Information Age Archives

Craig Wright, the litigious Australian branded an ‘accomplished liar’ by a UK judge for claiming to be Bitcoin’s inventor, is suing Block

Leonard Bernardone - November 6, 2024 2 MIN READ

Australian computer scientist and debunked Bitcoin ‘inventor’ Craig Wright has been accused of contempt of court after filing a $1.79 billion lawsuit against payments firm Block. Despite a storied early career in Australia’s IT industry, Wright is most known for his unwavering and controversial claim of having invented leading cryptocurrency Bitcoin under the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto. The… Read more »

Cyber security

Tech giants are ‘wilfully blind towards criminality on their sites’ says Australia’s former cybersecurity boss

Denham Sadler, Information Age - November 1, 2024 3 MIN READ

Social media companies are being “contemptuous” to the Australian people and have done “nothing” to help protect their users from scams and crimes, according to former government cyber security tsar Alastair MacGibbon. MacGibbon, who after a 15-year career with the Australian Federal Police served as special adviser to the Prime Minister on Cyber Security and… Read more »

AI/Machine Learning

‘Near tech’ workers are the solution to Australia’s cyber security & AI skills shortfall: ACS

Tom Williams - October 23, 2024 3 MIN READ

Australia is struggling to find technology workers with the right cyber security and artificial intelligence skills but could tap 1.1 million “near tech” workers with similar capabilities to reskill and support the workforce, the 10th annual ACS Australia’s Digital Pulse report has found. Demand for cyber security skills has increased by 80% in Australia since… Read more »

Cyber security

Cracking your first job in cybersecurity can be hard – here’s how to do it

Leonard Bernardone & Kate Millar - October 18, 2024 7 MIN READ

Despite Australia’s everlasting cyber security skills shortage, graduates and industry newcomers are struggling to get a foot in the door. AustCyber’s latest Sector Competitiveness Plan showed some 125,791 people were employed in the Australian cyber security workforce in 2022, with 51,309 of those workers in roles with a “dedicated focus” on cyber security. Meanwhile, it’s estimated 85,000… Read more »

Cyber security

Industry lobby group Australian Cyber Network launches in the wake of AusCyber’s demise

Leonard Bernardone - October 14, 2024 3 MIN READ

Australia’s cyber security industry has welcomed a new advocacy and growth champion with the launch of the Australian Cyber Network (ACN) – a not-for-profit set to pick up where its predecessor AustCyber left off. Launched Wednesday at Parliament House in Canberra, ACN said its goal is to address the “current and future needs” of Australia’s cyber security… Read more »

Cryptocurrency

Caroline Ellison, who ran the FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried’s trading firm, handed 2-year sentence over the crypto fraud

Denham Sadler, Information Age - October 1, 2024 3 MIN READ

Caroline Ellison, the ex-girlfriend of crypto fraudster Sam Bankman-Fried who turned star witness against him, has been sentenced to two years in prison over her role in the $16 billion FTX cryptocurrency scam. Ellison was the CEO of Alameda Research, the trading branch of Bankman-Fried’s cryptocurrency exchange FTX. Alameda was found to have taken funds… Read more »

Gadgets

Australians won’t get Apple Watch sleep apnoea alerts because they’ve not yet had the nod from regulators

Tom Williams - September 25, 2024 4 MIN READ

Apple customers in Australia are going without some key software features in their iPhones and Apple Watches after the company released its major operating system updates last week. Unlike in the United States and more than 150 other countries, Australian users who have updated their Apple Watch software are unable to use their devices’ sleep… Read more »

Cyber security

Cops crack global crime chat app, arrest Australian mastermind

Leonard Bernardone - September 19, 2024 4 MIN READ

A Sydney man has been arrested and charged as the alleged head of a global organised crime app, as police continue to make Australian arrests into the week. The 32-year-old man, Jay Je Yoon Jung, was arrested at his home in Narwee on Tuesday as part of a global takedown effort against encrypted communications network… Read more »

AI/Machine Learning

Your call is important to our chatbot: CBA looks to AI as customer service replacement

Denham Sadler, Information Age - September 17, 2024 3 MIN READ

The Commonwealth Bank (CBA) will test a generative AI-based chatbot that could replace its call centre staff as part of Australia’s largest financial institution’s expanded use of AI technology. On Tuesday, CBA announced it would become the first Australian company to use Amazon Web Services’ (AWS) P5s, which are based on Nvidia computer chips supporting… Read more »

Gadgets

The good news in Apple’s iPhone 16 release is that prices are coming down in Australia

Tom Williams - September 11, 2024 3 MIN READ

Apple is reducing the prices of its latest iPhones in Australia but not in the United States, as it introduces new iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro models. The new devices, which the company said would be available from Friday, 20 September, will see a drop in price of up to $100 compared to last… Read more »

Business

Canva empowers its profitability, jacking up subscription fees by up to 300%

Denham Sadler, Information Age - September 4, 2024 3 MIN READ

Canva has announced a tripling of their prices for some of its users as the Australian tech company prepares for a public listing in the US. In the US, some users have had their subscription increase from $119.99 per year to $300 per year for the first 12 months – an increase of 316% –… Read more »

Politics

The Australian government is threatening quantum founders with 10 years in jail if they export it – even stuff that doesn’t exist – without permission

Denham Sadler, Information Age - August 30, 2024 3 MIN READ

The Australian quantum sector will now face harsh criminal penalties if it shares information or technology, even accidentally, with individuals from overseas after quantum technology was brought under the export control scheme. The Department of Defence unveiled the first changes to the Defence and Strategic Goods List in three years, with quantum computers officially added.… Read more »

Social Media

Mining billionaire Twiggy Forrest had a big win the US courts over scam ads on Facebook

David Braue - August 27, 2024 3 MIN READ

Australian mining magnate Dr Andrew ‘Twiggy’ Forrest is a step closer to holding Meta to account for deepfake scam advertisements, after the dismissal of an appeal by the tech giant marked the first time it has failed to hide behind a US law widely seen to provide blanket immunity online. Forrest first discovered his image… Read more »

Global tech

‘Who, moi?’ Australian Google exec denies the tech giant dominates search at a Senate hearing

Tom Williams - August 20, 2024 3 MIN READ

Google has claimed it does not dominate search engine services in Australia after a judge earlier this month found the tech giant operated an illegal search monopoly in the United States. Representatives from Google responded to questions from Australian senators during a meeting of the Select Committee on Adopting Artificial Intelligence on Friday, which also… Read more »

AI/Machine Learning

Elon Musk’s AI generator, Grok, is lacking filters, so nudity and political deepfakes are running amok on X

Tom Williams - August 16, 2024 3 MIN READ

Note: This article contains images generated by artificial intelligence. Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company xAI has released Grok-2, the latest version of its Grok artificial intelligence chatbot, which can now generate images with what appears to be very few guardrails to prevent potential abuse. Grok-2 and Grok-2 mini, which are only available to subscribers of Musk’s social… Read more »

Trending