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Live from Rikers Island, Trump boots a baby, and batteries betray privacy: ICYMI

Some important news you might have missed on Tuesday, Aug. 2.

 

Dell Cameron

Tech

Posted on Aug 2, 2016   Updated on May 26, 2021, 8:34 am CDT

Here’s some news you may have missed:

A mother who reportedly pointed a gun at a Baltimore police officer was shot and killed during a standoff that left her 5-year-old son wounded by gunfire. Outrage spread quickly online with many calling for the officers’ body camera footage to be released.

The global surveillance industry has exploded over the past few years, so it may come as no surprise that cyberweapons (read: specialized malware and intrusion software) developed in Western countries are finding their way into the hands of despots. Thankfully, Transparency Toolkit has published a new searchable database to help sort out the mess.

Your cellphone battery may be betraying your privacy. New research from Princeton University indicates a commonly used API providing websites information about your remaining battery life is also used to create a unique “fingerprint” for tracking scripts.

In other bad news, Chinese malware creators are using your phone to rake in $300,000 a month.

Did you hear that Donald Trump kicked out an actual baby from his Virginia rally? Yeah, that wasn’t the only thing that went wrong for the Republican nominee on Tuesday.

Ever wondered if it’s possible to sneak a phone into Rikers Island prison and stream yourself doing time on Facebook Live? If so, you now have your answer.

In other news, it's only Tuesday.

In other news, it’s only Tuesday.

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Iranian hackers have reportedly hacked the Telegram messaging app, exposing the telephone numbers of 15 million Iranian users. The breach was the result of a flaw in Telegram’s use of SMS verification for accounts.—via Reuters

The FBI has denied the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee’s request to brief the panel on the DNC hack.—via the Hill

Republican Rep. Richard Hanna of New York wrote a scathing op-ed against Trump to accompany news that he is voting for Hillary Clinton in November.—via Syracuse.com

Whomever the next president is, she or he won’t understand technology.—via Politico

A new report details an “elaborately staged malware operation” targeting Syrian rebels. The operators, whom researchers have nicknamed “Group5,” reportedly target Windows computers and Android phones of “well-connected individuals in the Syrian opposition.”—via Citizen Lab

Top Democratic National Committee officials, including CEO Amy Dacey, resigned Tuesday amid ongoing fallout from the hacked DNC emails published by WikiLeaks.—via Washington Post

A Tuesday election forecast claims Hillary Clinton has a 65.9 percent chance of winning the presidency.—via FiveThirtyEight

Former subordinates of fallen Capt. Humayun Khan shared memories of a “loved” leader who sacrificed everything to save their lives. Khan’s parents—Khizr and Ghazala Khan—became the focus of a Donald Trump tirade this week after the captain’s father spoke at the Democratic National Convention.—via Daily Beast

Police in Manila are reportedly on a “killing spree” after Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte ordered officers and vigilantes to round up drug suspects. Around 50 people were killed.—via ABC (Australia)

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*First Published: Aug 2, 2016, 6:35 pm CDT