Posted by msmash from Slashdot
From the PSA department: Activision removed "Call of Duty: WWII" from Microsoft Store and Game Pass after hackers exploited a security vulnerability that allowed them to compromise players' computers, TechCrunch reported Tuesday, citing a source. The gaming giant took the 2017 first-person shooter offline last week while investigating what it initially described only as "reports of an issue."

Players posted on social media claiming their systems had been hacked while playing the game. The vulnerability was a remote code execution exploit that enables attackers to install malware and take control of victims' devices. The Microsoft Store and Game Pass versions contained an unpatched security flaw that had been fixed in other versions of the game.

Posted by msmash from Slashdot
From the desperate-times department: Corporate employees of Amazon have been asked to volunteer their time to the company's warehouses to assist with grocery delivery as it heads into its annual discount spree known as Prime Day. From a report: In a Slack message reviewed by the Guardian that went to thousands of white-collar workers in the New York City area from engineers to marketers, an Amazon area manager called for corporate "volunteers to help us out with Prime Day to deliver to customers on our biggest days yet." It is not clear how many took up the offer.

The ask came the day before Prime Day kicks off. The manager said volunteers are "needed" to work Tuesday through Friday this week, in two-hour shifts between 10am and 6pm in the Red Hook neighborhood of Brooklyn, where the company operates a warehouse as part of its grocery delivery service, Amazon Fresh. Corporate employees seconded to the warehouse would be tasked with picking items, preparing carts and bags of groceries for delivery, packing boxes on receiving carts, and working to "boost morale with distribution of snacks," though they would be allowed to step into a conference room to take meetings and calls, according to the message. The manager noted such an effort would help "connect" warehouse and corporate teams. Further reading: Amazon Prime Day Spending Down 14% in Early Hours From 2024.

Posted by msmash from Slashdot
From the for-what-it-is-worth department: Napster has returned with an AI-powered reinvention, launching a platform of specialized chatbots and holographic avatars. The former dot-com music file-sharing pioneer now offers dozens of "AI companions" trained as experts in fields from therapy to business strategy, plus the View device for 3D holographic video chats, FastCompany reports.

Infinite Reality acquired Napster for $207 million in March and rebranded itself under the nostalgic name. The platform charges $19 monthly or $199 bundled with hardware, marking Napster's latest attempt at relevance after previous owners tried VR concerts and crypto ventures.

Posted by onslaught24 from TFW2005


Thanks to various users on social media, our third official Transformers LEGO set has been unveiled! Following the initial Optimus Prime and subsequent Bumblebee sets, we now have Soundwave! The first Decepticon in the LEGO Icons line, Soundwave comes with a plethora of accessory necessities and is fully transformable like Prime and Bee. In addition to a fully-transforming, MP-13-esque Soundwave, the set also includes Laserbeak and Ravage which also seem to be able to transform and store in the tape deck, as well as a miniature version of his alternate mode to go with his Icons plaque. The LEGO Icons » Continue Reading.

The post LEGO Icons – Transformers Soundwave Set Revealed appeared first on Transformer World 2005 - TFW2005.COM.

Posted by msmash from Slashdot
From the moving-forward department: An anonymous reader shares a blog post: Version 140 of the Thunderbird mail client has been released. Notable features include "dark message mode" to adapt message content to dark mode, the ability to easily transfer desktop settings to the mobile Thunderbird client, experimental support for Microsoft Exchange, as well as global controls for message threading and sort order.

Thunderbird 140 is an extended-support release (ESR) which will be supported for 12 months. However, the Thunderbird project is trying to encourage users to adopt the Release channel for monthly updates instead. The project is staggering upgrades to 140 for existing Thunderbird users in order to catch any significant bugs before they are widely deployed, but users can upgrade manually via the Help > About menu. See the release notes for a full list of changes.

Posted by msmash from Slashdot
From the philosophy-meets-contract-law department: Microsoft and OpenAI are locked in acrimonious negotiations partly because they cannot agree on what artificial general intelligence means, despite having written the term into a contract worth over $13 billion, according to The Wall Street Journal.

One definition reportedly agreed upon by the companies sets the AGI threshold at when AI generates $100 billion in profits. Under their partnership agreement, OpenAI can limit Microsoft's access to future technology once it achieves AGI. OpenAI executives believe they are close to declaring AGI, while Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella called using AGI as a self-proclaimed milestone "nonsensical benchmark hacking" on the Dwarkesh Patel podcast in February.

Posted by from MMO Champion
Warcraft Audio Novella: "The Doom of K'aresh"

Originally Posted by Blizzard
(Blue Tracker / Official Forums)

Embark on a legendary narrative journey with "The Doom of K’aresh," a new 3-part audio novella written by Adam Christopher and illustrated by Cynthia Sheppard.

Join Ray Porter, the voice of Locus-Walker, for a reading of the thrilling and tragic tale behind the fall of K’aresh, shattered home world of the brokers and the ethereals, and setting for the second major patch of World of Warcraft: The War Within.

---

Chapter 1: The Voice from the Void

Shortly before the fall of Dalaran, Alleria Windrunner seeks answers from Locus-Walker about the fall of his home world, K’aresh, and the part Xal’atath played in it. Locus-Walker weaves Alleria a tale of K’aresh at the height of its beauty, and of the day its Worldsoul called to him for aid.

View the PDF

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Chapter 2: The Devouring War

After the darkening of K’aresh’s skies, Locus-Walker learns the name of the threat facing them: Dimensius the All-Devouring. As hope fails, Locus-Walker and the Ravel struggle to launch a desperate ploy that might save their world.

View the PDF

---

Chapter 3: Ethereum

< This article continues on their website >

Posted by msmash from Slashdot
From the better-late-than-never department: The Georgia Court of Appeals has overturned a trial court's order after finding it relied on court cases that do not exist, apparently generated by AI. The appellate court vacated the ruling in a divorce case involving Nimat Shahid's challenge to a divorce order granted to her husband Sufyan Esaam in July 2022.

"We are troubled by the citation of bogus cases in the trial court's order," the appeals court stated in its decision, which directs the lower court to revisit Shahid's petition. The court noted the errant citations appear to have been "drafted using generative AI" and were included in an order prepared by attorney Diana Lynch.

Lynch repeated the fabricated citations in her appeals briefs and expanded upon them after Shahid had challenged the fictitious cases. The appeals court found Lynch's briefs contained "11 bogus case citations out of 15 total, one of which was in support of a frivolous request for attorney fees." The court fined Lynch $2,500 for filing the frivolous motion.

Posted by Tony_Bacala from TFW2005


New update from Hasbro on the Cyberworld front.  The show launches this weekend on YouTube and a sneak peek clip has been shared.  Check out all the details below, some pics after the break! TRANSFORMERS: CYBERWORLD DROPS EXCLUSIVE SNEAK-PEEK VIDEO AHEAD OF JULY 12 SERIES PREMIERE Watch the New Clip, Featuring Optimus Prime and Grimlock, on the Official TRANSFORMERS YouTube Channel HERE PAWTUCKET, RI – JULY 8, 2025 – Hasbro, a leading games, IP and toy company, has unveiled a new video clip for TRANSFORMERS: CYBERWORLD, a 36-episode CG-animated original series that will launch on the official TRANSFORMERS YouTube » Continue Reading.

The post Transformers Cyberworld Series Sneak Peak appeared first on Transformer World 2005 - TFW2005.COM.

Posted by Tony_Bacala from TFW2005


Hasbro continues the reprint train today with a new reissue for a semi-recent release – Studio Series 86 Blaster and Eject.  For those that missed him the first go around, he’s available again now at Entertainment Earth (we’ll update if other retailers carry him).  Retail is ~$34.99 with a ship date of October 2025.  Read on for pics and details. Transformers Studio Series 86 Voyager Autobot Blaster & Eject TFSource, Entertainment Earth, Big Bad Toy Store, Robot Kingdom, The Chosen Prime, Ages » Continue Reading.

The post Reissue Alert – Transformers SS86 Blaster appeared first on Transformer World 2005 - TFW2005.COM.

Posted by msmash from Slashdot
From the moving-forward department: SUSE has unveiled a new support package aimed at customers concerned about data sovereignty. From a report: Called "SUSE Sovereign Premium Support," the service geo-pins support to a given region rather than adopting the traditional follow-the-sun model, where support comes from whatever region is online. The latter approach could break sovereignty regulations or policies, as it might involve transferring data out of a region. Ensuring that support is available from a specific region is therefore crucial, particularly for European customers.

SUSE CEO Dirk-Peter van Leeuwen told The Register: "Digital sovereignty has become a really hot topic in the last half year, and specifically in Europe, where companies feel an increasing need to get things done in-house, in-country, or in-region within Europe, with less dependency on non-European vendors and supply chains and people."

Posted by Tony_Bacala from The Toyark


Batman (No Man’s Land) Entertainment Earth, Big Bad Toy Store, The Chosen Prime, ToyGeek, Amazon (#ad) Nightwing (Teen Titans) Entertainment Earth, Big Bad Toy Store, The Chosen Prime, ToyGeek, Amazon (#ad) Monarch (DC Countdown) Entertainment Earth, Big Bad Toy Store, ...

The post McFarlane Digital Wave 5 – Classic Nightwing, Monarch, No Man’s Batman & More appeared first on The Toyark - News.

Posted by msmash from Slashdot
From the black-mirror department: An impostor pretending to be Secretary of State Marco Rubio contacted foreign ministers, a U.S. governor and a member of Congress by sending them voice and text messages that mimic Rubio's voice and writing style using AI-powered software, Washington Post reported Tuesday, citing a senior U.S. official and a State Department cable. From the report: U.S. authorities do not know who is behind the string of impersonation attempts but they believe the culprit was probably attempting to manipulate powerful government officials "with the goal of gaining access to information or accounts," according to a cable sent by Rubio's office to State Department employees.

Using both text messaging and the encrypted messaging app Signal, which the Trump administration uses extensively, the impostor "contacted at least five non-Department individuals, including three foreign ministers, a U.S. governor, and a U.S. member of Congress," said the cable, dated July 3. The impersonation campaign began in mid-June when the impostor created a Signal account using the display name "[email protected]" to contact unsuspecting foreign and domestic diplomats and politicians, said the cable.

Posted by msmash from Slashdot
From the tussle-continues department: X said Tuesday it is "deeply concerned about ongoing press censorship in India" after the Indian government ordered the platform to block 2,355 accounts on July 3, including two Reuters news agency handles. The social media company said the order came under India's Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, with non-compliance risking criminal liability.

The Indian Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology demanded immediate action within one hour without providing justification, X said. After public outcry, the government requested X to unblock the Reuters accounts.

Posted by msmash from Slashdot
From the PSA department: Google is implementing a change that will enable its Gemini AI engine to interact with third-party apps, such as WhatsApp, even when users previously configured their devices to block such interactions. ArsTechnica: Users who don't want their previous settings to be overridden may have to take action. An email Google sent recently informing users of the change linked to a notification page that said that "human reviewers (including service providers) read, annotate, and process" the data Gemini accesses.

The email provides no useful guidance for preventing the changes from taking effect. The email said users can block the apps that Gemini interacts with, but even in those cases, data is stored for 72 hours. The email never explains how users can fully extricate Gemini from their Android devices and seems to contradict itself on how or whether this is even possible.

Posted by msmash from Slashdot
From the aggressive-expansion department: Microsoft, OpenAI, and Anthropic will announce Tuesday the launch of a $22.5 million AI training center for members of the American Federation of Teachers, according to details inadvertently published early on a publicly accessible YouTube livestream. The National Academy for AI Instruction will be based in New York City and aims to equip kindergarten through 12th grade instructors with "the tools and confidence to bring AI into the classroom in a way that supports learning and opportunity for all students."

The initiative will provide free AI training and curriculum to teachers in the second-largest US teachers' union, which represents about 1.8 million workers including K-12 teachers, school nurses and college staff. The academy builds on Microsoft's December 2023 partnership with the AFL-CIO, the umbrella organization that includes the American Federation of Teachers.

Posted by Black Convoy from TFW2005


The ACGHK (Animation-Comic-Game Hong Kong) 2025 preview event is taking place in China this week and we have some new Transformers reveals by Yolopark. Via the official Yolopark Facebook and Instagram accounts, we finally have our first look at the color prototype of the upcoming AMK PRO Revenge Of The Fallen Megatron. He looks like a massive movie-accurate representation of the Decepticon leader. Being and AMK PRO release, this release will feature die-cast parts, LED lights, premium deco and several extra accessories. Stay tuned with this space for more updates! We also have a look at some other AMK PRO samples: Bumblebee Movie Soundwave » Continue Reading.

The post ACGHK 2025 – Yolopark AMK Pro Revenge Of The Fallen Megatron appeared first on Transformer World 2005 - TFW2005.COM.

Posted by BeauHD from Slashdot
From the salad-days-are-over department: An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Guardian: The herbicide ingredient used to replace glyphosate in Roundup and other weedkiller products can kill gut bacteria and damage organs in multiple ways, new research shows. The ingredient, diquat, is widely employed in the US as a weedkiller in vineyards and orchards, and is increasingly sprayed elsewhere as the use of controversial herbicide substances such as glyphosate and paraquat drops in the US. But the new piece of data suggests diquat is more toxic than glyphosate, and the substance is banned over its risks in the UK, EU, China and many other countries. Still, the EPA has resisted calls for a ban, and Roundup formulas with the ingredient hit the shelves last year. [...]

Diquat is also thought to be a neurotoxin, carcinogen and linked to Parkinson's disease. An October analysis of EPA data by the Friends of the Earth non-profit found it is about 200 times more toxic than glyphosate in terms of chronic exposure. [...] The new review of scientific literature in part focuses on the multiple ways in which diquat damages organs and gut bacteria, including by reducing the level of proteins that are key pieces of the gut lining. The weakening can allow toxins and pathogens to move from the stomach into the bloodstream, and trigger inflammation in the intestines and throughout the body. Meanwhile, diquat can inhibit the production of beneficial bacteria that maintain the gut lining. Damage to the lining also inhibits the absorption of nutrients and energy metabolism, the authors said.

< This article continues on their website >

Posted by Joe Moore from The Toyark


Hot Toys has revealed a new James Bond figure, based on the Daniel Craig era of films. The newest is a No Time To Die – James Bond (Commando Outfit) 1/6 Scale Figure. It includes battle damaged portrait with movable ...

The post No Time To Die – Hot Toys James Bond Commando Outfit Figure appeared first on The Toyark - News.

Posted by Joe Moore from The Toyark


Pre-orders are open for a new Jaws 50th Anniversary Resin Statue by McFarlane Toys. The 1/48 scale statue measures 4.5″ x 8.9″ x 9.9″, and features a light up base. It’s priced at $299.99, with a release set for the ...

The post Jaws 50th Anniversary Statue by McFarlane Toys appeared first on The Toyark - News.