Technology

• The EU Commission presented a Roadmap on how it intends to ensure that law enforcement has effective and lawful access to citizens' data
• Politicians seek to establish a precedent for the decryption of private data
• The Roadmap is part of the ProtectEU strategy, first unveiled in April 2025

EU law enforcement bodies could be capable of decrypting your private data by 2030.

This is one of the ambitious goals the EU Commission presented in its Roadmap on June 24, 2025. A plan on how the bloc intends to ensure police officers' "lawful and effective" access to citizens' data.

The Roadmap is the first step forward in the ProtectEU strategy, first unveiled in April 2025 – but privacy experts have already begun raising the alarm.

How the EU plans to achieve lawful access to data

ProtectEU represents the EU Commission's internal strategy to bolster the security of the European bloc in the years to come.

It stems from the work of the High-Level Group (HLG) carried on under the so-called Going Dark initiative. The group was tasked, by the EU Council in June 2023, to develop a strategic plan "on access to data for effective law enforcement."

Specifically, the group's final report, published in March 2025, referred to end-to-end encryption as "the biggest technical challenge" to the investigative work of law enforcement agencies, explicitly targeting the use of the best VPN services, encrypted messaging apps, and similar tools.

The Roadmap marks a key part of the strategy, providing more detail on how lawmakers plan to address what they refer to as "the growing challenges of accessing critical digital evidence" during criminal investigations.

(Image credit: Bjorn Bakstad, via Getty Images)

The plan focuses on six key areas:

• Data retention. The EU Commission is expected to carry out an impact assessment with the aim of extending the EU's data retention obligations and reinforcing cooperation between service providers and authorities.
• Lawful interception. Lawmakers seek to explore measures aimed at improving cross-border cooperation for lawful interception of data by 2027.
• Digital forensics. The goal here is to develop technical solutions that allow authorities to analyze and preserve digital evidence stored on electronic devices.
• Decryption. Next year, the EU Commission is set to present a Technology Roadmap on encryption to identify and evaluate decrypting solutions. These technologies are expected to equip Europol officers from 2030.
• Standardisation. The Commission is said to be committed to working alongside Europol, industry stakeholders, experts, and law enforcement practitioners to standardize the new approach to internal security.
• AI solutions for law enforcement. Lawmakers also seek to promote the development and deployment of AI tools by 2028. These solutions will enable authorities to lawfully and effectively process large volumes of seized data.

What the experts are saying

Experts have long warned against proposed plans to break encryption, meaning the technology responsible for scrambling data into an unreadable form to prevent unauthorized access.

Now, according to Internet Society's Senior Director, Robin Wilton, another move towards the decryption of private data is concerning.

"Efforts to develop decryption techniques almost inevitably introduce new vulnerabilities that could be exploited by anyone with the motivation and know-how; they may also encourage the 'hoarding' of vulnerabilities, which is contrary to good cybersecurity practice," Wilton told TechRadar.

These comments echoed previous warnings from technologists, cryptographers, and privacy advocates who were "deeply concerned" by the EU plan to weaken encryption.

The EU initiative Going Dark has now been launched by the EU Commission. They call it ProtectEU.It’s a rebranding of Chat Control. New name. Same old propaganda.The EU Commission’s goal is to “access encrypted data in a lawful manner, safeguarding cybersecurity and…April 4, 2025

A surge in cyberattacks worldwide has pushed government bodies, including the FBI and CISA in the US, to encourage citizens to switch to end-to-end encrypted services to fight back against these threats.

The European Commission itself even previously acknowledged encryption as a necessary measure to protect the integrity of cyberspace.

This is probably the reason why a similar proposal to create a backdoor into encryption, the so-called Chat Control bill, has been failing to attract the needed majority since 2022.

Now, lawmakers promise to be committed to finding the right balance between "allowing for efficient and future-proof solutions to facilitate law enforcement’s lawful access to digital information, while respecting the right to privacy and maintaining high levels of cybersecurity," said EU Commissioner for Internal Affairs and Migration, Magnus Brunner.

For Wilton, policymakers must never forget one simple fact: "Strong encryption isn’t the enemy of security – it’s the starting point for it."

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Peacemaker season 2: key information

- Releasing worldwide on August 21
- Comprises eight episodes
- First trailer unveiled in May
- Main cast all set to return
- Will also feature new and established characters in the rebooted DCU
- Plot synopsis revealed
- Addresses season 1's canonicity in the DCU
- Third season hasn't been greenlit yet

Get your dancing shoes on, because Peacemaker season 2 is just over a month away from being released. The John Cena-starring comic book TV series will launch worldwide on August 21, so you've still got time to learn more about the hit HBO Max show's return.

Indeed, this ultimate guide to all things Peacemaker will walk you through its sophomore season. You'll find more information on its first trailer, confirmed cast, story specifics, and potential impact on James Gunn and Peter Safran's rebooted DC Universe (DCU).

Full spoilers follow for Peacemaker season 1. Possible spoilers are also discussed for its follow-up.

Peacemaker season 2 release date

Counting the days until Peace on Earth. I just finished the DI & Mix on the Season Premiere yesterday and wow it’s one of my favorite things ever. DC Studios’ #Peacemaker Season 2 coming soon only on @StreamOnMax August 21. pic.twitter.com/df3yOcCsdnApril 7, 2025

Peacemaker season 2's release date was confirmed in April and it'll launch on HBO Max in nations where the streaming service is available on Thursday, August 21. It should air on Sky and Now TV in the UK, too.

This release date is in line with what Casey Bloys, HBO's TV chief, told journalists last November 2024, when he teased that the release window for Peacemaker season 2 would likely launch in August 2025.

Peacemaker season 2 trailer

Peacemaker season 2's first trailer was released publicly in May and there's quite a bit it revealed about this season's plot. Namely, that the titular metahuman will be hunted down by Rick Flag Sr – remember, Peacemaker killed Rick Flag Jr in 2021's The Suicide Squad movie – and, by way of a larger and/or multiversal Quantum Unfolding Chamber, cross over in the DCU from the now-defunct DC Extended Universe (DCEU).

The official trailer's arrival came six months after season 2's first footage was revealed by way of a 2025 HBO Max sizzle reel video. With DC Studios holding a panel for Peacemaker 2 at San Diego Comic-Con 2025, I fully expect a new trailer to drop around July 26/27, too.

Peacemaker season 2 cast

Emilia Harcourt and Chris Smith are part of season 2's cast roster (Image credit: Curtis Bonds Baker/Max)

Full spoilers follow for Peacemaker season 1.

Here's who you'll see in Peacemaker season 2:

• John Cena as Christopher Smith/Peacemaker
• Danielle Brooks as Leota Adebayo
• Freddie Stroma as Adrian Chase/Vigilante
• Jennifer Holland as Emilia Harcourt
• Steve Agee as John Economos
• Nhut Le as Judomaster
• Robert Patrick as Auggie Smith/White Dragon
• Viola Davis as Amanda Waller
• Frank Grillo as Rick Flag Sr.
• Tim Meadows as Langston Fleury
• Sol Rodriguez as Sasha Bordeaux
• Michael B. Rooker as Red St. Wild
• David Denman as TBC
• Isabela Merced as Kendra Saunders/Hawkgirl
• Nathan Fillion as Guy Gardner/Green Lantern
• Sean Gunn as Maxwell Lord

Chukwudi Iwuji’s Clemson Murn/Ik Nobe Llok, who died in season 1 episode 7, notwithstanding, the fist eight actors are all reprising their role from the series' debut season. That's in spite of Patrick's Auggie Smith also perishing last season, but he's likely returning as a ghost who, as the season 1 finale indicated, will continue to haunt his son.

On the newcomer front, the headline news is Grillo – best known for playing Brock 'Crossbones' Rumlow in the Captain America movies – will appear as Flag Sr. Grillo voiced the character's animated form in season 1 of R-rated TV series Creature Commandos, which launched on HBO Max last December and was the DCU's first project.

Peacemaker season 2 will be the third time we've seen Rick Flag Sr in the DCU (Image credit: Jessica Miglio/Max)

As we'll soon learn about in James Gunn's Superman movie, which flies into theaters on July 11, Flag Sr is the new head of ARGUS, a government organization that keeps tabs on DC Comics' various metahumans. As for why Davis' Waller isn't ARGUS chief anymore, Gunn said (via Threads) that season 2 will address this.

Other cast additions include Rodriguez (Star Trek: Picard) and Meadows (Mean Girls) as Bordeaux and Fleury, who appear to be ARGUS agents. Denman's role is yet to be publicly confirmed.

A post shared by James Gunn (@jamesgunn)

A photo posted by on

Meanwhile, Rooker is on board as an original character called Red St. Wild, who is the character in the above Instagram image. Speaking to Entertainment Weekly (EW), Gunn said he'll be the antagonist of a secondary plot involving Eagly, Peacemaker's bald eagle sidekick. Gunn's brother Sean, Merced, and Fillion will cameo as the Justice Gang, too, and interview Chris Smith for a position on their corporately-managed team.

Lastly, there are rumors (per Cinemablend) that Joel Kinnaman could return as Flag Jr. As I mentioned earlier, Smith killed him in The Suicide Squad so, if Kinnaman does return, he may do so as another apparition that Smith's guilty conscious creates. Oh, and Gunn also told EW: "There might even be one really, really, really big cameo near the end of the show", so place your bets on who that'll be.

Peacemaker season 2 story synopsis and speculation

Peacemaker season 2 is set a couple of years after its predecessor, according to DCU co-chief James Gunn (Image credit: Jessica Miglio/Max)

Full spoilers follow for Peacemaker season 1. Potential spoilers are also discussed for season 2.

Here's Peacemaker season 2's official logline: "The new season follows Christopher 'Chris Smith, aka Peacemaker, the vigilante superhero as he struggles to reconcile his past with his newfound sense of purpose while continuing to kick righteous evil-doer butt in his misguided quest for peace at any cost."

Before we dive into more potentially spoiler-filled story territory, let's address the question on every fan's mind: will Peacemaker season 2 feature a new, dance number-esque intro sequence that'll surely go viral on TikTok? In short: yes.

"I'm very happy with it," Cena told Collider. "I want to say so much more, but I’ll just say I'm very happy with it. Everyone was super enthused and also understood how important it is this time around, and I really hope that shows. I know the show is great. In my mind, the opening number is great. I hope the world agrees."

"I'll give you an exclusive," Gunn also told EW. "You get to see Eagly try to dance, so that's really something. He is not the best at it, but he tries to really join in the dance sequence at the end. He's got a little pose this time."

Langston Fleury (right) will replace Smith as this season's primary "a*****e", Gunn says (Image credit: Curtis Bonds Baker/Max)

But back to season 2's actual plot. "It essentially picks up where season 1 left off," Gunn told a fan on Threads, although he added that there’ll be "a couple of minor differences". Per EW, Gunn also said "a couple of years" have passed since last season's finale. Those "minor differences" are to be expected, especially in light of the fact that seasons 1 and 2 exist in completely different comic book universes.

Speaking to IGN, though, Gunn said of season 1's canonicity in the DCU: “The truth is almost all of Peacemaker is canon with the exception of The Justice League [who cameo at the end of season 1]. We will kind of deal with [that in season 2]". Gunn also teased (via EW) that the Quantum Unfolding Chamber, which we saw last season, "is the center of the story in Peacemaker season 2" and is likely to reveal how this series crosses over into and merges with the DCU.

Chris Smith will spend much of this chapter trying to stay out of Flag Sr's reach, too. Indeed, Flag Sr will be on a "mission of justice" to avenge his son's death. ARGUS' new chief has plenty of resources at his disposal – given his own military background, he's no slouch, either – so expect Peacemaker 2.0's story to largely center around this cat and mouse game as Flag Sr pursues the man who murdered his only child.

As for what lies in store if (or, rather, when) the pair physically and verbally clash, Grillo told Collider: “We do get into it. I’m not going to give anything away. It’s an interesting thing about Peacemaker and his perspective about my son, and what his feelings are about himself because of that. So, we did get into some tangles, but I don’t know that people are going to expect what’s to happen."

The Justice Gang won't take Smith's application to join their team seriously (Image credit: HBO Max/DC Studios)

Smith will continue to contend with other moments his own trauma-laced past, including accidentally killing his older brother, dealing with his xenophobic and uncaring father (albeit from beyond the grave), and securing peace no matter who dies in the process.

He redeemed himself somewhat by helping to put a stop to the Butterflies in season 1 – so much so that, as the DCU Chapter One show's first trailer reveals, he'll even try and join the DCU's Justice Gang, which we'll first see in 2025's Superman. It seems, though, that it'll take more than one world-saving mission to remove the 'anti' part of his anti-hero facade.

"He's basically interviewing for membership in the group," Gunn said to EW, "But, they just mock him the entire time, so he's not taken seriously. He's still considered a punchline among all of the other metahumans, so he's starting the season in a bad place. As are all of our heroes, all of the 11th Street kids – well, everybody but Vigilante, who just always seems to be okay with everything."

Freddit Stroma's scene-stealing character is back for more R-rated action in season 2 (Image credit: Jessica Miglio/Max)

Hopefully, every member of the 11th Street Kids will not only get their moment to shine in one of the best HBO Max shows' sophomore outing, but also be explored in more detail, too, especially from emotional and psychological perspectives.

"[Season 2 ] is all about the twists and turns," Gunn told EW. "It's about the surprises we find out in episode 1, 6, and 8. And it's a very, very emotional season – there's a lot of comedy like the first season, but there's also a lot of emotion in it, and it's really good."

How will Peacemaker season 2 impact the wider DCU?

Peacemaker season 2 will address how John Cena's titular character will join the DCU (Image credit: HBO Max/DC Studios)

The short answer is: I don't know. Once Peacemaker season 2 is out in full, we'll have a much better idea of how its story will affect the DCU moving forward.

For now, all Gunn has said (via EW) is "I developed it [season 2] along the way, in conjunction with the other DC projects that we're doing, so it's very much connected to Superman and it's very much connected to what comes after."

Right now, there are only three live-action projects in development at DC Studios: Supergirl (formally known as Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow), Lanterns, and Clayface. Of that trio, Lanterns is arguably the production that'll be most impacted by Peacemaker 2, especially with Fillion's Gardner set to have a role in the DCU's Green Lantern TV show.

How the other two movies or other unannounced DC Studios projects are affected remains to be seen. But, with Peacemaker season 2's launch date fast approaching, we won't have to wait much longer for answers.

For more DC Comics-based coverage, read our guides on how to watch the DC movies in order, how to watch the Superman movies in order, how to watch the Batman movies in order, and our ranking of the best Batman movies.

One night last November the traffic graphs at sports-betting firm, 1win, went vertical. Hours later the lines flattened, LEDs flicked green, ticket closed. End of story—until forensics showed that, while terabits of junk battered the perimeter, someone tip-toed off with 96 million customer records. The fireworks were loud enough that nobody heard the vault door click.

The culprit? Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks.

What was once digital vandalism—flood the pipe, claim bragging rights—has evolved into outright misdirection, hogging every console and CPU cycle while the real break-in unfolds elsewhere.

DDoS Attacks Today

Carriers that once saw two DDoS incidents a day now log hundreds, and 44% of these attacks are over in under five minutes. Blink and you miss the smoke screen—plus the burglary behind it.

Why the surge? Because a 100-gig “booter” subscription (to DDoS-for-hire services) costs less than Netflix. And because botnets ship pre-assembled: for instance, Eleven11bot drove hijacked webcams to launch record-breaking DDoS attacks, peaking at 6.5 Tb/s in February. That’s more than ten times Mirai’s original, 2016 record.

Attackers don’t show up to smash the furniture; they keep you chasing alarms while they lift the valuables—exfiltrating data, dropping ransomware, wiring in next week’s back-door.

Many teams let their guard down once the second latency graphs sag to normal, unaware they’re celebrating on the wrong lap. Stateful firewalls, last-minute ACLs (Access Control Lists), and a heroic operator attempt to handle raw volume right up to the moment an attacker overloads the very gear meant to stop them.

Picture the firewall as a nightclub bouncer armed with an exquisitely detailed guest list. Flood the door with a million party-crashers and the clipboard becomes decoration. In the chaos, the bouncer waves everyone through.

That reflex is fail-open.

Fail-open isn’t magic—it’s physics. Cram the firewall’s state table with a volumetric SYN flood and, once memory pegs, the firmware panics and slips into bypass, in a last-ditch attempt to keep links alive and traffic flowing. If the inspection daemon seg-faults under the strain, the chassis bridges traffic until it restarts. Kill the power or flap a link and the hardware relay shorts the ports together.

From the security operations center (SOC) chair, it’s eerie: logs go silent, session counters plunge, line-rate traffic barrels on, and NetFlow suddenly shows inbound RDP the policy never touched. The attacker didn’t avoid your defenses; they used them as the on-ramp.

What To Do Next

MITRE’s ATT&CK playbook spells it out: adversaries have been observed launching DDoS “to support other malicious activities, including distraction.” In other words, getting the service back up is merely Act I.

Four moves that can help your team keep the fireworks outside:

1.Baseline the who and the why, not just the how much

It’s midnight. Five thousand no-name IP-cams halfway across the globe all at once decide your Domain Name System (DNS) authoritative name-server is their new best friend. Bandwidth may not spike massively, but intent screams: cameras don’t spontaneously flood DNS.

Your detection engine should instantly flag anomalies like “Devices that typically whisper Network Time Protocol (NTP) are suddenly screaming DNS.” Layer flow data onto BGP, turning suspicious cameras into red dots on a heat map.

2.Let automation throw the first punch—under a minute, or it’s too slow

No human can out-type a terabit flood. Hand the reflex to silicon—gear that fires back before you’ve even seen the spike.

The second packets-per-second cross your threshold, edge routers should automatically shed malicious traffic or redirect it to mitigation gear, reverting when conditions stabilize.

3.Give your firewalls an airbag—let a stateless layer eat the crash

Firewalls are brilliant chess players with one fatal flaw: every new flow grabs a square on a state table, and that board is only so big. Fill it, and the box either drops everything or—worse—fails open. As a safeguard, bolt on a stateless “airbag” a hop upstream. It doesn’t care about SYNs or sequence numbers; it cares about the who and what—five thousand white-label cameras suddenly pelting your DNS server, for instance.

The second that odd waveform appears, the airbag inflates: drops the anomalous traffic on device or punts the junk to a scrubber. No sessions to track, no table to exhaust; just raw line-rate math absorbing the impact while the firewall keeps pondering the finer stuff: TLS fingerprints, strange HTTP verbs, and bots masquerading as browsers.

4.Audit the bouncers—make sure none of them silently swing the rope aside

Fail-open is a configuration choice, not a cosmic constant. Dramatically unplugging boxes mid-attack isn’t necessary; review your configurations instead. Verify each inline device explicitly states how it behaves if software crashes, links fail, or power dies. Anything set to silently bypass traffic without approval belongs at the top of tomorrow’s change list.

DDoS fireworks dazzle, but nobody robs the vault just for the spectacle. Spot the diversion, stay clear-eyed, and keep the attackers outside looking in. Next time the sky lights up, keep at least one eye on the basement door.

We've listed the best small and medium business (SMB) firewall software.

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

The fallout from “Liberation Day” has reignited a critical conversation across Europe: how long can the EU, UK and other European nations afford to tie their digital future to American tech monopolies? For years, Europe has depended on US hyperscalers to power its infrastructure, manage its data, and now, fuel its AI ambitions. But with America’s erratic leadership casting fresh doubt over the future of Europe’s tech sector, businesses are being forced to confront the real risks of over-reliance.

New research from Civo found that 84% of UK IT leaders are concerned that geopolitical developments could threaten their ability to access and control their data. As US tech giants scramble to offer reassurances, including recent pledges from Microsoft to uphold Europe’s digital resilience, the bigger question remains: can Europe afford to deepen its dependencies on the US?

In the midst of all this doubt, Europe has a window of opportunity to reclaim its technological sovereignty and reduce its exposure to the political and commercial whims of US. tech giants. There has never been a better time to build a more balanced, competitive, and resilient digital economy - one that hands back control to businesses.

Here are five key actions Europe must take to make that vision a reality:

1. It’s time to take sovereignty seriously

According to Civo’s research, 61% of UK IT leaders say that sovereignty is s strategic priority. But while European governments have talked a good game on sovereignty, action has been inconsistent. Take the UK, for example: while outside of the EU and operating under different data and competition laws, earlier this year it unveiled its AI Opportunities Action Plan.

Within this, Starmer’s government promises to build sovereign datacenters and AI Growth Zones. Yet at the same time, the UK has courted massive investments from US. hyperscalers like Microsoft and AWS to expand their UK footprints.

This contradiction underlines the urgent need for clear policy guardrails. Sovereignty is about so much more than just data localization; it’s about ensuring full legal, operational, and technical control over the UK’s critical digital infrastructure. That means building and backing a domestic cloud and AI industry that operates under European law with shared European values.

2. Close the loopholes created by the US. CLOUD Act by avoiding it altogether

The US. CLOUD Act grants American authorities sweeping access to data held by US. hyperscalers, no matter where in the world that data is stored. This reality undermines Europe’s data protection laws, including GDPR, and puts sensitive public and private sector information at risk of unwanted foreign interventions.

Europe needs to strengthen legal frameworks that guarantee immunity from extraterritorial laws like the CLOUD Act. That means recognizing and supporting providers headquartered in Europe, fully subject to European jurisdiction, that offer complete transparency about where data is stored and who has access to it.

3. Build a sovereign AI ecosystem

The rush to adopt AI has only deepened Europe’s dependency on US. firms. Most AI models today are trained, deployed, and monetized by a small handful of US hyperscalers. As a result, European businesses feeding data into these models often have no visibility into how their information is used, stored, or commercialized. So it’s not surprising that 68% of UK IT leaders now say they will only use AI services where they have complete certainty over data ownership.

Europe must invest in an open, sovereign AI ecosystem. One that gives users full control over their data and AI workloads. By championing sovereign AI, Europe has an opportunity to empower organizations to develop innovative AI on their own terms, without surrendering control to black-box systems operated overseas.

4. Reform the economics of cloud

The European cloud market has been stifled by opaque pricing structures, restrictive egress fees, and aggressive credit lock-ins that keep customers tied to US hyperscale platforms. This has made it difficult for new entrants and challengers to compete and for customers to switch providers without facing significant financial and technical penalties.

Encouragingly, 60% of UK organizations say they are no longer reliant on a single cloud provider, showing that many are already moving towards multi-cloud and hybrid models to regain choice and control.

The public sentiment is overwhelmingly clear: Europe must establish economic policies that level the playing field. This could include mandating pricing transparency, regulating unfair egress fees, or incentivizing organizations to migrate to sovereign providers. A competitive market benefits everyone. It drives innovation, reduces costs, and gives businesses genuine choice.

5. Build bridges, not barriers: Uniting Europe’s digital strengths without shutting out the world

Underinvestment remains one of Europe’s biggest barriers to digital progress. As Mario Draghi’s landmark report on European competitiveness makes clear, the status quo is no longer sustainable. Without coordinated action, Europe risks falling behind in the race to build productive, secure, and globally competitive digital industries.

While the EU and the UK have taken different regulatory paths, from evolving data governance frameworks in Brussels to post-Brexit policies in Westminster, both face the same challenges: underinvestment, regulatory misalignment, and a shortage of skilled talent are holding back sovereign cloud and AI projects across the continent.

The Draghi report calls for a new era of sustainable competitiveness and open strategic autonomy, one where Europe builds the foundations to compete globally while staying true to its values of fairness, resilience, and collaboration.

Digital sovereignty must be part of this vision, but it cannot be achieved in silos. It needs harmonized regulations, shared investment in skills and infrastructure, and cross-border collaboration to scale European alternatives that are open where it counts and protected where it matters.

But there are signs of progress. Initiatives like EuroStack, a growing coalition of policymakers, businesses, and researchers, are working to open the European market to support local digital industries to clear the path to achieving digital sovereignty.

Similarly, projects like Open Euro LLM are advancing open-source, GDPR-compliant AI models that align with Europe’s values, while still remaining open to international contributions and partnerships.

Sovereignty starts now

Let’s be clear: digital sovereignty does not mean closing the door on international partnerships or shutting out global innovation. As one of the world’s leading economic regions, the continent of Europe will always need to collaborate with partners around the world, but that collaboration must happen on Europe’s terms and not in ways that compromise control, economic, or geopolitical resilience.

Building genuine digital sovereignty means strengthening Europe’s digital foundations so that it can engage with the global tech ecosystem from a position of strength, not dependency. It means creating an environment where businesses have real choice, where data stays protected by local laws and values, and where European innovation isn’t at the mercy of foreign policy shifts or opaque corporate interests.

We have a chance to rebalance the market, encourage competition, and put fairness and transparency at the heart of Europe’s digital future. But that window won’t stay open forever. The time for action is now.

We've featured the best cloud storage.

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

• IdeaLab confirms it suffered a data breach, offers identity theft protection and credit monitoring
• Recently-departed ransomware operators Hunters International took responsibility
• The decryption key were recently published

Technology startup incubator IdeaLab has confirmed suffered a cyberattack in which it lost sensitive company files.

The organization confirmed the news after an extensive investigation that took almost a year, noting in a data breach notification letter sent earlier to affected individuals the attack most likely took place on October 4 2024, when cybercriminals accessed its network and stole sensitive information on current and former employees, current and former support service contractors, and their dependents.

We don’t know exactly how many people were affected by this attack, or what the nature of the data is. IdeaLab just said the attackers took people’s names, in combination with “variable data”.

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Smuggling through

Still, it offers affected individuals complimentary identity theft protection services through IDX, which includes 24 months of credit and dark web monitoring, a $1 million identity fraud loss reimbursement policy, and fully managed identity theft recovery services.

At the same time, the media reported that a ransomware operation known as Hunters International took responsibility for the attack, adding the stolen data to its leak site, likely after a failed extortion attempt.

Allegedly, the leaked archive was 262.8 GB in size, and contained 137,000 files. Interestingly enough, earlier today Hunters International announced it was disbanding, apologized for the inconvenience caused, and shared decryption keys for all of its victims. It’s safe to assume IdeaLab is included in this list, as well.

The motive behind the shutdown remains in the domain of speculation, with multiple security outfits believing the group was simply rebranding in order to hide its tracks from law enforcement and cut ties with previous affiliates.

Researchers from Recorded Future, Group-IB, and many others, have pointed out that Hunters International recently launched a parallel operation called World Leaks, that does not deploy encryptors and just focuses on extortion.

Via BleepingComputer

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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 Friday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Friday, July 4 (game #488).

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

• Today's NYT Strands theme is… Every second counts

NYT Strands today (game #489) - hint #2 - clue words

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

• PERSON
• HOME
• ROOT
• SHAKE
• SWOON
• MATE

NYT Strands today (game #489) - hint #3 - spangram lettersHow many letters are in today's spangram?

• Spangram has 11 letters

NYT Strands today (game #489) - hint #4 - spangram positionWhat are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?

First side: left, 4th row

Last side: right, 6th row

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

NYT Strands today (game #489) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Strands, game #489, are…

• CLOCK
• WATCH
• CHRONOMETER
• HOURGLASS
• SUNDIAL
• SPANGRAM: TIMEKEEPERS

• My rating: Hard
• My score: 1 hint

My first thought when I saw the theme “every second counts” was the TV show The Bear, as that phrase has appeared many times across all four seasons.

However, I soon realized that was very niche and we were actually looking for a much more literal interpretation.

Suffering a bad case of letter blindness, I took a hint after finding dozens of words that we weren’t looking for. CLOCK unlocked the rest of the board in a matter of minutes.

Until this puzzle, I didn’t actually realize what a CHRONOMETER was, I just thought it was a posh wristwatch. But the main thing this search got me thinking about is how we build our entire life around time, but we have so few TIMEKEEPERS – as evidenced by the fact that this search includes SUNDIAL and HOURGLASS. It’s almost as if we haven’t got enough time to invent new ways to keep time. 

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

Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Friday, July 4, game #488)

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

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 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 Friday's puzzle instead then click here: Quordle hints and answers for Friday, July 4 (game #1257).

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 #1258) - hint #1 - VowelsHow many different vowels are in Quordle today?

• The number of different vowels in Quordle today is 4*.

* 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 #1258) - hint #2 - repeated lettersDo any of today's Quordle answers contain repeated letters?

• The number of Quordle answers containing a repeated letter today is 0.

Quordle today (game #1258) - 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 #1258) - 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 0.

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 #1258) - hint #5 - starting letters (2)What letters do today's Quordle answers start with?

• H

• S

• D

• T

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

Quordle today (game #1258) - the answers

(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)

The answers to today's Quordle, game #1258, are…

• HAVEN
• SNAKE
• DREAM
• TORUS

Unlike Scrabble, where you put down an invented word on the off-chance that it could be in the dictionary, Quordle lets you enter as many fake words as you like before you hit on a real one.

That was the case for me today with TORUS, which looks like a bad spelling of Taurus but is (I just found out) a geometric shape like a donut.

Maybe my school geometry lessons were not all they should have been, but I can always appreciate a donut. Mmmmm, donuts…

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

Daily Sequence today (game #1258) - the answers

(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)

The answers to today's Quordle Daily Sequence, game #1258, are…

• OUTGO
• CRUSH
• SHIED
• BLUER

Quordle answers: The past 20

• Quordle #1257, Friday, 4 July: FAVOR, SKUNK, GAWKY, FLUFF
• 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

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 Friday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Connections hints and answers for Friday, July 4 (game #754).

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 #755) - today's words

(Image credit: New York Times)

Today's NYT Connections words are…

• SHORT
• PINE
• FOLD
• LAUNDRY
• LONG
• BUCKET
• BURN
• STING
• TO-DO
• SCHEME
• STIR
• RACKET
• BEAT
• ITCH
• HUSTLE
• BLEND

NYT Connections today (game #755) - hint #1 - group hints

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

• YELLOW: Scams
• GREEN: Mix it up
• BLUE: Can’t live without you
• PURPLE: Jot it down

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 #755) - hint #2 - group answers

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

• YELLOW: CON GAME 
• GREEN: COMBINE, AS BAKING INGREDIENTS 
• BLUE: YEARN 
• PURPLE: KINDS OF LISTS 

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

NYT Connections today (game #755) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Connections, game #755, are…

• YELLOW: CON GAME HUSTLE, RACKET, SCHEME, STING
• GREEN: COMBINE, AS BAKING INGREDIENTS BEAT, BLEND, FOLD, STIR
• BLUE: YEARN BURN, ITCH, LONG, PINE
• PURPLE: KINDS OF LISTS BUCKET, LAUNDRY, SHORT, TO-DO

• My rating: Easy
• My score: 2 mistakes

I’m classifying today’s Connections as easy, but I still struggled with it.

The purple group should have been simple, aside from the fact that there are many KINDS OF LISTS and I included two wrong ones – BURN and LONG – before I found the correct quartet.

I am a serial writer of TO-DO lists, none of which I ever complete. I saw a video recently where some terrifying life optimizer was saying that people like me should write two lists – their regular long to-do list, then another list with the three most important things from the to-do list.

It makes sense to me but I'll never remember to do it – I’ll have to put it on my BUCKET list. 

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

Yesterday's NYT Connections answers (Friday, July 4, game #754)

• 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

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.

After last week's TV show-heavy streaming list, it's time for their big-screen cousins to take the spotlight.

Four big new movies have graced some of the world's best streaming services ahead of this weekend (July 4 to 6), so it'll be an Independence Day to remember for film fans in the UD. We've rounded out this week's streaming recommendations list with a couple of TV series and a sports event – yep, we cover those from time to time! – so there's plenty to watch at home over the next few days. – Tom Power, senior entertainment reporter

The Old Guard 2 (Netflix)

One of the best Netflix movies from an action viewpoint finally has a follow-up. The long-awaited The Old Guard 2 has arrived on Netflix to take us on a brand new high-octane mission.

In our review of The Old Guard, we noted that its hokey-but-entertaining premise about a team of immortal warriors who've protected the world for centuries made for great page-turning comics, but didn't exactly translate to the small screen. This was made up for by an incredible lead performance from Charlize Theron, who has returned for the sequel alongside some new characters to fight a mysterious threat.

Despite the original movie becoming an instant hit, early reviews don't look as favorable for the sequel – although it seems everyone agrees that Theron's action sequences are a highlight of one of July's new Netflix movies. – Amelia Schwanke, senior entertainment editor

• Watch The Old Guard 2 on Netflix

Sinners (Max)

Good news, the incredible Sinners is now streaming on Max. Sorry, though, UK fans, you'll have to wait a bit longer for its streaming debut.

A shoo-in for our best Max movies list, Sinners not only holds an impressive 97% Rotten Tomatoes critical score, but it's been celebrated worldwide by everyday audiences, too. Ryan Coogler, known for his work on the two Black Panther movies and Ironheart for Marvel, has created something really special here.

The supernatural horror period piece follows twin criminal twin brothers (both played brilliantly by Michael B. Jordan) who return to their hometown and are confronted by a supernatural evil. It's an absolute must watch and is a real contender for horror movie of the year. – Lucy Buglass, senior entertainment writer

• Watch Sinners on Max

Heads of State (Prime Video)

If Idris Elba isn’t going to be in a James Bond movie, at least he can be UK Prime Minister. He’s quite literally going head-to-head with John Cena’s US president Will Derringer in one of July's new Prime Video movies in Heads of State, too. Well, until they're forced to work together when Air Force One is shot down in enemy territory.

Based on Amazon’s previous track record with Prime Video Movie Originals, expectations for Heads of State were so low that we didn't expect it to be a shoo-in for our best Prime Video movies list, but it’s blown them away. It’s stupid, but fun stupid, and there’s a natural chemistry between our leading men that’s sorely lacking in other 2025 releases. Clearly everyone involved is having a lovely time, so why shouldn’t we? – Jasmine Valentine, streaming staff writer

• Watch Heads of State on Prime Video

The Sandman season 2 (Netflix)

I was really looking forward to season 2 of The Sandman until numerous allegations were made against Neil Gaiman, aka the author behind the original graphic novel series it's based on.

Considering how good The Sandman season 1 was, it's a crying shame that the high-fantasy series' reputation has been tarnished by the man who created its literary namesake. It might have booked a spot in this week's streaming guide, but I I won't be tuning in to watch The Sandman season 2 and I suspect many others won't on principle, either.

Still, if you plan on watching the final season of one of the best Netflix shows (well, it was until Gaiman-gate, anyway), its first six episodes are out now. Five more chapters will arrive on July 24 to bring Netflix's live-action adaptation to a close. – TP

• Watch The Sandman season 2 on Netflix

On Becoming a Guinea Fowl (Max)

A24 has a habit of releasing bangers that fly under the radar, including Earth Mama and All Dirt Road Taste of Salt. Tipped as one to watch at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, On Becoming a Guinea Fowl, one of three new A24 movies landing on Max in July, is next in line. Set in Zambia, the black comedy follows Shula, who finds her uncle’s dead body in the middle of the road late at night.

Finding the funny in something deadly serious, On Becoming a Guinea Fowl explores timely social issues in an expressive and meaningful way. The classic predator versus prey analogy is at its core, framed through impeccable visuals and an astute story. If you’re wanting to watch global cinema that still feels accessible, one of July's new Max movies is the perfect choice. – JV

• Watch On Becoming a Guinea Fowl on Max

Attack on London: Hunting the 7/7 Bombers (Netflix)

Netflix has shone a light on numerous tragic incidents recently, including the surprisingly well made OceanGate documentary and the eye opening Grenfell Uncovered. Now, they're focusing on the 7/7 bombings, which occurred almost 20 years ago.

Told from multiple perspectives, this docuseries relives the moment four bombs exploded in London killing 52 people and injuring more than 700, and the weeks-long search for those responsible. Viewers will see archive footage and exclusive interviews with survivors, family members, investigators, intelligence services, and those closest to the events. A harrowing behind-the-scenes glimpse into one of the deadliest moments in recent British history. – Lucy Buglass, senior entertainment writer

• Watch Attack on London: Hunting the 7/7 Bombers on Netflix

Wimbledon 2025 (BBC/ESPN/9Now)

It's time to crack out the Pimms, strawberries, and cream! The Wimbledon Championships 2025 is officially underway, marking the 138th anniversary of the sporting tournament.

If you didn't manage to get a ticket to the prestigious sporting event, don't worry because you'll be able to stream all the matches from The All England Lawn Tennis Club between now and July 13.

The best part about streaming the matches is that you'll also get to see in-depth coverage of the tournament, including live commentary and player interviews. Sure, you've missed five days worth of matches, but there are still many more to watch! – AS

• Watch Wimbledon 2025 on ESPN (USA), BBC iPlayer (UK), and 9Now (Australia)

For more streaming suggestions, read our guides on the best Netflix shows, best Disney+ movies, best Prime Video shows, and best Hulu movies.

• Apple previously toyed with the idea of launching its own public cloud powered by M-series chips
• M-series chips already form the underpinnings of Private Cloud Compute and more
• Project ACDC's leader left in 2023 and the project's future is uncertain

Apple previously considered launching its own cloud services to compete with key hyperscaler alternatives like Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud, but has apparently pulled the idea.

A report by The Information notes the initiative was said to have been known as Project ACDC (Apple Chips in Data Centers), and would have given developers access to Apple's proprietary M-series chips.

Apple reportedly targeted offering a cheaper and more efficient alternative to traditional cloud platforms that use Intel or GPU-heavy servers by replacing them with its own M-series chips, which are known for their computing efficiency and strong AI inferencing capabilities.

Apple reportedly wanted to launch an AWS rival

Apple already uses its M-series chips applications beyond its Mac and iPad range – it started testing its chips in data centers with the launch of Private Cloud Compute (PCC), which handles complex AI queries when on-device processing power isn't sufficient.

Other Apple services, like Siri, Photos and Music, also got access to M-series chips to improve performance across things like search.

It could even be possible that these efforts could underpin the much-needed upgraded version of Siri.

With potential plans to launch the service to developers via its Developer Relations team, rather than creating a new sales team, Project ACDC would largely be an Apple-focused initiative, enabling developers to design iOS and macOS apps directly on Apple's chips, reducing dependency on expensive GPUs.

Michael Abbott, the exec previously behind Project ACDC, left the company in 2023, but discussions reportedly continued into at least early 2024. The project's future remains uncertain.

However, Apple has previously indicated a desire to grow services revenue, and Project ACDC could certainly align with that.

It could also help Apple cut costs on its own development, with the company reportedly spending $7 billion annually on third-party cloud services (via Apple Insider).

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• Microsoft will end operations in Pakistan 25 years after it moved there
• Political and financial instability join tech barriers as motivations to pull out of Pakistan
• Neighboring India is set to receive $3 billion in Microsoft investments over the next two years

After reducing its headcount and operations to the bare minimum, Microsoft has now fully pulled out of Pakistan, 25 years after it opened up in the country.

The news was revealed via a LinkedIn post by Jawwad Rehman, the founding head of Microsoft Pakistan, without a formal public announcement from the company itself.

However the move was all but confirmed already, with full operations shut down in Pakistan and only a liaison office with around five employees remaining.

Microsoft shuts shop in Pakistan after 25 years

Although it's believed service and customer agreements will remain unaffected through partners and regional offices, Microsoft ultimately had to pul out over economic instability, political volatility and tech barriers.

"This is more than a corporate exit. It’s a sobering signal of the environment our country has created.. one where even global giants like Microsoft find it unsustainable to stay," Rehman wrote on LinkedIn.

Unstable currency, barriers to importing tech hardware, frequent political regime changes, unstable governance, internet shutdowns, content blocks and difficulty moving funds and tools across borders are among the long list of factors likely to have influenced Microsoft's decision.

In a separate post, Rehman asked the Honourable Minister of IT and the Government of Pakistan to "actively engage Microsoft’s regional and global leadership" so that the company can maintain a presence within Pakistan.

Neighboring India has emerged as a key destination for tech investment in South Asia, with Microsoft announcing plans to invest $3 billion into the country over a two-year span earlier this year.

"India is rapidly becoming a leader in AI innovation, unlocking new opportunity across the country," CEO Satya Nadella wrote.

The news comes just a few months after Microsoft also revealed plans to end its joint-venture operations in China.

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Watch the original Naked Gun movie or the first Happy Gilmore, plus dozens of other titles, all for free this month.

It goes way beyond a new Vision Pro this year.

• The MSI Claw A8 is now available for pre-order in China
• It has an official price of 6,999 RMB without subsidy, which is roughly $970
• It's expected to launch this July in China, and potentially the same in other regions

MSI announced its latest handheld gaming PC at CES 2025 without any word on release date or pricing, so official details have been a long time coming – but it looks like we may finally have our answer.

As reported by VideoCardz, the MSI Claw A8 is now available for pre-order in China, with a confirmed launch this July. Its official price (according to its China pre-order listing) is 6,999 RMB, which is roughly $970 (including tax), making it even more costly than its MSI Claw 8 AI+ predecessor.

There's also a subsidized price at 5,949 RMB (around $737), thanks to the Chinese government offering a 15% subsidy on some products, but this likely won't be relevant for other regions.

As the first handheld to use AMD's Ryzen Z2 Extreme processor (if it releases before the ROG Xbox Ally), it's expected to outperform most handhelds like the Asus ROG Ally X, Lenovo Legion Go, and the Nintendo Switch 2. However, if the converted price is accurate for its retail price when it becomes available in the US and other regions, some prospective buyers could be put off.

The MSI Claw 8 AI+, the Claw A8's predecessor, is already an expensive handheld; it can be argued that it backs up its pricing with great gaming performance, but that doesn't change the fact that it prices out most gamers.

The Claw A8 potentially having a higher price would suggest the Z2 Extreme is the more powerful chip than the Claw 8 AI+'s Core Ultra 258V – but it's hard to see it selling well if it's pushing even closer to a $1,000 price point.

Analysis: Don't muck this up please, MSI...

(Image credit: MSI)

While nothing is confirmed for other regions just yet, I'd say it's highly likely that the purported price based on its Chinese listing (or somewhere within that ballpark) is accurate.

It's hard to believe that the Claw A8 will be significantly cheaper than the Claw 8 AI+, especially if the Ryzen Z2 Extreme turns out to be the better option for performance. It would have been unreasonable to expect a major price shift, then, but that doesn't mean the pricing won't affects its appeal.

If it's pricier than the handheld that's already difficult to buy (since the Claw 8 AI+ is scarce), then we can forget about it truly challenging other handhelds and the Switch 2.

The MSI Claw 8 AI+ is already pushing it with its $899 / £899 / AU$1,799 price tag, and it's worse with price rises due to tariffs. I have no doubts that it will be one of the best handhelds on the market in terms of performance, but I can't say I'm not worried about the impression its cost will leave on consumers...

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• A new search ability is rolling out for the Copilot app
• It gives Windows 11 and 10 users an AI-powered search, offering natural language queries
• Copilot can also peek inside files and find relevant info you need, saving you the legwork

Windows 11 is getting a new ability for Copilot to help you find files on your PC, and quickly glean info from those files, should you want to.

Windows Latest reports that the extended search powers facilitated by AI, which were previously in testing (a few months ago) with Windows 11, are now rolling out to all users (including those on Windows 10 too).

The folk at Windows Latest have already got the new functionality for the Copilot app and tested it out, being generally impressed by the feature.

It allows the user to fire up a local search of the PC – although there are limitations on the locations covered (I'll come back to that) – within the Copilot app simply by typing a natural language query. For example: "Find my resume for that job application I made last year."

Clearly, it's nice to have the ability to search just by asking a question like this, rather than trying to use Windows search itself and (attempting to) figure out the best query – after all, who can remember exact file names, especially with older files?

Analysis: A commendably useful feature... with some caveats

(Image credit: Windows Latest / Microsoft)

Windows Latest observes that this Copilot search is fast, as it's a local search – which also includes any synced files in OneDrive – and leverages Windows search itself. In other words, there's no waiting for the Copilot app to send data to the cloud, or wait for a reply from Microsoft's servers – everything is happening on the device, and so it's pretty nippy.

The search provided is also better than a basic Windows 11 search - even though this is still how the query is ultimately being resolved - as you can use natural language as noted. Indeed, this is a kind of makeshift alternative to the nifty AI-supercharged search in Windows 11 which is offered with Copilot+ PCs - and I'm glad to see it, because most of us don't have one of those devices (I certainly don't).

On top of this, the Copilot app search also lets you surface info from files you're hunting out without even opening them. So, if you're searching for a document file full of recipes, and you want a particular recipe for a curry, say, you can ask for exactly that - and the AI will extract it from the document there and then.

This Copilot-powered search also lets you sidestep some of the bugs with the standard Windows 11 search functionality (even though it still leverages the latter to get results).

Okay, so it all sounds good overall - but not everything is sweet smelling roses. There's a notable thorn in that the scope of the search is limited to commonly used files (meaning obscure file formats may not show up). Furthermore, by default the locations covered by this AI search are limited to your essential personal folders (such as Documents and Downloads). You can, however, expand that reach and grant Copilot access to further folders if you wish.

The thornier issue still for many, though, will be privacy. It's important to note that this search capability is turned off by default, which is good, and frankly necessary, given that there are plenty of people out there who are very much against Copilot 'nosing around in their files'.

It's also worth noting that there's not just a toggle to turn on the local file search ability for Copilot, but also a separate slider to allow the AI to read your files. The latter is obviously needed for Copilot to surface material from within a file (like the aforementioned curry recipe), so if you want to perform that trick, you'll obviously need to let Copilot 'nose around' in your stuff.

If you don't want the AI to have that kind of access, you can still use the feature, but leave this second slider alone and it won't look in your files (but you'll only get the basic search in the Copilot app).

There will still be plenty of doubters around this kind of feature, mind, but as long as it's off by default, it isn't going to be a problem - you can take it or leave it. If this functionality sounds useful to you, then you can go ahead and enable it - with the rollout now apparently underway, it should hopefully be turning up on all Windows 11 and 10 PCs before too long.

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• Ford CEO Jim Farley believes half of white-collar jobs will be lost to AI
• Amazon, Anthropic, Fiverr and other companies all agree
• Unsurprisingly, OpenAI and Nvidia think we're overreacting

Ford CEO Jim Farley has stated he believes "literally half" of all white-collar jobs in the US could be lost to artificial intelligence (via TechSpot).

Speaking at the Aspen Ideas Festival, Farley stated, “Artificial intelligence is going to replace literally half of all white-collar workers in the US...AI will leave a lot of white-collar people behind.”

This of course comes from the automaker responsible for revolutionizing the manufacturing process, and aligns with similar expressions shared by other influential execs.

Will AI take my job?

Despite widespread warnings from business leaders and analysts globally, AI's real effects on the human workforce are yet to be fully determined – countering this common view, many believe AI might simply redefine roles, removing some and creating others.

AI is certainly on track to replace some roles at Amazon, with its CEO Andy Jassy recently stating many positions will become redundant due to advancements in generative AI.

However, Jassy did note that new STEM-related roles could be created, marking a shift rather than a total wipeout.

Dario Amodei, CEO of AI giant Anthropic, also predicted that around half of entry-level white-collar jobs could be at risk, leading to unemployment rates 10-20% higher within five years.

Micha Kaufman, CEO of Fiverr, which has its eyes on the freelancer community, suggested that programmers, designers and lawyers could be at risk, while JPMorgan Chase expects headcount to drop by about 10% due to AI adoption.

Then, there are the companies that have halted hiring efforts altogether. It is believed that Apple's hiring freeze continues since it was first revealed in 2022, with Spotify CEO Tobi Lütke pausing recruitment to assess whether AI can do the job first.

It's not all doom and gloom, though, with ChatGPT-maker OpenAI's COO, Brad Lightcap, saying there's been little evidence so far of widespread entry-level job loss from AI. Lightcap believes the impact will be slower and more limited than some of the above views, with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang calling them "overly alarmist."

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• You can get a $100 payment or $150 in Google Store credit
• Google has set up a website where you can make your claim

The long-running Google Pixel 6a battery saga continues, and Google has now provided details of how owners of the 2022 handset can claim up to $150 (about £110 / AU$230) back from the company – money that could be put towards a new phone.

If you're just getting up to speed with this story, Google is in the process of rolling out a mandatory update for some Pixel 6a phones that could be in danger of overheating. In recent weeks there have been multiple reports of these handsets catching fire, which is obviously something Google doesn't want to see continue.

The update will "reduce battery capacity and charging performance" according to Google, and will show up as part of Android 16. Only some Pixel 6a phones are affected and in danger of overheating though – Google hasn't provided too many details about this, but you can check if your device will be included via Google's website.

Now 9to5Google has uncovered some extra details. Affected Pixel 6a owners will get three options: a free battery replacement for their phone, $100 (about £75 / AU$155) in cash, or $150 (about £110 / AU$230) in Google Store credit.

How to claim

Some Pixel 6a owners have been given a voucher towards a Pixel 9a (Image credit: Future)

The battery replacement option presumably means the battery limits put in place by Android 16 will be removed again – though you'll have to do without your phone for a few days while Google takes care of the repair job.

Whatever option you prefer, you can head here to choose it. You'll need to provide your email address and the IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity) number of your phone to prove your eligibility – you can find your handset's IMEI number by heading to About phone from Settings.

I can't work through the steps on Google's site because I don't have a Pixel 6a IMEI number to use, but the screenshots grabbed by 9to5Google show that Payoneer will be used to deliver the cash compensation. If you're outside the US, the $100 or $150 figures will be converted into your local currency.

Interestingly, 9to5Google reports that some users have been sent vouchers for $125 (about £90 / AU$190) to put towards a Google Pixel 9a (retail price $499 / £499 / AU$849), so check your inbox – though these vouchers apparently can't be used with the $150 credit.

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