Latest Technology News

As we approach the end of the year it's time to start wondering what the next one will have in store. As always we'll be running a series of pieces looking at what industry experts think will be key tech industry trends for 2025.

We start with a look at quantum, which is getting ever closer to widespread commercial deployment and could open up great opportunities but is also leading to increasing fears about security.

Six-hundred-twenty-five in a series. Welcome to this week's overview of the best apps, games and extensions released for Windows 10 and Windows 11 on the Microsoft Store and elsewhere in the past seven days.

Microsoft lifted several blockers that prevented earlier Windows 11 systems from upgrading to version 24h2. The company announced that the update will be offered to more devices going forward.

2024 has been a year of seismic change in the UK, what with a new government coming into power and a budget that will undoubtedly impact the UK’s small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in 2025. So, as we look ahead to next year, what technology trends will lead?

We see several dominant trends: a larger proportion of the workforce returning to the office, the increasing adoption of AI, and a heightened focus on security. Additionally, data sovereignty issues will come to the forefront as organizations worry about where their data resides, and ever-growing compliance requirements will become a business necessity -- no matter the organization's size.

At the dawn of a new year most people plan to make lifestyle changes like losing weight or giving up smoking. But new research commissioned by Tech Show London reveals that over 12 million UK consumers plan to make learning AI a New Year's resolution for 2025.

This growing interest in mastering AI signals a shift towards greater understanding and engagement with the technology that is increasingly shaping our lives. 46 percent of those surveyed agree that AI will fundamentally transform our relationship with technology.

In a time when there's a greater need than ever for remote and online collaboration, the secure transfer of information and digitized records is a non-negotiable essential.

As more enterprise employees create and share increasing amounts of sensitive content, organizations need to be able to manage all of their sensitive data transfers between partners, customers, users and systems, have complete visibility and control over where data goes and ensure the highest levels of security.

Dynabook Americas has introduced the Portégé X30W-M, a 13.3-inch 2-in-1 convertible laptop designed for business professionals, educators, and hybrid workers. This ultra-light laptop, weighing less than 1kg, combines flexibility, productivity, and durability with its ability to function as both a laptop and a tablet.

The Portégé X30W-M is powered by Intel’s U- and H-series Core Ultra processors and features built-in AI tools like Copilot, which streamlines workflows with intelligent recommendations. The device also includes a dedicated Copilot key for enhanced productivity. With up to 32GB of 6,400 MHz LPDDR5x memory and SSD storage options reaching 2TB, the X30W-M delivers premium performance for demanding tasks.

Stories of CISOs being held personally liable for cybersecurity incidents has negatively affected their opinion of the role for 70 percent of respondents to a new survey.

At the same time 34 percent in the study for BlackFog, of 400 IT decision makers across the US and UK, believe that the trend of individuals being prosecuted following a cyberattack was a 'no-win' situation for security leaders: facing internal consequences if they report failings and prosecuted if they don't.

Unlock the full potential of Microsoft 365 Excel with this extensive guide, crafted for both beginners and seasoned users alike.

Microsoft 365 Excel begins by revealing the foundational reasons behind Excel’s creation and its unmatched significance in the business world. Dive deep into the structure of Excel files, worksheets, and key concepts that underscore the application’s versatility. As you progress, you'll master efficient workflows, keyboard shortcuts, and powerful formulas, making Excel an indispensable tool for solving complex problems.

AI, and generative AI in particular, is expected to greatly enhance productivity within work processes. Some studies estimate that generative AI could contribute between $2.6 trillion and $4.4 trillion annually to the economy.

However, AI infrastructure is costly because the underlying algorithmic problems are extremely computationally intensive and this means there's a potential gap between demand and the capacity needed to meet it.

In a move sure to rattle some subscribers, YouTube TV has announced a price increase for its Base Plan. Starting January 13, 2025, the monthly subscription cost will jump from $72.99 to $82.99. The search giant cites the rising costs of content and investments in service quality as the primary reasons for this adjustment.

This change is set to affect subscribers during their first billing cycle on or after the January date. However, promotional and trial offers will remain intact for their original duration, ensuring current deals are honored. Subscribers concerned about the new pricing can review their plans by navigating to Settings > Membership within their accounts.

A new cybersecurity leadership survey from ISC2 shows 85 percent of all respondents identify communication as the most important leadership quality, followed by strategic thinking (41 percent), open-mindedness (37 percent), technical expertise (33 percent) and decisiveness (21 percent).

However, the findings reveal that formal leadership training remains largely inaccessible for most respondents, with fewer than 63 percent reporting they have received such formal training. Instead, 81 percent say they primarily developed leadership skills through on-the-job experiences with supervisors and managers.

Linux Mint recently surpassed MX Linux to become the most popular distribution on DistroWatch. Now, with the arrival of Linux Mint 22.1 "Xia" in beta, users get an exciting preview of the features and improvements in the next future stable release.

This long-term support release will eventually be supported until 2029, providing a solid foundation for those seeking reliability and usability. Built on the Ubuntu 24.04 package base and powered by the Linux kernel 6.8, this beta showcases several key improvements and updates.

A new report shows that endpoint platform security -- securing the hardware and firmware of PCs, laptops and printers -- is often overlooked, weakening cybersecurity posture for years to come.

The report from HP Wolf Security is based on a global study of over 800 IT and security decision-makers (ITSDMs) and over 6,000 work-from-anywhere (WFA) employees, it shows that platform security is a growing concern with 81 percent of ITSDMs agreeing that hardware and firmware security must become a priority to ensure attackers cannot exploit vulnerable devices.

New research from Imperva shows that 71 percent of UK consumers believe bad bots are ruining Christmas by snapping up all the most wanted presents.

It finds that 40 percent of consumers surveyed say they have been thwarted when trying to buy a gift in the past, only to find that it was completely sold out.

There are still various obstacles in the way of updating to Windows 11 24H2, but Microsoft has just removed one of them. Until now, systems with a USB scanner that used the eSCL scan protocol were blocked from installing the update, but this block has now been lifted.

This is not all that is to be found in the update, of course. There is a somewhat controversial switch to a shortened date format in the taskbar as well as a batch of important security fixes.