Hi there!

I’m a bit behind on this newsletter issue, but it’s a busy time for me! I hope you find it both useful and interesting. Here are my highlights from last week.

🛡️ Security & Privacy

• Reverse engineering the inactivity reboot security feature in iOS 18 available here.
• In summer 2024, the eBPF Foundation hired NCC Group for a security review of the eBPF Verifier. The report is available here in PDF format.
• DNA testing firm vanishes without trace, leaving customers stranded, BBC investigation finds. More here.
• An AI tool anonymizes faces in images while preserving the overall content and context. More here.
• Brave Browser 1.71 for iOS introduces "Shred," enabling one-tap deletion of site-specific browsing data without logging out. Read more here.
• Two undersea internet cables in the Baltic Sea were reported damaged: one connecting Finland and Germany, and another between Lithuania and Sweden. The German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius labeled the incident as an act of sabotage. More here.
• Apple confirmed zero-day attacks exploiting vulnerabilities in Intel-based Macs, prompting urgent security updates for macOS and iOS. Read more here.
• Porch pirates are reportedly accessing AT&T tracking data to steal iPhones right after delivery. More here.

🛸 Tech

• The RAIBO2 robot dog completed a marathon in South Korea, becoming the first quadrupedal robot to do so. More here.
• The Signaloid C0-microSD is a programmable FPGA SoM in microSD format, enabling hardware acceleration in various systems.
• SpaceX's Starship successfully reignited an engine during its sixth test flight, crucial for future missions. Read more here.
• Google researchers mapped Earth's ionosphere using millions of Android phones, enhancing GPS accuracy and coverage significantly. More here.
• Google is merging Android and Chrome OS to better compete with Apple's iPad in the tablet market. More here.
• The DOJ is pushing for Google to sell its Chrome browser to combat search market monopoly. Read more here.

Dev

• Good software development habits here.
• Useful GDB configuration and scripting tricks here.
• The Linux kernel 6.12 has been released. More here.
• Using gRPC for (local) inter-process communication here.

AI

• Meta utilized large language models (LLMs) to achieve a 42% accuracy rate in identifying the root causes of incidents. More here.
• Microsoft has partnered with HarperCollins to train AI models using select nonfiction titles. More here.
• Niantic is using player data from Pokémon Go to develop an AI geospatial model, raising privacy concerns. More here.
• Nvidia's Blackwell AI chips face overheating issues, delaying shipments to major clients like Meta and Microsoft. More here.
• Mistral launched new AI models and features for its Le Chat platform, enhancing multimodal processing and document analysis capabilities. Read more here.

🛠️ Tools

Personal Use

• Textgram - plug-in for creating and storing ASCII graphics, including diagrams and charts, as SVGs.

Dev

• bpftune - provides lightweight, automated system tuning using BPF observability features for optimal performance.
• WebVM - a Linux virtual machine that runs in your browser.

AI

• garak - tests AI models for vulnerabilities like hallucinations, data leaks, and security issues.
• Pensieve - a privacy-focused tool for passive screen recording, ensuring complete user data control.
• Documind - an AI-driven tool for extracting structured data from PDFs using customizable schemas.

🍂 Misc

• Thomas Kurtz, co-creator of the BASIC programming language, has died at the age of 96. Read more here.
• Japanese artist Lito carves intricate scenes on leaves, channeling his ADHD into creative expression. See more here.
• Fair coins tend to land on the same side they started. Full study here.
• I discovered a book titled Mathematica: A Secret World of Intuition and Curiosity, which delves into the cognitive processes occurring in the brains of individuals engaged in mathematical thinking. Here is an interview with the author.
• Scientists discovered that a laser can cast a shadow under specific conditions, enabling new optical applications. Read more here.

📩 Please feel free to share this article with colleagues and friends who will find it valuable.

Thanks for reading!

Have a great day!
Bogdan