Tech News – Page 47 – by Arlin Schaffel

First porn app ‘approved’ for the iPhone in Europe. Apple isn’t happy.

"We are deeply concerned about the safety risks that hardcore porn apps of this type create for EU users, especially kids. This app and others like it will undermine consumer trust and confidence in our ecosystem that we have worked for more than a decade to make the best in the world. Contrary to the false statements made by the marketplace developer, we certainly do not approve of this app and would never offer it in our App Store. The truth is that we are required by the European Commission to allow it to be distributed by marketplace operators like AltStore and Epic who may not share our concerns for user safety," Apple said in a statement to The Verge.
https://mashable.com/article/first-porn-app-apple-app-store

As Internet enshittification marches on, here are some of the worst offenders

"It’s my theory explaining how the Internet was colonized by platforms, why all those platforms are degrading so quickly and thoroughly, why it matters, and what we can do about it," Doctorow explained in a follow-up article. "We’re all living through a great enshittening, in which the services that matter to us, that we rely on, are turning into giant piles of shit. It’s frustrating. It’s demoralizing. It’s even terrifying."
https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2025/02/as-internet-enshittification-marches-on-here-are-some-of-the-worst-offenders/

Deepfake videos are getting shockingly good

According to the ByteDance researchers, OmniHuman-1 only needs a single reference image and audio, like speech or vocals, to generate a clip of an arbitrary length. The output video’s aspect ratio is adjustable, as is the subject’s “body proportion” — i.e. how much of their body is shown in the fake footage.
https://techcrunch.com/2025/02/04/deepfake-videos-are-getting-shockingly-good/

Why employees smuggle AI into work

According to a survey by Software AG, half of all knowledge workers use personal AI tools. The research defines knowledge workers as "those who primarily work at a desk or computer". For some it's because their IT team doesn't offer AI tools, while others said they wanted their own choice of tools.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn7rx05xg2go

Dell ends hybrid work policy despite remote work pledge

Dell justified the policy change by asserting a thirty-second in-person conversation can replace an email discussion that goes on for hours or days and by noting that specific groups within the company – sales, manufacturing, and engineering – have already adjusted to being in the office five days per week. Many companies, such as Amazon, have trimmed back or ended remote work arrangements over the past year. These return to office (RTO) mandates, however, have failed to improve corporate financial performance, according to a study last year by University of Pittsburgh business school associate professor Mark Ma and Yuye Ding, a doctoral student.
https://www.theregister.com/2025/01/31/dell_ends_hybrid_work_policy/?td=rt-3a

Books written by humans are getting their own certification

image via theverge.com

The Guild says its “Human Authored” certification aims to make it easier for writers to “distinguish their work in increasingly AI-saturated markets,” and that readers have a right to know who (or what) created the books they read. Human Authored certifications will be listed in a public database that anyone can access. The project was first announced back in October in response to a deluge of AI-generated books flooding online marketplaces like Amazon and its Kindle ebook platform.
https://www.theverge.com/news/602918/human-authored-book-certification-ai-authors-guild