Author: TechBrunch

Google has suspended Catwatchful's account, a phone monitoring operator who was using Tech Giant's servers to host and operate monitoring software. Google's move to shut down Spyware operations takes place a month after TechCrunch warns the tech giant. The operator was hosting Firebase Opering, one of Google's developer platforms. Catwatchful relied on Firebase to host and store a huge amount of data stolen from thousands of phones compromised by spyware. “We investigated these reported Firebase operations and stopped because we violated our Terms of Use,” Google spokesperson Ed Fernandez told TechCrunch this week's email. When asked by TechCrunch, Google didn't…

Apple is expanding its app age rating system. The company said Thursday it updated its age rating system to add 13+, 16+ and 18+ ratings to its existing 4+ and 9+ ratings, removing the 12+ and 17+ ranges. Additionally, app developers must answer new age rating questions to identify sensitive content in their apps. Developers can also update the app's age rating to one of the new options if desired. The company says it will automatically update all apps and games across the App Store to match the new system available for beta versions of iOS 26, iPados 26, Macos…

AI-powered coding tools have been extremely popular over the past few months, almost all major tech companies use one or create their own. The makers of these so-called “vibe coding” tools are hot products at the moment, and startups like startups like buyers and investors want to tap on hot trends. Google is now the latest to join this bandwagon. The company is testing a vibe coding tool called Opal, available to US users via Google Labs. Opal allows you to create mini web apps using text prompts. Alternatively, you can remix existing apps available in the gallery. All users…

Two years after securing $1 billion in commitments from over 20 countries, the NATO Innovation Fund (NIF) enters a new chapter marked by the arrival of two new partners and the departure of their penultimate founding team partners. In the context of increasing military spending across NATO members, investment in double-use technologies has skyrocketed since the initiative was first announced in 2021. This vibrant interest should have given the NIF the benefits of a First Me Bar, but the fund was hampered by management challenges and a series of well-known departures. After the 2025 NATO Summit in The Hague reaffirmed…

Internet trends are simple. Friends and family look into the camera and tell viewers in a slightly offensive tone that they are about to witness the presentation, and that it's better that they're good. That's what Kendall, the younger sister of Lucious McDaniel IV, did, and after she got aside, her brother pitched his company, Bitesight. You can also bookmark where customers can see what their friends have ordered and try them out. The app plays about how young people are involved in content. McDaniel posted the video and returned to work. Fifteen minutes later, his sister texted him that…

Two years after being a benchmark venture capitalist for a top shelf company, Victor Lazarute left the company to begin his own investment gig, which was announced at X on Thursday. Lazarte has become known for its co-founding technology of Wildlife Studios, the mobile gaming company last valued at an estimated $3 billion in 2020. Wildlife raised funds from numerous VCs, including benchmarks. For two years at the benchmark, Lazarte has invested in recruiting and data labeling for startup Melkor, AI video intelligence platform Heygen, and AI infrastructure companies. Lazarte is off the benchmark to “build new investment practices,” he…

Elon Musk's X begins experimenting with a new way of using community notes, a crowdsourced fact checking system, highlighting appropriate posts from users with different perspectives. On Thursday, the Community Notes X account announced the launch of a pilot test where selected contributors can rate posts by answering questions about whether they like or don't like that particular post. This system is similar to how communities fact-check their own facts. Rather than allowing users to support or downboat posts for accuracy, it's something that can be easily played when like-minded contributors combine to promote their own opinions. Community Notes use…

Apple has released its first public beta version of iOS 26, the new mobile operating system. It features a “Liquid Glass” user interface and improved AI features. This release will allow early adopters to get the latest Apple software before wider public availability later this fall. This update represents the most notable visual transformation since iOS 7. It features a “liquid glass” design that provides a more transparent, glassy feel to user interface elements, such as buttons, screens, in-app navigation and controls. Liquid Glass is integrated throughout iOS 26, including key apps such as phones, cameras, safaris, music, notifications, lock…

Netflix and Spotify have teamed up to launch a golf-inspired game as a way to promote “Happy Gilmore 2,” a sequel to Adam Sandler's 1996 comedy film, which premieres on Netflix on Friday, July 25th. This partnership represents a new venture for Spotify. This is because music platforms have never worked with other companies to create game experiences in-app before. The game is an area that Spotify has largely overlooked. So, even if it's just a promotional campaign that serves as a test to see if consumers resonate with the experience, it's notable that they work with the streaming giant.…

A self-styled “leaks and cracking forum” where users promote and share compromised databases, stolen credentials, and pirated software, leaked the IP address of logged in users to the open web. According to researchers at Upguard, the leak zone left an ElasticSearch database exposed to the internet without a password. In a blog post shared with TechCrunch ahead of the publication, researchers discovered the database on July 18th, and found that the data could be accessed by anyone with a web browser. The exposed database contained over 22 million records that stored the IP address and the exact timestamp of leak…