|
Listen To This Story
 |
PICKS are stories from many sources, selected by our editors or recommended by our readers because they are important, surprising, troubling, enlightening, inspiring, or amusing. They appear on our site and in our daily newsletter. Please send suggested articles, videos, podcasts, etc. to picks@whowhatwhy.org.
Twitter Hacked, 200M User Email Addresses Leaked, Researcher Says (Maria)
The author writes, “Hackers stole the email addresses of more than 200 million Twitter users and posted them on an online hacking forum, a security researcher said. … The breach ‘will unfortunately lead to a lot of hacking, targeted phishing and doxxing,’ Alon Gal, co-founder of Israeli cybersecurity-monitoring firm Hudson Rock, wrote on LinkedIn. He called it ‘one of the most significant leaks I’ve seen.’ Twitter has not commented on the report, which Gal first posted about on social media on Dec. 24, nor responded to inquiries about the breach since that date.”
Judge Suspends Alex Jones Lawyer Norm Pattis for Six Months Over Disclosure of Confidential Sandy Hook Medical, Psychiatric Records (Sean)
From the Hartford Courant: “In a sharply critical decision, a Superior Court judge has suspended Infowars broadcaster Alex Jones’ lawyer Norm Pattis from practicing law for six months for the ‘inexcusable’ disclosure of thousands of protected medical and psychiatric records obtained from relatives of Sandy Hook shooting victims. Judge Barbara Bellis, who presided over the contentious Connecticut case that ended last year in a $1.4 billion verdict, said Pattis’ failure to protect highly sensitive records entrusted to his office caused them to be ‘carelessly passed around from one unauthorized person to another’ in violation of multiple court orders.”
Millions of Workers Are Subject to Noncompete Agreements. They Could Soon Be Banned (DonkeyHotey)
The author writes, “The Federal Trade Commission took a bold move on Thursday aimed at shifting the balance of power from companies to workers. The agency proposed a new rule that would prohibit employers from imposing noncompete agreements on their workers, a practice it called exploitative and widespread, affecting some 30 million American workers. … Noncompete agreements restrict workers from quitting their jobs and taking new jobs at rival companies or starting up similar businesses of their own within a certain time period — typically between six months and two years.”
Here Are the People Iran Sentenced to Death in Its Protest Crackdown (Dana)
The authors write, “They are a doctor, a rapper, a karate champion, a barber and an actor, sons, grandsons and fathers. They are among the 13 people Iran has hurriedly sentenced to death in its campaign to quash the monthslong uprising against the Islamic Republic. In December, two men were hanged in quick succession. On Jan. 7, two others met the same fate, while nine others remain at risk of execution, according to the human rights group Amnesty International.”
Mysterious Changes Identified in the Brains of People Who Get Migraines (Mili)
The author writes, “Scientists may have … found a major new clue that could help solve the frustrating and ongoing mystery of the migraine. Using ultra-high-resolution MRI, researchers found that perivascular spaces — fluid-filled spaces around the brain’s blood vessels — are unusually enlarged in patients who experience both chronic and episodic migraine. Although the link to or role in migraine is yet to be established, the finding could represent an as-yet unexplored avenue for future research.”
Your Stuff Is Actually Worse Now (Sean)
From Vox: “We buy, buy, buy, and we’ve been tricked — for far longer than the last decade — into believing that buying more stuff, new stuff is the way. By swapping out slightly used items so frequently, we’re barely pausing to consider if the replacement items are an upgrade, or if we even have the option to repair what we already have. Worse yet, we’re playing into corporate narratives that undercut the labor that makes our items worth keeping.”
DoNotPay’s ‘Robot Lawyer’ Is Gearing Up for Its First US Court Case (Russ)
From Gizmodo: “An AI-based legal advisor is set to play the role of a lawyer in an actual court case for the first time. Via an earpiece, the artificial intelligence will coach a courtroom defendant on what to say to get out of the associated fines and consequences of a speeding charge, AI-company DoNotPay has claimed in a report initially from New Scientist and confirmed by Gizmodo. The in-person speeding ticket hearing is scheduled to take place in a U.S. courtroom (specifically, not California) sometime in February.”
