingly seen…