All products featured on WIRED are independently selected by our editors. However, we may receive compensation from retailers and/or from purchases of products through these links.
Get WIRED's daily briefing in your inbox. Sign up here
Vast Hurricaine Dorian strikes the Bahamas
Category five hurricane Dorian is the most powerful storm to make landfall in the Bahamas since records began, with sustained 285kph winds that destroyed roofs and power infrastructure as well as producing floods and storm surges (BBC News).
As Bahamian residents and emergency services begin dealing with the aftermath of the catastrophe, Dorian is now heading west towards the US states of Florida, Georgia, North and South Carolina, where a state of emergency has been declared. Its exact path has proven hard to predict due to what meteorologists describe as a wide “cone of uncertainty”.
YouTube fined in children's privacy violation settlement
Google has been fined $200 million by the US Federal Trade Commission as part of a settlement over alleged breaches of children's privacy law (Gizmodo). Privacy groups say that YouTube illegally collected data on viewers under 13 to serve them targeted ads. However, critics say the fine – issued alongside a requirement to create a web portal for children – is a slap on the wrist for Google.
Gendarmes take down cryptocurrency mining botnet
The cybercrime division of France's national gendarmerie has successfully hijacked and taken out the Retadup botnet, which was being used to spread cryptocurrency mining malware through the US, Russia, and Central and South America (TechCrunch). Working on recommendations from Avast security researchers, the Cybercrime Fighting Center built a replica disinfection server, which has so neutralised over 850,000 Retadup infections as compromised systems connect to it.
Twitter founder Dorsey's Twitter account got hacked
Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey briefly lost control of his own Twitter account in what's been confirmed as a SIM-swapping attack (WIRED). SMS messaging is often a weak link in security, as phone numbers were never designed to be the secure identity proxy they're often used as. In this case, Twitter will post any message that appears to come from a phone number associated with a given account. Twitter says the hackers gained access to Dorsey's number “due to a security oversight by the mobile provider.”
Netflix's The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance is a worthy successor to Game of Thrones
Look beyond the puppets, cast aside any preconceived notions about fantasy as a genre, and try to forget you're looking at some of the strangest creatures to grace your screen in decades, and The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance reveals itself to be something unexpected: one of the most radical and political shows you'll watch all year (WIRED).
It's been 37 years since the cinematic original introduced viewers to the mesmerising planet of Thra. For Age of Resistance, Netflix and the Jim Henson Company have gone the prequel route, exploring how the evil Skeksis came to power and the Gelflings were all but eradicated.
Why you shouldn't feel good about carbon offsetting
Listen now, subscribe via RSS or add to iTunes.
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
