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A recently discovered comet originating from the most distant corner of the solar system will be visible from Australia this week. The bright green comet has not entered Earth’s skies for 50,000 years — and it might take almost as long to return. WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: A green comet last seen 50,000 years ago is swinging by Earth again. Watch the latest News on Channel 7 or stream for free on 7plus >> The C/2022 E3 (ZTF) comet is named after the Zwicky Transient Facility where it was discovered in March 2022 by Californian Palomar Observatory astronomers using a wide-field survey camera. ZTF was only discovered last year because it is the first time the comet has come close enough to Earth to be seen since before our species evolved into modern Homo Sapiens. It was spotted just inside the orbit of Jupiter. After a brief period during the first week of February when the comet will become visible from Australia, it will not be seen again in our lifetime. The comet will be the clos...

Parents are being warned to be extra vigilant about privacy when posting back- to- school photos online over grooming fears. Identifying details such as a child ’s name, school logo or location can pose a risk, according to Australian Federal Police. “Any information, however seemingly innocent, can make it the easier for offenders to build a profile of a child with the intention of grooming them,” Acting Assistant Commissioner Hilda Sirec said. Watch the latest news and stream for free on 7plus >> “Or even to groom the parents or carers in a bid for access or leverage.” It’s suggested parents make their profiles private or adjust their settings to “friends only” so their photos aren’t seen by unintended audiences. Parents are being warned to take extra care when posting back to school photos of their children on social media over grooming fears. Credit: AAP Photos with easily identifiable backgrounds and “checking in” to a location also pose a risk. Australian Federal Po...

The Northern Lights are known top Travel bucket lists and draw countless Travel lers to the world’s artic regions — but many Australians are unaware that an identical phenomenon is visible in their own backyard. The Aurora Australis, or the Southern Lights, takes place above the South Pole and is regularly visible from Australia’s southernmost state. WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Spotting the Southern Lights in Australia. Watch the latest News on Channel 7 or stream for free on 7plus >> Auroras are magnetic storms commonly seen in the night skies nearest to polar regions. They occur when the sun expels a particle-filled solar wind blown into Earth’s magnetic field. Once inside Earth’s magnetosphere, the particles are pulled toward the north and south where they collide with and become energised by a range of gases and atoms. The phenomenon creates a natural light show visible from the Northern Hemisphere and the Southern Hemisphere. However, the latter display is arguably lesser known...

Spotify Technology SA's music streaming platform suffered a brief outage on Thursday, leaving tens of thousands of users unable to access the platform before services appeared to come back online. "Everything's looking much better now," Spotify Status, an account that provides updates about the platform's status, said in a tweet. In the second such outage within two weeks , more than 41,000 Spotify users reported on Downdetector.com they were having issues with the streaming platform at the peak of the disruption. As Spotify was coming back online, Downdetector said reports of outage s had fallen below 2,000. Spotify suffered a brief outage earlier this month, with more than 45,000 affected users from the United States at the peak of the disruption. A networking outage at Microsoft Corp on Wednesday took down its cloud platform along with services such as Teams and Outlook, hitting millions of users globally, while Meta Platfo...

The FBI on Thursday revealed it had secretly hacked and disrupted a prolific ransomware gang called Hive, a maneuver that allowed the bureau to thwart the group from collecting more than $130 million in ransomware demands from more than 300 victims. At a news conference, US Attorney General Merrick Garland, FBI Director Christopher Wray, and Deputy US Attorney General Lisa Monaco said government hackers broke into Hive's network and put the gang under surveillance, surreptitiously stealing the digital keys the group used to unlock victim organizations' data. They were then able to alert victims in advance so they could take steps to protect their systems before Hive demanded the payments. "Using lawful means, we hacked the hackers ," Monaco told reporters. "We turned the tables on Hive." News of the takedown first leaked on Thursday morning when Hive's website was replaced with a flashing message that said: "The Federal Bureau of I...

Popular AI-driven chatbot ChatGPT passed the final exam for the Master of Business Administration (MBA) program given by a professor at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School Professor Christian Terwiesch, the author of the research, wrote in his paper that the bot scored between a B- and B. The score showed a "remarkable ability to automate some of the skills of highly compensated knowledge workers in general and specifically the knowledge workers in the jobs held by MBA graduates including analysts, managers, and consultants." ChatGPT performed really well at "basic operations management and process analysis questions including those that are based on case studies", with "excellent" explanations provided. Educators have recently become overly concerned with the progress of AI chatbots like ChatGPT which could easily inspire cheating among students. The New York City’s Department of Education has already announced a ban on ...

A Sydney man has cried foul after claiming he purchased a $3 million Coogee home without anybody warning him about what he calls the “rat problem” in the suburb. The new homeowner Philip Jajou shared his reaction in a recent TikTok video. WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Man discovers rat problem after buying Sydney home. Watch the latest News on Channel 7 or stream for free on 7plus >> “When you buy a $3 million home in Coogee but no one told you about the rat problem,” he said. “Why didn’t anyone warn me?” Rats are seen scurrying from bushes onto the road and creeping along the grass at a beachside reserve in the video which has been viewed more than 300,000 times. It is unclear where the footage was actually filmed, where Jajou’s house actually is and whether rats were even spotted inside Jajou’s new home. However, the internet was divided, with many saying a rat problem was something a real estate agent should note. “If I paid $3 million for a house just for the real estate agent t...

Paul Murdaugh sent a Snapchat video to several friends just minutes before he was killed , according to a motion filed against Alex Murdaugh, a disgraced former lawyer who is standing trial this week over the killing of his wife and son. Margaret “Maggie” Murdaugh, 52, and the couple’s youngest son, Paul Murdaugh, 22, were found shot dead on the family’s South Carolina property in June 2021. Alex Murdaugh has denied he was involved in their deaths and pleaded not guilty to the murder charges. Watch the latest News on Channel 7 or stream for free on 7plus >> Jury selection has begun in a trial that could last up to three weeks, both the defence and prosecution have said. Three generations of the Murdaugh family served as prosecuting attorneys in coastal South Carolina but a series of deaths and allegations of embezzlement and insurance fraud brought the family legacy crashing down. The filing, obtained by CNN affiliate WCSC, appears to be the first mention of the Snapchat video ...

Netflix Inc's steady stream of hit shows is helping it stand out in a crowded market while paving the way for double-digit revenue growth later this year, analysts said, after the firm topped estimates for subscriber additions. Shares of the streaming pioneer surged more than 8% on Friday, as its fourth-quarter earnings report showed the company was coping well with weakening consumer sentiment and com Pet ition from Walt Disney Co and Amazon.com Inc. At least 18 brokerages raised their price targets on the stock as they cheered Netflix's 7.66 million subscribers additions that easily beat estimates of 4.57 million. The result was driven by some of the company's strongest content slate, including the "Addams Family" spin-off "Wednesday" - its third most watched TV show on record - and murder mystery "Glass Onion" - its fourth most popular movie. "Content performance is underpinning all aspects of financial improvement and helps in...

US wireless carrier T-Mobile said on Thursday it was investigating a data breach involving 37 million postpaid and prepaid accounts and that it expected to incur significant costs related to the incident. The company said it identified malicious activity on Jan 5 and contained it within a day, adding that no sensitive data such as financial information was compromised. However, some basic customer information was obtained, such as name, billing address, email and phone number, T-Mobile said. "Our investigation is still ongoing, but the malicious activity appears to be fully contained at this time, and there is currently no evidence that the bad actor was able to breach or compromise our systems or our network," the company said, adding it had begun notifying impacted customers. The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has also opened an investigation into the company's data breach incident, the Wall Street Journal reported on T...

STOCKHOLM: Chinese social media company TikTok could face a ban in the European Union if it does not step up efforts to comply with EU legislation before September, the top official overseeing the EU's internal market told the company's CEO on Thursday. TikTok needs to bring its Business in line with the EU's Digital Services Act (DSA) well ahead of the deadline of Sept. 1, European Commissioner Thierry Breton told Shou Zi Chew, according to an EU readout of a video call between the two. "We will not hesitate to adopt the full scope of sanctions to protect our citizens if audits do not show full compliance," Breton said. TikTok said in response that it was committed to the DSA, and had also outlined its efforts to comply with other EU legislation, such as GDPR data protections rules and a code of practice on disinformation. "The safety of our users is paramount," Caroline Greer, TikTok's director of public policy and government relations, tw...

After relaunching its larger HomePod speaker, Apple is now working on a smart home lineup. The category will include smart displays and a faster TV set-top box. The company is likely to start off with a low-end iPad that can control thermostats, lights and handle Facetime chats. With the help of magnetic fasteners, these products could be set up on walls or other locations to make them home gadgets. As a move to accommodate and control more products, Apple has also redesigned the Home app. Read: Big Tech braces for dismal profits, more job cuts As per Bloomberg, the company has agreed to support the new Matter protocol. Through Matter Protocol, Apple will be able to work with its competitors. As of now, Apple has been struggling in the smart home market. However, the new range of products in the category will give com Pet ition to Google and Amazon. Source: https://thefoxposts.com/apple-to-compete-with-amazon-google-in-smart-home-category-TheFOXposts-10649.html?utm_sou...

Microsoft Corp plans to cut thousands of jobs with some roles expected to be eliminated in human resources and engineering divisions , according to media reports on Tuesday. The expected layoffs would be the latest in the US  Technology sector, where companies including Amazon.com Inc and Meta Platforms Inc have announced retrenchment exercises in response to slowing demand and a worsening global economic outlook. Microsoft's move could indicate that the tech sector may continue to shed jobs. "From a big picture perspective, another pending round of layoffs at Microsoft suggests the environment is not improving, and likely continues to worsen," Morningstar analyst Dan Romanoff said. UK broadcaster Sky News reported, citing sources, that Microsoft plans to cut about 5% of its workforce, or about 11,000 roles. The company plans to cut jobs in a number of engineering divisions on Wednesday, Bloomberg News reported, according to a person familiar with t...

 Microsoft Corp on Monday said it is widening access to hugely popular software from OpenAI, a startup it is backing whose futuristic ChatGPT chatbot has captivated Silicon Valley. Microsoft said the startup's tech, which it so far has previewed to its cloud-computing customers in a program it called the Azure OpenAI Service, was now generally available, a distinction that's expected to bring a flood of new usage. The news comes as Microsoft has looked at adding to the $1 billion stake in OpenAI it announced in 2019, two people familiar with the matter previously told Reuters. The news site Semafor reported earlier this month that Microsoft might invest $10 billion; Microsoft declined to comment on any potential deal. Public interest in OpenAI surged following its November release of ChatGPT, a text-based chatbot that can draft prose, poetry or even computer code on command. ChatGPT is powered by generative artificial intelligence, which conjures new cont...

A traveller whose missing luggage had been torn apart by the time it was returned to them has slammed the airline involved. The passenger revealed the extent of the damage in a social media post, after travelling on a recent flight with Southwest Airlines in the US. WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Qantas slammed after man’s luggage worth $4000 is damaged. For more Travel related news and videos check out 7 Travel >> “Airline said they’d found my bag. Went to pick it up and ...,” they posted to Reddit, along with a series of images. The Travel ler’s bags are completely torn apart, the images reveal, along with the contents including tattered clothes and underwear. “Southwest destroyed my bag and stuff,” the Travel ler continued. Others were horrified by the photos and asked the traveller if they had received any explanation from the airline. “Nope. Just said ‘We weren’t there, we don’t know’,” they replied. Images posted to social media show the extent of the damage to a traveller’s l...

On a hot summer's day last year, the 90's boy band Backstreet Boys clambered on to a stage in Pennsylvania and belted out hits as 44 million viewers tuned in from thousands of miles away for the online concert hosted by China's WeChat Channels. The show is just one of many events held by WeChat owner Tencent to promote the app's short-video platform - described by the tech giant's founder Pony Ma as "the hope of the company". Tencent Holdings Ltd has tapped other entertainers too like Taiwan's Jay Chou and Irish boy band Westlife for livestreamed concerts and, according to a source, has set up a team to build a community of content creators as it seeks to challenge the dominance of ByteDance, the owner of TikTok and Douyin, and Kuaishou in the short-video Business . "Tencent hopes it can turn Channels into the next WeChat Pay. It has a shot at it. But it is also going to be difficult," said Liao Xuhua, a senior analyst at research fi...

Third-party Twitter apps, Tweetbot, Twittereffic, and others, are still not working because of issues with Twitter's API, despite complaints from users and developers. Elon Musk remains silent as user outrage grows and no effort is made to fix the broken apps. Twitter’s official API for developers is almost entirely offline, which has resulted in third-party client apps being inaccessible, showcasing an error message with a “problem authenticating with Twitter.” Tweetbot and other clients are experiencing problems logging in to Twitter. We’ve reached out to Twitter for more details, but haven’t heard back. We’re hoping this is just a temporary glitch and will let you know more as soon as we know more. — Tweetbot by Tapbots (@tweetbot) January 13, 2023 Developers of Twittereffic, the Iconfactory, are directing its users to a webpage explaining the reason why the app is broken and inaccessible, with a warning that “something b...

Apple's touch -friendly MacBook Pros are expected to arrive in 2025, according to Bloomberg sources. The laptop might run macOS and include a standard trackpad and keyboard. The MacBook Pro, though sticking to its traditional design, might incorporate display taps and gestures like Windows laptops. The company is expected to expand its touch input to other mac models in the future as well. The report also emphasised that Apple is changing its Mac displays to OLED from LCDs. Read  3D printing reaches new heights with two-story home While the company has already launched the TouchBar in 2016, it seemed to be a step towards incorporating full touch screen capabilities: the TouchBar enabled system and in-app shortcuts, spelling suggestions, and other touch -friendly inputs. The feature wasn't, however, well received by Apple developers and customers. While the report isn't confirmed yet, it seems likely that the tech giant is attempting to com Pet e in the a...

Twitter is planning to sell username s online to generate additional revenue, reported The New York Times. The auction would let users bid for username s or handles, though it still isn't clear if the idea might go through and be implemented. In a tweet last month, Twitter CEO, Elon Musk said that Twitter would begin freeing 1.5 billion usernames, as inactive users are removed and deleted from the platform. Twitter will soon start freeing the name space of 1.5 billion accounts — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 9, 2022 The platform's username squatting policy, however, doesn't allow usernames to be bought and sold but users had found a way around the policy as they traded usernames in the black market. The news report comes right after Telegram announced that it might introduce an auction for username s on a marketplace called TON blockchain. Read  Google argues it doesn't block rivals in bid to kill US government antitrust lawsuit Musk...

A self-described “influencer” has been caught on camera unashamedly jumping the queue at a crowded event because of her “obnoxiously beautiful” looks and her “70,000 TikTok followers”. Festivalgoer Desi was standing in line to buy drinks at a music festival in Nashville on New Year’s Eve when an ugly confrontation broke out after a blonde-haired woman moved to the front of the queue. WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Influencer’s ugly con front ation. For more Lifestyle related news and videos check out Lifestyle >> According to Desi, attendees were waiting in the queue for more than 40 minutes when three women - including the influencer - decided to “cut to almost the front of the line”. The video shows a passerby confronting the group before the influencer insisted she deserved to skip the queue due to her social media follower count. An ‘ influencer ’ is caught jumping the queue at a crowded event. Credit: desi.self/TikTok “I am obnoxiously beautiful , you ugly old b****, you f***ing ...

STOCKHOLM/LONDON: Facebook parent Meta and Google's video platform YouTube said on Monday they were removing content supporting or praising the weekend ransacking of Brazilian government buildings by anti-democratic demonstrators. Tens of thousands of supporters of Brazil's far-right former President Jair Bolsonaro smashed presidential palace windows, flooded parts of Congress with a sprinkler system and ransacked rooms in the Supreme Court in a more than three hour attack. "In advance of the election, we designated Brazil as a temporary high-risk location and have been removing content calling for people to take up arms or forcibly invade Congress, the Presidential palace and other federal buildings," a Meta spokesman said. "We are also designating this as a violating event, which means we will remove content that supports or praises these actions," he said. "We are actively following the situation and will continue removing content ...

A devastated West Australian teen who says she was swindled out of $37,000 has revealed why she may never see a cent of it again. Aurora Casilli, from Albany in the state’s Great Southern, had hoped to use the money she’d accumulated through working multiple jobs and diligent saving on a house deposit or future studies. But the 18-year-old’s plans have been thrown out the window and she’s now stuck in a battle to recoup the money after an alarming message sent last month. Watch the latest news and stream for free on 7plus >> Casilli said her life was turned upside down with a December 3 text message alerting her that someone was trying to access her NAB account. While the message was alarming in itself, Casilli said the number used did not instantly set off any alarm bells because the bank had sent her alerts previously for other legitimate matters and the latest appeared in the same thread. WA teen Aurora Casilli had hoped to use the money on a house deposit or on future studie...