The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) and a nonprofit privacy rights group have called on several states to investigate why “hundreds” of data brokers haven’t registered with state consumer protection agencies in accordance with local laws. An analysis done in collaboration with Privacy Rights Clearinghouse (PRC) found that many data brokers have failed to register in all of the four states with laws that require it, preventing consumers in some states from learning what kinds of information these brokers collect and how to opt out. These findings could be explained by variations in the definition of a data broker, but they may indicate some brokers are breaking the law.Data brokers are companies that collect and sell troves of personal information about people, including their names, addresses, phone numbers, financial information, and more. Consumers have little control over this information, posing serious privacy concerns, and attempts to address these concerns at a federal level have mostly failed. Last month, LexisNexis Risk Solutions disclosed a data breach that may have revealed the names, Social Security numbers, driver’s license numbers, and contact information for over 364,000 people.Four states — California, Texas, Oregon, and Vermont — do attempt to regulate these companies by requiring them to register with consumer protection agencies and share details about what kind of data they collect. Consumers in California, for example, can use the online database to search for different data brokers registered in the state, see contact information, and find steps on how to opt out of data collection. Meanwhile, in Texas, data brokers must follow certain security measures designed to protect consumers’ information.In letters to the states’ attorneys general, the EFF and PRC say they “uncovered a troubling pattern” after scraping data broker registries in California, Texas, Oregon, and Vermont. They found that many data brokers didn’t consistently register their businesses across all four states. The number of data brokers that appeared on one registry but not another includes 524 in Texas, 475 in Oregon, 309 in Vermont, and 291 in California.As noted by the EFF, differences in how each state defines a data broker could explain some of these discrepancies. It’s also possible some brokers don’t collect data from people in all these states — although the industry typically casts a wide net. Conversely, the EFF also says this analysis wouldn’t include the data brokers that “disregard state laws by failing to register in any state.” The EFF and PRC suggest that California, Texas, Oregon, and Vermont look into the companies that failed to register across other states, writing that their findings “could indicate a systematic failure of compliance” in each state. They add that an investigation and enforcement actions could “send a powerful signal” regarding a state’s commitment to privacy.For now, state-level regulation is Americans’ main source of protection against data brokers. Last year, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) aimed to clamp down on the industry with a rule that would ban brokers from selling your Social Security number, but the Donald Trump-appointed Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent later scrapped these plans.

Signify has announced price increases for its Philips Hue smart lighting and accessories starting on July 1st due to US tariffs. As for how much the products will go up in price, that hasn’t been confirmed, but the Hue Wall Washer that was recently launched is 10 percent more expensive than its price in the EU, which may offer an indication of what to expect. If you’ve been meaning to try Philips Hue smart bulbs, or add to your existing collection, this may be your last chance to snag products before the prices go up. Philips Hue Smart 75W A19 LED BulbThe Philips Hue we recommend for most people is its A19 color ambiance bulb with an E26 base, which is perfect for lamps and standard light fixtures of many kinds. It can be set to various shades of white, cool to warm, or to any color you’d like. In terms of brightness, it can achieve an impressive 1,100 peak lumens. You can use the bulb with or without the Hue Bridge. It’s also available in a multipack with two, four, or six bulbs.Where to Buy: $54.99 $47.99 at Amazon $54.99 $47.99 at Best BuyPhilips Hue Smart 100W A21 LED BulbThis 100W A21 lightbulb has the same color-changing features as its lower-powered counterpart, but will provide more light with a peak of 1,600 lumens. While the bulb’s common E26 base is the same as the 75W model, the bulb itself is larger, which means it may not fit in lamps with narrow shades. It’s also available in a four pack.Where to Buy: $64.99 $54.99 at Amazon $64.99 at Best BuyPhilips Hue Indoor 10 Ft Smart LED Solo Lightstrip Base KitThe Hue Indoor Lightstrip is a thin, adhesive-backed strip that can provide up to 1,700 lumens of light beneath cabinets and counters, or to other places to provide an elegant look. It’s available in 10, 16, and 33-foot sizes, and can be cut to any length. Where to Buy: $69.99 $49.99 at Amazon $69.99 at Best BuyPhilips Hue Smart Light Starter Kit This starter kit contains four 75W A19-sized E26 color ambiance bulbs plus a Philips Hue Bridge. The bridge allows you to group and fully automate your smart lights and accessories. Up to 50 devices can be connected simultaneously, but the hub must be wired into your Wi-Fi router or ethernet switch with an ethernet cable. Where to Buy: $159.99 at Amazon Check price at Best BuyPhilips Hue Smart Play Light Bar Base KitThe Light Bar is a standalone fixture that can add ambience to your home theater setup or gaming PC rig. It can be set up vertically or horizontally, or attached to the back of a monitor or TV using the included clips and double-sided tape. It’s also offered in a two-pack.Where to Buy: $89.99 at Amazon $89.99 $68 at WalmartPhilips Hue Go Smart Portable Table LampThis 13.78-inch tall, rechargeable table lamp comes with a wireless charging stand and has a color ambiance lightbulb preinstalled. It can be controlled by pushing a button on top in addition to smart assistants, and the Hue app. The lamp can last up to 48 hours per charge, and has an IP54 rating, so it shouldn’t get damaged when splashed with water. You can also get a pair of lamps as a bundle. Where to Buy: $159.99 $113 at Amazon $159.99 at Best BuyPhilips Hue Gradient Signe Floor LampIf you want a brighter lamp for a bigger space, this intriguing 57.40-inch tall option throws up to 2,500 lumens of light from its long, skinny strip. It’s built into a wide base that prevents it from easily tipping over. A shorter model more appropriate for a table or desk is also available. Where to Buy: $329.99 $263.99 at Amazon $329.99 $263.99 at Best BuyPhilips Hue Smart Recessed DownlightThis four-pack of recessed lights can throw down 1,100 lumens of light each and can fit into five- or six-inch enclosures. Alternatively, you can purchase just a single recessed light, or a six pack. You can also get a six-pack that fits into four-inch enclosures. Where to Buy: $229.99 $187.96 at Amazon $219.99 at WalmartPhilips Hue Smart 40W B39 E12 Bulb (two pack)These smaller candelabra bulbs are appropriate for small lamps or light fixtures with tight shades. Each soft warm white bulb can throw off up to 450 lumens of light each. These bulbs are also available in a four pack. Where to Buy: $34.99 $32.32 at Amazon $34.99 at Philips HuePhilips Hue BR30 LED Smart Light BulbsThis two-pack of BR35 (E26 base) bulbs have a larger top to diffuse light over a wider area than either an A19 or A21 bulb can, and these may be a better look if you’re replacing downlights with a four-inch enclosure. It’s also available in a single or four pack. Where to Buy: $99.99 $71.99 at Amazon $71.99 at Walmart

Dbrand will send replacement Killswitch Joy-Con Grips for the Switch 2 to buyers after admitting it had a “spectacularly terrible response” to complaints that the controllers could detach from the console if held a certain way while the grips were on. The company is currently working on tweaks to the grips as well.A few days ago, some owners of the case noticed that the Switch 2 Joy-Con controllers could pop off if you had the case and grips on and held the console primarily by a Joy-Con. This short video helps illustrate the issue.View LinkOn Sunday, Dbrand posted a more than 4,000-word response on Reddit titled “Killswitch Joy-Con Detachment Update” where it said that “nobody routinely holds their Switch 2 like this.” Dbrand argued that the detachment only happened when all three of the following conditions were met:You are specifically holding onto the console from only the Joy-Cons, in such a way that your fingers are making no supportive contact with the main console, andyou are holding the Switch 2 with only one hand, andyour Switch 2 is held more parallel to the ground than not.Part of the issue is that the Killswitch case’s Joy-Con grips wrap around the inner part of the Joy-Con, creating a small lip. “By adding those lips, particularly the ones on the interior face of the Joy-Cons, we filled the ‘air gap’ between the Joy-Cons and the Main Case,” Dbrand said. This means that it’s easier for the Joy-Con to create leverage against the main tablet part of the console so that detachment can occur “when held under a very specific set of conditions.”In some “particularly severe instances of detachment” highlighted on Reddit by Dbrand, the company also believed the Joy-Con grips had “an inner attachment lip that’s a hair thicker than desired.” Dbrand said that it had adjusted its tolerance guidelines for mass production to “filter out any Joy-Cons that cross that ‘lip is 0.12mm too thick’ threshold.”For users who were worried that they were having issues, Dbrand asked them to reach out to support and “describe the regular use scenario that is resulting in detachment” and the company would get them replacement grips in July.More than one commenter pointed out that Dbrand’s post echoed Steve Jobs and Apple’s famous response to iPhone 4 antenna issues caused by a way people could hold their phones. And yesterday, Dbrand published a new post where it said it would “try out a new communication strategy where we both say fewer words and devote less of them to blaming you” and offered to send everyone, “whether or not you’re experiencing this issue,” a replacement set of Joy-Con Grips.“As easy as it is to boil our original post down to ‘you’re holding it wrong,’ what we’re sober to now is the point that you should be allowed to hold it however the fuck you want, without detachment occurring,” Dbrand said. “We get it. Please continue dunking on us for the next six to eight months for reincarnating Steve Jobs.”Dbrand is working on two new versions of the grips: one with “an even thinner retaining lip compared to the ‘good’ stock we’ve already shipped” and one with a new retaining lip design that the company says “fully resolves the detachment issue.” However, that second option won’t be ready for a “mass production trial” until July 10th, and “at that point,” Dbrand will be able to tell if it will be using the first or second options for replacements.Dbrand says to expect its next update on July 10th.

I don't think I'm being too controversial when I say that Windows 11...hasn't gone down too well. Microsoft tried something new with this operating system, and from what I've seen, people are mostly dissatisfied with their experience with Windows 11.

The Social Network is finally getting a sequel courtesy of Sony.Deadline reports that Sony is moving forward with The Social Network Part II, a “follow-up” to David Fincher’s 2010 feature about how TheFacebook went on to become one of the most singularly influential websites in internet history and made Mark Zuckerberg a billionaire in the process. Though Fincher is not attached to the new movie, Aaron Sorkin — who wrote the first — is coming back to write and direct Part II. No production timelines or casting announcements have been made, but Sorkin will produce the project alongside Todd Black, Peter Rice, and Stuart Besser.While much of The Social Network was based on Ben Mezrich’s The Accidental Billionaires, according to The Hollywood Reporter, Part II will draw inspiration from The Facebook Files, The Wall Street Journal‘s article series that explored the myriad societal harms Facebook has caused over the years. Last year, Sorkin teased that he’d been contemplating a sequel to The Social Network that might dig into the way Facebook helped foment the rage that culminated in an attempted coup on January 6th, 2021.It sounds like that idea has evolved a full-blown picture that Sony wants to make, and given how much more of a juggernaut Facebook has become in recent years, Sorkin’s decision to go a bigger with Part II is probably a good move.

The Nintendo Switch 2 is going into its third week of sales, and if the number of XDA staff who added one to their console collection is any indication, it's a hit. But you don't have to take our word for it, sales figures are out, and it's officially the fastest-selling hardware Nintendo has released. All of this has been achieved with no major first-party launch titles (sorry, Mario Kart World), no pre-release reviews, and only a handful of third-party titles, most of which are ports from other consoles.

Apple’s next-generation CarPlay is splitting the auto world down the middle. Several automakers are eagerly lining up to adopt the newly immersive CarPlay Ultra, which takes over more screens and includes embedded vehicle features like speedometers, heating and cooling, and radio functions. Others are flatly refusing to allow it, while the rest are taking a wait-and-see approach. All this comes courtesy of a report in the Financial Times, which previews Apple’s rough road ahead as it pushes adoption for its splashy, more demanding phone projection system. As The Verge reported back in 2022, when Apple first revealed its more expansive CarPlay, most automakers were hesitant to commit to letting CarPlay gobble up all the screens in their cars. And unsurprisingly many are still wary of handing over too much real estate to the tech giant. Here’s where each of the automakers currently stands on CarPlay Ultra:AdoptedPlanning to adoptUnsure/still evaluatingNo plans to adoptActively blockingAston MartinPorscheFordAudiGeneral MotorsHyundaiNissanMercedes-BenzKiaInfinitiVolvoGenesisJaguar-Land RoverPolestarRenaultBMWWe’re still missing some big ones, like Volkswagen and Toyota, two of the biggest automakers in the world. I’ve reached out to both and will update this post if I hear back. CarPlay Ultra is a huge challenge for the auto industry. Multiple surveys show that customers love it, frequently use it over their car’s embedded systems, and would be less likely to buy a future vehicle that didn’t allow CarPlay. But automakers are spending huge sums of money on developing next-generation software systems that allow over-the-air updates and address their customers’ appetite for more digital services. And they’re reluctant to just let Apple slap their own software on top of that. Sources tell the Financial Times that automakers are eager to set clear standards about data sharing with Apple before agreeing to allow CarPlay Ultra.

As a dedicated self-hoster, I’m always on the lookout for tools that simplify my digital life. When it came to file management across my various apps, I discovered a true gem: FileBrowser Quantum. This free and open-source web-based file browser has become crucial to my toolkit. It goes far beyond basic file access and delivers an ultimate centralized hub for all your files.

WhatsApp can now call on Meta AI to summarize your personal chats. As shown in a GIF, you can access it by tapping the button to unfurl all of your unread messages in a chat. But instead of showing your messages, WhatsApp uses Meta AI to generate a bulleted summary of what you missed.The feature is rolling out in English in the US, with plans to launch in more countries and languages later this year. It uses Meta’s Private Processing technology, which the company claims will prevent it and other third parties from snooping on your messages.WhatsApp, which is owned by Meta, says its AI message summaries are optional, and the feature is turned off by default. You can also use WhatsApp’s “Advanced Privacy” setting to prevent users from using AI features in group chats. We still don’t know if WhatsApp’s AI message summaries will struggle with accuracy, which is something we saw with the launch of Apple’s AI-generated message and notification rundowns.Over the past year, Meta has continued stuffing different AI features into WhatsApp, including a way to ask Meta AI questions from within a chat, as well as a feature that generates images in real time. Some users have grown frustrated by the new Meta AI button in the bottom-right corner of the app that they can’t turn off or remove. Meta also sparked backlash with another change that brought ads to the app — something its founders said they never wanted to do.The app’s Private Processing is supposed to conceal your interactions with its AI model by creating a “secure cloud environment,” preventing Meta or WhatsApp from seeing your summaries. Other people in the group chat won’t be able to see the message summaries, either.

Anthropic is adding a new feature to its Claude AI chatbot that lets you build AI-powered apps right inside the app. The upgrade, launching in beta, builds upon Anthropic’s Artifacts feature introduced last year that lets you see and interact with what you ask Claude to make.“Start building in the Claude app by enabling this new interactive capability,” the company says in a blog post. “Simply describe what you want to create, and Claude will write the code for you.” It basically sounds like vibe coding, but with the ability to see the results right inside Claude. You can briefly see how it all works in a video from Anthropic that shows somebody building a chat app.Early users of the feature have built things like AI-powered games, learning tools, data analysis apps, writing assistants, and even agent workflows that “orchestrate multiple Claude calls for complex tasks,” Claude says. Apps will be able to “interact with Claude through an API.”Anthropic also wants people to share the apps that they make, and it’s encouraging that by making so that somebody else’s API usage of your app “counts against their subscription, not yours.”The feature is available on Anthropic’s Free, Pro, and Max tiers.

If you plug the world's best-reviewed webcams into the Nintendo Switch 2 today, they won't work, while many comparatively ancient webcams do. Why? That's been a mystery for the nearly three weeks since the handheld launched. Now, two companies say they've figured it out and are pledging to update the firmware on their cameras.Here's a possibly oversimplified answer: today's more powerful webcams advertise many different modes that they support to any device you connect via USB - but that's a problem because the Nintendo Switch 2 appears to be choosing modes it can't properly play.In the case of Elgato, which will update its non-working Facecam MK.2 and Facecam Neo, the solve was adding an additional low-resolution 480p mode, with Elgato general manager Julian Fest speculating that the Switch can only reliably support "very low resolution" cameras in order to put multiple facecams on screen.But low resolution by itself isn't the answer - as you'd probably expect, given that Nintendo's own official Switch 2 camera is a 1080p camera that genuinely broadcasts a 1080p mode (we checked), and given it's far from the only 1080p or higher camera that works with Nintendo's new Switch. …Read the full story at The Verge.

When breaking an addiction like social media use, different people respond to different stimuli. Some people will only break the habit if there's some kind of reward at the end of it, while others just need to be reminded about what they're doing so that they can stop. And some will keep using social media through hell or high water and require something a little more extreme to break the habit.