Gizmodo

After a slew of hacking scandals involving private surveillance companies, the U.S. is looking to impose new restrictions on the sale of commercial hacking tools—in the hopes of clamping down on abuse perpetuated by the industry.

A favorite movie for this time of year is Beetlejuice—Tim Burton’s 1988 horror comedy featuring Michael Keaton as a raunchy, wisecracking bio-exorcist. And while watching Beetlejuice for the 20th or 30th time this Halloween, you may find your thoughts drifting to a certain subject in between Harry Belafonte…Read more...

Despite Captain Marvel being one of the most significant characters in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, you’d be hard-pressed to describe who Carol Danvers, the person, really is—going by the handful of appearances she’s made throughout the franchise so far as the ultimate ringer who can take a punch. Director Nia…Read more...

Scientists this week are voicing an urgent warning to the world and its leaders: Climate change is already harming our health, and given current trends, it’s only going to get worse. In a new report from The Lancet, the authors highlight dozens of health impacts linked to climate change, including the increased spread…Read more...

Lamb, A24's new horror-thriller from director Valdimar Jóhannsson, has already hit theaters in cities across the United States. But actually getting into a screening depends on whether you’re in a city where the movie is showing, and how comfortable you are going to theaters during the covid-19 pandemic. If those are…Read more...

On Tuesday, around a dozen former Washington State Patrol (WSP) troopers laid their boots and uniform hats on the steps of the Washington State Capitol in memory of those troopers lost to the coronavirus pandemic.

Google’s refreshed indoor Nest Cam is one of the nicest security cameras you can buy. The $100 wired camera comes in four colors and replaces the plain black version that’s been on the market since 2015. That original Nest indoor camera is basically an homage to the brand’s Drop camera past, while this new indoor…Read more...

Dune seems like it’s going to be a big, sweeping sci-fi epic, full of big fights, big ideas, and the cinematic dazzle that director Denis Villeneuve has craved. Interestingly, and perhaps less reported, we averted a horrifying reality based on one terrible decision.

Crypto enthusiasts bought the Wu-Tang album, possibly a haunted talisman whose previous owner Pharma Bro went to prison shortly after he announced that he’d bought it in a $2 million troll. Can these dudes handle it? The New York Times and Rolling Stone have profiles. They seem fine.

The Black Widow movie (which is now available to Disney+ subscribers for free instead of forcing you to cough up an extra $30 for it) was surprisingly fun for a story delving into the Black Widow’s dark past as an assassin. That fun came primarily from Natasha’s little sister Yelena, played by Florence Pugh, whose…Read more...

Just in time for Halloween, a ransomware gang has targeted Ferrara Candy—the massive confectionary responsible for producing Brach’s well-known candy corn—the most OG of holiday treats.Read more...

At a time when American’s trust in the news media is plummeting to record lows, one recent Pew poll reported that about a third of U.S. adults say they regularly get their news fix from Facebook’s feeds—even if their own trust in Facebook itself is plummeting to new lows for, oh, whatever reason. Needless to say, the…Read more...

Three dogs that are trapped near the erupting Cumbre Vieja volcano on the Canary Islands may soon be saved by a drone.

Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of scandal-plagued Facebook, might be held personally liable for damages in a consumer protection lawsuit filed in Washington, DC.

Horror movies that offer genuine surprises and jaw-dropping shocks can be hard to come by. The Medium, a Thai-Korean production that arrived on Shudder last week, is one of those movies you’re best not knowing much about when you sit down to watch—but suffice to say it has both of those sought-after qualities in…Read more...

Scientists look to be one major step closer to a long-awaited goal in medicine: successfully transplanting organs from another animal to a human. Researchers from New York University announced this week that they recently transplanted a kidney from a genetically modified pig that was then able to function as normal…Read more...

On Tuesday morning, Earther got a press release purporting to be from financial services giant Vanguard. The press release touted a new fossil-fuel-free portfolio it called “Vanguardians of the Galaxy” for “young investors.” A few hours later, another press release showed up claiming to be from Marvel saying the…Read more...

Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos is walking back his repeated defenses of Dave Chappelle’s new standup special, “The Closer,” admitting that he “screwed up” internal communications just hours before employees were set to stage a virtual walkout.

Amazon has an idea, reportedly: Starbucks. Business Insider has obtained an internal Amazon document showing that Amazon and Starbucks had planned a joint operation, a cashierless cafe of sorts. Code name: “Verde.” WiFi password: BarnesandNobleCanEatBoogers!haha

A lot of nerds try to mash-up superhero movie trailers with footage from other movies, shows, cartoons, etc., and a lot of nerds fail. Either the creator doesn’t have the patience to truly hunt down the perfect footage, or the source material doesn’t work because it doesn’t have any appropriate footage, or a million…Read more...

We’re always happy to review pitches from freelancers who want to write ambitious investigative and narrative features, reported mid-length pieces, and first-person essays. Expose something. Take us somewhere. Tell us your incredible personal story. Send us a truly original take. Here’s how to pitch us and what we are…Read more...

After Apple updated its line of MacBook Pros earlier this week, it seems the next Mac to get a major revamp is the 27-inch iMac, which could get announced as early as the beginning of next year.

Facebook has plans to change its name as soon as next week, according to a new report from the Verge, and it’s no surprise why. The social media giant’s brand has become toxic after years of scandals, from the Cambridge Analytica data debacle to helping promote violence in Myanmar.Read more...

Unless you’ve got an extra room at home dedicated to being your theater, converting a living room to provide a similar experience usually requires unsightly speakers awkwardly placed around the space. Love Sac’s come up with a better solution with its StealthTech Sound + Charge line that features speakers hidden away…Read more...

If you’ve watched the immensely popular Dragon Ball Z Kai or Dragon Ball Super anime, you know his voice. If you’ve watched an English dub of any anime made over the past couple of decades, there’s a better than even chance you’ve heard him. Christopher Ayres was the voice of Frieza, the Dragon Ball franchise’s most…Read more...

Vikings were active at a Newfoundland settlement nearly 500 years before Christopher Columbus crossed the Atlantic, new research suggests.Read more...

Star Trek is boldly going into another new future at the end of the month with Prodigy, its first-ever CG animated series. It’s also the first to be explicitly aimed at families and younger audiences, compared to Trek’s usual demographics. But while there’s so much new to explore with the show—new heroes and villains,…Read more...

According to Samsung, its latest foldable phones have been a massive success: The company claims the new Z Flip 3 has sold 40 times more units than the previous model. At today’s Galaxy Unpacked part two event, Samsung announced a new customization service for the Z Fold 3 designed to let buyers really flaunt their…Read more...

Smart assistants like Siri, Alexa, and Google Assistant are always ready to respond to our beck and call, but talking electronics, particularly those with convincing human voices, are a fairly recent innovation. The earliest talking devices sounded like something straight out of nightmarish science fiction, but that…Read more...

David Gordon Green wants more classic Halloween characters back for Halloween Ends. Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City shows off just how much it wants to recreate the beloved games. Plus, new looks at what’s to come on Chucky, La Brea, and Supergirl. Spoilers get!

The United Nations climate conference happening in Glasgow in less than two weeks will essentially chart a course for humanity for generations to come. That’s because this decade is one where the world must start cutting carbon emissions by nearly 8% per year or blow past a key climate guardrail.Read more...

Android 12 is here, rolling out first to Pixel devices and then to everyone else, depending on your phone manufacturer and carrier. The latest version of Google’s mobile operating system is packed with new stuff for you to explore, and these are the 15 features to check out first.

Facebook plans to change its company name as soon as next week, according to a new report from the Verge. The name change is supposedly due to Facebook’s desire to be seen as more than a social media company, but we all know the real reason: The Facebook brand is absolutely toxic.Read more...

In 1957, the Soviet Union launched a dog named Laika into orbit. It was a major milestone in the space race, but it did not end well for Laika. Hopefully, the canine stars of Netflix’s new animated series Dogs in Space will fare better.

Riverdale’s original idea of crazy was that Archie Andrews was sleeping with his teacher and Jason Blossom was very dead. Five seasons and a cult, several murders, some supernatural monsters, and two teachers randomly leaping out of the same damn window, anything goes—so at this point, the fact that a new trailer…Read more...

Earlier this year, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro mocked the claim that his administration’s reckless handling of the coronavirus pandemic—which has entailed everything from straight denialism to promoting a cocktail of miracle drugs—was tantamount to genocide. Well, the Brazilian Senate has now concluded he is…Read more...

The sun has risen and set, the earth has turned, which means that it’s time for another massive collaboration for one of the biggest pop cultural behemoths on the planet—Star Wars, and Marvel canon continuity destroyer and a surprisingly good vehicle for Batman—Fortnite. This time it’s Dune, and while that’s not weird…Read more...

If you’ve ever thought that your precious pup was a true genius, now you’ll have the chance to prove it. Researchers in the UK and Germany have launched a new citizen science project this week, hoping to find dogs that are extraordinarily good at human communication and object recognition.Read more...

Everybody hopes that their phone calls and text messages are kept private but, in reality, we know the truth: Lots of entities—from dark web criminals to the government—have ways of intercepting intimate communications. Well, add another group to that anxiety-inducing list: A hacker gang, potentially based in China,…Read more...

The curated film streaming platform Mubi is reportedly unleashing a movie-a-week subscription streaming pass upon New York City later this month, much to the delight of anyone who remembers the ill-fated MoviePass and wishes they would replicate that model with arthouse films.Read more...

Whenever we write our annual round-up of the Worst Halloween Costumes of the Year, we try to make clear we’re never trying to shame anyone who wants to wear a sexy costume, we just want to make fun of bad costumes full stop. So this year, we thought we’d put our metaphorical candy where our mouth is, and celebrate the…Read more...

Barry Allen (Grant Gustin) is no stranger to saving the world or impending deadlines of doom. But in the Flash-centric crossover that will kick off the show’s eighth season, appropriately titled Armageddon, Barry’s only got seven days to stop the extraterrestrial villain Despero from killing everyone on Earth—and this…Read more...

The annual Close-up Photographer of the Year contest asks us to slow down and view the world through a more discerning lens. It’s sage advice, as these incredible zoomed-in images attest.

Google finally took the wraps off the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro today, and you can officially buy the company’s new Android flagships. But good luck actually placing your preorder. Although the company increased its inventory in anticipation of how the public would receive the pair of revamped Pixel phones, it seems…Read more...

An animal rights nonprofit is suing YouTube for failing to take down videos of animal abuse, and often allegedly profiting from them by selling ads running alongside the content, the New York Times reported on Tuesday.Read more...

Instagram users everywhere, rejoice (I know I am). The social network is finally allowing folks to post photos and videos through a browser rather than relying on the phone app. The feature will launch globally later this week.

Locke & Key season two arrives on Netflix on Friday, and since it’s been what feels like a pop culture eternity since its first season—it was actually February 2020—we decided a crash-course refresher for this spooky, heartfelt series was in order. This guide is most useful if you’ve already seen the series (and quite…Read more...

Another intriguing and lucrative use case exploring the potential of deepfake technology: dicks, unblurred. On Monday, police in Japan arrested a man who admitted to sharing porn that was deepfaked to clarify pixellated genitalia. According to The Mainichi, he sold over 2,500 video files for 11 million yen (roughly…Read more...

Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra’s beloved Vertigo comic Y: The Last Man did not have an easy road to its live-action adaptation. Over the course of 14 years, there was a doomed movie, rights switcharoos, multiple recastings, and a pandemic that delayed it getting on screen in any format. But it took less than eight…Read more...

This week, one of the world’s most-watched plastic clean-up projects will announce victory. The Ocean Cleanup, a nonprofit that has set out to solve the huge problem of plastics in the ocean, will hold a press event Wednesday where it will review the success of its latest system. The group has already said the…Read more...