Technology

The University of Minnesota has been banned from contributing to the Linux kernel by one of its maintainers after researchers from the school apparently knowingly submitted code with security flaws. Earlier this year, two researchers from the university released a paper detailing how they had submitted known security vulnerabilities to the Linux kernel in order to show how potentially malicious code could get through the approval process. Now, after another student from the university submitted code that reportedly does nothing, kernel maintainer and Linux Foundation fellow Greg Kroah-Hartman has released a statement calling for all kernel maintainers to reject any code submissions from anyone using a umn.edu email address. In addition to not accepting any new code from the university, all...

Apple announced on Wednesday that it’s once again extending the deadline for requiring in-app purchases for iOS apps that sell access to online classes and group events until December 31st, 2021, effectively meaning it won’t impose its 30 percent cut on businesses providing those services until next year. Apple extended the deadline initially to June 30th, 2021, but now developers have another six months. Apple cites the ongoing pandemic as its main justification for the change, but we have to wonder if it might also have something to do with the Congressional antitrust hearings that have zeroed in on whether Apple and Google’s app stores are monopolies. Helping out small businesses by not taking its traditional 30 percent cut is an example Apple can now use to demonstrate how it encourage...

Congressional Democrats have introduced a bill that would make it easier for the Consumer Product Safety Commission to warn people about unsafe products, by repealing part of a 49-year-old law that limits what information the agency can release publicly. The Sunshine in Product Safety Act (PDF) comes after reports that exercise machine company Peloton “obstructed CPSC’s investigation” into its Peloton Tread Plus treadmill, according to the members of Congress. The Tread Plus has been involved in some 39 accidents where children were injured, including one death. The CPSC “was unable to alert the public of the reported incidents related to children, pets, and objects getting pulled under the treadmill until a month later,” according to the congresspeople. “These incidents ranged from mild i...

Facebook wants to inspire, apparently. The company announced changes to its News Feed today that are supposed to fill feeds with things users like, rather than the content that annoys them. At the end of March, Facebook began introducing filters to allow users to customize their feed, and now, the company is hoping to learn more about what users like and dislike, with what seems like a special focus on moving away from political content and toward “inspirational posts.” The company has been under intense scrutiny for helping fan the flames of political division in the US and even playing an outsized role in elections. Facebook’s influence on both issues has largely stemmed from the misinformation that’s been spread on the platform. It’s an issue that seems directly connected to Facebook CE...

After launching a little over a year ago, Call of Duty: Warzone is one of the most popular free-to-play titles right now, with 100 million people playing the battle royale shooter. Following a nuclear missile that destroyed the game’s map, the in-game city of Verdansk is back with a new map set in the year 1984, as seen in the announcement trailer above. This mirrors a similar move made by its competitor Fortnite, which destroyed its original map and replaced it with a new one in 2019. Despite the shape and layout remaining the same as its predecessor, players will notice changes to most locations along with a 1980s vibe that fits the game’s new time period. Verdansk ’84, the name of the new map, has some alterations to make it a new location and not a direct reskin, while also becoming mo...

For a series about people getting their spines ripped out, Mortal Kombat has a surprising amount of story. Over three decades the fighting franchise has amassed a large mythos, filled with histories, lore, and motivations for its many combatants, which are mostly used to answer the question of why somebody is having their spine and / or arms removed. You wouldn’t really know that from watching the new movie, though. The film features plenty of callouts to the games — gruesome fatalities, goofy one-liners, and lots of familiar faces — but it never stops long enough to tell you why you should care about anything. It’s also not particularly fun, despite all of the aforementioned ripped-off arms. Mortal Kombat largely follows the same basic premise as the games, where champions from Earth face...

The Federal Communications Commission has decided to look into letting people text the upcoming shortened National Suicide Prevention Lifeline number in a bid to increase accessibility and use of the service by those who need it most (via Politico reporter John Hendel). Last May, the FCC approved the creation of a new short code, 988, that will act as an easier-to-remember phone number for the lifeline. Please note that calling 988 will not connect you to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline until July 16th, 2022. It’s worth noting that today’s approval is just a first step and doesn’t mean that people will, for sure, be able to text the 988 number when it goes live in July 2022. However, it does mean that the FCC will be looking into making it a requirement for phone providers, and it...

Garmin has upgraded its premium Venu smartwatch for 2021 (via DC Rainmaker and Ars Technica). It now comes in two sizes instead of a single 43mm-sized model. The 45mm Venu 2 houses a 1.3-inch 416 x 416 OLED screen. For smaller wrists (or those who just prefer a less wrist-dominating device), the 40mm Venu 2S has a 1.1-inch 360 x 360 OLED screen. Both watches have an optional always-on mode, and they are available now for $399.99, which is the same price as the original Venu. It doubles the battery life in some cases versus the original Other than the differences in case sizes, there isn’t much else distinguishing the Venu 2 lineup visually from the predecessor. They’re slick-looking touchscreen wearables with Gorilla Glass 3-covered touchscreens that feature two buttons. One of the biggest...

Robot cars are back in the spotlight on Capitol Hill after previous efforts failed to pass comprehensive legislation allowing more autonomous vehicles on the road. US Sens. Gary Peters (D-MI) and John Thune (R-SD) plan to introduce an amendment to a funding bill that would grant federal regulators the power to exempt tens of thousands of vehicles from requirements to have traditional controls for human drivers, according to Reuters. The power to exempt 15,000 vehicles per manufacturer The amendment would give the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) the power to exempt 15,000 vehicles per manufacturer from certain safety standards, with that number increasing to 80,000 in three years. The effect would be to grant more leeway to automakers like Ford and General Motors, as ...

SpaceX is slated to launch its third crew to the International Space Station early Friday morning, ferrying two astronauts from NASA, one from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, and the first European Space Agency astronaut to fly a private US spacecraft to orbit. The four-person crew will launch atop SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket at 5:49AM ET on Friday. The mission, dubbed Crew-2, marks the second operational mission under the Commercial Crew Program, NASA’s public-private initiative to revive its human spaceflight capabilities after a 10-year dependence on Russian rockets. It will mark the first time NASA astronauts fly a reused crew capsule — Crew-2’s ride first flew in May 2020 as SpaceX’s first astronaut mission, carrying Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley. The crew includes NASA astronauts ...

Sony will begin rolling out support for 1080p streaming with PlayStation Now beginning this week, upping the streaming quality from the cloud gaming service’s previous 720p cap. “The rollout will occur over the next several weeks across Europe, US, Canada, and Japan, where PlayStation Now is available,” Sony said in a tweet. PlayStation Now will begin rolling out support for streaming 1080p capable games this week. The rollout will occur over the next several weeks across Europe, US, Canada, and Japan, where PlayStation Now is available. pic.twitter.com/OEHWHtMTw8 — PlayStation (@PlayStation) April 22, 2021 In its tweet, Sony says support will roll out for “1080p capable games,” but it hasn’t yet shared a list of games that can hit the higher resolution. We’ve asked the company if it can s...