Glyn Moody
@glynmoody@mastodon.social  ·  activity timestamp 13 hours ago
#Australia Completely Loses The Plot, Plans To Ban Kids From Watching #YouTube - https://www.techdirt.com/2025/08/06/australia-completely-loses-the-plot-plans-to-ban-kids-from-watching-youtube/ "The end result will be that Australia has basically taught a generation of teenagers not to trust the government, that their internet regulators are completely out of touch, and that laws are stupid."
The Japan Times
@thejapantimes@mastodon.social  ·  activity timestamp yesterday

A massive outbreak of toxic algae off South Australia, which has devastated hundreds of species of marine life and disrupted local tourism and fishing, is being declared a natural disaster by the state's premier. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/environment/2025/08/06/wildlife/toxic-algae-australia-marine-tourism/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #environment #wildlife #pollution #australia #wildlife
The Japan Times
@thejapantimes@mastodon.social  ·  activity timestamp yesterday

Australia selecting a Japanese warship for its next frigate class could be a watershed moment for Japan’s defense industry as Tokyo aims for greater military cooperation and industrial tie-ups with allies and partners. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/08/06/japan/australia-japan-ship-deal-defense-industry/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #defense #australiajapanrelations #australia #sdf #defenseministry#mogami #mitsubishiheavyindustries
The Japan Times
@thejapantimes@mastodon.social  ·  activity timestamp yesterday

Australia’s internet watchdog says social media firms are still "turning a blind eye” to online child sex abuse material on their platforms, singling out YouTube as having been unresponsive to its inquiries. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/business/2025/08/06/tech/australia-regulator-youtube-child-abuse/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #business #tech #youtube #australia #socialmedia #children #childabuse #apple #google #alphabet #meta #snap #whatsapp
The Japan Times
@thejapantimes@mastodon.social  ·  activity timestamp 2 days ago

The Japan Organization for Metals and Energy Security said it will take part in a joint study for gallium production in Australia to try and ensure a stable supply of the critical mineral used to make semiconductors. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/08/05/japan/japan-gallium-australia-study/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #gallium #metals #australia #china
The Japan Times
@thejapantimes@mastodon.social  ·  activity timestamp 3 days ago

England suffered an agonizing six-run loss to India at the Oval on Monday as one of the most dramatic Test series of recent times ended in a 2-2 draw, posing serious questions for an upcoming tour of Australia. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/sports/2025/08/05/more-sports/england-india-ashes-questions/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #moresports #ashes #england #india #australia #benstokes
The Japan Times
@thejapantimes@mastodon.social  ·  activity timestamp 3 days ago

Australia will purchase 11 Japanese-made frigates in what will be Tokyo’s biggest-ever postwar defense contract, Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles announced Tuesday, in a major win for Japan’s defense industry. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/08/05/japan/japan-australia-mogami-contract/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #australia #australiajapanrelations #defense#mogami #sdf #msdf #defenseministry
Sjoerd
@slevelt@aus.social  ·  activity timestamp 3 days ago

having a general aversion against national flags, in spite of understanding the concepts of limiting food miles, supporting local economies, etc, I’ve always found any “Buy British” branding highly off putting for its use of the Union Jack. here in #Australia, nationally grown produce is marked with a green triangle with a yellow kangaroo - and I do not feel the same aversion.

so now I have a question for Aussies: am I right in seeing the green/yellow badge as less jingoistic and exclusionary than a national flag would be, or am I just missing those connotations?
Yogthos
@yogthos@social.marxist.network  ·  activity timestamp 5 days ago

China is pushing to decarbonize its steel industry by shifting to green technologies like electric arc furnaces. As China reduces its reliance on Australian metallurgical coal and traditional iron ore (hematite) for steel production, Australia's key exports are at risk.

To adapt, Australia must invest in green iron processing and hydrogen to align with China's new supply chains.

https://asiatimes.com/2025/07/chinas-green-steel-push-a-reality-check-for-australia

#china #australia #tech
Oasus Plainsview :verified:
@itsOasus@pawb.fun  ·  activity timestamp last week

So this is how Newgrounds is apparently handling age verification RE: UK's Online Safety Act.

Their ultimate solution is... unique.

Regarding age verification, here is our current plan for UK users: 1. If your account is more than ten years old, we will assume you are currently over 18. This is in line with one of the methods of effective age assurance, which involves paying a third party to match your email address against some sort of database of scraped data, which determines if your email has been in use for a long time. We have our own long-term data, so we'll use that instead. 2. If your account ever bought Supporter status with a credit card and we can confirm that with the payment processor, we will assume you are over 18 because you need to be 18 in the UK to have a credit card. 3. If your account ever bought Supporter status more than two years ago, we will assume you are over 18 because you need to be at least 16 to have a Paypal or debit card in the UK (assuming we are right about this). 4. If none of the above applies, you will have the opportunity to pay a small one-time fee via credit card as confirmation of your age. We are not planning to offer things like ID checks or facial recognition because these require us to pay a third party to confirm each person. Because Newgrounds runs at a loss and doesn't monetize users very well, this is not an option for us. As Wired noted, Big Tech is the only winner of the Online Safety Act because smaller websites can't afford to keep up with this sort of regulation.
Regarding age verification, here is our current plan for UK users: 1. If your account is more than ten years old, we will assume you are currently over 18. This is in line with one of the methods of effective age assurance, which involves paying a third party to match your email address against some sort of database of scraped data, which determines if your email has been in use for a long time. We have our own long-term data, so we'll use that instead. 2. If your account ever bought Supporter status with a credit card and we can confirm that with the payment processor, we will assume you are over 18 because you need to be 18 in the UK to have a credit card. 3. If your account ever bought Supporter status more than two years ago, we will assume you are over 18 because you need to be at least 16 to have a Paypal or debit card in the UK (assuming we are right about this). 4. If none of the above applies, you will have the opportunity to pay a small one-time fee via credit card as confirmation of your age. We are not planning to offer things like ID checks or facial recognition because these require us to pay a third party to confirm each person. Because Newgrounds runs at a loss and doesn't monetize users very well, this is not an option for us. As Wired noted, Big Tech is the only winner of the Online Safety Act because smaller websites can't afford to keep up with this sort of regulation.
Regarding age verification, here is our current plan for UK users: 1. If your account is more than ten years old, we will assume you are currently over 18. This is in line with one of the methods of effective age assurance, which involves paying a third party to match your email address against some sort of database of scraped data, which determines if your email has been in use for a long time. We have our own long-term data, so we'll use that instead. 2. If your account ever bought Supporter status with a credit card and we can confirm that with the payment processor, we will assume you are over 18 because you need to be 18 in the UK to have a credit card. 3. If your account ever bought Supporter status more than two years ago, we will assume you are over 18 because you need to be at least 16 to have a Paypal or debit card in the UK (assuming we are right about this). 4. If none of the above applies, you will have the opportunity to pay a small one-time fee via credit card as confirmation of your age. We are not planning to offer things like ID checks or facial recognition because these require us to pay a third party to confirm each person. Because Newgrounds runs at a loss and doesn't monetize users very well, this is not an option for us. As Wired noted, Big Tech is the only winner of the Online Safety Act because smaller websites can't afford to keep up with this sort of regulation.
bignose
@bignose@sw-development-is.social replied  ·  activity timestamp 7 days ago

Over at Chinwag, they have responded to #Australia calls for #AgeRestriction on #SocialMedia, with a characteristically Aussie policy.

https://chinwag.au/verification/

@itsOasus @chinwagnews