Dropping WhatsApp? Despite Privacy Concerns, Nostalgia Drives Users to ICQ

Here’s an interesting tidbit from The Wall Street Journal:
ICQ was a pioneering, mid-1990s internet messaging service then used on bulky PCs on dial-up. It was a precursor to AOL Instant Messenger, and was last in vogue when the TV show “Friends” was in its prime and PalmPilots were cutting edge. It’s been modernized over the years, and now is an app…

Fired COVID-19 Data Manager Rebekah Jones Sues FDLE Over Raid On Her Home

Former Department of Health data manager Rebekah Jones has filed a lawsuit (PDF) against the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, saying the Dec. 7 morning raid on her house was a “sham” to retaliate against her for not altering COVID-19 data. Tallahassee.com reports: Jones was fired in May for failing to change COVID-19 data, and soon launched her own online data…

US Says It Seized Cryptocurrency From Three Terrorist Groups

The Trump administration dismantled digital campaigns by al-Qaeda and other other terrorist groups that used social media to obtain cryptocurrency for carrying out terrorist attacks, the Justice Department said on Thursday. From a report: The U.S. seized millions of dollars and more than 300 cryptocurrency accounts used by al-Qaeda; Hamas’s military wing, the al-Qassam Brigades; and the Islamic State of Iraq…

These dogs are trained to sniff out the coronavirus

Scientists have been working with professional trainers in South Australia, Victoria and New South Wales to train dogs to sniff out Covid-19. Most of the dogs have a 100% success rate. Source: https://earthsky.org/human-world/dogs-trained-to-smell-detect-coronavirus-covid19…

A 17-Year-Old’s Journey: Minecraft, SIM-Swapping Bitcoin Heists, Breaching Twitter

The New York Times tells the story of the 17-year-old “mastermind” arrested Friday for the takeover of dozens of high-profile Twitter accounts. They report that Graham Ivan Clark “had a difficult family life” and “poured his energy into video games and cryptocurrency” after his parents divorced when he was 7, and he grew up in Tampa, Florida with his mother, “a…

ACLU Sues LA Over Controversial Scooter Tracking System

The American Civil Liberties Union sued Los Angeles Monday over the city’s requirement that electric scooter rental companies provide anonymized real-time location data. The Verge reports: The lawsuit centers on the Los Angeles Department of Transportation’s use of a digital tool called the Mobility Data Specification program (MDS), which the agency created as a way to track and regulate electric scooters…

Facebook Dating Launch Blocked In Europe After It Fails To Show Privacy Workings

An anonymous reader quotes a report from TechCrunch: Facebook has been left red-faced after being forced to call off the launch date of its dating service in Europe because it failed to give its lead EU data regulator enough advanced warning — including failing to demonstrate it had performed a legally required assessment of privacy risks. Yesterday, Ireland’s Independent.ie newspaper reported…

Alan Turing’s Doctorate & Knighthood Medal Recovered 36 Years After Theft

Slashdot reader McGruber shares the news that several of Alan Turing’s historic personal effects have been recovered nearly 36 years after they were stolen. From a report:
In filings in the U.S. District Court of Colorado Friday, federal officials say they seized the British mathematician’s Princeton University degree, his Order of the British Empire medal and several photos, school reports and letters…