AllYouCanTech

“Factors Contributing to Discontent with the TVs Featured at CES 2025”

### TVs in 2025: A Missed Chance for Genuine Innovation

The television market finds itself at a pivotal moment. As we approach 2025, the newest television models presented at CES in Las Vegas reveal a concerning pattern: companies are focusing more on software tricks, artificial intelligence (AI), and profit-driven corporate strategies rather than significant hardware enhancements and user-focused advancements. While the financial challenges faced by TV manufacturers are clear, the outcome is a frustrating journey for consumers who seek high-quality visual and auditory experiences free from unnecessary interruptions.

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### **The Transition from Hardware to Software**

The contemporary TV market is becoming more characterized by companies branding themselves as software developers instead of hardware manufacturers. This transition results from shrinking profit margins on television hardware, market oversaturation, and the emergence of budget brands like Vizio and Roku, which often market TVs at a loss and regain profits via advertisements and data harvesting. Consequently, even premium brands like LG and Samsung are intensifying their focus on software ecosystems, advertisements, and AI capabilities that emphasize corporate revenue over user experience.

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### **LG’s AI Remote: A Regression**

LG, renowned for its OLED technology and premium televisions, represents this trend with its 2025 “AI Remote.” Previously celebrated as the “Magic Remote,” the updated version trades user-friendly functions like a dedicated input button for the promotion of LG’s webOS ecosystem. Now, to change input modes—a frequent action for gamers, Blu-ray fans, and PC users—customers must long-press the Home Hub button, a tedious and counterintuitive task.

Rather than enhancing practical elements like play/pause buttons, fast-forward/rewind controls, or numeric keypads, LG has cluttered the remote with buttons for its free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) channels and Amazon Alexa. This redesign favors LG’s capability to monetize app interaction and gather user information, forcing consumers to cope with a less efficient experience.

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### **Google’s Subscription-Based AI Initiative**

Google, which powers TVs from brands such as Sony, TCL, and Philips, is also heavily investing in AI with its Gemini Enhanced Google Assistant. This year’s models will include far-field microphones to facilitate voice commands and incorporate Google’s generative AI chatbot, Gemini. While these features may sound advanced, they cater to a nonexistent demand. The majority of TV viewers do not seek their television to function as a chatbot or personal assistant, especially since they have smartphones, tablets, and laptops for that purpose.

What raises concern is Google’s intention to monetize these features via subscription fees. For instance, the Gemini Assistant could eventually charge users for tasks such as suggesting family-friendly films or summarizing news articles. This strategy prompts questions about whether TV manufacturers are catering to user requirements or merely pursuing new income sources.

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### **Samsung’s AI Overload**

Samsung is familiar with AI gimmicks, and its 2025 range is no exception. The company has unveiled features like Samsung Food, which utilizes AI to recognize on-screen dishes and suggest recipes. Although this may seem groundbreaking, its practicality is dubious, particularly given the shortcomings of similar AI-driven recipe applications. Samsung’s true intentions become apparent when considering its collaborations with firms like Instacart, which enable users to order groceries directly from their TVs or smart fridges. These functionalities necessitate a Samsung account, granting the company access to even more user data.

Additional features, such as AI Karaoke and gesture controls exclusively compatible with Samsung Galaxy Watches, further highlight the company’s emphasis on eye-catching yet ultimately specialized additions. Meanwhile, Samsung is advancing its ad and data collection efforts, including monitoring ad exposure on streaming platforms and working with analytics companies like Experian.

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### **Generative AI: A Solution in Pursuit of a Problem**

Both LG and Samsung are incorporating Microsoft’s Copilot chatbot into their 2025 TVs, touting features like tailored content suggestions and the capability to comprehend intricate commands. While these functions might appear impressive, they raise a crucial inquiry: are they addressing genuine consumer issues, or are they merely complicating a device that should be simple to operate?

For most individuals, a TV’s fundamental role is to provide high-quality video and audio. Features like Copilot, which purportedly assist TVs in “understanding conversational context” and “proactively identifying user challenges,” seem superfluous and out of context in a living room environment. Instead of fixating on these speculative AI functions, manufacturers could channel resources into enhancing core elements of the TV experience, such as superior picture quality, more robust hardware, and user-friendly interfaces.

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### **The Emergence of TV-as-a-Platform**

The prevailing trend in the TV market is the evolution of televisions into platforms for applications, advertising, and AI. This transition is particularly concerning for consumers investing in high-end TVs with the expectation of a premium experience. Instead, they encounter pervasive ads, dubious AI functionalities, and software ecosystems crafted to extract as much data and revenue as possible.

It’s important to acknowledge that not all AI implementations are unw

“Upgraded SpaceX Starship: Bigger, Heavier, and More Intelligent Version Approaches Launch Preparedness”

### SpaceX’s Starship Version 2: The Dawn of a New Era in Space Exploration

SpaceX is preparing for another significant achievement in its bold Starship initiative, with the forthcoming seventh full-scale test flight of its Super Heavy booster and Starship spacecraft set for January 13, 2025. This mission, which will lift off from SpaceX’s Starbase in South Texas, signifies the launch of Starship Version 2 (or Block 2), a markedly enhanced version of the spacecraft. Featuring cutting-edge technologies, improved capabilities, and an emphasis on reusability, this test flight stands as a crucial step toward SpaceX’s ambition of making space travel more efficient, sustainable, and available to more people.

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### **A Fresh Generation of Starship**

The imminent flight will highlight the inaugural second-generation Starship, which includes various upgrades focused on boosting performance, reliability, and reusability. Some of the key modifications are:

– **Revised Forward Flaps**: The forward flaps have been downsized and shifted closer to the nose of the ship to provide better protection against the extreme heat encountered during atmospheric reentry. Previous test flights had indicated heat-related damage to the flaps, necessitating this redesign.
– **Expanded Propellant Tanks**: The new Starship boasts propellant tanks that offer 25% more volume, enabling it to carry a greater amount of fuel and oxidizer. This enhancement, along with structural upgrades, adds nearly 6 feet (1.8 meters) to the height of the rocket, making it the tallest rocket ever constructed at around 404 feet (123.1 meters).
– **Upgraded Heat Shield**: SpaceX has enhanced the heat shield with the latest ceramic tile technology and a backup layer for added protection against absent or damaged tiles. Engineers have also refined the edges of the tile line to mitigate “hot spots” identified during earlier reentries.
– **Sophisticated Avionics and Power Systems**: The spacecraft now includes an advanced propulsion avionics module, smart batteries integrated into the design, and systems that can distribute 2.7 megawatts of power. These upgrades will facilitate longer and more intricate missions.
– **Vacuum Insulation and Fuel Line Enhancements**: New vacuum-insulated propellant feedlines and a revitalized fuel system for the ship’s Raptor vacuum engines have been implemented to boost efficiency and operational performance in space.

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### **Mission Goals**

The seventh test flight will act as a testing ground for various vital technologies and maneuvers:

1. **Payload Deployment Examination**: For the first time, Starship will evaluate its payload deployment system by launching 10 mock-ups of next-generation Starlink satellites. These satellites are too sizable and heavy to be carried by the Falcon 9 rocket, aiming to expand SpaceX’s broadband network.

2. **Booster Recovery and Capture**: SpaceX will endeavor to return the Super Heavy booster to the launch site, attempting to catch it using the “chopsticks” mechanism on the launch tower. Although this maneuver was successfully executed in October, a follow-up in November was called off due to sensor issues. The upcoming flight will employ upgraded radar tools and sensor safeguards to enhance the likelihood of success.

3. **Reentry Trials**: The Starship upper stage will conduct several reentry trials, including assessing the thermal behavior of its heat shield and redesigned flaps. Engineers will also explore metallic tile alternatives and active cooling measures to protect the spacecraft during reentry.

4. **Engine Restart in Space**: One of the six Raptor engines will be reignited in the vacuum of space, a vital capability for executing orbital maneuvers, higher-orbit missions, and future journeys to the Moon and Mars.

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### **Building the Framework for Reusability**

Reusability is a key element of SpaceX’s approach to transforming space travel. The Super Heavy booster and Starship spacecraft are engineered to be fully reusable, with the long-term vision of enabling several launches each day. The upcoming flight will test numerous advancements aimed at realizing this objective:

– **Recovered Raptor Engine**: One of the 33 Raptor engines on the Super Heavy booster for this mission has been retrieved from an earlier flight, signifying progress toward the reuse of the entire rocket.
– **Satellite Connectivity**: Starship Version 2 incorporates Starlink connectivity capabilities, enabling it to transmit high-definition video and telemetry in real-time. This functionality will bolster mission oversight and provide additional communication pathways.
– **Structural Integrity Testing**: Engineers have removed select heat shield tiles to perform “stress tests” on susceptible components of the spacecraft and assess its structural thresholds during reentry.

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### **Preparing for Tomorrow**

The innovations showcased in this test flight are set to lay the groundwork for even more daring missions. SpaceX aims to unveil Starship Version 3 in the foreseeable future, featuring nine upper-stage engines and the capacity to transport up to 440,000 pounds (200 metric tons) of cargo to low-Earth orbit.

“Significant Flaw Utilized to Breach Ivanti VPN Users”

### **Severe Vulnerability in Ivanti VPNs Targeted by Advanced Hackers**

In a worrying turn of events for cybersecurity experts, networks safeguarded by Ivanti VPNs are currently facing active assaults from well-funded hackers. These adversaries are taking advantage of a severe vulnerability, identified as **CVE-2025-0283**, which provides them with total control over network-connected devices. This flaw has been weaponized to execute harmful code without the need for authentication, presenting a considerable risk to the compromised systems.

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### **Details of the Vulnerability and Its Abuse**

Ivanti, the company responsible for the Connect Secure VPN, Policy Secure, and ZTA Gateways, announced the vulnerability in a security advisory released on a Wednesday. The organization verified that the vulnerability is already under active exploitation. In conjunction with this announcement, a security patch was issued, updating Connect Secure devices to version **22.7R2.5**.

Mandiant, a security firm owned by Google, reported that the vulnerability has been actively misused since **December**, a month before its public disclosure. Attackers have been seen deploying two previously unknown malware packages, **DRYHOOK** and **PHASEJAM**, on infiltrated devices.

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### **PHASEJAM: A Versatile Malware Tool**

PHASEJAM is an advanced bash shell script that features multiple capabilities. It initiates by installing a **web shell**, which grants attackers elevated access to devices. The malware subsequently injects a harmful function into the Connect Secure update process, mirroring a legitimate upgrade sequence to mislead administrators.

Mandiant elaborated on this deceptive procedure:

> “If the ICS administrator tries to perform an upgrade, the function presents an illusion of a genuine upgrade process that displays each of the phases along with various dot sequences to simulate a functioning process.”

This counterfeit upgrade routine is part of a larger scheme to ensure continuity and avoid detection.

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### **SPAWNANT: Disabling Core Security Tools**

Another piece of malware, **SPAWNANT**, has been detected on some compromised devices. Its main objective is to disable Ivanti’s **Integrity Checker Tool (ICT)**, which is intended to check device files for unauthorized alterations. SPAWNANT accomplishes this by substituting the expected cryptographic hash of a crucial file with the hash of the infected variant. This deception misleads the ICT into indicating that the system remains untainted, even when it has been compromised.

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### **Indicators of Compromise and Persistence Tactics**

The attackers have implemented extensive strategies to conceal their actions on infected devices. These strategies include:

1. **Clearing Kernel Messages**: Utilizing `dmesg` to erase traces of their activities.
2. **Eliminating Troubleshooting Data**: Disposing of state dumps and core dumps created during process failures.
3. **Altering Logs**: Removing entries from application event logs and SELinux audit logs to obliterate evidence of their intrusion.
4. **Interfering with System Upgrades**: SPAWNANT guarantees its persistence by hijacking the execution flow of the `dspkginstall` binary, associated with system upgrades. It also recalculates cryptographic hashes for maliciously altered files and creates new RSA key pairs to authorize the modified manifest.

In contrast to other persistence strategies, SPAWNANT does not obstruct the upgrade procedure but rather ensures its survival through system upgrades by transferring itself to the new upgrade partition.

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### **Overall Objectives of the Attackers**

The leading aim of these attacks seems to be **data harvesting**. The attackers are zeroing in on sensitive data, encompassing:

– VPN sessions
– Session cookies
– API keys
– Certificates
– Credential information

Mandiant has linked these attacks to two groups, **UNC5337** and **UNC5221**, both believed to be associated with espionage activities connected to China.

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### **Detection and Mitigation Strategies**

Ivanti has advised administrators to utilize the Integrity Checker Tool (ICT) for detecting infections on their devices. Nevertheless, this tool only proves effective if administrators thoroughly assess the results to confirm their authenticity. Mandiant cautioned that compromised devices might still pass ICT checks if the attackers have tampered with the tool’s output.

To reduce risks, Ivanti recommends the following:

1. **Use ICT Alongside Additional Security Tools**: ICT should be deployed alongside other monitoring solutions capable of identifying post-exploitation activity.
2. **Conduct a Factory Reset**: Upon detection of an infection, a factory reset is advised to return the device to a clean state.
3. **Look for Indicators of Compromise (IoCs)**: Administrators should examine IoCs offered by Ivanti and Mandiant to recognize signs of compromise.

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### **Wider Consequences**

The exploitation of CVE-2025-0283 showcases the growing complexity of cyberattacks targeting organizational networks. The attackers’ ability to manipulate integrated security tools, mimic legitimate operations, and maintain persistence across system upgrades highlights the necessity for proactive security strategies.

Organizations utilizing Ivanti VPNs should prioritize patching their systems and performing comprehensive inspections.