1. Openhaystack: Build ‘AirTags’ – track Bluetooth devices via Apple’s network Total comment counts : 19 Summary Summary of the Article on OpenHaystack: OpenHaystack is an experimental software framework developed by the Secure Mobile Networking Lab at TU Darmstadt, designed to allow users to create and track personal Bluetooth devices using Apple’s Find My network. Here are the key points: Functionality: Users can make their own tracking tags or integrate tracking capabilities into existing Bluetooth devices like keyrings or notebooks....

1. YC Graveyard: 821 inactive Y Combinator startups Total comment counts : 34 Summary The article lists various startups from different batches (W24, W23, W22, W21, W20, W19, W18) and their categories, showcasing a wide range of industries including: Technology and Engineering: Companies like Fileforge, Stitch Technologies, and Defer focus on engineering, product, and design. Health and Wellness: Notable mentions include BeWell Digital, Synapsica Healthcare, and 54Gene focusing on healthcare services, diagnostics, and consumer health....

1. Life lessons from the first half-century of my career Total comment counts : 27 Summary The article explains that the website is protected by a security service (Cloudflare) which has blocked the user’s action due to potential security threats. This could be triggered by specific words, phrases, SQL commands, or malformed data. It advises users who are blocked to contact the site owner, providing details of the action they were performing and including the Cloudflare Ray ID for reference....

1. A QR code that sends you to a different destination – lenticular and adversarial Total comment counts : 20 Summary error Top 1 Comment Summary The article discusses a hypothetical attack involving a dynamic QR code in public settings, where the code changes based on real-time user analysis: Setup: The QR code is designed as a half/half code, allowing for dynamic alterations. A system uses external inputs, like camera data, to assess user characteristics and adjust the QR code’s colors to influence which users are likely to scan it....

1. Understanding gRPC, OpenAPI and REST and when to use them in API design (2020) Total comment counts : 53 Summary The article discusses the primary models for API design, focusing on RPC (Remote Procedure Call) and REST (Representational State Transfer), and how these models interact with HTTP protocols: RPC vs. REST: RPC: Focuses on procedures where data is encapsulated within calls. gRPC, a modern RPC framework, uses HTTP/2 but abstracts the HTTP layer from the developer....

1. Ross Ulbricht granted a full pardon Total comment counts : 170 Summary error Top 1 Comment Summary The article recounts a coincidental experience where the author was reading a Wired magazine piece about the arrest of Ross Ulbricht, the alleged operator of the Silk Road online black market, in a public library. Interestingly, the author was sitting near the exact location where Ulbricht was apprehended years earlier. The author reflects on the surreal experience of reading about the arrest while being in the same spot, noting details like the FBI’s preparation at a nearby coffee shop and the setup of the arrest scene directly in front of him....

1. Reverse engineering Call of Duty anti-cheat Total comment counts : 21 Summary The article details a reverse engineer’s analysis of the anti-cheat system in “Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War,” referred to as TAC (Treyarch Anti-Cheat). Here are the key points: Anti-Cheat Overview: Unlike newer Call of Duty titles, Black Ops Cold War uses a user-mode anti-cheat system (TAC) without kernel-mode components. TAC is integrated directly into the game’s executable and does not utilize kernel drivers....

1. UK’s hardware talent is being wasted Total comment counts : 80 Summary The article by Josef Chen discusses the underutilization of engineering talent in the UK, particularly in hardware engineering, despite the presence of world-class graduates from universities like Imperial, Oxford, and Cambridge. Here are the key points: Salary Disparity: UK hardware engineers earn significantly less than their Silicon Valley counterparts, with starting salaries in London being much lower than in the US tech hubs....

1. TikTok goes dark in the US Total comment counts : 206 Summary Summary: A new federal law in the U.S. led to TikTok being temporarily unavailable on Saturday night, with the app disappearing from app stores and displaying a message about the ban. However, by Sunday midday, TikTok began restoring service. The law, which requires TikTok’s parent company ByteDance to sell the app or face a ban due to national security concerns, was passed with bipartisan support and signed by President Joe Biden....

1. Can you read this cursive handwriting? The National Archives wants your help Total comment counts : 38 Summary The National Archives is seeking volunteers through its Citizen Archivist program to help transcribe and tag its vast collection of historical documents, many of which are in cursive and date back over 200 years. This initiative aims to make these documents more accessible online, as traditional methods like optical character recognition are not always effective....