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• Judge orders Automattic to stop blocking WP Engine’s access to its servers
• WordPress owner must also restore access to how it was before the falling out
• Automattic CEO has indicated he’s unhappy with the decision

In the latest development in what has been a chequered few months for the WordPress hosting platform, the US District Court for the Northern District of California has sided with WP Engine in its battle against Automattic, the parent company of WordPress.com.

The court’s order demands Automattic stop, “blocking, disabling, or interfering with WPEngine’s and/or its employees’, users’, customers’, or partners’ access to WordPress.org” and “interfering with WPEngine’s control over, or access to, plugins or extensions.”

Judge Martínez-Olguín also criticized Automattic’s defense, which argued WP Engine’s reliance on WordPress.org resource was self-imposed, noting Automattic’s targeted actions specifically against WP Engine exacerbated the harm.

WP Engine comes out victorious?

The dispute began when Automattic CEO Matt Mullenweg accused WP Engine of being a “cancer” for taking more than it gives to the open source project.

Mullenweg later banned WP Engine from accessing WordPress.org’s resources for free after days of tit-for-tat arguments.

Apart from blocking WP Engine’s access to WordPress.org servers, WP Engine also accused Mullenweg of seizing control of its Advanced Custom Fields (ACF) plugin. In response to Automattic's drastic measures, WP Engine took legal action.

Judge Martínez-Olguín confirmed that Automattic’s “conduct is designed to induce breach or disruption.”

The court also heard WP Engine “experienced a 14% increase in the average number of daily cancellation requests between September 26 and 30, and an increase of 17% in cancellation requests between October 1 and October 14, as compared to September 1 through September 25.”

The Judge also demanded Automattic “[restores] WPEngine’s and Related Entities’ access to WordPress.org in the manner that such access existed as of September 20, 2024,” including to functionality and development resources, data resources, security resources and support resources.

A WPEngine spokesperson told TechRadar Pro, "We are grateful that the court has granted our motion for a preliminary injunction. The order will bring back much-needed stability to the WordPress ecosystem. WP Engine is focused on serving our partners and customers and working with the community to find ways to ensure a vigorous, and thriving WordPress community.”

We’ve reached out to Automattic for their responses to the court ruling, but did not immediately receive a response - however, Mullenweg did share another user’s X post seemingly indicative of his disagreement. It reads: “Agree with him or not, the court is forcing an open source maintainer into providing services to a user.”

UPDATE: Automattic shared the following statement with TechRadar Pro in an email:

"Today’s ruling is a preliminary order designed to maintain the status quo. It was made without the benefit of discovery, our motion to dismiss, or the counterclaims we will be filing against WP Engine shortly. We look forward to prevailing at trial as we continue to protect the open source ecosystem during full-fact discovery and a full review of the merits."

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Here's a hint: That peach emoji isn't about fruit.

In this installment of WIRED’s AI advice column, “The Prompt,” we answer questions about giving AI tools proper attribution and teaching future generations how to interact with chatbots.

• A new report suggests we'll be seeing two Galaxy Z Flip phones next year
• The report also tips both phones will run on Samsung's own Exynos 2500 chipset
• But Samsung has yet to offer any official information on upcoming foldables

A new report has pulled together two different threads of rumors concerning the future of the company’s flip foldable lineup following the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6.

According to Korean news outlet Chosun Biz, the rumored Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 and Galaxy Z Flip FE smartphones will use Samsung’s own Exynos 2500 chipset, as the company has managed to overcome hurdles in the chipset manufacturing process. The report was shared on Twitter by notable leaker Jukanlosreve.

The direct mention of the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip FE in this report adds to previous rumors of a cheaper folding phone from Samsung, though the use of a flagship-class Exynos 2500 chipset may suggest a more premium device than originally expected.

For comparison, the Samsung Galaxy S24 FE uses Samsung’s own Exynos 2400e chipset, while the flagship Galaxy S24 models all use the more powerful Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset from Qualcomm.

Samsung has been making efforts to move away from Qualcomm and towards its own Exynos platform for quite some time now but has faced difficulties with production, chiefly the inability to produce enough chipsets for the amount of phones the company sells.

It is currently the only major phone maker to not use a proprietary chipset in its flagship phones – Apple equips the iPhone 16 family with the A18 chipset, whereas Google implements its Tensor G4 in the Pixel 9 series.

The report quotes an unnamed senior official at Samsung, who noted that 3nm chipset production has “stabilized” after difficulties with mass production. The official added that “It seems difficult to install it in the Galaxy S25 series due to insufficient quantity, but it will be possible to fully install it in the premium models of the Z Flip series.”

Note the plural “models” in the above quote – this seems to support the idea that multiple new Z Flip phones are on the way, and the emphasis on premium may allude to more powerful specs for the rumored Z Flip FE.

If this is the case, the Exynos 2500 will seem right at home within the Galaxy Z Flip FE, though it may bring the total cost of the handset up somewhat.

No matter the price of the new Galaxy Z Flip devices, it’s likely we’ll see both phones make it to our list of the best folding phones.

Samsung have yet to officially comment on these developments, and likely won’t reveal either rumored phone until close to launch. For the latest official updates as we hear them, be sure to keep up with our Samsung Galaxy phones coverage.

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• The follow-up to the SU7 takes on the globally-popular SUV body shape
• It boasts larger batteries and more power than the Tesla Model Y
• Xiaomi says the YU7 will go on sale in China next year

Chinese smartphone and technology manufacturer Xiaomi has proven it can make waves in the electric vehicle market with the runaway success of its SU7 electric sedan – a high-performance Ultra version of which recently set a record around Germany’s Nurburgring.

Now, details and imagery of the brand’s debut SUV have been revealed via the company's Weibo site, alongside the name. Dubbed the YU7, the large SUV borrows several design cues from its sedan counterpart and features a nod to one its closest rivals in the nomenclature.

Tesla’s Model Y is clearly going to be Xiaomi’s number one target, with its newest vehicle tipped to offer battery sizes of 94.3kWh and 101kWh, which could equate to an all-electric range in excess of 400 miles on a single charge.

(Image credit: Xiaomi)

The YU7 is also longer and wider than the Tesla counterpart, boasting styling that is reminiscent of Ferrari’s Purosangue performance SUV, with hints of Porsche Macan at the rear. It’s certainly not the most original piece of design, but it’s arguably a more purposeful-looking EV than Tesla’s almost formless Model Y.

The Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology’s website, which publishes details of planned electric vehicle launches, suggested that the YU7 would receive a dual-motor powertrain that could offer a combined power output of 681bhp – almost 100hp more than the most potent Tesla Model Y Long Range Performance model.

There is currently no word on what the interior will look like, although we would expect it share many of its components (including its smartphone-derived technology) with the SU7 sister model. Xiaomi says deliveries of the YU7 will start in China next year.

Analysis: Xiaomi is shaking up the EV industry

(Image credit: Xiaomi)

Many scoffed at the thought of a smartphone-maker taking on some of the biggest names in the automotive game, but the company has proven that its domestic customers crave the absolute cutting-edge in technology.

The company had built and sold 10,000 SU7 models just 32 days after its initial announcement and then went on to hit its 100,000-unit sales target in 230 days. Since that point, it has out-sold Toyota in pure EV sales in China and has gone on to produce a 1,526hp, tri-motor performance version that out-gunned the most ferocious Porsche Taycan around Germany’s infamous Nurburgring.

Xiaomi is shaking up the market and the release of its long-awaited SUV model will only help bolster its sales. Tesla will likely be the most worried about the news, seeing as China has historically been one of its most successful markets.

But, like BYD, Nio and a whole host of fellow Chinese brands, it likely won’t be long before Xiaomi starts to look at other profitable global markets as it seeks expansion.

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• Android phones are getting a new Motion Cues feature
• The feature should help combat motion sickness when reading in cars
• iPhones recently got a similar feature in iOS 18

If you were paying attention to the iOS 18 launch, you may have noticed a new Vehicle Motion Cues feature that promises to help to combat car sickness. There's now an Android equivalent on the way – and we just got a better idea of how it's going to work.

The folks over at Android Police did some digging into the Google Play Services code on Android, discovering that the feature Google is planning – called, apparently, Motion Cues – is almost ready to be rolled out.

With a few tweaks, the Android Police team was able to get the feature working: You get a simple Motion Cues toggle switch, plus an Auto-enable when Driving option that has the feature kick in whenever your phone thinks you're in a car.

As on iOS, the feature puts small black dots at the edge of the screen, which then move to match the motion of the vehicle you're in. The idea is to remove the disconnect between your body feeling movement and your eyes seeing something fixed and stationary.

Coming soon

The hidden screens enabled by Android Police (Image credit: Android Police)

Google hasn't said anything officially yet, so we don't know when this feature is going to be pushed out – we might not see it until Android 16 arrives around mid-2025, though it could also be part of an Android 15 update. The feature was first spotted last month.

When it does turn up, you'll be able to activate it through the Quick Settings panel, Android Police reports – so with a quick one-finger or two-finger swipe down from the top of the screen you can turn it on and try and ward off any nausea.

Here's how Apple describes its own feature: "With Vehicle Motion Cues, animated dots on the edges of the screen represent changes in vehicle motion to help reduce sensory conflict without interfering with the main content."

That "sensory conflict" happens when there's a disconnect between what you see and what you feel, and Motion Cues should help – not just in cars, but in other places where you might get motion sickness (on a boat, for example).

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“People don’t always realize they are creating a human being and not a piece of furniture.”

• Samsung will reportedly sell magnetic cases for the Galaxy S25 series
• These could allow you to attach other magnetic accessories to the phones
• It's unclear whether these would be used with or instead of Qi2

One clear advantage the iPhone 16 and other iPhones have over Samsung’s devices is their MagSafe system, which allows you to magnetically attach wireless chargers, tripods, and other accessories to the back of them. But this is a feature that Samsung might be looking to match with the Samsung Galaxy S25 series.

According to leaker Roland Quandt (writing for WinFuture), Samsung is making a range of covers – including transparent covers and what’s being referred to as a “card cover” – with built-in magnets.

According to Quandt’s sources, these magnets will allow you to magnetically attach other accessories to the phone. So, in other words, the case might attach like any normal smartphone case, but its built-in magnet could allow you to attach additional magnetic accessories to the case.

This, then, could allow Samsung to somewhat replicate the MagSafe system without having any MagSafe-like tech built into the phone itself.

The Qi2 question

This leak is all well and good, but recently we heard that the Samsung Galaxy S25 line might support the Qi2 magnetic wireless charging standard. This should mean that you wouldn't need one of these cases to attach magnetic accessories to the phone, as the magnets would already be built into the handset.

So, what’s going on here? It’s possible that both leaks are right, and that Samsung's cases contain additional magnets so you can securely attach accessories even with a case on the phone.

Or maybe the claims of Qi2 were wrong and Samsung’s MagSafe alternative will be powered purely by these cases. Quandt, for his part, said on Bluesky that he hasn’t seen any evidence of Qi2, but that he also wouldn’t be surprised if the standard was supported.

One way or another, though, it’s looking very likely that you’ll be able to use magnetic accessories with the Samsung Galaxy S25 and its siblings.

In other Galaxy S25 news, Quandt has also shared images of some Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra dummy units.

Post by @rquandt030 View on Threads

These images show the phone from all angles in both black and white shades, but they don’t really show us much that we haven’t seen before. As noted by Quandt, they also seem to lack the periscope camera we’re expecting the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra to come equipped with – the device in question has the right number of cameras, but none of the lenses are the square shape we’d expect from a periscope.

As such, it’s possible that other details are wrong too, but these dummy units seem to otherwise line up with other leaked images, which show an S25 Ultra with slightly more rounded corners than the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra but an otherwise similar design.

We’re expecting the Samsung Galaxy S25 series to launch in January, with leaks pointing to January 22, so we should get an official look at the design – and any MagSafe-like accessories – before long.

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• The US Treasury Dept. is bringing sanctions against a Chinese cybersecurity firm and one of its employees
• The Government believes the employee is singlehandedly responsible for over 80,000 Sophos firewall breaches
• Many of the targets were part of US critical infrastructure

Chinese cybersecurity firm Sichuan Silence has been sanctioned by the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) for its role in a string of Ragnarok ransomware attacks in April of 2020, in which tens of thousands of firewalls were compromised across the globe.

Also sanctioned was an employee of the firm, Guan Tianfeng, who is allegedly single-handedly responsible for exploiting 81,000 Sophos firewalls. Guan discovered a zero-day exploit in the Sophos firewall and used this to compromise businesses, and steal information like passwords.

Once the information was obtained, Guan would often disable the victims anti-virus software and encrypt the device with a Ragnarok ransomware variant, which infected the victim’s device.

23,000 successful compromises

The wide-reaching cyber espionage campaign compromised over 23,000 firewalls in the US alone, with 36 critical infrastructure targets - including an energy company. Obviously an impressive cybercriminal, Guan (also known as GbigMao), also competed in cybersecurity tournaments on behalf of Sichuan Silence.

The Justice Department has offered a $10 million reward for any information that could lead to the location of the attacker. The ‘malicious cyber activities’ against infrastructure are violations of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act.

“The defendant and his conspirators compromised tens of thousands of firewalls and then continued to hold at risk these devices, which protect computers in the United States and around the world,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security Matthew G. Olsen.

The sanctions include the seizure of any US property or assets belonging to the firm or to Guan, and blocking any entities that are more than 50% owned by Sichuan Silence, unless authorized by the OFAC.

The US government recently announced that mitigating Chinese cyberattacks is a top priority for US security forces, citing serious national security concerns.

The cybersecurity firm is said to have served as a third-party contractor for the Chinese government’s intelligence agency, offering tools and skills. From now on, US organizations and citizens are prohibited from engaging in any financial transactions with the firm.

Via BleepingComputer

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