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A cryptocurrency scam that turned a small town against itself

Online scams are as old as the internet, but the rise of crypto has given con artists a valuable new tool — digital coins that can be transferred instantly, without oversight from banks legally obligated to monitor transactions for malfeasance. In 2023, crypto fraud cost American investors an estimated $4.8 billion, according to the F.B.I. The scams are so common that law-enforcement authorities have taken to calling them by a pithy name: Pig butchering, a rough translation of an expression wide

DOGE puts $1 spending limit on government employee credit cards

Elon Musk’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency put a $1 spending limit on most credit cards belonging to employees and contractors of the General Services Administration—a critical agency that manages IT and office buildings for the US government—along with at least three other federal agencies. Similar restrictions are expected to roll out to the entire government workforce soon, according to several sources familiar with the matter. “Effective immediately, all GSA SmartPay Travel a

Elon Musk Says He’ll ‘Fix’ Community Notes on X After It Disagreed With Him

Elon Musk is not happy with Community Notes, the crowdsourced fact-checking program that adds notes to correct misinformation on his social media platform X. And the billionaire says he’s now going to “fix” Community Notes so that it agrees with him, claiming without evidence that it’s being manipulated by governments and the media. “Unfortunately, @CommunityNotes is increasingly being gamed by governments & legacy media. Working to fix this,” Musk tweeted Thursday. Why is Musk upset? It looks

What's Free on the Epic Games Store This Week?

Let's be honest: There will always be more games to play than you have time for. No matter how much time you invest in the world of gaming, more games come out daily, and every publisher and developer is hungry for the money in your wallet. Being concerned about your gaming budget is a wise thing to be, with gaming costs rising and 2025 looking as unpredictable as ever. With that in mind, consider the Epic Games Store and its offerings: a free game every week for you to download and keep. Heard

Topics: dec feb free games jan

Best Mesh Systems for Whole-Home Wi-Fi

Editor's note: We think you should be aware that TP-Link routers are under investigation by the US government over security concerns and could be banned in the US this year, according to multiple news reports. The TP-Link Deco W7200 was previously named our best overall choice. While our evaluation of the hardware hasn't changed, out of extreme caution for our readers, we decided to pause it as our top recommendation until we learn more. Read CNET's reporting for more information. What is the b

Topics: fi mesh router speeds wi

Best Noise-Canceling Earbuds for 2025

Bowers & Wilkins PI7 S2: In 2023, Bowers & Wilkins upgraded its fantastic-sounding PI7 noise-canceling earbuds. The new S2 model has better battery life and Bluetooth range, now up to 25 meters (double the previous range). Additionally, the buds now integrate into the new Bowers & Wilkins Music app for iOS and Android and have a much-improved setup experience. Learn more in our full Bowers & Wilkins PI7 review. JBL Live Pro 2: Over the years, JBL has put out some decent true-wireless earbuds, b

12 Best Foods for Optimal Eye Health

Taking care of your eyesight is essential. You can help strengthen your eyes in simple ways, like taking screen breaks, wearing sunglasses and even eating nourishing foods, vitamins and minerals. The best part is that most of these foods are probably already in your home. Read more: Best Places to Buy Glasses Online Best foods for healthy eyes Anjelika Gretskaia/Getty Images Whether you've got a family history of vision problems or you're trying to fight eye strain in your day-to-day life, h

10 of the Best Peacock Shows to Stream Now

Peacock's supply of original series continues to grow, offering more choices when TV time rolls around. From the buzzy Eddie Redmayne assassin series The Day of the Jackal to season 3 of the twist-filled reality competition show The Traitors, you probably haven't explored all the highly-rated options on the streamer. If you're poking around Peacock for something to watch, here are 10 standout shows to try. Each of them scores around 70 or higher on Metacritic. Peacock costs $8 per month or $80

Apple, Lenovo lead losers in laptop repairability analysis

Apple and Lenovo had the lowest laptop repairability scores in an analysis of recently released devices from consumer advocacy group US Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) Education Fund. While Apple's low marks are partially due the difficulty involved in disassembling MacBooks, Lenovo appears to be withholding information from shoppers deemed critical to right-to-repair legislation and accessibility. The report, US PIRG's fourth annual “Failing the Fix” [PDF], calculated repairability score

ISP sued by record labels agrees to identify 100 users accused of piracy

Cable company Altice agreed to give Warner and other record labels the names and contact information of 100 broadband subscribers who were accused of pirating songs. The subscribers "were the subject of RIAA or third party copyright notices," said a court order that approved the agreement between Altice and the plaintiff record companies. Altice is notifying each subscriber "of Altice's intent to disclose their name and contact information to Plaintiffs pursuant to this Order," and telling the

Study: Cuttlefish adapt camouflage displays when hunting prey

Crafty cuttlefish employ several different camouflaging displays while hunting their prey, according to a new paper published in the journal Ecology, including mimicking benign ocean objects like a leaf or coral, or flashing dark stripes down their bodies. And individual cuttlefish seem to choose different preferred hunting displays for different environments. It's well-known that cuttlefish and several other cephalopods can rapidly shift the colors in their skin thanks to that skin's unique st

See a garbage truck’s CNG cylinders explode after lithium-ion battery fire

Garbage truck fires are never ideal, but they are usually not catastrophic. When a fire broke out on December 6 in the back of a garbage truck making its Friday rounds through the Chicago suburb of Arlington Heights, the fire department responded within five minutes. Firefighters saw flames shooting five feet into the air out the back of the truck, and they prepared to put the fire out using hoses and water. Four minutes after their arrival on scene, however, the garbage truck exploded in rather

The 3 Best Essential Oil Diffusers (and One to Avoid)

I first learned about Pura from a friend whose house always smelled like a high-end boutique under every circumstance. Cooking project, water leak … no matter what was going on in her house at the time, I only ever smelled berries. I have two cats and a multi-sports-playing tween—I knew I needed this. Now, about 14 months into my Pura journey, I have some thoughts. While most of my time has been with the now discontinued Pura 3, I have also since used the Pura 4 and new large-room Pura Plus, al

DOGE Puts $1 Spending Limit on Government Employee Credit Cards

Elon Musk’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency put a $1 spending limit on most credit cards belonging to employees and contractors of the General Services Administration—a critical agency that manages IT and office buildings for the US government—along with at least three other federal agencies. Similar restrictions are expected to roll out to the entire government workforce soon, according to several sources familiar with the matter. “Effective immediately, all GSA SmartPay Travel a

USDA Layoffs Derail Projects Benefiting American Farmers

The widespread layoff of Department of Agriculture scientists has thrown vital research into disarray, according to former and current employees of the agency. Scientists hit by the layoffs were working on projects to improve crops, defend against pests and disease, and understand the climate impact of farming practices. The layoffs also threaten to undermine billions of taxpayer dollars paid to farmers to support conservation practices, experts warn. The USDA layoffs are part of the Trump admi

Fitbit’s got a battery problem

is a senior reporter focusing on wearables, health tech, and more with 13 years of experience. Before coming to The Verge, she worked for Gizmodo and PC Magazine. Last month, Fitbit Versa 3 and Sense owners started getting notifications to download a mandatory firmware update. The problem? Overheating batteries. In an official consumer notice, Google (which owns Fitbit) notes that the firmware update would “reduce the risk of battery overheating and reduce battery capacity.” Affected users, of

Cherryrock Capital raises new $172M fund from all-star investors to back diverse founders

Cherryrock Capital, founded by ex-TaskRabbit CEO Stacy Brown-Philpot, announced Wednesday the closing of its $172 million Fund I with an all-star limited partner list that includes JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, MassMutual, Melinda French Gates’ Pivotal Ventures, Reid Hoffman, Mellody Hobson, and Sheryl Sandberg. Brown-Philpot told Bloomberg that the fund actually closed in January. The firm launched in 2023 during what was a challenging period for fundraising in the venture industry. As a result, B

Beta Technologies’ bet on electric flight and Hyundai’s new Tesla charging port comes up short

Welcome back to TechCrunch Mobility — your central hub for news and insights on the future of transportation. Sign up here for free — just click TechCrunch Mobility! Fifteen years ago, I started writing about a little EV startup that was trying to survive even as others failed in the clean tech boom-and-bust cycle. Back then Tesla had captured the interest of some celebrities and EV enthusiasts — but it was a small circle. A lot has changed since then, including the profile of its largest shar

Tesla to test virtual queues at Supercharging locations

Road rage has been around for a while. A newer phenomenon that’s cropping up is EV charging rage — the feeling when a fellow EV owner cuts the line to grab one of the only working charge ports. It’s common enough that people posted altercations between EV drivers on social media and forums. In at least one case, the EV charging rage turned deadly. In response to this rage, and specifically to a fight that broke out at a packed Supercharger station, Tesla announced in a post on X this week it w

Topics: ev post rage tesla year

Meta starts accepting sign-ups for Community Notes on Facebook, Instagram, and Threads

Meta announced in a blog post on Thursday that it’s now accepting sign-ups for its Community Notes program on Facebook, Instagram, and Threads. The announcement follows Meta news last month that it’s going to end its third-party fact-checking program and is instead moving to a Community Notes model similar to the one at X. In its blog post, Meta explains that Community Notes will be a way for users across its platforms to decide when posts are misleading, and allow them to add more context to t

Rivian inches closer to profitability but warns ‘changes to government policies’ could hurt

Rivian’s cost-cutting measures have gotten it a lot closer to profitability, but the company is warning that 2025 could still be a challenging year — especially because of the whorl of uncertainty caused by the new Trump administration. The company announced Thursday its fourth-quarter and full-year 2024 financial results, and along with it, shared plans to deliver between 46,000 and 51,000 EVs across 2025. Rivian cautioned that “changes to government policies and regulations, and a challenging

Children routinely using social media, Australian regulator says

Children routinely using social media, Australian regulator says 1 hour ago Graham Fraser Technology Reporter Getty Images More than 80% of Australian children aged eight to 12 use social media or messaging services that are only meant to be for over-13s, according to new research. It comes as Australia plans to implement a total social media ban for under-16s that is expected by the end of this year. The country's internet regulator, eSafety, found YouTube, TikTok and Snapchat were the most

Voltron Data just partnered with Accenture to solve one of AI’s biggest headaches

Join our daily and weekly newsletters for the latest updates and exclusive content on industry-leading AI coverage. Learn More As artificial intelligence drives unprecedented demand for data processing, a Mountain View startup is offering a solution to one of AI’s least discussed but most critical challenges: moving and transforming massive datasets quickly enough to keep up. Voltron Data, which announced a strategic partnership with Accenture today, has developed a GPU-accelerated analytics e

Vanguard Exiles launches on March 11 as next game from Magic creator Richard Garfield

Vanguard Exiles, the next game by Magic: The Gathering creator Richard Garfield, will launch into early access on Steam on March 11. The digital board game comes from Australian game developer The Tea Division, and it’s designed in association with Garfield. The title is an innovative auto battler with a redefined take on the genre. The devs say to prepare yourself for a competitive strategy gameplay experience unlike any other, offering new scenarios in each round ensuring no two turns are eve

Amazon pulls the plug on its Android app store that you never used anyway

Joe Hindy / Android Authority TL;DR Amazon will shut down its Android device app store in August 2025. Users will no longer be able to download or use apps from the Appstore on Android after the deadline. Amazon Fire devices like the Fire TV and the Fire Tablet. The Google Play Store is the premier source for downloading and installing apps on Android flagships, but the platform’s open nature also allows third-party app stores to exist. The Amazon Appstore was one of those popular options ou

AT&T is taking the hassle out of splitting phone bills with friends and family

Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority TL;DR AT&T’s new SplitPay feature makes splitting bill payments with friends and family members on your postpaid plan a whole lot easier. It notifies designated users when the bill is due and provides a link to help them pay their share. SplitPay also lets account owners easily track payments and sends alerts when someone hasn’t paid their share before the due date. AT&T is making it incredibly easy for subscribers with multiple lines on a single postpaid

Apple’s latest AirTag feature now supported by the busiest U.S. airline

Starting with iOS 18.2, Apple has enhanced its AirTag item trackers with a special feature that makes locating lost luggage easier than ever. The “Share Item Location” capability requires adoption by airlines to work, and this week the busiest airline in America has announced its support. American Airlines ranks third in terms of fleet size and revenue, but the company flies more passengers per day than any other U.S. airline. For that reason, American Airlines’ use of Apple’s Share Item Locat

Microsoft fixes Power Pages zero-day bug exploited in attacks

Microsoft has issued a security bulletin for a high-severity elevation of privilege vulnerability in Power Pages, which hackers exploited as a zero-day in attacks. The flaw, tracked as CVE-2025-24989, is an improper access control problem impacting Power Pages, allowing unauthorized actors to elevate their privileges over a network and bypass user registration controls. Microsoft says it has addressed the risk at the service level and notified impacted customers accordingly, enclosing instruct

I torture-tested this Windows 11 tablet that's built to thrive where others fail

ZDNET's key takeaways The DT Research tablet is built as rugged as it gets, with IP65, MIL-STD-810H, and MIL-STD-461G certifications. The choice of Intel Core i5 and i7 processors offers flexibility when buying the system. The tablet is big and rather chunky, far larger than a traditional iPad. View now at CDW Let's face it: Your average laptop or tablet is a pretty fragile piece of technology. One accidental drop, and more often than not, something critical -- usually the display -- decides

Can't quit Windows 10? You can pay Microsoft for updates after October, or try these alternatives

'ZDNET Recommends': What exactly does it mean? ZDNET's recommendations are based on many hours of testing, research, and comparison shopping. We gather data from the best available sources, including vendor and retailer listings as well as other relevant and independent reviews sites. And we pore over customer reviews to find out what matters to real people who already own and use the products and services we’re assessing. When you click through from our site to a retailer and buy a product or