TechRadar News

Every true crime fan’s wish was granted back in 2022 when Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story was dropped on Netflix as it became the platform’s most-watched show at the time – it's currently the best streaming service's third most-watched series ever. Now the anthology’s long-awaited second season has a release date, and this time it follows the story of another case popular among true crime fans. 

Netflix finally dropped the teaser trailer for Monster: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story in March, making it one of the most exciting shows that we couldn't wait for. The second season will be arriving on the platform on September 19 and, as its title implies, will reenact the events around the case of the Menendez brothers who were convicted of murdering their parents in 1989 – one of the most followed true crime stories. 

Being one of the star titles of everything new on Netflix in September 2024, you can expect the second insert in the anthology series to pack an all-star cast. The best Netflix show’s creator Ryan Murphy, aka the king of television anthologies, has roped in a number of his esteemed acting collaborators including Chloë Sevigny, Nathan Lane, and Leslie Grossman, along with Javier Bardem.  

A mere 54-second trailer (see above) shows the Menendez family sitting for what appears to be an innocent family photo, overlapped by an ominous pulsing sound followed by the motherly plea "I need to know what’s going on between you and the boys". Ending with the brothers embracing each other covered in blood splats, the second season of Murphy’s Monster anthology points to another shocking retelling of a gruesome tale, but this time feels injected with a sense of empathy for the brothers. 

What can you expect from Monster: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story? 

Inspired by the true story of Lyle and Erik Menendez, the second season is set to follow the two brothers (played by Nicholas Alexander Chavez and Cooper Koch) who shot and killed their parents, Kitty and Jose Menendez (Chloë Sevigny & Javier Bardem) in their home in Beverly Hills on August 20, 1989. Following the aftermath of the murder, the brothers were convicted of first-degree murder at ages 21 and 18. 

At the time of the case, the brothers shared that the motive behind their brutal killings stemmed from years of emotional, physical, and sexual abuse from their father, who the brothers believed would kill them if they exposed him. But the prosecutor argued that they committed murder in order to obtain the family’s multi-million dollar estate. 

In the show’s first season, not only did it follow the murders committed by Jeffrey Dahmer between 1978 and 1991 across the 10 episodes, but included scenes that gave an insight to the lives of his victims and the mind of Dahmer himself. Looking at the trailer for the new season, we get the impression that it will follow a similar narrative structure to the first season, but will hit differently on an emotional level. 

You might also like

• Netflix cancels hit supernatural series Dead Boy Detectives
• Netflix is making non-English movies and shows better
• 14 shows I'm most excited to see in late 2024

Dragon Age: The Veilguard just got a brand-new gameplay demo exploring several new locations and the mage class.

As part of IGN's month-long coverage of The Veilguard, which was teased last month through BioWare's roadmap, fans were treated to 22 minutes of gameplay guided by the game's director Corinne Busche, and creative director John Epler.

After sharing a series of screenshots last week, the demo started by giving us our first in-game look at the player's base of operations in the Fade, The Lighthouse, which is owned by Solas.

As Rook, the playable protagonist, walks around the base the area looks huge and you can see there are many places you can explore, for instance, the seven companion bedrooms. 

Each has their personal space in The Lighthouse, and from what the developers teased, these places can be upgraded as you progress through the story to fit the respective character's personality. 

BioWare also confirmed that the game will feature visual, glowing alerts that will let players know when a companion is ready to speak with them, so there's no worry about missing optional dialogue. 

As for the rest of the demo, the directors guide us through the beginning of a quest for one of your companions, and Grey Warden, Davrin; along with his adorable griffon Assan. 

After accepting the quest, the player heads to the Crossroads - an important place in Solas' history where he originally began his plans against the Elven Gods, as well as a place the developers said players can spend more time exploring and learning about moments in Solas' history. 

Although this is Davrin's personal quest, he has proceeded to the quest location on his own because, as the developers put it, it gives the companions more autonomy in the story. 

We also got a decent look at a new party combat, specifically with the mage class and the orb and dagger weapon duo. The developers compared this class to Dragon Age: Inquisition's Knight Enchanter specialization, which allows the player to stack elemental damage on an enemy, and then use the dagger to detonate the magic.

BioWare also demonstrated the new skill combinations that can be used alongside your companions, which can deal greater damage to enemies. Since there are several classes in the game, players will be able to experiment by combining mage abilities with Harding's rogue skills, for example. 

The developer also confirmed that when players are knocked down in battle, companions will be able to revive them with the click of a button.

Dragon Age: The Veilguard launches on October 31 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S and PC. 

You might also like...

• Best RPGs 2024 - top role-playing games for PC and consoles
• Dragon Age: The Veilguard preview: an emphasis on moment-to-moment action and a strong lineup of companions
• Dragon Age: The Veilguard will let players choose between several 'playstyles' as difficulty options

Following poor sales and a drastically low player count, live-service PS5 multiplayer hero shooter Concord is being taken offline just two weeks after its full launch.

The news was confirmed by Concord game director Ryan Ellis via an official PlayStation Blog post. Ellis confirms that the game will be taken offline on September 6, 2024. That gives you just three days, at the time of writing, to squeeze in some play time if you happen to own the game.

In the post, Ellis writes: "We have decided to take the game offline beginning September 6, 2024, and explore options, including those that will better reach our players.

"While we determine the best path ahead, Concord sales will cease immediately and we will begin to offer a full refund for all gamers who have purchased the game for PS5 or PC. If you purchased the game for PlayStation 5 from the PlayStation Store or PlayStation Direct, a refund will be issued back to your original payment method."

The post goes on to detail how players who purchased Concord on PC via Steam or the Epic Games Store can obtain their own refunds, as well as those who bought the game through various other retailers.

It's nothing short of disastrous news for Sony Interactive Entertainment, the game's publisher, and its plans to produce more live-service games, as well as Concord developer Firewalk Studios, naturally. The game, which the developer confirmed took a frankly absurd eight years to make. The team had also stated it was "strapped in and ready to push [the game] for years to come."

While Concord's budget and sales numbers remain unconfirmed, a report by Forbes' Paul Tassi suggests the game had made approximately $1 million, selling an abysmal 25,000 copies. With Tassi also stating that budget estimates are "around the $100 million mark," that's a pretty tragic return on investment.

It remains to be seen as to whether or not Concord will make a comeback; the wording of the PlayStation Blog post, particularly the desire to "explore options," implies there may be a future for the game yet. However, given its Steam all-time peak concurrent player count of 697 (according to SteamDB), it seems like Concord and its players don't have much of a future to look forward to.

You might also like...

• Dune Awakening developer says work on bringing the MMO to Xbox Series S is progressing but will be a "challenge"
• 90s games industry pioneer Argonaut is back - and it's remastering a much-loved PS1 classic
• Astro Bot creative director says there's "no chance" of a PSVR 2 version

According to new Nikkei reporting, China has become the leading spender on chipmaking equipment, amassing $25 billion in investments during the first six months of 2024.

Moreover, the spend is expected to continue at the same rate, with the country likely to hit $50 billion on semiconductor equipment by the end of this year.

So far this year, China has spent more than South Korea, Taiwan and the US combined, highlighting the country’s major buying power and its commitment to bolstering the sector amid US and EU-imposed export tariffs.

China is spending big on chipmaking equipment

Clark Tseng, SEMI's senior director of market intelligence, summarized: "Concerns over potential further [export control] restrictions also pushed them to pull in and secure more equipment they could buy in advance.”

Beyond the four walls of China, global chip industry association SEMI (cited in Nikkei’s article) noted that the likes of Japan along with countries in Southeast Asia, America and Europe are all likely to increase spending in the sector by 2027, fuelled by the trend of localizing production in order to circumvent restrictions and tariffs as well as reduce reliance on other nations, which could pose a security issue.

In comparison, South Korea, Taiwan and the US have all decreased spending in the sector year-over-year thanks to tough economic conditions.

Looking ahead, this year’s 20% market growth is expected to continue, with a further 20% growth predicted by 2025. While artificial intelligence has undoubtedly fuelled chip sales, future developments around software-defined vehicles and other smart technologies will continue to push the market in an upward trajectory.

More from TechRadar Pro

• We’ve rounded up a list of all the best processors
• China is planning a huge national compute boost by 2025
• Here are the best cloud computing services to access rented chips

V-color has announced the launch of a world-first in the form of its new RGB DDR5 O CUDIMM system memory.

The CUDIMM RAM sticks – which stands for Clocked Unbuffered DIMM, as opposed to a standard DIMMs (Dual In-line Memory Modules) for PCs, and we’ll come back to the difference – will come in 32GB (2 x 16GB) and 48GB (2 x 24GB) packs of varying speeds.

The DDR5 RAM will start at a transfer rate of 6400MT/s and run up to 9200MT/s (or more with overclocking, which is the idea with this memory). In short, the higher-end flavors are very fast indeed.

As the name tells us, the V-color RAM boasts RGB lighting, and looks slick with or without the lighting on, as the bar for the RGB is either silver or gold when the lights are turned off. It looks pretty smart, for sure.

Moreover, V-color has used a nifty new heatsink design for improved cooling. The company tells us that the RAM runs some 2% to 5% cooler than its previous heatsink with this new patented design.

V-color didn’t give us any details on the pricing yet.

(Image credit: V-color) Analysis: Clock wisdom

What’s the big deal about CUDIMMs compared to traditional DIMMS then? The CUDIMM memory modules come with a clock driver on the memory stick itself, so the RAM doesn’t have to rely on the system clock. Having a clock right there on the RAM module leads to better stability and reliability, which becomes increasingly important as you push DDR5 RAM faster and faster.

And indeed these V-color RAM sticks are reaching hugely fast speeds with the top SKUs which hit 9200MT/s as mentioned (not quite as fast as G.Skill’s DDR5 RAM kits that we saw at Computex 2024, mind, which reach 10,600MT/s).

The improved cooling here should help overclockers really push the boundaries, and this product could end up on our list of the best RAM modules – but doubtless when the price tag for this V-color RAM is revealed, it’ll be very expensive.

Via Wccftech

You may also like...

• Windows 11 is finally more popular than Windows 10 – at least in the world of PC gaming
• Top gaming PCs: great rigs for serious PC gaming
• Best PC games: must-play titles you don't want to miss

Intel launched its latest mobile processor series, the Intel Core Ultra 200 series (known as Lunar Lake), this afternoon at an event in Berlin ahead of the start of IFA 2024.

The new system-on-a-chip (SoC) promises substantial performance increases over last year’s Intel ‘Meteor Lake’ Core Ultra 100 series, as well as competitive performance against archrival AMD and newcomer Qualcomm in the thin-and-light laptop market.

With the launch of Intel Core Ultra 200 series chips, laptop manufacturers like Lenovo, Asus, and others are starting preorders today, with delivery and in-store availability starting on September 24.

The new chips were originally announced at Computex 2024 back in June, and now we have a whole lot more detail on the architecture and performance of these chips. Lunar Lake’s microarchitecture has been completely rebuilt from the ground up, with a new focus on energy efficiency while also delivering the kind of gen-on-gen performance uplift that one would expect with a new processor generation.

As an example of this performance and efficiency marriage, Intel said that for chips running at 20W, which would be around the midrange of the laptop market, an 8-core single-threaded Lunar Lake chip would match the performance of a 22-core multi-threaded Meteor Lake chip. This is due to the tripled performance-per-thread that Lunar Lake’s new architecture provides over the last-gen Meteor Lake chips.

Serious performance across the board

On the graphics side, Intel is promising up to 50% better graphics performance from the new Intel Xe2 graphics cores (the same architecture that will power Intel’s next-gen Battlemage desktop GPUs) over the Xe1 cores in Intel Meteor Lake. This includes better real-time ray tracing performance—which, when combined with Intel’s XeSS graphics upscaled, could make it possible to play ray-traced PC games at 1080p on low to medium graphics settings on an integrated GPU.

And we certainly can’t skip over the NPU performance of Lunar Lake, as Microsoft’s new Copilot+ AI PC push has been a major innovation in computing in 2024. In terms of NPU performance, Intel Lunar Lake gets up to 48 trillion operations per second (TOPS), which is among the fastest NPUs currently on the market (Qualcomm’s competing Snapdragon X Elite chip offers 45 TOPS) and Intel says that its real-world application performance in apps like Adobe Lightroom and GIMP’s Stable Diffusion plug-in is substantially better than its competitors.

These are laptops, after all, and maybe the most important feature of this chip is its battery life - and Intel says that a Lunar Lake laptop can get up to 20.1 hours of battery life, which is substantially more than any previous Intel-based laptop, and a stark contrast to the past few years where laptop battery life took a backseat to high-end performance.

Of course, none of this has been independently tested, so take everything with a grain of salt for now, but given the stakes for Intel, Lunar Lake is at least teasing a major show of force in the AI PC market.

A major opportunity for Intel at a particularly challenging time

(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

After announcing major layoffs and cost-cutting measures across the company in recent months, Intel could really use a win. 

With Qualcomm making a splash in the laptop market with its Snapdragon X series SoCs and AMD Ryzen AI 300 chips beating Intel to market, Intel is the last of the three chipmakers to release its AI laptop chips. Intel would really like you to believe that the best was saved for last, and the claimed performance for its new Lunar Lake chips is certainly compelling.

If Intel is able to deliver on the promises it’s made today, not only will it retain its status as the premier laptop chipmaker in a market it absolutely dominates by market share, but it will give itself a major shot in the arm as it heads into 2025 where competition from AMD and Qualcomm is expected to be fierce.

Fortunately, the more the three chipmakers fight it out to deliver better performance and efficiency, the better for the end user looking to upgrade their pandemic-purchased laptop in 2024 and 2025.

You may also like...

• Intel Lunar Lake CPUs could revolutionize ultrathin laptops
• Acer is set to show off new Copilot+ PCs with Intel’s Lunar Lake CPUs on September 4, kicking off the AI laptop wars in earnest
• Intel Lunar Lake CPUs could be revolutionary for thin-and-light laptops – but good luck buying one when they launch

Funcom has said that bringing Dune Awakening to Xbox Series S will be a "challenge".

The massively multiplayer online game (MMO) inspired by the best-selling Dune book series by Frank Herbert is set to launch on PC in early 2025, but Funcom has yet to share a release window for the console versions.

According to Dune Awakening's chief product officer Scott Junior, one of the main reasons for this is so Funcom can spend more time optimizing the Xbox version alongside the PlayStation 5 version, more specifically, the lower-powered Xbox Series S.

"So, it's one of the reasons we're coming out on PC first," Junior said in a recent interview with VG247. "There's a lot of optimisations we need to do before we release on the Xbox. But yeah, Xbox Series S is a challenge."

Junior added later on in the discussion that work is progressing and that those who own an Xbox Series S and are looking to play Dune Awakening on the console will be able to do so.

"Yeah, yeah it does," the developer said when asked if it will run on low-performance machines despite the optimizations. "But it will still perform well on hardware that's years and years old. We'll be able to do it!"

Dune Awakening is built in Unreal Engine 5 and recently received a brand-new 30-minute gameplay trailer at Gamescom Opening Night Live 2024 where we got our first look at the game's in-depth character creator as well as the open world of Arrakis.

Players will be able to join a guild and align with House Harkonnen or Atreides, and "clash for the precious spice in dynamic guild versus guild battles involving a range of vehicles, tech, and specialized combatants."

You might also like...

• Until Dawn remake developer Ballistic Moon lays off staff ahead of the game's October launch
• Rocksteady reportedly lays off devs after Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League's flop
• Xbox's Phil Spencer says he's "made some of the worst game-choice decisions" in the past

Although export tariffs have been somewhat unsuccessful in that Chinese companies have been spotted renting the latest chips via cloud computing services, GlobalWafers anticipates more stringent measures.

The Taiwanese manufacturer, and the world’s third-largest provider of silicon wafers, plans to expand its overseas manufacturing operations in response to anticipated upcoming tariffs on chip materials.

GlobalWafers’ decision uncovers concern that more stringent trade measures could disrupt the industry and its supply chain in the coming years.

GlobalWafers predicts worsening trade measures

According to a Bloomberg, the company is “actively” expanding production in six of the nine countries it operates in, including expanding two factories in the US and other facilities in Italy and Denmark.

In an interview with Bloomberg Television, company CEO Doris Hsu stated: “I believe that not only in the US but also some other countries, there will be some special tariff.” The CEO suggested that shifting to local production could help the company circumvent some of the potential tariffs.

This comes in light of ongoing geopolitical tensions relating to China and the recent pandemic-induced chip shortage that had major implications for industries such as automotive production.

Hsu said that geopolitics are now driving how companies do business – the company previously relied heavily on mergers and acquisitions to grow, but it has been shifting its focus to expanding production as a result.

Earlier this year, GlobalWafers secured funding worth up to €103 million from the European Commission and the Italian government to back a 12-inch wafer plant in Novara, near Milan in Italy. A further $400 million was secured from the US Chips Act to expand plants in Texas and Missouri.

As US and European nations continue to implement measures designed to curb China’s technological and military advancements, more manufacturers may explore similar routes in order to at least reduce some of the financial impacts of tariffs and restrictions going forward.

More from TechRadar Pro

• Check out our roundup of all the best processors
• China is planning a huge national compute boost by 2025
• Access the latest and greatest hardware with the best cloud computing services

Apple must stop supporting the "Russian government’s efforts to suppress freedom of speech" and restore all the VPN services the company removed from its local App Store. 

This is the request that 50 human rights organizations, media outlets, IT companies, journalistic groups, and public figures shared in an open letter on Monday, September 2.

Four VPN providers were the first to reportedly disappear from Russia's Apple App Store at the beginning of July. At that time, the Big Tech giant explained it did so upon a request order from the Russian censorship authority (Roskomnadzor). According to experts, at least 25 VPN apps are currently unavailable in Russia.        

Don’t be puppeteered into human rights violations @Apple!The decision by Apple to remove VPN apps on the call of Russia’s censorship agency, Roskomnadzor, is alarming. Apple must restore VPN accessibility now + uphold freedom of expression for all. ⬇️https://t.co/iE7iZcA5mzSeptember 2, 2024

"By removing VPN services from its app store for Russians, Apple has chosen to undermine its policies that recognize the critical importance of an open society, freedom of information and expression," said Sarkis Darbinyan, cyber lawyer and co-founder of Russian digital rights group Roskomsvoboda.

A VPN (virtual private network) is a security software that not only encrypts people's internet connections but also spoofs their real IP address location. The latter skill is exactly the reason why citizens and visitors in Russia are forced to use such software to browse an increasingly more restricted internet.

Both Freedom House and Reporters Without Borders (RSF) classify Russia as one of the worst countries for internet freedom due to high levels of internet censorship which have been intensifying since the invasion of Ukraine started. The likes of Facebook, Instagram, and X (formerly known as Twitter) cannot be accessed unless using a VPN, alongside an ever-growing list of websites that include news sites and even official sites of some VPN providers.

Darbinyan said: "Apple must realize the consequences of its actions and fix the situation immediately, otherwise it will become complicit in the Russian authorities' offensive against civil space in the country and the establishment of total censorship."

Russia's views on VPNs

As mentioned earlier, Apple reportedly removed 25 VPN providers from Russia's App Store starting from July 4, 2024. The providers affected include some of TechRadar's favorites such as NordVPN, Proton VPN, and Private Internet Access (PIA).

At the time, Apple sent a communication to some of the VPN companies to notify the removal "per demand from Roskomnadzor" as their app "includes content that is illegal in Russia."

The truth is, however, that the Kremlin has been looking into VPN usage since long before that. Many VPNs for Russia have been temporarily blocked over the years. As of November 2023, Russia had reportedly blocked the domain of at least eight of the 15 most popular VPN services across the country. HideMy.Name became the first VPN to challenge the Russian censor body in Court, which later branded the company as a foreign agent.

Did you know?

(Image credit: Getty Images)

In May, digital rights activists and experts also called for Google-owned YouTube to refrain from helping the Kremlin censor free speech amid a spike in removals targeting several human rights YouTube channels and anti-war content. 

Since March, a new law in Russia criminalized the spread of information about ways to circumvent internet restrictions.

Apple isn't the only Big Tech giant to help Russian authorities censor VPN services – and the wider web – either.

In 2022, for example, Google was forced to delist over 36 thousand URLs linked to VPN services – Surfshark reported at the time. In September of the same year, both Apple and Google removed Alexey Navalny's Smart Voting project app from their stores upon authorities' request. Apple also removed at least seven apps from its Russian App Store at Russian order that year, with 12 further applications disappearing in 2023.

Secure web browser providers Mozilla and Opera also got tangled up in the recent Russian VPN censorship efforts, receiving requests to block their anti-censorship plugin extensions in June. Both of the companies complied, but Mozilla later restored its VPN-like feature following backlash. 

Experts confirmed that Google is currently resisting demands from Roskomnadzor to remove VPN apps from the Google Play Store and suggest that Apple should follow suit.

"We urge [Apple] to assess all blocking orders and requests in terms of their compliance with international human rights standards, and not to accommodate those that restrict access to protected expressions and services (applications), instead challenging their legality by all available means."

Millions more people can now access body temperature readings in the rather quirky Pixel Thermometer app built into the Pixel 8 Pro, the Pixel 9 Pro, and the Pixel 9 Pro XL, as Google has now extended support to users in Europe.

As spotted by 9to5Google, the support documents have been updated to mention a long list of other European countries, including the UK, after the feature went live in the US in January. You will need an active SIM or eSIM installed in your phone in whichever country you're in, however.

If this is the first you're hearing about the Pixel Thermometer, it uses the infrared sensor embedded into the rear camera on these Pixels to take temperature readings (the standard Pixel 8 and Pixel 9 phones don't have the necessary sensor).

Initially, the tool could only be used to take the temperature of objects, but then Google got regulatory approval for body temperature scanning – so you can now easily see if you or someone you know is running a temperature.

Taking readings

The Pixel Thermometer app is expanding its reach (Image credit: Google)

Launch the Pixel Thermometer app and you get taken through a short introduction explaining what the tool is and how to use it: you can pick one of the presets for objects, materials, or people, or just get started without them.

After that, the phone camera helps you to get the infrared sensor correctly positioned, in terms of both framing and distance, before you start getting a temperature reading back. In the case of body temperature, you place the phone on your forehead and then on one of your temples.

Logged temperatures can be saved inside the Pixel Thermometer app and are kept for seven days, and you can also export the readings for body temperature to the Fitbit app, where they'll be stored for as long as you like.

It's a useful extra that differentiates the standard Pixels from the Pro Pixels, and now it's available to a lot more people. If you're thinking about an upgrade, be sure to check out our Google Pixel 9 Pro review and our Google Pixel 9 Pro XL review.

You might also like

• The Pixel 9 Add Me feature is a lot of fun
• Here's when you might be able to buy the iPhone 16
• The Pixel 9 improves Android upgrades

The recent global Microsoft outage highlighted a critical vulnerability in global supply chains. This outage, which has been described as “one of the worst ever” affected communication, halted production, and delayed deliveries, emphasising our dependence on digital tools. According to sources, 8.5 million computers using Microsoft systems were left inaccessible – impacting critical services such as healthcare, transport, and banking.

Whilst not of the same scale, just weeks later, a second outage caused by a cyber-attack, and a lack of defense, saw further disruption this month, serving as another stark reminder that supply chain strategies must evolve. As digital solutions rise in popularity, there has been a notable increase in the number of cyber-attacks resulting from vulnerabilities within the supply chain. These attacks can have devastating, expensive, and long-term ramifications for affected businesses, supply chains, and customers.

With our reliance on technologies and interconnectivity continuing to grow, the events of the last month aren’t the first and certainly won’t be the last. To withstand future potential disruptions, it is essential that business and supply chain leaders prioritize the following strategies:

1. Scenario planning:

As supply chain dynamics and potential threats become more complex, traditional planning methodologies are no longer adequate. Leaders need to invest in advanced scenario modeling capabilities to assess the impacts of possible scenarios across the supply chain. Scenario planning enables an enterprise to identify any potential disruption or risk to its supply chain – of which logistical challenges and delays caused by outages are just one example.

Black swan events like the pandemic have taught us in recent years, that anything is possible, and we must be equipped to deal with the worst-case scenario and have contingency plans in place to limit the impact where possible.

To do so effectively, supply chain leaders must adopt the right planning tools and integrate inputs from business-wide functions to build comprehensive plans that balance capacity, risks, customer demands, and financial goals.

2. Diversification and resilience:

Building resilience through diversification is a strategic imperative for supply chain leaders in today’s turbulent landscape. IT outages aside, there are several significant challenges facing global supply chains currently – from geopolitical tension and its impact on trade costs to mounting pressures on sea freight and truck transport. The focus on diversification is, therefore, more important than ever to maintain business continuity. As such, organizations are being urged to cultivate a diversified network of suppliers, warehouses, co-manufacturers, and distributors capable of swiftly adapting to unforeseen disruptions and shocks.

Maintaining a diverse supply chain, however, comes with considerable logistical hurdles and complexities to overcome – taking significant time and resource to manage effectively. Identifying suppliers that meet their procurement criteria and meet the right level of quality, cost, risk, capacity, and reliability – while sharing your values and goals – can also prove challenging.

That said, business leaders must embrace the change as an opportunity to optimize processes, rationalize operations, reduce waste, and foster innovation within their supply chain.

3. A balanced approach to inventory management:

Maintaining business continuity during periods of disruption can also be achieved by strategically deploying buffer stocks for the right products (and in the right locations). Leveraging dynamic portfolio segmentation and predictive replenishment strategies can help businesses shift from a reactive to a proactive inventory management approach, maintaining optimal stock levels while minimizing risks and protecting cash.

Whilst offering continuity should a disruptive event occur, it is important to approach buffer stocks with caution. This approach can be costly and even have a damaging knock-on effect on suppliers and their own planning. Building buffer stocks therefore should be calculated based on concrete need and calculated risk.

4. Strategic partnerships and collaboration:

Strategic partnerships and collaboration are additional crucial elements for success in an interconnected global marketplace. Supply chain leaders must collaborate closely with logistics providers, suppliers, and stakeholders to create a network of trusted partners. Sharing resources, information, and best practices can help organizations to enhance their resilience, responsiveness, and overall quality of products and services throughout the supply chain.

Working together and having an open line of communication with suppliers during IT outages, and other potential disruption is essential. Working together through the chaos and keeping stakeholders informed of any developments is particularly important to navigate turbulence, limit impact where possible, and come out the other side.

Proactivity is the key to success in a digital world

Ensuring business continuity, in an increasingly digital world, requires proactive measures and robust planning. Diversifying suppliers, establishing alternative communication channels, and maintaining manual backup processes are crucial steps. Additionally, strengthening supplier relationships and increasing inventory buffers can help cushion the impact of future disruptions.

By adopting these approaches and investing in supply chain resilience, businesses across all industries can protect themselves and consumers when the next IT outage hits.

We've featured the best ERP software.

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

Later this month, on September 24, a Crowdstrike executive will sit in front of a US House Homeland Security Committee to discuss the patch incident that brought many major US companies’ operations to a screeching halt.

According to The Register, it was confirmed late last week that Crowdstrike’s Senior Vice President of Counter Adversary Operations, Adam Meyers, has been called to testify.

In mid-July this year, thousands of organizations around the world were unable to operate properly, due to a major bug that affected most of their Windows computers.

No CEO (yet)

Among those affected were UK broadcaster Sky News, major airline Ryanair, the Berlin airport, and many, many others, all of whom reported the dreaded Blue Screen Of Death (BSOD) and a recovery boot loop issue that prevented their computers from starting up.

It was later revealed that the global outage was caused by a faulty update issued by Crowdstrike. “We have widespread reports of BSODs on Windows hosts, occurring on multiple sensor versions,” CrowdStrike said in a support note issued at the time.

CrowdStrike is a cybersecurity technology company specializing in cloud-delivered endpoint protection. It offers a range of products and services that prevent cyber threats, and detect attacks. Furthermore, the company works on threat intelligence, analyzing and reporting on the latest trends and threats in the cybersecurity community.

CrowdStrike’s flagship product is Falcon, a sophisticated cybersecurity platform designed to protect endpoints through a cloud-native architecture. The company later confirmed that the faulty patch was designed for Falcon.

Speaking to the company, The Register was curious why the CEO George Kurtz won’t be the one in the hot seat, since his presence was requested in July. The company gave the classic PR response of “continuing to actively and collaboratively work with relevant Congressional Committees.” The statement did leave a tiny door open to the possibility of Kurtz speaking at a different time:

“Briefings and other engagement timelines may be disclosed at Members' discretion,” they said.

Via The Register

More from TechRadar Pro

• What is CrowdStrike and how did it crash so many business computers?
• Here's a list of the best firewall software around today
• These are the best endpoint security tools right now

Rocksteady Studios has reportedly been hit by layoffs following the Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League's low sales. 

That's according to Eurogamer, who first reported that the studio's quality assurance (QA) department has been cut in half over the past month, bringing the size of the team down from 33 members to 15.

The reasoning behind the layoffs is being cited as "restructuring", with other job cuts expanding outside of the QA department as well, including several members of junior staff and some who have been at the studio for more than five years.

Staff who wished to remain anonymous also told the publication that the job losses - including developers with "specialized knowledge" - are also affecting the Rocksteady staff at large, as employees will now be required to handle their work on top of their own.

The same sources also said that Rocksteady's senior management has expressed that product quality will now suffer following the layoffs.

Last month, Warner Bros. reported that its gaming revenue had fallen by 41% year-on-year due to the poor performance of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, which cost $200 million to make.

Warner Bros. Discovery's chief financial officer Gunnar Wiedenfels said in an earnings call that the DC supervillain shooter had "fallen short of our expectations". 

Although Suicide Squad underperformed, Rocksteady is still working on the game's season pass which will offer additional post-launch content following its early February release. 

The first of these updates arrived in March with Season One, with the debut of The Joker as a playable character, followed by Season Two in July, which introduced Mrs. Freeze to the roster, a new map, and two episodes titled Frozen Hearts and Winter. The studio also has plans for seasons three and four.

You might also like...

• Baldur's Gate 3's long-awaited patch 7 is finally arriving on PC this week
• Xbox's Phil Spencer says he's "made some of the worst game-choice decisions" in the past
• The Witcher 4 will begin full production soon - "work on Polaris is progressing" says CD Projekt Red

The European Union has been urged to update its Chips Act with a revised 2.0 version in a bid to boost the continent’s semiconductor industry.

The push comes from the European Semiconductor Industry Association (ESIA) in light of ongoing geopolitical tensions and increased competition.

The ESIA highlighted the need for a more strategic approach to chip policy under the incoming EU Commission, asking for fewer export restrictions and more readily available aid.

ESIA calls for more chip support

In a statement (via Reuters), the ESIA stated: “A dedicated 'Chips Envoy' responsible for the overall industrial policy approach to semiconductors is a necessity.”

The ESIA represents the likes of Infineon, STMicroelectronics, NXP, ASML, imec, Fraunhofer and CEA-Leti

This comes in response to an April 2023 Chips Act, which included a €43 billion subsidy plan to help increase Europe’s share of the global chip market to one-fifth by the end of the decade. For four decades, Europe has maintained around 15% share in the global market.

Since the first act, delays such as the postponement of Intel’s Magdeburg project have raised concerns about its effectiveness. Pending EU aid approval is to blame for the delay.

The ESIA also acknowledged the need for security, calling for “a more positive approach” focused on support and incentives rather than restrictions when it comes to export policies. Netherlands-headquartered ASML has faced such restrictions on some of its products destined for China in line with EU and US policies that have been put in place to hinder China’s technological and military advancements.

In response, China has been circumventing restrictions by buying legacy hardware, however the country has been unable to obtain ASML’s newer products under the export restrictions.

Looking ahead, Dutch Prime Minister Duck Schoof indicated that the government will consider ASML’s impact on the country’s economy: “ASML is for the Netherlands an extremely important, innovative industry that should not suffer under any circumstances, because that would damage ASML's global position.”

More from TechRadar Pro

• These are the best processors
• Go online with the best cloud computing services
• Government support desperately needed for UK software industry

Sometimes, a robot just wants a hug. That's the message, I think, of the very brief 1X Neo Beta home robot introduction video. The Norwegian robotics company used the short video to unveil its new sweatsuit-clad humanoid robot on August 30 and show how it might safely operate in your home.

1X has been working on humanoid robotics for a decade with the original intention of bringing them to factories and other commercial facilities. The turning point to a more consumer focus might've been its 2022 partnership with OpenAI, which led to generative AI integration in its 1X line of robots. Earlier this year, the company started posting videos of its 1X A1 robot, a humanoid robot with gripper hands and wheels for feet. In those clips, the robots could be seen poorly cleaning tables, slowly folding laundry, and responding to commands like, "Can you please pick up the cup?"

Neo Beta, though, appears to be a significant leap forward. Gone is the somewhat cartoonish face, replaced with what appears to be an expressionless black glass. Instead of wheels, the robot has feet, and the grippers were replaced with expressive, 10-fingered hands.

The video offers virtually no details about the robot and its operation but tells a touching little story. In it, the robot is in a living room with a young woman. As she sits on the couch, tying her shoes, the robot points to her backpack and makes a shrug gesture. The woman says, "Yeah," and the robot picks up the backpack and carefully hands it to her.

The woman leaves the room, and Neo Beta appears at a loss, looking at its hands and then toward the exiting woman. The robot gestures for her to come back and when she returns, the girl puts her arm over the robot's shoulders and the robot puts a hand around her waist.

It's not often we see a real-world human/robot embrace, and with good reason. Does a robot know how not to squeeze her too hard?

In a release on the in-home test, Bernt Børnich, CEO at 1X, said, “Our priority is safety. Safety is the cornerstone that allows us to confidently introduce NEO Beta into homes, where it will gather essential feedback and demonstrate its capabilities in real-world settings."

Børnich doesn't explain how this safety is achieved, although it appears that some of what 1X will learn about this deployment is through trial and error in a carefully controlled beta test at "selected homes for research and development purposes."

Other questions linger, such as price, battery life, availability, and, can the robot walk? In the video, it's seen in a few different positions, but we never see Neo Beta walk from one spot to another.

Even so, the looks and movement have led to online conjecture that this is nothing more than a person in a costume. Granted, it is hard to assess how the robot is working under its fashionable black and gray sweatsuit, and some of the movements are eerily human-like.

On the other hand, with the recent explosion in humanoid robot development, we are seeing more and more fluid movement and conversational interaction. Figure 01's OpenAI-powered robots, in particular, offer some mind-blowing movement and interactive capabilities. You can, however, see quite clearly how Figure AI robots are working.

Perhaps 1X could post a follow-up video showing Neo Beta without its sweatsuit. That might be a bit uncomfortable for the robot's blonde friend, so maybe we just leave her out of it.

You might also like

• I saw the world's most advanced robot – and it's uncanny
• I'm ready to throw out my iRobot Roomba in favor of Samsung's new ...
• I've been testing Sony Aibo for 25 years and it's still my favorite robot ...

Mobile banking customers in Brazil are once again being targeted with malware that can take over their devices, exfiltrate sensitive data and ultimately perform wire fraud.

This is according to a new report from cybersecurity researchers ThreatFabric, who recently spotted the campaign and wrote a technical analysis as a warning. As per the researchers, threat actors known as DukeEugene were sending out phishing emails, in which they tricked the recipients into downloading a dropper for Android, called Rocinante.

This dropper, usually impersonating banking apps and telecommunications firms such as Itaú Shop, Santander, Bradesco Prime, or Correios Celular, asks for permissions upon installation, including the dreaded Accessibility Service. Generally speaking, Accessibility Service permissions are reserved for system apps only, and if a commercial app asks for them, it’s usually a red flag signaling potential malware.

Abusing Accessibility Services

If the victim grants these permissions, they can expect to lose sensitive data, and give the attackers control over their mobile device, since in many cases the malware can serve fake bank login pages:

"This malware family is capable of performing keylogging using the Accessibility Service, and is also able to steal PII from its victims using phishing screens posing as different banks," ThreatFabric said in its report. "Finally, it can use all this exfiltrated information to perform device takeover (DTO) of the device, by leveraging the accessibility service privileges to achieve full remote access on the infected device."

The stolen data gets exfiltrated to a Telegram bot, the researchers further explained, where it’s served to the attackers in plaintext, ready to be used.

"The bot extracts the useful PII obtained using the bogus login pages posing as the target banks. It then publishes this information, formatted, into a chat that criminals have access to," ThreatFabric said. "The information slightly changes based on which fake login page was used to obtain it, and includes device information such as model and telephone number, CPF number, password, or account number."

Via The Hacker News

More from TechRadar Pro

• This dangerous Android malware has been hiding on the Play Store for years — so make sure to check your downloads carefully
• Here's a list of the best firewall software around today
• These are the best endpoint security tools right now

Nokia manufacturer Human Mobile Devices (HMD) may be revisiting the classic Lumia 1020 design for its first quad-camera smartphone, if images shared by GSMArena are anything to go by.

The reportedly leaked images show a slab phone outline with a circular camera island featuring four cutouts, which suggests the image could illustrate HMD’s first quad-camera phone. 

The design is evocative of the Nokia Lumia 1020, considered one of the best camera phones of its time when it launched in 2013. 

(Image credit: HMDNews)

The Lumia 1020 made its mark by shipping with a single 41-megapixel rear camera at a time where phone cameras still lagged significantly behind dedicated point-and-shoot cameras, which gave both Nokia and the now-defunct Windows Phone operating system a welcome profile boost.

For comparison, the contemporaneous iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c were both equipped with an 8MP rear camera, while the Samsung Galaxy S4 managed 13MP.

HMD will have its work cut out if it wants to outdo current phones to the same degree. The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra sports a 200MP wide lens alongside four other specialist lenses, and we predict that the iPhone 16 series will all come with 48MP main shooters.

HMD itself packs a 108MP main sensor into the Skyline, its flagship phone, which would be hard to best while sticking to the company’s low prices.

It’s for this reason we tentatively think a new Lumia 1020-style HMD phone will be more of a tribute than a true successor, adopting design cues from the original without quite the same technical ambition.

A leaked outline doesn’t give us enough information to make any solid predictions, though, so HMD may yet surprise us if this design makes it to market.

The phone is also likely to carry a new name more inline with HMD’s current repertoire, as the leaked silhouette features the HMD logo rather than that of the Nokia sub-brand.

HMD was formed in 2016 when Nokia repurchased its mobile phone business from Microsoft, following the sale of said business in 2014.

You might also like

• The Samsung Galaxy S24 FE could get a charging downgrade
• iPhone 16 Pro Max: latest news, rumors and everything we know so far
• iPhone SE 4 tipped for imminent launch, but we’re not convinced – here’s why

If you own one or more of the iOS ports of recent Resident Evil titles, then you might just want to avoid updating them again. Developer Capcom has added an online check-in requirement to these apps, meaning they now require an internet connection to play.

The news, spotted by Eurogamer, was initially posted as a PSA to the r/iosgaming subreddit. The post is accompanied by an image showing that Resident Evil 7: Biohazard, Resident Evil Village, and Resident Evil 4's iOS ports are ready for an update. For all three, the update details state: "Due to changes to the startup process, an internet connection is now required when starting this app."

Quite understandably, the news has not gone down well with players on the subreddit, with many expressing a desire to seek a refund from Apple. However, some note that the backlash likely won't be too severe following the poor sales of these Resident Evil iOS ports.

You might argue that because an internet connection is only required on startup, this update isn't that big of a deal. But that's kind of missing the forest for the trees. Surely, the entire point of having mobile ports of these games is to offer the option of playing them on the go without restriction. Depending on where in the world folks are, an internet connection isn't always a guarantee, even if it's just for a few seconds at startup.

It remains to be seen whether or not Capcom will revert to this requirement following the backlash. But as stated earlier, given the lackluster sales of these iOS ports, it seems more likely that the change is here to stay. Which, honestly, makes the requirement that much more baffling in the first place.

You might also like...

• Guilty Gear Strive is coming to Nintendo Switch and it might be enough to make me double dip
• Devil May Cry and Dragon's Dogma director Hideaki Itsuno has left Capcom
• It looks like Yakuza Kiwami won't be getting a physical release on Nintendo Switch

Who is The Stranger in The Rings of Power? It's one of the biggest, if not the biggest, questions that's been on viewers' minds since his introduction in season 1.

Well, if you were hoping that the arrival of fan-favorite Lord of the Rings character Tom Bombadil would provide some long overdue answers, you'll want to check your expectations. With the pair set to cross paths soon, I suspect audiences were expecting Rory Kinnear's enigmatic 'Old Tom' to help us solve the mystery concerning The Stranger's identity.

That won't be the case, though. Speaking to TechRadar ahead of The Rings of Power season 2's first three episodes dropped on August 29, Daniel Weyman, who plays The Stranger, suggested 'Old Tom' isn't willing to simply hand over that information. Indeed, in typical Tom Bombadil fashion, his penchant for riddles and apparent moral neutrality means that the latter will find answers hard to come by in the hit Prime Video show's sophomore season.

Tom Bombadil is an enigmatic mentor figure for The Stranger (Image credit: Ross Ferguson/Prime Video)

"There's a huge amount of guilt and fear," Weyman said when I asked him about The Stranger's ongoing inability to control his powers; the latest incident leading to him being separated from Nori and Poppy in season 2 episode 3. "Everything he's seen, heard, or learned has come from his interactions with the Harfoots, so all the things he's picked up are directly linked to these friends who he might have lost. He literally hasn't been alone [since his season 1 introduction], either, which is deeply unsettling for him.

"As he stumbles through the desert and finally interacts with Tom, he's ripe to be toyed with because he's so vulnerable. The Stranger has existed in this small sphere of awareness with the Harfoot community but, as he moves further through this adventure, there's an expansion of his reality and his place in this world. Tom's fear isn't just about Middle-earth; it's universal. He goes backwards and forwards through time simultaneously as well. As The Stranger moves through that aura, what does that do to a being who also has that power in his DNA, but doesn't fully understand it? Ultimately, I think The Stranger is hoping for some answers from Tom, and it seems to me he doesn't give them up easily."

Tom Bombadil makes The Stranger question his own morality in season 2 (Image credit: Prime Video)

Fair enough, but surely Tom will provide some clues about The Stranger's name, where he's come from, how to channel his powers for the greater good, and/or act as a magical guide that helps The Stranger works these out for himself, right? Just as in The Lord of the Rings novels, things aren't so straightforward in Amazon's TV adaptation, too.

"I think The Stranger finds it deeply frustrating," Weyman added, "and Tom feels like he's got this very malleable thing to work with, so things get pretty dramatic between them. In season 1, we saw The Stranger treading this tightrope with his powers and not knowing who he is. But, through his interactions with Nori, banishing the Mystics in the season 1 finale, and then knowing where he has to go, he finally has a path to walk.

He's ripe to be toyed with because he's so vulnerable

Daniel Weyman

"But, because he defeated the Mystics and then uses his powers to find food for him and Nori this season, he thinks he's got a handle on his abilities. That leads to a bit of pride and, certainly with the sandstorm [in season 2 episode 3], he gets caught up in his own brilliance and bravado, which is when disaster strikes [with Nori and Poppy being blown away].

"Now he's back at square one, what does that do to a character? What happens when, no matter what turn you take or you think you're doing your best, it ends in the same result? It can cause choice paralysis and I think what Tom forces The Stranger to ask himself is 'do you have the courage to go back inside yourself and sort yourself out, or is he going to keep dithering while Middle-earth starts to burn?"

Want another Tom Bombadil-focused exclusive? Find out whether Kinnear's performance will include the character's famous sing-talking in season 2. Or, if you haven't watched its three-episode premiere yet, read my spoiler-light review of The Rings of Power season 2 to see what you're missing. And stick with TechRadar over the next few weeks for even more exclusives in and around each new episode.

You might also like

• The Rings of Power season 2 goes to 'some dark places' as it explores Sauron and Celebrimbor's relationship, its actors tease
• 'There are some cool parallels': The Rings of Power season 2's Isildur and Shelob fight took some cues from The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King movie
• 'There has to be a cost': The Rings of Power season 2 stars tease how Khazad-dum's storyline will 'shift and change' after the dwarven rings' creation

KitchenAid has just revealed a new range of coffee makers that can brew 50 different hot and cold drinks, all without waking up your sleeping partner. Some coffee machines can reach 70 decibels (dB) during grinding and brewing (the same as a washing machine), but all models in the KitchenAid Espresso Collection are Quiet Mark certified for their low noise levels.

According to Quiet Mark, although coffee machines generally give your ears a break between different parts of the brewing process, grinding beans and pulling espresso shots can still be an uncomfortably loud affair.

"It is because of this reason that isolating louder components, such as the grinding blades, is especially important," says the organization. "Furthermore, liquid sounds are to be minimized outside the coffee pouring process, as they create a sense of leakage where the user may be forced to stop the machine and check for cracks."

The KitchenAid KF8 coffee maker has a special mode for frothing non-dairy milks like oat, almond, and soya (Image credit: KitchenAid) No dairy? No problem

The new KitchenAid Espresso Collection includes three models. The KF6 can brew up to 15 different coffee drinks, and has a 24in color touchscreen display so you can easily pick your preferred beverage. The KF7 has a 3.5in display and offers 20 different coffee options. Finally, the KF8 (above) has a huge 5in screen and can make over 40 different drinks, with six customizable favorites.

Each bean-to-cup machine has an integrated conical stainless steel burr grinder, and a 9.5oz / 270g removable bean hopper. Interestingly, if you want to brew something other than your usual beans, you can use a separate chute to bypass the grinder and brew pre-ground coffee instead. That could be particularly useful if you want to make an occasional cup of decaf, or have a friend who prefers a different roast to you.

All three machines have an automatic milk frothing and heating system for drinks like cappuccinos and lattes, and the KF8 has a dedicated mode for plant-based milks like almond, oat, and soy that conventional automatic coffee makers tend to struggle with.

The new coffee makers will be available to order direct from KitchenAid today (September 3) in the UK. At the time of writing, prices for the three machines are yet to be announced, but we'll update this article as soon as we have more information. International release dates have yet to be confirmed.

If you're thinking about upgrading your coffee machine but don't know where to start, our roundup of the best coffee makers will help you make the right choice.

You might also like

• I took a barista class, and these are the most important lessons I learned for making perfect coffee at home
• Three coffee maker mistakes that are ruining your morning brew, according to an expert
• How to clean a coffee maker