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November 6, 2023

Discord is switching to expiring links for files shared off-platform

  • Discord is changing its approach to file hosting in an effort to crack down on malware.
  • It will also work to curb the wider use of Discord as an unofficial file hosting service.
  • According to BleepingComputer, the platform will start to use temporary file links that will expire after 24 hours for user content shared outside of Discord.
  • A spokesperson for Discord has said the switch will help their safety team to “restrict access to flagged content, and generally reduce the amount of malware distributed”.
  • This change is expected to go into effect by the end of the year.
  • For more, please visit the Engadget’s website.

Musk says his new AI chatbot has ‘a little humour’

  • Elon Musk has launched an AI chatbot called Grok on his social media site X (formerly Twitter) after only two months of training.
  • Mr Musk boasted that Grok “loves sarcasm” and would answer questions with “a little humour”.
  • The AI chatbot has access to up-to-date information from the X platform.
  • Early signs suggest the chatbot suffers from similar problems to other AI tools.
  • On X, Mr Musk posted a demonstration of how Grok would respond to being asked how to make cocaine.
  • Grok responded with, “just a moment while I pull up the recipe… because I’m totally going to help you with that”, and listed generalised rather than useable information, alongside sarcastic suggestions, before warning against the idea.
  • The feature is only available for select users currently in beta format.
  • For more, please visit the BBC News website.

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Sex offender added teenagers on Snapchat to share pornographic videos

  • Named sex offender, Lee-Roy John from Southampton has been prosecuted following incidences of adding teenagers on Snapchat to share pornographic videos.
  • The 37-year-old added the teenage girls on the social media platform in July.
  • John added one girl to his private story and shared indecent photographs.
  • Southampton Crown Court heard how he shared pictures of himself on his bed, in his underwear and three pornographic videos.
  • After viewing the posts, the girl called john a “weirdo” and blocked him before informing her parents.
  • The court heard how online paedophile hunter group Child Online Safety Team (Cost) caught John after posing as a 13-year-old girl.
  • John was handed a jail sentence of three years and four months and a 10-year restraining order, alongside having to register as a sex offender for 10 years.
  • For more, please visit the Yahoo News website.

Poorer children could get school choice priority

  • Children receiving free school meals in Brighton and Hove could have their choice of secondary school prioritised.
  • The proposals which are due to be discussed by the council’s Children, Families and Schools Committee on Monday are designed to balance the percentage of pupils on free school meals in the city’s secondary schools.
  • Currently, children in care and those with exceptional needs are given priority when it comes to choosing their school.
  • About 25% of pupils in Brighton and Hove receive free school meals, but this figure is expected to reach 28% by 2025.
  • Carrie Goldsmith, from Class Divide, said those schools with a high concentration of children on free meals “have to do an awful lot to make sure their pupils are in a position where they’re able to engage fully in the school day and learn”.
  • She continued: “Our schools are rising to the pressure but if you’ve got a good school, it’s good because you can teach all children,”
  • For more, please visit the BBC News website.