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• Microsoft has responded to rumors that Xbox head Phil Spencer will be retiring after the launch of the next Xbox console
• Kari Perez, head of Xbox communications, insisted that "Phil is not retiring anytime soon"
• The rumors come amid mass layoffs at Microsoft

Amid mass layoffs at Microsoft, the company has insisted that Gaming CEO Phil Spencer won't be retiring "anytime soon".

Yesterday, the company announced that it would be making swift changes across its studios, which has resulted in massive job cuts that have seen at least 9,000 staff members affected, as well as many game cancellations, including Perfect Dark, Everwild, and the unannounced MMO from The Elder Scrolls Online studio.

Following the major layoffs, rumors also began circulating that the head of Xbox is also set to retire, with Call of Duty leaker GhostOfHope claiming that "Phil Spencer will be retiring from his role as CEO of Microsoft Gaming after the launch of the next generation Xbox" and that Sarah Bond, current Xbox president, would take over the role.

However, Microsoft has now come forward and denied these claims, insisting that Spencer will remain in his role for, presumably, a good while.

In a statement to The Verge, Kari Perez, head of Xbox communications, said, "Phil is not retiring anytime soon."

Whether this means Spencer won't be retiring imminently, the statement is quite vague in regards to the rumors. There's also no official word from Spencer himself on his future plans.

Meanwhile, Microsoft communications chief Frank Shaw also took to X / Twitter to respond to the rumors, claiming they were made up.

The next Xbox console is reportedly slated to release in 2027 and is now "fully in production".

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Some of the best parental control apps try to concentrate on particular areas of expertise, like location tracking or social media monitoring – while others, like MMGuardian, try to do it all.

That’s an admirable aim, and MMGuardian’s list of features is certainly impressive: it monitors messaging and social media apps, it analyzes content for inappropriate messages using AI, and tracks your children’s location – while offering remote device management.

There’s no shortage of apps that offer it all, though, at least on paper – so let’s see if MMGuardian can stand up against big-name offerings from the likes of Norton, Bark and Qustodio.

Plans and pricing

MMGuardian’s most popular pricing tier is an annual family subscription, which costs $99.98/£78.53 for a year of coverage for up to five child device apps. It’s certainly a better option than the monthly subscription, which offers the same protection for $9.99/£7.85 per month.

If you only need to protect one child device, MMGuardian costs $4.99/£3.92 monthly or $49.98/£39.26 for a year of coverage.

It’s easy to see why that annual five-device plan is the most popular option. And if you’re unsure about whether MMGuardian is the right app for you, there’s a fourteen-day free trial.

That pricing aligns well with Bark’s Premium offering, which also costs £99/£78 annually. But Qustodio is a little cheaper – and so is Norton Family, too.

Features

MMGuardian makes a big deal about its web filtering, and it’s easy to see why. There are over 140 categories of inappropriate content to filter out, which is more than virtually any rival offers, and parents can use filters based on age ranges and also manually block or allow particular websites.

On Android, the web filtering works on browsers like Chrome, Firefox and Opera. It’s common for parental control apps to be a little more toothless on iOS, though, and that’s true here: on Apple devices, web filtering only works if you use MMGuardian’s own safe browser.

There are other areas where MMGuardian is just as comprehensive. You can access, monitor and read your child’s sent and received text messages and see the time, duration and number of their phone calls.

Additionally, MMGuardian offers message monitoring for popular services like WhatsApp, Instagram, Kik, Discord, Facebook Messenger, TikTok and Snapchat, so most of the big social media sites are covered.

You’ll get alerts if MMGuardian detects messages featuring inappropriate content, but it’s worth noting that this scanning and notifying is well-supported on Android but a bit patchy on iOS – it works on iMessage and WhatsApp, for instance, but not on Instagram or Snapchat.

(Image credit: MMGuardian)

MMGuardian can update parents on children’s locations periodically, with parents able to choose how often they get alerts, but this is a rare miss from MMGuardian – unusually, there’s no geofencing available in this app. That means you won’t get a notification when children enter or exit your chosen areas – like arriving at home or school, for instance.

MMGuardian’s screen time limiting has preset schedules for school nights or weekend nights, with the latter offering more leniency, and parents can create their own schedules. Individual apps can also be augmented with usage time limits.

If they contravene limits, they can still call or message parents, but there’s a missing feature here: MMGuardian doesn’t allow parents to define how much time their children are allowed to spend on their devices every day. That’s a very common feature for parental control apps, so it’s disappointing that it’s not available here.

If you want to easily see what your children have been up to, MMGuardian offers comprehensive activity reporting.

(Image credit: MMGuardian)

Delving into specific areas gives parents loads more data, so there’s no shortage of options for parents who want to monitor their children’s device usage.

Elsewhere, MMGuardian allows parents to lock and unlock child devices remotely and use a siren to help find a lost phone. Android users can also monitor YouTube viewing histories.

It’s also worth noting what’s missing, though. MMGuardian might be great at monitoring messages, but it doesn’t watch over emails – a big miss when it comes to content monitoring.

Also note, if you’re a parent who wants a particular level of control, that MMGuardian sells its own phones in conjunction with Samsung. The A15 and A35 devices are essentially Samsung phones with MMGuardian features layered over the top, and they include advanced GPS tracking, real-time monitoring, instant alerting and built-in protection to stop kids from tampering with the settings.

It’s the best way to get MMGuardian’s full suite of parental control abilities, although it does require quite an upfront cost on the devices – the A15 costs $229/£180 and the A35 is $339/£226.

Interface and in-use

It’s easy to get started with MMGuardian. Download the parents’ app, confirm that you’re the parent and create an account, and you’re good to go.

On child phones, it’s easy enough to link to parent apps – it just involves sending a link – and then it’s just a matter of accepting permissions and getting started.

The Android and iOS apps are easy to use, with settings stored in obvious places. And while there are fewer features available on iOS, that’s typical with parental control tools.

The web interface is just as easy to navigate, and it does a tremendous job of presenting parents with pertinent information.

The only downside here is the aesthetic: MMGuardian’s software is easy to use and well-designed, but it looks a bit archaic.

Support

MMGuardian’s website has an FAQ section with some articles and a glossary of teen slang, and there are installation videos to help Android and iOS users set up their software.

Beyond that, support functionality extends to a support email address that’s accessible on the website and a chatbot that directs questions back to MMGuardian. The chatbot says that MMGuardian usually responds within 24 hours.

It’s a solid support selection, but nothing special – competitors sometimes have phone support at particular product tiers, and many have more extensive article and FAQ sections on their websites.

The competition

MMGuardian tries to offer every kind of mainstream feature found in parental control apps – which means it faces lots of strong rivals.

Take Bark, for instance. It’s great for social media and AI-based content analysis and has a better interface than MMGuardian, but doesn’t provide complete web histories.

Bark and Qustodio both outpace MMGuardian for user interface, too, and Qustodio is a better option for screen time controls and for value.

Norton, similarly, is a cheaper option with a more attractive interface, but it’s weaker on social media and message monitoring.

Final verdict

MMGuardian, then, tries to do everything – and does a pretty good job. Its web filtering, message monitoring and screen time controls are excellent, the pricing is reasonable – even if others are cheaper – and it has comprehensive reporting and decent location tracking.

It doesn’t have geofencing, though, and it misses out on social media abilities and attractive UI when compared to rivals, some of which are cheaper. It’s also far stronger on Android than on iOS.

That said, MMGuardian is certainly a contender. If you’re not concerned about an attractive UI and you’re an Android-based family, compare MMGuardian’s features to Bark, Qustodio and Norton – and this may well be a winning app for you. 

• We've picked out the best free parental control software

All of the best parental control apps focus on different features and take their own approach to protecting children – and for Kidslox, that means a significant concentration on location services.

Using this app, you’ll be able to see your kids’ locations, track their location history, and even view the routes they’ve taken. And beyond that, Kidslox offers screen time schedules, web filtering and app blocking.

On paper, then, that’s a solid selection of features, but can Kidslox compete with big names like Qustodio, OurPact and other strong competitors?

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Plans and pricing

Kidslox is available in two pricing tiers: Basic and Family. The Basic package costs $3.09/£2.39 per month if paid annually, and the Family option is $4.64/£3.59 per month with the same year-long deal.

As the name suggests, the Basic package is more limited – it works with one device, while you get support for ten on the Family option.

And while you get web filtering, location tracking, screen time limits, and app blocking using both pricing models, if you opt for the Basic service, you miss out on more advanced location abilities, alongside more innovative settings like remote screen view.

Features

Kidslox has one of the best location-tracking modules we’ve seen on any parental control app. As well as providing real-time tracking so you can see your child’s location on your map, you can view their location history over the past seven days – so you can see routes, where they stopped, and for how long.

Geofencing is supported with instant alerting when your child arrives or leaves your designated zones. The geofencing radius of 1,000 metres is generous, and you can easily edit zones you’ve already created.

By default, Kidslox sets a two-hour device limit on weekdays and a three-hour limit on weekends. Users can customize these limits as needed, with scheduling available for every day of the week. The limits are easy to adjust, and children can request more screen time directly from within their version of the app.

Screen time is even lightly gamified in Kidslox: parents can assign children chores and reward them with more time if they’re completed.

(Image credit: Kidslox)

Elsewhere, Kidslox offers bedtime lock scheduling, prevents notifications during nighttime hours, and the app supports up to five different screen time schedules.

The parent app offers easy options for locking apps immediately, and parents can also create a list of allowed apps for permanent access – a handy feature for educational software. Parents can also lock the device entirely if needed.

Web content is filtered through a blocklist with over four million URLs, and parents can easily add more sites to the list. Internet access can be locked entirely if needed, and children are not allowed to disable the safe search settings built into browsers like Bing and Google.

Kidslox also allows parents to see browsing histories and app usage – with the latter only available on Android. If the children’s device uses Android, parents can take a screenshot at any time and receive reports with periodic screenshots of the device.

This is a good range of features, but it’s worth taking a deeper dive into what features are only available in the Family version of the app.

(Image credit: Kidslox)

You only get alerts for inappropriate searches, nudity, new app installations and locations in the more expensive package, for instance. You’ll need to pay for the Family package to get the gamified time rewards, location histories, and the option to view your child’s search, YouTube and TikTok activity. That handy remote screen view option is only included in the pricier version, too.

It’s also worth noting what features are not available in either of the Kidslox pricing tiers. You can’t block websites by category or type – unlike other apps, which offer dozens of options. Instead, you’re limited to using the full Kidslox block list and adding your own sites individually.

Other apps keep data for longer – some of Kidslox’s histories are only available for seven days – and this app does not monitor text messages, calls or social media apps.

It would have been useful if differing screen time limits could be set for different apps. Additionally, there is no keylogging functionality available with this app.

(Image credit: Kidslox)Interface and in-use

This is one area where Kidslox excels. Download the app from Google Play or the App Store, use a handy code to pair it with the child app on the kids’ phones, give the app the necessary permissions, and you’re good to go.

GIFs during the setup process show you precisely what to do, which makes installation even easier.

Once that’s done, the impressive design continues. As well as being visually attractive, it’s very easy to use, with features laid out sensibly in a straightforward and intuitive layout.

Statistics are displayed clearly, too, and it’s very easy to see what changes you’re making. The same goes for the child’s app, too – everything is simple to understand.

Support

This is another area where Kidslox performs well. Its knowledge base and FAQ section are comprehensive and an excellent starting point for solving most problems. There are also videos available for solving various common issues.

Support is accessed by emailing Kidslox, and it’s also possible to fill out a web form and attach files if you prefer that approach.

Customer feedback indicates that Kidslox email support is highly responsive, too, with responses within a matter of hours.

There’s no live chat or phone support, though, so you’ll need to explore apps like Qustodio if you’d like that level of access. That said, at the time of writing, a message within the app was asking parents if they’d prefer to use phone support as it’s an option that Kidslox is considering – so that feature may be added in the future.

The competition

Bark is better than Kidslox when it comes to social media monitoring – indeed, Bark is one of the best options on the market for monitoring those kinds of apps.

And if you want to see how long your children have spent on specific websites, then you should investigate Qustodio.

Kidslox, though, competes well with its location abilities, it’s reasonable in other areas, and it’s easy to use. And it’s also a little cheaper than both of its rivals: the Family package is over $40 cheaper than Bark’s annual Premium plan, and Qustodio is pricier as well.

Final verdict

Kidslox is very strong when it comes to location features, and its monitoring, reporting and screen time abilities are all impressive – we like the option to reward your children for completing chores.

When it comes to web filtering and monitoring social media, calls and texts, though, Kidslox is weaker. It would be better if web filtering had categories. Beyond its screenshot abilities, this app can’t monitor social apps, calls, or texts at all. And the Basic package is just that – it misses out on many of the features that justify buying Kidslox in the first place.

It’s easy to set up and use, though, it’s strong when it comes to location abilities, and it’s cheaper than the competition. Kidslox is not ideal if you need to monitor social media or if you want better filtering, but for affordable location-based tracking, it’s good.

When will we see Ghost of Yōtei gameplay?

(Image credit: Sucker Punch)

Thanks to a recent PS blog post, we know that a Ghost of Yōtei gameplay presentation is coming in July. According to the developer: "You’ll get an extended look at new and evolved gameplay mechanics, including exploration, combat, and much more." We'll be sure to update this page once an exact date is specified.

Ghost of Yōtei has been revealed, in place of what many had expected to be 'Ghost of Tsushima 2'. It's set more than 300 years after the first Ghost game, and as such, isn't quite a direct sequel.

While it's still early days in terms of Ghost of Yōtei details, we do know that it's set to arrive on October 2, 2025, so hopefully we'll hear more sooner rather than later. The main question we need to be answered currently is whether Ghost of Yōtei will tie into its predecessor at all, and how gameplay has evolved with the introduction of firearms. Developer Sucker Punch has already given us a glimpse at gameplay, and some details on the game's new setting.

It's yet to be confirmed, but we expect to see Ghost of Yōtei make the most of the PS5 Pro as well, making Ghost of Yōtei one of the most highly anticipated upcoming games for 2025. Hopefully, it'll end up on our list of the best PS5 games by the end of the year.

Here's everything we know so far about Ghost of Yōtei so far, including a look at gameplay, as well as all of the latest news and rumors. As new info drops, this page will be updated.

Ghost of Yōtei: cut to the chase

• What is it? The next entry in the Ghost of Tsushima series
• When does it come out? October 2, 2025
• What can I play it on? PS5 (exclusively)
• Who's making it? Sucker Punch (Ghost of Tsushima, Infamous)

Ghost of Yōtei release date and platforms

(Image credit: Sucker Punch)

Ghost of Yōtei will launch on October 2, 2025 exclusively for PS5. The game won't be coming to older consoles, given that it has been developed from the ground up to run on the PlayStation 5. In terms of a PC release, nothing has been announced, but if we look at recent Sony releases, it'll likely follow the PS5 release at some point.

Ghost of Yōtei trailers

So far, we've only received two trailers for Ghost of Yōtei. The first was revealed during the Sony State of Play event on September 24, 2024. We see the new protagonist: Atsu, as they travel across gorgeous vistas, and take down enemies while wearing a Ghost mask. It's a mix of cinematics and gameplay and can be viewed above.

The most recent trailer followed the announcement of the Ghost of Yotei release date. It sets the scene for Atsu's journey, which sees her hunting down a group of foes called the Yōtei Six. Check it out above!

We'll likely hear more about Ghost of Yōtei in the coming months. To keep up to date with every trailer release for the game, be sure to check out the official PlayStation channel.

Ghost of Yōtei gameplay

(Image credit: Sucker Punch)

We've only seen glimpses of Ghost of Yōtei gameplay in the trailers shown off so far. We see Atsu walking through some beautiful locales, a look at combat with katanas, smaller daggers, a spear and even a Kusarigama.

Thankfully, there are some more details on the PS Blog. Atsu will wear a Ghost mask throughout the game, suggesting that she is somehow following the steps of Jin Sakai. This means stealth gameplay, likely with tools, distraction devices, and new abilities. One key difference between Ghost of Yōtei and Ghost of Tsushima is the inclusion of firearms, which will be a core arm of Atsu's arsenal.

The open world can be explored at your leisure, with the ability to set up campfires wherever you'd like. The main six targets can be tackled in whatever order you'd like as well, and there's mention of additional bounty hunting to keep you busy, and your pockets well-lined with coin.

Shortly after the most recent State of Play event, Sucker Punch revealed that a Ghost of Yōtei presentation is planned for July. It promises an extended look at gameplay.

Ghost of Yōtei setting

(Image credit: Sucker Punch)

Sucker Punch is keeping the story of Ghost of Yōtei under wraps for now but we do know that it's set in 1603, more than 300 years after the events of Ghost of Tsushima. Players will explore the lands surrounding Mount Yōtei, a towering peak in the heart of Ezo, an area of Japan known as Hokkaido in the present day. The story will be based loosely on history, but is being described as an 'original story.'

Over on the game's official website, there's a brief tease as to the game's main story:

"300 years after the events of Ghost of Tsushima, a new warrior – Atsu – rises from the ashes of her homestead.

Filled with fury and determination, Atsu will hunt down those responsible for the death of her family and exact her revenge. Every odd job and bounty will provide the coin she needs for her journey. But how she fights, survives, and evolves the legend of the Ghost, will be up to you."

Thanks to the most recent trailer for Ghost of Yōtei, we know that Atsu is hunting a group called the Yōtei Six. They're described as follows:

"Sixteen years ago in the heart of Ezo (called Hokkaido in present day), a gang of outlaws known as the Yōtei Six took everything from Atsu. They killed her family and left her for dead, pinned to a burning ginkgo tree outside her home. But Atsu survived. She learned to fight, to kill, and to hunt, and after years away she has returned to her home with a list of six names: The Snake, The Oni, The Kitsune, The Spider, The Dragon, and Lord Saito."

Ghost of Yōtei: FAQs

(Image credit: Sucker Punch)Is Ghost of Yotei PS5 only?

So far, Ghost of Yotei has only been revealed for PS5. This is due to it being a PlayStation Studios game, headed up by Sucker Punch. It looks as though the team is leaving the past-generation consoles behind, building the game for the PS5 specifically. Even so, we expect Ghost of Yotei to arrive on PC at some point after the initial launch, though nothing has been confirmed yet.

Can you pre-order Ghost of Yōtei?

Pre-orders for Ghost of Yōtei went live on May 2, 2025 at 10:00 AM ET / 7 AM PT in the U.S., and 10:00 AM local time in the U.K., France, Germany, Austria, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg. You can get more info on the various editions of the game that are available over on the PS Blog.

Who is the Ghost of Yōtei protagonist?

Atsu is the protagonist of Ghost of Yōtei. She is a brand new character in the series, and at present, we know almost nothing about her. She's definitely connected to Jin Sakai in some way, given that she wears a similar Ghost mask, and looks to be following the same style of stealth/action from the first game.

Is Ghost of Yōtei PS5 Pro enhanced?

Ghost of Yōtei has not been confirmed as one of the PS5 Pro enhanced games. This is likely set to change, as we'd certainly expect a first-party PlayStation exclusive to make use of the PS5 Pro in some way. For now, it's not confirmed, but we're betting this changes at some point before launch, so could be a good reason to read our PS5 Pro review and see if it's worth picking up.

Is this Ghost of Tsushima 2?

Sort of. Ghost of Yotei is a sequel to Ghost of Tsushima, but given that it takes place hundreds of years later, and focuses on a new protagonist, it's still being treated as its own thing. This is likely why Sucker Punch went with the title of Ghost of Yotei, instead of Ghost of Tsushima 2.

Ghost of Yōtei news

Ghost of Yōtei gets a release date
Ghost of Yōtei will launch October 2, 2025 on PS5. This was revealed on April 23, alongside a brand new story trailer.

Ghost of Yōtei has been revealed
Sucker Punch has announced Ghost of Yotei, the next installment in the Ghost of Tsushima series. You'll play as Atsu, a new protagonist, in a story set more than 300 years after the events of the first game.

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• Cisco Talos warns of callback phishing scams on the rise
• Phishing emails come with PDF attachments, in which are phone numbers
• Threat actors are exploiting people's trust in phone calls

Security researchers from Cisco Talos have warned of an ongoing phishing campaign in which victims are tricked into calling the attackers on the phone.

In a new report, the researchers said that between early May and early June 2025, they observed threat actors spoofing major tech companies, such as Microsoft, Adobe, or Docusign.

Cisco Talos calls this type of scam “callback phishing” - in the phishing emails, they would notify the victims of a problem, or an incoming/pending transaction, then share a phone number they control, and invite the victim to dial in and address these issues. During the call, the attackers would masquerade as a legitimate customer representative and explain to the victim that in order to sort out their problem, they need to either disclose sensitive information, or install a piece of malware on their device.

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Callback phishing

“Attackers use direct voice communication to exploit the victim's trust in phone calls and the perception that phone communication is a secure way to interact with an organization,” the researchers explained.

“Additionally, the live interaction during a phone call enables attackers to manipulate the victim's emotions and responses by employing social engineering tactics. Callback phishing is, therefore, a social engineering technique rather than a traditional email threat.”

Most phone numbers used in these campaigns are VoIP ones, Cisco Talos further explained, stating that these are more difficult to trace.

The key information, including the attacker-controlled phone number, is shared via a .PDF file sent as an attachment. This is usually done to bypass traditional email security mechanisms and ensure the email lands in the inbox.

As an added layer of obfuscation, the attackers would sometimes add a QR code into the body of the PDF file, since most AV and email protection tools cannot scan that deep. Furthermore, QR codes are usually scanned via smartphone cameras, and mobile devices rarely have the same level of security as laptops or desktop computers do.

Via The Hacker News

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Lots of the best parental control apps pair a full set of features on Android with a much more limited offering on iOS, but OurPact tries to provide a far more comprehensive set of features on Apple devices.

With geofencing, scheduling, screen time allowances, encrypted screenshots and more available across both platforms, there’s plenty to like here – and, in theory, plenty of reasons why OurPact should be able to compete with rivals from across the parental control sector.

Plans and pricing

OurPact’s two paid options, Premium and Premium+, cost $6.99/£5.45 or $9.99/£7.78 per month if you pay annually.

Both tiers allow you to manage up to twenty devices, which is ample for all but the largest families. The more affordable tier, Premium, includes the app’s core features, like scheduling, app rules, screen time management and family location ability.

In the Premium version of OurPact you also get the option to set rules for messaging apps and website visits.

Premium+ includes all of those features alongside the ability to view a gallery of your children’s screenshots, instantly take screenshots of your child’s device, and automate those screenshots – and the option to filter those screenshots by specific content categories.

That pricing is reasonable: Qustodio and Bark are a little more expensive and MMGuardian is slightly cheaper if you purchase the annual products rather than pay every month, but all four products offer similar pricing.

OurPact offers a 14-day free trial if you want to try out its Premium and Premium+ features. There’s also a free version of the product, although it’s very limited: it includes one automated schedule and management of one device alongside the ability to block web browsers.

Qustodio’s free product is better, and Microsoft Family Safety is also more impressive than the free version of OurPact.

Features

The Screenshot feature in Premium+ is one of OurPact’s key innovations. It offers three differing ways to see what your kids are doing: periodic screenshots, on-demand screenshots and a gallery.

The periodic view delivers automated screenshots of your child’s device at a schedule you set, although bear in mind that your children need to start the OurPact Jr app’s recording feature themselves for this to work. Bark takes a different approach here, only delivering screenshots when it detects suspicious content.

The on-demand option allows parents to look at their kid’s behavior whenever necessary. And when navigating the gallery, parents can browse by device, data or by categories like drugs, violence, romance and many more.

OurPact’s web filter allows parents to block inappropriate content, and parents can also create custom lists of blocked sites and websites that are always allowed – ideal if you want to allow your kids to always access educational resources, for instance.

As well as this conventional filtering, OurPact enables parents to prevent kids from making in-app purchases and uninstalling apps, and it can also disable iOS features like Siri and AirDrop – and limit the data that is collected for advertising usage. On Android, parents can also disable airplane mode.

That filter works in conjunction with a feature that allows parents to disable browsers like Chrome and Safari.

(Image credit: OurPact)

OurPact has mediocre scheduling abilities, with customizable daily scheduling available alongside easy app blocking during specific periods – but other apps offer far more granularity in terms of time periods that can be chosen when building a new schedule.

Parents can reward children with more screen time within the app. Individual apps can be allowed permanent or scheduled access – but children can’t send a request for more screen time, which is an increasingly popular feature elsewhere in the market.

Children can also use their version of the OurPact app to track their screen time, and this is a manual process that helps them stay mindful of their device usage and take responsibility for their behavior.

OurPact is one of the only parental control apps that allows parents to block iMessage on iOS devices, and it’s also possible to block text messaging apps, too.

(Image credit: OurPact)

And, finally, there’s the location tracker – which has real-time tracking, geofencing with a generous 1,000m radius, and location history for all of your children. You’ll also get push notifications when children arrive or depart your safe or forbidden zones.

There’s no doubt that OurPact has a good range of features, especially on iOS – indeed, it’s unusual to find a parental control app where core functionality is shared across Apple’s platform and Android, with the latter usually far more versatile.

That said, it’s clear that OurPact misses out on some basic features too.

It doesn’t have clear, easy activity reporting, so it can be difficult to get an overview of your child’s recent device behavior – and this is something that’s extremely common with rival tools. And while we’re always pleased to see web filtering, it just has one filter to use for all adult content, while Qustodio offers more than 25 filters and MMGuardian delivers over 100.

While OurPact’s web filter does block adult content, those rival apps do a better job of blocking anything else that you might consider inappropriate, so it does a better job of giving parents control over what children see.

OurPact doesn’t have in-depth social media monitoring like Bark, and it doesn’t monitor messages in the same way as Bark or MMGuardian. If you’re a parent who would like that level of control, you’ll need to look elsewhere.

Interface and in-use

To get started with OurPact, parents need to create an account – but once that’s done, things get a little more complicated.

On iOS child devices, parents need to disable the Find My iPhone feature for OurPact to work properly. On Android, USB debugging needs to be enabled. This is a little more technical than many other apps but, thankfully, OurPact provides clear instructions on how to get the job done.

When you’ve got the apps set up, OurPact is easier to use. The interface is intuitive on all platforms, with easy navigation even for beginners, and the OurPact Jr app for children makes it easy for them to see their screen time allowances and other important information.

The only complaint we’ve got is that OurPact looks a little bland and dated – but that’s a purely aesthetic issue that has no bearing on how the app functions day-to-day.

Support

OurPact’s Support page offers straightforward guides to setting up and using the app alongside a troubleshooting section for fixing common problems.

If you need to get in touch, there’s a web form that promises responses every day of the week, with reports suggesting that responses are both fast and helpful. OurPact promises a Live Chat feature, too, but reports elsewhere suggest that agents are rarely available – so it’s best to stick with email.

There’s also a Family Resource Page that provides links to helplines for families or children who may be experiencing distress.

It’s a reasonable support offering that matches many other apps, but Bark and Qustodio are notably better: Bark provides loads of help videos and Qustodio has its superb Care Plus package that’s included with its Complete product.

The competition

Indeed, it’s easy to see where OurPact’s key rivals are much better. With Bark, you get improved social media, message and email monitoring for a slightly cheaper price.

Qustodio, meanwhile, costs a little more, but it has better filtering and scheduling abilities. And MMGuardian delivers the best filtering around alongside more comprehensive messaging monitoring.

It’s also worth noting that all three of those apps offer top-level reporting abilities that make it easier to stay on top of child behavior, which isn’t available with OurPact.

Final verdict

It leaves OurPact looking a little meagre, especially when the price and competition are considered.

It may have reasonable screenshotting, app control and screen time abilities, but rivals are better in most of those areas – and, as we’ve seen, other apps also go far further with web filtering, social media monitoring and reporting. If you want a free product, Qustodio’s no-cost version is better than the OurPact equivalent, too.

And while OurPact may be strongest on iOS, rivals like Bark and Qustodio still have reasonable Apple offerings – even if they’re stronger on Android.

OurPact, then, is only worth serious consideration if you’re an Apple-based family – and, even then, weigh up the features first. For everyone else, look elsewhere for stronger alternatives.

From sleek conferencing setups and smart classrooms to complex control rooms, audiovisual (AV) systems have become an essential part of how we work and communicate. But behind the interfaces lies an often-overlooked risk – security. Many AV systems still run on outdated software and firmware, creating vulnerabilities that attackers can exploit with relative ease.

Because AV equipment is not always seen as ‘business critical’ and is sometimes managed separately from the core IT infrastructure, it is frequently assumed to be safe - isolated on its own network or low risk by nature. But this complacency is dangerous. Many devices operate on older versions of software packages which are not always updated even when new versions are released for the device. This creates vulnerabilities in the system.

Knowing the risks

While hybrid working has brought convenience it’s also increased risk. Remote access may speed up troubleshooting, but it also expands the attack surface. Social engineering attacks such as phishing can trick users into handing over access credentials, especially when awareness is low.

As cyber attackers become more sophisticated, they’re shifting their attention to overlooked entry points like AV infrastructure. A good example is YouTuber Jim Browning’s infiltration of a scam call center, where he used unsecured CCTV systems to monitor and expose criminals in real time. This highlights the potential for AV vulnerabilities to be exploited for intelligence gathering.

To counter these risks, organizations must adopt a more proactive approach. Simulated social engineering and phishing attacks can help assess user awareness and expose vulnerabilities in behavior. These simulations should be backed by ongoing training that equips staff to recognize manipulation tactics and understand the value of security hygiene.

In parallel, organizations that use third parties for remote support should be prioritize partners that undergo independent security audits such as ISO 27001 and Cyber Essentials Plus. These accreditations help ensure that strict controls are in place around remote access, including the use of secure management tools and clearly defined policies governing their use.

CVSS – a measured approach to risk

Not all AV vulnerabilities are created equal. That's where the Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) comes in. CVSS helps IT and AV teams prioritize their response by evaluating the complexity of an attack, the scope of its potential impact, and its effect on confidentiality, integrity, and availability.

Vulnerabilities with CVSS scores above 7.5 should prompt swift mitigation. Those rated at the maximum 10 out of 10 require immediate action due to their high severity and low complexity of exploitation. That said, patching these vulnerabilities isn’t always straightforward. In complex, interconnected AV environments, patching updates can introduce compatibility issues that disrupt operations. Organizations should adopt a measured, risk-based approach, balancing the likelihood of exploitation against operational stability.

The severity of breaches also depends on the device and its role. Compromised management interfaces or control code could allow attackers to manipulate systems or access other network devices. Exploited cameras and microphones can lead to breaches of video or audio data, posing serious privacy risks and enabling unauthorized surveillance.

Strengthening AV security

To mitigate the risks posed by vulnerable AV systems, organizations should take a proactive and layered approach to security. This includes regularly updating device firmware and underlying software packages, which are often left outdated even when new versions are available. Strong password policies should be enforced, particularly on devices running webservers, with security practices aligned to standards like the OWASP Top 10.

Physical access to AV infrastructure must also be tightly controlled to prevent unauthorized LAN connections. Where legacy protocols like SCP, SFTP, FTP, or Telnet are still in use, these should be hardened or disabled wherever possible. Encrypting communication between devices using modern protocols such as TLS 1.3, and ensuring appropriate cipher suites are in place, helps safeguard data in transit. Similarly, encrypting data at rest, whether configuration files, control code or temporary data, adds another layer of protection, limiting the damage that can result from a breach.

Collaboration is key

Ultimately, security is a shared responsibility. While network teams play a central role in defending infrastructure, leaving all security decisions to them can be shortsighted. Many vulnerabilities stem from device-specific issues such as outdated firmware, default configurations, or poorly managed passwords that cannot always be mitigated by network controls alone. Even a well-configured device can present risks if it’s connected to a poorly segmented or insecure network.

AV professionals, IT leads, and vendors need to collaborate closely, sharing expertise and intelligence to identify vulnerabilities and address integration challenges. AV teams must take an active role by ensuring devices are updated and properly configured before deployment, clearly communicating potential risks and requirements to network teams, and following best practices such as implementing VLANs, restricting unnecessary traffic, and enabling secure management protocols.

By working together, organizations can build a layered defense that addresses risks at both the device and network levels; strengthening the overall security posture and reducing the likelihood of a breach.

AV systems may not be the first thing you think of when you hear ‘cybersecurity risk’ and that’s exactly the problem. From data leaks and surveillance breaches to unauthorized lateral movement across networks, the consequences of ignoring AV security are real. It’s time to treat AV like the critical infrastructure it has become.

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There’s no shortage of ambition around AI in UK businesses. It’s on board agendas, investor decks and product roadmaps. And yet, for all the buzz, not every organization is seeing meaningful value. According to our research, three out of four UK business leaders say they’re falling behind on AI.

It’s not due to a lack of vision. In fact, most businesses know exactly what AI could do – automate manual work, generate insights, scale faster. The challenge often comes down to execution.

Because success with AI isn’t about one tool, one use case or one budget cycle. It’s about the systems, behaviors and product choices that shape how work gets done. And when those foundations aren’t set up for speed, even the smartest AI strategy can stall.

From a product perspective, three recurring patterns emerge: infrastructure that hasn’t kept up, ways of working that resist change and tools that overcomplicate instead of enable. None of these are permanent blockers – but they need to be designed for, not worked around.

Turning legacy systems into launchpads

Most businesses aren’t dealing with broken systems – just ones that were built for a different time. And over years of growth and expansion, those systems can become more tangled than intentional.

45% of UK business leaders say legacy tech stacks are a major barrier to getting real value from AI – often because the systems beneath them can’t keep up. That’s where friction builds: data stored in different formats, tools that don’t integrate, teams working around the tech rather than with it. When AI enters the picture, those gaps matter. It doesn’t just need data – it needs data that moves.

The good news is that you don’t need to start from scratch. Strategic simplification – consolidating systems, integrating platforms, removing duplications – creates the breathing room AI needs to function. It’s about aligning what you already have to work harder, together.

That’s why businesses are moving towards platforms that unify core tools. We see the most progress when customers focus less on overhauling and more on unlocking single sources of truth. When systems are connected and data flows freely, AI becomes less of a bolt-on and more of a multiplier.

Designing change people want to be part of

Our research found that a third of UK business leaders experience pushback when updating legacy systems or introducing new processes. That hesitation is often labelled as resistance – but more often, it’s a call for clarity. People want to understand how AI fits into their day-to-day work.

When AI is introduced without context – or without input from the people expected to use it – it can feel more like disruption than progress. And that’s where adoption often falters.

The real shift happens when leaders approach change like a product rollout – with transparency and feedback built in. That means involving teams early, framing AI as an enabler and showing clear wins that matter to employees: time saved, tasks simplified, better decisions made faster. It also needs commitment from leadership to effective change management and AI empowerment.

Equally important is giving teams the confidence to experiment. AI is an evolving capability. Employees need to feel safe to test, question and shape how these tools work in practice.

It doesn’t always take a huge transformation programme to shift culture. In many teams, the change starts with solving a small, frustrating problem in a better way – and sharing how it’s done.

Keeping it simple enough to scale

Even with modern systems and engaged teams, there is one more barrier that can slow AI adoption: complexity. Not in the concept of AI itself, but in how it shows up in people’s work.

According to our research, 35% of UK business leaders say they’re struggling to bridge this skills gap and give their teams the confidence to use new AI tools effectively. And often, that comes down to how those tools are built – with technical users in mind, not everyday use.

They sit outside established workflows or feel disconnected from the work people are actually trying to do. In resource-conscious organizations, this kind of friction can stall adoption altogether.

Simplicity is all about reducing the time between intention and outcome. The more intuitive a tool is, the faster it delivers value. A well-designed AI system doesn’t just speed up tasks – it helps teams reach clarity faster, with less back-and-forth and fewer dependencies. It also scales better. Tools that are simple to use are easier to roll out, train, and maintain – especially across cross-functional teams.

Creating the right conditions for AI to deliver

UK businesses seeing value from AI aren’t rushing ahead. They’re creating conditions for progress.

That means designing processes that evolve, cultures that stay open to iteration and products that learn alongside the people actually using them. The fact is that AI doesn’t need a perfect environment. It just needs a responsive one – built to both implement change and sustain it.

What matters most isn’t scale on day one, but the ability to keep improving.

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Watch Get Out, Companion or another scary flick.

Looking for a different day?

A new NYT Strands puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Thursday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Thursday, July 3 (game #487).

Strands is the NYT's latest word game after the likes of Wordle, Spelling Bee and Connections – and it's great fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands hints.

Want more word-based fun? Then check out my NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games, and Marc's Wordle today page for the original viral word game.

SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.

NYT Strands today (game #488) - hint #1 - today's themeWhat is the theme of today's NYT Strands?

• Today's NYT Strands theme is… ... Let's have a picnic!

NYT Strands today (game #488) - hint #2 - clue words

Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.

• BARN
• LORE
• BUGS
• STAR
• TRACE
• SNORE

NYT Strands today (game #488) - hint #3 - spangram lettersHow many letters are in today's spangram?

• Spangram has 8 letters

NYT Strands today (game #488) - hint #4 - spangram positionWhat are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?

First side: top, 4th column

Last side: bottom, 4th column

Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.

NYT Strands today (game #488) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Strands, game #488, are…

• BURGERS
• SALAD
• COLESLAW
• BRATS
• BEANS
• WATERMELON
• SPANGRAM: BARBECUE

• My rating: Easy
• My score: Perfect

I roared through today’s word search at rapid speed. Most likely because I’m hungry and I’d love a BURGER – not one from a BARBECUE, though. In my experience that’s a bad idea. But also because there was little to challenge us here beyond the twisty-turny WATERMELON.

It may be different in the United States, where people who don’t usually cook have more opportunities to practice burning meat, but in the UK a barbecue is a rare event that usually results in some form of drama caused by drinking in the sunshine alongside a long list of food hygiene infringements.

Again, most likely different in other parts of the world, but the traditional British barbecued burger is burnt to a crisp on the outside and raw, bordering on still frozen, on the inside – and served on a bun that is chemically closer to rubber than bread. Strangely, I don't feel hungry anymore.

How did you do today? Let me know in the comments below.

Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Thursday, July 3, game #487)

• CHERRY
• COFFEE
• BUTTERSCOTCH
• BROWNIE
• PISTACHIO
• SPANGRAM: ICE CREAM

What is NYT Strands?

Strands is the NYT's not-so-new-any-more word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable that has been running for a year and which can be played on the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.

I've got a full guide to how to play NYT Strands, complete with tips for solving it, so check that out if you're struggling to beat it each day.

Looking for a different day?

A new NYT Connections puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Thursday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Connections hints and answers for Thursday, July 3 (game #753).

Good morning! Let's play Connections, the NYT's clever word game that challenges you to group answers in various categories. It can be tough, so read on if you need Connections hints.

What should you do once you've finished? Why, play some more word games of course. I've also got daily Strands hints and answers and Quordle hints and answers articles if you need help for those too, while Marc's Wordle today page covers the original viral word game.

SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Connections today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.

NYT Connections today (game #754) - today's words

(Image credit: New York Times)

Today's NYT Connections words are…

• DRAB
• BLOW
• MISS
• SPOKE
• TIRE
• DUCT
• WASTE
• FATIGUE
• EXHAUST
• RIM
• KHAKI
• HOSE
• LOSE
• PIPE
• HUB
• CAMO

NYT Connections today (game #754) - hint #1 - group hints

What are some clues for today's NYT Connections groups?

• YELLOW: Circular car component
• GREEN: Army garments 
• BLUE: Let it flow
• PURPLE: A chance that slipped away

Need more clues?

We're firmly in spoiler territory now, but read on if you want to know what the four theme answers are for today's NYT Connections puzzles…

NYT Connections today (game #754) - hint #2 - group answers

What are the answers for today's NYT Connections groups?

• YELLOW: PARTS OF A WHEEL 
• GREEN: MILITARY CLOTHING DESCRIPTORS 
• BLUE: USED IN VENTILATION 
• PURPLE: FAIL TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF, AS AN OPPORTUNITY 

Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.

NYT Connections today (game #754) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Connections, game #754, are…

• YELLOW: PARTS OF A WHEEL HUB, RIM, SPOKE, TIRE
• GREEN: MILITARY CLOTHING DESCRIPTORS CAMO, DRAB, FATIGUE, KHAKI
• BLUE: USED IN VENTILATION DUCT, EXHAUST, HOSE, PIPE
• PURPLE: FAIL TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF, AS AN OPPORTUNITY BLOW, LOSE, MISS, WASTE

• My rating: Easy
• My score: Perfect

After a terrible streak it felt good to complete a round of Connections without making a mistake. 

I can only conclude that today’s edition was an unusually easy one; even the purple group would be at yellow-level on some days. 

My only pause for thought was over MILITARY CLOTHING DESCRIPTORS; CAMO, FATIGUE, and KHAKI all seemed common enough, but DRAB was a guess based on how dull army clothing is.

How did you do today? Let me know in the comments below.

Yesterday's NYT Connections answers (Thursday, July 3, game #753)

• YELLOW: CORRESPONDENCE CONTACT, DEALINGS, EXCHANGE, INTERACTION
• GREEN: AIRPORT BOARD INFO ARRIVAL, DESTINATION, FLIGHT, GATE
• BLUE: PRO ATHLETE DATA COLLEGE, NUMBER, POSITION, TEAM
• PURPLE: FARMERS' THINGS ALMANAC, INSURANCE, MARKET, TAN

What is NYT Connections?

NYT Connections is one of several increasingly popular word games made by the New York Times. It challenges you to find groups of four items that share something in common, and each group has a different difficulty level: green is easy, yellow a little harder, blue often quite tough and purple usually very difficult.

On the plus side, you don't technically need to solve the final one, as you'll be able to answer that one by a process of elimination. What's more, you can make up to four mistakes, which gives you a little bit of breathing room.

It's a little more involved than something like Wordle, however, and there are plenty of opportunities for the game to trip you up with tricks. For instance, watch out for homophones and other word games that could disguise the answers.

It's playable for free via the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.

Looking for a different day?

A new Quordle puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Thursday's puzzle instead then click here: Quordle hints and answers for Thursday, July 3 (game #1256).

Quordle was one of the original Wordle alternatives and is still going strong now more than 1,100 games later. It offers a genuine challenge, though, so read on if you need some Quordle hints today – or scroll down further for the answers.

Enjoy playing word games? You can also check out my NYT Connections today and NYT Strands today pages for hints and answers for those puzzles, while Marc's Wordle today column covers the original viral word game.

SPOILER WARNING: Information about Quordle today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.

Quordle today (game #1257) - hint #1 - VowelsHow many different vowels are in Quordle today?

• The number of different vowels in Quordle today is 3*.

* Note that by vowel we mean the five standard vowels (A, E, I, O, U), not Y (which is sometimes counted as a vowel too).

Quordle today (game #1257) - hint #2 - repeated lettersDo any of today's Quordle answers contain repeated letters?

• The number of Quordle answers containing a repeated letter today is 2.

Quordle today (game #1257) - hint #3 - uncommon lettersDo the letters Q, Z, X or J appear in Quordle today?

• No. None of Q, Z, X or J appear among today's Quordle answers.

Quordle today (game #1257) - hint #4 - starting letters (1)Do any of today's Quordle puzzles start with the same letter?

• The number of today's Quordle answers starting with the same letter is 2.

If you just want to know the answers at this stage, simply scroll down. If you're not ready yet then here's one more clue to make things a lot easier:

Quordle today (game #1257) - hint #5 - starting letters (2)What letters do today's Quordle answers start with?

• F

• S

• G

• F

Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.

Quordle today (game #1257) - the answers

(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)

The answers to today's Quordle, game #1257, are…

• FAVOR
• SKUNK
• GAWKY
• FLUFF

Today was a great example of a mistake leading to a tricky answer I might not have solved otherwise. I incorrectly guessed “snuff” instead of SKUNK and the F-F ending opened up FLUFF.

Incidentally, fluff is one of a small number of five-letter words with just three unique letters. Only one English five letter word has two unique letters. Don’t know it? Ask your mamma.

Sorry for the terrible dad joke.

How did you do today? Let me know in the comments below.

Daily Sequence today (game #1257) - the answers

(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)

The answers to today's Quordle Daily Sequence, game #1257, are…

• THEME
• MULCH
• DEUCE
• OCCUR

Quordle answers: The past 20

• Quordle #1256, Thursday, 3 July: DANCE, EYING, GLAZE, EGRET
• Quordle #1255, Wednesday, 2 July: INANE, SCOUR, ELITE, ULCER
• Quordle #1254, Tuesday, 1 July: REBAR, YEARN, FORTH, CROWD
• Quordle #1253, Monday, 30 June: INGOT, INFER, TAPIR, CLUED
• Quordle #1252, Sunday, 29 June: MIRTH, APTLY, SCRUB, SMACK
• Quordle #1251, Saturday, 28 June: AWOKE, SMOKY, DEVIL, SWING
• Quordle #1250, Friday, 27 June: SPEAK, EAGLE, AVERT, SUING
• Quordle #1249, Thursday, 26 June: SLUMP, REBUS, GUAVA, MONEY
• Quordle #1248, Wednesday, 25 June: SOGGY, CLASH, MODEM, SQUAD
• Quordle #1247, Tuesday, 24 June: QUALM, SQUIB, AXIAL, FLACK
• Quordle #1246, Monday, 23 June: PIXEL, FJORD, STEAL, EXIST
• Quordle #1245, Sunday, 22 June: WREST, CRAZE, PAPAL, SCION
• Quordle #1244, Saturday, 21 June: BUDDY, GROUT, BEGIN, MADAM
• Quordle #1243, Friday, 20 June: BRAID, DULLY, HASTE, LURID
• Quordle #1242, Thursday, 19 June: BRUSH, ISLET, FRUIT, PRIVY
• Quordle #1241, Wednesday, 18 June: MEDIA, SHARK, GUPPY, MOURN
• Quordle #1240, Tuesday, 17 June: LEAPT, PRISM, ADMIN, WHINE
• Quordle #1239, Monday, 16 June: RETRY, SCALD, DINGO, FEIGN
• Quordle #1238, Sunday, 15 June: SHOCK, STEIN, BROIL, COVEN
• Quordle #1237, Saturday, 14 June: STICK, FERRY, THESE, IONIC

• Hackers are actively targeting a messaging app used by federal agencies
• The app was also involved in the Signalgate scandal
• Hackers have already stolen chats and metadata from 60 government officials

The US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has warned a popular Signal messaging app clone being used by federal agencies is under attack.

The clone, TeleMessage, was found to have some serious issues, including a lack of proper end-to-end encryption.

Hackers have been exploiting two flaws, CVE-2025-48927 and CVE-2025-48928, to access federal chat logs and metadata. CISA has given federal agencies until July 22 to apply patches.

Federal chat app hacked

The new comes months after then-US national security advisor Mike Waltz accidentally added Jeffrey Goldberg, editor in chief at The Atlantic, to a secret Signal chat discussing ongoing US strikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen. Waltz was then removed from his position as a result.

Following investigations into the fiasco, it emerged that Waltz and others weren’t using Signal, but a clone of the app called TM SGNL, which was developed by TeleMessage.

The app was then subsequently targeted in an attack that saw the chat logs and metadata of around 60 government officials including Secret Service members and a White House official leaked online.

The first flaw listed by CISA, CVE-2025-48927, has a CVSS score of 5.3, and allows hackers to extract sensitive data from memory dumps exposed by a Spring Boot Actuator misconfiguration in the TeleMessage app that exposes the /heapdump endpoint.

The second flaw, CVE-2025-48928, has a CVSS score of 4.0, and allows an attacker to access exposed passwords sent over HTTP by stealing a memory-dump file through local access to the TeleMessage server.

No other details on the flaws have been released by CISA, but the agency has said that federal agencies must patch the app by July 22 or stop using it altogether.

Via The Register

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U.S. employers added 147,000 jobs in June as the unemployment rate dipped to 4.1%. Job gains were concentrated in health care and state and local government.

(Image credit: Michael M. Santiago)

• AMD's RX 9070 XT is now considerably faster than it was at launch
• It's 9% quicker, in fact, with the latest graphics driver compared to the initial release
• That's based on benchmarking across a suite of games conducted by Hardware Unboxed, and those results are broadly reflected elsewhere, too

AMD's RX 9070 XT graphics card is considerably faster than it was when the GPU first launched thanks to improvements in Team Red's drivers, going by some new testing.

This comes from Hardware Unboxed on YouTube (as highlighted by VideoCardz), which had seen reports of performance boosts and wanted to verify those claims.

And they turned out to be correct, because based on benchmarks conducted across a suite of 16 games (at 1440p resolution) by Hardware Unboxed, the RX 9070 XT was 9% faster than with its launch graphics drivers (from back in March 2025).

This game benchmarking used the latest AMD Adrenalin graphics driver (version 25.6.3), but also included Nvidia's RTX 5070 Ti not just for perspective, but also to ensure that these gains were achieved due to the drivers.

This was to eliminate the possibility that the near-10% boost witnessed by the RX 9070 XT might have been the result of patches applied to the games. So, if the RTX 5070 Ti had shown similar gains, the conclusion would be that this was down to game, not driver, optimizations – but that isn't the case.

Granted, with some games, the RTX 5070 Ti witnessed similar frame-rate gains to AMD's graphics card, which could indicate that those improvements were indeed down to an update for the game (or multiple updates over time). Or indeed that Nvidia's drivers have improved, too, by a similar amount, which is of course perfectly possible. There were some victories for the RTX 5070 Ti, as well, though they were more outliers, like a 36% gain in Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 (which was due to a bug fix).

The broad thrust of Hardware Unboxed's findings, though, is that the RX 9070 XT does considerably better, with the mentioned 9% boost (going from 116 frames per second to 126 on average) compared to a gain of 2.5% (119 frames per second to 122) for Nvidia's upper-mid-range GPU. That include a 27% speed gain for the AMD graphics card in Spider-Man Remastered.

Analysis: AMD's increasingly tempting value proposition

Of course, there are a lot of moving parts here in terms of the games chosen to be tested and graphics settings applied (and the test PC configuration). There wasn't much difference at 4K resolution, it's worth noting, with a 4% gain for the 9070 XT versus 3% for the 5070 Ti.

So, this is hardly a definitive result, and we should exercise some caution around it. Still, the difference at 1440p appears to be large enough to warrant some raised eyebrows, and these kinds of gains have been observed elsewhere, too, as noted.

It appears, then, that AMD has made considerable progress in honing its Adrenalin graphics drivers – much more so than Nvidia – since the RDNA 4 range of graphics cards was launched. Or, to a certain extent, this could reflect Team Red smoothing out wonkiness with performance at lower resolutions (given that the boost at 4K is much less, and barely any different to what Nvidia has managed with the RTX 5070 Ti).

This is great news for those who bought an RX 9070 XT already, of course, and effectively a substantial free speed boost, as it were. It's also evidence of the 'fine wine' effect that's commonly associated with AMD drivers, meaning they age very well as time goes on.

What about the situation for those who are looking at buying either an RTX 5070 Ti or RX 9070 XT? For starters, they can check out our head-to-head comparison of those GPUs, but performance-wise in this Hardware Unboxed test, there's not much between them.

At 1440p – the resolution these graphics cards will mostly be used at – AMD has pulled its socks up a good deal as noted, and the 9070 XT is now the faster board, but only by 3%. There are other arguments in favor of Nvidia, too, around the benefits of DLSS 4 and Multi Frame Generation, so it's a very close battle here.

That means, then, that pricing is absolutely key – and of course regional price tags, too – and this is where AMD scores the win, certainly in the US, UK and Australia. At Newegg US currently, the Nvidia GPU is 20% more expensive (it's normally more, though), and in Australia the gulf is more like 30%. Wherever you live, the story is likely to be very similar, unless you can find a really good outlier of a deal on the RTX 5070 Ti (like this one in the UK currently).

And given that, unless you're really hungry for DLSS 4, the RX 9070 XT is now looking very much the stronger of these GPUs in terms of that all-important overall price/performance ratio.

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• Microsoft reportedly set for another round of job cuts
• Next move could see 6,000 cut from the company's Gaming division
• The cuts make up less than 4% of Microsoft's global headcount

Microsoft is cutting 9,000 jobs with most of those facing the ax being employed in the Gaming division.

“We continue to implement organizational changes necessary to best position the company and teams for success in a dynamic marketplace,” a Microsoft spokesperson said (via CNBC).

The job cuts seek to reduce the layers of managers standing between individual contributors and top executives, a person familiar with the matter told CNBC.

Microsoft reveals another round of cuts

Cutting jobs seems to be the growing trend for many large companies, with Microsoft cutting just under 1% of its workforce in January 2025.

Another 6,000 workers, mostly programmers, were cut in May and a further 300 jobs cut in June.

Phil Spencer, Microsoft’s CEO of gaming, wrote in a Wednesday memo, “To position Gaming for enduring success and allow us to focus on strategic growth areas, we will end or decrease work in certain areas of the business and follow Microsoft’s lead in removing layers of management to increase agility and effectiveness.”

Amazon has also gone through several waves of layoffs this year, with CEO Andy Jassy repeatedly saying that AI could replace some of its workers.

For Microsoft though, the layoffs are more to do with improving business performance and reducing internal friction.

Intel has also lined up a significant wave of layoffs, with the company looking to cut 15-20% of its factory workforce.

Intel already laid off 15,000 people in August 2024. But while Intel has been struggling with declining revenues and market performance, Microsoft reported nearly $26 billion in net income on $70 billion in revenue for the March quarter.

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Presumed Innocent season 2: key information

- Renewed in July 2024
- Rachel Brosnahan cast as lead star
- Jake Gyllenhaal to return as executive producer
- Release date currently unknown
- Plot to follow Jo Murray's Dissection of a Murder
- No official trailer yet

Presumed Innocent season 2 is on the way, which is not surprising given the prodigious success of Apple TV+'s dark and twisting adaptation of the Scott Turow novel of the same name.

And while viewers had yet to find out whether Rusty Sabich (Jake Gyllenhaal) did or didn’t murder his mistress, it seems they never will. A new lead star has been cast with a whole new plot to follow. So, there's plenty to talk about that doesn't concern Rusty at all.

It's one of the best Apple TV+ shows and as we look ahead to what season 2 has to offer for this gripping procedural drama before it returns to one of the best streaming services. Here's what we can expect from release date, plot details, confirmed cast, trailer speculation and more.

Presumed Innocent season 2 release date

New season. New case.Presumed Innocent has been renewed for season 2. pic.twitter.com/FeKFmAWueiJuly 12, 2024

There's no Presumed Innocent season 2 release date just yet, but with the official renewal from Apple TV+ happening back in July 2024, it doesn't feel too far away.

I'd predict we'll be seeing season 2 around early 2026, but I'll be sure to update here as soon as I hear any news.

Presumed Innocent season 2 trailer

New season. New case.Presumed Innocent has been renewed for season 2. pic.twitter.com/FeKFmAWueiJuly 12, 2024

Unfortunately, it's not going to take a district attorney to work out that a Presumed Innocent season 2 trailer won’t be expected until a few weeks before the show drops on Apple TV+. But, I'll post it here when it does.

Presumed Innocent season 2 cast

A post shared by Apple TV (@appletv)

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Full spoilers to follow for Presumed Innocent season 1.

The only confirmed Presumed Innocent cast member so far is Rachel Brosnahan as Leila Reynolds. In June, it was officially revealed by Apple TV that she would be taking on the lead role for season 2.

Despite Gyllenhaal playing the lead in this series, it seems very unlikely that he'll return as Rusty for season 2 given there will be an entirely new storyline (more on this below).

But, he will be staying on as an executive producer alongside David E. Kelley, J.J. Abrams and Scott Turrow.

And while Peter Sarsgaard played Tommy Molto in season 1, he was very clear about his position on returning for season 2, as reported by IndieWire: “I’m not really that interested in sequels. I think I’ve only ever done one season of anything… I think I’m a one-season person.”

That doesn't mean there can't be any crossover though, as Deadline revealed: "There had been an idea for a character or two from Season 1 to carry over for continuity in the vein of HBO's The White Lotus; it is unclear whether that is still a possibility". Though reps from Apple TV+ and WBTV declined to comment.

Presumed Innocent season 2 plot details & rumors

A new season and a new courtroom (Image credit: Apple TV Plus)

As discussed in the cast section, Presumed Innocent season 2 will be based on an entirely new source material. While Scott Turrow is on board as co-executive producer, it won't be another of his books that season 2 will follow.

Instead, it has been confirmed that it will be based on the debut legal thriller Dissection of a Murder by Jo Murray. And that is, in part, due to the fact there was no clear path for season 2.

As per the Pan Macmillan's official synopsis, we have a great insight into the plot: "When Leila Reynolds is handed her first murder case, she's shocked at how high-profile it is: the murder of a well-respected, well-known judge.

"This shouldn't be the kind of case she's leading; it's way beyond her expertise. But the defendant, Jack Millman, is clear. He wants her, and only her.

"To make things worse, he's refusing to talk. How is she supposed to prove herself on what appears to be an unwinnable case?"

Oh, and Deadline also revealed that the prosecutor in Leila's case is also her husband. Adding: "Things are still in flux but Dissection of a Murder is expected to serve as inspiration for the second season of what is shaping up to be a true anthology series."

Will there be more seasons of Presumed Innocent?

Presumed Innocent season 2 paves the way for an anthology (Image credit: Apple TV+)

There's no news of any future seasons of Presumed Innocent, but that shouldn't come as a shock since there's not even a season 2 release date yet.

What we do know is that the popular Apple TV+ drama is shaping up to become an anthology series, which does create a much wider scope for any future seasons and their subsequent plots.

As always, I imagine it'll depend on the success of season 2 before a decision is made around more. But, since season 2 was renewed two weeks before season 1 concluded, there's every hope that there'll be more to come.

For more Apple TV+ coverage, read our guides on Severance season 3, Ted Lasso season 4, Silo season 3, and Slow Horses season 5.

Our series on identity theft protection apps will evaluate the features, pricing options, competition, and also the overall value of using each app. However, these are not full hands-on reviews since evaluating identity theft protection apps is almost impossible. It would require several months of testing, purposefully hacking accounts to see if the protection app works, handing over personally identifiable information, performing multiple credit checks, and risking exposure of the reviewer’s personally identifiable information.

Every discussion about Experian IdentityWorks in reviews and news begins with the mandatory mention of the company's previous data breach history. This evaluation contains the same pattern as others, but readers should evaluate its complete fairness. The brand IdentityWorks operates under Experian, which maintains its position as a subsidiary, despite Experian’s well-known reputation for negative reasons.

In 2015, the major consumer credit reporting agency revealed one of the most significant data breaches, which exposed more than 15 million customer records. The massive security failure of a credit reporting agency handling sensitive financial data caused global shock and widespread public concern, despite additional data breaches across various industries.

The infamous security incident occurred more than ten years ago. The long duration of this event would remind movie fans of a memorable scene from The World According to Garp. The movie depicts Robin Williams' character, who searches for a house but watches a plane crash into his potential home. He decides to buy the house because he believes another plane hitting the house would be astronomically unlikely.

The security measures implemented by Experian follow a similar pattern to the previous situation. The company likely dedicated significant resources to improving data security after its major and harmful 2015 data breach, thus surpassing other organizations in their security enhancements. Experian faces an "astronomical" probability of experiencing another major data breach at least as severe as its previous incident. The focus on Experian's 2015 breach creates an inaccurate impression because the company has probably developed enhanced defensive capabilities that provide better protection for its IdentityWorks users today.

Experian offers a number of plans to choose from depending on how many adults and children there are in your household (Image credit: Experian)

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Experian IdentityWorks: Plans and pricing

The Basic plan, a free tier of Experian, offers limited features. It includes a complimentary Experian credit report, FICO score, dark web surveillance report, and FICO score tracker. While cost-effective, this plan provides minimal protection.

The Premium plan offers a comprehensive range of features designed to protect adults from identity theft and fraud. Priced at $24.99 per month, this subscription service provides robust monitoring and alerts to safeguard sensitive personal information.

One of the key features of the Premium plan is full access to credit monitoring. This service monitors your credit reports from the three major credit bureaus—Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion—and notifies you of any changes or suspicious activity. This allows you to stay informed about your credit profile and quickly identify any potential issues, such as unauthorized inquiries or fraudulent accounts.

To enhance account security, the plan offers financial account takeover alerts. These alerts vigilantly monitor your financial accounts for any unauthorized transactions or changes. By doing so, this feature safeguards your bank accounts, credit cards, and investment accounts against potential compromises. If any suspicious activities are detected, you will receive immediate notifications, allowing you to take prompt action to secure your accounts effectively.

Within the Premium plan's robust offerings, change of address alerts stand out as a crucial feature. This service keeps a watchful eye on public records to detect any modifications to your address, such as alterations to your driver's license or voter registration. Identity thieves frequently exploit change of address requests to reroute your mail, allowing them to pilfer confidential documents. However, this alert system safeguards you by promptly notifying you of any unauthorized changes, empowering you to take proactive steps to shield your identity from harm.

In addition to its monitoring features, the Premium plan provides social network monitoring alerts. This service vigilantly scans social media platforms for any unauthorized use of your name, photos, or personal information. Given that social media accounts are frequent targets for identity thieves, this alert system keeps you informed of potential online fraud attempts.

Among the many benefits of the Premium plan, the most notable feature is the up to $1 million in identity theft insurance it provides. This coverage acts as a financial safety net in the unfortunate event you become a victim of identity theft. The insurance covers expenses associated with restoring your identity, including legal fees, lost wages, and credit repair. This coverage offers invaluable peace of mind, knowing that you have a support system in place to help you recover from the devastating impact of identity theft.

The Premium plan provides a comprehensive array of security features to safeguard adults from identity theft and fraudulent activities. This subscription service offers robust monitoring, timely alerts, and substantial insurance coverage, creating an invaluable layer of protection for your sensitive personal information.

For families with more than one adult, the top-tier Family plan is the best choice. With a monthly cost of $34.99, this plan covers two adults and up to ten children, offering all the features of the Premium plan except for one minor difference.

The assumption of identity theft prevention software that users could have "up to" 10 children is perplexing, particularly given that the average number of children per family in the US is only two, and even fewer in the UK. Despite this, IdentityWorks inexplicably offers pricing options that accommodate up to 10 children and one or two adults. This pricing structure stands in stark contrast to the reality of family sizes in most countries, raising questions about the rationale behind such an assumption.

Unfortunately, annual discounts are currently unavailable. Instead, a brief 7-day free trial is offered. However, it necessitates purchasing the plan and then canceling it within the trial period, effectively converting it into a money-back guarantee during the first week.

Experian does not offer a standalone app for IdentityWorks and instead the service is baked into its credit report app. (Image credit: Experian)Experian IdentityWorks: Interface

Thank goodness we're partnering with a major corporation like IdentityWorks, which boasts the resources and expertise to develop a user-friendly and feature-rich application. IdentityWorks' dashboard exemplifies minimalist design, featuring a sleek layout with intuitive tabs at the top that simplify navigation. Users can effortlessly find the information they need without unnecessary distractions. Additionally, the dashboard incorporates a dynamic wizard that visually tracks progress, indicating the number of steps completed and accounts configured, much like the seamless experience offered by Norton LifeLock, which prioritizes accessibility and user engagement.

In contrast, PrivacyGuard's interface appears somewhat cluttered, with an overabundance of bright colors that can be distracting and create a sense of overwhelm for specific users. IdentityWorks, on the other hand, cultivates an atmosphere of professionalism and importance, ensuring that users feel confident and secure while managing their sensitive information.

The IdentityWorks app is packed with practical features that empower users to take charge of their identities and maintain their privacy. For example, it offers tools for generating strong passwords, regularly monitoring credit reports, and sending timely alerts about potential identity theft. These proactive measures are crucial in today’s digital landscape, where threats to personal information are constant and evolving. Additionally, the app includes comprehensive resources for identity recovery in the event of an unfortunate need, ensuring users have a plan in place to regain control if their identity is compromised.

Overall, IdentityWorks stands out as an excellent choice for individuals seeking a comprehensive and user-friendly identity management solution. Its clean interface, practical features, and robust security measures position it as a leading option for anyone serious about protecting their identity and privacy in an increasingly digital world.

However, it's worth noting that while the IdentityWorks website provides links to apps for both Android and iOS devices, many consumers are unaware of their actual existence. Unfortunately, the linked apps lead to the Experian app rather than a dedicated IdentityWorks application. This oversight is disappointing and frustrating for consumers who are actively seeking a well-rounded identity management solution tailored to their needs. Improved visibility and clarity regarding app options could significantly enhance the user experience and ensure that users have the necessary tools at their fingertips.

Experian IdentityWorks: Features

In addition to its unique features, IdentityWorks emphasizes the importance of education and empowerment in the realm of identity protection. The platform is designed not only to monitor for potential threats but also to equip users with the knowledge they need to take proactive steps in safeguarding their identities. By providing access to a wealth of educational resources, including articles, guides, and webinars, users can stay informed about the latest trends in identity theft and cyber threats, enabling them to make more informed decisions about their safety.

Another noteworthy aspect of IdentityWorks is its focus on customer support. Recognizing that navigating issues of identity theft can be stressful and overwhelming, IdentityWorks provides comprehensive, round-the-clock support to its users. This includes access to dedicated identity theft recovery specialists who can guide users through the process of resolving any issues they may encounter. Whether it’s disputing fraudulent charges, recovering stolen identities, or simply understanding the nuances of personal credit, having expert assistance available can significantly alleviate the anxiety often associated with identity theft.

Additionally, IdentityWorks places a strong emphasis on user privacy and data security. In an era where data breaches are becoming increasingly common, the platform utilizes advanced encryption techniques and robust cybersecurity measures to safeguard sensitive user information. This commitment to protecting personal data not only enhances trust among users but also aligns with the growing demand for responsible data handling practices in the industry.

Moreover, the ability to tailor monitoring alerts is another feature that enhances the user experience. Users can customize the types of alerts they receive, ensuring they are only notified about issues relevant to them. This level of personalization not only reduces noise and potential overwhelm but also allows for a more focused approach to identity monitoring. Users can prioritize their concerns and receive timely updates that are relevant to their specific situations.

Finally, as technology continues to evolve, IdentityWorks remains committed to staying current with advancements in the field of identity protection. By regularly updating its services and features, the platform aims to stay ahead of emerging threats, offering users cutting-edge tools that reflect the current landscape of identity security. This commitment to innovation not only positions IdentityWorks as a formidable player in the identity theft protection market but also helps reassure users that their security is a top priority in an evolving environment.

In summary, while many identity theft protection services offer foundational monitoring features, IdentityWorks stands out through its unique offerings, emphasis on education and customer support, commitment to privacy and data security, customizable alerts, and dedication to staying current with technological advancements. These qualities make it an attractive option for those seeking comprehensive protection and guidance in navigating the complexities of identity management.

Experian IdentityWorks: The competition

The strong set of features in Experian IdentityWorks includes court record monitoring alongside FICO score simulation accuracy. Still, the identity theft protection market offers multiple robust alternatives for diverse needs and price ranges. LifeLock serves as a prominent identity theft protection service because it is integrated within the Norton 360 suite, which offers comprehensive cybersecurity protection. LifeLock monitors deeply, offering extensive dark web and home title and social media surveillance, along with $3 million in identity theft insurance coverage. However, its costs rise substantially following initial promotional periods.

Aura stands as a powerful alternative, achieving high ratings from users who praise its comprehensive security features. Aura provides users with comprehensive identity and credit monitoring capabilities through its alert system, which tracks all three major credit bureaus and incorporates full cybersecurity features, including VPN protection, antivirus software, and parental control capabilities. Aura offers families an excellent digital security solution, providing comprehensive protection at competitive prices with generous identity theft insurance benefits of up to $5 million for family plans.

The Premier version of Identity Guard provides advanced AI technology based on IBM Watson to monitor three bureau data alongside comprehensive protection which sets it apart from other options. The system provides immediate alerts and focuses intensely on credit reporting so it suits users who want to protect their financial information. The legal support feature of IDShield through LegalShield makes it stand out as a provider because it offers simple pricing together with dedicated legal assistance during identity theft situations. The restoration process includes access to a licensed private investigator along with social media tracking and VPN protection for users who need complete identity protection along with robust legal protection. The selection between these alternatives depends on individual preferences regarding specific features and insurance levels as well as budget constraints and the need for a complete cybersecurity package.

Experian IdentityWorks: Support

Experian doesn't provide a specific phone number or email address for direct contact regarding issues. Instead, clicking on "Contact us" directs users to a help center with various articles. For immediate assistance, Experian recommends obtaining an Experian credit report and calling the phone number provided on the report.

To enhance user satisfaction, we would suggest more streamlined and accessible communication channels for users to reach out to Experian.

Experian IdentityWorks: Final verdict

Safeguarding your personal identity stands as an absolute necessity in the current digitally connected world. Our personal information exists in the digital atmosphere to a greater extent than ever because of online transactions and social media posts, along with connected devices. The defense mechanisms provided by credit protection cover only a limited segment of identity theft risks that continue to evolve.

Identity theft is a broad and damaging criminal activity that encompasses multiple types of fraudulent actions, resulting in severe harm to victims. A person who steals your personal details can perform multiple illegal actions, such as establishing unauthorized credit accounts using your name while taking loans you will need to pay, filing false tax returns, and committing crimes, which will appear on your criminal record. The consequences of identity theft go beyond financial damage because they cause severe credit score deterioration along with damaged reputation and both emotional suffering and time-consuming identity recovery procedures.

Experian IdentityWorks stands as one of the primary services that protects identities from theft among all available options. The service provides a comprehensive suite of protective tools designed to defend personal data and mitigate identity theft threats effectively. The service offers continuous credit bureau monitoring, a proactive fraud alert system, substantial identity theft insurance coverage, and dedicated support for resolving identity theft cases.

Many users choose Experian IdentityWorks because of its extensive educational resources and instructional materials. The service provides highly valuable, actionable information that teaches users effective techniques for preventing identity theft and secure methods for handling their data online. The informational materials provide clear and engaging content that enables individuals with varying digital skills to protect their personal information effectively.

The choice to sign up for Experian IdentityWorks depends on personal factors which include your comfort level with risk and the specific issues you want to address. The financial and credit security features of Experian IdentityWorks make it a solid choice for those seeking comprehensive credit monitoring and fraud protection, thanks to its direct connection to Experian's credit data. Direct access to Experian credit data enables users to benefit from superior accuracy and a more detailed understanding.

The past data breach of Experian remains a notable concern for potential customers who decide against the service. The company invested extensive resources in security improvements following the breach more than a decade ago, although the incident continues to impact those who need perfect security standards. People who want better security and peace of mind should consider identity protection services such as LifeLock, Aura, Identity Guard, and IDShield.

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• Catwatchful data leak affects 62,000 victims, including 26,000 victims' phone data
• The dodgy developer outed himself by reusing an email address
• Google has committed to warning users about the app

Security researcher Eric Daigle has revealed information about a serious data breach affecting Catwatchful, an Android spyware app disguised as a child monitoring tool.

A full user database with plaintext passwords and email addresses affecting over 62,000 users has been leaked as a result, with phone data like messages, photos, location, mic and camera feeds also putting 26,000 victims at risk.

According to the report, the spyware app runs in stealth mode hidden from users, collecting and uploading information.

Catwatchful app is full of spyware

As is typical from stalkerware like this, Catwatchful is an app that operates outside of the Play Store, requiring physical installation via a process known as sideloading.

The app's admin, Uruguay-based developer Omar Soca Charcov, has been exposed because the email he used for Catwatchful had been reused on LinkedIn.

Daigle also noted that Charcov's admin account was the first record in the breached database, with password recovery linked to his personal email address.

The data was stored on Google Firebase, sent via a custom API that was unauthenticated, resulting in open access to user and victim data. The report also confirms that, although hosting had initially been suspended by HostGator, it had been restored via another temporary domain.

Most affected devices affect users in Mexico, Colombia, India, Peru, Argentina, Ecuador and Bolivia.

Daigle was able to exploit a SQL injection vulnerability to get access to the database, leading him to conclude that Firebase was not the source of the vulnerability, but rather the API.

Google has been notified, and although the app isn't distributed on the Play Store, the company has added Google Play Protect alerts for Catwatchful.

To stay protected from threats like this, it’s important to use the best antivirus software, reliable malware removal tools, and strong endpoint protection.

Even well-known apps and tools can have flaws, so running trusted security software and keeping all apps current helps reduce the risk of malware slipping through unnoticed.

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