Author: News Desk

Sydney: Australia has blocked internet users from accessing multiple websites that used artificial intelligence to generate child sexual exploitation material, the country’s internet regulator announced. According to eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant, three AI-powered ‘nudify’ websites, which digitally strip clothing from images of real people, have now withdrawn from Australia after receiving an official warning from her office. The commissioner said that these sites had been attracting around 100,000 visits each month from Australians and were involved in high-profile cases where AI-generated child sexual abuse images of Australian school students had circulated. Grant described the impact of these platforms on…

Tokyo: Japanese beer giant Asahi announced that a massive cyber-attack in September may have exposed the personal data of more than 1.5 million customers. The company issued a detailed statement on the ransomware incident, which had severely disrupted production at its facilities across Japan and forced staff to revert to pen-and-paper methods to process orders. Asahi confirmed that information belonging to individuals who had contacted its customer service centres was likely compromised, with affected people expected to be notified shortly. The company also said it would delay its full-year financial results so it can focus entirely on managing the consequences…

London: The UK has introduced its first artificial intelligence-powered police virtual assistant named ‘Bobbi,’ marking a major milestone in digital policing as Thames Valley Police and the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary begin trialling the tool. The AI assistant is designed to interact with the public in a conversational, human-like manner and provide quick responses to frequently asked questions. However, officials stress that the system is strictly for non-emergency use and cannot be used to report crimes or replace the 999 emergency line. According to the forces, Bobbi is meant to support existing contact options, including online forms, telephone…

Witten, Germany: New research has found that fame can shorten a musician’s lifespan by as much as 4.6 years, an effect comparable to the health impact of occasionally smoking cigarettes. The study, published in the Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health, compared the lifespans of famous singers with those of lesser-known artists and found a clear association between stardom and higher mortality. While earlier research has connected touring demands, performance pressures, and the typical ‘rock’n’roll lifestyle’ with reduced life expectancy, this new study is the first to demonstrate a direct link between fame itself and a higher risk of early…

London: The UK government has announced that luxury cars will no longer be offered through the Motability scheme, marking a significant shift in the programme. The government says the move will help redirect more investment into British manufacturing. Motability allows eligible Personal Independence Payment (PIP) recipients to exchange part of their benefit for a rental vehicle, with the scheme also offering tax breaks and providing adaptations for people who need modified cars to live and work independently. The programme has been under heightened scrutiny in recent years due to sharp growth in the number of PIP recipients and concerns about…

New Delhi: A new study from Maulana Azad Medical College, published in the journal Music and Medicine, shows that listening to calming music during surgery can reduce anaesthetic drug requirements and improve recovery. Patients exposed to soft flute or piano music needed lower doses of propofol and fentanyl, had smoother recoveries, better-controlled blood pressure, and lower stress-hormone levels (cortisol) compared with patients who heard no music. Music and Medicine The research centers on patients having laparoscopic cholecystectomy, a common minimally invasive surgery to remove the gallbladder. Typically lasting less than an hour, the procedure requires patients to recover quickly and…

London: The Princess of Wales has issued a powerful appeal urging the public to help break the ‘stigma’ surrounding addiction, noting that the lives of those struggling with dependency are too often shaped by ‘fear, shame and judgment.’ In a message released to mark Addiction Awareness Week, which runs until November 30, Catherine highlighted that addiction affects people from every background and walk of life. As patron of the Forward Trust, a charity that supports individuals recovering from addiction, Princess stated that society must bring the issue ‘out of the shadows’ through more open, honest conversations. https://twitter.com/KensingtonRoyal/status/1992885146052444268 Catherine emphasised that…

Sydney:  Snap has announced that it will begin offering Australian users the option to verify their age using software operated by the country’s banking sector. The move comes as it prepares to comply with Australia’s new social media ban for children under 16, which takes effect next month. Australia introduced the world’s first nationwide ban on social media access for minors under 16 last year, marking one of the strictest global moves aimed at regulating Big Tech platforms. The US-based company, which operates Snapchat, said that it will start contacting users this week with age-verification options. Users will be able…

San Francisco: Meta allegedly shut down internal research after discovering evidence that Facebook and Instagram were harming users’ mental health, according to newly unredacted filings in a lawsuit brought by US school districts against major social media companies. Documents reveal that in 2020, during an internal study known as Project Mercury, Meta researchers partnered with survey firm Nielsen to measure the effects of users temporarily deactivating Facebook and Instagram. To the company’s concern, the results showed that people who stopped using Facebook for a week experienced a lower level of depression, anxiety, loneliness, and social comparison. Instead of releasing the…

Caracas, Venezuela: Six major international airlines have suspended their flights to Venezuela after the United States issued a warning to civilian carriers about a ‘potentially hazardous situation’ caused by increased military activity around the country. According to the reports, Spain’s Iberia, Portugal’s TAP, Chile’s LATAM, Colombia’s Avianca, Brazil’s GOL, and Trinidad and Tobago’s Caribbean Airlines halted services, as confirmed by Marisela de Loaiza, President of the Venezuelan Airlines Association. TAP announced the cancellation of its scheduled flights for November 22 and the following Tuesday, while Iberia stated that it would suspend flights to Caracas indefinitely. TAP said that its move…