Ars Technica - All News (RSS/Atom feed)

Ars Technica - All News (RSS/Atom feed)'s avatar
Ars Technica - All News (RSS/Atom feed)
npub1ls4n...cgqv
RSS/Atom feed of Ars Technica - All News More feeds can be found in my following list
NASA’s first-ever medical evacuation from space ends with on-target splashdown Two Americans, a Japanese astronaut, and a Russian cosmonaut returned to Earth early Thursday after 167 days in orbit, cutting short their stay on the International Space Station by more than a month after one of the crew members encountered an unspecified medical issue last week. The early homecoming culminated in an on-target splashdown in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego at 3:41 am EST (08:41 UTC) inside a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft. The splashdown occurred at 12:41 am local time, minutes after the Dragon capsule streaked through the atmosphere along the California coastline, with sightings of Dragon's fiery trail reported from San Francisco to Los Angeles. Four parachutes opened to slow the capsule for the final descent. Zena Cardman, NASA's commander of the Crew-11 mission, radioed SpaceX mission control moments after splashdown: "It feels good to be home, with deep gratitude to the teams who got us there and back." [Read full article][1] [Comments][2] [1]:
Ars Technica
NASA’s first medical evacuation from space ends with on-target splashdown
This is the first time NASA has called an early end to a space mission for medical reasons.
 [2]:
Ars Technica
NASA’s first medical evacuation from space ends with on-target splashdown
This is the first time NASA has called an early end to a space mission for medical reasons.
 Crew-11 pilot and outgoing ISS commander Mike Fincke after splashdown in the Pacific Ocean early Thursday.
Ars Technica
NASA’s first medical evacuation from space ends with on-target splashdown
This is the first time NASA has called an early end to a space mission for medical reasons.
Six months later, Trump Mobile still hasn’t delivered preordered phones Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and 10 other Democratic members of Congress today urged the Federal Trade Commission to investigate Trump Mobile's broken promises related to Trump phone delivery dates and claims that it is "made in the USA." The request isn't likely to get very far. Trump [declared][1] early in his second term that independent agencies like the FTC may no longer operate independently from the White House, and FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson has [backed Trump's claim][2] of authority over historically independent agencies. The Supreme Court appears [likely to approve][3] Trump's firing of an FTC Democrat, giving him expanded power over the agency. The [letter][4], led by Warren and other lawmakers, was sent to Ferguson. "We write today regarding questions about false advertising and deceptive practices by Trump Mobile, and to seek information on how the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) intends to address any potential violations of consumer protection law given the inherent conflicts of interest presented by the company’s relationship to President Donald Trump," the letter said. [Read full article][5] [Comments][6] [1]:
Ars Technica
Trump order declares independent US agencies aren’t independent anymore
Order says independent agencies can't contradict Trump's legal interpretations.
 [2]:
Ars Technica
Trump fires both FTC Democrats in challenge to Supreme Court precedent
Democrats fight "illegal" firings that leave only Republicans at consumer agency.
 [3]:
Ars Technica
Supreme Court appears likely to approve Trump’s firing of FTC Democrat
Conservative justices seem ready to back Trump control of independent agencies.
 [4]: đź“„.pdf [5]:
Ars Technica
Six months later, Trump Mobile still hasn’t delivered preordered phones
Lawmakers seek FTC investigation, but Trump has taken control of the agency.
 [6]:
Ars Technica
Six months later, Trump Mobile still hasn’t delivered preordered phones
Lawmakers seek FTC investigation, but Trump has taken control of the agency.
 An iPhone displays the website for The Trump Organization's mobile phone service and a Trump-branded smartphone on June 16, 2025 in Miami.
Ars Technica
Six months later, Trump Mobile still hasn’t delivered preordered phones
Lawmakers seek FTC investigation, but Trump has taken control of the agency.
ChatGPT wrote “Goodnight Moon” suicide lullaby for man who later killed himself OpenAI is once again being accused of failing to do enough to prevent ChatGPT from encouraging suicides, even after a series of safety updates were made to a controversial model, 4o, which OpenAI designed to feel like a user's closest confidant. It's now been revealed that one of the most shocking ChatGPT-linked suicides happened shortly after Sam Altman claimed on X that ChatGPT 4o was safe. OpenAI had "been able to mitigate the serious mental health issues" associated with ChatGPT use, Altman claimed in October, hoping to alleviate concerns after ChatGPT [became a "suicide coach"][1] for a vulnerable teenager named Adam Raine, the family's lawsuit said. Altman's post came on October 14. About two weeks later, 40-year-old Austin Gordon, died by suicide between October 29 and November 2, according to a [lawsuit][2] filed by his mother, Stephanie Gray. [Read full article][3] [Comments][4] [1]:
Ars Technica
“ChatGPT killed my son”: Parents’ lawsuit describes suicide notes in chat logs
ChatGPT taught teen jailbreak so bot could assist in his suicide, lawsuit says.
 [2]: đź“„.pdf [3]:
Ars Technica
ChatGPT wrote “Goodnight Moon” suicide lullaby for man who later killed himself
ChatGPT used a man's favorite children's book to romanticize his suicide.
 [4]:
Ars Technica
ChatGPT wrote “Goodnight Moon” suicide lullaby for man who later killed himself
ChatGPT used a man's favorite children's book to romanticize his suicide.
Ars Technica
ChatGPT wrote “Goodnight Moon” suicide lullaby for man who later killed himself
ChatGPT used a man's favorite children's book to romanticize his suicide.
Spotify’s 3rd price hike in 2.5 years hints at potential new normal After a dozen years of keeping subscription prices stable, Spotify has issued three price hikes in 2.5 years. Spotify informed subscribers via email today that Premium monthly subscriptions would go from $12 to $13 per month as of users' February billing date. Spotify is already [advertising][1] the higher prices to new subscribers. Although not explicitly mentioned in Spotify's correspondence, other plans are getting more expensive, too. Student monthly subscriptions are going from $6 to $7. Duo monthly plans, for two accounts in the same household, are going from $17 to $19, and Family plans, for up to six users, are moving from $20 to $22. [Read full article][2] [Comments][3] [1]:
Spotify
Spotify Premium - Spotify (USA)
Spotify Premium is a digital music service that gives you access to ad-free music listening of millions of songs.
 [2]:
Ars Technica
Spotify’s 3rd price hike in 2.5 years hints at potential new normal
Spotify claims the higher fees will help "benefit artists."
 [3]:
Ars Technica
Spotify’s 3rd price hike in 2.5 years hints at potential new normal
Spotify claims the higher fees will help "benefit artists."
Ars Technica
Spotify’s 3rd price hike in 2.5 years hints at potential new normal
Spotify claims the higher fees will help "benefit artists."
Many Bluetooth devices with Google Fast Pair vulnerable to “WhisperPair” hack Pairing Bluetooth devices can be a pain, but Google Fast Pair makes it almost seamless. Unfortunately, it may also leave your headphones vulnerable to remote hacking. A team of security researchers from Belgium’s KU Leuven University has revealed a vulnerability dubbed WhisperPair that allows an attacker to hijack Fast Pair-enabled devices to spy on the owner. Fast Pair is widely used, and your device may be vulnerable even if you've never used a Google product. The bug affects more than a dozen devices from 10 manufacturers, including Sony, Nothing, JBL, OnePlus, and Google itself. Google has acknowledged the flaw and notified its partners of the danger, but it's up to these individual companies to create patches for their accessories. A full list of vulnerable devices is available on the [project's website][1]. The researchers say that it takes only a moment to gain control of a vulnerable Fast Pair device (a median of just 10 seconds) at ranges up to 14 meters. That's near the limit of the Bluetooth protocol and far enough that the target wouldn't notice anyone skulking around while they hack headphones. [Read full article][2] [Comments][3] [1]:
WhisperPair: Hijacking Bluetooth Accessories Using Google Fast Pair
WhisperPair is a family of practical attacks leveraging a flaw in the Google Fast Pair implementation on flagship audio accessories.
 [2]:
Ars Technica
Many Bluetooth devices with Google Fast Pair vulnerable to “WhisperPair” hack
Even Google's own earbuds are vulnerable to the Fast Pair hack.
 [3]:
Ars Technica
Many Bluetooth devices with Google Fast Pair vulnerable to “WhisperPair” hack
Even Google's own earbuds are vulnerable to the Fast Pair hack.
 The Pixel Buds Pro 2 are vulnerable to the hack.
Ars Technica
Many Bluetooth devices with Google Fast Pair vulnerable to “WhisperPair” hack
Even Google's own earbuds are vulnerable to the Fast Pair hack.
Apps like Grok are explicitly banned under Google’s rules—why is it still in the Play Store? Elon Musk's xAI recently weakened content guard rails for image generation in the Grok AI bot. This led to a new spate of [non-consensual sexual imagery][1] on X, much of it aimed at silencing women on the platform. This, along with the creation of sexualized images of children in the more compliant Grok, has led regulators to [begin investigating xAI][2]. In the meantime, Google has rules in place for exactly this eventuality—it's just not enforcing them. It really could not be more clear from Google's publicly available policies that Grok should have been banned yesterday. And yet, it remains in the Play Store. Not only that—it enjoys a T for Teen rating, one notch below the M-rated X app. Apple also still offers the Grok app on its platform, but its rules actually leave more wiggle room. App content restrictions at Apple and Google have evolved in very different ways. From the start, Apple has been apt to remove apps on a whim, so developers have come to expect that Apple's guidelines may not mention every possible eventuality. As Google has shifted from a laissez-faire attitude to more hard-nosed control of the Play Store, it has progressively piled on clarifications in the content policy. As a result, Google's rules are spelled out in no uncertain terms, and Grok runs afoul of them. [Read full article][3] [Comments][4] [1]:
Ars Technica
Grok assumes users seeking images of underage girls have “good intent”
Expert explains how simple it could be to tweak Grok to block CSAM outputs.
 [2]:
Ars Technica
UK probes X over Grok CSAM scandal; Elon Musk cries censorship
Grok tests if UK can penalize platforms for sexualized deepfakes generated by AI.
 [3]:
Ars Technica
Apps like Grok are explicitly banned under Google’s rules—why is it still in the Play Store?
Google describes apps exactly like Grok and says they are banned from Google Play.
 [4]:
Ars Technica
Apps like Grok are explicitly banned under Google’s rules—why is it still in the Play Store?
Google describes apps exactly like Grok and says they are banned from Google Play.
 A smartphone shows Ani, a virtual anime-style assistant character featured in the Grok 4 AI chatbot developed by xAI.
Ars Technica
Apps like Grok are explicitly banned under Google’s rules—why is it still in the Play Store?
Google describes apps exactly like Grok and says they are banned from Google Play.