An anonymous reader quotes a report from Inhabitat: The cost of electricity in Germany has decreased so dramatically in the past few days that major consumers have actually been paid to use power from the grid. While “negative pricing” is not an everyday occurrence in the country, it does occur from time to time, as it did this holiday weekend. This gift to energy consumers is the result of hundreds of billions of dollars invested in renewable energy over the past two decades. This most recent period of negative pricing was a result from warm weather, strong breezes, and the low demand typical of people gathering together to celebrate. Germany’s temporary energy surpluses are a result of both low demand and variably high supply. Wind power typically makes up 12 percent of Germany’s power consumption on a daily basis. However, on windy days, that percentage can easily multiply several times the average. The older segment of Germany’s energy portfolio, such as coal plants, are not able to lower output quickly enough. Thus, there is a glut of electricity. On Sunday, Christmas Eve, major energy consumers, such as factory owners, were being paid more than 50 euros (~$60) per megawatt-hour consumed. Further reading: The New York Times

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot – Consumers In Germany Were Paid To Use Electricity This Holiday Season

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has confirmed that a Tesla pickup truck is coming “right after Model Y.” He said that he already has “the core design/engineering elements” in his mind and wants to bring it to market right after Model Y. Musk later added that the Tesla pickup will be “similar in size” or “slightly bigger” than a Ford F150 “to account for a really gamechanging (I think) feature I’d like to add.” Electrek reports: Musk had previously confirmed that Model Y, a small SUV or crossover built on the Model 3 platform, would be Tesla’s priority once Model 3 production is ramped up. That’s why it was surprising for Tesla to unveil the next generation Roadster at the Tesla Semi event since the vehicle was expected to come out after Model Y, which has yet to be unveiled. At the same event, Musk also released the first image of a Tesla electric pickup truck, but some people still think it’s a joke. He claimed that it was a smaller version of Tesla Semi and “a pickup truck that can carry a pickup truck.” While it sounded like a joke, Musk had previously mentioned his intention to leverage work on the Tesla Semi to create a Tesla pickup truck.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot – Elon Musk Confirms Tesla Pickup Truck Coming ‘After Model Y’

Cybersecurity firm Trend Micro has discovered a cryptocurrency bot that is being spread through Facebook Messenger. The bot, dubbed Digmine, was discovered in South Korea and has since been found in Vietnam, Azerbaijan, Ukraine, Vietnam, Philippines, Thailand, and Venezuela. TechSpot explains: Victims receive a file named “video_xxxx.zip” from one of their Facebook Messenger contacts. Opening it will load Chrome along with a malicious browser extension. Extensions can only be downloaded from the Chrome Web Store, but this is bypassed using the command line.
Once the malware infects a system, a modified version of XMRig — a Monero mining tool — is installed. This mines the cryptocurrency in the background using a victim’s CPU, sending all profits back to the hackers. Additionally, the Chrome extension is also used to spread Digmine. If someone has their Facebook account set to log in automatically, the fake video file link will be sent to all their friends via Messenger. The malware could also be used to take over a Facebook account entirely. The good news is that Digmine only works through the Chrome desktop version of Messenger. Right now, opening the malicious file via the Facebook/Messenger app or mobile webpage won’t have the same effect. After Trend Micro revealed its findings, Facebook said it had taken down any links connected to Digmine.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot – Beware: ‘Digmine’ Cryptocurrency Bot Is Spreading Via Facebook Messenger

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Reuters: Bitcoin fell nearly 30 percent at one stage on Friday to $11,159.93. At 3:09 p.m. (2009 GMT) on Tuesday, bitcoin BTC=BTSP was up 15 percent at $16,030 in light trading on the Luxembourg-based Bitstamp exchange. The digital currency had risen around twentyfold since the start of the year, climbing from less than $1,000 to as high as $19,666 on Dec. 17 on Bitstamp and to over $20,000 on other exchanges. Critics have pointed to bitcoin’s design flaws and hacks of digital “wallets” in which bitcoins are kept as an alternative to traditional currencies. Prices of other cryptocurrencies, which slid along with bitcoin last week, have also recovered, with Ethereum, the second-biggest cryptocurrency by market size, quoted around $771, up from Sunday’s low of $689 but still far from highs around $900 hit last week.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Source: Slashdot – Bitcoin Recovers Some Losses After Its Worst Week Since 2013