Tech Republic

The cyber landscape is more turbulent than ever. Microsoft recently reported a 2.75-fold increase in ransomware attempts this year, while research predicts that global cyber attacks in 2024 will surge 105% compared to 2020. There is a dire need for more qualified cyber professionals as generative AI is lowering the barrier to entry for attacks. Unfortunately, cyber skills gaps have been reported in both the U.K. and Australia, with women making up only a quarter of the industry. But how will we roll into next year? TechRepublic asked cyber experts to predict the top trends impacting the security field in 2025. SEE: Number of Active Ransomware Groups Highest on Record 1. Renewed focus on third-party risk management, including the AI software supply chain This year, headlines were dominated by the CrowdStrike incident, which disabled about 8.5 million Windows devices worldwide and caused huge disruption to emergency services, airports, law enforcement, and other critical organisations. SEE: What is CrowdStrike? Everything You Need to Know However, this is far from the first instance of a supply chain attack being put on the public’s radar; the MOVEit attacks from last year may also still be fresh in the mind. Due to the prevalence of these incidents, Forrester analysts predict that governments will ban certain third-party software in 2025. Additionally, more companies are using Generative AI to code new software, which could open it up to weaknesses. AI-generated code has been known to cause outages, and security leaders are even considering banning the use of technology in software development. For executives, this all illustrates how essential third-party risk management is to operations, leading to a new focus in 2025. Max Shier, the chief information security officer at cyber advisory firm Optiv, told TechRepublic in an email: “Third party risk management, supply chain risk management, and increased oversight and regulatory requirements will drive the need for companies to focus on and mature their governance, risk, and compliance programs.” Jacob Kalvo, the CEO of proxy provider Live Proxies, added: “It is expected that in 2025, organisations will likely shift toward proactive ways of assessing and monitoring supply chains. It could be leveraging zero-trust architectures that will verify at stages of access, where the companies deal with external partners. “This shift to increased supply chain scrutiny marks a wider trend of bringing cybersecurity into general enterprise-wide risk management.” AI software is one of the weakest links in the software supply chain While businesses race to capitalise on generative AI solutions, the speed of their adoption has resulted in some areas of oversight when it comes to security. A study from HackerOne found that 48% of security professionals believe AI poses the most significant security risk to their organisation. Cache Merrill, founder of software development company Zibtek, told TechRepublic by email: “As AI tools increasingly integrate into software development, we anticipate attackers targeting the software supply chain’s weakest AI-driven components. The focus will no longer be just on vetting third-party code but scrutinising AI models that may have inadvertently introduced security gaps through data poisoning or bias exploitation. “By 2025, supply chain security will demand a whole new layer of vigilance, where even the datasets and AI models feeding into our applications are analysed for adversarial tampering. A secure supply chain won’t just be about code but curating safe and verifiable AI training sources.” Paul Caiazzo, VP of security services at Quorum Cyber, told TechRepublic that attackers may specifically target weaker AI tools to exfiltrate sensitive data. “CISOs will struggle to secure them due to a lack of AI skills and tooling,” he added. Must-read security coverage 2. Macs will become more targeted by cybercriminals Experts say that Macs will become even more of a target for cybercriminals in the next year. Kseniia Yamburh, malware research engineer at Mac security provider Moonlock, told TechRepublic by email:  “Once considered safer, macOS now faces rising threats, particularly from stealer malware designed to collect sensitive data. “Our research at Moonlock shows a notable spike in macOS-targeted stealer malware, with 2024 seeing 3.4 times more unique samples than 2023.’ SEE: Threat Actors Increasingly Target macOS, Report Finds The number of macOS vulnerabilities exploited in 2023 increased by more than 30%, with attackers using infostealers, fake PDFs, fake Mac apps, legitimate Microsoft apps, and other novel techniques to breach the operating system this year. In November, several malicious macOS apps were linked to North Korea. The growing interest in Apple devices may be due to their increasing prevalence in organisations and greater competition amongst cybercriminals in the Windows landscape. 3. Identity to shift into the jurisdiction of security teams Security experts predict that in 2025, responsibility for identity and access management within companies will shift from IT departments to security teams. Sagie Dulce, VP of research at segmentation firm Zero Networks, said identity-based attacks are the leading cause of breaches, and this is not looking to change. As these attacks escalate, security professionals are needed to eliminate potential entry points. Dulce told TechRepublic: “This is not new, but is a growing trend as more identities belong to services and apps — they are harder to manage and control. Most organisations are currently blind to their exposure from service accounts, privileged identities, secrets spread, third party access, and more. “These identities are often the lowest-hanging fruits in organisations and attackers know it. As many web applications are still exposed to the internet, getting initial access via compromised credentials to a web app remains the main attack vector utilised to gain initial access.” 4. Cyber regulations will divide countries Global cyber regulations are becoming stricter — especially with the rise in nation-state cyber attacks. As a result, legislation will focus on geopolitics and national security interests. Vishal Gupta, CEO of security software provider Seclore, told TechRepublic in an email: “In the coming year, long raging wars and general geopolitical tensions will drive the bulk of regulations. Countries and groups of countries will create regulations to protect their own interests over deemed enemies and will

Customer relationship management (CRM) and enterprise resource planning (ERP) have a fair amount of similarities but they do possess some key differences. Both CRM and ERP are software solutions that, when applied correctly, assist businesses of all sizes with centralizing customer data, increasing work productivity, and improving automation processes in order to drive revenue growth. However, where these two software platforms differ is that CRM often supports sales and customer service operations, while ERP supports financial operations and accounting. When it comes to automation features, a CRM system automates customer interactions and sales processes, whereas an ERP system automates fiscal operations and business practices. 1 monday CRM Employees per Company Size Micro (0-49), Small (50-249), Medium (250-999), Large (1,000-4,999), Enterprise (5,000+) Any Company Size Any Company Size Features Calendar, Collaboration Tools, Contact Management, and more 2 Pipedrive CRM Employees per Company Size Micro (0-49), Small (50-249), Medium (250-999), Large (1,000-4,999), Enterprise (5,000+) Any Company Size Any Company Size Features Calendar, Collaboration Tools, Contact Management, and more 3 HubSpot CRM Employees per Company Size Micro (0-49), Small (50-249), Medium (250-999), Large (1,000-4,999), Enterprise (5,000+) Micro (0-49 Employees), Small (50-249 Employees), Medium (250-999 Employees), Large (1,000-4,999 Employees) Micro, Small, Medium, Large What is CRM? CRM is a robust software tool that can be integrated into your business to boost productivity and enhance communication and collaboration among your team members. The main goal of any CRM system is to improve customer interactions, which leads to stronger relationships between your business and its clientele, and translates into higher profitability through lead conversion. Managers and teams accomplish this goal and more by relying on a centralized hub that stores all customer data, which can then be easily accessed by team members. This is particularly useful if multiple team members are working on the same account and need to collaborate in lockstep, making it easier for them to understand the individual wants and needs of their customer base, while taking the appropriate actions needed to move forward. A CRM system allows your sales and marketing teams to stay organized, identify prospective leads, and by utilizing advances in automation practices, convert those leads into paying customers. Ultimately, a CRM system assists with maintaining and nurturing relationships with existing clientele in an effort to keep their interest from waning; while also increasing customer retention, reducing churn, and prioritizing new customers when necessary. What are the benefits of CRM? There are many benefits that come with adopting CRM software for your business, with improved customer interactions being at the top of the list. Since a CRM system works by storing important customer data in a singular hub, that information can be easily accessed by anyone on your team with just a click. Every interaction between your team members and customers is logged and provides important insights that can be recalled and leveraged to build loyalty and boost customer satisfaction. A CRM can also significantly improve customer service through automation. Customer support can be automated to track patterns in customer behavior, which will assist your team with identifying and addressing certain issues before they become problematic. When using a CRM to improve customer service, it is also much more likely to increase customer retention and reduce churn. When customers continue to return to your business, you can expect to see a definite increase in sales. And because a CRM directly assists with building your sales pipeline, streamlining sales processes and automating important tasks, team members are much more likely to focus on their most profitable customers, which leads to a noticeable increase in overall sales revenue. More about CRM What is ERP? ERP is a software solution that manages and organizes a company’s daily business activities, such as accounting, project management and risk management. An ERP system also ensures that supply chain operations function optimally and continue to provide flexibility when updates need to be made. A robust ERP platform should possess several important features, including an enterprise performance management function, which assists with planning and budgeting a business’s financial results. ERP systems connect various business processes and allow data to flow smoothly between them. By gathering shared data from different sources, ERP reduces data duplication and ensures improved accuracy, which creates a single reliable source of information. In today’s business landscape, ERP systems are essential for managing businesses of all sizes across many different industries. What are the benefits of ERP? ERP systems offer several key benefits for businesses. For example, an ERP system centralizes data across all departments, ensuring that everyone has access to accurate and up-to-date information. This not only improves decision-making and ensures a reduction in errors, but it also promotes better collaboration between team members. With all functions integrated, companies can streamline their processes, automate repetitive tasks, and eliminate inefficiencies, which ultimately saves time and reduces operational costs. Another benefit of ERP is its ability to improve reporting and analytics. ERP systems provide real-time insights into business performance, helping managers monitor their financials, and forecast future trends. This data-driven approach allows for smarter decision-making and better strategic planning. Finally, as ERP systems are scalable, they can grow with a business. This flexibility makes it easier for companies to adapt, expand into new markets, and incorporate new technologies, ensuring the system remains useful as the company continues to evolve. What is the difference between CRM and ERP? CRM and ERP are both critical systems for businesses but serve distinct purposes. CRM is designed to manage customer relationships, focusing on improving customer satisfaction, retention, and sales. It centralizes customer data and automates sales and marketing processes, which makes it easier to nurture leads and build lasting customer connections. CRM is mostly used by sales, marketing, and customer service teams to optimize customer engagement and boost sales revenue. On the other hand, ERP is a comprehensive system that integrates essential functions such as finance, inventory, human resources (HR), and production. ERP’s primary goal is to streamline workflows and ensure efficient resource use across departments. By centralizing data

TL;DR: Merlin AI features top models, unlimited usage, and custom chatbots—visit TechRepublic Academy to save 56% on a 1-year subscription. As ChatGPT remains the go-to for many professionals, a new AI tool emerges as a powerful alternative. With a web app full of handy prompts and a Chrome extension for summarizing web pages and writing emails, you might consider switching to save valuable time. Merlin AI might even be a more cost-effective choice for your business with a 1-year subscription at $99 and unlimited usage during that time (reg. $228)—check out now because you won’t find a lower price anywhere else. This is just the right amount of time to try the tools before committing to a longer plan. What’s inside Merlin AI? We know it might seem odd to go with an AI tool you’ve never heard of when there are recognizable names out there, but Merlin AI is powered by ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Minstrel, and Llama. The difference is you no longer have to know how to sweet-talk the AI models on your own—there are preset prompts, so even beginners can use AI. Whether you’re new to AI or you want to teach people on your team to embrace the future, there are dozens of AI tools accessible with a click: Logo generator Marketing problem solver Social media caption generators Email generator Resume builder Excel formula generator Think Merlin AI sounds like a fit? Head to checkout now to get our unbeatable sale price. More complex AI features Already familiar with AI? We’ll talk more about your speed: Merlin AI lets you create your own AI project assistant by uploading documents, files, and other resources, so you can come back time and time again to chat with the same bot for help. You can also chat with websites or PDFs to get quick summaries or ask questions, bypassing the need to read them in their entirety. Finally, there’s no more need to spend hours reading business jargon when you have better things to do. Buy this all-in-one AI tool now before it goes up in price. A Merlin AI 1-year subscription is $99 (reg. $228) for a limited time. Prices and availability subject to change. source

Two years ago, on Nov. 30, ChatGPT burst onto the scene, igniting a global fascination with generative AI and transforming it into a must-watch innovation for both consumers and technology professionals. Since then, ChatGPT has expanded, and the wheels of AI regulation have started to turn. TechRepublic asked tech professionals how their work with ChatGPT has evolved, both personally and within the broader tech industry. New features introduced in 2024 Over the last year, OpenAI has: Expanded ChatGPT into new formats like ChatGPT search and Canvas, the latter of which is built, in part, to sit beside a coding application. Unveiled GPT-4o and OpenAI o1, new flagship models. Partnered with Apple to support some features of Apple’s onboard AI. Announced ChatGPT will remember previous conversations. Released ChatGPT search, marking OpenAI’s bid to replace Google Search as the de facto portal to the rest of the internet. Rolled out Advanced Voice Mode to select users in October, enabling users to talk to the AI aloud. On Oct. 3, OpenAI rolled out Canvas, marking a major experiment in using ChatGPT. “Making AI more useful and accessible requires rethinking how we interact with it,” the OpenAI team wrote in October on the occasion of Canvas’s announcement. “Canvas is a new approach and the first major update to ChatGPT’s visual interface since we launched two years ago.” How ChatGPT has improved in 2024 Graham Glass, CEO of AI course-building platform Cypher Learning, noted how ChatGPT offers access to more sophisticated models now than it did in 2023. “First of all, ChatGPT keeps on getting better,” he said in an interview with TechRepublic. “And it’s become more sophisticated, which opens additional opportunities for leveraging that technology.” In the last year, Glass has leveraged ChatGPT to brainstorm software designs and software architectures. Asking the technology about best practices or design tradeoffs brings him “the corpus of all the designs that everyone’s ever done on that particular topic,” he said. “It’s gotten smarter,” added Curt Raffi, chief product officer at Acrolinx, a company using AI to proof content for technical documents and other writing-heavy jobs. He pointed out the improved performance of GPT-4o, as well as OpenAI o1. Raffi also explained that people have grown more comfortable with using ChatGPT. He works with engineers who have improved at prompting ChatGPT in ways that express specific business logic. SEE: The first meeting of the International Network of AI Safety Institutes, held this week, aims to manage the risks of advanced AI. Glass likes that ChatGPT search provides present-day information, calling it a time-saver for tasks like product comparisons. He also uses Advanced Voice Mode to chat with the AI out loud. Overall, ChatGPT’s additions over the last year have provided more options for people who want to use generative AI for technical work. “The most significant way generative AI assistants have changed programming and development over the last year lies in enabling people at different levels of programming to engage in software development to deliver solutions to real-world problems,” Houbing Herbert Song, a fellow with the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, said in an email to TechRepublic. More must-read AI coverage What can’t ChatGPT do in 2024? AI is not immune to mistakes. For Glass, coding with ChatGPT often involves back-and-forth dialogue, including “reminding” the AI about details it may have overlooked. “While I think it’s a lot more reliable when it comes to design [in 2024], it still makes loads of coding errors,” said Glass. For example, Glass said about a recent task that it took 10 prompts for ChatGPT to build one function in JavaScript correctly. This still saved him time, but it shows that ChatGPT is still limited. He ascribed this partly to ChatGPT being trained on a finite, though enormous, corpus of code. Filev pointed out ChatGPT has become so reliable people may not easily notice when it makes mistakes. “It’s becoming so good that I started to let the guard down, and I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing,” Filev said. For many tasks, he started looking for hard sources from Google Search or Perplexity AI before using ChatGPT. These might be better places to find reliable sources, he said, while ChatGPT is better for brainstorming. Regulations could affect ChatGPT The last year also revealed ChatGPT’s limitations and potential regulation. Raffi said his team is approaching AI-generated code carefully after a court case between developers and GitHub Copilot. The developers alleged GitHub Copilot violated intellectual property rights by using open-source code. Raffi noted that the commercial use of such code in marketplaces remains somewhat uncertain, making AI applications in coding a cautious and exploratory process. “Our IP is in our code, and if we suddenly were open or exposed to lawsuits, we could erode the value of our company,” Raffi said. How ChatGPT has affected early-career developers Over the past year, another key development has been the impact of ChatGPT on early-career developers. “Because this greatly improves efficiencies for developers to focus on higher-order design and innovation, perhaps more importantly, the role of a developer drastically shifts from creators to supervisors of AI-generated code,” said Dheerendra Panwar, IEEE senior member, in an email to TechRepublic. “Which brings us to a very important question: are we dumbing down the art of coding?” In some cases, junior developers may not be hired at all, as some tasks typically assigned to them are now being handled by AI. “These changes appear to be beneficial for senior programmers as it expands their role and importance,” Jen Stave, executive director of the Digital Data Design Institute at Harvard, wrote in an email. “Because junior developers often lack the expertise to detect issues such as AI hallucinations or inaccurate outputs, this incredibly important role falls to senior programmers who need to now broaden their responsibility toward mitigating risks such as AI-induced code errors.” In other cases, junior developers might be more proficient at prompt engineering than seniors. “For junior programmers, the story

Many customers would rather ditch inserting and swiping their credit cards. Luckily, you can meet the moment via Tap to Pay technology. This innovation eliminates the need to insert or swipe a credit card. Instead, your customers  simply hover their card or smart device near a payment terminal. No fumbling with zip codes and no signatures required. As a result, you can speed up transaction times while your customers enjoy a smoother check-out process. Let’s discover how this win-win approach can help your small business. What is Tap to Pay? Tap to Pay, also known as contactless payment, lets customers complete transactions via a simple hovering of their credit card, smartphone, or wearable device near a payment terminal. An encoded chip within the card securely transmits payment information to the terminal. There’s no need to swipe, insert, or sign. The technology eliminates friction, making it easier to complete a sale. That’s why it’s a highly valued upgrade to any small business. Tap to Pay allows customers to complete payments with their smartphone, smartwatch, or NFC-enabled card. This payment method is incredibly popular and continues to grow. Visa reports more than 300 million Tap to Pay-enabled credit cards in the United States at the end of 2023, with upwards of 25% of transactions in major metro areas like New York City registering as contactless. How does Tap to Pay work? Tap to Pay relies on near-field communication (NFC) technology. This concept involves magnetic field induction to “sense” when a device or payment card is within a few inches. You’re probably already familiar with NFC. It’s the same way your smartphone finds another device to start a Bluetooth connection. It’s also how public transit riders can tap a plastic card to pay for a bus fare, among other uses. Here’s how the process works: Present the payment source: The customer holds their card, phone, or wearable device near the payment terminal. NFC communication: The terminal and the device establish a short-range wireless connection through NFC. Payment information is transmitted securely and rapidly. Transaction approval: Like traditional card swipes, the payment terminal communicates with the customer’s bank or payment processor to approve the transaction. Confirmation: Once approved, the payment is complete. There are no other steps. The entire process typically takes just one or two seconds. Compare this to a traditional card swipe, which can take up to five times as long. Cumulatively, this speed translates to oodles of time saved, generating more revenue and happier customers. Benefits of Tap to Pay Tap to Pay delivers numerous perks to small businesses. These advantages range from easier transactions to enhanced security. Let’s explore some marquee benefits. Faster transactions As mentioned above, Tap to Pay speeds up the checkout process. A simple touch of card to terminal is often all that’s needed to complete a transaction. Customers enjoy this perk, and it allows you to serve more people in less time. As a result, adopting this technology could increase revenue in the long term. Enhanced security When it comes to security, this high-tech offering is superior to traditional card payments. That’s because each transaction involves top-tier encryption and a one-time code to validate the payment device. Plus, since there’s no need to physically insert a credit card, skimmers can’t capture any information. Some devices also mandate biometric authentication, like fingerprint or face recognition, adding an extra layer of security. Contactless convenience Many customers appreciate the hygienic appeal of Tap to Pay since there’s no need to touch the payment terminal. This approach is particularly attractive in the post-COVID-19 era. Increased sales potential Tap to Pay speeds up check-out and conveys your business’s drive to use technology to enhance the buying experience. Both elements help earn customers’ trust, which can boost sales over time. This technology also allows you to accept payments from customers who might only have their smartphone or smartwatch on them. Depending on your Tap to Pay-enabled hardware, you could also accept payments in more out-of-store settings, such as events, pop-ups, and curbside, enabling more sales opportunities. Accommodates diverse abilities Seniors and people with disabilities benefit greatly from Tap to Pay. Since there’s generally no need to input zip codes or personal identification numbers (PINs), it’s a boon for those with memory issues. And, the ease of a simple tap makes it much easier for people with reduced dexterity. How businesses can accept Tap to Pay For businesses looking to accept Tap to Pay, the process is relatively straightforward. It involves ensuring that your point-of-sale (POS) system supports NFC technology. Otherwise, there isn’t any difference between accepting a card payment via Tap to Pay and a card payment via magstripe or chip. Let’s walk through a general outline for getting started with this modern system. Upgrade your payment terminal First, ensure your payment system is NFC-enabled. Most modern terminals now have this technology built in. Look for the Tap to Pay symbol on your equipment. The universal Tap to Pay symbol. If your current system doesn’t support Tap to Pay, you’ll need to purchase a new device from your payment processor. Choose a payment processor Speaking of payment processors, you’ll need one that offers contactless options. Many well-known companies like Square, PayPal, and Stripe include NFC technology by default. And thankfully, there’s usually no extra charge for these swipe-free transactions. Related: Best Payment Processing Companies Train your staff Once you’ve locked down the technology, teach your staff how to accept Tap to Pay payments. Employees should know how to fix any issues and explain the process to customers unfamiliar with the technology. Indeed, many customers report encountering terminals that erroneously require a traditional swipe when they try tapping. You can dodge this problem with proper setup and diligent training. Promote Tap to Pay Advertise that you accept Tap to Pay with prominent signage at your business. Many payment processors provide complimentary door stickers, in-store signage, and digital assets to raise customer awareness. The more customers know you offer this option, the more

PureVPN fast facts Our rating: 3.7 stars out of 5Pricing: Starts at $3.99/mo (annual)Key features: Large network with 6,000+ servers. 7-day free trial via mobile. Intuitive application. PureVPN’s 6,000+ servers across more than 65+ countries make it an attractive choice for users looking for a virtual private network with an extensive server network. It provides more flexibility for unblocking content and offers faster speeds. PureVPN’s Windows application also has an intuitive design, making for user-friendly navigation. Unfortunately, PureVPN suffers from a controversial logging incident with the Federal Bureau of Investigation that prevents it from being a top security recommendation. While it has made efforts to rebuild trust, its overall package may not be enough for more privacy-focused users. Semperis Employees per Company Size Micro (0-49), Small (50-249), Medium (250-999), Large (1,000-4,999), Enterprise (5,000+) Large (1,000-4,999 Employees), Enterprise (5,000+ Employees) Large, Enterprise Features Advanced Attacks Detection, Advanced Automation, Anywhere Recovery, and more ESET PROTECT Advanced Employees per Company Size Micro (0-49), Small (50-249), Medium (250-999), Large (1,000-4,999), Enterprise (5,000+) Any Company Size Any Company Size Features Advanced Threat Defense, Full Disk Encryption , Modern Endpoint Protection, and more NordLayer Employees per Company Size Micro (0-49), Small (50-249), Medium (250-999), Large (1,000-4,999), Enterprise (5,000+) Small (50-249 Employees), Medium (250-999 Employees), Large (1,000-4,999 Employees), Enterprise (5,000+ Employees) Small, Medium, Large, Enterprise How much does PureVPN cost? Duration Plans Standard Plus Max Teams 1 year $3.99 per month $5.82 per month $7.07 per month $5.45 per use, per month; min.of 2 users 2 years $2.14 per month $2.96 per month $4.07 per month $4.75 per use, per month; min.of 2 users 1 month $12.95 per month $15.95 per month $19.95 per month $8.95 per use, per month; min.of 2 users 5 years $2.16 per month $2.66 per month $3.33 per month N/A What’s included? VPN service VPN service Secure Password manager End-to-end file encryption VPN service Secure Password manager End-to-end file encryption Personal Privacy Manager In 2024, PureVPN introduced a new subscription tier called Teams. This is on top of its original subscription tiers: PureVPN Standard, Plus, and Max. Below are the main feature differences amongst these options: PureVPN Standard comes with the VPN service itself and a tracker blocker. PureVPN Plus includes all Standard features plus a password manager. PureVPN Max includes all Plus features plus Remove My Data capabilities and Dark Web Monitoring. PureVPN Teams built for remote teams and includes a centralized admin dashboard, 24/7 customer support, and support for up to 200 members. Before choosing a plan, I recommend trying PureVPN’s seven-day free trial. While there isn’t a dedicated trial for desktop, a trial is accessible via PureVPN’s mobile apps on iOS or Android. Once you sign up for the free trial on a mobile device, you can log into your account via desktop. The trial allows users to choose which subscription (Standard, Plus, Max) they want to test drive. In my experience, setting up the free trial was easy and trouble-free. If you plan on using a paid plan, PureVPN Plus for two years at $2.96 per month is the best option. This is fairly affordable compared to other VPNs with the same duration and affords you PureVPN’s extra features like its password manager. It’s also a better option compared to the monthly $12.45 Standard subscription that is on the pricier end for a monthly plan. PureVPN also introduced a new five-year plan in 2024 that wasn’t available last year. While I appreciate the cost savings with the smaller monthly fee, I personally think it’s smarter to opt for the shorter-term options. This allows you the flexibility of not renewing your contract within a shorter period, especially considering how VPN services can change over time, such as with security incidents or major feature changes. I would’ve preferred if either the additional password manager or dark web monitor were included in the base VPN subscription itself; this would’ve given PureVPN more unique features to set it apart from the competition. You can purchase either the Plus or Max subscriptions to get these features, but having at least one of them included, without an additional payment, would’ve given PureVPN more bang-for-your-buck value. Is PureVPN safe and trustworthy? I wouldn’t recommend PureVPN if safety is a priority. On paper, PureVPN looks like a secure VPN, with its quality security protocols and impressive “always-on” audits. However, its logging incident in 2017 and the lack of in-depth information on the audits themselves leave much to be desired. PureVPN comes with the three most important security protocols for a modern VPN: OpenVPN, WireGuard, and IPSec/IKEv2. It also features AES 256-encryption, a kill switch, and domain name system leak protection. Unfortunately, an issue arises with its no-logs policy. Like most VPNs, PureVPN claims to have a no-logs policy where they state that they don’t log browsing activities, connection logs, original IPs, and browsing history. However, PureVPN was involved in an incident back in 2017 where the company allegedly handed off logs to the FBI. In particular, the FBI used logs from PureVPN to track down a suspected cyberstalker and harasser. While catching such criminals is important, the problem was in PureVPN’s privacy policy at the time — which stated that it kept no logs. This is a big blow to the credibility of PureVPN’s no-logs policy, especially because keeping anonymity is one of the main reasons to use a VPN. Since then, PureVPN has come out with third-party audits that verify their no-logs policy. First was with Altius IT in 2019 and the second with KPMG in 2021 — both finding no evidence of the company keeping any logs. The KPMG audit is noteworthy because it was an “always-on” audit that allowed KPMG to audit PureVPN’s network without prior notice. As I revisited PureVPN in 2024, I saw that it had undergone a fourth audit on its no-logs policy. However, I found it difficult to get more in-depth information on the audit itself. When you look at the web page, there’s no clear data on which firm

Google has announced several changes to its Search features to comply with the E.U.’s Digital Markets Act. These changes are intended to level the playing field between the tech giant and third-party comparison sites. The Alphabet-owned company will introduce search result layouts that give equal prominence to results from comparison sites and direct supplier websites, such as airlines, hotels, or retailers. They will also be able to display more detailed information on the results pages, such as prices and images. Google is also creating specialised ad units designed for comparison platforms, enabling them to feature more prominently in search results. Additionally, Google is running a test to understand the impact of simplifying the format of all search results to just a simple blue hyperlink. Since Nov. 25, it has been removing the search result features on hotel, holiday rental, and comparison websites for users located in Germany, Belgium, and Estonia. These include the map showing hotel locations, the hotel results, and property information. The idea is to temporarily observe how reverting back to blue links influences traffic and user experience. “We’re very reluctant to take this step, as removing helpful features does not benefit consumers or businesses in Europe,” Google’s Director of Legal Oliver Bethell wrote in a blog post. “That’s why we have committed so much product and engineering time to constructive discussion informed by objective data. “We think the latest proposal is the right way to balance the difficult trade-offs that the DMA involves. We still hope to be able to reach a solution that complies with the law and continues to provide European users and businesses with access to helpful technology.” SEE: Meta and Apple Violated the Digital Markets Act, EU Charges SEO experts comment on Google’s changes to Search features Alex Moss, an SEO expert from Yoast, says these changes will make a positive difference to smaller companies and comparison sites. “This will increase information democratization, which is the most natural way to have an objective search experience and allow a user to make an improved and more informed decision,” he told TechRepublic. However, he thinks that what Google should be doing to provide a level playing field is “definitely not the same as what is legally required” by the DMA. “Google will conform to what is legally required of them and nothing more – especially if that impacts profit margins,” he told TechRepublic. However, Elie Berreby, an SEO strategist from Cyprus, said that removing search features for hotel and holiday rental businesses is an act of malicious compliance. “To demonstrate why resisting regulatory compliance makes sense, they designed a temporary ‘search engine test’ that will remove very useful Google Search features for users in Belgium, Estonia, and Germany — EU’s largest country in terms of GDP and population,” he told TechRepublic. “While the DMA was simply asking Google for equal treatment, their search experience seems designed to generate frustration and put the European consumer on Google’s side.” More Google news & tips Google’s changes in response to the DMA have resulted in fewer clicks for airlines, hotels, and small retailers The DMA prohibits Google from favouring its own services over competitors’ in search results or other online platforms. Violations could result in fines of up to 10% of Google’s total worldwide turnover or 20% for repeated offences. When the DMA came into force in March, the company announced some significant changes to its products and services, including temporarily removing some Google Search widgets to allow individual businesses to compete on the results page. It also introduced new settings for choosing how data is shared between different Google services and “Choice screens” for Android and Chrome to encourage users to pick their preferred browser. However, a few weeks later, the European Commission opened an investigation into Alphabet, Google’s parent company, for alleged gatekeeping — or promoting their own services above competitors’ — on apps and in browsers. It claimed the way Alphabet presents Google search results may steer customers back to Google services, such as Shopping, Flights, or Hotels. Bethel said that some of the company’s changes in response to the legislation while benefitting travel aggregators and comparison sites, have been detrimental to airlines, hotel operators, and small retailers. “They have reported that free direct booking clicks are down as much as 30% since we implemented our original changes,” he wrote. “And yet comparison sites insist that our changes need to go even further.” E.U., U.K., and U.S. are fighting against Google’s anticompetitive practices in online search and advertising European regulators firmly have Google in their crosshairs because of its huge dominance in online search and advertising. In September, the European Court of Justice upheld a €2.42 billion fine against Google for violating E.U. antitrust rules by favouring its own comparison shopping service, Google Shopping, in search results. A Commission investigation into whether Google favours its own ad technology services is ongoing, but a preliminary finding from last year said that a “mandatory divestment” of part of its ad tech business would be the only way to address competition concerns. The E.U. is not the only nation concerned with Google’s alleged anticompetitive practices. In September, the U.K.’s Competition and Markets Authority provisionally ruled that Google’s dominance in the ad tech market is detrimental to competitors. In 2020, the U.S. Department of Justice and state Attorney General initiated an antitrust investigation into Google’s ad tech practices, alleging it “has unlawfully used the distribution agreements to thwart competition.” That investigation remains ongoing. Additionally, in August, a federal judge ruled that the tech company monopolizes general search services and text ads, broking antitrust law. However, Google is not going down without a fight; it successfully overturned a €1.5 billion antitrust fine it was handed by the European Commission in 2019 for preventing third parties that use its AdSense platform from displaying competitor ads next to Google search results. It was also handed a €4.34 billion fine from the Commission in 2018 for abusing its dominance by pre-installing Google

Many people seek new charities to become involved with — whether through volunteer opportunities or monetary donations. The nonprofit world, along with every for-profit industry, is changing rapidly with the advancement of technology. And now, many nonprofits are dedicated to making technology more accessible, affordable, secure, and simpler for everyone. Let’s highlight eight of them. 1. NPower NPower is a nonprofit dedicated to providing underserved groups, including underresourced young adults and military veterans, with access to education and skills training in the technology sector. It offers free courses in areas like cybersecurity, coding, and cloud computing and fosters partnerships with other nonprofits and educational institutes to expand access to tech talent. Mission Helping military-connected individuals, young adults, and women from underresourced communities launch digital careers. Location New York City Year founded 1999 Tech offering Tech training, job placement assistance, and support services. 2. Center for Democracy and Technology The Center for Democracy and Technology is a nonprofit that works to preserve the user-controlled nature of the internet and freedom of expression. Its main focus areas include promoting privacy and data security, ensuring government surveillance accountability, safeguarding free expression online, and supporting an innovative internet. It does this through policy research, providing legal and technical expertise, and collaborations with advocacy groups, governments, and tech companies. Mission Advocating for policies that ensure privacy, free expression, and an open internet. Location Washington D.C., San Francisco, and Europe Year founded 1994 Tech offering Research papers, events, tech policy advocacy. 3. Child’s Play Child’s Play is a game industry charity dedicated to improving kids’ lives in hospitals by providing them with games and consoles. Anyone can donate games to one of Child’s Play’s over 190 hospital partners. The organization provides an Amazon wishlist, and hospitals can apply to become part of the network to get games for younger patients. Mission Improving the lives of children in hospitals and domestic abuse shelters by providing them with toys, games, and technology. Location Redmond, Wash., but donates to hospitals worldwide. Year founded 1974 Tech offering Video games and consoles for children and teens in hospital. 4. Code.org Code.org is dedicated to expanding participation in computer science and making it available in more schools around the U.S. They work to change policy to make STEM education and computer science part of the core curriculum in all grade levels. The nonprofit also runs the “Hour of Code,” a global initiative that aims to introduce students to computer science through one-hour coding activities. Mission Expand access to computer science education at school and increase participation among underrepresented groups, such as young women. Location Seattle, Wash. Year founded 2013 Tech offering Free coding courses and learning resources, computer science curriculum for K-12 students, and professional development workshops for educators. 5. KoBo KoBo is a nonprofit that hosts and maintains the KoboToolbox, an open-source suite of tools for data collection and analysis during humanitarian emergencies. KoboToolbox is provided free of charge to other nonprofits in the humanitarian, global development, environmental protection, and human rights sectors. Use case examples include tracking data about displaced families in Ukraine, and measles and typhoid immunization data in Pakistan. KoBo is partnered with the United Nations Refugee Agency and United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Mission Improving data collection methods in humanitarian crises by providing KoboToolbox to nonprofits for free. Location Cambridge, Mass., but works with global charities. Year founded 2005 Tech offering Open-source data collection tools. 6. The Guardian Project The Guardian Project makes simple, secure apps, open-source libraries, and customized mobile devices for anyone, whether they are citizens, journalists, or humanitarian organizations, to safeguard their online work from interception and monitoring. Mission Developing open-source mobile tools for secure communication, especially in environments where surveillance and censorship are prevalent. Location New York City Year founded 2010 Tech offering Open-source apps for secure communication and personal data. 7. TechSoup TechSoup, a San Francisco-based organization, focuses on two main ideas: nonprofits and schools need computers but face many obstacles, including a lack of resources and many talented people in computer science and technology who want to contribute to big causes. TechSoup connects those ideas by offering discounted software, hardware, and tech support to other nonprofit organizations, libraries, schools, and foundations. Mission Providing affordable nonprofits, schools, and other organizations with access to technology products and services. Location Worldwide Year founded 1987 Tech offering Software such as Microsoft Office, Adobe Creative Cloud, and QuickBooks; hardware such as laptops, desktops, projectors, and networking gear. It also offers tech support and cloud services. 8. DataKind DataKind is a nonprofit that aims to use data science and artificial intelligence to solve real-world problems. They connect tech experts with mission-driven groups to help make sense of their data and create better solutions for issues like climate change, financial inclusion, and health crises. Its team also builds new tools and hosts hackathon-style events to help solve problems. Examples of its work include optimizing vaccine distribution and streamlining data access to improve flood response. Mission Providing nonprofits, governments, and social impact organizations with the data science and AI resources they need to tackle global issues. Location Worldwide Year founded 2012 Tech offering Data science and AI expertise, software tools for data analysis. source

Android does a great job of handling incoming spam SMS messages. But there are two things you might find you’re having to manually do. The first is deleting spam SMS messages. Given the constant deluge of spam that floods our various inboxes, those messages can add up. You certainly don’t want to allow your device to fill up with blocked spam messages. SEE: Electronic communication policy (TechRepublic Premium) The second thing you might need to do is add blocked numbers manually. Android does a pretty good job of catching and blocking spam numbers, but it’s not 100% every time. So, how do you delete those messages and add new blocked numbers? I’ll show you how. What you’ll need The first thing you’ll need is a device running Android. It should at least be running Android 10, but Android 11 would be better. You’ll also need to have collected some spam SMS messages. If you have yet to receive that first spam message, count yourself lucky and just catalog this information for that inevitable day when the spam starts flooding in. Mobility must-reads How to delete SMS spam The first thing we will do is delete some of those spam SMS messages you’ve collected. It’s a very simple process but can be tedious (as there’s still no select-all option—Google, are you listening?). To delete your spam messages, open the Messages app. From the main window, tap the menu button and then tap ‘Spam & blocked.’ The Messages menu is accessed from the application main window. In the Spam & blocked window, you’ll have to manually tap every single message you want to delete. All of the Spam & Blocked SMS messages are collected here. The trick to selecting the messages is that you have to long-press one of the messages first to select it. Once you’ve selected that first message, you can then go through the list and single-tap each one to select. After selecting all of the messages to be deleted, tap the trash can in the top right to delete the messages. Deleting selected Spam & Blocked SMS messages on Android. After tapping the trashcan, you will be prompted to confirm the delete. Tap Delete, and the messages will vanish from your Messages’ Spam & blocked folder. SEE: How to Record a Phone Call on Android in 5 Ways How to manually add a phone number to Spam & Blocked Now, we will manually add a new phone number to the Spam & Blocked list. From the same screen, tap the menu button and then tap Blocked Contacts. In the resulting window, tap Add a Number. Adding a new number to the Messages blocked list. Type the number to be added and tap Block. You’re almost finished adding the new blocked number. And that’s it; you’ve just added a new number to the Android Messages blocked numbers list. You won’t ever have to worry about receiving SMS messages from that number again. Subscribe to TechRepublic’s YouTube channel for all the latest tech advice for business pros. source

Traveling isn’t just a summer thing. Especially for business professionals with interests across the country and abroad, keeping an active travel schedule is essential. And to extend your reach even further, learning a new language can go a long way. With a lifetime subscription to Babbel Language Learning, you’ll be set up for success no matter where you’re going. Now through December 8, you can get a lifetime subscription on sale for just $129.97 (reg. $599). About the App: Developed by more than 100 expert linguists, Babbel takes a practical approach to language learning, with 15-minute lessons focused on topics like navigation, ordering food, shopping, and making friends — things you’ll actually need to know when you travel abroad. You can learn at a level that works for you and use Babbel’s technology to keep your pronunciation on point and identify points of weakness to work on. Babbel offers 14 languages: Spanish, German, Italian, French, Portuguese, Swedish, Turkish, Dutch, Polish, Indonesian, Norwegian, Danish, Russian, and English. Babbel is the world’s top-grossing language app, trusted by more than 10 million people worldwide. Its accessible, bite-sized courses help make up a curriculum that has helped propel it to a 4.5/5-star rating in the Google Play Store and a 4.6/5-star rating on the App Store. Learn a new language in your own time at a great price. Now through 11:59 pm PDT on December 8, you can get a lifetime subscription to Babbel Language Learning for a 78% discount off its regular price at just $129.97. Prices and availability are subject to change. source