• Romania has cancelled its presidential election as a result of a spate of cyberattacks
• The cyberattacks targeted electoral systems, with over 85,000 attacks in total
• The election will be re-run, likely with closer oversight over systems and social media

A recently declassified report [PDF] from Romania’s Intelligence Service (SRI) has revealed that the election’s infrastructure was targeted by over 85,000 cyberattacks over the run up to election day.

The primary concern from these attacks is the state-sponsored online influence campaign promoting the election of front-runner and Pro-Moscow candidate Călin Georgescu. Access credentials for election websites were stolen by threat actors and leaked on a Russian hacker forum, which is a worrying development given the volatility of the region’s political landscape.

The SRI confirmed that an attack on the IT infrastructure of the Romanian Permanent Electoral Authority (AEP) compromised a server which mapped data connected to the AEP’s network, which occurred on November 19th. In light of these developments, the election has since been cancelled by Romanian courts to allow for a re-run of the presidential election first round.

Significant breaches

Between the initial breach and November 25th, which was the end of the first round of Presidential elections, BleepingComputer reports that the 85,000 attacks were targeting the information systems which support the electoral process. Analysts have confirmed that the scale of the campaign would point to a state actor.

"Romania—along with other states on NATO's eastern flank—has become a priority for Russia's hostile actions; there is a growing interest in the Kremlin to influence (at least) the mood and agenda in Romanian society in the electoral context through propaganda and disinformation." the report confirms.

Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu said that anulling the election was "the only correct decision," with the judges of the Constitutional Court citing the same report as a factor in its decision making.

It’s important to note that the SRI has not directly attributed these attacks to a specific threat actor, but geopolitical tensions do seem to suggest that they’re looking in a specific direction.

Russian cyber influence campaigns have been reported during the US election cycle, so there is precedent for similar incidents. Russia has denied any interference with Romanian elections.

Romania’s infrastructure is still being affected by vulnerabilities, the agency warned, and these could be exploited heading into the second round of the election.

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• Broadcom gives 1,500 of its 2,000 biggest customers back to channel partners
• The company hopes partners will be able to offer customers better deals
• It’s all in an effort to stop losing VMware customers

According to new information revealed by Ars Technica, Broadcom has reversed its plans to take its 2,000 biggest customers directly, instead taking just 500 and leaving channel partners to pick up the rest.

It’s believed that Broadcom is branding the change as one that will drive additional value for money to customers through partner-driven deals, which it hopes will keep customers using its services rather than looking to migrate.

Since its acquisition of VMware a little over a year ago, Broadcom has caused uproar in the virtualization world by implementing a series of changes it said were meant to simplify its portfolio, but the reality has been increased costs for many customers.

Broadcom giving VMware deals back to partners

Some of the changes affecting customers have included the company’s decision to end perpetual licenses and move to subscription-based models, the bundling of multiple products into fewer (and more expensive, in some cases) SKUs, and the termination of the channel partner program.

Broadcom’s decision to reintroduce channel partners is likely a strategic move to help it maintain business and not lose any more customers.

The firm said in a statement: “We announced a program that is currently in development to offer qualified VCF customers a 15 percent professional service entitlement of their annual contract value to access partner-delivered or Broadcom professional services. This will help customers improve both time to value and ROI.”

Speaking about the change, Canalys Chief Analyst Alastair Edwards said that Broadcom handing back 1,500 big customers back to channel partners and giving its channel 15% of the value of deals they win would be its best defense against potential migrations.

However, posting on LinkedIn, Edwards said that Broadcom CEO Hock Tan’s efforts to “strip out layers of cost and complexity” have so far “come at the expense of customer and partner relationships.”

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• Leaked FCC filings in the US suggest Mavic 4 Pro will land soon
• Mavic 4 Pro would replace the triple-camera Mavic 3 Pro from April 2023
• It could sport a new camera array and a bigger battery

It appears that the looming threat of a US ban has only served to accelerate DJI's drone production, as yet another new drone has seemingly leaked – the DJI Mavic 4 Pro.

Prominent DJI leaker @JasperEllens shared on X (formerly Twitter) a Federal Communications Commission (FCC) filing in the US of DJI's latest flagship camera drone, the Mavic 4 Pro, which comes just a few days after an all-new foldable DJI Flip was leaked in the same way.

A double whammy of what could be two of the best DJI drones is certainly something for fans to get excited about, especially given the Flip is a mysterious new model, while the Mavic 4 Pro would succeed the superb Mavic 3 Pro, the world's first triple-camera drone that was launched in April 2023.

We awarded the Mavic 3 Pro both best drone and best camera in the TechRadar Choice Awards 2023 – it's that good. The Mavic 4 Pro has a tough act to follow then, so what can we expect from DJI's next flagship camera drone? There are a few leaks that hit the feeds of DJI leakers on X on the same day, so let's see what we can learn already.

A serious flagship on the horizon

There's not much by way of product info to learn from these first leaks, besides two FCC filings suggesting that the Mavic 4 Pro is coming soon, possibly in two iterations, and that it packs a beefier 6654 mAh battery to the Mavic 3 Pro's already impressive 5000 mAh battery.

A new battery unit suggests a new design, and we were given a glimpse of the product itself in a video shared on X that seemingly shows a DJI staffer packing the Mavic 4 Pro drone away, covered in development stickers, after a test flight.

Another blurry image of what appears to be the same drone in flight shows a spherical camera unit which looks a little different to the one in the Mavic 3 Pro, so perhaps we can anticipate a new camera array.

That's not a lot to go on right now. But as with all recent DJI product launches, we can expect plenty more leaks in the build up, when we will find out more about what could be the best drone in 2025.

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• Only 1.8% of the 45,000 individuals analyzed were bothered about AI ethics
• Consumers believe organizations should be held accountable
• EU AI Act brings multimillion-euro penalties

According to Pluralsight, of the 45,000 people who wanted to learn about artificial intelligence, only a mere 1.8% actively searched how to adopt AI responsibly.

The study revealed a rise in interest surrounding generative AI, machine learning and AI for cybersecurity, however Pluralsight Chief Content Officer Chris Herbert said that no significant interest in ethical AI was seen on the platform.

Herbert added: “It’s crucial that learners understand the risks and pitfalls associated with AI so they can adopt it ethically.”`

We’re not interested in ethical AI

The report highlights Google DeepMind research showing how AI can be misused, manipulated and exploited. Herbert said we should be focusing on “mitigating its risks and negative consequences while maximizing its positive outcomes.”

Lead Content Strategist Adam Ipsen also noted Accenture research reveals that more than three-quarters (77%) of global consumers believe organizations should be held accountable for AI misuse, highlighting the need for greater awareness.

The reality is that four in five executives and nearly as many (72%) IT practitioners say their organization often invest in new tech without considering employee training. In a similar vein, only 12% of execs have significant experience working with AI.

Consequences for not adopting AI ethically are also set to have a financial value, with the EU AI Act entering force in August 2024 and gradually seeing enforcement increased over the course of the next few years. Maximum fines stand at €35 million or 7% of global turnover.

Looking ahead, Ipsen urges businesses not to see AI as a “one and done” project, but one that requires constant upskilling. Those who take the time to learn will realize the true benefits of AI rather than see it become a liability that causes them to face legislative and regulatory hurdles.

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The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra could be the best Android phone of 2025. At the very least it will probably be in the conversation, but while we’re still in 2024 at the time of writing, you probably won’t have to wait very long for this phone, as it’s likely to land near the start of 2025.

Between leaks and past form we have a very good idea of when the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra could be announced, right down to a potential day. And based on that we can also take some educated guesses as to when pre-orders will open and when it will ship.

So to find out when you might be able to purchase the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra, read on. And check back soon, as we’ll be updating this article whenever we hear any new release date information.

Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra announcement date predictions

Our best guess for when the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra will be announced is January 22. A source with a good track record for Samsung leaks points to that January 22 date, and that also matches with another leak, which technically said the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra would be announced on January 23, but once you account for time differences (as that source is in South Korea) it becomes January 22.

This is the only specific date that’s been leaked, so with no conflicting reports and two sources pointing to January 22, we’d say that’s a very likely date.

Plus, in recent years Samsung has always announced its new Galaxy S models in either January or February, so a January announcement would make sense.

More specifically, the timing has always recently been between mid-January and mid-February, which again fits with January 22, and that date also gives the announcement enough breathing room from CES 2025, which runs from January 7-11.

Samsung is likely to announce various smart home products and TVs there, and likely wouldn’t want to take attention from them with a phone launch, but by January 22, CES will be long finished.

All that said, while we think Wednesday, January 22 is very likely, we’re not certain of it. But at the very least, the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra will probably be announced sometime between mid-January and mid-February, alongside the Samsung Galaxy S25, the Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus, and perhaps the Samsung Galaxy S25 Slim.

Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra pre-order date predictions

Samsung usually lets you pre-order its new Galaxy S phones the same day as they’re announced. So based on the above, the most likely pre-order date for the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra is January 22, but it could be anytime between roughly January 15 and February 15.

So you’ll probably be able to place your order soon, but hopefully you’ve been saving, as the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra price could be very high.

Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra on-sale date predictions

There tends to be a roughly two week gap from when new Galaxy S models are announced to when they go on sale.

For example, the Samsung Galaxy S24 went on sale exactly two weeks after its announcement, on January 31, while the Samsung Galaxy S23 and Samsung Galaxy S22 both went on sale 16 days after they were announced, and the Samsung Galaxy S21 went on sale 15 days after it was announced.

So assuming the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra is announced on January 22 it will probably ship sometime around Wednesday, February 5, which is two weeks later, and we’d imagine no later than Friday, February 7, since it’s not likely to hit stores on a weekend, and any later would be a change from Samsung’s usual patterns.

Of course, it could be announced earlier or later than January 22, but assuming an announcement sometime between mid-January and mid-February, the on-sale date will likely be between late January and early March.

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• Eric Meurice and Steve Sanghi have joined Intel’s board with immediate effect
• They’ve been described as “successful CEOs with proven track records”
• The search for ex-CEO Pat Gelsinger’s replacement continues

Intel has announced the appointment of two new members to its board – semiconductor industry veterans Eric Meurice and Steve Sanghi – as the search for a new CEO continues.

The addition of Meurice, former ASML CEO, and Sanghi, Microchip Technology interim CEO, brings back some much-needed semiconductor expertise to the board following Lip-Bu Tan’s departure in August.

The board’s interim executive chair, Frank Yeary, commented: “Eric and Steve are highly respected leaders in the semiconductor industry whose deep technical expertise, executive experience and operational rigor make them great additions to the Intel board.”

Intel adds two new members to its board

Yeary goes on to describe both new members as “successful CEOs with proven track records of creating shareholder value.”

Meurice served as president and CEO for ASML between 2004 and 2013 after high-ranking positions with ITT Semiconductors and Dell. He said: “I am thrilled to join Intel’s board as the company completes a historic pace of process technology innovation and transforms its business for the future.”

Sanghi, who recently took on the interim CEO and president roles at Arizona-based Microchip Technology, also has several decades’ experience including a decade at Intel. He added: “I am excited to lend my experience and perspective as Intel executes one of the most consequential corporate transformations in decades.”

Under his leadership, Microchip Technology achieved 121 consecutive quarters of profitability, with its market cap shooting from $10 million to $44 billion over a period of 30 years.

With these two veterans on its side, Intel now hopes that its ongoing transformation following poor financial performance will revive the company and restore investor confidence. Its two most recent quarters saw revenue drop by 1%, and then 6%, year-over-year.

The welcome news comes four days after the company’s CEO, Pat Gelsinger, resigned from his role. For now, the search for Gelsinger’s replacement continues.

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• A new roadmap has given dates for Apple’s upcoming OLED devices
• The MacBook Pro and the iPad mini are first in line
• Not every device will get Tandem OLED tech

We’ve long wondered when Apple will launch an OLED MacBook Pro, and a new product roadmap might have provided the answer. According to information shared by leaker Jukanlosreve on X, the switch might start happening by 2026.

But there’s more than just the MacBook Pro on the schedule. The roadmap suggests that the next Apple products to get OLED displays will be the iPad mini, which could debut alongside the OLED MacBook Pro.

While the former will use a single-layer panel (meaning no Tandem OLED like that found in the iPad Pro), the MacBook Pro will apparently come with Tandem OLED goodness. We’ll also see a slight increase in the MacBook Pro’s display size, the roadmap claims, going from 14.2 and 16.2 inches to 14.3 and 16.3 inches on the two MacBook Pro models.

In 2027, both sizes of the iPad Air will be outfitted with single-layer OLED panels (again, no Tandem OLED). Then in 2028, we will reportedly see both the iPad Pro and the MacBook Air get the OLED treatment – as expected, only the iPad Pro’s screen will feature Tandem OLED tech. The MacBook Air will slightly increase its display sizes to 13.8 and 15.5 inches, up from the current 13.6 and 15.3 inches.

That will leave the 10.9-inch iPad as the only Apple tablet not to get an OLED display of some form, but that shouldn’t be too surprising given its entry-level status.

Interestingly, the report alleges that Apple will finally launch its long-rumored foldable device in 2028. This will have an 18.8-inch Tandem OLED screen and ProMotion dynamic refresh rate, and it’s described as a “tablet/note PC/monitor” in the roadmap. It’ll therefore be very interesting to see how Apple positions this device and what sort of use cases the company envisions for it.

A plausible timeframe

OLED technology is currently entirely absent from the MacBook line, even as many of the best laptops boast fantastic OLED screens.

Yet it’s not Apple’s style to rush to market with new technology, and it instead prefers to wait until it thinks it can one-up the competition before revealing its hand. As well as that, the mini-LED displays in the MacBook Pro are some of the best on the market (OLED or not), which has given Apple more breathing room to research and design its OLED panels at its own pace.

Jukanlosreve says that its information was sourced from industry analysts Omdia, which means they didn’t get it directly from someone at Apple or one of the company’s suppliers. While that means it’s a little harder to know how trustworthy this information is, well-regarded Apple analyst Ross Young largely agreed with the forecast, which lends it some weight given how accurate Young has been in the past.

So, if you’re in the market for a new OLED-equipped Apple device, you now have a plausible roadmap for when these new devices might come to market. Don’t take it as gospel – it could well be wrong – but it's our best guess yet.

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• Businesses are being sent billions of spam emails
• Of these emails, 427 million contained malicious content
• Phishing attacks are the primary attack vector

New research from HornetSecurity has shown that a third of all emails received by businesses this year were spam, amounting to over 20 billion over the course of the year. Of these, over 427 million contained malicious content (2.3%).

Unsurprisingly, phishing is top of the list of most prevalent cyberattacks in 2024, and was responsible for a third of all attacks. Malicious URLS came in a close second, making up 22.7%.

Malicious links often direct victims to fake login pages, enticing them to enter personal or even payment information. Although nearly every type of malicious file saw a decrease in comparison to 2023, HTML files (20.4%), PDFs (19.2%), and Archive files (17.6%) were still the top three vectors used.

Phishing is king

Cybercriminals have been using social engineering attacks for many years, but the evolution of AI tools has led to a significant rise in attacks in recent years, with some businesses receiving 36 phishing emails per day.

AI is not only making attacks more common, but also more sophisticated, with new tactics often able to bypass security measures, with Q2 of 2024 seeing a 52.2% increase in phishing attacks which passed secure email gateway detection.

“Last year, our prediction came to pass that phishing attacks would become more sophisticated, targeted and difficult to spot, due in large part to the proliferation of generative AI.” said Matt Aldridge, Principal Solutions Consultant at OpenText Cybersecurity.

“We predict that this trend will continue, as attackers continue to become better armed with AI-integrated solutions such as next-generation phishing kits. Ensuring that all bases are covered will need to be top of mind for SMB defenders. Getting the basics right has never been more critical.”

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• Mercedes can now paint unique patterns on the S-Class
• Demand for custom cars has led to an expansion of its Manufaktur Studio
• The plan is to roll out of the offering to Mercedes-AMG sports cars soon

Growing interest in highly personalized cars has resulted in Mercedes-Benz expanding its Manufaktur Studio in its ultra-modern Factory 56 in Sindelfingen, Germany – the same place that churns out S-Class limousines and the like.

Already hosting a number of specially-trained employees that go to town befitting vehicles with all manner of fancy interior textiles and the fabrication of bespoke features (think champagne fridges and leather headliners), it has expanded to cope with growing demand and has begun using some new advanced techniques to keep pace.

One of these innovations is what Mercedes called PixelPaint, which the company says is inspired by inkjet printers and applies high-quality paint directly onto the vehicle body with “incredible precision”.

Think beyond simple shades and start imagining patterns and unique paint designs applied to a vehicle by a machine and you are basically there.

The company’s AMG Project One, as well as Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series ‘P One Edition’ that was spawned from it, featured a unique paint job that included the famous three-pointed stars painstakingly applied to the bodywork by hand.

It is this sort of thing that PixelPaint is able to achieve, with one current example being a Mercedes-Maybach S-Class daubed with Maybach insignia all over the bonnet.

For now, the Manufaktur Studio can only deal with 20 cars per day and it will be offered to 2025 S-Class customers wanting to personalize their vehicles further. The idea is to expand the offering to Mercedes-AMG sports-car models, too.

Although the program still leans heavily on highly-skilled craftspeople, the recent revamping has also introduced a number of technological upgrades, including the use of AI to detect irregularities in leather hides, for example, as well as as driverless transport systems that deliver tools and materials to workers.

Analysis: Money doesn’t buy class… unless it’s an S-Class

Currently, Mercedes says that the bonnet is the only location it can apply its PixelPaint method, although it does hope to expand this to include the rest of the car at a later date.

That means we may soon see S-Class and G-Class daubed in Louis Vuitton or Gucci branding, or even just a giant image of the owner’s face.

The company says the Manufaktur program is proving extremely popular and has already accounted for over 30% of vehicles sold in the top-end segment in the first half of 2024, with this number only due to increase.

We live in a time of hyper-individuality, where customers want a unique grille, paint and wheel combo in order to stand out from the crowd. While the likes of Rolls-Royce and Bentley have been offering this sort of thing for years, Mercedes-Benz is effectively bringing that level of customization at a reduced cost.

That said, the company hasn’t mentioned pricing. I guess if you have to ask, you can’t afford it.

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• The Pixel 6 series, Pixel 7 series, and Pixel Fold will all get two additional years of updates
• That brings them up to five years of Android updates in total
• That's still less than the Pixel 8 and Pixel 9

If you’re using a Pixel phone from a few years ago then we have some good news: Google has just quietly extended its support window for selected handsets.

As spotted by 9to5Google, the Google Pixel 7, Pixel 7 Pro, Pixel 7a, Pixel Fold, Pixel 6, Pixel 6 Pro, and Pixel 6a will now all get five years of operating system updates.

Previously, these phones were only promised three years of operating system updates, along with five years of security updates, the latter of which isn’t changing.

So, this change means that you’ll probably get two more major Android versions than you might have expected with these phones, and Google also notes that new and upgraded features could arrive through Pixel Drops during these extra two years of updates.

This is great news, then, for anyone who likes to hang on to their phone for a while, though notably, it’s still less than you’ll get with the Pixel 8 and Pixel 9 lines, both of which are promised seven years of updates.

Android 17 and beyond

Still, this should mean the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro will now get updates up to and including Android 17, whereas previously they would have already had their final major update with the Android 15 launch earlier this year.

The Pixel 6a will probably stop getting updates with the same Android release, but since it launched seven months later than the rest of the Pixel 6 line, it may yet get one more if Google deviates from its usual Android release timing, as it's doing with Android 16 at least.

The Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro should keep being supported up to and including Android 18, so there’s still three years of life in those phones.

And the Pixel 7a and Pixel Fold landed around seven months after the Pixel 7, so depending on when Android 19 lands, there’s a chance they could get that, but it’s more likely that Android 18 will be the final update for these phones, too.

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• iOS 18.2 is expected to launch fully next week, December 9
• The Hearing Test feature is coming to the UK, and other countries
• Hearing Aid Mode only appears to be coming to the UAE this time

Apple has released the final release candidate for iOS 18.2, which means the much-awaited iPhone update is about to launch for everybody rather than just beta testers. The good news is that the useful Hearing Test feature, which helps you detect any suspected hearing loss, is coming to more countries – including the UK. However, the bad news is that this doesn't include the actual hearing aid mode in most of these countries – just the test.

According to Apple's release notes, the new hearing aid mode is indeed coming – but only to users in the UAE. While the update brings "support for the Hearing Test feature on AirPods Pro 2 in Cyprus, Czechia, France, Italy, Luxembourg, Romania, Spain, United Arab Emirates, and United Kingdom" it's only bringing the hearing aid mode to the United Arab Emirates.

We tried the AirPods Pro 2's hearing aid mode, which is available to users in the US thanks to FDA approval, and it's a very impressive update. Hopefully it will come to more countries following respective regulatory approvals, but there's no clear schedule for that, so we have to stick with "hopefully" for now.

What to expect from iOS 18.2

I've been using the various iOS 18.2 betas for a while, and the headline features are all around Apple Intelligence. Or at least, they are if you have the iPhone 16 or iPhone 16 Pro models, or the iPhone 15 Pro models. Other iPhones haven't been invited to the Apple Intelligence party.

What that means in practice is a mix of useful and, to me, useless features – these include the gimmicky AI image generator Image Playground, custom emoji generation, and the occasionally handy Clean Up option in the Photos app.

There's also ChatGPT support, summarisation of Mail and Messages notifications, Visual Intelligence to carry out an image search based on what your camera's pointing at, and the two-stage shutter mode for the iPhone 16's new camera button. The Music and TV apps get natural language search, and there are improvements to Find My too.

The release candidate is available now, and unless any earth-shattering bugs are discovered in it we'd expect to see the full release next week, most likely on Monday. It'll be launched alongside new updates for iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, watchOS, visionOS and the HomePod software too.

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