Talk Fuse

    Technology

    Technology covers the tools, platforms and digital services shaping how people work, play, communicate and find information. It includes consumer devices, software, gaming, online culture, artificial intelligence, security and the business decisions behind them.

    The topic also tracks the consequences of technological change: who benefits from new products, how rules and markets respond, and what is lost or gained as digital systems become more central to everyday life.

    • Noah Schnapp play loses focus after exploring privilege and drink-driving deaths

      Andy Sandberg’s play opens with an intriguing premise: a wealthy teenager kills two people whilst drink-driving, and his parents invoke “affluenza”—the notion that his crimes stem from parental neglect rather than personal responsibility—to evade justice. The setup offers a sharp commentary on wealth, privilege and how money insulates the powerful from consequences, echoing real-world cases…

    • Pixel 11 Pro drops to $849 as Amazon cuts flagship prices

      Google’s Pixel 11 Pro and Pro XL smartphones are receiving substantial discounts of $250 and $300 respectively during Amazon’s October sale. This pricing shift is particularly significant because the Pro model is now only $100 more expensive than the standard Pixel 11 (compared to its usual $200 premium), making the upgrade considerably more attractive for…

    • Giorgia Meloni seeks EU trademark protection for her voice

      Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has filed a trademark application for her voice with the European Union Intellectual Property Office to protect herself against AI deepfakes. This decision reflects a broader movement among public figures seeking legal protection from unauthorised AI use, following similar applications by actor Matthew McConaughey and singer Taylor Swift. The move…

    • ASOS Users Targeted by In-App Extortion Messages Claiming Snowflake Database Breach

      ASOS customers received an alarming in-app notification on Tuesday morning claiming hackers had compromised the company’s Snowflake database instance and demanding engagement under threat of leaking data. The message was addressed directly to ASOS’s data protection officer and IT teams and linked to a Telegram channel, representing an unusually brazen and public extortion attempt, as…

    • Misuse of AI is brands’ top reputational threat, new survey says

      Misuse of artificial intelligence is the leading reputational risk for companies, according to a survey of more than 150 public affairs leaders. The survey’s authors say falling public trust means AI use or overuse could quickly damage confidence among customers, investors and other stakeholders. The Reputation Risk Index says AI has repeatedly ranked as a…

    • Atos wins Met Police applications contract worth up to £350m for six years

      Atos, a French outsourcer, has been awarded a six-year contract worth up to £350 million by the Metropolitan Police Service to manage and secure its applications. The deal is intended to support the Met’s ongoing digital modernisation and simplification, providing a stable foundation for officers and staff whilst driving greater efficiency in the technology that…

    • Drax datacentre could create nearly twice the yearly emissions of all Gatwick flights

      Drax’s proposed North Yorkshire datacentre could emit 8.6 million tonnes of carbon dioxide a year if powered as planned, according to an analysis by the Natural Resources Defense Council. That would be nearly twice the annual emissions attributed to flights from Gatwick, raising concerns about the project’s impact on the UK’s climate targets. The estimate…

    • ASOS app users receive apparent hacker extortion messages across UK

      Thousands of ASOS app users across the UK have received pop-up messages that appear to be from hackers attempting extortion. The message claims the hackers have “fully compromised the Snowflake instance” and threatens to leak data unless ASOS engages with them. This breach is particularly concerning because hackers gained access to ASOS’s app itself, transforming…

    • Asos investigates app message threatening to expose customer data

      The hackers have given Asos a two-week deadline to pay ransom, with cyber-security experts describing the approach as “unusually brazen” and designed to whip up panic. Messages on the hackers’ Telegram channel claim customer information is safe and “will not be touched for a designated period”, suggesting this is an extortion attempt. Asos has confirmed…

    • Legacy sign-on service comes back to bite school software provider Bromcom

      Bromcom, a UK school software provider serving over 5,000 schools and 390 multi-academy trusts, has notified customers of a data breach affecting its legacy single sign-on (SSO) system. An unauthorised third party accessed email addresses and registration information associated with SSO accounts, with the incident discovered on 6 September and publicly announced on 24 September.…