PFAS-contaminated fertilizer from biosolids is causing severe health issues for farmers and livestock in Johnson County, Texas, with investigation findings showing dangerous contamination levels. The fertilizer, produced by Synagro from municipal wastewater-treated sewage sludge, contained high levels of PFAS chemicals that affected soil, water sources, and caused animal deaths. Environmental experts warn this is a national crisis threatening the U.S. food supply, with calls for federal regulation of PFAS in biosolids.
Recent experiences with iPad Air 11" M2 reveal significant performance issues, including lag and overheating, particularly when using Apple's native applications like Notes and Freeform. Multiple software updates and hardware replacements have failed to resolve these problems, suggesting a broader decline in Apple's software quality that affects the premium user experience.
Cloudflare introduces two major Waiting Room enhancements: Turnstile integration to detect and manage bot traffic through an Infinite Queue system, and Session Revocation for optimizing user throughput. These features work together to reduce wait times, protect against automated threats, and ensure fairer access during high-demand events while maintaining a seamless user experience.
After a 5-year legal battle, an Illinois FOIA lawsuit seeking database schemas from Chicago's parking ticket system ended in a unanimous Supreme Court loss, significantly broadening agencies' ability to withhold records. The case highlighted ongoing challenges in accessing public data through FOIA requests and revealed inconsistencies in how Chicago handles sensitive data disclosure.
Video game speedrunners unknowingly develop advanced cybersecurity skills through glitch hunting, using professional tools like IDA Pro and Ghidra for reverse engineering. These enthusiasts create sophisticated exploits and technical documentation comparable to professional vulnerability researchers, yet often don't realize their skills could translate into cybersecurity careers.
An investigation reveals how Xcode's unnecessary connections to Apple's servers can significantly slow down build times, particularly during the 'Gather provisioning inputs' phase. The post details how blocking specific connections through Little Snitch can improve build performance and reduce unwanted analytics collection by Xcode.
A Department of Energy (DOGE) employee Jordan Wick has been publicly sharing sensitive work-related code on GitHub, including a Twitter DM downloader and geospatial data analysis tools for undersea cables and critical minerals.
A widespread scam operation on GitHub involves thousands of repositories distributing malware disguised as game mods and cracked software. The malware, known as Redox stealer, collects sensitive data including passwords, crypto wallets, and gaming accounts from victims' computers, then sends it to Discord servers for exploitation.
Government access to personal data through tech giants has dramatically increased, with Meta, Google, and Apple sharing details of 3.16 million accounts over the past decade. The US government made nearly 500,000 data requests to Google and Meta in the last measured 12 months, exceeding all other 14 Eyes Alliance members combined. These companies' business models prevent them from implementing strong privacy protections, as they rely heavily on user tracking for revenue.
IBM has completed its $6.4 billion acquisition of HashiCorp, integrating advanced cloud infrastructure automation and security capabilities into its portfolio. The merger aims to help enterprises manage hybrid cloud environments more efficiently, with HashiCorp's Terraform and Vault products now available through IBM's automation software lineup. The acquisition strengthens IBM's position in multiple growth areas including Red Hat, watsonx, and IT automation.