Technology news

If you happen to have an old Android device lying around and a reason to worry about people messing with your business, Edward Snowden has an app for that.
Haven is an open-source project that Snowden developed in conjunction with Freedom of the Press Foundation and Guardian Project. You can find directions and links for downloading and installing it on the latter organization's Github page.
SEE ALSO: Edward Snowden and human rights groups slam NSA bill that's rushing through Congress
This isn't

You can finally settle that never-ending debate around your Christmas dinner table, once and for all: Die Hard is definitely a Christmas movie. 
Or at least that's what the classic action movie's writer says. 
SEE ALSO: Let the annual 'Is Die Hard a Christmas movie?' debate begin
When CNN's Jake Tapper asked screenwriter Steven E. de Souza about it on Twitter, he confirmed that he sees Die Hard as a Christmas flick, right down to the fact that "a woman about to give birth features prom

Leeroy Jenkins has returned once more to ruin World of Warcraft raids, but this time for a good cause. The creators of the infamous meme released a never-before-seen dry run of the botched attack, this time with the hopes of raising awareness about net neutrality.The original video was published on May 10, 2005, but has enjoyed enduring popularity and places in pop culture, from Jeopardy to The Daily Show. YouTube channel Anf Pal published a video dubbed “Leeroy Jenkins First Take/Dry Run,

(Reuters) — Israel’s markets regulator will propose regulation to ban companies based on bitcoin and other digital currencies from trading on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, he said on Monday.
Shmuel Hauser, the chairman of the Israel Securities Authority (ISA), told the Calcalist business conference he will bring the proposal to the ISA board next week. If approved, it would be subject to a public hearing and then the stock exchange bylaws would need to be amended.
“If we have a

Trivia app HQ’s rise in popularity has meant more players, more prize money at stake, and inevitably, more cheaters. Some players resort to frantically googling the answers to the game’s wide-ranging questions; some write scripts to google for them. But there’s a way to stop players hacking the game, according to the very people who’ve learned how to beat the system.
Online, developers and hackers have begun sharing their hacks to better explain how these vulnerabilities

Nintendo’s online store for downloadable video games appears to be a casualty of the Switch’s popularity this holiday season. The company announced on Twitter that it’s working on a fix for people who are encountering errors when trying to access the eShop to purchase and download games, but it’s unclear when it will be back up and running.
When users try and access the eShop, they’re greeted with a 2813-0009 error, and have been for the past several hours. It&

Slow your roll, bitcoin.
The finicky cryptocurrency has skyrocketed in overall value throughout 2017, but its bumpy December continued in the run-up to Christmas. After posting an all-time high of $19,796 per bitcoin on Dec. 17, the price fell to $11,590 on Dec. 22, according to Coinbase data).
SEE ALSO: You know who's not loving Bitcoin's rise? Speed freaks.
It was the steepest decline of the year, losing more than 40 percent of its peak value to date — a milestone reached just days earli

'Twas Christmas Day and all over the place,
People were celebrating, even in space.
The halls were all decked, the stockings were hung,
And for all that we know, even carols were sung.
Two-forty miles up, above Santa's sleigh,
Was the International Space Station's own holiday.
Gifts came on a rocket that was launched up from Earth,
Bringing cosmonauts and astronauts plenty of mirth.
On that zero-g station with their hearts all a-flitter,
Astronaut Vande Hei shared this photo on Twitter.Merry Chr

Merry Christmas and happy holidays. I thought I would do something different for a holiday message this year. It’s based on a talk I gave to a game journalism class at Stanford University recently. It’s about my life in game journalism, and how I got to where I am today. I hope you enjoy it.
I am a quiet person in general. It takes me a little while to find my voice when I’m talking. I ask that you be a bit understanding on that. What I like to do, I write at night when I have

So you just got a new ebook reader for the holidays this year. Nice! Now, it’s time to find books to load it up with, which should give you plenty to read on your trip home, or if you need an excuse to avoid relatives for a couple of hours.Here’s 13 science-fiction books that kick off a series for you to break your new e-reader in, whether it’s a Kindle, Kobo, Nook, or other tablet. Image: Orbit Books
Consider Phlebas by Iain M. Banks
If there’s one series to pick up and

After many of us refreshed our hardware through Black Friday sales and now (hopefully) have the perfect mouse, mechanical keyboard, chassis, GPU, and the works, it’s time to d-d-duel — just kidding, it’s time to game. Now that the long stretch of the holiday weekend is ahead, you can break out the PC games, taking pride in how smoothly your new computer’s frame rate is. Some of these games rely on the player to have excellent reflexes, while others just require you to hav

Your family fought the good fight and got you a Switch. First things first: thank them. Go ahead, give them a big smile and a hug. Great! Okay! Time to get to gaming. We've included all the must-have games below along with a couple additional recommendations for when you want even more. These should last you a while and make the most use of your brand new Switch.
We've rounded up our favorite and most-used apps and utilities for the technology we use every day. Check out our other picks for iPho

Do you think the message landed?
As Donald and Melania Trump sat for Midnight Mass in the wee morning hours of Christmas Day, the presiding reverend at one point seemed to speak directly to the Twitter-loving 45th president. It happened during the homily, which focused on the power of words.
SEE ALSO: Christmas came early for those who are extra obsessed with... KFC?
You can probably see where this is going.
As a Sunday morning White House pool report notes, Reverend James Harlan started off wit

People around the U.S. are waking up to a white Christmas. 
Seattle and Portland — two cities that aren't exactly known for heavy snowfall this time of year — are both seeing a fair bit of snow on Monday. 
Large swaths of the Midwest and Northeast also woke up to plenty of the white stuff coating lawns, trees, and cars. 
SEE ALSO: People are losing their minds over historic Southern snowstorm
And that's not all. 
Some lucky Boston residents awake early enough on C

Your viewing experience for Star Wars: The Last Jedi was probably like mine, wherein you used money to enter a theater, ate some overpriced snacks, and tried not to yell every time the person behind you kicked your seat. Our experience was definitely not like a group of astronauts orbiting Earth, who watched the latest Star Wars film from the safety of the International Space Station.NASA astronaut Mark T. Vande Hei tweeted a picture of movie night, wherein the space station crew has crowded aro

Just unwrapped a fancy new iPhone X? Maybe a svelte iPhone SE? No matter what model, you’re gonna need some apps to go with your fancy new phone. Fortunately, we’ve already done the busy work for you and put together the best apps to get started with.We've rounded up our favorite and most-used apps and utilities for the technology we use every day. Check out our other picks for iPhones, Android phones, PCs, and Macs. We've also listed our favorite games for iOS and Android from this

So you just got a new Android phone. You’ve probably turned it on, logged into a bunch of apps, downloaded your favorites — Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, etc. — and logged into all of them as well. But now it’s time to dive a little bit deeper. If you’re setting up a phone for the first time, here are 11 apps worth downloading that you might have missed.
We've rounded up our favorite and most-used apps and utilities for the technology we use every day. Check out ou

2017, with its natural disasters, human disasters, and all around horrible undercurrent that continuously barraged us with bad news and situations that sometimes seemed too difficult to bear, was a real fuckin' doozy.
In times like these, the world becomes a bit too difficult to deal with 24/7, and we need to slip away into something that can grab our attention, wash away all the reminders of the outside world for a few hours and make us feel calm.
SEE ALSO: Why 2017 Was the Best Year for Video

One of the OnePlus 5T's most coveted and new features is Face Unlock. Now, the authentication method is rolling out to the slightly older OnePlus 5. Carl Pei, co-founder of OnePlus, tweeted yesterday morning that the security measure will come to the phones. He didn't specify a timeline.
Pei says the feature roll-out follows "popular demand," which makes sense. In The Verge's review of the 5T, Vlad Savov writes that more than anything else, Face Unlock is convenient. It isn't super secure, as hi

Whether you’re unwrapping your first Mac, or getting an upgrade, you’ll need some apps for your new computer. We’re here to help, with some of our best picks to get you started.
We've rounded up our favorite and most-used apps and utilities for the technology we use every day. Check out our other picks for iPhones, Android phones, PCs, and Macs. We've also listed our favorite games for iOS and Android from this year, and our top choices for PS4, Xbox One, and the Nintendo Switc

It's hard to believe that it's been a year since pop star George Michael passed away.
He will forever be tied to Christmas, as the mastermind behind Wham! tune "Last Christmas" passed away on Christmas Day 2016.
Michael will also be forever remembered for his many acts of kindness, the details of which didn't emerge until after his death at age 53.
SEE ALSO: George Michael gets the 'rainbow priest' memorial mural he deserves
A year later, his family has shared a Christmas message to his many fan

Heads up: All products featured here are selected by Mashable's commerce team and meet our rigorous standards for awesomeness. If you buy something, Mashable may earn an affiliate commission.
Quick, stick your head in your car. What do you smell? If your answer includes sweat, smoke, feet, your dog’s farts, or that cheeseburger and fries you had back in 2013, it’s time to do something about it. And that means a solution that’s a little — or a lot — more sophisticate

Alright, you’ve gotten your new Android phone or iPhone set up. Now it’s time for the important part: games. You’ll want something good to play on your new pocket supercomputer, especially if you’re stuck somewhere for the holidays away from your console or gaming PC. Fortunately, there’s tons of great games out there for mobile devices — here’s some of our favorites.
We've rounded up our favorite and most-used apps and utilities for the technology we us

Heads up: All products featured here are selected by Mashable's commerce team and meet our rigorous standards for awesomeness. If you buy something, Mashable may earn an affiliate commission.
Have you ever had a brilliant idea for an app and wondered how hard it might be to actually build it yourself? Learn how to build the app of your dreams with The Complete iOS 11 & Swift Developer Course that's $10 for a limited time. (It's usually upwards of $200.)
Whether you're a beginner or have some

Imagine a world where consumers buy their groceries directly from manufacturers, cutting grocery stores and supermarkets completely out of the equation. That’s a future that blockchain startup INS wants to enable. And the company has just raised roughly $43 million (60,000 Ether) in a public token sale to make it happen.
INS says seven of the top-20 fast-moving consumer goods companies in the world have shown significant interest in the platform; it cites Unilever and Mars as two examples.

There's one thing that might be able to save Papa John's Pizza after the company saw its founder and CEO John Schnatter stepping down from his role after his comments disparaging the NFL protests. It's Lil Jon. 
Yep, you read that right. 
The rapper, known for his boisterous adlibs, has officially placed his name in an unofficial Twitter bid to become the new CEO of Papa John's. 
SEE ALSO: Making pizza in space is incredibly hard, ya'll
After Twitter user Devin Smith tweeted that

FEATURE: More so than any other kind of games, mobile titles feel like they slot into our lives in a very specific way. For me, the mobile game I still play every day is Sirvo’s numbers-based puzzler Threes — especially after I found out that it really actually does have an end and doesn’t simply continue ad infinitum.
We’ve seen a lot of excellent games this year, whether it’s new expansions like Hearthstone’s addictive single-player campaign Kobold

UPDATED Dec. 25, 2017, 11:04 a.m. ET It's back now.
With little fanfare and zero explanation, Julian Assange's Twitter account reappeared on Monday morning. It's a Christmas something-or-other.
The WikiLeaks founder has tweeted two times since his account came back online, though neither one addresses the reason for the disappearance. One tweet features a cartoon of Santa Claus adding WikiLeaks to his "Nice" list as he stares at the organization's Wikipedia entry. The other is a request for dona

Nothing like a feel-good film to watch together as a family this holiday season, huh?
SEE ALSO: Let the annual 'Is Die Hard a Christmas movie?' debate begin
The Big Sick actor and comedian Kumail Nanjiani plugged his film on Twitter as being a great way to spend time with your family instead of making awkward conversation during the holiday season.According to @RottenTomatoes, #TheBigSick is the 2nd best reviewed movie of 2017! It’s a great movie to watch with your family. On Amazon Prime

Merry Christmas, friends! It’s December 25, and I’ve suspended my war on Christmas to observe this day and receive presents. I’ve also decided to spend the next year creating a new war on Boxing Day, so enjoy a year off in 2018, Santa.
But speaking of presents, we’ve got something for you! The GamesBeat crew got together to record a week of podcasts talking about the last year. In this episode, we’ve got our “Non-Awards.” These are the categories we each

It's been QUITE the year for the royal family. There's been no end of birthdays, weddings, engagements, anniversaries, and all kinds of other festivities. 
SEE ALSO: Why Prince Harry and Prince William are truly the millennial royals
Here are 17 major moments that defined one helluva year for the royals. 
1. Princess Diana's letters confirmed what we already knew
This year began with a bit of a blast from the past: a revelation from Princess Diana's letters, written when Prince Harry w

Steve Lukas and his son Christian were able to explain VR and AR to a third grade class without needing other kids to put on a headset.
Earlier this year I decided against bringing VR to a recent career day at my child’s school because I would’ve insisted upon permission slips being signed by guardians before letting other kids try a headset. Lukas had a similar thought.
“Ever since my son has been exposed to VR, I’ve always wanted him to do a show and tell for his class,