Nancy Guthrie, mother of Today host Savannah Guthrie, has been missing for over a month now. While the investigation remains active, with no new breaks over the past several weeks, the Pima County Sheriff’s Department in Arizona has returned some of its police officers back to their previous positions. The media circus outside of Nancy’s house left with them.
Tech
Nancy Guthrie missing case: The influencer circus on TikTok and YouTube.
That isn’t the case for everybody, however. There are social media influencers still milling around the missing Guthrie’s home, waiting for a break in the case. And they’re not just waiting — but trying to actually solve the case. They’re looking for clues while their followers give their own theories that can verge into outrageous.
Slate’s Luke Winkie told Today, Explained co-host Sean Rameswaram that he “thinks people think that this case could be solved despite the fact that it’s not, and that has driven a lot of the speculation.”
Below is an excerpt of Winkie’s conversation with Today, Explained, edited for length and clarity. There’s much more in the full episode, so listen to Today, Explained wherever you get podcasts, including Apple Podcasts, Pandora, and Spotify.
Tell us where you went and tell us what it looked like.
I flew into Phoenix, Arizona, jumped in a rental car, took out my phone, and I tapped in Nancy Guthrie’s address. I drove to Tucson, about an hour and a half away, all pretty ordinary. And then I took this one right turn onto a street, and immediately, there were all these cars parked on the side of the road. There were drones overhead — media people just kind of wandering around. There’s people filming front-facing camera videos and talking to their streaming setups. There’s not a police barricade or anything. Anyone can just show up there to cover the case.
Is there something about this Nancy Guthrie case that is particularly potent for these true crime tribes? Is it just that her daughter’s super famous?
This is a galactically famous person, almost like in the subconscious of America. And we live in kind of a low trust culture right now, and I think people are maybe more eager to believe that maybe the sheriff doesn’t know what they’re talking about. Maybe the FBI has bungled this. So maybe you’re more inclined to think that a couple YouTubers might be getting to the bottom of something or are focusing on something that authorities out there have missed.
Did you get a sense being out there how much people wanted to solve this case versus how much they just wanted it to drag on for the views?
I can’t say that the influencers wanted it to drag on for the engagement, but I do think that the longer it went on, in some ways that was more validating for some of the influencers, in the sense that it let them kind of exist within this narrative, that I’m the one that’s going to be able to solve this. I remember there was this one guy, Jonathan Lee Riches, JLR, he goes by, and the longer I was out there, his content stopped being so much about Nancy Guthrie and started being about [the authorities]: “I understand people have to have health and fitness, but would you go — like if you’re the sheriff — would you go to the gym and work out, just like, the next day when Nancy goes missing? He’s been there for days, like working out in the morning.”
What’s funny about that is here we are a month and a couple of days out from Nancy Guthrie being abducted, and none of them have figured it out! What are the influencers doing out there?
“The top guy out there, JLR, was getting almost 80,000 concurrent views of people just staring at a static [shot] of Nancy Guthrie’s house.”
Most influencers are literally just setting up a camera in front of her house and talking to a chat box that is filled with people that are tuning in to basically stare at Nancy Guthrie’s house and wait for updates to trickle in, or to share random theories they saw on Twitter, or to pass along rumors.
And you might think, why would anyone tune into that? [But] clearly there is a market for this. The top guy out there, JLR, was getting almost 80,000 concurrent views of people just staring at a static [shot] of Nancy Guthrie’s house. I talked to another guy out there who’s from California; he drove out there and his reasoning [was]: No one was taking the night shift.
How different is that, I guess, from CNN being out there and not breaking any new news?
This is the thing I found myself thinking about a lot, because you are right. The engagement [from the audience] is really good; you were covering the biggest story in the world, and if you are in the game of true crime, this is where you want to be. You have kind of the veneer of giving the people what they want. I’m out here covering this story and piping it to the people that trust me on true crime.
I didn’t get a great sense that ultimately what these influencers were doing and what these cable news entities were doing were especially different. I think at the end of the day, everyone was sort of milling around Nancy Guthrie’s house waiting for the sheriff to show up to make their statements.
You could say they’re not hurting anyone, but they kind of are — because haven’t they gassed up certain theories to the detriment of alleged suspects who weren’t even suspects?
A good example is the sheriff, when I was out there, made a statement kind of reiterating that they had ruled out Nancy Guthrie’s immediate family as suspects in this investigation. And that’s because there’s been all this speculation that someone close to Nancy Guthrie might’ve been the person to abduct her.
And I talked to one guy out there who was a true crime streamer, and he told me, “Well, I go about things a different way. I like to have direct interaction with my viewers. So when the sheriff put out that statement, I put a poll in my chat saying like, Hey, do you believe the sheriff that her family had nothing to do with it? And in that poll everyone said that, No, I think their family still had something to do with it.”
It wasn’t like he was taking charge of saying, No, guys, listen, we can’t be talking about that, because the authorities ruled them out. They were still willing to kind of engage in that kind of speculation, which you could say is a little bit damaging and not necessarily helpful to solving the case.
It’s like doing your own research about vaccines, except you could ruin someone’s life, right?
I was talking to this guy who was an influencer, and we were talking about how streamers like him get accused of passing along misinformation. He had starred in an Inside Edition feature about how he and these other influencers were putting out these rumors, and how the police want them gone. I expected him to push back hard against the idea that he was spreading misinformation. And he did that a little bit, but that wasn’t really the thrust of his defense.
Instead, he told me that, Listen, I’m going to get things wrong. But I’m a true crime content creator, and that’s what makes true crime fun. To come up with a rumor and a theory and talk about that and explore it, and maybe it later [gets] debunked — that is kind of what we do here in true crime. The next day he was going to go investigate a golf course, because some of his viewers thought that Nancy Guthrie’s body might be stowed away in this golf course. I was chilled about how much I related to what he was saying, and how icky it felt, nonetheless.
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Here comes another disappointment for ChatGPT users. As first reported by Sources‘ Alex Heath, OpenAI is yet again delaying its “adult mode” for ChatGPT. A company spokesperson told Heath that “we’re pushing out the launch of adult mode so we can focus on work that is a higher priority for more users right now.”
More specifically, OpenAI’s spokesperson said that things like “gains in intelligence, personality improvements, personalization, and making the experience more proactive” were being prioritized instead. However, the company still wants to release an adult mode, but it would “take more time,” according to the company spokesperson.
The reveal of ChatGPT’s adult mode dates back to October, when OpenAI’s CEO, Sam Altman, posted on X that the company would roll out more age-gating as part of its “treat adults like adults” principle, adding that this would include “erotica for verified adults.” Altman originally said this adult mode would be available in December, but an OpenAI exec later said during a December briefing that it would instead debut in the first quarter of 2026.
With Q1 almost coming to a close, we no longer have a timeframe for when ChatGPT’s adult mode will release. However, OpenAI began rolling out its age prediction tool in January, which may go hand-in-hand with the upcoming adult mode.
The UFC 326 live stream features Max Holloway vs Charles Oliveira 2 for the BMF belt, a one-off symbolic title that has taken on a life of its own over the past six years and this could be the best contest yet.
And here’s the knockout blow: Walmart+ members get Paramount+ free, and new subscribers to Walmart+ get 30 days’ access for just $1, which means you can watch the UFC 326 full fight live for next to nothing in the United States.
It’s a deal worthy of the BMF title. Details below…
How to watch UFC 326 for $1
Use a VPN to access UFC 326 from anywhere
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If you’re determined to watch UFC 326 for next to nothing but you’re away from the US when it’s on, combine the Walmart/Paramount free trial with the Surfshark free trial below! Don’t forget to cancel before the free trials end.
Quick start: Using a VPN to watch UFC 326 free
Once you’ve signed up with your VPN:
1. Open the NordVPN or Surfshark app.
2. Connect to a server based in USA (e.g. New York).
3. Fire up Paramount Plus or Walmart+. Pro tip: try it in Chrome’s Incognito mode and it should be plain-sailing.
4. Sign up to to Paramount ($8.99) or Walmart ($1 trial) to catch UFC 326. Use a Paramount Plus gift card if you don’t have a credit card.
5. Watch UFC 326.
🥊 UFC 326 card and start times
📍 Location: T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada
📅 This Saturday
⏰ Start Times (ET / PT)
Early Prelims: 5 p.m. ET / 2 p.m. PT
Prelims: 7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT
Main Card: 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT
📋 Main Card
Max Holloway (c) vs Charles Oliveira – Lightweight BMF Title (Rematch)
Caio Borralho vs Reinier de Ridder – Middleweight
Rob Font vs Raul Rosas Jr. – Bantamweight
Drew Dober vs Michael Johnson – Lightweight
Gregory Rodrigues vs Brunno Ferreira – Middleweight
🔥 Prelims
Cody Garbrandt vs Xiao Long – Bantamweight
Donte Johnson vs Cody Brundage – Middleweight
Ricky Turcios vs Alberto Montes – Featherweight
Cody Durden vs Nyamjargal Tumendemberel – Flyweight
🥋 Early Prelims
Su Mudaerji vs Jesús Santos Aguilar – Flyweight
Rafael Tobias vs Diyar Nurgozhay – Light Heavyweight
Lee Jeong-yeong vs Gaston Bolaños – Featherweight
Luke Fernandez vs Rodolfo Bellato – Light Heavyweight
All fights are streaming live on Paramount Plus in the US and through local providers internationally. Watch Paramount Plus for $1 with the Walmart+ 30-day trial.
Conclusion
UFC 326 is here, and thanks to Walmart+ including Paramount Plus with its $1 trial, you can stream every fight live in the US for next to nothing. Traveling outside the country? A strong VPN lets you access Paramount Plus and watch Holloway vs Oliveira 2 legally. Don’t miss this legal, low-cost way to watch UFC 326 live, from prelims to the main event.
You may also be interested in…
We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example: 1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service). 2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad. We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.
Ransomware threat actors tracked as Velvet Tempest are using the ClickFix technique and legitimate Windows utilities to deploy the DonutLoader malware and the CastleRAT backdoor.
Researchers at cyber-deception threat intelligence firm MalBeacon observed the hackers’ actions in an emulated organization environment over a period of 12 days.
Velvet Tempest, also tracked as DEV-0504, is a threat group that has been involved in ransomware attacks as an affiliate for at least five years.
The actor has been associated with deploying some of the most devastating ransomware strains: Ryuk (2018 – 2020), REvil (2019-2022), Conti (2019-2022), BlackMatter, BlackCat/ALPHV (2021-2024), LockBit, and RansomHub.
Source: MalBeacon
The attack was observed by MalBeacon between February 3 and 16 in a replica environment for a non-profit organization in the U.S. with more than 3,000 endpoints and over 2,500 users.
After obtaining access, Velvet Tempest operators performed hands-on keyboard activities, including Active Directory reconnaissance, host discovery, and environment profiling, as well as using a PowerShell script to harvest credentials stored in Chrome.
The script was hosted on an IP address that researchers linked to tool staging for Termite ransomware intrusions.
According to the researchers, Velvet Tempest gained initial access through a malvertising campaign that led to a ClickFix and CAPTCHA mix that instructed victims to paste an obfuscated command into the Windows Run dialog.
Source: MalBeacon
The pasted command triggered nested cmd.exe chains and used finger.exe to fetch the first malware loaders. One of the payloads was an archive file disguised as a PDF file.
In subsequent stages, Velvet Tempest used PowerShell to download and execute commands that fetched additional payloads, compile .NET components via csc.exe in temporary directories, and deploy Python-based components for persistence in C:\ProgramData.
The operation ultimately staged DonutLoader and retrieved CastleRAT backdoor, a remote access trojan associated with the CastleLoader malware loader known for distributing multiple families of RATs and information stealers, like LummaStealer.
Termite ransomware has previously claimed high-profile victims such as SaaS provider Blue Yonder and Australian IVF giant Genea.
While Velvet Tempest is typically associated with double-extortion attacks, where victim systems are encrypted after stealing company data, MalBeacon’s report notes that the threat actor did not deploy the Termite ransomware in the observed intrusion.
Multiple ransomware actors have adopted the CkickFix technique in attacks. Sekoia reported in April 2025 that the Interlock ransomware gang used the social engineering method to breach corporate networks.
Malware is getting smarter. The Red Report 2026 reveals how new threats use math to detect sandboxes and hide in plain sight.
Download our analysis of 1.1 million malicious samples to uncover the top 10 techniques and see if your security stack is blinded.
Astronomers have spotted a galaxy they believe is made of 99.9% dark matter, reports CNN — and it’s so faint, it’s almost invisible:
CDG-2, which is about 300 million light-years from Earth, appears to be so rich in dark matter that it could belong to a hypothesized subset of low surface brightness galaxies called “dark galaxies,” which are believed to contain few or no stars…. [Post-doctoral astrophysics/statistics fellow Dayi Li at the University of Toronto was lead author on a study about the discovery, and tells CNN] There is no strict definition of dark galaxies… but their existence is predicted by dark matter theories and cosmological simulations. “Where exactly do we draw the line in terms of how many stars they should have is still ambiguous, because not everything in astronomy is as clear-cut as we like,” he said. “To be technically correct, CDG-2 is an almost-dark galaxy. But the importance of CDG-2 is that it nudges us much closer to getting to that truly dark regime, while previously we did not think a galaxy this faint could exist.”
To observe CDG-2, the researchers used data from three telescopes — Hubble, the European Space Agency’s Euclid space observatory and the Subaru Telescope in Hawaii — along with a novel approach that involved looking for objects called globular clusters. “These are very tight, spherical groupings of very olds stars, basically the relics of the first generation of star formation,” Li said. Globular clusters are bright even if the surrounding galaxy is not, and previous observations have shown a relationship between them and the presence of dark matter in a galaxy, Li added. Because CDG-2 appears to have very few stars, there must be something else providing the mass that the clusters need to hold themselves together. Li and his colleagues assume that the source of the mass is dark matter.
The researchers found a set of four globular clusters in the Perseus Cluster, a group of thousands of galaxies immersed in a cloud of gas and one of the most massive objects in the universe. Further observations revealed a glow or halo around the globular clusters, suggesting the presence of a galaxy… Astronomers believe, Li explained, that after the formation of the clusters early in the galaxy’s existence, larger surrounding galaxies stripped it of the hydrogen gas required to make more individual stars like our sun. “The material that this galaxy needed to continue to form stars was no longer there, so it was left with basically just a dark matter halo and the four globular clusters.” The process, he added, would leave behind a skeleton or ghost of “a galaxy that pretty much just failed.” As a result of this formation mechanism, the galaxy only has 0.005% of the brightness of our own galaxy, Li said…
Studying potential dark galaxies is important because they provide nearly pristine views of the behavior of dark matter, according to Neal Dalal, a researcher at the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, who was not involved with the study.
Robert Minchin, an astronomer at New Mexico’s National Radio Astronomy Observatory, told CNN that “it seems likely that other very dark galaxies will be found by this method in the future.”
Phone Repair Guru examines packages from AliExpress, each holding the components that will hopefully be utilized to make a seventh-generation iPad. Sounds like a simple challenge: build a fully functional iPad with these components, primarily acquired online, and evaluate how the final cost compares to a reconditioned tablet that costs roughly $200 Canadian. However, there is a catch: the screen is purchased from eBay because the AliExpress selections were inadequate, and the housing is a bit of a mess, having arrived broken but salvageable.
The packages arrive in waves, beginning with the small components: volume buttons, side key, speakers, ringer buzzer, GPS and Wi-Fi antennas, headphone jack, microphone, home button and its flex cable, metal pins for accessories, screws, front and rear cameras, battery and white digitizer, and the motherboard with a charging port pre-soldered on it. Phone Repair Guru must sort through it all while keeping in mind that the quality of everything can vary greatly.
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The housing is assembled first, with the headphone jack installed and secured with a larger screw, and the magnet from the old configuration is pulled out and replaced once the new portion is in position. Next, the speakers are installed, held in place by screws at the bottom and a few adjacent. Antennas are attached on top of the speakers with some residual adhesive. The microphone assembly is slotted along its flexible cable, with the end poking through a hole in the frame.
Cameras are installed with care, as the front camera requires a little bracket from the old housing to secure it before being inserted underneath. The back camera is simply pushed into place and sealed with hot glue (because the preferred cold glue ran out, which I suppose is anti-rep tactics).
The battery comes next, with the motherboard being wrenched out to guide the battery connection, and then the battery is installed. The mother board is reinserted, and a little amount of adhesive is used to ensure that it is securely attached to the housing. Back in goes the motherboard, flex cables are linked, and the battery is secured with a single screw.
The digitizer layer is fitted on top of the home button using pre-applied adhesive. It is aligned using a metal back plate and a little dot for precision. Two flex cables and the home button connector click into the digitizer, and the LCD is fitted in, with the solid connector establishing contact and the bigger screws securing in each corner. The battery connector is tightly clamped down to keep everything locked in.
Finally, all of the remaining screws are inserted, and the protective adhesive removed. What happens when you push the power button? The Apple logo appears. The device boots up to iPadOS 16, the language changes from Chinese to English, Wi-Fi activates, and updates begin downloading. Function checks confirm that everything is working properly; voice memos are recorded and played back through the speaker and microphone. Charging is operating, the power, volume, and home buttons all respond, and touch input works properly. Of course, cameras work as well.
Apple announced a ton of new tech this week, from the iPhone 17E to speedy new MacBook Pro models with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips. By far, the affordable MacBook Neo is making the biggest splash. The 256GB model starts at $599, while the 512GB model costs $699.
But let’s be real. We’re all talking about the new colors. With silver, blush, citrus, and indigo on the table, we polled the CNET crew to see which shade actually wins the office beauty pageant.
Silver came in dead last. Makes sense, since that’s Apple’s default color, and most of us are looking for a tech glow-up. Despite the lower votes for standard silver, I’m sure the classic look will sell well. It’s predictable, but it’s also clean and fresh.
Among CNET staff, the other three colors got a lot more love, with citrus and indigo clearly edging ahead of the competition.
From top to bottom, the MacBook Neo comes in blush, silver, indigo or citrus.
Managing Editor Josh Goldman said that citrus was the favorite at the New York Apple event. But he’s personally not a fan: “It is a yellow-green. I don’t care for it.”
Senior Copy Editor Sarah McDermott also weighed in, calling citrus the “worst of both worlds.” McDermott opted for the blush, as did Goldman, who called it “subtle, changing from silver to pink, depending on the lighting.”
Senior Editor Lori Grunin wasn’t a fan of citrus, either: “Get your green out of my yellow. Also, of the colors, I like the pink best, but I think all-pink devices are ugly.” If Grunin were to buy a MacBook Neo, she’d go with the indigo.
The indigo color squeaked ahead to earn the most votes, and for good reason. It’s a calming shade and reminds me a lot of the iPhone 17 Pro in deep blue.
Senior Editor James Bricknell agreed that Neo’s citrus hue is “more like a lemon that’s not quite ripe,” rather than a bright yellow, but he stilled liked the citrus the best out of the lot. He added, “Full disclosure, my iPad is also yellow. It’s simply the most fun color that Apple makes.”
Citrus is my favorite of the four as well, and Bricknell and I both agreed the indigo is probably our second-favorite. While I’m not a big fan of pastels in general, I must say blush pink is a lovely shade.
It’s crystal clear that the Silver color is the worst.
In the end, indigo took the top spot, garnering 38% of the vote. Citrus was close behind, with 35%. Blush earned a respectable 23% of the vote. And silver scored a measly 4% in total.
I, for one, miss the days of bold, bright colors. Everything has been getting washed out and pastel-ified for years, as if brands just want to be the LaCroix of colors.
I want Kool-Aid red back. I was a big fan of the Product (Red) collection, and I would have loved for the new releases to include some bright, saturated shades — and I’m not the only one in that camp.
Social Media Manager Faith Chihil wants those infamous translucent iBooks to make a comeback. Goldman noted that the days of plastic Apple laptops and desktops are likely done. Senior Writer Jeff Carlson jumped in, agreeing, “Yes, but what about transparent aluminum? (Which is real now!).” Now that’s an idea.
Watch this: Apple Gets It Right! Hands-on with MacBook Neo
You can preorder everything Apple has announced right now, with items launching officially on March 11.
When to watch Newcastle vs. Man City
- Saturday, March 7 at 3 p.m. ET (12 p.m. PT)
Where to watch Newcastle vs. Man City
- Newcastle vs. Man City will air in the US on ESPN Plus, which is available via ESPN Select or ESPN Unlimited.
The pick of this weekend’s English FA Cup fifth-round matches sees Eddie Howe’s resurgent Newcastle host Premier League title-chaser Man City in the Northeast on Saturday.
While City may have lost ground to Arsenal in the EPL title race following its draw with struggling Nottingham Forest in midweek, Pep Guardiola’s crew remains in the hunt for an unprecedented quadruple. Could it be in the cards with this tie coming ahead of its UEFA Champions League clash with Real Madrid at the Bernabeu next Wednesday?
Newcastle may draw encouragement for this game, and next week’s UCL match against Barcelona, from its 2-1 win over Man United in the Premier League on Wednesday.
Newcastle United takes on Manchester City at St. James’ Park on Saturday, March 7. Kickoff is set for 8 p.m. GMT local time in the UK, which is 3 p.m. ET or 12 p.m. PT in the US and Canada, and 7 a.m. AEDT in Australia early on Sunday morning.
Substitute William Osula’s stunning 90th-minute strike earned Newcastle a dramatic 2-1 win in the Premier League over Man United on Wednesday.
Livestream Liverpool vs. Brighton in the US
Every match from this point in the tournament will be available to stream live on ESPN Plus, which is accessible via the network’s ESPN Select or ESPN Unlimited streaming packages. ESPN Select carries ESPN Plus and is the cheaper option at $13 a month.
ESPN’s streaming platforms have been shaken up in recent months. The sports network now offers two tiers with its new direct-to-consumer setup: ESPN Select and ESPN Unlimited. ESPN Select is essentially what ESPN Plus used to be, with the same content available to subscribers, including FA Cup soccer, for $13 a month. If you want full access to ESPN’s networks and services, such as ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, ESPNews and ESPN Deportes, as well as all of ESPN Select’s content, then ESPN Unlimited is the way to go. It costs $30 a month.
Livestream Liverpool vs. Brighton in the UK
TNT Sports and the BBC are sharing duties for the FA Cup this season, with this Saturday evening game set to be shown on TNT Sports 1.
TNT Sports will be showing every match live from the third round onward, excluding Saturday 3 p.m. kickoffs. You can access TNT Sports via Sky Q as part of a TV package, as well as through online streaming options. It costs £31 either way and comes in a package that includes Discovery Plus’ library of documentary content.
Livestream Liverpool vs. Brighton in Canada
Canadian soccer fans looking to watch this FA Cup fixture can watch all the action live via Sportsnet.
Sportsnet is available via most cable operators, but cord-cutters can subscribe to the standalone streaming service Sportsnet Plus instead, with prices starting at CA$30 per month or CA$250 per year for the standard plan.
Livestream Liverpool vs. Brighton in Australia
Football fans in Australia can watch FA Cup matches live on the streaming service Stan Sport.
Stan Sport will set you back AU$20 a month, on top of a Stan subscription, which starts at AU$12. It is worth noting the streaming service is offering a seven-day free trial. On top of select FA Cup matches, a subscription gives you access to Premier League, Champions League and Europa League action, along with international rugby and Formula E.
Tech
Employees thought they were fixing a browser error until fake IT support quietly walked them through infecting their own company computers
- Attackers now rely on employees to unknowingly launch the malware themselves
- Fake IT support calls transform routine troubleshooting into a full network compromise
- Browser crashes become the opening move in carefully staged social engineering attacks
Cybercriminal activity continues to move away from direct software exploitation toward manipulating everyday user behavior within corporate environments, experts have warned.
New research by Huntress describes a campaign in which attackers intentionally crash a user’s browser and display alarming security messages that encourage a “repair.”
The tactic creates a false sense of urgency while allowing the attacker to initiate direct communication with the employee.
Attackers take advantage of employee confusion
In many observed cases, victims received phone calls from individuals claiming to be internal technical staff responsible for resolving the issue, giving the attacker credibility and creates pressure for the employee to cooperate with instructions that appear routine.
The entire chain begins with spam messages flooding a user’s mailbox. Soon after, a phone call arrives from someone claiming to represent “IT support”, who says the spam or browser malfunction requires immediate maintenance on the affected computer.
The deception works because victims are persuaded to perform the actions that trigger the compromise themselves.
Researchers explained that the attackers rely on manual user interaction rather than automated malware delivery, as victims are guided through steps such as approving remote access sessions or installing remote administration tools like AnyDesk.
In other cases, users are instructed to copy and paste commands into system prompts or execute scripts disguised as diagnostic fixes.
The attackers open a browser during remote sessions and direct victims to a fraudulent Microsoft-themed interface hosted on cloud infrastructure.
Victims were instructed to log into a fake “Outlook Antispam Control Panel” and download what was described as an “Antispam Patch”, but is actually a disguised archive file containing several components designed to initiate the next stage of the attack.
Once the so-called repair files were executed, the malicious chain reconstructed itself locally using a staged payload, unpacking files that appeared to resemble legitimate software components, including runtime libraries and executable utilities.
One binary named ADNotificationManager.exe triggers the next phase of the compromise after installation.
At this stage, attackers rely heavily on a technique known as DLL sideloading to run malicious code while legitimate applications continue operating normally.
Malicious dynamic libraries were placed beside legitimate files, allowing the malware to run without immediately triggering obvious alarms within the system.
The payload ultimately deployed a modified agent derived from the open-source command-and-control framework Havoc C2.
And “what once ended with a $300 gift card purchase now ends with a modified Havoc C2 framework burrowed into your environment.”
The activity is swift, in one case, the intruder expanded from the initial compromised computer to nine additional endpoints within roughly eleven hours.
Such rapid activity indicates direct operator control rather than automated malware spreading through vulnerabilities.
The attacker used remote management tools and scripted payloads to maintain persistence while moving through connected systems.
The researchers warn that the campaign reiterates how attackers increasingly depend on social interaction rather than technical flaws to bypass firewall defenses.
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David Barnett has learned a lot since first launching PopSockets more than a decade ago.
As the tale goes, the former philosophy professor was looking for an easy way to hold his headphones and went on to create one of the most viral phone accessories of all time: A device that grips to the back of the phone and can be used as a kickstand or a handle — better known as the PopSockets.
Barnett sat down with Equity this week to talk about his journey building this company from his garage, why he decided to never take on traditional venture capital funding, and some of the lessons he’s learned while scaling the business.
“I was a philosophy professor, so I had no experience with manufacturing,” he recalled, adding that he also lacked experience in business, tax, accounting, and finance. “I burned through a lot of money with no revenue,” he continued, adding that he had “wave after wave of manufacturing defects” during the early days.
Still, he managed along and was able to land in a local toy store where he would often stop by to watch how customers interacted with his brand. “The sales were quite slow,” he said. He adjusted the Popsocket a bit, and that’s when everything started to take off. “That was the point where I thought, ‘Okay, this could work in retail.”
From there, he spoke about the hits and misses of entering retail (including a dispute he had with Amazon that briefly caused him to pull his product from the website). He spoke about adapting the product even more, protecting intellectual property, and when he knew it was time to step down as CEO and let someone else take the reins.
“The greatest lesson I’ve learned is that it’s all about the people,” he said, adding that he was looking for this trait in his successor. “I think that’s the most important skill one can have as a leader.”
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October 13-15, 2026
UFC 326 live streams feature a headline bout that’s been more than a decade in the making. Max Holloway vs Charles Oliveira 2 is rematch from 2015 and the pair finally go head-to-head again in the Octagon at T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, on Saturday. The prize? To find out which one is the baddest mother in the UFC.
Before the legendary lightweights go at it, there’s a typically jam-packed card gracing the T-Mobile Arena that features some of the organization’s hottest prospects. The 21-year-old Mexican Raul Rosas Jr, for example, has been tipped by some to become the UFC’s youngest ever champ. While Gregory Rodrigues and Brunno Ferreira will continue to make waves with an all-Brazilian clash in the middleweight division. You’ll find the full card at the bottom of this page.
Here’s where to watch UFC 326 live streams online and from anywhere with a VPN – including a clever way to watch UFC 326 for just $1.
How to watch UFC 326 live stream in the US
Exclusive US coverage of the full UFC 326 event is on Paramount Plus. It’s being headlined by Max Holloway and Charles Oliveira, which is expected to start at around 11pm ET / 8pm PT.
Plans start from only $8.99 a month with the Paramount Plus Essential Plan, or upgrade to Premium for $13.99 a month (see below for more details). You can also get a Paramount Plus trial with Walmart+ for $1 as with this sneaky trick we found.
While Paramount Plus will show UFC 326 in its entirety, CBS Sports will show two hours of coverage (excluding the headline bout) from 8pm ET / 5pm PT. And you can also watch the Early Prelims with the UFC Fight Pass.
Traveling outside of the US? Use a VPN to watch Paramount Plus from abroad while you’re away from home.
Use a VPN to watch UFC 326 from anywhere
This is handy piece of software that can make your device appear as if it’s back in your home country, thereby letting you unlock your usual service. The best VPN right now? We recommend NordVPN – it does everything and comes with a 74% discount and free Amazon Gift Card thrown in on some plans.
Using a VPN is incredibly simple:
1. Install the VPN of your choice. As we’ve said, NordVPN is our favorite.
2. Choose the location you wish to connect to in the VPN app. For instance, if you’re visiting the UK and want to view your usual US service, you’d select a United States server from the list.
3. Sit back and enjoy the action. Head to your usual local streaming service and watch the UFC.
How to watch UFC 326 live stream in the UK
The UFC 326 live stream is on TNT Sports 1 in the UK.
You can get it by adding TNT Sports to your Sky, Virgin Media or EE TV package, or pay from £30.99 per month for a Discovery+ plan that includes TNT Sports.
The main card action is set to begin at 2am GMT on Sunday morning. UFC Fight Pass subscribers can also watch the Prelims and Early Prelims there.
If you’re abroad whilst the MMA live stream is on, a VPN like NordVPN can help you to access your home streaming services from anywhere.
How to watch UFC 326 live stream in Canada
There are a host of pay-per-view providers offering a UFC 326 live stream in Canada.
You can head to the likes of Sportsnet, Bell or the UFC Fight Pass to watch the whole event, where the PPV price is set at $69.99. Prelims will also be shown on Sportsnet and TVA Sports.
North of the border from the US? You can use NordVPN to watch your Paramount Plus subscription like you were back at home.
How to watch UFC 326 live stream in Australia
Sunday’s Main Card at UFC 326 will be available on PPV in Australia, setting you back AU$59.95 from Foxtel Main Event or Kayo Sports Main Event.
That means you can live stream UFC 326 via your web browser and devices like Android, iOS, Samsung TV, Apple TV, Android TV, Telstra TV and Chromecast.
You can also catch all the Prelims (but not the Holloway vs Oliveira 2 main event) via Paramount+ and free-to-air Network 10.
Downloading a VPN will help you access your subscriptions from anywhere if you’re abroad when the fight is on.
Not quite. Other than the sneaky little Walmart+ for $1 trick described above in the US, there doesn’t seem to be any way to watch UFC 326 for free. It’s on Paramount Plus in the US, which no longer carries a free trial. And it’s on PPV in many other countries around the world. TVNZ+ will also broadcast the early prelims for free in New Zealand if you are looking to catch the full card.
The UFC 326 Main Card is scheduled to begin at 9pm ET / 6pm ET on Saturday, March 7. That’s 2am GMT or 1pm AEDT in the UK and Australia on Sunday, March 8.
Before that, the Early Prelims start at 5pm ET / 2pm PT / 10pm GMT and the Prelims at 7pm PT / 4pm PT / 12am GMT (Sun).
Yes. Most broadcasters have streaming services that you can access through mobile apps or via your phone’s browser – Paramount Plus, Discovery+ and Kayo Sports all have mobile apps, for example. You can also stay up-to-date with the latest UFC news and plays on the official social media channels on X (@ufc), Instagram (@ufc), Facebook (UFC) TikTok (@ufc) and YouTube (@ufc).
Can I watch UFC 326 for free?
When does UFC 326 start?
Can I watch UFC 326 on my mobile?
UFC 326 full card
Main card
Max Holloway vs Charles Oliveira (Lightweight)
Caio Borralho vs Reinier de Ridder (Middleweight)
Rob Font vs Raul Rosas Jr (Bantamweight)
Drew Dober vs Michael Johnson (Lightweight)
Gregory Rodrigues vs Brunno Ferreira (Middleweight)
Prelims
Cody Garbrandt vs Xiao Long (Bantamweight)
Donte Johnson vs Cody Brundage (Middleweight)
Ricky Turcios vs Alberto Montes (Featherweight)
Cody Durden vs Nyamjargal Tumendemberel (Flyweight)
Early prelims
Sumudaerji vs Jesus Aguilar (Flyweight)
Rafael Tobias vs Diyar Nurgozhay (Light Heavyweight)
JeongYeong Lee vs Gaston Bolanos (Featherweight)
Luke Fernandez vs Rodolfo Bellato (Light Heavyweight)
We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example: 1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service). 2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad. We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.
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