Techin' Geek

Nearly four years following the introduction of a security feature known as Lockdown Mode, Apple claims it has not encountered a situation where an individual’s device was compromised with these enhanced security measures activated. 

“To our knowledge, there have been no successful mercenary spyware incursions on devices enabled with Lockdown Mode,” stated Apple spokesperson Sarah O’Rourke to TechCrunch on Friday.

This is the latest confirmation from the tech behemoth that Apple devices operating under Lockdown Mode can endure government spyware intrusions, having first made this assertion a year after the launch of the security feature.

In 2022, Apple introduced Lockdown Mode, an opt-in set of security measures that disables certain features on iPhones and other Apple products that are frequently exploited for hacking targets using spyware. Apple specifically developed this security mode to aid vulnerable customers in shielding themselves against the dangers presented by government spyware produced by firms like Intellexa, NSO Group, and Paragon Solutions.

In recent times, Apple has acknowledged that its clientele can fall prey to spyware and has adopted a more assertive approach to inform customers who have been targeted.

Apple has dispatched multiple notifications to users across more than 150 nations, notifying them that they could have been compromised by spyware, highlighting the level of insight the company now possesses regarding these types of attacks. Although Apple has never disclosed how many users have been informed, it’s reasonable to conclude that the numbers are in the dozens, if not more.

Donncha Ó Cearbhaill, the leader of the security lab at Amnesty International, where he has examined numerous spyware incidents, mentioned that he and his team “have not observed any proof of an iPhone being successfully infiltrated by mercenary spyware while Lockdown Mode was active during the attack.”

Digital rights groups such as Amnesty International and the University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab have cataloged various successful assaults on iPhone users, none of which reported a breach of Lockdown Mode. In a minimum of two instances, Citizen Lab researchers have publicly stated that they witnessed Lockdown Mode effectively thwart spyware attacks, one involving NSO’s Pegasus and another with Predator spyware, developed by a company that is now under Intellexa.

In at least one recorded incident of spyware targeting iPhones, security analysts at Google indicated that the spyware would abandon its attempt to infect the target if Lockdown Mode was detected, likely as a method to avoid being noticed.

Patrick Wardle, a cybersecurity expert focused on Apple and a critic, asserts that Lockdown Mode is a vital feature that complicates the task for spyware creators aiming to target Apple users.

“It can be confidently said that Lockdown Mode represents one of the most rigorous consumer-facing hardening features ever implemented,” he conveyed to TechCrunch. 

Wardle clarified that by “minimizing the attack surface,” Lockdown Mode eliminates various strategies typically employed to exploit the iPhone, compelling spyware developers to resort to more sophisticated and costly methodologies.

“It neutralizes entire delivery mechanisms/exploit classes,” he added, “as it restricts most message attachment formats and limits WebKit capabilities. This represents a substantial decrease in the remotely accessible attack surface, particularly concerning zero-click exploit chains,” referring to intrusions that can target individuals over the internet without requiring any action from the victim.

It’s plausible that Lockdown Mode has been circumvented, and neither Apple nor independent analysts have detected the breach. However, considering that Apple usually maintains a publicly reserved stance, its latest proclamation signifies a notable point for Lockdown Mode.

I have utilized Lockdown Mode for several years, and I seldom think about it — except when notifications appear that can sometimes be perplexing. Some features that have been disabled necessitate an additional step, such as copying and pasting links from text messages into your browser. That’s why I, along with several digital security professionals, advise anyone concerned about being targeted by spyware or cyber assaults to enable Lockdown Mode.

An 82-year-old woman in Kentucky turned down a $26 million proposal from an AI company planning to establish a data center on her land. Although the same company may seek to rezone 2,000 acres nearby, as AI infrastructure continues to integrate into everyday life, the world is beginning to push back.

This week’s tension is omnipresent, from OpenAI discontinuing its Sora application to courts finally taking action against social media platforms like Meta. In this episode of TechCrunch’s Equity podcast, Kirsten Korosec, Anthony Ha, and Sean O’Kane investigate how the AI hype phase collides with reality.

Subscribe to Equity via YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify and all other platforms. You can also follow Equity on X and Threads at @EquityPod.

David Sacks has concluded his tenure as Donald Trump’s AI and cryptocurrency adviser.

In a conversation with Bloomberg on Thursday, the seasoned entrepreneur, investor, and podcaster confirmed that his non-consecutive 130-day role as a special government employee has ended and that he’s transitioning to co-chair the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST), partnering with senior White House technology adviser Michael Kratsios. 

“I believe that as co-chair of PCAST, I can now provide insights not only on AI but on a broader array of technology issues,” he mentioned to Bloomberg during a video interview. “So yes, this is how I’ll be involved from now on.”

Practically, this signifies that Sacks will have less proximity to the power dynamics in Washington than he has had since the beginning of this second Trump term. As the AI czar, Sacks maintained direct communication with Trump and influenced policy decisions. PCAST serves as a federal advisory committee, meaning it investigates matters, produces reports, and forwards recommendations but does not create policy.

The council has been around in various forms since FDR, yet Sacks emphasized to Bloomberg that this particular group boasts “the most star power of any similar assembly” ever formed, and it’s challenging to dispute his assertion. The initial 15 members encompass Nvidia’s Jensen Huang, Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg, Oracle’s Larry Ellison, Google co-founder Sergey Brin, Marc Andreessen, AMD’s Lisa Su, and Michael Dell, among others. 

That’s quite a collection of billionaires.

Sacks informed Bloomberg that the council will address AI, advanced semiconductors, quantum computing, and nuclear energy, with immediate focus directed toward advancing Trump’s national AI framework, unveiled just last week. The framework aims to replace what Sacks referred to as a chaotic mix of conflicting regulations at the state level. “You’ve got 50 different states regulating this in 50 different ways,” he stated, “and it’s resulting in a patchwork of regulations that our innovators find challenging to navigate.” 

What Sacks did not directly address was the reasoning behind the timing of this transition and whether his recent remarks influenced it. Earlier this month, during the well-known “All In” podcast he co-hosts, Sacks publicly encouraged the administration to seek an exit from the U.S.-backed conflict with Iran, outlining a series of deteriorating scenarios — attacks on oil infrastructure in neighboring nations, the destruction of desalination facilities, the potential for nuclear engagement by Israel — and advocating for a diplomatic exit. Trump replied by informing reporters that Sacks had not discussed the war with him. 

When Bloomberg inquired about it on Thursday, Sacks figuratively raised his hands in disbelief: “I’m not part of the foreign policy or national security teams,” he remarked, specifying that his podcast commentary represented his personal perspective, not an official stance.

Despite the notable individuals Sacks is bringing to PCAST, it’s pertinent to consider the historical context of what the council has been, functioning as an advisory group with significant influence in some administrations and negligible impact in others. 

President Obama’s administration is remembered as the most productive on record, generating 36 reports over eight years — two of which resulted in tangible policy changes, including a regulation from the FDA that facilitated the availability of over-the-counter hearing aids. 

In contrast, President Trump’s initial council took nearly three years to appoint its first members, delivered a few reports, and did not leave a significant impact, while President Biden’s council leaned heavily towards academic expertise — featuring Nobel laureates, MacArthur fellows, and National Academy members — and produced a limited set of reports before the administration concluded. 

The current PCAST represents an entirely different entity, formed predominantly from the executive leadership of companies that are shaping the technology it will provide guidance on.

Now, Sacks is once again part of that landscape and likely free to move back into his role as an investor and entrepreneur. A representative for Craft Ventures, the firm Sacks co-founded and where he continues to be a partner, has not yet addressed related inquiries, but TechCrunch reported last year about the ethics waivers Sacks secured to retain financial interests in AI and crypto firms while influencing federal policy in both realms — an arrangement that received considerable criticism from ethics scholars and legislators.

A federal judge has favored Anthropic in its complex legal encounter with the Trump administration, granting the tech firm a legal injunction against the government’s latest order that classified it as a “supply chain risk,” according to the Wall Street Journal.

On Thursday, Judge Rita F. Lin of the Northern District of California instructed the Trump administration to revoke its recent categorization of Anthropic as a security threat, along with withdrawing its mandate that federal agencies sever connections with the company.

“It appears to be an effort to undermine Anthropic,” Lin reportedly remarked during the judicial proceedings. Lin ultimately contended that the government’s directions had violated free speech safeguards for the company.

The conflict between the Pentagon and Anthropic intensified last month over a disagreement about the government’s use of the AI company’s software. Anthropic had allegedly aimed to impose specific restrictions on how the government could utilize its AI models, including prohibiting their application in autonomous weapons systems or mass surveillance. The government opposed those restrictions, ultimately designating the company a supply chain risk—a label typically reserved for foreign entities. President Trump additionally instructed federal agencies to sever ties with the firm.

Shortly thereafter, Anthropic filed a lawsuit against the agency, along with Hegseth.

The White House has spent the past few weeks criticizing the company, describing it as “a radical-left, woke company” that threatens America’s “national security.” Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, on the other hand, has branded the Defense Department’s actions as “retaliatory and punitive.”

Following Judge Lin’s ruling, Anthropic provided TechCrunch with the following statement: “We thank the court for acting promptly, and we are pleased they concur that Anthropic is likely to prevail on the merits. While this lawsuit was essential to defend Anthropic, our customers, and our partners, our emphasis continues to be on collaborating constructively with the government to ensure that all Americans benefit from safe and dependable AI.”

TechCrunch has also reached out to the White House for a response.

In the realm of AI chatbots, a fierce competition for user engagement is ongoing. Major chatbot companies are vying to boost their user numbers, and in a minor triumph, Google has recently simplified the process for users of rival chatbots to switch to Gemini.

On Thursday, the firm unveiled what it refers to as “switching tools,” new widgets crafted to enable users to migrate “memories” (essentially snippets of personal data) and even full chat histories from other chatbots straight into Gemini. According to the company, users can readily share “important preferences, connections, and personal context” using this method.

The intention is to significantly ease the transition to Google’s AI assistant, as users won’t need to invest extensive time retraining Gemini regarding their identity and desires.

The memory feature functions like this: Gemini will propose a prompt for the user to enter into their existing chatbot, which will subsequently produce a response that can be copied and pasted back into Gemini. In this manner, Gemini advises the user on what types of information would be beneficial for it to know about them, while also aiding in the transfer of that data back into its own system.

“Once you import these memories, Gemini will grasp the same essential details you’ve provided to other applications, such as your hobbies, your sibling’s name, or the town where you were raised,” the company states. “Rather than starting anew, you can swiftly bring Gemini up to date on what is most significant to you.”

For importing chat histories, Google claims that all it takes is uploading them in a zip file. It’s fairly straightforward to export chat logs in zip format from the majority of chatbots — including ChatGPT and Claude. This enables users to “seamlessly continue exactly where you paused,” according to the company. Google also mentions users can search through these past conversations.

ChatGPT continues to dominate the consumer chatbot landscape, with OpenAI sharing last month that it has reached 900 million active users each week. Gemini — despite Google’s extensive distribution advantages, including its default status on Android devices and the Chrome browser — has struggled with consumer recognition. Last month, it disclosed its own metrics during Alphabet’s fourth-quarter earnings report, revealing that Gemini had exceeded 750 million monthly active users. This strategy is clearly aimed at aiding Google in narrowing the gap.

As artificial intelligence penetrates the realms of editorial and media, platforms are rushing to set foundational guidelines for its utilization. This week, Wikipedia prohibited the incorporation of AI-generated text by its editors — yet it refrained from imposing a complete ban on AI within the site’s editorial framework.

In a recent adjustment to its guidelines, the platform now articulates that “the application of LLMs to create or modify article content is forbidden.” This updated wording refines and clarifies earlier, less clear language that indicated LLMs “ought not to be employed to produce new Wikipedia articles from the ground up.”

The involvement of AI in Wikipedia articles has sparked a heated debate within the extensive, volunteer-based community of editors. 404 Media reveals that the updated guideline, which was voted on by the editors of the site, received overwhelming backing — 40 to 2.

Nevertheless, the revised guidelines still allow for the ongoing use of AI in certain editorial tasks.

“Editors are allowed to utilize LLMs to propose basic copyedits to their writings, and to incorporate some suggestions post human evaluation, as long as the LLM does not inject any content of its own,” the revised policy specifies. “Caution is necessary, since LLMs may exceed your requests and alter the meaning of the text to a degree that is not substantiated by the cited sources.”

Mastodon is implementing modifications aimed at enhancing the attractiveness and usability of its social networking service, particularly for mainstream users seeking alternatives to X or Threads.

On Thursday, the creator of decentralized social networking software announced it is overhauling a crucial element of its platform by providing people’s user profiles with a fresh appearance, which it hopes will attract both organizations and individuals.

Founded on the ActivityPub protocol, Mastodon gained prominence after Elon Musk took over Twitter, now rebranded as X, prompting some users to look for alternatives. The platform’s allure lies in its decentralized nature, meaning no single entity controls the algorithm, and users can transfer their accounts should they disapprove of a specific server’s operations or community management.

Nevertheless, this arrangement is also more complex compared to joining a traditional social network like X. On Mastodon, users must select a server to participate in and experience different timelines (local and federated), which can be perplexing for newcomers. The procedure for following other users on the service can also be tricky.

This has left Mastodon facing challenges in attracting new users, with numbers currently around 800,000 monthly active users, down from a million during the peak of the Twitter saga.

In recent months, Mastodon has been addressing several challenges that might deter users. In February, it streamlined the onboarding experience and incorporated additional features that users typically expect, such as Quote Posts and “starter packs” known as Collections.

Now, it is focusing on user profiles. The revamped edition introduces several alterations, many of which are visual.

What’s changing

Rather than presenting two views of a user’s posts (“posts” or “posts and replies”), akin to X, profiles now contain a single “Activity” tab equipped with a dropdown menu. This enables users to customize different combinations of posts by enabling or disabling replies and boosts — with boosts being Mastodon’s equivalent of a repost.

Hashtags are now prominently displayed at the top of the Activity tab, enabling users to filter posts on that account by the selected tag.

Mastodon has also eliminated the pinned posts carousel, a feature that many users found unappealing. This was created to reconcile the requirements of those wanting to pin multiple posts with those visiting a profile to quickly access the user’s latest posts. Now, users with several pinned posts will showcase one prominently, while others can be accessed via a new “View all pinned posts” button.

Another alteration aims to clarify Mastodon handles for new users. In contrast to X or Threads, where users are simply @username, Mastodon handles incorporate two @’s — one indicating their account name and the other their server’s name. A new information pop-up elucidates this.

Users are also given greater control over their profile’s appearance, with options to conceal the “Media” or “Featured” tabs, if desired, or to hide replies from their “Media” tab to highlight their work.

Custom fields on the profiles where users can add elements like links, pronouns, and additional details are now arranged horizontally, creating more vertical space on the screen. These fields can now also be updated on iOS and Android, not solely on the web.

Additional design adjustments make profiles appear less cluttered — such as the elimination of a “following you” badge and repositioning the optional “personal note” users add to their profiles into an overflow menu.

Profile modifications can now all be managed from a single location in the account settings, enabling users to oversee tasks such as their featured hashtags (which Mastodon now thoughtfully suggests), links, and other profile details.

Link verification — a feature of Mastodon to ascertain a user’s trustworthiness without establishing a centralized authority (or demanding payment like X) — is now more accessible rather than being hidden in settings. Users can crop and add alt text to their profile images and cover photos.

These updates will be initially accessible to the mastodon.social server and other servers that choose to operate the nightly build. More servers will receive the update with the launch of the Mastodon 4.6 software version in a few weeks.

Netflix has discreetly increased its prices once more. The streaming leader’s lowest-priced, ad-supported plan is now $8.99 monthly, up from the earlier $7.99 subscription fee, Netflix confirmed to TechCrunch in a message.

The standard ad-free plan now costs $19.99 per month, reflecting a $2 rise from the former $17.99 subscription charge, while the premium option is also escalating by $2 and will now be priced at $26.99 per month.

It’s also becoming pricier to add additional viewers outside your residence. Adding a user to an ad-supported plan now incurs a fee of $6.99, instead of the previous $7.99. For ad-free plans, adding an extra viewer will now cost $9.99 rather than $8.99.

The company informed TechCrunch that these modifications aim to reflect enhancements to its “diverse selection of entertainment” and the quality of its services.

The price increases were initially noticed by Android Authority.

Netflix states that new subscribers enrolling will experience the adjusted plan costs from March 26, while current users will see the new prices implemented over the upcoming months. Current members will receive an email notification a month prior to the new rates taking effect.

Netflix last raised its prices in January 2025. Since that time, the platform has introduced a variety of new features, including the debut of video podcasts and an increase in livestreaming offerings. The company has also recently revealed plans to enhance its mobile application and expand its short-form video functionalities.

These new increases follow Netflix’s decision last month to withdraw from an acquisition attempt for Warner Bros. Discovery.

Warner Bros. Discovery announced that Paramount Skydance’s offer of $31 per share was a “better proposal” and had given Netflix four business days to respond. Netflix subsequently declared it would not increase its $82.7 billion all-cash proposal for the studio, ultimately abandoning the deal.