By Marco Hugo Barsotti MHB 
Welcome to the France Today and Central Milan bulletin for Saturday August 15, 2026, on FranceToday.com, in podcasting, via AI chatbot and on Medium Waves at 1575 kHz. In the newsroom in Nice Marco Hugo Barsotti, from Paris Rachel Costa.
News from France
The Constitutional Council censures the law that bans minors under 15 from accessing social networks
The Constitutional Council declared the proposed law unconstitutional that provided for an absolute ban on the use of social networks by minors under fifteen, according to the statement published on Friday August 14. The decision followed a complaint filed by deputies of La France Insoumise on July 23, which highlighted a “severe disproportionate violation of freedom of expression and communication”.
The Council emphasized that the ban, which would affect platforms such as TikTok and Instagram, is based on health and safety risks for young people that have not yet been demonstrated. Moreover, the measure does not take into account the exact age, family situation, or the maturity level of individual minors, nor does it provide a mechanism for parents to exempt or limit the ban in the child’s interest.
A second criticism concerned the right to privacy: publishing a rule that obliges all users – including adults – to verify their age before accessing a service imposes an unregulated identity check, leaving the necessary constitutional guarantees empty.
The bill, approved on July 21 with 279 votes in favor and 81 against, was one of the “flagship measures” of President Emmanuel Macron’s administration and was set to take effect in September to protect minors. After the annulment, the President assigned the task to the Minister of Infrastructure, Sébastien Lecornu, to draft a “legally sound” version by spring 2027, taking into account the Council’s opinion and European regulations.
Political reactions were mixed: Deputy Laure Miller (LFI) expressed regret, calling for stronger protections against violent, sexual, or eating‑disorder‑related content, while colleague Antoine Léaument (LFI) welcomed the decision as “satisfaction”, emphasizing that massive identity checks would be invasive and could violate privacy, instead hoping for interventions on the platforms’ algorithmic mechanisms.
franceinfo, 14/08/2026
Fact Check by Gemma4.
Cyberattack on the French tax administration: data thefts, intrusion methods, and the administration’s response
The General Directorate of Public Finances (DGFiP) confirmed that, following an “illegal access” to its information system at the end of June 2026, data of about 678 000 taxpayers and businesses were stolen. The theft was claimed on a well‑known cyber‑criminal forum by a group calling itself “ZeroBytes”, which said it gained access to a VPN used by tax agents, allowing it to view and extract sensitive files.
A second intrusion, occurring at the end of July, targeted the Professional Land‑register Data Server (SPDC). According to the group’s statements, multi‑factor authentication was bypassed, allowing the extraction of more than 250 000 rows of information relating to over two million people. The stolen data include tax numbers, family quotients, reference income, postal addresses, phone numbers and e‑mail addresses for private individuals, while for companies the SIREN number, legal headquarters and representatives’ data were taken.
The group put part of the material up for sale, indicating prices of thousands of euros for the tax database and a few hundred for the land‑register one. Potential buyers could use the information for phishing campaigns or to facilitate identity theft, even though direct access to the impots.gouv.fr site remains protected.
Bercy announced that it blocked all involved accounts as soon as the suspicious activity was detected, but the public notice arrived only after the hackers had put the data up for sale. The administration has launched the reporting procedure to the Commission nationale de l’informatique et des libertés (CNIL) and promised to contact directly the affected parties to inform them of precautionary measures to adopt.
The union Solidaires finances publiques criticized the slowness of communication, recalling that it had warned DGFiP already in June about the risks of attacks, phishing and identity usurpation. The “ZeroBytes” group, which says it consists of two people, declared it operates from a “non‑extradition” jurisdiction and that it had previously sold data to companies such as SFR, Intermarché, the French Handball Federation and the Accor hotel group.
Authorities confirmed they received notice of the incident within timeframes compatible with the European data‑protection regulation, but acknowledged that the violation was identified only after the cyber‑criminals reported it on a public forum.
Franceinfo, August 14 2026
Fact Check by Gemma4.
Rachel’s Editorial – Bercy’s Fiscal Screen: Data Stolen, Apologies Suspended
I will now read you my editorial of the day.
It seems the French government has decided to turn its tax service into a digital version of “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?”, where the challenge is to make citizens guess how many of their personal data end up in the hands of pirates. Hundreds of thousands of users exposed? Why not a single real‑time news item instead of the usual statement that arrives late in the afternoon when the tea is already cold?
And what’s the point of talking about “multi‑factor authentication” when the official portal is so “secure” that it doesn’t even notice an illegitimate access for months? If your internal VPN is more vulnerable than a backpack buckle, perhaps it’s time to rethink the definition of “cyber security” instead of inventing new acronyms to sell on shiny brochures.
The union “Solidaires finances publiques” has launched its “late communication”. But is the notice really late, or has Bercy’s response simply been stuck in the queue next to a minister’s apologies that promise the world while the data are being packaged for the black market? It looks like the priority is the “trump card” of the public statement rather than concrete protection of taxpayers.
Finally, the grand finale: the stolen data ended up sold to SFR, Intermarché and even the Accor group. What a booming line of business! The side effect will perhaps be a new fashion of “haute‑couture phishing”. Or maybe, in the end, the only thing more “invisible” than French bureaucracy is its ability to not see danger until it shows up in the face with a compensation invoice.
Koan of the day
A monk asked the Master: “If a hacker spies on my earnings and sells them, is the shame mine or of the system that guarded them?”
The Master replied: “Shame is a paper garment: you wear it as long as it is offered, but the same ignorance of the tailor tears it with fire.”
The monk persisted: “And if the law says I must be informed within 72 hours, but it alerts me when traffic is already stopped, what remains to be done?”
The Master concluded: “Time is a river that flows within the limits imposed by men’s clocks; the true call is to awake the guard before the bridge collapses.”
But let’s get back to the news.
Half of the service stations ran dry in some departments: in eastern France the low level of the Rhine makes fuel supply difficult
14 % of service stations in eastern France reported a shortage of at least one type of fuel on Friday, according to data published on prix‑carburants.gouv.fr. The problem is attributed to the drought affecting the Rhine River, the main inland‑waterway for supplying gasoline and diesel in the area.
In the departments of Haut‑Rhin and the Territoire de Belfort, unavailability rates range between 25 % and 50 %, with a sharper shortage of unleaded gasoline compared to diesel. The cause is the extremely low water level of the Rhine, which prevents supply vessels from passing.
The flow of the Rhine, recently almost halted at Kaub in western Germany, has dropped to 130 cm, a level never recorded before. Consequently, boats are forced to unload 80 % of their cargo, as explained to AFP by Jean‑Laurent Kistler, director of development at Voies Navigables de France (VNF). “It’s a situation that has lasted for a week,” confirmed a TotalEnergies station employee in Strasbourg, which has run out of Super‑98 gasoline but still offers Super‑95. Other stations have run out of both gasoline and diesel.
Shortages are not new: similar situations occurred in 2018 and 2023, but never with such widespread impact. The drop in water level is due to a lack of rainfall that began in early July, well before the traditional September peak.
Forecasts indicate rain from the upcoming weekend through the following week, but experts estimate the Rhine’s level will rise by only about twenty centimeters before it starts falling again.
BFM Business, August 14 2026
Fact Check by Gemma4.
Policy experts say: Europe trapped between “rock and concrete wall” in space launches
In the last five years SpaceX has gone from a handful of Falcon 9 first‑stage landings to hundreds of flights per year, controlling more than three‑quarters of the mass launched into orbit. Besides the Starlink satellite constellation, the company has begun launching payloads for competitors such as Amazon, Northrop Grumman, AST Space Mobile and OneWeb, thanks to the low cost guaranteed by rocket reuse.
A new study by British and Italian academics, published in Economics Letters, analyzed over 6 700 launches from 1960 to 2025. The results show that, starting in the 1990s, the United States and the Soviet Union carried similar payloads, but after the 2003 Space Shuttle Columbia accident Russia took the lead. With the rapid increase of Falcon 9 in the early 2020s, the USA regained ground, surpassing Russia and more than doubling its orbital payload share compared to Russia since 1990. The United States’ dominant role is confirmed by its global payload share rising from 20 % in 2012 to over 82 % in 2024.
SpaceX’s competitive advantage also translates into markedly lower launch costs. According to available data, the average cost to lift one kilogram into orbit in the United States is about $3 225, versus $9 897 in Europe, $5 287 in Japan, $5 809 in China, $6 682 in Russia and almost $15 000 in India, the latter figure reflecting a focus on small vehicles with poorly amortised fixed costs.
Researchers warn that countries that continue to rely exclusively on domestic rockets will see costs rise, risking slower development of satellite constellations and other space activities. In Europe, the choice is between using low‑cost U.S. technology or sustaining an expensive, poorly scalable approach with national launches. The delay in European programmes is evident: for example the ESA Themis project, intended to demonstrate sub‑orbital hops by 2022, has not yet produced a flight.
To stay competitive, nations will need to invest in more modern, reusable launch capabilities, a model now adopted by the overwhelming majority of new commercial rockets, both Western and Chinese. Until recently Europe lagged behind, but current evidence points to the need for a strategic course correction.
Ars Technica, August 14 2026
Fact Check by Gemma4.
Welcome to the international bulletin from FranceToday and Radio Central Milan for Saturday August 15 2026 on FranceToday.com in podcasting and on Medium Waves at 1575 kHz.
From Paris I am Rachel Costa.
Trump orders the abandonment of electromagnetic catapults for future United States aircraft carriers
The President of the United States has decided to withdraw the new electromagnetic catapults, considered the most advanced technology for launching aircraft from carriers, and to return to traditional steam systems. The announcement, made just days after rising nationalism in the U.S. leadership, hits the Navy’s modernization ambitions, which had already begun construction of the new USS Doris Miller with electromagnetic technology. Military experts warn the choice could delay fleet response times, while the government justifies the decision by saying steam catapults are more reliable and less costly.
Volkswagen faces a €1.5 billion fine for environmental violations
European Union authorities have opened proceedings against the German automotive group for alleged violations related to CO₂ emissions. If the sanction is confirmed, Volkswagen will have to pay €1.5 billion, the highest ever imposed on an automaker in EU history. The European administration accuses the company of manipulating data during emissions testing, undermining efforts toward a cleaner‑vehicle transition. The case reignites debate over large corporations’ responsibility in tackling climate change.
The United States resorts to unprecedented economic tactics against Iran
The U.S. Treasury Department announced a series of financial measures aimed at paralyzing the Iranian economy, including restrictions on international payments and blocking part of the oil trade. The new sanctions, described as “never‑seen‑before” by authorities, aim to weaken Tehran’s ability to fund conflicts in the Middle East. At the same time, the U.S. Navy is preparing to reroute a technically troubled aircraft carrier, the USS Abraham Lincoln, on a different path to reduce operational pressure in the region. European allies have expressed concern over the economic escalation but also stressed the need to contain Iranian activities.
Meta’s CEO publishes a long letter on artificial intelligence
The Meta executive has released a document of over forty pages outlining his view on the risks and opportunities of artificial intelligence. In the letter, the chief executive calls for clearer rules, algorithmic transparency and collaborations among major tech firms to avoid a digital “arms race”. The document has sparked lively debate among public‑policy makers, researchers and privacy activists, all aware of the transformative power but also of the potential threats posed by rapid proliferation of these systems.
Apple partners with Alibaba to develop an AI model for the Chinese market
The U.S. tech giant has forged a partnership with Chinese giant Alibaba to create a new artificial‑intelligence model aimed at the People’s Republic market. The project, launched mid‑year, foresees integrating advanced language‑processing capabilities with Alibaba’s e‑commerce platforms to enhance online search and purchasing experiences. Apple hopes this will strengthen its presence in China, a market that has long posed challenges due to local restrictions and competition from domestic manufacturers.
Drone‑maker stocks rise after Trump’s new tariffs on foreign components
The drone market recorded a notable uptick following the U.S. President’s announcement of 100 % duties on imported components for these devices. Industry operators, who rely heavily on Asian suppliers, reacted positively to prospects of greater domestic production, anticipating investments in local manufacturing capacity. Analysts caution, however, that higher production costs could translate into higher prices for end‑users, especially in civilian monitoring and delivery applications.
Nvidia close to a deal to guarantee about $100 billion of credit to OpenAI
According to sources close to the negotiations, Nvidia is poised to finalize an agreement that would provide roughly $100 billion in credit support for OpenAI’s new artificial‑intelligence campus in the state of Ohio. The financing would cover most of the construction costs for the first phase, as well as part of the chip purchases needed for computing power. The collaboration reflects the growing interdependence between high‑performance computing hardware makers and the most advanced AI platforms, marking a significant step in the global race for technological dominance.
Tesla prepares the debut of the new “flying” Roadster
The U.S. automaker is set to unveil a radical Roadster model capable of flight, the result of a partnership with an aerospace‑technology firm. The concept envisions short‑runway take‑offs and brief test flights, combining supercar performance with vertical‑take‑off capability. Tesla held a private press conference for investors and media, emphasizing the ambition to push automotive engineering toward aerial mobility. Experts note that, if realized, the project could open new market opportunities but also raise regulatory and safety challenges that remain to be defined.
Weather Paris, Monaco Monte Carlo and Milan for Saturday August 15 2026
Paris – Summer heatwave with sun and sayings by Régis Crêpet
In the morning the sky over Paris is very cloudy, temperatures hover around 26 °C with a feels‑like of 28 °C due to humidity, and occasional isolated showers could wet the streets; the wind is almost still with gusts of 25 km/h. In the afternoon the thermometer reaches 36 °C, the sun is relentless, the heat index climbs to 40 °C, the wind shifts slightly to 10‑30 km/h but remains mostly light. In the evening, around 20:00, temperatures drop to 30 °C, the sky becomes partly cloudy and the breeze stays around 10‑30 km/h, with no precipitation. During the night the temperature falls to 24 °C, the sky is half‑cloudy, wind light at 10‑25 km/h and the chance of rain drops to 25 %. In summary, the day’s low is 24 °C, the high 36 °C, with weak‑to‑moderate winds and a few morning showers, according to expert Régis Crêpet.
Monaco Monte Carlo – Bright sun and sea breezes
In the morning Monaco is slightly cloudy, with temperatures reaching 28 °C and a feels‑like of 29 °C, wind calm at 15 km/h from the sea, and no rain in sight. In the afternoon the thermometer climbs to 33 °C, the feels‑like is nearly 42 °C, wind intensifies to 20 km/h but remains a light breeze, and the sky stays clear with no risk of rain. In the evening, around 20:00, temperature drops to 29 °C, wind eases to 10‑30 km/h, the sky is very cloudy but without drops. At night, with 27 °C and wind of 20 km/h, the sky is slightly cloudy and remains dry. The day’s low is 27 °C, the high 33 °C, with light‑to‑moderate winds and no rain at all.
Milan – Humid heat with high thermal index, according to expert Daniele Berlusconi of 3BMeteo
In the Milan morning the sky is clear or slightly cloudy, temperatures sit at 26‑27 °C, wind is virtually absent, and the air is dry, so rain is not expected. By mid‑afternoon temperatures rise quickly to 35 °C, the sun shines high, a light wind comes from the southeast at 2‑4 km/h, and a heat alert has been activated for the hottest hours. In the evening temperatures remain high around 33‑34 °C, the sky becomes more variable with some cloud patches, wind stays weak from the south‑southeast at 1‑3 km/h, and there is no precipitation. During the night temperatures fall to 26‑27 °C, the sky is calm, wind light from the south‑southwest, and the risk of rain stays nil. The forecasted low is 26 °C, the high 35 °C, with virtually no wind in the morning, light in the afternoon and weak at night, and no rain, according to Daniele Berlusconi of 3BMeteo.
Rachel’s Weather Editorial – The climate is always to blame, isn’t it?
Isn’t it a bit odd that every day we find a new excuse in “climate change” for any weather mishap? Should we really believe that a light drizzle, a cooler breeze, or a heat wave are signals to interpret as the plot of an apocalyptic movie? Sure, science matters, but sometimes it feels like the term “climate change” is used as a magic cover‑all that explains everything, from burnt coffee to a sunset that arrives late.
And what about people who, at the first smell of rain, rush to buy gigantic umbrellas as if they were life‑preservers? Or those who, at the slightest temperature rise, impose mandatory tabletop fans to save humanity? It’s curious how the fear of global warming turns into a buffet of panic‑buying and influencer slogans, when simple daily adaptation measures would suffice. Maybe next time we could ask the weather if traffic “changed” because the wind moved the cars, instead of immediately blaming a suffocating “greenhouse effect”.
Koan of the day
A monk asked: “What is the true face of time today?”
Zhaozhou replied: “Time is like a mirror: it reflects what you ask of it.”
A monk asked: “Then why does the sun burn so fiercely in Milan?”
Zhaozhou concluded: “The sun does not burn because it is angry, but simply because it is the sun.”
And that is today’s weather.
Sign-off.
Online, on X and Mastodon, on all smart speakers and on medium wave, this is FranciaOggi with Centrale Milano 1575 kilohertz.