RSA

The United Nations is preparing an event to mark the 25th anniversary of the 2001 World Conference against Racism held in Durban, South Africa. The anniversary commemoration is drawing attention because the original Durban conference remains controversial, particularly over debates about Israel and antisemitism at the 2001 gathering.

Daniel Gultsch, developer of the Android XMPP chat app Conversations, has announced the app is breaking up with Google Play and is now free. The move ends distribution through Google's app store, and the essay explains the reasoning behind leaving the platform and making the app available at no cost.

Protesters gathered outside the ICE Processing Center in Pearsall, Texas, in a demonstration against the facility and US immigration enforcement. Local outlet KSAT reported on the rally, which adds Pearsall to the list of Texas cities where immigration detention sites have drawn public protests. Details on the size of the crowd, the organisers and specific demands were not immediately reported.

NBCUniversal is reportedly considering a move into video games as Comcast prepares to separate the media company into a standalone entity. The plan would mark a significant push into gaming for the studio behind major franchises, though no official announcement or details on timing and investment have been confirmed.

The United States is commemorating the 25th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, a moment of national mourning for the nearly 3,000 people killed in New York, Virginia and Pennsylvania. Memorial ceremonies are drawing attention to the lasting impact of the attacks on American security, foreign policy and collective memory a quarter-century on.

SpaceX has carried out a launch rehearsal as it prepares for the 14th test flight of its Starship rocket. The wet dress rehearsal, conducted ahead of the upcoming flight, is a key step in verifying the vehicle and ground systems before launch. Space enthusiasts and commentators are closely tracking preparations as Starship continues its test campaign.

A new paper posted on the IACR ePrint archive describes a method for forging 1024-bit RSA signatures in time close to that required by the Special Number Field Sieve. The work matters because 1024-bit RSA remains in use in some legacy systems, and any practical improvement in factoring-based attacks weakens the security margin of keys that experts already consider too small.

A news segment examines the state of scientific knowledge on chronic traumatic encephalopathy, the brain condition linked to repeated head impacts in contact sports. The report outlines what researchers have established so far and highlights the significant gaps that remain, including how to diagnose CTE in living patients and who is most at risk. The topic continues to draw attention amid ongoing concern over head injuries in football and other sports.