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Quordle was one of the original Wordle alternatives and is still going strong now more than 1,000 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 Wordle today, NYT Connections today and NYT Strands today pages for hints and answers for those puzzles.

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 #1005) - hint #1 - Vowels How 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 #1005) - hint #2 - repeated letters Do any of today's Quordle answers contain repeated letters?

• The number of Quordle answers containing a repeated letter today is 1.

Quordle today (game #1005) - hint #3 - uncommon letters Do the letters Q, Z, X or J appear in Quordle today?

• Yes. One of Q, Z, X or J appears among today's Quordle answers.

Quordle today (game #1005) - hint #4 - starting letters (1) Do any of today's Quordle puzzles start with the same letter?

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

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

Quordle today (game #1005) - hint #5 - starting letters (2) What letters do today's Quordle answers start with?

• P

• E

• R

• P

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

Quordle today (game #1005) - the answers

(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)

The answers to today's Quordle, game #1005, are…

• PRANK
• EXIST
• RUDDY
• PICKY

If number of distinct letters is a measure of a Quordle's difficulty – and it certainly can be – then today's is further towards hard than easy. It contains 14 characters, including an X and two Ks, so depending on how the letters fell for you, it may have been a tough one to solve.

I didn't find it too hard myself, fortunately. My start words gave me 12 of those letters – minus the X and K – and 16 of the 20 letters needed in total, which is not too bad as these things go. I messed up a little with EXIST, for some reason playing FIEST, which I'm not sure is a word but which Quordle inexplicably accepted – but otherwise it was fairly mundane.

How did you do today? Send me an email and let me know.

Daily Sequence today (game #1005) - the answers

(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)

The answers to today's Quordle Daily Sequence, game #1005, are…

• GIANT
• RUGBY
• EXTOL
• GREAT

Quordle answers: The past 20

• Quordle #1004, Thursday 24 October: DAIRY, RALLY, CURLY, LABEL
• Quordle #1003, Wednesday 23 October: DROSS, ANNEX, GRAVE, BROKE
• Quordle #1002, Tuesday 22 October: ADORE, SMITH, AFOOT, LUCID
• Quordle #1001, Monday 21 October: TREAD, NINTH, GRIEF, UNSET
• Quordle #1000, Sunday 20 October: CORAL, WHOSE, HEIST, SOAPY
• Quordle #999, Saturday 19 October: GUSTY, BROKE, ENJOY, HAZEL
• Quordle #998, Friday 18 October: PUPIL, MOCHA, EGRET, NATAL
• Quordle #997, Thursday 17 October: BUILD, BIRTH, LURCH, SASSY
• Quordle #996, Wednesday 16 October: EERIE, SMIRK, HUNCH, EMBED
• Quordle #995, Tuesday 15 October: UMBRA, BRIEF, GRAVY, TORUS
• Quordle #994, Monday 14 October: ROGUE, STORY, EMCEE, AUNTY
• Quordle #993, Sunday 13 October: UNFIT, NYMPH, THUMB, PUREE
• Quordle #992, Saturday 12 October: SAUCY, UNDUE, EGRET, HELLO
• Quordle #991, Friday 11 October: RINSE, ANIME, PUSHY, ZEBRA
• Quordle #990, Thursday 10 October: UNTIL, MARSH, METAL, WINDY
• Quordle #989, Wednesday 9 October: TRIAL, HUSKY, DOWNY, TRADE
• Quordle #988, Tuesday 8 October: TROUT, HATER, BARGE, DOZEN
• Quordle #987, Monday 7 October: CAULK, HALVE, APING, HEATH
• Quordle #986, Sunday 6 October: FUDGE, TENOR, BEGAT, ROUSE
• Quordle #985, Saturday 5 October: ELECT, CROAK, FRISK, JAUNT

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 clues.

What should you do once you've finished? Why, play some more word games of course. I've also got daily Wordle hints and answers, Strands hints and answers and Quordle hints and answers articles if you need help for those too.

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 #502) - today's words

(Image credit: New York Times)

Today's NYT Connections words are…

• FORMAL
• COOKWARE
• QUESTION MARK
• RAVE
• PERIOD
• THUMBS UP
• BALL
• DOT
• BAD REVIEW
• HOP
• EXCLAMATION
• POINTS
• SATYR
• POINT
• CAMERA MOVEMENT
• HEART
• TITTLE

NYT Connections today (game #502) - hint #1 - group hints

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

• Yellow: Sentence ender
• Green: Thing to bust a move at
• Blue: iReply
• Purple: Look for gold in a river

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 #502) - hint #2 - group answers

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

• YELLOW: •
• GREEN: EVENT WITH DANCING
• BLUE: IPHONE MESSAGE TAPBACK RESPONSES
• PURPLE: “PAN”

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

NYT Connections today (game #502) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Connections, game #502, are…

• YELLOW: • DOT, PERIOD, POINT, TITTLE
• GREEN: EVENT WITH DANCING BALL, FORMAL, HOP, RAVE
• BLUE: IPHONE MESSAGE TAPBACK RESPONSES EXCLAMATION POINTS, HEART, QUESTION MARK, THUMBS UP
• PURPLE: “PAN” BAD REVIEW, CAMERA MOVEMENT, COOKWARE, SATYR

• My rating: Moderate
• My score: 1 mistake

Today I learned that the word TITTLE means a very small part or indeed a PERIOD, POINT or DOT, as it's used in today's Connections. And there I was thinking that it was a misspelling – possibly deliberate – of TITLE. That ignorance on my part cost me a guess, because I thought maybe BALL would be part of that group instead; don't laugh, it is the same shape at least!

That was supposedly the easiest of today's four groups, but none of them could really be described as that. Green – EVENT WITH DANCING – was not too bad, but FORMAL and HOP are not terms I've heard used often in the UK, where I am, or at least not in the past half century – so I had to rely on my knowledge of US TV and movies for that.

Fortunately, IPHONE MESSAGE TAPBACK RESPONSES was a little simpler for a tech journalist such as myself, but won't necessarily have been so if you're on Android instead. Purple, as always, was just difficult.

How did you do today? Send me an email and let me know.

Yesterday's NYT Connections answers (Thursday, 24 October, game #501)

• YELLOW: LINEUP BILL, PROGRAM, SCHEDULE, SLATE
• GREEN: NYT OFFERINGS AUDIO, COOKING, GAMES, NEWS
• BLUE: THINGS MADE BY FOLDING PAPER AIRPLANE, CRANE, FAN, FORTUNE TELLER
• PURPLE: FRENCH WORDS ADIEU, BELLE, PAIN, TEMPS

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.

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 Wordle today, NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games.

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 #236) - hint #1 - today's theme What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?

• Today's NYT Strands theme is… Make some noise!

NYT Strands today (game #236) - hint #2 - clue words

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

• META
• QUEUE
• BARN
• BRUNT
• TOUR
• STEP

NYT Strands today (game #236) - hint #3 - spangram What is a hint for today's spangram?

• Woofers and tweeters

NYT Strands today (game #236) - hint #4 - spangram position What are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?

First: left, 5th row

Last: right, 4th row

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

NYT Strands today (game #236) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Strands, game #236, are…

• CHIRP
• SQUEAK
• PURR
• GROWL
• BARK
• SQUAWK
• GRUNT
• MEOW
• SPANGRAM: PETSOUNDS

• My rating: Easy
• My score: Perfect

What better way to end the working week than by solving a Strands puzzle that's all about PETSOUNDS. No, not the Beach Boys album – though I would have been VERY happy to have had a Strands game with that as the theme – but rather the actual sounds made by animals. For instance SQUEAK, PURR, BARK, MEOW and CHIRP.

They're all pretty obvious, to be honest, so I doubt anyone here will have struggled too much. The most difficult element will have been to get started, but many of the answers are easy to find, so even that is unlikely to have troubled you by much.

How did you do today? Send me an email and let me know.

Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Thursday, 24 October, game #235)

• PEPPER
• ANISE
• CINNAMON
• CLOVE
• CARDAMOM
• NUTMEG
• SPANGRAM: MASALACHAI

What is NYT Strands?

Strands is the NYT's new word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now out of beta so is a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable and 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.

• The web version of Google Calendar has been given an official dark mode
• The feature is rolling out globally this week to all Calendar users
• Google has also given Calendar a "refreshed user interface"

If you've been patiently waiting years for Google Calendar to deliver an official dark mode, today is your day – the web version of the app has finally been given a darker optional color scheme, along with a mild redesign.

The news came in a Google Workspace blog post where Google said that it's introducing the ability to switch between light mode, dark mode, and default themes. As previous reports have noted, dark modes can give you a small battery life saving, particularly if you're using a device with an OLED screen.

(Image credit: Future)

The update is rolling out now, though it's also become available to a few members of the TechRadar team so far. To see if you have it, head to the settings cog at the top right of the page, then in the new drop-down menu click 'Appearance' (see above).

You'll then see the menu below – choose 'Dark' and you'll be treated to the eye-pleasing sight of the new dark mode. That's not everything that's changed either – the typography and controls have been tweaked in line with Google's 'Material Design 3' guidelines, which Google says makes it "more modern and accessible."

The calendar certainly looks cleaner to us, but the dark mode is the main improvement that we're particularly happy to see.

Warning: may cause extension headaches

(Image credit: Future)

In slightly less good news, Google says these changes may break some of your Chrome extensions if they "are active when using Google Calendar."

Google didn't elaborate on what extensions might be affected but said some "might not work as expected" and that you should contact the extension's developers with any issues. We'd imagine ones like G-Calize (for color-coding calendars) and Timely might be the kind of extensions that could be affected.

Other affected extensions could include some theme customizers that became available in the Chrome Web Store when it looked like Google was reluctant to make an official one.

Fortunately, that dark mode is now here – which is good news for both our eyes and laptop battery lives in general.

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• Gmail and Google Calendar are getting an upgrade that your employees might actually like

A new leak claims AMD’s upcoming Ryzen 7 9800X3D processor will see an 8% performance boost over the Ryzen 9 7800X3D — in other words, the chip that is regarded as one of the best gaming CPUs on the market now looks set to be dethroned.

This could stand as a significant boost for PC gamers, especially considering the improvement in 3D V-Cache, which was a downside in our AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D review. The leak from VideoCardz contains a marketing description of the 9800X3D, revealing ‘Next-Gen 3D V-Cache’ which points towards better thermal performance when operating at higher clock speeds.

VideoCardz also reports that it’s expected to have a 15% enhancement over the 7800X3D in multi-threaded workloads, ideal for multi-tasking duties and video editing, using 8 cores and 16 threads — this strikes a balance for both content creators and gamers, along with the aforementioned 3D V-Cache improvements. These pivotal enhancements being leaked ahead of the 9800X3D’s confirmed November 7th launch and AMD’s full spec reveal gives gamers some insight into what to expect.

Will the 9800X3D be worth the upgrade?

While we have yet to see the full scope of what the Ryzen 7 9800X3D will have to offer specification-wise, the leaked marketing description gives us a great idea of what is in store for PC gamers. Considering the aforementioned 8% boost in gaming performance and room for slightly higher clock speeds up to 5.2GHz compared to the previous 5GHz, the switch is certainly worth contemplating - and for gamers who have yet to upgrade to an AM5 chip, this performance boost could finally be the push they need.

Despite the improvements listed in the leak, it’s important to note that there is only so much that can be done when it comes to poor game optimization on PC — an upgrade can help specifically with reducing stuttering in certain games, but it’s not the silver bullet for achieving optimal performance. Besides, most modern games are far more dependent on your GPU and available VRAM.

If you’re using the best GPUs on the market, like the Nvidia RTX 4080 Super or RTX 4090, any kind of upgrade isn’t entirely urgent, but we’ll have to wait to see everything AMD’s new processor has to offer before we can pass judgment on the value of this new chip.

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The iKOOLCORE R2 Max is a compact yet powerful mini PC that comes with either the Intel N100 or the more powerful Intel Core i3-N305, making it capable of handling various tasks such as content creation, virtualization, and office work.

Despite its small size, measuring just 15.7 x 11.8 x 4 cm, the R2 Max is well-equipped with four high-speed Ethernet ports - two 10GbE ports powered by Marvell AQC113C-B1-C chips and two 2.5GbE ports running on Intel i226-v controllers.

These could make it an excellent choice for users seeking a budget-friendly home web server with advanced networking capabilities.

Keep cool

(Image credit: iKOOLCORE )

Internally, the R2 Max supports up to 32GB of DDR5-4800 RAM in a single slot and includes dual M.2 NVMe slots (2242/2280) for storage, with support for up to 2TB. While the PCIe 2.0 x1 lanes limit peak SSD performance, they should be fast enough for sharing files and serving up media.

The R2 Max also includes two USB-A 3.0 ports and a USB-C 3.2 Gen2 port for connecting peripherals, alongside HDMI 2.0 and USB-C for 4K 60fps display output. Power can be supplied via a 19V DC input or a USB-C PD port, adding flexibility for users who want a backup battery.

Cooling is handled via a passive system, featuring a copper heatsink and a CNC metal top cover for heat dissipation, which should be more than sufficient for typical home server tasks. For heavier workloads, two optional fans can be added to improve airflow and prevent the system from overheating.

The R2 Max is priced at $299 for the N100 barebone version and up to $709 for the fully equipped N305 model with 32GB RAM and a 2TB SSD. The mini PC is compatible with Windows, Linux, pfSense, OPNsense, OpenWrt, Proxmox VE, VMware ESXi, Unraid, and more.

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Our experts spend hundreds of hours regularly testing VPN apps to give you only the best and most up-to-date buying advice. Well, after another round of deep dives, there are some big changes to our best VPN rankings.

While some testing sessions are less eventful – often confirming rather than revolutionizing our top VPN list – there have been quite a few interesting changes this time around. From checking unblocking and threat protection capabilities to speeds, server network, pricing, and new releases: some providers have recorded important wins to the detriment of some big names.

Keep reading to see what has changed, what hasn't, and what all this means for you. Understanding the reasoning behind our rankings is crucial for choosing today's best software according to your needs.

NordVPN remains TechRadar's favorite

Before looking at what has changed with the new VPN ranking, let's confirm what has not. Good news for all our long-standing readers who have trusted our previous buying advice - NordVPN confirms itself as TechRadar's best pick this time, too. This round of testing unveils brilliant performances from Nord's side yet again, in fact, across all its apps. We are especially pleased to see its speeds and unblocking results still at the top of the ranking.

Did you know?

A VPN, short for virtual private network, is a security software that encrypts your internet connection to secure all the data leaving your device. It also spoofs your real IP address and location to boost your online anonymity and grant you access to otherwise geo-blocked content.

We also recorded many browser extension improvements, including location spoofing which tells your browser to use the VPN’s virtual location, and the complete rebuilding of the Firefox extension to improve security. Similarly, there also are some improvements with its Meshnet feature, including faster file sharing and the ability to personalize device names so they’re easier to recognize.

Even more significantly, NordVPN has seriously upped its game for malware and phishing protection. The newly launched Threat Protection Pro has already proven itself to be a highly effective security tool and uses AI to help identify newly created threats. Yes, you'll need to upgrade above the Basic plan to use this tool, but our results show that it's well worth it for your online safety.

Surfshark steals second place

Now, let's have a look at something more juicy – the changes across the rankings.

Surfshark obtained a silver medal for the first time ever in our top VPN list. While the best cheap VPN provider has moved to second place, ExpressVPN has slipped to third as a result. Multiple factors influenced our decision which can be summarized as Surfshark offering more consistent performances for a fraction of Express' price.

(Image credit: Future)

Let's take a look at the speed results, for example. NordVPN and Surfshark were still consistently faster than ExpressVPN, if only a little. While the latter peaked at 898 Mbps with its WireGuard-based protocol, the others reached over 950 Mbps consistently also this time.

When using Surfshark, we enjoyed more stable streaming unblocking, too. That's because ExpressVPN had a few fails with some Netflix connections. It eventually unblocked every country but sometimes it took two or three attempts – this makes Surfshark a way more reliable Netflix VPN option.

Last but not least, ExpressVPN is way more expensive service compared to Surfshark or NordVPN. In the past, we were putting performances and technical infrastructure above this factor, but lacking the first we had to consider this difference.

Having said that, Express has recently lowered its price for the first time ever. Its one-year plan dropped to just $5.32 per month from its previous $8.33 monthly fee. While this is still far from matching Sursfhark convenience ($2.79 a month for the same plan), it certainly puts Express at a more competitive place in the market.

Proton VPN knocks PIA out of the rankings

The changes among our top VPN picks do not end here, though. The Swiss provider also behind one of the most secure email services and cloud storage solutions, Proton VPN has jumped from #6 to #4.

Again, there is a mix of reasons behind this choice. For starters, Proton VPN was among the fastest VPNs we tested also this time, peaking at 950+Mbps alongside the top two picks when connected to the WireGuard protocol.

(Image credit: Future)

We were also impressed by the boost to its server network, now counting locations across 112 countries – even more than NordVPN or ExpressVPN. Proton VPN’s global domination is also significant as the provider focuses on areas competitors may overlook, like Africa (Proton has 22 servers in contrast to the 7 NordVPN has) and Asia (42, against 34 from ExpressVPN and 32 from NordVPN).

While PrivadoVPN, the best free VPN service right now, remains in the same position (#5), a popular provider had to say goodbye to the top five. Private Internet Access (PIA) has now fallen to the sixth position after a few years in fourth.

This drop mainly comes as a result of Proton's improvements. Besides this, PIA speeds didn't impress much – 436Mbps when connected to WireGuard. TechRadar's Lead Reviewer, Mike Williams, also found the provider's customer support experience a bit "lousy" as the team stopped replying to his questions at some point.

How we test VPNs

We take our reviewing process very seriously and are committed to running VPN tests regularly to offer only up-to-date recommendations. To do so, our experts undertake a rigorous array of tests designed to determine the strengths and weaknesses of each VPN service.

The testing process begins by gathering as many technical details as possible about every product. These details span from network size and server locations to supported protocols, encryption methods, security features, and independent audit results. Reviewers then compare the information and conduct subsequent in-house tests accordingly.

Many factors need to be verified to assess the reliability of VPN software, in fact. Is the privacy and security infrastructure in line with industry standards? Does it work as promised? Does the VPN offer fast connections? Does it unblock geo-restricted content without any issues? How's the provider customer support?

To reply to all these questions, reviewers run many practical tests, including speeds, streaming unblocking, and various security checks. You can read more about our testing process on our methodology page.

Bottom line

It's important to stress that these rankings variations are a cumulation of many factors, but do not mean that ExpressVPN and Private Internet Access (PIA) are not valid services anymore.

All the providers listed in our guide are secure and worth subscribing to, in fact. These new pieces of information are for you to shape your buying choices according to your very own needs.

Do you need more servers around Africa and Asia? Proton VPN may be your best bet, then. Is connection speed a defining factor for you? You should probably consider NordVPN or Surfshark over PIA. And so on.

It's also worth reminding you that all the VPN services in our rankings come with some form of money-back guarantee (generally 30 days). This means you can try them out risk-free and decide for yourself if the software is really value for money – for you, at least.

Some Samsung smartphones were reportedly carrying a high severity vulnerability in their processors, allowing threat actors to escalate privileges and possibly drop malware on the devices.

Cybersecurity researchers from Google’s Threat Analysis Group (TAG) found the flaw and reported it to Samsung, which addressed the vulnerability on October 7, with a patch and a follow-up security advisory.

In the advisory, the flaw was described as an use-after-free vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2024-44068, with a severity score of 8.1 (high-severity), found in Samsung Exynos mobile processors versions 9820, 9825, 980, 990, 850, and W920.

Vulnerability chain

Samsung phones that are powered by these chips include parts of the S10 series, Note 10 and 10+, the S20 series, as well as Samsung Galaxy A51 5G and Samsung Galaxy A71 5G. The Exynos W920 is primarily used in wearable devices like Samsung's Galaxy Watch series.

TAG’s researchers suggested that the vulnerability is being exploited in the wild, as part of a larger chain that makes use of other bugs, as well.

"This 0-day exploit is part of an EoP chain," TAG said in its technical write-up. "The actor is able to execute arbitrary code in a privileged cameraserver process. The exploit also renamed the process name itself to 'vendor.samsung.hardware.camera.provider@3.0-service,' probably for anti-forensic purposes." There was no mention of other vulnerabilities exploited as part of the chain.

Google’s researchers did not discuss the identity of the miscreants abusing this flaw. However, it’s worth mentioning TAG usually tracks nation-states and state-sponsored threat actors, so it is safe to assume that this bug was abused by a similar team, too.

Nation-states usually engage in cyber-espionage and identity theft, so it is possible that whoever abused this flaw, tried to drop an infostealer, or a tracker, onto a Samsung device.

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iOS 18.2 developer beta is here and the new Apple Intelligence-powered Mail app is one of the standout updates coming to your iPhone.

While it may not be as headline-grabbing as ChatGPT-integration with Siri, Visual Intelligence, or Genmoji, it’s the mundane use of AI that I think the average consumer will appreciate most. I’ve been using the new Mail app in iOS 18.2 developer beta for roughly 24 hours now, and while it’s still in development it makes me optimistic about Apple Intelligence.

With new categorization, incredible summarizing tools, and a fresh look, Mail on iOS 18.2 could be the answer to my mess of an inbox and it could be for yours too.

Organized by Apple Intelligence

(Image credit: Apple)

Before I begin, I just want to emphasize that iOS 18.2 is in its very early stages. This isn’t software you should install on your primary device, and I advise you to wait for the official launch later this year to try out any of the Mail improvements I’m writing about. If you can’t wait to use Apple Intelligence, you’ll be able to install the official release of iOS 18.1 shortly and that should give you enough new features to tide you over until 18.2 finally arrives.

Now that we’ve got that out of the way, let’s talk Mail. iOS 18.1 had the rumblings of Apple Intelligence Mail features, but apart from some basic summaries, there wasn’t anything to write home about. Fast forward to iOS 18.2 and Apple Intelligence is incredibly prominent in the Mail app, and it rules.

The first thing you’ll notice when opening Mail on iOS 18.2 is Categories, powered by Apple Intelligence. Mail will automatically organize your emails into multiple categories ranging from Primary for emails that matter, Transactions for purchase receipts and delivery info, Updates for subscription info, social media emails, and newsletters, and Promotions for all your deal emails and special offers from websites. Any email that is time-sensitive, regardless of the category it falls under will also show up in Primary. This has been a life-saver already, considering my email inbox is usually cluttered with more newsletters and spam than any important information – now however, I can actually see the messages that I need to.

This simple but effective change to the Mail app is visible from the new menu bar and even just using it for a day makes me wonder how I lived without it. I’ve always wanted an AI tool to help me stay on top of my life and counting on Apple Intelligence to filter my emails takes away the constant worry that I’m missing important information because of my cluttered inbox. Up until yesterday, I feared opening the Mail app, but now I understand how it works and I’m happy to check my emails. Not only does Apple Intelligence filter your emails into categories automatically, but you can help it understand your priorities a bit better by manually categorizing contacts. I had a couple of emails pop into Transactions that should’ve been in Updates, but it was quick and easy to make sure they go into the category I want next time. The Mail app now also groups emails within these categories by sender, completely decluttering any mess.

Summarization tools that make sense

(Image credit: Future / Apple)

Aside from the new look given by Categories, summaries also worked great in my short time testing the feature. I used Apple Intelligence to summarize seven emails in a thread and it was impressive how many details it managed to pick up. While I’m still not sure how often I’d use summarization like this, it’s impressive to see it in action and I’m sure many people will love it. Where I will use summaries, however, is in the way the Mail app breaks down an email into one or two important bullet points – it’s very useful when you just want to glance at your inbox rather than open every email to determine if it’s worth your time.

It’s the decluttering that Mail that iOS 18.2 does best. No longer are you met with an endless list of emails that always feel on top of you. I know apps like Gmail have done similar things for a while, but it’s the trust I have in Apple Intelligence to do a good job that makes Mail feel different. With more Apple Intelligence features coming over the next months and a smarter Siri with personal context and on-screen awareness arriving at the end of the first wave, I’m hopeful that this is just the start of an AI-powered iPhone that works as a personal assistant in my pocket.

Emails have plagued my life for years, and they’ve gotten increasingly hard to keep on top of. If Apple Intelligence can sort my online clutter and make the mundane easier then I think Apple is onto something. Maybe this actually is “AI for the rest of us.”

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We've all been there: Endlessly scrolling on Netflix, trying to navigate the best streaming service's admittedly huge library. But there's a better way if you're trying to narrow down your search, thanks to Netflix's secret codes.

The codes are actually pretty interesting. These shortcuts date all the way back to 2007, back when Netflix was still a DVD rental service. During that time they came up with a tagging system to categorize movies and TV shows, and these can still be used today.

Nowadays instead of DVDs, they're added onto a URL to fast-track you to find whatever you're looking for. The beginning is always 'https://www.netflix.com/browse/genre/' and then you fill in the blank with any of the codes listed below.

The best Netflix horror codes

The horror genre is huge and it seems to be able to blend effortlessly with pretty much any other. Whether it's comedy horror, sci-fi horror, or even horror romance, there's plenty out there. And while Netflix does have a dedicated 'horror' category on its homepage, you might want to go deeper to find certain titles in the best Netflix movies. There's an impressive number, you might be surprised just how niche some of them go!

Here are the best codes you'll want to use, and where they take you. And if you want specific recommendations, check out TechRadar's Halloween Week for our personal favorites.

• Horror (general): 8711
• B-Horror Movies: 8195
• Creature Features: 6895
• Cult Horror Movies: 10944
• Deep Sea Horror Movies: 45028
• Foreign Horror Movies: 8654
• Goofy Horror Movies: 4021
• Horror Comedy: 89585
• High-Brow Horror: 3261672
• Monster Movies: 947
• Satanic Stories: 6998
• Slasher & Serial Killer Movies: 8646
• Small Town Scares: 81496215
• Supernatural Horror Movies: 42023
• Survival Horror: 2939659
• Teen Screams: 52147
• Vampire Horror Movies: 75804
• Werewolf Horror Movies: 75930
• Zombie Horror Movies: 75405

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The notorious Lazarus cybercrime gang has been found targeting cryptocurrency users with a “stolen” computer game to attract potential victims.

For those unfamiliar with Lazarus, it’s a North Korean state-sponsored hacking collective known for targeting cryptocurrency companies and users, and has been responsible for some of the biggest crypto heists in history, with the money allegedly going into the country’s government and weapons program.

Cybersecurity researchers from Kaspersky recently found a new campaign that uses a fake game to lure people to a website. Lazarus uses the website to exploit two vulnerabilities in the Chrome browser, and ultimately steal sensitive data from the device.

Cookies, tokens, and more

Kaspersky explained the crooks used a DeFi (decentralized finance) game known as DeFiTankLand, and simply rebranded it into DeTankZone. Users who visit the impersonated site and try to download the game will get a defunct product that doesn’t work past the login/registration screen. However, while visiting the website, a hidden script (index.tsx) will trigger an exploit for a type confusion vulnerability tracked as CVE-2024-4947.

This vulnerability was discovered in V8, Chrome’s JavaScript engine. When exploited, it corrupts the browser’s memory, and overwrites it, granting the crooks access to the address space of Chrome’s process. That, in turn, allows them to grab cookies, authentication tokens, browsing history, and saved passwords.

Since Chrome’s V8 is in a sandbox, and JavaScript execution is isolated from the rest of the system, Lazarus used a different vulnerability for remote code execution, Kaspersky said.

The researchers spotted the flaw in mid-May 2024, and Google came back with a fix two weeks later, on May 25. Cryptocurrency lovers who want to remain secure from Lazarus should bring their Chrome browsers at least to version 125.0.6422.60/.61. Lazarus has been operating this campaign since February, it was concluded.

Via BleepingComputer

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Create a centralized database to make patient health records easily accessible by all NHS services, like hospitals, GP surgeries, and ambulances. These so-called "patient passports" are the main innovation of the government plan unveiled on Monday, October 21, to transform the NHS from "analog to digital" over the next decade.

Wes Steering, the health secretary, promises these changes will modernize the country's healthcare institutions to considerably speed up patient care and reduce human errors. A new law, the Data (Use and Access) Bill, is also expected to support this transition and create a standard system where sharing these digital records is the new norm.

At first glance, fixing the issues currently crippling the NHS by embracing the power of digital tools looks like a much-needed step. Some European countries have been using a similar system for years – Estonia began digitalizing all patient records in 2008, for example. Yet, privacy experts (myself included) can see how easy it might be for this ambitious plan to turn into yet another privacy nightmare at the cost of our most sensitive information.

NHS has a bad track record in protecting our data

Let's start with the obvious – so far, the NHS has been really bad at protecting patients' health data against hackers.

The health data of UK citizens has been leaked on several occasions this year, landing on the dark web. On March 15, for example, a ransomware gang hacked Into NHS Dumfries and Galloway's digital database and stole identifying information belonging to both staff and patients, including mental health data of children.

Pathology service provider Synnovis also suffered a major attack in June, resulting in hundreds of gigabytes of sensitive patient data leaking online. A National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) executive, Professor Ciaran Martin, warned at the time against the risk of further attacks caused by the NHS IT systems being "out of date."

I don't trust that the NHS will take good care of my data anytime soon

More recently, in August, the UK Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) filed a provisional fine of £6 million following the 2022 medical records hack that saw the personal information of almost 83k people compromised.

2023 was also a bad year for people's health data security. Over a million NHS patients have had their sensitive information leaked following a ransomware attack on the University of Manchester – affecting 250 GB, or over a decade’s worth, of patient data. Worse still, the security vulnerabilities of the NHS go back as far as 2012 when the personal information of over 1.8 million patients and staff was exposed.

This trend is only likely to increase considering that cyberattacks are more frequent and destructive than ever thanks to the spread of AI and machine learning software. According to experts, healthcare is among the fields hit the most.

All this is even more worrying considering that, at the time of writing, the government's ambitious plan is at a mere consultation stage – AKA, "we still have to figure out how to make these patient passports hacking-proof."

Well, I don't know about you but, as the situation stands now, I don't trust that the NHS will take good care of my data anytime soon.

No clear plan to escape the "Big Brother" effect

Besides data security, there's also another pressing question: how does the government plan to prevent privacy abuse? The plan is, Steering says, "to ensure patients’ data is protected and anonymized." That's great – on paper, at least. Again, authorities don't have a clue how to do that in practice – and who knows if they ever will.

As health privacy advocates group medConfidential pointed out, these patient records will be accessible by any of the NHS’s 1.5 million staff. "Wes Streeting is planning a ’big brother’ database," said Sam Smith, a spokesperson for the group, according to the Guardian. "A gift to stalkers and creeps who misuse NHS systems to find out the most basic private details that people only tell their doctors."

Such a centralized database also increases the risk of private medical data being sold to big pharma and other companies without patients knowing about it. After all, something similar already happened with today's messy and scattered health record system. Last year, an Observer investigation shed light on how a covert tracking tool placed on the websites of 20 NHS trusts has for years collected browsing information and shared it with Facebook.

I also agree with privacy expert Jamie Akhtar, co-founder and CEO at CyberSmart, when he says that medical records will pass from being managed by healthcare professionals to "the control of politicians, who might decide to sell this sensitive information to the highest bidder," as Yahoo News reported.

NHS APP: now and tomorrow

(Image credit: Photo by Jaap Arriens/NurPhoto via Getty Images )

While an NHS App already exists, this comes with limitations as patients are still held locally (on their GP and visited hospitals system). The new app will de-facto reunite all the information about a patient across all parts of the health service in one place.

As we have seen, there's still a lot that we don't know about the current UK government's plan of action to execute its ambitious goal of making the NHS great again. What we do know, though, is that Britons aren't hopeful about the idea.

A public consultation published in May depicts a grim picture of public trust in the UK's healthcare institutions, with respondents completely lacking confidence in the NHS cybersecurity system. Four out of five patients believe that NHS systems are vulnerable to cyberattacks. Moreover, almost half (49%) strongly believe that the NHS could make mistakes in the handling of their data.

Wes Steering is now urging both NHS staff and patients to take part in the "national conversation.” You have time until the start of next year to voice your concerns and share ideas at change.nhs.uk.

Yes, we all know that the NHS needs to be better, but to do so it's crucial to have a solid plan of action to protect people's data privacy and security. Noble ideas alone won't save our most sensitive information from being leaked and abused.

Apple’s highly anticipated M4 MacBook Air models are rumored to be in production for launch in 2025, with the brand’s M4 Mac Studio reportedly now being pushed back and becoming a secondary focus.

This rumor comes from well-known Apple hardware leaker Mark Gurman at Bloomberg, months after Apple’s reveal of the brand-new M4 chip, which delivers a dramatic jump in performance across multiple devices – the original announcement showcased the power of the new chip, which we further discuss in our M4 iPad Pro review, improving on the M3’s 10-core GPU and introducing a new CPU with 10 cores.

The new leak suggests that the M4 chip could be present within upcoming new Mac mini and Mac Studio models, but the MacBook Air may be the sole focus for now going into 2025. Apple reportedly has no plans to change the design of the MacBook Air models, with the M4 chip being the primary upgrade.

So what’s the schedule?

As reported by Gurman, Apple had originally planned to work on the enhanced Mac Studio alongside the aforementioned M4 MacBook Air in early 2025. This schedule has apparently now changed to a period between March and June next year – if Gurman is correct, this would be after the expected launch of the MacBook Air M4 models.

Considering the dropping sales of Mac devices, it’s no surprise to see Apple stepping up production of updated MacBook Air models for early next year – if the M4 iPad Pro is anything to go by, then anyone getting their hands on the upcoming laptops should expect substantial performance improvements over the M3 MacBook Air.

The unannounced M4 MacBook Pro is also expected to be unveiled at some point, with a potential reveal in the coming days – though this is only based on different leaks from Gurman. We expect Apple to also reveal new M4 Max chips alongside the upcoming MacBook Pro models, which we anticipate will offer a significant improvement over the M3 Max.

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The list of PS5 Pro-approved games continues to rack up following the console's official announcement as yet another studio confirms upgrades on the way.

In a recent X / Twitter post, Team Ninja announced that Rise of the Ronin, its action role-playing game (RPG) that launched earlier this year, will receive PlayStation 5 Pro support.

Although the developer didn't offer too many details, it did confirm that Rise of the Ronin will get "improved visuals" and "frame rates" on the mid-generation console.

Improved visuals could potentially take advantage of the PS5 Pro's new AI upscaling software, PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution (PSSR), generally enhancing the look of the game in everything from characters, environments, and visual effects.

As for frame rates, the action game could receive additional modes that let players choose what to prioritize, like visuals or performance.

Currently, the PS5 version of Rise of the Ronin features a 60fps Performance mode, 30fps Graphics mode, and a 30fps Ray Tracing mode, so it's possible the PS5 Pro upgrade could improve these options further, allowing players to have the best of both worlds in some capacity.

Experience #RiseoftheRonin with improved visuals and frame rates on #PlayStation5 Pro!Immerse yourself in the vibrant streets of Yokohama, Edo and Kyoto, where breathtaking 19th Century heroes come to life!Forge your fate in the epic world of Bakumatsu Japan. pic.twitter.com/ZFnB0VtmKjOctober 23, 2024

Arrowhead Game Studios has also confirmed that its popular third-person multiplayer shooter, Helldivers 2, will receive a PS5 Pro upgrade in the future, but hasn't provided the specifics just yet.

Alan Wake 2 developer, Remedy, also recently revealed that its horror game will receive Quality and Performance mode upgrades after the mid-gen console launches.

Looking to get your hands on the PS5 Pro ahead of launch? Be sure to check out our PS5 Pro pre-order guide.

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70% of UK financial organizations now cite cyberattacks as a main risk to financial stability. This is no surprise, considering financial institutions are 300 times more likely to confront cyberattacks than any other industry. It’s a difficult landscape for leaders in the banking industry to navigate – banks are increasingly interacting with more technology; however, this also increases risk by introducing more entry points for bad actors.

This raises an important question: What are some of the biggest cybersecurity challenges that banks are facing, and how can they safeguard their systems in an increasingly hostile digital environment?

The era of the endpoint

Every device, from servers to employee laptops and mobile phones, represents a potential entry point for attackers. The rise of remote work, and digital consumer banking services, only perpetuates this challenge. In the last couple of years, we’ve witnessed two-thirds of banks offer workers the chance for hybrid work, exposing more remote access for their employees. With this, financial institutions are managing more heterogeneous devices than ever before, which dramatically expands their attack surfaces.

Banking on the cloud

Financial institutions are rushing to reap the rewards of digital transformation through public cloud infrastructure, with 82% of banking executives planning to move over half of their mainframe workloads to the cloud. This introduces another potential attack surface, making the financial sector an increasingly attractive target.

While cloud security follows similar principles as traditional security measures, the principal difference is that it operates over the public internet, leaving security no room for error. Therefore, existing security solutions might not be enough to protect against the unique risks of the cloud. Security teams must update their plans to address the specific needs of the cloud environment.

Thankfully, there are many ways banks can reduce their attack surface and improve their ability to prevent, detect, and respond to attacks regardless of if the endpoint is remote, in a private data center, or in a public cloud.

Here are six steps banks can take to mitigate security threats:

1. Monitor, identify and fix misconfigurations: Misconfigured cloud resources, SaaS applications, or any internet-exposed device can be the root cause of incidents where data is inadvertently exposed or stolen by a threat actor. For financial institutions, this type of threat will have both a monetary impact and can harm their brand and customer trust. To mitigate these risks, banks must not only maintain an accurate inventory of their cloud, SaaS application, and corporate environments but also ensure comprehensive visibility into all endpoints. Active monitoring and detailed visibility allow banks to identify and remediate misconfigurations before they result in serious harm.

2. Enforce multi-factor authentication: Along with strong passwords, multi-factor authentication provides a huge boost to security. The most effective options are hardware security keys or time-based one-time password (TOTP) applications, like Google Authenticator. This ensures that even if a malicious actor obtains a username and password, they won’t be able to log in without access to a physical key or device.

3. Backup data and gain insight: Ransomware is a serious risk to organizations because it brings operations to a screeching halt. To build resilience and ensure access to critical information, even in the event of a successful attack, security and IT teams should not only back up cloud and endpoint data but again, maintain visibility across their environments. By backing up their data and monitoring endpoint activity, banks can better protect themselves and recover more effectively from ransomware attacks.

4. Exercise the principle of least privilege and limit third party access: Compromised user accounts are a leading cause of breaches. Limiting user access to the absolute minimum reduces the impact of a bad actor assuming the identity of a legitimate user. Additionally, overly permissive third-party access can inadvertently expose sensitive information to unintended recipients.

5. Keep patches up to date across all endpoints: Patching is an essential security control. Out-of-date operating systems and applications can leave doors open for intrusion or exploits. To make this easier, banks can use patch management tools to automate numerous updates across all their machines.

6. Use threat detection and response tools: To ensure nothing slips through the cracks, banks should use a threat detection and response tool as part of an in-depth cybersecurity plan. It can also monitor and gain awareness into threats both in the cloud and on endpoints, before they come to fruition, halting them in their tracks.

Cyber attackers commonly target sectors that offer reams of sensitive data and the possibility of lucrative pay outs when held for ransom – making financial services a handsome target. To combat this, IT teams at banks, insurance carriers, and other financial institutions, need to partner with security teams to reduce their attack surface, harden endpoints, and address known vulnerabilities quickly.

By taking a few smart steps and partnering with the right solution providers, banks can rest easy knowing that their data is safe.

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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

Sustainability has never been higher on the boardroom agenda, as both consumers and regulators alike keep a keen eye on how businesses are impacting the environment. Failing to recognize this could cost a business, both financially and reputationally, as individuals no longer want to interact with brands that are failing to become more sustainable. In fact, taking that even further, with recent research from PWC discovering that consumers are willing to pay 9.7% more on sustainable produced or sourced goods, despite ongoing inflationary pressures.

To add to this, regulatory pressures, especially when it comes to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, are only set to increase. The Climate Change Act commits the UK to reach net zero by 2050. However, earlier this year, a high court ruled the UK government’s climate action plan ‘unlawful’, citing that there is currently not enough evidence of sufficient policies in place to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. A revised plan will be created in the next 12 months which ensures that the UK will achieve its pledge to cut emissions by more than two-thirds by 2030. It’s likely that the majority of UK businesses will be expected to play some sort of role in this.

Transitioning away from fossil fuels or decarbonizing emissions-intensive industries are often identified are key pathways to net-zero emissions. Another key area that would have a positive impact on organizations' sustainability is efficient data storage. Today, redundant, obsolete or trivial (ROT) and dark data continues to plague organizations, with minimal or no effort made to address data storage issues. This presents a big opportunity for businesses operating in today’s increasingly sustainability-conscious landscape.

What a waste! Data hoarding and sustainability

With the proliferation of digital devices and online applications, individuals are more aware of their data than ever before. However, whilst the topic of data breaches and how to prevent them is often getting airtime, sustainability and the impact that certain data management practices could have on the environment is not.

For example, waste remains a major concern in data storage. The energy consumption of procured storage remains the same regardless of how much of it is used. Thus, using as much of the available capacity as possible, and procuring no more than is needed, must be a priority if businesses want to achieve both efficiency and sustainability.

Data hoarding is a catalyst for poor decision making. As a business's data pile grows, it becomes harder to keep track of everything and easier for cybercriminals to take advantage. Data breaches have devastating consequences and, whilst we’re all aware of the financial and reputational damage that can follow, many of us might not be so aware of the environmental cost of data hoarding, with data centers currently pumping out tons of emissions to manage global data storage, equivalent of almost 2 percent of the world’s emissions, which is the same as the airline industry.

The message is clear. Businesses need to assume responsibility when it comes to data storing, by turning away from poor data management practices, and considering solutions to lessen their carbon footprint.

Making a positive impact

As the pressure to be more sustainable increases, businesses need to get one step ahead. One way to ensure this is to proactively set up emission tracking systems and explore optimizing services that are both eco-friendly and cost-efficient. It is important to get the balance between ensuring that data is securely protected but also that any solutions are being deployed in a way that limits the environmental impact of long-term data storage and management.

Businesses should begin by taking stock of their current data management and storage practices and assessing how they line up with any wider environmental, social and governance (ESG) goals. Through this, areas for improvement can be identified and business leaders can seek advice from internal or external resources.

To minimize waste in data storage, IT leaders can embrace lean principles with techniques such as data compression, de-duplication and thin provisioning. It is beneficial for organizations to establish an official data lifecycle to understand the relevance of data, archive infrequently used data and purges data that is no longer required.

Of course, when it comes to adopting more sustainable data management practices, organizations can consider partnering with cloud service providers to assist in managing their carbon footprint efficiently. Specifically, by dynamically allocating resources across customers’ workloads, cloud data centers can achieve higher resource utilization and energy efficiency – translating into lower carbon footprint associated with the same workload.

A more sustainable future

Moving forward, business leaders will need to be more conscious about the environmental impact of their operations. Dark data should not be considered a natural consequence of digitalization and data waste and data hoarding are two issues that need to be tackled head on. By adopting cloud-based autonomous data management solutions that combine automation, artificial intelligence and elastic architecture, organizations can pave the way for a more cost-effective and sustainable business model.

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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

Despite AI tools now being implemented in organizations of all sizes, cybersecurity professionals have reproted they are being excluded from the development process.

Despite the increasing use of AI in security operations, a new survey from ISACA has revealed almost half (45%) of companies shut out cybersecurity teams from the development, onboarding, and implementation of AI solutions.

The threat landscape is rapidly developing, as are the tools security professionals use to combat them, with the survey showing 28% of cybersecurity teams are now using AI to automate threat detection and response, and 27% use the tech for endpoint security.

Shifting focuses

AI has the potential to be used by cybersecurity teams to streamline tasks and lighten workloads, but there’s also evidence AI tools are being increasingly used in cyberattacks against businesses.

With more and more regulations also being introduced regarding AI software, like Europe’s AI Act, governance is becoming much more significant. Shockingly, only 35% of cybersecurity professionals are actively involved in the development of policy governing the use of AI tech within their business.

“Cybersecurity leaders cannot singularly focus on AI’s role in security operations," said Jon Brandt, ISACA Director, Professional Practices and Innovation.

"It is imperative that the security function be involved in the development, onboarding and implementation of any AI solution within their enterprise – include existing products that later receive AI capabilities.”

Staffing difficulties are a persisting problem in the cybersecurity industry, and the survey reveals that there has been an increase in the use of contractors and consultants to plug the gap.

There is an increased reliance on AI or automation to address shortages - making it even more important for security professionals to be included in implementation stages.

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A new mystery thriller series titled Prime Target is set to debut on Apple TV Plus in 2025 and it sounds like it will be packed with puzzles to unravel.

The new show was first announced in February earlier this year, when the streamer revealed that it had cast a leading duo that are familiar faces from the best streaming services. Leo Woodall is known for The White Lotus and Netflix rom-com One Day, and will star alongside Quintessa Swindell, who was in Black Adam, which is streaming on Max in the US.

The duo will star in the eight episode series and looking at the first-look images released today (Thursday, October 24), Prime Target has the potential to be one of the best Apple TV Plus shows.

What do we know so far about Prime Target? Image 1 of 2

(Image credit: Apple TV Plus)Image 2 of 2

(Image credit: Apple TV Plus)

The plot for Prime Target reads like it will see the maths genius from A Beautiful Mind at the center of a major global security threat like what was portrayed in WarGames. In the series, Woodall plays Edward Brooks, a brilliant young maths postgraduate who is on the cusp of a major mathematical breakthrough.

Said breakthrough involves finding a pattern in prime numbers, so get your calculators ready! Solving this will hold the key to accessing every computer in the world, which undoubtedly has big consequences. Of course, such a search for discovery hasn't gone unnoticed and there's an "unseen enemy" on the hunt for Brooks to stop him from solving the puzzle.

This is where Swindell comes in. The actor plays Taylah Sanders, who's a member of the National Security Agency that's been tasked with monitoring Brooks. Of course, something deeper is afoot, which brings the duo together to unravel a deeper mystery shrouded in conspiracy that Brooks is now at the center of.

The cast of Prime Target also includes Stephen Rea (Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles), David Morrissey (The Walking Dead), Martha Plimpton (The Regime), Sidse Babett Knudsen (Borgen), Jason Flemyng (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button), Harry Lloyd (Game of Thrones), Ali Suliman (Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan), Fra Fee (Rebel Moon) and Joseph Mydell (The Eternal Daughter).

January is shaping up to be a big month for Apple TV Plus as we also have the highly-anticipated sci-fi series Severance season 2 returning on January 27, so there will be plenty of mysteries to unravel.

The first two episodes of Prime Target will be released globally on Apple TV Plus on January 22, 2025, and will see a new episode added every Wednesday through March 5, 2025.

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More movies are set to leave Netflix in November 2024, and although we're always expecting this every month, it isn't the best news to hear. However, you won't be saying goodbye to any of our picks for the best Netflix movies, which has given me a big sigh of relief.

As it is every month, Netflix's list of departing movies and show tends to be very short and sweet, and just like everything that's leaving Netflix in October 2024, it's another brief list for one of the best streaming services. But while you only have a few weeks left to catch these movies before they go, Netflix is making up for it by replacing them with even more titles coming in November 2024.

Everything leaving Netflix in November 2024

Leaving on November 5

A Man Called Otto (movie)

Leaving on November 6

Edge of Tomorrow (movie)

Leaving on November 10

Night School (movie)

Leaving on November 14

First Man (movie)
Nothing to Lose (movie)
Nothing to Lose 2 (movie)

Leaving on November 15

Harriet (movie)

Leaving on November 19

Shahs of Sunset seasons 1-2 (TV show)

Leaving on November 22

Evil Dead Rise (movie)
Sausage Party (movie)

Leaving on November 30

A Beautiful Life (movie)
Ali (movie)
The Devil's Own (movie)
Diary of a Mad Black Woman (movie)
Frances Ha (movie)
Glengarry Glen Ross (movie)
Hunter Killer (movie)
It Chapter Two (movie)
The Little Things (movie)
The Matrix Resurrections (movie)
National Security (movie)
Pain & Gain (movie)
Point Break (movie)
Space Jam: A New Legacy (movie)
Troy (movie)
What to Expect When You're Expecting (movie)

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The Monster Hunter Wilds open beta will let players try out the game ahead of its release next year. There's a variety of missions to take on, from a small slice of a story mission to repeatable monster hunts. All in all, it looks set to give players a good opportunity to experience some of the new weapon mechanics and see the new environments in action.

From what we've seen so far, and from what we played in our Monster Hunter Wilds preview, the game is primed to push the series forward, with evolving landscapes and more complex monster behaviors. This time around, you can bring multiple weapons into hunts with you, a huge change that'll likely allow for more build experimentation. It's changes like these that make us hopeful that Monster Hunter Wilds will end up on our best crossplay games list by the end of the year.

Here's when you'll be able to play the Monster Hunter Wilds open beta, whether that's as a PS Plus subscriber, a PS5 player, an Xbox player, or someone playing on PC. We'll also detail what to expect from the beta, including rewards that'll transfer over to the full game at launch.

Monster Hunter Wilds open beta release date for PlayStation, Xbox and PC

(Image credit: Capcom)

The Monster Hunter Wilds open beta starts on Tuesday, October 28, and runs through until Thursday, October 30. This is the first open beta period, available for those on PlayStation Plus. If you're not a PS Plus subscriber, or if you're playing on Xbox or PC, you can find the precise timings below:

• PS5 with PS Plus subscription: October 28 at 11PM ET / 8PM PT (October 29 at 3AM GMT) - October 30 at 10:59PM ET / 7:59PM PT (October 31 at 2:59AM GMT)
• PS5 (no PS Plus subscription): October 31 at 11PM ET / 8PM PT (November 1 at 3AM GMT) - November 3 at 9:59AM ET / 6:59AM PT (November 4 at 1:59AM GMT)
• Xbox Series X|S: October 31 at 11PM ET / 8PM PT (November 1 at 3AM GMT) - November 3 at 9:59AM ET / 6:59AM PT (November 4 at 1:59AM GMT)
• Steam: October 31 at 11PM ET / 8PM PT (November 1 at 3AM GMT) - November 3 at 9:59AM ET / 6:59AM PT (November 4 at 1:59AM GMT)

Monster Hunter Wilds open beta preload

(Image credit: Capcom)

You'll be able to preload the Monster Hunter Wilds open beta on Sunday, October 27 at 11PM ET / 8PM PT (Monday, October 28 at 3AM GMT) if you're a PlayStation Plus subscriber on PS5. If you're on other platforms, or on PS5 without a PS Plus subscription, you'll find preload times below:

• PS5 (no PS Plus subscription): Wednesday, October 30 at 11PM ET / 8PM PT (Thursday, October 31 at 3AM GMT)
• Xbox: Wednesday, October 30 at 11PM ET / 8PM PT (Thursday, October 31 at 3AM GMT)
• PC (Steam): Wednesday, October 30 at 11PM ET / 8PM PT (Thursday, October 31 at 3AM GMT)

Monster Hunter Wilds beta rewards

(Image credit: Capcom)

There are two main Monster Hunter Wilds beta rewards that can be transferred to the full game at launch:

• Open Beta Test Bonus Pendant (Pictured above)
• Open Beta Test Bonus Item Pack (Mega Potion x10, Ration x5, Lifepowder x5, Max Potion x2, Herbal Medicine x2, Mulberry x2, Armor Sphere x5)

Note that in order to redeem the rewards at launch, you will need to be playing on the same platform where you played the beta.

Monster Hunter Wilds open beta - what to expect

(Image credit: Capcom)

The Monster Hunter Wilds open beta will feature a character creator, as well as two main missions to take on. The first mission is the Story Trial, where you'll experience the opening cutscene and play the Chatacabra Hunt with some basic tutorials enabled. Once you've gotten the hang of the basics, you can take on the Doshaguma Hunt. The goal here is to defeat the alpha of the Doshaguma pack. Explore on your Seikret, and switch between two different weapon types on the fly.

Monster Hunter Wilds FAQ Does progress from the beta carry over into Monster Hunter Wilds?

While main progress from the Monster Hunter Wilds doesn't carry over into the full game, you will earn the aforementioned rewards for participating. In addition, you can import your Character data over once the game launches. This means your main Hunter design, as well as your main Palico companion.

Does the Monster Hunter Wilds beta feature crossplay?

Yes, the Monster Hunter Wilds open beta will feature crossplay, across PS5, Xbox and PC. Note that during the PS Plus open beta test, only PS5 players with a PS Plus subscription will be able to participate. Once things open up later on, crossplay will be enabled.

Can you play the Monster Hunter Wilds beta Solo?

You can play the Monster Hunter Wilds beta solo if you wish. There's also the SOS Flare function, which allows you to call in other online players, or to call for help from NPC Support Hunters.

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