sys110x

I use LibreELEC on a mini-PC for my home TV. LibreELEC is a Linux distribution that runs Kodi and is pretty good for a media centre straight out of the box. I use a Rii Mini K25 remote (with a dongle) to control it: https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B06XHF7DNQ

The downside is I can't control the TV itself with this, but this can be sorted out with a USB IR receiver (like this: https://amzn.asia/d/0hvzkP93), LIRC (https://lirc.org/) or something similar, *and a universal remote. On my to-do list lol

I have a DHCP reservation for the TV itself and it's blackholed on my network. The only reason it's connected at all is so I can monitor what it tries to do.

Edit: Also need a universal remote for the IR solution so it can talk to the PC IR receiver and the TV IR receiver separately.

If your house plumbing is leaking there is water going out where it shouldn’t be.

Yes. Correct. Personally Identifiable Information openly exposed on the internet is information going out where it shouldn't be.

If your house is leaking, whether there's someone out there with a cup doesn't change whether your house is leaking or not. It only changes whether someone took your water ie. a breach

Data leak and data breach have specific definitions:

Data Leak vs Data Breach: What Is the Difference? While many use the terms "data leak" and "data breach" interchangeably, there is a difference between the two. A data leak often comes from within the organization either by accident or intent, while a data breach occurs when confidential or otherwise protected information is accessed, stolen, or used by outsiders without authorization. https://www.fortinet.com/resources/cyberglossary/data-leak

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/security/business/security-101/what-is-a-data-leak

https://www.oaic.gov.au/privacy/your-privacy-rights/data-breaches/what-is-a-data-breach

https://www.ibm.com/think/topics/data-leakage

https://www.trendmicro.com/en/what-is/data-breach/data-leak.html

This is a data leak. We don't know yet if it's a data breach. We might not know until active exploitation.

Given the lack of control on this data, and that it wasn't fixed until the researchers told them about it, do you trust IDMerit to have the scrutiny on their logging to know if it was accessed externally? I don't.

If your house plumbing is leaking, its not a leak to you unless you see it? How do you know it hasn't been accessed?

Thankfully we don't need to rely on your definition of a data leak: https://www.fortinet.com/resources/cyberglossary/data-leak

A data leak happens when an internal party or source exposes sensitive data, usually unintentionally or by accident.

This is sensitive data that's accidentally been exposed on the internet. That is a leak. You are misinformed on what a data leak is.

It's not misleading. A database of personally identifiable information being exposed on the internet is a data leak. Personally identifiable information is legally required to be protected, while an exposed database on the internet is about as far from 'protected' as you can get.

The article and title make no claim to active selling or known exploitation of the data, but to write this off as nothing would be a mistake. Are you sure that only the Cybernews team found it?

The Cybernews team discovered the exposed MongoDB instance on November 11th, 2025 and immediately notified IDMerit. The company secured the database by November 12th.

We don't know how long it was exposed for prior to it being discovered on the 11th - it might've been that day, it might've been a few months.

That's part of the trust problem though; when I have a $10 note in my pocket, I trust that it will still be $10 when I go to pay for my coffee later that day.

If I get $10 worth of Bitcoin out of an ATM in the morning, I don't have that same faith in the afternoon. It might be $7, it might be $3, it might be $15,000. That volatility is exactly why I can't trust it as my standard currency.

Sure did!

https://www.cnet.com/health/sleep/owners-of-luxury-smart-beds-literally-lost-sleep-due-to-aws-outage/

Oh my god, I totally missed that. Amazing lol Thanks for that!

Would you mind elaborating on why this is your favourite? I tried to find some context for it but all I can really seem to find is the quote itself.

That's a perfectly healthy & grounded view, my friend. :) Apologies if I came across as pushy or like something that "should" be done. It's awesome that it doesn't impact your daily life!

Drugs are certainly an adventure and hit everyone differently. Sometimes the adventure is life changing, be it bad or good.

Wishing you the best too! Hope it's been, and continues to be, an awesome night. Thanks for the wholesome exchange <3

Hey, just in case you haven't heard this before - maybe book an ADD/ADHD test if some of the indicators resonate with you.

I have a diagnosed friend who also said the same thing about stimulants not having the expected effect. It's apparently common for drugs like cocaine and MDMA in people with ADHD.

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/cocaine-and-adhd

https://theforgerecovery.com/mdma-and-adhd-understanding-the-effects-on-neurodivergent-individuals/

Or she was one of 500,000+ tech workers that lost their job between 2022-2024.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/emilsayegh/2024/08/19/the-great-tech-reset-unpacking-the-layoff-surge-of-2024/

"An Eagle never misses" though. Tough choice.