US confirms weapons in space, iOS 27 fixes over 100 security bugs
America has deployed weapons in space to guard against “hostile adversary action”, the US military confirmed for the first time. In the most direct acknowledgement so far, the US air force secretary said it already has space weapons in place above the Earth. Troy Meink confirmed the move in a speech at the Air, Space & Cyber Conference in Maryland on Monday. He didn’t state which weapon was deployed, whether it had been tested, or how many there were.
Alcohol buyers will be able to use a digital ID app on their phones to prove their age under new rules introduced on Tuesday. Pubs and shops in England and Wales can use the tech in addition to current physical forms of ID – with the government saying a digital option will make age-checks quicker and more secure for customers and staff. Customers will be able to choose ID apps from a range of suppliers such as the Post Office, Yoti or Luciditi, provided they are on a government-approved list. BBC
Today’s iOS 27 update addresses over 100 security vulnerabilities, which is a good reason to install the new software.
If you don’t want to update to iOS 27 yet, Apple also released iOS 26.7 with over 80 security fixes. 75 of the fixes are shared across both updates, so iOS 26.7 addresses many of the same issues. There are multiple kernel fixes, including one that could allow a malicious app to gain root access and another that could allow for Bluetooth remote code execution. A full list of vulnerabilities can be found on Apple’s site for both iOS 27 and iOS 26.7. MacRumors
Scotland’s parliament is this week set to vote on a moratorium on new hyperscale data centers. The Scottish Green Party has vowed to use its opposition debate at Holyrood on Wednesday to force a vote on banning new data center proposals using more than 50MW of power. Earlier this year, the Green Party announced its backing for a moratorium amid what it describes as a “huge wave of speculative proposals across Scotland.” It wants all large projects paused until Scotland can develop a national strategy for data centers, with clear criteria for approving planning applications. DCD
The Volvo XC60 and Volvo XC90 now boast among the longest ranges of any plug-in hybrids in the world, thanks to the addition of a new powertrain that should allow owners to do an entire week’s worth of commuting without using a drop of petrol. Volvo’s new, aptly named ‘long-range plug-in hybrid’ powertrain provides up to 124 miles of pure-electric driving range in the mid-size XC60 and 99 miles in the larger, seven-seat XC90 – two-and-a-half times what the brand’s old PHEV set-up could deliver in the pair. AutoExpress
Before an Anthropic researcher resigned and declared human extinction imminent last week, tech leaders and scientists had sounded the alarm about a superintelligent AI ending humanity for over a decade. The development of artificial intelligence “could spell the end of the human race”, warned professor and astrophysicist Stephen Hawking in 2014 – a little less than a decade before the public got its hands on the generative AI features of the original version of ChatGPT. It’s a now-familiar warning, echoed across the AI and tech industry by countless employees and CEOs. The Guardian
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