Microsoft confirmed disruption to its Microsoft 365 apps earlier this month was due to a

By Gloria Dickie Monday, July 3, was the hottest day ever recorded globally, according to data from the U.S. National

More than half of young people in the UK have used an AI chatbot such as ChatGPT in the last year to help them with schoolwork, emails or their job, research suggests. Nominet’s latest annual Digital Youth Index, which examines young people’s online habits and attitudes, suggests that while most young people (94%) feel safe online, 76% said they had been exposed to an upsetting experience. That is a 7% rise on last year, with young people reporting an increase in exposure to fake news and hate speech, both up 4%, as well as sexual content, up by 6%. The study, conducted by Opinium, surveyed 4,000 people aged between eight and 25 in the UK. While society at large grapples with artificial intelligence at all levels, it’s encouraging to see young people embracing technology so quickly and using it in their daily lives Paul Fletcher, Nominet The young people surveyed claimed to spend an average of between four and five hours a day online – mostly on social media, chatting with friends or accessing entertainment. Most (95%) of those asked said they were on at least one social network, including children who are under the age limit for some of those services. According to the study, X, formerly known as Twitter, was identified as the platform where the most respondents (77%) had seen distressing content. On AI, the study showed that 53% of those asked said they had used an AI chatbot and were curious about how they could use them in their lives, while 54% said they were concerned about the impact AI could have on jobs in the future. Nominet chief executive, Paul Fletcher, said: “While society at large grapples with artificial intelligence at all levels, it’s encouraging to see young people embracing technology so quickly and using it in their daily lives. “We must continue to encourage this inquisitive nature from the next generation – and despite their adoption of AI, many still have concerns about the potential impact on their future. “When it comes to online safety, it looks like young Brits are growing in confidence, but the rise in exposure to upsetting content highlights that tackling online harm remains important to young people.” The study also indicated that 14% of young people lack access to a laptop or desktop computer, while 15% did not have broadband access at home. Meanwhile, 11% said they had to change or cancel their internet package this year as a direct result of the cost-of-living crisis. “Our data shows us the reality that despite young people’s lives and their education system going online, a concerning 14% of two million of them still don’t have access to a laptop or desktop computer, and this has the potential to significantly disadvantage those that would benefit the most,” Mr Fletcher said. Read More Businesses embracing generative AI but fear cyberattacks, survey finds Police to trial use of drones as first responders to emergencies Apple to adopt system to improve texting between iPhones and Android devices ICO seeks permission to appeal against Clearview AI tribunal ruling Users of iPhones can now check bank balance from Wallet app VR tool aims to help rail passengers spot and safely tackle sexual harassment

Tech companies should help to reimburse the victims of social media purchase scams, bosses at Barclays have said. It comes as data from the bank revealed a jump in the number of social media scams affecting British shoppers. Purchase scams, where people buy good which never arrive or are not as advertised, now account for two thirds of all reported scams, according to the research. Barclays said that 88% of these scams, which cause victims to lose £1,000 on average, start on social media platforms. The bank has called for more to be done in order to prevent these scams, demanding further action from social media companies and politicians. It has called for a victim reimbursement fund to be financed by all firms whose systems and platforms are used to perpetrate scams, including tech companies and banks, as part of four recommendations. Currently victims are only reimbursed by funding from banks, Barclays said. The banking giant also called for the creation of a cross-Government group within the Home Office to deal with the issue in order to coordinate regulators, policy makers, industry groups, and companies across different sectors. The prevention of scams should also be made mandatory, particularly for tech companies, in a shift from current voluntary measures, it added. Barclays also urged the Government to make organisations publish their scams data in order to inform consumers of the risks involved in using their platforms. Matt Hammerstein, chief executive officer of Barclays UK, said: “With so much of everyone’s lives now being online, from staying connected with friends and family, to shopping, it’s important that people feel safe on the platforms they use. “Our data shows that tech platforms, particularly social media, are now the source of almost all scams. “However, there is no current legislative or regulatory framework obliging the tech sector to support the prevention of these crimes, as there rightly is for banks. “We can only drive back this epidemic, and protect UK competitiveness, by stopping scams at their source, preventing the flow of funds to organised crime.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Hozier would consider striking over AI threat to music industry Snapchat experiences ‘temporary outage’ as My AI chatbot posts own Story Crime victims’ data revealed by two police forces in FoI responses

China would be blocked from purchasing oil from the US’s emergency stockpiles under legislation slated for a Senate

The wife of Republican gubernatorial nominee Daniel Cameron has dismissed the Democratic governor’s proposal for an 11% pay raise for public school personnel as unfeasible

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jul 5, 2023--

TOKYO Semiconductor materials maker JSR Corp's board will meet on Monday to discuss a potential multi-billion dollar buyout

Two years after awarding Elon Musk's SpaceX a contract to ferry astronauts to the surface of the Moon, NASA on Friday announced it had chosen Blue Origin, a rival space company founded by billionaire Jeff...

LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 16, 2023--

Diverse types of organic molecules have been found on Mars by a Nasa rover. The material was detected by the Perseverance rover in the Jezero Crater on Mars, scientists said. Researchers are unable to rule out that the materials have a “biotic” origin, or are the result of life on the planet. But they might also be formed in other ways, such as interactions between water and dust or having been dropped onto the planet by dust or meteors. The findings suggest that Mars may have had a far more active past than we realised – and could have significant implications for the search for alien life. According to the study, understanding more about Martian organic matter could shed light on the availability of carbon sources, with implications for the search for potential signs of life. The Scanning Habitable Environments with Raman and Luminescence for Organics and Chemicals (Sherloc) instrument on the rover is the first tool to enable fine-scale mapping and analysis of organic molecules and minerals on Mars. Perseverance landed within the Jezero crater, the site of an ancient lake basin with high potential for past habitability, in February 2021. Since then scientists have been exploring the geological make-up of the crater floor using a suite of tools on board the rover that can take pictures of and analyse the rocks. Sunanda Sharma, Ryan Roppel and their colleagues analysed observations from two formations on the Jezero crater floor. Signals of organic molecules were detected on all 10 targets that Sherloc observed in the Jezero crater floor, concentrated in the Maaz formation, more than in the Seitah formation. The data showed diverse mineral association and spatial distribution that may be unique to each formation. The researchers suggest the diversity among these observations may provide insight into different ways that organic matter may have originated: potentially through deposition by water, or in combination with volcanic materials. Writing in the Nature journal, the authors said: “Our findings suggest there may be a diversity of aromatic molecules prevalent on the Martian surface, and these materials persist despite exposure to surface conditions. “These potential organic molecules are largely found within minerals linked to aqueous processes, indicating that these processes may have had a key role in organic synthesis, transport or preservation.” The findings are published in a new article, ‘Diverse organic-mineral associations in Jezero crater, Mars’, in Nature today. Additional reporting by Press Association Read More Nasa to begin Moon mining within next decade Microsoft’s attempt to buy Call of Duty developer reaches huge new development Elon Musk posts series of explicit tweets about Mark Zuckerberg Microsoft’s attempt to buy Call of Duty developer reaches huge new development Elon Musk posts series of explicit tweets about Mark Zuckerberg Scientists invent cloak inspired by Roman god that could help us live on Mars

Save 20%: Amazon announced the next generation of Echo Buds on May 17, and though