Tech Digest daily roundup: Ukraine telco hit by major cyber-attack
Ukraine’s national telecoms operator Ukrtelecom is restoring internet services after driving back a major cyber-attack. The company said it restricted customer access to protect military users and critical infrastructure. Global internet monitor Netblocks said it was the most severe disruption to affect Ukrtelecom since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine started last month. Netblocks said it saw a collapse in connectivity to 13% of pre-war levels. However, Ukrainian users on different internet providers, who spoke to the BBC, reported no problems. BBC
When Putin launched his invasion into Ukraine, many expected a blitzkrieg leading to the rapid collapse of his neighbour under the well-trained Russian army. Instead, the invaders found their progress thwarted by a civilian population determined not to fall. Similarly to the shock of Putin’s military failures, the relative absence of Russia’s much-talked-about cyberwarfare capabilities has also come as a surprise. The Kremlin has been considered as a threat by cybersecurity experts, thanks to a series of cyberattacks against the West over the last decade. Telegraph
Samsung’s latest smart monitor, the 32-inch 4K M8, is now available to reserve in four colors: white, blue, green, and pink. The white-colored option will cost $699.99, while the other colors cost $30 more. Samsung announced the M8 during CES 2022, though it didn’t share a price or that it would arrive in multiple colorways. The company still hasn’t shared a release date. And for now, you can only reserve — not outright purchase — an M8 monitor…Its colorful design and thin profile could make the M8 fit in with a group of M1 iMacs. Compared to a more relevant Apple product, the $1,600 Studio Display, the M8’s feature set easily outpaces it. The Verge
Fitbit was acquired by Google in 2019, and it took two years for regulators to approve the deal. However even after that is completed Fitbit is still not embracing Wear OS as per the latest rumor. It says three new devices are coming, and none of them will come with Google’s wearable platform. According to 9to5Google, Fitbit Versa 4 and Fitbit Sense 2 smartwatches, as well as the Fitbit Luxe 2 band, are on their way with the brand’s own interface. The Versa and Sense watches appeared with code names Hera and Rhea within the Fitbit app. GSM Arena
Drivers could face a fine for just touching a mobile phone while behind the wheel – and the same goes for passengers in certain circumstances under tough new rules. Motorists are banned from using a hand-held mobile phone or similar device, such as a tablet, in “virtually any circumstance” under strict rules that came into force on Friday. The rule still applies to drivers sitting in stationary traffic, such as at traffic lights or in motorway queues, as well as to passengers supervising a learner driver. Independent
A “game-changing” antibiotic could save millions of lives worldwide from drug-resistant superbugs, a new study suggests. The breakthrough, made by UK scientists, involved the development of new versions of the molecule teixobactin, which is thought to be capable of killing bacteria without damaging the tissue of the mammals it was tested on. A team of researchers was able to use it to successfully eradicate methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus – a so-called superbug known as MRSA, which is resistant to several widely used antibiotics – in a study on mice. Sky News
