Latest News - Page 1663

Reports have surfaced indicating that Apple has a serious flaw in the Mail app that's on numerous iPhone and iPad devices. The bug was discovered by a security firm called ZecOps while investigating a sophisticated cyberattack against a client that took place in late 2019. During the investigation, ZecOps CEO Zuk Avraham said that he found evidence the vulnerability was exploited in at least six cybersecurity attacks. Apple has now acknowledged the vulnerability exists in software for email on both iPhone and iPad models.

An Apple spokesperson says that the company is working on a fix that will be rolled out in an update for the millions of devices sold globally. The research into the flaw was published this week, and Apple has made no comment so far. Avraham says the software was taking advantage of the flaw in iOS as far back as January 2018. The researcher claims to have been unable to determine who the hackers were.

The hack required victims to be sent what appeared to be a blank email through the Mail app that forced it to crash and reset. The crashed app opened the door for hackers to steal other data on the device like photos and contact details. The security firm claims that the vulnerability would allow the hackers to steal data from the iPhone device even if the iPhone is running recent versions of iOS.

There's evidence that coronavirus may have been in the United States much earlier than thought. A man who attended the annual CES convention in Las Vegas in January has just learned that he was infected with coronavirus at the time. The attendee was Michael Webber, a 49-year-old who divides time between Texas and France. He learned this week that he had been infected with the virus and recovered.

A confirmed infected CES attendee should give pause to the 170,000 people who attended the annual technology conference between January 7th and the 10th in Las Vegas. The four-day event is huge in the technology realm and attracts people from all around the world. Coronavirus could've incubated during CES and spread globally when attendees went home. That is still conjecture at this time, but Webber's disclosure that he had coronavirus while attending the annual conference is the first direct confirmation that the virus was likely circulating at the show.

Officials are beginning to see that the virus may have been spreading around the world before previously believed. Health officials in Northern California recently confirmed a coronavirus death that happened in early February. For that person to have died in February, they're believed to have likely contracted the disease in January. Health officials in the area are still investigating and expect additional confirmed cases in the Santa Clara County area.

One of the things people forced to work from home don't like is having coworkers see their home in the background. Few are keen to be judged on their housekeeping capabilities or decor. One of the features that have made Zoom so popular is that it can add custom backgrounds to block out what's behind you.

Those who prefer Skype will be glad to hear that Skype has rolled out a new version of the app for Mac, Windows, Linux, and the web that add support for custom backgrounds. The support that was previously available to blur the background during a video call remains. Skype says in its description for the new feature that users can look like they're anywhere, including calling from the beach or space.

To customize the background for Skype while in a call, Microsoft says landscape images work best, and the image has to be locally saved on the computer. The first step is hovering over the video button or clicking the more menu during a call. Next up is clicking the choose background effect button. After that button is clicked, users can blur the room they're in, or choose an image previously added for the new custom image to change the background effect.

Lenovo has a new laptop computer that's available in the US and UK called the Lenovo IdeaPad 5. The machine is a budget laptop that features AMD hardware inside and sells in the US for $690. The device has a 15-inch screen with 1080p resolution, but there are a pair of other screen options available. Those who are particularly privacy concerned will like the integrated webcam privacy shutter.

Buyers can opt for an optional fingerprint sensor, and the battery is good for up to 15 hours of use per charge and features quick charge technology. The operating system is Windows 10 Home, and the processor offered is up to an AMD Ryzen 7 4800U. Graphics are integrated, and the notebook can have up to 16 GB of RAM and up to 1TB of storage.

Wireless connectivity options include Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.1. Ports include a pair of USB-A 3.1, a single USB-C, HDMI output, and a memory card reader. The battery is good for up to 15 hours of runtime for use with Quick Charge able to charge the battery completely in three hours and 15 minutes.

Samsung's folding smartphone called the Galaxy Z Flip has a new killer app in the form of YouTube optimization specifically to take advantage of the smartphone's unique form factor. Samsung says that the development came out of a long and fruitful relationship between the two companies. YouTube has optimized its app to work with the Galaxy Z Flip to provide users of that smartphone with some unique ways to watch video.

The YouTube app update allows Galaxy Z Flip users to flip the top section of the screen up vertically and then place the smartphone on a table leaving the controls on the flat section of the smartphone. Essentially the app splits the device into a pair of four-inch screens. Users can watch videos on the upper half the screen while doing things like searching for videos on the bottom half, reading descriptions, writing comments, and other tasks.

The Flex mode-optimized YouTube app also adjusts itself to the screen no matter the aspect ratio of the video being watched. The app will change how the video is played the top half of the screen with square and vertical videos nearly filling the entire space. 16:9 aspect ratio videos will adjust to the center. Samsung says that it is working closely with the Android developer community to drive innovation for foldable devices. Samsung and Google engineers integrated the Android Support Library to make it easier to bring Flex mode to more third-party services.

Guerrilla Games is ramping up its development teams to prepare for new projects, which could include a next-gen Horizon Zero Dawn sequel on PlayStation 5.

Right now Sony's first-party studio Guerrilla Games is hiring 24 developers across a myriad of disciplines including cinematics, AI, 3D art, animation, and programming. A huge portion of these positions were put up recently. From last month until now, Guerrilla added 16 new job listings to its board. Some of these are higher-level positions like the Senior Graphics Programmer or the Lead Game Designer.

So what's Guerrilla working on?

One of the services has been heavily used during the coronavirus outbreak as more people work from home, and schools teach remotely, is Google Meet. Google has announced an update to the service that allows Google Meet to see 16 participants at once using a tiled layout. Google says that being able to see more people at the same time can help improve the dynamics of larger group meetings and classes.

Being able to see 16 faces on the screen at once allows the user to see reactions to what's being discussed or more easily track multiple speakers, according to Google. The update can also help meetings conducted remotely feel more like in-person meetings and encourage participation. Google has designed the layout to adjust to show the active speaker.

For those participating in a meeting that has more than 16 people, an option to open the list of participants to see who else is in the meeting has been added. Google took the opportunity to remind that all G Suite customers can host meetings with up to 250 participants at no additional cost through September 30, 2020. That feature is currently only available on Meet on the web.

What's in a name? A whole lot, especially when there's a logo attached.

Microsoft just filed what looks to be the final trademark for the Xbox Series X's logo design, and it reminds me of a construction zone sign from a faraway alien world. The filing was submitted April 20, but it hasn't yet been examined or approved.

This design marks the second major logo for the Xbox Series X. The first one was shown during the Xbox Series X reveal in December 2019. Technically the console's name consists of two trademarks: this new submission is just for "Series X" and combines up with the existing "Xbox" trademark (oddly enough, Microsoft filed a new Xbox logo in November 2019, just a month before the Xbox Series X's reveal at The Game Awards 2019).

Facebook has announced that it has rolled out its Facebook Messenger Kids messaging service to 70 additional countries. The social network says that with schools closed and people physically distancing from each other, parents are turning to technology to help keep kids connected with friends and family. Messenger Kids is a video chat messaging app that helps kids connect with friends and family in a fun and parent-controlled space.

As of today, kids in more than 70 additional countries around the world can use Messenger Kids with more countries coming soon. The full list of supported countries is available here. The Messenger Kids app is available for iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and all Android devices. The app is available to download from the App Store, Amazon Appstore, and Google Play Store.

Facebook says that it has brought in advisors to ensure that Messenger Kids is a service that balances parental control with features that allow kids to learn how to connect with others responsibly online. One complaint Facebook says it's heard from parents and kids that it's hard to find friends and connect with them in the app. To help make finding friends easier, there are new options to help parents connect kids with their friends.

Fallout 76's NPCs are looting player corpses and stealing powerful weapons, and there's no way to get them back.

Fallout 76 has a great new bug that's once again misplacing players' hard-earned loot. The loot hasn't been stolen by other players, though: This time it's NPCs who are stealing it. The bug has been reported by numerous Fallout 76 Redditors and was actually captured in a YouTube video.

Here's a quick rundown: A player was using a powerful level 50 gatling plasma gun in an event, dies, and then resurrects to find the gun missing from their inventory. Turns out the NPC--Marion Copeland in this case--stole the gatling gun and can clearly be seen using the player's weapon in the video. Somehow the gun was yanked from the player's inventory and handed over to the NPC.

YouTube is getting serious in banning any and all content that goes against the recommendations of, or contradicts the World Health Organization (WHO) when it comes to coronavirus recommendations.

YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki herself explained the news to CNN when she was on their segment 'Reliable Sources' with host Brian Stelter, where she said YouTube will be "removing information that is problematic". This includes "anything that is medically unsubstantiated".

Wojcicki continued: "So people saying 'take vitamin C; take turmeric, we'll cure you', those are the examples of things that would be a violation of our policy. Anything that would go against World Health Organisation recommendations would be a violation of our policy".

If you thought the headline was click bait, think again -- the US is allowing Chinese company DJI to have drones flying in 22 states allowing US authorities to enforce social distancing rules over COVID-19 coronavirus.

In a story on MSNBC that talked with officials and authorities in Elizabeth, NJ -- aerial drones are flying above many cities in the United States with some dystopian messages to Americans. DJI has donated a bunch of drones to 43 agencies across 22 states in the US in order to "enforce social distancing".

DJI is a Chinese company that scarily might be "sending data to China (more on that here)" on Americans, as these drones are being used by authorities to fly where police cars can't get to. This includes tight spaces between buildings, the backyards of innocent Americans, schools, and other places. If you are not adhering to social distancing rules, the Chinese drone will shout orders out at you -- and you will receive a summons or a $1000 fine.

If you thought it was bad with COVID-19 now, it could get much worse -- with the chief of the United Nations food relief agency warning that the world is facing widespread famine of "biblical proportions" over coronavirus.

David Beasley, executive director of the World Food Programme warns that over 30 countries in the developing world could be plunged into widespread famine -- with 10 of those countries already there, and 1 million people on the edge of starvation.

Beasley explained: "We are not talking about people going to bed hungry. We are talking about extreme conditions, emergency status - people literally marching to the brink of starvation. If we don't get food to people, people will die".

Twitter is getting serious with 5G conspiracy theories, with the social networking giant announcing new rules. YouTube recently made a similar move, removing any videos that connect COVID-19 and 5G.

These new rules will see Twitter remove tweets that have "unverified claims that incite people to engage in harmful activity, could lead to the destruction or damage of critical 5G infrastructure".

Twitter won't be removing every single 5G conspiracy theory tweet, and instead will be prioritizing claims that are inciting people to action. You know, like encouraging people across the world to burn down their local 5G towers. With over 50 fires that have targeted "cell towers and other equipment" in the UK in recent weeks, this is a strong move by Twitter.

It couldn't come at a worse time, but the CDC, Gates Foundation, NIH, WHO, and the World Bank have been hacked and close to 25,000 email addresses and passwords were leaked online.

I saw this get leaked onto Twitter by "conspiracy theorists" and didn't look twice, but now it is hitting the media and seems a little more serious. Unknown hackers -- and from some of what I've read, Anonymous -- have leaked out nearly 25,000 email addresses and passwords from the likes of CDC, Gates Foundation, NIH, WHO, and the World Bank.

The SITE Intelligence Group monitors online extremism and terrorist organizations said that on Sunday, the email logins were shared -- and 24 hours later they were used in hacking and harassment attempts by "far-right extremists".

Until now, if you wanted to play Fortnite on an Android-powered smartphone or tablet you couldn't download it directly from the Google Play Store -- you had to use Epic's own software or you went through Samsung.

Well, not anymore -- Epic Games has made Fortnite available on the Google Play Store after its rather epic (if you'll pardon the pun) battle with everything giant Google. Epic has explained that Google used "scary, repetitive security pop-ups", Google Play Protect, and hostile characterizations to shove non-Play Store titles "at a disadvantage".

Epic added that it wants to see Google rethink its policies regarding the Play Store, so that developers from all corners of the gaming world can "compete on a level playing field" when it comes to Google and payments, and other services.

The Xbox Series X may not require intense optimizations to tap the powerful SSD tech, and some games were natively boosted four-fold by the PCIe 4.0 storage.

The Xbox Series X's SSD is revolutionary. It's a customized PCIe 4.0 NVMe M.2 SSD that hits up blazing fast 2.4GB/sec transfers with a potent software stack to massively accelerate data flow. And now we have evidence that games will be natively boosted by the hardware without any code changes needed, similar to how the Xbox Series X will natively boost current-gen games to 4K resolution. The boost mode isn't just limited to graphics and extends to storage too; devs don't have to lift a finger to take advantage of the tech.

"With the Xbox Series X, out of the gate, we reduced our load-times by more than 4x without any code changes," The Coalition's technical director Mike Rayner told Windows Central.

COVID-19 combined with a new Animal Crossing is a perfect storm for Nintendo sales.

Nintendo lucked out with Animal Crossing: New Horizons. The game released just as the United States bunkered down for forced COVID-19 quarantines, so gamers could still go to stores and grab a copy. As a result of this accidental opportunism, Animal Crossing has skyrocketed as March's best-selling console game in the global and U.S. markets. It's a veritable beast that's taken a big chomp out of the competition--and Nintendo Switch availability.

Analyst firm SuperData says Animal Crossing has sold more than 5 million copies worldwide, making it the best-selling single-month game in console history.

UPDATE: Valve issues a statement that CS:GO hasn't been jeopardized and it's safe to play online. The source code was from an outdated build and will not interfere with the current version of CS:GO.

Valve makes a ton from CS:GO. The game has multi-million dollar eSports tournaments every year and pulls in serious revenue via skins and microtransactions. It's a heavily-guarded moneymaker that Valve regulates with strict anti-cheat software. That could be jeopardized with today's leak.

Source code for CS:GO and Team Fortress 2 have leaked out to the public via 4Chan, which could have big ramifications for Valve's money-making franchises. The code is actually outdated, though: the CS:GO code leak dates back to 2017, and the TF2 code is from 2018. The worry is the code could be used to create hacks and mods that circumvent the anti-cheat software embedded into both games. The code itself is licensed out by Valve and isn't available to the public for this reason. Many services and mod sites have gone offline in response to the leak as to not provide hosting for any game-breaking content.

The global games market earns a record-breaking $10 million from digital sales in March thanks to coronavirus quarantines.

The COVID-19 lockdowns have tremendously boosting the games industry, especially digital. The lockdowns have created a vacuum that consumers are filling with activities and games. The demand is soaring, but supply is scarce: now that most of the stores have shut down, consumers are choosing to buy games directly from digital storefronts. The result is a massive spike in monthly earnings for March 2020.

According to SuperData's latest report, the global gaming market generated a new all-time high of $10 billion from digital in March 2020. This was driven by the success of heavy-hitters like Animal Crossing: New Horizons, which handily dominated the console charts, Doom Eternal, and Final Fantasy 7 Remake. Overall revenues are up 11% year-over-year from the $9 billion earned in March 2020.