Australian police are warning about ‘sadistic sextortion’. Here’s how it works, and the red flags for parents

Children as young as 12 are being coerced into producing extreme content, from sex acts to self-harm, over the internet at a rising rate, Australian federal police have warned parents and guardians.The practice, which police term sadistic sextortion, involves extreme online communities. Members from around the world, using nicknames, are coercing children on social media and messaging platforms to self-produce explicit sexual and violent content to gain entry to the groups, an AFP statement detailed. Offenders can be the same age as victims.What distinguishes sadistic sextortion is that most offenders are motivated by “obtaining status or notoriety within the group” rather than money, Helen Schneider, AFP commander of human exploitation and the AFP-led Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation, said

Oura Gen 3 review: can smart ring worn by celebs and athletes work for you?

Smart rings are having a bit of a moment with the Oura seen adorning the fingers of celebrities and elite sportspeople alike. It promises the health-tracking features of a smartwatch squeezed into a much smaller, less techie device focused on sleep, recovery and resilience. But can it deliver for regular people, too?The Guardian’s journalism is independent. We will earn a commission if you buy something through an affiliate link. Learn more

UK signs first international treaty to implement AI safeguards

The UK government has signed the first international treaty on artificial intelligence in a move that aims to prevent misuses of the technology, such as spreading misinformation or using biased data to make decisions.Under the legally binding agreement, states must implement safeguards against any threats posed by AI to human rights, democracy and the rule of law. The treaty, called the framework convention on artificial intelligence, was drawn up by the Council of Europe, an international human rights organisation, and was signed on Thursday by the EU, UK, US and Israel.The justice secretary, Shabana Mahmood, said AI had the capacity to “radically improve” public services and “turbocharge” economic growth, but that it must be adopted without affecting basic human rights.“This convention is a major step to ensuring that these new technologies can be harnessed without eroding our oldest values, like human rights and the rule of law,” she said

YouTube to restrict teenagers’ exposure to videos about weight and fitness

YouTube is to stop recommending videos to teenagers that idealise specific fitness levels, body weights or physical features, after experts warned such content could be harmful if viewed repeatedly.The platform will still allow 13- to 17-year-olds to view the videos, but its algorithms will not push young users down related content “rabbit holes” afterwards.YouTube said such content did not breach its guidelines but that repeated viewing of it could affect the wellbeing of some users.YouTube’s global head of health, Dr Garth Graham, said: “As a teen is developing thoughts about who they are and their own standards for themselves, repeated consumption of content featuring idealised standards that starts to shape an unrealistic internal standard could lead some to form negative beliefs about themselves.”YouTube said experts on its youth and families advisory committee had said that certain categories that may be “innocuous” as a single video could be “problematic” if viewed repeatedly

Racism, misogyny, lies: how did X become so full of hatred? And is it ethical to keep using it?

Ever since Elon Musk took over Twitter, I and many others have been looking for alternatives. Who wants to share a platform with the likes of Andrew Tate and Tommy Robinson? I considered leaving Twitter as soon as Elon Musk acquired it in 2022, just not wanting to be part of a community that could be bought, least of all by a man like him – the obnoxious “long hours at a high intensity” bullying of his staff began immediately. But I’ve had some of the most interesting conversations of my life on there, both randomly, ambling about, and solicited, for stories: “Anyone got catastrophically lonely during Covid?”; “Anyone hooked up with their secondary school boy/girlfriend?” We used to call it the place where you told the truth to strangers (Facebook was where you lied to your friends), and that wide-openness was reciprocal and gorgeous.It got more unpleasant after the blue-tick fiasco: identity verification became something you could buy, which destroyed the trust quotient. So I joined the rival platform Mastodon, but fast realised that I would never get 70,000 followers on there like I had on Twitter

Meta’s moderation board backs decision to allow ‘from the river to the sea’ in posts

Meta’s content moderation board has backed the company’s decision to allow Facebook posts containing the phrase “From the River to the Sea” after ruling that a blanket ban on the pro-Palestine slogan would hinder free speech.The Oversight Board reviewed three cases involving Facebook posts that featured “From the River to the Sea” and found they did not break Meta’s rules involving restrictions on hate speech and incitement, while an outright ban on the phrase would interfere with political speech in “unacceptable ways”.In a decision backed by a majority of its members, the board said the content showed solidarity with Palestinians but did not call for violence or exclusion and upheld Meta’s original decision to keep the content on Facebook.The board, whose decisions on content are binding, said the phrase has multiple meanings and is used “in various ways and with different intentions”. While it could be seen as encouraging antisemitism and the elimination of Israel, the board said, it is also used as a call for solidarity with Palestinians“The standalone phrase cannot be understood as a call to violence against a group based on their protected characteristics, as advocating for the exclusion of a particular group, or of supporting a designated entity – Hamas,” said the ruling