Extortion hacks have completely rattled the entertainment industry

Chris Unthank, the director of digital systems for Larson Studios, was in a panic this past December. The company he works for, a California-based postproduction studio, had apparently been hacked. Files containing the company’s work were being held hostage by a criminal known as TheDarkOverlord. Among the property stolen was 10 episodes of the new season of Netflix’s show “Orange is the New Black.” Unthank found all of the studio’s data stolen and deleted, and the hackers demanded payment via bitcoin in exchange for the data’s safe return. “Once I was able to look at our server, my hands started shaking, and I almost threw up,” Unthank told Variety in an interview. TheDarkOverlord demanded 50 bitcoin, roughly $50,000, to not leak the unaired episodes of the Netflix series. After conferring with federal law enforcement, studio President Rick Larson and his wife and business partner Jill Larson negotiated with hackers and […]

The post Extortion hacks have completely rattled the entertainment industry appeared first on Cyberscoop.

Continue reading Extortion hacks have completely rattled the entertainment industry

For the First Time, a Video Game Trailer Is Eligible To Be Nominated For an Academy Award

For the first time in 90-year Oscar history, a video game is eligible for an Academy Award, specifically the recently-released game Everything. From a report: The 11-minute trailer for philosophical pontificating simulator Everything is eligible for an… Continue reading For the First Time, a Video Game Trailer Is Eligible To Be Nominated For an Academy Award

Hacking On TV: What You Need To Know

It seems to be a perennial feature of our wider community of hackers and makers, that television production companies come up with new ideas for shows featuring us and our skills. Whether it is a reality maker show, a knockout competition, a scavenger hunt, or any other format, it seems that there is always a researcher from one TV company or another touting around the scene for participants in some new show.

These shows are entertaining and engaging to watch, and we’ve all probably wondered how we might do were we to have a go ourselves. Fame and fortune awaits, …read more

Continue reading Hacking On TV: What You Need To Know

The best Meeker 2017 Internet Trends slides and what they mean

 Here are the must-read stats about what’s happening with Internet adoption, smartphones, ads, ecommerce, entertainment, gaming, enterprise healthcare, China, India, and startups. We’ve picked the most important slides from legendary Kleiner Perkins partner Mary Meeker’s massive 355-page 2017 Internet Trends report, deciphered the complex data, and explained why… Read More Continue reading The best Meeker 2017 Internet Trends slides and what they mean

Tennis star Serena Williams joins SurveyMonkey’s board

 Serena Williams (yes, THAT Serena Williams) has joined the board of consumer survey startup SurveyMonkey, along with Intuit CEO Brad Smith. This is the tennis superstar’s first venture into Silicon Valley and, according to a SurveyMonkey spokesperson, came about at the suggestion of fellow board member and Facebook’s chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg. Read More Continue reading Tennis star Serena Williams joins SurveyMonkey’s board

Facebook is improving the 360 video experience by predicting where you will look

 From the stage at F8, Joaquin Quinonero, Facebook’s director of Applied Machine Learning, described a new technique the company is using to improve the watching experience for 360 videos. By predicting where a viewer will look next, rendering priority can be given to that location — particularly helpful for users with lower-quality internet access. Read More Continue reading Facebook is improving the 360 video experience by predicting where you will look

Facebook will license its new 360 cameras that capture in six degrees of freedom

 On day two of Facebook’s F8 conference, Mike Schroepfer, Facebook’s CTO showed off designs for two new 360 cameras that the company is going to help push to market. The x24, with 24 cameras, and its little brother the x6, with six cameras, can each capture in six degrees of freedom for more immersive 360 content. Facebook plans to license the designs of the two cameras to… Read More Continue reading Facebook will license its new 360 cameras that capture in six degrees of freedom