Spinifex 1.19.0 expands AWS emulation from 3 to 11 services in five months

Spinifex, an AWS-compatible infrastructure platform, has released version 1.19.0 after five months of development spanning nineteen releases since its 1.0.0 launch in late March. The platform has grown from supporting just three AWS services — EC2, EBS, and S3 — to eleven, including ALB/NLB load balancers, EKS, ACM, ECR, ECS, and RDS. Supported API actions have also expanded from 129 to 371 over the same period. Notable additions include a K3s-backed EKS implementation with IAM authentication and IRSA support, an air-gap-friendly ECS and ECR stack, and managed PostgreSQL and MariaDB via RDS. An AI inference module codenamed Ochre, targeting AWS Bedrock compatibility, is currently in development.

Google Warns EU DMA Compliance Causes Biggest Search Quality Drop in Its History

Google has redesigned its Search results in the European Union to comply with the Digital Markets Act, which aims to limit self-preferencing by major digital platforms. The company claims these mandated changes represent the largest reduction in Search quality in its 29-year history. The redesign de-emphasizes Google-owned features like Maps and Flights, replacing them with prominent third-party comparison and aggregator services at the top of relevant results pages. Google has cautioned that some users may need to resubmit queries to find what they are looking for under the new layout. The changes apply exclusively to EU users and reflect a regulatory requirement rather than a voluntary product update, with potential knock-on effects for businesses relying on organic search visibility.

‘Unethical practices’: Jaipur sweet shops say no to Zomato over commissions, discounts

Watch: US strikes 5 Iranian oil tankers near Kharg Island after IRGC targeted navy ships

Ronaldo Misses Ballon d'Or Shortlist for Fourth Consecutive Year

Cristiano Ronaldo has been left off the 2026 Ballon d'Or nomination list for the fourth year running. This comes despite a productive season in which he scored 28 goals in the Saudi Pro League, helped Al-Nassr win the title, and netted three goals at the World Cup. His exclusion has drawn scrutiny given that two of his Al-Nassr teammates, Sadio Mané and Julián Quiñones, did receive nominations. Observers suggest voters may have discounted Ronaldo's statistics due to concerns about the level of competition in the Saudi league and other narrative-driven criteria.

Dev's SEC filing bot silently skipped all foreign firms due to wrong form section lookup

A software developer building a US-listed company analysis bot discovered it was silently skipping risk-factor data for all foreign firms without throwing any errors. The bug stemmed from the bot always searching for 'Item 1A' — the risk section in the US Form 10-K — while foreign companies listed in the US file a Form 20-F, which places risk factors under 'Item 3.D' instead. Because the missing section was caught and returned as an empty string, the downstream LLM interpreted the absence of data as a clean bill of health, producing false 'no risk factors' results. The fix involved branching logic to select the correct section ID based on form type, and updating the extraction method to return None on failure rather than an empty string, making errors distinguishable from genuinely empty data. The developer noted two key lessons: domain knowledge of the data being processed is as critical as coding skill, and silently swallowing errors by defaulting to empty values can cause dangerous, hard-to-detect data loss.

Why Duplicate CSV Rows and Duplicate Customer IDs Need Separate Fixes

A technical article published on DEV Community highlights a common data-handling mistake: treating duplicate CSV rows and duplicate customer IDs as the same problem. While an exact duplicate row is an identical record, a repeated customer ID may represent two conflicting records about the same entity, such as differing region values. Silently dropping one record during an import can cause data loss without any human decision being made. The article demonstrates a Python standard-library script that flags both issues separately, without automatically modifying the source file. It also outlines best practices such as treating identifiers as text strings, making normalization steps explicit, and auditing changes before any cleanup is applied.

Stellary Launches Hosted MCP Endpoint to Connect AI Clients to Live Project Boards

Developer Soheil Saheb-Jamii has released a hosted Model Context Protocol (MCP) surface for Stellary, allowing AI clients like Cursor to connect directly to the platform's NestJS backend via Streamable HTTP at api.stellary.co/mcp. Unlike local stdio-based setups, the integration requires no separate daemon or npm package, with the server creating a fresh transport per request. Users can authenticate through OAuth, which is the preferred method, or by generating a personal access token from Stellary's account settings. The setup grants AI agents access to Stellary tools including project boards, card management, cockpit dashboards, and queued agent missions. The guide recommends starting with read-only scopes such as projects:read and pilotage:read before enabling any write permissions.

Meta Still Running CSAM-Promoting Ads on Instagram in India, Report Finds

Meta has continued to allow advertisements promoting child sexual abuse material (CSAM) to run on its Instagram platform in India, according to a new report. The findings follow an earlier BBC Eye investigation that first uncovered the presence of such paid ads on the platform. Despite the initial exposure, the problematic advertisements appear to have persisted rather than being removed. The situation raises serious concerns about Meta's content moderation and ad review processes in the region.

AI-Generated Works Get No US Copyright Protection, Courts and Officials Confirm

Under current US law, works produced entirely by artificial intelligence cannot be copyrighted because copyright requires a human author, regardless of how detailed or iterative a user's prompt was. The US Copyright Office reaffirmed this position in its January 2025 report on AI and copyright, concluding that existing law already addresses the issue without need for new legislation. Courts have backed this stance, most notably in Thaler v. Perlmutter, where the DC Circuit ruled in 2025 that copyright demands human authorship, and the Supreme Court declined to revisit that ruling in 2026. However, distinctly human contributions woven into an AI-assisted work — such as original writing, editorial choices, or creative selection and arrangement — can still qualify for protection. The UK has historically taken a different approach by allowing limited protection for computer-generated works, though that policy is now under review.

How Composite Indexes and Query Rewrites Can Cut SQL Latency by Over 1,000%

As databases scale to millions of records, poorly optimized SQL queries become a major performance bottleneck, straining CPU resources and degrading user experience. Common pitfalls include using SELECT * in production, which increases I/O overhead and prevents covering indexes from functioning efficiently. Tools like EXPLAIN in MySQL and PostgreSQL help developers inspect query execution plans and identify full table scans or missing indexes before making changes. Composite indexes can dramatically speed up multi-condition queries, but column order matters — high-selectivity columns should be placed first to maximize index usage. Wrapping indexed columns in functions within WHERE clauses also invalidates index lookups, and rewriting such queries as explicit range comparisons restores fast index scans.

N-able patches CVSS 10.0 RCE flaw in N-central amid reports of active exploitation

N-able has released N-central 2026.3 Hotfix 4 (build 2026.3.1.14) to address CVE-2026-86218, a pre-authentication remote code execution vulnerability scoring 10.0 on the CVSS scale. The flaw affects self-hosted and N-able-hosted N-central deployments, and successful exploitation could grant attackers code execution on the RMM server without valid credentials. Security firm Huntress noted conflicting vendor communications — some suggesting active exploitation in the wild, while official release notes stopped short of confirming production incidents. Huntress also flagged that log rotation at an affected customer site prevented definitive attribution of a specific incident to this vulnerability. Two related but separate vulnerabilities, CVE-2026-86206 and CVE-2026-86207, were also disclosed; the earlier Hotfix 3 does not address CVE-2026-86218.

White House Removes 'Build the Wall' Game After Tetris Copyright Complaint

The Trump administration briefly published an arcade game called 'Build the Wall' on a White House platform. The Tetris Company publicly stated that it takes copyright infringement very seriously, signaling a legal objection to the game. Following the complaint, the game was taken down and is no longer accessible. The incident highlights the legal risks of using gameplay mechanics or designs closely associated with protected intellectual property.

Critical Adobe Commerce Zero-Day CVE-2026-75650 Exploited to Deploy Rust Backdoor

A critical unauthenticated remote code execution vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2026-75650 and dubbed StyleSmuggler, affects Adobe Commerce and Magento Open Source installations. Discovered and reported by Sansec, the flaw allows attackers to inject PHP into the template system, which then executes when the server renders a failed payment notification email — requiring no user interaction. Active exploitation has been observed deploying a Rust-based Linux backdoor, with some variants also dropping PHP web shells; the malware communicates via WebSocket over TLS or NTP-like UDP traffic on port 123. Adobe has released a hotfix under security bulletin APSB26-146, though applying it does not remove existing malware or invalidate credentials that may already have been compromised. Store operators are advised to apply the patch immediately, audit templates, check for unauthorized files under pub/media, and review processes and cron entries for signs of compromise.

Modified ScreenConnect Clients Spread Malware to Support Operators via Worm-Like Technique

Security researchers at Huntress have identified a campaign in which tampered ConnectWise ScreenConnect clients on compromised endpoints automatically push malicious scripts to operator machines that connect to them for remote support. The attack begins through social engineering, where victims are tricked into granting remote access or installing an unauthorized ScreenConnect client, sometimes preceded by abuse of Microsoft Quick Assist. Once a Guest endpoint is infected, the modified client exploits ScreenConnect's built-in file-transfer and script-execution features to deliver a series of VBScript files to any Host operator that connects. Depending on the target environment, payloads can include user-level remote access tools, persistence mechanisms, UAC bypass, network tunneling via wstunnel, and cryptocurrency mining using XMRig. Defenders are advised to watch for ScreenConnect spawning wscript.exe, execution of numbered VBS files, and suspicious RunFiles audit entries as key indicators of compromise.

How to Join Microsoft Student Ambassadors: Requirements, Tracks and Process

The Microsoft Student Ambassadors program is a global extracurricular initiative for full-time university students aged 18 or older, offering benefits such as Azure credits, Microsoft 365, Visual Studio Enterprise, and vouchers. It is not an internship or certification and does not guarantee employment at Microsoft. Applicants register on the Microsoft website and receive a Contributor ID via email within 3 to 5 business days, along with access to a global Discord community. To complete onboarding, members must obtain a recent Microsoft credential and fulfill one of two contribution tracks: the Community Influencer Path, which requires reaching 250 Preferred Visitors on eligible Microsoft pages, or the Community Skiller Path, which requires participants to complete 1,000 modules through a Microsoft Learn Plan created by the candidate. Microsoft sends program invitations quarterly, typically in January, April, July, and October, and any incomplete activity carries over to the next round.

Two Gang Members Shot in Delhi Gunfight Linked to Himanshu Bhau Network

Two shooters were injured in a gunfight involving members of the Himanshu Bhau gang in Delhi. The incident took place in the capital, though the exact timing and precise location have not been fully detailed. Authorities identified the accused as suspects in the murder of a property dealer named Pramod in the Narela area. Pramod was allegedly killed while on his way to the gym. The case highlights ongoing criminal activity linked to the Himanshu Bhau gang in the region.

Why SEO Strategies Built for Large Sites Often Hurt Small Businesses

SEO advice designed for large enterprises — with multiple teams, complex workflows, and vast content libraries — can mislead smaller websites into prioritising the wrong tasks. Practices like exhaustive audits, volume-driven content plans, and elaborate reporting structures may add cost and delay without meaningfully improving a small site's visibility. Experts suggest that smaller teams focus instead on pages with a clear commercial purpose, such as service, product, or lead-generation pages, ensuring each explains its offer and guides visitors toward an action. The recommended approach is to identify high-value pages first, then improve their content, structure, and internal linking before expanding scope. The core principle is prioritisation: for a small team with limited time, the order of work matters as much as the work itself.

Godzilla Minus Zero Trailer Teases Ghidorah Clash, Battles Ramayana on Nov 6

The trailer for Godzilla Minus Zero hints at the return of King Ghidorah and a large-scale monster showdown. The film is set to premiere in North America on November 6. India's Ramayana Part 1 is also scheduled for a worldwide release on the same date, setting up a box office clash. Both films are targeting IMAX screens, promising visually ambitious theatrical experiences. Audiences are keenly watching how the two high-profile releases will compete in terms of scale and visual spectacle.

Hegseth's Pentagon Overhaul Raises Questions About US Military Readiness

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has been implementing significant changes within the Pentagon since taking office under President Trump's second term. The restructuring is occurring while the United States maintains active military engagements abroad. Critics and observers are questioning whether the sweeping reforms could affect operational effectiveness and long-term military capability. The scale of the upheaval is seen as potentially defining for the broader legacy of Trump's second administration. BBC correspondent Tom Bateman examines the possible consequences of reshaping the military establishment during an active period of conflict.