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Apple has been warning possible victims of spyware attacks, according to several alleged recipients of the messages. At the time of writing there appears to be at least two people who have confirmed theyve been notified by Apple, and that the warning itself says that users in 100 countries have received similar alerts. The company does not offer any specifics as to how many people may have been targeted, or where the attacks are coming from As reported by TechCrunch, one recipient of the warning message is the Italian journalist Ciro Pellegrino, who works for an online news outlet called Fanpage in his native country. The other (as far as we know right now) is Dutch right-wing commentator Eva Vlaardingerbroek, who posted screenshots and a video of the alleged warning message on X. According to Vlaardingerbroek, Apple informed her that it had detected a targeted mercenary spyware attack against her iPhone. The message she says she received said: This attack is likely targeting you specifically because of who you are and what you do. Although its never possible to achieve absolute certainty when detecting such attacks, Apple has high confidence in this warning please take it seriously. Posting the iMessage with the threat notification I got from @Apple here (4 out of 5 screenshots) pic.twitter.com/sbYWkfMr0A Eva Vlaardingerbroek (@EvaVlaar) April 30, 2025 The warning does not say where the alleged spyware attack originated, but Vlaardingerbroek claims that Apple used the Israeli cyber-arms company NSO Groups Pegasus software as an example. She goes on to say that the attack, if genuine, is likely an attempt to intimidate and silence her. Apples official guidelines about threat notifications match the screenshots on Vlaardingerbroeks video, where it also explains that mercenary spyware attacks cost millions of dollars and often have a short shelf life, making them much harder to detect and prevent. The vast majority of users will never be targeted by such attacks. The same guidelines state that targeted users will be notified with an alert at the top of the page when signing into their Apple account, as well as by email and iMessage using the email addresses and phone numbers associated with that account. Last year, Apple device users in as many as 92 countries were sent spyware attack warnings of a similar nature, and since 2021, individuals in over 150 countries have been contacted. But Apple hasnt given more details on how many people are targeted in such attacks, only the number of countries where it contacted affected users.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/apple-sends-spyware-warnings-to-iphone-users-in-100-countries-142547474.html?src=rss
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Anyone rocking a recent-gen high-end GPU like an RTX 4090 or 5090 knows that these behemoths of rendering power are heavy enough to knock out a would-be PC thief. As GPUs get larger and heavier, sagging has become a growing concern for PC builders and GPU manufacturers, and ASUS briefly let on just how aware of this issue the company is. ASUS quietly added a function called Equipment Installation Check to its GPU Tweak III monitoring software back in January. Included in this toolset was a measurement named VGA Horizontal Status that precisely measured the angle at which the installed GPU was tilting down. Users could set a custom warning if the GPU tilted down beyond a degree threshold set by the user. In mid-April, Taiwanese publication UNIKOs Hardware published a teardown of the latest ROG Astral 50-series cards, which highlights what they suspect to be a Bosch Sensortec chip. Bosch describes it as a general purpose, low-power IMU that combines precise acceleration and angular rate (gyroscopic) measurement with intelligent on-chip motion-triggered interrupt features. The technicians at UNIKOs Hardware believe this chip is what powers the tilting detection tool. Curiously, the most recent mentions of this feature on ASUS forums point out that as of the latest release of the Tweak III software, dated April 11, the Equipment Installation Check button is no longer there. Users had begun reporting what they believed to be false positives, confident that their GPUs were level despite the software saying they were sagging. Engadget reached out to ASUS to understand if this feature is being deprecated or if it wasnt reporting accurate readings but did not receive a response. Whether the feature is gone for good or angling for a comeback, the risk of sagging GPUs is all too real for many PC gamers today. PCIe slots were not exactly designed with todays six-plus GPUs in mind, which has led to gamers finding creative solutions to hold up their enormous graphics cards and prevent potential damage.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/asus-adds-then-removes-the-ability-to-detect-sagging-in-its-latest-rog-astral-gpus-134508930.html?src=rss
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Microsoft is dramatically increasing the price of the Xbox Series X and Series S, as well as new games and accessories. As of today, the Series S will start at $380, up from $300, while the Series X will begin at $550, a $100 increase from its previous price. As for the 1TB Series S, it now costs $430, up from $350. Meanwhile, if you want the Series X with disc drive, it will now set you back $600. Lastly, the 2TB Galaxy Black Special Edition now costs an eye-watering $730. Additionally, Microsoft says beginning this holiday season "some" new first-party games will release at $80. As a small consolation, if you purchase one of those games through the Xbox Store, it will support Microsoft's Play Anywhere feature, allowing you to play it on PC at no additional cost. At the same time, the company is increasing the price of nearly all of its first-party and peripherals. Most notably, a core controller will now set you back $65. Microsoft is also increasing pricing in Europe, UK, Australia and many other countries. "We understand that these changes are challenging, and they were made with careful consideration given market conditions and the rising cost of development," the company said. "Looking ahead, we continue to focus on offering more ways to play more games across any screen and ensuring value for Xbox players." Historically, the price of consoles has gone down, not up, mid-generation. In 2002, for instance, Sony cut the price of the PlayStation 2 from $299 to $199. Alongside the system's extensive game library, Sony's aggressive pricing strategy was widely credited for the PS2's runaway success. Similarly, Sony revived the PlayStation 3's fortunes in 2009 with the console's 'Slim' redesign and price cut to $299. The fact Microsoft is now increasing the price of the Xbox Series X/S nearly five years after release is likely to kill whatever little momentum the two consoles had. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/microsoft-is-raising-prices-on-the-xbox-series-s-and-series-x-132004594.html?src=rss
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