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Google warns that hackers tied to Russia are tricking Ukrainian soldiers with fake QR codes for Signal group invites that let spies steal their messages. Signal has pushed out new safeguards.

The fired staffers were tasked with making sure medications given to animals work well and are safe.

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• NetEase Games has laid off staff in one of its Seattle teams
• This included Marvel Rivals director Thaddeus Sasser
• The company claims that the cuts were made for "organizational reasons"

Last night, Marvel Rivals developer NetEase Games laid off an unspecified number of staff from its Seattle design team.

This included one of the game's directors, Thaddeus Sasser, who posted about the layoffs on his LinkedIn page. "My stellar, talented team just helped deliver an incredibly successful new franchise," he said.

"... and were just laid off!" He then explained his desire to help the affected staff find new jobs, spotlighting the contributions of former level designer Garry McGee.

The layoffs certainly seem unexpected, in no small part thanks to the apparent massive success of Marvel Rivals. It was rated highly in our review, with praise leveled at its impressive roster of varied heroes and overall fun factor. It's been a mainstay of the Steam charts since it launched back on December 6, 2024.

NetEase has commented on the layoffs in a statement to PCGamer, claiming that they were made "to adjust Marvel Rivals’ development team structure for organizational reasons and to optimize development efficiency for the game."

It also stated that the main development team, which is located in China, is still "fully committed to delivering an exceptional experience" with "new super hero characters, maps, features, and content" on the way.

NetEase also made cuts at its other western studios throughout last year. This included stopping funding for the recently-founded Worlds Untold studio, the closure of Jar of Sparks, and major layoffs at Visions of Mana developer Ouka Studios. This could suggest that the company is planning to shift its focus more heavily towards its Chinese developers.

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• Thrustmaster launches the SimTask FarmStick X that's tailor-made for Farming Simulator 25
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• Ubisoft announces Rainbow Six Siege X, 'the biggest transformation' the tactical shooter has ever seen that will overhaul gameplay and graphics

• Juniper Networks says it found a critical flaw during internal testing
• Session Smart routers bug has a 9.8 severity score and allows full device takeover
• A patch is already available, so update now

Juniper Networks just released a patch for a critical vulnerability that allowed threat actors to take over Session Smart Routers (SSR).

In a security advisory, the company said that during internal testing, it discovered CVE-2025-21589, an authentication bypass vulnerability with a severity score of 9.8/10 (critical). This issue affects Session Smart Router, Session Smart Conductor, and WAN Assurance Managed Router - the affected endpoints include:

Session Smart Router:

from 5.6.7 before 5.6.17,
from 6.0.8,
from 6.1 before 6.1.12-lts,
from 6.2 before 6.2.8-lts,
from 6.3 before 6.3.3-r2;

Session Smart Conductor:

from 5.6.7 before 5.6.17,
from 6.0.8,
from 6.1 before 6.1.12-lts,
from 6.2 before 6.2.8-lts,
from 6.3 before 6.3.3-r2;

WAN Assurance Managed Routers:

from 5.6.7 before 5.6.17,
from 6.0.8,
from 6.1 before 6.1.12-lts,
from 6.2 before 6.2.8-lts,
from 6.3 before 6.3.3-r2.

No workarounds

Juniper said that there are no workarounds for this issue, and that the only way to safeguard the endpoints is to apply the patches: SSR-5.6.17, SSR-6.1.12-lts, SSR-6.2.8-lts, SSR-6.3.3-r2 and subsequent releases.

“In a Conductor-managed deployment, it is sufficient to upgrade only the Conductor nodes and the fix will be applied automatically to all connected routers,” Juniper explained. “As practical, the routers should still be upgraded to a fixed version however they will not be vulnerable once they connect to an upgraded Conductor. Router patching can be confirmed once the router reaches the “running" (on 6.2 and earlier) or “synchronized” (on 6.3+) state on the Conductor".

Devices that operate with WAN Assurance, connected to the Mist Cloud, are automatically updated. The routers should still be upgraded, it was said.

So far, there is no evidence of the flaws being abused in the wild.

Via BleepingComputer

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• The majority of Daredevil: Born Again's release schedule has been revealed
• The Disney+ show's episodic release format differs slightly from other Marvel TV series
• Fans have come up with two big theories about why the change has been made

Daredevil: Born Again's release schedule (most of it, anyway) has been revealed, and it's immediately sparked discussions among fans about its unusual episodic release format.

A direct continuation of the beloved Daredevil TV show that originally ran on Netflix from 2015 to 2018, Born Again is one of the most highly-anticipated Marvel projects in years. And, with its launch is fast approaching – Marvel confirmed Daredevil: Born Again would arrive on March 4 (US) and March 5 (UK and Australia) in October 2024 – fan excitement has stepped up a notch in recent weeks.

That excitement turned to curiosity yesterday (February 18), though, after the release schedule for its first six episodes was revealed. In a Disney press release outlining Disney+'s March 2025 line-up, fans were immediately drawn to the fact that Born Again's fifth and sixth episodes will arrive on the platform on the same day – that being March 25 for US audiences, and March 26 for British and Australian viewers.

Why is Daredevil: Born Again getting a two-episode release midway through its first season?

Born Again will reunite us with Matt Murdock and Wilson Fisk (Image credit: Marvel Studios/Disney Plus)

It's not unusual for Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) shows to receive two-episode premieres on Disney+. Many of its predecessors, including Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man and Agatha All Along similarly launched with dual episode drops on release day. Disney+'s latest press blast confirmed Daredevil: Born Again is getting the same treatment.

This is the first time that a Marvel TV show will get a two-episode drop mid-season, though. It's even more bizarre when you realize that other episodes follow the traditional Marvel TV show weekly release format, too. For example, episodes 3 and 4 will be released on March 11 (US) / March 12 (UK and Australia) and March 18 (US) / March 19 (UK and Australia).

So, why is Marvel experimenting with a dual episode mid-season release here? I have two big theories and, given what I've read online since this information came to light, other MCU fans are thinking along similar lines.

The first hypothesis is a story-based one. Daredevil: Born Again's first season comprises nine episodes and it's possible that, if the narrative playing out across episodes 5 and 6 is essentially a two-parter, it makes sense to release them together. Why make fans wait a week to find out what happens if episode 5 ends on a cliff hanger? Sure, it would generate plenty of discussion post-episode 5's release, but that might not be in the best interests of the story that one of the best Disney+ shows (potentially, anyway) is trying to tell.

Marvel fans think Andor season 2's forthcoming release is also behind Born Again's unusual release schedule (Image credit: Lucasfilm/Disney Plus)

The other and more likely reason, however, is that Disney doesn't want this Marvel Phase 5 production to clash with another eagerly-anticipated series that'll debut on one of the world's best streaming services in the near future. The program in question? Andor season 2, which is one of the best-rated Star Wars projects of the last five years.

Last November, Disney confirmed Andor's second and final season would premiere on April 22. If Daredevil: Born Again followed the usual Marvel TV show release format after its two-episode premiere, its season 1 finale wouldn't land on Disney+ until April 22. That would pit it against the two-episode premiere of Andor's sophomore outing. It would be a baffling movie if Disney released those three episodes on the same day and subsequently cannibalize each series' viewing figures.

But, what do you think? Am I and my fellow Marvel devotees on the right track about Born Again's mid-season dual header? Or have you come up with another theory? Let me know in the comments! Once you have, get the complete lowdown on everything we know about Daredevil's first standalone MCU adventure by reading my dedicated Daredevil: Born Again guide.

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• AMD’s RX 9070 is supposedly set to have reviews aired on March 5
• That’s the same day as Nvidia releases its RTX 5070 GPU
• This further backs up the rumor that the on-sale date for RX 9070 models could be March 6

More evidence has emerged from the rumor mill that AMD is setting up a mid-range GPU showdown between its RX 9070 and Nvidia’s RTX 5070.

VideoCardz brings us what’s purportedly the review embargo date for RX 9070 models, which is March 5, ahead of a theoretical March 6 on-sale date (all AMD has officially said, though, is that these graphics cards will go on sale in early March).

However, as review embargoes tend to fall a day (or maybe two) ahead of the arrival of GPUs on shelves, this does further suggest that the RX 9070 on-sale date might in fact be March 6 as rumored.

What’s also telling about March 5 is that it’s a huge date in Nvidia’s own launch diary – this is the day that RTX 5070 graphics cards officially go on sale.

So, the plan would appear to be for AMD to trigger a flood of reviews of RX 9070 GPUs, no doubt comparing them to the RTX 5070 (which will already have been reviewed at that point). And presumably the hope for Team Red is that this could dampen the enthusiasm for Nvidia’s graphics cards as they hit the shelves.

(Image credit: PowerColor) Analysis: Pricing cards on the table, please, AMD

Of course, all this depends on how these reviews pan out, and the rival graphics cards actually stack up to each other. But thus far, the leaks around the RX 9070 paint a promising picture, and you’ve got to think AMD must be reasonably confident to have set up an (almost) head-to-head launch here.

At any rate, I can’t wait to find out, and obviously I’m not alone there – anyone looking for a good mid-ranger at a (relatively) more affordable price is doubtless as keen as I am to discover where the final performance of these AMD and Nvidia GPUs will lie.

While we know the asking price for Nvidia’s RTX 5070 – which is $549 / £539 – what we don’t know is where AMD is pitching its RX 9070 and 9070 XT. So far, Team Red is playing its pricing cards close to its chest, but I’m hoping we will finally find out the MSRP at the big launch event AMD has planned for February 28.

Another interesting point here is that VideoCardz observes that when the embargo material supposedly provided by AMD talks about that big launch at the end of February, it calls the event an “RX 90x0 announcement” not an RX 9070 affair. That further suggests we will get details on other RDNA 4 desktop graphics cards, perhaps the specs of RX 9060 models, too? Or at least something of a teaser for those more wallet-friendly GPUs.

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• The Thrustmaster SimTask FarmStick X has launched
• It's compatible with Xbox and PC and made for Farming Simulator 25
• It also features Hall effect technology and a huge number of customizable buttons

Attention, virtual farmers. Thrustmaster has just launched the SimTask FarmStick X, a bespoke joystick that's designed with Farming Simulator 25 in mind.

This is a follow-up to last year's SimTask FarmStick which was only compatible with PC. Now, the SimTask FarmStick X has compatibility with Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and PC, bearing the official 'Designed for Xbox' seal of approval.

The Thrustmaster SimTask FarmStick X features the company's H.E.A.R.T. tech (that's short for Hall Effect AccuRate Technology) which is also the selling point of the Thrustmaster Heart controller. This means you can likely expect a drift-resistant and precise thumbstick that won't wear out any time soon.

You're also getting 33 customizable buttons on the stick, including two rocker switches, two triggers, a smaller mini stick, and a thumbwheel. There is also a dedicated 'Combo' button which appears to let you bind multiple inputs to a single button press, though this only seems to work on PC.

On top of all this, it looks like you won't have to worry about any kind of complex setup process, as Thrustmaster assures the SimTask FarmStick X is a "plug and play" device for Farming Simulator 25, meaning it'll work with your game right out of the box. It can also be paired with some of the best racing wheels including the Thrustmaster T248.

The Thrustmaster SimTask FarmStick X is available to buy now for $129.99 / £99.99 (around AU$204). You can pick one up yourself over at Thrustmaster's official website.

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The confirmation hearing for the former Oregon representative nominated to lead the Labor Department is to start Wednesday. The secretary of labor holds the 11th Cabinet position in the presidential line of succession.

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Rose is one of thousands of federal workers who have been terminated by the Trump administration. At 26, she's left wondering what to do now.

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President Trump launched the Artemis program to return U.S. astronauts to the moon for the first time since Apollo. Now, the plan could be a casualty of the cost-cutting drive overseen by Elon Musk.

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• A research study has suggested mood changes can be detected by your wearable
• This would allow the prediction of mood data, helping you counteract it with advice
• It could be huge for helping manage the symptoms of mental health conditions

We've seen that the best smartwatches can track everything about your physical health, from detecting sleep apnoea to predicting your best marathon times, but the next frontier could be predicting your mental health.

Research published in the journal Nature last year leverages the power of a smartwatch and the data it collects to map out manic and depressive episodes in patients with mood disorders, based on sleep-wake data. Because stress and mood can have an effect on circadian rhythms, the study hypothesized that it's possible to predict upcoming 'mood episodes'.

"Disruptions in sleep and activity patterns have been observed in individuals diagnosed with mood disorders, including major depressive disorder (MDD) and bipolar disorder (BD)," the study's introduction explains.

"To gain a deeper understanding of these mood-related patterns, sensors in smartphones and wearable devices, such as accelerometers, Global Positioning System sensors (GPS), and light sensors, have been employed to noninvasively and passively collect data within individuals’ real-life environments."

"This approach allows for long-term, objective assessment of a patient’s physiological and behavioral status, providing a valuable complement to conventional psychiatric assessments that rely on subjective patient recall through clinical scales or interviews."

Huge impact on mental wellbeing

As per the study, this could make a huge difference to anyone suffering from a mental health condition, and not only major depressive disorder or bipolar disorder.

By tracking this data and mapping it out over an extended period, smartwatches could offer coping strategies to a whole host of people with mental health concerns, from permanent diagnoses such as bipolar disorder, to temporary episodes such as seasonal affective disorder (SAD).

Spotting signs that can contribute to a higher risk of depression, like later bedtimes, and varied day structures, could help users develop coping mechanisms to manage or minimize their symptoms.

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The Department of Education told schools to stop DEI efforts or risk losing federal dollars. The president of the Council for Higher Education Accreditation warns it won't be quick and easy.

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Louis DeJoy said he plans to step down after a nearly five-year tenure marked by the coronavirus pandemic, surges in mail-in election ballots and efforts to stem losses through cost and service cuts.

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The reasons for the beachings are unclear. Reasons could include disorientation caused by loud noises, illness, old age, injury, fleeing predators and severe weather.

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Despite promises to improve the system, problems within prisons keep mounting. Critics say the Dominican Republic continues to push for pretrial detentions in cases where no charges have been filed.

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