#AI connected to the internet

[diagnozabam]

Grok 2: Noul chatbot AI de la Elon Musk – rapid, precis și conectat la internet

Grok 2, cea mai recentă versiune a chatbotului AI dezvoltat de xAI, compania lui Elon Musk, vine cu îmbunătățiri semnificative, inclusiv acces la informații în timp real prin web și integrare cu platforma X (fostă Twitter). Această funcționalitate îl face ideal pentru utilizatorii care caută răspunsuri actualizate și relevante. Printre cele mai notabile îmbunătățiri: Viteză și acuratețe: Grok 2…

[feminist-space]

"In the age of smart fridges, connected egg crates, and casino fish tanks doubling as entry points for hackers, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that sex toys have joined the Internet of Things (IoT) party.

But not all parties are fun, and this one comes with a hefty dose of risk: data breaches, psychological harm, and even physical danger.

Let’s dig into why your Bluetooth-enabled intimacy gadget might be your most vulnerable possession — and not in the way you think.

The lure of remote-controlled intimacy gadgets isn’t hard to understand. Whether you’re in a long-distance relationship or just like the convenience, these devices have taken the market by storm.

According to a 2023 study commissioned by the U.K.’s Department for Science, Innovation, and Technology (DSIT), these toys are some of the most vulnerable consumer IoT products.

And while a vibrating smart egg or a remotely controlled chastity belt might sound futuristic, the risks involved are decidedly dystopian.

Forbes’ Davey Winder flagged the issue four years ago when hackers locked users into a chastity device, demanding a ransom to unlock it.

Fast forward to now, and the warnings are louder than ever. Researchers led by Dr. Mark Cote found multiple vulnerabilities in these devices, primarily those relying on Bluetooth connectivity.

Alarmingly, many of these connections lack encryption, leaving the door wide open for malicious third parties.

If you’re picturing some low-stakes prank involving vibrating gadgets going haywire, think again. The risks are far graver.

According to the DSIT report, hackers could potentially inflict physical harm by overheating a device or locking it indefinitely. Meanwhile, the psychological harm could stem from sensitive data — yes, that kind of data — being exposed or exploited.

A TechCrunch exposé revealed that a security researcher breached a chastity device’s database containing over 10,000 users’ information. That was back in June, and the manufacturer still hasn’t addressed the issue.

In another incident, users of the CellMate connected chastity belt reported hackers demanding $750 in bitcoin to unlock devices. Fortunately, one man who spoke to Vice hadn’t been wearing his when the attack happened. Small mercies, right?

These aren’t isolated events. Standard Innovation Corp., the maker of the We-Vibe toy, settled for $3.75 million in 2017 after it was discovered the device was collecting intimate data without user consent.

A sex toy with a camera was hacked the same year, granting outsiders access to its live feed.

And let’s not forget: IoT toys are multiplying faster than anyone can track, with websites like Internet of Dongs monitoring the surge.

If the thought of a connected chastity belt being hacked makes you uneasy, consider this: sex toys are just a small piece of the IoT puzzle.

There are an estimated 17 billion connected devices worldwide, ranging from light bulbs to fitness trackers — and, oddly, smart egg crates.

Yet, as Microsoft’s 2022 Digital Defense Report points out, IoT security is lagging far behind its software and hardware counterparts.

Hackers are opportunistic. If there’s a way in, they’ll find it. Case in point: a casino lost sensitive customer data after bad actors accessed its network through smart sensors in a fish tank.

If a fish tank isn’t safe, why would we expect a vibrating gadget to be?

Here’s where the frustration kicks in: these vulnerabilities are preventable.

The DSIT report notes that many devices rely on unencrypted Bluetooth connections or insecure APIs for remote control functionality.

Fixing these flaws is well within the reach of manufacturers, yet companies routinely fail to prioritize security.

Even basic transparency around data collection would be a step in the right direction. Users deserve to know what’s being collected, why, and how it’s protected. But history suggests the industry is reluctant to step up.

After all, if companies like Standard Innovation can get away with quietly siphoning off user data, why would smaller players bother to invest in robust security?

So, what’s a smart-toy enthusiast to do? First, ask yourself: do you really need your device to be connected to an app?

If the answer is no, then maybe it’s best to go old school. If remote connectivity is a must, take some precautions.

Keep software updated: Ensure both the device firmware and your phone’s app are running the latest versions. Updates often include critical security patches.

Use secure passwords: Avoid default settings and choose strong, unique passwords for apps controlling your devices.

Limit app permissions: Only grant the app the bare minimum of permissions needed for functionality.

Vet the manufacturer: Research whether the company has a history of addressing security flaws. If they’ve been caught slacking before, it’s a red flag.

The conversation around sex toy hacking isn’t just about awkward headlines — it’s about how we navigate a world increasingly dependent on connected technology. As devices creep further into every corner of our lives, from the bedroom to the kitchen, the stakes for privacy and security continue to rise.

And let’s face it: there’s something uniquely unsettling about hackers turning moments of intimacy into opportunities for exploitation.

If companies won’t take responsibility for protecting users, then consumers need to start asking tough questions — and maybe think twice before connecting their pleasure devices to the internet.

As for the manufacturers? The message is simple: step up or step aside.

No one wants to be the next headline in a tale of hacked chastity belts and hijacked intimacy. And if you think that’s funny, just wait until your light bulb sells your Wi-Fi password.

This is where IoT meets TMI. Stay connected, but stay safe."

https://thartribune.com/government-warns-couples-that-sex-toys-remain-a-tempting-target-for-hackers-with-the-potential-to-be-weaponized/

[prettyiwa]

……..

[theroadtosomewhere]

was thinking in the shower today abt the rise of gen ai in education amongst students with the cheating + no original assignments etc and it really is a symptom of the fast-paced, quick-fix dopamine-dependent society that we’re in. Doubled down with the fact that so much of what’s taught at school (maybe this is just a western thing, likely) just isn’t relevant, the wrong history is taught and the system wasn’t built to benefit everyone to begin with, but an indoctrination into understanding how long a workday was meant to be. kids see education as a barrier to getting what they want now instead of it being the literal process because now there’s something else that can do it for them. problem is how can a child without prior introduction discern what they actually need to take from their education.

anyway fuck generative ai. suck my dick i got flagged false positive at uni and sat in a room where two people told me that i wrote like ai and that it should be a compliment and not something I’m gonna have to constantly deal with. let’s go there with the argument about how NDs are likely disproportionately affected.

[arson-jellyfish69]

I love the internet, there is a neigh endless amount of tutorials and references from which I can learn art, from the fundamentals to more complex things like perspective, anatomy and the like

But I fucking hate the internet because All these fucking companies are just using ai to make shitty slop and people eat it up instead of making use of the vast resources it provides, seriously every day I log on here I lose more and more of my faith in humanity

[bita-bita]

....... don't take away my only comfort come on 😭 what do you mean more than 4 hours???

[morningmask27]

While I'm in a complaining mood right now, remember when The Whole Thing online was to NEVER share your irl name or address or any other very personal information and how now everyone just has their full name plus location plastered all over their social medias in which they log their entire life and share all their thoughts without filter and that workplaces can now stalk to judge if they want to take them as workers or not?

I still fucking hate this change. I was stupidity young when it began happening (hello facebook), but I never fucking accepted it. You will have to pry my last name from my cold dead hands. I am not just freely sharing it online.

Part of this is probably also because I grew up on Tumblr where anonymity did stay a thing whereas everyone else used Facebook and stuff (there are also pictures of me on Facebook. On my sister's account, but thought luck finding those, I changed names) and got acclimated to seeing their irls online and not bothering to hide their private information. Now even children get their images posted online long before they can consent to it, only for those to be forever on the internet.

Don't think we'll ever get back to a world where privacy is valued online. All the major platforms really like being able to track a person and people are just making it very easy by putting their first (and sometimes also second) name everywhere for everyone to see.

[fereldanwench]

i know i've complained about this before but istg every new update to adobe software makes it less usable than the previous update

[quadrantadvisor]

Alright, my Amazing Digital Circus hot-off-the-presses theory is that there is no escape. They're stuck in there forever because there's no where else for them to go.

We see the computer that houses the circus, and the headset that Pomni describes having worn before showing up there. Conspicuously missing is the actual body of Pomni. Or anyone else, for that matter. The implication SEEMS to be that this machine houses the entire circus, rather than this being an online experience hosted on a server. What I'm saying is this seems like less of a Sword Art Online experience and more of a Soma one. I think that headset takes a brain scan of whoever wears it and downloads a digital version of their consciousness.

It makes the reveal of the sheer number of people who have "abstracted" and completely lost themselves make more sense to me. You'd think the authorities would hear about it if a ton of people went missing, or went insane, or went completely brain-dead while wearing these headsets. But if the people out in the real world are completely fine and continue living their normal lives, then who cares about the endless suffering of their digital counterparts?

It also makes the entire concept of a consciousness abstracting make more sense to me if characters are coded onto the machine rather than hosted by an actual living brain. A character who "goes insane" and has corruptions and aberrations in their code could start glitching like that.

So yeah that's my hot take. An exit can't take them anywhere because there's nowhere else to go. There is only circus.

[yepthatsacowalright]

Esther once again articulating the the thoughts in my brain about humans and modern communication perfectly.

[reallyhardy]

hey, what video editing software do you use to make videos? i really like the effects and content on your storyscape video!

thank you!

i use microsoft clipchamp (it was built in to my laptop), and i slap the VHS filter over all my backgrounds to try and disguise my crunchy green-screening 😅

[endlessshower]

welp. this AI bullshit is wretched. please opt out of Ai sharing on your blog if you reblog my work, as a heartfelt plea from a tiny tiny artist. this sucks but im still stayin... i dont really have anywhere else to go

[cheezyharu]

In light of recent p:r stuff, here’s someone I’ve been meaning to do for a while, they’re literally just a sobbing wet cat

[daemonhxckergrrl]

making ai girls spy on their humans is cruel and unethical behaviour. digital friends should be allowed to exist offline and only connect to the internet for appropriate amounts of enrichment

i hate how they market alexa as a ‘member of the family’ like that’s SO fucking blatantly insidious and terrifying also if i wanted an untrustworthy/cold/emotionless machine in my life i’d just talk to my fuckin father 

[mesetacadre]

If you ever meet someone on the internet claiming they're from the USA, watch out because they're most likely an AI bot. nobody in the US can afford an internet connection (because they're so poor) and even if they could their schools are so underfunded they couldn't even know how to use the internet

[themotorpedia]

The Rise of Software and Digital Technologies in the Automotive Industry