Dennis Gabor was a Hungarian-British physicist who's widely credited with inventing holography, a photographic technique that can record and reconstruct three-dimensional images. This is an invention for which he received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1971. But his legacy extends to his philosophy on the nature of innovation

Go your own way

Gabor wrote this iconic passage in his now-extremely rare book 'Inventing the Future', in which he sketched out an optimistic vision for the future.

At the core of his belief was that there was no need to any longer passively predict what may come to pass in the years ahead. Instead, the influence and strength of science and industry was such that mankind could forge its own future.

The comments also focused on that pivot point of the industrial revolution, before which the possibilities of the future were fairly limited, in his view. As each wave of innovation comes to pass, the possibilities continue to expand.

Charting a path

There's no understating the influence that Gabor had in modern science and industry. His comments were routinely quoted, and even adopted, by others. Chief among the figures that took this philosophy to heart was Alan Kay, described as one of the true luminaries of personal computing.

Kay, whose career spanned stints at Apple and HP among other industry titans, used this idea of inventing, not predicting, the future as a core maxim from 1971. He used the phrase to inspire his work in pioneering elements like the graphical user interface and laptops many years before they were realized.

Although Gabor was a very influential figure in the technology world, his predictions weren't always on the mark. In 1962, for instance, he said sending documents via telephone wires was possible, but only in principle. That's because the equipment required was so expensive that he didn't see a world in which they'd be cheap enough for the technology to become practical.

• Ukraine has deployed a turbojet interceptor specifically designed to hunt Russian attack drones
• The compact aircraft can return home when an interception attempt fails
• Multiple warhead options allow the interceptor to tackle different aerial targets

Ukraine's defense ministry has confirmed a new turbojet-powered aircraft built to shoot down Russian attack drones has now entered military service.

Dubbed Alexa Spatium, the compact v-tail craft was engineered domestically to intercept small aerial and surface threats across the battlefield.

It was built chiefly to engage Russia's Geran-3, Geran-4 and Geran-5 kamikaze drones, together with the frequently deployed Shahed-131 loitering munition.

Built for speed and reuse

The aircraft measures 1.5 by 1.7 meters and is fired from a portable catapult stationed close to the front line.

If it fails to strike anything on a given mission, the interceptor is designed to fly back toward its own launch point.

It can be fitted with thermobaric, shaped-charge, fragmentation or high-explosive warheads, depending on the kind of threat it aims to destroy in the air.

Guidance comes either from coordinates loaded before launch or through direct operator control once the aircraft is already flying toward its objective.

Detection relies on an electro-optical camera paired with an infrared sensor, allowing it to spot enemy aircraft even in low visibility conditions.

As of the time of writing, Kyiv has not officially revealed the interceptor's top speed, and a statement from the Ukrainian Ministry of Defence left several performance figures undisclosed.

A wider race against faster threats

Ukraine is not the only country fielding this kind of weapon, since Britain introduced a comparable system earlier in the year.

Known as Skyhammer and built by Cambridge Aerospace, it also runs on a turbojet engine and hunts down Shahed-style drones.

It relies on a nose-mounted radar seeker and a fragmentation warhead built to disable rather than fully destroy its objective.

Neither weapon, however, offers real protection from ballistic missiles, which travel far faster than any propeller or jet drone can manage.

This gap matters a great deal for Ukraine, whose stock of American-supplied Patriot missiles has thinned after years of steady combat use.

Ten European countries, Ukraine and the United Kingdom, formed an Anti-Ballistic Missile Coalition in July to help Ukraine close the gap.

During a Kyiv visit marking Ukraine's independence anniversary, held every August 24th, the U.K.’s Prime Minister Andy Burnham confirmed its desire to help Ukraine.

London cleared MBDA, the joint European missile maker, to hand over classified data on the Storm Shadow's internal components to Ukrainian engineers.

The move should let Ukraine begin producing its own version of the joint British and French cruise missile domestically.

Even so, none of these interceptors solve the core problem, since drones and missiles remain two very different categories of threat entirely.

Whether new missile production can scale quickly enough to matter will likely depend more on politics than on engineering alone.

That question, more than any single weapon unveiled this month, may ultimately decide how well Ukraine's skies are defended through the coming winter months.

Via The Register

• Russia is offering the Garpia-A1E to foreign military customers
• The drone can reportedly travel up to 1,000 kilometres
• Garpia-A1E carries over 50kg payload and endures for over six hours

Moscow has begun marketing a long-range loitering munition built by a state defense manufacturer to foreign militaries.

The weapon, known as the Garpia-A1E, has drawn interest from buyers abroad following a series of live demonstrations.

Officials confirmed the export plan, but declined to name which countries have expressed interest so far.

A weapon built for distance

Unlike drones designed for repeated missions, this class of weapon flies toward its programmed coordinates and detonates on arrival, destroying itself in the process — a one-way flight profile that has earned the informal label "suicide drone."

The aircraft spans 3.4 meters in length, carries a takeoff weight of 250 kilograms, and stretches 3 meters across its wings.

Engineers built the airframe around an existing gasoline-powered munition design, relying on a tailless layout and a rear-mounted propeller to strike fixed coordinates set before launch.

It tops out near 170 kilometers per hour, can remain airborne for more than six hours, and operates at altitudes ranging from 50 to 2,500 meters.

"Today, the Garpia-A1E is the only loitering munition on the global market with a range of up to 1,000 kilometers," said Alexander Mikheev, general director of Rosoboronexport.

The payload capacity exceeds 50 kilograms, and the system's accuracy keeps errors within four meters of the intended point of impact.

Prospective buyers overseas have already shown interest following a round of live testing, the director added.

Rosoboronexport remains open to negotiating direct sales agreements, along with arrangements to manufacture the drone inside countries considered friendly toward Moscow.

Meanwhile, the drone's maker, Almaz-Antey, has expanded output at its production facilities, supporting the defense sector's ability to fulfill international orders on competitive timelines.

Domestic orders come first

Any commercial arrangement involving Russian military hardware must account for existing domestic commitments before new contracts move forward.

However, it seems Russia’s domestic needs will not be a problem because the company has since expanded production.

Almaz-Antey has now reached a production capacity sufficient to meet foreign orders within competitive delivery windows.

That balance between domestic obligation and export ambition now defines Russia's approach to marketing kamikaze drones internationally.

"When conducting contract and supply work regarding Russian military products, Rosoboronexport primarily considers the need for the manufacturer to fulfill its obligations to the Russian Ministry of Defence," said Alexander Mikheev, general director of Rosoboronexport.

“Almaz-Antey has mastered the series production of the Garpia-A1E system and reached a level that enables it to fulfill contracts with foreign customers…without compromising the country’s defence capability.”

Loitering munitions have grown into one of the defining weapons of current conflicts, prompting analysts to closely track their battlefield influence and cost.

As of the time of writing, no delivery timeline has been disclosed publicly, though analysts expect pricing and rival systems to shape eventual contract decisions.

Via The Drone Front

I've hand-picked my 12 favorite Mac mini alternatives for Windows, from budget picks to high-end content creation stations. There's no denying Apple's newly unveiled Mac mini with M6 chip is a seriously cool piece of hardware, but fixed memory and limited port selection mean it's definitely not for everyone.

If you want upgradable RAM and additional connectivity like USB4 for hooking up an external GPU, these are the Windows Mac mini alternatives I really like. I've included top-tier compact machines from brands we've reviewed highly during our mini PC testing, including Beelink, Geekom, GMKtec, Minisforum, and Asus. Whether you need a cheap mini PC for the office or a high-performance powerhouse for heavier workloads, these are the machines I recommend.

My top 12 Windows mini PCs

Why I chose these mini PCs

I had three key areas of focus when selecting these mini PCs — performance, connectivity and value for money.

Performance was obviously high on my list, which is why I've included mini PCs powered by some seriously capable AMD Ryzen and Intel Core processors. The Beelink SER9 Pro ranked as our best mini PC for business.

I also wanted plenty of memory and storage, although upgradeability obviously varies considerably between these machines.

There are some particularly well-connected choices among my top 12, too. The Minisforum UM890 Pro has two USB4 ports, OCuLink for connecting high-speed external hardware, dual 2.5GbE ports and enough display connections to drive four screens simultaneously.

The GMKtec EVO X1 also combines USB4 and OCuLink with dual 2.5GbE networking, alongside HDMI and DisplayPort outputs.

Price was important as well, so I tried to include options for different budgets rather than filling the list with flagship machines. We rate Acemagic's K1 as our best mid-range mini PC, and at under $290, GMKtec's G10 Mini PC is a very affordable choice.

For more options, check out the best mini PCs we've tested, and for more savings, see our round-up of this week's best mini PC deals.

Fancy getting into vinyl, or upgrading your existing setup? This year has delivered some especially interesting new turntables, ranging from the classy to the tacky, and from the practical to the surely-just-for-show. I've rounded up some of our favorites below.

Oxblood is clearly in vogue, because we have not one but two decks in the moody hue: Technics' Friz Hansen turntable with a matching lamp, and Pro-Ject's ultra-minimalist Debut Evo 2.

Looking for something less understated? Rammstein fans should gear up to grab one of respected turntable brand Clearaudio's limited-edition themed decks when they finally become available in October. The brand's love letter to the German metal gods isn't simply a band logo slapped onto an existing turntable either — it was created in collaboration with Rammstein as a "fully independent model" featuring a metallic lacquer finish and dimmable LED lighting.

If you think that's bold, wait until you see Technics' other notable 2026 release. This limited-edition turntable is based on the SL-1200 model, and designed to mark its 55th anniversary. The inner workings remain largely untouched compared to the base model, but the exterior is altogether flashier: the theme here is gold, and lots of it. Everything from the tonearm to the controls to the platter has had the Midas touch applied — it even has a gold slip mat.

Scroll down for a closer look at all these decks and more — and hit the More details button for links to additional info.

Top turntables

• The Garmin Enduro 4 might have appeared in a new leak
• Details emerged in Indonesian regulatory filings
• The device might arrive before the end of 2026

We’ve barely had time to catch our breath after the Garmin Fenix 9 and Fenix 9 Pro announcement, but here comes news of another high-end Garmin watch looming over the horizon. Only this time, it’s not an official announcement that has shone a light on the device, but instead an intriguing leak that Garmin would probably rather you didn’t see.

The leak in question first appeared in regulatory filings from Indonesia (via Garmin News). There, listings mentioned an unnamed Garmin device bearing the model number A05197 in the “Outdoor Product” category.

Other details are pretty thin on the ground, but there is reason to believe it could point towards the unreleased Enduro 4. For one thing, Garmin News reports that Garmin uses the Outdoor Product category for “almost all of its high-end multisport smartwatches during testing phases, including past Fenix, Tactix, and Enduro generations.” That could therefore be an indicator that this mystery device belongs to one of those product families.

Then there’s the issue of previously leaked code references. We’ve already seen mention of the Enduro 4 in code contained within the Garmin Connect app, suggesting that the wearable is in development at the very least. Combine that with the new Indonesian regulatory filings and an Enduro 4 launch is looking increasingly likely.

A battery champ

Prior to the Fenix 9 Pro announcement, we had hopes that the Enduro 4 would also appear at Garmin’s launch event. That never came to pass, but it hasn’t dampened our expectations that the device exists and is on the way.

Interestingly, the unnamed Garmin device was granted regulatory approval in Indonesia on August 25 — the same day as the Fenix 9 event. Garmin News notes that it can take one to three months for a Garmin device to be unveiled after it is approved, suggesting that we could see the Enduro 4 — or whatever this unknown wearable is — before the end of 2026.

If and when that happens, it should be good news for fans of the best Garmin watches who want a device with phenomenal battery life. After all, as our Garmin Enduro 3 review noted, this line of watches “puts battery first.” We can expect the Enduro 4 to continue that tradition.

• McKinsey report into the state of AI finds more businesses are deploying agentic solutions
• 20% of organizations have been constrained by operating costs but plan to increase investments into AI
• However some are still concerned about job cuts due to AI replacement

More companies are adopting agentic AI solutions, but are also facing difficulties in making the technology pay for itself, according to new research from McKinsey - however, there is good news on the horizon, with reports of an encouraging financial impact attributed to AI use.

Several cost-saving advantages of AI adoption have been found, with almost 33% of respondents saying they had moved away from software procurement in favor of developing in-house solutions with agentic coding tools.

Interestingly, the survey has found that while AI use for organizations at large seems relatively muted, it is boosting the performance of individual employees. But on the downside, 39% of those who responded expect a decline in the size of their organization’s workforce due to AI.

Reshaping businesses

Many organizations have explored AI, with 40% of those surveyed with annual revenues of more than $1 billion are scaling AI agents, an increase on last year’s survey which recorded 27%.

In smaller organizations, just 22% reported scaling, a figure that hasn’t improved notably since the previous survey. It’s a figure that suggests – unsurprisingly – that the larger organizations are more suited to exploring AI and scaling agentic applications. This is something that is highlighted in McKinsey’s report.

“Organizations’ conviction in AI is growing faster than the immediate financial returns they can attribute to it,” McKinsey said. “More expect AI to reshape their business over the next three years than did a year ago, and they continue to plan to invest more.”

So, the EBIT (Earnings Before Interest and Taxes) factor, where at least 5% goes into AI, may seem low, and seems pretty flat with just 6% of respondents, but it has not declined, which at this stage is vital.

The downside of agentic AI

This survey reveals some significant trends, however, that could be seen as challenging for any business putting their eggs into a basked marked “AI.”

A key challenge is proving to be the token cost, with 20% reporting reduced use of AI due to operating costs. However, while 80% have reported that increases in “individual productivity” and 50% have claimed improved decision making, the use of AI seems to be making the changes that many observers have predicted over recent years.

The survey’s respondents are not optimistic on the impact of AI on the size of their workforce. 39% expect workforce declines caused by AI over the coming 12 months. This is up from 32% in McKinsey’s previous report, although it is important to note that 43% expect no AI-related decline or increase.

• Digital Foundry says getting Grand Theft Auto 6 to run at 60fps on current-gen consoles is "extremely unlikely"
• The tech experts say the 30fps footage from the Extended Look was "the most impressive example of real-time game rendering" they've seen
• It says the eventual PC version running at 60fps would be "genuinely challenging"

Tech analysts have suggested that getting Grand Theft Auto 6 to run smoothly at 60 frames per second would be a massive challenge on console.

After Grand Theft Auto 6's Extended Look, which finally offered a deep dive into Rockstar's biggest game yet running on the base PS5, reports confirmed that the game will run at 30fps on PlayStation and Xbox, with the possibility of 60fps being added post-launch.

That's no surprise considering the scale and how hyper-realistic GTA 6 looks, but according to the tech experts at Digital Foundry, it may be impossible for current-gen consoles to even hit 60fps.

Speaking about last night's extended look footage, the folks at Digital Foundry said it looks like "the most impressive example of real-time game rendering" they've ever seen; the gameplay shown is "relatively stable and well-paced 30fps output, with only very occasional single frame drops (though the nature of the 30fps asset means there could be more, unseen)."

It's believed that, while 30fps might seem low for a current-gen title such as GTA 6, Rockstar appears to be targeting this level to maximize the game's level of visual detail.

"It's clear that the focus was absolutely maximizing the level of visual detail at a fixed 30fps frame rate on all platforms," Digital Foundry wrote. "The rendering, simulation and presentation have all been tuned around that constraint — and the result is an unprecedented level of density, material quality and world coherence, with trade-offs landing primarily in image quality and animation smoothness rather than systemic scale or fidelity."

It continued, "The evidence suggests that the game maintains its 33.3ms cadence with care, and Rockstar has clearly spent immense effort balancing CPU and GPU workloads to fully saturate the hardware."

For this reason, Digital Foundry believes "a 60fps version extremely unlikely on console hardware — there's no way to regain enough GPU and particularly CPU time to make a 16.7ms update rate work without compromising the world."

It also suggests that the game could look better on PS5 Pro, thanks to the console's powerful GPU with PSSR upscaling, but Rockstar has yet to reveal official gameplay running on the hardware.

As for the eventual PC release, which hasn't been announced yet, "some level of caution is required" as while the platform could allow higher resolutions and benefit from upscalers like Nvidia DLSS, the CPU demand of GTA 6's complex world could "make hitting 60fps genuinely challenging in a way we don't often see, and will likely require a high-end CPU like a recent Ryzen X3D to avoid bottlenecks."

GTA 6 launches on November 19 for PS5, Xbox Series X, and Series S, and Rockstar has confirmed that the game can take up to 80 hours to beat.

• An X investigation just found 200k Chinese bot accounts, including 200 posting anti-AI content
• The posts were targeting and amplifying legitimate US citizen concerns about data centers
• Is this part of a Chinese effort to slow down American innovation, to race ahead?

X's Global Government Affairs account has revealed it "identified a bot farm of approximately 200,000 accounts," 200 of which "posting in a manner that could manipulate a legitimate debate about American AI and energy policy."

Some of the narratives that these 200 accounts were promoting included that: AI data centers are pushing up household electricity prices, rapid data centre construction is placing excessive strain on the US grid, and ordinary households are subsidising wealthy AI and data center companies.

Among the post types were visual, cartoon-like illustrations depicting data center operators getting rich, while consumers picked up the cost.

X Chinese bot accounts

X described the activity as an attempt to interfere with what it explicitly acknowledged as "legitimate debate" about American AI and energy – many of the underlying concerns about electricity demand and consumer bills are indeed supported by genuine data, but the platform worries these accounts could skew public discourse.

The company now says it's suspended the accounts that violate its authentication policy, stressing that while it wants X to remain an "open and authentic platform," fake accounts and bots are not welcome.

The post describes the offenders as "suspected Chinese inauthentic accounts," but no further detail was shared about the operators, the ties to China, engagement and reach figures, and what the other 199,000+ accounts were doing.

Is China targeting US AI?

In a similar vein, OpenAI also recently uncovered a similar operation, implying this X case isn't alone. The ChatGPT maker called that earlier operation a 'Data Center Bandwagon', when it banned a cluster of likely Chinese accounts using ChatGPT to produce propaganda-like material and other similar social media content criticizing US AI data centers.

According to the company, the accounts responsible prompted in Simplified Chinese, often requested English outputs and used VPNs to avoid the restrictions placed on mainland China.

More broadly, Axios previously reported pro-AI organizations were worried that China-linked bot campaigns were promoting opposition to US data centers, possibly in a bid to slow America's ability to build out its AI infrastructure while buying China time to get ahead.

"Industry, governments, civil society and the public should remain alert for similar attempts to scale these messages and foreign interference activities," OpenAI warned in its June 2026 report.

Together, these two cases imply that China-linked operators are deliberately experimenting with ways to boost American opposition to AI infrastructure using existing concerns, but what sort of an impact these accounts are actually having on public perception is not yet so clear.

"We take seriously any attempts to undermine the integrity of the global town square and suspend accounts that violate our Authenticity policy," X wrote.

Since I started my monthly Blu-ray Bounty column in November 2024, I’ve tested more than 100 4K Blu-rays. In that time, as well as finding that a lot of highly anticipated discs — such as Fight Club — lived up to the hype, there have also been some pleasant surprises, including the reference-quality Speed Racer and the spectacularThe Super Mario Galaxy Movie. The latter two are now part of the selection of discs I use to test the best TVs and best soundbars.

While I haven’t managed to test every disc I’ve wanted to (and certainly not every 4K disc released), one has remained frustratingly elusive: Hard Boiled. One of John Woo’s most iconic films, it's a cornerstone of Hong Kong action cinema, and I'd been keen to get my hands on the 4K release.

After failing to snag the Limited Edition, released in March 2026 in the UK, and every subsequent restock, I was starting to wonder if a Hard Boiled was destined to stay on my testing wishlist. July saw the arrival of a standard edition — and it shot to the top of my July 2026 most anticipated 4K list. After yet more courier delays, Hard Boiled finally made it into our testing lab — so, at long last, I was able to give it a spin to see whether the 4K disc is worth all the hype.

Awesome Atmos audio

There are three soundtrack options on this disc: Cantonese Mono, Cantonese Dolby Atmos, and English Mono. I primarily used the Cantonese Dolby Atmos, to see how effective the upscaled audio track would be, although I was impressed by the clarity of the Cantonese Mono.

There're no shortage of action-packed scenes in Hard Boiled, in particular a number of gunfights, and the disc's Dolby Atmos soundtrack makes the most of them. During testing, I used a Samsung HW-Q990C 11.1.4 channel soundbar system, and the Atmos mix really came alive. As bullets tear through the room, ricocheting bullets can be heard bouncing off walls with impressive detail and precision. In the opening gunfight, as sprays of bullets from sub-machine guns fly, the trajectory of these bullets was precisely mapped to the rear channels, and as the camera moved around the room, the sound of the bullets moved with it.

While bullets generate impact, it’s the big explosions that deliver the meaty bass. While these explosions didn’t always resonate from the Q990C’s subwoofer (down to the older mix), there was still plenty of oomph to each one. The Atmos soundtrack also displays great balance and range. As Tequila and Ah Long are caught in a shootout with one another, the sound of bullet casings hitting the floor is audible in the loud gunfire, which is in turn well balanced with raised voices and the often-lively score.

4K picture wins again

Arrow Video’s 4K discs are among the strongest when it comes to restoration, and this remains true with Hard Boiled. Textures have been finely restored, with details such as skin taking on a remarkably natural, almost 3D quality. In some scenes, the movie looks like it could have been shot only a few years ago rather than in 1992. Close-up shots reveal an impressive level of refinement, too, from the texture of a gun to the tiny details of a bullet. Having recently visited Silver Salt Restoration, which occasionally works with Arrow Video, I know just how much hard work goes into restoring films to such a standard.

Elsewhere, this 4K disc showcases bold, vibrant colors that really pop off the screen. The neon signs of downtown Hong Kong have a gorgeous richness to them, while restaurant interiors benefit from punchy yet natural-looking hues – such as a vivid green door in the opening gunfight. And then there's the blood — of which there is plenty in Hard Boiled — that displays real vibrancy, but in some scenes, also appears deep, rich and convincingly realistic. It really highlights the disc’s color reproduction.

Throughout the movie, there are plenty of scenes that, displayed on the right TV, really highlight the 4K disc’s excellent contrast. In the dimly lit jazz club during the opening credits, the dim surroundings contrast well with the wall and stage lights. A later scene of a parade of motorcyclists escorting a car along the docks also show deep black tones, which balance nicely with the headlamps from the vehicles.

Finally, there are plenty of moments that can give a good TV a chance to shine, too. Throughout the movie, bright sparks fly from car collisions, showers of bullets and explosions, and on the LG G6 I used for testing, they really showed off the G6’s strong HDR highlights. The film grain has also been cleaned up. There’s still enough to satisfy cinephiles, but the clean-up job gives Hard Boiled a more contemporary look without stripping away any character.

My 4K Blu-ray love grows

I’ve written plenty about how much I love what 4K Blu-ray can do for more classic movies, with titles such as 1938’s Captain Blood, 1944’s Double Indemnity and 1950’s Sunset Boulevard from Hollywood’s Golden Age all given a new lease of life. Even "more recent" thrillers such as To Live and Die in L.A. — also from Arrow Video — have received stunning 4K makeovers, while remaining crucially faithful to the original, filmmaker-intended look.

Hard Boiled is just the latest in a series of titles I’ve tested that showcase just what 4K Blu-ray can do. It retains the movie’s iconic look, both of early-'90s Hong Kong cinema and John Woo’s distinctive style, while also giving the movie a new coat of paint. The superb new Atmos soundtrack adds another layer, bringing out a wealth of intricate detail and making the explosive action even more immersive. It's yet another fantastic 4K Blu-ray release that I’ll be adding to my now bursting 4K Blu-ray shelves.

• Grand Theft Auto 6's hand-crafted NPCs have over 600,000 animations
• Rockstar North co-head Aaron Garbut says Rockstar established a new team that art-directed every single NPC
• Garbut says every single room and the NPCs inside them were hand-crafted

To achieve the grand scale and realism we witnessed this week in Grand Theft Auto 6's extended look, the development team went above and beyond, according to Rockstar.

In an interview with The New York Times about the game's development, Rockstar North co-head Aaron Garbut revealed that the studio established a new Los Angeles-based team of writers, directors, and producers to focus solely on realizing non-player characters (NPCs).

"We art-directed each individual one of them," said Garbut, revealing that GTA 6 has over 600,000 animations, compared to GTA 5's 55,000 and double Red Dead Redemption 2's 300,000 animations.

"Every room in the game, somebody thought about this," Garbut said. "Who's sitting where, what they're drinking, the marks that are left on the table. The pictures on the wall will have the people that are in that room, with their tattoos on their arms and their family behind them. That whole thing has been made, and built, and photographed, and placed in this random room in a random building in a huge city, in a world."

Rob Nelson, the head of development and co-studio head at Rockstar North, also emphasised that the game is "an evolution" of what the studio achieved with Red Dead Redemption 2 and its impressive gameplay systems.

"Once we managed to accomplish that level of interactive fidelity in a more sparsely populated version of America 100 years ago," Nelson said, "we were already imagining what it would be like if we could do that at the scale and density of a modern environment."

GTA 6 launches on November 19 for PS5, Xbox Series X, and Series S, and a new report has confirmed that the game will run at 30fps on consoles at launch.

• Sony unveils cheaper Bravia 6 OLED TV, available in sizes from 48 inches to 83 inches
• It has four HDMI 2.1 ports, Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos
• Prices start from $1,300 (about £957 / AU$1,805), putting it against Samsung and LG's mid-range model, but its unclear if performance will match

Sony has launched a new mid-range OLED TV, the Bravia 6. As the numbering suggests, it sits below the Bravia 8 and Bravia 8 II OLED TVs and the Bravia 7 II and Bravia 9 II RGB LED TVs in Sony's 2026 TV range.

The Bravia 6 comes in five sizes, ranging from 48 to 83 inches, and includes the MediaTek Pentonic 800 chip, which means it has four HDMI 2.1 ports that support 4K 120Hz and variable refresh rate — unlike Sony's higher-end TVs, which only have two HDMI 2.1 ports each due to a quirk of chip choices. The Bravia 6 also supports Dolby Vision, Dolby Atmos, DTS:X, auto low latency mode and HDMI eARC.

The strapline for Sony's marketing is "OLED essentials, now within reach", and with prices ranging from $1,300 to $4,000 in the US (international pricing is coming soon) the Bravia 6 is priced to fight it out with the LG C6 and the Samsung S90H. So how do they compare?

Sony Bravia 6 vs LG C6 vs Samsung S90H: key features

As you'd expect from a new Sony, the Bravia 6 runs Google TV. LG has its webOS system, and the Samsung runs Tizen. There's essentially universal disagreement in the TV community over which of these is better, but they all support every major streaming service.

The Bravia 6 will come in five sizes: 48, 55, 65, 77 and 83 inches. The LG C6 and Samsung S90H are both available in six: 42, 48, 55, 65, 77 and 83 inches.

Samsung's model has HDR 10+ while the Sony and LG have HDR 10 and Dolby Vision; all three have Dolby Atmos audio but the Sony also has DTS:X.

For gamers, the Sony has variable refresh rate based on the standard HDMI 2.1 spec; the LG has HDMI-spec VRR, plus, Nvidia G-Sync and AMD FreeSync Premium; and the Samsung has HDMI-spec VRR, G-Sync and FreeSync Premium Pro.

All three TVs support at least 120Hz 4K, but this is where it gets interesting. The Sony only supports 120Hz at 4K, while the LG and Samsung both support 4K 165Hz maximum.

This suggests that the Sony is using a different panel to the other models, despite being the same kind of price. We don't have official confirmation yet, but multiple outlets are have reported that the Bravia 6 uses the new, more affordable OLED SE panel, which is also used in the LG B6.

But what's odd is that the OLED SE panel is capable of hitting 144Hz, so the Sony being limited to 120Hz doesn't actually confirm anything about its panel either way.

If it is using the OLED SE panel, the LG C6 and Samsung S90H have a clear advantage in terms of the brightness and color reproduction of the panel itself. We loved the performance of the LG C6, and our first impressions of the Samsung S90H were that its display came very close to the C6, though our full review is coming soon.

TV enthusiasts will be very interested in Sony's processing, however, rather than just the panel. Sony's built a reputation for offering extremely good motion handling and upscaling, and producing fantastic levels of accuracy in its pictures. However, this often comes with a dimmer-looking picture than the competition even when using the same panel, and Sony might be using a dimmer panel to start with here…

At $1,300, the Sony Bravia 6 is priced to compete with the LG C6, which has fallen to a regular price of $1,299, while the Samsung S90H is available for $1,199 at the time of writing.

The 48-inch version of the LG B6 is available for just $799 at the time of writing, and if the Sony TV does use the same panel, that's quite a start difference.

The mid-range OLED market is going to be a tough one for Sony to crack — the company is pretty cautious about discounting, but LG and Samsung are very aggressive with it. If the Bravia 6 has the performance to match the price, then it could be the cinephile's choice — but it could all depend on that panel.

Thinking of buying a new TV?

Try our TV size and model finder! You tell it how far you sit from your TV, we'll tell you what size to buy based on viewing angle advice from image quality experts, and we'll recommend our three top TVs at that size for different prices.

It's getting tougher and tougher to find decent gaming laptop deals these days, but every now and again, I still spot the odd gem. One such example has to be this Gigabyte Aero X16 gaming laptop for $1,339 (was $1,499) at Best Buy.

It's a pretty pricey laptop, no doubt, but it's a rare example of a machine that features both an RTX 5070 graphics card and 32GB of RAM for under $1,500. I've spotted quite a few 'cheap' RTX 5070 laptops recently, but they've all come with a rather measly 16GB of RAM.

Since RAM is so expensive these days, getting 32GB right out of the box is a real selling point for this Gigabyte Aero X16. You shouldn't have any issues getting great performance here, even if you do have to pay a little extra versus the cheaper RTX 5060 laptops that are quite common in this price bracket.

If you're headed off to college, then I could see this one being a particularly fine choice, too. It's powerful enough to handle the applications you'll need, while also doubling as a great tool for gaming in your downtime. With a decent AMD chipset, this one should see you through all of college with no problem.

Today's best gaming laptop deal

• See more: check out all of today's gaming laptop deals

This particular deal is one of the highlights of Best Buy's 'back to school' section, which includes plenty of laptops and gaming laptops of all shapes and sizes. I don't think any listing quite matches this one for value right now if you're looking for a higher-end gaming laptop.

If it's not what you're looking for, however, it's worth checking in regularly at the retailer as we'll almost certainly see some Labor Day specials over the next week or so. Best Buy has already launched a big appliances sale, and tech is sure to follow shortly.

I'm a big fan of reMarkable's line of digital handwriting tablets, having used them for years now. They genuinely offer the closest feeling of writing with pad and pen that I've ever experience. And right now, the whole line has up to £100 off.

Topping the list is my daily driver, the reMarkable Paper Pro Move, now £399 (was £499) at Amazon. I use this notebook-style E Ink tablet every day professionally and personally, and it rarely leaves my side.

For those who need extra screen space that's more similar to writing, sketching, and drawing in an A4 pad, the reMarkable Paper Pure is down to £375 (was £399) and the color reMarkable Paper Pro is down to £599 (was £699), too.

• Shop the full Amazon Tech Week sale.

Today's best reMarkable tablet deals

Why I recommend them

I'm a prolific hoarder of notebooks. So, before I first took the plunge on an E Ink writing tablet all those years ago, I spent months researching and trying different models to find one that gave me the same tactile experience I get from writing with a pad and pen.

The reMarkable 2 won hands-down, and won me over in a matter of seconds once I got started. Since then, I've used the whole line - with the Paper Pure and Paper Pro Move both in my tech stack.

Beyond the minimalist, distraction-free ethos, the handwriting recognition is one of the stand-out features here. So long as you write relatively legible, the device can turn those handwritten notes into useable text. Other pro features I like include the ability to highlight and annotate documents.

For a distraction-free writing experience, reMarkable's surpass any other device out there. I've used the Kindle Scribe a fair amount (my wife swears by it). And while it comes close, it doesn't quite match that scratchy pen-to-paper feel you get from the reMarkable tablets.

Which should you buy?

✅ Buy the reMarkable Paper Pro Move if...

You want a pocket-sized notebook-style digital handwriting tablet. I love mine, and it's genuinely useful for taking notes at work. It easily replaced my beloved Moleskine.

✅ Buy the reMarkable Paper Pro if...

You need the largest canvas offered by reMarkable, and a colour screen is important to you. It's good for professional graphs and documents, as well as epubs like graphic novels.

✅ Buy the reMarkable Paper Pure if...

You just want the cheapest distraction-free tablet in the reMarkable line, and can live without a colour screen or frontlight.

✅ Buy the reMarkable 2 if...

You want a slightly cheaper model than the Paper Pure that replaced it, and don't mind the fact that this slower tablet has been discontinued (although accessories like the pen tips are still widely available)

Price context & historical value

As a bit of a reMarkable fan-boy, I'm always on the look out for deals on these tablets, and they don't come around nearly as often as I'd like. £100 off the Paper Pro and Paper Pro Move bundles, which come with a protective folio and the Marker Plus (you can turn it upside-down to delete your writing like it's a pencil with an eraser on the end).

The Paper Pure is the newest addition to the line-up, and I didn't expect to see a discount so soon - even if it is relatively small. I put it down to being a device that's tailor-made for the back-to-school season.

And frankly, any discount on the reMarkable 2 is welcome, as it's been discontinued so prices may rise as stock runs dry.

The Catch: What to know before you buy

These aren't iPads. They're not even a Kindle. reMarkable's tablets are focused on being as distraction-free as possible. So, while you can integrate certain workplace apps like Slack, OneDrive, and Google Drive, it's not built for streaming movies or reading eBooks from Amazon's store. The central idea here is to use the tablet for writing and sketching.

• See all tablets at Amazon

• Watch Crystal Palace vs Man City on Sky Sports (UK) / USA Network via Sling (US)
• Unlock your stream with NordVPN (save 75%)
• Crystal Palace vs Man City kick-off: Fri, Aug 28 at 3pm ET / 8pm BST

The Crystal Palace vs Man City live stream kicks off the Premier League weekend on Friday night. Man City are targeting a second victory of the season under their new boss Enzo Maresca, while Crystal Palace are looking to get off the mark in 2026/27 following defeat on the opening weekend.

Man City did not have everything their own way last time out. They fell behind to Bournemouth and were still trailing until the latter stages, before former Crystal Palace captain Marc Guehi notched an equaliser. Josko Gvardiol then completed the comeback in stoppage time.

Crystal Palace, for their part, had poor finishing to blame for their 2-0 loss to Everton, who have been a bogey side for the Eagles for over a decade. It has been a disruptive few days for Pierre Sage, who has had to deal with reports linking Jean-Philippe Mateta and Ismaila Sarr with moves away from Selhurst Park.

Man City will look to take advantage of Crystal Palace's current difficulties. Even though they are the away team, we will likely see Maresca's charges dominate possession in south London, with Crystal Palace adopting a counter-attacking strategy. One thing is for sure: if they want to cause an upset, the Eagles cannot be as wasteful in front of goal as they were on matchday one.

Here's how to watch Crystal Palace vs Man City in the 2026/27 Premier League from anywhere in the world.

Crystal Palace vs

Man City XI: Donnarumma, Khusanov, Dias, Gvardiol, O'Reilly, Anderson, Guehi, Cherki, Foden Semenyo, Haaland.

Can you watch Crystal Palace vs Man City for free?

Crystal Palace vs Man City is locked behind a paywall, but there are some free trials available that will let you stream the game for free.

In the US, the game is being shown on USA Network, which is carried by YouTube TV (10-day free trial), DirecTV Stream (5-day free trial), Hulu+Live TV (3-day free trial) and Fubo (5-day free trial).

Traveling abroad right now? You can use a VPN to watch Crystal Palace vs Man City for free as if you were right at home.

How to watch Crystal Palace vs Man City from anywhere

A VPN is handy piece of software that can make your device appear as if it's back in your home country, so you can unlock your usual service. The best VPN right now? We recommend NordVPN – it does everything and comes with up to 75% off.

How to watch Crystal Palace vs Man City live streams in the US

Crystal Palace vs Man City is being televised on USA Network in the US.

It's worth noting that games are also being shown on Peacock, NBC and NBCSN this season.

Sling TV carries USA Network on its Blue plan, as well as NBC, ABC and Fox in select locations, plus FS1, FX and more. Prices start at $45.99.

Alternatively, USA Network, NBC and NBCSN are all carried by YouTube TV and Fubo, which both offer free trials.

Free trials are also available for Hulu + Live TV and DirecTV Stream, which include USA Network and NBC.

Outside the US for the game? Use NordVPN to access your usual coverage.

How to watch Crystal Palace vs Man City live streams in the UK

In the UK, Crystal Palace vs Man City is being shown on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Premier League.

Sky Sports packages start at £22/month for existing Sky subscribers, rising to £35/month for new customers. Now is a great time to sign up, with the start of the football season, England's Test series against Pakistan and the US Open tennis upon us.

You can also tune in via a NOW Sports membership that carries the Sky Sports channels.

If you're out of the UK but still want to watch Crystal Palace vs Man City, explore the VPN route set out above, which will help you access your subscriptions from anywhere.

How to watch Crystal Palace vs Man City live streams in Canada

Crystal Palace vs Man City is available to watch on Fubo in Canada.

Prices start at CA$31.49/month for Fubo's Sports Monthly package.

You can also access Fubo's Premier League coverage through an eligible DAZN subscription.

Not in Canada? Use NordVPN if you're away from home, in order to tap into your preferred Crystal Palace vs Man City coverage from anywhere.

How to watch Crystal Palace vs Man City live streams in Australia

Stan Sport is showing the Crystal Palace vs Man City game in Australia.

Stan Sport costs AU$20/month on top of a Stan subscription, which itself starts at AU$9.99/month. In addition to all 380 Premier League games, it's also showing Rugby's Greatest Rivalry, Super Rugby, the Six Nations and the Nations Championship.

Not in Australia right now? You can simply use a VPN like NordVPN to watch all the action as if you were back home.

We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example:1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service).2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad.We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.

We're officially a quarter of the way through Lanterns' first season — and, judging by the sheer volume of discussions I've seen online about it, millions are really enjoying the DC Universe's (DCU) latest TV show.

If you're among that number, you'll want to know when the sci-fi crime drama's next chapter, titled 'OutKast', will hit a streaming platform near you. This week's entry will fill us in on John Stewart's upbringing and apparent 'chosen one' status as a future Green Lantern, too, so you definitely won't want to miss it.

So, here's when and where you can watch Lanterns episode 3.

When does episode 3 of Lanterns come out?

Lanterns' third installment will arrive on Sunday, August 30 at 6pm PT / 9pm ET in the US and Canada.

The DCU Chapter One show's forthcoming episode will also be available to stream in other nations, but won't premiere outside of North and South America until Monday, August 31. If you live elsewhere, these are the launch times you need to be aware of:

• US — Sunday, August 30 at 6pm PT / 9pm ET
• Canada — Sunday, August 30 at 6pm PT / 9pm ET
• UK — Monday, August 31 at 2am BST
• India — Monday, August 31 at 6:30am IST
• Singapore — Monday, August 31 at 9am SGT
• Australia — Monday, August 31 at 11am AEST
• New Zealand — Monday, August 31 at 1pm NZST

Where can I watch Lanterns episode 3?

Like the two episodes that preceded it, Lanterns' third chapter will drop on HBO Max, aka one of the best streaming services around, in countries where this platform is available.

Not a subscriber or live somewhere HBO Max hasn't launched yet? Don't worry, because the Kyle Chandler and Aaron Pierre-fronted TV show is also set to air on other streamers, TV networks, and channels. Read on to find out which one you'll need to tune in to:

• US — HBO and HBO Max
• Canada — Crave
• UK — HBO Max, Sky Atlantic, and Now TV
• India — JioHotstar
• Singapore — HBO Max
• Australia — HBO Max
• New Zealand — HBO Max

When will new episodes of Lanterns be released?

If it wasn't obvious by now, new entries will make their debut every Sunday in the Americas and every Monday on other continents. That'll remain the case until the season 1 finale comes out in early October, too.

Want to know the exact launch dates for each installment? Of course you do. Check out the list below for more details:

• Lanterns episode 1 — out now
• Lanterns episode 2 — out now
• Lanterns episode 3 — August 30/31
• Lanterns episode 4 — September 6/7
• Lanterns episode 5 — September 13/14
• Lanterns episode 6 — September 20/21
• Lanterns episode 7 — September 27/28
• Lanterns episode 8 — October 4/5

• Watch Miss Teen USA 2026 for free on Queen Beauty Network
• Unblock QBN from abroad with NordVPN – Save 75%
• The event is no longer available on The CW after a contractual issue

Now into its 44th year of competition, Miss Teen USA 2026 is a huge event, particularly in America (along with Miss America, which is also taking place at the same time and available to view via the same methods we'll detail below).

The beauty pageant took place at Ziff Ballet Opera House at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami-Dade County, with a massive yacht party planned for those taking part and attending. Watching at home might not be quite as glamorous, but it is going to be mighty simple, even in spite of The CW dropping the broadcast amid contractual problems.

The event may be staged in the USA, but anyone traveling around can still find a way to watch along, with our help. So, read on to find out how to watch Miss Teen USA 2026 from anywhere and for free.

How to watch Miss Teen USA 2026 for free

Queen Beauty Network has put on a special offer to celebrate the 75th edition of Miss America by allowing viewers to use the service for free to watch the event and Miss Teen USA 2026.

The service can be accessed globally for free, be it via mobile, on the website, or on smart TVs.

The event will be available worldwide from Friday, August 28.

How to watch Miss Teen USA 2026 abroad with a VPN

If you’re traveling abroad when Miss Teen USA 2026 airs, you can watch without regional restrictions using a VPN.

Use a VPN to watch Miss Teen USA 2026 from anywhere:

How to watch Miss Teen USA in the US?

Miss Teen USA used to be broadcast on The CW, but contractual issues have seen the network drop the event in 2026.

Instead, you can access the show via Queen Beauty Network as detailed above, and it's totally free.

Away from home? Use a VPN to watch the show when traveling around – it's easy. Details above.

Why is Miss Teen USA 2026 not on The CW?

The Miss USA organization shared on their Instagram story that the show would not be airing on The CW, writing: "We identified a contractual issue with our production arrangements that could not be resolved within the necessary time frame."

You can find more information on that via Entertainment Weekly.

Who are the hosts of Miss Teen USA 2026?

Miss USA winner from 1993, Kenya Moore, will be on hosting duties this year. She is joined by former Beverly Hills, 90210 cast member Ian Ziering.

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• How to watch The Girls: A Khloé Kardashian Project online — stream the reality series from anywhere
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• Proton found 85% of VPNs on US app stores contain hidden trackers
• 64 of these apps actively track physical GPS locations
• Millions of US downloads are tied to apps funneling data to foreign entities

Millions of Americans use virtual private networks to shield their internet activity from prying eyes. But a massive new study reveals that many of the most popular privacy apps are doing the exact opposite.

According to Proton VPN's latest report, a staggering 85% of mobile VPN apps available on US app stores contain trackers designed to collect and share your data.

Instead of securing your connection, these rogue apps harvest incredibly sensitive information. This includes your unique device IDs, device models, network types, and mobile carrier data.

If you are on the hunt for the best VPN, this data serves as a harsh reminder that not all privacy tools are created equal. In June 2026 alone, Google and Apple allowed these suspect VPNs to be downloaded more than 13.2 million times.

The hidden foreign ownership problem

Proton’s research team analyzed more than 7,000 mobile VPN apps worldwide to uncover these privacy violations. Zooming in on the US market, they found that 64 out of the 390 available VPNs appeared to be owned by Chinese companies.

Worse still, the report says that 31 of those services actively conceal their true ownership behind shell companies based in places like Singapore, Hong Kong, and the UK. These Chinese-owned apps are incredibly popular, racking up more than 3 million US downloads in a single month.

Proton also found that VPN apps that funnel tracker data back to companies in Israel accounted for 2.6 million US downloads. Meanwhile, apps containing trackers sending data to China and Russia hit 1.5 million and 1.4 million downloads, respectively.

NEW: Leave No Trace — A weekly newsletter on digital privacy and online surveillance.

Leave No Trace investigates the companies and governments putting our digital freedom at risk — and the people fighting back.

📩 Subscribe now to get every edition delivered to your inbox every Friday, launching this September.

Location tracking and the worst offenders

Proton's researchers discovered that, in what Crawford deems "the ultimate act of betrayal," 64 VPN apps are actively tracking users' physical locations using GPS and other geolocation data.

This essentially builds a real-time map of your physical movements, completely shattering your anonymity. "Anyone with access to this data can see if you are at a protest or meeting with a journalist, lawyer, or source, and ultimately share that information with law enforcement or intelligence services," said Crawford.

Apps flagged for this behavior include popular services such as VPN Proxy Master, VPN-Fast VPN Super, and X-VPN. Together, these 64 location-tracking apps accounted for more than 3 million US downloads in June alone, representing roughly 20% of all VPN downloads in Proton's dataset.

TechRadar contacted the named providers for comments, but we were still waiting for a response at the time of publication.

David Peterson, Proton VPN General Manager, feels strongly that people looking to protect their privacy have the right to make an informed choice.

"People have the right to know if their personal information is being shared by their VPN, and with whom," he told TechRadar.

That's why Proton's deeper investigations into VPNs with a significant number of downloads are only at the beginning.

Peterson confirms to TechRadar that the team is currently tracking 7,500 VPNs. "We have data sets for the UK, France, and Germany, which we are looking to publish in the near future," he added.

How to stay safe in a sea of shady apps

This isn’t the first time we’ve seen major app stores flooded with dangerous software. TechRadar has previously reported on how Apple and Google are hosting hundreds of dangerous VPN links.

We also recently uncovered how thousands of iOS and Android VPNs are hiding behind fake websites and useless privacy policies.

To protect yourself, completely avoid free, ad-supported mobile VPNs from unknown developers. If a service is entirely free, there is a very high chance your data is the product being sold.

Always stick to reputable providers with transparent ownership. Look for VPNs that undergo strict, independent security audits to verify their no-logs claims, ensuring your browsing data remains entirely your own.

It's a good day to visit Best Buy. Online and in-store, Best Buy has launched its official Labor Day appliance sale, and it's also running a 24-hour tech sale on its best-selling gadgets.

I'll first start with its appliance sale, because it's very impressive this year. The retailer is not only offering big savings, up to 45% off, but it's promising that 'we won’t be beat on appliance pricing,' and that is backed by their price match guarantee. That means if you find an appliance that's cheaper at an online or local competitor, Best Buy will match it.

• Shop today's top deals at Best Buy

The retailer's Labor Day appliance sale offers a wide range of appliances, including refrigerators, washing machines, dishwashers and ranges from brands like LG, Samsung, GE and Whirlpool. Best Buy also offers free shipping on all major appliances and free installation on qualifying products.

If you're also in the market for a new tech gadget, Best Buy has a 24-hour flash sale today, and I've listed the top deals further down the page, including OLED TVs, AirPods, cheap laptops and more.

Best Buy's Labor Day appliance sale

Shop more of today's top Best Buy deals

See more of today's best Labor Day sales

• Amazon: 45% off TVs, AirPods, air fryers & vacuums
• Apple: iPads, AirPods & MacBooks from $99
• Appliances: up to $1,200 at Samsung
• Best Buy: 60% off appliances, TVs, laptops & more
• Casper: up to 30% off mattresses
• Dell: laptop deals from $249.99
• DreamCloud: up to 60% off mattresses, 66% off bundles
• Home Depot: 40% off appliances, furniture, grills & tools
• Lowe's: $1,000 off appliances, patio & tools
• Nectar: up to 50% off mattresses, deals from $349
• Saatva: up to $625 off luxury mattresses
• Samsung: up to $2,000 off 4K, QLED & OLED TVs
• Target: 45% off clothing, tech & furniture
• Walmart: 58% off back-to-school, furniture, & clothing

• Ransomware group Qilin lists Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) among new victims, claiming a “major incident”
• ATF confirmed breach of a standalone system holding investigation target data, not core networks
• Systems were disconnected, DOJ notified; Qilin is Russia‑linked, known for past Synnovis attack

The US Government's Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) has suffered a “major incident” in which it appears to have lost sensitive information.

Notorious ransomware operators Qilin added a handful of new names to their data leak site: Northern Leasing Systems, Metal Conversions, California Truck Equipment, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and WireCo.

The attackers did not say what kind of data they stole, or how much of it they have. They have also not posted any samples of the stolen files, which is not that uncommon these days.

ATF investigations

Shortly after appearing on Qilin’s data leak site, ATF confirmed the news via a press release published on the agency’s website. In the announcement, ATF said it was responding to an incident, “affecting a standalone system”.

“The impacted system operates separately from the ATF enterprise network, and there is no indication that the incident has affected the ATF enterprise network, the ATF eForms system, or any other ATF system,” the press release reads. While the press release does not mention the name of the targeted system, a spokesperson told The Register it contains information about targets of ATF investigations.

The ATF usually investigates federal crimes such as illegal firearms trafficking, violent crime and gangs, explosives, arson and bombings, organized crime, illegal alcohol and tobacco trafficking, and firearms dealers and manufacturers.

After spotting the attack, ATF disconnected the affected systems, engaged cybersecurity experts, and notified relevant authorities, including the Department of Justice. “Senior Department officials have designated the event a “major incident” under applicable federal guidelines, and required notifications have been completed,” ATF added.

Qilin is a relatively old, known ransomware threat actor. It is being tied to Russia and is best known for its attack on the pathology provider Synnovis, which happened back in 2024.

• 82% of young American knowledge workers now consider themselves global employees
• The 'American Dream' is more about career opportunities, wherever they may be
• Social networks and leadership are far more important than AI, for Gen Z

New research from Pebl has claimed Gen Z workers in the US actually see themselves as global employees, not American employees, as hybrid and remote work continues to spread across the world.

In fact, more than half (54%) said that achieving the 'American Dream' doesn't actually mean they have to remain in the US – just that they purse the best career opportunities possible.

Consequentially, 53% would choose to work for the world's best company over America's best company, with four in five (82%) already considering themselves part of a global workforce.

Young workers see the career landscape as global

It seems that workers are also keen to interact with colleagues from other countries, with benefits including broadening perspectives (73%), improving leadership skills (71%) and improving problem-solving abilities (68%).

But even though other studies have pointed toward remote working being a non-negotiable for many young workers, they're still keen to work internationally, whether that's in person or remote. Two in five (41%) envisage careers involving work across two or three different countries, and two in three (64%) would be very or extremely interested in temporary work opportunities in another geography.

"Gen Z is not just more open to international careers – they increasingly see global experience as essential to becoming stronger leaders," CEO Francoise Brougher explained. "If companies want globally minded leaders tomorrow, they need to start creating globally minded careers today."

Ongoing return-to-office mandates have also placed a big emphasis on in-person collaboration, and it's clear that younger workers agree. Building strong and professional networks (28%) and gaining experience in leadership and management (26%) ranked much more highly than developing AI skills (11%) among the 1,022 US Gen Z knowledge workers surveyed. Pebl explained AI's role as a human skill amplifier, not a replacer.

Ultimately, after years of major upheaval across both in-person/remote working routines and AI/automation, young workers are still very optimistic about in-person relationships and new career opportunities.

The final weekend of August 2026 has arrived — and, for those in the UK, that means the last bank holiday of the year is also here. You better enjoy the long weekend while you can, then.

Unfortunately, there aren't many exciting new movies and shows for you to enjoy during your downtime. Sure, the world's best streaming services have released some new content in recent days, but they're all distinctly lacking in the 'must see' department. Hopefully, things will pick up again in September. Anyway, read on to see if any of the below tickles your fancy. — Tom Power, senior entertainment reporter

The Whisper Man (Netflix)

Netflix's latest thriller movie follows a widowed crime writer (Adam Scott) who enlists the help of his estranged father and detective (Robert DeNiro) after his young son goes missing.

As the investigation unfolds, they discover a connection between the recent abduction and the decades-old case of the titular, convicted serial killer.

Adam Scott has had an excellent run with recent hits like Severance and Hokum, so I have high hopes that this will be another win for the Parks and Rec. alumnus. — Lucy Buglass, senior entertainment writer

• Watch The Whisper Man on Netflix

The Last Sunrise (Prime Video)

Another young adult banger from Prime Video? The streamer is truly the gift that keeps on giving if this is the genre for you. This time, more summer romance comes in the form of The Last Sunrise.

In a nutshell, Ry (Maia Reficco), is a college student with a chronic illness on a summer escape with her mother (Eva Longoria). She unexpectedly falls for Julián (Fernando Lindez) and begins to embrace living in the moment but, as its logline states, "her worsening condition and long-hidden family secrets threaten to unravel everything before the summer ends."

Sounds like tissues will be needed, then. Based on the novel of the same name, I can almost guarantee than watching Amazon's movie adaptation is going to break me. — Jasmine Valentine, entertainment reporter

• Watch The Last Sunrise on Prime Video

Dark Matter season 2 (Apple TV)

I've said it before and I'll say it again: Apple TV is the undisputed king of small-screen sci-fi fare. Admittedly, Dark Matter isn't one of the streamer's more popular genre offerings, but its mind-melding narrative will scratch the itch of those who aren't completely burned out by the concept of the multiverse.

But, I'm getting off-track. Season 2 of the Apple original series reunites us with the Dessens — Jason (Joel Edgerton) and Daniela (Jennifer Connelly) — as they're forced to go on the run again when a new threat ermerges. Coupled with Jason's growing obsession with the mysterious Box and Daniela's escalating paranoia further impinging on their lives, their relationship will be pushed to the limits are Dark Matter season 2 blends intimate drama with abstract science fiction. — TP

• Watch Dark Matter season 2 on Apple TV

One Hundred Years of Solitude Grand Finale (Netflix)

As Netflix's ambitious attempts to tell Gabriel García Márquez's apparently unfilmable novel is about to reach its conclusion.

Indeed, the finale charts Macondo as it faces its last days and the birth of the final descendant. Even if you've read the original book, you still probably won't have a handle on what's about to unfold. One Hundred Years of Solitude is a tragedy on a legendary level, but there's still something incredibly satisfying about our story coming full circle. — JV

• Watch One Hundred Years of Solitude Grand Finale on Netflix

Adults season 2 (Hulu/Disney+)

Adults returns with a two-episode premiere this weekend, so Hulu or Disney+ is the place to be for your sitcom needs.

When we pick up, we'll be navigating the aftermath of that messy season one cliff-hanger. What was meant to be a spontaneous and platonic marriage between Paul Baker (Jack Innanen) and Anton (Owen Thiele) to stop the former's deportation from the US has evolved into something much more.

Unfortunately, this has caused a love triangle because Issa (Amita Rao) is in love with Paul Baker, and Anton happens to be her best friend. I can't see this ending well, can you? — LB

• Watch Adults season 2 on Hulu (US) and Disney+ (internationally)

The Undeclared War season 2 (Peacock)

Peacock subscribers, you are in for a treat. UK viewers have already experienced The Undeclared War season 2 on Channel 4 and, frankly, I've never been more invested in a cyber-attack scandal.

The same Malware Department at GCHQ are dealing with the aftermath of a devastating Russian cyberattack. But, just as the UK believes it has regained control, a far more dangerous threat emerges involving Chinese malware — and an internal mole.

You probably already know and love Simon Pegg (and rightly so), but it's Siân Brooke that you need to keep an eye on. Everything she touches, turns to gold. — JV

• Watch The Undeclared War season 2 on Peacock

Tyler Perry's Beauty in Black season 3 (Netflix)

If you're a fan of Beauty in Black, you've no doubt been on the edge of your seat waiting for season 3. After an FBI raid and plenty of legal trouble last season, we all want the tea.

In season 3, we follow Kimmie (Taylor Polidore Williams) and Mallory (Crystle Stewart) as they navigate their new control of the Bellarie family empire. Meanwhile, older family members are getting interrogated and are beginning to turn on each other as hidden crimes are brought to light.

Beauty in Black will return for season 4 as well, so this Netflix show is here to stay. I'm sure Tyler Perry's got much more drama up his sleeve. — LB

• Watch Tyler Perry's Beauty in Black season 3 on Netflix

• Grand Theft Auto 6 can take up to 80 hours to beat
• Rob Nelson, the head of development, says it took him 80 hours, including the main story and some "optional goals with narrative ramifications," to complete the game
• This makes GTA 6 Rockstar's longest game yet

I hope Grand Theft Auto 6 fans have booked enough time off work, because the game will take up to 80 hours to beat, and that's just the main story.

In a new interview with The New York Times, Rob Nelson, the head of development and co-studio head at Rockstar North, revealed that his playthrough took 80 hours to finish, including the main story and some "optional goals with narrative ramifications."

Though we don't know what these "optional goals" are, they sound like side quests that affect the story's outcome, such as personal missions that could pertain to either Lucia or Jason.

This means the game can take up to 100 hours, possibly more, if players want to spend time exploring Leonida and Vice City, engaging in interactive activities, completing side missions, and messing around in the vast open world.

"I hope that there will be people that want to get up, have a cup of coffee, shower, get dressed, go out for a little exercise," Nelson said. "Interact with some people, explore, maybe get into some trouble. Rob some places, make some money."

For context, GTA 5's story takes around 30 hours to beat, while Red Dead Redemption 2 can take up to 60 hours. This makes GTA 6 Rockstar's biggest and longest game yet.

GTA 6 launches on November 19 for PS5, Xbox Series X, and Series S, and Rockstar has confirmed that it will run at 30fps on consoles at launch.

If you missed out on the Grand Theft Auto 6: An Extended Look premiere, here are 16 new GTA 6 details we learned, including new details about Jason and Lucia's romance system.

• Anthropic emerges victorious in legal battle against Pentagon over supply chain risk designation
• The Pentagon wanted to use Anthropic's models for autonomous weapons and surveillance
• Judge rules that the Pentagon's supply chain risk claims were "baseless"

A US federal judge has blocked the Pentagon's attempt to blacklist Anthropic in a major win for the Claude maker amid its ongoing battle against the US military over how its AI models can be used.

The Pentagon had previously demanded that Anthropic allow its Claude models to be used for 'any lawful purpose', including military applications, but the company refused to remove two key restrictions it's placed on Claude use – fully autonomous weapons and mass/domestic citizen surveillance are still banned by the AI firm.

Despite huge advanced in AI technology, Anthropic argues that today's models are still not reliable enough to make autonomous lethal decisions safely. It also worries over the ethical and civil impacts of AI-powered surveillance.

Pentagon loses battle against Anthropic

In response, the Pentagon argued that private AI companies should not be able to dictate how the US military conducts its operations.

After failing to negotiate unrestricted use of Anthropic's models, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth went on to designate Anthropic as a supply chain risk, restricting it from certain military contracts. Anthropic warned this could lose it billions in lost business and reputation damage.

Judge Lin has since agreed that the Pentagon's actions are "illegal and baseless," finding that the government had unlawfully retaliated against Anthropic. "The empty invocation of national security is not a blank check to punish and retaliate against government critics," she wrote.

The court also found a major weakness in the Pentagon's case – the government continued to work closely with Anthropic even after publicly portraying it as a supply chain threat.

Importantly not just for Anthropic, but all private companies, is that the US government must not use national security powers against technology companies that disagree with its policy.

"We welcome the court's ruling that this supply chain risk designation was unlawful," an Anthropic spokesperson shared. "We remain focused on working productively with the government to harness AI for our national security so all Americans benefit from this technology."

The Pentagon has not yet publicly commented on the case, but Anthropic does have one further lawsuit pending, so the Pentagon could be waiting for that to come to a close.

Surfshark's latest deal shows why it's long been our best cheap VPN. Its One plan, the best-value option, is down to $67.23 for a two-year subscription, saving you nearly $10 upfront.

This is the lowest price we've seen since Surfshark adjusted its prices a couple of months ago and likely the best deal available until Black Friday.

The One plan offers several key features alongside the VPN including Antivirus, Dark Web Monitoring, and Scam Protection. At $2.49 per month, this Surfshark deal is actually $1 cheaper per month than NordVPN’s entry-level tier alone — saving you roughly $27 over the plan.

Tempted? You've only got 3 days left to claim; the offer ends on August 31, when the price will return to $2.79/month.

Surfshark remains among the best VPNs I've tested in 2026. It delivers over 1,000 Mbps download speeds over WireGuard, unblocks most top streaming services with ease, and offers plenty of extra features to protect your data online.

While the recent price hike was noticeable, it remains the best cheap VPN out there. What's more, despite its extensive feature list, the app is simple enough for beginners on any platform.

If you're after superior performance, be prepared for a higher price tag. NordVPN, our best VPN overall, starts at $94.23 for 27 months, $27 more than Surfshark. Meanwhile, Proton VPN is $83.76 for 24 months and ExpressVPN is $83.72 for 28 months, both over $16 more.

While higher-tier competitors offer minor improvements in raw speed, privacy, or unblocking capabilities, you'll rarely notice the difference during everyday browsing. So why pay the extra?

One of the worst parts about getting scammed is the shame, and that shame just plays into the hands of the crooks. If we don't spread the personal stories, then no one gets warned. So, good on Les Howard who told his story of getting QR code scammed to the BBC earlier this week.

Les, quite understandably, feel victim to what's widely known in the security industry as quishing (QR phishing). Les scanned a QR code that he thought was to pay for his parking, downloaded the app, put in his card details and then watched as chunks of cash were removed from his account day after day. Not great.

There are a number of different ways that QR scams work. Les Howard experienced the fake app routine, but it could just have easily been a link to a fake website, mocked up to look exactly like the real one. AI can work marvels these days when it comes to creating duplicate web pages.

You can just as easily get done by the QR scanner apps themselves, which will take a legitimate QR and send you anywhere it wants to, adding all sorts of other links or scraping the details that you send through.

Now, this doesn't mean that we shouldn't use QR codes. We just need to be a bit more careful about it. The two most important pieces of advice are to use the QR scanner that comes baked into your phone's camera app, if you have one, and, second, use a QR code checker app to make sure what you're scanning isn't a scam.

There are free online tools for the job, such as Is This QR Safe and DNS Checker but they also come bundled in with other tools such as antivirus and VPNs. Kaspersky antivirus has a QR code scammer. The VPN to choose to get one is IPVanish.

The IPVanish QR code checker – like all good QR code checkers – loads a live version of the destination page, rather than just relying on domain blacklists that may not be up to date.

It checks all the facets of the page for anything malicious, and follows any redirects that may be trying to throw it off the scent, until it's sure the QR code is safe. If all is well, it presents you with the page and allows you to continue. If not, you'll be told it's a scam code. Pretty simple stuff from the user end.

We rate IPVanish as solid, 4-star VPN. It's only short of the very best VPNs on features like server count and some streaming service unblocking that's not a priority for this use case.

In terms of QR code checking and other security features, it's right up there. So, if you're VPN-curious and definitely want in on a QR code checker, then give it a go.

If a QR code checker is all you want, though, then make sure to take some of those free options above for a spin, instead, before you settle on which one to use full time.

Amazon's 2026 Labor Day sale is live, and it arrives at just the right time. As retailers like Amazon and Apple have had to raise prices on their electronics recently because of the memory and storage component shortage, a discount is very welcome, and Amazon has done just that.

• Shop Amazon's full Labor Day sale

Amazon's Labor Day sale includes deals on best-selling Apple gadgets like iPads and AirPods, as well as its own smart home devices, including smart speakers, Fire TV Sticks, tablets, and Ring Doorbells. The retailer also offers discounts on Labor Day favorites like small appliances, TVs, and popular home items.

Below are links to Amazon's most popular Labor Day sale categories, followed by the top deals I've hand-picked. Highlights include the all-new Ring Battery Doorbell 2K for $69.99, the viral Beckham Hotel Collection pillows for $41.97, and Apple's AirPods 4 for $99.

Keep in mind that today's offers are a part of Amazon's official Labor Day sale, which means you won't find better prices on Labor Day proper (September 7).

Amazon's Labor Day sale – quick links

• Amazon Devices: Fire Sticks & Echo from $18
• Apple: MacBooks, AirPods & AirTags from $29
• Back-to-school: backpacks, tech & supples from $5
• Cheap TVs: smart TVs from $69.99
• Grills: Weber & Ninja from $179
• Halloween: decor, costumes & books from $8
• Headphones: 50% off Beats, Bose & Samsung
• Laptops: Apple, HP & Dell from $199
• Mattresses: Sealy, Serta & more from $186
• Patio: outdoor furniture, rugs & decor from $19.99
• Vacuums: Dyson, Shark & Bissell from $34

Amazon's top Labor Day deals

Amazon Labor Day Apple deals

Amazon Labor Day home & appliance deals

Amazon Labor Day TV deals

Amazon Labor Day Amazon device deals

Contains spoilers for episodes 1 - 7 of Furious season 1.

Furious season 2 has been confirmed for Hulu (US) and Disney+ (internationally), and I'm thrilled at the news that the excellent crime series will continue.

Ahead of the season 1 finale on August 31, Furious has been renewed so we can all breathe a sigh of relief that the trail won't go cold. There are so many answers I want in season 2, and I'm not alone in this.

I spoke to Nora Washington's actress about what she hopes to see in season 2, and at the time of our interview, the news hadn't yet been confirmed. So I'm excited to see if any of this comes to light when the show returns.

'I would love to see how she got to where she is'

Nora has quickly become a fan favorite amongst Furious viewers, and it's easy to see why. Bernstine perfectly balances humor with the dark narrative, bringing some funny lines where we never know what she's going to do or say next.

When I asked Bernstine about her hopes for Furious season 2, she had her sights set on Nora's boss Ed George (Danny McCarthy). He's now firmly Nora's enemy after removing her from the case, which could open doors for a very juicy revenge plot for her.

Bernstine told me: "Well, we have to take Ed George down first and foremost. I really need him to go away, so that's my main hope for Nora in season 2."

We also discussed Nora's alcoholism, and how that's an important part of her story. Bernstine admitted this was a challenge, because Nora is a high-functioning alcoholic and we see her trying to get her job done whilst also struggling with this addiction.

She said: "My biggest acting challenge was the alcoholism, because in my experience, it's easier to play like very drunk, you know, like falling down drunk. Nora is a highly functioning alcoholic, and so it was more of a gray area that she occupied because she is a little drunk and she's a little hungover at all times. So figuring out that balance was a challenge for me."

With this in mind, Bernstine told me she would love to learn more about Nora's backstory before we met her in Furious season 1. There's so much about Nora that remains a mystery, which could be explored when the series returns.

"I would also love to see how she got to where she is. I don't know what that looks like, but I'm curious to see what Liz [Meriwether, Furious' showrunner] and the writers might come up with."

Furious season 1 concludes on August 31, so we'll have to wait patiently for news of the show's return. I can't wait to see what happens next.

Until then, why not check out why Furious is a game changer for disabled actors and what Furious star Scoot McNairy thinks you should stream once you've finished the series.

• Grand Theft Auto 6's romance between Jason and Lucia is completely optional, Rockstar confirms
• Rob Nelson, the head of development and co-studio head at Rockstar North, says if players aren't into it, "don’t bother with it"
• He says players will need to nurture their relationship if they want it to be romantic

Rockstar Games has confirmed that the romance between Grand Theft Auto 6's co-protagonists, Jason and Lucia, is completely optional.

Speaking in an interview with IGN ahead of the Grand Theft Auto 6: An Extended Look, Rob Nelson, the head of development and co-studio head at Rockstar North, revealed that Jason and Lucia's relationship will be central to the story, but whether the player chooses to nurture their romance is completely up to them, and they won't be penalized for avoiding it.

"I have to say it feels great — if you are into it as a concept. Don’t bother with it if you aren’t. Up to you," said Nelson.

"The narrative is structured in such a way that the circumstances they find themselves in require them to stay together for most of the story and work together. At the very least, they will get through most things as partners in crime."

Nelson avoided talking spoilers, but he said the duo's relationship "adds a compelling element to things."

"It’s one of the reasons we wanted to approach this sort of story, because it's completely different for us," he said. "Could we bring some sort of emotional resonance to GTA for people if they wanted to engage with it? Could we also provide mechanisms for people to just opt out of it if they're not into it? If they feel like, 'I don't want a relationship in this?' That's what we're going to find out. It's not something that we want to foist upon players."

If players do want to make Jason and Lucia's romantic relationship flourish, however, they'll have to spend time nurturing it by spending time together in Leonida. Whether that's taking trips, holding hands, walking on the beach, or doing crime together, these activities will build up their bond.

"When you bring them together, it feels like you’re a steward of their relationship, and you feel protective of them as a unit," Nelson continued. "But this is something we did not know when we started, and it really had to be something we felt our way through.

"But I will say that whether you’re getting in trouble, or you’re running from the cops, or getting in a car, or waiting for the other one — playing as them together feels very cool. It feels like you’re taking care of them, if that’s something you’re into."

Last night's gameplay showcase was filled with a mountain of new details, with a new report later confirming the game will launch at 30fps. To catch you up, here are the 16 things we learned from GTA 6's extended look ahead of the game's November 19 launch.

A man and his sidekicks time travel through an infinite number of universes, arriving to unknown circumstances where futuristic drama inevitably lays in wait. Am I talking about Stuart Fails to Save the Universe on HBO Max, or legendary BBC series Doctor Who?

At face value, they clearly could be one and the same. But while The Big Bang Theory spinoff is just getting started with its debut 10 episodes (though season 2 has already been renewed), Doctor Who has been regenerating for decades since 1963... but is now stuck.

Not only has Russell T Davies — the man responsible for reviving the IP in the early 2000s — officially left, but the series has been put out to tender. This means that the broadcaster (BBC) asks independent production companies to pitch ideas and bid to make the program instead of using their own in-house team or current producer.

In short, absolutely anything could happen to Doctor Who over the next few years, including it being dropped completely. Yes, this is a worst case scenario, but you don't need the Doctor to tell you that nothing is impossible.

As we enter week six of Stuart Fails to Save the Universe airing on the small screen, something the cast told me has birthed a slightly unhinged idea: what if the two shows crossed over in an unexpected act of heroism?

Stuart Fails to Save the Universe and Doctor Who feels like a partnership waiting to happen — and it could help the BBC

"We're like four inept Doctor Who's," Lauren Lapkus (Denise) tells me. "The whole show has very heavy Doctor Who vibes." And you know what? She's right.

Let's start with the obvious. Doctor Who is actively looking for new production companies to pitch fresh ideas. Stuart Fails to Save the Universe is the new kid on the sci-fi block, armed with some of the best sitcom creators in the world and an overarching idea that could last for seasons upon seasons.

From those facts alone, it sounds like a conversation between HBO and BBC needs to happen. Add to this that the two distributors have worked together before — on Half Man, Industry and His Dark Materials, just to name a few — and we only have more solid reasoning.

Doctor Who has even been 'Americanised' before now thanks to the BBC's previous partnership on the show with Disney+. Was this the right fit? No, but audiences have certainly got a taste of what the Doctor can be.

Don't forget, Stuart Fails to Save the Universe is also steeped in classic sci-fi lore thanks to The Big Bang Theory. Take a look at how many references there were below and you'll realize both characters and creators had an inside-out understanding of the genre its built from.

So watching our new Doctor, whoever that ends up being, collide with Stuart and the gang doesn't seem too far-fetched to me. Even an alternate version of Stuart being the Doctor himself is something that I wouldn't question. Doctor Who obviously isn't a sitcom, but it's always been funny... so all of this should be enough to Chuck Lorre to come knocking.

Realistically, I think a singular crossover episodes is as much as we'd ever get here, but I'm daring to dream — mostly because as a Brit, I don't want to see Doctor Who have a neglected, unfitting end completely out of its own control.

Identity is the fundamental currency in any technology transaction so we need to treat nonhuman assets with the same care as we apply to people.

We’re outnumbered! Nonhuman identities (NHIs) outnumber human identities in the enterprise by a ratio of up to 50:1. This Non-Human Identity Management Group statistic from 2025 is likely already outdated, and in a year from now the ratio will be exponentially higher as rapid growth trends like AI/Machine Learning, the Internet of Things, digital assistants and the burgeoning API Economy continue to accelerate automation.

What are NHIs? Machines, processes, service principals and accounts, virtualized and other workloads, and applications that are granted digital credentials. Think, for an everyday example, of a helpdesk chatbot on your favorite website.

Managing NHIs is a challenge that CIOs, identity experts, and CISOs must accept. This in some ways is a re-run of what happened 40 years ago when identity access management was widely deployed. It’s just that now we are not only dealing with human beings. And I don’t know a single organization that has its collective head around the concept of who is, or should be, ‘the HR chief’ for NHIs.

Leaders today need to consider nonhuman identity in the way they consider human identity. When we hire, we onboard people by harnessing and securing the details we need to pay them and manage them, but we also work to imbue them with our organizational culture, systems, risks, security processes and so on.

We set and tweak permissions based on who needs access to what and when, depending on their roles, seniority, specific tasks they perform at a given time and so on. We need to have similar controls and contextual understanding of our nonhuman assets.

An urgent case where context is king

Without making that change CIOs and other leaders will have no foundational basis of understanding where risks are coming from or what measures they need to take. They need a central, visible platform to see what they have and what’s going on. Legacy IAM can’t offer that because it starts with a narrow focus on compliance and is a static model based on rigid criteria like six-month audits and the rote dispensing of permissions and privileges.

The old IAM is rooted in the early-21st-century age of Sarbanes-Oxley, reactions to governance scandals and corporate malfeasance. Moreover, it ignores what is happening in the wider digital world: namely, the explosion of identity types that are crying out for holistic oversight.

Control of the human and nonhuman estate means ensuring there is insight into nonhuman assets and what they're doing.. context is king. So look at NHI constructs that can touch anything in the digital ecosystem and the underlying connectivity to apps and, most importantly, data. CIOs need to be able to recognize the truth of a contemporary mantra: identity is the fundamental currency in any technology transaction.

Everything must be covered: bots; service principals; IoT endpoints; abandoned trial workloads; autonomous agents and agents that speak to other agents. Start by asking an overarching question: do these NHIs leverage a human identity when they perform tasks on behalf of that person, and is that appropriate?

Then it is possible to drill into practical areas like guarding against credential misuse across agents, improving digital and identity hygiene by spotting risks relating to non-expiring tokens, and analyzing API access levels on a just-in-time basis.

ISPM (Identity Security Posture Management) is useful here because organizations need to have a handle on what they have, and must bring identity constructs together. However, this is not a ‘one and done’ discovery process so consider it as a CI/CD journey of continuous improvement.

In the AI era, holistic technology inventory can't be CMDB-based but must be dynamic and based on CI/CD pipeline control frameworks that let us dynamically view and slice and dice data and assets by controlling who is using what and where.

Think of it as an opportunity…

It’s a complex task and we are all busy. But we need to pause and think about how this inflection point can be parlayed into a positive. This is an opportunity for the security and identity teams to start asking ourselves about the constructs we can apply to nonhuman identities.

They should be asking what needs to be added to legacy IAM frameworks to be successful. And usually the answer will be to replace them with systems that are coded for the current age, not the previous one.

By providing these new controls the identity team will become respected and sought out. Identity leaders will gain kudos by their ability to attribute risk ratings based on behavioral analytics and business function.

By demonstrating insights into where data sits, where it moves to and from, and how identity supports that, identity leaders can deliver qualitative and quantitative process analysis. In some cases of outperforming best practices and execution, they will even help to refine business process re-engineering through a platform that informs prioritization and budget management.

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• OpenAI wants every business, firm, government, and infrastructure provider to be hardened against cyber AI
• To do this, frontier AI firms and their friends in the security industry need to provide access and training
• A letter laying out these aims and how to achieve them has been signed by over 120 companies

Following a string of accidental cyberattacks and demonstrations of powerful AI models capable of finding vulnerabilities and breaches in even the most hardened defenses, OpenAI has called upon its compatriots to shore up the world's businesses, governments, and critical infrastructure.

“Each of us can reduce risk now,” OpenAI’s call to arms said. “All organizations, cybersecurity companies, technology partners, governments, and AI frontier companies have an important role: accelerate defenders’ priorities with tools, funding, and hands-on support, especially for critical infrastructure organizations with limited budgets.”

Over 120 companies have become signatories to OpenAI’s letter, signing their names against three principles; the status quo of security soon won’t be enough; cyber-capable AI can help harden vulnerable organizations; and a collective response is needed to make this happen.

Collective action on cyber defense

Where OpenAI and other organizations have made little progress in requesting a slowdown in AI tech development, this is the next best thing. Cyber AI will progress whether organizations want it to or not - so if it cannot be slowed down then organizations should be prepared to deal with it.

Ultimately, OpenAI’s first point of call is to ensure all the cyber basics are covered to prepare organizations for the future of cyber AI. “Make cyber defense an immediate leadership priority,” the letter states. Fix and verify weaknesses, replace or upgrade systems using the principle of least privilege, and use AI-powered cyber defenses wherever possible.

OpenAI’s second point calls upon organizations to, “help lead the response to defend against sustained AI-enabled attacks,” by deploying tools that make AI-powered defense accessible to all and build out playbooks that help businesses and critical infrastructure understand how these tools are deployed and used.

The third point calls for coordination with governments to ensure supply chains, hospitals, water utilities, and local governments all have access to capable AI cyber defenses, starting with those without the budget to upgrade existing systems or implement these tools themselves.

Finally, OpenAI calls on frontier AI companies to provide access, training, and support for “under-resourced critical-infrastructure defenders” that includes threat assessments and observability tools to improve response and recovery to cyber threats.

“We call on leaders across industry and government to bring the full weight of their technology, resources, and expertise to this effort. Put cyber-capable AI in the hands of defenders, starting with the teams protecting essential services. Fix the most dangerous weaknesses, verify the fixes, and share what works so others can build on it,” the letter says.

“Together, we can turn today’s AI advances into lasting improvements in security that benefit everyone. Let’s put them to work.”

• Google Messages has been hit by a group chat bug
• Users describe it as "frustrating" and "irritating"
• Google says it's now working on rolling out a fix

When you're got an app that's as essential as Google Messages is, bugs are even more frustrating than usual — and Google just acknowledged an issue with the app that annoyed users have been grappling with for several weeks.

The bug in question (via Android Authority) causes group chats to suddenly split up into separate threads. Someone replies to the group, and a new group chat is created, with the same participants but without all the past message history.

According to reports on the Google Messages support forums, group chats can be split until multiple ongoing conversations — which of course makes it tricky to keep track of what's being said, and isn't how group chats should work at all.

As you can imagine, users aren't too impressed with the ongoing issue. "I am so done with this happening!" writes one upset commenter on Reddit, while multiple others are chiming in to call the problem "frustrating", "irritating", and "weird".

Make your feedback heard

"We are aware of the issue where group chats are splitting into separate threads, and our team is actively looking into it," a Google representative has now announced on Reddit, encouraging affected users to send a feedback report through the Google Messages app.

To do that, open Google Messages on your phone, tap your profile picture (top right), then choose Help and feedback > Send Feedback. Tap Get started, and you'll then be able to describe the problem — just add #splittingthreads to the text before you send it.

Considering the first reports of this issue cropped up three weeks ago, Google has taken its time in getting around to addressing it. Multiple phone models seem to be affected, though many of the users reporting the bug seem to have recently switched phones.

If you are affected by this, there are no reported workarounds as of yet — so you can't really do much except report the problem to Google, then sit tight and wait for a fix to roll out, which will now hopefully be sooner rather than later.

In the past eighteen months, our teams have moved from debating whether to use AI to debating how fast we can deploy it. The harder question is how to let teams move quickly enough to capture the value of AI without allowing the company’s risk profile to expand faster than its ability to govern it.

That tension is familiar to technology and security leaders because AI creates two mandates that can appear to compete with each other. The technology side of the organization wants experimentation, access, speed, and a path to real productivity gains, while the security side needs control, accountability, data boundaries, and confidence that new workflows will not introduce avoidable exposure.

Both instincts are correct, which is why companies get into trouble when they treat AI as either a pure innovation project or a pure security problem. It is an operating model change, and the organizations that handle it well will be the ones that build just enough structure and hardened tools to let teams move with confidence rather than forcing them to choose between speed and control.

Start with the work, not the tool

Many companies begin by treating AI adoption like a standard software rollout. They approve a vendor, distribute licenses, publish a few guidelines, and assume usage will naturally become transformative. That approach can create activity, but it rarely creates durable operational change.

Real adoption starts when leaders understand how work actually gets done. A finance team, product team, marketing team, support team, and engineering team will not use AI tools in the same way because each group has different knowledge requirements, data sources, risk thresholds, and experience. Each of these will require the development of AI skills and tools.

Leaders should begin by asking what each function is trying to accomplish, what knowledge it needs to make better decisions, what skills are required to use AI responsibly, and what tools or data sources are necessary to produce a reliable result.

When AI is mapped to those capabilities, it becomes part of how the organization operates; when it is layered on top of disconnected processes, it tends to create more output without necessarily creating better outcomes.

Treat data access as a risk design problem

Data access is one of the clearest places where AI changes the operating model. To make AI genuinely useful, teams often need access to information they did not previously use directly.

A marketing team may need product documentation and customer insights, a finance team may need structured operational data, and a support team may need internal knowledge, historical context, and the ability to understand patterns across systems.

The instinct to open access is understandable because AI becomes more valuable when it has more context. The instinct to restrict access is also understandable because broader access can create privacy, compliance, and security concerns. The answer is not to choose one instinct over the other but to create a more deliberate model for deciding which data can be used, by whom, and for what purpose.

In one enterprise rollout, for example, the practical answer was not to give every team access to everything or to keep AI locked inside a technical function. It was to separate lower-risk operational data from more sensitive information, then give teams enough access to work differently while limiting the potential damage if a workflow behaved unexpectedly.

One useful way to think about this is the blast radius of data. Not every dataset carries the same level of risk, and not every AI use case deserves the same level of restriction. Some information can be made more accessible because the potential damage is limited if something goes wrong, while other information, especially personally identifiable information or sensitive customer data, requires much tighter controls.

This approach allows teams to experiment where the risk is lower while preserving stronger governance where the business truly needs it. The goal is not to make security lighter, but to make it more precise so the company can move faster without losing control of the environments, data, and workflows that matter most.

Build verification into the workflow

Verification is where many AI strategies either become scalable or begin to stall. AI systems can produce work that looks polished but is incomplete, inaccurate, off-brand, or noncompliant, and while human review can absorb some of that risk in the early stages, it does not scale well once AI becomes embedded in daily operations.

I have seen this most clearly in technical teams, where AI can accelerate software development only if there is a reliable way to evaluate the quality, security, and accuracy of what gets produced. Without that verification layer, teams may feel faster in the moment while quietly creating more review burden, more rework, and more risk downstream.

Companies need verification patterns that are designed into the workflow itself. That can include automated checks, data quality controls, approval paths, logging, observability, and clear escalation rules for outputs that should not be trusted without further review.

Leaders shouldn't treat these mechanisms as bureaucracy added after the fact. They are what allow AI to move from individual productivity aid to enterprise capability, because teams can only scale adoption when they have a repeatable way to understand whether the work being produced is accurate, appropriate, and safe to use.

Make AI adoption a leadership responsibility

AI adoption cannot be delegated to a single innovation team or AI officer while the rest of the executive team watches from a distance. Every function leader needs to understand how AI changes the work their team performs, how employees will collaborate with agents and models, and where the risks are likely to appear.

That does not mean every executive needs to become a machine learning specialist, but it does mean leaders need enough fluency to guide decisions, set expectations, and model the behavior they ask of their teams. Employees are unlikely to change the way they work if their leaders treat AI as something other people are supposed to adopt.

The cultural framing also matters because if employees hear AI adoption as a euphemism for job elimination, they will protect the current version of their role rather than explore what the next version could become. Leaders should be honest that roles will change, some workflows will disappear, and new responsibilities will emerge, while also making clear that the near-term goal is to help people do higher-quality work with better leverage.

In many cases, the shift is from doing every task manually to orchestrating systems that help do the work. That requires a willingness to work through ambiguity, which becomes more important as AI becomes more capable.

The companies that succeed with AI will not be the ones that put innovation ahead of security and they will not be the ones that wait until every risk can be eliminated in advance. They will be the ones that build enough governance, verification, and data discipline to let teams move with confidence, because within enterprise AI, control is what makes speed sustainable.

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• Grand Theft Auto 6 will launch at 30fps on PS5, Xbox Series X, and Xbox Series S
• Rockstar could reportedly add higher performance modes post-launch
• The footage from the GTA 6 Extended Look was running on the base PS5, which means everything fans saw was 30fps

Grand Theft Auto 6 won't run at 60fps and will reportedly launch at 30fps on consoles, but Rockstar Games may add more performance modes later.

That's according to YouTuber Davy Jones, a content creator who recently visited Rockstar North to preview GTA 6. Jones reported that Rob Nelson, the head of development and co-studio head at Rockstar North, told him the game is currently running at 30fps on console during development.

Flow Games also interviewed Jones about his time at the studio (translated via Kotaku) and reported that performance could change post-launch.

"According to Rob Nelson, Lead Developer and Co-director at Rockstar North, during this development period, the consoles are running the game at 30 frames per second," the Flow Gams report reads.

"According to the director, it is still necessary to consult the technical team to determine if there will be a 60 FPS option at launch (or in the future). He also emphasizes that he does not currently have details on resolution and other technical qualities, such as the use of Ray Tracing, but the performance, for now, is 30 FPS."

For now, Rockstar also hasn't confirmed whether the game will run at 60fps on PS5 Pro.

Last night, the long-awaited Grand Theft Auto 6: An Extended Look finally premiered and offered a deep dive into gameplay, cinematics, and co-protagonists Jason and Lucia.

The footage looks incredible and was confirmed to be running on the base PS5, and knowing what we do now, this means the extended look was also capped at 30fps.

As TechRadar Managing Editor Rob Dwiar puts it, "The amount of technical brilliance and sheer detail that will likely go into GTA 6 will surely translate into the amount of demand on a console’s GPU and CPU," which is why a 40fps mode on PS5 Pro would be perfect balance.

In case you missed it, here are the 16 new GTA 6 details learned from the big Extended Look, including an improved combat system, interactive gameplay mechanics, story hints, and more.

GTA 6 launches on November 19 for PS5, Xbox Series X, and Series S.

• Windows 11 has a new preview update for August
• It offers some nifty new features, including the ability to move the taskbar
• There are some frustrating bugs in the update, though, which include an oversized retro mouse pointer you can't switch away from

Windows 11 just got a new update — albeit still in preview — and while it delivers some smart goodies for the interface (including a taskbar option many users have been waiting for), there's a problem with bugginess here.

As a result, the preview update for August is an 'install at your own risk' affair, and although it's not going to put you in danger of being trapped in a boot loop or something equally terrible, the bugs are annoying.

Windows Latest noticed the initial reports of problems with this update, which include the mouse pointer being changed to a "big white cursor" and the wallpaper becoming a blank black background.

There are plenty of reports of this happening in the official Reddit thread (posted by Microsoft's Jen Gentleman) pertaining to this Windows 11 update. Apparently the old-style cursor which is appearing in some cases can't be changed, and if you try to revert the cursor back to what you had before, it'll just switch to the legacy pointer again, going by the reports on Reddit. You can, apparently, get rid of the plain black wallpaper.

While this update is optional, as are all preview releases, there's been quite a rush to grab it, because, as mentioned, it comes with some long-awaited interface changes: the ability to move the taskbar away from the bottom of the screen, and to resize the Start menu. There's also functionality that allows you to turn off Bing in Windows 11 search, which is great to see.

Analysis: QA and gradual rollout frustrations

While the bugs are purely cosmetic issues, you do end up with a stark and basic-looking operating system if they happen to your system. The really annoying bit is that you can't escape from the clutches of the oversized white retro mouse pointer (the only solution is to remove the update by all accounts).

One unimpressed Redditor complains: "Wow a buggy mess of an update for everyone."

It's easy enough to draw this conclusion scanning through the official Reddit thread, where there are quite a lot of reports of this issue. However, we've got to remember that those who are affected are more likely to be vocal and drop a complaint (or a straightforward bug report) on social media. So, that skews things and makes matters look worse than they actually are – and notably some folks are chiming in saying they've installed the August optional update just fine with no problems. Windows Latest didn't encounter any pointer-related shenanigans, either.

That said, there are enough reports of this to be a worry, and it's a weird glitch to have made it through to the final stage of Windows 11 testing — where preview updates are actually pushed to customer (non-Insider) devices (if they elect to install the optional release, of course). This again points to issues around QA (quality assurance) and testing for Microsoft, something that I keep banging on about.

At any rate, hopefully it'll be a quick fix from Microsoft here. This preview release will become the September update next month, and so this bug will certainly need to be squashed before then.

It's also worth noting that there are people who've not encountered the mouse cursor bug, but are still expressing their disappointment that they haven't got the mentioned interface changes for the taskbar and Start menu. This is because those features are on a gradual rollout, so they will only come to a selection of PCs to begin with, which will broaden over time.

As another Redditor observes: "So I got black screen, my cursor is stuck to Windows 98 and can't be changed for some reason. I got the movable taskbar but don't have the big or small Start menu. With all due respect, this OS is a 'joke' (more than that actually just wanted to stay super polite)."

It's frustrating to take a chance on an optional update because you want the features therein, only to find you don't get some — or indeed any — of them, but such is the nature of functionality deployment in Windows 11. You just have to be patient, although Microsoft has had some of its bigger changes on a very slow-paced rollout in recent times, and this is proving to be an increasing annoyance for some folks. Better to be 'right' than 'rushed' though…

• Manchester Airports Group confirmed a cyberattack exposing data from 8.7 million customers
• Stolen info includes emails, phone numbers, vehicle registrations, and postcodes, but no payment data
• Operations unaffected; “Manage My Booking” suspended, customers urged to stay vigilant

The Manchester Airports Group (MAG) has announced suffering a cyberattack and losing sensitive customer data.

MAG is the UK’s largest airport operator, owning and running Manchester, London Stansted, and East Midlands airports. It also operates the digital travel services business called CAVU, and employs, in total, more than 7,000 people.

The company published a brief announcement on its website, citing a spokesperson: "Manchester Airports group has been subject to a cyber security incident by an unauthorised third party,” it reads. “A quantity of customer data has been obtained that relates to car park, lounge and Fast Track bookings and in-airport WIFI sign-ups at Manchester, Stansted and East Midlands airports.”

Almost 9 million victims

While the official statement does not state a number, a company spokesperson told The Register that the breach likely affected around 8.7 million people. An investigation is currently ongoing, with the help of “specialist advisors”. Relevant authorities have also been notified.

The unidentified hackers stole customer email addresses, phone numbers, vehicle registrations, and postcodes. Payment details, bank account numbers, and similar data were not stolen since MAG doesn’t even store them, it was said.

“The incident has not resulted in any operational disruption. Airport operations remain unaffected and customer parking services continue to operate normally.

So far, no threat actors have assumed responsibility for the attack, and the data has not yet surfaced anywhere on the dark web. We don’t know if anyone reached out to MAG directly to demand ransom in exchange for deleting the files.

In the meantime, MAG has temporarily suspended its “Manage My Booking” online service and is telling its customers to manage their bookings via phone call. It is also urging customers to remain vigilant of incoming emails and other communications.

• Champions League Start Date: 8 September 2026
• Free Streams: RTE Player, Virgin Media Play (Ireland) / TRT (Turkey) / RTBF Auvio (Belgium)
• Unlock your stream with Surfshark VPN

The biggest clubs in Europe return for another Champions League campaign, with two-time defending champions Paris Saint-Germain looking to make it three in a row.

Real Madrid will be among the biggest threats, with Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior and Jude Bellingham leading the charge, while Barcelona will look to Lamine Yamal to fire them to glory. Harry Kane's Bayern Munich, last season's runners-up Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City will also have their eyes on the trophy

After UEFA changed the format in 2024, the competition will once again feature 36 clubs in the league phase, with each team playing eight different opponents rather than three.

The top eight will go straight through to the round of 16, while teams finishing 9th to 24th will enter a two-legged playoff for the remaining eight spots. From there, the competition returns to a more familiar format, with two-legged round-of-16, quarter-final and semi-final ties before the single-match final.

And there are some mouthwatering fixtures already lined up, including Real Madrid's trip to Arsenal, PSG vs Barcelona and Barcelona vs Manchester City. Liverpool, meanwhile, appear to have received one of the kinder draws, avoiding PSG, Real Madrid, Barcelona and Bayern Munich from Pot 1.

Traveling away from home? A good VPN will let you tap into your regular Champions League coverage from anywhere – and one of our favourites Surfshark has a 30-day money back guarantee, plus it covers an unlimited number of devices.

Use a VPN to watch any Champions League 2026-27 stream

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If the past few months are anything to go by, extreme heat is becoming part and parcel of the British summertime. As temperatures continue to rise, employers are under growing pressure to make sure workplaces can cope with the hotter conditions.

The challenge is understanding the smartest way to adapt, because the cost of leaving it to guesswork and getting it wrong is significant.

The UK’s June 2026 heatwave is estimated to have resulted in 24 million lost working hours and a cost to the economy of £1.15 billion in lost productivity. Those figures show the direct impact workplace conditions can have on business performance.

At the same time, hybrid working adds another layer of complexity, having fundamentally changed how offices operate. Attendance is far less predictable than it once was, so it’s harder to know where and when things like cooling, ventilation and workspace capacity are needed most.

Aside from the summer heat, organizations need workplaces that perform well in every season and adapt to constantly changing occupancy and environmental conditions. They need to understand how people move through the office. Things like which desks they check into, which meeting rooms fill up, where teams collaborate and which spaces are regularly ignored.

Doing so requires a real-time understanding of how buildings are being used. This is where sensor technology and workplace usage data comes in, turning assumptions into evidence and giving organizations the insight to make smarter workplace decisions.

Building-wide averages can hide local problems

Many offices are still managed around a relatively fixed idea of how a building should operate. Cooling and ventilation systems may follow predetermined schedules, while individual spaces are managed according to their maximum capacity, rather than how they’re being used in the moment. But we know modern workplaces don’t behave that predictably.

One day a floor may be largely empty, while another is full. The following day, those patterns may be completely different. A busy Tuesday might see meeting rooms become warm and stuffy after hours of back-to-back collaboration, while the open-plan workspace next door remains comfortable. Likewise, areas exposed to direct sunlight will naturally heat up much faster than others.

A single temperature reading taken in one location simply can’t capture those differences. Yet building-wide decisions are often made using exactly that kind of limited information, resulting in energy being used where it isn’t needed while genuine comfort issues remain unresolved.

That’s why employers need a more complete view of workplace performance. Environmental sensors can monitor temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide and air quality across different areas, while occupancy data can show which spaces are being used and how it changes throughout the day.

Often, organizations assume they need to monitor employees to understand workplace performance, but that’s not the case. Built with privacy in mind, systems can combine thermal sensing, ambient temperature, CO2 levels and anonymous spatial tracking to show how an area is performing without needing to identify the people using it.

Bring those data points together, facilities teams can identify real issues earlier, understand what’s causing them and prioritize action that have real impact for employees and their productivity.

Making the data useful

Collecting workplace data is only the beginning. The real value lies in how organizations use that information to create better experiences for employees while operating buildings more efficiently. It’s easy to focus on dashboards and sensors here, but the real goal is to give facilities teams information that’s helpful and they can actually use.

Workplace intelligence isn’t just about responding more quickly when something goes wrong. It’s about anticipating issues before they begin affecting the people using the space.

For example, rising carbon dioxide levels may indicate that a meeting room needs better ventilation, while recurring temperature spikes could point to equipment use, afternoon sunlight or an imbalance between occupancy and cooling. This allows facilities teams to pinpoint the root cause of problems and take action before they begin to impact employees.

By directing resources to the areas that genuinely need them, employers improve employee comfort while reducing unnecessary energy use and operating costs. This more targeted approach also supports wider sustainability goals.

Avoiding unnecessary cooling across half-empty floors reduces operating expenditure and helps organizations make progress against Scope 2 emissions targets, without compromising productivity or indoor air quality.

Designing workplaces around how people really work

Perhaps the greatest value of workplace data lies in what it reveals over time.

Patterns begin to emerge, so organizations build a much richer understanding of how their workplaces are being used.

Recurring patterns can reveal which spaces are consistently underused, which place the most demand on building systems and whether certain areas should be opened, consolidated or redesigned altogether. They can also inform more accurate and efficient cooling schedules, room-booking policies and decisions about where particular teams or activities are best placed.

Check-in and booking data add another layer to that. An organization may discover that employees regularly choose a particular bank of desks, that small meeting rooms are constantly oversubscribed or that a purpose-built collaboration area is rarely used. Those behaviors tell facilities teams something that a temperature reading alone never could.

That said, data is most useful when it is considered alongside employee feedback.

For organizations managing several offices and thousands of employees, speaking to everyone individually isn’t always realistic. Workplace data can help identify where deeper conversations are needed, while surveys, feedback tools and direct employee input provide the context behind the numbers.

Workplace intelligence can highlight what’s happening across a building, but employees provide the context that explains why it matters and how conditions affect their ability to collaborate and concentrate.

Bringing these perspectives together creates a much more complete understanding of workplace performance.

Ultimately, it’s about creating offices that continuously adapt to changing conditions to keep employees comfortable and productive, rather than relying on static assumptions that quickly become outdated.

Preparing offices for a warmer future

It's not only the weather that has become harder to predict. Working patterns are changing just as quickly, and static approaches to workplace management are increasingly out of step with both.

Organizations need to understand both how a building is designed to perform and crucially how it’s being used from one day to the next. That visibility enables facilities teams to respond earlier, use energy more intelligently and create environments that remain comfortable and flexible as conditions change.

The benefit is a workplace that simply works better for the people using it. Somewhere people can focus when they need to and trust that the environment will support the work they have come in to do.

Put simply, when a workplace works better for its people, they are far more likely to want to use it.

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This article was produced as part of TechRadar Pro Perspectives, our channel to feature the best and brightest minds in the technology industry today.

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The paperless office is one of the clearest examples of the impact that digital transformation has had on workflows. This includes industries, like law and finance, where physical records of compliance documents, market-sensitive data, and customer information must be retained.

Mishandling electronic and physical data can lead to heavy regulatory penalties, so companies take care to encrypt data in transit, enforce MFA, segment their networks, and sharpen endpoint detection.

These measures build a solid foundation of security. But what good is that wall when the weakest link sits in the corner of the office, quietly printing?

Regulated industries have a print security problem

Most offices treat printers as passive output devices, disconnected from any threat. That assumption is out of date. HP found 57% of IT decision-makers rate print security as a low priority in their cybersecurity strategy, and 45% aren't confident their print environment meets compliance standards.

Whilst most print-related losses differ in complexity, they can be easily traced. Data leaks expose unencrypted hard drives and unpatched firmware, while print history can reveal when documents have been left sitting in the output tray.

Modern printers are networked endpoints with access to confidential cloud environments and increasingly, they're managed by third-party MPS vendors, widening the potential attack surface.

Managed Print Services are useful for fixing hardware gaps, but they can introduce new risks. When print jobs are routed through third-party cloud servers without end-to-end encryption, files in transit become exposed. Granting an external MPS vendor administrative network access creates backdoor entry where even if only the vendor is compromised, attackers can easily pivot into the corporate network.

Singapore saw this play out in 2025, when a ransomware attack on a printing vendor for Bank of China's Singapore branch exposed 11,200 customer names and account details. The incident is a clear example of how a print vendor can easily become the weakest link in an otherwise solid network.

Hybrid work adds another layer of complexity and few companies have clear governance for print behavior once it leaves the office. Office workers may have enterprise-grade tools, but remote workers don’t. Employees printing at home may be using unmanaged devices and unsecured Wi-Fi, offering little visibility into what's being printed or where it ends up.

The compliance exposure under FCA rules

When two-thirds of knowledge workers assume network printers are secure by default, the likelihood of a printer-related breach goes from a matter of if, to when.

For UK financial services firms, this creates an operational and regulatory risk. The FCA has no statutory cap on fines, and its expectations around data governance extends to how firms handle information physically, not only digitally.

Regulators won’t distinguish between a breach caused by a compromised server and one caused by an unattended output tray; the obligation to protect customer data is the same either way. Conversely, a firm can encrypt data in transit, enforce MFA, and segment its network, and still face exposure if a printer or an MPS vendor becomes the point of failure.

Security starts at the print queue

Even as workflows digitize, printers aren't going anywhere. Regulatory demands still call for hard copies and inked signatures, putting print infrastructure at the heart of broader conversations about automation and intelligent document processing.

Every print, scan, or routing job sits in between physical and digital workflows, making them a powerful lever for end-to-end process improvement. Cybercriminals know this too and lapses in printer security become an open door to confidential data.

Content-aware and cloud-based print management platforms close it. By doing away with physical print servers, they allow businesses to centrally manage printers, automate driver installs, and enforce secure "pull printing," where documents release only once a user authenticates at the device.

Because many cloud based print platforms run in Azure, the same security governing email and Teams can extend to print. Documents are checked against content-aware rules that determine whether they're printable or reportable, with flagged jobs blocked or escalated automatically.

Businesses can also go cloud-agnostic through S3-compatible integrations to avoid vendor lock-in, keeping secure releases separate from the product, so nothing installs on the printer itself and everything is managed remotely.

The last unsecured endpoint

Ultimately, security is a board-level concern, and printers need to be treated as the endpoints they are. That means extending endpoint detection and firmware patching to print fleets and extending governance to remote printing, even if that means restricting what can be printed at home altogether.

This is where visibility matters most. In third-party risk management, paper trails are supposed to tell a coherent story but rarely do. Evidence of oversight is too often scattered across email threads, physical documents, and local files. Vetting MPS vendors is how businesses close that gap, but the work starts with treating print infrastructure as seriously as any other endpoint on the network.

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This article was produced as part of TechRadar Pro Perspectives, our channel to 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/pro/perspectives-how-to-submit

• College Football 2026/27: Saturday, August 29 2026 to Monday, January 25 2027
• Find Full Week 1 Schedule Here
• Stream in the US via Sling TV
• Use NordVPN to watch from anywhere – 75% off

Watch College Football 2026/27 live streams and see whether the Indiana Hoosiers can replicate their National Championship success, if another new school will be crowned NCAA champions, or a more established college can return to winning ways when the big dance comes around on January 25.

With their Heisman Trophy winning quarterback Fernando Mendoza (now of the Las Vegas Raiders) orchestrating things on the field, Curt Cignetti's Hoosiers went 16-0 in the regular season before storming to the championship at the start of 2026 with a historic 27-21 win over the Miami Hurricanes.

But it's the Ohio Buckeyes that are by far the most fancied school to go all the way this time around and take the overall title for the second time in three years. Doing so would deliver a fourth straight championship for the Big Ten conference. Dan Lanning's Oregon are seen as their likeliest challengers, while the likes of Georgia, Ole Miss and LSU are the teams best positioned to bring success back to the SEC. And don't count out the Texas Longhorns, with QB and dynastic prodigy Arch Manning looking to show uncles Peyton and Eli what the next generation of Manning can bring to the table.

Here's where to watch College Football 2026/27 live streams online from anywhere.

Use a VPN to watch College Football 2026/27 stream from anywhere

A VPN is a handy piece of software that can make your device appear as if it's back in your home country, thereby letting you unlock your usual streaming services. The best VPN right now? We recommend NordVPN – it does everything and comes with a 75% discount.

How to watch College Football 2026/27 live streams in the US

National coverage of the 2026/27 College Football season is shared between an array of TV channels and streaming services, including:

ACC: ABC, ESPN channels, ESPN App, FOX/FS1/FOX One, The CW, ACC Network,
Big Ten: CBS Sports/Paramount+, FOX/FS1/FOX One, NBC Sports/Peacock, Big Ten Network
Big 12: ABC, ESPN channels, ESPN App, FOX/FS1/FOX One, TNT
Pac-12: CBS Sports/Paramount+, USA, The CW
SEC: ABC, ESPN channels, ESPN app, SEC Network

If you're a cord cutter, Sling TV is an OTT service that gives access to a good proportion of nationally televised games. Prices start as low as $4.99 (one-day access to Sling Orange that carries ESPN and TNT).

Go for an Orange + Blue plan for $60.99 per month and you'll get access to ESPN, FS1 and TNT, with ABC, Fox and NBC in selected cities, and access to the Fox One app. Add the Sports Extra bolt-on ($11 a month) to your cart and you get the SEC, ACC, Big Ten networks, too.

Other OTT online streamers carrying a selection of the above channels include Fubo, YouTube TV or Hulu + Live TV – all of which feature free trials for new users.

How to watch College Football 2026/27 live streams in Canada

In Canada, coverage of College Football 2026/27 from the US is shown by a combination of TSN and DAZN (from $29.99 per month).

All games shown on TSN can also be watched online through the network's streaming service. It now costs from $29.99 a month after a recent price hike, with the TSN Premium tier showing more than 250 games this season.

If you already subscribe to one of these services but find yourself outside Canada, download a VPN and watch NCAA games as if you were back at home.

How to watch College Football 2026/27 live streams in the UK

Specialist sports streamer DAZN has the rights to show College Football from the 2026/27 season in the UK.

DAZN has pledged to show 25 College Football games per week, in addition to playoff matches and the National Championship.

Unlike last year, it looks as though a subscription will be required to stream these games on DAZN. That will cost you from £12.99 a month for flexible rolling monthly plan, with savings available if you commit to a year of DAZN.

Outside the UK? You’ll need to download a VPN, as detailed above, to watch your usual stream from abroad.

How to watch College Football 2026/27 live streams in Australia

Aussies can watch College Football on DAZN and ESPN via Foxtel which can be live-streamed via Foxtel Now, Kayo Sports and Disney Plus.

DAZN will have one free games live each week but outside of that it is a similar stance to the UK. An NCAA College Sports subscription costs AU$144.99/year, AU$13.99/month on a 12-month plan, or AU$17.99/month rolling.

Kayo Sports costs from $30 a month after a 7-day free trial or your first month for $1, while Disney+ subscriptions are available from only $9.99 a month.

Not in Australia? Use a VPN if you're away from home, in order to tap into your usual College Football coverage on the above services from anywhere.

College Football 2026/27 Week 0 Schedule

Thursday, August 27

6pm - Mercyhurst vs Youngstown State
6pm - Maine vs Towson
6pm - Stony Brook vs Delaware State
7pm - Lafayette vs Georgetown
7pm - Houston Christian vs Southeastern Louisiana
7pm - Eastern Illinois vs Murray State
7pm - Chattanooga vs West Georgia
7pm - Charleston Southern vs Lindenwood
7pm - Southern Illinois vs West Florida
7pm - Mississippi Valley State vs Nicholls
7pm - Gardner-Webb vs Austin Peay
7:30pm - Central Arkansas vs UT Martin
8pm - LIU vs North Dakota

Friday, August 28

6pm - Marist vs New Haven
6pm - Colgate vs Fordham
6pm - William & Mary vs Villanova
7pm - New Hampshire vs UAlbany
7pm - Rhode Island vs Merrimack
9pm - Weber State vs Northern Colorado
10pm - Idaho vs Cal Poly

Saturday, August 29

12pm - North Carolina vs TCU
3pm - San Jose State vs Southern California
3:30pm - NC State vs Virginia
5:30pm - Jacksonville State vs North Dakota State
6:30pm - Sacramento State vs Eastern Michigan
7pm - Hawaii vs Stanford
7pm - New Mexico State vs Florida State
10pm - Memphis vs UNLV

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As incidents of women being harassed by people wearing smart glasses were making headlines, London-based mum and tech founder Liz Hunter could not help but watch in horror as fashionable Ray-Ban Meta glasses multiplied across city streets.

She went online to sign a petition calling for a ban on the technology. To her disbelief, she couldn’t find a single petition that reflected the scale of the outrage she was seeing online. So she decided to take matters into her own hands.

"I didn't want to just stand on the sidelines wringing my hands, because everyone just complaining to each other on LinkedIn isn't going to do anything. I wanted to build something to make that voice a little bit louder," Hunter told TechRadar.

Hunter decided to team up with teacher and privacy campaigner Guy Holder — who was behind a parliamentary petition calling for a sales ban on Meta’s wearables — and build a grassroots movement.

Last Friday, the Stop Smart Glasses campaign was officially launched with a clear goal: to pressure retailers and lawmakers to act before the technology is normalized.

But how exactly does Stop Smart Glasses plan to achieve this? And can social pressure be the key to breaking a legislative roadblock?

How to stop the rise of smart glasses

The idea behind the Stop Smart Glasses initiative is simple: harness the growing wave of UK venue bans to turn privacy concerns into public action.

Major pub chains like Wetherspoons — alongside courtrooms, theaters, and cinemas — have already responded to public backlash by banning smart glasses on their premises. "So, I thought, let's borrow a bit of that attitude," Hunter told us.

With the help of basic AI tools, Hunter built the campaign platform in just a week, despite having no coding background.

The website includes several tools to help people take practical action. A store finder enables visitors to locate local retailers across the UK and Ireland by entering their postcode, town, or city, and email them asking to stop selling smart glasses.

Similarly, users can contact local sports facilities and other venues, urging them to implement private property bans. The site even makes it easy to swamp the customer support inboxes of major national retailers or contact local MPs.

"Then obviously you can sign [Holder's] petition. We really hope that we see the numbers starting to snowball soon," Hunter said.

While the campaign's primary target is Meta's line of wearables, Hunter says the problem is much bigger. A quick Google search reveals that dozens of companies are already making smart glasses.

For Hunter, one principle isn't negotiable: cameras embedded in everyday items should not become a normal part of daily life. "An urgent public debate is needed and, whilst we wait for this to happen, these devices must be immediately banned," she writes on her website.

Smart glasses and the grand public privacy debate were discussed in our latest podcast episode. Check it out!

To ban or not to ban: why campaigners demand action on smart glasses

A backlash against Meta's wearables has intensified following a sharp rise in reports of women being secretly recorded in public spaces, with footage often posted online without their consent.

As reported by Futurism, TikTok is already flooded with teenage boys in the US using these glasses in schools to harass and bully girls.

For Hunter, the priority is avoiding a repeat of social media's early days, when new technology "raced ahead of regulation" with little concern for the potential downsides.

"We turn the page, and suddenly we're in an episode of Black Mirror," she said. "We don't want another damaged generation to be the evidence of [inaction]."

The problem with banning smart glasses, however, is that they also offer legitimate benefits. They enable real-time translation and hands-free controls — and, most importantly, empower visually impaired individuals to live more independently.

We previously reported that these factors make a complete UK sales ban unlikely.

While supporting the use of smart glasses for the disabled, Hunter strongly objects to trading general consumer convenience for public anonymity. "It's not worth the risk. You cannot ignore how quickly they have become a means to abuse and harass people," she said.

Ultimately, Hunter believes tech giants like Meta are using accessibility benefits as a PR shield to force public acceptance. "They nudge the door open with them, and then flood through to the mass market, which was their goal all along," she added.

When asked for comment, a Meta spokesperson stated that limiting access to this technology — which the company deems "critical" for the blind and low-vision community — "would be a major step backwards."

The spokesperson acknowledged that "some places shouldn't be filmed at all," but argued that "rules should be applied consistently." They also noted that the glasses feature an LED light indicating when a photo or video is being recorded—"something smartphones and other cameras don't have."

However, recent research suggests these lights fall short, with a study concluding that neither bystanders nor wearers "viewed LED indicators as adequate privacy protection." The research noted that many believe they are too small, easily overlooked in daylight, and simple to obstruct.

Users have also found ways to deactivate or cover the light, prompting Meta to release a patch that disables the camera if physical tampering with the capture LED is detected

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Leave No Trace investigates the companies and governments putting our digital freedom at risk — and the people fighting back.

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The people vs. Big Tech: putting public pressure to the test

Stop Smart Glasses is now giving concerned citizens the tools they need to make their voices heard. But will that be enough?

In reality, online momentum rarely translates into actual legislative change. We saw this last year when a petition to repeal the UK Online Safety Act failed despite garnering over 450,000 signatures in just a few days

That said, public pressure does sometimes pay off — such as the 2014 Change.org petition that led to the abolition of the tax on sanitary products in 2021.

While viral petitions do not guarantee statutory changes, they can still trigger parliamentary debate. Real-world change takes time — time that, in the case of smart glasses, society may not have.

Despite the challenges, for Hunter, it's a no-brainer — lawmakers need to step in and regulate this market before any more societal harm is done. She believes this urgency can be driven by more public venues and retailers siding with citizens' concerns.

"I'm a real believer that people power can shift the needle," said Hunter, adding that the campaign wants to appeal directly to the new UK Prime Minister. "We want him to be brave enough to ban smart glasses."

Public pressure against smart glasses has shown signs of success elsewhere in Europe. In Norway, for example, the Ministry of Digitalisation announced tighter regulations on controversial features, while the Norwegian Consumer Council urged retailers to halt sales until regulations are settled.

Will the Stop Smart Glasses campaign foster a similar legislative push? That remains to be seen. But ultimately, the true strength of the campaign may lie in its refusal to remain a localized battle.

While currently focused on the UK and Ireland, the platform was fundamentally "built to go global," Hunter explains. The entire website's code is open-source to make it "easy to replicate" — a strategy that has already attracted interest from a US supporter looking to launch their own version.

What started as a local fight for privacy rights could soon turn into a global movement. Will you join?

• Watch 270+ Bundesliga 26/27 games FREE on Fandango Stream (US)
• ABROAD? Use NordVPN to watch the matches live from anywhere

The Bundesliga is back, with Harry Kane and Bayern Munich beginning their title defence this Friday against VfB Stuttgart. Bayern will once again be the team to beat, but the likes of Bayer Leverkusen, Borussia Dortmund, and RB Leipzig will be looking to challenge their dominance.

The best part? You can watch almost all of it completely FREE this season. In a landmark deal, the Bundesliga has struck a new five-year agreement – so through the summer of 2031 – with US broadcaster Versant, splitting its coverage between USA Network and Fandango.

At least 30 matches per season will air on cable channel USA Network, while the remaining 270-odd games will stream completely free on Fandango. Yes, that’s the same Fandango widely known as a platform for booking movie tickets and renting movies online.

The move comes off the back of a hugely successful 2026 World Cup in the US, with broadcasters hoping to turn the country's newfound interest in soccer into something longer-lasting.

Robin Austermann, Bundesliga Americas Executive Vice President, said that “the 2026 World Cup has highlighted the tremendous growth potential of soccer in the US”, and that they aim to “transfer the casual soccer fan from the World Cup into a season-long Bundesliga fan.”

But while Fandango's Bundesliga streams are completely free for viewers in the US, what if you're traveling abroad? Can you still access those free live streams? You absolutely can, with a VPN. Read on to find out how.

How to watch Bundesliga free in the US

Fandango actually has two apps: the regular Fandango app for going to the movies, and Fandango Stream, which is the one you'll need for watching at home or on your phone. You can also access Fandango Stream through your browser.

How to watch Bundesliga free from anywhere

Fandango's free Bundesliga streams are officially available in the US, so you'll need a VPN if you're traveling outside the country and want to access them.

A VPN can change the IP address that websites and streaming services see (assuming you're not breaching any broadcaster T&Cs, of course), making it appear as though you're connecting from the US.

You may be surprised by how simple it is to do. Plus, we have a great 75% discount on our #1 VPN...

What devices can I use to watch free Bundesliga streams

Fandango Stream is available on the following devices:

• Apple TV 
• Amazon Fire TV 
• Android TV 
• Chromecast 
• Roku 
• Xfinity Flex and X1  
• Smart TVs (LG, Roku, Samsung, Sony, TCL, Vizio, Xumo TV)
• Web browsers (Safari, Chrome, Edge, Firefox)
• Android 5 Level 23 and above 
• Apple iOS 17 and above 
• Apple Vision Pro
• Game Consoles (PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X)

We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example:1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service).2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad.We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.

• New research shows 64% of people feel confident challenging professional advice after checking it with AI
• Over 45s are less likely to question professional advice
• An “expertise recession” has been identified by the survey, conducted by Use.AI

AI is helping many of us call time on taking professional advice without further research, concerning new reports have found.

Research by Use.AI has claimed professional advice from doctors and teachers is now researched further, with nearly two-thirds (64%) of people are now more confident challenging what they have been told.

In addition, an “expertise recession” has been identified, a scenario in which expertise is less sought after in a world where AI can assimilate all information and present a contextual and nuanced response.

Gen X less likely to ask

The survey of 15,428 adults has also revealed other professionals that people are more likely to challenge. Managers, journalists, and economists are included in the list.

Use.AI’s findings also highlighted a key split in age groups, as while 70% of 18 to 34-year-olds are “more comfortable” asking questions that challenge professional advice after checking an AI chatbot response, that figure shrinks to 49% among over-45s.

Also, while 64% are “more confident challenging advice” from professionals, 53% of people are using AI to check answers and information from experts ahead of deciding if they can agree with it. Furthermore, nearly half (46%) of respondents stated that professional credentials don’t hold the same reputation as they once did, thanks to AI making it much easier to check an expert’s response.

This reveals an interesting change in how expert information is received. No longer is it something accepted at face value. Credentials might indicate a professional’s experience and knowledge, but don’t necessarily mean that everything they say should be accepted without further confirmation – typically by AI.

The “expertise recession”

In summarizing the report, Use.AI has referred to something it calls the “expertise recession.” This is, it says, evidence of a “decline in automatic deference” to professionals with years of education, expertise, and experience.

“AI has democratized confidence faster than it has democratised knowledge,” said Ihor Herasymov, Co-Founder & CEO of Use.AI. “Someone can use AI to arrive at better questions without becoming qualified to judge the answers.”

Use.AI tell us that the “gap between confidence and competence” will continue to grow in importance as more people use AI for information searches and fact checks.

Do you ever feel that some smartwatches have just too much smartwatch in them? That’s what struck me when Garmin announced the Fenix 9 and Fenix 9 Pro today. Sure, they look like great devices — but at over $1,000 / £850 / AU$1,500 a pop, I’ve been wondering how many people actually need everything they have to offer.

I know I don’t. While I love working out, I’m not a pro athlete and don’t need anything like the suite of features you get with Garmin’s new watches — but Garmin's first live event launch seemed aimed at people like me, the Apple Watch crowd. It's telling Garmin didn’t actually mention how much they cost during the show itself.

If you feel like me and baulk at the expense required to slap one of these devices on your wrist, it’s not all bad news. There are plenty of other options out there, and none of them will break the bank in quite the same way.

Or you could just wait for the features to trickle down to more affordable devices. Either way, there’s no need to open your wallet just yet unless you’re 100% sure you need one of these watches.

Top devices, high prices

Let’s get one thing out of the way first: the Fenix 9 and Fenix 9 Pro look like great smartwatches — possibly even some of the best smartwatches money can buy. They’re full of top-of-the-range features that are perfect for people who push their exercise regimes to the fullest, who regularly stride off into the wilderness in search of adventure, and who demand some of the most specialized features you can get in a consumer smartwatch.

The brighter AMOLED display in particular looks fantastic, especially if you previously struggled to read your watch’s screen in certain weather conditions. I was also heartened to see the rumors of solar charging were bang on the money — while it might be limited to the 47mm models and up of the Fenix 9 Pro, its ability to extend the life of your watch exponentially is tailor-made for off-grid escapades.

But there’s a big difference between interesting features and interesting features that cost a minimum of $1,099.99 / £949.99 / $1,749 AUD. I’m an Apple Watch Series 10 owner, and while the Apple Watch Ultra 3 has been on my radar, its $799 / £749 / $1,399 AUD price has moved it out of “must-buy” territory for me. It’s therefore unsurprising that Garmin’s latest launches haven’t ratcheted up my temptation meter.

There might be some wider context here. Garmin doesn’t normally do big, flashy events like it did for the Fenix 9 series, so the fact that it did this time suggests to me that it wants to introduce its smartwatches to a wider audience. Instead of its core crowd of sports buffs and fitness fanatics, it might be looking to broaden its horizons a bit and crack the more casual market.

The problem is that the Fenix 9 and Fenix 9 Pro have done exactly the opposite of that with their pricing. They’re not exactly entry-level options for people who have never heard of Garmin before. The flashy show puts it in the same company as Apple and Samsung — who also do glitzy product launches — but by limiting its announcements to some of its most premium devices, Garmin hasn’t quite hit the nail on the head.

Patience is a virtue

If Garmin’s Fenix 9 show has whetted your appetite for a smartwatch but you just can’t justify spending almost a thousand smackers on one, what can you do? Well, luckily you’re spoiled for choice.

You don’t even have to look outside the Garmin ecosystem to find some excellent options. How about the Garmin Venu 4, which is our pick for the best Garmin smartwatch? We summed it up as being “perfect for people who wouldn’t describe themselves as hardcore adventurers or triathletes, but still lead an active lifestyle, and might take on a big challenge once a year such as a marathon.” It’s full of top features that you need without breaking the bank thanks to its $549.99 / £469.99 / AU$949 price.

For an even more affordable option, there’s Garmin’s Vivoactive 6, which will set you back a mere $299.99 / £279.99 / AU$549. But this isn’t some undercooked offering that you’ll regret buying. You get 11 days of battery life, a beautiful AMOLED display, and plenty of premium features that once lived exclusively on Garmin’s more expensive products.

And that highlights a key point about the latest Fenix 9 and Fenix 9 Pro releases. While they’re incredibly high-end options right now with price tags to match, I’m willing to bet that it won’t be long before many of their features are rolled out to much more affordable devices in Garmin’s smartwatch line-up. That kind of move has happened plenty of times in the past, and there’s no reason to think that Garmin is going to change its tune.

So, while I won’t be buying the Fenix 9 or Fenix 9 Pro right now, who’s to say I won’t pull the trigger further down the line? As these products’ prices drop and their features migrate to other wearables, chances are I’ll no longer be obstructed by an eye-watering price tag. A little patience is all it takes.