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In a bid to cut e-waste, Microsoft is employing AI-powered robots to streamline the disposal of old data center hard drives.

The initiative is part of the Secure and Sustainable Disposal of Hard Disks project, which originated during the 2022 Microsoft Hackathon. Spearheaded by Principal Data Scientist Ranganathan Srikanth, the project expands on Microsoft's Circular Centers scheme which is designed to repurpose and recycle servers and related cloud hardware.

Circular Centers are a pivotal part of Microsoft's broader environmental goals. In 2020, Microsoft President Brad Smith committed the company to being carbon-negative by 2050, with zero waste by 2030.

#NoShred

Data centers, which house computer systems and essential components like telecommunications and storage, contribute significantly to global electricity demand. In 2022 this accounted for approximately 1-1.3%, but thanks to AI, energy use is skyrocketing and is expected to at least double by 2026. The strain on local power grids is intensifying as a result, and end-of-life data centers risk clogging landfills with e-waste.

Srikanth recognized the potential to address these mounting issues through the Hackathon project. "If it was just one hard disk, it wouldn’t be an opportunity," Srikanth noted. "However, in 2022 alone, there were two million hard disks shredded and that would fill the cargo of up to nine 747s."

Historically, end-of-life hard drives have been shredded to protect sensitive data, but this process also destroys valuable materials like neodymium. Up to 70 million HDDs are destroyed annually, resulting in a significant waste of rare metals.

The Hackathon team proposed a #NoShred solution, which prioritizes dismantling HDDs with robotics. "The process uses computer vision and robotics to disassemble the hard disk, sorts them, and destroys the media that contains data. The materials are then recycled," a Microsoft narrator explained in a new video which you can watch below. By breaking down the disk drives, the robots ensure data security while preserving and recycling component parts.

Microsoft's Circular Centers employ machine learning to decommission servers onsite, sort reusable parts, and improve future equipment sustainability. A successful pilot in Amsterdam demonstrated reduced downtime, increased availability of parts, and lower carbon emissions, Microsoft says.

The Secure and Sustainable Disposal of Hard Disks project aims to achieve a 90% reuse and recycle rate of all hard disks by 2025.

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Genetics testing company 23andMe has agreed to terms which could settle the class-action lawsuit it is currently facing following a major data breach.

News broke in October 2023 that a hacker had accessed accounts belonging to 23andMe users, with subsequent investigations confirming DNA Relatives profiles of some 5.5 million people were accessed, as well as Family Tree profile information of some 1.4 million DNA Relative participants.

The hackers started their grand theft data in April 2023, and were active until September the same year.

The terms of the settlement

In January 2024, the company laid the blame for the breach on its customers, as since the hackers used credential stuffing to access the accounts, 23andMe said users, “negligently recycled and failed to update their passwords following past security incidents unrelated to 23andMe."

“Therefore, the incident was not a result of 23andMe’s alleged failure to maintain reasonable security measures,” it said at the time.

The victims still filed a class-action lawsuit, which the firm is now “close to settling”, with all that remains is for the judge to approve the terms.

Under the settlement terms, which the judge still needs to approve, 23andMe will pay out $30 million to affected customers, and will conduct annual computer scans and cybersecurity audits for the next three years. It will set up a dedicated website to notify eligible individuals of the payout, and will provide everyone with an easy way to delete all their files from the company’s servers.

Finally, victims will receive a three-year Privacy & Medical Shield + Genetic Monitoring program for free.

How the settlement affects the company’s business remains to be seen. Reuters says 23andMe described its financial condition as “extremely uncertain”, with revenues down by a quarter (from $299m to $220m) year-on-year.

Via Engadget

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Castlevania: Nocturne has got a season two release date but it's coming later than fans might have hoped. If you were expecting the beloved vampire series to return in time for the spookiest season of all, I'm afraid I've got bad news:

Among the best streaming service's early announcements for Netflix Geeked Week is a trailer and a release date for the newest season in the Castlevania series, but sadly new episodes aren't coming until January 2025.

The new year is shaping up to have some great things though, as we know Severance season 2 hits Apple TV Plus in January, but with Castlevania: Nocturne giving off those spooky vibes, it is a shame fans have to wait for its return.

The good news is, it's on route – and Netflix has released a few exciting details. Take a look at those below.

What do we know about Castlevania: Nocturne season 2?

As mentioned above, Castlevania: Nocturne debuts in January 2025. Per Tudum, we will be seeing the return of major season one characters like Richter (Edward Bluemel), Maria (Pixie Davies), Annette (Thuso Mbedu), Edouard (Sydney James Harcourt), and Tera (Nastassja Kinski). By the time we see them again, though, they'll have undergone some "great emotional or physical changes" after the events of season one.

There'll also be the return of Alucard, the son of Dracula (talk about nepotism), who is voiced by James Callis from the original Castlevania series. During the second season, he'll become a reluctant mentor to Richter and Annette, and those dynamics will be interesting to witness.

Plot-wise, Netflix has confirmed that season two of one of the best Netflix animes picks up as the French Revolution rages on. The ruling class of oppressive religious figures and exploitative imperialists have been infiltrated by literal blood-suckers, including the vampire messiah, Erzsebet (Franka Potente), so there's plenty to get excited about. 

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Microsoft is planning to streamline its Edge browser considerably when it comes to the configuration of the app.

Windows Latest noticed that the official roadmap website for Microsoft 365 now has an update for Edge which informs us that the Settings for the browser are going to be revamped to be more organized.

In the roadmap entry titled ‘Microsoft Edge: Elevating top settings and improving settings page navigability,’ the software giant explains what streamlining measures are being enacted, and that the rollout of these changes is expected to begin in October 2024.

The first step Microsoft is taking is a new quick access panel on the landing page for Edge Settings. This will provide one-click shortcuts to the most commonly used actions front and center in the menu that first greets you when you access Settings.

Secondly, when you dive into a submenu in Settings – such as System and Performance, or Appearance – this will also have the same one-click shortcuts for the options that are most often used.

And finally, Microsoft plans to break up the long lists of options you drill down into in Settings to make them smaller subsections, similar to a table of contents in a book.

(Image credit: Shutterstock/GaudiLab) Analysis: A move in the right direction

All of this aims to make hunting around to change things in Edge much easier, and it seems like a sound plan to us. Navigating Settings can be a painful task at times, and having shortcuts to all your most-used options right there upfront will be very handy. No, it’s not a move that’ll suddenly make Edge more popular than Chrome, but it’ll help (and Edge is actually a good product already – it’s top of our best web browser list, after all).

Note that there are no changes being made in terms of the actual functionality of the settings in Edge here – it’s a reorganization of how they are presented, with a large helping of handy one-click shortcuts thrown in.

In some ways, this is taking a leaf out of Chrome’s book, as Google’s browser has generally tighter organization when it comes to Settings (and even in its more cluttered parts, Chrome is certainly no worse than Edge).

Further note that while the rollout is kicking off in October, Microsoft is referring to the initial stages of testing the revamped Settings panel. It could be some time before work progresses through testing and on to the release version of Edge, of course – and some work in preview never sees the light of day. Mind you, we’ve a feeling this will make the cut, as Edge could use a boost in the organization of its options.

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Don't pirate content, folks. Even if someone else is doing it, it's best not to get hooked on it. It's bad, illegal, and will never be as good as the paid thing. That's lesson number 1. Lesson number 2 follows.

The news that Dan and Eugene Levy would be hosting the 2024 Emmy Award Show was met in my home with some excitement. We're all huge Schitt's Creek fans, having been hooked when we streamed the entire five seasons on Netflix (irony to follow) at least twice. But when it was time to watch the Emmys, which was airing September 15, 2024, on ABC in the US, we forgot to account for one little wrinkle: We no longer have cable, and live shows are often difficult or impossible to watch.

Live but not for you

The best streaming networks are constantly making deals to host live events like football and baseball games. Sometimes the networks have their own streaming platforms where they show these events in their entirety. I watched all of the Summer Olympics on Peacock and absolutely loved the Gold Zone they built to help you keep track of the best of all the live medal-worthy events.

Not everything, however, can be found on these streaming platforms. ABC network appears to have more than a few dark spots and the Emmy Awards, which honor the best of television across broadcast, cable, and, yes, streamers, is one of them.

Initially, everything seemed fine. Roku TV, which I have for free as part of my TCL Roku TV, was airing Emmys Live from The Red Carpet. We all watched in happy silence until 8 PM ET, when the screen went black and then switched to endless promos for other Roku TV shows. We all stared at each other and then looked back at the TV in horror, silently willing it to bring us Dan and Eugene Levy's cold open.

Soon we were all searching online for who might be offering a live feed. fuboTV was listed and that was about it. But I'd already used my fuboTV Live free trial to watch the Oscars. I was not about to shell out $98 a month just to watch the Emmys.

After searching across Hulu, Netflix, and other streaming options for a feed that wasn't a Red Carpet replay, I opened the YouTube app on my Roku TV.

At the very top was an "Emmys Live feed." It looked legit.

It was not.

The crime

Oh, this is embarrassing (Image credit: Future)

I launched the stream and saw that it was, in fact, the Emmys, live. There were the hosts, but they were behind a poorly rendered black box that said "EMMYS" at the top and then explained, "Sorry, we can't show you the full stream because it will be taken down by Youtube." Below that, it encouraged you to click on a link in the chat and "send a donation if you want to watch the full show."

Apparently, someone was using "XSplit Broadcaster" to pull a feed from their computer and then place it on YouTube. The show was somewhat watchable despite the box, which would disappear for various lengths of time, seemingly at random. Once, it was gone for 40 minutes, but then it was merely gone for just five minutes. I noticed in the YouTube channel chat that people were begging the "broadcaster" to remove the box. It was as if they didn't understand this was illegal, and the guy could not remove it for the duration without being discovered.

A quick search on YouTube revealed a few different illegal streamers, all using various apps to pull the live feed off, likely their cable feeds or another streaming platform.

At one point, the feed, which was about 2 minutes behind true live, went into glitch mode, and we were treated to a view of the pirate's full computer desktop. Yes, it was comical.

What's not funny, though, is that I can't keep denying the inescapable fact that there is still a form of cable/broadcast television that is worth paying for: live TV and commercial-free television.

As more and more streamers introduce ad-supported versions or reduce what was once both affordable and ad-free to almost affordable but riddled with ads, paying for some of these premium packages that drop ads and bring your live local, broadcast and cable channels is starting to look more and more worth it.

It is frustrating, though. I left cable behind because of all the channels I was paying for that I never watched. It just turns out that there are still a fair few I do want, now miss, and might be willing to pay for.

As for the pirated Emmys, they continued through to the end, but increasingly with the box fixed in place. I guess you get what you pay for.

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The best free streaming services can’t compete with the likes of Netflix, Prime Video, and Max for headline-grabbing new movies and TV shows, but they do boast a surprisingly vast range of older titles for you to enjoy.

Last week’s roundup of the best free movies to stream included Blackberry, Margin Call, and 500 Days of Summer, and this week’s edition is similarly varied. Below, I’ve highlighted five of the best free movies to stream on Tubi, Pluto TV, Amazon Freevee, and other free streaming services over the coming days.

Tropic Thunder (Pluto TV)

Release date: September 2008
RT Score: 82%
Length: 107 minutes
Director: Ben Stiller
Main cast: Ben Stiller, Jack Black, Robert Downey Jr., Tom Cruise

Tropic Thunder feels like the sort of movie that just wouldn’t get made in 2024. This star-studded, noughties-era comedy follows a group of veteran actors who, while filming for a new Vietnam war flick, become embroiled in a real-life conflict with Southeast Asian natives (think Galaxy Quest with jungles and helicopters).

Ben Stiller, Jack Black, Robert Downey Jr., Matthew McConaughey, and Tom Cruise (yes, Tom Cruise) count among the film’s stellar ensemble cast, while Stiller himself directs. You’ll find Tropic Thunder streaming, for free, on Pluto TV.

The Hunt (Tubi, Kanopy, The Roku Channel)

Release date: May 2012
RT Score: 92%
Length: 115 minutes
Director: Thomas Vinterberg
Main cast: Mads Mikkelsen, Thomas Bo Larsen, Annika Wedderkopp, Lasse Fogelstrøm

The first of many collaborations between Danish screen legends Mads Mikkelsen and Thomas Vinterberg, The Hunt – which is now streaming for free on Tubi, Kanopy, and The Roku Channel – is among the best foreign language films of the past 20 years. 

Set in a small Danish village during the run-up to Christmas, the film follows the plight of a divorced kindergarten teacher, Lucas (Mikkelsen), who falls victim to mass hysteria after being wrongly accused of sexually abusing a young girl in his class. Sure, that sounds bleak – and The Hunt isn’t exactly a cheery affair – but this small-budget film is nonetheless an engrossing watch.

Zodiac (Hoopla, Pluto TV – leaving soon)

Release date: January 2009
RT Score: 90%
Length: 157 minutes
Director: David Fincher
Main cast: Jake Gyllenhaal, Mark Ruffalo, Robert Downey Jr., Brian Cox

Longlegs may have dominated the horror movie conversation these past few months, but Oz Perkins’ atmospheric murder mystery takes more than a few cues from David Fincher’s filmography, among which is Zodiac.

This inspired-by-true-events thriller chronicles the manhunt for the Zodiac Killer, an infamous (and still possibly at large) serial killer who used letters, ciphers, and crime scene evidence to taunt investigators in the San Francisco Bay Area during the late 1960s. Jake Gyllenhaal, Mark Ruffalo, and Robert Downey Jr. all star in Zodiac, which serves as a great companion piece to Fincher’s best movie, Seven.

3:10 to Yuma (Tubi – leaving soon)

Release date: August 2007
RT Score: 89%
Length: 122 minutes
Director: James Mangold
Main cast: Russell Crowe, Christian Bale, Logan Lerman, Ben Foster

For some reason, James Mangold’s 3:10 to Yuma was my go-to Sunday afternoon movie when I was a kid. This star-studded remake of the 1957 Western of the same name follows a down-on-his-luck rancher (Bale) who agrees to help law enforcement officers transport a notorious outlaw (Crowe) to a prison-bound train.

Director James Mangold has since gone on to helm more commercially successful films (Logan and Ford v Ferrari among them), but 3:10 to Yuma remains, for me, one of his most accomplished and re-watchable pictures. This one is now streaming for free on Tubi, but leaving soon, so act fast if you’re keen to see Russell Crowe in villainous cowboy mode.

Submarine (Amazon Freevee)

Release date: September 2010
RT Score: 88%
Length: 97 minutes
Director: Richard Ayoade
Main cast: Craig Roberts, Yasmin Paige, Sally Hawkins, Noah Taylor

In the mood for something short and sweet this week? Look no further than Richard Ayoade’s charming 2010 indie fluck Submarine, which is now streaming on Amazon Freevee.

This coming-of-age novel adaptation stars Noah Taylor as Oliver Tate, an unpopular 15-year-old in rural Wales who finds himself torn between winning the affections of his charismatic classmate Jordana (Yasmin Paige) and stopping his mother (Sally Hawkins) from succumbing to her spiritual ex-lover Graham (Paddy Considine). As with 3:10 to Yuma, Submarine is leaving its free streaming service soon, so get watching ASAP.

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Just days ahead of its full release and hours before watchOS 11 is released to the public, Apple's new sleep apnea detection feature for Apple Watch has been approved for use by the US Food and Drug Asministration (FDA). 

Apple unveiled its new Apple Watch Series 10 at its Glowtime iPhone 16 event last week, and one of the highlights of the new wearable is sleep apnea detection. The upgrade is actually a software-powered feature that is also coming to the Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2.

Sleep apnea, which affects an estimated 1 billion people worldwide, is a disorder in which breathing momentarily stops while sleeping, depriving the body of oxygen. Left untreated, it can lead to serious health issues, including type 2 diabetes. Apple has developed a new metric to help diagnose the condition, and now, the FDA is on board. 

Apple Watch sleep apnea gets the go ahead

(Image credit: Apple)

Apple Watch's sleep apnea detection is a new metric that uses accelerometer data to log small wrist movements caused by the breathing interruptions associated with sleep apnea. The Apple Watch can provide a report every 30 days, notifying users if they show signs of moderate to severe sleep apnea.

The same data can also measure how restful your sleep was generally, but sleep apnea detection is the headline feature. The data can even be presented as a PDF that you can share with your healthcare provider, helping users get the treatment they need. 80% of sleep apnea cases reportedly go undiagnosed, with most sufferers unaware they suffer from it. Short-term effects can include excessive daytime tiredness, problems with concentration, and increased irritability. 

Sleep apnea was one of several noteworthy health innovations Apple announced at its iPhone 16 event. It was unveiled alongside a new hearing aid feature for AirPods Pro that also recently passed FDA scrutiny. AirPods Pro 2 are now authorized to be used as a clinical-grade hearing aid, providing enhanced listening based on the results of a new iPhone-powered hearing test. 

Apple Watch Series 10 will be released on September 20, alongside the new iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro. 

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The cyber-incident that hit the Port of Seattle in late August 2024 was a ransomware attack, the company has confirmed.

In a press release, the organization also shared a few additional details that were uncovered in the investigation, with affiliates of the Rhysida ransomware group blamed for the attack.

"This incident was a "ransomware" attack by the criminal organization known as Rhysida," the company noted. "There has been no new unauthorized activity on Port systems since that day. It remains safe to travel from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport and use the Port of Seattle's maritime facilities."

No payment

To put things into context - the United States government agency overseeing Seattle's seaport and airport, Port of Seattle, reported on August 24, 2024 that it suffered a cyberattack that forced it to push parts of its infrastructure offline. At the time, it did not share many details, other than it was working diligently to restore its services.

Ransomware attackers usually steal sensitive data from their victims, and then demand payment in exchange for keeping it private. The same thing happened here, but so far the company doesn’t know what was taken.

"Our investigation has determined that the unauthorized actor was able to gain access to certain parts of our computer systems and was able to encrypt access to some data,” the PR further explains. “Our investigation of what data the actor took is ongoing, but it does appear that some Port data was obtained by the actor in mid-to-late August. Assessment of the data taken is complex and takes time, but we are committed to these efforts and notifying potentially impacted stakeholders as appropriate.”

The organization said it refused to pay the ransom demand, which could result in the data leaking on the dark web. At press time, that doesn’t seem to have happened.

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*Contains spoilers for Emily in Paris season four*

Netflix has renewed Emily in Paris for fifth season and sorry Gabriel, but I'm rooting for Emily's new Italian man this time.

While it's not one of the best Netflix shows with its 62% Rotten Tomatoes score, the soapy drama has become a huge hit on the best streaming service with Emily in Paris season 4 still in the Netflix Global Top 10 four weeks after it premiered in August. 

The show's star Lily Collins announced the season five news on Good Morning America, with show creator Darren Star telling Tudum: “We’re thrilled with the incredible response to this season of Emily in Paris and excited to return for a fifth to continue Emily’s adventures in Rome and Paris!”

There's no place like Rome. Emily in Paris is coming back for SEASON 5! pic.twitter.com/UL3aRa0ftuSeptember 16, 2024

Emily in Paris season 4 saw the American marketing executive embark on a new relationship with Italian fashion heir Marcello (Eugenio Franceschini) and move to Rome to run a new Agence Grateau office. While I thought that this would finally close the chapter of her on-and-off romance with neighbor and boyfriend Gabriel (Lucas Bravo), I got whiplash once again when the chef realized that he wanted to be with Emily after everything.

After Emily's disastrous love life with both a Frenchman and an Englishman, maybe it's time for her to start afresh with an Italian stallion (she's really getting those passport stamps isn't she?).

What can we expect in Emily in Paris season 5?

We know that it won't be called Emily in Rome, as Star said: "Emily’s going to have a presence in Rome. It doesn’t mean she’s not going to be in Paris, but she’s going to have a presence in Rome." So, while Emily will be flaunting Italian streets in extravagant clothing, we'll still get to see the boujee boulangeries of Paris.

Like me, Collins is looking forward to exploring Emily's relationship with Marcello in season 5. "Marcello is a whole other adventure that we want for Emily because we ultimately want Emily to be able to have a better work/life balance,” Collins said to Tudum. “We want to have Emily be able to smile without condition. We want to see her beyond her vacay mode. And he comes at that perfect time.”

Meanwhile, Star teased: "I feel like they [Emily and Marcello] have a real spark and a real connection and a real romantic connection. A lot of that’s going to continue to play out next season." Will Emily move on with Marcello or move back to the City of Love for Gabriel? I have my fingers crossed for Marcello. 

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What a week it is for Apple fans, with the launch of iOS 18 and the release of the iPhone 16 all happening over the next few days. This particular week in September comes around every year like Christmas, giving tech lovers the chance to use a shiny new smartphone or give a lease of life to their old one.

This year’s no different: the iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max have arrived on the scene with exciting new features like Camera Control and larger displays on the Pro models. All four models are joined by iOS 18, the next generation of the iPhone’s operating system, which itself brings Home Screen customization options that let you pick any color to tint your app icons, a new Passwords app to house all your login information, and even an updated calculator app with Math Notes. I’m not even scratching the surface with iOS 18, however; there’s plenty more to get excited about and the OS works with every iPhone from the XS and onwards.

So, why the downbeat headline? After all, the iPhone 16 Pro looks like a solid upgrade from last year’s best iPhone, adding a faster chip, camera upgrades, new buttons, better and larger screens, and even better battery life. Touted as the “first iPhones built from the ground up for Apple Intelligence”, these new smartphones are propelling us into a new Apple AI future – well, sort of.

(Image credit: Apple)

You see, plastered across all of Apple’s marketing for the latest iPhones, you’ll find people reaping the benefits of Apple Intelligence. New commercials featuring The Last of Us’ Bella Ramsey show the actor using AI to summarize emails, speak with the upgraded Siri, and make Movie Memories. All pretty cool, right? Sure, but nestled in each ad (in small white writing) is a disclaimer that Apple Intelligence won’t be available at the iPhone 16’s launch on September 20.

Why, you ask? You just preordered an iPhone 16 because of all the cool Apple Intelligence features you’ve seen plastered on the London Underground or shown at the cinema before Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. Well, those Apple Intelligence features – like Writing Tools, Clean Up, and new Mail categories – are coming, just not in the first release of iOS 18. It’s a bit of a weird situation, to be totally honest. 

Apple is selling the latest and greatest iPhones based on 'what ifs?', and as consumers, we’re meant to trust the process and jump on for the ride. Unfortunately, the lack of major features at launch in not only iPhone 16 but iOS 18 too means that these upgrades and updates all feel kind of lukewarm. 

Just check Apple’s iOS 18 Preview page if you don’t believe me: Apple Intelligence is the headline feature, followed by incremental updates to apps we use every day, and color customization options that should’ve arrived on iPhone years ago. It’s all very odd – even Mail’s category feature isn’t available in iOS 18 initially, because it’s powered by Apple AI.

The promise of 'what ifs?'

As an ex-Apple Retail employee, I don’t envy any of my ex-colleagues who will have to explain to disgruntled customers why their fancy new iPhone can’t do the snazzy things they’ve seen advertised. It’ll even be tough for them from a demo perspective – how do you make retail customers want a product without its best features?

It’s an intriguing situation, but it’s not a long-term one. Apple Intelligence is set to arrive in US English in October as part of iOS 18.1 and then in other localized English languages in December. If you’re in the UK, like I am, you can use Apple Intelligence when it launches in Beta next month by simply changing your device’s language and Siri’s language. 

But after the arrival of iOS 18.1, Apple Intelligence tools will arrive in a scattered launch with no real timeframe of when we’ll be able to use everything we were shown at WWDC 2024 in June. If current estimates are correct, Siri’s on-screen awareness won’t arrive until iOS 18.4, which is likely to land in March 2025, while other features like Genmoji and Image Playground are scheduled for iOS 18.2, which will begin rolling out just before the turn of the year, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman.

(Image credit: Apple)

This is where my bigger concern lies: the promises of what’s to come. I’ve used Apple Intelligence as part of the iOS 18.1 developer beta and I like what I’ve tried so far, but Genmoji, Image Playground, and the wonder of an actually useful Siri are all just pipedreams right now. No one outside of Apple has even seen these AI tools in the flesh; they aren’t even in beta testing yet as part of a Developer Beta. 

So, can Genmoji even generate two emojis together as seamlessly as we saw on stage? Does Image Playground work as well as some of the best AI image generators? No one has a clue, we’re just putting blind faith in Apple based on the company’s track record of delivering in the past.

This wouldn’t be the first time that Apple has launched a new iPhone with promises of future features (see Deep Fusion), but it is the first time such a major selling point is just absent from an iPhone’s release. In a year, if all goes well, Apple Intelligence’s muddled launch will be a thing of the distant past. But if Genmoji or Image Playground turns into a replica of the AirPower fiasco, then the iPhone 16 launch could be an absolute nightmare for Apple.

If you’re in the market for a new iPhone, purchasing a new one based on the incredible new A18 chips, Camera Control, and any other hardware improvement will likely make you a happy camper. If you’re looking at the new iPhones for Apple Intelligence, especially the features that aren’t in iOS 18.1, then it’s worth debating between an upgrade now versus one in a few months.

With iOS 18, if you want a few new features and a more stable iPhone operating system, you’ll be happy. But if you install iOS 18 expecting Apple Intelligence and everything you’ve been promised, then you might just feel a little disappointed. 

Our early iPhone 16 review, early iPhone 16 Pro review, and Apple Intelligence hands-on hint at a very exciting year for Apple. Just know what you’re getting yourself into, because if you’re spending hard-earned cash on the promise of future features, you might just end up regretting your decision.

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It's official: Bridgerton season 4 is finally in production. Netflix confirmed the news in a post on X/Twitter (see below) as the streaming titan kicked off its Netflix Geeked Week 2024 celebrations. Alongside the filming start date reveal, Netflix unveiled the first official photo from on set of Luke Thompson and Yerin Ha; the latter of whom will, as previously announced, play Benedict Bridgerton's love interest Sophie Baek.   

Please rise for Sophie Baek & Benedict Bridgerton!!!Here's your first official photo of Yerin Ha and Luke Thompson on the set of Bridgerton Season 4. Now OFFICIALLY in production. pic.twitter.com/TyOlryDXEUSeptember 16, 2024

Until now, we only knew that Bridgerton's fourth season was on the way, with it being greenlit back in April 2021. We did, however, get a sneak peek of one of the show’s new romantic leads after its predecessor – Bridgerton season 3 – ended in July, with the world's best streaming service confirming serial playboy Benedict Bridgerton would be the next chapter's lead male character.

Your Sophie has finally arrived. Please welcome Yerin Ha to Bridgerton Season 4! pic.twitter.com/sHZMZIPhTDSeptember 11, 2024

Just two months later, and to the delight of fans, Netflix revealed that Ha would be joining the cast of one of the best Netflix shows – the Halo TV show alumnus landing the coveted role of Sophie, who's also known as the Lady in Silver, on September 11. Ya is set to feature as part of the ensemble cast for forthcoming Max prequel series Dune: Prophecy, too, so viewers should get used to seeing the talented Australian more often in the years ahead.

Following the success of season 3, fans will know how important the casting of the leading couple is, so it's great to see such talented actors joining the show.

Who else is joining the Bridgerton season 4 cast? 

They are rather striking next to each other, are they not? https://t.co/Huj1csTNTLSeptember 16, 2024

Alongside its filming start date, Netflix also confirmed three new cast members for Bridgerton season 4, as well as bumping up two minor characters from season 3 – Emma Naomi's Alice and Hugo Sachs' Brimsley – to series regulars for the wildly popular romantic drama's next entry:

• Katie Leung as Lady Araminta Gun
• Michelle Mao as Rosamund Li
• Isabella Wei as Posy Li 
• Emma Naomi as Alice Mondrich
• Hugh Sachs as Brimsley

Based on the third novel (An Offer From a Gentleman) in Julia Quinn's successful book series of the same name, Bridgerton's fourth season is set to focus on Benedict Bridgerton and Sophie Baek, aka the mysterious Lady in Silver, who meet at a masquerade ball. Judging by the first photos we've seen of the new Bridgerton  couple, the Netflix period drama's next outing is going to be an enchanting affair. Set your pulses to 'racing', everyone.

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Microsoft added Copilot, its generative AI chatbot, to Microsoft 365 back in March last year, but now it's launching what it's calling ‘Wave 2’ of its AI-assisted boost to your productivity by revamping the whole way you work with Copilot, and adding some more AI features to the Microsoft 365 apps.

In this new way of working you can open up the Copilot chat interface, now called Business Chat, and from there combine all the knowledge Microsoft 365 has about you and your organization with the knowledge it can find on the web by creating collaborative documents called Pages.

So, you could start by asking Copilot about something on the web, then once it's found what you’re looking for you hit the ‘Edit in Pages’ button to pull that Copilot response into a new Copilot Page (which is a pop-up document window, containing all the information you’re interested in), and then you can continue to expand it, sharing and collaborating on it with all your team members.

Business Chat with a document open in Copilot Pages. (Image credit: Microsoft)

Pages (not to be confused with the Apple app of the same name) documents look very similar to Word documents. You can go back to Business Chat and perform more searches for information, then bring that new data into your Pages document. There’s a simple switch at the top of the Business Chat window that enables you to switch between Web or Work. Switch it to Work and Copilot will be able to tap into the knowledge contained in all your work documents; so you could prompt Copilot with something like “make a report similar to that one we did last month for Eric, but with the new data”, and it will compile it for you.

The new narrative builder in PowerPoint (Image credit: Microsoft) PowerPoint narrative builder

A new narrative builder has been added to PowerPoint that helps you craft a story for your next presentation. This will create a whole deck of slides from a prompt using Copilot, complete with transitions and speaker notes. Type your prompt in answer to the question, “Create a presentation about” and watch it work its magic. You get a draft outline, which you can reorder, edit, and add new sections to. Once you’re happy click on ‘Generate slides’ and Copilot will produce your whole presentation, pulling in images from your corporate library, or it can generate images using DALL-E 3 if required.

Microsoft Excel showing data analysis using Python (Image credit: Microsoft) Copilot in Excel with Python

Now you’ll be able to combine the power of Python, with Copilot and Excel to do some serious number crunching. You can get Excel to do forecasting, risk analysis and visualization of complex data using natural language prompts in Copilot, and all without having to write a line of code yourself.

Copilot in Outlook, Word, Teams and Drive

The ability to intelligently summarize your inbox is being brought to Outlook with a new feature called ‘Prioritize my inbox’. This produces a neat summary of what’s awaiting you in your inbox, so you don’t have to wade through unhelpful preview versions of the start of emails or a lot of text. Word is getting new suggested prompts to help you get started with documents. Copilot in OneDrive enables you to use it to reason over your Drive, so it can gain insights on, summarize and compare up to five different files. Finally, in Teams, Copilot will now be able to analyze the group chat in any answers it gives you.

Copilot Agents

One brand-new feature to look out for is Copilot Agents. These are AI assistants that are designed to automate business processes. You can create an agent from any site, library, or folder, and it will be able to use Copilot’s reasoning power over those files. You can even add your agents to your department’s Teams chat, and @mention them, too, and they'll respond just like a human team member. You can talk to Agents as you would a trusted colleague, and your data never leaves the Microsoft 365 trust boundary.

When will you get it?

For Microsoft 365 Copilot customers, the new Business Chat and Pages features are rolling out now, although Microsoft does add the caveat that Pages “will be generally available later this month”. In the coming weeks, Microsoft will be bringing Pages to the more than 400 million people who have access to the free version of Copilot when they’re signed in via a Microsoft Entra Account. You can start using Business Chat today at Microsoft365.com/Copilot.

The other new features in the Microsoft 365 apps will start appearing in the public previews later this month.

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The FBI and the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has warned American voters about misinformation campaigns aimed at undermining their trust in the election process.

In a public service announcement (PSA), the two agencies said hackers “continue to spread false or misleading information in an attempt to manipulate public opinion and undermine confidence in US democratic institutions.”

Among the different tactics being used, one particularly stands out - that hackers managed to compromise election infrastructure. To “prove” their case, the hackers use voter registration information, something that can be purchased legitimately through publicly available sources, the two agencies said.

Russia and Iran

“In recent election cycles, when cyber actors have obtained voter registration information, the acquisition of this data did not impact the voting process or election results,” the PSA reads.

Furthermore, the two agencies said that so far, hacking attacks never prevented the elections, changed voter registration information, prevented a person from voting, compromised the integrity of the ballots, or meddled with the ballot counting process. Instead, US citizens should be skeptical of the things they see and hear online, particularly if they are coming from unknown sources.

Earlier this month, US law enforcement seized 32 websites, and charged two individuals with conspiracy, in a crackdown on attempts to influence the upcoming US presidential elections. This scheme was part of a larger influence campaign orchestrated by Russia, with the goal of getting former president Donald Trump back in the Oval office.

Furthermore Google also confirmed that an Iranian state-sponsored threat actor tried to access personal email accounts of multiple people linked to President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump.

Finally, there are reports that Russian president himself, Vladimir Putin, ordered Operation Lakhta, whose goal was to meddle in the 2016 US presidential elections and get Trump voted in, over HIllary Clinton.

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Tile has just launched the next-generation of its Bluetooth trackers, and now they’re fully integrated into the Life360 ecosystem. While that might initially sound disappointing for people who were wishing for them to join the Android Find My Device and Apple Find My networks, there’s one big satellite-enabled benefit on the way to give Tile’s trackers a boost – and one security feature I’m still uneasy about.

As always there are four Tile models to choose from. The standard Mate features its built-in keyring loop; the enhanced Pro comes with the same keyring but also a longer range, louder ringer and replaceable battery; the Slim maintains its thin card shape making it perfect for keeping track of your wallet; and the Sticker can be stuck to almost anything.

Price-wise the trackers are staying around the same cost as before, though depending on your region and which model you’re interested in some prices are going up and some are going down. It’ll get confusing if we try and explain all the changes specifically for the US, UK and Australia, so instead here’s a list of the new Tile tracker prices:

• Tile Mate: $24.99 / £24.99 / $44.95
• Tile Pro: $34.99 / £34.99 / $59.95
• Tile Slim: $29.99 / £29.99 / $49.95
• Tile Sticker: $24.99 / £24.99 / $39.95

In return you’re getting trackers that have a three-year battery life – except the Tile Pro which is only one year, but its battery is replaceable – with loud in-built ringers that make it easy (from my experience) to find your lost items around your home.

(Image credit: Tile)

They’re also keeping one of my favorite aspects of last gen’s Tile models – the Lost and Found QR code. Scanning this code on the back of the Tile Mate, Pro, or Slim (the Sticker misses out because its back is an adhesive) will allow whoever finds it to find out your contact information (if you choose to enable it). This makes it a little simpler for people to help return your lost stuff to you regardless of what network they use.

New Life360 integrations

The big changes however are coming as part of the new full Life360 integration – which have been added in part because Life360 now owns Tile.

Life360 is a previously separate service which allows family members – or whoever you add to your in-app Circle across Android and iOS – to track each other’s locations and make sure they’re safe thanks to features like crash detection. There are times when it can feel a little invasive, but there are privacy settings to tweak how the service works and I can see the advantages the Life360 could offer plenty of families – especially for parents who want to give their kids a little more freedom, but still want to make sure they’re safe.

As for the Tile integrations, the first is a new option for the button on the trackers. Previously this button enabled reverse ring. If you have your Tile but not your phone you can use the tracker to locate it by pressing the button. Now you can instead enable a Life360 SOS alert by pressing the button three times. This sends a discrete notification to your Circle that something is wrong – with a Life360 representative explaining that this could be if you feel you’re in danger, or something more mundane like your kid feels a bit too uncomfortable at a party and they want you to come pick them up.

You can also share your Tiles with everyone in your Circle, so they can ring them for you and help you find them.

Life360 integration adds new features like SOS alert (Image credit: Tile)

Lastly – and this is the big one – thanks to a partnership with satellite company Hubble the new Tiles won’t just be findable using a Bluetooth connection; Life360 is promising that satellites will be able to help you find them in the future. This will be especially useful if you lose your tracker somewhere that doesn’t get a lot of footfall or where cellular connections are weak – like out in the wilderness – and is an advantage that neither of Apple’s or Android’s Find My networks can offer right now.

That said, the feature hasn’t launched yet, but Hubble is hoping to offer global connectivity by 2028 and when it does the service does launch (even in a more limited way) these new Tiles will be fully compatible with the satellite network.

Anti-Theft Mode, a blessing or a curse?

One final feature I wanted to highlight is Tile’s Anti-Theft Mode, a unique tool to these new and older Tile trackers that allows you to hide them from Tile’s own Bluetooth device finder tool Scan and Secure, as well as some other third-party scanners.

This was explained to me as a beneficial feature because it ensures that thieves don’t simply find your Tile and dispose of it when they steal your valuables. What’s more Tile has introduced several safety measures like requiring you to scan an official ID (a passport, driver’s license, or something equivalent) and take a selfie to verify your identity before you’re allowed to turn on Anti-Theft Mode – with the threat that it will share this information with law enforcement and issue you a $1 million fine if you’re suspected and later convicted of a stalking crime, and used this mode to track a person illegally.

Safety vs security (Image credit: Tile)

However I’m left uneasy by it.

I understand Tile’s approach is trying its best to balance a person’s safety and your valuables’ security. Though, if, for example, the stalker acts before the tracker is physically found and taken to police (something which is harder to do now that it can’t be detected by scanners), I don’t see how Tile's safety measures will help to protect potential stalking victims.

Even if they do offer protections I'm not considering you then also have to trust a third-party service to handle your personal ID securely and appropriately, which opens up its own can of worms.

I personally don’t mind my stuff being a little easier to steal if it means it’s a lot harder to stalk people, so I seriously hope the Anti-Theft Mode is removed, and soon from the new trackers and Tile's older devices which support it.

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Apple’s brand-new iPad operating system, iPadOS 18, launches today, bringing with it a host of new features to enhance the experience on all the best iPads. From new apps to Apple Pencil enhancements, there’s a lot to like about the new update.

Here, we’ve picked out five of the best upgrades in iPadOS 18 that you’ll want to try out straight away. With the update expected around 1pm ET / 10am PT / 6pm BST, all you need to do is update your iPad (Settings > General > Software Update, if you don't have automatic updates turned on) and you’ll be ready to go.

(Image credit: Future)

The full list of iPads that support iPadOS 18 are the new iPad Pro (M4), iPad Pro 12.9-inch (3rd gen or later), iPad Pro 11-inch (1st gen or later), iPad Air (M2), iPad Air (3rd gen or later), iPad (7th gen or later) and the iPad mini (5th gen or later).  

Just note that, although Apple Intelligence isn’t launching until October, you can try out Apple’s artificial intelligence (AI) system in the latest iPadOS 18.1 beta. That said, many of its features aren’t available yet, with some not expected until the new year, so you’ll need to be patient for those. While you wait, here are the biggest highlights of iPadOS 18...

The new Calculator app

(Image credit: Apple)

You might think it’s strange for us to lead with the new Calculator app that’s arriving in iPadOS 18, but it’s a surprisingly big deal. Not only does it work really well on the iPad’s large display, but it adds some neat functionality that takes it to the next level.

The headline feature is called Math Notes (and it also works in the Notes app). This lets you write mathematical equations into the app using an Apple Pencil. When you draw an equals sign, the Calculator app automatically solves the equation for you. Make a change to the equation and the solution updates in real time.

Better yet, the Math Notes feature supports variables. Change one of the variables on a page and everything that uses this variable updates too, including the solution to your problem. You can adjust variables using a slider instead of having to rewrite them, and Math Notes can also create graphs from your workings.

Handwriting in Notes

(Image credit: Apple)

iPadOS 18 brings some changes to existing apps, and one in particular received a whole bundle of updates: Notes. As with the Calculator app, much of the improvements here focus on the Apple Pencil. 

So, there’s a new Smart Script feature that refines your handwriting as you jot it down, making for a neater and more consistent appearance on the page. You can even paste copied text and it will appear in your own handwriting style. There are other improvements, like being able to move text using the Apple Pencil or erase it by scribbling over it, making the writing experience more enjoyable.

Elsewhere, Notes has added highlighting, collapsible sections, audio recording and live sound transcription, too. It’s a much better place to organize your thoughts, utilize audio, and get things done with an Apple Pencil.

The floating tab bar

(Image credit: Apple)

While we’re on the subject of apps, Apple has added something that works in apps across iPadOS 18: a new floating tab bar. 

This shows a few common controls for an app at the top of the screen, and it can also expand out to become a sidebar with more tools. Its controls can be tweaked as needed – all you need to do is drag and drop a menu option from the sidebar onto the tab bar.

Apple has made the tab bar functionality available in an API, meaning third-party developers can work it into their own apps. So, you should start seeing this new, convenient way of navigating appear in many of the best iPad apps sooner or later.

Style it your way

(Image credit: Apple)

In iPadOS 18, you can organize your app icons and redesign your Home screen with much more flexibility than before, and it’s something that’s also available in iOS 18. 

Using these new controls, the Home screen can now have empty areas devoid of icons – this is great if you want to leave part of your background photo uncovered or just create a cleaner, more minimalistic look. As well as that, there are now options to tint your app icons so that they all take on a similar appearance, giving your iPad a uniform appearance for more visual consistency.

And the ability to customize iPadOS extends to the Control Center, where you can add, remove and rearrange tools to make the Control Center more useful to you. Tools can be spread over several pages, which helps if you want to make things a little more organized.

Game Mode

(Image credit: Apple)

The iPad is an excellent gaming device thanks to its large, high-quality display and powerful chip. In iPadOS 18, that’s taken up a notch thanks to Game Mode, which automatically optimizes the operating system to devote more resources to your games.

When you launch a game, Game Mode starts up. When it’s in use, it gives your game high-priority access to your iPad’s chip, enabling it to get the resources it needs to ensure smooth gameplay and high frame rates. It also doubles the Bluetooth sampling rate, which in turn reduces input latency for connected devices like games controllers and AirPods. It should all help to make playing the best iPad games a better all-round experience.

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Artificial intelligence has rapidly become a cornerstone of modern business, driving innovation and efficiency across industries. Yet, as companies increasingly rely on AI to handle sensitive tasks, they are also opening themselves up to new security vulnerabilities.

Businesses integrating AI into their operations means AI entities are becoming more autonomous and gaining access to more sensitive data and systems. As a result, CISOs are facing new cybersecurity challenges. Traditional security practices, designed for human users and conventional machines, fall short when applied to AI. So, it’s vital for companies to address emerging vulnerabilities if they are to prevent security issues from unchecked AI integration and secure their most valuable data assets.

AI: More than just machines

Every single type of identity has a different role and capability. Humans usually know how to best protect their passwords. For example, it seems quite obvious to every individual that they should avoid reusing the same password multiple times or choosing one that’s very easy to guess. Machines, including servers and computers, often hold or manage passwords, but they are vulnerable to breaches and don’t have the capability to prevent unauthorized access.

AI entities, including chatbots, are difficult to classify with regard to cybersecurity. These nonhuman identities manage critical enterprise passwords yet differ significantly from traditional machine identities like software, devices, virtual machines, APIs, and bots. So, AI is neither a human identity nor a machine identity; it sits in a unique position. It combines human-guided learning with machine autonomy and needs access to other systems to work. However, it lacks the judgment to set limits and prevent sharing confidential information.

Rising investments, lagging security

Businesses are investing heavily in AI, with 432,000 UK organizations – accounting for 16% – reporting they have embraced at least one AI technology. AI adoption is no longer a trend; it’s a necessity, so spending on emerging technologies is only expected to keep rising in the coming years. The UK AI market is currently worth over £16.8 billion, and is anticipated to grow to £801.6 billion by 2035.

However, the rapid investment in AI often outpaces identity security measures. Companies don’t always understand the risks posed by AI. As such, following best practices for security or investing enough time in securing AI systems is not always top of the priority list, leaving these systems vulnerable to potential cyberattacks. What’s more, traditional security practices such as access controls and least privilege rules are not easily applicable to AI systems. Another issue is that, with everything they already have going on, security practitioners are struggling to find enough time to secure AI workloads.

CyberArk’s 2024 Identity Security Threat Landscape Report reveals that while 68% of UK organizations report that up to half of their machine identities access sensitive data, only 35% include these identities in their definition of privileged users and take the necessary identity security measures. This oversight is risky, as AI systems, loaded with up-to-date training data, become high-value targets for attackers. Compromises in AI could lead to the exposure of intellectual property, financial information, and other sensitive data.

The threat of cloud attacks on AI systems

The security threats to AI systems aren’t unique, but their scope and scale could be. Constantly updated with new training data from within a company, LLMs quickly become prime targets for attackers once deployed. Since they must use real data and not test data for training, this up-to-date information can reveal valuable sensitive corporate secrets, financial data, and other confidential assets. AI systems inherently trust the data they receive, making them particularly susceptible to being deceived into divulging protected information.

In particular, cloud attacks on AI systems enable lateral movement and jailbreaking, allowing attackers to exploit a system’s vulnerabilities and trick it into disseminating misinformation to the public. Identity and account compromises in the cloud are common, with many high-profile breaches resulting from stolen credentials and causing significant damage to major brands across the tech, banking and consumer sectors.

AI can also be used to perform more complex cyberattacks. For example, it enables malicious actors to analyze every single permission that’s linked to a particular role within a company and assess whether they can use this permission to easily access and move through the organization.

So, what’s the sensible next step? Companies are still at the beginning of the integration of AI and LLMs, so establishing robust identity security practices will take time. However, CISOs can’t afford to sit back and wait; they must proactively develop strategies to protect AI identities before a cyberattack happens, or a new regulation comes into place and forces them to do so.

The key steps for strengthening AI security

While there is no silver bullet security solution for AI, businesses can put certain measures in place to mitigate the risks. More specifically, there are some key actions that CISOs can take to enhance their AI identity security posture as the industry continues to evolve.

• Identifying overlaps: CISOs should make it a priority to identify areas where existing identity security measures can be applied to AI. For example, leveraging existing controls such as access management and least privilege principles where possible can help improve security.

• Safeguarding the environment: It’s crucial that CISOs understand the environment where AI operates to protect it as efficiently as possible. While purchasing an AI security platform isn’t a necessity, securing the environment where the AI activity is happening is vital.

• Building an AI security culture: It’s hard to encourage all employees to adopt best identity security practices without a strong AI security mindset. Involving security experts in AI projects means they can share their knowledge and expertise with all employees and ensure everyone is well aware of the risks of using AI. It’s also important to consider how data is processed and how the LLM is being trained to encourage employees to think of what using emerging technologies entails and be even more careful.

The use of AI in business presents both great opportunities and unprecedented security challenges. As we navigate this new landscape, it becomes clear that traditional security measures are insufficient for the unique risks posed by AI systems. The role of CISOs is no longer simply about managing conventional cybersecurity threats; it now involves recognising the distinct nature of AI identities and securing them accordingly. So, businesses must make sure they invest time and resources in finding the right balance between innovation and security to keep up with the latest trends while protecting their most valuable assets.

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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

This is Part 2 of a two-part series on cloud repatriation.  In The Shift to Cloud Repatriation: Why Organizations are Making the Change - Part 1 we delved into the significance of edge computing and data sovereignty when considering repatriation highlighting the strategic benefits of maintaining control over data. But another key factor is the growing popularity of Kubernetes, the next evolution in application deployment and management. An open source container orchestration platform that offers organizations an appealing combination of flexibility and control, Kubernetes helps companies more dynamically size for each application, while managing costs and improving performance.

Kubernetes and containers: A new era of flexibility and efficiency

Although containers are billed as lightweight alternatives to full virtual machines, they pack a massive punch. From small ephemeral apps to large scale stateful workloads, containers give organizations the ability to encapsulate applications in a consistent environment, eliminating software configuration conflicts and ensuring reliable performance across different platforms. Kubernetes serves as a powerful open-source controller or orchestration platform for containers, enabling developers to manage and scale applications seamlessly.

Because Kubernetes is open source, it is accessible to anyone at any time. Whether you are operating racks of enterprise-class servers or a couple of mini PCs in a retail closet, Kubernetes can adapt and function seamlessly. This universal compatibility, flexibility, and ease of use allows developers to create, manage, and scale applications, free of the constraints traditionally imposed by specific hardware or software environments.

An additional point of appeal is the standardization that Kubernetes offers. Developers can write applications, encapsulate them into containers, and replicate these containers endlessly with consistent results. This eliminates the headache of dealing with conflicting operating systems or applications that might override critical data. Containers ensure a digitally perfect copy of a known good application, which can be deployed as many times as needed without variation.

All of the major hyperscalers have developed advanced tools around Kubernetes, but the core value of Kubernetes remains its open-source foundation and the fact that it doesn’t bind organizations to a single cloud provider. Kubernetes also provides organizations with the ability to move configurations across different environments – including public clouds, private clouds, or even on-premises servers – that is the true game-changer. This enables businesses to avoid a lock-in with any single cloud provider, offering the freedom to choose the most cost-effective and efficient solution for each workload.

Workload portability: the Kubernetes advantage

Prior to Kubernetes, moving applications and workloads between different environments was cumbersome and costly, and continuously using public cloud resources for stable, long-running applications was not cost-effective. Now organizations can evaluate their computing needs and optimize costs by transferring workloads to the most appropriate channel, balancing cost and performance. Stable applications with predictable usage patterns can benefit from the cost savings of a private cloud, avoiding the premium costs associated with on-demand public cloud resources.

Still, not all applications are suited for private clouds. Applications with sporadic, high compute needs, such as running one-time machine learning algorithms on large datasets, are ideal for the public cloud because they allow businesses to leverage significant computing power for short periods without long-term commitments. Conversely, applications that require continuous operation and low latency, such as incident management systems or real-time financial applications, are better suited for private clouds.

Think about it this way: public clouds excel in providing resources for applications that can be turned off when not in use, saving costs during idle periods. But for applications that must run 24/7, private clouds offer more predictable pricing and lower total cost of ownership. Additionally, private cloud provides greater flexibility and lower costs for data transfer and connectivity, making them more cost effective for moving large volumes of data between different locations.

The multi-cloud paradigm is here to stay, driven by the need for flexibility, cost optimization, and performance. During the pandemic, many organizations rushed to public clouds due to immediate needs and external pressures. But it has become clear that relying on a single provider is not a sustainable long-term strategy. Cost concerns, latency issues, and the inability to move workloads freely have underscored the limitations of a one-size-fits-all approach.

By carefully evaluating workloads and leveraging the strengths of both public and private clouds, businesses can achieve the best performance, lowest cost, and ultimately drive better business outcomes. The future lies in this hybrid, multi-cloud approach, where the right strategy can make all the difference.

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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

TechRadar Pro is live in San Francisco for Dreamforce 2024!

We're here in California for what will no doubt be a packed few days of news, features, and much more as Salesforce shows off all it's newest and most exciting releases.

Expect surprises and celebrity guests during Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff's keynote, plus all the latest Slack and AI news as well. We'll be here covering the event live, so stay tuned for all the latest and greatest updates as they happen!

Good morning and welcome to our live coverage of Dreamforce 2024!

TechRadar Pro is here in San Francisco after flying in last night, and we're looking forward to a busy week of news and announcements.

Dreamforce 2024 begins tomorrow (Tuesday 17 September) - so we'll be in the opening keynote to report everything going on!

The Windows operating system (OS) had a vulnerability that allowed people to hide a file’s true extension, which hackers were able to use and distribute files that looked like .PDF documents, but were in fact weaponized .HTA files.

In the most recent Patch Tuesday cumulative update, Microsoft addressed a flaw described as "Windows MSHTML spoofing vulnerability", and tracked as CVE-2024-43461. This flaw was apparently used by a threat actor known as Void Banshee to deploy the Atlantida infostealer.

In the attack, the crooks would first create a malicious .HTA file. An .HTA file stands for HTML Application, and it is a file type that allows HTML to be executed as a standalone application. Unlike typical web pages that run in a browser, .HTA files are executed with more privileges, similar to desktop applications, and can access system resources.

Atlantida infostealer

Then, they would abuse the vulnerability to add twenty-six repeated encoded braille whitespace characters to the file’s name. That way, when a user views a file on their computer, the actual file type would be hidden, tricking the victim into believing they were looking at a .PDF file, instead. Running the file would install the Atlantida infostealer, which would pick up and exfiltrate sensitive data, login information, and more.

Deploying the .HTA file to the device was done through a weaponized shortcut file (.URL). This file was most likely delivered with phishing, or social engineering.

"Specifically, the attackers used special Windows Internet Shortcut files (.url extension name), which, when clicked, would call the retired Internet Explorer (IE) to visit the attacker-controlled URL," Check Point Research explained in a recent paper, BleepingComputer reports.

The bug was fixed with the latest Patch Tuesday update. Now, when a user tries to open the .HTA file, the actual file type will not remain hidden. However, it will still be pushed to the right, thanks to multiple braille whitespace characters, which might still confuse some people.

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From the creator behind Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, which was once one of the best Netflix series, Ryan Murphy is returning to another one of our best streaming services with his upcoming limited series Grotesquerie. The recent teaser trailer for the new Hulu show (see below) packs everything you can expect from a Ryan Murphy production, including a true crime backdrop, a token nun character, and Taylor Swift’s boyfriend Travis Kelce.  

Following the release of the show’s official trailer (see below), which is introduced by Kelce himself, Hulu and FX have been dropping teaser trailers in the lead up to its release on September 25. Going off what we’ve seen so far in its teasers, Grotesquerie will have a crime-centric storyline with elements of gory cults and rituals across the 10-episode first season carried by a cast of new additions to the Murphy family of actors, as well as those who have worked with him on previous projects.

As well as newcomer Travis Kelce, Grotesquerie brings Academy Award nominee Lesley Manville (Phantom Thread and Netflix’s The Crown) into Murphy’s circle. Tony Award nominee Micaela Diamond will also be swapping the stage for the screen in her Ryan Murphy production debut as Sister Megan, performing alongside Nicholas Chavez who’ll be starring as Lyle Menendez in Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, the second series in Murphy’s Netflix show.

If you’re familiar with the works of Murphy, you’ll know that his productions often feature recurring actors, and in the case of Grotesquerie, Niecy Nash will be returning following appearances in shows such as Scream Queens and Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story. 

Grotesquerie will undoubtedly be one of the most talked about shows this spooky season, however its many trailers suggest that we won’t see anything that we haven’t already from Murphy.

 What does Ryan Murphy have in store for us this time?  

“Something hellish is here”, Nash says to set the tone of Grotesquerie’s main trailer. Following a series of crimes that shake up a small community, Detective Lois Tryon (Nash) senses that there’s a personal element attached to the crimes, convincing herself that she’s being targeted. While she comes face-to-face with the murder case, she must learn to juggle a complicated relationship with her daughter Merritt (Raven Goodwin), and cope with the struggles of absent husband in long-term hospital care. 

Having nowhere to turn, she meets Sister Megan (Diamond), a nun and journalist with a history of witnessing the worst kinds of evil. The two women band together to gather clues with hopes of getting to the bottom of the cases, but it proves to be difficult when their questions become more puzzled and evil forces grow stronger.  

You can watch the full trailer for Ryan Murphy's drama series Grotesquerie below. 

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