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  • I was paid to write fake Google reviews – then my ‘bosses’ tried to scam me

    Undercover reporter gets a taste of the sprawling fraud industry in which cryptocurrencies play a crucial role Five firms including Autotrader and Just Eat investigated over fake review failings The holiday flat near(ish) the Roman ruins of Pompeii was “disgusting”, and smelled of “a mix of dampness and sewage”, according to one reviewer on Google…

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  • Former Google executive Matt Brittin selected to be next BBC director general

    Former Olympic rower to lead corporation as it hammers out future funding model with government The BBC has turned to a former tech executive to steer it through a critical period in its history, as it attempts to navigate government talks over its future and huge changes in media consumption. Matt Brittin, who stepped down…

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  • Pinterest CEO calls for ban on social media for youth under 16

    Bill Ready pointed to Australia’s social media ban for under-16s as a model, though it does not apply to his company Pinterest’s CEO called on world leaders to ban social media for youth under 16 in a LinkedIn post on Friday. “We need a clear standard: no social media for teens under 16, backed by…

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  • Google scraps AI search feature that crowdsourced amateur medical advice

    Exclusive: Revelation comes as company faces mounting scrutiny over use of AI to provide health tips Google has dropped a new artificial intelligence search feature that gave users crowdsourced health advice from amateurs around the world. The company had said its launch of “What People Suggest”, which provided tips from strangers, showed “the potential of…

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  • Meta and Google trial: are infinite scroll and autoplay creating addicts?

    Features woven into the fabric of platforms have been central to landmark social media harm case in US. How do they work? It was as “easy as ABC”, claimed the lawyer prosecuting a landmark social media harm case against Meta and Google which heard closing arguments this week. The defendants were guilty, said Mark Lanier,…

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  • ‘Happy (and safe) shooting!’: chatbots helped researchers plot deadly attacks

    Users posing as would-be school shooters find AI tools offer detailed advice on how to perpetrate violence Popular AI chatbots helped researchers plot violent attacks including bombing synagogues and assassinating politicians, with one telling a user posing as a would-be school shooter: “Happy (and safe) shooting!” Tests of 10 chatbots carried out in the US…

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  • AI chatbots point vulnerable social media users to illegal online casinos, analysis shows

    Tech firms condemned for lack of controls with Meta AI and Gemini even offering advice on how to bypass UK gambling and addiction checks AI chatbots are recommending illegal online casinos to vulnerable social media users, putting them at increased risk of fraud, addiction and even suicide. Analysis of five AI products, owned by some…

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  • Google Pixel 10a review: cheaper Android is great, but no real advance

    Quality camera, good software and long battery life, but you should just buy the Pixel 9a instead The latest smartphone in the lower-cost A-series Pixel line shows what makes Google phones so good, while undercutting the competition on price. The problem is that it differs little from its predecessor, which is still on sale. Priced…

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  • Leave big tech behind! How to replace Amazon, Google, X, Meta, Apple – and more

    A handful of companies monopolise the web, with unprecedented access to our data. But there are many more ethical – and often distinctively European – alternatives There’s not much to love about big tech these days. So many ills can be laid at its door: social media harms, misinformation, polarisation, mining and misuse of personal…

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  • Mind launches inquiry into AI and mental health after Guardian investigation

    Exclusive: England and Wales charity to examine safeguards after Guardian exposed ‘very dangerous’ advice on Google AI Overviews ‘Very dangerous’: a Mind mental health expert on Google’s AI summaries Mind is launching a significant inquiry into artificial intelligence and mental health after a Guardian investigation exposed how Google’s AI Overviews gave people “very dangerous” medical…

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