PCB Business Card Plays Pong, Attracts Employer
Facing the horrifying realization that he’s going to graduate soon, EE student [Colin Jackson] AKA [Electronics Guy] needed a business card. Not just any business card: a PCB business card. Not just any PCB business card: a PCB business card that can play pong.
[Colin] was heavily inspired by the card [Ben Eater] was handing out at OpenSauce last year, and openly admits to copying the button holder from it. We can’t blame him: the routed-out fingers to hold a lithium button cell were a great idea. The original idea, a 3D persistence-of-vision display, was a little too ambitious to fit on a business card, so [Colin] repurposed the 64 LED matrix and STM32 processor to play Pong. Aside from the LEDs and the microprocessor, it looks like the board has a shift register to handle all those outputs and a pair of surface-mount buttons.
Of course you can’t get two players on a business card, so the microprocessor is serving as the opponent. With only 64 LEDs, there’s no room for score-keeping — but apparently even the first, nonworking prototype was good enough to get [Colin] a job, so not only can we not complain, we offer our congratulations.
The video is a bit short on detail, but [Colin] promises a PCB-business card tutorial at a later date. If you can’t wait for that, or just want to see other hackers take on the same idea, take a gander at some of the entries to last year’s Business Card Challenge.
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L’intelligenza artificiale spinge le aziende a tornare ai colloqui di persona
Il processo di ricerca di lavoro è stato profondamente alterato dall’intelligenza artificiale, spingendo numerose aziende a riesumare un approccio più tradizionale: i colloqui faccia a faccia, come sottolinea il WSJ.
I colloqui virtuali sono diventati la nuova norma negli ultimi anni, grazie all’aumento del lavoro da remoto e al desiderio dei datori di lavoro di assumere più rapidamente. Tuttavia, i reclutatori affermano che sempre più candidati utilizzano l’intelligenza artificiale per ingannare, ad esempio ricevendo indizi nascosti durante i colloqui tecnici.
Raramente, ma si verificano casi più pericolosi: gli strumenti di intelligenza artificiale consentono ai truffatori di impersonare chi cerca lavoro per rubare dati o denaro dopo aver ottenuto un impiego.
In risposta a ciò, le aziende stanno tornando agli incontri di persona. Cisco e McKinsey ora includono almeno un incontro di persona in diverse fasi del processo di assunzione, e quest’anno Google ha reintrodotto i colloqui di persona per alcune posizioni per testare competenze chiave come la programmazione.
“Vogliamo assicurarci di effettuare almeno un giro di colloqui di persona per accertarci che il candidato abbia le conoscenze fondamentali”, ha affermato il CEO di Google Sundar Pichai nel podcast di Lex Friedman.
Ciò è particolarmente vero per i lavori di sviluppo e ingegneria, dove le attività di codifica in tempo reale sono diventate troppo facili da eseguire con l’intelligenza artificiale. “Siamo tornati al punto di partenza“, afferma Mike Kyle di Coda Search/Staffing.
Secondo lui, la percentuale di datori di lavoro che richiedono riunioni di persona è aumentata dal 5% nel 2024 al 30% nel 2025.
Si tratta di una fase inaspettata nella corsa agli armamenti dell’intelligenza artificiale, in cui i datori di lavoro, sopraffatti dal flusso di candidature, si sono rivolti a software per esaminare i curriculum e filtrarli in massa. I candidati, a loro volta, hanno iniziato a utilizzare l’intelligenza artificiale per rispondere automaticamente a centinaia di annunci di lavoro e creare curriculum personalizzati.
Le nuove tecnologie deepfake consentono non solo di impersonare uno specialista più qualificato, ma anche di organizzare truffe su larga scala. L’FBI ha lanciato l’allarme su migliaia di nordcoreani che si spacciano per americani per lavorare da remoto negli Stati Uniti.
In un sondaggio di Gartner, il 6% dei candidati ha ammesso di aver partecipato a “truffe durante i colloqui” e, secondo le previsioni dell’azienda, entro il 2028 un quarto dei profili dei candidati in tutto il mondo sarà falso.
Un anno e mezzo fa, McKinsey ha introdotto un incontro personale obbligatorio prima di presentare un’offerta. Inizialmente, questo ha aiutato a valutare il modo in cui un candidato stabilisce un contatto, una competenza importante per lavorare con i clienti.
Ora l’azienda ammette che l’aumento delle frodi basate sull’intelligenza artificiale non ha fatto altro che rafforzare questa pratica.
L'articolo L’intelligenza artificiale spinge le aziende a tornare ai colloqui di persona proviene da il blog della sicurezza informatica.
Battaglia per il Cervello! OpenAI e Sam Altman lanciano Merge Labs, rivale di Neuralink
OpenAI e il suo co-fondatore Sam Altman si preparano a sostenere un’azienda che rivaleggerà con Neuralink di Elon Musk sviluppando una tecnologia per collegare il cervello umano a un computer. La nuova impresa, chiamata Merge Labs, sta cercando finanziamenti per 250 milioni di dollari, con una valutazione di 850 milioni di dollari, con una parte significativa del denaro potenzialmente proveniente dalla divisione venture capital di OpenAI.
Altman è un convinto sostenitore del lancio, secondo alcune fonti, e co-fonda Merge Labs con Alex Blania, responsabile del progetto di identità digitale tramite scansione oculare World, anch’esso finanziato da Altman. Tuttavia, non sarà coinvolto nella gestione quotidiana.
Merge Labs è tra le startup in crescita che sfruttano i più recenti progressi dell’intelligenza artificiale per creare interfacce cervello-computer più efficaci. Il nome dell’azienda si riferisce al concetto di “fusione“, il momento in cui esseri umani e macchine si fondono. Altman ha scritto in un post sul blog nel 2017 che questo potrebbe accadere già nel 2025, e quest’anno ha affermato che “interfacce ad alta velocità” saranno presto disponibili grazie alle innovazioni tecnologiche.
Il prossimo progetto sarà un concorrente diretto di Neuralink, fondata da Musk nel 2016. Neuralink sviluppa sistemi per collegare direttamente il cervello a un computer e quest’anno ha raccolto 650 milioni di dollari, per una valutazione di 9 miliardi di dollari. Tra i suoi investitori figurano Sequoia Capital, Thrive Capital e Vy Capital. Lo stesso Altman aveva già investito in Neuralink.
Altman e Musk hanno co-fondato OpenAI, ma Musk ha lasciato il consiglio di amministrazione nel 2018 dopo una divergenza di opinioni. Da allora, i due imprenditori sono diventati acerrimi rivali, con Musk che ha lanciato la sua startup di intelligenza artificiale, xAI, e ha intentato causa per impedire a OpenAI di diventare un’organizzazione a scopo di lucro.
Il mercato delle interfacce cervello-computer è in piena espansione. Oltre a Neuralink, anche le startup Precision Neuroscience e Synchron sono attive nel settore. La tecnologia degli impianti è in circolazione da decenni, ma i progressi nell’elettronica e negli algoritmi di elaborazione dei segnali cerebrali l’hanno avvicinata molto di più all’uso pratico.
Altman ha anche investito in altre iniziative tecnologiche legate a OpenAI, la cui valutazione è di 300 miliardi di dollari. Tra i suoi progetti figurano l’azienda di fissione nucleare Oklo e il progetto di fusione nucleare Helion. OpenAI ha rifiutato di commentare.
L'articolo Battaglia per il Cervello! OpenAI e Sam Altman lanciano Merge Labs, rivale di Neuralink proviene da il blog della sicurezza informatica.
Media Freedom Act: Stampa Romana sostiene esposto alla Commissione europea per riforma Rai
Entra in vigore oggi l’European Media Freedom Act (EMFA), regolamento dell’Ue che impone agli stati membri norme per garantire l’ indipendenza e l’autonomia dei mezzi di informazione e la libertà dei giornalisti intervenendo, tra l’altro, sulle concentrazioni editoriali, il mercato pubblicitario, la trasparenza dei finanziamenti le autorità di controllo, la tutela delle fonti, la nomina dei vertici del Servizio Pubblico. Questioni su cui l’Italia è in evidente ritardo. Nonostante un dibattito pubblico che si trascina da mesi e lo stallo nell’elezione del presidente della Rai, il Parlamento non è riuscito a varare una legge perchè viale Mazzini possa avere risorse certe, una prospettiva industriale svincolata dalla durata dei governi, vertici nominati in base alle competenze. Articolo Quinto, l’associazione (cui Stampa Romana ha aderito) nata per sollecitare l’adeguamento delle norme ai canoni stabiliti dall’EMFA ha presentato tramite il suo presidente Stefano Balassone un esposto alla Commissione europea per queste inadempienze, un’iniziativa che ha il pieno e convinto sostegno di Stampa Romana.
La Segreteria dell’ASR
F-35 italiani intercettano due caccia russi nello spazio aereo Nato. I dettagli
@Notizie dall'Italia e dal mondo
Per la prima volta, due caccia F-35 Lightning II dell’Aeronautica militare italiana hanno intercettato due velivoli russi operanti vicino allo spazio aereo dell’Alleanza. I due aerei intercettati sono decollati dalla base di Ämari, in Estonia, come confermato
Angelucci chiede risarcimento a Di Benedetto e Mantovani (Fatto Quotidiano): la solidarietà di Stampa Romana
Un’azione civile con la richiesta di risarcimento contro i giornalisti che scrivono articoli poco graditi, un classico del repertorio di chi vuole scoraggiare le inchieste. Questa volta Antonio Angelucci, parlamentare della Lega, imprenditore con attività che spaziano dalla sanità all’editoria, per le quali usufruisce di cospicue risorse pubbliche, se la prende con i giornalisti del Fatto Quotidiano Linda Di Benedetto e Alessandro Mantovani, che hanno fatto il loro lavoro di cronisti raccontando la cessione del Tempo al gruppo Toto. Una vicenda che ricorda ancora una volta quanto sia urgente un intervento legislativo per rispondere alla pratica delle richieste di risarcimento e delle querele temerarie. Ai colleghi del Fatto Quotidiano va la piena solidarietà dell’Associazione Stampa Romana.
La Segreteria dell’ASR
By omitting the "one-third" provision that most other states with age verification laws have adopted, Wyoming and South Dakota are placing the burden of verifying users' ages on all sorts of websites, far beyond porn.
By omitting the "one-third" provision that most other states with age verification laws have adopted, Wyoming and South Dakota are placing the burden of verifying usersx27; ages on all sorts of websites, far beyond porn.#ageverification
Wyoming and South Dakota Age Verification Laws Could Include Huge Parts of the Internet
Last month, age verification laws went into effect in Wyoming and South Dakota, requiring sites hosting “material that is harmful to minors” to verify visitors are over 18 years old. These would normally just be two more states joining the nearly 30 that have so far ceded ground to a years-long campaign for enforcing invasive, ineffective methods of keeping kids away from porn online.But these two states’ laws leave out an important condition: Unlike the laws passed in other states, they don’t state that this applies only to sites with “33.3 percent” or one-third “harmful” material. That could mean Wyoming and South Dakota would require a huge number of sites to use age verification because they host any material they deem harmful to minors, not just porn sites.
Louisiana became the first state to pass an age verification law in the US in January 2023, and since then, most states have either copied or modeled their laws on Louisiana’s—including in Arizona, Missouri, and Ohio, where these laws will be enacted within the coming weeks. And most have included the “one-third” clause, which would theoretically limit the age verification burden to adult sites. But dropping that provision, as Wyoming and South Dakota have done, opens a huge swath of sites to the burden of verifying the ages of visitors in those states.
Louisiana’s law states:
“Any commercial entity that knowingly and intentionally publishes or distributes material harmful to minors on the internet from a website that contains a substantial portion of such material shall be held liable if the entity fails to perform reasonable age verification methods to verify the age of individuals attempting to access the material.”
A “substantial portion” is 33.3 percent or more material on a site that’s “harmful to minors,” the law says.
The same organizations that have lobbied for age verification laws that apply to porn sites have also spent years targeting social media platforms like Reddit and X, as well as streaming services like Netflix, for hosting adult content they deem “sexploitation.” While these sites and platforms do host adult content, age-gating the entire internet only pushes adult consumers and children alike into less-regulated, more exploitative spaces and situations, while everyone just uses VPNs to get around gates.
Florida Sues Huge Porn Sites Including XVideos and Bang Bros Over Age Verification Law
The lawsuit alleges XVideos, Bang Bros, XNXX, Girls Gone Wild and TrafficFactory are in violation of Florida’s law that requires adult platforms to verify visitors are over 18.404 MediaSamantha Cole
Adult industry advocacy group the Free Speech Coalition issued an alert about Wyoming and South Dakota’s dropping of the one-third or “substantial” requirement on Tuesday, writing that this could “create civil and criminal liability for social media platforms such as X, Reddit and Discord, retailers such as Amazon and Barnes & Noble, streaming platforms such as Netflix and Rumble,” and any other platform that simply allowed material these states consider “harmful to minors” but doesn’t age-verify. “Under these new laws, a platform with any amount of material ‘harmful to minors,’ is required to verify the age of all visitors using the site. Operators of platforms that fail to do so may be subject to civil suits or even arrest,” they wrote.I asked Wyoming Representative Martha Lawley, the lead sponsor of the state's bill, if the omission was on purpose and why. "I did not include the '33% or 1/3 rule' in my Age Verification Bill because it creates an almost impossible burden on a victim pursuing a lawsuit for violations of the law. It is more difficult than many might understand to prove percentage of an internet site that qualifies as “pornographic or material harmful to minor'" Lawley wrote in an email. "This was a provision that the porn industry lobbied heavily to be included. In Wyoming, we resisted those efforts. The second issue I had with these types of provisions is that they created some potential U.S. Constitutional concerns. These Constitutional concerns were actually brought up by several U.S. Supreme Court justices during the oral argument in the Texas Age Verification case. So, in short the 1/3 limitation places an undue burden on victims and creates potential U.S. Constitutional concerns."
I asked South Dakota Representative and sponsor of that state's bill Bethany Soye the same question. "We intentionally used the standard of 'regular course of trade or business' instead of 1/3. The 1/3 standard leaves many questions open. How is the amount measured? Is it number of images, minutes of video, number of separate webpages, pixels, etc. During oral argument, a Justice (Alito if I remember correctly) asked the attorney what percentage of porn was on his client’s websites. The attorney couldn’t give him an answer, instead he mentioned the other things on the websites like articles on sexual health and how to be an activist against these laws," Soye told me in an email. "The 1/3 standard also calls into question the government’s compelling interest in protecting kids from porn. Are we saying that 33% is harmful to minors but a website with 30% is not? We chose regular course of business because it is focused on the purpose of the business/website, not an arbitrary number. If you look into the history of the bill, 33% was a totally random number put in the first bill passed in Louisiana. Other states have just been copying it since then. We hope that our standard becomes the norm for state laws moving forward."
Kansas Is About to Pass the Most Extreme Age Verification Law Yet
The bill would make sites with more than 25 percent adult content liable to fines, and lumps homosexuality into “sexual conduct.”404 MediaSamantha Cole
A version of what could be the future of the internet in the US is already playing out in the UK. Last month, the UK enacted the Online Safety Act, which forces platforms to verify the ages of everyone who tries to access certain kinds of content deemed harmful to children. So far, this has included (but isn’t limited to) Discord, popular communities on Reddit, social media sites like Bluesky, and certain content on Spotify.
playlist.megaphone.fm?p=TBIEA2…
On Monday, a judge dismissed a case brought by the Wikimedia Foundation that argued the over-broadness of the new UK rules would “undermine the privacy and safety of Wikipedia’s volunteer contributors, expose the encyclopedia to manipulation and vandalism, and divert essential resources from protecting people and improving Wikipedia, one of the world’s most trusted and widely used digital public goods,” Wikimedia Foundation wrote. “For example, the Foundation would be required to verify the identity of many Wikipedia contributors, undermining the privacy that is central to keeping Wikipedia volunteers safe.”"As we're seeing in the UK with the Online Safety Act, laws designed to protect the children from ‘harmful material’ online quickly metastasize and begin capturing nearly all users and all sites in surveillance and censorship schemes,” Mike Stabile, director of public policy at the Free Speech Coalition, told me in an email following the alert. “These laws give the government legal power to threaten platform owners into censoring or removing fairly innocuous content — healthcare information, mainstream films, memes, political speech — while decimating privacy protections for adults. Porn was only ever a Trojan horse for advancing these laws. Now, unfortunately, we're starting to see what we warned was inside all along."
Updated 8/13 2:35 p.m. EST with comment from Rep. Lawley.
Updated 8/13 3:35 p.m. EST with comment from Rep. Soye.
Wikimedia Foundation Challenges UK Online Safety Act Regulations – Wikimedia Foundation
UPDATE: On Monday, 11 August, the High Court of Justice dismissed the Wikimedia Foundation’s challenge to the UK’s Online Safety Act (OSA) Categorisation Regulations.Wikimedia Foundation
Un reattore nucleare sulla Luna entro il 2030. La sfida Usa a Russia e Cina
@Notizie dall'Italia e dal mondo
Nei primi di agosto, l’amministratore pro tempore della Nasa, nonché segretario ai Trasporti degli Stati Uniti, Sean Duffy, ha annunciato che gli Usa intendono accelerare i loro sforzi per installare un reattore a fissione nucleare sul suolo lunare entro il 2030. Secondo Duffy, a sua
CBP's use of Meta Ray-Bans; the bargain that voice actors are having to make with AI; and how Flock tech is being essentially hacked into by the DEA.
CBPx27;s use of Meta Ray-Bans; the bargain that voice actors are having to make with AI; and how Flock tech is being essentially hacked into by the DEA.#Podcast
Podcast: Why Are DHS Agents Wearing Meta Ray-Bans?
We start this week with Jason’s article about a CBP official wearing Meta Ray-Bans smart glasses to an immigration raid. A lot of stuff happened after we published that article too. After the break, Sam tells us about the bargain that voice actors are making with AI. In the subscribers-only section, Jason tells us how a DEA official used a cop’s password to AI cameras to then do immigration surveillance.
playlist.megaphone.fm?e=TBIEA7…
Listen to the weekly podcast on Apple Podcasts,Spotify, or YouTube. Become a paid subscriber for access to this episode's bonus content and to power our journalism. If you become a paid subscriber, check your inbox for an email from our podcast host Transistor for a link to the subscribers-only version! You can also add that subscribers feed to your podcast app of choice and never miss an episode that way. The email should also contain the subscribers-only unlisted YouTube link for the extended video version too. It will also be in the show notes in your podcast player.
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- A CBP Agent Wore Meta Smart Glasses to an Immigration Raid in Los Angeles
- Voiceover Artists Weigh the 'Faustian Bargain' of Lending Their Talents to AI
- Feds Used Local Cop's Password to Do Immigration Surveillance With Flock Cameras
- Congress Launches Investigation into Flock After 404 Media Reporting
The 404 Media Podcast
Tech News Podcast · Updated Weekly · Welcome to the podcast from 404 Media where Joseph, Sam, Emanuel, and Jason catch you up on the stories we published this week. 404 Media is a journalist-owned digital media company exploring the way …Apple Podcasts
Emails obtained by 404 Media show the LAPD was interested in GeoSpy, an AI tool that can quickly figure out where a photo was taken.#FOIA
LAPD Eyes ‘GeoSpy’, an AI Tool That Can Geolocate Photos in Seconds
📄
This article was primarily reported using public records requests. We are making it available to all readers as a public service. FOIA reporting can be expensive, please consider subscribing to 404 Media to support this work. Or send us a one time donation via our tip jar here.The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) has shown interest in using GeoSpy, a powerful AI tool that can pinpoint the location of photos based on features such as the soil, architecture, and other identifying features, according to emails obtained by 404 Media. The news also comes as GeoSpy’s founder shared a video showing how the tool can be used in relation to undocumented immigrants in sanctuary cities, and specifically Los Angeles.
The emails provide the first named case of a law enforcement agency showing clear interest in the tool. GeoSpy can also let law enforcement determine what home or building, down to the specific address, a photo came from, in some cases including photos taken inside with no windows or view of the street.
“Let’s start with one seat/license (me),” an October 2024 email from an LAPD official to Graylark Technologies, the company behind GeoSpy, reads. The LAPD official is from the agency’s Robbery-Homicide division, according to the email. 404 Media obtained the emails through a public records request with the LAPD.
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Solo con l’immunità il Parlamento ritrova la centralità perduta
@Politica interna, europea e internazionale
L'articolo Solo con l’immunità il Parlamento ritrova la centralità perduta proviene da Fondazione Luigi Einaudi.
Socialpoliticanti
@Politica interna, europea e internazionale
L'articolo Socialpoliticanti proviene da Fondazione Luigi Einaudi.
Recensione : Mark Solotroff – In Search of Total Placelessness
Mark Solotroff, figura cardine della scena noise-industrial e power electronics americana (fondatore di Intrinsic Action, Anatomy Of Habit, BLOODYMINDED), torna quest'anno con In Search of Total Placelessness
#musica
iyezine.com/mark-solotroff-in-…
Mark Solotroff - In Search of Total Placelessness - In Your Eyes ezine
Mark Solotroff, figura cardine della scena noise-industrial e power electronics americana (fondatore di Intrinsic Action, Anatomy Of Habit, BLOODYMINDED), torna quest'anno con In Search of Total PlacelessnessNoiseGang (In Your Eyes ezine)
Recensione : The Unknowns – Looking from the outside
The Unknowns "Looking from the outside": un'esperienza punk che scuote e incendia! Scopri il terzo album della band australiana che spacca!
iyezine.com/the-unknowns-looki…
The Unknowns - Looking from the outside - In Your Eyes ezine
The Unknowns "Looking from the outside": un'esperienza punk che scuote e incendia! Scopri il terzo album della band australiana che spacca!Reverend Shit-Man (In Your Eyes ezine)
Perplexity divorerà Chrome di Google?
L'articolo proviene da #StartMag e viene ricondiviso sulla comunità Lemmy @Informatica (Italy e non Italy 😁)
Nell'agone dell'Intelligenza artificiale va in scena la riedizione della lotta di Davide contro il gigante Golia: Perplexity (che farebbe gola ad Apple) pronta a sborsare 34,5 miliardi di dollari pur di accaparrarsi il browser di Google Chrome. Mountain View
Inciampo all’avvio per Alexa+. Perché il super assistente Amazon non convince il New York Times
L'articolo proviene da #StartMag e viene ricondiviso sulla comunità Lemmy @Informatica (Italy e non Italy 😁)
Gli algoritmi AI stanno mettendo a rischio la sopravvivenza dei vecchi assistenti virtuali: ecco perché Amazon sta correndo per presentare al
Perché OpenAI ha dovuto risuscitare il suo vecchio modello Gpt-4o?
L'articolo proviene da #StartMag e viene ricondiviso sulla comunità Lemmy @Informatica (Italy e non Italy 😁)
A volte il vecchio è meglio del nuovo. O almeno, sembrerebbe così nel caso dell'ultimo modello di OpenAI. Dopo nemmeno 24 ore dal lancio di Gpt-5 gli utenti hanno rivoluto indietro il suo predecessore
freezonemagazine.com/articoli/…
È difficile racchiudere in una definizione sintetica una figura di alto livello e versatile come quella di Ivan Pozzoni, ma bisogna comunque partire da un punto inequivocabile: siamo di fronte ad un grande poeta e soprattutto uno dei più originali, innovativi, degli anni 2000 della poesia italiana, versante sul quale la nostra poesia contemporanea, non […]
L'articolo Ivan Pozzoni.
LA CINA HA CREATO IL PRIMO REATTORE NUCLEARE AL MONDO CHE NON PUÒ FONDERSI… DAVVERO?
@Informatica (Italy e non Italy 😁)
La notizia non ha avuto molta eco, però merita un approfondimento: “La Cina ha testato con successo un reattore nucleare rivoluzionario..
L'articolo LA CINA HA CREATO IL PRIMO REATTORE NUCLEARE AL MONDO CHE NON PUÒ FONDERSI… DAVVERO?
Dopo più di 30 anni Aol disconnette la connessione Internet dial-up
L'articolo proviene da #StartMag e viene ricondiviso sulla comunità Lemmy @Informatica (Italy e non Italy 😁)
Protagonista indiscusso dell'era di Internet 1.0, Aol ha scontato diversi errori strategici ed è stato zavorrato dall'evidente incapacità di innovare, finendo presto relegata ai margini della Rete.
Difesa, la capacità produttiva europea è triplicata rispetto al 2021
@Notizie dall'Italia e dal mondo
L’industria della difesa europea sta attraversando la più ampia fase di espansione dalla fine della Guerra fredda. Secondo un report del Financial Times, i cantieri legati alla produzione di armamenti si moltiplicano a un ritmo tre volte superiore rispetto ai tempi pre-invasione dell’Ucraina, con oltre
Qualcosa di strano galleggia nei nostri oceani da anni e gli scienziati hanno finalmente capito di cosa si tratta
Gli scienziati hanno scoperto 27 milioni di tonnellate di materiale invisibile nell'Atlantico, il che suggerisce danni profondi e potenzialmente irrevLee Bell (Meteored Italia)
A DEA agent used a local cop's password "for federal investigations in late January 2025 without [the cop's] knowledge of said use."
A DEA agent used a local copx27;s password "for federal investigations in late January 2025 without [the copx27;s] knowledge of said use."#Flock
Feds Used Local Cop's Password to Do Immigration Surveillance With Flock Cameras
A Drug Enforcement Administration agent used a local police officer’s password to the Flock automated license plate reader system to search for someone suspected of an “immigration violation.” That DEA agent did this “without [the local police officer’s] knowledge,” and the password to the Flock account, which belonged to the Palos Heights PD, has since been changed. Using license plate readers for immigration enforcement is illegal in Illinois, and casual password sharing between local police and federal law enforcement for access to surveillance systems is, at the very least, against Flock’s terms of service.The details of the search were first reported by the investigative news outlet Unraveled, which obtained group chats about the search using a public records request. More details about the search were obtained and shared with 404 Media by Shawn, a 404 Media reader who filed a public records request with Palos Heights after attending one of our FOIA Forums.
DEA agent used Illinois cop’s Flock license plate reader password for immigration enforcement searches
A federal Drug Enforcement Administration agent on a Chicago area task force used Palos Heights Detective Todd Hutchinson’s login credentials to perform unauthorized searches this past January. Group chat screenshots obtained via public records request show the detective and the feds discussing the incident.Unraveled Press
Flock makes automated license plate reader (ALPR) cameras, which passively collect the time, plates, and model of cars that drive past them and enter them into a network that can then be searched by police. Our investigation in May showed that federal agents were gaining side-door access into this system by asking local police to perform immigration enforcement searches for them; the new documents show that in some cases, local police have simply given federal agents their passwords.The documents obtained by Unraveled show details of an internal investigation done by the Palos Heights, Illinois police department in response to a series of questions that I asked them for an article we published in May that appeared to show a Todd Hutchinson, a police officer in Palos Heights, performing a series of Flock searches in January as part of their research into an “immigration violation.”
At the time, Palos Heights police chief Mike Yott told me that Hutchinson was a member of a DEA task force “that does not work immigration cases.”
“None of our officers that work with federal agencies have cross designation as immigration officers, and therefore have no immigration authority, and we and our partner agencies are very sensitive to the fact that we and the State of Illinois do not pursue immigration issues,” Yott said. “Based on the limited information on the report, the coding/wording may be poor and the use of Flock may be part of a narcotics investigation or a fugitive status warrant, which does on occasion involve people with various immigration statuses.”
Our reporting set off an internal investigation into what these searches were for, and who did them, according to the documents obtained by Unraveled. According to a July 9 investigation report written by the Palos Heights Police Department, Hutchinson was the only task force member who had access to Flock. Information about what the search was actually for is redacted in the internal investigation, and neither the Palos Heights Police Department nor the DEA has said what it was for.
“Hutchinson advised that it was common that he allowed others to use his login to Flock during the course of their drug investigations. TFO Hutchinson spoke to his group and learned that one of the DEA agents completed these searches and used his login information,” the report says. The DEA agent (whose name is redacted in the report) “did in fact use Hutchinson’s login for federal investigations in late January 2025 without Hutchinson’s knowledge of said use.”
“When I had shared my account with the Special Agent, I believed it would only be used for DEA/narcotics related investigations,” Hutchinson wrote in an email to his bosses explaining why he shared his password. Hutchinson said in a series of text messages to task force officers, which were also obtained by Unraveled, that he had to change the password to lock other members of the task force out of the system.
“What’s the new password?,” a task force member wrote to Hutchinson.
“Sorry man. Keys had to be taken away,” he responded.
The task force member replied with a gif of a sad Chandler Bing from friends sitting in the rain.
“Hey guys I no longer have access to Flock cause Hutch took my access away,” another group text reads. “Apparently someone who has access to his account may have been running plates and may have placed the search bar ‘immigration’.. which maybe have brought undue attention to his account. Effective immediately Defer all flock inquiries to Toss Hutchinstein[sic].”“Dear Todd, I hope you don’t get in trouble cause of my mistake,” the DEA agent joked in the group chat. “U were so helpful in giving the group access but now that is gone, gone like dust,…..in the wind … Trust is broken / I don’t know if bridges can be mended … one day we might be back to normal but until then I will just have to sit by this window and pray things will return … Best Regards. Ps, can u flock a plate for me”
“Only time will tell my fate, I suppose,” Hutchinson responded. “What’s the plate? And confirming it is NOT for immigration purposes…”
“It was a test …… and u passed ….,” the DEA agent responds.
In response to a separate public records request filed by Shawn, the 404 Media reader, and shared with us, the Palos Heights Police Department said “Our investigation into this matter has revealed that while these inquiries appear to have been run as part of a taskforce assignment, no member of the Palos Heights Police Department ‘ran’ those queries. They were, apparently, run by another, non-Palos Heights, task force member who used a Palos Height's member's sign in and password information without his knowledge.”The Palos Heights Police Department said in its investigation files that “this incident has brought to light the need to review our own protocols of LPR use.” The police department said that it had decided to limit searches of its Flock system only to agencies within the state of Illinois, rather than to police departments around the country. The department also turned on two-factor authentication, which had not been previously enabled.
“Lastly, I believe there is a need to start a monthly review of our own flock searches to ensure our officers are working within standards and compliant with all policies and laws,” the report says.
Palos Heights’ casual sharing of passwords to a powerful surveillance system is a violation of Flock’s terms of service, which states “Authorized End Users shall not share their account username or password information and must protect the security of the username and password.”
More concerningly, it shows, as we have been reporting, that there are very few practical guardrails on how Flock is being used. The DEA does not have a contract with Flock, and police generally do not obtain a warrant to use Flock. We have repeatedly reported on police officers around the country who have offered to either run plates for their colleagues or to give them access to their logins, even when those agencies have not gone through proper acquisition channels.
The Palos Heights police department did not respond to a request for comment from 404 Media. The DEA told 404 Media “we respectfully refer you to the Palos Heights Police Department.” Flock also did not respond to a request for comment. The House Oversight Committee announced last week that it had launched an investigation into how Flock is being used to search for immigration violations.
ICE Taps into Nationwide AI-Enabled Camera Network, Data Shows
Flock's automatic license plate reader (ALPR) cameras are in more than 5,000 communities around the U.S. Local police are doing lookups in the nationwide system for ICE.Jason Koebler (404 Media)
Bravo Donald: sono gli americani a pagare l'86% dei rincari innescati dai dazi
Secondo un rapporto di Goldman Sachs gli esportatori stranieri hanno sopportato solo il 14% degli aumenti innescati dalle tariffe americane. Il resto le impres…Claudio Paudice (HuffPost Italia)
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Lezioni di conversazione in italiano
Uso spesso podcast e video di persone di madrelingua inglese per migliorare la conoscenza della lingua.
Mi piacerebbe restituire il favore.
Ho pensato che magari da qualche parte sul pianeta c'è qualcuno che studia italiano a cui potrebbe fare altrettanto comodo avere uno sparring partner, quindi non podcast e video ma vere conversazioni on-line (gratuite).
Non so da che parte partire per far arrivare la notizia a chi potrebbe essere interessato, voi come fareste?
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«Non c’è nessun caro ombrellone»
ci vuole coraggio a definire i prezzi in italia non esosi e non un'emergenza... pazzesca la ghigna che ha la gente. fosse per me renderei obbligatoria una spiaggia libera accanto a ogni stabilimento a pagamento.
L’Italia investe nelle startup tecnologiche israeliane
@Notizie dall'Italia e dal mondo
La Cassa Depositi e Prestiti destina decine di milioni di euro a imprese israeliane di intelligenza artificiale e calcolo quantistico. L’obiettivo è attrarre in Italia competenze e innovazione, dimenticando la distruzione di Gaza
L'articolo L’Italia investe nelle startup tecnologiche israeliane
alephoto85
in reply to Max - Poliverso 🇪🇺🇮🇹 • • •ricordo app, forse "Hello Talk" e "Tandem", che potrebbero essere utili in questo caso ma non mi viene in mente nessuna alternativa open.
Se invece ti va bene anche offline, al mio circolo arci di fiducia, organizzano lezioni di italiano per stranierз, giusto per fare un esempio.
Magari prova a vedere se nella tua zona ci sono progetti simili. Credo ci sia sempre bisogno di volontarз.
Max - Poliverso 🇪🇺🇮🇹
in reply to alephoto85 • •@alephoto85
Sì in effetti è una buona idea, non ci avevo pensato. Grazie.
Anche se a me piacerebbe di più farlo con gente che sta dall'altra parte del mondo, così potrei approfittarne per farmi raccontare qualcosa di come vivono laggiù 😀
alephoto85
in reply to Max - Poliverso 🇪🇺🇮🇹 • • •capisco! Ci sta effettivamente! Sono sicuro però che anche chi arriva qui da lontano avrà qualcosa da raccontare in merito.
Se trovo altre cose online ti scrivo ma adesso mi vengono in mente solo quelle 😅