Sam Raimi’s ‘Spider-Man 4’ Will Never Happen Because It Wouldn’t ‘Be Right’ to ‘Resurrect My Version’: ‘I Handed the Torch Off to Someone Else’

Sam Raimi, director of the original Spider-Man trilogy, explains why a fourth film under his direction will not happen, citing the need to respect the evolution of the character and the current storyline led by Tom Holland.

Hacker taps Raspberry Pi to turn Wi-Fi signals into wall art

French artist Théo Champion, also known as Rootkid, has created a piece called 'Spectrum Slit' that transforms nearby radio signals into light using a Raspberry Pi. The sculpture, which consists of 64 LED filaments, displays the intensity of radio signals in the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands, used by Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and other technologies. The project, which took around four weeks and cost approximately $1,000 to build, aims to make people more aware of the technology that surrounds them.

A new test for AI labs: Are you even trying to make money?

TechCrunch proposes a five-level scale to evaluate AI labs' commercial ambitions, with Level 5 representing the highest ambition. The article analyzes four AI labs: Humans& at Level 3, TML potentially at Level 2 or 3, World Labs at Level 4, and SSI at Level 1.

Researchers say Russian government hackers were behind attempted Poland power outage | TechCrunch

Security researchers attribute the attempted use of destructive 'wiper' malware across Poland's energy infrastructure in late December to a Russian-backed hacking group known for causing power outages in Ukraine.

Video Vault: Introducing Cellular Phones

NASA is about to send people to the moon… in a spacecraft not everyone thinks is safe to fly

As NASA prepares to launch Artemis II, the upcoming mission around the moon, concerns have been raised by some experts about the spacecraft's heat shield, which has a known flaw. Despite investigations and adjustments to the mission's flight path, there remains uncertainty about the safety of the heat shield, which is crucial for protecting astronauts during reentry. While NASA asserts confidence in the spacecraft's safety, dissenting opinions highlight the risks involved in proceeding with the mission.

Microsoft Gave FBI Keys To Unlock Encrypted Data, Exposing Major Privacy Flaw

Microsoft provided the FBI with BitLocker encryption keys to access data on three laptops, raising concerns about privacy and security. The tech giant claimed this was a standard response to a court order, but privacy advocates argue that Microsoft should follow Apple and Meta's lead in not complying with such requests. This case highlights the potential for law enforcement to gain extensive access to personal data if encryption keys are not properly secured.

New Android malware uses AI to click on hidden browser ads

A new family of Android click-fraud trojans uses TensorFlow machine learning models to detect and interact with hidden browser ads. The malware operates in 'phantom' mode using a hidden WebView browser and in 'signalling' mode using WebRTC to stream a live video feed to attackers. Distributed through Xiaomi’s GetApps store and third-party APK sites, the trojans are often hidden in seemingly legitimate apps, leading to covert click fraud with no visible indication to users.

Former Olympic snowboarder and FBI fugitive Ryan Wedding arrested

Former Canadian Olympic snowboarder Ryan Wedding, once a fugitive on the FBI's 'Ten Most Wanted' list, has been arrested, according to a law enforcement source. Wedding, who competed in the 2002 Winter Olympics, was indicted for running a criminal enterprise involving cocaine trafficking and murder, with officials previously believing he was in Mexico under the protection of the Sinaloa cartel.

FortiGate firewalls hit by silent SSO attacks & config theft... still happening after latest patch

FortiGate firewalls are experiencing silent attacks where attackers bypass SSO protections to reconfigure settings, create backdoor admin users, and steal configuration files. Arctic Wolf warns of automated malicious activity targeting FortiGate appliances since January 15. Despite patches for critical authentication bypass bugs, admins report ongoing intrusions, suggesting a patch bypass for CVE-2025-59718. Fortinet is preparing new releases to fully address the issue.

Updates to our Web Search Products & Programmable Search Engine Capabilities

The Programmable Search Engine Blog announces updates to their web search products and capabilities. They are simplifying and modernizing their offerings to provide more focused and capable solutions for every use case. The Search Element is being simplified for site-specific search, while Google Vertex AI Search is offered for enterprise-grade needs. A full web search solution is available for those requiring the entire index. Transition to these new solutions must be completed by January 1, 2027.

London boroughs limping back online months after cyberattack • The Register

Hammersmith & Fulham Council has resumed processing online and telephone payments two months after a cyberattack impacted multiple boroughs in London. While most services are now available, some council tax and housing rent account balances may not be current. The council has introduced enhanced security measures and is investigating the impacts on all systems and services. The attack also affected Westminster City and Kensington and Chelsea councils, with ongoing disruptions and investigations.

72.7M Under Armour accounts hit in alleged ransomware leak

Have I Been Pwned reports that 72.7 million Under Armour customer accounts were affected by an alleged ransomware attack in November. The Everest ransomware group claimed responsibility and threatened to release stolen data unless Under Armour paid a ransom. The leaked data includes names, email addresses, dates of birth, genders, geographic locations, and details of previous purchases. Under Armour has not yet acknowledged the alleged leak.

Ancient telnet bug happily hands out root to attackers

A recently disclosed critical vulnerability in the GNU InetUtils telnet daemon (telnetd) allows attackers to gain root access to a target system by exploiting an argument injection flaw. The bug, introduced in a May 2015 update, has been trivial to exploit and is already being targeted by attackers. Users are advised to update to the latest version of telnetd, restrict network access to the telnet port, or switch to a more secure alternative such as SSH.

Hackers get $1,047,000 for 76 zero-days at Pwn2Own Automotive 2026

Pwn2Own Automotive 2026 concluded with security researchers earning $1,047,000 for exploiting 76 zero-day vulnerabilities in fully patched automotive systems. The competition, held in Tokyo, targeted in-vehicle infotainment systems, EV chargers, and car operating systems. Vendors have 90 days to release security fixes for the disclosed zero-days. Team Fuzzware.io won the contest with $215,000, followed by Team DDOS and Synactiv.

149 Million Usernames and Passwords Exposed by Unsecured Database

A researcher discovered an unsecured database containing 149 million usernames and passwords, including millions for Gmail, Facebook, and Binance. The database, suspected to be collected using infostealing malware, was accessible to anyone via a web browser. The hosting provider removed the database after being notified by the researcher.

Nic Barker Explains ASCII, Unicode, And UTF-8

This article from Hackaday explains the importance of understanding 7-bit ASCII and UTF-8 for text data processing, highlighting their features and the pitfalls of UTF-16.

A 1970s Electronic Black Jack Game

In 1978, UK gaming company Waddingtons introduced the 2001 The Game Machine, an early electronic gaming console with four games: a shooting gallery, blackjack, Code Hunter, and Grand Prix. The console, which also functioned as a calculator, was considered impressive at the time and could be easily cloned today using modern technology.

Bitter cold will slam Canada with some lows plunging to -50 C

Bone-chilling cold warnings have swept across Canada, with some regions experiencing temperatures as low as -50 C due to a polar vortex. Environment Canada has issued orange weather alerts for Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and northern Ontario, warning of severe weather conditions likely to cause significant damage, disruption, or health impacts. Residents in these areas can expect wind-chill temperatures between -45 C and -50 C ahead of a slow warming trend this weekend.

Blue Origin makes impressive strides with reuse; next launch will refly booster

Blue Origin is pushing the boundaries of rocket reusability with its New Glenn rocket. The company plans to refly the booster used in its second mission, NG-2, for the upcoming NG-3 mission, scheduled for late February or early March. This would mark the third flight of the New Glenn fleet, and if successful, it would represent a significantly shorter turnaround time compared to SpaceX's first refly of a Falcon 9 booster, which took nearly 11 months.

Google begins offering free SAT practice tests (powered by Gemini)

Google has introduced a new feature in Gemini that offers free SAT practice tests, aiming to assist students in improving their scores. The feature uses generative AI to create practice tests that resemble the actual SAT, complete with scoring and explanation tools. Google has partnered with education firms to ensure the accuracy of the tests. While the SAT is the initial focus, Google plans to expand to other standardized tests in the future. This move could potentially disrupt the traditional test prep and tutoring industry, which currently charges high fees for similar services.

Hacker who stole 120,000 bitcoins wants a second chance—and a security job

Ilya Lichtenstein, who was involved in a 2016 crypto heist stealing 120,000 bitcoins, has expressed remorse and a desire to turn his life around. Released from prison, he aims to use his skills for cybersecurity.

Microsoft Paint can now make AI coloring books

Microsoft has introduced new AI capabilities to its Paint and Notepad apps on Windows. The updates, currently available to Windows Insiders, include AI text improvements in Notepad and a 'Coloring book' feature in Paint that generates coloring book pages based on text prompts. These features are available on Copilot Plus PCs, suggesting Microsoft is exploring ways to make its AI-infused Windows 11 devices more marketable.

Tesla discontinues Autopilot in bid to boost adoption of its Full Self-Driving software

Tesla discontinues its basic driver-assistance system, Autopilot, to boost adoption of its more advanced Full Self-Driving (Supervised) software. This decision comes as the company faces a 30-day suspension of its manufacturing and dealer licenses in California for deceptive marketing about Autopilot's capabilities. Tesla now offers only Traffic Aware Cruise Control as standard, with FSD available through a monthly subscription of $99.

Palmer Luckey says the coolest thing about Anduril expanding to Long Beach is the fighter jets

Defense tech company Anduril plans to expand its Southern California presence with a major campus in Long Beach, creating about 5,500 jobs. Founder Palmer Luckey highlights the potential to manufacture autonomous fighter jets directly from the factory.

Underground Resistance Aims To Sabotage AI With Poisoned Data

This Forbes article discusses the Poison Fountain project, an underground resistance movement aiming to sabotage AI systems by contaminating their training data. The group's manifesto and instructions are available on a public-facing website, echoing growing concerns about AI safety, particularly from experts like Geoffrey Hinton. The project's strategy involves embedding links to poisoned data on various websites to trick web crawlers into collecting flawed content. However, the article also points out potential limitations of this approach, such as the difficulty of infiltrating large volumes of poisoned data into AI training pipelines and the ability of AI developers to detect and filter out such data.

Okta SSO accounts targeted in vishing-based data theft attacks

Okta has issued a warning about phishing kits specifically designed for voice-based social engineering attacks, known as vishing. These kits are being used in active attacks to steal Okta SSO credentials for data theft. Threat actors are targeting identity providers and cryptocurrency platforms by creating customized phishing pages and impersonating IT staff to trick employees into providing their credentials.

Kessler Syndrome Alert: Satellites' 5.5-Day Countdown

This article from IEEE Spectrum discusses the CRASH Clock, a warning system that predicts the time before a catastrophic satellite collision in low Earth orbit. The current prediction is 5.5 days, highlighting the risks of Kessler syndrome and the need for perfect decisions from satellite operators. The article also explores the impact of solar storms, the challenges of tracking small debris, and the implications of SpaceX's Starlink megaconstellation.

Trump says hes withdrawing invitation for Carney to join his Gaza Board of Peace

U.S. President Donald Trump announced the withdrawal of an invitation for Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney to join his 'Board of Peace' initiative for Gaza, as reported by CBC News. The initiative, launched at the World Economic Forum in Davos, aims to rebuild the war-torn region during a governance transition. While 35 countries have signed up, traditional European allies like the U.K. and France have rejected the invitation, citing concerns about the initiative's alignment with the UN charter. Canada has not yet confirmed its participation and has indicated it will not pay the $1 billion fee for a permanent seat on the board.