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ANDREY DENISYUK/Getty The Trump administration’s tax bill — also called its “big, beautiful bill,” which is facing a vote today — includes a rule that would prevent states from enforcing their own AI legislation for five years, and would withhold up to $500 million in funding for AI infrastructure if states don’t comply. Over the […] More
oxygen/Getty Cloudflare is a robust content delivery network (CDN) that specializes in providing protection against distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks. Last month, Cloudflare blocked the largest DDoS attack in internet history. This assault peaked at a staggering 7.3 terabits per second (Tbps). That’s a data deluge, equivalent to streaming nearly 10,000 high-definition movies in under a minute. The […] More
Kerry Wan/ZDNETDid you know that whenever you turn on your smart TV, you invite an unseen guest to watch it with you? These days, most popular TV models utilize automatic content recognition (ACR), a form of ad surveillance technology that gathers information about everything you watch and transmits it to a centralized database. Manufacturers then use your data to identify your viewing preferences, enabling them to deliver highly targeted ads.Also: Your TV’s USB port is seriously underutilized: 5 features you’re not taking advantage ofWhat’s the incentive behind this invasive technology? According to market research firm eMarketer, in 2022, advertisers spent an estimated $18.6 billion on smart TV ads, and those numbers are only going up.To understand how ACR works, imagine a constant, real-time Shazam-like service running in the background while your TV is on. It identifies content displayed on your screen, including programs from cable TV boxes, streaming services, or gaming consoles. ACR does this by capturing continuous screenshots and cross-referencing them with a vast database of media content and advertisements. More
Jack Wallen / Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNETNearly everything you do on your desktop, laptop, phone, and tablet begins with a Domain Name System (DNS) query. Essentially, DNS turns domain names (such as ZDNET.com) into an IP address so web browsers and apps know where to get the information you want.Also: The best Android phones to buy in 2025Without DNS, you’d have to type 34.149.132.124 every time you wanted to go to ZDNET.com or 74.125.21.102 to go to Google.com. Even by simply running a Google search, DNS is at work. The problem is that standard DNS isn’t encrypted, meaning all your queries are sent over the network as plain text. Why is non-encrypted DNS a problem? Let’s say you’re on a public network — like a coffee shop — and you start searching for things on your Android device. Or maybe you have to access a CMS or another work tool, and you don’t want the public to know the address you’re typing. If someone else is on the same network and has the skills, they could intercept your non-encrypted search queries (or the URLs you visit) and know exactly what you’re looking for. That’s where Private DNS Mode comes into play. Once you enable this feature, all of your DNS queries are encrypted, so bad actors won’t be able to view them — even if they capture those packets. In other words, Private DNS Mode should be an absolute must for anyone who values their privacy and security. Also: I test dozens of Android phones every year: Here’s how the best models stack upBut how do you enable Private DNS Mode on Android? It’s actually pretty simple. Let me show you how. How to enable Private DNS mode on Android version 11 or newer If you’re using Android version 11 or newer, the old method of Private DNS no longer works. Instead of handling this process manually, you have to install an application created by Cloudflare, called 1.1.1.1 + WARP. Once you’ve installed that app, it will open, and you’ll see a slider marked Disconnected. Tap that slider, and it will enable the service. More
Google / Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNETThat smartphone in your pocket is home to your favorite apps, personal accounts, and sensitive data. That means your device should have the strongest security protection available to prevent the wrong people from stealing your money or information.Also: The best Android phones to buy in 2025For Android users, Google offers a variety of tools and technologies to defend you against scammers, malware, and other threats to your security and privacy. In a blog post published last month, the company spotlights the protections now available or coming soon and how they aim to keep you safe from the latest dangers. Here’s the recap. 1. Protection against scam calls More
Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNETLast summer’s CrowdStrike meltdown was a nightmare for network administrators worldwide, disrupting healthcare systems, cutting off access to banking systems, and grounding aircraft. All in all, the event caused billions of dollars in direct and indirect damages, and it was entirely preventable.Also: How to get Windows 10 extended security updates for free: 2 optionsIn response, Microsoft convened a security summit, bringing together technical experts from CrowdStrike and its competitors in the endpoint security software business. That meeting led to an announcement late last year of a new set of Safe Deployment practices and some changes to the architecture of Windows desktop and server products, with the goal of preventing a similar incident from ever happening again. No more kernel drivers?Today, the company announced that some of those Windows Resiliency Initiative features are about to go live. In July, the company said, it will deliver a private preview of the new Windows endpoint security platform to a set of its partners who have signed on to the Microsoft Virus Initiative 3.0 program. The biggest change is one that the majority of security experts had recommended — moving third-party security drivers out of the Windows kernel, where a flaw could cause a catastrophic crash, and running them in user space instead. The new Windows capabilities will allow them to start building their solutions to run outside the Windows kernel. This means security products like antivirus and endpoint protection solutions can run in user mode just as apps do. This change will help security developers provide a high level of reliability and easier recovery, resulting in less impact on Windows devices in the event of unexpected issues. The announcement includes supportive quotes from some of those partners, including Bitdefender, ESET, SentinelOne, Trellix, Trend Micro, WithSecure, and — naturally — CrowdStrike. Also: Will your old laptop still get security updates after this year? Check this chartNotably, none of the companies on the list committed to moving their drivers out of the kernel and into user space, a process that will require time and testing. And there’s no guarantee that all of the participants are ready to move to the new architecture.Last year, following the security summit, ESET had been blunt about the prospect of changes to the endpoint security platform: “It remains imperative that kernel access remains an option for use by cybersecurity products,” the company wrote in an unsigned statement. This year’s remarks are more collegial but still not quite a ringing endorsement: The collaboration between ESET and Microsoft technology teams on the proposed Windows endpoint security platform changes continue to be productive with open and ongoing dialogue. Delivering a stable and resilient operating system environment is extremely important for our joint customers, and the ESET team continue to provide detailed feedback to help ensure there is no degradation in the security or performance currently enjoyed by our customers. One company that was notably missing from today’s roster of supporters was Sophos, which had been vocally critical of calls to move security software out of the Windows kernel space. At the time, Sophos Chief Research and Scientific Officer Simon Reed made clear that the company considers access to the Windows kernel to be fundamental. “Operating in ‘kernel-space’ — the most privileged layer of an operating system, with direct access to memory, hardware, resource management, and storage — is vitally important for security products,” he said, adding that kernel drivers are “fundamental” not just to Sophos products but to “robust Windows endpoint security, in general.” In a follow-up post after the security summit, Neil Watkiss, VP of engineering for Sophos’ Windows products, reiterated that “the system access provided by kernel drivers is necessary to provide the security functions expected by users of a modern cybersecurity product” and tentatively discussed the need to reduce the need for kernel drivers. Bye-bye, Blue Screen of Death Today’s announcement also highlights some related improvements in the Windows 11 24H2 release that had been previously announced. The first is an improvement in the process of collecting “crash dump” reports after a failure that causes the system to restart; that change should cut downtime to about two seconds for most users. A new interface also simplified the classic Blue Screen of Death screen to a less jargon-filled “unexpected restart” screen with white text on a black background. Those changes will be available later this summer, the company says. More
zf L/Getty It’s generally not a good idea to keep screenshots of sensitive information on your phone, but you should probably delete them, especially if they’re related to your crypto wallet. A new Trojan spy known as SparkKitty targets information from screenshots stored in your gallery. This spy, likely connected to the infamous SparkCat data […] More
Screenshot by Lance Whitney/ZDNETOnline scammers will use all kinds of tricks to steal anything — from your money to your identity. And not all security products are able to fully defend you against their tactics. Now, Avast has beefed up its free security software with a new feature that aims to thwart scams no matter what the source.Known as Scam Guardian, the protection tries to do more than just detect malicious or suspicious URLs. Trained on scam data, Scam Guardian uses AI to analyze the context and language behind a shady web page or text message. The feature also goes behind the scenes to scan the actual website code. The intent is to look above and below the surface for signs of deceptive and dangerous content.Also: Best data removal services: Delete yourself from the internetThe scam protection included with Avast Free Antivirus consists of two components. Avast Assistant The AI-powered Avast Assistant attempts to guide you when you encounter deceptive websites, SMS messages, emails, links, offers, and other content. Instead of acting solely on its own, the assistant will start a dialogue with you to help you understand the content and offer advice on what to do. More
