Roblox introduces new safety features, Australia bans Under 16s from social media
Roblox is introducing new safety features for children under the age of 13, following criticism of how it protects younger users. The free online gaming platform, which has around 70 million daily users, external worldwide, allows players to create their own games and play those made by others. It is particularly popular with children – but some have complained they have been exposed to upsetting and harmful content on the site. Starting 3 December, game creators will be asked to say whether their games are suitable for under-13s – with any that fail to do so being blocked for players 12 and younger. BBC
Australia’s government has pledged to introduce what it described as “world-leading” legislation to ban children under the age of 16 from social media. “Social media is doing harm to our kids and I’m calling time on it,” Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said. “I’ve spoken to thousands of parents, grandparents, aunties and uncles. They, like me, are worried sick about the safety of our kids online.” The legislation will be introduced in the country’s parliament during its final two weeks in session this year, beginning on 18 November. Sky News
The US supreme court grappled on Wednesday with a bid by Meta’s Facebook to scuttle a federal securities fraud lawsuit brought by shareholders who accused the social media platform of misleading them about the misuse of user data. The justices heard arguments in Facebook’s appeal of a lower court’s decision allowing the 2018 class action suit led by Amalgamated Bank to proceed. The suit seeks unspecified monetary damages in part to recoup the lost value of the Facebook stock held by the investors. The Guardian
Second-hand car sales are climbing as cash-strapped consumers shun the new vehicle market. The number of used car transactions rose by 4.3pc from July to September compared to a year ago to reach 1.96m, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). Of these, a record 53,423 were electric vehicles (EVs) – an increase of 57pc, or about 19,000… Ian Plummer, commercial director at Auto Trader, the online marketplace for used cars, said there continued to be strong demand for “middle-aged” EVs, defined as vehicles that are three to five years old. Many have now reached price parity with their petrol or diesel equivalents. Telegraph
The Apple TV 4K is finally getting a long-awaited update for enhanced projector performance in an upcoming software update for tvOS. After a fairly lacklustre initial release of the software that included new screensaver options and the InSight feature for Apple TV+ Original programming, we’re finally seeing an upgrade that will appease AV enthusiasts who have the streamer in their home cinema setups. The option to adjust aspect ratios will be implemented with the release of tvOS 18.2, which is set to be released in early December. WhatHiFi
Virgin Media O2 has successfully deployed the UK’s first 5G standalone small cells, with customers in Birmingham city centre the first to benefit from the technology. The new 5G standalone small cells have been installed on existing street furniture and are delivering increased mobile capacity in the exceptionally busy areas surrounding Birmingham’s Broad Street and Fleet Street. The operator switched on its next generation 5G standalone network earlier this year, which is now available in over 300 towns and cities to O2 customers at no extra cost. Broadband TV News
