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"Brands such as fintech company Ramp, jobs search site Indeed and Pernod Ricard-owned Scottish whisky maker Chivas Brothers have adopted the software. They are hoping to reach millions of users who regularly use generative AI products as a new method to search for information online - a shift that poses a long-term threat for Google's main business. "This is about much more than just getting your website indexed in their results. This is about recognising large language models as the ultimate influencer," said Jack Smyth, partner at marketing technology group Brandtech, which has created its own interface for brands. "

"Anvi Ahuja noticed a "freaky" new text message from a number she didn't know right after getting back to her downtown Toronto apartment last month.  The text was a transcript of the conversation she'd just had with her roommates during their eight-minute Lyft ride home from a friend's place. "I was like 'who is tapping me?'" Ahuja said. "The driver didn't inform us that we could be recorded.""

""Deeply disturbing" research exposes how easy it is for children to encounter inappropriate content and interact unsupervised with adults on the gaming platform Roblox. It comes as parents shared their serious concerns about children experiencing addiction, seeing traumatising content and being approached by strangers on the hugely popular website and app. Roblox acknowledges that children using the platform may be exposed to harmful content and "bad actors". It says it is working hard to fix this, but that industry-wide collaboration and government intervention are needed."

"A rise in online racism driven by fake images is "just the start of a coming problem" after the latest release of X's AI software, online abuse experts have warned. Concerns were raised after computer-generated images created using Grok, X's generative artificial intelligence chatbot, flooded the social media site in December last year. Signify, an organisation that works with prominent groups and clubs in sports to track and report online hate, said it has seen an increase in reports of abuse since Grok's latest update, and believes the introduction of photorealistic AI will make it far more prevalent."

"Our estimate of the length of tasks that an agent can complete depends on methodological choices like the tasks used and the humans whose performance is measured. However, we're fairly confident that the overall trend is roughly correct, at around 1-4 doublings per year. If the measured trend from the past 6 years continues for 2-4 more years, generalist autonomous agents will be capable of performing a wide range of week-long tasks."

"At least 50 separate deadly strikes by armed forces in Africa have been confirmed during the three years up to November 2024, with analysts describing a "striking pattern of civilian harm" with little or no accountability. Although the rapid growth of armed drones deployed by Ukraine and Russia receives significant scrutiny, scant focus is being paid to the escalating use in Africa of a new breed of imported cheaper drones, such as Turkey's Bayraktar TB2, said Cora Morris of campaign group Drone Wars UK, which on Monday published a report on the growth of armed drones in Africa, called Death on Delivery."

"What we know about reducing misinformation Where the evidence stands for six strategies used to reduce the spread and impact of misinformation, according to the Prosocial Design Network"

"Why the way AI speaks to us matters more than what it says We're living through a fundamental shift in how we access information. Students today don't just Google answers-they ask Alexa, chat with ChatGPT, and increasingly, speak with AI voices that sound remarkably human. But here's what's concerning: research shows that when information comes through a voice rather than text, we're significantly less likely to think critically about it."

"Google is now showing ads in chatbot conversations via its AdSense for Search network, marking a shift in its digital advertising strategy as generative AI becomes not only more commonplace, but increasingly used in place of traditional search engine tools. Previously, ads were shown within the search results of other websites, however Google added them to conversations with chatbots operated by AI startups earlier in 2025 (via Bloomberg)."

"As we roll out more Generative AI and agents, it should change the way our work is done. We will need fewer people doing some of the jobs that are being done today, and more people doing other types of jobs. It's hard to know exactly where this nets out over time, but in the next few years, we expect that this will reduce our total corporate workforce as we get efficiency gains from using AI extensively across the company."

Great article - that gets to the heart of the ITGS syllabus...

"Facebook and Twitter reported to have been blocked in run-up to protests, with people turning to VPNs to broadcast content"

"Keyword-based filtering allows blocking of sites and texts containing candidates' names and slogans, say security experts"

"DDoS attacks are also becoming more common. Brian Krebs, an independent security researcher, observed earlier this month that the "source code" to the Mirai botnet had been released by a hacker group, "virtually guaranteeing that the internet will soon be flooded with attacks from many new botnets powered by insecure routers, IP cameras, digital video recorders and other easily hackable devices""