Category: Technology

The US government agency in charge of designing and maintaining nuclear weapons was among those breached by a hack of Microsoft’s SharePoint server software, Bloomberg reported. However, attackers weren’t able to obtain any sensitive or classified information, according to an unnamed source with knowledge of the matter. 

The breach occurred at the National Nuclear Security Administration, an arm of the Energy Department responsible for producing and dismantling nuclear arms. “On Friday, July 18th, the exploitation of a Microsoft SharePoint zero-day vulnerability began affecting the Department of Energy,” a spokesperson told Bloomberg. “A very small number of systems were impacted. All impacted systems are being restored.”

The exploit only affects SharePoint for on-premises servers. The Department of energy said it was minimally impacted because it widely uses Microsoft M365 cloud “and very capable cybersecurity systems,” the spokesperson added.

Microsoft blamed the attack on state-sponsored Chinese hackers. They reportedly exploited flaws in SharePoint document management software and were able to access and control systems and steal security credentials and tokens. “It’s a dream for ransomware operators,” Google’s Threat Intelligence Group said, adding that the flaw allows “persistent, unauthenticated access that can bypass future patching.” 

Attackers also accessed the US Education Department and Florida’s Department of Revenue, along with government systems in other nations including the Middle East and Europe. Microsoft announced on Monday that it had released a new security patch “to mitigate active attacks targeting on-premises [and not online] servers.” 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/us-nuclear-weapons-agency-breached-using-microsoft-sharepoint-hack-120027770.html?src=rss 

Meta is adding some of its teen safety features to Instagram accounts featuring children, even if they’re ran by adults. While children under 13 years of age aren’t allowed to sign up on the social media app, Meta allows adults like parents and managers to run accounts for children and post videos and photos of them. The company says that these accounts are “overwhelmingly used in benign ways,” but they’re also targeted by predators who leave sexual comments and ask for sexual images in DMs. 

In the coming months, the company is giving these adult-ran kid accounts its strictest message settings to prevent unsavory DMs. It will also automatically turn on Hidden Words for them so that account owners can filter out unwanted comments on their posts. In addition, Meta will avoid recommending them to accounts blocked by teen users to lessen the chances predators finding them. The company will also make it harder for suspicious users to find them through search and will hide comments from potentially suspicious adults on their posts. Meta says will continue “to take aggressive action” on accounts breaking its rules: It has already removed 135,000 Instagram accounts for leaving sexual comments on and requesting sexual images from adult-managed accounts featuring children earlier this year. It also deleted an additional, 500,000 Facebook and Instagram accounts linked to those original ones.

Meta introduced teen accounts on Instagram last year to automatically opt users 13 to 18 years of age into stricter privacy features. The company then launched teen accounts on Facebook and Messenger in April and is even testing AI age-detection tech to determine whether a supposed adult user has lied about their birthday so they could be moved to a teen account if needed. 

Since then, Meta has rolled out more and more safety features meant for younger teens. It released Location Notice in June to let younger teens know that they’re chatting with someone from another country, since sextortion scammers typically lie about their location. (To note, authorities have observed a huge increase in “sextortion” cases involving kids being threatened online to send explicit images.) Meta also introduced a nudity protection feature, which blurs images in DM detected as containing nudity, since sextortion scammers may send nude pictures first in an effort to convince a victim to send reciprocate. 

Today, Meta is also launching new ways for teens to view safety tips. When they chat with someone in DMs, they can now tap on the “Safety Tips” icon at the top of the conversation to bring up a screen where they can restrict, block or report the other user. Meta has also launched a combined block and report option in DMs, so that users can take both actions together in one tap. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/meta-is-adding-new-safety-features-to-kid-focused-ig-accounts-run-by-adults-110000524.html?src=rss 

Splitgate 2, the follow-up to the hugely successful 2021 Quake–Portal hybrid concept, is returning to beta. The game launched last month, but developer 1047 Games is pulling it after deciding the release had been rushed. The company doesn’t plan to release the project again until 2026.

“We’ll be heads down until early next year, rebuilding major parts of the game to capture the spirit of what made Splitgate special,” the founders said in a post to the game’s Reddit community. “That means reworking progression from the ground up, adding more portals to our maps, simplifying monetization, refocusing on classic game modes you’ve been asking for, and more, which we’ll share soon.”

Not only will the sequel go back into development, but 1047 Games is also cutting jobs. And that’s after it already laid off some team members shortly after Splitgate 2‘s initial release. The company said it will shut down the servers for the original Splitgate in order to reduce expenses and keep more of its team members employed.

1047 Games has been brutalized in the public eye after co-founder Ian Proulx appeared at Summer Games Fest wearing a hat that read “Make FPS Great Again,” which infuriated many of the original Splitgate‘s players. After the initial stance, posted to the studio’s X account on Splitgate 2’s release date, that he was both “not here to apologize” and that the hat was “not a political statement,” Proulx finally landed on the line that it was all basically a publicity stunt. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/splitgate-2-is-yanked-back-to-beta-a-month-after-release-231022772.html?src=rss 

Amazon’s latest move in the AI space is an acquisition. The company is purchasing a startup called Bee, which makes a wearable and an Apple Watch app that can record everything the wearer says. Amazon said that the deal has not closed and that the terms of the acquisition are confidential. Although the company did not provide specific numbers, it added that all Bee employees received offers to join Amazon. TechCrunch first reported this news based on a LinkedIn post from Bee founder Maria de Lourdes Zollo.

Bee presents its platform as a personalized AI assistant that passively learns from its wearer by listening to all of their conversations and activities. While the wearable does have a button to mute recording, it can theoretically observe every single thing the owner does or says. The app can then summarize daily activities, suggest to-do items or recall previously discussed details. Bee’s website also gives examples of using the assistant for personal growth, such as tracking successes or possible improvements as a parent.

Amazon has had a mixed bag with wearables endeavors. It still sells Echo Frames smart glasses, but shuttered its Halo health tracker in 2023. The AI angle of Bee may be of particular interest for Amazon, especially as the company pushes its Alexa+ generative AI assistant. The always-listening aspect of Bee also harkens back to Amazon’s privacy debacle of a few years back when it had to address concerns that employees were reviewing conversations recorded by Alexa, including some recorded by accident.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/amazon-is-acquiring-an-ai-wearable-that-listens-to-everything-you-do-221103233.html?src=rss 

Welcome to Video Games Weekly on Engadget. Expect a new story every Monday or Tuesday, broken into two parts. The first is a space for short essays and ramblings about video game trends and related topics from me, Jess Conditt, a reporter who’s covered the industry for more than 13 years. The second contains the video game stories from the past week that you need to know about, including some headlines from outside of Engadget.

Please enjoy — and I’ll see you next week.

This week, I’m fried. Maybe it’s the plodding and ever-present crumbling of society and human decency, or maybe it’s because Love Island USA just ended so I’m feeling extra listless. It’s a familiar summer sensation, but this year everything is exaggerated and extra tense, the stakes of every action seem higher, and instead of melting into the warmth of the season with a popsicle and a smile, I often find myself frozen and numb. I am the popsicle, coo coo ca choo.

I’m not sure exactly what I’m trying to convey here, but I think it’s clear that I shouldn’t be writing anything too serious at the moment. I’m working on a few reports and trying to keep my composure amid the chaos, and all the while, the video game headlines keep rolling on. I’ve included a few more than usual this week, as penance for my popsicle state.

The news

The Chinese Room escapes from Tencent

UK studio The Chinese Room, creator of Still Wakes the Deep and Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture, is independent once again. The Chinese Room leaders completed a management buyout with help from VC firm Hiro Capital to fully split the studio from Tencent subsidiary Sumo Digital, which acquired it in 2018. A number of people were laid off as part of the transition and the studio is left with a total of 55 employees. The Chinese Room is still working on Vampire: The Masquerade — Bloodlines 2 for Paradox Interactive, and it also has original projects in development.

Still Wakes the Deep was one of my absolute favorite games of 2024. Whether you’re a fan of beautiful paranormal horror or you’re just really into oil rigs, give it a go.

Read these stories that Vice censored

Vice’s owner, Savage Ventures, doesn’t want you to read this story. Or this one.

Vice removed two articles about Steam’s new ban on certain “adult-only” content and the organization that pushed for the change, Collective Shout, which has the support of prominent anti-pornography groups with conservative religious foundations. The stories were written by contributor Ana Valens, who said the removals were “due to concerns about the controversial subject matter — not journalistic complaints.” Valens has vowed to never write for Vice again and a handful of reporters there have resigned in solidarity.

Censoring stories about censorship is certainly a choice, Vice.

Supermassive delays Directive 8020 and shrinks its team

The home of Until Dawn and The Dark Pictures Anthology, Supermassive Games, is laying off 36 people, restructuring its team and delaying one of its projects into 2026. A statement from the studio says the decisions were in response to the video game industry’s “challenging and ever-evolving environment.” It’s estimated that Supermassive had more than 300 employees before the layoffs.

Directive 8020, the fifth installment in the Dark Pictures Anthology, is now due to come out in the first half of 2026, rather than this fall. Honestly, I’m not surprised to hear Supermassive needs more time to work on Directive 8020. I watched Engadget UK bureau chief Mat Smith play the demo at Summer Game Fest in June, and while it looked great, we were both surprised by how short and non-interactive the segment was. He summed up this feeling in his preview with the line, “Finally, I got to play (but only for a few minutes).”

Supermassive is also working on Little Nightmares III, a series that it took over from Tarsier Studios. Tarsier created Little Nightmares and its sequel, but lost the rights to the IP when the team was acquired by a subsidiary of Embracer Group in 2019. Series publisher Bandai Namco kept the Little Nightmares brand and commissioned Supermassive to build the third game, while Tarsier is working on its own project, Reanimal.

It makes sense that Supermassive would prioritize Little Nightmares III in order to fulfill its obligations with Bandai. The game has already been delayed once, and it’s set to hit PC and consoles on October 10.

FBC: Firebreak is getting less busted

I still have high hopes for FBC: Firebreak to be the Left 4 Dead revival we’ve always wanted, but fact is, it’s not quite there yet. Remedy Entertainment is aware of this hard truth and has a plan to fix it. The studio laid out its pipeline for making FBC: Firebreak easier to jump into, more fun to play and less confusing overall, with most major changes coming in an update this winter.

Valve is still the best retirement community in game development

PCGamesN published an interview with Counter-Strike co-creator Minh Le, who left Valve years ago to try out independent development. One sentiment stuck out to me.

“They didn’t force me out or anything,” Le told PCGamesN. “But a part of me kind of regrets it. Looking back, my decision to leave Valve was, financially, kind of a poor decision. If I had stayed with Valve, I would have been able to retire by now.”

It’s not presented as an indictment of Valve, but I find it notable that Le describes the studio as a place to retire, rather than a space to innovate and create the next generation of video games. At this rate, Valve will never outrun its reputation as the studio where talented game developers go to die (professionally speaking). 

But, hey, at least they’re not getting laid off en masse. Which, unfortunately, brings us to the next headline.

Your favorite studio’s favorite studio faces layoffs

Cyberpunk 2077, Sea of Thieves and Dune: Awakening support studio Virtuos is laying off 270 developers, which is about seven percent of its staff. Virtuos is currently best known as the studio behind The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered alongside Bethesda, and it has more than 4,000 employees across Asia, Europe and North America. The cuts affect developers in Asia and Europe, with “fewer than 10” in France, where work on Oblivion Remastered was headquartered.

Heck yeah, there’s gonna be a Hellraiser game

Make sure to pin this one on your calendar. Saber Interactive is making Clive Barker’s Hellraiser: Revival, a first-person, action-survival horror game that features actor Doug Bradley as Pinhead for the first time in nearly 20 years. Barker himself provided input on the story, too. It’s coming to PlayStation 5, PC and Xbox Series X/S, with no release date yet.

“The Hellraiser universe is defined by its unflinching exploration of pain, pleasure, and the thin and terrifying line that separates the two,” a description from Saber Interactive reads. “That essence is at the heart of our game.”

An inside look at the fallout of the Zenimax layoffs

Game Developer reporter Chris Kerr spoke with a number of employees at Zenimax who are still reeling from the layoffs that Microsoft enacted in early July. The vibes there sound pretty terrible.

“This carcass of workers that remains is somehow supposed to keep shipping award-winning games,” one senior QA tester told Kerr. The developer continued, “Microsoft just took everything that could have been great about the culture and collaboration and decimated it. Morale is terrible. It’s grotesque. People are stressed. They’re crying.”

Xbox cloud play anywhere

When Xbox isn’t firing thousands of employees in one blow, it’s quietly laying the groundwork for the future of video game distribution. An update for Xbox Insiders this week introduces cross-platform cloud support, bringing your cloud library and play history to the Xbox PC app. This means you can access cloud activity on an Xbox console, PC or Windows handheld, and seamlessly play cloud games across devices. This is just how video games are going to work in the coming decades, and it’s interesting to watch our future slowly roll out in blog posts and software updates.

Subnautica 2 scandal catch-up

Did you miss all of the mess around Subnautica 2 last week? Or, more accurately, this past month? To quickly summarize, Subnautica publisher Krafton is being sued by the series creators after it fired them and then delayed their game, allegedly sabotaging a $250 million bonus payout due to developers. To not-quickly summarize, see my complete breakdown of the drama.

My Melody & Kuromi hits Netflix this week

I don’t know who else needs a little levity in their life right now, but I certainly do. Thankfully, the stop-motion show My Melody & Kuromi is coming to Netflix on July 24, and there’s already an adorable tie-in music video by LE SSERAFIM to enjoy. Zen out, watch all of the Sanrio sweetness and finally settle the debate: Are you more of a Kuromi or a My Melody?

Additional reading

Kris Holt’s weekly indie game roundup

Have a tip for Jessica? You can reach her by email, Bluesky or send a message to @jesscon.96 to chat confidentially on Signal.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/video-games-weekly-censorship-shrinkage-and-a-subnautica-scandal-221839722.html?src=rss 

The British government has announced plans to move forward with a law that would bar public organizations from paying off ransomware attackers. The proposed legislation would add schools, town councils, National Health Service (NHS) hospitals and critical infrastructure managers to a ban which already applies to the national government.

The logic behind banning payments is simple. If cybercriminals know a ransomware attack against a UK school or hospital won’t get them paid, they’ll look somewhere else for a more lucrative target. Security Minister Dan Jarvis said that the government is “determined to smash the cyber criminal business model,” and added that laws in the proposed package will require even private businesses to seek guidance from the government before paying a ransom.

Since the WannaCry attack on the NHS in 2017 launched the modern era of ransomware attacks, the UK has suffered a number of serious incidents. In the last two years alone, attacks have hit the British Library, the BBC and the Ministry of Defence. This may explain why, according to the government’s announcement, “nearly three quarters” of public comments on the ban legislation were supportive.

Although bans on ransom payments are a popular solution to the ever-increasing scourge of ransomware, there’s currently not much data on whether they work. Two US states, North Carolina and Florida, have enacted similar bans, but it’s hard to say what impact they’ve had. Critics argue that some organizations, especially hospitals, can’t afford the long-term disruption of leaving the ransom unpaid, and may choose to pay in unaccountable ways. Furthermore, some hacking groups have aims other than money, and may continue ransomware attacks to sow political chaos.

The UK is moving into uncharted territory as the first nation to pass a ransomware payment ban. We’ll be interested to see whether it helps get attacks under control. Either way, the outcome is likely to inform how other countries respond to the continuing threat of cybercrime.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/new-uk-law-would-ban-ransomware-payments-by-publicly-funded-orgs-210851334.html?src=rss 

Switch 2 owners won’t have long to wait for Borderlands 4. On Tuesday, Gearbox founder and CEO Randy Pitchford said it will arrive on October 3. While some had worried the game would be pushed back to 2026, it will land on Nintendo’s console less than a month after other platforms.

Pitchford’s video begins with a sober build toward what sounds like bad news. Just when you think he’s about to announce a delay, he turns into an excited 10-year-old, yelling about the game’s October release date. “That date is October 3! It’s October 3, you guys!! It’s not next year; it’s not even the holiday! It’s so much before Christmas; it’s so much before Thanksgiving! It’s October 3, you guys!!!” Pitchford, who is a magician on the side, clearly relished this.

Borderlands 4 is Gearbox’s first major release since 2K Games bought the studio last year. That followed the epic, messy implosion of its former owner, Embracer Group.

In the game, you’ll play as a vault dweller taking on the dreaded Timekeeper and his ruthless army. It’s set on a new planet, Kairos. It also introduces new gameplay mechanics (a grappling hook!), seamless world transitions (no loading screens) and fluid co-op (asynchronous difficulty levels). Best of all, it won’t cost $80. Tone-deaf comments Pitchford made in May sparked speculation that the game might pull a Mario Kart World. (His magic failed him that day.)

The game first launches on PC, PlayStation and Xbox on September 12. Unlike those platforms, Borderlands 4 for Switch 2 isn’t yet available for pre-order.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/nintendo/switch-2-owners-can-play-borderlands-4-on-october-3-200651283.html?src=rss 

Meta is no longer paying creators to post on Threads. The company quietly ended the Threads bonus program, which offered some creators thousands of dollars a month in bonuses, earlier this year, Engadget has confirmed.

The company hasn’t officially commented on why it stopped the payments, but an Instagram support page that once listed details about the creator incentives no longer references Threads at all. In posts on Threads, creators who were once part of the program have said they stopped receiving payments around the end of April. That’s roughly one year after Meta first started paying creators for popular posts. Though Meta never publicly shared a lot of details about how the program worked, creators who previously spoke with Engadget reported that they were able to earn monthly bonuses ranging from $500 to $5,000 in exchange for hitting specific metrics around post counts and views.

It’s not clear what Meta’s strategy for creators on Threads is going forward. The company is still trying to lure more brands and notable faces to the platform, and has tested features to help people find popular creators they previously followed on X. Meta has also added creator-friendly tools, like the ability to add more links to profiles and more detailed analytics for the app.

But Meta has yet to clearly explain what it can offer creators in return. The platform is hardly driving any traffic to outside websites. It’s also much harder to build a following on Threads, since the platform defaults to an algorithmic timeline consisting mainly of recommended content. This means that it’s easier for a post from an unknown account to go viral, but viral posts rarely lead to an influx of new followers.

Meta may simply be calculating that Threads already has enough momentum without paying people for viral content. At the same time, Mark Zuckerberg has repeatedly said he believes the app can be Meta’s next billion-user platform. It’s difficult to see how that happens without the buy-in of creators.

Have a tip for Karissa? You can reach her by email, on X, Bluesky, Threads, or send a message to @karissabe.51 to chat confidentially on Signal.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/meta-has-ended-its-bonus-program-on-threads-201627935.html?src=rss