Samsung‘s Galaxy S24 series is still over a month away but leaks have already revealed a lot, leaving little to the imagination. We have seen the design from various angles, and all the key specs have been confirmed too. Now, as we wait for the company to announce the launch date, official wallpapers for the Galaxy S24 Ultra have surfaced online.
The Galaxy S24 Ultra wallpapers are available to download early
Samsung is rumored to launch the Galaxy S24, Galaxy S24+, and Galaxy S24 Ultra on January 17, 2024. Pre-orders will open immediately after launch, with sales expected to begin on the 30th of the month. Based on this information, the unveiling event is still more than six weeks away. However, a myriad of leaks over the past couple of months or so has revealed pretty much everything you need to know about the phones.
A few days back, the entire lineup showed up in leaked official renders. We could see the Ultra model’s wallpaper in the watermarked images. X user @Vetrox360 used AI and photo editing tools to give us high-quality watermark-free images of the wallpaper in all four colors or shades: Titanium Violet, Black, Grey, and Yellow. The color tone of Samsung’s official wallpaper always matches the device’s body.
The source extracted these wallpapers from the Galaxy S24 Ultra’s renders. However, the base Galaxy S24 and Galaxy S24+ should also have the same wallpaper design. It isn’t the most appealing or catchy design we have seen from Samsung. Some may even call it lousy. However, some may find it uniquely beautiful. If you like the design and want to set it as your wallpaper, you can save the photos directly by long-pressing or right-clicking on them. As usual, the device should offer multiple shades (some brighter and some darker) of this wallpaper.
The Galaxy Book 4 will arrive with the same default wallpapers
Samsung’s latest flagship products—smartphones, tablets, and laptops—feature the same default wallpaper or a variant of the same design. It was true for the Galaxy Book 3 and the Galaxy S23 series, as well as the Galaxy S23 FE and Galaxy Tab S9 FE. The Galaxy S24’s wallpaper design will feature on the Galaxy Book 4. We have already seen the new laptops, expected to debut later this month, in renders with the same wallpaper design. Stay tuned for the official announcement regarding the launch of these products.
Right now, there’s a heated competition between Google’s Bard and OpenAI’s GPT-4. In terms of raw power, the latter had the former beat, but Google has a trick up its sleeve… but it won’t be coming when expected. Gemini, Google’s GPT-4 competitor has been delayed, and it will launch in 2024.
If you don’t know what Gemini is, then you definitely should. Bard is plenty powerful, but that’s child’s play compared to what the company wants to achieve. Gemini is a giant multi-modal LLM that Google is planning on launching. It’s slated to be substantially more powerful than Bard and better competition for GPT-4.
Unlike Bard, it will be able to generate images along with text, and that’s something that will make it sort of an all-in-one AI bot. At the point with AI where we’re starting to see more chatbots implement image generation.
Along with the ability to make images, Gemini will just be more powerful than Bard. It’s going to take advantage of more advanced AI and be able to give better and more comprehensive responses.
Google delayed the launch of Gemini
While the launch of Gemini wasn’t public knowledge, we had the notion that it was slated to launch this month through leaks and rumors. We’re pretty sure that the company was going to quietly launch it rather than make a whole show of it. However, it’s not coming out this month, and the company pushed it to early 2024. We don’t know the exact date, but it’s expected to launch sometime in January.
According to The Information (via Engadget), Gemini was having trouble with non-English queries. Because of this, Google CEO Sundar Pichai pushed the launch to next month. That’s a smart move by the company. We’re all sure that Google wants Gemini’s launch to be squeaky clean and free of issues, unlike Bard’s launch.
Like the grade-school dweeb who reminds their teacher to assign tonight’s homework, or the power-tripping homeowner who threatens every neighbor with an HOA citation, the ransomware group ALPHV can now add itself to a shameful roster of pathetic, little tattle-tales.
In November, the ransomware gang ALPHV, which also goes by the name Black Cat, notified the US Securities and Exchange Commission about the Costa Mesa-based software company MeridianLink, alleging that the company had failed to notify the government about a data breach. Under newly announced rules by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), public companies will be expected to notify the government agency about “material cybersecurity incidents” within four days of determining whether such an incident could have impacted the company’s stock prices or any investment decisions from the public.
According to ALPHV, MeridianLink had violated that rule. But how did ALPHV know about this alleged breach?
Simple. They claimed to have done it.
“It has come to our attention that MeridianLink, in light of a significant breach compromising customer data and operational information, has failed to file the requisite disclosure under Item 1.05 of Form 8-K within the stipulated four business days, as mandated by the new SEC rules,” wrote ALPHV in a complaint that the group claimed to have filed with the US government.
The victim, MeridianLink, refuted the claims. According to a MeridianLink spokesperson, while the company confirmed a cybersecurity incident, it denied the severity of the incident.
“Based on our investigation to date, we have identified no evidence of unauthorized access to our production platforms, and the incident has caused minimal business interruption,” a MeridianLink spokesperson said at the time. “If we determine that any consumer personal information was involved in this incident, we will provide notifications as required by law.”
This week on the Lock and Code podcast with host David Ruiz, we speak to Recorded Future intelligence analyst Allan Liska about what ALPHV could hope to accomplish with its SEC complaint, whether similar threats have been made in the past under other regulatory regime, and what organizations everywhere should know about ransomware attacks going into the new year. One big takeaway, Liska said, is that attacks are getting bigger, bolder, and brasher.
“There are no protections anymore,” Liska said. “For a while, some ransomware actors were like, ‘No, we won’t go after hospitals, or we won’t do this, or we won’t do that.’ Those protections all seem to have flown out the window, and they’ll go after anything and anyone that will make them money. It doesn’t matter how small they are or how big they are.”
Liska continued:
“We’ve seen ransomware actors go after food banks. You’re not going to get a ransom from a food bank. Don’t do that.”
The OnePlus 12 is right around the corner. The phone will launch tomorrow, and we’ve seen a ton of information about the phone thus far. In addition to everything that was said about the OnePlus 12, its IP rating was just confirmed too, and the same goes for transfer speeds.
The OnePlus 12 IP rating and USB transfer speeds confirmed
OnePlus has a tendency to release a ton of information about its flagships prior to launch. That is the case with the OnePlus 12 too. The OnePlus 12 will offer IP65 certification for water and dust resistance.
Truth be said, that is not as good as the certification some other flagships offer (IP68 certification), but it’s better than what the OnePlus 11 offered (IP64). It will also be more than enough for most people. You won’t have to worry about getting caught in the rain, or anything of the sort.
In regards to the phone’s transfer speeds, we’re talking about its USB transfer speeds, of course. The OnePlus 12 will feature USB 3.2 Gen 1, the company has confirmed. That means you’ll be able to transfer files up to 10Gbps, which is on par with the best smartphones in the market.
The OnePlus 12 hands-on images appeared recently, while the phone is coming tomorrow
Having said that, the phone’s hands-on images appeared earlier today. Some of them were shared by the company’s exec, while others leaked. Regardless, those images gave us a great look at the phone itself.
The OnePlus 12 will launch in China tomorrow, December 5. Its global launch will follow in January, next month. OnePlus still hasn’t confirmed the launch date, but it’ll likely be January 23.
The phone will have an immensely bright display, up to 4,500 nits. The Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 will be included, and a 5,400mAh battery. 100W wired charging and charger will be a part of the package too, and so will 50W wireless charging. Its specs will be flagship-grade through and through.
While Google allows for app sideloading, the Google Play Store is still the main venue for Android users to download their apps and games. The Play Store comes preinstalled on every Android device, making it extremely difficult for independent developers to compete. But the details of ongoing trials between Google and Epic reveal the plans for a dedicated Android app store for games that was in the works by Activision Blizzard.
Activision Blizzard could have its own mobile game store
According to Android Authority (via The Verge), internal emails and other documents seen during the courtroom hearing reveal that Activision Blizzard’s “Project Boston” aimed to build a mobile game store for the company’s customers. The store, dubbed “Steam of Mobile,” allowed users to move away from the Google Play Store and download their games from a store solely dedicated to Android games.
Users could install the “Steam of Mobile” store through sideloading. Epic Games and Supercell are said to be Activision Blizzard partners for “Project Boston.” However, the firm could be working on it independently.
Regarding transaction fees, Activision Blizzard’s mobile game store seemed far more affordable than the Play Store, with only 10 to 12% in fees. Google’s fees for Play Store transactions are now set at 30%.
Activision Blizzard reportedly planned to launch its store in 2019 or 2020 with mobile games like Candy Crush. The store was first planned to be launched in the US market for Android users. It could also expand to more markets and iOS if it succeeded. In 2021, Activision Blizzard planned to add all of King’s mobile games to the store. More features like multi-account support and push notifications could later come to the platform.
Despite a clear roadmap for the mobile game store, Activision Blizzard abandoned the plan after it reached an agreement with Google. The new deal allowed the game maker “capture stronger economics for ABK across mobile, YouTube, advertising, media spend, and cloud.” The deal was reportedly worth around $100 million.
The Verge’s report notes that Activision Blizzard used the mobile game store plan to put pressure on Google. Meanwhile, Activision Blizzard’s Chief Financial Officer, Armin Zerza, said they abandoned the plan because “it wasn’t financially attractive.”
WhatsApp isn’t known for the quality of media files people share between them, in fact, the opposite. Although an update rolled out last summer added the option to share videos and photos in HD format, WhatsApp users still can’t send media files in the original quality.
However, that’s about to change, as the app is now getting a new update that allows WhatsApp users to send media files like photos and videos in original quality.
For now, the update is only making its way to iOS users, so if you’re using an iPhone, you should be looking for WhatsApp version 23.24.73. The new stable build was spotted by WABetaInfo, which also posted the official changelog.
Apart from the ability to share original quality media as a file, the latest version of WhatsApp for iOS introduces a couple of other new features. For example, WhatsApp users can now start voice chats without ringing in large groups.
Also, developers have added new bubbles in chat to help users see missed ongoing and completed calls. Finally, WhatsApp users on iOS can now quickly react to a Status using their avatar by tapping “Reply” and selecting one of the 6 avatar reactions that are available.
As per WhatsApp’s changelog, these features will be rolled out over the coming weeks, so if you don’t see one or more of these changes, you’ll have to wait a bit longer.
Keep in mind that in order to send original quality media as file, you’ll have to tap “+” in chat, click Document, and then “Choose Photo or Video” to get started.
The ‘How To’ guide for targeting Booking.com customers is being offered for sale on the dark web, as well as on underground cybercrime forums, including Russian-speaking platforms such as XSS.IS.
Cybersecurity firm Secureworks is alerting Booking.com customers to a recently identified scam wherein hotels’ Booking.com accounts are compromised to deceive users into divulging their payment details.
This fraudulent activity was detected in October 2023. Researchers have observed that cybercriminals successfully obtained access to hotel login credentials through the utilization of the Vidar information stealer.
While this tool is not commonly employed in such scams, in this instance, the Vidar infostealer is utilized to infiltrate the hotel’s Booking.com portal. This unauthorized access enables cybercriminals to peruse upcoming bookings and communicate directly with guests while posing as hotel staff.
Researchers from Secureworks Counter Threat Unit™ (CTU) suspect that this may be part of a broader campaign specifically aimed at targeting Booking.com users. The purloined data is presumed to be traded on underground marketplaces or forums, where it can command a higher price due to the increased potential for defrauding unsuspecting guests.
Characterizing it as a sophisticatedly crafted scam, researchers highlight that the hackers devised an email aimed at gaining the trust of hotel employees. The deceptive message purportedly originated from a former guest who reported losing their ID or other valuables, seeking assistance from the hotel staff to locate the items.
The subtlety of this approach meant the employee did not find it suspicious, especially since the email lacked attachments or dubious links, creating the illusion of a genuine request. Consequently, the employee responded and offered assistance.
However, a link within the email, allegedly containing a photo of the lost item, actually served to install the Vidar infostealer. Once activated, this malware illicitly acquires the hotel’s Booking.com login credentials, facilitating unauthorized access to guest reservation details.
The hook in this scam creates a sense of urgency for the guests. The attacker contacts those having reservations at the hotel through Booking.com. Guests receive urgent emails from the hotel demanding immediate payment confirmation to avoid booking cancellation. This doesn’t raise any suspicions.
Rather, it panics the guests, and they click on the provided link. According to Secureworks’ report, this leads them to a fake website designed to look like Booking.com, which was created to steal their payment data.
The scammers scam the guests by draining their accounts using the stolen payment data. Moreover, they sell Booking.com credentials on the Dark Web for up to $2,000.
The Booking.com phishing email and one of the forums selling Booking.com exploit (Screenshot credit: Secureworks)
Although Booking.com hasn’t been directly breached, the company is cooperating with impacted hotels to improve security and help affected customers. The company emphasized using machine learning to detect suspicious activity and advised hotels and customers to stay vigilant and never provide payment details without verifying the website.
“Due to the rigorous controls and the machine learning capabilities we employ, we can detect and block the overwhelming majority of suspicious activity before it impacts our partners or customers. We have also been sharing additional tips and updates with our partners about what they can do to protect themselves and their businesses, along with the latest information on malware and phishing so that they are as up-to-date as possible on the latest trends that we’re seeing.”
“It’s good to remember that no legitimate transaction will ever require a customer to provide their credit card details by phone, email, or text message (including WhatsApp)”, Booking.com stated.
This incident highlights the evolving tactics of cybercriminals and the importance of vigilance, even for seemingly harmless requests. Hotels should be especially cautious of suspicious emails and enable multi-factor authentication on Booking.com and other platforms to add an extra layer of security.
Chris Hauk, Consumer Privacy Advocate at Pixel Privacy, shared his comments with Hackread.com, stating that this scam is designed to target hotels with good reputations.
“This scam preys on hotels that offer good customer service, making the hotel employees believe that they are aiding a customer in retrieving a lost item. This is the first time I’ve heard of scammers taking that approach. The second step in the scam involves using a customer’s Booking.com information to convince the customer that they need to make a payment immediately.”
“Organizations like Booking.com need to work with their partners to ensure that all systems and applications are kept up to date to close security holes. Also, employee training to make them aware of how scammers work is also a must” Hauk added.
Samsung‘s A-series mid-range smartphone lineup for 2024 is starting to take shape. We have already seen the Galaxy A15, Galaxy A25, and Galaxy A35 in leaked renders. The Galaxy A55, which will head the lineup as the most premium model, has also appeared. The high-quality renders published by MySmartPrice in collaboration with OnLeaks reveal its design, including a metallic frame. We also have a 360-degree video.
Galaxy A55 renders leaked ahead of 2024 launch
Samsung’s 2023 smartphones all look similar from the back. They feature a vertical camera array without a camera bump—from budget models to flagships. The company isn’t changing the rear camera design next year. The Galaxy A55’s camera layout looks very much like this year’s Galaxy A54 or the upcoming Galaxy S24 flagship. However, there are some design changes in other areas.
Most notably, Samsung has made the frame flat. All four sides are flat except for the area around the power and volume buttons on the right. It’s slightly raised and curved to make enough room for the physical buttons. Interestingly, all other 2024 A-series phones feature a similar design, at least according to the leaked renders. The Galaxy S24 flagships, meanwhile, have a completely flat frame.
Rumors say Samsung will equip the Galaxy A55 with a metallic frame, an upgrade from a plastic frame used this year and before. The renders show the handset in a graphite color with antenna lines, which confirms a metal body. The rear panel may still be made of plastic, though. There’s little hope that the Korean behemoth will give us a glass back panel.
Another design change we can see today is the speaker grille at the bottom. It’s a coin slot-type strip instead of tiny holes. The Galaxy S24 Ultra and Galaxy A35 are also rumored to feature a similar speaker design. The rest of the design is largely unchanged, including the SIM tray at the top. Samsung appears to have reduced the display bezels, though the chin is still relatively thick.
The new premium mid-range phone is several months away
The Galaxy A55 is still several months away. Samsung will probably unveil it in March 2024. Earlier leaks have revealed that the phone will feature the Exynos 1480 chipset with a custom, AMD-powered Xclipse GPU. There may not be many other hardware upgrades. We may learn more about Samsung’s 2024 A-series phones in the coming months, particularly after the Galaxy S24 series is official.
Verizon announced on Monday that later this week, it will be adding a new bundle to its service. Customers can bundle Netflix and Max starting on December 7 for just $10 per month.
This bundle will include the ad-supported tiers of each service, which are $6.99 and $9.99, respectively. Giving customers a savings of around $7 per month.
Unfortunately, this bundle is only available to Verizon customers, and you also need to be on the carrier’s new myPlan. Verizon announced myPlan in May of this year, which stripped out a lot of perks included in their older plans. Instead, myPlan lowers pricing, streamlining its offerings, and lets customers add the perks they want. And one of those perks is now the ability to add Netflix and Max for only $10 per month.
Verizon already offers a slew of different perks that you can add to your plan for only $10 per month. This includes the Disney Bundle (ad-free Disney, ad-supported Hulu, and ESPN+), 100GB of Mobile Hotspot, Apple One, Apple Music Family, Walmart Plus, and a few other options. This makes myPlan a lot more attractive than their older plans that offered Apple Music and the Disney Bundle for everyone at a higher price.
Apple TV Plus and Paramount Plus could also introduce their own bundle
Last week, there was a report that Apple and Paramount could be looking to bundle their own services together as well. This one is a bit odd since these are separate companies. Paramount has already bundled Paramount Plus and SHOWTIME together, but both are owned by Paramount. An Apple TV Plus bundle would be really great to have, but apparently, the two companies are still in “preliminary discussions” to offer a bundle. So, pricing has not been announced yet.
With Apple TV Plus having just increased to $9.99 per month, it really sounds like an ad-supported tier is coming soon. And if that gets bundled with Paramount Plus (with ads) for around $10 per month, that would be a really great deal, and it would get both services more customers.
Could we see more of these bundles between companies that like each other? Perhaps. Streaming really took off in 2020 and 2021 when everyone was stuck at home and needed stuff to watch. However, now that everyone has gone back to work, and both the SAG-AFTRA Strike and the Writers Guide of America Strike are over, prices are increasing quite a bit across all streaming services. Resulting in many people canceling their service. Bundles could help here, but it remains to be seen if it would help the bottom line for these services.
The best way to keep a game alive is to partner with a ton of popular brands in order to keep the whole experience fresh. This is what Epic Games (more popularly known as the company that unleashed Fortnite onto the world) is doing. According to a new report, there is a new Lego experience coming to Fortnite.
Right now, we don’t know too much about this new experience. The official Lego_group X account posted a new video, but it didn’t really show much. It’s mostly a teaser to get all of the 12-year-olds drooling. We see a classic Fortnite character being transformed into a Lego character before getting swept away by a flood of Lego bricks.
So, we know that kids may be able to play as Lego characters, but that’s all that we can glean from the trailer for the game.
Kids won’t wait long for the Lego experience in Fortnite
While we don’t have too much information about this partnership, we can guess that it’s going to be heavily child-friendly. You don’t really associate Legos with, ya know, shooting and killing people. So, it might be off of the beaten path for Fortnite. Be that as it may, the rating for this new experience is E10+. So, there’s definitely something keeping it from dipping into an E rating.
This new experience should involve a heavy emphasis on building and crafting. Legos and Fortnite have that in common; Legos, arguably, involve less gun violence. If anything, we guess that the experience will have an overaching Lego theme added to it. Expect to be playing as Lego characters and placing Lego blocks when you’re crafting.
If you’re itching to start playing Legos in the Metaverse, then you won’t need to wait for too long. The Lego Fortnite experience will officially launch on December 7th.
