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Supposed bitcoin founder says ‘goodbye’ after presenting fake evidence

2019-03-06T05:58:36-05:00

Craig Steven Wright, the man claiming to be mysterious bitcoin founder Satoshi Nakamoto, is abruptly withdrawing from public life. Wright posted today that he would offer no more evidence to prove his identity, just days after he publicly claimed the Satoshi mantle in a series of coordinated articles. Wright’s claims were greeted with intense skepticism from many in the bitcoin community, who saw Wright as a con man using the Satoshi identity for personal gain.

As recently as yesterday, Wright had promised new evidence that would definitively prove his identity as bitcoin’s creator, writing that “extraordinary claims require extraordinary proof.” But according to the latest message published on his personal site, Wright abruptly lost the courage to carry through with the demonstration, fearing it would lead to personal attacks against him.

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This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

Supreme Court approves legal authority to hack anonymous computers

2019-03-06T05:15:19-05:00

It just got a lot easier for law enforcement agents to hack anonymous computers over the internet. Last night, the Supreme Court approved changes to the rules of criminal procedure, enabling warrants for searches of remote computers, regardless of their physical location. That kind of warrant is particularly important for law enforcement hacking techniques, which typically target anonymous accounts or devices without knowing their physical location or identity. The changes are due to take effect in December, unless Congress passes countermanding legislation in the interim.

A number of experts have criticized hacking warrants as granting unnecessarily broad powers. In a 2014 editorial, law professor Ahmed Ghappour argued the warrants would result in widespread intrusions into other countries, potentially violating other countries’ sovereignty. “Overseas cyber operations will be unilateral and invasive,” Ghappour wrote. “They will not be limited to matters of national security; nor will they be executed with the consent of the host country.”

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This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

Comcast announces plan to buy DreamWorks Animation for $3.8 billion

2019-03-06T05:15:14-05:00

NBCUniversal* has announced a plan to purchase Dreamworks Animation for $3.8 billion dollars, in a deal expected to close by late 2016. Best known for the Shrek and Kung Fu Panda franchises, Dreamworks Animation has produced 32 feature films in its 22 year history, developing as a rival to the Disney-owned Pixar. The deal does not include Dreamworks Pictures, a separately owned studio specializing in live-action films.

The acquisition would significantly expand the entertainment holdings of Comcast, which owns NBCUniversal and operates the largest cable business in the United States. “DreamWorks will help us grow our film, television, theme parks and consumer products businesses for years to come,” said NBCUniversal CEO Steve Burke in a statement. “The prospects for our future together are tremendous.”

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* Comcast owns NBCU, an investor in Re/code parent company Vox Media.

This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

FBI Director Comey Says iPhone Hack ‘Doesn’t Work on a 5s’ or Newer

2019-03-06T05:36:27-05:00

The FBI’s new method for unlocking iPhones won’t work on most models, FBI Director Comey said in a speech last night at Kenyon College. “It’s a bit of a technological corner case, because the world has moved on to sixes,” Comey said, in response to a question. “This doesn’t work on sixes, doesn’t work on a 5s. So we have a tool that works on a narrow slice of phones.”

Comey did not elaborate on why the new method did not work on more advanced phones, but it’s very likely related to the Secure Enclave protections that were implemented with the 5s’ A7 chip, present in all subsequent iPhones. If true, that would severely limit the impact of the FBI’s new method.

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This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

The FAA Logged More Than 500 Drone Incidents in Six Months

2019-03-06T05:11:09-05:00

Airplanes and helicopters no longer have the skies to themselves. A new report from the FAA lists 583 separate drone incidents reported from August 2015 through January 2016. The majority of the incidents are minor, with pilots or bystanders reporting drones that are flying in restricted airspace without necessarily endangering anyone.

Still, the documents reveal more than a few close calls. One incident outside New York’s JFK airport in August saw a drone flying at 7,000 feet, only 20 feet from the plane’s right side. The report also lists hundreds of incidents in which drones approached airports or flew above the 500-foot altitude limit proposed by the FAA.

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This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

Google Is Giving Itself an Encryption Report Card

2019-03-06T05:16:04-05:00

Today, Google added a new section to its transparency report, giving users a running tally of how many Google requests use HTTPS encryption. Groups like the EFF have long pushed for wider usage of HTTPS, but implementation can be demanding, particularly for services as complex as Google’s. “Our aim with this project is to hold ourselves accountable and encourage others to encrypt so we can make the Web even safer for everyone,” Google said in an accompanying statement.

Roughly three-quarters of requests from Google products use SSL. Products like Gmail and Drive require SSL encryption, which powers HTTPS, for security reasons, but it’s less important for casual products like Maps or News. Still, Google figures show SSL usage growing gradually more encrypted over the past two years.

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This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

White House Initiative Pledges Broadband to 20 Million More People by 2020

2019-03-06T05:10:25-05:00

Today, President Obama announced a new broadband initiative called ConnectALL, aimed at providing broadband to underserved areas. The initiative aims to bring broadband access to another 20 million Americans by 2020, building on previous goals set by the National Broadband Initiative in 2010.

The most immediate effort is one that was announced yesterday by the FCC: A proposed broadband subsidy for poor households, scheduled for a commission vote on March 31st.

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This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

Apple Has a New Fix for Phones Bricked by Error 53

2019-03-06T05:12:18-05:00

In the latest update to iOS, Apple has issued a patch for one of its most stubborn and mystifying errors, potentially restoring countless bricked phones to functionality. Typically triggered by third-party repairs, Error 53 has been causing headaches for months, but became particularly prominent earlier this month when a freelance reporter described severe difficulty restoring his phone after having it repaired while on assignment in Macedonia.

While rare, the error is significant because of its severe consequences. Error 53 is typically triggered by a disruption of the link between the Touch ID fingerprint reader and the Secure Enclave within the phone, which often causes the phone to brick completely. Many users who took those phones to nearby Apple stores were told the phones were effectively unrecoverable.

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This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

Facebook Is Developing Millimeter-Wave Networks for Internet.org

2019-01-29T14:07:52-05:00

When Starry announced its new venture for gigabit mesh networks in January, it was hailed as ambitious, innovative, and more than a little far-fetched. But Starry isn’t the only company developing the technology.

Patent records obtained by The Verge show that Facebook is actively developing an extremely similar technology. One patent — filed by Facebook employee Sanjai Kohli in October but made public the week after the Starry announcement — describes a “Next Generation Data Network” that would connect computers using millimeter-wave radio links deployed as a mesh network. Both mesh and millimeter-wave technology are also central ideas in Starry’s scheme. Another patent granted to Kohli at the end of 2015 describes the Next Generation Network in more detail, as a kind of centralized, cloud-based routing system.

Reached by The Verge, Facebook confirmed the millimeter-wave research and said its development was part of Internet.org’s ongoing efforts to build out Internet access for rural and poor populations.

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This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

The Dragnet: How a Fraud Suspect Exposed a Secret Surveillance Device

2019-03-06T05:40:40-05:00

On May 6, 2008, a package containing $68,000 in cash arrived at a FedEx store in Palo Alto, Calif. The bills had been washed in lantern fuel, as per instruction, then double-vacuum-sealed and placed inside the cavity of a stuffed animal, which was then gift-wrapped. The store had been chosen carefully: It was open all night and located just 500 feet from a Caltrain station. The package was general delivery, to be picked up at the store by a man named Patrick Stout.

The money was being closely watched. The package had been prepared by a criminal informant, working in cooperation with a joint task force of agents from the FBI, IRS, and U.S. Postal Service, who were investigating a tax fraud scheme. The informant had been arrested and flipped months earlier, betrayed by yet another informant. Now they were after the mastermind.

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This article originally appeared on Recode.net.