ReHacked #38: Illegal primes, stolen Bitcoin moves and more.

Hello again, please enjoy another dose of the news (mainly security) issues today. Also don’t forget to share, subscribe (if not  yet) and leave a comment. Thanks.

An illegal prime is a prime number that represents information whose possession or distribution is forbidden in some legal jurisdictions. One of the first illegal primes was found in 2001. When interpreted in a particular way, it describes a computer program that bypasses the digital rights management scheme used on DVDs. Distribution of such a program in the United States is illegal under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. An illegal prime is a kind of illegal number. #copyrights

Microsoft announced Monday it would buy Nuance Communications, a software company that focuses on speech recognition through artificial intelligence, in an all-cash transaction valued at $19.7 billion (including debt assumption).

Why it matters: This is Microsoft's second-largest acquisition, behind the $26.2 billion deal for LinkedIn in 2016.

Microsoft is trying to leapfrog competitors like Google and Amazon as they face record antitrust scrutiny.

Its cloud business has also been booming during the pandemic. Microsoft's stock hit an all-time high on Friday, as it approaches $2 trillion in market value. #economy #software

Using console.log() for JavaScript debugging is the most common practice among developers. But, there is more…  Use console.log() like a pro #software

FLoC off! Vivaldi does not support FLoC.

Google’s new data harvesting venture is nasty. Called FLoC (The Federated Learning of Cohorts), this new advertising technology intends to replace third-party cookies and related technologies like third-party localStorage. This clearly is a dangerous step that harms user privacy.

This is a pretty valid question as we are based on Chromium. But the truth is that while we rely on the Chromium engine to render pages correctly, this is where Vivaldi’s similarities with Chrome (and other Chromium-based browsers) end. #privacy

WhatsApp has been facing one hell of a backlash ever since it shared that it wanted to update its privacy policy  with changes that would allow Facebook to aggregate all of its users'  data across all of its services. And now, the company might be in for  some regulatory issues, as well. A German privacy regulator has opened proceedings to stop the company from moving forward with the privacy policy update.  #privacy

The technology behind Bitcoin

is a “boon for surveillance” and shouldn’t be shunned by governments but embraced, according to an ex-CIA boss.

Michael Morell, who was previously the CIA’s acting director, said in ‘An Analysis of Bitcoin’s Use in Illicit Finance’ that “blockchain  technology is a powerful but underutilized forensic tool for  governments to identify illicit activity and bring criminals to  justice.”  #blockchain

Leong  Sze Hian was fined almost $100,000 for sharing a Facebook link ruled as  defamation against the prime minister. It sets a dangerous precedent. #freespeech

On November 7, 2018, Leong Sze Hian, a financial  advisor and blogger, shared an article on his Facebook page, without  comment. The article, published by Malaysian website The Coverage,  alleged that Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong had become a  target of ongoing investigations in the 1Malaysia Development Berhad  scandal, a massive case of graft in Malaysia that drew in banks in  Singapore, Hollywood stars, and Saudi royalty. The article claimed that  Malaysia, under former Prime Minister Najib Razak, had signed unfair  deals with Singapore in return for help to launder stolen funds.

WinAmp in your browser: WebAmp #internet

Denmark on Wednesday became the first country to stop using  AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine altogether over a potential link to a  rare but serious form of blood clot.  #health

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Dainius