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  • Montell Jordan’s prostate cancer is back. He has a battle plan

    Montell Jordan’s prostate cancer is back. He has a battle plan

    Montell Jordan, the son of South L.A. who shot to fame in 1995 with the hit “This Is How We Do It,” says his prostate cancer has returned despite having a radical prostatectomy last year.

    “We thought [the cancer] was all confined, isolated to the prostate,” he said Wednesday on “Today.” “Apparently, that was not the case.”

    Jordan said that after his nine-month follow-up exam and testing, doctors noticed a “tiny amount” of cancer cells in the prostate bed — the former site of the gland that was removed — and in some lymph nodes on the left side of his body. He is opting for proton radiation therapy to target the cancer and hormone blockers to reduce or eliminate production of testosterone, a hormone that the Mayo Clinic says is needed for most prostate cancer cells to grow.

    The five-day-a-week radiation treatments will be “a 7½-week interruption of life to make sure that I have a longer life,” said the 56-year-old Pepperdine University graduate, who is now a pastor based in Georgia, in addition to continuing to work in the music industry.

    After getting prostate exams regularly since he turned 40, he knew his doctor suspected he had cancer when his PSA test results came back elevated. Still, he said, getting the official diagnosis early in 2024 was a shock.

    “I still go numb a little bit,” Jordan told “Today.” “I’m the type of person that tries to live a life of moderation in what I eat and what I drink and how I work out. I don’t do alcohol or smoke or any of those things.” He noted that his quality of live has been “fantastic” since his surgery.

    However, the biopsy that came back after his prostatectomy showed that his cancer was likely Stage 2, not Stage 1 as originally thought, he said. Stage 2 means that the cancer has grown larger and has possibly spread to nearby lymph nodes. The most recent exam appears to have confirmed that diagnosis.

    Jordan said he is talking about his journey because the way that prostate cancer and notions of manhood and masculinity are interwoven means men don’t like to talk about the disease — Black men especially.

    The minister, who with his wife, Kristin Jordan, formed the “100% virtual” Master Peace Church operating out of Dacula, Ga., northeast of Atlanta, is also filming a documentary about his experience.

    “I’m trying to give a template for people that get diagnosed with this to, one, know they have options available to them,” Jordan said. “And, two, in the mix of what that looks like, it’s OK to cry. It’s OK to shake your fist at God. It’s OK to navigate and do what you need to do, but doing nothing is not an option.”

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  • Google Wins Big in Antitrust Remedy Decision, Expert Says

    Google Wins Big in Antitrust Remedy Decision, Expert Says

    Things didn’t look good for Google after a judge found that the company’s search engine is a monopoly. 

    But Northeastern University technology and antitrust experts predict that the remedy the judge imposed — that Google share search data with “qualified competitors” — will make Google executives very happy.

    “This ruling is a major victory for Google,” says John Kwoka, Neal F. Finnegan distinguished professor of economics at Northeastern. “‘Remedies’ that depend on the incumbent monopolist for their effectiveness have a dismal track record.”

    Christo Wilson, professor and associate dean of undergraduate programs at Northeastern’s Khoury College of Computer Sciences, concurs.

    “I don’t think this ruling is strong enough to make a difference,” Wilson adds, saying that Google executives are probably “elated” at the news.

    Wilson, who has done digital consumer protection research on online platforms including Google, says that he finds the judge’s remedy hard to reconcile with the finding that Google search is a monopoly. 

    “They just seem at odds,” Wilson says. “You identified a problem, but you are abdicating your responsibility to solve the problem.”

    02/12/19 – BOSTON, MA. – Christo Wilson, associate professor in the Khoury College of Computer Sciences, poses for a portrait in the Interdisciplinary Science & Engineering Complex on Feb. 12, 2019. Photo by Matthew Modoono/Northeastern University
    John Kwoka, a professor of economics, featured in a portrait with a neutral expression against a sleek background.
    12/03/21 – BOSTON, MA. – John Kwoka, Neal F. Finnegan Distinguished Professor of Economics, poses for a portrait on Dec. 3, 2021. Photo by Matthew Modoono/Northeastern University
    Northeastern University’s Christo Wilson and John Kwoka say Google has reason to celebrate after a judge said the company did not have to give up its Chrome browser. Photos by Matthew Modoono/Northeastern University

    The Department of Justice filed an antitrust suit against Google in 2020, arguing that the company used exclusive agreements with device makers like Apple and Samsung to give Google’s search engine a prime position on phones or computers — thus unfairly boxing out its competitors. In return, companies like Apple received billions of dollars in payments from Google, the suit alleged.

    In August 2024, U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta ruled in the DOJ’s favor, finding that Google had maintained an illegal monopoly over search.

    That began the second — or remedy — phase of the trial, with the judge essentially deciding what the company had to do about its monopoly. 

    The DOJ requested that Google spin off its browser, Chrome, and share search data. Google objected, agreeing only to roll back its exclusive search engine contracts.

    Mehta ruled largely in Google’s favor, Northeastern experts say.

    “Google does not have to divest Chrome or Android, even though those were the mechanisms for gaining share, preventing the emergence of new competitors and monetizing its search monopoly,” Kwoka says. “Google does not even have to offer a choice screen for alternative search engines — not that screens were always effective, but this ruling makes no effort whatsoever to compel choice.”

    Moreover, the sharing of search data will likely not change anything — at least anytime soon, Kwoka says.

    “Crucially, the requirement that Google provide access to their search database for ‘qualified competitors,’ well, Google could not have written language better suited to endless debate and delay,” Kwoka continues. 

    He says that “one can already imagine” how Google will interpret the term “qualified” to raise privacy issues and concerns over seamless operation, to exclude certain competitors, and “stall”  in providing full and continuous updates. 

    Wilson agrees. 

    “I don’t particularly subscribe to this as a reasonable remedy because I think it’s a recipe for malicious compliance,” Wilson says. 

    Moreover, Wilson says that sharing search data – even if it happens – doesn’t solve the monopoly problem.

    “Let’s just say that they comply, and they start giving data to Microsoft or Open AI,” Wilson says. “They can go and build search engines – and maybe they will – but that doesn’t solve the problem of how to get that search engine in front of people in a way that they will use it and become long-term users.”

    Finally, neither Wilson nor Kwoka was swayed by Mehta’s reasoning that search based on artificial intelligence will provide competition to Google and thus warranted a spinoff of Chrome or other more drastic remedies.

    “There is very little data suggesting that the AI companies are seriously challenging Google in the search space,” Wilson says. “But even if we accept the thesis that AI is going to change how search works, that doesn’t mean Google is going anywhere. Gemini (Google’s AI assistant) is deeply integrated into all their products now.”

    Kwoka concurred. 

    “(The judge’s reasoning) overlooks the fact that the tech companies — including Google — have been busy acquiring leaders in AI,” Kwoka says. “Given how AI has been allowed to evolve, that sector will not bring the necessary competition to search. This ruling ensures that.”

    Science & Technology

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  • Everything everywhere all at once: Decision-making signals engage entire brain

    Everything everywhere all at once: Decision-making signals engage entire brain

    Activity associated with choice showed up in cortical areas, in line with previous findings, but it also occurred in subcortical areas such as the hindbrain and cerebellum, challenging the notion that only a few select areas encode information about decision-making and supporting the idea that it is widespread.

    “It is interesting how much choice selectivity is everywhere,” says Long Ding, research associate professor of neuroscience at the University of Pennsylvania, who was not involved in the work.

    Movement- and feedback-related signals also pervaded across the brain: 81 percent of recorded brain regions contained information that could predict the animal’s wheel speed, and activity from nearly all recorded brain regions—including those beyond the associated reward areas—accurately predicted whether the mouse had received a reward or not, with stronger activity in the thalamus, the midbrain and the hindbrain.

    If the mice saw the circle more often on one side of the screen than the other, they eventually integrated that prior information into their next decision. This information was represented broadly across 20 to 30 percent of the brain, including in sensory processing areas, such as the dorsal lateral geniculate, that are located early in the visual pathway, the team reported in the second study.

    The findings contradict the long-standing idea that prior information is integrated into the process only in higher-order cortical or decision-making regions “at the very last step,” Churchland says. Instead, priors shape decisions all along, the new findings suggest.

    A

    ltogether, the studies suggest that the current model of decision-making and the brain regions that control it might be limited in scope and that other, unexplored brain areas might also be important, Churchland says.

    And although the analyses show that a distributed network of brain regions contains information about decision-making even at early stages of sensory processing, the results do not show causality, so future studies need to determine how that information is used, Ding says. “Yes, [the information is] reflected everywhere, but where is it actually used for the next decision, for learning?”

    The comprehensive map sets the stage for those next experiments and could even act as a “library” to help neuroscientists double-check results in their own labs, de Lange says, and ultimately, these studies underscore the importance of large-scale, multilab efforts, particularly for studying brain activity.

    The global consortium has since expanded to include 21 experimental and theoretical neuroscience labs and has established a new group called IBL 2.0 that plans to share the tools and expertise it has amassed with new partners, Churchland says. “I hope that our work makes clear that when larger groups of folks team up, they can accomplish things that are beyond the scale of a single laboratory and that really generate critical insights for the field.”

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  • Check Point Software Shareholders Approve All 2025 Annual General Meeting Proposals

    Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ: CHKP), a leading provider of cyber security solutions globally, today announced that shareholders approved all six proposals presented at the 2025 Annual General Meeting. Approximately 85.8 million shares, representing approximately 80% of the shares outstanding as of the record date, were voted at the meeting.

    Check Point would like to thank shareholders for the support and confidence they have in the company and its employees.

    For more information on the agenda items, please see the company’s proxy statement for the annual general meeting of shareholders:

    www.checkpoint.com/about-us/investor-relations/annual-general-meeting/

     

    Follow Check Point via:

    X (Formerly known as Twitter): https://www.twitter.com/checkpointsw
    Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/checkpointsoftware
    Blog: https://blog.checkpoint.com
    YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/CPGlobal
    LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/check-point-software-technologies

    About Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. 

    Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (www.checkpoint.com) is a leading protector of digital trust, utilizing AI-powered cyber security solutions to safeguard over 100,000 organizations globally. Through its Infinity Platform and an open garden ecosystem, Check Point’s prevention-first approach delivers industry-leading security efficacy while reducing risk. Employing a hybrid mesh network architecture with SASE at its core, the Infinity Platform unifies the management of on-premises, cloud, and workspace environments to offer flexibility, simplicity and scale for enterprises and service providers.

    Legal Notice Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
    This press release contains forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements generally relate to future events or our future financial or operating performance. Forward-looking statements in this press release include, but are not limited to, statements related to our expectations regarding future growth, the expansion of Check Point’s industry leadership, the enhancement of shareholder value and the delivery of an industry-leading cyber security platform to customers worldwide. Our expectations and beliefs regarding these matters may not materialize, and actual results or events in the future are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those projected. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are also subject to other risks and uncertainties, including those more fully described in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 2, 2024. The forward-looking statements in this press release are based on information available to Check Point as of the date hereof, and Check Point disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, except as required by law.


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  • Hewlett Packard beats quarterly revenue estimates on robust server demand

    Hewlett Packard beats quarterly revenue estimates on robust server demand

    (Reuters) -Hewlett Packard Enterprise beat Wall Street estimates for third-quarter revenue on Wednesday, driven by strong demand in its server and networking segments.

    Demand for AI servers has surged as big tech companies and startups race to deploy generative AI services, such as ChatGPT, which require immense computing power.

    The surge in GenAI has boosted demand for HPE’s AI-optimized servers, powered by Nvidia processors, which can run complex applications. HPE integrated Nvidia’s latest GPUs into its server portfolio in 2025.

    “Customer demand stretched broadly across our portfolio and was particularly strong in our Server and Networking segments,” CEO Antonio Neri said.

    HPE’s acquisition of Juniper expands its networking business, a segment that generally grows faster compared to traditional hardware. HPE completed the $14 billion acquisition in early July.

    The company added veteran tech industry executive Robert Calderoni to its board in July, reaching a truce with activist investor Elliott Investment Management, one of HPE’s biggest shareholders with a stake exceeding $1.5 billion.

    For the third quarter ended July 31, HPE reported revenue of $9.14 billion, ahead of analysts’ average estimate of $8.53 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG.

    Server revenue increased by 16% year-over-year to $4.9 billion, while networking revenue surged 54% to $1.7 billion during the quarter.

    The server maker projects fourth-quarter revenue between $9.7 billion and $10.1 billion, exceeding analysts’ expectations of $9.54 billion.

    HPE now expects revenue growth of 14% to 16% in fiscal year 2025, compared with its prior forecast of growth of 7% to 9%.

    (Reporting by Juby Babu in Mexico City; Editing by Mohammed Safi Shamsi)

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  • Samsung Galaxy Book5 Pro 360 laptop deal: Save $350

    Samsung Galaxy Book5 Pro 360 laptop deal: Save $350

    SAVE 21%: As of Sept. 3, you can get the 16-inch Samsung Galaxy Book5 Pro 360 Copilot+ (Intel Core 7 Ultra, 16GB RAM, 1TB HDS) for $1,349.99, down from $1,699.99. That’s a 21% discount and a $350 saving on list price.

    The school year has started, and for many, that means upgrading outdated tech to fit the demands of whatever new academic (and creative) challenges the semester has in store. Luckily, most of Amazon’s Labor Day discounts are still available, so you can snag a new laptop, headphones, and other tech essentials at a fraction of the list price.

    If you’re looking for a deal on a powerful 2-in-1 laptop, this one’s for you. As of Sept. 3, you can get the Samsung Galaxy Book5 Pro 360 Copilot+ (Intel Core 7 Ultra, 16GB RAM, 1TB HDS) for $1,349.99, down from $1,699.99. That’s a 21% discount and a $350 saving. It’s also the lowest price we’ve tracked on this model to date.

    SEE ALSO:

    The 6 best laptops under $500: Back-to-school edition

    This AI-powered laptop is built for performance. It’s stacked with a next-gen Intel Core Ultra Series 2 processor, an Intel Arc GPU, and a dedicated NPU that chew through demanding tasks without a problem. Everything pops on the Dynamic AMOLED 2X screen, thanks to its wide color gamut and super-smooth 120Hz refresh rate. It also includes the S Pen, giving you the precision to sketch out your next big idea.

    Mashable Deals

    Save over $300 on the Samsung Galaxy Book5 Pro 360 Copilot at Amazon.

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  • Brainwave test spots Alzheimer’s years before symptoms show

    Brainwave test spots Alzheimer’s years before symptoms show

    Alzheimer’s disease remains one of the most feared conditions of our time. For decades, researchers have searched for ways to detect its early signs before memory loss becomes irreversible.

    A team from the University of Bath, working with the University of Bristol, has now shown that a simple brain-wave test could transform this challenge.


    The findings reveal that the Fastball EEG test can identify memory impairment linked to Alzheimer’s years before a clinical diagnosis is possible. Unlike traditional tools, it works passively and can even be used in people’s homes.

    Fastball memory test

    Fastball is a three-minute EEG test that tracks brain activity while participants view a stream of images. It does not require them to follow instructions or recall details, making it more objective than memory tests used today.

    The research team demonstrated that Fastball detects memory issues in people with mild cognitive impairment, a condition that often progresses to Alzheimer’s.

    Earlier studies in 2021 already suggested Fastball’s sensitivity, but this new work highlights its potential in real-world settings.

    Catching Alzheimer’s early

    New Alzheimer’s treatments such as donanemab and lecanemab work best in the early stages. Yet in England, one in three people living with dementia lack a formal diagnosis.

    This delay prevents timely treatment, reduces access to support, and limits opportunities for clinical research.

    Dr. George Stothart from the University of Bath, who led the study, stressed the importance of earlier detection.

    “We’re missing the first 10 to 20 years of Alzheimer’s with current diagnostic tools. Fastball offers a way to change that – detecting memory decline far earlier and more objectively, using a quick and passive test,” he said.

    Mild impairment, higher risk

    Alzheimer’s disease often begins with silent changes in the brain decades before symptoms. mild cognitive impairment, especially the amnestic form, is considered a key transition stage.

    Patients with this condition show pronounced memory problems and face a higher risk of developing dementia compared to those with other types of impairment.

    Fastball zeroes in on recognition memory. Unlike attention tests or verbal recall, it captures the brain’s unconscious response to familiar images.

    The study confirmed that the tool predicts recognition memory performance but not unrelated functions like sustained attention.

    From labs to living rooms

    The study marks the first time Fastball has been successfully used in homes rather than in clinical labs. This shift could enable wider screening and regular monitoring through low-cost equipment.

    Researchers envision the test being applied in GP surgeries, memory clinics, and private households. Its simplicity and portability make it attractive for large-scale adoption.

    “There’s an urgent need for accurate, practical tools to diagnose Alzheimer’s at scale. Fastball is cheap, portable, and works in real-world settings,” added Dr. Stothart.

    Fastball test is very reliable

    Traditional memory tests often face cultural, linguistic, and educational biases. They also require effort and communication, which can be stressful for patients.

    Fastball avoids these hurdles by passively recording brain activity. It uses steady-state visual stimulation, a method that produces reliable signals in a short time.

    In this study, the test showed good reliability over a year when repeated with healthy older adults.

    Importantly, patients who later developed dementia displayed weaker responses at baseline – hinting at its predictive potential.

    The Academy of Medical Sciences funded the study, while dementia research charity BRACE provided vital backing. BRACE has long championed the project and sees promise in its next stages.

    “Fastball is an incredible tool that could offer anyone who, for whatever reason, cannot access a dementia diagnosis in a clinical setting,” said Chris Williams, CEO of BRACE Dementia Research.

    “BRACE has been supporting the development of Fastball for several years, and we are excited to see what Dr. Stothart’s team will achieve over the next few years with ongoing support from the charity.”

    Hope for families facing Alzheimer’s

    The potential of Fastball lies not only in its science but in its reach. By providing accurate results in minutes without demanding effort from patients, it could reshape the way memory disorders are tracked and treated.

    With ongoing support and refinement, this test might open the door to earlier interventions and new hope for families facing Alzheimer’s, while also offering healthcare systems an affordable, scalable approach to improve diagnosis, monitoring, and timely access to emerging treatments.

    The study is published in the journal Brain Communications.

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  • Fitness, Lean Mass Linked to Reduced Anxiety and Depression in Children

    Fitness, Lean Mass Linked to Reduced Anxiety and Depression in Children

    Greater lean mass and higher fitness were linked with fewer anxiety and depression symptoms in preadolescent children, as higher visceral adipose tissue was found to be related to increased mental health issues, according to results published in JAMA Network. The study authors noted that the findings highlight the importance of looking at physical health markers early on to support a child’s mental health and development.1,2

    Mental Health Challenges and Weight Management

    Nearly 20% of children and adolescents experience mental health issues, with anxiety and depression being the most common, increasing by nearly 30% between 2016 and 2020. Additionally, about 40% of adolescents report persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness, according to data provided in the study. Mental health challenges at a young age can impact a child’s development, as depression can hinder academic performance, and chronic anxiety and depression can lead to long-term health issues like heart disease.1

    Previous studies have linked both body composition and fitness with childhood mental health. Higher fitness levels have been associated with improved overall health and fewer depressive symptoms in children and adolescents; however, most children do not meet physical activity guidelines. Additionally, childhood obesity rates have increased, placing children at an increased risk for depression and anxiety due to negative body image and various social factors.1,3

    How Do Depression and Anxiety Relate to Obesity in Children?

    Despite what is already known about mental health and childhood obesity, research on the relationship between fitness and anxiety and depression is limited for children under 10. To further this research, investigators created a cross-sectional study that evaluated the relationship between body composition, fitness, and symptoms of anxiety and depression in a large sample of preadolescent children aged 8 to 11 years, without prior health diagnosis. The study used dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) to assess body composition and a VO₂ peak test to evaluate fitness.1

    A total of 207 children were included in the study, with depression and anxiety measured using self-report tools. The study authors noted that depression was assessed with the 12-item short form of the Child Depression Inventory (CDI), with higher scores indicating increased symptom severity. Anxiety was evaluated using the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children (STAIC-T), where higher scores indicated severe anxiety.1

    The results demonstrated that certain body compositions and fitness measures were linked to anxiety and depression symptoms. Specifically, a higher body fat percentage and increased visceral adipose tissue (VAT) were associated with more severe anxiety symptoms, as higher lean mass and higher cardiorespiratory fitness were linked with fewer anxiety symptoms. For depression, a higher body fat percentage was not associated with depressive symptoms, but a higher VAT was linked to more severe depression. However, both greater lean mass and a higher level of cardiorespiratory fitness were related to fewer depressive symptoms.1

    The findings suggest higher VAT increased depressive and anxiety symptoms, as high body fat percentage was only connected with greater anxiety. Children who had greater lean mass and more fitness and physical activity had fewer mental health symptoms.1,2

    “These distinctions, detectable even in preadolescence, could support early identification of children at greater risk for mental health symptoms. Integrating modifiable factors like fitness and body composition into routine pediatric assessments may help guide preventative care and early intervention to improve children’s mental health outcomes,” the authors said in the study.1

    REFERENCES
    1. Braun B, Khan NA, Hillman CH, Raine LB. Body Composition, Fitness, and Mental Health in Preadolescent Children. JAMA Netw Open. 2025;8(8):e2528868. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.28868
    2. Body composition, fitness, and mental health in preadolescent children. EurekAlert! News release. August 26, 2025. Accessed September 3, 2025. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1095724
    3. Lasting Impact: The Long-Term Effects of Childhood Obesity. Cleveland Clinic. News release. June 3, 2024. Accessed September 3, 2025. https://health.clevelandclinic.org/long-term-effects-of-childhood-obesity

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  • Tech rebounds, jobs worries deepen

    Tech rebounds, jobs worries deepen

    By Jamie McGeever

    ORLANDO, Florida (Reuters) -TRADING DAY

    Making sense of the forces driving global markets

    By Jamie McGeever, Markets Columnist

    A rebound in U.S. tech stocks lifted the Nasdaq and S&P 500 on Wednesday, but soft U.S. employment indicators kept investors on edge and sparked a rally in Treasuries and gold prices.

    More on that below. In my column today, I look at the surprising strength of China’s yuan against the dollar in recent weeks, and argue that it may be part of Beijing’s wider strategy in its trade negotiations with Washington.

    If you have more time to read, here are a few articles I recommend to help you make sense of what happened in markets today.

    1. From Tokyo to London, bond investor fears over fiscaldiscipline leave markets on edge 2. Fed rate cuts and doubts over independence to keep U.S.dollar under pressure 3. Google’s AI rivals get a boost from data-sharing order,but tech giant far from routed 4. China’s Xi projects power at military parade with Putinand Kim 5. UK budget speculation adds to risks for the economy

    Today’s Key Market Moves

    * STOCKS: S&P 500 and Nasdaq rise after favorableantitrust ruling for Alphabet. Nasdaq outperforms but Dow,Russell 2000 slip. * SHARES/SECTORS: Alphabet surges 9%, ConocoPhillips-4.4%. Communications sector +3.8%, biggest rise since April;energy -2.3%. * FX: Dollar falls broadly. Biggest decline is a 0.5%slide against Hungary’s forint; in G10 FX space, greenback falls0.4% against sterling and Aussie dollar. * BONDS: European debt remains under pressure butTreasuries rebound. U.S. yields fall as much as 7 bps, curvebull flattens. * COMMODITIES: A new high for gold at $3,578/oz. Oil falls2.5%, biggest fall in a month, as OPEC mulls output hike.

    Today’s Talking Points:

    * U.S. jobs

    This is a huge week for the U.S. labor market, and therefore the Fed. Most observers agree conditions are softening – the disagreement is over how rapidly, whether interest rate cuts are warranted, and if so, when does the Fed act.

    Figures on Wednesday showed job openings fell to a 10-month low in July and there were more unemployed people than positions available for the first time since the pandemic. Weekly claims and July ADP private sector jobs data are out on Thursday, before the big one on Friday – August non-farm payrolls.

    * ECB

    Euro zone price pressures may be a little hotter than expected, with figures this week showing producer inflation in July and consumer inflation in August above forecast. European Central Bank board member Isabel Schnabel told Reuters there’s no need to cut rates.

    Schnabel is at the hawkish end of the spectrum, but markets don’t disagree – the ECB is expected to stand pat next week and all of next year. Further rate cut hopes are fading. Could the next move, whenever it comes, actually be a rate hike?

    * China flexes muscles

    China held its largest-ever military parade on Wednesday to mark 80 years since Japan’s defeat in World War Two, with President Xi Jinping telling the world it must choose between “peace or war, dialogue or confrontation, win-win or zero-sum.” U.S. President Donald Trump called it a “beautiful ceremony”.

    The event was designed to flex China’s diplomatic, economic and tech muscle too, not just its military might. As many countries agree to lopsided trade deals with the U.S., the leaders of China, Russia and India are forging closer ties between their nations.

    China uses yuan as olive branch in U.S. trade talks

    A notable trend this year has been the often-counterintuitive market reactions to U.S. President Donald Trump’s efforts to upend many long-held economic norms. One of the biggest surprises has been the appreciation of China’s yuan.

    The consensus opinion at the start of the year was that Beijing would counter Washington’s punitive tariffs on Chinese imports by depreciating the yuan against the dollar. This would keep Chinese goods competitive, enabling the country’s exporters to compensate for any loss of U.S. business.

    On top of that, a weaker exchange rate would, in theory, help to reflate China’s economy, pulling it out of the deflationary funk it has been in since its property bubble began to burst in 2021.

    And, finally, a weaker yuan would be a poke in the eye to Washington. A key pillar of the Trump administration’s economic agenda, articulated most artfully by adviser Stephen Miran and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, is a weaker dollar.

    But Beijing surprised everyone.

    The yuan did slide to an 18-year low around 7.350 per dollar during the chaos of Trump’s April 2 ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs. And combined with low domestic inflation and even deflation in recent years, the yuan’s broad ‘real’ effective exchange rate (REER) is the weakest in over a decade.

    But since April, it has reversed course rapidly against the dollar, trading last week at a 2025 high of 7.1260 per dollar.

    Indeed, measured by the People’s Bank of China’s official daily fixings or offshore market trading, the yuan just posted its biggest monthly gain against the greenback in almost a year.

    These big moves can partly be explained by strong capital inflows. The Shanghai Composite equity index is at a 10-year high, boosted by record net inflows from hedge funds in August. And even though China’s trade surplus with the U.S. may be shrinking, its global surplus in the first seven months of the year hit a new record.

    That’s a recipe for a stronger exchange rate.

    GOOD FAITH

    But with a currency as tightly controlled as the yuan, market dynamics are not the whole story.

    The appreciation appears to be a deliberate policy choice by Beijing, potentially hinting at its broader strategy in combating Trump’s tariffs.

    On a basic level, this doesn’t make sense. Given the deflationary pressures still weighing on the Chinese economy, why do authorities appear to be actively pursuing a stronger exchange rate?

    But when viewed as a negotiating tactic, the logic starts to become clear. The Trump administration has explicitly stated that it wants a weaker dollar – not a ‘weak dollar’, mind you – but a currency level that would make U.S. exports more attractive. And Beijing can help deliver this, especially given that China’s currency acts as an anchor for other regional exchange rates.

    Thus, the yuan’s appreciation against the dollar indicates that – despite China’s show of force this week – Beijing is still willing to negotiate with Washington.

    ‘ANTI-INVOLUTION’

    China may also want a firmer exchange rate to help ease some domestic concerns, namely sluggish consumption.

    The economic data coming out of China will do little to support consumer sentiment or domestic demand: the latest headline manufacturing PMI data was soft, new orders are declining, and construction has contracted at its fastest rate since the pandemic.

    President Xi Jinping is clearly taking this seriously. He has pledged to take steps to boost domestic consumption and technological innovation, while supporting small firms. And he has also spoken about breaking the cycle of “involution”, a term now widely used for excess competition and overcapacity.

    An appreciating yuan should help these efforts because, as all else being equal, a stronger currency should boost domestic demand.

    The yuan’s recent rise against the dollar is thus “a policy push, not a market pull,” as Goldman Sachs analysts neatly put it.

    And given the foreign and domestic concerns China currently faces, investors should not be surprised if Beijing keeps pushing the currency higher, at least until the latest U.S.-Sino tariff truce expires in November. A stronger yuan may be one olive branch Beijing is still willing to offer.

    What could move markets tomorrow?

    * Australia trade (July) * Malaysia interest rate decision * Euro zone retail sales (July) * Canada trade (July) * U.S. trade (July) * U.S. services ISM (August) * U.S. ADP private sector employment (August) * U.S. weekly jobless claims * U.S. Senate Banking Committee hearing on Stephen Mirannomination to Fed Board of Governors * Federal Reserve officials scheduled to speak include NewYork Fed President John Williams, Chicago Fed President AustanGoolsbee

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    Opinions expressed are those of the author. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

    (By Jamie McGeever; Editing by Nia Williams)

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  • Automated Sextortion Spyware Takes Webcam Pics of Victims Watching Porn

    Automated Sextortion Spyware Takes Webcam Pics of Victims Watching Porn

    Sextortion-based hacking, which hijacks a victim’s webcam or blackmails them with nudes they’re tricked or coerced into sharing, has long represented one of the most disturbing forms of cybercrime. Now one specimen of widely available spyware has turned that relatively manual crime into an automated feature, detecting when the user is browsing pornography on their PC, screenshotting it, and taking a candid photo of the victim through their webcam.

    On Wednesday, researchers at security firm Proofpoint published their analysis of an open-source variant of “infostealer” malware known as Stealerium that the company has seen used in multiple cybercriminal campaigns since May of this year. The malware, like all infostealers, is designed to infect a target’s computer and automatically send a hacker a wide variety of stolen sensitive data, including banking information, usernames and passwords, and keys to victims’ crypto wallets. Stealerium, however, adds another, more humiliating form of espionage: It also monitors the victim’s browser for web addresses that include certain NSFW keywords, screenshots browser tabs that include those words, photographs the victim via their webcam while they’re watching those porn pages, and sends all the images to a hacker—who can then blackmail the victim with the threat of releasing them.

    “When it comes to infostealers, they typically are looking for whatever they can grab,” says Selena Larson, one of the Proofpoint researchers who worked on the company’s analysis. “This adds another layer of privacy invasion and sensitive information that you definitely wouldn’t want in the hands of a particular hacker.”

    “It’s gross,” Larson adds. “I hate it.”

    Proofpoint dug into the features of Stealerium after finding the malware in tens of thousands of emails sent by two different hacker groups it tracks (both relatively small-scale cybercriminal operations), as well as a number of other email-based hacking campaigns. Stealerium, strangely, is distributed as a free, open source tool available on Github. The malware’s developer, who goes by the named witchfindertr and describes themselves as a “malware analyst” based in London, notes on the page that the program is for “educational purposes only.”

    “How you use this program is your responsibility,” the page reads. “I will not be held accountable for any illegal activities. Nor do i give a shit how u use it.”

    In the hacking campaigns Proofpoint analyzed, cybercriminals attempted to trick users into downloading and installing Stealerium as an attachment or a web link, luring victims with typical bait like a fake payment or invoice. The emails targeted victims inside companies in the hospitality industry, as well as in education and finance, though Proofpoint notes that users outside of companies were also likely targeted but wouldn’t be seen by its monitoring tools.

    Once it’s installed, Stealerium is designed to steal a wide variety of data and send it to the hacker via services like Telegram, Discord, or the SMTP protocol in some variants of the spyware, all of which is relatively standard in infostealers. The researchers were more surprised to see the automated sextortion feature, which monitors browser URLs a list of pornography-related terms such as “sex” and “porn,” which can be customized by the hacker and trigger simultaneous image captures from the user’s webcam and browser. Proofpoint notes that it hasn’t identified any specific victims of that sextortion function, but the existence of the feature suggests it was likely used.

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