TechRadar News

• Peacemaker season 2's premiere drops plenty of hints about Batman
• This season's first episode contains multiple references to The Dark Knight
• Other DCU projects confirmed The Caped Crusader already operates in this universe

Peacemaker season 2 has finally made its long-awaited debut – and the popular HBO Max show's latest installment wastes no time letting us know that Batman already exists in the DC Universe (DCU).

Admittedly, previous DCU projects have done that. Creature Commandos episode 6 revealed the DCU's Batman for the first time – albeit in silhouette form – while James Gunn's Superman movie contained a blink and you'll miss it reference to Gotham City via a road sign.

Nevertheless, the first episode of Peacemaker's sophomore season really drives home that Bruce Wayne has been operating as his vigilante alter-ego for some time – and six specific Easter eggs that prove it.

Full spoilers immediately follow for Peacemaker 2's inaugural chapter.

Krank Toys is a nationwide toy and model business that exists in the DC Universe (Image credit: HBO Max)

The first of those happen 12 minutes into this season's opener, titled 'The Ties That Grind'.

As Leota Adebayo and Chris Smith pull up to the place where the latter's Justice Gang interview is being held, said venue bears the name Krank Toys.

A business founded and run by Griffin Krank, and later taken over by his son Cosmo after his father's death, the Gotham City-based enterprise and the Krank family weren't created for DC Comics. Indeed, they were specifically made for 2004 animated series The Batman (NB: not to be confused with its 2022 Matt Reeves-directed movie namesake). In that show, the Kranks made futuristic but dangerous toys and, after Bruce Wayne used his considerable clout to shut it down, Griffin adopted the supervillain pseudonym Toymaker to enact revenge on Wayne.

Jaina Hudson, is that you? (Image credit: HBO Max)

The DCU TV Original's next Batman Easter egg appears moments later. As Smith approaches the building's entrance, one of its bodyguards opens the door and a visibly upset woman, who's dressed in a white rabbit costume, walks past Smith.

A criminal known as the White Rabbit – real name Jaina Hudson – exists in the comics. And, given Hudson's alias appears in episode 1's end credits sequence, it's clear this individual in 'The Ties That Grind' is the Gotham-based socialite who moonlights as a crook. So, it's another fun call-back to a member of the Caped Crusader's stacked rogues gallery.

Sasha Bordeaux's backstory has been altered for Peacemaker season 2 (Image credit: HBO Max)

15 minutes pass before the DCU Chapter One TV series drops its next Batman reference in the form of ARGUS agent Sasha Bordeaux, played here by Sol Rodríguez.

Created by Greg Rucka and Shawn Martinbrough, and debuting in 'Detective Comics #751' in December 2000, Bordeaux has big ties to The Dark Knight. I won't spoil anything about her comic book history here in case any of it has been adapted for her live-action take in the DCU. However, speaking to me ahead of the show's return, Rodríguez told me she's "really love" it if Bordeaux appears in the DCU's Batman film, which is currently titled The Brave and the Bold. We'll see if her wish is granted post-season 2.

It sounds like the general populace is growing increasingly concerned about metahumans... (Image credit: HBO Max)

Easter egg number four appears – or, rather, is heard – during the news report Rick Flag Sr is watching before Bordeaux enters his office to inform him of the "glitch" they've been keeping tabs on at Smith's home (i.e. Smith using the Quantum Unfolding Chamber to access another dimension).

In said news bulletin, the anchor says there have been three breakouts at Belle Rive Penitentiary and Arkham over the past two months. The latter is, unsurprisingly, a reference to Arkham Asylum, the psychiatric hospital that supervillains captured by Batman are sent to.

A blink and you'll miss it creature feature (Image credit: HBO Max)

The penultimate Easter egg can be glimpsed in the trophy room of the Smith household that exists in the alternate universe we'll see throughout season 2.

As the DCU's Chris Smith inspects some framed newspaper clippings of his family's heroic exploits in this parallel dimension, one such article reveals they thwarted something know as the Rainbow Creature. A powerful Abominable Snowman-type character, this monster first appeared in 'Batman Vol. 1 #134' in September 1960. Created by Bill Finger and Sheldon Moldoff, it hails from South America and has access to various superpowers, including pyrokinesis and the ability to vaporize objects, by way of its multi-colored fur.

Keith Smith namedrops the city patrolled by Nightwing in this season's premiere (Image credit: HBO Max)

The final reference in one of the best HBO Max shows' second season isn't specific to Batman. Given his ties to the hero it's related to, though, it still counts.

So, what is it? When the DCU's Smith stumbles outside and meets his brother Keith, who's alive and all grown up in this alternate reality, the latter says to the former "I thought you were in Bludhaven". That's the Gotham-adjacent city protected by Nightwing, aka Dick Grayson. He's one of many individuals to assume the superhero identity of Robin, i.e. Batman's sidekick, in DC Comics.

For more on Peacemaker's latest season, read my Peacemaker season 2 release schedule guide to find out when new episodes will be released. Then, check out my Peacemaker season 2 review, which contains clues about what might happen in episodes 2 through 5.

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GenAI tools such as ChatGPT, Gemini, and Copilot have become essential components of modern workflows, significantly saving countless hours and revolutionizing various tasks. 42% of enterprises actively deployed AI, and 40% are experimenting with it and 59% of those using or exploring AI have accelerated their investments over the past two years.

Their widespread adoption across industries has demonstrably boosted efficiency and productivity, making them indispensable for many organizations across almost all industries.

However, the rapid integration and reliance on GenAI tools have inadvertently fostered a dangerous sense of complacency within organizations.

While these tools are easy to use and offer widespread benefits, ignoring the consequences of misuse and even malicious use has led to a serious underestimation of the inherent risks tied to their deployment and management, creating fertile ground for potential vulnerabilities.

When Innovation Hides Exposure

While typical users may not consider the vulnerabilities that GenAI tools bring, many CISOs and AI leaders are increasingly concerned about the misuse that’s unfolding quietly beneath the surface.

What often appears to be innovation and efficiency can, in reality, mask significant security blind spots. By 2027, it is estimated that over 40% of breaches will originate from the improper cross-border use of GenAI. For CISOs, this isn't a distant concern but an urgent and growing risk that demands immediate attention and action.

The exploitation of everyday AI users isn’t just a scary headline or a cautionary tale from IT—it’s a rapidly growing reality. These emerging attacks are sweeping across industries, catching many off guard. Just recently, researchers disclosed a Microsoft Copilot vulnerability that could have enabled sensitive data exfiltration via prompt injection attacks.

The ongoing underestimation of basic AI usage risks within organizations is a key driver of this emerging danger. The lack of awareness and robust policies surrounding the secure deployment and ongoing management of GenAI tools is creating critical blind spots that malicious actors are increasingly exploiting.

A New Security Mindset

The evolving landscape of GenAI presents a critical inflection point for cybersecurity leaders. It's imperative that CISOs and industry professionals move beyond the initial excitement and acknowledge that these tools have inherent risks that have been introduced by the widespread adoption of these powerful tools.

The current situation, marked by rapid integration and security oversight mixed with dangerous complacency, demands a fundamental shift in how organizations perceive and manage their digital defenses especially with AI.

The future of network security hinges on intelligent, comprehensive monitoring systems capable of understanding normal behavioral patterns and rapidly identifying deviations. This approach is not only crucial but paramount for detecting sophisticated threats that bypass traditional defenses.

Tools that can defend and protect against highly sophisticated threats need to include advanced capabilities at their core. Particularly, when considering scenarios where seemingly innocuous actions, like using a basic GenAI chatbot could lead to the silent exfiltration of sensitive corporate data, without user interaction or explicit warnings.

In these instances, traditional signature-based detection methods would likely prove ineffective. Therefore, it's imperative to begin leveraging advanced pattern recognition and behavioral analysis to combat threats specifically designed to evolve and evade detection.

Trust in AI Starts from Within

With the rise of increasingly sophisticated threats pressing closer to the enterprise perimeter, organizations must take decisive and actionable steps. This begins with addressing internal distrust of AI. Roughly three-quarters of AI experts think the technology will benefit them personally, however, only a quarter of the public says the same.

Fostering an environment where employees understand both the advantages and the risks associated with its use is essential to bridging this gap in perception. The promotion of responsible usage across the organization lays the groundwork for a more secure adoption of GenAI technologies.

While traditional human error remains a threat, the widespread adoption of GenAI has created a new, more subtle class of behavioral risks. Equipping employees with the knowledge to use GenAI tools securely is essential and should include comprehensive training, setting clear usage guidelines, and implementing robust policies tailored to defend against AI-driven attack vectors.

As the AI landscape adapts and changes, security frameworks must be continuously updated to keep pace with these evolving threats and to ensure appropriate safeguards are in place.

Real Security Starts with Behavior Change

Despite technological advancements, attackers continue to exploit human error. Today’s most significant data exposure isn't necessarily from a phishing link, while still a prime point of entry for threat actors; it's from an employee pasting proprietary source code, draft financial reports, or sensitive customer data into a public AI chatbot to work more efficiently.

In turn, companies must adopt strategies that address human behavior and decision-making. In an attempt to boost productivity they inadvertently externalize intellectual property.

This requires companies to evolve their approach beyond periodic training. It demands continuous engagement focused on GenAI-specific scenarios: teaching employees to recognize the difference between a safe, internal AI sandbox and a public tool.

It means creating a culture where asking "Can I put this data in this AI?" becomes as instinctual as locking your computer screen. Employees must be equipped to understand these new risks and feel accountable for using AI responsibly.

Demonizing AI usage, even basic use will never solve the problem at hand. Instead, embracing a secure approach to GenAI from a holistic point of view empowers employees to leverage these powerful tools with confidence to maximize their operational advantages while minimizing exposure to risk.

By leading with clear guidance, highlighting potential warning signs and operational risks, organizations can significantly reduce the chances of data breaches related to improper AI usage, ultimately protecting critical assets and preserving organizational integrity.

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In 2025, enterprises are caught in an invisible battle between algorithms. Artificial Intelligence (AI) has emerged as a tool for both defenders and attackers. This duel between “Good AI” and “Bad AI” is reshaping how enterprises approach security in an increasingly connected and complex world.

While AI empowers organizations to detect, prevent, and counteract evolving threats, bad actors have weaponized the same technology to create more sophisticated and elusive attacks.

So, what defines Bad AI, and how does Good AI counter it? And more importantly, can enterprises embrace advanced cybersecurity strategies to remain resilient in the face of this evolving threat landscape?

AI – The Double-Edged Sword

The clash between Good AI and Bad AI is a battle of intelligence, adaptation, and creativity, driven by ever-evolving systems. Bad AI, embedded in malicious software, is advancing fast, allowing hackers to bypass defenses, infiltrate networks, and compromise sensitive data through behavior modification and imitation of legitimate system activities. For instance, malware like Emotet has leveraged AI to evolve, making it increasingly elusive and harder to neutralize.

In response, Good AI counters these threats by analysing massive datasets, identifying risks, and even predicting attacks before they occur, positioning itself as an enterprise’s strongest ally in staying one step ahead of attackers.

AI is not solely about the adversarial. Trust, transparency, and human alignment are the main goals of good AI. It is intended to preserve privacy, ethics, and security while also evolving responsibly.

Bad AI exploits its power - hiding behind layers of opacity, bias, and harmful intentions.

The cost of inaction: Why proactive defense is non-negotiable

According to research by the World Economic Forum, cybercrime costs are expected to reach $10.5 trillion annually by 2025, with the costs to British businesses amounting to £27 billion a year.

This not only reflects financial losses, but also broader consequences such as weakened trust, reputational damage, and operational disruptions caused by cyberattacks. And it doesn't end there. These attacks will increase in frequency and difficulty as the AI era progresses.

The rapid evolution of AI means that enterprises can no longer depend on traditional, reactive security measures. Cyberattacks are not only growing in volume but becoming increasingly tailored, adaptive, and intelligent. Attackers are leveraging AI to not only craft sophisticated phishing schemes but compromise privileged accounts and deploy evolving malware.

Without robust, proactive strategies, organizations risk falling behind and leave themselves vulnerable to breaches that can disrupt their operations.

To navigate this complex landscape, enterprises must embrace a resilience mindset - one that prioritizes not just protection but also adaptability, foresight, and innovation. Here are five key strategies enterprises can adopt to build proactive, AI-driven defenses:

1. AI-powered threat detection and response

Traditional defense mechanisms are no longer sufficient, as enterprises now require predictive AI-powered threat intelligence platforms that analyze vast datasets, detect anomalies, and identify attack vectors before they occur.

Operating autonomously, these platforms neutralize threats in real time, reducing human error and enabling faster, data-driven responses. AI systems can anticipate phishing attempts by analysing user behaviors and patterns, flagging suspicious activity early to prevent breaches.

This real-time protection, combined with continuous evolution, ensures defenses stay effective against ever-changing threats.

2. Zero Trust enhanced by AI

The Zero Trust model is a cornerstone of modern cybersecurity, and its effectiveness increases exponentially when combined with AI. AI-powered Identity and Access Management (IAM) systems evaluate risks in real time by analysing factors like user behaviors, geolocation, and device health.

Through continuous monitoring of access points, AI ensures only authorized individuals access sensitive data, significantly reducing the risk of both insider threats and external breaches.

3. Self-healing networks

AI-powered self-healing networks will redefine resilience by automatically identifying security breaches, isolating compromised components, and restoring them to a secure state without human intervention.

By leveraging AI-enabled automation, these networks ensure business continuity during sophisticated attacks, mitigating risks, reducing operational downtime, and keeping enterprises functional and efficient amid evolving threats.

4. Blockchain-integrated data integrity

As AI becomes pivotal in cybersecurity, ensuring data integrity is essential, and blockchain technology offers a robust solution by providing an unchanging ledger that guarantees authenticity and prevents tampering.

By leveraging blockchain-enabled frameworks, organizations can secure transactions in real time, flag anomalies, and enhance transparency, ensuring data remains trustworthy even in highly targeted attack environments.

5. Collaborative Threat Intelligence

AI-driven threat intelligence platforms enable organizations to share information on attack vectors, vulnerabilities, and tactics globally, fostering a collaborative approach to cybersecurity.

This strengthens industry resilience and enhances defenses against sophisticated adversaries, ultimately helping organizations stay ahead of emerging threats.

Security frameworks

For CIOs, CISOs, and business leaders, the challenge is no longer whether to adopt AI in cybersecurity frameworks, but how to do so effectively. The key lies in understanding AI’s full potential, not just as a protective force but as a dynamic, evolving capability that requires continuous refinement, training, and alignment with strategic objectives.

Organizations must invest in equipping their teams with the knowledge and skills to work with AI systems effectively. Technical training, adaptive defenses, proactive monitoring, and an understanding of both the capabilities and limitations of AI will define the businesses that thrive in an AI-powered future.

Successful defense with smarter AI

The battle between Good AI and Bad AI is far from over - and it’s one that will continue to shape the cybersecurity landscape for years to come. However, the enterprises that lead this fight will be those that not only deploy AI for defense but also foster a deep understanding of how it works, how it evolves, and how it can fail.

By transitioning from reactive to proactive AI-driven strategies, businesses can ensure long-term digital resilience. Equipping AI with moral and ethical guardrails, aligning it to the greater good, and investing in continuous innovation will be critical for building smarter, stronger defenses.

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Quantum computing has long occupied the edges of our collective imagination – frequently mentioned, rarely understood. For many, it remains a distant prospect rather than an immediate concern. But that mindset is fast becoming a risk in itself.

While understanding may be limited today, that must quickly change. Quantum computing has long been viewed as a technology several decades away, but recent breakthroughs suggest it could arrive far sooner.

Google’s Willow and Microsoft’s Majorana chips signal rapid technical acceleration, and the UK Government’s £500 million investment in quantum innovation confirms that global leaders are no longer treating this as speculative, but as a strategic priority.

Despite this, only 35% of professionals surveyed by ISACA believe quantum will enter the mainstream within years rather than decades, highlighting just how much industry perception is lagging behind reality.

That disconnect extends beyond expectations – it’s impacting readiness. Most organizations have yet to factor quantum into their cybersecurity planning, even though the technology is set to fundamentally reshape how vast sectors of society operate online.

This isn’t just about adopting a new form of computing – it’s about protecting the systems, economies and infrastructures that underpin our digital lives. And that starts with truly understanding what quantum is, and how it could both redefine and disrupt the cybersecurity landscape.

The Fundamentals: A Primer on Quantum Computing

If classical computers are powerful calculators, quantum computers are like probability engines, processing information in ways that allow them to explore many possibilities simultaneously.

Classical computing relies on bits, which are binary units of information that can either be 0 or 1. Quantum computers, by contrast, use qubits (quantum bits), which can be both 0 and 1 at the same time – a phenomenon known as superposition. Qubits can also be entangled, meaning the state of one can instantly influence another, even at a distance.

This means quantum computers can perform complex calculations by exploring multiple paths at once, rather than one-by-one. Where a classical computer might take thousands of years to crack encryption software or simulate a protein structure, a quantum computer could, in theory, complete the task in seconds.

But this is not about speed alone – it’s about capability. Quantum computing makes it possible to solve problems previously considered intractable: from modelling complex chemical reactions at the atomic level, optimizing vast and variable systems like global logistics, to breaking the mathematical problems that make today’s encryption secure.

When it comes to AI the effect is expected to be hugely transformational as the capability of Quantum will lead AI to a new era, both in terms of its level of intelligence and value but also in terms of the risks that come along with AI. These breakthroughs will have profound implications for the systems that underpin daily life, including cybersecurity, healthcare, and finance.

Why Quantum Matters: Revolutionary Potential Across Sectors

Quantum computers won’t replace classical machines, but they will be used to solve problems that today’s systems simply can’t at exponentially faster speeds. Their ability to handle complexity at scale means quantum computing will unlock solutions that were previously impossible or impractical, with major implications across a range of sectors.

This potential is already being recognized by many in the industry. ISACA’s Quantum Pulse Poll found that a majority (56%) of European IT professionals welcome the arrival of quantum computing, with the same number predicting that it will create significant business opportunities.

In healthcare, quantum systems could accelerate drug discovery by modelling molecules and protein folding far more accurately than classical machines allow. In business and finance, they could transform how organizations optimize supply chains, manage risk, and harness artificial intelligence to process and learn from vast datasets.

In cybersecurity, quantum has the power to redefine how we protect systems and data. Quantum Key Distribution could enable theoretically unbreakable encryption. AI-driven threat detection could become faster and more effective. And quantum-secure digital identity systems could help prevent fraud and impersonation.

But while these developments hold huge promise, they also introduce one of the most serious challenges facing cybersecurity today.

Quantum and Cybersecurity: A Looming Disruption

This isn’t a distant concern. Over two-thirds (67%) of cybersecurity professionals surveyed by ISACA believe that quantum computing will increase or shift cyber risk over the next decade, and it’s not hard to see why.

At the center of concern is encryption. Today’s most common cryptographic methods, like RSA and ECC, are built on mathematical problems that classical computers can’t solve in practical timeframes. But quantum machines could crack these with relative ease, putting the security of data at serious risk.

This raises the very real threat of “harvest now, decrypt later” where malicious actors steal encrypted data today, intending to unlock it once quantum capabilities arrive. Sensitive information considered secure now, such as financial records, personal data, and classified communications could be exposed overnight.

The implications are vast. If these foundational algorithms are broken, the ripple effect would be felt across every sector. Cryptography underpins not just cybersecurity systems, but digital infrastructure itself, from banking and healthcare to identity verification and cloud computing.

As quantum advances, preparing for this threat is no longer optional. It’s a critical step toward protecting the digital systems we all rely on.

The Reality Check: How ready are we for quantum?

While the pace of quantum innovation accelerates, organizational readiness is not keeping up.

Few organizations have started preparations. Just 4% of IT professionals say their organization has a defined quantum computing strategy in place. In many cases, quantum is still entirely off the radar. More than half of respondents (52%) report that the technology isn’t part of their roadmap, with no plans to include it.

Even when it comes to mitigation, most have yet to take basic steps. Despite the risks posed to current encryption standards, 40% of professionals say their organization hasn’t considered implementing post-quantum cryptography, creating worrying potential for disruption.

Part of the challenge lies in awareness. Quantum remains unfamiliar territory for most professionals, with only 2% describing themselves as extremely familiar with the technology. And while the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has spent more than a decade developing post-quantum encryption standards, just 5% of respondents say they have a strong understanding of them.

Meanwhile, global progress on quantum development continues to accelerate. Commercial applications are likely to arrive sooner than many expect, yet they may do so in a digital ecosystem unfit to cope. If encryption breaks before defenses are in place, the consequences could be severe, with widespread operational disruption, reputational harm, and regulatory fallout.

Preparing for quantum is no longer a theoretical exercise. The risk is real, and the window for proactive action is closing.

Preparing for the Post-Quantum Future

Preparing for quantum computing isn’t just a technical upgrade – it’s a strategic imperative. Yet most professionals still lack the awareness and skills needed to navigate what’s coming. Quantum education must now be a priority, not just for security teams, but across leadership, risk, and governance functions.

Governments have a role to play too. The UK’s £60 million investment in quantum skills is a strong start, but long-term readiness will depend on sustained collaboration between public and private sectors.

For organizations, action is needed now. That means identifying where quantum could pose a risk, assessing encryption dependencies, and beginning the shift to quantum-safe systems. Crucially, none of this will be possible without the right expertise.

Developing a holistically trained workforce on quantum (whilst continuing to do this for AI) will enable organizations to apply new technologies effectively and securely before the threats materialize.

Quantum brings extraordinary potential, but it also demands urgent preparation. Those who act early will be far better positioned to secure their systems and lead confidently in a post-quantum world.

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Microsoft’s decision to extend security updates for Windows 10 offers welcome breathing room for businesses still navigating complex migration paths. The move aligns with the tech giant’s long-standing pattern of accommodating the slower pace of enterprise IT change, giving organizations time to budget, plan and maintain operational continuity.

For many IT teams, this extension helps manage short-term risk and avoid disruption, particularly for those still reliant on existing infrastructure or specialist applications. But while this reprieve buys time, it does also delay the inevitable, potentially compounding the challenge.

As we’ve seen with previous extensions, each delay risks the loss of critical internal knowledge, as the people and vendors who originally managed these systems move on.

Over time, what could have been a straightforward application and data migration becomes a complex, costly rescue mission. The longer businesses wait, the more they risk accumulating technical debt, becoming dependent on expensive external partners and missing out on innovation. As such, organizations must treat the extension as a final window to take action before the real cliff edge arrives.

Here I explore the pros and cons of the recent Windows 10 security update extension and what considerations businesses should be contemplating over the forthcoming months.

The pros

Let’s start with the obvious. An extension provides extended breathing room and gives organizations more time to plan and execute a migration strategy without immediate pressure. Concurrently, this reduces short-term risk, as continued security updates help mitigate vulnerabilities while businesses remain on Windows 10.

This provides operational continuity and avoids any disruption for businesses still dependent on existing, well-established applications or IT infrastructure.

More broadly, the extension offers budget flexibility. IT departments can spread out migration costs over a longer period, which can help with financial planning, especially in a climate of ongoing budget pressures.

It also provides alignment with past practices, keeping consistent with Microsoft’s historical approach of offering extended support to accommodate slow-moving enterprise migrations.

The cons (and the real risks)

An extension may provide breathing room, but this also creates a false sense of security. More time can encourage complacency, delaying necessary upgrades and strategic planning.

Even more importantly, it can contribute to a loss of internal knowledge. As time passes, key personnel with migration experience may leave, and vendor support may disappear - this makes future transitions harder and riskier.

What’s more, while short-term savings might be gained, there can be increased long-term costs. Maintaining older infrastructure often becomes more expensive than upgrading it, especially when emergency migrations are needed.

Crucially, delays mean companies accumulate technical debt; by not performing migrations, organizations can end up with a backlog of compatibility issues, unsupported applications and outdated hardware.

The combination of losing internal knowledge and maintaining unsupported systems means businesses can become increasingly reliant on expensive external partners to manage complex migrations and increases the chance of vendor lock-in and dependency.

Ultimately, staying on older systems can prevent organizations from leveraging new features, performance improvements, and security enhancements in Windows 11 or alternative operating systems.

A mindset of continuous modernization

The issue with deadlines and extension periods is that they signify an eventual point of completion. In this case, a completed migration project. While they are of course necessary for encouraging organizations to update their Windows applications, they also create the mindset that the process is then a done deal.

But technology quickly evolves and IT infrastructure requires continuous modernization. Having this mentality also avoids companies delaying projects when extensions are provided.

At the same time, existing Windows applications can be critical to operations and not modernizing them before the deadline will bring serious risks. So, how can organizations maintain operational continuity but also modernize over the coming months?

The ‘Rs’ approach – including AWS’ ‘7Rs’ and Gartner’s ‘5Rs’ – presents several strategies. This industry standard process is used by cloud providers and encompasses different ways for companies to carry out migrations for unsupported applications. ‘Retiring’, for instance, involves identifying applications that are no longer useful and can be turned off. Each method has its purpose for various contexts.

But large IT estates can be too unique or complex to use such methods alone. In these cases, external cloud specialists can provide companies with vendor-neutral platforms that allow them to maintain their existing Windows 10 applications but redeploy them onto managed operating systems or cloud environments.

This means applications remain fully operational and secure but can continue to receive security patches, support and software updates. It acts as a smarter alternative to complex migration strategies or the costly redevelopment of applications.

Managing, not delaying, the inevitable

This extension is not a solution, but a grace period. It gives IT teams more time to manage short-term risk. But all an extension really does is delay the same situation repeating itself.

Time and time again we have seen this occurrence take place: a business delays its migration for a year, and then another year, and then - all of a sudden - Microsoft stops the extension of the extension.

The pattern often ends with a scramble when the final deadline hits - by which time the cost, complexity and risk have all increased, internal knowledge to migrate quickly and safely has disappeared, and vendors no longer exist.

So while there are pros to the extension, the cons present very real risks - and they emphasize why businesses need to adopt a mindset of continuous modernization.

The technology and providers are available to help companies maintain their existing Windows 10 applications but move them onto supported operating environments.

In the coming months, rather than delaying the inevitable scramble, IT teams can build ongoing modernization.

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Few technological shifts have generated as much excitement and anxiety as the introduction of artificial intelligence in the workplace.

We’re seeing a marked step forward in the innovation and wider integration of AI tools as standard across all sectors and industries, driven by promises of streamlining, productivity gain, and growth opportunities.

This transformation is marked by both decision-makers’ eagerness to harness the full potential of AI and employees’ fears about job security.

Gradual, deliberate integration

Despite the demonstrable potential of enterprise AI tools, it’s important that companies deploy them incrementally, rather than actioning disruptive overhauls. A “rip and replace” mindset could result in internal resistance and operational disruption. Gradual integration will enable greater flexibility and alignment with strategic and technical goals.

We’ve seen first-hand how companies have failed to properly implement AI tools, for instance with Klarna in early 2024. Klarna aggressively automated customer support, introducing AI agents to handle huge workloads in place of humans. This led to poor customer experiences, and a public admission that overreliance on cost-cutting was a mistake. The human touch proved irreplaceable for complex human queries.

Similarly, there’s the risk of businesses falling into the trap of viewing AI as a one-size-fits-all solution, lured by the prospects of increased efficiency and decreased costs. Without a clear assessment of foundational challenges, like fragmented data and how to integrate with legacy systems, AI initiatives can hinder rather than deliver results.

Instead, organizations should turn their focus to integrating AI deliberately with existing IT infrastructure, at points where it’s truly able to add value. Targeted, measured deployments will unlock efficiencies that mesh with existing operational strategy and mitigate the chances of disruption.

Human-Machine collaboration

There’s one key thing that’s overlooked in much of the discourse suggesting AI is replacing jobs: the simple fact that AI success depends on the humans that shape, supervise and steer AI output.

Think of it not as a substitute for human intelligence, but as an augmentor capable of transforming ideas into actionable results. To this end, the more that AI is implemented, the greater the potential productivity benefit, but the greater the need for accountability as well.

Accountability — and demonstrated adherence to ethical and legal guidelines — requires human oversight and judgement. Far from making human employees obsolete, widespread AI rollout is creating new demands for human expertise and a whole cache of professions.

Technological accessibility

This will only become the case by way of mass AI adoption. Which itself can only happen with the emergence of zero- and low-code platforms. The goal is to make powerful IT automation tools accessible to non-technical teams.

This way, employees with specific domain expertise can devise tailored AI systems, and become active shapers of AI-infused business innovation.

This level of collaboration will reveal insights that otherwise might stay hidden in siloed processes, combining automation with deep and involved operational understanding.

It’s not about replacing talent: it’s about identifying it and finding ways of amplifying it to unlock smarter, more adaptive ways of working.

Recognizing value is value in itself

There’s a lot of talk about AI freeing up employees for high-value tasks, but what qualifies as “high value” is far from universal. A task deemed critical in healthcare might be routine in retail.

Precision might matter most in one industry, where creativity may trump it in others. The reality is: value is subjective and sector-specific, which is why one-size-fits-all actually fits none.

The companies that treat this question strategically, rather than a bolt-on, are the ones that will gain a competitive edge and extract the most value from their AI deployments.

It’s no longer about what AI can take over, but what it should.

Eking out a definition should sit beside broader business priorities: deciding where human focus belongs will be imperative to business success. In an AI-enabled future, the ability to evaluate what matters most will become one of the highest-value capabilities of all.

In short, AI won’t kill jobs, but lazy thinking might. The real threat isn’t the tech itself, but how it’s deployed. Businesses that chase efficiency at the expense of human insight risk shedding expertise. The message for decision makers is clear: equip people, don’t replace them — and you don’t just keep up, you lead.

We list the best IT management tools.

This article was produced as part of TechRadarPro's Expert Insights channel where we feature the best and brightest minds in the technology industry today. The views expressed here are those of the author and are not necessarily those of TechRadarPro or Future plc. If you are interested in contributing find out more here: https://www.techradar.com/news/submit-your-story-to-techradar-pro

The cyber-attack on Marks & Spencer is the kind of event that makes business leaders sit up and ponder whether their own organization could be next. While its services may now be up and running, the incident has still cost the brand over £300 million in lost profits, along with potential damage to its customer relationships.

The brand is not alone either, since attackers also hit the specialist food distributor Peter Green Chilled, integral to several supermarket supply chains, along with Coop, North Face and Cartier recently as well. The lasting impacts of these cybersecurity breaches have revealed how quickly a single compromise can affect revenue, logistics and brand trust, even if organizations have well-rehearsed contingency plans.

Cyber criminals love retail data

The UK’s appetite for online shopping has grown from 18.1 per cent of total sales in September 2019 to around 26 per cent today. This growth brings increased volumes of payment credentials, loyalty data and personal profiles that retailers and their partners must store and access for the whole system to operate effectively.

As every part of the retail supply chain process, from stock control to fulfilment, is now digitally integrated in the battle for streamlined, multi-channel efficiency, it has become almost impossible to guarantee total security.

Criminals want that data for ransom, resale or misuse, and incessantly seek it out. They have learned that the easiest way past expensive perimeter tools starts inside each business. A seasonal employee’s click on an email, a misconfiguration in a loyalty-app update, or slack use of recycled passwords by a manager working from home are all weaknesses that criminals exploit.

The addition of hybrid working has also opened up many more potential entry points for criminals and complicates security vigilance.

The complex pipework of supply chain partner relationships makes continuous monitoring much harder. Retailers rely on third-party ecommerce software, CRM suites, point-of-sale systems and supply-chain tools. Vulnerabilities from even a single vendor or partner is enough to let criminals inside.

Artificial intelligence, meanwhile, has automated phishing lures and vulnerability scanning. The development of off-the-shelf ransomware kits also means criminals need less technical expertise to be effective. They can deliver cyberattacks at greater frequency and speed with superior precision.

Building defenses that contain attacks

Removing all cyber risk is impossible, so organizations must switch focus to damage limitation and maintenance of legitimate trade, using layered security instead of relying totally on a single gatekeeper.

High on the shopping list for retailers should be real-time endpoint detection and response (EDR) or extended detection and response (XDR) platforms. These solutions monitor devices, networks and cloud workloads for anomalous behavior, then isolate infected assets before malware spreads.

Strict network segmentation limits an intruder’s freedom of movement in systems. A zero-trust model will make life harder for them by demanding authentication for every access request.

Sometimes, the most effective containment measure is a deliberate shutdown to allow individual branches to keep trading on local platforms. This prevents attackers from scuttling through systems and enables investigators to get on with their work.

Layering defense

Layered defense must involve employees as well as technology. Multi-factor authentication cuts down the threat from stolen passwords, while least-privilege principles ensure staff only access what is required for the task in-hand. Regular penetration tests expose weak spots before adversaries find them, and supply-chain audits encourage vendors to improve standards.

Preparation is essential. Immutable off-site backups provide clean copies of critical data, but only if recovery time and recovery point objectives are realistic and regularly rehearsed. Full fail-over, forensic hand-off and customer communications must all be rehearsed.

It is also important to diversify infrastructure, avoiding reliance on what becomes a single fault domain through the mistake of running production, back-up and disaster-recovery environments on the same platform. What retailers need is a hybrid or multi-cloud approach to spread risk and improve flexibility.

Instilling new confidence

After the immediate threat is contained and systems are restored, rebuilding confidence is tough when customers, staff and investors are wanting details of what happened, the data exposed and how the company will prevent it from happening again.

A timetable of transparent updates shows respect and reduces speculation. Each cyber event or breach should trigger policy changes and fresh internal training, reinforcing the message that security is a collective responsibility shared by everyone in every department.

Many retailers use managed service providers (MSPs) to accelerate all these steps, bringing access to wider experience and expertise, round-the-clock monitoring and economies of scale. Retailers have the strategic oversight and sector knowledge, while the MSP supplies a deeper level of technical insight and a commitment to continuous improvement.

With the right partnerships, layered defenses, crisis response and security awareness, retailers can absorb attacks without day-to-day business grinding to a halt. They can continue to maintain the vital trust that is behind each customer transaction. There is certainly no reason to despair if organizations follow this multi-layered approach.

We list the best endpoint protection software.

This article was produced as part of TechRadarPro's Expert Insights channel where we feature the best and brightest minds in the technology industry today. The views expressed here are those of the author and are not necessarily those of TechRadarPro or Future plc. If you are interested in contributing find out more here: https://www.techradar.com/news/submit-your-story-to-techradar-pro

• UK proxy use has grown as VPNs face potentially tighter rules and restrictions
• Specialist proxies give businesses flexibility, location accuracy, and resilience compared with VPNs
• British firms are adopting proxies across eCommerce, finance, and marketing

Many UK firms are worrying further VPN regulation could be on the cards, after the divisive Online Safety Act led to explosive interest in the tools, driving regulators to take notice and businesses to explore alternatives.

This is not about traditional business VPNs (such as SonicWall, Cisco AnyConnect, or Fortinet) that secure employee access to internal networks, but rather about specialist VPN services used for external online operations.

As a result of growing uncertainty, companies are increasingly turning to proxy services, which offer greater flexibility and fewer compliance concerns than VPNs.

UK interest increasing

Proxies, unlike VPNs which encrypt traffic and direct it through a single tunnel, offer more granular routing and customizable access, allowing organizations to conduct location-specific data collection, navigate geo-restrictions, and monitor competitors with reduced risk of detection or blocking.

Data from Decodo shows proxy users from the UK increased by 65% following the launch of the Online Safety Act, while proxy traffic rose by 88%.

That points to growing reliance on proxies as a standard part of digital infrastructure rather than a niche tool.

“Companies around the globe are getting smarter about how they operate in highly competitive landscapes. Instead of just picking the most popular tools, they’re choosing what actually works best for them, whether that’s faster, easier to use, or works better with region-specific restrictions. It shows that people are thinking more critically about their options,” said Vytautas Savickas, CEO at Decodo.

One reason proxies are expanding so fast is their technical maturity, Decodo says. Providers now bundle enterprise-grade security features with user-friendly designs, which makes them suitable for global enterprises as well as smaller firms.

At the same time, more UK businesses are learning how to differentiate between VPNs and proxies and are matching tools to their goals.

“More organizations in the UK are investing time in understanding the tools that power secure and efficient online operations. Most companies test out different solutions, providers, and do their research on proxies and VPNs, and they’re also making more informed, strategic choices,” said Gabriele Verbickaitė, Product Marketing Manager at Decodo.

Proxies are proving especially valuable in sectors such as eCommerce, finance, and digital marketing, with firms using them for tasks like ad verification, price tracking, SEO monitoring, and fraud prevention.

Options such as residential, mobile, and ISP proxies allow for greater stability and location accuracy compared with older methods.

“UK businesses are quickly adopting proxy services, moving beyond simple VPNs to more advanced setups that offer greater control over their online activity. It’s no longer just about staying private – performance and reliability are now just as important,” said Vaidotas Juknys, Head of Commerce at Decodo.

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• Grok conversations shared by users have been found indexed by Google
• The interactions, no matter how private, became searchable by anyone online
• The problem arose because Grok's share button didn't add noindex tags to prevent search engine discovery

If you’ve been spending time talking to Grok, your conversations might be visible with a simple Google search, as first uncovered in a report from Forbes. More than 370,000 Grok chats became indexed and searchable on Google without users' knowledge or permission when they used Grok's share button.

The unique URL created by the button didn't mark the page as something for Google to ignore, making it publicly visible with a little effort.

Passwords, private health issues, and relationship drama fill the conversations now publicly available. Even more troubling questions for Grok about making drugs and planning murders appear as well. Grok transcripts are technically anonymized, but if there are identifiers, people could work out who was raising the petty complaints or criminal schemes. These are not exactly the kind of topics you want tied to your name.

Unlike a screenshot or a private message, these links have no built-in expiration or access control. Once they’re live, they’re live. It's more than a technical glitch; it makes it hard to trust the AI. If people are using AI chatbots as ersatz therapy or romantic roleplaying, they don't want what the conversation leaks. Finding your deepest thoughts alongside recipe blogs in search results might drive you away from the technology forever.

No privacy with AI chats

So how do you protect yourself? First, stop using the “share” function unless you’re completely comfortable with the conversation going public. If you’ve already shared a chat and regret it, you can try to find the link again and request its removal from Google using their Content Removal Tool. But that’s a cumbersome process, and there’s no guarantee it will disappear immediately.

If you talk to Grok through the X platform, you should also adjust your privacy settings. If you disable allowing your posts to be used for training the model, you might have more protection. That's less certain, but the rush to deploy AI products has made a lot of the privacy protections fuzzier than you might think.

If this issue sounds familiar, that's because it's only the latest example of AI chatbot platforms fumbling user privacy while encouraging individual sharing of conversations. OpenAI recently had to walk back an “experiment” where shared ChatGPT conversations began showing up in Google results. Meta faced backlash of its own this summer when people found out that their discussions with the Meta AI chatbot could pop up in the app's discover feed.

Conversations with chatbots can read more like diary entries than like social media posts. And if the default behavior of an app turns those into searchable content, users are going to push back, at least until the next time. As with Gmail ads scanning your inbox or Facebook apps scraping your friends list, the impulse is always to apologize after a privacy violation.

The best-case scenario is that Grok and others patch this quickly. But AI chatbot users should probably assume that anything shared could be read by someone else eventually. As with so many other supposedly private digital spaces, there are a lot more holes than anyone can see. And maybe don't treat Grok like a trustworthy therapist.

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Ever since I tried out Google's Real Time Voice translation on a call between a pair of Google Pixel 10 Pro phones, I've been imagining a future where I can speak to anyone in any language in my own voice and we can instantly understand each other.

I'm not alone in my amazement. When Jimmy Fallon and YouTuber Karen Polinesia demonstrated the feature live during Made By Google 2025 on August 20, 2025, the late-night TV host was gobsmacked, giggling in astonishment as his distinctive voice delivered sentences in Spanish to someone on a Pixel 10 Pro phone in an undisclosed location.

I don't blame him. As I've said, this feature uses AI to re-create both callers' voices in another language, almost without any lag, which is the closest we've come to Star Trek's Universal Translator. But it is missing something.

(Image credit: Lance Ulanoff / Future)

You see, Google's Real Time Call Translation only works when you're calling someone on the Pixel 10 phone. What I really want is a more ambient experience.

I can't believe I'm writing this, but what we need is a piece of wearable hardware that's always listening and when it hears someone speaking to you in a language other than your native tongue, it starts interpeting on the fly and "speaking" those same words in your native launguage, while, of course using a voice that matches the speakers voice.

In Star Trek, the galaxy explorers would simply point the device at aliens, and their unintelligible languages would transform their voices into English. I know that's unlikely; however, I do have a vision of what I want.

I'm aware that Google has long had a translate feature with Pixel Buds (using Google Translate and Google Assistant), but it never worked like this and never used a simulacrum of the speaker's voice for the translation. As far as I'm concerned, the system doesn't work unless it includes this.

@techradar

♬ original sound - TechRadar A wearable translator

In a perfect world, the system would be frictionless: on both speakers and always ready to transparently intercept, translate, and speak so that we don't have to call, tap, look up, or read.

In the real world, there would be some concessions to the current state of Google's mobile hardware ecosystem.

There are a few options. It could be a system that works on both the Pixel Watch and Pixel Buds (the watch translates and sends the voice to the buds) or the buds translate and deliver the voice on their own. Pixel Watch 4 and Pixel Buds (even the Pro models) lack the horsepower to handle the translation.

What's needed is another piece of hardware or a combination of wearable gadgets that can bring this ever-present live translation to life.

A hardware possibility

(Image credit: Future/Lance Ulanoff)

In general, I'm not a fan of dedicated AI hardware (see Rabbit R1 and Plaud.AI). Smartphones like the Pixel 10 Pro have all the generative AI we need, and a secondary device just to perform many of those same AI actions seems superfluous at best.

The Real Time Live Translation, however, has me thinking differently. Perhaps it's the combination of an enhanced Pixel Watch and Buds, but I'd prefer if the entire operation were housed in what we might call "Pixel Buds Pro Enhanced".

(Image credit: Lance Ulanoff / Future)

Inside would be a new Tensor Chip small enough to fit inside one of the buds yet powerful enough to perform local translation and voice generation. We know the software works, so why not build special hardware to support it?

I know that's a tall order. Tensor G5 is a 3nm process chip. Could this be a 2nm? Maybe. The goal would be to both shrink the AI (with its neural network) and lower the power consumption so that one translation doesn't eat up half the Pixel Bud Pro Enhanced's battery life.

This is the one AI wearable idea I can get behind. Just think of what travel to another country might be like if you were wearing one of these. I get that it's unlikely that the person you're talking to also has a pair, but if they can run Gemini Live on their phone or if they have a Pixel Watch, perhaps they can hear what you're saying in their language (and in your voice), too.

My point is, this feature is too powerful to be stuck inside a smartphone, and I hope Google is working right now to bring my Star Trek Universal Translator dreams to life.

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• Peacemaker season 2 makes a big change to its predecessor's finale
• Fans have long wondered how it would handle a key scene from season 1 episode 8
• Everything else from last season is deemed canon in the DCU

Ever since Peacemaker season 2 was first announced, one big question has plagued fans of the hit HBO Max show: what aspects of its forebear's story will be treated as canon in the nascent DC Universe (DCU)?

It's a query that James Gunn, co-CEO of DC Studios, and Peacemaker's head writer and occasional director, hasn't answered as clearly as many fans had hoped. Now, though, this season's premiere has – and it's solved a big mystery about how Gunn would handle a cameo-filled scene from last season's finale, too.

Full spoilers immediately follow for Peacemaker season 2 episode 1, titled 'The Ties That Grind'. Turn back now if you haven't seen it yet.

Season 2's 'Previously On...' segment confirms the events of last season are all canon in the DCU (Image credit: HBO Max)

The short answer is: all of season 1 is canon in the DCU. Well, everything except that cameo-stuffed scene, which I'll get to later.

'The Ties That Grind' opens with John Cena's eponymous anti-hero – real name Chris Smith – answering questions from a class full of kids. It's a funny and unexpected way to open this season of the DCU Chapter One project, especially when you consider the dichotomy between the the foul-mouthed, substance-abusing titular character and his innocent inquirers.

Anyway, when Smith is asked if he has an origin story, we're treated to a 'Previously On...' montage from one of the best HBO Max shows' debut season. That includes clips of his traumatic childhood, joining 'Project Butterfly', killing his xenophobic and toxic father, and saving the world from an alien invasion. Cena even provides a voice-over saying "previously on the DCU", which basically confirms season 1 took place in the DCU instead of its now-defunct forebear, aka the DC Extended Universe (DCEU).

It's the end of this footage-based collage that addresses the multi-cameo scene I've been alluding to. That being, the DCEU's Justice League appearing after Smith and the 11th Street Kids defeat the extraterrestrial Butterflies to stop them taking over planet Earth.

A different supergroup shows up in season 2 episode 1 (Image credit: HBO Max)

As the 11th Street Kids triumphantly walked away from a job well done in last season's finale, they were greeted by the Justice League. Admittedly, Jason Momoa's Aquaman and Ezra Miller's The Flash are the only actors who actually appear on the screen, but silhouettes of their fellow heroes – Henry Cavill's Superman, Ben Affleck's Batman, Gal Gadot's Wonder Woman, and Ray Fisher's Cyborg – are shown.

Peacemaker 2 retcons this Justice League cameo. Indeed, the 'previously on...' segment reveals that sextuplet have been replaced the Justice Gang – i.e. Edi Gathegi's Mister Terrific (who only appears in silhouette form), Isabela Merced's Hawkgirl, and Nathan Fillion's Guy Gardner/Green Lantern. The trio are also joined by outlines of David Corenswet's Superman and Milly Alcock's Supergirl, even though the Kryptonian pair aren't part of the Justice Gang.

But I digress. Lambasting their belated appearance, Smith greets them in the same way he did the Justice League last season, saying "you're late, you f*****g d*******s!". Then, in a very brief scene designed to replace Aquaman and The Flash's short and semi-amusing exchange from season 1, Hawkgirl and Gardner have a similarly fleeting chat.

Hawkgirl and Guy Gardner appear again later on in season 2 episode 1 (Image credit: HBO Max)

So, problem solved, right? As long as you don't go back and re-watch season 1 episode 8, aka 'It's Cow or Never'. Speaking as part of a roundtable interview attended by TechRadar, Gunn admitted that the retooled Justice Gang scene from this season's premiere won't replace the Justice League one in the season 1 finale.

"I wish I could do that," Gunn replied when asked if he'd swap out the Justice League scene for the updated Justice Gang one. "But, I can't, because it's too expensive. I think we'd rather spend the money on a few more visual effects shots for Supergirl.

"The other thing is normal people don't give a s**t about all this canon stuff as intimately [as diehard fans do]," he continued. "They're just like 'Oh cool, Peacemaker is in Superman' or 'Oh, it's Alien and Predator together'. It doesn't matter if it's not completely consistent with the past, so I though the simple way was really the best, which is just saying 'Yeah, this world is a little different'. We know there are other universes, and this is one where everything is exactly the same as what happened in season one, except for the Justice League's appearance."

Peacemaker season 2 episode is out now. Read my Peacemaker season 2 release schedule to find out when new entries will arrive, or check out my Peacemaker season 2 review for some clues about what's to come in episodes 2 through 5.

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Netflix crushed my heart last month when it removed some of my favorite titles, and it's about to do it again with plans to remove more movies in September than it did in August. There are 41 movies lined up to get the chop next month, but luckily, the best streaming service is giving you time to watch them over the next few weeks.

The first set of movies that will disappear is the Airport film series. This will be followed by rom-com classic The Notebook (2004), one of my favorite horror movies Barbarian (2022), and the sci-fi epic Mad Max: Fury Road (2015). As well as movies, you only have a few weeks left to make the most of one of the best Netflix shows, as The Good Place will be removed September 26.

Everything leaving Netflix in September 2025

Leaving on September 1

17 Again (movie)
50 First Dates (movie)
After Earth (movie)
Airport (movie)
Airport '77 (movie)
Airport 1975 (movie)
American Gangster (movie)
American Graffiti (movie)
Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues (movie)
Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (movie)
Barbarian (movie)
Bee Movie (movie)
Black Hawk Down (movie)
Blood and Bone (movie)
Burn After Reading (movie)
Dumb and Dumber To (movie)
Hanna (movie)
The Holiday (movie)
Home (movie)
MacGruber (movie)
Midnight in the Switchgrass (movie)
Midway (movie)
The Mule (movie)
National Security (movie)
The Notebook (movie)
The Nutty Professor (movie)
Paul (movie)
The Polar Express (movie)
Red Eye (movie)
Sicario (movie)
Trainwreck (movie)
Us (movie)
V for Vendetta (movie)
Wipeout season 1 (TV show)

Leaving on September 5

The Wave (movie)

Leaving on September 9

Mad Max: Fury Road (movie)

Leaving on September 10

Greenleaf seasons 1-5 (TV show)

Leaving on September 13

London Has Fallen (movie)

Leaving on September 14

Chosen seasons 1-2 (TV show)

Leaving on September 15

Band of Brothers (TV show)
The Pacific (movie)

Leaving on September 16

Bad Words (movie)
Instant Family (movie)

Leaving on September 22

The Island (movie)

Leaving on September 26

The Good Place seasons 1-4 (TV show)

Leaving on September 30

Chappelle's Show seasons 1-2 (TV show)

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• TPG Telecom confirmed a cyberattack with the country's securities exchange agency
• Unidentified crooks stole an employee's account login and used it to exfiltrate sensitive data
• Customers of its iiNet sub-brand were affected

TPG Telecom, a major Australian telecommunications provider, suffered what it described as a “limited” cyberattack - however, judging by the amount of personal information stolen, that “limited” comes with quite large quotation marks.

The company issued a statement with the Australian Securities Exchange in which it reported currently investigating a cybersecurity incident when an unauthorized third party accessed its iiNet order management system - internal software tool used within the iiNet brand to create, manage, and track customer service orders.

The incident was spotted on Saturday, August 16, with the preliminary investigation showing that the origin of the breach were stolen employee account credentials. The company described the attack as “limited” since the system that was breached does not contain extensive data. However, that data still includes iiNet email addresses for some customers, iiNet landline phone numbers, contact names, contact numbers and residential addresses “for a smaller group of customers”.

Names, addresses, and phone numbers

What the iiNet order management system does not contain are copies or details of identity documents, or credit card and banking information.

The number of affected individuals is in the hundreds of thousands: 280,000 active iiNet email addresses, around 20,000 active iiNet landline phone numbers, around 10,000 iiNet user names, street addresses and phone numbers, and around 1,700 modem set-up passwords, all stolen.

This could trigger a wave of highly convincing phishing emails, voice scams, and malware / ransomware deployments through vulnerable modems. Phishing emails can lead to the compromise of banking accounts, social media accounts, and other services, and could result in identity theft, wire fraud, and more.

“We unreservedly apologise to our iiNet customers impacted by this incident,” TPG Telecom said in the announcement.

“We will be taking immediate steps to contact impacted iiNet customers, advise of any actions they should take and offer our assistance. We will also contact all non-impacted iiNet customers to confirm they have not been affected.”

There is currently no evidence of abuse in the wild.

Via The Register

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When Hisense announced its 116-inch RGB mini-LED TV at CES 2025, the TV world took notice.

RGB panel technology had already been realized in LG’s new Primary Tandem RGB OLED panel, with the promise of bolder, richer colors than had previously been seen in a TV. But combining that with a super-bright mini-LED backlight in a cinema-sized screen was an equally exciting prospect.

Hisense makes some of the best TVs, with the new Hisense U8QG scoring highly in our Hisense U8QG review and finding its place on several of our best-of lists. But the new 116UX is mini-LED TV tech taken to the next level.

I got the chance to test the Hisense 110UXN in December 2024, and it earned four out of 5 stars in my Hisense 110UXN review. Its color and brightness were two highlights, but the $15,000 / £20,000 price was tough to overlook, especially given the TV’s backlight blooming and screen uniformity issues.

The major difference between the Hisense 110UX and the 116UX is the latter’s RGB mini-LED backlight (the 110UX uses a standard mini-LED backlight). My colleague Matthew Murray, Head of Testing for Future, did his own hands-on test of the 116UX. But I got to spend more time with it doing real-world testing.

A new world of color and detail

Color is where the Hisense 116UX really shines, shown here with Elemental in Dolby Vision IQ. (Image credit: Disney / Future)

From the minute I streamed Elemental, one of my movie choices for testing color, on Disney+, it was clear that the TV’s RGB LEDs (all 20,000 of them) added another layer to the experience. Even with the TV in Dolby Vision Dark mode, colors looked spectacular. The oranges, reds and purples of Ember’s flames and the glass vase were displayed with a real vibrancy. Switching to Dolby Vision IQ made colors look even brighter and bolder, but I preferred the more natural picture with Dolby Vision Dark.

I next moved to Wicked on 4K Blu-ray, again in Dolby Vision Dark mode. As Elphaba stood under a tree with pink flowers, the flowers looked rich and bright, with bold highlights, and Elphaba’s green skin was vivid. This was hardly surprising since in our measurements, we found that the 116UX covered a staggering 99.4% of the UHDA-P3 color gamut, matching the color performance even of the best OLED TVs of this year, such as the LG G5 and Samsung S95F.

Watching demo footage on the Spears & Munsil UHD Benchmark 4K Blu-ray in HDR10 format, a field of red flowers had an eye-popping punch and plenty of depth. A parrot’s yellow and blue feathers shimmered, looking vibrant and colorful.

This footage uses the BT.2020 color space, and when we measured the 116UX, its BT.2020 color gamut coverage was 92.64% – a phenomenal result and the highest we’ve ever recorded for a TV. Once again, it’s no wonder the 116UX’s color looks so good.

Throughout my testing, I also noticed that textures and details were incredibly realistic, which gave people, objects, and landscapes depth, clarity and a real lifelike presence. Close-up shots of faces, such as those in The Batman and No Time to Die, revealed every pore, hair, and scar with a staggering level of detail. Even the 116UX’s upscaling was impressive, with the textures in an HD stream of Fight Club on Disney+ getting a real uplift.

Room for improvementImage 1 of 2

While the Hisense 116UX displayed deep black levels in some cases (1), it struggled with real-world content such as Alien: Romulus, where clouding was apparent (2). (Image credit: Future)Image 2 of 2

(Image credit: 20th Century Studios / Future )

The 116UX had seriously impressed me with its color and detail, but it was now time to move on to darker movie scenes, something mini-LED TVs can struggle with. Watching the same Spears & Munsil demo footage, but focusing on studio sequences with objects against dark black backgrounds and night scenes, the 116UX displayed deep, rich blacks. They did look slightly raised in places, but they were still impressive for a mini-LED TV, especially one this bright. I did see some blooming around bright objects, which was more apparent when viewing from an off-center position, but the TV’s performance here was pretty good overall.

So all good news, right? Not quite. Watching other dark scenes in Dolby Vision Dark mode revealed some screen uniformity issues with the massive 116UX. In Alien: Romulus, a scene with an alien nest in a tunnel showed significantly raised black levels along with a clouding effect.

The same was true for The Batman. In the opening crime scene sequence, black levels looked raised, and there was the same blooming around characters and bright objects. Also, the clouding effect I saw in Alien: Romulus could be seen here.

Admittedly, The Batman is an extremely challenging movie for TVs due to its low mastered brightness (400 nits compared to the standard 1,000 nits). And the clouding effect wasn’t as bad with Alien: Romulus, but it was still present. For a TV at this price, I’d expected it to do a better job. The 116UX won’t be beating the best OLED TVs any time soon.

A big price to pay

(Image credit: Future)

The Hisense 116UX is set to launch in September for $24,999 / AU$39,999 / €28,999 (roughly £25,000 based on the European price). That price is going to outstretch almost everyone’s budget.

I also found during my testing that while its built-in sound system is impressive, with plenty of bass rumble, the sound felt constrained to the screen. A screen like this deserves sound to match, so you’ll need to take the price of one of the best soundbars into account, too.

While you can’t get an OLED TV at this size, you can buy a 97-inch LG G4 or LG G5 OLED for roughly the same price at $24,999 / £24,999. You can also get a top-end 4K projector, such as the JVC DLA-NZ800, with a decent screen and sound system to match for a similar price. When you consider that, the 116UX suddenly looks a little pricey.

The 116UX isn’t a perfect TV, but it is an impressive step forward for mini-LED tech. Despite its shortcomings, its color, brightness and upscaling are all superb. With improved local dimming and a more reasonable price tag, RGB mini-LED could become a real threat to OLED TVs.

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When we look back over the summer months, Netflix has been on top form, bringing us one gripping title after the next – and it's keeping up that momentum for its wave of September 2025 movies and shows.

There are plenty of Netflix Original movies and shows to choose from over the coming weeks. Indeed, we're excited for the second part of Wednesday season 2 to arrive on September 3, but the new drama series House of Guinness has also caught our eye, which follows the family behind the world's best pint.

It's always difficult to let go of the summer months, but when the best streaming service pulls through with a stacked list of movies, it makes it easier to adjust to the colder seasons. So, if you're stuck with what to add to your fall watchlist, look no further than the new Netflix titles below.

Everything new on Netflix in September 2025

Arriving on September 1

8 Mile (movie)
A Thousand Tomorrows season 1 (TV show)
The Amazing Spider-Man (movie)
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (movie)
Billy Madison (movie)
The Boy Next Door (movie)
Boyz n the Hood (movie)
Bram Stoker's Dracula (movie)
Bridesmaids (movie)
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (movie)
Chicken Run (movie)
Dennis the Menace (movie)
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (movie)
Edge of Tomorrow (movie)
Escape Room (movie)
Good Advice (movie)
The Four Seasons (movie)
Franklin & Bash seasons 1-4 (TV show)
Hot Shots! (movie)
Hot Shots! Part Deux (movie)
Inglourious Basterds (movie)
Inside Man (movie)
Inside Man: Most Wanted (movie)
Knocked Up (movie)
La La Land (movie)
The Land Before Time (movie)
Liar Liar (movie)
Limitless (movie)
Long Shot (movie)
Money Talks (movie)
Orphan Black seasons 1-5 (TV show)
Paddington (movie)
Phantom Thread (movie)
Puss in Boots (movie)
The Rookie (movie)
The Running Man (movie)
Shark Tale (movie)
Sherlock Holmes (movie)
Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (movie)
Shrek (movie)
Shrek 2 (movie)
Shrek Forever After (movie)
Shrek the Third (movie)
Stand by Me (movie)
We're the Millers (movie)
Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (movie)

Arriving on September 3

Wednesday season 2 part 2 (Netflix original series)

Arriving September 4

Countdown: Canelo v Crawford (Netflix original series)
Pokémon Concierge season 1 part 2 (Netflix original series)

Arriving on September 5

Inspector Zende (Netflix original movie)
Love Con Revenge (Netflix original series)

Arriving on September 7

The Fragrant Flower Blooms With Dignity (Netflix original series)

Arriving on September 8

Stolen: Heist of the Century (Netflix original documentary)

Arriving on September 9

Daddy's Home (movie)
Daddy's Home 2 (movie)
Jordan Jensen: Take Me With You (Netflix comedy special)
Kiss or Die (Netflix original series)

Arriving on September 10

aka Charlie Sheen (Netflix original documentary)
The Dead Girls (Netflix original series)
Love Is Blind: Brazil: Season 5 (Netflix original series)
Love is Blind: France (Netflix original series)

Arriving on September 11

Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret (movie)
Diary of a Ditched Girl (Netflix original series)
Kontrabida Academy (Netflix original series)
Tyler Perry's Beauty in Black season 2 (Netflix original series)
Wolf King season 2 (Netflix original series)

Arriving on September 12

Beauty and the Bester (Netflix original documentary)
Maledictions (Netflix original series)
Ratu Ratu Queens: The Series (Netflix original series)
The Wrong Paris (Netflix original movie)
You and Everything Else (Netflix original series)

Arriving on September 13

Canelo Álvarez vs. Terence Crawford (Netflix live event)

Arriving on September 14

Ancient Aliens season 11 (TV show)
Moving On (movie)

Arriving on September 15

Call the Midwife season 14 (TV show)
Nashville seasons 1-6 (TV show)
S.W.A.T. season 8 (TV show)

Arriving on September 17

1670 season 2 (Netflix original series)
Matchroom: The Greatest Showmen (Netflix original documentary)
Next Gen Chef (Netflix original series)

Arriving on September 18

The BA***DS of Bollywood (Netflix original series)
Black Rabbit (Netflix original series)
Platonic: Blue Moon Hotel (Netflix original series)
Same Day with Someone (Netflix original movie)

Arriving on September 19

Billionaires' Bunker (Netflix original series)
Cobweb (movie)
Haunted Hotel (Netflix original series)
She Said Maybe (Netflix original movie)

Arriving on September 22

Blippi's Job Show season 2 (Netflix original series)

Arriving on September 23

Cristela Alonzo: Upper Classy (Netflix comedy special)
Spartacus seasons 1-4 (TV show)

Arriving on September 24

The Guest (Netflix original series)

Arriving on September 25

Alice in Borderland season 3 (Netflix original series)
House of Guinness (Netflix original series)
Wayward (Netflix original series)

Arriving on September 26

Ángela: Limited Series (Netflix original series)
French Lover (Netflix original movie)
Pokémon Horizons: Season 2—The Search for Laqua Part 4 (Netflix original series)
Ruth & Boaz (Netflix original movie)

Arriving on September 28

10 Things I Hate About You (movie)
Idiocracy (movie)
Sweet Home Alabama (movie)

Arriving on September 30

Earthquake: Joke Telling Business (Netflix comedy special)
Interview with the Vampire season 2 (TV show)
Nightmares of Nature: Cabin in the Woods (Netflix original documentary)

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Gemini is coming to Google Home, and during yesterday’s Made by Google event, we saw our first glimpse of an unreleased Google Nest speaker - a roughly spherical device with a colored light at the base, seen sitting on a table beside F1 driver Lando Norris.

It’s about time too, given it’s been four years since Google’s last home hub, the 2nd-gen Nest Hub, launched in 2021. The question is, after such a long and rocky road, will anyone want it?

First of all, I find it interesting that Google has given us a peek at a speaker, not a smart display. It suggests that Google is taking a different approach to Amazon (which released two new Echo Show hubs late last year, and those are now the primary interface for its new subscription-tier Alexa+ service), and Apple (which is rumored to be announcing a new Apple Intelligence-powered display in September).

The Gemini presentation certainly didn’t tease a new Pixel Tablet – Google’s semi-portable smart home hub, which you can detach from its base and carry from room to room – though perhaps it’s keeping that up its sleeve for later in the year.

There was no sign of an updated Google Pixel Tablet to compete with the new Amazon Echo Show devices (Image credit: Future / Philip Berne)

Despite its lack of a screen, the new Nest will need a serious silicon upgrade to keep pace with its rivals. The Echo Show 15 and 21 both sport Amazon’s new AZ2 processor, which the company claims will let them run an LLM locally with no latency, so the Nest will need a complete internal overhaul to compete, with a brand new chipset and more RAM.

That will mean a big price increase from previous Nest speakers - but will people be willing to pay? Google is currently facing an outcry from users who report that their existing Nest devices are throwing up error messages, or no longer recognizing commands. A US law firm has even announced that it has "begun investigating a possible class action" against Google because so many owners are reporting problems.

Device owners on the Google Home subreddit are certainly skeptical that the new speaker represents a fresh start for Google’s hardware.

“Not buying another Google Home product until they fix the thousand plus dollars worth of devices that I already bought and have been getting worse and worse with each passing week,” says the top-rated comment.

“Seriously I've never bought a tech product that literally got worse over time. It's insane. Why should I give Google [any more] money?”

A chilly reception

That’s not the only issue - users living outside North America (including me) might not ever be able to use the new Nest to its full potential. In its Gemini for Home announcement, Google explained that users can “conveniently issue multiple commands at once to control your home: 'Dim the lights, and set the temp to 72 degrees.'” But I won’t.

That’s because Google is ending support for its older smart thermostats in October, and won’t be selling any new ones in Europe - including the Fourth-Generation Nest Learning Thermostat that launched last year in the US and Canada. According to Google, this is because “heating systems in Europe are unique and have a variety of hardware and software requirements that make it challenging to build for the diverse set of homes.”

The Fourth-Gen Nest Learning Thermostat should work seamlessly with Gemini, but Google says it'll never be available in Europe (Image credit: Future)

That also means we’ll miss out on hot water control - a feature coming to Google Home very soon according to Android Authority, which secured confirmation from Google Nest and Home Chief Product Officer Anish Kattukaran.

I’m curious to learn more about the new Nest, but with Google’s current usability issues, a potentially high price tag, and a lack of commitment to customers in Europe, it’ll have to work hard to convince me it’s a good investment.

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• Stolen payment card data is fueling ghost tapping fraud worldwide
• Burner phones are turning identity theft into organized retail scams
• Luxury goods bought with ghost tapping are quickly resold online

Digital payment services have long promised speed and ease, but the same systems are increasingly being manipulated for fraud.

Recorded Future’s Insikt Group researchers are now warning a new wave of fraud known as “ghost-tapping” has been spreading quickly across Southeast Asia and beyond since 2020.

The method allows scammers to load stolen payment details onto burner phones, which are then used for retail fraud.

How ghost-tapping works

Ghost-tapping relies on stolen payment card data, often gathered through phishing, social engineering, or mobile malware.

Once the information is taken, criminals bypass security by intercepting one-time passwords sent to victims, and then upload the stolen data to mobile wallets linked to contactless services such as Apple Pay or Google Pay.

Syndicates can use burner phones to make purchases in stores or even withdraw money from ATMs.

The process shows parallels with identity theft, where personal and financial data is exploited for profit.

Recorded Future’s Insikt Group says it has observed organized groups distributing not only phones but also software that can relay card details across devices.

This enables a network of mules who present themselves as ordinary shoppers or tourists, purchasing high-value goods such as jewelry or mobile phones, which are later resold through underground Telegram channels.

After a security clampdown on Telegram channels, syndicates shifted operations to alternatives such as Xinbi Guarantee and Tudou Guarantee, which continue to facilitate ghost-tapping deals.

According to the researchers, the high volume of ads and mule recruitment on these platforms suggests that many goods circulating in these markets originate from ghost-tapping.

This campaign is persistent, and even after several arrests of Chinese and Taiwanese nationals in Singapore in 2024, the decentralized nature of Telegram-based trading makes disruption difficult.

Ghost-tapping has wide implications for retail, banks, and payment providers.

Because many stores lack strict Know-Your-Customer checks, fraud is difficult to spot at the point of sale.

Insurance companies are also exposed to the fallout of unauthorized transactions.

In Singapore alone, police recorded hundreds of incidents of phished card data tied to mobile wallets, leading to millions in losses.

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime has described ghost-tapping as part of a larger professionalization of scamming in the region.

“The convergence between the acceleration and professionalization of these operations on the one hand and their geographical expansion into new parts of the region and beyond on the other translates into a new intensity in the industry - one that governments need to be prepared to respond to,” Benedikt Hofmann, UNODC acting regional representative for Southeast Asia and the Pacific, said at the time.

How to stay safe

• Implement multi-factor authentication to strengthen protection against unauthorized use of payment credentials.
• Rely on reputable security suites and properly configured firewalls to mitigate phishing and malware threats before data is stolen.
• Maintain vigilance when entering financial details online to avoid exposing sensitive information to fraudulent sites.

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I’ve been testing the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 for close to a month, and I’m convinced it might just be the best phone on the planet.

Before this, I relied on the Z Fold 7’s older sibling – Samsung’s Z Fold 6 – and I fell in love with that phone almost instantly thanks to its unique design that morphs between a phone and tablet whenever I need.

However even after 12 months of knowing how great the phone is, whenever I talked or wrote about the Z Fold 6, I always explained that I didn’t think it’s the right phone for most people – and if Samsung hadn’t sent us this phone for testing, I’d probably be using something like a Galaxy S25 or Google Pixel 9 because they offer better bang for your buck.

That’s not so much the case with the new Galaxy Z Fold 7.

Yes, it’s still a pricey beast. However, Samsung’s new foldable does a much better job of justifying its high price.

VS. Z Fold 6

The Z Fold 6 was my champion (Image credit: Future)

Samsung took my biggest Z Fold 6 frustrations and eliminated them with the 7.

The outer screen is now a 6.5-inch display instead of 6.3, but more importantly, the squashed aspect ratio of the Z Fold 6 has been changed to a standard 21 by 9. This means you no longer have to deal with compressed or poorly optimized apps that are cut off at the edges, since, when closed, the phone is practically indistinguishable from a standard flagship model.

When opened, you’ll unlock a larger inner screen now, too. I thought the screen on the 6 was great, but that extra space on the 7 is certainly handy for gaming, watching videos, or being productive.

This phone is also impressively slim.

At 8.9mm thick – when folded – the phone is just 0.7mm thicker than a Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra. Despite my fiancée being used to seeing me open up my phone, she audibly gasped when I did it with the Z fold 7 for the first time, as until that moment, she thought I was testing a standard single-screen phone.

It might only be 3.2mm thinner than the Z Fold 6, and 24g lighter too, but these seemingly small savings make a world of difference in how easy the phone is to handle day in and day out.

The Z Fold 7 is bigger, and better (Image credit: Lance Ulanoff / Future)

The real world of change comes from the cameras.

While on paper its 12MP ultra wide and 10MP 3X optical zoom lenses don’t look to be any better than what the Galaxy Fold 6 gave us, Samsung says some other hardware tweaks have been made to improve their image quality, which does look to be the case.

But where there’s no doubt that the Z Fold 7 is better with its 200MP main sensor, the same megapixel count you’ll get from Samsung’s S25 Ultra.

I’ll get back to this Ultra comparison in a minute, but know that the camera array on the Z Fold 7 is close to perfection for casual photographers like me.

Selecting this 200MP option allows the phone to produce high-resolution photos that you can crop as needed, or by using the 50 or 12MP options, I can snap a photo that uses pixel binning and other software tricks to enhance the clarity, contrast, and colors of my snaps.

The selfie cameras have been improved too, with the biggest change being that the inner selfie cam is now 10MP – replacing a 4MP under-display camera, and I can’t tell you how much of an upgrade this is.

And while it is now a hole punch, it’s never all that distracting.

The Z Fold 7 has better cameras (Image credit: Lance Ulanoff / Future)

Not every aspect has received a major update this time around however.

The battery size of the Z Fold 7 is the same as the Z Fold 6, though some efficiency improvements mean that Samsung says the 7 can squeeze out an extra hour in its tests – bringing it up to 24 hours of use.

This is still less than the Galaxy S25 Ultra’s 31-hour battery life under the same Samsung testing conditions, and I’ve found from my real-world testing that the Fold 7 does usually need a top off towards the late afternoon or evening.

It also still only boasts the same IP48 rating as the Z Fold 6.

This isn’t ideal, though I have to admit that for my day-to-day usage, the IP48 rating is plenty.

I’ve visited three sandy beaches and spent a week in the desert this past year with my foldable as my daily driver, and while I was careful not to drop it in the sand, I didn't go overboard with a ziplock bag or anything, and my phone came away completely unscathed.

It's just superb (Image credit: Peter Hoffmann)VS. S25 Ultra

Okay, I said I’d get back to the S25 Ultra, and here we are.

The Galaxy Z Fold 7 was billed as an Ultra-level phone, and in many ways, that’s true.

If you get into the nitty gritty, the Ultra does still have some advantages – chiefly its battery, camera array, and display resolution (and that it supports the S Pen, though I’ve never used a stylus with the Z Fold 6 and frankly couldn’t care less if the Z Fold 7 supported one or not) – but the gap between the Fold 7 and the S25 Ultra in these areas has shrunk from where it was with the Galaxy Z Fold 6.

(Image credit: Future)

And with its massive tablet-like display, the foldable finally has enough of an edge on Samsung’s other phones for me.

I know cost will play the biggest part in deciding your next phone, but I would wholeheartedly recommend giving the Z Fold 7 some attention if your budget can comfortably stretch that far through deals or an affordable monthly contract.

Unlike the Z Fold 6, this feels like a phone you won’t regret buying. I know I’d go out and buy a Z Fold 7 – something I wasn’t able to say about the foldables that came before.

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• Nearly 700 counterfeit Seagate hard drives were seized in a major Malaysian raid
• Counterfeiters converted desktop HDDs into fake surveillance drives for profit
• Thousands of dollars were generated monthly through counterfeit hard drive sales

A large-scale raid in Malaysia has revealed the extent of manipulation in the hard drive market.

Seagate, working alongside the Ministry of Domestic Trade, traced suspicious online offers to a warehouse near Kuala Lumpur.

The raid uncovered a counterfeiting workshop that not only handled its own hard drives but also those from Western Digital and Toshiba.

Discovery of altered storage devices

This is not the first time old Seagate HDDs have been modified and sold as new. The Chia cryptocurrency case and other reports show Seagate drives are susceptible to counterfeiting.

In this latest case, nearly 700 Seagate units, some with capacities reaching 18TB, were seized.

Evidence suggests that devices were taken from the secondary market, scrubbed clean, fitted with new labels, and then sold as though they were fresh from the factory.

A striking case involved a desktop HDD being converted into a so-called "new" surveillance HDD, highlighting the deceptive practices being used.

The operation came to light when a sales manager noticed unusually low prices on e-commerce sites such as Lazada and Shopee.

Further investigation showed that the fraudsters reset SMART values to mask the age and use of the drives.

Reports indicate that the sales volume was large, with thousands of US dollars being generated each month.

Many of these products were listed as high-capacity options, making them attractive to customers seeking affordable storage, whether in desktop systems, portable HDD setups, or NAS HDD configurations.

Seagate believes the used equipment may have originated in China, although tracing the precise supply chain remains difficult.

The challenge now lies in finding out how large the network is and who is ultimately responsible for channeling used parts into counterfeit goods.

The raid demonstrates that organized groups are capable of reshaping the appearance of drives so effectively that unsuspecting buyers may only realize the problem once failures occur.

In response, Seagate has strengthened its partner program, demanding that distributors commit to sourcing exclusively from authorized suppliers.

Global Trade Screening is being emphasized as a mechanism to block purchases from companies that appear on sanctions lists.

These steps are designed to reduce the chances of counterfeit drives entering legitimate markets, although it remains to be seen whether this will make a lasting difference.

The discovery is not isolated. Other brands have been affected, as shown by counterfeit UnionSine external devices circulating on Amazon’s marketplace without effective intervention.

Despite alerts, sales continued, and this shows how porous the global distribution chain has become.

For buyers, the risks associated with unusually cheap listings remain, and unless enforcement intensifies, counterfeit devices may continue to slip through unchecked channels.

Via computerbase (originally in German)

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Large language models have an awkward history with telling the truth, especially if they can't provide a real answer. Hallucinations have been a hazard for AI chatbots since the technology debuted a few years ago. But ChatGPT 5 seems to be going for a new, more humble approach to not knowing answers; admitting it.

Though most AI chatbot responses are accurate, it's impossible to interact with an AI chatbot for long before it provides a partial or complete fabrication as an answer. The AI displays just as much confidence in its answers regardless of their accuracy. AI hallucinations have plagued users and even led to embarrassing moments for the developers during demonstrations.

OpenAI had hinted that the new version of ChatGPT would be willing to plead ignorance over making up an answer, and a viral X post by Kol Tregaskes has drawn attention to the groundbreaking concept of ChatGPT saying, “I don’t know – and I can’t reliably find out.”

GPT-5 says 'I don't know'.Love this, thank you. pic.twitter.com/k6SNFKqZbgAugust 18, 2025

Technically, hallucinations are baked into how these models work. They’re not retrieving facts from a database, even if it looks that way; they're predicting the next most likely word based on patterns in language. When you ask about something obscure or complicated, the AI is guessing the right words to answer it, not doing a classic search engine hunt. Hence, the appearance of entirely made-up sources, statistics, or quotes.

But GPT-5’s ability to stop and say, “I don’t know,” reflects an evolution in how AI models deal with their limitations in terms of their responses, at least. A candid admission of ignorance replaces fictional filler. It may seem anticlimactic, but it's more significant for making the AI seem more trustworthy.

Clarity over hallucinations

Trust is crucial for AI chatbots. Why would you use them if you don't trust the answers? ChatGPT and other AI chatbots have warnings built into them about not relying too much on their answers because of hallucinations, but there are always stories of people ignoring that warning and getting into hot water. If the AI just says it can't answer a question, people might be more inclined to trust the answers it does provide.

Of course, there's still a risk that users will interpret the model's self-doubt as failure. The phrase “I don’t know” might come off as a bug, not a feature, if you don't realize the alternative is a hallucination, not the correct answer. Admitting uncertainty isn't how the all-knowing AI some imagine ChatGPT would behave.

But it's arguably the most human thing ChatGPT could do in this instance. OpenAI's proclaimed goal is artificial general intelligence, AI that can perform any intellectual task a human can. But one of the ironies of AGI is that mimicking human thinking includes uncertainties as well as capabilities.

Sometimes, the smartest thing you can do is to say you don't know something. You can't learn if you refuse to admit there are things you don't know. And, at least it avoids the spectacle of an AI telling you to eat rocks for your health.

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