Backing up Spotify
We backed up Spotify (metadata and music files). It’s distributed in bulk torrents (~300TB). It’s the world’s first “preservation archive” for music which is fully open (meaning it can easily be mirrored by anyone with …
TIL adults who frequently post on social media are at more risk of developing mental health problems than those who passively view social m…
Adults who frequently post on social media are at more risk of developing mental health problems than those who passively view social media content, finds a new study led by UCL researchers.
China's banned memory-maker CXMT unveils surprising new chipmaking capabilities despite crushing US export restrictions — DDR5-8000 and LPD…
But can it make them in decent volumes?
RAM and SSD prices are still climbing—here’s our best advice for PC builders
I would avoid building a PC right now, but if you can’t, here’s our best advice.
915 MHz Forecast: Rolling Your Own Offline Weather Station
There are a lot of options for local weather stations; most of them, however, are sensors tied to a base station, often requiring an internet connection to access all features. [Vinnie] over at vin…
AI boom has caused same CO2 emissions in 2025 as New York City, report claims
Study author says tech companies are reaping benefits of artificial intelligence age but society is left to pay cost
TP-Link Tapo C200: Hardcoded Keys, Buffer Overflows and Privacy in the Era of AI Assisted Reverse Engineering
Hi friends and welcome to the last post for this year! Whenever someone asks me how to get started with reverse engineering, I always give the same advice: buy the cheapest IP camera you can find. These devices are self…
Facebook is testing a link-posting limit for professional accounts and pages | TechCrunch
Meta said that the test impacts professional accounts and pages on Facebook.
[Self-promotion] My partner just released a (free) game about a monster in a winter forest
A short horror game set in a spooky winter forest.
Happy Public Domain Day everyone
January 1, 2026 is Public Domain Day: Works from 1930 are open to all, as are sound recordings from 1925! By Jennifer Jenkins and James Boyle[1] CC BY 4.0 Please note that this site is only about US law; the copyright t…
Cataloging modern-era physical releases for the Mega Drive and Sega Genesis
Cataloging modern-era physical releases for the Mega Drive and Sega Genesis
TikTok Deal Done And It’s Somehow The Shittiest Possible Outcome, Making Everything Worse
There were rumblings about this for a while, but it looks like the Trump TikTok deal is done, and it’s somehow the worst of all possible outcomes, amazingly making all of the biggest criticis…
Why we’re taking legal action against SerpApi’s unlawful scraping
We filed a suit today against the scraping company SerpApi.
Inequality alone doesn’t cause civil unrest – but internet access adds the crucial spark
Some regimes may be tempted to shut down the internet to maintain stability. But new research shows why reducing the wealth gap has become crucial for maintaining security.
Google sues web scraper for sucking up search results ‘at an astonishing scale’
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LG TVs’ unremovable Copilot shortcut is the least of smart TVs’ AI problems
LG says it’ll let people delete the Copilot icon. But TV chatbots aren’t going away.
Beware of OpenAI's 'Grantwashing' on AI Harms
J. Nathan Matias and Avriel Epps say OpenAI's announced research funding is the perfect corporate action to make sure we don't find answers for years.
Fediverse is getting E2EE
If you trust this link, click it to continue.
Explained: Why you can't move Windows 11 taskbar like Windows 10, according to Microsoft
Windows 11 can't move the taskbar, and four years later, Microsoft still has no plans to bring it back. Here's why, according to Microsoft.
Did Microsoft do anything right in 2025? Wins, fails, and WTF moments
We continue our annual tradition of looking back at Microsoft's wins, fails, and WTF moments: its victories, failures, and things that left you shaking your head. There's no other way to say it: Microsoft had a bad 2025.
Self-Host Weekly #150: Watchtower No More
Popular open source licenses, Santa tracking, and saying goodbye to an old friend
Inputs Of Interest: SafeType™ Vertical Keyboard With Mirrors Puts Pain In The Rear-View
Yep, this keyboard is another ebay special. I can’t stay away! This is a SafeType™ V801 from probably the early 2000s, although there is no date on it anywhere. I’m basing my guess on t…
Apple announces more ads are coming to App Store search results
Apple is expanding the number of ads that appear in App Store search results. In an update on its Apple...
We're putting lots of transition metals into the stratosphere. That's not good.
We successfully plugged the hole in the ozone layer that was discovered in the 1980s by banning ozone-depleting substances such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs). But, it seems we might be unintentionally creating another p…
TikTok allegedly monitoring users’ Grindr activity, digital rights group claims
TikTok has been accused of monitoring its user's Grindr activity by an Austrian internet privacy rights group.
North Korean infiltrator caught working in Amazon IT department thanks to lag — 110ms keystroke input raises red flags over true location
A barely perceptible keystroke delay was the smoking gun that led to the uncovering of a malign imposter.
AI’s Unpaid Debt: How LLM Scrapers Destroy the Social Contract of Open Source
TL;DR: The big tech AI company LLMs have gobbled up all of our data, but the damage they have done to open source and free culture communities are particularly insidious. By taking advantage of those who share freely, t…
The Mysterious Forces Steering Views on Hacker News
How the moderators behind one of the internet’s most popular platforms for tech content have a say into which content you consume.
ICE Contracts Company Making Bounty Hunter AI Agents
AI Solutions 87 says on its website its AI agents “deliver rapid acceleration in finding persons of interest and mapping their entire network.”
OpenAI’s Chief Communications Officer Is Leaving the Company
Hannah Wong told staff she is moving on to her ânext chapter.â The company will be running an executive search to find a replacement, according to a memo.
Tor Project received $2.5M from the US government to bolster privacy
The US government contributed over $2.5 million to the Tor Project last year, continuing its financial relationship with the nonprofit.
Apple opens up its App Store to competition in Japan
Epic Games CEO says Fortnite won't return to Japan, though, because the new rules still require high fees.
Are Apple Gift Cards Safe to Redeem?
Link to: https://tidbits.com/2025/12/17/compromised-apple-gift-card-leads-to-apple-account-lockout/
Creating apps like Signal or WhatsApp could be 'hostile activity,' claims UK watchdog
It's the latest blow to encryption in the UK
Tencent ‘Horizon clone’ pulled from stores as Sony settles lawsuit
Sony and Tencent have settled their dispute over upcoming Tencent game Light of Motiram…
Stardew Valley Creator Says 1.7 Update Will Contain 'More Character/Social Stuff' and a New Farm Type
As Stardew Valley fans continue to wait patiently for the previously announced 1.7 update, creator Eric Barone (ConcernedApe) has dropped a couple small, vague, yet exciting hints about what said mysterious update might…
House Science Committee Questions DOE Science Chief About Agency Reorganization
Under Secretary for Science Darío Gil said the new fusion and computing offices will focus on fostering industries for emerging technologies.
China Has Reportedly Built Its First EUV Machine Prototype, Marking a Semiconductor Breakthrough the U.S. Has Feared All Along
China's semiconductor industry might have taken a technological leaps, as a report claims that the nation has built the first EUV prototype.
Meet the New Right-Wing Tech Intelligentsia
Libs and the far-right ‘link and build’ in the Bay’s tech publication scene.
Rats Can Play Doom Now
We built a complete VR setup from scratch to let rats play DOOM. The system includes a motion-tracked treadmill ball, a panoramic headset, an input trigger, and a reward circuit. All hardware and software components are…
“They burned millions but got nothing.” Japanese game font provider’s aggressive price hike could be result of parent company’s alleged AI …
After it replaced a domestic $380 annual license plan for game fonts with a $20,500 plan, Monotype has come under scrutiny.
How French spies, police and military personnel are betrayed by advertising data | Le Monde
Using easily accessible advertising data, Le Monde was able to pinpoint the identities, home addresses and daily routines of several dozen people working for sensitive official entities.
Cloudflare report reveals global internet internet traffic grew 19% in 2025 - but a lot of it was just bots
‘Volatile crawling activity’ plagues platforms, but website owners are fighting back
Linux Kernel Rust Code Sees Its First CVE Vulnerability
The first CVE vulnerability has been assigned to a piece of the Linux kernel's Rust code.
New Ways to Corrupt LLMs: The wacky things statistical-correlation machines like LLMs do – and how they might get us killed
The wacky things statistical-correlation machine like LLMs do – and how they might get us killed
Coursera and Udemy enter a merger agreement valued at around $2.5B | TechCrunch
Coursera and Udemy, two of the biggest names in online learning, are combining platforms next year.
Video Game Physical Software and Hardware Sales Just Had the Worst November in the U.S. Since 1995 - IGN
Last month, November, was a shockingly terrible month for video game sales in the U.S. While we traditionally think of November as a huge sales month what with Black Friday and all, November 2025 was the worst November …
NetChoice Wins Permanent Block of Louisiana Age Verification Law, Protecting Free Speech and Parental Rights - NetChoice
BATON ROUGE, La.—Today, the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana granted NetChoice’s motion for summary judgment in NetChoice v. Murrill, striking down Louisiana’s Act 456. The court […]
Nvidia plans heavy cuts to GPU supply in early 2026
Nvidia reportedly plans to axe as much as 40% of its GeForce RTX 50 series GPU production in early 2026. Why? Memory costs...
Microsoft Edge Pushes an "All in One Browser" Message on Chrome’s Download Page
Microsoft Edge now shows a security-focused banner on Google Chrome’s download page. It highlights built-in safety features and links to Microsoft’s Online Safety page.