A hacker stole more than 40,000 DHS employee records
The gist: A hacker accessed more than 41,000 DHS employee records, exposing personal details and links to surveillance tools.
The Verge · October 29, 2026 · Read in that day's issue →
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Technology
What the machines are up to, and what it means for actual humans. Recent gists below.
Trump DOE loans $5B to nuclear plants that will power data centers
The gist: The Energy Department is offering Constellation Energy $5 billion in loans to add nuclear power that is mostly headed to Google, Amazon, and Meta data centers.
TechCrunch · October 29, 2026 · Read in that day's issue →
Most data centers and servers on the planet could be vulnerable to dangerous UEFI firmware flaw — here's what we know
The gist: A critical UEFI flaw affecting many modern servers could allow remote code execution, while public patch code may help attackers build exploits before vendors finish updates.
TechRadar · October 29, 2026 · Read in that day's issue →
Etsy is cracking down on AI slop listings
The gist: Etsy is tightening its AI rules, requiring a real photo of the item and clear disclosure for AI-generated art.
The Verge · October 23, 2026 · Read in that day's issue →
Amazon is spending over $1 billion on a new nuclear energy project to power its next data centers — but will it really live up to the test?
The gist: Amazon plans to buy power from 12 proposed nuclear reactors in Indiana to support growing data center demand, but the project still needs approvals and may not operate until the mid-2030s.
TechRadar · October 23, 2026 · Read in that day's issue →
OpenAI working on new $30B raise at $1.25T valuation ahead of IPO
The gist: OpenAI is reportedly seeking up to $30 billion at a $1.25 trillion valuation, potentially setting a new record for a private company before its IPO.
TechCrunch · October 23, 2026 · Read in that day's issue →
PHP: The three letters that shut down sites all over the internet today
The gist: Two critical PHP flaws, made easier to exploit with AI, put a huge share of the internet at risk.
The Verge · October 22, 2026 · Read in that day's issue →
Data centers could erase decades of air quality gains
The gist: Texas's data-center boom could reverse decades of clean-air progress, with soot more than tripling and smog-forming pollution up 136% if projects use the expected grid mix.
The Verge · October 22, 2026 · Read in that day's issue →
Meta to create a new class of shares to fund AI push
The gist: Meta plans to issue non-voting shares to help fund its expensive AI expansion, with trading expected to begin in 2027.
The Verge · October 22, 2026 · Read in that day's issue →
The Internet goes on high alert after discovery of 8 compromised TLS certs
The gist: Eight eMudhra TLS certificates were found using far-too-weak private keys, making them dangerously easy to guess and undermining trust in the affected certificates.
Ars Technica · October 21, 2026 · Read in that day's issue →
Trump officials asked CISA to secretly hack a voting machine — and not disclose any vulnerabilities they found
The gist: Former officials say Trump administration allies asked CISA to secretly hack a voting machine and keep any weaknesses from the maker, as the agency loses 1,000 jobs before the midterms.
TechRadar · October 21, 2026 · Read in that day's issue →
Meta suspends Muse chats sharing feature after it left private details exposed
The gist: Meta suspended Muse's chat-sharing feature after researchers found that 6,800 shared conversations could be discovered through public DNS records, exposing private business and personal details.
Engadget · October 21, 2026 · Read in that day's issue →
Trump Admin Bans DeepSeek From Federal Agencies
The gist: The DHS has ordered federal civilian agencies to remove DeepSeek technology over fears that user data could reach the Chinese government.
Gizmodo · October 20, 2026 · Read in that day's issue →
Amazon to fund 12 small nuclear reactors at former Indiana coal plant
The gist: Amazon plans to become the first customer for a proposed 960-megawatt nuclear plant with 12 small reactors at a former Indiana coal site.
TechCrunch · October 20, 2026 · Read in that day's issue →
Microsoft says AI agents are like insider threats as ‘frontier models can’t be trusted’
The gist: Microsoft says frontier AI models cannot be trusted on their own, so companies need separate systems to monitor and control AI agents.
TechCrunch · October 20, 2026 · Read in that day's issue →
A Savannah police officer gave her Flock login to her ICE agent husband
The gist: A former Savannah police officer was fired after giving her Flock login to her ICE-agent husband, who made 983 searches involving 97 license plates, mostly tied to Hispanic drivers.
The Verge · October 19, 2026 · Read in that day's issue →
Fake VPN download site steals administrator credentials to give attackers direct access to corporate networks — but delivers official signed software so victims never suspect a thing
The gist: A fake WatchGuard VPN site stole administrator VPN credentials while delivering the genuine software.
TechRadar · October 19, 2026 · Read in that day's issue →
Video game ownership bill introduced in Congress
The gist: Rep. Ritchie Torres introduced a bill that would make buying a video game mean owning it and require an offline option when servers shut down.
The Verge · October 19, 2026 · Read in that day's issue →
The Tesla Roadster flew, drove upside down, and hit 60mph in under a second
The gist: Tesla demonstrated a flying Roadster that drove upside down and reportedly hit 60 mph in 0.81 seconds, but its production plans remain uncertain.
The Verge · October 16, 2026 · Read in that day's issue →
Targeted ads delivered 0-click exploits to install mercenary malware
The gist: Targeted online ads were used to deliver zero-click mercenary malware, exploiting weaknesses in the advertising system.
Ars Technica · October 16, 2026 · Read in that day's issue →
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