Feed aggregator

• Nextron Systems found a malicious Pluggable Authentication Module
• They named it Plague after finding pop culture references
• The malware is capable of wreaking havoc across high-value targets

Security researchers have found a piece of highly capable Linux malware which somehow flew the radar for a year.

Nextron Systems reported finding Plague, a malicious Pluggable Authentication Module (PAM) that grants attackers persistent, covert access to compromised systems.

“The Plague backdoor represents a sophisticated and evolving threat to Linux infrastructure, exploiting core authentication mechanisms to maintain stealth and persistence,” the researchers explained. “Its use of advanced obfuscation, static credentials, and environment tampering makes it particularly difficult to detect using conventional methods.”

Manual inspection

The malware was named Plague after finding a reference to Mr. Plague, a character from the 1995 movie Hackers, in its code.

The researchers said that multiple samples were uploaded to VirusTotal over the past year, yet none were flagged as malicious, which could indicate the backdoor managed to evade public scrutiny and antivirus detection.

Plague integrates deeply into the authentication stack, survives system updates, and leaves minimal forensic traces, the experts explained.

It employs evolving string obfuscation techniques, including XOR, KSA/PRGA-like routines, and DRBG layer. It also features anti-debugging checks and session stealth mechanisms that erase all traces of activity. Compiler metadata also showed that it is in active development.

For cybercriminals, there are multiple benefits to malware hiding inside PAM systems.

According to a CyberInsider report, Plague can steal login credentials, making it particularly dangerous on high-value Linux systems such as bastion hosts, jump servers, and cloud infrastructure.

“A compromised bastion host or jump server can provide attackers with a foothold to move laterally across internal systems, escalate privileges, or exfiltrate sensitive data,” the publication argues.

Furthermore, a compromised cloud environment could grant the attackers access to multiple virtual machines or services all at once.

Since Plague is still not being flagged by the best antivirus tools, Nextron advises admins to manually inspect their devices, including auditing the /lib/security directory for shady PAM modules, monitoring PAM configuration files in /etc/pam.d/ for changes, and looking for suspicious logins in authentication logs.

Via The Register

You might also like

• A new Linux backdoor is hitting US universities and governments
• Take a look at our guide to the best authenticator app
• We've rounded up the best password managers

You can watch "comfort fare" movies and TV shows from brands like Warner Bros.

Across the UK's public sector, digital transformation is no longer a future goal, it's a daily necessity. From healthcare to local councils, teams are under growing pressure to deliver more, more efficiently. With Labour now in government, the focus must shift from AI hype to tangible, measurable outcomes that improve both public services and the lives of citizens.

AI adoption in the UK is already accelerating across the public sector. According to the National Audit Office, 70% of respondents in government bodies last year were piloting and planning AI use cases - and this number is only increasing.

Among recent innovations, agentic AI stands out for its potential to reshape public service delivery. Agentic AI doesn’t just assist users it acts on their behalf, it is like an invisible colleague, giving public sector workers time back to concentrate on higher-value tasks. For example, it can automatically draft responses to citizen inquiries, process routine paperwork, or generate policy briefs by summarizing large volumes of legislative and research data.

To see widespread adoption and demonstrate its immense potential to revolutionize UK public services, agentic AI cannot be locked behind expensive paywalls or complex integrations. Instead, it should be embedded into the platforms already used by millions quietly working in the background to remove friction and unlock capacity.

Leveraging agentic AI to power the public sector

Built with four core agentic skills – reasoning, memory, task action, and orchestration – agentic AI uses these skills to complete tasks and act autonomously under human oversight to support public servants in their day-to-day work. Take the example of administrative overhead in healthcare, education, or local government - often the invisible weight negatively impacting productivity and morale. In roles like community health visits or social work, professionals frequently spend as much time on documentation as they do with people. With the help of agentic AI instead of spending time after each consultation writing up a report, agentic AI can do so in their place without asking. This means trained professionals can get on and do what they do best and trained for: supporting people.

Or imagine a local council meeting where decisions are made about community projects. With the help of agentic AI, the meeting's key points can be summarized instantly, action items can be identified, and follow-up communications can be drafted – automatically without manual intervention. Agentic AI can also analyze and develop content based on uploaded documents which can be a huge benefit for officials across the civil service and local government. Whether it's creating campaign briefs or drafting policy documents, agentic AI can help public servants get over the hurdle of producing a first draft, giving them more time to focus on strategic or higher-value initiatives during their day. In resource-constrained teams - common in the public sector - it’s like gaining an extra pair of hands.

With the right permissions, agentic AI can do much more than summarize meetings. It can even understand schedules and book meetings on team's behalf, under the user's discretion.

Agentic AI adoption is built on transparency

Technology is only part of the equation. For agentic AI to serve its purpose, adoption must be transparent, inclusive, and focused on solving real-world problems. Public trust is paramount, and any AI deployed in public services must meet high standards for privacy, bias mitigation, and accountability. That’s why implementation matters as much as innovation.

One of the most effective ways to implement agentic AI is by integrating it into tools that people already use every day. Whether it be for communication, collaboration, education, service delivery, or operations. These are the platforms and systems that employees, students, and citizens are already comfortable with. Embedding AI into these familiar environments builds user confidence, simplifies training and education, and accelerates adoption by meeting people where they are, rather than introducing entirely new workflows.

Crucially, being transparent isn’t just a matter of ethics, it’s a prerequisite for public trust. Building confidence in AI starts with inclusive design, rigorous governance, and a commitment to using these tools to solve real-world challenges. When citizens see that AI is being applied responsibly and with their interests in mind, it becomes more than a technological advance; it becomes a public asset.

A vision for the future

Agentic AI has the potential to reshape public services by automating routine tasks, supporting better decisions, and allowing frontline workers to focus on people rather than paperwork. It supports the broader goal of building a public sector that is more efficient, responsive, and centered around citizens’ needs.

To realize this vision, public-private collaboration will be essential. The public sector must continue to set the direction - anchored in fairness, transparency, and service to citizens - while tech providers must ensure that innovation is accessible, responsibly deployed, and truly supportive of the people on the frontlines.

Agentic AI is not a distant vision but rather a present opportunity. If embraced wisely, it can be the catalyst that powers Labour's vision for a reimagined, modernized public sector.

We've featured the best AI website builder.

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

The emergence of destructive cyberattacks has given rise to the increasing use of the term “cyber resilience”. But what exactly does it mean? And how does an organization become cyber resilient?

Many organizations will readily invest in preventative and detective technologies, in the hopes it will provide a virtual castle-and-moat against the increasing volume and sophistication of cyberattacks. Yet, the pervasiveness of adversaries continues, with the recent M&S, Harrods, and Co-op attacks of late just another example that tech investments don’t necessarily result in a winning hand.

True cyber resilience lies beyond simply deploying a tech solution off-the-shelf; it’s about how these solutions are used, your company culture, and whether you have the necessary skills and processes to maintain it.

Yet, many IT and security teams continue to operate in silos that leave their business vulnerable. In fact, our research found that 31% of IT and security professionals consider collaboration between their IT and security teams “weak,” while two in five (40%) report that collaboration between the teams continues to stagnate – or even decline.

While it’s right to establish distinction between IT and security teams, they must have the muscle memory and lines of communication required to minimize disruption and accelerate recovery in a time of crisis.

So, how can IT and security teams work together to ensure the right governance, processes, and technologies are in place to respond to crises and build long-term resiliency?

Incident response: The foundations for resiliency

An effective incident response strategy will be the foundational thread that brings together your people, processes and technology. A critical first step is to define key responsibilities – your security team, for example should focus on detecting the breach, containing its spread, and identifying the entry point.

Meanwhile, your IT team should focus on remediation and ensuring business continuity. Responsibilities should include managing the response to system outages, restoring critical infrastructure, re-setting authentication tokens and passwords, deleting malicious accounts, and installing software patches.

IT and security teams must agree on policies for governance and incident escalation, ensuring this is put into practice from the outset. Communication is one of the first things to break in a crisis, so it’s vital to establish communication protocols and capabilities. How will you talk? How often? What happens when a major decision needs to be made? Do you have a joint workflow for an attack?

A shared document outlining specific responsibilities, key contacts, escalation paths, and recovery strategies will provide the foundations for both teams to move quickly and act methodically, even when emotions are running high.

Building a ‘shared responsibility model’

An effective incident response strategy should also include the creation of a ‘shared responsibility model’, which establish clear, step-by-step procedures for responding to cyberattacks.

As part of this, businesses should consider setting up a Clean Room, which is an isolated, secure environment where IT and security teams can align on investigation and remediation without the risk of reinfection. This controlled space would allow teams to analyze the attack, build a timeline, and develop a recovery plan that removes the threat and prevents reinfection.

Once systems are confirmed as clean and data recovered, it can be moved to a staging area for testing before being reintroduced into live systems. This may take longer than stakeholders would like, but the cost of improper recovery could ultimately result in systems being hit again and taken down for longer.

Fostering greater IT and security alignment

A healthy competitiveness often exists between IT and security teams. IT wants to innovate, while security wants to lock things down. These teams are made up of brilliant minds. However, faced with the pressure of a crisis, simmering issues may come to a head, or they may become so fixated on solving the issue that they fail to update others.

To build an effective incident response strategy, identifying a shared vision is essential. Leadership should host joint workshops in which teams learn more about each other and share ideas about embedding security into system architecture. Furthermore, these sessions should simulate real-world crises, ensuring that each team is familiar with how their roles intersect during a high-pressure situation and feel comfortable when an actual crisis arises.

Measuring incident readiness and resiliency

Most importantly, IT and security teams should continuously benchmark against a cyber resiliency maturity model to optimize their people, process, and technology. While there are the classic measures like Mean Time to Detect, Mean Time to Respond, and Mean Time to Remediate to ensure teams are working towards something, for me, it’s about assessing readiness through structured activities.

By simulating realistic scenarios – from ransomware incidents to malware attacks – those in leadership positions can directly test and measure the incident response plan so it becomes an ingrained process. Throw in curveballs when needed, and use these exercises to identify gaps in processes, tools, or communication.

Remember that cyber resilience is like a chain – the capability of the weakest link will drag down your overall level of cyber resilience. Therefore, my key takeaway is this: create shared purpose, simplify escalation paths by giving frontline responders clear roles, automate what you can, and ensure communications channels are streamlined and always available. If you can overcome occupational silos and get security and IT working together, most other issues will cease to exist.

We've featured the best encryption software.

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

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 Tuesday's puzzle instead then click here: Quordle hints and answers for Tuesday, August 5 (game #1289).

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 #1290) - 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 #1290) - hint #2 - repeated lettersDo any of today's Quordle answers contain repeated letters?

• The number of Quordle answers containing a repeated letter today is 2.

Quordle today (game #1290) - hint #3 - uncommon lettersDo the letters Q, Z, X or J appear in Quordle today?

• No. None of Q, Z, X or J appear among today's Quordle answers.

Quordle today (game #1290) - 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 0.

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 #1290) - hint #5 - starting letters (2)What letters do today's Quordle answers start with?

• R

• A

• F

• H

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

Quordle today (game #1290) - the answers

(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)

The answers to today's Quordle, game #1290, are…

• RISKY
• APART
• FAUNA
• HANDY

The secret today was in seeing common three-letter combinations. Once I had A-N-D and A-R-T in position, educated guesses got me to HANDY and APART.

Meanwhile, for FAUNA I had so few letters left I knew this was the only possibility.

Daily Sequence today (game #1290) - the answers

(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)

The answers to today's Quordle Daily Sequence, game #1290, are…

• FEMUR
• VOWEL
• ROCKY
• PALER

Quordle answers: The past 20

• Quordle #1289, Tuesday, 5 August: ROAST, SLICK, AUDIT, BILLY
• Quordle #1288, Monday, 4 August: MACAW, SINCE, COLON, CHIRP
• Quordle #1287, Sunday, 3 August: MOTIF, LEERY, LOFTY, BURST
• Quordle #1286, Saturday, 2 August: WARTY, PUPAL, CLEAR, SLICE
• Quordle #1285, Friday, 1 August: ACTOR, MEALY, WIDTH, ADOBE
• Quordle #1284, Thursday, 31 July: STYLE, VALET, AGONY, ALLOY
• Quordle #1283, Wednesday, 30 July: DEBAR, ADMIN, FOLIO, USAGE
• Quordle #1282, Tuesday, 29 July: BATCH, TOPIC, MURKY, BUNCH
• Quordle #1281, Monday, 28 July: CANDY, TRYST, SHIRT, FORGO
• Quordle #1280, Sunday, 27 July: TRAWL, BALER, PIANO, MINCE
• Quordle #1279, Saturday, 26 July: MUDDY, SAINT, KINKY, POLAR
• Quordle #1278, Friday, 25 July: BONUS, RESIN, CEDAR, MADAM
• Quordle #1277, Thursday, 24 July: AGONY, VERVE, GLEAN, MINUS
• Quordle #1276, Wednesday, 23 July: OZONE, PENCE, ROOMY, WIDER
• Quordle #1275, Tuesday, 22 July: OPTIC, GIDDY, VOCAL, ADULT
• Quordle #1274, Monday, 21 July: KNEED, SNAIL, PINTO, FEAST
• Quordle #1273, Sunday, 20 July: GRACE, COUNT, EGRET, GIANT
• Quordle #1272, Saturday, 19 July: EARLY, CLICK, TRITE, SPREE
• Quordle #1271, Friday, 18 July: CINCH, FOYER, FUDGE, TAFFY

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 Tuesday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Connections hints and answers for Tuesday, August 5 (game #786).

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 #787) - today's words

(Image credit: New York Times)

Today's NYT Connections words are…

• BAIT
• PIN
• CROSS
• SQUAD
• HOOK
• SPEC
• NEEDLE
• BADGE
• STRAP
• BUTTON
• RAG
• SHAMMY
• RIB
• UPPERCUT
• BROOCH
• JAB

NYT Connections today (game #787) - hint #1 - group hints

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

• YELLOW: Decorative adornment
• GREEN: To poke fun
• BLUE: In the ring 
• PURPLE: Flexing

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 #787) - hint #2 - group answers

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

• YELLOW: ACCESSORY WITH A POINTY FASTENER 
• GREEN: TEASE 
• BLUE: BOXING PUNCHES 
• PURPLE: MUSCLE NICKNAMES PLUS "S" 

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

NYT Connections today (game #787) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Connections, game #787, are…

• YELLOW: ACCESSORY WITH A POINTY FASTENER BADGE, BROOCH, BUTTON, PIN
• GREEN: TEASE BAIT, NEEDLE, RAG, RIB
• BLUE: BOXING PUNCHES CROSS, HOOK, JAB, UPPERCUT
• PURPLE: MUSCLE NICKNAMES PLUS "S" SHAMMY, SPEC, SQUAD, STRAP

• My rating: Hard
• My score: 2 mistakes

I was quite the badge wearer when I was a kid, back in the day where it was essential to own a jacket covered with button badges of all your favorite bands. So, ACCESSORY WITH A POINTY FASTENER was a group I got very quickly.

I was less successful with TEASE, which claimed two mistakes. In my haste to complete another group I didn’t see the other possibilities and included JAB then CROSS before finally getting it right with RAG.

This is the second day in a row where I have completed Connections in difficulty order; the possibility of making it three in a row is already making me tingle.

Yesterday's NYT Connections answers (Tuesday, August 5, game #786)

• YELLOW: SUBTERRANEAN TRANSIT METRO, SUBWAY, TUBE, UNDERGROUND
• GREEN: MAKE INTO SMALLER PIECES WHILE COOKING CUBE, GRATE, MINCE, SLICE
• BLUE: USED TO DECORATE A SNOWMAN CARROT, COAL, PIPE, SCARF
• PURPLE: CODE DRESS, HEALTH, SECRET, ZIP

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 Tuesday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Tuesday, August 5 (game #520).

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

• Today's NYT Strands theme is… Paint me a picture

NYT Strands today (game #521) - hint #2 - clue words

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

• BOSS
• STEW
• PILL
• CHUTE
• GUILTY
• SWEET

NYT Strands today (game #521) - hint #3 - spangram lettersHow many letters are in today's spangram?

• Spangram has 9 letters

NYT Strands today (game #521) - hint #4 - spangram positionWhat are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?

First side: top, 3rd column

Last side: bottom, 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 #521) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Strands, game #521, are…

• GUITAR
• BOOK
• SUNFLOWERS
• FRUIT
• JEWELRY
• PITCHER
• SPANGRAM: STILL LIFE

• My rating: Hard
• My score: 1 hint

It’s funny how sometimes you see part of a word but not all of it, but I had three examples of this today.

First, I spotted the non-game word “jewel”, but completely missed JEWELRY, then “pitch” before seeing PITCHER and “flowers” ahead of SUNFLOWERS. I am ashamed to admit I needed a hint to see that!

My crowning achievement, though, was seeing books but not BOOK. Don't quite know how I managed that!

Anyway, a lovely search today and I am sure some of you will know many famous paintings that feature these still-life staples. I know that Picasso was obsessed with the GUITAR and Van Gogh will always be associated with sunflowers. The rest I'm not sure of. Maybe there's a painting that features all of them.

Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Tuesday, August 5, game #520)

• BINGO
• GIVEAWAY
• DRAWING
• SWEEPSTAKES
• LOTTERY
• SPANGRAM: LUCKY BREAK

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.

• Nintendo has warned against using Switch and Switch 2 systems outside in hot weather
• You should avoid using the system in temperatures above 95°F / 35°C
• The announcement comes during a Tokyo heatwave

Nintendo has issued a warning to those using their consoles outside.

"When using a Nintendo Switch or Nintendo Switch 2 in a high-temperature environment, the device's temperature may rise," said a recent social media post that we have machine translated.

"This could potentially cause malfunctions, so please use it in a location between 5–35°C [41-95°F]," it continued. "Recently, temperatures have been exceeding 35°C [95°F]. Please be cautious when using it outdoors."

The warning comes as summer gets into full swing and temperatures begin to rise. In Japan, Tokyo and the Izu Islands are currently subject to a heat warning, with temperatures expected to reach dangerously high levels on August 6.

Parts of the US are also experiencing heat well into the region of 95°F / 35°C, while the UK is on the tail end of its latest heatwave.

Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2 owners should think twice about using their systems outside in such weather conditions in order to avoid potential damage.

If you're looking for some games to try while sat right next to your air conditioning unit, check out our recently updated guide to the 15 best Nintendo Switch 2 games to play in 2025.

You might also like...

• I’ve spent 150 hours with The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and the Switch 2 Edition is an incredible upgrade
• Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition on Nintendo Switch 2 proves that I don’t need a Steam Deck anymore
• The Joy-Con 2 are definitely an improvement, but I’d still prefer almost any other Nintendo Switch 2 controller

McAfee is undoubtedly one of the most popular antivirus providers in the world. The McAfee Total Protection suite, for instance, has been a mainstay in the world of digital security for years. While it still offers solid device security and antivirus, McAfee shifted gears and expanded its offerings by releasing a completely new line of products referred to as McAfee+.

Despite Total Protection still being available (and the fact that there’s some overlap between its features), the new iteration takes a different approach. Primarily, it adds a larger emphasis on advanced safeguards like identity protection and parental controls.

So, choosing such a solution can often seem overwhelming and daunting. That is why we’ll carefully guide you along, outlining the features starting from the cheapest McAfee Essential plan all the way to the flagship Ultimate plan, hopefully helping you find something that works for your needs and budget.

(Image credit: Future)McAfee: Plans and Pricing

The entry-level plan provides a decent foundation for individuals and small families. It supports up to five devices on a single subscription and provides the basic tools like a VPN and core identity protection services. The price is generous, starting at $39.99.

The first plan with the plus moniker is McAfee+ Premium, starting at just $49.99/year ($69.99/year for the family plan. You can view this tier as a small upgrade from the Essential, as it’s identical, save for unlimited device support. Do note that although you’ll receive a basic online account and personal data scans and identity alerts (just as with the low-tier version), you won’t receive any identity theft protection. Opting for the family plan provides you access to parental controls and supports two adults and up to four children.

Up the ladder, McAfee+ Premium introduces identity theft restoration, helping recover your identity if you fall victim to identity theft, while also offering credit monitoring. Pricing starts at $89.99/year or $119.99/year if you go for the family plan, which covers the same number of individuals as the Premium.

The most comprehensive option is McAfee+ Advanced. Costing $199.99/year for a single individual and $249.99/year for the family plan, it unlocks full service for online accounts and personal cleanup. Moreover, it supports credit lock and allows credit monitoring with three major credit bureaus.

Note that all the pricing applies to the first year of subscription. Renewal will drastically bump up the pricing - $119.99 for Essential, $149.99 for Premium, $199.99 for Advanced, and $279.99 for Ultimate. Despite Total Protection still being available (and the fact that there’s some overlap between its features), the new iteration takes a different approach. Primarily, it adds a larger emphasis on advanced safeguards like identity protection and parental controls.

So, choosing such a solution can often seem overwhelming and daunting. That is why we’ll carefully guide you along, outlining the features starting from the cheapest McAfee Essential plan all the way to the flagship Ultimate plan, hopefully helping you find something that works for your needs and budget.

Compare McAfee subscriptions

McAfee Essential

McAfee+ Premium

McAfee+ Advanced

McAfee+ Ultimate

Operating system:

Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, Linux

Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, Linux

Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, Linux

Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, Linux

Max devices:

Up to 5

Unlimited

Unlimited

Unlimited

Starting price:

$39.99/yr

$49.99/yr; Family plan $69.99/yr

$89.99/yr; Family plan $119.99/yr

$199.99/yr; Family plan $249.99/yr

Firewall:

✔️

✔️

✔️

✔️

Password manager:

✔️

✔️

✔️

✔️

File shredder:

✔️

✔️

✔️

✔️

VPN:

✔️

✔️

✔️

✔️

Account clean-up:

❌

Scans only

Scans only

Full service

Personal data clean-up:

❌

Scans only

Full service

Full service

Identity theft monitoring:

✔️

✔️

✔️

✔️

Identity restoration:

❌

❌

✔️

✔️

Credit monitoring:

❌

❌

1 bureau

3 bureau

Credit lock:

❌

❌

❌

✔️

The Core of McAfee Protection

Even McAfee’s cheapest plan will provide you with effective AV and web protection, meaning that the differences between entry-level subscriptions and the more expensive options are identity theft protection features and the number of devices supported.

Employing a multi-layered approach, McAfee combines real-time scanning, AI, and cloud technology to defend against known and evolving threats, and does a great job against malware, spyware, ransomware, and viruses.

Case in point: the latest tests by AV-Comparatives show that McAfee scored 99.6% in online detection rate, with the same score in online protection. However, it does lag behind the competition in terms of offline detection rate, scoring just 79.3%.

(Image credit: AV-Comparatives)

Another snag is that McAfee is trigger-happy, raising 15 false alarms during the evaluation by AV-Comparatives.

A security suite must offer robust protection without slowing down your device. In the past, McAfee struggled in this department, building up a reputation as a resource-intensive program. You’ll be happy to learn that the team improved the engine so much that it’s now the fastest AV in the world.

According to AV-Comparatives performance tests from April 2025, McAfee had an impact score of 2.6, which indicates that its impact on the device is minimal.

McAfee scores fairly well with the big testing labs right now. (Image credit: AV-Comparatives)McAfee Essential

McAfee Essential is a powerful antivirus in a small package. For example, the firewall is fairly capable, if a bit limited, as it only controls outbound traffic, leaving inbound connections to the native OS firewall. Similarly, the True Key Password Manager helps you create and sync passwords across devices. The only downside is that it’s restricted in terms of form-filling, since you can auto-fill login credentials.

All subscriptions (including this one) come with VPN access in the form of McAfee Safe Connect. Generally, the VPN is ok for the money you dish out, employing AES-256 encryption to keep your data safe, and somewhat surprisingly, comes with a no-logs policy.

It also includes some essential VPN functions like a kill switch, split-tunneling, and auto connection, along with a modest network of 50+ countries.

The addition of a VPN is nice, but it leaves plenty of things to be desired. At times, the performance tends to be poor, especially on distant servers, which eliminates it as a viable solution for streaming.

The biggest stain, though, is the fact that you can only use the full-featured VPN if you turn on auto-renewal. If you disable auto-renewal, McAfee will limit your monthly data to 500MB per month.

This is a common practice for McAfee and is stated in their terms of service. It's a way for the company to incentivize customers to remain subscribed and to protect them against a lapse in their security protection, but such a limitation is puzzling in 2025.

McAfee Essential also lets you dip your toes in identity theft protection, including basic identity monitoring to help you find your personal information online and on the dark web.

McAfee+ Premium

The first upgrade doesn’t introduce that much and is, for lack of a better term, only a slight improvement over the Essential tier. So, is there a reason to purchase the Premium?

It depends purely on your needs.

For an extra $10, you get support for unlimited devices, and more importantly, there is a Family version you can opt for that unlocks a powerful set of family controls (we’ll talk about these a bit later). Premium unlocks the online account scans feature, which tracks down unused online accounts and personal data scans that do well in finding your information on data broker sites.

That said, if you don’t require as broad a support and aren’t interested in parental controls, it’s likely better to stick with the entry-level tier.

McAfee+ Advanced

As a mid-tier subscription plan, McAfee+ Advanced is a convincing option. In addition to the protections and features found in the first two plans, it introduces a nifty system scan that tracks down any vulnerabilities and junk files on your computer.

While a fine addition, McAfee again doesn’t let you resolve the issues, meaning you’ll have to fix these problems on your own. Considering the ‘Advanced’ plan is relatively pricey, this limitation borders on lazy and certainly doesn’t reflect the ‘advanced’ part.

At a glance, it may seem that the plan doesn’t add all that much for an extra 40 bucks, but it may be worth it for the identity theft restoration services alone.

For starters, the service will provide access to a real-life fraud resolution specialist, who will, if things come to a head, assist you every step of the way. Furthermore, you’ll receive a Lost Wallet service, where these specialists cancel and replace all the documents on your behalf.

To top it all off, you’ll also receive Identity Theft Insurance, which covers any costs incurred by the identity theft, allowing you to receive up to $1 million in eligible expenses, such as legal fees, stolen funds, or lost wages.

McAfee+ Advanced bumps up your overall protection with credit monitoring. Although supporting only TransUnion, McAfee will send monthly reports and flag any suspicious transactions.

McAfee+ Ultimate

The jump in value between Advance and Ultimate is very impressive. This is most apparent when you take a look at the Personal Data Cleanup and Online Account Cleanup features. Limited in the mid-tier, here McAfee will not only identify problems but also automatically resolve them on your behalf.

Other than that, the Ultimate plan also supercharges the identity theft protection features.

In addition to everything in the previous plan, McAfee+ Ultimate introduces credit lock and expanded credit monitoring features. Credit monitoring support extends to Equifax and Experian, and you can also opt in to receive daily reports, in addition to monthly breakdowns.

Credit lock is particularly interesting, allowing you to “lock down” your credit card, thus stopping companies from obtaining a copy of your credit history without your permission.

Lastly, McAfee+ Ultimate adds another $1 million to the identity theft insurance.

McAfee+ Family plans

While all McAfee+ subscriptions provide unlimited protection, opting for one of the Family versions includes functions designed to keep you and your family safe.

Let’s start with the identity theft protections. Features from individual plans are identical to those found in the family-oriented packages, extending the protection to two adults and up to four children. Put differently, you can scrub your kids’ birthdates and other identifiable information, such as Social Security Numbers, from the web, thus protecting them from identity theft and any future credit issues.

Still, the tour de force in the family plans is the Safe Family parental control app, which provides parents with the ability to stay on top of their children’s browsing habits.

You can easily set time limits for devices and restrict usage during certain times. We also love the aptly-named Digital Time-out, which allows you to pause the internet connection on your children’s devices.

Safe Family also comes with website filtering options you can use to block access to sites according to available categories. The good news is that this filter works in both regular and incognito mode, and it’s impossible to bypass with a VPN. App blocking works pretty much the same, allowing you to block apps on a category basis (e.g., social media).

You also get a better insight into juniors’ browsing habits through detailed reports that outline which websites they’ve visited.

Finally, by leveraging GPS, Safe Family’s location tracker grants you the option to keep an eye on your children’s location on a live map and view their entire location history. This isn’t just a simple location tracker, though, as it also supports geofencing that enables you to receive notifications if your child leaves or enters designated locations.

McAfee Antivirus: Final Verdict

Differences in its product lineup (and their pricing) aside for a moment, going for McAfee is a safe choice. Not only is the underlying antivirus engine good at rooting out the nasty stuff, but even the entry-level subscription will provide you with plenty of useful security tools.

However, the said tools are either not well-implemented or suffer from a slew of limitations that make them nothing but a poor take on dedicated products. In addition, while basic identity theft features are certainly a welcome addition, only the pricier Advanced and Ultimate tiers make them fully worthwhile.

With all that in mind, if you don’t require extra bells and whistles and are looking to protect only a handful of devices, then the Essential plan provides quite a lot of bang for your buck. If you need a more capable solution and are willing to pay a premium price, other antivirus programs simply provide a better service, often at a more affordable price point.

We list the best cloud antivirus.

• Nintendo recently opened a survey asking players their opinion on digital and physical games, but it's now closed
• One question asked about physical games featuring a digital download, and has fans wondering if Nintendo will make changes to its divisive Game-Key Cards
• There were also questions about physical games and whether players prefer owning physical or digital games

Nintendo briefly opened a survey asking players their opinion on digital and physical games, suggesting the company is looking for feedback after the launch of the Switch 2 and its divisive Game-Key Cards.

As reported by Eurogamer, on August 4, Nintendo ran a survey to find out what its player base thinks about physical and digital games, with questions aimed at how many Switch games they've purchased for themselves and others.

One question asked users, "In general, when it comes to games for a Nintendo Switch system, do you prefer purchasing games in physical format or in digital format?"

Another asked, "For which of the following reasons would you consider purchasing physical versions of Nintendo Switch games?" with an option to reply with answers like, "I like collecting physical games", "it's easier to gift physical games to others", and "Physical games provide a stronger sense of ownership."

For some reason, the survey has now been deactivated, but another question, asking about physical games featuring a digital download, has fans online wondering if Nintendo will consider making changes to its Game-Key Cards.

"Filled out the Nintendo online survey & was very adamant about letting them know I very much LOVE my physical media & don’t want them ever going away," one BlueSky user said. "I’m not a massive fan of the new keycard approach. Let’s hope Nintendo actually takes this feedback to heart and people show up for physical media."

(Image credit: Future / Sega)

Game-Key Cards are a new form of physical Switch 2 games that contain a download key but don't feature the full game data like other physical editions.

After the player downloads the game, they can play it by inserting the Game-Key Cards into their console and starting it up like a standard physical game.

Some games that offer these Game-Key Cards include Persona 3 Reload, Bravely Default, and more, while new titles like Mario Kart World and Donkey Kong Bananza are standard physical game cards like the original Switch.

However, the new cards have become a divisive topic, with many fans worrying that the company might be moving towards a full digital output. Others suggest that since Game-Key Cards don't contain the full game data, players don't have full ownership of their game after purchasing.

In April, Nintendo of America senior vice president of product development and publishing Nate Bihldorff said that Game-Key Cards are "future-proof" and that they will allow for more games on the Switch 2, no matter the size.

You might also like...

• I’ve spent 150 hours with The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and the Switch 2 Edition is an incredible upgrade
• The Nintendo Switch 2 is the company’s least ambitious console to date, but its improvements are astronomical
• Microsoft says Xbox Game Pass reached 'nearly $5 billion' in annual revenue over the last year, setting a new record for the service

The star-studded cast includes Hugh Laurie, Matthew Macfadyen and Riz Ahmed.

The new Pantone Ice Melt model will go on sale in a $1,000 bundle that includes the Moto Buds Loop in the same color.

Light spoilers follow for Alien: Earth episodes 1 through 6.

Nearly 50 years have passed since Ridley Scott terrified audiences with 1979's Alien. In the decades since, the sci-fi horror movie has spawned its own film franchise, had crossovers with other big-name properties including Predator, Star Wars, and Marvel, and inspire countless numerous other scary extraterrestrial flicks.

It's only now, though, that the hair-raising property has made the facehugger-style leap to the small screen with Alien: Earth – and the good news is that it's been worth the wait. Armed with a near-perfect blend of nostalgia and contemporary long-form storytelling, Alien: Earth breeds a new kind of monstrous tale that made this Alien fan's chest burst with joy.

Man or machine

Wendy, a synthetic being known as a hybrid, is Alien: Earth's lead character (Image credit: FX Networks)

Set in the year 2120, Alien: Earth begins by telling us that the five megacorporations that rule the planet – Weyland-Yutani, Dynamic, Threshold, Lynch, and Prodigy – are in a race to unlock human immortality by any means necessary.

The last of that quintet is closest to achieving that aim. Led by the trillionaire tech wonderkid Boy Kavalier (Samuel Blenkin), Prodigy successfully transfers the consciousness of a child named Marcy into a synthetic body.

The resultant prototype is a Hybrid called Wendy (Sydney Chandler), whose supercomputer-like humanoid body is soon put to the test when the MSCSS Maginot, a deep-space research vessel owned by Weyland-Yutani, crash-lands on Prodigy City. Alongside five other Hybrids and their android mentor Kirsh (Timothy Olyphant), Wendy soon encounters numerous terrifying alien lifeforms who pose a significant threat to everyone on Earth.

Boy Kavalier, played with nefariously charming intent by Blenkin, is the Alien universe's newest love-to-hate character (Image credit: FX Network/Hulu/Disney+)

Timeline-wise, Alien: Earth takes place just two years before Alien, so it's not a surprise that episode 1's opening minutes capture the essence of the 1979 Scott-directed flick. Okay, it doesn't recreate Alien's own introductory sequence per se. But, whether it's the Maginot crew exiting cryosleep, the subsequent mess-hall scene, use of crossfades, and/or the inclusion of a ginger cat, Alien: Earth is a prequel that disregards other projects set before Alien, including Prometheus and Alien: Covenant, and evokes sentimentality for the original movie.

Alien: Earth evokes the spirit of its movie sibling from the get-go

That said, I found the opening 25 minutes to be quite messy. Sure, its weird pacing, jarring tonality, and artistic flair elicit a sense of suspense and dread, but its atmosphere and rhythm are frustratingly upended by superfluous quick cuts as the FX TV Original tries to find its footing.

Just when you think Alien: Earth is nothing more than nostalgia bait for Alien, though, a narrative switch is flipped that takes it in a completely different direction, and soon helps its story hit its stride.

Wendy joins the search and rescue operation in Prodigy City to find her biological brother Joe (left) (Image credit: FX Network/Hulu/Disney+)

Indeed, while the fearless albeit naive Wendy volunteers herself and her fellow Hybrids, aka The Lost Boys – these aren't the only narrative parallels to Peter Pan in Alien: Earth – to aid the Prodigy City search and rescue operation, she also does so in a bid to track down her biological brother Joe (Alex Lawther). Their familial dynamic is the beating heart of the entire show and, like Rain and Andy's surrogate sibling relationship in Alien: Romulus, it explores the emotional complexities of a bond between an artificial being and someone who's 100% human with aplomb.

I was completely absorbed by tête-à-têtes involving the super-companies

Alien: Earth also examines the uneasy truce between the Alien universe's multinational biotech powerhouses.

Until now, Weyland-Yutani is the only one of these profit-driven institutions we've really seen. Alien: Earth creator Noah Hawley's decision to place Prodigy front and center, then, is designed to place Weyland-Yutani on the back foot as it tries and fails to recover its incredibly dangerous extraterrestrial cargo, and positions them as an underdog to their fellow industry giant.

I was completely absorbed by tête-à-têtes involving the super-companies as the cocksure Kavalier runs rings around his peer at Yutani (Sandra Yi Sencindiver), and such meetings certainly put a novel spin on franchise lore – other parts of the Alien mythos are scrutinized and/or added to, but I won't spoil them here – that suggests Weyland-Yutani wasn't always the number one megacorp in the land.

It's a pity that Threshold, Lynch, and Dynamic are more conspicuous by their absence – although they could show up in this season's final two episodes, which I haven't seen yet. Their time might also come if Alien: Earth is renewed for another season – and if it is, I'd love to see how they stack up against their similarly power-hungry competitors.

Creature feature

Yes, the franchise's iconic Xenomorphs have a big part to play in the first Alien TV series (Image credit: FX Networks/Hulu)

Really, though, we're all here to see the franchise's famed Xenomorphs do what they do best: kill. Unlike Alien, which held back the Xenomorph's grand reveal to build tension, it doesn't take long for the nightmare-inducing endoparasitoid to appear in Alien: Earth, with the first Xenomorph surfacing very early on in its premiere to make light work of the Maginot's unfortunate crew.

Alien: Earth also introduces four new frightening creatures who add their own freakish flavor to proceedings

Alien: Earth also introduces four new frightening creatures – some, such as the highly-intelligent organism referred to as The Eye, get more to do than others – from the far-flung corners of the universe who were first teased in Alien: Earth's official trailer, and who add their own freakish flavor to proceedings.

Indeed, after they're transported from the New Prodigy crash site to Kavalier's secret research center called Neverland (I warned you that the Peter Pan references weren't done) they soon become the focus of Prodigy's immoral founder at the expense of his Hybrid program. In that sense, Alien: Earth reminded me of Jurassic Park – i.e., a reckless CEO and his mostly loyal band of scientists experimenting (read: playing God) on dangerous creatures at a remote location.

The parasitic lifeform known as The Eye, seen in the sheep's left eye socket, is my new favorite bioweapon in the Alien franchise (Image credit: FX Networks)

It's from this point on that the relative stillness of the sci-fi drama that punctuates Wendy's side of the story is slowly and purposefully countered by the increasing sense of dread of the aliens eventually breaking out of confinement. It's a smoldering powder-keg that threatens to explode at any moment, and I was on tenterhooks waiting for things to go horribly wrong. For a property steeped in hyperviolence, Alien: Earth builds up more than enough tension to fill the vastness of space, but it eventually releases the pressure valve in typically – and delightfully – brutal and gory fashion as its huge ensemble becomes canon fodder for the deadly quintet.

Alien: Earth's life-threatening, otherworldly beings aren't the only monsters who populate its story. Whether it's the heinous Kavalier, or the show's android contingent, including Kirsh and Weyland-Yutani cyborg Morrow (Babou Ceesay) who operate in the morally gray, it's full of human characters and artificial creations alike who are as sinister, clever, uncompromising, and/or unsympathetic as the bioweapons they experiment on – or, in Morrow's case, want to recover for his employer.

Some creatures, such as this sundew-esque specimen, are underused in Alien: Earth's first six chapters (Image credit: FX Networks)

It's ethically minded people, such as Prodigy scientist Arthur Sylvia (David Rysdahl), plus Wendy and The Lost Boys – Slightly (Adarsh Gourav), Smee (Jonathan Ajayi), Curly (Erana James), Nibs (Lily Newmark),and Tootles (Kit Young) – who are predictably caught in the crossfire of the series' corporate bureaucracy, morally corrupt individuals, and lethal lifeforms. The slow unraveling of Prodigy's artificially constructed family, which also includes Arthur's fellow researcher and wife Dame Sylvia (Essie Davis), is an engrossing car crash that I couldn't look away from, and I'm desperate to see how things continue to implode in this season's final two episodes.

The slow unraveling of Prodigy's artificially constructed family is an engrossing car crash I couldn't look away from

I hope there are more interactions, albeit belated ones, between Alien: Earth's Hybrids in chapters 7 and 8, and/or in future seasons, too. With so many subplots and specific dynamics to dedicate time to, it doesn't leave much room to explore the relationships between these artificial kidults. Some of Alien: Earth's most nuanced moments involve sequences where their camaraderie and conflicting perspectives are on full view, so I'm keen to see more moving forward – that is, as long as they survive this season's finale.

My verdict

Alien: Earth is a facehugging delight. Like Alien: Romulus, it confidently re-energizes the fan-favorite property with a well-cast and well-crafted dystopian story that pleasingly meters out its mix of sci-fi horror, psychological thriller, action, drama, and even disaster elements without one or more of its genres suffocating the others.

With a reportedly sizeable production budget, it's a stylish slice of prestige television that carves out its own space and identity while staying true to what's come before. I'd even go so far as to suggest that it grants some Alien fans' long-held wishes by combining the best bits of the '79 original and its more action-oriented '86 sequel Aliens, too.

Sure, it's not without its issues. Its narrative occasionally drags around the show's midpoint, and some characters aren't as fully formed as they could be. I'm also going to slightly contradict what I said earlier about Alien: Earth's penchant for nostalgia bait, because its fifth episode – a Morrow-fronted whodunit-style flashback entry that provides context about the Maginot's eventual crash – is arguably my favorite entry of the six I saw.

Overall, though, Alien: Earth fully deserves a spot in our best Hulu shows and best Disney+ shows guides – and I'll scream that from the rooftops so everyone can hear me.

Alien: Earth will launch with a two-episode premiere on Tuesday, August 12 on Hulu (US) and Wednesday, August 13 on Disney+ (internationally). New episodes air weekly.

Have you noticed your Fitbit is registering you’re awake more during the night, with your graph now showing more awake events than it did previously? It turns out this isn’t a bug lingering from the recent major outage; it’s an intended side effect of a recent update.

That’s according to a note Fitbit shared with its community explaining that “Your sleep tracking just got more accurate.” Noting this is just the first in a “series of upcoming improvements” to sleep tracking.

Specifically, this first update involves some tweaks to how your Fitbit tracks your sleep to make it more accurate. This is perhaps why your awake time and number of awake events have increased as you do briefly wake up throughout the night (even if you don’t realize), but the old system didn’t correctly track all of these instances.

The upshot is that your Fitbit should more accurately track your night's rest to give you a better measure of your body’s recovery.

(Image credit: Andrea Gaini)

The only unclear thing is which Fitbits will support this new sleep tracking, but we expect it will at least include the Fitbit Charge 6, Inspire 3, Sense 2, and Versa 4 – as these are the four models Google still sells.

Some older models may also be included, but Fitbit hasn’t clarified which ones.

However, if more improvements are planned, these could be detailed at the upcoming Made By Google event, which will happen on August 20 at 10am PT / 1pm ET / 6pm BST / 3am AEST.

While Google promises the event will focus on “the latest additions to our Pixel Portfolio of devices,” Fitbit might be included in that, even if it's just as part of a wider Pixel Watch discussion.

Whatever happens, you can be sure we’ll be ready to cover it.

You might also like

• Fitbit may have fixed its major outage, but some users are still reporting problems
• The latest Google Pixel Watch 4 leaks point to a price freeze
• The Google Pixel Watch 4 is rumored to sport a bigger battery – but I'm hoping it's not just for a brighter screen

In July and August of 2024 in Bangladesh, student protesters' push for change drove the authoritarian prime minister out of power. Hundreds of demonstrators were killed.

(Image credit: Parvez Ahmad Rony for NPR)

• Mozilla is warning its dev community of an ongoing attack
• The attackers want access to the devs' accounts
• Tainting browser addons with malware could be the play here

Mozilla is warning its developer community they are at risk of being targeted by devious new phishing attacks urging them to “exercise extreme caution and scrutiny” when receiving emails claiming to have come from either Mozilla, or AMO (addons.mozilla.org).

“Phishing emails typically state some variation of the message “Your Mozilla Add-ons account requires an update to continue accessing developer features,”” the company said in its description of what the targets could expect.

The company did not say who the threat actors are, what they’re looking to achieve, or how successful they are - however, given browser add-on developers are being targeted, it’s safe to assume the miscreants are looking for a way to compromise the products with malware.

Supply chain attacks

Browser add-ons are tiny programs that add extra features or functions to a web browser, and users usually install them to customize or enhance their browsing experience.

Some of the most popular addons include ad blockers, spelling and grammar checkers, password managers, screenshot tools, and VPNs or privacy tools.

By tainting the solutions with malware, cybercriminals can engage in supply chain attacks, gaining access to people’s bank accounts, social media accounts, cryptocurrency tokens and NFTs, passwords, session cookies, and more.

It’s a common attack vector, too. Less than a month ago, it was reported that many Chrome and Edge addons, including several prominent products, were found spying on users and communicating with a third-party server.

At the time, security researchers from Koi Security reported that a seemingly benign Chrome add-on called “Color Picker, Eyedropper — Geco colorpick”, which allows users to quickly identify and copy color codes from any point within their browser, was secretly a malware.

While working as advertised, and having thousands of downloads and positive reviews, the add-on also did something in the background - it hijacked browser activity, tracked the websites users were visiting, and communicated with remote C2 infrastructure.

This discovery led them down a path that uncovered an entire web of add-ons, all doing similar things.

Via The Register

You might also like

• Hackers hit SAP security bug to send out nasty Linux malware
• Take a look at our guide to the best authenticator app
• We've rounded up the best password managers

• Google makes it easier to join Meet calls on Companion mode
• Laptops listen out for hardware via ultrasound signals
• It only works with Chrome and supported hardware

One of the biggest pain points for Google Meet users joining video conferencing calls could soon be solved after the company by adding a new Companion Mode feature to automatically allow users to join a call.

In a blog post, the company unveiled its new automatic room check-in feature, which uses ultrasound proximity detection to streamline the process of joining meetings in Companion mode.

Users' laptops will leverage the built-in microphone to detect an ultrasound signal from Google Meet hardware, making it even easier to join in with multi-person calls - and hopefully putting an end to annoying or jarring echoes for good.

Google Meet gets even easier in Companion mode

"To simplify joining meetings from a conference room and prevent disruptive audio feedback, Google Meet now intelligently guides you to the best joining option," Google noted.

When a laptop detects nearby Google Meet hardware, it will switch from highlighting 'Join now' to 'Use Companion mode', which allows them to join into a call without duplicating audio or video in a shared room.

Already a useful feature, Companion mode disables the mic and camera by default to prevent audio feedback or echo, allowing users to view presentations, use the in-meeting chat, participate in polls, share their screen and use captions.

"This wayfinding feature helps ensure a seamless, echo-free start to your meeting," Google added.

Proximity-based Room Check-in replaces the manual check-in prompt shown after clicking 'Use Companion mode'.

The tool will be available to all Google Workspace customers with Google Meet hardware, but could take up to 15 days from August 4 to show up for all users. For now, the feature is only supported on Google Meet web via Chrome, together with certified Google Meet peripherals.

You might also like

• We've listed the best business webcams
• Need an upgrade? Consider one of the best business laptops
• Google Meet will now use Gemini to suggest "next steps" after your team meetings

These are our favorite bug sprays to repel bugs during the summer and beyond.

Nearly half are worried about finding quality purchases at an affordable price -- adding another strain to school shopping this year.

Meta Quest still rules and Vision Pro made a splash in early 2024. Now Google, Samsung, Meta and maybe even Apple could be turning a lot of what we know on its head, with a lot in glasses form. Valve could be in the mix too.