Tech Talk

Since the world wide web explosion in the mid-1990s, the risks of identity theft and fraud have increased considerably. While fears were voiced as online payment systems became more prominent, online stores appeared, and the internet grew in importance within the fabric of life and society; if anything, the risk has increased. Who is at risk of ID theft? Are kids who grew up with the web more likely to be wise to the risks, or are silver surfers naturally more cynical and less trusting? And how can you tell if your ID is about to be stolen? We've rounded up the best secure drives to help keep your data safe on the go Protect your online privacy with one of the best VPN services These are the best anonymous browsers on the market Some people are more at risk than others Identity theft is a problem that shows no sign of going away. Throughout history, people claim to be someone they're not to gain a financial advantage. These days, it has become an industrialized for

You can do it in just a couple minutes. Puget Systems offers a number of different benchmarks to test out your PC using automated real-world tasks in the Adobe Creative Cloud. Some of them (such as the one for Premiere Pro ) are somewhat complicated and can take a while to get up and running. But one of them — PugetBench for Photoshop — is very simple. PugetBench for Photoshop measures how fast your computer can perform various tasks, including mask refinement and gradients as well as filter tasks like lens correction and noise reduction. Unlike some of Puget’s other benchmarks, the Photoshop benchmark only requires one quick plug-in to set up. Note: this benchmark is not yet supported for the M1-native version of Photoshop. In the Creative Cloud Desktop app, go to Stock and Marketplace > Plugins . Search for PugetBench for Photoshop and click Install . Make sure you close Photoshop before installing the plug-in. Once the plug-in is installed, open Photoshop. Go to Window

The war in Ukraine just got a new frontier, the VPN market. According to , the US government is pouring money into three separate VPN developers: nthLink, Psiphon, and Lantern. The news comes as VPNs have become a lifeline for citizens in Russia and Ukraine looking to avoid government censorship; on March 14, VPN installs in Russia reached an all-time high, surging by 11,253 per cent beyond their normal level. Where is the money coming from? The money is reportedly coming from a federal agency that controls US government backed broadcasters, the US Agency for Global Media (USAGM). The three VPN firms received $4.8 million in funding between 2015 and 2021, but this total funding has now risen by almost half. These VPNs are in widespread use according to Laura Cunningham, president of the Open Technology Fund, who told Reuters over four million Russians are using these type of privacy tools . How is Russia responding? "We don't censor the Internet,” a Kremlin spokespe

eBay Live looks heavily inspired by Instagram’s livestream feature. | Image: eBay eBay’s combining online and real-world auction experiences with its newly launched eBay Live platform , where people can chat and react to sellers through Livestream video and buy their products. The service is currently in beta release and will launch with “highly coveted and rare” trading card offerings like a “1998 Kobe Bryant Skybox That’s Jam PSA 10” from eBay seller Bleecker Trading starting on June 22nd at 3PM ET. The event will be hosted live by avid collector DJ Skee, and interested buyers can join in on the official eBay Live page or sign on via the eBay app. “As the collector community grows, we’re offering a new live platform that combines an engaging environment with incredible ease, allowing our community to come together over shared interests and merchandise,” said eBay’s VP of collectibles, Dawn Block. The service will also continue into real-world trading card conferences, including

Microsoft has announced an expansion of its software subscription package that should help users better protect their various devices against cyberthreats. As described in a new blog post , Microsoft 365 customers will now benefit from a service called Microsoft Defender for Individuals, billed as “a new security app designed to keep individuals and families safer online”. The application gives users a way to both protect and monitor all their devices - across macOS, iOS and Android, as well as Windows - from a single, unified dashboard. It also offers up tips and suggestions to help users further strengthen their protections. Microsoft Defender for Individuals The objective of the new service, says Microsoft, is to eliminate complexities that arise as a result of using multiple different security products across multiple devices and operating systems. For example, someone might deploy an antivirus and ransomware protection service on their Windows PC, but use a different prod

Amazon is planning to offer more than 30 free games to Amazon Prime subscribers as part of its Prime Day festivities. Beginning June 21st, ahead of Prime Day, Amazon will make more than 25 games available to claim for free, including Metal Slug 2 and two King of Fighters titles. During the actual Prime Day event, which takes place July 12th and 13th , Amazon will offer some bigger titles. Perhaps the most notable is Mass Effect Legendary Edition , a remastered version of BioWare’s acclaimed sci-fi RPG trilogy . But Amazon Prime subscribers will also be able to claim two racing games, Grid Legends and Need for Speed Heat, as well as three Star Wars games: Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy, Star Wars Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast, and Star Wars Republic Commando. In addition to free games, Amazon will also be offering the Luna Controller for its Luna cloud gaming service for $39.99, a $30 discount off the controller’s usual $69.99 price. That promotion will be available from

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Amid all the news on Overwatch 2 and Diablo Immortal , Activision Blizzard has filed a document with the US Securities and Exchange Commission in which it affirms that, after an internal investigation, it concluded its own board did not fail to act when presented with allegations of harassment. “Contrary to many of the allegations, the board and its external advisors have determined that there is no evidence to suggest that Activision Blizzard senior executives ever intentionally ignored or attempted to downplay the instances of gender harassment that occurred and were reported,” Activision Blizzard wrote in the filing. The report does acknowledge there were problems within the company and that such a conclusion does little to address the concerns of those harmed. “Indeed, a single instance of someone feeling diminished at Activision Blizzard is one too many,” it wrote. However, in a report from one of the consultants Activision Blizzard e

Though video game companies such as Microsoft have been making strides in developing accessible gaming controllers like the Xbox Adaptive Controller , there’s plenty of work to be done to ensure that they are available to all who need them. Enter the The Controller Project , a UK-based organization that’s dedicated to 3D printing controller modifications for gamers with physical disabilities. Back in March, founder Caleb Kraft put out a call on Twitter for volunteers with a 3D printer to print out any mods on the site and ship them out to gamers in need.   When you sign up to volunteer , you’ll receive a request from someone requesting a specific mod from the site who doesn’t have the means to print it themselves. And if you can’t print out yourself, you can always donate either money or old controllers to mod. Analysis: Gaming accessibility is an ongoing issue Organizations like The Controller Project and The AbleGamers Charity demonstrate the need for more avenues of access

PayPal has rolled out an update designed to make its buy now, pay later (BNPL) offering more enticing amid stiff market competition. The payments giant has announced it is expanding its service with a new Pay Monthly plan, which will allow US-based customers to spread repayments over periods as long as 24 months. The service is available for purchases valued at anywhere between $199 and $10,000, with interest rates ranging from 0% to 29.99% APR depending on the length of the payment plan. The battle for BNPL The BNPL market was thrown into the spotlight earlier this month when Apple revealed plans to enter the space with its Pay Later program, which will give customers a way to split any payment made over Apple Pay into four instalments. Given the size of the Apple install base and ubiquity of Apple Pay-compatible online payment systems and POS terminals, the company looks set to snatch up a sizable portion of the market. In the face of competition from Apple, PayPal has move

The Sonos Roam, a small speaker with plenty of sound, is on sale for $143.20 at Best Buy. | Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge Panicking because Father’s Day is just around the corner and you have yet to pick up your dad something special? Fret not because we’ve got your back. We did a bit of digging and found a variety of excellent gadgets Dad will love, all of which you can still order today and receive in time for Father’s Day. You don’t necessarily need to be an Amazon Prime member to receive some of these in time for the holiday either, nor do you need to pay extra for expedited shipping at places like Best Buy, Target, or Walmart. Also, if you still can’t decide what to buy after looking through our list, be sure to check out our Father’s Day 2022 gift guide . And if you really can’t make up your mind and end up leaving things until the last minute, we’ve curated a list of digital gifts toward the end of this post you can buy on Father’s Day! We wouldn’t recommend it, but, you

Image: The Boring Company Elon Musk’s Boring Company has received unanimous approval to expand its system of tunnels beneath downtown Las Vegas. The expansion will add stops at landmarks like the Stratosphere and Fremont Street, letting customers hop aboard a Tesla and travel from one part of the city to the next. The network of tunnels, called the Vegas Loop , is supposed to span 29 miles and have 51 stops when finished. But for now, only 1.7-mile tunnels are operational beneath the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC), turning what would be a 25-minute walk across the convention center into a two-minute ride . The system uses human-controlled Model X and Y vehicles to transport passengers, despite Musk’s previous statements about using sleds to carry cars through the tunnels. Image: The Boring Company This year’s CES attendees got to try out the tunnel beneath the LVCC themselves, and some riders weren’t all too impressed . While it was reportedly less congested than actually

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge YouTube is introducing new seasonal recaps of your top artists, songs, albums, and playlists to YouTube Music, starting first with the Spring Recap. YouTube rolled out a Spotify Wrapped-style annual recap at the end of last year , but now YouTube owner Google is taking the concept further with seasonal rundowns. “Similar to the 2021 Recap, you’ll find your personalized content in the Spring Recap landing page on the YouTube Music app along with your personalized Spring Recap playlist,” YouTube product manager Ayshaw Khan wrote in a blog post. “Want to tell your friends about your favorite songs of the Spring? Easily share your Spring Recap playlist and stats by simply tapping the arrow at the bottom of your stats card.” Image: YouTube YouTube’s screenshot showing off what the recap looks like. The release of Spotify’s annual recaps typically mark a delightful few days on the internet every year — it’s always fun to judge thoughtfully

Kristen Radtke / The Verge; Getty Images With the price of Bitcoin, Ethereum, and almost every other cryptocurrency tumbling dramatically, major crypto companies like Coinbase and Crypto.com have laid off hundreds of workers in the past few days alone. But one company is on a hiring spree — just not for employees who will call out racism, transphobia, or label other kinds of workplace behavior toxic. The Kraken cryptocurrency exchange, ranked in the top five globally by trade volume, announced in a blog post Wednesday that it was hiring more than 500 new staff, as long as they fit with the company’s vision of a “crypto-first culture.” Another document linked in the post outlines the fundamentals of that culture divided into sub-sections that summarize a particular vision of crypto-libertarianism associated with controversial CEO Jesse Powell. One pillar is that “crypto is for everyone,” and another is that “belief in The Mission is a must” — the mission being to accelerate cr

This is from Fallout 4 , not Fallout 5 . | Image: Bethesda Bethesda, which recently delayed Starfield into next year and hasn’t shown anything substantial about The Elder Scrolls 6 since announcing it in 2018 , is already thinking about what comes after. In an interview with IGN , Bethesda’s Todd Howard said Bethesda Game Studios is planning on making Fallout 5 ... eventually. “Yes, Elder Scrolls 6 is in pre-production and, you know, we’re going to be doing Fallout 5 after that, so our slate’s pretty full going forward for a while,” Howard said . There’s no indication about when we can expect Fallout 5 to be released. Given how long we’ve been waiting for Starfield and the fact that we know basically nothing about The Elder Scrolls 6 — note that Howard said the game is still in pre-production despite being announced four years ago — it seems likely Fallout 5 is a long ways away from actually coming out. Fallout 5 would be the next game in the post-apocalyptic series

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge In a judgment on Tuesday , an appeals tribunal in the United Kingdom largely upheld a previous ruling ordering Meta (parent company to Facebook) to unwind its acquisition of Giphy, as first reported by the Financial Times . The judgment comes more than six months after the initial ruling by the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) and more than two years after Meta first announced its intention to acquire the company. The ruling was not a total defeat for Meta, however. While the appeals tribunal found in favor of the CMA in five of the six claims, the tribunal did rule that the CMA had failed to properly inform Meta of Snapchat’s acquisition of Gfycat for nearly a year after it became aware of the ruling, thus undermining the company’s defense. The tribunal will decide how to remediate this error in the coming weeks in consultation with Meta and the CMA. Still, the judgment lays out a tough road ahead for the proposed acquisition.

O-RAN appears to have arrived. | Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Today’s the day: Dish Network needs to offer 5G service to at least 20 percent of the US population or face some steep fines from the US government. And lo and behold, Dish appears to be lighting up its 5G service in the nick of time — but there’s an awful lot still up in the air. The company’s website for Project Genesis (that’s what it’s calling this whole endeavor) has been updated to state that it’s “live in 120 cities” with a link to “order now.” Until very recently, the website only listed the 120 initial cities that the service would cover outside of its first test market in Las Vegas, Nevada, and it looked uncertain that Dish would make its deadline. It’s still not entirely clear that Dish has met the requirements. Dish has yet to formally announce the service’s launch, and the company hasn’t responded to our request for more information. If the service doesn’t cover enough of the US population toda

They play over and over and over and over. | Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Instagram Stories seem to be misbehaving for some users, making it so that they have to re-view all of someone’s stories before they’re able to see new ones. The issue has affected several Verge staff members since yesterday, and some Reddit users have reported the same thing is happening to them. The root issue seems to be that Instagram doesn’t remember where you left off when viewing someone’s stories. For example, if one of my friends has posted five stories, and I look at four of them before swiping away, the next time I tap on their icon, I should see their fifth story. Instead, Instagram is currently making me go back through the four I’ve already seen each time I go to view the story. The problem also crops up when someone posts a new story to their feed. it won’t stop https://t.co/HbHCikuwW2 — Chris Welch (@chriswelch) June 14, 2022 It’s currently unknown how many users are affec

Starting next year, Apple TV will be the place to watch every Major League Soccer (MLS) match live. MLS fans around the world will soon only have to tune into one stream free from local service outages and expensive cable bundles to watch matches with commentary as they happen. Apple announced today that it’s creating, with the MLS, a subscription-based service that will live exclusively on the Apple TV app and will be available in 2023. Along with match content, the streaming service will include a weekly whip-around, highlights, and an analysis show. A “broad selection” of MLS and League Cup matches will be available to stream at no additional cost for Apple TV+ subscribers. The upcoming service will also be included in MLS full-season ticket packages.  Upon the service’s launch, subscribers will be able to watch with English or Spanish commentary, with French commentary available on matches with Canadian or French teams. The service will also provide enhanced behind-the-scenes c