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The best parental control apps, like Bark, are becoming increasingly popular as the web gets increasingly dangerous for young people – and with features like screen time management, website and app blocking and location tracking available, it’s no wonder.

Bark was founded by Brian Bason, the current CEO, in 2015. It’s grown to become one of the biggest names in the parental control space, with 7.5 million children covered by its services – and, admirably, it’s detected millions of potential self-harm and bullying situations alongside loads of other threats.

Should you consider Bark for your parental control needs, though, or should you look elsewhere? Let’s find out.

Plans and pricing

Bark’s core service, its monitoring app, is available with two different plans. The more affordable plan, Bark Jr, costs $5 per month or $49 per year and allows parents to control screen time, filter websites and apps and monitor for appropriate content. It also offers location tracking and check-in features.

The more expensive plan, Bark Premium, costs $14 per month or $99 for a year and adds social media, email, and YouTube monitoring on phones, tablets, and computers. That pricier product also includes advice and tips from child psychologists and web search monitoring.

Bear in mind that right now the app only works in the US, Guam, South Africa and Australia.

Bark’s size and popularity mean that the company has branched out beyond the app, too.

The Bark Phone integrates many of the app’s features into a kid-friendly smartphone with automatic monitoring capabilities. The Starter Plan costs $29 per month and doesn’t allow apps, social media or browsing, so it’s ideal for younger children. The Advanced Plan costs $39 per month and adds those features – with parental controls – for older children.

The Bark Watch monitors texts, tracks locations, manages contacts, and includes an emergency SOS button. It costs $15 per month and includes a Bark Premium subscription.

Finally, there’s Bark Home, which is a small device that connects to your home internet to monitor screen time, content and apps for every device in your home. It costs $6 per month.

Features

We’re here to discuss the Bark app, though, and there’s no denying that there’s plenty to talk about.

Firstly, it’s essential to note that, like many parental control tools, Bark can monitor various services and apps on both Android and iOS devices. This is because of how easily Bark’s software works with those operating systems. For Bark, Android is the most comprehensive platform.

On Android, Bark currently monitors 27 different apps. The list includes big social media names, like Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, X and TikTok, alongside messaging services like WhatsApp, Kik, Slack and Discord. It covers cloud storage services like OneDrive and Google Drive, apps like ChatGPT, Spotify and Steam, and gaming platforms like Roblox.

(Image credit: Bark)

Beyond that, Bark on Android monitors Google Chrome, Firefox, and the device's default browsers, email clients including Outlook, Gmail, AOL, Comcast, and iCloud, and the device’s texts, photos, and videos.

On iOS, add Yahoo Mail to the list. On Apple’s platform, Bark only includes complete monitoring for 15 apps, and that list does not include TikTok, Snapchat, Skype or Discord.

When a potential event is detected, the parent gets a real-time alert to intervene, and different alerting methods are available, including texts, emails, or push notifications.

(Image credit: Bark)

Bark also offers comprehensive features to limit children’s online time, including blocking websites and controlling screen time with a range of granular options – although it's worth noting that a complete website history is not available. Bark will only update you if it’s flagged for your chosen topics.

But, with Bark, that’s the idea. It’s not a keylogger or a tracker, and relies on a certain level of trust between parent and child – so you get alerting and reporting, but not a complete picture.

A similar approach is deployed for Bark’s location tracking. You get alerts when your children are at specific locations, rather than 24/7 tracking. If they drive, you get a summary of their travel and top speed.

Elsewhere, Bark is a smart bit of software with some unfortunate blind spots. Its machine learning is great at catching the latest trends and slang words, and it can spot if your child is using VPNs or trying to create alternative accounts for services and apps, but it can’t block offline apps.

To play into the trust involved here, children can uninstall Back – albeit with a warning. If they try to install risky apps, parents will get a warning and parents can block, but that’s not automatic.

Interface and in-use

Bark’s apps and desktop interfaces are excellent: clear, straightforward, and attractive. A dashboard provides a summary of the rules you’ve set for your children and their activity over the last seven days, and parents get a weekly report via email too.

Individual reports are clear, which makes it easy to see what’s been flagged and why, and alerts that need attention are displayed prominently.

(Image credit: Bark)Support

Bark offers email and live chat support, online guides and forums, and an AI assistant can provide easy access to articles and triage basic issues.

On the Bark website you’ll find how-to videos that explain the app’s key features, and plenty of support articles.

There isn’t any phone support, though, which may be a dealbreaker for parents who want quick responses while talking to a real person.

The competition

Bark faces plenty of competition as one of the larger names in the sector. Qustodio is one of the other big names, and it suffers from some of the same issues: it’s far more powerful on Android than on iOS, for starters.

It’s stronger on screen time limits and web filtering, but it’s a little more expensive.

Elsewhere, Google Family Link is free, even if it’s a bit more basic than Bark, and Mobicip is a good alternative if you want real-time activity monitoring and location tracking.

Bark: Final verdict

Bark may not have every feature available, but it does excel when it comes to tracking key social media apps and other services that are popular with kids and teens – indeed, few apps track as many apps on Android as Bark.

Elsewhere, Bark is easy to use and relatively affordable, making it a good option for maintaining some level of trust with your children.

Be aware, though, that it only works in certain countries, and it’s not suitable if you want an app that provides complete tracking.

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Jacob Soboroff of NBC News says the Trump administration promised to deport the "worst of the worst" criminal immigrants, but is now detaining undocumented workers with no serious criminal record.

There are few more prominent names in cybersecurity than Norton. Norton Family tries to leverage that recognition and trust into one of the best parental control apps that protects your children when they’re using the internet.

With a wide feature set that includes screen time controls, inappropriate content filters, app restrictions, and location checkers, it’s clear that Norton Family provides many of the options that busy families with digitally savvy children need.

Some of the features have more depth than you’ll find on other parental control apps, too, but there are questions about how effective Norton Family is on Apple’s iOS platform – so let’s find out if Norton’s product is the right option for protecting your children.

Plans and pricing

Norton Family gets off to an impressive start: it costs just $49.99/£29.99 per year. That stellar price undercuts many rivals – top tools like Qustodio and Bark cost $89.36/£69.95 and $99 for a year of access to their upper-tier products. Mobicip’s pricing also sits in the same category as Qustodio and Bark.

Because Norton offers so many consumer cybersecurity products, it’s easy to get Norton Family included in other products.

Norton 360 Deluxe, for instance, includes Norton’s parental control features alongside a secure VPN, dark web monitoring, and scam protection. It costs $49.99/£29.99 for the first year, with a renewal price of $119.99/£89.99.

And if you want to add even more features, Norton 360 Premium or Select Plus costs $99.99/£99.99.

Those prices may look high, but remember that they’re for broader security products that happen to include Norton Family features, so they still represent excellent value.

If you’re still unsure if Norton Family is right for you, there’s a thirty-day free trial – a generous offer that’s longer than many other free trials. Bear in mind, though, that there’s no free version of Norton Family.

Features

Web filtering is one of Norton Family’s strongest areas. Parents can block websites using 45 pre-defined categories of inappropriate content – more than many rivals.

Norton tries to give children some trust with its web filtering too: parents can choose to warn children about sites and let them decide whether to proceed. Kids will also be able to see why particular sites have been blocked.

Differing access levels are also allowed depending on age groups, with specific categories of content permitted for older children, and there is the usual option to allow or block specific sites.

Norton also monitors how your children use search engines, and has an option to always enable safe searching across various browsers on Android – but on iOS, this only works using Norton’s own browser. Also note that Norton Family doesn’t work on child Mac OS devices at all.

Reports for parents show your child’s web history, including which blocked sites they’ve tried to access, their search histories and their YouTube history. Norton’s web filtering works across Android and iOS, with browser extension options for desktop and laptop browsers. It’s a comprehensive, effective system.

The impressive filtering extends to apps, too. Parents are presented with a list of apps installed on child devices, blocking is simple, and each app has an activity report for parents to see when the app was installed and how much it’s used. Newly-installed apps are even given a special highlight on Android devices.

Set a device to school time and it can only access educational web categories (Image credit: Norton)

The only thing missing here is the ability to set app time limits – a feature you’ll find on many rivals, including Qustodio.

Norton’s screen time schedules can be built in thirty-minute increments – that’s fine, but apps like Mobicip allow more granular control. Parents can set screen time limits on different days or just restrict devices at night, and it also has a selection of effective pre-defined schedules for children of different ages. There’s also a specific module for setting more restrictive limits during school hours – that education option includes additional web filtering to further restrict the content children can access.

Kids can request more screen time – a feature you’ll find in Mobicip but not in Qustodio – and screen time reports are displayed easily, with clear graphs showing usage.

(Image credit: Norton)

Norton Family includes the usual array of location-based features. There’s real-time tracking, and the geofencing tool includes a generous radius of 3,200m (2 miles) – the largest we’ve seen on any parental control app.

Parents can set up alerts to find out where kids are located at particular times of day. Norton’s emphasis on trusting children also extends to an option where kids can perform check-ins and choose to share their location – rather than parents automatically viewing the location.

Elsewhere, Norton allows parents to instantly lock child devices and prevent app uninstallation with additional security features, but Norton Family does not monitor text messages or calls – or what your children are posting and messaging on social media apps. If you do need that feature, Bark is your best option.

Interface and in-use

Norton’s parental control apps are available on Android, iOS and the Edge, Chrome and Firefox browsers, while child apps can be installed on Android, Windows and iOS devices.

No matter what platform you’re using, Norton Family is very easy to set up with a familiar process that requires account registration and allowing the typical range of app permissions on child devices.

That ease-of-use continues to using Norton Family. The kids apps allow children to browse the web using the Norton Family Browser and it’s easy for children to find the option to send a check-in to parents, see the rules they’ve been set, or ask for a time extension.

Parent apps are similarly well designed, with clean design and options in sensible places. Altering settings is simple, and the app's web version is just as straightforward to use.

Support

Norton Family’s entry-level support module includes loads of helpful, well-produced guides and a busy forum for asking questions. If you need to contact Norton support, there are phone and live chat options that are open 24/7 – the benefit of dealing with a large business like Norton rather than a smaller organization that can’t provide that level of access.

If you’d like more support, including faster access to experts, then you can also pay for Norton Ultimate Help Desk. This provides quicker and more comprehensive support, but it costs $99.99/£99.99 annually.

Also note that Norton’s array of support options doesn’t always mean you’ll get a good answer.

The sheer size of Norton means that some users report that some of Norton’s customer support representatives are not particularly helpful with queries about Norton Family features – if you’ve got a specific query then you’ll need to get lucky and land a knowledgeable support representative if you don’t want to get generic and vague answers.

The competition

Still, those support options are excellent, and align with what you get with Qustodio’s Care Plus package. Bark’s support is reasonable, but it still can’t compete.

Elsewhere, Norton competes reasonably well on value thanks to its great pricing, but its biggest competitors offer more features: Qustodio is stronger on call and SMS monitoring, and Bark is better with social media.

MMGuardian is worth considering if you want improved web filtering, and Mobicip has great scheduling and screen time functionality, even if it fails on social media and messaging in the same way as Norton.

Final verdict

Norton Family, then, sits in a tricky spot. It’s an effective, competent parental control product that offers great value and a good range of features – and it’s very easy to use, too.

However, it falls behind on social media, call and text message monitoring, and it could perform better on iOS, too. And, importantly, rivals go better in all of these areas, with more power and innovation.

There’s still a place for Norton Family, though: it’s a good, well-rounded parental control app, it’s affordable, and it’s very easy to use. It helps that it’s included with many other Norton apps too.

If you want a straightforward, effective tool that’s easy to use – and trust Norton’s brand and other products – then this is worth its good-value prices. But if you need social media or messaging monitoring, or want more power, then shop around.

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• Microsoft pulls the plug on its Startups program in favour of a new scheme
• From July 2025, startups will need to join a two-track system
• For the most credits, startups will need a referral

Microsoft has pulled the plug on a popular program designed to support startups by offering them up to $150,000 in Azure credits, according to a new memo posted on 27 June, 2025, but it's not gone forever.

Instead, the company is making changes to the program – Microsoft will continue to support startups, but this time via a two-track system that gets its support from investors as well as the company itself.

Microsoft stressed existing activated credits remain valid until they expire, however new applicants will be guided down the two-track system, which came info effect on July 1.

Microsoft for Startups program undergoes a big shift

The new program will first consist of an investor-backed track – arguably the most valuable to startups.

It consists of $100,000+ in Azure credits, but requires a referral from an affiliated investor, such as accelerators, venture capitalists and universities. Eligible startups can also unlock additional benefits based on program engagement and their investor.

Dedicated support channels, co-marketing initiatives and tailored resources are also available.

Secondly is the self-service track, which is open to startups with no investor backing that are new to Azure. Up to $5,000 in Azure credits are available, comprising $1,000 that are available for 90 days upon signup and a further $4,000 that remain available for 180 days after business verification.

However, there is no dedicated support on this track – it's self-serve only.

The abrupt change could cause disruption to many startups who may have already budgeted based on the previous $150,000 credit availability, with most startups unlikely to refocus their strategies given the short notice period.

It's unclear how the changes could affect Microsoft's model, too, with Google offering up to $200,000 in credits (or $350,000 for eligible AI startups) and AWS offering up to $100,000 and an additional $30,000 for startups using AWS Trainium or Inferentia.

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• NordVPN has been recognized for its ability to detect and block phishing websites
• NordVPN’s Threat Protection Pro blocked 90% of phishing websites in the test
• Threat Protection Pro is available for NordVPN Plus, Complete, and Ultra subscribers

NordVPN’s phishing protection has been again certified by AV-Comparatives, further cementing its status as the best VPN on the market today. This adds to the growing evidence of the effectiveness of NordVPN’s anti-malware tool, Threat Protection Pro.

AV-Comparatives, an independent testing lab, had already recognized Threat Protection Pro’s ability to detect and block phishing websites in 2024. A repeat result in 2025 sees NordVPN awarded an anti-phishing certification for the second year running.

Threat Protection Pro detected 90% of phishing URLs in AV-Comparatives comprehensive testing, well ahead of the 85% minimum required to earn the anti-phishing certification. The news means that NordVPN is still the only VPN with certified phishing protection.

How Threat Protection protects you from phishing sites

Threat Protection Pro is available only on Windows and MacOS devices (Image credit: Future)

Introduced to NordVPN’s feature lineup in June 2024, Threat Protection Pro helps NordVPN users avoid not only phishing attempts, but a variety of other online dangers including tracking, malware, ads, and scams.

"Phishing websites are one of the biggest threats to internet users worldwide. They steal personal data, login credentials, and financial information from unsuspecting users," said Product Director at Threat Protection, Dominickas Virbickas. "We put our greatest effort into protecting our customers from the consequences caused by these sites."

Threat Protection Pro is available with NordVPN Plus, Complete, and Ultra subscription plans. Subscribers to the Basic tier won’t have access to Threat Protection Pro and its independently certified phishing protection but do benefit from Threat Protection.

Not to be confused with Threat Protection Pro, Threat Protection is a DNS filter capable of blocking ads and malicious domains. In contrast, Threat Protection Pro works at the URL and Javascript level and, unlike Threat Protection, doesn’t require you to be connected to a NordVPN server to benefit from its protection.

NordVPN is still the only VPN with certified phishing protection

This isn’t the first time NordVPN’s Threat Protection Pro anti-malware tool has been recognized by AV-Comparatives.

In 2024, it ranked as the third-best software for avoiding online shopping scams out of 35 competitors, emerging as a top tool for avoiding online shopping scams.

Two more independent audits further confirmed NordVPN's blocking capabilities. Experts at AV-Test awarded NordVPN as the winner among five recognized VPN providers. During testing from West Coast Labs (WCL), NordVPN scored a hugely impressive 99.8% malware protection rate.

What else you can do to prevent phishing attacks

Threat Protection Pro has been proven to offer a solid line of defence against increasingly sophisticated phishing attacks. However, there are still some things you can do to further reduce your risk of falling victim:

• Think before you click. Tell-tale signs of phishing attempts include poor spelling or grammar. Scare tactics are also common in an effort to prompt you into action. When in doubt, re-read messages and carefully check the sender’s contact information.
• Enable two-factor authentication. Make use of two-factor authentication (2FA) which adds an extra layer of security to your online accounts. It requires you to provide an additional method of authentication to log in, such as a code sent to your phone.
• Check for HTTPS. Get in the habit of checking URLs in your browser’s address bar. When you do this, check for HTTPS and confirm the domain is correct. Some URL changes can be difficult to detect such as a number “1” instead of the letter “l”.
• Keep devices and software up-to-date. Phishing attacks may look to exploit unpatched vulnerabilities. Keeping your devices and software updated via official sources helps close off these vulnerabilities.
• Verify the source. Phishing often relies on impersonation with messages designed to look like they’ve come from someone you trust. If at all suspicious, you should avoid clicking or replying and instead contact the person or organization via official channels to verify the message’s authenticity.

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If you’ve spent any time researching the best parental control apps, then you will have heard of Qustodio – it’s one of the most prominent names in the sector. It’s been around for over a decade, it’s been trusted by over seven million parents, and the app’s systems have averted over three billion threats.

That’s an impressive resume and, on paper, it’s backed by an impressive slate of features, too. But can Qustodio earn your vote ahead of big rivals like Bark, Norton Family or MMGuardian?

(Image credit: Qustodio)Plans and Pricing

The Qustodio experience starts with a refreshingly straightforward look at pricing, with two paid tiers available.

The Basic package offers core functionality and costs $43.37/£33.95 a year – the equivalent of just $4.25/£3.33 per month.

With the Basic package, you get daily time limits, web filtering, location monitoring, game and app blocking and the ability to pause internet access for your children’s phones. It’s a solid core product with a more generous offer than the basic package you’ll find elsewhere.

The Complete product, at $89.36/£69.95 annually, adds AI-powered alerts, social media monitoring, custom routines, app time limits and additional monitoring, and allows parents to add unlimited devices to the account.

It’s a decent offer, especially when many premium products restrict how many devices you can monitor.

Bark and MMGuardian are both pricier than Qustodio, but Norton Family is even cheaper.

There’s a free version of Qustodio, too, that offers web filtering, daily time limits, 7-day activity reports and the ability to pause the internet, but it only protects one device, so it’s understandably limited.

Features

Qustodio offers good value, then, and it also serves up a good range of features.

It’s possible to filter out inappropriate apps, games and websites easily, and pick categories for whitelisting, alerting or total blocking. Parents can access alternative recommendations to apps that kids aren’t allowed to access, and even deploy conversation starters, approved by child psychologists, to start conversations about web browsing and internet use.

With Qustodio you can block unknown websites, automatically enable safe searches in common browsers, and receive alerts if your child searches for inappropriate content.

Qustodio offers more than 25 web filtering categories, but there’s no option within the app for kids to request access to particular websites – a feature you’ll find on Norton Family.

Qustodio allows parents to set screen time allowances for every day of the week, and also set time limits for individual apps – and use the in-built app monitoring and detection to automatically sort over 25,000 apps into categories for easier blocking or accessing.

It’s easy to create different routines and switch between them and, if you need to step in quickly, there’s an option to pause internet access on child devices or block the device completely.

And if parents want to reward their children or be a little more lenient, it’s easy to add screen time and see a new limit once that extra time has been granted.

Different rules can be used to govern screen time use between browsers and apps, there are varying “modes” that alter access for bedtime, leisure time and study time, and custom schedules are very easy to build.

(Image credit: Qustodio)

A straightforward map allows parents to spot child locations, geofencing is supported – albeit with a tiny 200m radius – and you can see location histories.

Call and SMS tracking and reading are supported on both Android and iOS, with full message details available, and parents can block phone numbers on child devices. You’ll get alerts for suspect content.

When it comes to reporting on all of this, Qustodio is similarly comprehensive. A real-time dashboard provides easy access to each child's digital activity, including an activity timeline, screen time and browsing history, and parents can access more detailed daily or weekly reports.

Qustodio is also forging ahead with some AI-based content, too, with AI-powered alerts that notify parents of any worrying searches, conversations or social media activity based on chosen topics or categories. That’s great, but it’s worth noting that Qustodio is a little weak on social media monitoring – it monitors messages on WhatsApp, Instagram and LINE, but that’s it.

In terms of other features, Qustodio allows parents to limit social media use, get app-based insights, and add additional parents or guardians to the software.

The app is also comprehensive when it comes to device support. As well as working on Android and iOS, which is a given for parental control apps these days, it works on Windows and Mac OS tech, Chromebooks, and Kindles. Additionally, parents can monitor child devices using Qustodio’s web interface.

As usual, though, be prepared that not every feature works on every platform. You don’t get WhatsApp alerts on iOS, for instance, and there’s no location, call or SMS monitoring on Mac OS or Windows. Android is the only platform that features a panic button.

Interface and in use

Qustodio has one of the best interfaces we’ve seen on any parental control app. As well as having a straightforward layout that places everything where you’d expect, Qustodio packs its apps and web interfaces with helpful tips and explanations about features and how they work.

A selection of Quick Actions provides fast access to common tasks, and the activity summary does a fantastic job of presenting key data in an attractive and intuitive format.

(Image credit: Qustodio)

Child apps are simple enough for even the youngest children to understand what’s going on, and if you’re a parent who wants to dive deeper into the settings, you won’t get lost – the effective UI continues here.

It’s typically easy to get started, too: download the app, register an account, set up child profiles and tick all of the permissions, and you’re ready to start building schedules, monitoring devices and protecting your kids.

Customer Support

Qustodio makes a big deal about ensuring that its service is easy to use for busy parents who may not have a deep understanding of technology, and this attitude extends to its support functionality.

There are loads of helpful articles in the FAQ section, many of which have screenshots, and the guides that illustrate how to set up the app, use basic features and manage your account are particularly good.

If you need support and you use the Basic package, it’s managed through a contact form – sadly there’s no phone support, chatbot or live chat available here, but users report that they always receive helpful, polite form responses within 24 hours.

If you’re a Complete user, you get access to Care Plus. This adds phone support, personalized guidance and ongoing check-ins for parents who want more from their parental control app. And, impressively, Care Plus has an average resolution rate of 97% and an average resolution time of 15 minutes.

While it’s included for free with the Complete package, it costs $10.21/£7.99 to add it to the Basic product.

The Competition

As a big name in the parental control space, Qustodio has some big rivals – but it does a brilliant job of competing.

Norton Family, for instance, is more affordable than Qustodio but not as good at call or SMS monitoring. And MMGuardian isn’t as easy to use as Qustodio and is a bit more expensive, too.

Bark is probably Qustodio’s best competitor. It’s far better with social media, but is more limited on iOS and doesn’t provide a full web history, and it’s also a little more expensive.

Final Verdict

Those factors leave Qustodio looking like a particularly strong parental control option. It has superb filtering, scheduling and screen time options, AI-based additions, solid location features and excellent design, reporting and platform support.

Its customer support is great if you have the Complete product, the apps are all easy to use, and the pricing is fair, too – either competing or undercutting many rivals. The only downside is weak social media monitoring and a relatively small geofencing zone.

That social media monitoring drawback could be a dealbreaker for many families but, in almost every other area, Qustodio is a winner – it’s one of the best parental control apps on the market.

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• Windows 10 PCs are getting an update stealthily installed
• The under-the-radar arrival of KB5001716 may confuse some folks
• This patch is deployed to versions of Windows which are about to run out of support, and it'll nudge you to make a move to keep your PC secure

Windows 10 PCs are getting an update stealthily piped to them, and some folks may be confused as to what it is.

The good news is that it's nothing to worry about as such – although the update is a bit of an oddity, and it does herald the end of Windows 10 (I'll come back to why momentarily).

Neowin noticed the arrival of the patch labelled KB5001716, and observed that this is an upgrade that Microsoft deploys ahead of 'force-installing' a new feature update.

That's somewhat dramatic phrasing for KB5001716 being pushed to Windows versions which are about to run out of support – hence the users will indeed need to upgrade soon, or they'll be left without security updates (and potentially open to vulnerabilities that could be exploited as a result).

So technically, the comment about a forced installation is true, but only because the upgrade is a necessary move to ensure the safety of the host PC.

Here's what Microsoft tells us about this patch: "After this update is installed, Windows may periodically display a notification informing you of problems that may prevent Windows Update from keeping your device up-to-date and protected against current threats. For example, you may see a notification informing you that your device is currently running a version of Windows that has reached the end of its support lifecycle."

In this case, the update is being quietly installed on PCs running the latest version of Windows 10, which is 22H2, as well as 21H2 – the latter is already out of support, mind you. (As is Windows 11 21H2, which Microsoft also lists as receiving this patch currently, rather oddly).

Analysis: the beginning of the end

(Image credit: Microsoft)

What this really represents is Microsoft preparing the ground for the end of Windows 10, which happens in October of this year. With this patch now being installed on all Windows 10 PCs, as noted, those machines will receive periodic notifications warning that the operating system is about to run out of support (and security updates).

Microsoft is keeping something of a tight rein on those nudges (which will doubtless mention upgrading to Windows 11), though. The company notes that they "will respect full screen, game, quiet time and focus assist modes" meaning that they won't be overly intrusive. And hopefully they won't be too regular, either.

So, if you've been worried about the appearance of this update, there's no need to fret. It's not a big deal, although that said, it is in some respects, in terms of the fuse effectively being lit for the final countdown with Windows 10.

There are only three months left to go before the End of Life of the older OS now, and so there is some urgency to act. If you can't upgrade to Windows 11 due to falling short of the system requirements, you need to be thinking about alternatives (or getting an extra year of support).

I think it would really help if Microsoft was clearer about what this update is. In fact, KB5001716 is rolled out to PCs every time a support deadline for a version of Windows is imminent. Indeed, in the past, we have seen reports of this patch failing to install because it's already present on the system.

Strictly speaking, that shouldn't happen – due to the patch only being pushed out to versions of Windows that are at death's door, as noted – but if it does somehow, the solution is simple. Uninstall the existing copy of KB5001716 in Windows Update, and the new one should then patch successfully. Otherwise, it'll keep repeatedly failing, which will doubtless get tiresome quite swiftly.

Overall, this is a somewhat odd approach from Microsoft for managing dying Windows versions. It's not surprising that KB5001716 can cause some confusion, in terms of the stealthy, and repeated (over the years), installation of this 'update for Windows Update' as the company bills it.

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Combs was found guilty of two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution, but the jury found him not guilty on the more serious charges of racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking.

(Image credit: Kevin Winter)

The first time I heard The Velvet Sundown’s album Dust and Silence on Spotify, I thought to myself, hmm, that’s not too bad. It hits a lot of the notes I look for in music I can listen to in the background while I work: acoustic guitar, nice vocals, chill beats, and a mellow 60s psychedelic vibe. There’s only one problem: this band might not exist.

The Velvet Sundown is suspected of being an entirely AI-generated band. Despite posting pictures of its band members on its Instagram and X.com accounts, the pictures look very fake. In fact, they look exactly like they were created by AI.

It’s very hard to prove definitively if the band is fake, but the evidence mounts up: The pictures look fake, there’s no evidence that the band members really exist, and the music sounds like it could have been generated in an AI music tool, like Suno.

Famous YouTube musician Rick Beato even released an episode about the band, breaking down its songs into individual tracks to see if he could tell if it was AI-generated. His opinion? Yes, it is.

Upcoming tour

The band’s account on X.com is adamant that the band is real and makes its own music, even promising an upcoming live tour! A post from the band says, “This is our music, written in long, sweaty nights in a cramped bungalow in California with real instruments, real minds, and real soul. Every chord, every lyric, every mistake — HUMAN.”

I’ve reached out to the band, and they’ve emailed me back, saying they’re happy to answer questions, except that as soon as I suggest a video interview, they immediately ghost me. It feels like whoever is behind The Velvet Sundown is very much trolling the rest of us for publicity by pretending to be a real band, and as this article shows, it’s working.

Yesterday, The Velvet Sundown had 470,000 monthly listens on Spotify. When I look at its page today, they have gone up to 634,000. That’s a lot of revenue being diverted away from real bands who actually made their own music and towards a band whose music is created by AI from being trained on other people’s material, usually without attribution.

Dust and Silence from The Velvet Sundown, playing on Apple Music. (Image credit: The Velvet Sundown)Apple and Spotify

What’s interesting is that both Apple and Spotify are happily streaming the band’s music while not flagging it as AI. Don’t we, the paying punters, deserve to know if the band we are listening to is fake?

In fact, The Velvet Sundown is one of a number of recent ‘bands’ that have exposed a massive loophole in the big music streaming services like Apple, Spotify, and Amazon Music: They have absolutely no requirement that AI music be flagged as AI-generated.

Interestingly, the smaller-sized streaming service Deezer does, and it has used its own technology to identify The Velvet Sundown’s music as AI-generated, and it flags it as such.

Deezer flags Dust and Silence as "Ai-generated content". (Image credit: Deezer)

The Velvet Sundown isn’t the only band suspected of being AI-generated (other suspected bands include Stellar Cruise and The Luna Lounge), but we’re only at the start of this problem. Music streaming services are about to be overrun by AI-generated content, and they need to act fast.

I don’t want to be sending whatever meagre cents that music streams generate these days to a band that doesn't exist when there are plenty of struggling artists who need genuine support. Perhaps this whole mess will lead Apple and Spotify to rethink their policies on flagging AI music and take a leaf out of Deezer’s book, because I think it should be their responsibility to tell us, their paying customers, if the music we are listening to is AI-generated or not.

Whether they are real or not, after the success of The Velvet Sundown, an absolute deluge of AI music will be on the way now that people have realized it’s an easy way to generate revenue, and Apple and Spotify do not flag it as such. And the next generation of AI bands will probably be a bit cleverer about hiding the fact that they are AI-generated.

We’ve reached out to both Apple and Spotify for comment on AI music on their streaming platforms and will update this article if we receive any.

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Now that the PS5 Pro is in the hands of gamers everywhere, the list of PS5 Pro enhanced games continues to grow. Around launch, Sony detailed 50+ titles that have dedicated modes that make use of everything the upgraded console has to offer. Since then we've even put together a best PS5 Pro games list, highlighting the ten top titles that are enhanced on the new console.

Now that the PS5 Pro is out, and we've finalized our PS5 Pro review, there's a lot to love about Sony's most powerful console. Thanks to the PS5 Pro specs, it's no surprise that games such as Marvel's Spider-Man 2 look and feel better than ever, leveraging AI-driven upscaling and improved raytracing. Now that the dust has settled on the PS5 Pro launch, we’ve even been able to spend time with many of the upgraded games, and feel confident offering some recommendations on the PS5 Pro games to play first.

Before you seek out where to buy a PS5 Pro, however, you'll want to know what games have received upgrades, which is where we come in. In this article, we'll cover every PS5 Pro game confirmed so far, including a look at what's set to change in each title. As more games are unveiled in the future, we'll be sure to update this list.

Update (July 2, 2025): Added details on Death Stranding 2, which is out now, featuring PS5 Pro enhancements.

PS5 Pro games list - confirmed PS5 Pro-enhanced titles

(Image credit: Guerrilla Games)

Given that there are now over 100 PS5 Pro enhanced games, and with each developer handling things slightly differently, the list below represents just a small slice of the headline games that have received beefy PS5 Pro updates since launch:

• 007: First Light - enhanced for PlayStation 5 Pro, using PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution (PSSR) and having optimized performance, with the game playable at 60 FPS in Quality Mode. Coming in 2026.
• Alan Wake 2 - Performance Mode now offers 4K at the same fidelity as the base PS5's Quality Mode. The PS5 Pro Quality Mode however, will target raytracing. As confirmed in this blog post.
• Assassin’s Creed: Shadows - exhibist an enhanced ray-traced global illumination technology. Improved fidelity thanks to expanded GPU capabilities, and leveraging of PSSR. As per the PS Blog.
• Death Stranding 2 - higher visual fidelity in Performance Mode. You can read our thoughts on the upgrades here: Death Stranding 2: On the Beach sold me on the PS5 Pro
• Demon’s Souls - 4K image-like quality at 60 frames per second.
• Dragon’s Dogma 2 - benefits from the power of the PS5 Pro, PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution (PSSR) and new ray tracing technology, allowing improved framerates.
• Dragon Age: The Veilguard - The game’s Fidelity and Performance modes both see improvements on the hardware, including improved resolution in 30FPS Fidelity and 60FPS Performance modes.
• Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 - enhanced on PlayStation 5 Pro
• Doom: The Dark Ages - enhanced on PS5 Pro. details not given.
• Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth - The new Enhanced Mode* developed especially for PS5 Pro combines the characteristics of the existing Performance Mode and Graphics Mode to offer players a new visual experience.
• F1 24 - F1 24 is upgrading its Quality mode to add new ray tracing effects that shined particularly on rain-soaked courses and made the tracks feel more realistic and immersive. As per the PS Blog.
• Gran Turismo 7 - now able to support ray tracing during races, which was previously impossible. This allows not only for car surfaces to show full reflections of other cars, but also for a car to reflect its own parts, greatly enhancing realism and immersion throughout the whole game.
• Hogwarts Legacy - Players are able to experience crisper, richer, higher resolution graphics, leveraging PSSR on all visual modes.
• Horizon Forbidden West - you can now enjoy a visual quality that matches or surpasses the Quality mode on the regular PlayStation 5, but now at 60 FPS – double the framerate.
• Indiana Jones and the Great Circle - experience next-level realism and image clarity with native 4K resolution and advanced ray tracing.
• Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 - Spider-Man 2 finds a new default Performance Pro mode, which marries the crisp 4K resolution and ray tracing features of Fidelity mode with the speedy 60 frames per second of Performance mode.
• Marvel's Spider-Man 2 - PSSR technology allows for the trees and the lush vegetation of the game’s iconic jungle terrain to become more vivid, and enhances the sense of realism of infiltrating through a natural environment
• Monster Hunter Wilds - Resolution Mode for full Ray Tracing at 4K and 30FPS. Performance Mode allows for uncapped frame rate. Balanced Mode with some Ray Tracing at 40FPS on 120Hz monitors
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart - new default Performance Pro mode, which marries the crisp 4K resolution and ray tracing features of Fidelity mode with the speedy 60 frames per second of Performance mode.
• Marvel's Spider-Man Remastered - new default Performance Pro mode, which marries the crisp 4K resolution and ray tracing features of Fidelity mode with the speedy 60 frames per second of Performance mode.
• Marvel's Spider-Man Miles Morales - new default Performance Pro mode, which marries the crisp 4K resolution and ray tracing features of Fidelity mode with the speedy 60 frames per second of Performance mode.
• Resident Evil 4 Remake - the game runs at a higher framerate, making the dynamic action even more intense. Resident Evil 4 also uses the power of PS5 Pro for ultra-high-resolution technology, painting vividly realistic imagery brimming with detailed environments and more natural and beautiful visual effects than ever before.
• Resident Evil Village - added 120fps gameplay to provide the best possible user experience on PS5 Pro.
• Returnal - new resolution offering a boost of up to 2.5x
• Star Wars Jedi: Survivor - In Quality Mode, the game offers its highest-ever console resolution at 2160p. At the same time, Performance Mode continues to deliver a solid 60 fps—but now with higher resolutions and the added visual depth of ray tracing for reflections and ambient occlusion.
• Stellar Blade - 4K resolution at 50fps or more, with smoother gameplay, and you’ll notice an improvement in grain and detail in the game in PSSR upscale mode. Plus, the HFR (high framerate) option is supported, allowing you to enjoy a fluid gaming experience at 80 fps (120hz display support required).
• The Crew Motorfest - more objects on-screen – decals, vegetation, crowds – all running at 60fps.
• The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered - PS5 Pro Enhanced
• The First Descendant - expanding the ray tracing feature by leveraging PS5 Pro’s superior GPU performance and enhanced ray tracing architecture.
• The Last of Us Part I - new PS5 Pro-specific enhanced rendering mode that takes advantage of improved graphics processing, rendering 1440p, then upscaling to 4K via PSSR super resolution. This mode maintains the 60 fps target, offering an ideal balance of framerate and resolution.
• The Last of Us Part II Remastered - new PS5 Pro-specific enhanced rendering mode that takes advantage of improved graphics processing, rendering 1440p, then upscaling to 4K via PSSR super resolution. This mode maintains the 60 fps target, offering an ideal balance of framerate and resolution.
• Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 - Upscaled resolution of 2160p. Target performance of 60FPS, unlocked with VRR enabled. Leverages PSSR upscaling technology.
• Lies of P - "Quality Mode benefits from more than a 30 percent increase in FPS, delivering smoother, more fluid gameplay. Additionally, Performance Mode now supports full native 4K resolution, allowing players to enjoy stunning visuals without sacrificing responsiveness," - Lies of P director Jiwon Choi in an interview with Eurogamer.
• Lords of the Fallen - the PS5 Pro enhanced version of the action role-playing game (RPG) allows players to experience a "40% increase in pixel density over the base PlayStation 5 console, resulting in a sharper image and finer details. Read the full details here.
• Zenless Zone Zero - native 4K resolution and 60 FPS simultaneously with the average frame rate increasing by nearly ten frames. Update arrives December 18, 2024.

And now, a highlight of the major titles that have received a PS5 Pro patch, as previously confirmed on the PS Blog ahead of the PS5 Pro launch.

• Alan Wake 2
• Albatroz
• Apex Legends
• Arma Reforger
• Assassin’s Creed Mirage
• Assassin's Creed Shadows
• Baldur’s Gate 3
• Black Myth: Wukong
• Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
• Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
• EA Sports College Football 25
• Dead Island 2
• Dead Rising Deluxe Remastered
• Demon’s Souls
• Diablo IV
• Dragon Age: The Veilguard
• Dragon’s Dogma 2
• Dying Light 2 Reloaded Edition
• Dynasty Warriors: Origins
• EA Sports FC 25
• Enlisted
• F1 24
• Final Fantasy VII Rebirth
• Fortnite
• God of War Ragnarök
• Hogwarts Legacy
• Horizon Forbidden West
• Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered
• Indiana Jones and the Great Circle
• Kayak VR: Mirage
• Kingdom Come Deliverance 2
• Lies of P
• Lords of the Fallen
• Madden NFL 25
• Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered
• Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales
• Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
• Monster Hunter Wilds
• Naraka: Bladepoint
• NBA2K 25
• Ninja Gaiden 2 Black
• No Man’s Sky
• Palworld
• Paladin’s Passage
• Path of Exile 2
• Planet Coaster 2
• Professional Spirits Baseball 2024-2025
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
• Resident Evil 4
• Resident Evil Village
• Rise of the Ronin
• Rogue Flight
• Slitterhead
• Star Wars: Jedi Survivor
• Star Wars: Outlaws
• Stellar Blade
• Test Drive Unlimited: Solar Crown
• The Callisto Protocol
• The Crew Motorfest
• The Finals
• The First Descendant
• The Last of Us Part I
• The Last of Us Part II Remastered
• UFC 25
• UFL
• Until Dawn
• War Thunder
• Warframe
• Warhammer 40,000 Darktide
• World of Warships: Legend
• Zenless Zone Zero
• Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii

The games above have received dedicated PS5 Pro versions, and are even be labeled separately to indicate as such. There's also a whole host of PS4 and PS5 games that'll benefit from what Sony is calling PS5 Pro Game Boost (as per the PS Blog):

"With the PS5 Pro version of the Game Boost feature, you can enjoy faster and smoother frame rates in some of the PS4 and PS5 console’s greatest games."

This is said to apply to at least 8,500 PS4 and PS5 titles, so there are plenty of changes and upgrades on the way to the games you already own if you do choose to pick up a PS5 Pro. In addition, PS5 Pro will significantly enhance PSVR 2 games according to Mark Cerny.

PS5 Pro enhanced games - what's the difference?

As part of the initial PS5 Pro technical presentation, we saw a few games running on the new hardware, highlighting the differences relative to the base PS5 console. Each enhanced game benefits from the new specs in different ways, but they all pull from the improvements below:

• Upgraded GPU with 67% more compute units and 28% faster memory; resulting in 45% faster rendering
• Advanced ray-tracing
• AI-driven upscaling known as PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution (PSSR)
• 2TB SSD
• PS5 Pro Game Boost
• Optional disc-drive
• VRR and 8K gaming support

(Image credit: PlayStation)

In our PS5 Pro review, we came to the conclusion that the main attraction is really “the convergence of graphical fidelity and performance with games now able to tap into the PS5 Pro’s hardware and features to shine in both ways - at the same time”. This boosted graphical fidelity is, more often than not, on par with the Quality Modes of the base PS5, but with a much smoother experience thanks to 60FPS or higher. This best of both worlds approach is really going to be the key difference moving forward, though it’s likely that we’ll see developers experiment further with higher end graphical settings that focus on ray tracing, or make use of the hardware’s new AI-boosted upscaling.

Speaking on ray tracing, there have been significant advancements for many of the games now enhanced by the PS5 Pro. In our PS5 Pro review, we were impressed by the ray tracing across the board, noting that “you can now enjoy some of the best ray-tracing PS5 has to offer in a performance mode, targeting 60 frames per second, which is truly special in games like Marvel’s Spider-Man 2.” So far, we’re looking at games that have already come out as well, so moving forward we’re excited to see what the PS5 Pro’s ray tracing capabilities can achieve as games get bigger and better looking across the board.

PS5 Pro review: The TechRadar Gaming verdict

(Image credit: Future)

Our Managing Editor, Rob Dwiar, spent some time with the PS5 Pro pre-launch, and gave his verdict in the TechRadar Gaming PS5 Pro review. He concludes that the PS5 Pro “is a superb console and now the best PlayStation 5 machine available. The advancements are glorious and bring a new level of immersion and beauty to games, while also boosting performance levels to offer fluid and smooth frame rates and very high levels of image fidelity - at the same time - offering a clear advancement over the base PS5, and will be perfect for those enthusiasts yearning for more from the camps of fidelity and performance.”

One thing that is immediately surprising when taking the PS5 Pro out of the box is its size and weight relative to the base model, especially the one that launched with a disc drive back in 2020. The PS5 Pro is much lighter than you’d expect, and its sleek design and black vented sides really stand out alongside the all white of the PS5’s faceplates. Under the hood, you now get 2TB of storage as standard, meaning that you can hold more games on your hard drive without having to swap things out for new releases.

While the technical upgrades and visual changes are indeed exciting, it’s also vital to point out the price jump between the base PS5 and the PS5 Pro. For $699.99 / £699.99 / AU$1,199, you do not get a disc drive, or even a vertical stand, something that really represents a sting in the tail for an otherwise enticing mid-generation upgrade. Our review concludes that “If you’ve a keen eye for detail, are a PlayStation fanatic who wants to be at the bleeding edge of the brand’s console and wants the most performant PlayStation console going, or you’re a graphics obsessive who wants the best experience going, or are a PS5 user with a new 120Hz-capable gaming TV or PS5 monitor, then the gaming experiences provided by the PS5 Pro are going to be very tempting indeed. For everyone else, it’s just going to be too expensive.”

You can read more on the differences between the Pro and the base PS5 in our PS5 Pro vs PS5 article.

PS5 Pro games: FAQsWill new games be PS5 Pro-enhanced?

While we'll have to wait and see what upcoming PS5 games like Ghost of Yōtei do with the new PS5 Pro technology, it's highly likely that first-party games will offer some form of PS5 Pro version. This was how things worked with the PS4 Pro, so expect there to be boosts to upcoming games like Marvel's Wolverine, and Saros. In terms of third-party, PS5 Pro enhancements will come on a case by case basis. Some games will lean into the PS5 Pro's features, even offering separate PS5 Pro-labelled versions, while others may focus on a more general PS5 offering.

How much does the PS5 Pro cost?

The PS5 Pro launched on November 7, 2024, and currently retails for $699.99 / £699.99 / AU$1,999.95. This is a significant step up from the base console, especially when you consider that you won't get a disc drive or a vertical stand with it.

What games are the TechRadar Gaming looking forward to on PS5 Pro?

Now that the PS5 Pro is out, we’ve spent some time with the currently available list of enhanced games. Looking ahead, Borderlands 4 and Ghost of Yōtei will most likely show off the next level of PS5 Pro enhancements, especially the latter, which is being developed by Sony first party studio Sucker Punch. Beyond that, we've just had news of 007: First Light's PS5 Pro support, arriving in 2026.

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• Apple is paying out $95 million to settle a Siri class-action lawsuit
• If you think you're eligible, you need to submit a claim by the end of July 2
• Apple has denied all wrongdoing in settling the case

Back in January, Apple agreed to settle a class-action lawsuit related to its Siri voice assistant. The case saw some Apple device owners claim that Siri had disclosed their private conversations to advertisers, following "unintended Siri activations".

Apple denied all wrongdoing and agreed to settle the case to "avoid additional litigation" (more on that below). But the result of the 'Lopez vs Apple Inc' suit means that, if you owned and used an Apple device between September 17, 2014 and December 31, 2024, you could be due a small slice of the payout. You'll need to be quick, though – the deadline is today, July 2.

Those who are eligible could be a line for a maximum payout of $100 (that's $20 per device, for up to five Siri devices). Not exactly a lottery jackpot, but worth investigating if you think you've been affected by unintentionally activating Siri during a private conversation during that period.

As The Verge reports, many of those affected will have received an email titled “Lopez Voice Assistant Class Action Settlement" (from the address 'info@lopezvoiceassistantsettlement.com'). Despite sounding like spam, this is a genuine email containing details like your 'claimant identification code' and more.

But even if you didn't receive this, you can also submit a claim. Here's a quick breakdown of what happened, how Apple's responded and how to file a claim if you think you've been affected...

What happened?

The lawsuit's plaintiffs alleged that "confidential or private communications" were "obtained by Apple and/or shared with third parties as a result of an unintended Siri activation". According to the suit's homepage, that took place sometime between 17 September, 2014 and 31 December, 2024.

But how? Apple has always maintained that iPhones don't 'listen' to their owners, aside from when wake words like 'Hey, Siri' are used. Well, the key is that phrase "unintended Siri activation".

The plaintiffs say that Siri not only tuned into private conversations by mistake – perhaps by mishearing a wake word – but also used that information to subsequently trigger ads.

(Image credit: Shutterstock / DedMityay)

Again, Apple denies that this is possible, stating that "Siri data has never been used to build marketing profiles and it has never been sold to anyone for any purpose".

Nevertheless, as Reuters reported, two plaintiffs claimed that their mentions on Air Jordan sneakers and Olive Garden restaurants later resulted in them getting ads for those products, while another plaintiff claimed they got ads for a brand name surgical treatment after talking about it with their doctor.

What did Apple say?

Despite agreeing to pay $95 million to settle the Siri lawsuit, Apple was pretty bullish in its response – and admitted no wrongdoing, despite settling the suit.

Apple told us that "Siri data has never been used to build marketing profiles and it has never been sold to anyone for any purpose,” adding that collected data is only used to improve the virtual assistant.

(Image credit: Shutterstock / Tada Images)

In a separate statement, it added: "Apple settled this case to avoid additional litigation so we can move forward from concerns about third-party grading that we already addressed in 2019. We use Siri data to improve Siri, and we are constantly developing technologies to make Siri even more private."

That's fairly emphatic then, but the settlement means that potentially millions of Apple device owners could be eligible for a claim – here's how to check to see if you're one of them.

How to claim

(Image credit: Lopez v Apple Inc)

If you think you're eligible for a payout in the 'Lopez v Apple Inc' lawsuit, you'll need to use the official claim form and submit it by the end of July 2, 2025.

You'll need to meet some pretty specific criteria in order to be eligible for a payout. That criteria is below and the claim form asks you to confirm all of the below under oath:

• between September 17, 2014 and December 31, 2024 you bought or owned a Siri device in the United States, and enabled Siri on that device
• you experienced an "unintended Siri activation" in that period
• that unintended Siri activation took place "during a conversation intended to be confidential and private"

You can make claims for up to five Siri devices – these can include iPhones, iPads, Apple Watches, MacBooks, iMacs, HomePods, the iPod touch, or Apple TVs.

As mentioned above, many of those who are potentially eligible will have received an email titled "Lopez Voice Assistant Class Action Settlement". But you don't necessarily need to have received that email to make a claim – if not, just click "New Claim" in the claim form and enter your details from there.

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We’re officially over halfway through the year and Paramount+ is still proving it’s the king of the best streaming services for classic movies. Amazingly, we’ve got even more added to its hefty binge list from July 2025.

Jackass is making a huge comeback to the platform with seven of its unhinged movies dropping this month, while tear-jerkers Saving Private Ryan (1998) and Titanic (1997) will make sure we completely run out of tissues.

That’s before we even get to the two big-hitters this month: Dexter: Resurrection and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3. Strange New Worlds is a sequel of the original series, while Resurrection is technically a sequel of a prequel of its main show.

Keeping up? You’ve got some serious binging to do of the best Paramount+ shows.

Everything new on Paramount+ in July 2025

Arriving on July 1

A Soldier's Story (movie)

A Walk Among the Tombstones (movie)

A Walk on the Moon (movie)

Airplane II: The Sequel (movie)

Airplane! (movie)

An Officer and a Gentleman (movie)

Beverly Hills Cop (movie)

Beverly Hills Cop II (movie)

Beverly Hills Cop III (movie)

Boys And Girls (movie)

Breakfast at Tiffany's (movie)

Chicago (movie)

City of God (movie)

City of Men (movie)

Congo (movie)

Cracks (movie)

Crisis (movie)

Defiance (movie)

Don Jon (movie)

Downhill Racer (movie)

Election (movie)

Failure to Launch (movie)

Full Metal Jacket (movie)

G.I. Blues (movie)

G.I. Jane (movie)

Gasoline Alley (movie)

Girl, Interrupted (movie)

Glory (movie)

Go (movie)

Hamburger Hill (movie)

Hit & Run (movie)

Jackass 2.5 (movie)

Jackass 3 (movie)

Jackass 3.5 (movie)

Jackass Number 2 (movie)

Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa (movie)

Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa .5 Unrated (movie)

Jackass: The Movie (movie)

Jarhead (movie)

John Grisham's The Rainmaker (movie)

Limitless (movie)

Looper (movie)

Lords of Dogtown (movie)

Machete Kills (movie)

Major League (movie)

Monster Summer (movie)

Mud (movie)

Pet Sematary (2019) (movie)

Rules of Engagement (movie)

Saving Private Ryan (movie)

Seabiscuit (movie)

Set It Off: Director's Cut (movie)

Side Effects (movie)

Sleepless (movie)

South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut (movie)

Stardust (movie)

Staten Island Summer (movie)

Stop-Loss (movie)

The Aviator (movie)

The Book of Henry (movie)

The Fighter (movie)

The Gunman (movie)

The Killer Inside Me (movie)

The Lincoln Lawyer (movie)

The Patriot (movie)

The Presidio (movie)

The Quiet American (movie)

The Survivalist (movie)

The To Do List (movie)

The Virgin Suicides (movie)

Titanic (movie)

Training Day (movie)

World Trade Center (movie)

Zero Dark Thirty (movie)

Arriving on July 2

Dora & Diego: Rainforest Rescues special (TV show)

Dora and the Search for Sol Dorado (TV show)

Dora season 3 (TV show)

Arriving on July 8

White Famous season 1 (TV show)

Arriving on July 10

The Great Debaters (movie)

Big Brother season 27 (TV show)

Arriving on July 11

Dexter: Resurrection (TV show)

Arriving on July 13

Alone in Berlin (movie)

Arriving on July 16

The Challenge: All Stars season 5 (TV show)

Max and the Midknights season 1 (TV show)

Arriving on July 17

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3 (TV show)

Arriving on July 23

RuPaul's Drag Race season 17 (TV show)

RuPaul's Drag Race: Untucked season 16 (TV show)

Arriving on July 30

CMT Live - Nate Smith at Busch Country: One Night Only (TV show)

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According to recent research, nearly half of the FTSE 100 now have a Chief AI Officer (CAIO) – with 42% of those hires happening in just the last year. On paper, this looks like real momentum, as boardrooms recognize the huge transformational potential of artificial intelligence (AI).

With investors asking, employees experimenting, and competitors charging ahead, the pressure to ‘do something with AI’ is everywhere. For many organizations, a new C-suite title feels like a signal of intent.

But leadership titles alone won’t fix underlying data issues – and in most enterprises, their data isn’t yet AI ready. So, the question is: are CAIOs a sign of strategic evolution, or a symptom of something more reactive?

Who owns AI? Balancing responsibilities between CAIOs and CDOs

In many organizations, the CAIO steps into an environment that already includes a Chief Data Officer (CDO). In others, CDOs are simply absorbing the AI remit without additional support or clarity. It may tick a box on the surface, but it doesn’t solve the underlying issue: who’s actually accountable for AI success?

The result is often blurred lines, overlapping mandates, which can potentially lead to internal friction. CAIOs may be tasked with developing an AI strategy to support technology goals, while the CDO manages data governance, but overlapping responsibilities can sometimes lead to differences over resources and accountability, which may slow the progress of their shared initiatives.

What’s needed is more than simply another title. It’s clarity. AI initiatives are far more likely to succeed when there’s clear ownership of the data lifecycle – from ingestion and governance through to analytics and deployment. Without that end-to-end view, AI projects become fragmented and fail to scale.

AI ambition meets data reality

While boards chase cutting-edge AI strategies, their IT teams are often stuck managing fragmented and outdated data – and legacy systems that weren’t built for AI. IT teams are dealing with dozens of disconnected sources, each with its own structure, format, and security posture. This disconnect between business goals and execution makes it difficult to translate strategy into implementation at scale.

The situation is intensified by relentless data growth, increasingly complex regulatory demands, and hybrid environments spanning both cloud and on-premises infrastructure.

Traditionally, organizations have turned to point solutions to manage scale and compliance. While these tools can accelerate specific use cases and give the impression of faster time to value, they often introduce their own set of complications. Integration challenges, fragmented workflows, and the need for specialized training can all erode long-term ROI – resulting in long-term complexity. This is effectively imposing a ‘data integration tax’ on organizations, at a time when they want to accelerate AI investment.

Many organizations underestimate just how foundational the data layer is. AI requires full visibility into where data lives, how it flows, who has access, and how it’s governed – wherever it resides – whether on-prem, in the cloud, or at the edge. You can’t trust your AI output if you don’t trust your data input.

This is why unified data management platforms are so critical. Without a consistent approach to control, access, and lifecycle management, AI models are not being built on a strong enough foundation. This gap between vision and reality is exactly where a CAIO should be equipped to translate complex technical potential into practical solutions.

CAIOs don’t have to be deep technologists – but they must be translators

Another misconception in the CAIO role is that you need an advanced technical background, like a PhD in machine learning, to do the job. In reality, many of today’s effective AI leaders come from business or operational backgrounds. They understand how to align AI strategy with business outcomes – and just as importantly, how to communicate that strategy to the board.

The real value of the CAIO isn’t just technical – it’s also translational. The best one's act as a bridge between data science teams and the wider organization, making sure that AI initiatives are solving real business problems. They know how to ask the right questions, interpret what’s possible, and lead cross-functional teams to deliver impact.

Of course, technical literacy is integral. But it’s the ability to integrate this with business outcomes and communicate cross functionally across the business that sets a great CAIO apart.

Before businesses hire, they need to ask if they’re ready

There’s no question that CAIOs can add enormous value. But only if the foundations are in place. If the data is fragmented, governance controls are poor, and internal ownership is unclear, even the most visionary AI leader will struggle to deliver results.

That’s why forward-thinking organizations need to ask themselves questions before rushing to hire. Do we have full visibility across our data lifecycle? Are we applying governance and security consistently, no matter where our data lives? Is our architecture flexible enough to support AI at scale? And critically, do we have the cultural and operational readiness to embed AI in a way that actually delivers value?

In this context, it's not about rushing to appoint someone just to show momentum. It’s about ensuring they have the structure, support, and systems in place to actually make a difference. At the end of the day, it’s not the title that will define a company's AI success – it’s the trust they have in their data.

We've featured the best AI chatbot for business.

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

• Wireless Account Lock is now available for AT&T consumer and business users alike
• Free feature that can be toggled in the myAT&T app
• The feature prevents SIM-swapping and similar attacks

AT&T has introduced a new feature to protect consumer and business accounts from SIM-swapping attacks.

Wireless Account Lock will be able to disable several key account changes, a key part of SIM-swapping, which can give attackers control of a victim’s phone number and lets them intercept SMS-based two-factor authentication app codes.

“The lock forces an extra step before important account changes can be made,” AT&T said of the new tool. “It prevents anyone from buying a device on the account, for example, or conducting a SIM swap – moving a phone number to a SIM in a different device.”

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Malicious insiders and tricked employees

The feature is now available in the myAT&T app for postpaid consumer wireless accounts. There, users can toggle it on or off, adding an extra step before they can upgrade a device, change a SIM or an eSIM card, initiate a phone number transfer, add a new line, change billing information, change authorized users, or change phone numbers.

For business users, there is the Business Account Lock and an AT&T Prepaid wireless account lock with similar functions. For businesses, account admins can find the lock switch wherever they access the account online.

Adversaries typically pull off SIM swapping attacks by tricking or bribing mobile carrier employees, or using stolen personal data to impersonate the victim and convince the carrier to transfer the number to a SIM card they control.

Once successful, the attacker can reset passwords and take over sensitive accounts like email, banking, or crypto wallets.

Although it might sound far-fetched, these types of attacks happen all the time - most recently, Bitdefender reported a student interning at the Société Générale bank was arrested under suspicion of helping SIM-swapping scammers defraud 50 clients.

Via MacRumors

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• Proton has joined a US lawsuit against Apple over anti-competitive practices
• The suit seeks both changes in the App Store ecosystem and monetary damages
• On April 30, 2025, a US judge found Apple guilty of violating the 2021 Epic Games case federal injunction over illegal monopoly

Swiss privacy firm Proton has sued Apple over anti-competitive practices that, the company warns, undermine freedom and democracy, hurt privacy-first companies, and lead to a worse user experience.

The provider behind one of the best VPN, secure email, encrypted calendar, and password manager services, Proton, has joined an existing class-action lawsuit in the US against Apple on Monday, June 30, 2025.

The suit, filed in the US District Court for the Northern District of California, seeks changes in the App Store ecosystem as well as monetary damages. The latter, Proton said, will be donated to organizations fighting for democracy and human rights via the nonprofit behind the company, Proton Foundation.

Why Proton is suing Apple

"Apple’s monopoly control of software distribution on iOS devices presents a myriad of problems for consumers, businesses, and society as a whole," wrote Proton in a blog post.

"Anti-monopoly laws exist because the power gifted by monopoly status inevitably leads to abuse. In the case of oligarchic tech giants, these abuses have wide implications for society, and it’s vital to the future of the internet that they be addressed now."

Specifically, Proton claims that Apple's policies favor a surveillance capitalism model that hurts privacy and privacy-first companies.

Apple not only requires all developers to pay an annual fee to be in the App Store, but it also takes a 30% cut from all subscription payments made through iOS apps.

On April 30, Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers found this behavior to violate her federal injunction over illegal monopoly issued in 2021 in the Epic Games case.

The Big Tech giant was indeed supposed to halt anti-competitive practices by giving third-party developers more power to redirect users to cheaper non-Apple payment options.

On that occasion, Proton's Founder and CEO, Andy Yen, said that the company could lower its pricing by up to 30% if Apple were finally forced to remove its tax on the App Store.

In response to the recent court ruling in the US against Apple's illegal in-app purchase monopoly, @ProtonPrivacy will finally be allowed to let iOS users purchase subscriptions outside of the app store. No Apple tax means we will lower prices for users by up to 30%.May 1, 2025

Proton also warns that Apple's total control of the App Store endangers app distribution across different markets.

"Apple argues this control is necessary for security reasons. But the reality is that this has made Apple the single point of failure for free speech and a tool of dictatorships," said the provider.

In 2024 alone, for example, Apple has removed at least 60 VPN apps from Russia's App Store at the request of authorities, for a total of nearly 100 applications unavailable in Apple's market in Russia.

We are seeking to permanently end anti-competitive behavior on the App Store

Proton

Researchers at AppleCensorship also found a staggering 11,026 unavailable apps in China's App Store, which affect sensitive categories like virtual private network (VPN) – ProtonVPN included – other privacy software (like ProtonMail, Signal, and DuckDuckGo), news apps, social media, and even dating applications.

Proton also accuses Apple of "intentionally crippling third-party apps that compete with Apple services," ultimately delivering Apple users a worse internet experience.

For example, Apple allegedly prevents users from using the Proton Calendar app as a default option, Proton said, despite this interoperability being available for email services.

What's next?

As mentioned earlier, Proton has joined an existing lawsuit that was filed on May 23 against Apple by a group representing Korean app developers.

Yet, the lawsuit isn't just about money. The decision to join this legal action against such a tech behemoth, Proton said, stems from the commitment to improve the state of the internet by changing Apple App Store policies once and for all.

"We are seeking to permanently end anti-competitive behavior on the App Store, and we are joining this lawsuit to ensure that any future settlement enforces real changes to Apple’s practices and policies to benefit all consumers, developers, and competition, and not just cosmetic changes," said Proton.

We approached Apple for comments, but we're still waiting for a response at the time of publication.

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Looking for a different day?

A new Quordle puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Wednesday's puzzle instead then click here: Quordle hints and answers for Wednesday, July 2 (game #1255).

Quordle was one of the original Wordle alternatives and is still going strong now more than 1,100 games later. It offers a genuine challenge, though, so read on if you need some Quordle hints today – or scroll down further for the answers.

Enjoy playing word games? You can also check out my NYT Connections today and NYT Strands today pages for hints and answers for those puzzles, while Marc's Wordle today column covers the original viral word game.

SPOILER WARNING: Information about Quordle today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.

Quordle today (game #1256) - hint #1 - VowelsHow many different vowels are in Quordle today?

• The number of different vowels in Quordle today is 3*.

* Note that by vowel we mean the five standard vowels (A, E, I, O, U), not Y (which is sometimes counted as a vowel too).

Quordle today (game #1256) - hint #2 - repeated lettersDo any of today's Quordle answers contain repeated letters?

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

Quordle today (game #1256) - hint #3 - uncommon lettersDo the letters Q, Z, X or J appear in Quordle today?

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

Quordle today (game #1256) - hint #4 - starting letters (1)Do any of today's Quordle puzzles start with the same letter?

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

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

Quordle today (game #1256) - hint #5 - starting letters (2)What letters do today's Quordle answers start with?

• D

• E

• G

• E

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

Quordle today (game #1256) - the answers

(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)

The answers to today's Quordle, game #1256, are…

• DANCE
• EYING
• GLAZE
• EGRET

I only just completed Qourdle today, after making two rookie errors.

I failed to check before typing out “glade” and ignored that the letter D had already been ruled out for this word. And then I gambled on a double letter with “greet”. Still, both mistakes led me to the correct answers, so I’m not too disappointed in myself.

How did you do today? Let me know in the comments below.

Daily Sequence today (game #1256) - the answers

(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)

The answers to today's Quordle Daily Sequence, game #1256, are…

• ZEBRA
• MINCE
• STOOP
• TOWEL

Quordle answers: The past 20

• Quordle #1255, Wednesday, 2 July: INANE, SCOUR, ELITE, ULCER
• Quordle #1254, Tuesday, 1 July: REBAR, YEARN, FORTH, CROWD
• Quordle #1253, Monday, 30 June: INGOT, INFER, TAPIR, CLUED
• Quordle #1252, Sunday, 29 June: MIRTH, APTLY, SCRUB, SMACK
• Quordle #1251, Saturday, 28 June: AWOKE, SMOKY, DEVIL, SWING
• Quordle #1250, Friday, 27 June: SPEAK, EAGLE, AVERT, SUING
• Quordle #1249, Thursday, 26 June: SLUMP, REBUS, GUAVA, MONEY
• Quordle #1248, Wednesday, 25 June: SOGGY, CLASH, MODEM, SQUAD
• Quordle #1247, Tuesday, 24 June: QUALM, SQUIB, AXIAL, FLACK
• Quordle #1246, Monday, 23 June: PIXEL, FJORD, STEAL, EXIST
• Quordle #1245, Sunday, 22 June: WREST, CRAZE, PAPAL, SCION
• Quordle #1244, Saturday, 21 June: BUDDY, GROUT, BEGIN, MADAM
• Quordle #1243, Friday, 20 June: BRAID, DULLY, HASTE, LURID
• Quordle #1242, Thursday, 19 June: BRUSH, ISLET, FRUIT, PRIVY
• Quordle #1241, Wednesday, 18 June: MEDIA, SHARK, GUPPY, MOURN
• Quordle #1240, Tuesday, 17 June: LEAPT, PRISM, ADMIN, WHINE
• Quordle #1239, Monday, 16 June: RETRY, SCALD, DINGO, FEIGN
• Quordle #1238, Sunday, 15 June: SHOCK, STEIN, BROIL, COVEN
• Quordle #1237, Saturday, 14 June: STICK, FERRY, THESE, IONIC
• Quordle #1236, Friday, 13 June: REPEL, LARGE, SNIDE, CARRY

Looking for a different day?

A new NYT Connections puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Wednesday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Connections hints and answers for Wednesday, July 2 (game #752).

Good morning! Let's play Connections, the NYT's clever word game that challenges you to group answers in various categories. It can be tough, so read on if you need Connections hints.

What should you do once you've finished? Why, play some more word games of course. I've also got daily Strands hints and answers and Quordle hints and answers articles if you need help for those too, while Marc's Wordle today page covers the original viral word game.

SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Connections today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.

NYT Connections today (game #753) - today's words

(Image credit: New York Times)

Today's NYT Connections words are…

• CONTACT
• NUMBER
• EXCHANGE
• INSURANCE
• ARRIVAL
• COLLEGE
• MARKET
• POSITION
• ALMANAC
• FLIGHT
• DEALINGS
• TEAM
• GATE
• TAN
• DESTINATION
• INTERACTION

NYT Connections today (game #753) - hint #1 - group hints

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

• YELLOW: Communicating
• GREEN: Crucial at the terminal
• BLUE: Player information
• PURPLE: Preceded by a profession that rhymes with “llama”

Need more clues?

We're firmly in spoiler territory now, but read on if you want to know what the four theme answers are for today's NYT Connections puzzles…

NYT Connections today (game #753) - hint #2 - group answers

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

• YELLOW: CORRESPONDENCE 
• GREEN: AIRPORT BOARD INFO 
• BLUE: PRO ATHLETE DATA 
• PURPLE: FARMERS' THINGS 

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

NYT Connections today (game #753) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Connections, game #753, are…

• YELLOW: CORRESPONDENCE CONTACT, DEALINGS, EXCHANGE, INTERACTION
• GREEN: AIRPORT BOARD INFO ARRIVAL, DESTINATION, FLIGHT, GATE
• BLUE: PRO ATHLETE DATA COLLEGE, NUMBER, POSITION, TEAM
• PURPLE: FARMERS' THINGS ALMANAC, INSURANCE, MARKET, TAN

• My rating: Hard
• My score: 3 mistakes

My first two mistakes came trying to put together AIRPORT BOARD INFO including POSITION and then NUMBER instead of ARRIVAL. It seems obvious now, of course, but the word “time” after “arrival” would have helped.

Next, I struggled to see what was left from the eight remaining words and landed at PRO ATHLETE DATA through some fortunate shuffling. 

I had never heard of several of these FARMERS’ THINGS before, but can see now why a farmer’s TAN could be a unique thing, as it indicates someone who works outside a great deal. 

How did you do today? Let me know in the comments below.

Yesterday's NYT Connections answers (Wednesday, July 2, game #752)

• YELLOW: KNOCKOFF BOOTLEG, COPY, FAKE, REPLICA
• BLUE: WORDS AFTER "T-" MOBILE, PAIN, REX, SHIRT
• GREEN: ASSOCIATED WITH FREUD DREAMS, ID, OEDIPUS, SLIP
• PURPLE: STARTING WITH HIGH SCHOOL/COLLEGE ABBREVIATIONS FRESHWATER, JUNIPER, SENECA, SOPHOCLES

What is NYT Connections?

NYT Connections is one of several increasingly popular word games made by the New York Times. It challenges you to find groups of four items that share something in common, and each group has a different difficulty level: green is easy, yellow a little harder, blue often quite tough and purple usually very difficult.

On the plus side, you don't technically need to solve the final one, as you'll be able to answer that one by a process of elimination. What's more, you can make up to four mistakes, which gives you a little bit of breathing room.

It's a little more involved than something like Wordle, however, and there are plenty of opportunities for the game to trip you up with tricks. For instance, watch out for homophones and other word games that could disguise the answers.

It's playable for free via the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.

Looking for a different day?

A new NYT Strands puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Wednesday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Wednesday, July 2 (game #486).

Strands is the NYT's latest word game after the likes of Wordle, Spelling Bee and Connections – and it's great fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands hints.

Want more word-based fun? Then check out my NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games, and Marc's Wordle today page for the original viral word game.

SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.

NYT Strands today (game #487) - hint #1 - today's themeWhat is the theme of today's NYT Strands?

• Today's NYT Strands theme is… ... Beyond vanilla

NYT Strands today (game #487) - hint #2 - clue words

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

• MARCH
• BROWN
• BORE
• STRETCH
• SCOTCH
• CROWN

NYT Strands today (game #487) - hint #3 - spangram lettersHow many letters are in today's spangram?

• Spangram has 8 letters

NYT Strands today (game #487) - hint #4 - spangram positionWhat are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?

First side: bottom, 3rd column

Last side: top, 4th column

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

NYT Strands today (game #487) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Strands, game #487, are…

• CHERRY
• COFFEE
• BUTTERSCOTCH
• BROWNIE
• PISTACHIO
• SPANGRAM: ICE CREAM

• My rating: Tricky
• My score: 1 hint

In many ways this was my perfect Strands game. It was tricky, but not too tricky. The spangram was of a standard, acceptable length. There were no disputable words. 

Most of all, it made me think about my favorite treat for a few minutes.

I forget that I’m lactose intolerant when it comes to ICE CREAM (in case anyone wants an argument, my theory is that every human is lactose intolerant) and especially when it comes to PISTACHIO ice cream.

I’d been under the impression that it was a relatively rare flavor, but here it is rubbing shoulders with the other top alternatives to the ice cream flavor mafia of vanilla, strawberry and chocolate. The Salted Caramel team are going to be really annoyed they didn’t make into this puzzle.

How did you do today? Let me know in the comments below.

Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Wednesday, July 2, game #486)

• FEATHER
• TWIG
• WOOL
• GRASS
• LEAF
• FLUFF
• MOSS
• SPANGRAM: NESTING MATERIAL

What is NYT Strands?

Strands is the NYT's not-so-new-any-more word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable that has been running for a year and which can be played on the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.

I've got a full guide to how to play NYT Strands, complete with tips for solving it, so check that out if you're struggling to beat it each day.

Now we know why your favorite fast food now costs more than ever before.

Netflix has a bonkers new anime movie that has proven to be a smash hit, as critics and audiences across the globe race to stream the viral animation.

Since dropping on June 20, KPop Demon Hunters has shot to the top of the streamer's charts, becoming the number one most-watched movie worldwide. The new Netflix movie has also topped the charts in a variety of countries and is sitting comfortably in the top 10 everywhere that one of the best streaming services is available.

It’s hardly surprising considering critics are rating it among the best Netflix movies currently streaming, with the film earning a 97% rating on Rotten Tomatoes from the critics.

From directors Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans and produced by Spider-Verse stable Sony Pictures Animation, the film tells the story of fictional K-pop girl group Huntr/x and their battle with rival boy band the Saja Boys, who are secretly demons, naturally.

The band, consisting of Rumi (Arden Cho), Mira (May Hong), and Zoey (Ji-young Yoo) may spend much of their time selling out stadiums, but unbeknownst to their legions of fans, the trio are also part of an ancient order of badass demon hunters who use their singing voices – and great big swords – to maintain a barrier between our world and that of the demons known as the Honmoon. However, when one band member begins to lose their voice as a result of a dark secret, the Honmoon begins to weaken as an ancient evil plots to conquer our world.

Since its release, the film has become a viral sensation, not only due to the eye-popping animation and bonkers demon slaying action, but also the music, which as you can imagine, consists of K-pop banger after K-pop banger.

"I’ve always thought of K-pop as the most theatrical genre of pop” says the film’s executive music producer Ian Eisendrath, “and so I was just instantly excited by the possibilities of what could happen in a narrative context with the K-pop songs [and] incorporating actual, hit-making K-pop artists. I just felt like everything was really set up to be a special musical and narrative experience.”

To ensure the film felt authentic to its K-pop world, Kang and Appelhans enlisted the services of some of the genres biggest producers including Teddy Park, Lindgren, Stephen Kirk and Jenna Andrews, who between them have produced tracks for the likes of Blackpink, BTS, TWICE and Together X Tomorrow.

The film boasts a whole heap of original K-pop style songs that both perfectly fit the action on screen and will get stuck in your head for days afterwards, with at least a couple likely to feature on your Spotify Wrapped come December.

What are the critics saying about KPop Demon Hunters?

(Image credit: Netflix)

As you’d expect from such a high Rotten Tomatoes score, critics are loving KPop Demon Hunters, with redditor 'Common Sense Media' saying: “What's not to like about an animated superhero tale set against the world of K-pop music?” while Mashable praised the writing, stating “What makes KPop Demon Hunters so effective isn’t just that it nails the aesthetic; it gets the emotions right.”

'InSession Film', meanwhile, warn that the film may just make you a fan of the musical genre: “Kang and Appelhans’ film more than deserves your attention, and could act as a gateway to the incredible, highly imaginative world of KPop. You may never be the same after the credits roll.”

The lively animation has also received plenty of acclaim, with Screen Rant calling the film “stunning” while Decider applauded the “striking visuals”.

What's the subscriber's verdict?

Subscribers have been equally vocal in their praise, with the flick boasting a very respectable 89% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes.

On Reddit, one user said “I love it so freaking much,” calling it their “all time favourite movie of 2025” while another said “It was amazing. Great animation, I loved most of the songs, and the vibe was off the charts.”

The music, in particular, has been a hit with audiences as Redditors praise the "absolutely phenomenal” songs, calling them “catchy” tracks which "absolutely banged.”

A few detractors have shared their thoughts on plot aspects they wish were further developed, however, with one user saying “I kinda wished the demons had been more complex" while another said “I wish they would have explained Rumi’s parents more.”

Comment from r/netflix

By all accounts, it seems Sony Pictures Animation have once again delivered an instant classic, so if you’re in the mood for a bonkers, uplifting movie that will leave you toe tapping for days afterwards, head over to Netflix and stream KPop Demon Hunters right now.

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