Tag Archives: author_name|Mariella Moon

Star Wars: The Acolyte isn’t getting a second season

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Lucasfilm has decided not to renew The Acolyte for a second season, according to Deadline and Variety. Fans won't get to see how the show was supposed to end and won't get to know how the plotlines its creator, Leslye Headland (Russian Doll), teased at the end of the first season would unravel. Engadget Senior Editor Devindra Hardawar called The Acolyte "Star Wars at its best" in his review, discussed how unique its premise was, and drew parallels between the series and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. 

Deadline says the show had a strong start and garnered 4.8 million views in the first day it became available for streaming, reaching 11.1 million views after five days. However, viewership fell in the coming weeks, and its finale was reportedly the poorest performing finale for a Star Wars series. 

The Acolyte was a mystery-thriller story featuring a former Jedi trainee played by Amandla Stenberg, who's suspected of committing a series of crimes. Her former Jedi Master played by Lee Jung-jae (Squid Game) now has to find her to get to the bottom of things. Manny Jacinto, who played the smuggler Qimir, gained a lot of attention online due to this shirtless scenes. It was revealed in the later episodes that he plays a bigger role in the story, and viewers were even supposed to learn his real name in the next season. 

The show is still available to watch on Disney+ for those who don't mind not getting closure for its story. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/tv-movies/star-wars-the-acolyte-isnt-getting-a-second-season-120033350.html?src=rss

A Pacific Rim prequel series is being developed by the scriptwriter of Bird Box

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The next entry in the Pacific Rim franchise could be an origin story for the universe, set before the events of the 2013 film by Guillermo del Toro. According to Variety, the franchise's producer Legendary Entertainment has signed a first-look TV deal with Eric Heisserer. One of the first projects he's developing with Carmen Lewis, his co-founder for his production company called Chronology, is a prequel series for Pacific Rim. Heisserer won several awards for his screenplay for Arrival, the Denis Villeneuve-directed sci-fi movie starring Amy Adams and Jeremy Renner. He also wrote the script for the Netflix post-apocalyptic movie Bird Box, which starred Sandra Bullock. 

It sounds like the project is still in its very early stages, so we'll have to wait for its storyline and projected release date if it does get the green light. Seeing as it's supposed to be the Pacific Rim origin story, though, we may get to see the first kaijus emerging from the interdimensional portal at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean. We may also get to see how the first Jaegers, or the gigantic mechas controlled by human pilots to fight the alien monsters, were designed and created. 

The original Pacific Rim movie was followed by Pacific Rim Uprising, its 2018 sequel film that starred John Boyega and was directed by Steven S. DeKnight. If the series pushes through, it'll follow Pacific Rim: The Black, an anime series that streamed on Netflix in 2021 and 2021, which serves as the continuation of the two films.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/tv-movies/a-pacific-rim-prequel-series-is-being-developed-by-the-scriptwriter-of-bird-box-110043597.html?src=rss

Instagram’s experimental profile grid has rectangular images instead of squares

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Instagram is testing a new profile grid layout that features rectangular images instead of the squares you're used to. In an Instagram story, Adam Mosseri has revealed that the app is testing a vertical grid for users' profiles. He explained that the original square grid was designed back in the day when the app only allowed users to upload square photos. Those days are long gone, and the vast majority of Instagram uploads are apparently vertical, specifically 4 x 3 images and 9 x 16 videos. He called cropping those uploads down to square as "pretty brutal." 

When you click on Instagram's video tab, you'll already see a rectangular grid, so the experimental layout won't look terribly unfamiliar. In fact, the test profile looks exactly the same, based on a screenshot that a user posted on Threads, except the grid includes photo posts and not just videos. A spokesperson told The Verge that the test has only rolled out to a small number of users and that the Instagram team will listen to feedback before expanding the redesigned grid's availability. 

Based on an old post by reverse engineer Alessandro Paluzzi, the app has been working on the new rectangular grid layout since at least 2022. It looks like the test is making its way to more users — and it seems like not everyone's happy about it. Mosseri posted his Story in response to a comment submitted to his "Ask Me Anything" session, pleading for the app not to kill the old layout.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/instagrams-experimental-profile-grid-has-rectangular-images-instead-of-squares-160007086.html?src=rss

National Public Data confirms breach that exposed Americans’ social security numbers

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A data dump that contains 2.7 billion records of personal information for people living in the US, including their Social Security Numbers, have recently been leaked online. The data dump's contents were linked to National Public Data, a company that scrapes information from non-public sources and sells it for background checks. Now, the company has confirmed that it did have "a data security incident" wherein people's names, emails, addresses, phone numbers, social security numbers and mailing addresses had been stolen. 

National Public Data's wording in its Security Incident report is a bit a vague and convoluted, but it did blame the security breach on a third-party bad actor. It said that the bad actor "was trying to hack into data in late December 2023" and that "potential leaks of certain data" took place in April 2024 and summer 2024, indicating that the hacker had successfully infiltrated its system. In April, a threat actor known as USDoD tried to sell 2.9 billion records of people living in the US, UK and Canada for $3.5 million. It claimed that it stole the information from National Public Data. Since then, the records have been leaked in chunks online with the more recent one being more comprehensive and containing more sensitive information. 

The company said it worked with law enforcement to review potentially affected records and will "try to notify" individuals "if there are further significant developments applicable" to them. It also said that it published the notice so that those who were potentially affected can take action. The company is advising people to monitor their financial accounts for fraudulent transactions, and it's also encouraging them to get free credit reports and to put a fraud alert on their file. 

The National Public Data is already facing a proposed class action lawsuit that was filed in early August by a plaintiff who received a notification from their identity theft protection service that their personal information was posted on the dark web. They argued that the company failed "to properly secure and safeguard the personally identifiable information that it collected and maintained as part of its regular business practices." 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/national-public-data-confirms-breach-that-exposed-americans-social-security-numbers-100046695.html?src=rss

FBI says Iranian hackers are targeting both presidential campaigns

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A phishing campaign that the FBI believes is linked to Iran has been targeting members of the Trump and Harris camps as they seek to be elected as the president of the United States later this year. While the bad actors have reportedly been trying to spear-phish several advisers of the Biden-Harris and Trump campaigns, The Washington Post specifically named senior Trump adviser Susie Wiles as one of the targets. 

In June, federal agents worked with Microsoft and Google when they started investigating the spear phishing emails the presidential candidates' staff had received. Google recently published a report detailing how an Iranian government-backed threat actor called APT42 has been targeting high-profile users in Israel and the US for years. It also confirmed that its threat analysis group continued "to observe unsuccessful attempts from APT42 to compromise the personal accounts of individuals affiliated with President Biden, Vice President Harris and former President Trump, including current and former government officials and individuals associated with the campaigns." The company apparently had to block numerous attempts by the hackers to log into the staff members' email accounts.

The feds said that Roger Stone, an informal advisor to Trump, fell victim to the phishing emails sent by the Iranian hackers who were then able to take control of his account and send messages with phishing links to other people. Authorities reportedly didn't find evidence indicating the hackers had also successfully compromised the account of anybody in the Harris camp. 

Feds blamed Iran and Russia for spreading misinformation related to the 2020 US Presidential Election four years ago. However, the US still doesn't see Iran as a major threat when it comes with cyber attacks — The Post said officials are concerned that other countries like Russia and China have also launched more sophisticated attacks that won't be as easily detected. US authorities had linked Russia to various attempts at meddling with elections in the US for years, and officials even believe that Vladimir Putin directly ordered the launch of a campaign to destabilize the American vote and denigrate Hillary Clinton when she ran for president in 2016.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/general/fbi-says-iranian-hackers-are-targeting-both-presidential-campaigns-150019590.html?src=rss

Margrethe Vestager, Big Tech’s European nemesis, reportedly steps down later this year

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Margrethe Vestager, the European Union's commissioner for competition, won't be back for a third term and will be stepping down this year. According to the Financial Times, the Danish government will be nominating a different candidate as EU commissioner after Vestager's political party didn't do well in the previous election. Vestager is known for being one of Europe's top antitrust authorities and has been been tough on big tech companies during her term. The market abuse cases she has filed over the years inspired the creation of the Digital Markets Act (DMA), which is a regulation meant to ensure that large companies don't abuse their market power. 

Apple, Google, Meta and other big players in the industry have had to implement changes to how they conduct business after the DMA came into force. Google, for instance, said it will start displaying price comparison results in Search from external aggregators when looking up services, such as flights or hotels. It will be easier for Android users to change search engines, as well. Apple said it will let companies set up their own app stores for iOS, but it conjured its own stringent rules that developers will have to follow. 

The EU, under Vestager, started investigating Apple, Alphabet and Meta in March to look into their efforts to comply with the DMA. In an interview with CNBC afterward, Vestager said that Apple has "very serious" issues when it comes to non-compliance. Vestager also ruled way back in 2016 that Irish tax authorities had given Apple a "sweetheart deal" for over a decade and had ordered the company to pay Ireland €14.3 billion ($15.72 billion) in taxes. EU's General Court overturned her order in 2020, but the commission had appealed that decision. 

The European Commission also fined Google €4.3 billion ($5 billion) for antitrust violations surrounding Android and $2.8 billion for favoring its own comparison shopping services over others in Search under her leadership. More recently, the EU slapped Apple with a €1.8 billion ($1.95 billion) fine for suppressing music streaming services on the App Store that rival its own. 

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen will start interviewing new candidates next week, the Times said. Vestager's replacement is expected to replace her this autumn. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/margrethe-vestager-big-techs-european-nemesis-reportedly-steps-down-later-this-year-140024124.html?src=rss

US Homeland Security will reportedly collect face scans of migrant kids

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Update, August 15, 5:50PM ET: The US Department of Homeland Security has issued a statement disputing some of MIT Technology Review's reporting. We've updated our post below with its statement and more details. 

The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which is looking to improve its facial recognition algorithms, is reportedly planning to use the facial data of migrant children entering the country for training. According to MIT Technology Review, the agency intends to collect and analyze facial captures of kids younger than 14. John Boyd, the assistant director of Homeland Security's Office of Biometric Identity Management who's involved in the development of biometric services for the government, told the publication that the collection will include children "down to the infant."

Programs that collect biometric information and even DNA samples from migrants entering the country typically only apply to people between 14 and 79 years old. Boyd said Homeland Security's plan was likely made possible by some of its sub-offices' decision to remove age restrictions for the collection of biometric data. Since the information is also supposed to be used for research purposes and not for the agency's actual operations, Homeland's restrictions for biometric collection also don't apply to the program. 

Boyd told MIT Technology Review that the agency hasn't started collecting biometric information under the program yet, at least to the best of his knowledge, but that he can confirm that his office is funding it. He added that his office takes privacy seriously and that it doesn't share data with commercial industries. Data collected by the program could help improve facial recognition technologies' understanding of how faces change as humans age. The program could ultimately help authorities find missing children even after years have passed. 

However, critics and expects have raised concerns about collecting data from migrants, a lot of whom are entering the country in hopes of a better life and may feel like they have no choice but to agree to getting their facial and fingerprint information taken. It's even more concerning in this case, because children can't give their informed consent.

Homeland Security is disputing some of MIT Technology Review's reporting, though, and a spokesperson told Engadget that the publication got its information from a presentation meant to understand emerging technologies and their theoretical applications. "The DHS does not collect facial images from minors under 14, and has no current plans to do so for either operational or research purposes," the spokesperson said. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/general/us-homeland-security-will-reportedly-collect-face-scans-of-migrant-kids-133042516.html?src=rss

SAG-AFTRA deal will let advertisers replicate actors’ voices with AI

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SAG-AFTRA has announced a new agreement that would allow actors to earn from AI copies of their voice with their informed consent. The union representing thousands of performers has struck a deal with Narrativ, which is an online platform where performers can license digital voice replicas for use in audio ads. Brands who want to use a performer's voice will have to identify the products or services they're promoting, and performers will be able to review offers before accepting or declining them. 

Performers will also be able to set their own prices, with SAG-AFTRA's minimum rates being the lowest. And if they don't want to work with Narrativ anymore, the platform is required to delete their digital voice replica and any recordings they made for its creation. When the union went on strike last year, one of the biggest issues it wanted to address was the use of artificial intelligence to create actors' likeness without their permission (and without pay) even after they die. They were also concerned about the technology's potential to replace performers altogether. 

When the union ended its strike in November 2023, it said it was able to secure a deal that would protect its members from the "threat of AI." Under the terms of agreement it negotiated, performers have to provide explicit consent before replicas of them can be created. They also have to provide their consent for every additional project where their replica is used. In January, SAG-AFTRA entered an agreement with Replica Studios so performers can license their voice to game studios. However, it failed to reach a deal with several major video game publishers, prompting the union to call for another strike in July so it could protect it members' likenesses and voices from being recreated with AI without their permission. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/sag-aftra-deal-will-let-advertisers-replicate-actors-voices-with-ai-130019844.html?src=rss

Apple finally allows Spotify to display pricing in the EU

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Spotify can now show its users in the European Union how much its plans cost within its iOS app after their trial period ends. The company has revealed that it's opting into Apple's "entitlement" for music streaming services in an update to an old blog post. This "entitlement" was created after the European Commission slapped Apple with a €1.8 billion ($1.95 billion) fine back in March for restricting alternative music streaming apps on the App Store. The commission's decision followed an investigation that was opened when Spotify filed a complaint against the tech company, accusing it of suppressing its service in favor of iTunes and Apple Music.

Apple initially rejected the update that Spotify submitted in April this year to add "basic pricing and website information" on its app in Europe. Now that Apple has approved changes, users will be able to see pricing information, as well as promotional offers, within the Spotify app for iPhones. They'll also see a note saying that they can go to the Spotify website to subscribe to any of the service's plans. However, the service chose not to provide users with an in-app link that would give them access to external payment options. As The Verge notes, it's because Apple recently tweaked its App Store rules in the EU, stating that it will still take a cut of developers' sales even if customers pay via third-party providers. 

"Unfortunately, Spotify and all music streaming services in the EU are still not able to freely give consumers a simple opportunity to click a link to purchase in app because of the illegal and predatory taxes Apple continues to demand, despite the Commission’s ruling," Spotify wrote in its post. It added that "if the European Commission properly enforces its decision, iPhone consumers could see even more wins, like lower cost payment options and better product experiences in the app."

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/music/apple-finally-allows-spotify-to-display-pricing-in-the-eu-123010178.html?src=rss

Proton VPN’s browser extension is now free for all users

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You can now get and use Proton VPN's browser extension even if you're not a paying user. The extension used to only be accessible if you're on one of the service's paid plans, but now you can install it as long as you're on a Firefox- or a Chromium-based browser. Proton VPN was our top choice for VPNs last year, because it was fast and doesn't collect data that passes through its network. 

Its apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android and Linux have always been free to use, but the unpaid service does come with limitations. The service's paid plans are faster, has over 100 countries to choose from and lets you connect up to 10 devices at once. Meanwhile, the free version struggled to stay connected at times when we tested it out. Still, it does its job and now it comes with access to the service's browser extension, which lets you keep your Proton VPN connection within your browser only. 

Yes, the extension will let you use your standard internet connection outside of your browser. If you're using an app that doesn't work properly when you're on a device-wide VPN, but you want to protect your connection or circumvent region-based website blocks, the extension can solve your problem. Proton unfortunately has no plans to release a Safari browser for now, but we'll let you know if that changes. You can get the Chrome and Firefox extensions from Proton VPN's official website.

The company has also recently launched a new plan called Proton Duo, if you're considering paying for its products. It was specifically designed for two users who'll then get to share 1 TB of storage space (with additional 15 GB of bonus storage every year), as well as full access to Proton Mail, Drive, Calendar, Pass and VPN. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/proton-vpns-browser-extension-is-now-free-for-all-users-100049528.html?src=rss