Month: August 2024
Washington Post Calls Telegram ‘a Haven for Free Speech – and Child Predators’
The Washington Post writes that Telegram’s “anything-goes approach” to its 950 million users “has also made it one of the internet’s largest havens for child predators, experts say….”
“Durov’s critics say his public idealism masks an opportunistic business model that allows Telegram to profit from the worst the internet has to offer, including child sexual abuse material, or CSAM… “
[Telegram is] an app of choice for political organizing, including by dissidents under repressive regimes. But it is equally appealing for terrorist groups, criminal organizations and sexual predators, who use it as a hub to share and consume nonconsensual pornography, AI “deepfake” nudes, and illegal sexual images and videos of exploited minors, said Alex Stamos, chief information security officer at the cybersecurity firm SentinelOne. “Due to their advertised policy of not cooperating with law enforcement, and the fact that they are known not to scan for CSAM, Telegram has attracted large groups of pedophiles trading and selling child abuse materials,” Stamos said.
That reach comes even though many Telegram exchanges don’t actually use the strong forms of encryption available on true private messaging apps, he added. Telegram is used for private messaging, public posts and group chats. Only one-to-one conversations can be encrypted in a way that even Telegram can’t access them. And that occurs only if users choose the option, meaning the company could turn over everything else to governments if it wanted to… French prosecutors argue that Durov is in fact responsible for Telegram’s emergence as a global haven for illegal content, including CSAM, because of his reluctance to moderate it and his refusal to help authorities police it, among other allegations…
David Kaye, a professor at University of California, Irvine School of Law and former U.N. special rapporteur on freedom of expression… said that while Telegram has at times banned groups and taken down [CSAM] content in response to law enforcement, its refusal to share data with investigators sets it apart from most other major tech companies. Unlike U.S.-based platforms, Telegram is not required by U.S. law to report instances of CSAM to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, or NCMEC. Many online platforms based overseas do so anyway — but not Telegram. “NCMEC has tried to get them to report, but they have no interest and are known for not wanting to work with [law enforcement agencies] or anyone in this space,” a NCMEC spokesperson said.
The Post also writes that Telegram “has repeatedly been revealed to serve as a tool to store, distribute and share child sexual imagery.” (They cite several examples, including two different men convicted to minimum sentences of at least 10 years for using the service to purchase CSAM and solicit explicit photos from minors.)
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
The Washington Post writes that Telegram’s “anything-goes approach” to its 950 million users “has also made it one of the internet’s largest havens for child predators, experts say….”
“Durov’s critics say his public idealism masks an opportunistic business model that allows Telegram to profit from the worst the internet has to offer, including child sexual abuse material, or CSAM… “
[Telegram is] an app of choice for political organizing, including by dissidents under repressive regimes. But it is equally appealing for terrorist groups, criminal organizations and sexual predators, who use it as a hub to share and consume nonconsensual pornography, AI “deepfake” nudes, and illegal sexual images and videos of exploited minors, said Alex Stamos, chief information security officer at the cybersecurity firm SentinelOne. “Due to their advertised policy of not cooperating with law enforcement, and the fact that they are known not to scan for CSAM, Telegram has attracted large groups of pedophiles trading and selling child abuse materials,” Stamos said.
That reach comes even though many Telegram exchanges don’t actually use the strong forms of encryption available on true private messaging apps, he added. Telegram is used for private messaging, public posts and group chats. Only one-to-one conversations can be encrypted in a way that even Telegram can’t access them. And that occurs only if users choose the option, meaning the company could turn over everything else to governments if it wanted to… French prosecutors argue that Durov is in fact responsible for Telegram’s emergence as a global haven for illegal content, including CSAM, because of his reluctance to moderate it and his refusal to help authorities police it, among other allegations…
David Kaye, a professor at University of California, Irvine School of Law and former U.N. special rapporteur on freedom of expression… said that while Telegram has at times banned groups and taken down [CSAM] content in response to law enforcement, its refusal to share data with investigators sets it apart from most other major tech companies. Unlike U.S.-based platforms, Telegram is not required by U.S. law to report instances of CSAM to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, or NCMEC. Many online platforms based overseas do so anyway — but not Telegram. “NCMEC has tried to get them to report, but they have no interest and are known for not wanting to work with [law enforcement agencies] or anyone in this space,” a NCMEC spokesperson said.
The Post also writes that Telegram “has repeatedly been revealed to serve as a tool to store, distribute and share child sexual imagery.” (They cite several examples, including two different men convicted to minimum sentences of at least 10 years for using the service to purchase CSAM and solicit explicit photos from minors.)
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
These novel metal foams promise 90% improved heat exchange for sustainable data center cooling
Apheros metal foams could slash data center cooling energy needs by 10-20%.
Swiss startup Apheros has unveiled a new way to address the global demand for data processing driven by the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) and large language lodels (LLMs)
The company has developed a novel metal foam it says can revolutionize the cooling systems used in data centers.
As pressure on data centers continues to rise, cooling systems become more crucial for maintaining their optimal operation, often accounting for nearly 40% of their total energy consumption.
Efficient cooling solution for data centers
Data centers are increasingly tasked with handling complex AI workloads, which require specialized hardware such as GPUs and TPUs.
These components generate significant amounts of heat, necessitating advanced cooling systems to prevent overheating and ensure consistent performance. Traditionally, data centers have relied on heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems for cooling. However, as server densities increase, these air-based systems have become insufficient.
To address these limitations, more efficient cooling methods have emerged, including immersion cooling and direct-to-chip cooling. Immersion cooling involves submerging servers in a dielectric liquid, while direct-to-chip cooling circulates coolant through cold plates attached to the chips. Both methods rely on effective heat exchange to transfer heat away from the chips and into a cooling medium, which is where Apheros’ metal foams come into play.
(Image credit: Apheros)
The metal foams are available in various compositions including copper, nickel, iron, and stainless steel. Their structure features completely open porosity with interconnected pores, resulting in a surface area that is 1000x higher compared to traditional solutions. The foams have densities ranging from 0.9 to 2.2 g/cm3.
Apheros uses a patent-pending, easily scalable powder-based method that operates at room temperature, which it says results in consistent properties and high open-cell porosity, based on established food production techniques like chocolate mousse and meringue, which allows for the creation of mechanically stable foams.
Apheros’ metal foams have high thermal conductivity and can provide up to 90% improved heat exchange compared to traditional solutions. This allows for the use of higher coolant temperatures, leading to 10-20% energy savings in cooling systems, not only reducing operational costs but also supports the growing need for sustainable data center working.
(Image credit: Apheros)
The foams are optimal for passive cooling applications like heat sinks and are suitable for single-phase cold plates and immersion cooling in data centers. There is also potential for two-phase direct-to-chip cooling. Furthermore, the large surface area makes the foams suitable for use as electrodes and catalysts.
Julia Carpenter, co-founder and CEO of Apheros, told VentureBeat, “This ultra-high surface area metal foam goes directly on the chip and allows the liquid to flow through it. So, in the case of on-chip cooling, it acts like a kitchen sponge with really fine porosity, where the water or the coolant flows through and takes the heat away. This also occurs in immersion cooling.”
“The increase in heat transfer efficiency of Apheros foams directly translates into energy-saving benefits as it allows data centers to use higher coolant temperatures. This is crucial as it allows for heat exchange with outside air without using water-intensive evaporation towers or power-hungry processes like compression.”
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A former Essential Phone exec used company funds for Lamborghinis, claims lawsuit
OSOM’s first phone, eventually renamed the Solana Saga. | Image: Osom
A lawsuit filed against Osom Products, Inc. by its former chief privacy officer, Mary Stone Ross, claims that the company’s CEO, Jason Keats, used business funds for extravagant purchases that include two Lamborghinis, reports Android Authority.
Keats, who founded Osom after Essential shut down and hired several of Essential’s former workers, is also accused of using company resources to pay for things ranging from his racing habit to his racing partner’s salary to his own mortgage, the outlet writes. Ross has apparently asked the court to make Osom give her access to company records that may prove the lawsuit’s claims.
The lawsuit also reportedly claims that Keats tried and failed to sell the company to HP and that, after that deal fell through, he tried to get Osom to pivot to making an “AI-powered camera.” The company’s “resources are allegedly depleted.”
An unnamed spokesperson denied the lawsuit’s claims when asked by Android Authority.
OSOM’s first phone, eventually renamed the Solana Saga. | Image: Osom
A lawsuit filed against Osom Products, Inc. by its former chief privacy officer, Mary Stone Ross, claims that the company’s CEO, Jason Keats, used business funds for extravagant purchases that include two Lamborghinis, reports Android Authority.
Keats, who founded Osom after Essential shut down and hired several of Essential’s former workers, is also accused of using company resources to pay for things ranging from his racing habit to his racing partner’s salary to his own mortgage, the outlet writes. Ross has apparently asked the court to make Osom give her access to company records that may prove the lawsuit’s claims.
The lawsuit also reportedly claims that Keats tried and failed to sell the company to HP and that, after that deal fell through, he tried to get Osom to pivot to making an “AI-powered camera.” The company’s “resources are allegedly depleted.”
An unnamed spokesperson denied the lawsuit’s claims when asked by Android Authority.
Pump Up the Party With This Labor Day Deal on the Sonos Move 2 Speaker
Save 20% on the Sonos Move 2 Bluetooth speaker with this special Labor Day deal.
Save 20% on the Sonos Move 2 Bluetooth speaker with this special Labor Day deal.