Hi all! So much tech news today. What a blessing! Have a great day — CW

The News

Australia to require p*rn and AI websites to get users to prove their age

P*rn websites will need to check user’s ages and restrict access under new rules from the eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant (Crikey, $). This is one of the “compliance measures” as part of six industry codes registered today which have been written by Australia’s tech industry and approved by Inman Grant (eSafety). These regulations will also require AI chatbot makers to check users ages so they can stop children from talking about sex and suicide with bots (ABC News). Much like the teen social media ban, the actual methods are unspecified but we can assume it will include things like facial scans and uploading ID. These rules kick in on March 9, and providers face multi-million dollar fines for failing to comply.

The Sizzle: Well, it was the worst kept secret in Australian tech policy that this was coming, but I think it’s still worth taking a moment. We are officially at the end of an era of the age-blind internet. It is now Australian government policy that many of the world’s most popular services and platforms have to restrict users based on country-level decisions about what content you should be allowed to see. Before we even get to all the challenges of implementation — and we will get to that, don’t worry — both fans and opponents will admit it’s an enormous change.

Discuss in the Sizzle Slack or forum.

Malware put into coding package with billions of weekly downloads

Hackers have slipped malware into popular coding packages that are downloaded billions of times a week (Bleeping Computer). The accounts of Javascript npm package maintainer Josh Junon were hacked after he got phished in a campaign that targeted a bunch of maintainers. Once inside, they put malicious code that will intercept and hijack browser traffic into the packages which will re-route crypto transfers into the hackers’ accounts.

The Sizzle: These supply-side attacks are a good reminder of how the most sophisticated, complex systems are still usually reliant on some guy. In this case, one bloke clicked the wrong email and, as a result, an untold amount of people were exposed to malware. Not much any of us can do about that!

Discuss in the Sizzle Slack or forum.

Robots are getting their own robots

Robot makers have a new approach to conquering stairs: they’re building robots to carry the other robots. Both Eufy (Verge) and Dreame (CNET) have released new robots that carry your robo-vacuum from floor-to-floor.

The Sizzle: I am soooo close to pulling the trigger on a robovacuum. They’re getting pretty cheap — like the one in yesterday’s Bargain section. But as part of this, I’d essentially accepted that it would be limited to a single floor. Kudos to the eggheads who managed to pitch their bosses on building a moon lander-cum-robo spider creation as a solution to stairs but I can’t help but wonder whether it’s still probably cheaper to buy a vacuum for each level than these monstrosities.

Discuss in the Sizzle Slack or forum.

Leftovers

Discuss these links in the Sizzle Slack or forum.

Oh, Also

The quest to save iPod click wheel games

Remember the click wheel games that came on some of the iPod models? Apple’s FairPlay DRM made it near impossible to preserve and play the 54 titles released for iPods over the years — until now. It was a long and difficult process according to Apple Insider, but the iPod Click Wheel Games Preservation Project has managed to compile each of the games in once place. You still need to have an actual iPod to play but, if you do, I’d love to hear if you take this for a spin.

Discuss in the Sizzle Slack or forum.

Bargains

Electronics & electrical

Computing

Mobile

The End

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