Biggest Treasury ETF Sees Largest Exodus Since 2020 Meltdown
Investors are bailing out of the biggest exchange-traded fund devoted to Treasuries at the fastest pace since markets
1970-01-01 08:00
Hackers ’emptied’ victims’ accounts and tried to blackmail GTA maker, court told
A hacking gang stole victims’ savings and tried to blackmail major companies including the maker of the best-selling Grand Theft Auto videogames, prosecutors claim. Arion Kurtaj, 18, and a 17-year-old who cannot be named for legal reasons are accused of being “key players” in the LapsusS hacking group, a trial at Southwark Crown Court in London has heard. The duo, aided by unknown associates, are alleged to have hacked the servers and data files of broadband provider BT and mobile operator EE before demanding a four million dollar ransom on August 1 2021. Kurtaj is further accused of targeting transport giant Uber, financial technology firm Revolut and Rockstar Games, developer of the Grand Theft Auto series, in quick succession in September 2022, the court has heard. It’s perfectly plain from the evidence that those involved in the attacks were totally serious in this endeavour of hacking companies and stealing valuable data from those companies with the intention of profiting from that, sometimes on a huge scale, whether by blackmail or fraud Prosecutor Kevin Barry He allegedly tried to blackmail Rockstar Games by threatening to “leak the stolen source code for the Grand Theft Auto sequel onto internet forums”, the indictment states. Kurtaj and the youth are also accused of hacking software company Nvidia in February 2022 before threatening to “release Nvidia Corporation’s intellectual property on to the web” if it did not pay them. In a closing speech to the jury on Monday, prosecutor Kevin Barry said: “The victims in this case, and they undoubtedly were victims, they were members of the public who suffered the SIM swap frauds and losses as a result of that. “There were also big corporations who were targeted and attacked. “It hasn’t been suggested by anyone that any of these attacks were just individuals out for larks and laughs. “It’s perfectly plain from the evidence that those involved in the attacks were totally serious in this endeavour of hacking companies and stealing valuable data from those companies with the intention of profiting from that, sometimes on a huge scale, whether by blackmail or fraud.” He said the jury has heard evidence from members of the public who had their data stolen during the BT/EE hack. “They found their lives, some of them, turned upside down with accounts accessed and emptied of savings,” he said. He said one man’s account on Coinbase, a cryptocurrency exchange platform, had £38,000 taken from it. Mr Barry said “major corporations” were also targeted by the hacking gang and “enormous disruption and costs were suffered by them” as a result. He added: “Make no mistake, in this case, members of the jury, that losses experienced by these companies were real, they were a direct consequence of the defendants’ actions and those of their associates.” He added: “Any loss they suffered through activity like this will ultimately be passed on to their customers, people like us.” He told jurors “each of the defendants has previous convictions for committing computer-enabled offences in the recent past”. Psychiatrists have assessed Kurtaj as unfit to stand trial so the jury must decide whether he committed the acts alleged against him. Kurtaj is charged with 12 offences, including six counts under the Computer Misuse Act, three counts of blackmail and two counts of fraud. The youth is charged with two counts of blackmail, two counts of fraud and three counts under the Computer Misuse Act, relating to the BT/EE and Nvidia allegations. He previously pleaded guilty to one offence under the Computer Misuse Act and one count of fraud. The prosecutor is due to finish his speech on Tuesday.
1970-01-01 08:00
Montana Youth Climate Activists Get Historic Win in State Case
(Bloomberg Law) -- A state judge ruled Monday that Montana’s oil and gas policies are infringing on young people’s constitutional
1970-01-01 08:00
iPhone 14 and Pro: Apple users say their phone batteries are running down unexpectedly quickly
Some iPhone users say that the latest models are losing power unexpectedly quickly. The iPhone 14 and 14 Pro’s batteries are aging more quickly than those in previous versions of the iPhone, the affected users complain. For years, Apple has offered the ability to see an iPhone’s “maximum capacity”. That is a measure of how much energy can be stored in the battery, and therefore indicates how long it will last on a single charge. As with all lithium-ion batteries of the kind used in the iPhone, that battery will gradually lose their capacity over time. A number of factors will influence how quickly they do so, including the temperature and how often that battery has been used and recharged. But owners of the new iPhone 14 and 14 Pro say that process has been happening more quickly. Some users say they have already lost 15 per cent or more of their capacity after less than a year of owning the phone. Joanna Stern, a personal technology columnist at the Wall Street Journal, said that her phone had already reached 88 per cent battery capacity. She said that she had been told by the Apple Store that her heavy use of the iPhone meant that it had already hit 450 charge cycles – which would represent heavy use of the kind that Apple says can reduce the iPhone’s battery life. But she also suggested the problem could be the result of “heat from fast charging”. But she also suggested that the problem could be the result of heat in the world: iPhones and other electronic devices can suffer when they reach high temperatures, and very hot summers in some part of the world could have degraded their performance. Ms Stern was not alone in her complaint: on Twitter, a number of posts in response to hers and others suggested that other users were surprised by how quickly their battery’s capacity had declined. But others still indicated they were seeing performance in line with previous years, and so it is difficult to know whether there is a problem with this generation’s iPhones more generally. Apple has a support page dedicated to the iPhone’s battery and how it relates to the performance of the phone more generally. There, it says that “a normal battery is designed to retain up to 80 per cent of its original capacity at 500 complete charge cycles when operating under normal conditions”. The company also notes that defective batteries are covered by the one-year warranty with the phone. If the battery is out of warranty, then Apple will replace it for a charge – or it can also be done under the third-party and DIY repair programmes that the company has supported in recent years. The iPhone 14 first went on sale on 16 September last year, meaning that owners who bought the new models soon after release will now be approaching the end of that one-year warranty period. Apple is expected to announce a new iPhone 15 and 15 Pro around the same time this year, with an increased battery life. The maximum capacity of an iPhone’s battery can be found by opening up the Settings app, navigating to the “Battery” option and clicking “Battery health & charging”. That will show not only the “maximum capacity” of that battery, but also whether it is still operating at its peak performance and the option for “optimised battery charging”, which will control when the iPhone charges to try and protect it from ageing. Apple added those options in iOS 11.3, as part of a broader set of battery tools that were a response to “batterygate”. That event saw users complain that their iPhones were slowing down because of tools that were added to protect iPhones from problems with ageing batteries – but sparked complaints from users that performance of their phone was being changed without their knowledge. Read More Apple is working on a mysterious new project called ‘Watch X’, report claims Apple is planning a host of powerful new Macs, rumours say Apple’s iPhone 15 release date leaked amid reports of ‘severe shortages’ Apple gives update on its plans for AI – and says it is coming to every product Apple results show sales slumping Apple planning new version of AirTags – but not for some time
1970-01-01 08:00
More than 20 million Americans enrolled in a federal program for subsidized internet access
More than 20 million US households are now receiving discounts on internet service as part of a federal program created to close the digital divide, according to the Federal Communications Commission.
1970-01-01 08:00
What Is VRAM? Why Games Are Using it More, and How to Optimize Your PC
After many years of being largely an afterthought, VRAM is suddenly a hot topic du
1970-01-01 08:00
Hawaiian Electric Industries shares plunge amid deadly Maui wildfire scrutiny
(Reuters) -Hawaiian Electric Industries' shares plunged nearly 40% to a 13-year low in early trading on Monday amid growing scrutiny
1970-01-01 08:00
CBS announces Wendy McMahon to lead news in wake of Neeraj Khemlani stepping down
Wendy McMahon was named president and chief executive officer of CBS News, the network's local TV stations, and CBS Media Ventures, the company announced on Monday following the departure of Neeraj Khemlani as co-president of CBS News and stations.
1970-01-01 08:00
Watch X: Apple working on dramatic redesign for its wearable, report claims
Apple is working on a “Watch X”, bring a major redesign and new features to its wearable, according to a new report. The new version will be thinner, bring new health features such as a blood pressure sensor and change the technology powering the screen, according to a new report from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. But the new version of the Watch might not arrive until next year, or even the year after that, he reported. As such, the new design would mark the 10th anniversary of the Watch, which went on sale in April 2015. Apple undertook a similar significant redesign for the 10th version of the iPhone, with the iPhone X. That also brought a new look, with a slimmer design and a display that wrapped all the way to the edge of the phone, and new technologies such as facial recognition. This year’s Apple Watch is expected to bring a new processor, which would be the first since 2020’s Series 6. Otherwise, it is expected to stay largely the same on the outside. That might give Apple more time to work on that rumoured “Apple Watch X”, for the years that would follow. As well as the new redesign and features, it might rely on a microLED screen that has not yet been seen in the Apple Watch. Apple has long been rumoured to be working on such screen technology for the Watch, to bring the brighter and more colourful screen technology to the small display. Rumours have suggested however that the company has struggled with the new technology, and hit problems with shrinking it down to the size of the Watch and allowing it to stay affordable. The other major feature update is said to be a blood pressure built into the Watch itself. Chief executive Tim Cook has repeatedly said that health is one of the big focuses of Apple’s work, and has been rumoured to be working on new sensors including blood glucose and blood pressure, presumably for its wearables. The redesign could have some drawbacks. The redesign will bring with it a new, magnetic way of attaching watchbands – which would presumably mean that existing Watch straps will not work with the Watch X. Until now, all versions of the Watch have been compatible with all of Apple’s straps, as long as they are the correct one of two sizes. Mr Gurman did suggest on Twitter that Apple or third-party manufacturers could create adapters to allow old straps to work on new Watches. Read More Apple Watch 7 pre-order: How to buy the new smartwatch in the UK Apple introduces new version of Watch with complete redesign iPhone 13 - live: UK contract deals and prices for Apple, EE and O2
1970-01-01 08:00
Romeo Lavia chooses next club after lengthy Chelsea and Liverpool battle
Romeo Lavia will undergo a medical with Chelsea after opting to join the Blues ahead of Liverpool. Southampton have agreed to sell the 19-year-old in a deal that could eventually be worth £55m.
1970-01-01 08:00
Batiste dry shampoo settles $2.5m lawsuit over harmful levels of cancer-causing chemical
Church & Dwight, the parent company of Batiste, has agreed to settle a $2.5m class action lawsuit that claims its dry shampoo products contain a potentially harmful level of benzene, a chemical known to cause cancer in humans. Now, customers who purchased one or more Batiste dry shampoo products may be able to cash in on the million-dollar lawsuit. In the lawsuit, plaintiffs claimed that Batiste dry shampoo was contaminated with benzene, a known human carcinogen linked to leukaemia and other blood-related cancers. While the manufacturer has denied allegations of contamination and “denies that it did anything wrong”, it has agreed to pay out the $2.5m settlement “to avoid the costs and distractions associated with continuing this case”. The company’s settlement means that customers can qualify for a refund based on the type and number of Batiste products they purchased. Those who bought Batiste Bare or Clean or Batiste Light Bare dry shampoo products before 30 May 2023 - and can provide proof of purchase - can receive a full refund for the products they purchased through cash payment or a voucher. Meanwhile, people who cannot provide proof of purchase may receive $2 per product up to five products, for a maximum payment of $10. Customers who purchased Batiste products that were not Bare dry shampoos can still receive a $2 product voucher for each purchased product up to five items, for a maximum total of $10. Those who wish to take part in the class action claim must submit a valid claim form by 15 November 2023. The form asks customers to submit their name, address, and email, as well as information about the products purchased and payment options to receive the refund. The final approval hearing for the settlement is currently scheduled for 16 October 2023. The Batiste dry shampoo class action lawsuit comes nearly one year after Unilever - the manufacturer for brands like Dove, Suave, and TRESemmé - recalled 19 dry shampoo aerosol products for “potentially elevated levels” of benzene. After conducting an internal investigation, the company identified the propellant used in its aerosol cans as the source for the high levels of benzene. However, Unilever added that daily exposure to benzene in dry shampoo products “would not be expected to cause adverse health consequences”. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), benzene is a chemical that can occur naturally in the environment – such as in crude oil or gasoline – and can be used to manufacture plastics, lubricants, dyes and detergents. Indoor and outdoor air also contains low levels of benzene due to tobacco smoke, motor vehicle exhaust, industrial emissions and or household paints. The major effect of long-term exposure to benzene is on the blood, which can lead to a decrease in red blood cells or anemia after a year or more of exposure to high benzene levels. The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) has determined that benzene can also cause blood-related cancers, such as leukaemia. Last November, independent laboratory Valisure found that 70 per cent of samples across 34 brands of Unilever dry shampoo products contained “quantifiable” levels of benzene. “The detection of high levels of benzene in dry shampoos should be cause for significant concern since these products are likely used indoors, where benzene may linger and be inhaled for prolonged periods of time,” said David Light, chief executive officer of Valisure, in a statement. “These and other issues identified by Valisure, including the detection of benzene in body spray, hand sanitiser, and sunscreen products, strongly underscore the importance of independent testing and its need to be better integrated into an increasingly complex and vulnerable global supply chain.” The Independent has contacted Church & Dwight for comment. Read More High levels of cancer-causing chemical detected in dry shampoo, study finds Procter & Gamble recalls more than 30 dry shampoo and conditioner products Trader Joe’s recalls two types of cookies over concerns they may contain rocks How quitting smoking can boost your health and finances – as Government considers adding messages to cigarette packs Mother tried to cure son of disease by putting him in a hole as a child Is it ever safe to sunbathe?
1970-01-01 08:00
Sony Music, Triller end copyright case over platform's music use
By Blake Brittain Sony Music Entertainment has dropped a lawsuit against Triller over allegations the short-form video platform
1970-01-01 08:00
