Honey is a popular browser extension owned by PayPal thatβs at the center of a big new controversy. As a new investigative video outlines, the extension thatβs meant to save users money not only misses key discounts, but also intentionally redirects affiliate funds away from creators.
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Health care company Ascension lost sensitive data for nearly 5.6 million individuals in a cyberattack that was attributed to a notorious ransomware gang, according to documents filed with the attorney general of Maine.
Ascension owns 140 hospitals and scores of assisted living facilities. In May, the organization was hit with an attack that caused mass disruptions as staff was forced to move to manual processes that caused errors, delayed or lost lab results, and diversions of ambulances to other hospitals. Ascension managed to restore most services by mid-June. At the time, the company said the attackers had stolen protected health information and personally identifiable information for an undisclosed number of people.
A filing Ascension made earlier in December revealed that nearly 5.6 million people were affected by the breach. Data stolen depended on the particular person but included individuals' names and medical information (e.g., medical record numbers, dates of service, types of lab tests, or procedure codes), payment information (e.g., credit card information or bank account numbers), insurance information (e.g., Medicaid/Medicare ID, policy number, or insurance claim), government
identification (e.g., Social Security numbers, tax identification numbers, driverβs license numbers, or passport numbers), and other personal information (such as date of birth or address).
Β© iStock / Getty Images Plus
Director Denis Villeneuve's stunning two-part film adaptation of Frank Herbert's Dune has received many well-deserved accoladesβwith Dune: Part 2 being crowned Ars Technica's top movie of 2024. The films also spawned a lavish HBO spinoff TV series, Dune: Prophecy, just renewed for a second season right before a momentous season finale.
(Some spoilers below for S1 of Dune: Prophecy, but no major plot reveals.)
Dune: Prophecy is a prequel series inspired by the novel Sisterhood of Dune, written by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson, exploring the origins of the Bene Gesserit. It's set 10,000 years before the ascension of Paul Atreides and follows two Harkonnen sisters as they combat forces that threaten the future of humankind, establishing the fabled sect that will become the Bene Gesserit in the process.
Β© Attila Szvacsek/HBO
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is suing Walmart and payroll service provider Branch Messenger for alleged illegal payment practices for gig workers.
The bureau says Walmart was opening direct deposit accounts using Spark delivery driversβ social security numbers without their consent. The accounts also can come with intense fees that, according to the complaint, would add either 2 percent or $2.99 per transaction, whichever is higher. It also says Walmart repeatedly promised to provide drivers with same-day payments through the platform starting in July 2021 but never delivered on that.
The Bureau alleges that for approximately two years starting around June 2021, defendants engaged in unfair, abusive, and deceptive practices in violation of the Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010, including by requiring Spark Drivers to receive their compensation in Branch Accounts, opening Branch Accounts for Spark Drivers without their informed consent or, in many instances, on an unauthorized basis, and making deceptive statements about Branch to Spark Drivers.
βWalmart made false promises, illegally opened accounts, and took advantage of more than a million delivery drivers,β said CFPB Director Rohit Chopra in a statement. βCompanies cannot force workers into getting paid through accounts that drain their earnings with junk fees.β The agency sued both companies in the US District Court for the District of Minnesota.
Spark delivery workers have been complaining about Walmartβs Branch Messenger account requirements for years, which forced workers to use these accounts with no option to direct deposit to a preferred credit union or local bank. Walmart allegedly told workers theyβd be terminated if they didnβt accept the Branch accounts.
Todayβs 9to5Toys Lunch Break is headlined by a surprise Best Buy 48-hour flash sale with deals still shipping by tomorrow, including a $350 price drop on Samsungβs 256GB unlocked Galaxy S24 Ultra. We also spotted a whopping $460 off Microsoftβs Surface Pro 11 Snapdragon Copilot+ PC keyboard bundle, the ASUS ROG Ally X gaming handheld back at Black Friday pricing, a new Amazon low on the wonderful Sony XM5 Wireless ANC Headphones, and we have our exclusive discount on the new Arc Pulse bumper cases for the Pixel 9 lineup. All of that and more awaits below.Β
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According to a report out of Korea, Samsung is cutting down significantly on its plans for 2025 Galaxy foldables as it reflects on the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Flip 6, which ultimately failed to meet expectations.
moreβ¦From now through December 31, save 20% on all 9to5Mac Daily Plus, 9to5Mac Happy Hour Plus, and 9to5Mac Pro annual subscriptionsΒ with promo code HOLIDAY! VisitΒ 9to5mac.com/joinΒ to sign up.
Benjamin and Chance reflect on Appleβs 2024 products, focused on all the product announcements from the past twelve months. From the lows of AirPods Max to the highs of M4 iPad Pro, and the mixed reception to Apple Vision Pro. We break it all down in our last episode of the year.
And in Happy Hour Plus, we talk about what we are most excited for in 2025 as rumors swirl for the iPhone 17 lineup and Appleβs deeper foray into the smart home.Β Subscribe atΒ 9to5mac.com/join.
While we are coming down to the wire now for holiday shipping, Best Buy has launched a surprise 48-hour flash sale with deals still arriving by tomorrow. And one of them is the best deal ever on the most affordable M4 MacBook Pro with 24GB of RAM at $300 off the list price. That offer joins up to $169 in savings on AirPods Max, ongoing 2024 lows on AirTags, a 50% price drop on Twelve Southβs metal Curve SE MacBook stand, Bose and Sony headphones, plus even more. Scope it all out down below.Β
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Under Joe Biden's direction, the US Trade Representative (USTR) launched a probe Monday into China's plans to globally dominate markets for legacy chipsβalleging that China's unfair trade practices threaten US national security and could thwart US efforts to build up a domestic semiconductor supply chain.
Unlike the most advanced chips used to power artificial intelligence that are currently in short supply, these legacy chips rely on older manufacturing processes and are more ubiquitous in mass-market products. They're used in tech for cars, military vehicles, medical devices, smartphones, home appliances, space projects, and much more.
China apparently "plans to build more than 60 percent of the world's new legacy chip capacity over the next decade," and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said evidence showed this was "discouraging investment elsewhere and constituted unfair competition," Reuters reported.
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Apple is on the verge of reaching an unprecedented $4 trillion market valuation, buoyed by investor excitement over its recent AI-driven initiatives aimed at reviving sluggish iPhone sales. The news comes just over a month ago afterΒ Nvidia claimed the title [β¦]
The post Apple nears $4 trillion valuation, surpassing Nvidia amid AI boost and iPhone surge first appeared on Tech Startups.
Iβve used an iPad Pro as my primary computer for years, despite occasionally testing the waters with the Mac. For various reasons, Iβve always stuck with the iPad, but one new feature Apple just shipped might finally be the thing that gets me back to the Mac in 2025.
moreβ¦It looks like Meta is preparing to add displays to its popular line of Ray-Ban smart glasses, according to a report by Financial Times. These screens could show up in a future iteration of the device as early as next year. The likely release window is the second half of 2025.
According to folks familiar with Metaβs plans, the screens will be on the smaller side and will likely be used to display notifications or responses from Metaβs AI virtual assistant. Itβs highly unlikely that the company is planning on making this a full mixed-reality device just yet.
For that, Meta has the recently-unveiled Orion AR glasses, which are still several years out. The same report indicates that the positive response to the Orion glasses has likely accelerated development and possibly ensured a commercial release. It was uncertain if those glasses would remain an in-house prototype.
The Ray-Ban smart glasses have been a surprise hit for Meta, and itβs easy to see why. They look great and perform admirably. The current model includes in-ear speakers, cameras, microphones and access to Metaβs virtual assistant.
I quite enjoy the simplicity of the current design, particularly when taking photos and videos. My hope is that screens do not get in the way of that simplicity and that they donβt come at the expense of, say, improvements to the camera system.
Ray-Ban Meta glasses, after all, are the perfect device for snapping quick photos of a pet. Have you ever tried to will an animal to keep still so you can dig your phone out of a bag to take a photo? Those darned cuties never do. The Ray-Bans solve that problem.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ar-vr/meta-is-reportedly-adding-displays-to-its-ray-ban-smart-glasses-162634427.html?src=rss
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Β© Engadget/Karissa Bell
San Jose, Costa Rica, 23rd December 2024, Chainwire
The post New Crypto Casino Platform Winna.com Secures $15 Million in Seed Funding first appeared on Tech Startups.
U.S.-based fintech giant Fiserv is set to acquire Canadian payments platform Payfare in a deal valued at C$201.5 million ($140 million). Announced Monday, the acquisition positions Fiserv to deepen its offerings for gig economy workers, a rapidly growing segment that [β¦]
The post Fiserv to acquire Canadaβs Payfare in $140M deal to expand payment solutions for gig workers first appeared on Tech Startups.
