All posts tagged: users

LG users complain about unwanted ads on TVs and gaming monitors

LG users complain about unwanted ads on TVs and gaming monitors

Published by skeptic

Korean electronics giant LG is taking heat over intrusive settings on its TVs and computer monitors — and the backlash may just be getting started. It all began on July 17, when an LG gaming monitor customer noticed a pop-up ad for McAfee antivirus software on their screen. The user took to X to vent their frustration. “PSA: Do NOT buy an LG monitor, it automatically downloaded an app that gives me pop ups for their own apps and McAfee,” wrote the customer identified as wexos. This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed. The YouTube channel Gamers Nexus looked into the report, finding that LG UltraGear monitors were installing a program called LG Monitor App Install after users connected them to Windows PCs. As our colleagues at PCMag reported, “The program advises customers to install other apps, and shows a pop-up ad for McAfee’s Scam Detector software.” (Disclosure: PCMag and Mashable are owned by the same parent company, Ziff Davis.) The situation escalated quickly from there. Microsoft EVP for …

Meta Launches Free ‘Facebook Verified’ Badge to Confirm Real Users

Meta Launches Free ‘Facebook Verified’ Badge to Confirm Real Users

Published by skeptic

Meta today announced Facebook Verified, a free badge designed to confirm that a Facebook profile belongs to a real person rather than an AI-generated fake. The feature uses a selfie-based verification process: users record a short video selfie, which ‌Meta‌ checks against their existing profile photos to confirm a match. ‌Meta‌ says the process is free and typically takes just a few minutes to complete, though accounts must meet the company’s trust and safety standards to qualify. Facebook Verified is limited to users 18 and older who are in good standing with ‌Meta‌’s Community Standards around fraud, scams, and deceptive practices, and who show no evidence of inauthentic behavior. The badge is not available for Pages or ProMode accounts, positioning it squarely as a personal-profile feature rather than one aimed at creators or businesses. Once verified, the badge will appear on Marketplace, Dating, Groups, and Profile, with ‌Meta‌ planning to extend it to Feed posts over time. There is no subscription fee for the feature, and the badge carries across the platform once a user …

ChatGPT’s Apple Health Integration Now Rolling Out to U.S. Users

ChatGPT’s Apple Health Integration Now Rolling Out to U.S. Users

Published by skeptic

The Health in ChatGPT feature that integrates medical records and Apple Health data is rolling out to ChatGPT users in the United States as of today. OpenAI announced plans for a health feature that used data from Apple Health and other sources back in January, but it was in beta and was not made widely available. Health in ChatGPT can draw on health information connected by the user to compare lab test data, summarize changes since a prior appointment, track medications, and explore how sleep, activity, and workouts impact health. With your permission, ChatGPT can consider relevant information you have connected, such as medications, lab results, recent visits, sleep, and activity, alongside the goals and context you share. This added context can make everyday conversations more useful. For example, ChatGPT can consider a dietary restriction when helping you choose a restaurant, or a recent injury when planning lower-impact weekend activities with your family. You can ask follow-up questions, add context, or correct information that is incomplete or out of date. OpenAI says the feature is …

Unreliable AI answers are ‘good enough’ for most users of platforms

Unreliable AI answers are ‘good enough’ for most users of platforms

Published by Sam Flores

ChatGPT. Picture: Shutterstock If internet users accept convenient, plausible-sounding AI answers as “good enough” en masse, it harms the publishers that provide the primary sources used to generate those answers. This second of three articles covering the AOP’s newly launched ‘Artificial Intelligence Publisher Impact Study’, looks at the behavioural impacts of AI on how users seek information online, as revealed by a nationally representative UK study conducted by Ipsos. The first article in this series examined the 7.1% average reduction in referral traffic to premium UK publisher domains in the first half of 2025 and revealed how this reduction varied widely across various content topics and types. So why is this happening? The decline in referral traffic to UK publishers is no surprise when we look at the rise of ‘stop here’ behaviours caused by AI. This is when the user, having retrieved their desired information, does not interact further. We found that the presence of an AI Overview on a search results page causes an 18% reduction in a user’s propensity to click through …

Light’s new 9 flip phone has no apps and T9 texting, but aims to connect its users

Light’s new $299 flip phone has no apps and T9 texting, but aims to connect its users

Published by skeptic

Light Follow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google. ZDNET’s key takeaways Light just announced the Light Flip — a minimalist flip phone for $299. It has a slightly lower-end build compared to the Light Phone 3, but aims for a thoughtful design and striking colors. It comes with a nine-month “Flip Your Life” program that helps users prepare to ditch their smartphones for good.  Light, the company that made the “premium dumbphone”, just announced the latest device to its lineup: the Light Flip, a $299 flip phone with the same minimal aesthetic but with trade-offs in hardware, build, and a lower rate at $39 a month. The Brooklyn-based company’s core ethos remains the same: a completely minimalist UI, no email, no apps, and limited features — even less than the Light Phone 3, which was already spare. The result is a unique device in wild colors designed solely for making calls and sending texts (if you can brave the T9 keyboard). Also: I gave up my iPhone for a dumbphone with no apps. A month …

HuggingFace breach that’s blamed on AI agent is defended by AI, too – what users should do next

HuggingFace breach that’s blamed on AI agent is defended by AI, too – what users should do next

Published by skeptic

XH4D/ iStock / Getty Images Plus via Getty Images Follow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google. ZDNET’s key takeaways Hugging Face discloses a cyberattack that compromised internal infrastructure and credentials. An autonomous AI agent has been blamed for the breach. An AI, in turn, detected the intrusion — but is AI-enabled defense enough to stop future attacks? Hugging Face has disclosed a security incident, believed to be the work of an unknown agentic AI, that exposed its production platform and credentials. It’s not known if partner or customer data was affected. What is Hugging Face? Hugging Face is an open source repository and community platform that describes itself as “where the machine learning community collaborates on models, datasets, and applications.”  Also: 5 security tactics your business can’t get wrong in the age of AI – and why they’re critical The platform, a diverse resource for those interested in AI and large language models (LLMs), offers datasets, applications, models, trending AI creations, as well as collaboration opportunities. Dataset turned disaster In a security advisory published …

Hugging Face confirms breach affected internal datasets and credentials, urges users to take action

Hugging Face confirms breach affected internal datasets and credentials, urges users to take action

Published by skeptic

Hugging Face, a platform that hosts AI models and datasets, said its internal datasets and service credentials were compromised in a hack last week. The company disclosed the breach on Friday, but said it was still investigating whether any customer or partner data was stolen during the incident. In a blog post, the company said a dataset uploaded to its platform abused a security vulnerability to run malicious code on its servers, allowing the attackers to escalate their permissions and gain broader access to Hugging Face’s internal systems. The company said it has revoked and rotated the stolen credentials that were accessed. It urged users to do the same with any keys stored on the platform, and review any suspicious activity on their accounts. Hugging Face said it has fixed the vulnerability that was abused during the cyberattack. While it’s common for hackers to try to break into a company’s network using stolen employee credentials, keys, or a weak point in their security perimeter, this incident underscores the challenges that companies like Hugging Face face …

Microsoft’s own mistakes are pushing users toward Linux faster than anyone expected

Microsoft’s own mistakes are pushing users toward Linux faster than anyone expected

Published by skeptic

Desktop Linux has seen a massive surge in popularity in the past few years alone, which, ironically enough, is in no small part thanks to Microsoft. The recent string of Windows hiccups has forced folks to migrate to Linux, and the number seems to be ever-increasing. Outside of desktops, Linux has always been quietly building the backbone of the internet and almost every other cloud service, while Windows Server seems to slip into the background, unnoticed. The Linux wave is here, and it doesn’t look to be stopping anytime soon. Not even Microsoft, in all its power, can hope to stand against it. Related Using Linux made me appreciate these 5 Windows features Using Linux reminded me how Windows quietly excels at drivers, settings, apps, and gaming without demanding constant tinkering. Linux has always been the popular choice for servers It’s only recently that desktop Linux has started to gain traction Desktop Linux gaining traction can be regarded as a relatively new phenomenon, but the same has not been true for cloud computing and server …

iPhone Users Beware: Scammers Are Using FaceTime to Steal Bank Info

iPhone Users Beware: Scammers Are Using FaceTime to Steal Bank Info

Published by skeptic

Scammers are now targeting you via FaceTime.  Elena Uve/Getty Images If you’re constantly receiving scam calls and text messages, you know that not all scammers take the same approach. A recent CBS report found that thieves are impersonating bank representatives to trick people into answering FaceTime calls to “verify” their bank accounts, and then stealing their banking information.  These schemes work because scammers know how to prey on people’s anxiety, Justin Brookman, director of technology policy at Consumer Reports, tells CNET. “They create a false sense of urgency to get you to take immediate steps or else something catastrophic will happen,” he says. FaceTime scammers reportedly first send out a call or text message purporting to be an urgent bank account or credit card alert that requires your attention. A number is included in the message that you’re expected to call to connect with the scammer. During the call, the scammer may ask for additional verification and prompt you to answer their FaceTime video call. The FaceTime video allows scammers to manipulate you to share your screen …

Meta ditches Muse Image AI feature because it ‘misses the mark’ on users’ privacy | Meta

Meta ditches Muse Image AI feature because it ‘misses the mark’ on users’ privacy | Meta

Published by Sam Flores

Meta has said ⁠it is discontinuing an AI feature launched this week that allowed users to generate images using public Instagram ⁠accounts, after drawing widespread ⁠criticism over ​privacy concerns, including from a Hollywood union. “Our intent was to provide a useful creative tool and to give people control ⁠over whether their public content could be referenced in this way,” Meta said in a statement. “We’ve heard the feedback that ⁠this feature missed the mark, so it’s no longer available,” it said. Meta, owner ​of Facebook and Instagram, had launched ‌Muse Image on Tuesday, its ‌first image-generation model from Meta Superintelligence Labs. The feature, integrated into its Meta ‌AI chatbot, can use photos as input and lets users edit generated images directly through sketches. The feature soon faced backlash over privacy concerns and being an automatic opt-in for users. Emmy-winning actor Hannah Einbinder, known for Hacks, criticised the feature on Instagram, saying it had been turned on automatically and urging users to ‌turn it off. SAG-AFTRA, the union representing actors and other media professionals, also urged …