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Tech News
Apple introduced the HomeView, a smart display that extracts recipe instructions from websites into simplified, hands-free, voice-navigable steps using Siri. The feature removes the surrounding text, ads, and affiliate links that many food writers depend on for income, joining a growing category of apps and gadgets that strip recipes to their essentials.
Estonia has released the source code for IVXV, its online voting platform, in a public repository for review. The maintainers say the repository mirrors the exact code used in legally binding elections, though it is not used for active development. Actual development is overseen by Estonia's State Electoral Office, which directs further inquiries to valimised.ee.
Australia is moving to enforce a law barring children under 16 from social media accounts, partly in response to accounts like Varsha Yajman's, who says platform algorithms pushed her toward pro-eating-disorder content as a teenager. Yajman, now 24 and recovering from anorexia, says she still receives weight-loss related content despite using strict safety settings and blocked keywords.
A new survey from data removal service Incogni, covering 1,517 U.S. adults, found that 45% say they aren't concerned about their online privacy. Despite this, among those who claimed to have 'nothing to hide,' 58% would refuse to let a stranger unlock their phone for any amount of money, 39% cover their device cameras, and nearly half wouldn't share text messages with the government or 'Big Tech' even for three months' income.
Meta is updating its commercial and self-serve ad terms, effective October 30th, with language authorizing it to deploy web crawlers and bots on domains "associated" with businesses using its advertising platforms, including news publishers. The terms state Meta can use that content to develop, improve, research, and train its AI products. Meta spokesperson Daniel Roberts says the move simply consolidates existing ad terms and denies any change to how the company uses web crawlers.
Online sellers say AI agents acting on behalf of shoppers are now inserting themselves into the buying process, creating friction between businesses and their customers. These agents can handle tasks like comparison shopping, negotiating, or completing purchases without direct human interaction with the merchant's own interface.
A commentary on social media age-verification bans argues that minors routinely bypass these restrictions, and that calls to tighten enforcement miss the point. The authors contend that stricter age gates could push children toward less-moderated parts of the internet and require more invasive collection of personal data to verify ages.
Child protection campaigner Simmons-Read warned that the UK's planned 2027 ban on social media for under-16s 'doesn't go far enough' and could be circumvented by criminals, potentially also deterring young people from reporting grooming. He called for tech platforms to invest more in detecting exploitation as it happens. The government said it is drafting legislation to block children from viewing or sharing nude images on devices, while Meta said it restricts contact between adults and unconnected teens and uses behavioural signals to flag possible grooming.
The UK government announced that from 6 November it will be illegal to possess or publish pornography depicting strangulation, suffocation, incest, or adults role-playing as under-16s. The change stems from amendments to the Crime and Policing Bill, which became law in April, following a 2025 review led by Baroness Gabby Bertin into online porn regulation.
Hackers have been exploiting a critical command injection vulnerability in Nextcloud's built-in Collabora Online CODE server app since at least September 10, weeks before the issue received a formal advisory and CVE number. The flaw lets unauthenticated attackers send a crafted request to the app's proxy.php endpoint and run system commands when the bundled CODE server is down, such as after a restart or crash, allowing them to plant PHP webshells and hunt for passwords and crypto wallets.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has signed a decree requiring social media and content-sharing platforms to block minors from accessing material involving violence, hate speech, self-harm, sexual abuse and explicit sexual content. Platforms have 30 days to add age classifications, parental controls, stronger privacy settings and a round-the-clock contact point for authorities, with Mexico's ADTT overseeing compliance. The measures carry no penalties at first, though the government says it will pursue legislation if platforms fail to comply.
Apple has introduced a 'Get Ready' feature on its Online Store and Apple Store app, letting customers pick their iPhone Duo model, color, storage, carrier, trade-in and accessories ahead of time. Shoppers can also set up payment and shipping details before pre-orders officially open on Friday. Apple will then automatically place the order once the purchase window begins.