Microsoft mandates a return to office, 3 days per week
- Hacker News.
:::
Flexible work update - The Official Microsoft Blog
Amy Coleman, Executive Vice President and Chief People Officer, shared the below communication with Microsoft employees this morning. How we work has forever changed.Amy Coleman (The Official Microsoft Blog)
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Jeffrey Epstein & JPMorgan: How the Largest U.S. Bank Enabled the Sexual Predator's Crimes
Amid growing pressure for the Trump administration to release the full Jeffrey Epstein files, a New York Times investigation reveals how the country’s largest bank, JPMorgan Chase, enabled Epstein’s sex-trafficking operation and profited from its ties to him. The exposé is based on more than 13,000 pages of legal and financial records. The Times reports JPMorgan processed more than 4,700 transactions for Epstein totaling more than $1.1 billion, including payments to some of the women who were sexually trafficked. The bank “arranged for Epstein to be able to pay those victims, both in the U.S. and in Eastern European countries and in Russia,” says David Enrich, deputy investigations editor for The New York Times. Epstein “operated in large part because he had unfettered access to the global financial system. And for many years, it was JPMorgan that was providing him with that access.”
Jeffrey Epstein & JPMorgan: How the Largest U.S. Bank Enabled the Sexual Predator’s Crimes
Amid growing pressure for the Trump administration to release the full Jeffrey Epstein files, a New York Times investigation reveals how the country’s largest bank, JPMorgan Chase, enabled Epstein’s sex-trafficking operation and profited from its tie…Democracy Now!
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Israel’s Peace Plan: Assassinate the Ceasefire Negotiators
In “a mockery of international law,” per one expert, Israel has bombed the residence of Hamas officials negotiating peace in Doha, Qatar.
Archived version: archive.is/newest/theintercept…
Disclaimer: The article linked is from a single source with a single perspective. Make sure to cross-check information against multiple sources to get a comprehensive view on the situation.
AMD expands FSR 4 with drop-in support for 85 games with latest Radeon driver update - but you still need an RDNA 4 GPU
Support for FSR 4 officially expands to a total of 85 games
Intel ousts CEO of Products as part of the latest executive shake-up, ending 30-year career — company also establishes new custom chip design unit
This continues shake ups under the new CEO who has previously announced plans to flatten executive structure, making more departments and people answer to him directly.
Canon is bringing back a point-and-shoot from 2016 with fewer features and a higher price (it’s viral)
A $379 point-and-shoot with a USB Mini port — in 2025.
Canon is bringing back a point-and-shoot from 2016 with fewer features and a higher price (it’s viral)
Canon’s PowerShot Elph 360 HS A point-and-shoot isn’t really new. It’s much the same as the 2016 original, which became a viral hit because of the digicam trend and celebs like Kendall Jenner.Antonio G. Di Benedetto (The Verge)
This Atari handheld with retro controls is finally available for preorder
Nearly two years after it was first announced the Atari Gamestation Go will launch in October 2025 for $180.
World's first laser communication link between a plane and satellite ran at 1 Gbps — 10-watt laser which has a 3,417 mile range and 2.5 Gbps max data rate
Showcasing an important alternative to radio-based, high-speed communication.
Freedom Flotilla member & supporter group chat shut down by Whatsapp
SMH @ activists using techno-fascist platforms for communications during an operation subject to state-actor level interference. I thought we recognised and acknowledged this problem 15-20 years ago already.
I Hate My Friend: The chatbot-enabled Friend necklace eavesdrops on your life and provides a running commentary that’s snarky and unhelpful. Worse, it can also make the people around you uneasy.
The AI-powered Friend pendant is now out in the world. If you live in the US or Canada, you can buy one for $129.The smooth plastic disc is just under 2 inches in diameter; it looks and feels a little like a beefy Apple AirTag. Inside are some LEDs and a Bluetooth radio that connects you (through your iPhone) to a chatbot in the cloud that’s powered by Google’s Gemini 2.5 model. You can tap on the disc to ask your Friend questions as it dangles around your neck, and it responds to your voice prompts by sending you text messages through the companion app. You can reply to these messages with your voice or via text to keep the conversation going.
It also listens to whatever you’re doing as you move through the world, no tap required, and offers a running commentary on the interactions you have throughout your day. To perform that trick, the device has microphones that are always activated.
If the idea of a microphone-packed wearable that’s always listening to your conversations raises privacy concerns for you, just know that you’re not alone. If your experience is anything like ours, wearing the Friend will likely earn you the ire of everyone around you. Curiously, you might even end up being bullied by the chatbot itself.
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Firefox launches ‘shake to summarize’ on iPhones
cross-posted from: programming.dev/post/37149554
If you have an iPhone 15 Pro or later with iOS 26+, the summary is created on your device using Apple Intelligence. On other devices with earlier iOS versions, the page text is sent securely to Mozilla cloud-based AI, which creates the summary and sends it back.
Firefox launches ‘shake to summarize’ on iPhones
If you have an iPhone 15 Pro or later with iOS 26+, the summary is created on your device using Apple Intelligence. On other devices with earlier iOS versions, the page text is sent securely to Mozilla cloud-based AI, which creates the summary and sends it back.
On Firefox for iOS, summarize a page with a shake or a tap
Firefox for iOS lets you summarize long articles and recipes with a simple shake or tap. Get privacy-first AI summaries on your iPhone.Kristina Bravo (The Mozilla Blog)
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Firefox launches ‘shake to summarize’ on iPhones
cross-posted from: programming.dev/post/37149554
If you have an iPhone 15 Pro or later with iOS 26+, the summary is created on your device using Apple Intelligence. On other devices with earlier iOS versions, the page text is sent securely to Mozilla cloud-based AI, which creates the summary and sends it back.
Firefox launches ‘shake to summarize’ on iPhones
If you have an iPhone 15 Pro or later with iOS 26+, the summary is created on your device using Apple Intelligence. On other devices with earlier iOS versions, the page text is sent securely to Mozilla cloud-based AI, which creates the summary and sends it back.On Firefox for iOS, summarize a page with a shake or a tap
Firefox for iOS lets you summarize long articles and recipes with a simple shake or tap. Get privacy-first AI summaries on your iPhone.Kristina Bravo (The Mozilla Blog)
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Firefox launches ‘shake to summarize’ on iPhones
cross-posted from: programming.dev/post/37149554
If you have an iPhone 15 Pro or later with iOS 26+, the summary is created on your device using Apple Intelligence. On other devices with earlier iOS versions, the page text is sent securely to Mozilla cloud-based AI, which creates the summary and sends it back.
Firefox launches ‘shake to summarize’ on iPhones
If you have an iPhone 15 Pro or later with iOS 26+, the summary is created on your device using Apple Intelligence. On other devices with earlier iOS versions, the page text is sent securely to Mozilla cloud-based AI, which creates the summary and sends it back.On Firefox for iOS, summarize a page with a shake or a tap
Firefox for iOS lets you summarize long articles and recipes with a simple shake or tap. Get privacy-first AI summaries on your iPhone.Kristina Bravo (The Mozilla Blog)
Just had a hospital group employee tell me to simply email medical information
WTF lady? Is this what they are telling people to do now? I said, "email is insecure by design" and she responded, "Well SIR we use a secure server."
"OK, thanks for your time, bye"
Google’s Veo 3 can now generate vertical AI videos
AI slop, now optimized for mobile platforms.
Google’s Veo 3 can now generate vertical AI videos
Google has added support for 1080p resolution and vertical video formats to its Veo 3 AI video generator.Jess Weatherbed (The Verge)
Microsoft and LG Are Bringing Xbox to Cars
You can now play video games while your EV is charging, the company said.
Snapchat hit with Dutch probe over online sale of vapes to minors
The Dutch regulator said it is in contact with the European Commission about the investigation into Snapchat, one of the 25 largest online platforms in Europe.
Microsoft mandates a return to office
Microsoft wants employees back in the office
Microsoft mandates a return to office
Microsoft is requiring its employees to return to the office. Employees near its headquarters will start returning in late February, ahead of other offices.Tom Warren (The Verge)
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Tesla says its new Megablock can cut costs for renewable energy storage.
It’s designed to streamline installation.
Ex-MP Used Forged Docs To Accuse Reporter Of Being KGB Asset: Report
David Pugliese places Chris Alexander’s assault on his character in the context of an “ongoing attack on Canadian journalism.”
[Announcement] Content Creator Boss Rush Event Recap
Last weekend, community streamers Zizaran, Ghazzy and DarthMicrotransaction participated in a 4v4 boss rush event with Doublelift, AnnieFuchsia, Guzutv, Xaryu and Sunglitters.
If you missed the event, check out this highlight video created by Zizaran and his team to find out who won!
Video: This TEAM BOSS RUSH RACE was so much fun!!
Early Access Announcements - Content Creator Boss Rush Event Recap - Forum - Path of Exile
Path of Exile is a free online-only action RPG under development by Grinding Gear Games in New Zealand.Path of Exile
Republican Lawmaker Pleads Guilty in Domestic Abuse Case Alleging Eye-Gouging Attempt
Republican Lawmaker Pleads Guilty in Domestic Abuse Case Alleging Eye-Gouging Attempt
Ty Burns’ plea and sentencing raise questions of accountability after reports he chased his family off the road and assaulted his wife.The Intellectualist
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HMD announces made in Europe smartphone (for governments)? with secure element
The specs are wild, this is likely going to be very expensive
It has a secure element so it could run Graphene no? The only problem is that it's not a mainstream device so I don't think it's going to be supported.
A similar device that's currently released is Nokia XR21, but the only pro is that it's manufactured in Hungary
Don't bother with HMD's candybar dumbphones if you wanna escape Android, mine calls 999 (ambulance) if I put it in the backpack and it did it two times on its own (HMD 110 4G 2024), flip phones shouldn't have this problem though.
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Michigan 'fake electors' will not face criminal trial, judge rules
"These cases will not be bound over to the circuit court," Simmons, a state district court judge, said. "Each case will be dismissed."Simmons said the Michigan Republicans involved in the effort were trying to seek redress after Trump’s loss and attempted to perform their civic duties.
"The prosecution would like the court to believe that these named defendants were savvy or sophisticated enough to understand fully the electoral process, which the court does disagree because the document that was presented doesn't even align with the level of sophistication that they want me to believe," she said before announcing her decision.
Michigan 'fake electors' will not face criminal trial, judge rules
Fifteen so-called fake electors in Michigan will not face a criminal trial over their alleged involvement in efforts to overturn former President Joe Biden's 2020 election win in the state, Judge Kristen D. Simmons announced Tuesday.Megan Lebowitz (NBC News)
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Sam Altman says that bots are making social media feel 'fake'
Sam Altman says that bots are making social media feel 'fake' | TechCrunch
After watching Reddit's OpenAI and Anthropic communities, Sam Altman thinks social media cannot be trusted. And bots are to blame.Julie Bort (TechCrunch)
To decode that a little, he’s accusing humans of starting to sound like LLMs, even though LLMs — spearheaded by OpenAI — were literally invented to mimic human communication, right down to the em dash. And OpenAI’s models definitely trained on Reddit, where Altman was a board member through 2022, and was disclosed as a large shareholder during the company’s IPO last year.
He's a moron.
Catch me on Fireside Fedi in half an hour!
firesidefedi@social.firesidefedi.live kindly invited me onto their show to chat. Looking forward to it!
Episodes are uploaded to their Peertube and you can catch the stream online here
Fireside Fedi Livestream
Fireside Fedi is an attempt to learn more about folks within the Fediverse.Fireside Fedi Livestream
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Graphite, the Israeli spyware acquired by ICE
Graphite, the Israeli spyware acquired by ICE
Paragon’s technology is one of the most powerful commercial espionage tools available, and can covertly activate microphones to turn smartphones into listening devicesAlonso Martínez (Ediciones EL PAÍS S.L.)
Alternativa FOSS a google lens: offline translator
Questa app è una piccola bomba:
- traduzione completamente offline con il motore recentemente implementato in Firefox
- riconoscimento da immagini con tesseract
- overlay del testo tradotto sull'immagine originale
E' ancora un'app giovane ma funziona piuttosto bene. Inoltre mi sembra un passo fondamentale verso la de-googlizzazione
Codice sorgente: github.com/DavidVentura/firefo…
Offline Translator | F-Droid - Free and Open Source Android App Repository
On-device translation of text and imagesf-droid.org
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Firefox launches ‘shake to summarize’ on iPhones
If you have an iPhone 15 Pro or later with iOS 26+, the summary is created on your device using Apple Intelligence. On other devices with earlier iOS versions, the page text is sent securely to Mozilla cloud-based AI, which creates the summary and sends it back.
On Firefox for iOS, summarize a page with a shake or a tap
Firefox for iOS lets you summarize long articles and recipes with a simple shake or tap. Get privacy-first AI summaries on your iPhone.Kristina Bravo (The Mozilla Blog)
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US tech companies enabled the surveillance and detention of hundreds of thousands in China
cross-posted from: sh.itjust.works/post/45704477
“Every move in my own home is monitored,” Yang said, sitting behind black curtains that block him from the glare of police lights trained straight at his house. “Their surveillance makes me feel unsafe all the time, everywhere.”Across China, tens of thousands of people tagged as troublemakers like the Yangs are trapped in a digital cage, barred from leaving their province and sometimes even their homes by the world’s largest digital surveillance apparatus. Most of this technology came from companies in a country that has long claimed to support freedoms worldwide: the United States.
Over the past quarter century, American tech companies to a large degree designed and built China’s surveillance state, playing a far greater role in enabling human rights abuses than previously known, an Associated Press investigation found. They sold billions of dollars of technology to the Chinese police, government and surveillance companies, despite repeated warnings from the U.S. Congress and in the media that such tools were being used to quash dissent, persecute religious sects and target minorities.
Critically, American surveillance technologies allowed a brutal mass detention campaign in the far west region of Xinjiang — targeting, tracking and grading virtually the entire native Uyghur population to forcibly assimilate and subdue them.
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Trump’s Takeover of DC: Traffic Stops Turn Into Immigration Arrests for Delivery Riders and Workers
Four masked men in police tactical vests surround a young scooter rider, cuffing his hands behind his back. One person, whose face is fully obscured with a cap, sunglasses and a balaclava, is heard on eyewitness video telling the scooter rider: “You came into this country as a J1, as an exchange student. You didn’t show up … You lied, ok?”
“Yeah, he’s illegal, either way,” another person is heard saying, before they lead him to an unmarked car.
Screengrab from a video showing a man being arrested by federal agents along Florida Avenue Northwest, Washington DC on Tuesday, Sept. 2. Source: Instagram/@will.allendupraw
Nearby, two Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) cars are seen blocking part of the lane. Uniformed MPD officers stand around the area, neither intervening nor appearing to participate directly in the arrest.
MPD vehicles seen blocking part of a lane where federal officers are arresting a man on a scooter along Florida Avenue Northwest, Washington DC on Tuesday, Sept. 2. Source: Instagram/@will.allendupraw
The video was posted by Will Allen-DuPraw, whose profile says that he is a photographer and videographer based in DC, on Sept. 2. Allen-DuPraw wrote in the post that bystanders reported that authorities were stopping Latino men on scooters along Florida Avenue Northwest, a major road in Washington DC, and had arrested two.
An urgent alert sent out on the morning of the same day by Stop ICE Alerts, a community-driven alert network for those affected by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids, reported similar information. The alert said that ICE, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) – a branch of ICE focused on investigating transnational crime – and MPD were “stopping Latinos on scooters” and had arrested one or two people along Florida Avenue Northwest.
A Metropolitan Police officer directs traffic at a checkpoint on New York Avenue after US President Donald Trump deployed US National Guard troops to Washington and ordered an increase in the presence of federal law enforcement to assist in crime prevention, in Washington, DC. Source: Reuters/Al Drago
With US President Donald Trump’s crackdown on immigration, scenes of federal agents detaining people while accusing them of immigration offences have been cropping up all over social media from around the country. An analysis of ICE arrest data by DC-based think tank Cato Institute found that in June and July alone, ICE conducted almost 9,000 street arrests nationwide of immigrants who had no criminal convictions, charges, or removal orders. About 90 percent of these were immigrants from Latin America.
The incident on Florida Avenue Northwest was one of 42 that Bellingcat and our partner Evident Media geolocated and verified using videos and photos from social media and news reports. These showed federal agent encounters in the capital, in the month or so since Trump’s federal takeover of DC on August 11. The full dataset can be downloaded here.
In the three weeks after DC was placed under federal control, Trump’s administration said more than 300 people without legal immigration status were arrested in the District.
Like previous immigration raids that we documented in Los Angeles, the federal agents involved in the DC cases were often masked and in military wear. Some wore generic “Police” vests, while others had attire indicating specific government entities such as ICE and HSI. The vehicles they used were usually unmarked, with plates from a variety of US states.
Car plates from a variety of US states that federal agents in DC were filmed using in Washington DC. Source: Evident Media
There is one key difference, however. In LA, a state law prohibits local law enforcement from using its resources for immigration enforcement in most cases. But in DC, where no such law applies, MPD has frequently been seen working with federal officers since the federal takeover last month.
In half of the incidents in our dataset, local DC law enforcement could be seen working alongside federal agents. Most of the DC local police were from MPD, though some were from the Metro Transit Police Department. Aside from ICE and HSI, agents from federal agencies including the US Park Police, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) were also seen in the videos.
Agents from US Park Police, FBI, DEA and ATF were seen in the videos. Source: Evident Media
“We are definitely seeing MPD cooperate at a level we’ve never seen before, and it is resulting in people getting arrested and sent to detention,” Michael Lukens, who runs immigrant rights centre Amica, told Evident Media.
MPD has not replied to Evident Media’s queries about their cooperation with federal law enforcement agencies as of publication.
Of the cases we analysed, 22 involved the arrest of delivery drivers or tradespeople, such as workers in an air conditioning and heating truck.
In two widely shared videos, DC resident Tyler DeSue claimed agents pulled over his Uber Eats driver for having “incorrect tags” on his bike, then checked his registration and insurance and saw it was valid. DeSue said they then asked for his immigration status and detained him.
Police officers, one in an HSI vest, seen questioning a man in a video posted by Tyler DeSue on Aug. 17. Source: TikTok/@td13__
The videos DeSue posted did not show the initial encounter between the agents and the driver, but did show the arrest. DeSue can be heard in one video telling agents that the man they were questioning did not understand what they were saying, and they should use Google Translate. Another witness is heard calling the arrest “ridiculous” and questioning if the agents have “better things to do than to harass Uber Eats drivers”.
In a second video, also posted by DeSue, agents are seen wrapping the man in chains before putting him in an unmarked car.
A second video posted by DeSue on Aug. 17 show agents wrapping the man in chains before putting him into an unmarked car. Source: TikTok/@td13__
Another video posted by NPR reporter Chiara Eisner on Aug. 21 shows an agent in a “Police” tactical vest handcuffing a man in front of a truck, with US Park Police nearby. When Eisner asks what is happening, a Park Police officer says this is a traffic enforcement because the man was driving a commercial vehicle on park roads.
US Park Police stand by as a man is arrested by an agent in a “Police” tactical vest, after what they said was a traffic enforcement for driving a commercial vehicle on park roads. Source: TikTok/@chiaraeisner
Evident Media asked the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) about videos of these two specific incidents, as well as whether federal agents were using race or language as factors in their stops and arrests. In response, a DHS spokesperson said:
“What makes someone a target for immigration enforcement is if they are illegally in the US – NOT their skin colour, race or ethnicity. America’s brave men and women are removing murderers, MS-13 gang members, pedophiles, rapists – truly the worst of the worst from our communities.”
The spokesperson also claimed that the men detained in these two incidents were undocumented immigrants who entered the country illegally. They did not mention any other criminal record for the men or comment on why the men were stopped by local police in the first place.
Lukens told Evident Media that ICE agents had been seen in areas with larger immigrant populations, such as Columbia Heights and Adams Morgan, which he described as “high-level racial profiling”.
Constitutionally, the Fourth Amendment protects anyone in the US, regardless of immigration status, from unreasonable searches and seizures by the government.
“If you are an ICE officer and the only thing that you have to fall on or to fall back on in justifying arrest is a person’s racial makeup and what vehicle they are driving, then you have conducted an illegal stop and an illegal arrest,” Lukens said.
Melissa Zhu, Eoghan Macguire, Pooja Chaudhuri, Kolina Koltai, Vladimir Zaha, Fraser Crichton and Bonny Albo contributed research to this piece.
From Evident Media, Jennifer Smart, Kevin Clancy and Zach Toombs contributed to research and production for the video report.
Bellingcat is a non-profit and the ability to carry out our work is dependent on the kind support of individual donors. If you would like to support our work, you can do so here*. You can also subscribe to our Patreon channel* here*. Subscribe to our* Newsletter and follow us on Bluesky here and Mastodon here.
‘How far does this go?' Uber Eats driver detained while making delivery in DC
A D.C. man says he ordered Uber Eats over the weekend, but his delivery driver was detained by federal agents before he could make that delivery.Aimee Cho, News4 reporter (NBC4 Washington)
Commissioner: Ohio schools would need doubled sales tax to replace property tax
A Mahoning County Commissioner contends that Ohio’s sales tax would need to more than double to replace property tax revenue used to fund schools.
Commissioner Geno DiFabio stated on Monday in a social media post that the state’s current tax structure would not support a full repeal of property taxes without a significant increase in other taxes.
DiFabio said the state's property tax system generates about $15 billion for schools annually. He contrasted this with the state's portion of sales tax, which is 5.75% and yields about $14 billion a year.
His analysis suggests that to cover the current school funding, the sales tax would need to increase. In Mahoning County, the current sales tax rate is 7.5%, while neighboring Trumbull County has a rate of 6.75%, and Columbiana County's is 7.25%.
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Investigation: IBM, Dell, Cisco, Oracle, Microsoft, Intel, Nvidia, and other US tech companies helped design and build China's vast digital surveillance state
- Reddit.
:::
US tech companies enabled the surveillance and detention of hundreds of thousands in China - r/news
View on Redlib, an alternative private front-end to Reddit.farside.link
UK toughens Online Safety Act with ban on self-harm content
cross-posted from: programming.dev/post/37143047
The government has today (8 September) announced urgent action to toughen the Online Safety Act by putting stricter legal requirements on tech companies to hunt down and remove material that encourages or assists serious self-harm, before it can destroy lives and tear families apart.While platforms already have to take specific steps to protect children from this dangerous self-harm content, the government recognises that adults battling mental health challenges are equally at risk from exposure to material that could trigger a mental health crisis or worse.
The new regulations mean that content encouraging or assisting serious self-harm will be treated as a priority offence for all users.
UK toughens Online Safety Act with ban on self-harm content
The government has today (8 September) announced urgent action to toughen the Online Safety Act by putting stricter legal requirements on tech companies to hunt down and remove material that encourages or assists serious self-harm, before it can destroy lives and tear families apart.While platforms already have to take specific steps to protect children from this dangerous self-harm content, the government recognises that adults battling mental health challenges are equally at risk from exposure to material that could trigger a mental health crisis or worse.
The new regulations mean that content encouraging or assisting serious self-harm will be treated as a priority offence for all users.
Online safety laws to strengthen to protect people of all ages from devastating self-harm content
Vulnerable people across the UK will be shielded from the most dangerous content online, as new laws are set to be introduced to prevent devastating self-harm material from reaching people of all ages.Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (GOV.UK)
Home Office dangles £1.3M prize for algorithm that guesses your age: Contract tender follows 'alarming' safeguarding failure at border with undocumented kids
cross-posted from: programming.dev/post/37144665
UK Home Office dangles £1.3M prize for algorithm that guesses your age: Contract tender follows 'alarming' safeguarding failure at border with undocumented kids
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