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Communications of the ACM

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The news archive provides access to past news stories from Communications of the ACM and other sources by date.

April 2022


From ACM News

Google Pulls Apps that May Have Harvested Data from Millions of Android Devices

Google Pulls Apps that May Have Harvested Data from Millions of Android Devices

The apps took users' precise location, email, phone numbers, and more, researchers said.


From ACM News

How Retail is Using Digital Twins

How Retail is Using Digital Twins


From ACM News

Google Using AI to Update Business Hours on Google Maps

Google Using AI to Update Business Hours on Google Maps

The predictions are run by humans along the way.


From ACM News

Europe Is Building a Huge International Facial Recognition System

Europe Is Building a Huge International Facial Recognition System

Lawmakers advance proposals to let police forces across the EU link their photo databases—which include millions of pictures of people's faces.


From ACM TechNews

Drone Operators Who Halted Russian Convoy Headed for Kyiv

Drone Operators Who Halted Russian Convoy Headed for Kyiv

A Russian armored convey headed toward Kyiv was halted by night ambushes by Ukrainian special forces and drone operators who are part of an air reconnaissance unit known as Aerorozvidka.


From ACM TechNews

AI-Driven Algorithm Can Detect Autism in Brain 'Fingerprints'

AI-Driven Algorithm Can Detect Autism in Brain 'Fingerprints'

A new algorithm may help detect autism by analyzing functional magnetic resonance imaging rain scans, and can also forecast the severity of autism symptoms in individuals.


From ACM TechNews

Solving the Challenges of Robotic Pizza-Making

Solving the Challenges of Robotic Pizza-Making

Researchers have created an architecture for a robotic manipulation system that could teach robots to handle pizza dough.


From ACM TechNews

Apple Rushes Out Patches for Zero-Days Threatening iOS, macOS Users

Apple Rushes Out Patches for Zero-Days Threatening iOS, macOS Users

Apple recently released patches for two critical zero-day vulnerabilities discovered by an anonymous researcher that affect the operating systems of iPhones, iPads, and Macs.


From ACM News

Chinese AI Turns Commercial Satellite into Spy Tracker Able to Follow Small Objects with Precision: Paper

Chinese AI Turns Commercial Satellite into Spy Tracker Able to Follow Small Objects with Precision: Paper

The AI algorithm could be uploaded to processors on some of China's Earth observation satellites already in orbit without any ground assistance: researchers.


From ACM News

U.S. Disrupts Prolific Botnet Controlled by Russian Military

U.S. Disrupts Prolific Botnet Controlled by Russian Military

U.S. officials worked with law enforcement in the U.K., and network security company WatchGuard, to analyze the malware and develop detection and remediation tools.


From ACM News

Hackers Target Customers of 8 Malaysian Banks

Hackers Target Customers of 8 Malaysian Banks

According to Slovak security firm ESET, the malicious apps are tied to websites spoofing legitimate services in Malaysia, including six clearing services and a pet store.


From ACM News

First, There Were Bug Bounties. Now, Here Come the Bias Bounties

First, There Were Bug Bounties. Now, Here Come the Bias Bounties

Offering rewards for the identification of bias in algorithms.


From ACM News

Pinterest Bans All Climate Misinformation

Pinterest Bans All Climate Misinformation

The image-focused social network says it will take down content that distorts or denies facts of climate crisis.


From ACM News

You're Still Being Tracked on the Internet, Just in a Different Way

You're Still Being Tracked on the Internet, Just in a Different Way

Apple and Google are pushing privacy changes, but a shift in digital tracking is giving some platforms a bigger advertising advantage.


From ACM News

Researchers Identify 'Master Problem' Underlying All Cryptography

Researchers Identify 'Master Problem' Underlying All Cryptography

The existence of secure cryptography depends on one of the oldest questions in computational complexity.


From ACM News

Google Bans Apps With Hidden Data-Harvesting Software

Google Bans Apps With Hidden Data-Harvesting Software

Code placed in consumer-facing apps is tied to U.S. national-security contractors, documents show.


From ACM News

Hackers' Fake Claims of Ukrainian Surrender Aren't Fooling Anyone. So What's Their Goal?

Hackers' Fake Claims of Ukrainian Surrender Aren't Fooling Anyone. So What's Their Goal?

Experts say the hackers' intentions might not be to actually trick anyone, but to erode confidence in Ukrainian media outlets and institutions.


From ACM News

In Memoriam Yulia Zdanovska: 2000-2022

In Memoriam    Yulia Zdanovska: 2000-2022

A gifted mathematician, Zdanovska began participating in Informatics, Mathematics, and Physics Olympiads during her time in elementary school.

 


From ACM TechNews

'We Became Like a Big Startup.' How Kyiv Adapted Tech to Save Lives

'We Became Like a Big Startup.' How Kyiv Adapted Tech to Save Lives

Kyiv city officials have been working to adapt and repurpose the Ukrainian capital's technology amid the war with Russia.


From ACM TechNews

Cities Using Digital Twins Like SimCity for Policymakers

Cities Using Digital Twins Like SimCity for Policymakers

Cities like Orlando, FL, and Singapore are using digital twins to generate virtual models of themselves, in order to simulate the effects of potential new policies or infrastructure projects.


From ACM TechNews

Researchers Use Decommissioned Satellite to Broadcast Hacker TV

Researchers Use Decommissioned Satellite to Broadcast Hacker TV

Researchers in the Shadytel telecommunications and embedded device hacking group used a decommissioned Canadian satellite to broadcast a livestream to the Northern Hemisphere.


From ACM TechNews

AI Can Create Computer Inside Itself to Run Another AI, Play Pong

AI Can Create Computer Inside Itself to Run Another AI, Play Pong

University of Pennsylvania researchers have developed an approach that enables a neural network to run a code like a standard computer.


From ACM News

ACM Prize in Computing Recognizes Pioneer of Robot Learning

ACM Prize in Computing Recognizes Pioneer of Robot Learning

Pieter Abbeel's groundbreaking research helped shape contemporary robotics and continues to drive the future of the field.


From ACM TechNews

Study Reveals Why Facebook Ads Can Miss Target

Study Reveals Why Facebook Ads Can Miss Target

North Carolina State University researchers have determined that Facebook's targeted advertising algorithm does not account for the context of users' activities.


From ACM TechNews

Acoustic Fiber Can Turn Fabrics into Mics, Speakers

Acoustic Fiber Can Turn Fabrics into Mics, Speakers

A team of multi-institutional scientists has developed a single-fiber acoustic sensor that can transform fabrics into microphones and speakers.


From ACM TechNews

Exxon Weighs Taking Gas-to-Bitcoin Pilot to Four Countries

Exxon Weighs Taking Gas-to-Bitcoin Pilot to Four Countries

A pilot program launched by Exxon Mobil Corp. involves powering cryptocurrency-mining operations using excess natural gas that otherwise would be burned off from oil wells in North Dakota.


From ACM News

State Department Launches Cyber Bureau

State Department Launches Cyber Bureau

The newly-minted office starts its work as U.S. and world leaders fret about cyberattacks spilling out of Russia's unprovoked invasion of neighboring Ukraine.


From ACM News

BlackByte Ransomware Bites Critical Infrastructure, the San Francisco 49ers

BlackByte Ransomware Bites Critical Infrastructure, the San Francisco 49ers

One ransomware attack struck a professional football team as competitors were preparing for the Super Bowl.


From ACM News

Elon Musk Buys 9.2% Stake in Twitter, Making Him the Largest Shareholder

Elon Musk Buys 9.2% Stake in Twitter, Making Him the Largest Shareholder

A stake of less than 10% in a company is considered "passive" by Wall Street, but it could signal an effort by Musk to take a more active role in how Twitter is run.


From ACM TechNews

Putting 3D Printers to Work in Ukraine's War Zone

Putting 3D Printers to Work in Ukraine's War Zone

Entrepreneurs in Poland are rushing three-dimensional printers to Ukraine for the manufacture of defensive equipment.