Liv McMahonTechnology reporter Getty Images “Half of my life is on this app and now they expect us to pay for it.” One-star reviews and a sense of injustice have dominated online discussion since the popular messaging app Snapchat became the latest tech firm to put a price tag on a service people previously enjoyed […]
Chinese EV giant sees UK sales soar by 880%
Chinese car making giant BYD says the UK has become its biggest market outside China, after its sales there surged by 880% in September compared to a year earlier. The company says it sold 11,271 cars in the UK last month, with the plug-in hybrid version of its Seal U sports utility vehicle (SUV) accounting […]
AI means it’s ‘scary times’ for YouTube creators
The world’s biggest YouTuber, MrBeast, says the rapid advance of generative artificial intelligence (AI) is “scary” for the “millions of creators currently making content for a living”. AI tools that can create fully-formed videos from simple text prompts by users have made rapid advances in recent years. The most recent of these, OpenAI’s Sora – […]
North Korean hackers stealing record sums, researchers say
Targeting high net worth crypto holders has helped North Korean hackers steal more than $2bn (£1.49bn) so far this year according to researchers. The thefts are a record for the regime-linked hackers who now account for around 13% of North Korea’s gross domestic product (GDP), according to United Nations’ estimates. For the last few years […]
Two teenagers arrested over cyber-attack on nursery chain
Two 17-year-old boys have been arrested by police investigating a cyber-attack on a chain of nurseries in London. The Metropolitan Police say the pair were arrested at residential addresses in Bishop’s Stortford, Hertfordshire, on suspicion of computer misuse and blackmail. Hackers were said to have stolen the photographs, names and addresses of about 8,000 children […]
Pacific Palisades fire suspect snared by ChatGPT image, say investigators
Ana Faguy and Nardine SaadBBC News, Los Angeles Watch: Palisades Fire spews ‘fire devil’ A 29-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of starting the Pacific Palisades fire in Los Angeles that killed 12 people and destroyed more than 6,000 homes in January. Evidence collected from Jonathan Rinderknecht’s digital devices included an image he generated […]
China tightens export rules for crucial rare earths
China has tightened export controls on rare earths and other materials critical for advanced tech manufacturing as trade negotiations continue with the US. It processes around 90% of the world’s rare earths, which go into everything from solar panels to smartphones – a key bargaining chip ahead of an expected meeting between Chinese leader Xi […]
ID photos of 70,000 users may have been leaked, Discord says
Discord, a messaging platform popular with gamers, says official ID photos of around 70,000 users have potentially been leaked after a cyber-attack. The platform, which has more than 200 million users worldwide, says hackers had targeted a firm that helped to verify the ages of its users but the Discord platform itself was not breached. […]
Tesla investigated over self-driving cars on wrong side of road
Tesla is being investigated by the US government after reports the firm’s self-driving cars had broken traffic laws, including driving on the wrong side of the road and not stopping for red lights. It said it was aware of 58 reports where the electric cars had committed such violations, according to a filing from the […]
Tech billionaires seem to be doom prepping. Should we be worried?
Zoe KleinmanTechnology editor BBC Mark Zuckerberg is said to have started work on Koolau Ranch, his sprawling 1,400-acre compound on the Hawaiian island of Kauai, as far back as 2014. It is set to include a shelter, complete with its own energy and food supplies, though the carpenters and electricians working on the site were […]