Technology

Google Meet has announced a new update that allows meeting participants to display their pronouns on calls.

The update, available when using the video conferencing tool on the web, will show users’ pronouns on their video tiles if they have them set up in their Google Accounts.

Admins will need to enable the feature within users’ accounts, and the feature is only available for Google Workspace subscriptions including Business and Education users, leaving individual account holders without support for pronouns for the moment.

Google Workspace adds pronouns to Meet

Once enabled, end users can set their pronouns by going to their Google Account’s ‘About Me’ page and selecting from a predefined list of pronouns or creating a custom one. Furthermore, users will need to set visibility to ‘Anyone.’

Google’s decision to roll out broader support for pronouns across its ecosystem is part of the company’s broader effort to promote inclusivity – pronouns are also supported alongside contact information in Calendar, Chat, Docs, Gmail and more, making it easier for others to refer to individuals correctly.

It’s worth noting that while the functionality is only supported on web at the moment, users can still set their pronouns on mobile devices, suggesting that Google could be working on UI changes to make displaying pronouns on smaller screens easier, though this is only speculation.

Users are encouraged to ensure their pronouns are up to date in their Google settings in order to promote a more inclusive workplace.

The updates form part of a broader push by Google to keep its online collaboration tools fresh and in line with rivals. Just recently, the company announced support for video messages within Chat as well as transcription for voice messages.

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Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has laid out his ideal of “trustworthy AI” that brings benefits to users everywhere.

Speaking at the company’s Microsoft AI Tour London event, Nadella was understandably bullish about the predicted positive effects of AI tools, and the productivity and efficiency boosts it can bring to consumers and businesses alike across the globe.

“Trust in the technology, ultimately is going to be core to all the diffusion,” he stated, “and if you don't trust it, you're not going to use it, and that’s not going to be great for anyone.”

AI building blocks

In his speech, Nadella laid Microsoft’s straightforward mission when it comes to technology - “empowering people to do things they couldn’t do previously…making a profound impact”.

“It’s fantastic to be here, especially at a time like this, when there’s a new tech platform being born…it’s exciting to talk about the vibrancy that comes with these platform shifts.”

These aims are manifesting in three ways, he said - new forms of computing interfaces, increased reasoning, and improved context and memory capabilities, and in order to get the most out of these, Microsoft is building three platforms - Copilot (described by Nadella as "the UI for AI"), an AI stack to support this, and Copilot devices such as AI PCs.

“When you put these three things together, you are building out a very rich AI or agentic world,” he declared.

Agents have become a central part of many company’s AI strategies in recent months, and Nadella was keen to add his backing, noting soon, building an AI agent would be "no more mystical than creating an Excel spreadsheet...you could even think of these as the new form of applications, that anyone can create.”

Nadella also labelled Copilot as a “cognitive amplifier” able to augment human work and intelligence, leading to all-round boosts in productivity and efficiency, noting the ideal would be to, “think with AI, and work with my colleagues at work”.

But trust is the key factor underlying these platforms, he emphasized, with Microsoft’s own core key principles of data security, governance, and privacy.

“Ultimately, technology has to translate into real-world impact, one person and one organization at a time,” Nadella concluded.

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Organizations – on average - refresh their enterprise device portfolios once every four years. However, this timeline, for many, went out the window – for want of a better phrasing - in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic, and the pressing need to equip then remote workforces with devices that were suitable for what we thought at the time might be a short stint of remote working.

That was, now, four years ago – and the world of work has changed infinitely – or at least, in three key ways.

1. Businesses and their employees are working in different ways. Many now need devices which are powerful enough to work remotely, but also lightweight enough to carry on the commute.

2. Support for Windows 10 will end in October 2025, and many businesses are deciding whether to invest in virtualization, or devices which are Windows 11 compatible.

3. AI continues to reimagine what is possible within the workplace. Keeping pace with rapid technological innovation – and making sure your devices are future fit and future secure – are increasingly significant challenges.

Ultimately, budgets for device estate upgrades are finite and likely to not be replenished for four years, or so. So, organizations need to ensure that their devices are fit for their current working model, but are also capable of keeping pace with the evolution of your business over the next four years.

AI is a great example of what this looks like in practice.

What do we mean by an AI PC?

When it comes to AI, we are talking about a step change in the way that we work, and how we use technology. For a device purchased today to be fit for use for the next four years – it needs to be able to efficiently run AI-powered tools. AI PCs are much discussed - but the mechanics under the hood of some AI PCs are specifically built to work in the way that AI works. These devices are designed to empower employees with the speed, and versatility they need to work from anywhere, anytime – with AI as an augmenting partner.

To put it bluntly, there’s a risk for those who opt to invest in traditional PCs in their upcoming refresh cycle – that they may not be able to reap the full benefits of new AI tools and technologies. This could leave them lagging competitors, employees feeling disengaged (more on this below), and – potentially - force IT decision makers (ITDMs) to invest in an out of cycle upgrade to their device estates, putting the company at a financial disadvantage.

Beyond the finances, what we’re seeing, however, is that there is clear demand from employees to be set up for success when it comes to AI – which in of itself, is a critical steer as to where to focus technology investment. According to a recent research report commissioned by Microsoft, ‘The AI + Talent Equation', 60% of employees who are looking to change employer say they would stay longer if their current company enabled them to develop more digital skills. The report also shows that younger generations are more likely to switch jobs or careers to future proof their skills and prospects in an AI-driven world.

The digital skills challenge

AI and AI PCs are not only tools for automating tasks, but also proven catalysts of new ways of working. A lot of the skills needed to leverage them are intuitive – and rooted in natural language. However, there is a new range of skills and behaviors which need to be identified, encouraged, and enabled. For example, to use AI to the best of its potential, its essential that users know how to build effective prompts, and when to supercharge their workflow with an AI-powered tool. However, many employees lack the confidence and training to use AI in their day-to-day work and adapt to changing roles and expectations.

This has implications for talent retention and career satisfaction, especially for younger employees. The research report mentioned above also found that only 36% of employees feel they have the skills needed to leverage AI in their day-to-day work, with this figure dropping to 24% for Gen X. Whilst this stat increases to 56% of Gen Z, one in two Gen Z workers (50%) say they’re taking active steps to future proof their careers. The youngest working generation are also twice as likely (41%) to be planning to switch companies, specifically to future proof their career than the average employee (19%).

How to make AI work for your business and your people

Importantly, however, there are a multitude of ways in which AI and AI PCs can help businesses and employees realize the future of work, and leverage AI as a retention tool. But, it requires a strategic approach that aligns technology, skills, and culture. Here are some of the steps that I would recommend to ITDMs.

Provide employees with access to training and resources that can help them develop their digital skills and confidence in using AI. And, the good news is, AI can help here. Online training platforms allow employees to access personalized and interactive learning paths that can teach them how to use AI in their work. For example, we offer a course on the fundamentals of Gen AI, which explores the way in which language models enable AI applications and services to generate original content based on natural language input.

Another key step is to foster a culture of learning and innovation that encourages employees to experiment with AI, share their ideas and feedback, and collaborate across teams and functions. Host weekly breakout sessions and encourage employees to share their learning and challenges with AI to foster an environment that celebrates AI. Kick off a central resource which hosts the best prompts, access to the best copilots, and examples of outputs.

In addition to fostering a culture of learning and innovation, and providing employees with training and resources, ITDMs should also work with the C-Suite and HR Leads to ensure everyone understands the role tech is playing in talent retention.

Given the fast pace of AI innovation and the competitive landscape of the modern workplace, it is vital that employers equip their employees with the best tools and opportunities to leverage AI in their work. Otherwise, they risk losing their talent to other organizations that are more forward-thinking and agile in adopting AI. Employees today want to work for companies that empower them to grow their skills and career prospects, and that recognize the value of AI as a driver of business transformation and employee satisfaction. By investing in AI-ready devices, such as AI PCs, and providing training and support for AI tools, employers can show their commitment to their employees and their future.

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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

CrowdStrike was brought before a US Congressional Committee on September 24 to explain why its cybersecurity solution triggered one of the largest IT outages ever seen. A senior official told Congress that the company was “deeply sorry” that a flawed update pushed out to its market-leading Falcon endpoint detection and response (EDR) software in July caused widespread disruption across airlines, banking systems, healthcare, manufacturing, government services, and more.

The financial cost is still being counted, but it’s estimated that the outage caused more than $500 billion in direct losses at Fortune 500 companies with only around 10-20 percent of these losses likely to be covered by insurers. Delta, for example, was forced to ground more than 7,000 flights in the aftermath, incurring losses of $500 million. The risk of lawsuits being launched against CrowdStrike by companies impacted in this way remains very real.

In its appearance before Congress, CrowdStrike sought to reassure lawmakers that it was acting on the “lessons learned” from the incident so such an outage could never occur again.

But the uncomfortable truth is: it almost certainly will. Here’s why.

A crisis waiting to happen

The update that CrowdStrike pushed out to its Falcon EDR software on July 19 was nothing special. In fact, CrowdStrike revealed to Congress that it issues 10 to 12 similar updates every single day. We can assume that the majority of the other “Magic Quadrant” EDR vendors employ similar levels of constant updating.

These constant updates are pushed out to devices with little or no warning – and come with the risk of corrupting the devices they are loaded on. A minor issue may result in false positives that cause disruption. But in the case of the July 19 CrowdStrike incident, users on Windows machines suddenly found themselves facing the “blue screen of death” and were forced to reboot in safe mode to remove and fix.

Until there is a fundamental rethink in these update processes, we only have CrowdStrike’s word that the likelihood of it happening again is reduced.

Up to now, this risk has been justified by the EDR industry. That’s because they’re always one step behind the bad guys. To block an attack, a cybersecurity vendor first needs to be aware of it. As a result, vendors that use this model are permanently in reactive mode. To minimize the impact on customers, they must continue to increase the number of updates as soon as a way to block them is found. And as the number of attacks continues to grow, so must the number of updates.

The irony of the July 19 incident was that, even though it wasn’t a cyberattack, the blast impact was far worse than any attack in recent memory. It could be classified as an unintentional supply chain attack. This type of attack came to the fore with the SolarWinds attack of 2020 and there have been hundreds of “intentional” supply chain attacks in the period since.

How can I trust what my vendor is sending me?

The end customers of these cloud-based cybersecurity solutions, fearful of a repeat of July 19, can no longer be confident that the updates they receive from their vendor are fully tested and suitable for all their devices. Those with critical infrastructure, for example, cannot risk accepting an update that has the potential to bring their systems down without validating it first. This could mean staging an update on a testbed or limiting the update to non-critical devices to check for the blue screen of death.

But resorting to manual validation processes requires time and human resources. It also means putting tools in place to prevent automatic updates and waiting to see if the update runs smoothly elsewhere before installing. This can be challenging because EDR vendors often make it difficult to intercept such updates. The manual approach also undermines the central value proposition of a product such as CrowdStrike: if you’re not taking the updates, then your risk of sustaining an attack increases substantially over time. In a world where today’s cybercriminals – often nation-state-backed – are harnessing AI to launch increasingly sophisticated attacks with increasing frequency, guarding only against last week’s attacks leaves you vulnerable.

Moving beyond the patch-and-update model

How can companies protect themselves? The answer lies in adopting a more generic approach to cybersecurity, which doesn’t require an update to stop each new form of attack. This type of solution is able to observe the processes and code used as they execute in memory, and uniquely detect – and block – the vast array of generic attack techniques.

Lightweight agents on each device integrated at ring zero of the OS kernel provide the visibility to intercept such attack techniques without ever needing an update. This means protection from zero-day attacks on day zero, not shortly thereafter. It is a complement to existing solutions, rather than a replacement. But it can also detect and stop EDR vendor updates from loading on critical devices, and hold them back until approved if necessary.

The CrowdStrike outage serves as a stark reminder of the risks posed by the current state-of-the-art EDR industry model for staying protected. And until alternative solutions are put in place, it is only a matter of when – not if – such an outage will happen again.

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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

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Android 15 appears to contain a bug that may brick certain Google Pixel 6 models, meaning owners may want to hold off on updating to the latest version of Google’s mobile operating system.

As Android Police reports, the catastrophic bug has caused some Pixel 6 handsets to become completely unresponsive unexpectedly, with no clear fix in sight.

Several threads in the Reddit community r/GooglePixel have noted issues after updating to Android 15, with user u/GegoByte reporting that their phone had failed after enabling the Private Space feature.

Private Space is a new feature in Android 15 that allows users to keep a selection of apps and files in a locked profile. It’s not yet clear why this would cause the phone to brick, but the feature is apparently somewhat resource intensive, requiring a phone with at least 6GB of RAM to function.

This latest bug is, regrettably, not the first bricking issue to affect the Pixel 6 lineup. In July, reports surfaced of Pixel 6 phones bricking after a factory reset, and last year Forbes reported that updating to Android 14 had cost some users access to their local files and caused boot-looping.

It’s also not the only issue Pixel users are reporting with Android 15 – PhoneArena reported problems with the back gesture on the Pixel 8 Pro.

Additionally, across several models the Android 15 update rendered the Instagram app unusable (though there is a fix on the way).

Google released its stable version of Android 15 to Pixel phones on October 15. The Pixel 6, Pixel 6 Pro, and Pixel 6a are the oldest Pixel models to receive the update.

Other phone makers like Motorola and OnePlus have either begun or announced the rollout of Android 15, which will give us a chance to see whether these issues are exclusive to Google’s Pixel family or because of faults with Android 15 itself.

We’ll update this article with any confirmed fixes. Until then, be sure to keep up with our Google Pixel phones coverage and Android coverage for the latest updates.

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Facebook co-founder and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has stated any company that prides itself on its tech should have a tech-savvy CEO and other like-minded leaders in post in order to succeed in today’s increasingly digital landscape.

Speaking recently on the Acquired podcast, Zuckerberg suggested product development and technological innovation should go hand-in-hand for companies to meet their full potential, adding that Meta’s success is thanks to its strong balance between the two.

“I think that that's something that we've held ourselves to and built a good organization around," he added.

Zuckerberg highlights the importance of tech-savviness

Reflecting on his early experiences in Silicon Valley, the Meta CEO criticized many so-called tech companies for not valuing technical leadership enough: “The CEO wasn't technical, the board of directors had no one technical on it. They had one dude on the management team who was the head of engineering, who was technical, and everyone else wasn't.”

Zuckerberg argued that, while such companies might be successful in other areas, they should not consider themselves to be tech firms unless a significant proportion of the leadership team has strong technical knowledge.

Highlighting the differences between Meta and Apple, which is typically slower to polish and release its products, Zuckerberg also stated that a reactive approach to businesses can be advantageous.

He covers the benefits of “a culture that values shipping and getting things out and getting feedback,” adding that Meta has been close to “the line of being embarrassed about what [it] put[s] out” but confident enough that it can learn from customer feedback.

Besides having the right leaders to guide decisions, Zuckerberg warns companies not to protect their pride too much – “there are more smart people outside of your company than inside your company.” He suggested that businesses can gain valuable insights from the successes and failures of rival companies.

With all companies needing to innovate quickly and stay on top of emerging trends like AI to remain competitive, Zuckerberg’s timely advice could help transform businesses and prevent them from being left behind.

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The iPhone 16 Pro is barely a month old, but we're already seeing some credible rumors for next year's successor – and the latest camera speculation for the iPhone 17 Pro has got me considering delaying my iPhone upgrade.

According to a research note from the usually reliable analyst Jeff Pu (via MacRumors), both the iPhone 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max will see their 5x telephoto camera upgraded from a 12MP sensor to a 48MP one. Less excitingly (for me, at least), the front camera will also be boosted to a 24MP sensor.

The note contains other predictions for Apple's next flagship phone – both models will apparently get 12GB RAM (up from 8GB) to improve Apple Intelligence and multitasking speeds, plus a first major reduction in size for the Dynamic Island (thanks to a new metalens for the Face ID system). Naturally, there will also be a new A19 Pro chip.

But as a photographer who's close to upgrading to the iPhone 16 Pro, those telephoto rumors for the 17 Pro have given me pause for thought. I've previously written about why I skipped the iPhone 15 Pro, with the main reason being my golden rule to wait until any new Apple feature reaches second-generation refinement.

This year, the iPhone 16 Pro brought Apple's 5x telephoto camera to the smaller Pro model (it was previously a Max exclusive), but it is largely identical to last year with an f/2.8 aperture and 12MP sensor. That 'zoom' camera will reach real maturity, it seems, in the 17 Pro series with the same 48MP boost that Apple brought to the iPhone Pro's wide-angle camera this year – and that could be worth waiting for.

Why a telephoto upgrade would be a big deal

(Image credit: Apple)

Apple left one of the iPhone 16 Pro's three cameras with a 12MP resolution – the telephoto one. The main camera is a 24mm, 48MP affair with a bright f/1.78 aperture, while the 13mm Ultra Wide was upgraded to 48MP. While the Ultra Wide doesn't pack the same computational 'Fusion' magic as the main camera, the resolution is still a helpful upgrade for things like macro shots.

Sensor size is at least as important as resolution, if not more so. But a higher-resolution 48MP sensor can help reduce noise through 'binning' – in other words, combining adjacent pixels to make larger ones that are more sensitive to light. Technical improvements like that are particularly helpful when light is being bounced around an internal tetraprism, like it is on the telephoto lens.

If the iPhone 17 Pro's telephoto camera combined a resolution boost with a larger sensor, its image quality would be much-improved. While our iPhone 16 Pro review found its 5x camera to be perfectly solid, it is still the weakest sibling of the phone's three hardware-based cameras – and one I'd probably only use in emergencies or as a handy pair of digital binoculars.

Of course, waiting for Apple to give the iPhone Pro series a 'perfect' photography setup – three 48MP cameras with large sensors and 'Fusion' processing – is a fool's game. Apple is a master of bread-crumbing these little camera upgrades just enough to keep you on the upgrade cycle. I will most likely still succumb to the temptation of an iPhone 16 Pro upgrade, but these rumors mean it's certainly tempting to wait one more year.

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With continued reports that Europe has fallen behind when it comes to cutting-edge technology development, a top diplomat has called the gap the ‘single biggest long-term challenge’ to European security.

Seasoned German diplomat Wolfgang Ischinger went on to share concerns that Europe is ‘definitely not in good shape’ in regards to security and defence technology compared to the US and China, insisting “we need to put that at the top of the agenda” along with wars in the Middle East and Ukraine.

Repeated critical infrastructure attacks from state sponsored actors outline the urgency and gravity of the threat. In an increasingly digital world, cybersecurity will be at the forefront of national security concerns.

Limited optimism

The key concern of the European official is the shortcomings of military tech, and what’s hindering Europe in technological development is the fragmentation of its capital market.

“The completion of the Capital Markets Union is probably the single, most essential precondition for getting this right,” Ishinger said.

"My optimism is somewhat limited, because I don't think that government institutions, whether they're at the national level or at the EU level, can actually do it." he continued.

EU officials and Big Tech have found themselves at odds recently, with the Digital Market and Digital Service Act introduced to try and curb the powers of top tech firms through regulations, restrictions, and fines.

At the Munich Security Conference earlier in 2024, Google launched its AI Cyber Defense Initiative, which will offer skills training, investments, and tools for businesses to harness the power of AI in cybersecurity.

Investment into European digital infrastructure, like data centres and cloud services, will hope to bridge the gap between Europe and the US and China. Projects unveiled in the UK are aimed at making the country more attractive to tech organisations.

Via Politico

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In the tit-for-tat blame game that continues to play about regarding delayed and poor AI deployment, workers are now saying that their managers aren’t ready enough to move things forward.

A Capgemini Research Institute report of 1,500 executives and 1,000 workers across 15 countries found just one in 10 (11.6%) employees believe their managers have the right data management skills, and only a touch more (12.8%) are technologically literate in terms of AI.

The sentiments are reflected in actual usage – only one-third (34.9%) of managers currently use generative AI for decision-making, despite four in five (80%) recognizing its potential.

Managers are to blame for slow AI uptake

It’s clear that there are more hurdles preventing companies from advancing their AI strategies, too, such as the unauthorized use of GenAI tools that could be putting sensitive and confidential data at risk. Despite this, 11.1% of employees and 20% of managers admit to using public generative AI tools without the proper authorization.

Moreover, 44% of employees said that they do not use these tools at all.

In spite of slow uptake, organizations are acknowledging the potential benefits of emerging technologies like AI and automation. Capgemini’s report suggests that GenAI could help with around one-third of entry-level tasks in the next 12 months.

The study also explores the ongoing concern AI could replace human workers, with two-thirds (68.6%) of employees worrying that replacing human managers with AI could negatively impact the workplace. More positively, 71% of employees see their roles evolving rather than being entirely replaced by artificial intelligence.

“Generative AI has the potential to shift from a co-pilot to a co-thinker, capable of strategic collaboration, adding new perspectives and challenging assumptions," noted Capgemini Invent CEO Roshan Gya.

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The Sonos Ace headphones are the firm's first venture into the headphone market – and it looks like that venture hasn't been very successful. The ongoing woes around the Sonos app have done real damage to the brand, and Sonos itself says that the drama overshadowed the launch of the Sonos Ace.

Sonos has reportedly slashed its manufacturing targets for the Ace by almost 90%, and now a new report says it's considering a price cut to boost the profile of the ailing Aces.

That's according to Bloomberg, which says that Sonos has a two-pronged strategy. Prong one is to release a higher-spec version of the Ace for the same price; prong two is to then cut $50 off the current Ace headphones, bringing the price down to $400.

Is $50 off the Ace enough?

Bloomberg says that the plans are still being discussed, and that some Sonos insiders don't think the current plan is a good one. I'm inclined to agree, because as we said in our Sonos Ace review its performance in music and with noise cancelling isn't as good as the competition, notably Bose. And at $400, the Ace headphones would still be more expensive than most of their rivals.

If you look at the best headphones right now, lots of great models are much cheaper than the Sonos. Sony's WH-1000XM5 had an launch price of $399 and are now available for under $300 during deals events.

When it comes to noise cancellation, the best in class are Bose's QuietComfort Ultra Headphones, and these also sound better than the Sonos Ace. Their official price is higher at $429, but we've seen them discounted to $329 and with Black Friday looming they'll fall again soon enough. $400 for the Sonos Ace is not going to compete with this.

The Sonos Ace headphones are in a tough place right now because they're priced as premium products from a premium brand – a strategy that worked really well for Apple's AirPods Max, which benefit both from the headphones being fashionable and from the loyalty of Apple fans. But Apple hasn't had months of furious customers and bad publicity around its audio products, and Sonos has.

If the Ace has any chance of being a hit, Sonos can't rely on its die-hard fans; it needs to meet buyers where they are, and to be a better buy than the competition. With Bose delivering better sound and noise cancellation, that leaves one thing: price. A $50 drop may not be big enough.

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The threat actors that breached Nidec Corporation earlier in 2024 leaked the data they stole in the attack on the dark web, the company has confirmed.

In its announcement, the company explained a threat actor stole valid VPN account information from a Nidec employee, and used it to access a server holding sensitive information.

It is important to note here that this was not a full-blown ransomware attack - no systems were encrypted during the attack. Instead, the threat actor just stole as many files as they could, and bolted.

8BASE and Everest

Nidec Corporation is a Japanese multinational company specializing in electric motor technology, producing a wide range of motors for applications such as automotive, industrial, and home appliances.

In early June 2024, one of its subsidiaries - Nidec Precision - suffered a cyberattack.

Nidec Precision focuses on the design and manufacturing of precision components, particularly in the areas of robotics, electronics, and industrial automation. This company is based in Vietnam.

Among the information stolen in the attack are 50,694 files, including internal documents, letters from business partners, documents related to green procurement, labor safety and health policies, business documents (purchase orders, invoices, receipts), contracts, and more.

Roughly two weeks after the incident, a ransomware threat actor named 8BASE claimed responsibility for the attack. The group said the organization had not disclosed the full scope of compromised data, and that it held a “huge amount” of confidential files. A month later, another threat actor, called Everest, leaked the stolen data.

According to BleepingComputer, Everest is a threat actor that specializes in extortion negotiations, so it’s safe to assume that 8BASE handed the job to Everest, once its efforts proved futile. Ultimately, no malicious actors managed to convince Nidec to pay up.

Via BleepingComputer

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