io9 has several acclaimed authors among its alumni, including Annalee Newitz, Charlie Jane Anders, Evan Narcisse, and Andrew Liptak. Another former io9-er, Linda H. Codega, will join their ranks early next year with the release of fantasy novel Motheater, and we’re thrilled to be debuting the cover and talking to the…
A political consultant who admitted to using a deepfake of President Joe Biden’s voice in a robocall scheme this year is facing several charges as well as a hefty fine from the Federal Communications Commission. Steve Kramer (pictured above) said his aim with the New Hampshire primary robocall was to warn people about the dangers of artificial intelligence, as The Hill notes.
Kramer previously worked for Dean Phillips, a long-shot Democratic presidential candidate who suspended his campaign in March. Kramer has called for “immediate action” on AI “across all regulatory bodies and platforms.”
He has now been charged with 13 felony counts of voter suppression and 13 misdemeanor counts of impersonation of a candidate. The phony Biden voice allegedly urged people not to participate in the primary and to “save your vote for the November election.” New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella, who announced the charges, said in February that the robocall reached as many as 25,000 voters.
The FCC has proposed a $6 million fine against Kramer, citing an alleged violation of the Truth in Caller ID Act as the robocall is said to have spoofed a local political consultant’s phone number. The agency also proposed a $2 million fine against Lingo Telecom, the telecom carrier that operated the phone lines, for allegedly violating caller ID authentication rules. The FCC banned AI-generated voices in robocalls soon after the Kramer incident.
“New Hampshire remains committed to ensuring that our elections remain free from unlawful interference and our investigation into this matter remains ongoing,” AG Formella said. “The Federal Communications Commission will separately be announcing an enforcement action against Mr. Kramer based on violations of federal law. I am pleased to see that our federal partners are similarly committed to protecting consumers and voters from harmful robocalls and voter suppression.”
Meanwhile, the FCC may soon require political advertisers to disclose the use of any AI in TV and radio spots. However, chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel is not seeking to ban the use of AI-generated content in political ads. “As artificial intelligence tools become more accessible, the commission wants to make sure consumers are fully informed when the technology is used,” Rosenworcel said in a statement on Wednesday.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/robocaller-behind-ai-biden-deepfake-faces-charges-and-hefty-fcc-fine-201803214.html?src=rss
Carlo Acutis, a 15-year-old programmer who died of leukemia in 2006, is set to be the first millennial saint, according to a new report from the Catholic News AgencyThursday. Acutis created websites documenting purported miracles and has been dubbed “God’s influencer” since his death.
If you take in your Samsung device to an independent shop for repair, Samsung requires the store to send your name, contact information, device identifier, and the nature of your complaint to the mothership. Worse, if the repair store detects that your device has been previously repaired with an aftermarket or a non-Samsung part, Samsung requires the establishment to “immediately disassemble” your device and “immediately notify” the company.
These details were revealed thanks to 404 Media, which obtained a contract that Samsung requires all independent repair stores to sign in exchange for selling them genuine repair parts. Here’s the relevant section from the contract: “Company shall immediately disassemble all products that are created or assembled out of, comprised of, or that contain any Service Parts not purchased from Samsung.” It adds that the store “shall immediately notify Samsung in writing of the details and circumstances of any unauthorized use or misappropriation of any Service Part for any purpose other than pursuant to this Agreement. Samsung may terminate this Agreement if these terms are violated.” Samsung did not respond to a request for comment from Engadget.
Samsung’s contract is troubling — customers who take their devices to independent repair stores do not necessarily expect their personal information to the sent to the device manufacturer. And if they’ve previously repaired their devices by using third-party parts that are often vastly cheaper than official ones (and just as good in many cases), they certainly do not expect an repair store to snitch on them to the manufacturer and have their device rendered unusable.
Experts who spoke to 404 Media said that consumers are within their rights to use third-party parts to repair devices they own under the Magnuson Moss Warranty Act, a federal law that governs consumer product warranties in the US.So far, Right to Repair legislation exists in 30 states in the country according to the Public Interest Research Group (PIRG), a consumer advocacy organization. But in states like New York, Minnesota and California where this legislation goes into effect this year, contracts like the one Samsung makes repair stores sign would be illegal, 404 Media pointed out.
“This is exactly the kind of onerous, one-sided ‘agreement’ that necessitates the right-to-repair,” Kit Walsh, a staff attorney at the Electronic Freedom Foundation told the publication. “In addition to the provision you mentioned about dismantling devices with third-party components, these create additional disincentives to getting devices repaired, which can harm both device security and the environment as repairable devices wind up in landfills.”
This isn’t the only incident around device repair that Samsung has found itself in hot water. Hours before the report from 404 Media, repair blog and parts retailer iFixit announced that it was ending its collaboration with Samsung to launch a “Repair Hub” less than two years into the partnership. “Samsung’s approach to repairability does not align with our mission,” iFixit said in a blog post, citing the high prices of Samsung’s parts and the unrepairable nature of Samsung’s devices that “remained frustratingly glued together” as reasons for pulling the plug.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/samsung-reportedly-requires-independent-repair-stores-to-rat-on-customers-using-aftermarket-parts-203925729.html?src=rss
If you take in your Samsung device to an independent shop for repair, Samsung requires the store to send your name, contact information, device identifier, and the nature of your complaint to the mothership. Worse, if the repair store detects that your device has been previously repaired with an aftermarket or a non-Samsung part, Samsung requires the establishment to “immediately disassemble” your device and “immediately notify” the company.
These details were revealed thanks to 404 Media, which obtained a contract that Samsung requires all independent repair stores to sign in exchange for selling them genuine repair parts. Here’s the relevant section from the contract: “Company shall immediately disassemble all products that are created or assembled out of, comprised of, or that contain any Service Parts not purchased from Samsung.” It adds that the store “shall immediately notify Samsung in writing of the details and circumstances of any unauthorized use or misappropriation of any Service Part for any purpose other than pursuant to this Agreement. Samsung may terminate this Agreement if these terms are violated.” Samsung did not respond to a request for comment from Engadget.
Samsung’s contract is troubling — customers who take their devices to independent repair stores do not necessarily expect their personal information to the sent to the device manufacturer. And if they’ve previously repaired their devices by using third-party parts that are often vastly cheaper than official ones (and just as good in many cases), they certainly do not expect an repair store to snitch on them to the manufacturer and have their device rendered unusable.
Experts who spoke to 404 Media said that consumers are within their rights to use third-party parts to repair devices they own under the Magnuson Moss Warranty Act, a federal law that governs consumer product warranties in the US.So far, Right to Repair legislation exists in 30 states in the country according to the Public Interest Research Group (PIRG), a consumer advocacy organization. But in states like New York, Minnesota and California where this legislation goes into effect this year, contracts like the one Samsung makes repair stores sign would be illegal, 404 Media pointed out.
“This is exactly the kind of onerous, one-sided ‘agreement’ that necessitates the right-to-repair,” Kit Walsh, a staff attorney at the Electronic Freedom Foundation told the publication. “In addition to the provision you mentioned about dismantling devices with third-party components, these create additional disincentives to getting devices repaired, which can harm both device security and the environment as repairable devices wind up in landfills.”
This isn’t the only incident around device repair that Samsung has found itself in hot water. Hours before the report from 404 Media, repair blog and parts retailer iFixit announced that it was ending its collaboration with Samsung to launch a “Repair Hub” less than two years into the partnership. “Samsung’s approach to repairability does not align with our mission,” iFixit said in a blog post, citing the high prices of Samsung’s parts and the unrepairable nature of Samsung’s devices that “remained frustratingly glued together” as reasons for pulling the plug.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/samsung-reportedly-requires-independent-repair-stores-to-rat-on-customers-using-aftermarket-parts-203925729.html?src=rss
Carlo Acutis, a 15-year-old programmer who died of leukemia in 2006, is set to be the first millennial saint, according to a new report from the Catholic News AgencyThursday. Acutis created websites documenting purported miracles and has been dubbed “God’s influencer” since his death.
In developed countries all over the world, driving continues to get safer. The one exception to that rule is the United States, where driving continues to get more dangerous. Unfortunately, there are so many factors that make drivers in the U.S. more dangerous, there’s no silver bullet that will magically fix things.…
If you take in your Samsung device to an independent shop for repair, Samsung requires the store to send your name, contact information, device identifier, and the nature of your complaint to the mothership. Worse, if the repair store detects that your device has been previously repaired with an aftermarket or a non-Samsung part, Samsung requires the establishment to “immediately disassemble” your device and “immediately notify” the company.
These details were revealed thanks to 404 Media, which obtained a contract that Samsung requires all independent repair stores to sign in exchange for selling them genuine repair parts. Here’s the relevant section from the contract: “Company shall immediately disassemble all products that are created or assembled out of, comprised of, or that contain any Service Parts not purchased from Samsung.” It adds that the store “shall immediately notify Samsung in writing of the details and circumstances of any unauthorized use or misappropriation of any Service Part for any purpose other than pursuant to this Agreement. Samsung may terminate this Agreement if these terms are violated.” Samsung did not respond to a request for comment from Engadget.
Samsung’s contract is troubling — customers who take their devices to independent repair stores do not necessarily expect their personal information to the sent to the device manufacturer. And if they’ve previously repaired their devices by using third-party parts that are often vastly cheaper than official ones (and just as good in many cases), they certainly do not expect an repair store to snitch on them to the manufacturer and have their device rendered unusable.
Experts who spoke to 404 Media said that consumers are within their rights to use third-party parts to repair devices they own under the Magnuson Moss Warranty Act, a federal law that governs consumer product warranties in the US.So far, Right to Repair legislation exists in 30 states in the country according to the Public Interest Research Group (PIRG), a consumer advocacy organization. But in states like New York, Minnesota and California where this legislation goes into effect this year, contracts like the one Samsung makes repair stores sign would be illegal, 404 Media pointed out.
“This is exactly the kind of onerous, one-sided ‘agreement’ that necessitates the right-to-repair,” Kit Walsh, a staff attorney at the Electronic Freedom Foundation told the publication. “In addition to the provision you mentioned about dismantling devices with third-party components, these create additional disincentives to getting devices repaired, which can harm both device security and the environment as repairable devices wind up in landfills.”
This isn’t the only incident around device repair that Samsung has found itself in hot water. Hours before the report from 404 Media, repair blog and parts retailer iFixit announced that it was ending its collaboration with Samsung to launch a “Repair Hub” less than two years into the partnership. “Samsung’s approach to repairability does not align with our mission,” iFixit said in a blog post, citing the high prices of Samsung’s parts and the unrepairable nature of Samsung’s devices that “remained frustratingly glued together” as reasons for pulling the plug.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/samsung-reportedly-requires-independent-repair-stores-to-rat-on-customers-using-aftermarket-parts-203925729.html?src=rss
A year after the Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser took its last flight, here’s a look back at the best of Disney Parks’ bold venture into the immersive entertainment space—and why in the end, it couldn’t quite work.
Netflix’s mobile gaming lineup will soon have one more entry. Cozy Grove: Camp Spirit, the sequel to the 2021 Animal Crossing-esque Cozy Grove, will arrive on Android and iOS on June 25.
The Cozy Grove sequel is the first game from developer Spry Fox since Netflix bought the studio in 2022. In the game, you’ll embark on the high-stakes mission of helping ghostly bears upgrade their haunted island. The developer describes it as a “heartwarming adventure” where you’ll “experience new activities, new ghost stories, new furry companions with stories and abilities of their own and much more.”
Netflix’s mobile gaming portfolio has grown exponentially since it began dabbling in the arena in 2017 with its Stranger Things tie-in. Netflix now has a roster of “nearly 100” mobile games. Cozy Grove: Camp Spirit will be the third game from an in-house studio after the streaming service began scooping up indie studios, including Spry Fox, Night School Studio, Boss Fight Entertainment and Next Games. It’s also building studios in Helsinki and Los Angeles, where it’s working on a AAA game.
You can pre-register for the game on Google Play and the App Store and check out the trailer for the chillaxing title below.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/netflixs-cozy-take-on-animal-crossing-hits-android-and-ios-in-june-204905615.html?src=rss
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