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This week DJI and Insta360 had a Freaky Friday situation as they announced a 360 camera and a drone respectively, tech the other is usually known for.

We also heard that OpenAI is scared of its next AI, and the UK faced the Online Saftey Act.

You can catch up on these stories and more in this week's catch up of the seven biggest tech news stories.

7. We Found My Skechers

(Image credit: Skechers)

This week, Skechers debuted the new Find My Skechers. They look like your run-of-the-mill sneakers on the outside, but hidden in each heel is a cutout that’s perfect for an Apple AirTag.

This Bluetooth tracker can then be used to help you keep track of your child if you’re out in an unfamiliar place, or help you locate any lost shoes, whether they were misplaced while out and about or while getting ready in the mad rush to get to school.

Though when we polled parents, the reactions were mixed. Predominantly because the target age range – toddlers and young children – outgrow their shoes every six months to a year. At their cheapest, Find My Sketchers cost $52 a pop, which is a lot to regularly shell out.

• Read more: These new sneakers have a secret AirTags compartment

6. The UK faced the Online Safety Act

(Image credit: Getty Images)

This week Britain was hit by the latest provisions of the Online Safety Act, introducing age verification measures designed to help prevent young people accessing age inappropriate content. However the new requirements have frustrated many adults.

A petition to repeal the UK Online Safety Act garnered over 450,000 signatures in just a few days, and some have tried all sorts of workarounds including attempting to game the system with Death Stranding’s photo mode.

Most people are onboard with the idea behind the rules, but aren’t keen on needing to share their ID with websites – especially foreign websites – as they’re worried their data might be mishandled. Despite the concerns, the Government has said it won't be repealing the measures.

• Read more: Over 450,000 Brits want to repeal the UK Online Safety Act

5. Google Home's crisis got worse

(Image credit: Future)

Last week, we reported on a growing number of complaints about Google Home devices, with the smart home gadgets failing to deal with commands properly or throwing up other bugs.

This week, it seems the problem got worse, with many reporting their voice controls for smart lights were now completely broken and not working at all.

The situation has gotten so bad that US law firm Kaplan Gore has announced it has "begun investigating a possible class action" against Google because so many users are now reporting broken functionality, despite most of these devices having worked fine in the past.

• Read more: Google Home devices are continuing to break

4. DJI Osmo 360 landed

(Image credit: DJI)

The 360 camera space has been dominated by Insta360 for years, but it finally has some proper competition following the arrival of the DJI Osmo 360. What's more, they could soon be joined by the GoPro Max 2, which was recently teased by GoPro.

Considering it's DJI's first foray into the market, the Osmo 360 impresses straight off the bat, delivering what DJI says are several industry firsts, the most notable of which are its twin 1-inch sensors with 8K video recording up to 50fps. Those sensors are effectively twice the size of the Insta360 X5's, our current favorite 360 camera, and should give DJI's model the upper hand for image quality, especially with richer 10-bit color depth.

Based on specs, the Osmo 360 has the edge over the X5, but it's real-world use that matters the most, and the X5 is our favorite model for a reason. It has stellar battery life, and its lenses can be replaced in the event of damage. We are currently conducting our hands-on versus of the two models, and it's making for a titanic battle.

• Read more: Can DJI's first 360 camera dethrone the X5?

3. Insta360 revealed the world’s first 360 drone

(Image credit: Antigravity, Insta360)

DJI isn’t used to having competition in the skies, but this week, its first serious rival for years flew into town. The undisputed king of 360 cameras, Insta360, has announced its new Antigravity platform, which will soon give us the first drone with a 360-degree camera.

Okay, but what’s the benefit of a flying, all-seeing camera? The main one is that, in theory, you won’t need to worry about perfectly shooting aerial videos as you fly, because you’ll be able to reframe them later. We’re looking forward to experiencing that in person when the Antigravity drone fully launches later this month.

• Read more: Has DJI just met its match? Insta360 unveils Antigravity – the world’s first 360 drone

2. ChatGPT helped us study

(Image credit: OpenAI)

ChatGPT has added a new feature called Study mode to its paid-for and free accounts that turns the famous chatbot into an unpaid study tutor for your kids. Parents often panic about ChatGPT being used by their children to avoid actually learning anything, but Study mode is different. It’s pretty safe for kids to use because it teaches them how to arrive at the answer, rather than just giving them the answer. It’s more of an interactive back-and-forth chat about the question being posed, which encourages them to learn as they go.

Of course, you don’t need to let your kids have all the fun with it. You can use Study mode yourself to learn any new subject. Having the ability to turn ChatGPT into a proper tutor is pretty handy, so whatever it is you want to learn – whether that’s a new language or how to code – now you’ve got the perfect excuse to get started.

• Read more: OpenAI added Study mode to ChatGPT, even for free accounts

1. OpenAI was scared by its AI

(Image credit: Shutterstock/ DIA TV)

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman revealed details about his company's testing of GPT-5 (the next-gen brain for ChatGPT) by saying he got scared by the AI, and comparing it to The Manhattan Project.

The over-the-top analogy might evoke some level of keen scientific minds coming to a major breakthrough, but his other comments made OpenAI seem either reckless or incompetent.

Even if he's exaggerating, we don't know if either of those descriptions should be attached to the kind of company that might decide how next-gen AI power is deployed.

• Read more: OpenAI's CEO says he's scared of GPT-5

• Wi-Fi 8 plans to fix edge-of-coverage dropouts where extenders usually fail to keep things running smoothly
• Wi-Fi 7 maxes out throughput while Wi-Fi 8 makes sure it works everywhere, every time
• Wi-Fi 8 to introduce Single Mobility Domains so devices roam between access points without getting interrupted

Only hours after the official ratification of Wi-Fi 7, early details of its successor, Wi-Fi 8, are already making waves.

A release from Qualcomm noted Wi-Fi 8 isn’t promising faster peak speeds; instead, it focuses on improving stability, cutting latency, and ensuring smoother performance in environments with many connected devices.

Where Wi-Fi 7 emphasized raw throughput and bandwidth gains, Wi-Fi 8 is being designed to sustain those benefits under pressure, ensuring consistent delivery even in crowded or interference-prone settings.

Rethinking the role of Wi-Fi

Two core trends are shaping the direction of Wi-Fi 8. First is the growing ecosystem of personal devices such as AR glasses and next-gen health monitors, which demand seamless and low-latency connections to nearby companion devices.

Second is the rise of AI-powered systems that depend on fast, reliable access to edge or cloud-based intelligence.

Together, these trends are pushing local networks, including your Wi-Fi router or even a mobile 5G router, into territory they weren’t originally designed for.

Wi-Fi 8 is being framed as the foundational layer of connectivity that will underpin these increasingly dynamic and latency-sensitive systems.

And unlike a basic Wi-Fi extender that simply expands signal reach, the new standard rethinks how access points work together, how devices roam, and how signal quality is preserved at the edge of coverage zones.

What gives Wi-Fi 8 its edge is the ongoing development of the 802.11bn standard.

Several core features aim to make Wi-Fi more reliable in the real world, not just in ideal lab conditions.

One of the key innovations is “Single Mobility Domains,” which allow devices to move across multiple access points without experiencing disruptions, something particularly beneficial in environments like airports, hospitals, or multi-floor offices.

Another major improvement is performance at the edge, the outer limits of a signal’s reach.

Current setups, even with a Wi-Fi extender, often suffer drops and delays in these areas - Wi-Fi 8 introduces physical layer updates meant to improve consistency without relying on brute-force signal strength.

Multi-access point coordination is another shift, and this is ideal for large venues or dense urban housing - as rather than each unit operating in isolation, Wi-Fi 8 envisions coordinated networks that intelligently share airtime and avoid overlap.

On-device coexistence, especially where radios like Bluetooth or ultra-wideband compete for antenna space, is also receiving attention.

Wi-Fi 8, expected to be finalized by 2028, reflects a deeper rethink of what modern connectivity actually requires.

The push isn’t for headline-grabbing throughput figures but for a wireless experience that performs like wired infrastructure.

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• Labels like “Verified” give a false sense of safety but don’t reflect real extension behavior
• Browser DevTools were never meant to track how extensions behave across tabs and over time
• Malicious extensions often act normally until specific triggers make their hidden features come alive

The unchecked spread of malicious browser extensions continues to expose users to spyware and other threats, largely due to deep-seated flaws in how the software handles extension security.

New research from SquareX claims many people still rely on superficial trust markers like “Verified” or “Chrome Featured,” which have repeatedly failed to prevent widespread compromise.

These markers, while intended to reassure users, often offer little insight into the actual behavior of an extension.

Labels offer little protection against dynamic threats

A central issue lies in the limitations of Browser DevTools, which were designed in the late 2000s for web page debugging.

These tools were never meant to inspect the far more complex behavior of modern browser extensions, which can run scripts, take screenshots, and operate across tabs, actions that existing DevTools struggle to trace or attribute.

This creates an environment where malicious behaviors can remain hidden, even as they collect data or manipulate web content.

The failure of these DevTools lies in their inability to provide telemetry that isolates extension behavior from standard web activity.

For instance, when a script is injected into a web page by an extension, DevTools lack the means to distinguish it from the page’s native functions.

The Geco Colorpick incident offers an example of how trust indicators can fail catastrophically - according to findings from Koi Research, 18 malicious extensions were able to distribute spyware to 2.3 million users, despite carrying the highly visible “Verified” label.

To address this, SquareX has proposed a new framework involving a modified browser and what it calls Browser AI Agents.

This combination is designed to simulate varied user behaviors and conditions, drawing out hidden or delayed responses from extensions.

The approach is part of what SquareX terms the Extension Monitoring Sandbox, a setup that enables dynamic analysis based on real-time activity rather than just static code inspection.

At the moment, many organizations continue to rely on free antivirus tools or built-in browser protections that cannot keep up with the evolving threat landscape.

The gap between perceived and actual security leaves both individuals and companies vulnerable.

The long-term impact of this initiative remains to be seen, but it reflects a growing recognition that browser-based threats demand more than superficial safeguards.

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• Cheats and mods are now frontlines for cybercrime targeting gamers' wallets and private data
• Verified crypto wallets like MetaMask and Exodus are being drained through browser injection
• Trojan.Scavenger abuses overlooked flaws to disable browser safety and manipulate trusted extensions

Gamers seeking performance enhancements or special abilities through third-party patches and mods may be unwittingly exposing themselves to sophisticated malware, experts have warned.

Recent findings from Dr.Web revealed a malware family known as “Trojan.Scavenger” which targets Windows users by disguising itself as cheats or enhancements for popular games.

This seemingly harmless mod can ultimately compromise crypto wallets, password managers, and web browsers, posing serious risks to user privacy and digital assets.

When cheats become covert threats

The infection chain begins when users download ZIP archives claiming to improve performance in games including the likes of Grand Theft Auto 5 or Oblivion Remastered.

These archives contain modified dynamic libraries, sometimes renamed with extensions like .ASI to resemble legitimate plugin formats.

When the user follows the installation instructions, the malicious library is placed in the same folder as the target game. If the game does not properly validate its libraries, the trojan loads automatically at startup.

In some cases, flaws in library search priorities are essential to the malware’s success, allowing it to hijack execution within the host application.

Once loaded, the malware establishes contact with a command-and-control server using encrypted communication. This process includes verifying encryption keys and checking timestamp consistency, which is meant to evade analysis and block antivirus detection.

The malware doesn’t stop with the initial payload. In more complex infections, it deploys additional trojans that embed themselves in Chromium-based browsers like Chrome, Edge, Opera, and Yandex.

These trojans interfere with browser sandboxing, disable extension verification, and replace legitimate extensions with modified versions.

Crypto wallets such as MetaMask and Phantom, as well as password managers like Bitwarden and LastPass, are among the affected applications.

Modified extensions collect mnemonic phrases, private keys, and stored passwords, which are then transmitted to the attackers' servers.

Exodus, a popular crypto wallet, is also targeted using similar techniques.

By exploiting library loading behavior, the malware extracts sensitive JSON entries, including passphrases and seed data required for generating private keys.

How to stay safe

To stay safe, always apply caution when accessing unofficial content.

Avoid downloading mods or cheats from sketchy forums or unverified sources, especially those shared on torrent platforms or through poorly moderated social media channels.

Antivirus software, while helpful, must be regularly updated to stay effective against evolving threats.

Android antivirus tools may protect mobile platforms, but on desktop systems, more capable solutions are necessary.

Good social media management also helps reduce exposure to malicious content. Limiting interaction with communities known for spreading cracked software or shady patches can lower the risk.

Lastly, checking file paths, verifying digital signatures when available, and restricting admin privileges on daily-use accounts can make it harder for malware to execute successfully.

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• The Honda N-One e: is unveiled in Japan and previews a global compact EV
• The diminutive car will measure less than 3,400mm (133.9inches) in length
• A range of 150+ miles is expected and V2L means it can power homes

The production version of the teeny, boxy Honda that wowed crowds at the recent Goodwood Festival of Speed has been unveiled and the N-One e: will go on to influence a global, low-cost EV.

Revealed in Japan this week, one of Honda’s smallest-ever electric vehicles will offer over 150 miles (245km) of range on a single charge from its equally small battery packs, while the single electric motor is expected to produce around 63hp.

Designed predominantly for town and city driving, the Japanese version of Honda’s Super EV concept complies with the country’s strict Kei Car rules, which mean it has to measure less than 3,400mm (133.9inches) in length.

It is likely that the European version will sport chunkier bodywork so it isn’t completely dwarfed by the myriad overweight SUVs, but we can expect to see a lot of the features carried over from the Japanese Domestic Market model.

(Image credit: Honda Japan)

The interior, for example, is packed with practical touches, such as rear seats that fold upright or flat to provide ample stowage space for numerous, odd-shaped items.

There are also hard-wearing, easy-to-maintain fabrics and charging points for smartphones.

Honda also says that the N-One e: is capable of one-pedal driving and Vehicle 2 Load (V2L), which means owners can power homes during power outages, or simply top up a power-hungry laptop when on the move.

Small EVs are proving a big hit

(Image credit: Honda Japan)

While it is highly unlikely the N One e: (or whatever the Super EV concept will eventually be called) will make its way to the US market, Honda has said that it plans to introduce a small city EV to Europe and beyond next year.

The company was one of the first to market with a funky, compact EV game thanks to its innovative Honda e. Unfortunately, its cutting-edge styling couldn’t make up for its 100-odd mile real-world range, slow charging speeds and high sticker price.

The Super EV concept comes at a time when battery technology has improved, so the range could be a more usable 170 miles and the asking price will likely be more in line with something like the BYD Dolphin Surf, which starts at £18,650 in the UK (around £25,000 / AU$38,250).

Honda is synonymous with practical, affordable, compact vehicles, with the likes of the Jazz remaining popular among savvy buyers that want reliable, simple transport that laps up short hops without breaking the bank.

While the N One e: is predominantly aimed at the Japanese and Chinese market for now, we expect to see what a more global version will look like at the IAA motor show in Munich later this year.

Honda is also on an EV push in general, with the recent launch of the CUV e: battery-swap electric scooter and the announcement of a full-size electric motorcycle coming soon.

The thread that appears to be running through all of the products is Honda's commitment to excellent engineering solutions and a competitive price point. We might start to see battery-powered models that can compete on price with their gas-powered counterparts.

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• OpenAI has removed the ChatGPT feature, allowing people to search through public conversations with a search engine
• Many users learned too late that enabling the “discoverable” setting could make chats accessible to anyone online
• The decision came after several people saw their sensitive and private information publicized

OpenAI has abruptly shut down a feature in ChatGPT that allowed chats shared publicly to be searchable through Google. Users were unpleasantly surprised to discover that private information shared with ChatGPT was now publicly available as a Google search result.

Dane Stuckey, OpenAI’s Chief Information Security Officer, announced the shutdown on Thursday, with the feature disabled on Friday morning. OpenAI has also begun scrubbing search engine indexes of the previously shared conversations.

OpenAI designed the “Make this link discoverable” checkbox, which they had clicked on, to give more people access to potentially helpful conversations between ChatGPT and different users. In practice, it opened the door to a new kind of digital exposure, where criminal confessions, personal secrets, and corporate practices were just a few keywords away from turning up in a Google Search.

This was not some obscure opt-out setting hidden in a developer console. It was right there in the sharing menu of any ChatGPT conversation users chose to turn into a public link. However, while OpenAI believed the wording was clear about what users were doing, many users apparently did not understand. They thought the link would remain private or unfindable unless explicitly shared.

For the average person using ChatGPT to plan a resignation letter, troubleshoot a relationship, or work on a legal strategy, that’s more than a technical hiccup. It’s a gut check. If you’ve ever shared a link to a conversation, there’s a nonzero chance someone found it by a Google search.

Some of the reported indexed conversations included internal job applicant evaluations, sensitive mental health disclosures, confessions of crime, and proprietary software code. People were talking to ChatGPT as if it were private, but for anyone who toggled that setting, it wasn’t.

We just removed a feature from @ChatGPTapp that allowed users to make their conversations discoverable by search engines, such as Google. This was a short-lived experiment to help people discover useful conversations. This feature required users to opt-in, first by picking a chat… pic.twitter.com/mGI3lF05UaJuly 31, 2025

Searchable secrets

To OpenAI’s credit, the company pulled the feature quickly. But the fallout raises important questions not just about privacy, but about how much users can reasonably be expected to understand about the tools they’re using. The “discoverable” checkbox didn’t hide behind a wall, but it also didn’t do a great job of communicating the scope of its consequences. It’s one thing to share a link, but indexing it in global search engines indefinitely is something else.

It is fascinating what this says about how users behave with AI. They confide in it, test ideas, vent frustrations, and draft things they’d never type into a search bar. If you’ve ever shared a ChatGPT conversation, it’s worth checking whether that link is still live.

While OpenAI is working with Google and other search engines to purge previously indexed content, search crawlers have long memories. Some content may linger for a while, even if deleted. OpenAI disabled the feature quickly, but the damage may already be done for some users.

Hopefully, the lesson will stick with the public, much like the idea of not deleting embarrassing browser histories has transitioned from a common joke to something only the most clueless person would forget to do. The magic of tools like ChatGPT lies in how they create the illusion of a conversation. But if you forget that it is still an illusion, you might not notice risks like buttons that send your digital heart-to-heart straight to Google.

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