Technology

Pornhub has made significant changes to its content policies after a New York Times report detailed the damage done by nonconsensual videos posted to the platform, often involving underage girls. In a statement today, Pornhub announced a new set of policies aimed at keeping nonconsensual videos off the site. Most significantly, the platform will no longer accept uploads from unidentified users, a significant shift for a company that built its platform on non-professional uploads. In the short term, that will restrict uploads to content partners and members of the platform’s Model Program, although Pornhub plans to roll out a broader verification process for regular users in 2021. Once content has been uploaded, Pornhub will block downloading content entirely, no longer allowing users to ex...

Netflix is rolling out a new tool for parents to better understand and monitor what their kids are watching. Called the Kids Activity Report, as seen in the image above, the new breakdown includes data on what type of programming kids are spending the most time watching, who their favorite character is, and recommendations for new shows based on their interests. Emails sent out to customers who have kids accounts enabled started going out this weekend, letting parents know they could opt into the report. The report also comes with a “joke of the day,” coloring pages (based on Netflix characters and shows) to print out for kids stuck at home, and prepared questions to ask their kids based on their favorite show or character. Parents will hopefully be able to better connect with their kids b...

After three years of support, the Pixel 2 has received its last update from Google: a delayed November security patch going out to the devices this month, as noted by Android Central. Google’s device support schedule indicates that the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL aren’t guaranteed security updates after October 2020. Google announced the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL in October 2017. The two devices were identical in every way except size, and they earned plenty of praise for their somewhat groundbreaking camera. Google was early to really lean into camera software and computational photography, and the results showed in the Pixel 2 — its single rear-facing camera was in many ways ahead of the multi-camera-toting competition. Aside from a highly capable camera and an overall likable design, it wasn’t ...

Bungie has confirmed Destiny 2 will be getting crossplay support at some point next year. While Bungie didn’t specify which platforms will support the feature, hopefully you’ll be able to dive into Destiny 2 with players across every platform on which the game is available. That includes PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X / S, PC, and Stadia. Earlier this year, it seemed as though a 2021 launch date for crossplay was the goal, but Bungie was more definite about a launch next year in a blog post published on Tuesday. Bungie has slowly been making the game more platform-agnostic. The studio added cross-save support, which lets you bring your save from one platform to another, in 2019. And alongside the next-gen update for the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X / S that’s out today, the game will...

Today, Facebook Gaming announces a new initiative targeted specifically at Black streamers on the platform: the Black Gaming Creator Program. The company says it plans to invest $5 million a year over the next two years to support the Black gaming creator community. If you’re selected to take part in the program, there are some benefits. You’ll get Facebook Gaming partnership, early product access (along with product feedback sessions), community support — which includes invitations to all digital and in person events — and mentorship. The program also comes with guaranteed monthly pay, which distinguishes it from other creator mentorship programs. Interested creators can apply here. Leo Olebe, the global director of games partnerships at Facebook, said in a statement that the new initiati...

Cyberpunkland Latest Cyberpunkland <div class=”specialcenterbox”><img src=”https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22154314/cyberpunkland_XOXL_Icon_3_01.png” style=”width:200px;height: 100%;margin-bottom: 16px;”> Welcome to Blade City, a full-service dystopia resort. Blade City is a dangerous, fast-moving world where hackers, hustlers, and streetfighters live in the shadow of the evil corporation Xoxl. As the Hospitality Manager at Xoxl, it’s your job to keep Blade City dirty and antisocial — a hip, gritty vacation from a soul-numbing late capitalist reality. Are you ready? (link:”CLOCK INTO WORK”)[(goto:”Grittiness Tutorial”)] </div>{ (set:$Tutorial to 2) (display:”Name Arrays”) (set:...

Samsung’s next flagship phones the Galaxy S21, S21 Plus, and S21 Ultra are widely expected to arrive this January (alongside some new buds), but we haven’t had a true glimpse at them yet. That may be changing today, as Android Police has just published three brief teaser videos that it says come directly from Samsung, and line up perfectly with the OnLeaks renders we first saw in October. While we can’t glean too much from these videos, they make it crystal clear what to expect from the design of these phones — a sleek, streamlined new camera bump that blends into the sides of the phone, with three cameras on the S21 and S21 Plus and five cameras (including what appears to be a periscope zoom lens, see the square shape) on the S21 Ultra. Your eagle eyes can probably also see that the S21 U...

On today’s episode of Decoder, I’m talking to Chris Best, co-founder and CEO of Substack, the subscription newsletter startup that’s taken the media industry by storm over the past few months. High-profile journalists like Glenn Greenwald, Andrew Sullivan, Matt Yglesias, and Anne Helen Petersen have left their jobs at traditional media companies to start paid newsletters on Substack. Casey Newton recently left The Verge and launched a Substack newsletter called Platformer, which is great — you should subscribe to it. The appeal of running your own newsletter is obvious and simple: instead of working for a boss, you can work for yourself. Instead of having your salary determined by management, you can make more money just by getting more subscribers. And most importantly, instead of feeling...

Substack, the hot subscription newsletter startup, is building a reader app to help people manage all of their newsletters in a single place. That’s the word from Substack CEO Chris Best on this week’s episode of Decoder, The Verge’s new tech and business interview podcast. “Something that I really miss is proper reader apps, proper RSS readers. I think the death of Google Reader was a big, sad thing,” Best said. “Something that we think about a lot is readers tell us, ‘Hey, I’m subscribed to six different Substacks now, and I want to read them all, and it sucks that they’re in my email inbox along with all my other stuff,’” Best added. “‘Wouldn’t it be nice if there was one place where I could go and see all of these direct connections that I have, and that I’m paying for in many cases?’ ...

WhatsApp is introducing a new shopping carts feature that lets you order multiple items with a single message from businesses on the service. It works in conjunction with the service’s existing catalogs feature. Now, while browsing a business’s wares, you can add multiple items to your shopping cart and send the entire order in a single message, replacing the back-and-forth communication that needed to happen previously. The feature will be available globally starting today. Shopping might not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think of the Facebook-owned messaging service, but it’s become an increasingly popular venue for small businesses around the world to sell their products. Over 175 million people used the service to message a WhatsApp Business account each day as of late...

Persona 5 Strikers, an action RPG follow-up to Persona 5, will head to the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Steam on February 23rd. The game will be available four days early, on February 19th, for those who preorder the digital deluxe version. Developer Atlus confirmed the news today, just days after its release was leaked via YouTube trailer. Persona 5 launched worldwide in 2017; an enhanced version, Persona 5 Royal, had its wide release earlier this year. Unlike the original game, which features turn-based combat, Persona 5 Strikers is an action-oriented take on the series from Dynasty Warriors developer Omega Force. Strikers takes place after the events of the original story when the Phantom Thieves find their vacation interrupted by a new threat. Where Persona 5 took place strictly...