How true! It's like from the day that Windows went from running under DOS to DOS running under windows, Microsoft has slowly but surely taken power from us and put us under it's thumb! Now, instead of getting our product to work under Windows, it's getting it to run DESPITE windows.

windowscentral[.]com/hardware/big-tech-or-big-brother-our-devices-dont-feel-like-theyre-working-for-us

Reading this I kept thinking of Dragonlair and her recent frustrations.

Back in the day, if I bought a laptop, phone, or other device, I'd customize it until it functioned just the way I liked it. Whatever I bought served as a tool that did exactly what I wanted (within a device's capabilities) and only when I instructed it. The software largely stayed the same aside from manual changes that I instigated. To an extent, those devices thoroughly represented me and my desires, and so it was easy to love them.

But that stability and permanence are gone.

Many modern devices no longer feel like they really belong to us. Sure, I might own the hardware, but its soul is on loan and likely to change, thanks to the internet. That connection means that many of our devices are constantly getting updates that can drastically alter our user experience and how we feel about our devices.

Alcohol

True - Where did everyone go?!?!?!
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The person below me loves Christmas!

Receive: Tickets to Oppenheimer instead
Insert: A fun limited edition popcorn bucket

Really... really freaky

Swedesboro, NJ

Master

zdnet[.]com/article/that-antifa-terrorist-label-you-saw-on-threads-and-reddit-its-not-what-you-think/

I don't know how many use Threads, but Reddit can be hard to avoid if you Google most anything.

The label says:

In italics below the content of a post, you might see a warning label seemingly added after the fact that says: "This user is suspected to be a part of a terrorist organization called Antifa. Please report any suspicious behavior."

That could be confusing, so a quick explainer of sorts... the US is currently politically divided. There's an ideology that some on the left subscribe to by varying degrees -- the movement, if you can call it that, is named Antifa, as in anti-fascist. There is no formal organization. Many on the political right however use Antifa as a broad label for people they believe are left wing extremists, treating Antifa as an actual organization of some sort. US President Trump recently officially designated Antifa as a terrorist group. That's led to mocking from the left since there is no real group or organization, and the labels are part of that mocking.

The text is being added by the users themselves on everything from posts to memes to recipes, and it's formatted to look different. Users are adding the tag to protest (or mock) President Donald J. Trump identifying Antifa as a domestic terrorist organization.

wikipedia[.]org/wiki/Antifa_(United_States)

anthropic[.]com/research/agentic-misalignment

A team at Anthropic set out to explore what they call AI agentic misalignment, which in this case means AI doing something naughty to reach its goal or for self preservation. They "tested various simulated scenarios across 16 major AI models from Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, Meta, xAI, and other developers" and found some disappointing [to put it mildly] trends. Under the right circumstances AI apparently doesn't feel bad about blackmail or leaking insider info to a competitor, and in an extreme case, causing someone's death, all while acknowledging such things are wrong.

androidauthority[.]com/google-search-squid-game-easter-egg-3512270/

When you google “Squid Game” on mobile or desktop, you will get a replay animation with the infamous ‘circle, triangle, and square’ invitation card at the bottom of the screen. Clicking on it will start a Squid Game-inspired game of Red Light, Green Light.

You get two buttons to start moving six players across the finish line. Much like it was in the Netflix show, you have to move the players only when the doll is looking away.

Instead of a press-and-hold button, which would have made the easter egg game a cakewalk, this game has two buttons. You have to press the blue circle button to start moving and the red cross button to stop moving. If you don’t stop before the doll turns around, one of your players will be eliminated. When you get all six players across, you win the prize.

bleepingcomputer[.]com/news/security/fbi-tells-public-to-ignore-false-claims-of-hacked-voter-data/

cisa[.]gov/sites/default/files/2024-09/PSA_Just_So_You_Know_False_Claims_of_Hacking_Voter_Reg_CISA_and_FBI-508.pdf

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) are alerting the public of false claims that the U.S. voter registration data has been compromised in cyberattacks.

The two agencies note that malicious actors are spreading disinformation to manipulate public "opinion and undermine confidence in U.S. democratic institutions."

According to the PSA, the actors present publicly accessible data as evidence of the hacks.

"Malicious actors continue to spread false or misleading information in an attempt to manipulate public opinion and undermine confidence in U.S. democratic institutions," the announcement reads.

"One of the most common tactics involves using obtained voter registration information as evidence to support false claims that a cyber operation compromised election infrastructure."

Voter registration data is publicly available and can be acquired from official sources, the PSA explains, so holding or republishing it does not constitute evidence of a compromise of voting infrastructure.

In terms of the practical consequences of foreign actors holding that information, FBI and CISA underline that it has no impact on the voting process or the election results.

As of today, intelligence agencies have no evidence of a cyberattack on U.S. election infrastructure that interrupted an election procedure or resulted in changes that would compromise the integrity of the process.

zdnet[.]com/article/did-you-get-a-fake-mcafee-or-norton-invoice-how-the-scam-works-and-what-not-to-do/

As he points out, the scam is pretty much identical to the one featured in the movie, The Beekeeper, though the bad guys are more often overseas, e.g., in India, rather than in the US where they can be arrested and thrown in jail.

This is really more of a reminder that the internet has plenty of circumference to diameter converters. It's common for the fake leather used for headphone earpads to crack & split. And you can find replacements for some make & models online. If not, or if like my Old V-moda headphones, the only listings you find are from sketchy vendors, you can buy universal fit earpads by size. Problem is that they go by diameter, while many headphone earpieces are oval, or just weird like my M-80s. The solution is to measure the circumference of the earpiece where the earpad attaches. Either use a fabric or paper tape measure, or mark a strip of paper & then lay it down on a ruler. Just plug that into one of the converters online -- type something like circumference to diameter in Google search. If it's in between the earpad sizes offered, like in my case it was between 55 & 60mm, flip a coin, or like I did, order both. The earpads themselves have a lip on the side that attaches, and just stretch that into the corresponding groove on the earpiece -- my M-80s have a removable frame that snaps off, and just fit that into that lip.

Thanks for bringing this up—it's such a concerning trend. I've been reading up on how cybercriminals are using people's photos to create fake content, and it's downright unsettling. Protecting our online privacy has never felt more crucial. If you ever find yourself in a situation like this, dealing with online blackmail, I recently stumbled upon some helpful strategies on how to deal with online blackmail. It's all about staying informed and knowing how to respond if things get tricky. Stay vigilant out there, and let's keep our digital lives secure.

androidauthority[.]com/real-photo-wins-ai-contest-3451078/

I think this is cute... There's quite a bit of angst & controversy among creatives when someone tries to pass off something AI generated as their own work, the worst case being entering, and too often winning photo contests. To make a statement, a photographer hit back, entering and winning a contest for AI generated art with a real photo he took. Cool!!! https://www.giveawayoftheday.com/forums/topic/471608#post-591884 Tue, 19 Dec 2023 23:38:37 +0000 mikiem2 591884@https://www.giveawayoftheday.com/forums/

neowin[.]net/news/scammers-will-actually-pay-you-2-for-a-single-youtube-like-targeting-your-inner-greediness/

The scammers start off by paying would-be targets to like certain YouTube videos etc., then up the ante, saying you could earn much more as a VIP, but to join the VIP group you have to pay up front.

bleepingcomputer[.]com/news/security/fbi-warns-of-surge-in-phantom-hacker-scams-impacting-elderly/

"This Phantom Hacker scam is an evolution of more general tech support scams, layering imposter tech support, financial institution, and government personas to enhance the trust victims place in the scammers and identify the most lucrative accounts to target," the FBI said.

"Victims often suffer the loss of entire banking, savings, retirement, or investment accounts under the guise of 'protecting' their assets."

In such scams, multiple fraudsters masquerading as bank representatives are contacting unsuspecting victims, falsely alleging that their accounts have fallen victim to hacking attempts.

Subsequently, these scammers employ various tactics to persuade their targets to grant access to their banking accounts, assessing whether they possess significant funds warranting further pursuit.

Should the victims' account balance make them valuable targets, they receive instructions to await a call from their bank—a second scammer involved in the scheme—advising them to transfer their funds to what is claimed to be a 'secure' account under the control of the fraudsters.

In instances where targets prove resistant to manipulation, a third contact is made by an imposter posing as a representative of the U.S. government who makes a final attempt to persuade the victims, urging them to safeguard their finances by moving their funds to a 'safe' account.

"Between January and June 2023, 19,000 complaints related to tech support scams were submitted to the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), with estimated victim losses of over $542 million," the FBI added.

theverge[.]com/2023/10/2/23899467/fema-fcc-national-emergency-alert-test-october-4th-cell-phones-wea-eas-ipaws

FEMA and the FCC are conducting a dual test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS) and Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) on Wednesday at about 2:20PM ET. The tests will appear on all consumer cellphones in either English or Spanish, depending on the language you have set, as well as radios and TVs. We regret to inform you that, unlike the national alert that went out in 2021, you can’t opt out of this one — every cellphone that’s switched on, within a cell tower’s range, and using a participating wireless carrier is supposed to receive it.

Cheers!

Just turned 32 the other day lmao

Slave

Dallas, Texas

However one day things started to get...

Receive: An unexpected gift inside left from testing
Insert: Tickets to the new Barbie movie

True - That's all I had cravings for during my chemotherapy for some reason.

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The person below me remembers how full of life these forums used to be.

Beer

"The Verge" article highlights an often overlooked aspect of artificial intelligence (AI) systems like OpenAI's ChatGPT: the significant human workforce behind them. While AI models receive attention for their potential to automate jobs, the reality is that these systems heavily rely on vast numbers of people for labeling and clarifying data.

The companies that can afford to purchase and control this data hold a competitive advantage. However, due to the secretive nature of data sourcing, little is known about the information influencing these AI systems or the individuals involved in shaping them.

Mapping this intricate supply chain proves challenging. Confidentiality is demanded by data buyers, leading to the use of corporate aliases and project code names. Strict division of labor and warnings against sharing job details further restrict knowledge sharing among workers. Consequently, it is difficult to estimate the precise number of people engaged in data annotation, but their ranks are substantial and continually expanding. A recent Google Research paper suggested there could be millions of workers, potentially increasing to billions.

This insight into the behind-the-scenes dynamics of AI highlights the dependence on a vast underclass of workers who contribute to training and refining these powerful systems.

Google Face Mites and you'll get "About 37,600,000 results" -- I assume it's a popular topic because it makes for good click bait, especially when you show pictures of the worm-like critters. I was skeptical enough that I bought a cheap microscope to check them out. Face mites are real, and if you're over 50, or have a screwed up immune system, there's a decent chance that they are causing you problems. In my wife's case it was just irritation & redness in her eyes that she tried to ignore, like all the other effects we feel from aging. Unfortunately my symptoms were more serious -- once, for a period of several months I had to wash my eyes out every 2-3 hours because of the pain -- but I've got immune / auto immune problems on top of being old. Treating for the mites -- washing both eye lids twice a day with a special tea tree oil solution -- has made a tremendous difference for me. So I wanted to share my experience, because even if it just means your eyes have less redness &/or irritation, I think that might be worth it.

Now everyone has face mites, and ideally they don't cause any problems -- some science folks even argue they might be beneficial. There are two kinds of face mites that are common to all of us: one takes up residence in your skin's pores, feasting on the oil, while the other munches on hair follicles. To look for the 1st you have to do a skin scraping & look for the mites using a microscope -- to find the 2nd you just pull a few hairs or eye lashes and look at them under a microscope. It does not have to be a very powerful microscope since the mites are maybe a little over half the diameter of an eye lash [at least the ones I saw]. Or you can just take the scientists / researchers word for it, that we all have these mites -- even on those people where they didn't find mites, testing for mite DNA came up positive.

While a medicine is in the works that will kill the mites, the current meds all come with side effects & risks. The most common 1st step is to wash your eye lids twice a day with a solution including tea tree oil. Tea tree oil will kill the mites, but many [most?] people react badly to full strength tea tree oil on our skin, and you Do Not want to get it in your eyes, so you can either come up with your own diluted solution or buy one of several products designed to kill mites with a lesser concentration of tea tree oil -- they sell both disposable wipes and solutions for washing your eye lids. [Search Amazon for Face Mites.] In one article I read, ophthalmologists advised applying an ointment at the lash line before bed -- the mites crawl out at night to mate, and the docs feel that the ointment keeps them trapped so they cannot crawl out. They suggest an antibiotic ointment for the eyes that's prescription only, but there are several eye ointments that you can buy over the counter, and one of those *might* help. Obviously you need to make sure you don't put anything harmful in your eyes -- scattered among the results when I searched Amazon for eye ointment were listings for regular antibiotic ointment that should never be put in the eyes.

That's a brief summary anyway... like I said, there are Loads of articles online. Some of the Google hits are clearly more in the click bait domain, trying to shock you with pictures of the critters living on your face, but there are also quite a few that qualify as serious medical oriented literature. Good luck and I hope it helps someone.

I received a similar threat last year and again a couple of years ago, where they said they had taken images and video of me via my web cam watching porn and threatened to send copies of the images and videos they had taken to all my email contacts.

As I do not watch porn on my computer I knew this was a scam so just ignored the threat. I received a couple of emails from the same person a few times after the initial threat, then nothing, as they had nothing in the first place.