It’s ChromeOS now, not Chrome OS
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
Chrome OS, Google’s Linux-based operating system for its Chromebook devices, has been around for more than a decade, but the company has made a small but notable branding change: it’s now called ChromeOS, with no space in between. James Croom, Google’s senior director of marketing for ChromeOS, confirmed the change to The Verge.
You can see the change for yourself all over Google’s ChromeOS dev page (though the official logo at the top appears to have a lowercase c.)
Screenshot from Google’s ChromeOS dev pageThat’s three entire spaces saved just in this screenshot. (And four if you count the logo.)
The change hasn’t rolled out everywhere just yet. On this ChromeOS page on Google’s Chromebook site, for example, Google still spells the operating system as two separate words. According to Croom, the company is aware the change isn’t reflected everywhere but is working toward making it appear more consistently, so it sounds like the new ChromeOS branding will be switched over eventually.
I know this isn’t the biggest deal in the world, but we here at The Verge love to look at branding and logos. Apple long ago moved its operating systems to the “thingOS” branding, and I’m wondering if Google might do something similar. Wear OS still has a space — maybe Google will drop it in favor of WearOS when the Pixel Watch launches this fall? I’m also going to write the word “AndroidOS” so that we can collectively manifest it into existence. Or better yet, “FuchsiaOS.”
I’m kidding (mostly) with those last two, and we don’t have any indication that Google plans to change anything but ChromeOS. But if you’ve gotten used to writing Chrome OS with that space, it’s officially time to stop.
Crypto lending company Celsius Network has filed for bankruptcy
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
The crypto crash has claimed another corporate victim: Celsius Network has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The crypto lending company’s future has been in question ever since it abruptly halted all withdrawals and transfers exactly one month ago. It now hopes to continue operating with its remaining $167 million in cash while bankruptcy courts restructure the company.
According to Celsius Network’s filing, the company has between $1 billion and $10 billion in assets but owes a similar amount. The five largest claims range between $20 million and $80 million each. The company was valued at $3.25 billion last year, according to Fortune, and managed as much as $24 billion worth of assets before this year’s sell-off. That had reportedly dipped to around $12 billion before it locked withdrawals, but the bankruptcy filing suggests it has less now.
There have been... questions, to say the least, about Celsius’ business model and operations. We describe some of those here.
Celsius now says it halted withdrawals last month to avoid a bank run: “Without a pause, the acceleration of withdrawals would have allowed certain customers—those who were first to act—to be paid in full while leaving others behind to wait for Celsius to harvest value from illiquid or longer-term asset deployment activities before they receive a recovery,” reads a portion of the company's press release today.
Tesla’s head of AI is out
Photo By Michael Macor/The San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images
Andrej Karpathy, Tesla’s head of AI and a key leader in the development of Autopilot, its driver assist feature which requires supervision by a human, announced on Twitter Wednesday that he’s leaving the company.
“It’s been a great pleasure to help Tesla towards its goals over the last 5 years and a difficult decision to part ways,” Karpathy wrote. “In that time, Autopilot graduated from lane keeping to city streets and I look forward to seeing the exceptionally strong Autopilot team continue that momentum.” In a follow-up tweet, Karpathy said he has “no concrete plans for what’s next” but wants to revisit “my long-term passions around technical work in AI, open source and education.”
I have no concrete plans for what’s next but look to spend more time revisiting my long-term passions around technical work in AI, open source and education.
The departure seems to be amicable, as CEO Elon Musk replied kindly to Karpathy on Twitter. In March, Karpathy said that he was on a sabbatical to “rest & travel,” but had said he planned to come back to Tesla this month, according to Bloomberg.
Thanks for everything you have done for Tesla! It has been an honor working with you.
Karpathy joined Tesla in 2017, taking over the top AI job after former Apple executive Chris Lattner’s six-month stint in the post. As AI chief, Karpathy has overseen the growth and development of Tesla’s controversial Autopilot driver assist software, though the software is currently under investigation from the federal government after Teslas using Autopilot crashed into parked emergency vehicles.
6 Signs Cybercriminals Infected Your Phone and How To Fix It
Be suspicious at the first sign of your phone behaving oddly. Both the Android and iOS smartphone platforms present the same set of common symptoms to indicate malware may be at play inside your device. The post 6 Signs Cybercriminals Infected Your Phone and How To Fix It appeared first on TechNewsWorld.
Amazon Prime Day 2022: the best deals under $25
The fourth-gen Echo Dot is on sale for just $19.99, which is a 50 percent discount. | Photo by Dan Seifert / The Verge
Even with Amazon Prime Day going on, deals on inexpensive tech can be hard to come by. Nevertheless, they do exist, and some products are currently on sale on Amazon for less than $25. These deals encompass a range of products, from great smart speakers and Bluetooth trackers to 4K streaming sticks and popular video games like Forza: Horizon 5, some of which are on sale for the lowest prices to date.
Below, we’ve curated a list of just some of the best tech deals under $25 so even those on the tightest of budgets can save big this Prime Day. And don’t forget: for even more sales, be sure to also check out our guide to the best Amazon Prime Day deals available. We’ve also put together guides to the best anti-Prime Day deals at Best Buy, Target, and Walmart.
Smart speaker deals
The spherical, fourth-gen Echo Dot is currently going for just $19.99 ($20 off) on Amazon — you can tack on an Amazon Smart Plug for $5 more. The latest model may not have as great sound quality as the more expensive fourth-gen Echo, but the small smart speaker still sounds great for its size. Plus, the Alexa-enabled device makes it possible to set timers, control other smart home devices, and so much more hands-free. Read our review.
Not a fan of the fourth-gen Echo Dot’s orb-like design? The smaller, puck-shaped Echo Dot from 2018 is also on sale today for $17.99 ($22 off) as well. Sure, it’s not Amazon’s latest and greatest smart speaker, but it still offers a surprising amount of sound and can be used to set alarms and carry out a range of tasks via Alexa. Read our review.
Streaming stick deals
If you’re looking for a streaming stick, Amazon’s older Fire TV Stick 4K with the third-gen Alexa remote is on sale for $24.99 instead of $49.99, which matches its Black Friday price. While not as good as the more expensive Fire TV Stick 4K Max, it’s still plenty fast and offers support for Dolby Vision, Dolby Atmos, HDR10 Plus, and HDR10. Read our review.
Roku’s Express 4K Plus is Roku’s entry-level streaming stick, one that is on sale for $24.99 ($15 off). The 4K streaming device supports HDR10, comes with a remote for hands-free commands, and works with Amazon Alexa, Apple’s Siri, and Google Assistant.
Location trackers and accessories deals
The 2022 Tile Mate is on sale for $17.99 instead of $24.99, which matches its best price ever. The simple Bluetooth tracker works with both iOS and Android and can help you keep track of your keys and other items from up to 250 feet away. Plus, it comes with a built-in hole — something you won’t find on Apple’s AirTags — allowing you to securely attach it to your belongings. Other perks include water resistance and user-replaceable batteries.
You can buy Apple’s AirTag loop in blue, orange, and yellow right now for $9 instead of $29.99, which is a new all-time low on Amazon. As we previously mentioned, you’ll need a lanyard to attach your AirTags to luggage and other accessories, given that the AirTags lack a built-in keychain loop. Amazon is also selling Apple’s Leather Key Ring in yellow and orange for $19 instead of $35.
For those who own a Samsung Galaxy smartphone that runs Android 8.0 or higher, you can buy the standard Samsung SmartTag tracker that lacks UWB for $17.99 instead of $29.99.
Also, while not technically Prime Day deals, Amazon has recently discounted some video games and other gaming accessories to both Prime and non-Prime members. These include Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy (Xbox and PlayStation), which is on sale for $24.99 ($15 off). You can also buy Forza Horizon 5: Standard Editionfor Xbox for $21.99 instead of $59.99, as well as Sea of Thieves for Xbox and Windows for $19.99 ($20 off). Read our reviews ofMarvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy,Forza Horizon 5, andSea of Thieves.
Skullcandy’s Dime are also on sale for $19.49 ($7.50 off). Like the Jib, these also feature IPX4 water resistance, although — on paper — they can only last up to three hours on a single charge or 12 hours with the included charging case.
You can easily add voice control to any outlet with one of Kasa’s smart plugs, which are on sale as part of a two-pack for just $12.99 ($7 off). The handy devices work with both Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant, as well as IFTTT, even without a hub.
Various services like Paramount Plus, Starz, Showtime, and more are just $0.99 per month for up to two months if you’re a Prime member. Amazon’s also offering discounts on a variety of movies like The Batman, which is half off at $9.99.
Prime members can currently buy the Rocketbook Fusion erasable notebook, which comes with a Pilot Frixion Pen and a microfiber cloth, in select colors aslow as $21.35 ($15.65 off). The 42-page notebook offers seven different page styles, including a weekly planner, task list, monthly calendar, a dot grid, and more.
If you’re in need of a basic charger for your phone, Anker’s 511 Charger is on sale for Prime members for $13.99, or about $5 off its typical list price. It only offers a single USB-C port, but the 20-watt offering provides enough power to fast charge most smartphones.
Ex-CIA engineer convicted for sending classified hacking tools and info to WikiLeaks
Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge
On Wednesday, a jury in New York convicted ex-Central Intelligence Agency engineer Joshua Schulte on all nine charges he faced (as first reported by @InnerCityPress) as a result of the single largest leak in agency history. Dubbed Vault 7, the files and information shared by WikiLeaks in 2017 exposed a trove of tactics and exploits the CIA used to hack its targets’ computers, iPhones or Android phones, and even Samsung smart TVs.
CIA spokesperson Tammy Thorp said in a statement given to The Verge, “Today’s verdict affirms that maintaining the security of our nation’s cyber capabilities is of the utmost importance. It’s critical to the security of the American people, and it’s critical to our advantage against adversaries abroad. As set forth in the trial, unauthorized disclosures not only jeopardize US personnel and operations, but also equip our adversaries with tools and information to do us harm.”
Schulte, the subject of a lengthy profile in the New Yorker that described him as “abrasive” and then went into far worse details, was arrested in 2018, initially charged with possession of child pornography, and has been in jail ever since.
The article details Operations Support Branch (OSB), where Schulte worked and reportedly built hacking tools by quickly turning prototypes into actual exploits that could monitor or steal information from the targeted person’s devices. It reports that investigators obtained evidence against Schulte through his own lapses in personal security, like storing passwords on his phone that could be used to access his encrypted storage.
It even goes into the trouble investigators had obtaining the Vault 7 documents — they remained classified despite being leaked and publicly available on the internet, leading FBI officials to download the cache over Wi-Fi at a Starbucks to a freshly purchased laptop that immediately became officially classified, stored in a supervisor’s office, and only accessible with Top Secret clearance.
Additional charges accusing him directly of stealing classified national defense information and sending it to WikiLeaks were filed later. In 2020, the government’s first attempt at prosecuting Schulte ended in a mistrial as a jury convicted him on contempt of court charges as well as lying to FBI investigators but couldn’t agree on the rest.
That spurred the second trial that just ended, where Schulte opted to represent himself. The charges he was convicted on are all specifically related to gathering, stealing, and transmitting classified information and obstruction of justice for lying to investigators about it. He has not yet been sentenced, pending the resolution of the other charges he still faces for possessing and transporting child pornography.
The Associated Press reports prosecutors argued that after feeling ignored and disrespected over his complaints about the work environment, Schulte took revenge on the CIA by stealing and leaking the same exploits he’d been a part of creating. In his defense, Schulte argued unsuccessfully that he was being used as a scapegoat for the government’s failure to protect dangerous hacking tools. There is some evidence to support that argument, as The Washington Post reported in 2020 that an internal investigation by the CIA’s WikiLeaks Task Force found security in the unit was “woefully lax,” with users sharing admin-level passwords and a lack of controls over access to historical data or the use of removable USB thumb drives, and this was years after the Snowden leaks. Schulte claimed there was no reasonable motive established and that hundreds of people had access to the information who could’ve been behind the leaks.
In a statement released after the verdict, US Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams said, “When Schulte began to harbor resentment toward the CIA, he covertly collected those tools and provided them to WikiLeaks, making some of our most critical intelligence tools known to the public – and therefore, our adversaries.” His statement ended by saying, “Schulte has been convicted for one of the most brazen and damaging acts of espionage in American history.”
Elon Musk just couldn’t help himself on Monday morning. Having announced the termination of his $44bn (£37bn) takeover of Twitter, he took to the platform he no longer wants to buy and mocked its likely legal response.
Musk’s tweet to his 100 million followers stated: “They want to force me to buy Twitter in court.” Twitter does indeed have grounds to seek an order requiring Musk to buy the business, despite him pulling out in a dispute over the number of spam or bot accounts on the platform.
A who’s who of CEOs is begging every school to teach computer science
Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
More than 500 notable people in business, education, and the nonprofit sector are calling for governors and education leaders to update K-12 curriculums to allow “every student in every school to have the opportunity to learn computer science,” according to a new letter posted publicly at https://www.ceosforcs.com/. The list of signatories includes many prominent figures in technology, including Apple CEO Tim Cook, Amazon founder and executive chair Jeff Bezos, Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, Microsoft cofounder Bill Gates, and Meta founder, chairman, and CEO Mark Zuckerberg.
“The undersigned commit our support by collectively creating employment opportunities for computer science students in every city in the USA, and in every sector, from manufacturing to banking, from agriculture to healthcare,” the letter reads. “Many of us offer internships to help these students find their career pathway. Many of us have funded efforts in CS education, to support underserved communities. But there is only so much industry can do by ourselves.”
“Now is the time for action, and the stakes couldn’t be higher. Together we urge you, for the sake of our students, our economy, and our country, to work together to update the K-12 curriculum, for every student in every school to have the opportunity to learn computer science,” it continues. You can see the full list of signatories on the letter’s website.
Separately, some of the signers also expressed their support on Twitter. “Coding is one of the most valuable skills a person can learn,” Tim Cook wrote. “It can open new doors, jumpstart careers, and help big dreams seem like achievable goals.”
“When I was 13, computer science changed the course of my life,” Bill Gates tweeted. “I was really lucky to have access to a computer that early on. I hope this initiative will give every student the same opportunity.”
When I was 13, computer science changed the course of my life. I was really lucky to have access to a computer that early on. I hope this initiative will give every student the same opportunity. https://t.co/If2bV8YVFM
The best anti-Prime Day deals happening at Walmart
Illustration by Kristen Radtke
We’re in the midst of Amazon Prime Day, and yet some of the best Prime Day deals to be had aren’t on Amazon’s site at all. While Best Buy is calling its sales “Black Friday in July” — which makes even less sense than calling a two-day event Prime Day, singular — Walmart is running deals of its own. It’s commonplace to see Walmart and the others matching many of the deals Amazon throws out there, as well as promoting some unique ones of its own.
Some of these deals can be a little unexpected and especially good, while some are just what we’d call a fine discount on any other day of the year. However, if you happen to be a Walmart Plus subscriber, there may be added incentive to find these deals at your retailer of choice, like taking advantage of free, faster shipping. So along with all our extensive Prime Day 2022 coverage, we’re pooling together all the good deals at other retailers, like these here at Walmart.
The older iPad Air from 2020 is available at such a steep discount that it’s almost in base-model iPad territory, at least in terms of pricing. You can get the 64GB, Wi-Fi model at Walmart right now for $379 ($220 off its original price) in silver, space gray, or sky blue. It may not have the M1 CPU like the newer model, but its A14 Bionic is still very speedy. Read our review.
Apple’s 64GB iPad Mini with Wi-Fi is on sale for $409 ($90 off) at Walmart. In some ways, it's like an 8.3-inch iPad Pro with USB-C charging and gesture controls, one that now lacks a 3.5-millimeter audio jack. Sadly, the 2021 Mini doesn’t normally get much cheaper than this, as it doesn’t have much competition in this space. Read our review.
The Bose Sport Earbuds may not offer noise cancellation like some of the pricier models out there, but they are suited for an active lifestyle given their IPX4 sweat and water resistance. Right now, Walmart has them for $149 ($30 off).
Samsung’s Galaxy Watch 4 is down to an all-time low price of $149.99 ($100 off) in the silver colorway at Walmart. The base configuration is a GPS-equipped, 40mm model, which is approachable for most wrists. The Galaxy Watch 4 is one of the best smartwatches for the Android ecosystem thanks to Samsung’s collaboration with Google on its software. Read our review.
Oh, and the black Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 is just a little more, priced at $165.30.
Read the memo Google’s CEO sent employees about a hiring slowdown
Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge
Google has told employees that it’ll be “slowing down the pace of hiring for the rest of the year,” according to an internal memo Tuesday by CEO Sundar Pichai obtained by The Verge.
Pichai says the company will have to “be more entrepreneurial” and work with “greater urgency, sharper focus, and more hunger than we’ve shown on sunnier days.” You can read the full memo below.
According to the memo, the company isn’t freezing hiring entirely; it’ll still hire for “engineering, technical and other critical roles.” But Pichai says that the pullback will mean “pausing development and re-deploying resources to higher priority areas.” Insider first reported Tuesday that Google had slowed its hiring plans.
Google isn’t the only company that’s had to recently pump the brakes on hiring people: Uber has said it’ll have to be “hardcore about costs,” Meta sent a memo to employees warning of “serious times” and fierce headwinds after implementing hiring freezes for some teams, and Spotify and Snap have also announced plans to slow hiring. Other companies, like Twitter, Netflix, and GameStop, have recently decided to lay off employees.
Hi Googlers,
Hard to believe we’re already through the first half of 2022. It’s the right opportunity to thank everyone for the great work so far this year, and to share how my Leads and I are thinking about H2.
The uncertain global economic outlook has been top of mind. Like all companies, we’re not immune to economic headwinds. Something I cherish about our culture is that we’ve never viewed these types of challenges as obstacles. Instead, we’ve seen them as opportunities to deepen our focus and invest for the long term.
In these moments, I turn to our mission: to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful. It’s what inspired me to join the company 18 years ago, and what makes me so optimistic about the impact we are able to have on the world. Knowledge and computing are how we drive our mission forward. That’s the lens we use to decide where to invest — whether it’s in areas like Search, Cloud, YouTube, Platforms and Hardware, the teams that support them, or in the AI that enables more helpful products and services.
We help people and society when we focus on what we do best, and do it really well. The investments we’ve made in the first half of the year reflect this vision. In Q2 alone, we added approximately 10,000 Googlers, and have a strong number of commitments for Q3 start dates which reflects, in part, the seasonal college recruiting calendar. These are extraordinary numbers, and they show our excitement about long-term opportunities, even in uncertain times.
Because of the hiring progress achieved so far this year, we’ll be slowing the pace of hiring for the rest of the year, while still supporting our most important opportunities. For the balance of 2022 and 2023, we’ll focus our hiring on engineering, technical and other critical roles, and make sure the great talent we do hire is aligned with our long-term priorities.
Moving forward, we need to be more entrepreneurial, working with greater urgency, sharper focus, and more hunger than we’ve shown on sunnier days. In some cases, that means consolidating where investments overlap and streamlining processes. In other cases, that means pausing development and re-deploying resources to higher priority areas. Making the company more efficient is up to all of us — we’ll be creating more ways for you all to engage and share ideas to help, so stay tuned.
Scarcity breeds clarity — this is something we have been saying since the earliest days of Google. It’s what drives focus and creativity that ultimately leads to better products that help people all over the world. That’s the opportunity in front of us today, and I’m excited for us to rise to the moment again.
Liquidators for crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital say they can’t find founders
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
Where in the world are Su Zhu and Kyle Davies? The founders of the cryptocurrency hedge fund Three Arrows Capital (3AC) are nowhere to be found, according to officials charged with liquidating the bankrupt company (via Reuters).
According to a court document filed Friday, Zhu and Davies’ whereabouts are currently unknown, and its liquidators say they have not received “any meaningful cooperation” from the two. On Tuesday, a judge granted 3AC’s liquidators full control of 3AC’s assets, preventing them from transferring any money out of their accounts.
Russell Crumpler and Christopher Farmer, two senior directors at Teneo, claim they have been unable to get in touch with Zhu and Davies. In the court filing, Crumpler and Farmer allege they joined a Zoom call with “persons identifying themselves as ‘Su Zhu’ and ‘Kyle,’” but “their video was turned off and they were on mute at all times with neither of them speaking despite questions being posed to them directly.”
During the Zoom call, the two founders communicated through representatives from the Singapore-based legal agency, Advocatus and Solitaire. Farmer alleges that he even tried locating Zhu and Davies at the 3AC headquarters in Singapore — only to find a locked door and a pile of unopened mail. The filing notes Zhu may be trying to sell his $35 million mansion in Singapore, citing various rumors.
Crumpler and Farmer claim there’s an “imminent risk” that the duo could attempt to transfer the company’s remaining funds elsewhere. “Here, that risk is heightened because a substantial portion of the Debtor’s assets are comprised of cash and digital assets, such as cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens, that are readily transferrable,” the filing reads. “The Foreign Representatives [Teneo], the Debtor [3AC], and its creditors as a whole would be irreparably harmed if any disposition of the Debtor’s assets were to occur during the provisional period.”
Sadly, our good faith to cooperate with the Liquidators was met with baiting. Hope that they did exercise good faith wrt the StarkWare token warrants. pic.twitter.com/CF73xI8r6n
After Crumpler and Farmer made the filing, Zhu accused the liquidators of “baiting.” In a post on Twitter, Zhu attached two screenshots of email correspondence between Crumpler and Advocatus and Solitaire representative Christopher Anand Daniel, who claims the liquidators were “keen to ask if the discussions were on a ‘without prejudice basis,’” so they “could use the discussions in Court filings without notice to” Zhu and Davies.
“It appears, therefore, that contrary to your representations that you were seeking to engage our clients in good faith, and constructively, you had already prepared to make that application, and were in fact baiting our clients,” Daniel adds. He goes on to explain that the founders and their families have “received threats of physical violence” and have also been “working under a lot of time pressure” to answer questions from the Monetary Authority of Singapore.
That’s the explanation given for Davies and Zhu allegedly not being all that cooperative with the liquidators. But they still don’t plan on meeting with Teneo’s agents — Daniels declined to participate in a phone call on their behalf. “Depending on your response, we will let you know when our clients can reasonably be expected to speak with you.”
The collapse of major cryptocurrency firms like 3AC has caused a lot of damage to the crypto market that likely hasn’t been fully realized yet. Crypto lending firms Babel Finance and Celcius have also been rocked by the turbulent market, with both companies freezing transactions amidst a “crypto winter.”
Update July 12th, 6:57PM ET:Updated to add a response from Su Zhu and his legal representation, as well as to note that a court has given liquidators control of 3AC’s assets.
Match Group is bringing Tinder’s free background checks to more dating apps
More checks in more places. | Image: Match Group
Match Group is bringing Tinder’s free background checks to two of the other dating apps it owns: Match (formerly Match.com) and Stir, a dating site for single parents (via CNBC). The system works similar to the way it does on Tinder: people can use it to see if whoever they’re talking to or planning to meet up with has a history of “violent and harmful behavior,” as the company’s press release puts it, though there is some nuance there that we’ll talk about in a bit.
When Match Group added this feature to Tinder earlier this year, there was a bit of a multi-step process to running one of the checks. The company says the process should be a bit easier on the Match service — if you’re talking to someone about meeting up, a box will pop up asking if you want to run a background check. Tapping on the link to do so will show you some extra information and safety tips, then hand you off to Garbo, the service that actually runs the background checks.
Once you’re there, you’ll have to enter info about the person you’re trying to run a check on, such as their first and last names, phone number, birthday, location, etc. Match won’t provide any of this information itself, according to a help document, so you’ll either have to know it already or get it from the person you’re trying to run a background check on. Obviously, that may be easier said than done without arousing suspicions.
The payment structure for the background checks is similar to Tinder’s — regular users will be able to run two background checks for free and will have to pay Garbo for subsequent ones. Premium subscribers will get four free background checks.
Many folks will already know this, but it’s worth repeating: while background checks can be a helpful tool, you shouldn’t just trust someone because an app gives them the all-clear. Match Group says that Garbo’s results are nuanced — they look at things like arrests, convictions, and sex offender registry data but won’t necessarily flag things that “have a disproportionate impact on marginalized groups,” such as convictions relating to drug possession or sex work — but there’s no guarantee they’ll catch everything.
It’s always best practice to let a few people know when you’re going to meet up with a stranger and give them some sort of time window when you expect to be home. And if the vibes are off, either take extra precautions or skip the meetup entirely.
Former Theranos exec Sunny Balwani convicted of 12 counts of fraud
The decision by California jurors brings to close a 13-week trial of Elizabeth Holmes’s former lover and business partner
The former Theranos executive Sunny Balwani has been convicted on all 12 fraud charges brought against him for his role at the now-defunct blood testing company.
The decision closes the final chapter of Theranos’s legal saga, nearly eight years after serious concerns were raised about the startup’s blood testing technology. The conviction of Balwani, who at one point oversaw the Theranos lab and put millions of his own fortune into the company, also marks a more severe judgment than that of his former lover and business partner Elizabeth Holmes, who was convicted of only four of 11 of the same charges in January.
‘They couldn’t even scream any more. They were just sobbing’: the amateur investors ruined by the crypto crash
Fuelled by hype and hysteria, the market in bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies went from an obscure niche to a $3tn industry. Then the house of cards collapsed
In the gloom of an 18th-century drawing room at the private rehab clinic Castle Craig, near Peebles in the Scottish Borders, Roy, a 29-year-old victim of the global cryptocurrency crash, tells me his story. It is a dazzling summer’s day, but here the mood is sombre. Roy shifts uncomfortably in his chair as he begins.
It all started in February 2021, with a radio advert for Dogecoin, a cryptocurrency promoted by Elon Musk, the founder of Tesla. Intrigued, Roy started Googling, eventually using his credit card to make an initial investment of €2,500 (£2,200) in a range of cryptocurrencies. The value of Roy’s portfolio climbed to €8,000, then €100,000, then €525,000. Roy had entered the market during an adrenalised bull run, meaning an extended period of price growth. A combination of Covid stimulus packages, low interest rates and an unprecedented level of enthusiasm for cryptocurrency among furloughed workers meant the bull was careering out of sight.
The best stock Nerf blasters ever made are half-off for Prime Day
Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge
Has there ever been a better day to get into Nerf? I’m having a hard time thinking of one. Two of the best, most competitive unmodded blasters cost half their normal price today — including the Dart Zone MK-3 and the Nerf Rival Perses — and I’m seeing huge discounts on a bunch of other actually-fun foam throwers as well.
Just note that you won’t actually find most of these blasters at Amazon. Target and Walmart are holding the best blaster sales, likely in an attempt to draw focus from their competitor.
Dart Zone MK-3 for $65(normally $130) at Target. The hobby’s never seen a stock blaster like the MK-3 before, pictured atop this story. You get semi-auto AND full-auto; short darts AND long darts; 8AAs or the option of a drop-in lithium polymer pack if you buy one yourself. That’s all in one sci-fi rifle that shoots 150 feet-per-second right out of the box. Just know that its serrated flywheels can be harsh on darts.
Dart Zone Max Stryker for $42 (normally $60) at Target. The Target-exclusive version of Dart Zone’s Adventure Force Nexus Pro, which changed the hobby by introducing unheard of accuracy and range with normal long and especially short darts for a mere $50 out of the box. It’s got a cooler look and more comfortable grips than the Nexus if you ask me, and now it costs less than a typical Nexus as well.
Adventure Force Nexus Pro for $40 (normally $50) at Walmart. And here’s the Nexus Pro itself, for slightly cheaper. Same blaster as the Max Stryker above internally, but different design and grip. One bonus: you can stuff a Nerf Mega or Rival round into the front barrel and it’ll fire a short distance!
This remote keyfob hack may leave the past decade of Hondas vulnerable
Even the most recent models. | Image: Honda
Security researchers and The Drive’s Rob Stumpf have recently posted videos of themselves unlocking and remotely starting several Honda vehicles using handheld radios, despite the company’s insistence that the cars have security protections meant to stop attackers from doing that very thing. According to the researchers, this hack is made possible because of a vulnerability in the keyless entry system in many Hondas made between 2012 and 2022. They’ve dubbed the vulnerability Rolling-PWN.
The basic concept for Rolling-PWN is similar to attacks we’ve seen before used against VWs and Teslas, as well as other devices; using radio equipment, someone records a legitimate radio signal from a key fob, then broadcasts it back to the car. It’s called a replay attack, and if you’re thinking that it should be possible to defend against this kind of attack with some sort of cryptography, you’re right. In theory, many modern cars use what’s called a rolling key system, basically making it so that each signal will only work once; you press the button to unlock your car, your car unlocks, and that exact signal shouldn’t ever unlock your car again.
Heads up, Honda owners—security researchers found a vulnerability in many new Hondas that can allow someone to unlock and start the car without its keys. It's been dubbed "Rolling Pwn," and here's our @RobDrivesCars demonstrating how it works.
But as Jalopnik points out, not every recent Honda has that level of protection. Researchers have also found vulnerabilities where surprisingly recent Hondas (2016 to 2020 Civics, specifically) instead used an unencrypted signal that doesn’t change. And even those that do have rolling code systems — including the 2020 CR-V, Accord, and Odyssey, Honda tells Vice — may be vulnerable to the recently-uncovered attack. Rolling-PWN’s website has videos of the hack being used to unlock those rolling code vehicles, and Stumpf was able to... well, pretty much pwn a 2021 Accord with the exploit, turning on its engine remotely and then unlocking it.
Honda told The Drive that the security systems it puts in its key fobs and cars “would not allow the vulnerability as represented in the report” to be carried out. In other words, the company says the attack shouldn’t be possible — but clearly, it is somehow. We’ve asked the company for comment on The Drive’s demonstration, which was published on Monday, but it didn’t immediately reply.
According to the Rolling-PWN website, the attack works because it’s able to resynchronize the car’s code counter, meaning that it’ll accept old codes — basically, because the system is built to have some tolerances (so you can use your keyless entry even if the button gets pressed once or twice while you’re away from the car, and so the car and remote stay in sync), its security system can be defeated. The site also claims that it affects “all Honda vehicles currently existing on the market,” but admits that it’s only actually been tested on a handful of model years.
Even more worryingly, the site suggests that other brands of cars are also affected, but is vague on the details. While that makes me nervously eye my Ford, it’s actually probably a good thing — if the security researchers are following standard responsible disclosure procedures, they should be reaching out to automakers and giving them a chance to address the issue before details are made public. According to Jalopnik, the researchers had reached out to Honda, but were told to file a report with customer service (which isn’t really standard security practice).
GameStop’s NFT market has arrived just in time for a crypto market crash
Photo by Sean Hollister / The Verge
GameStop is seemingly ignoring that whole ”crypto winter” thing and moving ahead with the launch of its own NFT marketplace, which is now open in what the company calls a “public beta.”
Right now, you can use the platform to buy, sell, and create NFTs. There are more than 200 collections you can peruse and more than 53,000 NFTs listed on the marketplace. The art I’ve seen seems to be pretty standard NFT fare — in just a few minutes of perusing, I’ve already spotted some some weird cat and monkey-themed collections, for example. Unsurprisingly, you can connect the newly-launched GameStop Wallet to manage your digital assets, though you can also use options like WalletConnect and MetaMask. And not just anyone can create an NFT on the platform — interested creators will need to apply.
GameStop has bigger plans for the marketplace down the line, saying in a press release that it plans to “expand functionality” into areas like Web3 gaming. On the NFT marketplace homepage, GameStop is already teasing that support for Immutable X, a platform built on Ethereum that’s used by some NFT games, is coming soon. GameStop and Immutable X have also launched a $100 million grant program.
The gaming retailer first announced in February that it planned to open its own NFT marketplace, but over the past several weeks, sales of NFTs have fallen amid a bigger downturn in crypto overall. Crypto companies like Coinbase, BlockFi, and Crypto.com have had to lay off staff in an attempt to weather the storm, but GameStop is surging forward with its plans, despite its own troubles. GameStop is opening its NFT market just days after laying off staff and firing its CFO, and crypto efforts seem as if they’re an important part of the company’s future; in a memo to employees about the layoffs, CEO Matt Furlong mentioned GameStop’s blockchain group in the very first sentence.
Liquidators for crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital say they can’t find founders
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
Where in the world are Su Zhu and Kyle Davies? The founders of the cryptocurrency hedge fund Three Arrows Capital (3AC) are nowhere to be found, according to officials charged with liquidating the bankrupt company (via Reuters). According to a court document filed Friday, Zhu and Davies’ whereabouts are currently unknown, and its liquidators say they have not received “any meaningful cooperation” from the two.
Russell Crumpler and Christopher Farmer, two senior directors at Teneo, claim they have been unable to get in touch with Zhu and Davies. In the court filing, Crumpler and Farmer allege they joined a Zoom call with “persons identifying themselves as ‘Su Zhu’ and ‘Kyle,” but “their video was turned off and they were on mute at all times with neither of them speaking despite questions being posed to them directly.”
During the Zoom call, the two founders communicated through representatives from a Singapore-based legal agency instead. Farmer alleges that he even tried locating Zhu and Davies at the 3AC headquarters in Singapore — only to find a locked door and a pile of unopened mail. The filing notes Zhu may be trying to sell his $35 million mansion in Singapore, citing various rumors.
Crumpler and Farmer claim there’s an “imminent risk” that the duo could attempt to transfer the company’s remaining funds elsewhere. “Here, that risk is heightened because a substantial portion of the Debtor’s assets are comprised of cash and digital assets, such as cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens, that are readily transferrable,” the filing reads. “The Foreign Representatives [Teneo], the Debtor [3AC], and its creditors as a whole would be irreparably harmed if any disposition of the Debtor’s assets were to occur during the provisional period.”
As noted by Reuters, the court has scheduled an emergency hearing set to take place on Tuesday, July 12th to address 3AC’s situation. The collapse of major cryptocurrency firms like 3AC has caused a lot of damage to the crypto market that likely hasn’t been fully realized yet. Crypto lending firms Babel Finance and Celcius have also been rocked by the turbulent market, with both companies freezing transactions amidst a “crypto winter.”
The Moscow moves: how Mandelson’s firm helped Uber reach Russian elite
Leak shows how the former Labour minister used his access to pro-Kremlin oligarchs, including some now under sanctions
Even before Uber’s top executives arrived in Davos in January 2016, its bosses were trying to secure invitations to the exclusive party hosted by the billionaire Russian metals magnate Oleg Deripaska. Famous for its free-flowing vodka, the event was an invitation-only, after-hours fixture of the world economic forum, the annual gathering of corporate leaders and politicians in the Swiss Alps.
Fortunately for Uber, it had hired someone who could pull strings. “Put them on list at door,” ordered Peter Mandelson, according to messages in the Uber files data leak.
Let's talk about what's really involved with switching to electric cars. Then we'll close with the product of the week, a laptop from Vaio that showcases just how much you can get for under $700 -- at least for now. The post The World Is Not Yet Ready for Electric Cars appeared first on TechNewsWorld.
A leaked trove of confidential files has revealed the inside story of how the tech giant Uber flouted laws, duped police, exploited violence against drivers and secretly lobbied governments during its aggressive global expansion.
The unprecedented leak to the Guardian of more than 124,000 documents – known as the Uber files – lays bare the ethically questionable practices that fuelled the company’s transformation into one of Silicon Valley’s most famous exports.
The leak spans a five-year period when Uber was run by its co-founder Travis Kalanick, who tried to force the cab-hailing service into cities around the world, even if that meant breaching laws and taxi regulations.
Striking a balance between protecting your data, ensuring your personal security and getting the most out of dating apps can be tricky. Here’ some advice on the dos and don’ts
In an online wild west populated by scammers and hackers, dating apps pose challenges beyond just finding a partner. It’s getting harder to tell if your date is who they say they are, and that’s before you consider the data security and privacy implications of using the apps on your smartphone.
It’s difficult to maintain privacy when apps such as Hinge, Tinder and Bumble need to collect data to match you with potential dates. Then there’s the data you share with other users – including your sexual orientation, age and social media information – that could put you at risk if it gets into the wrong hands.
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Screenshot from Google’s ChromeOS dev page
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Screenshot from Google’s Chrome OS page on its Chromebooks site
