Image: Xfinity Xfinity is notifying customers of a “data security incident” it says resulted in the theft of customer information, including usernames, passwords, contact information, and more. In a notice on Monday, Xfinity says “there was unauthorized access” to its systems from October 16th to October 19th, 2023.Xfinity traces the breach to a security vulnerability disclosed by cloud computing company Citrix, which began alerting customers of a flaw in software Xfinity and other companies use on October 10th. While Xfinity says it patched the security hole, it later uncovered suspicious activity on its internal systems “that was concluded to be a result of this vulnerability.”The hack resulted in the theft of customer usernames and hashed... Continue reading…

Master Boot Record (MBR) and GUID Partition Table (GPT) are two different partitioning schemes that you can use for your SSDs and HDDs. They play a vital role in managing the disk structure, and determining how the data is stored or accessed. MBR dates back to the 80s, meaning it works well with older computers with legacy BIOS firmware, whereas GPT is a more modern alternative that was developed as a part of the Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI).

Photo Illustration by Amelia Holowaty Krales and Cath Virginia / The Verge Let us help you find all kinds of gifts for all kinds of kiddos. Continue reading…

The CMA has a deadline of February 25th to make a final decision. | Illustration by Kristen Radtke / The Verge Adobe is, unsurprisingly, standing its ground after the UK’s competition watchdog slammed the brakes on its $20 billion plan to purchase the cloud-based product design platform Figma. Last month, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) provisionally determined that the deal would harm the product design software market should it go ahead — effectively blocking the acquisition until Adobe addressed the regulator’s concerns, which involves the divestiture of “overlapping operations” like Figma Design and the company’s competing Adobe XD app.A response to the CMA’s request for remediations, dated December 14th, was published on the Authority’s website on Monday. In short, Adobe is refusing to make any of the suggested compromises to... Continue reading…

Image: The Verge X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, may have broken the European Union’s tough new Digital Service Act rules, regulators said as they announced the opening of a formal investigation today. A key concern of the investigation is “the dissemination of illegal content in the context of Hamas’ terrorist attacks against Israel,” the European Commission says.In a press release, the Commission said it will look at X’s attempts to counter the spread of illegal content on its platform and will examine X’s efforts to stop “information manipulation” via its Community Notes system and other policies. It’s also looking into matters beyond content moderation, including “deceptive design” relating to “the so-called Blue checks,” advertising... Continue reading…

Photo Illustration by Amelia Holowaty Krales and Cath Virginia / The Verge Whether you need a stocking stuffer or a white elephant present, we’ve got an inexpensive gift idea for nearly every occasion. Continue reading…

There are a lot of important parts that make up a PC, but one of the most crucial is going to be the case, as it not only protects the internal parts, but it's also a major component of the computer's appearance. While you can keep things boring and just get a basic shell, it can sometimes be fun to get something more exciting, one that matches your personality.

YouTube Former prime minister of Pakistan Imran Khan has been in prison since August for illegally selling state gifts — but that hasn’t stopped him from campaigning. The leader’s political party released a four-minute video on Sunday evening that used AI-voice cloning technology to replicate his voice. In the video, which aired during a “virtual rally” in Pakistan, the dubbed audio is accompanied by a caption that states, “AI voice of Imran Khan based on his notes.”Jibran Ilyas, a social media leader for Khan’s party (known as the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, or PTI), posted the video on X. Founding Chairman Imran Khan's speech in AI voice. Can't stop praising Dr Asma for staying up 36 hours to get this done in time, Nausheen for... Continue reading…

Microsoft Store in Windows 11 has recently been updated with a nifty new feature that will try to stop you from getting apps and games you have already downloaded and installed on your PCs. However, this is available for you only if you're running Windows 11 Insider builds, as it's currently in the beta testing phase.

Gusto will launch from Antarctica. | Image: Geoffrey Palo / GUSTO Team NASA is preparing to begin an experiment named GUSTO — short for Galactic / Extragalactic ULDB Spectroscopic Terahertz Observatory — to gather data that will be used to create a 3D map of a portion of the Milky Way Galaxy. The GUSTO experiment involves a telescope that will float 120,000 feet over Antarctica on a high-altitude balloon for at least 55 days, soaking up high-frequency radio waves percolating through the cosmic interstellar medium — a term that refers to the gases, dust, radiation, and other materials that make up the space between stars. NASA has a fun guide to its scientific balloons that explains the zero-pressure and super-pressure balloons it uses for missions like this. Image: José Silva / GUSTO Team... Continue reading…

Smartwatches have become a popular tool for empowering seniors to live independently. These high-tech wearables offer easy access to practical features like emergency assistance, medication reminders, and location services. They also have a suite of biometric tools to monitor fitness, sleep, and vitals. Together, these features allow seniors to proactively manage their well-being in a way that doesn’t require the same technical expertise as using a smartphone.

Image: Disney Disney has dropped Jonathan Majors from his leading Marvel role as Kang the Conqueror after he was found guilty of reckless assault in the third degree and of harassment, according to The Hollywood Reporter and Variety. The verdict comes after a two-week trial following Majors’ arrest last March after an altercation with his ex-partner Grace Jabbari.Marvel had been setting up for Majors to be the next supervillain for the franchise, but now the company is changing course. It’s unclear if Disney plans to recast Kang or change its planned storylines more drastically. Majors had already appeared in both seasons of Loki and in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, and was set to star in one of the next planned Avengers movies, subtitled The... Continue reading…