I have spent at least five hours recently, over the phone and on site, fixing computers that have been infected, not by viruses because I have got family and friends to install antivirus software like NOD32, but by spyware !
Annoying pop-up messages that often sound scary to novices, "You have been infected by spyware" "you must download this software"... And they are real pains to get rid of. You either have to install Spyware removal software, that have twice in my experience crashed the computer, or manually search and destroy (sorry remove) !
I just don't understand, like with Spam, why there isn't more done against people that advertise through this medium. A practice that can also result in seriously damage people's lives when hackers take advantage of this to take the issue one step further...
Ads can be served to you by reputable web sites, that are unaware of the malicious intent behind the spyware installing companies, engaging in this type of business. Ads like these suddenly pop-up on your computer sometimes before you have even typed anything in the browser :
An article at the washingtonpost.com's Security Fix discusses a recent spyware campaign and does a great initial job of researching the people behind the so called DeckOutYourDeck ad. This extract explains how the iDefense analyst Michael La Pilla followed as far as possible the security flaw that comes from the images in the Windows Metafile format :
Using software that captures and analyzes Web traffic, La Pilla found that the installation program contacted a Russian-language Web server in Turkey that tracks how many times the program was installed, presumably because most of this adware is installed by third parties who get paid for each installation. The data there indicate that the adware was installed on 1.07 million computers, La Pilla said, adding that all seven of the Internet addresses contacted by the downloader Trojan appear to be inactive at this time.
I question the reliability and accuracy of Generative AI (GenAI) in enterprise scenarios, particularly when faced with adversarial questions, highlighting that current Large Language Models (LLMs) may be data-rich but lack in reasoning and causality. I would call for a more balanced approach to AI adoption in cases of assisting users, requiring supervision, and the need for better LLM models that can be trusted, learn, and reason.
I discuss my experience with chatbots, contrasting older rules-based systems with newer GenAI (General Artificial Intelligence) chatbots. We cannot dismiss the creative capabilities of GenAI-based chatbots, but these systems lack reliability, especially in customer-facing applications, and improvements in the way AI is structured could lead to a "software renaissance," potentially reducing society's technical debt.
The article discusses the contrasting debate on how AI safety is and should be managed, its impact on technical debt, and its societal implications.
It notes the Center for AI Safety's call for a worldwide focus on the risks of AI, and Meredith Whittaker's criticism that such warnings preserve the status quo, strengthening tech giants' dominance. The piece also highlights AI's potential to decrease societal and technical debt by making software production cheaper, simpler, and resulting in far more innovation. It provides examples of cost-effective open-source models that perform well and emphasizes the rapid pace of AI innovation. Last, the article emphasises the need for adaptive legislation to match the pace of AI innovation, empowering suitable government entities for oversight, defining appropriate scopes for legislation and regulation, addressing ethical issues and biases in AI, and promoting public engagement in AI regulatory decisions.
Japan has made its ruling on the situation between Content creators and Businesses. Japanese companies that use AI have the freedom to use content for training purposes without the burden of copyright laws. This news about the copyright laws in Japan reported over at Technomancers is seen as Businesses: 1 / Content Creators: 0 The […]