Time and again, hackers infect other people’s computers as well as routers or other network devices in order to misuse them for their botnet. What’s a botnet, you ask? Simply put, it’s a collection of computers and other devices that have been infected with malware. From such a botnet, cybercriminals launch attacks on websites or servers. For example, DDoS attacks or they send spam and phishing emails. The owners of the hijacked computers and network devices are unaware of this unless they check the traffic coming from their machines. However, this requires experience in using network analysis tools such as Wireshark or Nmap. But there is an easier way that doesn’t require any prior technical knowledge. The security company GreyNoise has provided a free online tool called GreyNoise IP Check on its website, with which you can immediately check whether your network’s IP is connected to a botnet. The check takes barely a second, and you will immediately know whether there are hijacked or remotely controlled computers or other network devices in your network. You don’t have to log in to use it, and you don’t even have to enter an email address. According to Bleepingcomputer, three classifications are possible: Clean: No malicious scanning activity has been detected. Malicious/Suspicious: The IP address has shown scanning activity. Users should check the devices in their network. General corporate service: The IP address belongs to a VPN, a corporate network, or a cloud provider, and the scan activity is normal for these environments. Restriction: Of course, the result only applies to the current IP address of your computer. However, this changes regularly for private users (albeit after different periods of time), unless they have a fixed IP address, which is the exception for private users. If the classification is malicious/suspicious, you should immediately scan all of your computers with an up-to-date virus scanner. The manufacturer writes: “The tool shows you when the activity was first and last observed, what types of scanning behavior were detected and advises you of the next steps.” Install the latest available firmware on all network-enabled devices (including smart TVs or network cameras, etc.) to close any newly discovered security gaps. Next, change all access data/passwords on the affected devices and switch off remote access functions if you do not need them. More information on the free GreyNoise IP Check scan tool is available from the manufacturer here. Read...

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Every Google user automatically gets 15GB of free Google Photos storage when they create a Google account. You can store your smartphone photos, videos, and screenshots in this space–either manually or through the automatic syncing from your phone. Each uploaded file can be labeled with keywords and descriptions, and you can combine multiple photos into albums or collections, and even create photo books. You can access your online photo library on your PC at photos.google.com or on your smartphone through the Google Photos app. Just make sure you’re logged in to your Google account. However, Google Photos is much more than just an online photo album. The service also includes numerous tools for editing photos, some of which even use artificial intelligence. In this guide, we’ll show you where AI comes into play during the editing process, how to use it on your PC and smartphone, and what kind of results you can expect. Editing photos with AI in your browser In the main view of Google Photos, you can see all your saved photos along with the date and place they were taken. To scroll quickly, move the mouse to the right edge of the screen to display the timeline, then click any date to jump to it. Clicking a photo opens it in full view. If you want to edit an image, click on the icon in the top-right corner of the full view. This opens a toolbar with editing options. Click the three stars to access “Suggestions,” the automatic editing feature, which includes various presets such as “Dynamic,” “Warm,” “Cold,” or “Vivid,” as well as the “Optimize” option. With this option, the AI applies the corrections independently. Note: Exactly which presets are offered to you for a photo depends on the image in question! However, the “Optimize” option is always available and, in our tests, consistently produced the best results. The edited images show noticeably more detail and depth than the alternatives. Foundry Google Photos offers further editing options in the “Tools” menu, which you can open by clicking the tool icon. However, not all options are available for every image. In general, Google Photos offers five functions here: Portrait lighting lets you adjust the exposure of a photo retrospectively by digitally changing the position of the light source. To do this, simply move the displayed circle with your finger and/or add additional light sources using additional markers. The slider regulates the intensity of the lighting. Blur softens the background, and you can set the intensity with the slider. The main subject is automatically detected and kept sharp in the foreground. Sky offers presets such as “Radiant” and “Stormy,” along with a slider to control intensity and adjust the sky’s appearance with a single click. Color focus reduces color saturation of the background while keeping the main subject in color. A slider is also available here to adjust the intensity. Finally, the HDR effect increases the brightness and contrast of a photo. Foundry Using AI-powered image editing on smartphones As we’ve shown, some of Google Photos’ AI features are also available in the browser. However, smartphones and tablets offer more functionality. The availability of specific tools depends not only on your device’s hardware but also on the subject of the photo. To access the AI tools, open the detailed view of a photo, and scroll until you find “Tools.” Depending on the subject, you’ll find options such as “Portrait lighting,” “Blur background,” “Sharpen,” “Zoom optimization,” “Magic eraser,” and “Color focus.” “Portrait lighting,” “Blur background,” and “Color focus,” work similarly to their desktop counterparts. However, with “Blur background,” you can also adjust the focus range in addition to the level of blurring, while “Portrait lighting” lets you equalize the lighting or add additional light sources to brighten a subject. “Sharpen,” on the other hand, is a function that’s only available in the Google Photos app. It helps improve images that are blurry due to motion or background depth. You can adjust the sharpness with a slider. The “Zoom optimization” feature is also exclusive to the app. It lets you crop images with your fingers, and Google Photos then automatically enhances the enlarged sections for improved sharpness. Foundry Using Magic Eraser and AI filters in the Photos app The magic eraser, introduced in the Google Photos app in 2023, is the service’s most impressive AI feature. It removes unwanted elements from your images. After selecting a photo and starting the Magic Eraser, Google first analyzes the image. You can then mark the unwanted area with your finger. You now have two options: You can leave the marked area “Erased,” and Google Photos will automatically fill the gap using the surrounding parts of the image. You can also “Hide” the selection. In this mode, the Magic Eraser changes the color of the selected area to make it less noticeable. If you’re happy with the result, save your changes. If not, repeat the process as often as necessary. Foundry Another AI-powered feature in Google Photos can be found in the detailed view of an image under “Edit.” This tool can be used not only to remove selected areas, but also to enlarge, reduce, move, or copy them to another part of the image. You can access the feature by tapping the color-changing icon in the bottom left corner of the “Edit” menu. Mark the desired image area by circling it, swiping over it, or tapping on it. You can then resize or reposition the selected area by spreading or pinching two fingers. Once it’s placed correctly, tap the arrow at the bottom right corner and Google Photos will start processing. Tick the box to save the result. Foundry If you tap the color-changing icon again in the same menu, Google Photos will display various AI filters. The available filters depend on the subject of the photo. For example, we applied “Golden Hour” for a warm, dramatic effect, and “Sky” to brighten it and add extra clouds. “Portrait,” on the other hand, blurs the background in various gradations. Another AI filter, called “Stylized,” transforms the photo into a drawing or painting. The results vary with each use. The AI generates up to four versions per filter, and you can request more with a single tap. Foundry Generative AI features: Remix and Reimagine Artificial intelligence is currently used in Google Photos mainly for image editing. However, the company has announced plans to add generative AI to future versions of the app. Unfortunately, this wasn’t the case until recently, and we haven’t been able to test the revised editor announced in June 2025, which will include all tools under a new “Actions” menu. Still, we’d like to take this opportunity to introduce the upcoming AI features, which will be bundled under the “Create” menu. For example, you’ll soon be able to use the “Remix” feature to turn your photos into a 3D animation, an anime-style image, a sketch, or a comic. On the other hand, “Video from photo” will create six-second video clips from your photos, with options like “Subtle effect” (e.g., a smile) or “Good luck,” which adds more movement. Foundry With the “Reimagine” feature, you can use a text prompt to add new elements to an existing photo, such as “yellow flower meadow” or “stormy sky.” “Auto Frame,” found in the crop menu, lets you replace or extend a photo’s background if it’s been cropped too much. No more bad pictures Google Photos already offers a range of AI-powered image editing features that deliver impressive results. However, once generative AI is fully integrated and further developed, it won’t matter how well a photo was originally taken. AI will handle the rest. Read...

At a glance Top mini PC deal picks Acemagician S3A — $429 (20% off on Amazon, was $539) Kamrui Hyper H2 — $418 (45% off on Amazon, was $760) It’s Black Friday and Cyber Monday season! Some of the best discounts I’m seeing have been for mini PCs, and that’s perfectly fine with me because I absolutely love these tiny computers. They take up very little space on the desk, they offer excellent performance for the price, and they don’t cost too much. Did I mention they’re super easy to upgrade and they usually support at least three 4K displays? Now that’s a fantastic way to increase your workstation productivity without breaking the bank! Finding the right deals can be tricky, however, because there are so many things to consider from the configuration to the price. Fear not! I’ve been covering mini PC deals for a long time — and PCWorld has tested thousands of PCs over four decades — so let me help you out. I select our favorite deals by thoroughly examining the list of specs, overall design, user feedback, and general value. The RAM, SSD, and CPU all matter significantly in mini PCs, and if you’re not careful, you may select a “bare bones” rig that makes you bring your own memory and storage. None of our picks below will leave you in the lurch! Updated November 30, 2025 to reflect the latest deals and prices. Best Black Friday deals on Ryzen mini PCs Acemagician S3A, AMD Ryzen 7 8745HS, 16GB DDR5 RAM, 512GB SSD, Radeon 780M iGPU, triple 4K support — $429 (20% off on Amazon, was $539) Beelink SER5, AMD Ryzen 5 6800U, 32GB DDR4 RAM, 1TB SSD, triple 4K support — $369 (20% off on Amazon, was $459) Acemagician Kron K1, AMD Ryzen 5 7430U, 16GB DDR4 RAM, 512GB SSD, triple 4K support — $256 (20% off on Amazon, was $319) Bosgame P3, AMD Ryzen 7 7840HS, 32GB DDR5 RAM, 1TB SSD, triple 4K support — $440 (20% off on Amazon, was $550) Bosgame P3 Lite, AMD Ryzen 7 6800H, 24GB DDR5 RAM, 1TB SSD, Radeon 680M, triple 4K support — $386.66 (19% off on Amazon, was $479.95) Geekom A6, AMD Ryzen 7 6800H, 32GB DDR5 RAM, 1TB SSD, quad 4K support — $423.20 (20% off on Amazon, was $529) Geekom A5, AMD Ryzen 7 5825U, 16GB DDR4 RAM, 512GB SSD, quad 4K support — $331 (17% off on Amazon, was $399) GMKtec M7, AMD Ryzen 7 Pro 6850H, 16GB DDR5 RAM, 1TB SSD, quad 4K support, Oculink — $395 (29% off on Amazon, was $560) GMKtec M5 Ultra, AMD Ryzen 7 7730U, 32GB DDR4 RAM, 512GB SSD, triple 4K support — $380 (24% of on Amazon) Geekom A9 Max, AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370, 32GB DDR5 RAM, 2TB SSD, quad 4K support — $949 (21% off on Amazon, was $1,199) Geekom A9, AMD Ryzen 9 8945HS, 32GB DDR5 RAM, 2TB SSD, Radeon 780M, quad 4K support — $679.20 (20% off on Amazon, was $849) Top pick: These are all amazing discounts for excellent mini PCs at every budget, but if I were to pick a single deal, I’d go for the Acemagician S3A for $399 because that’s a great price for the specs. It’s more than capable of handling your daily workload, browsing, streaming, and even gaming thanks to the Radeon 780M integrated graphics. If you’re willing to spend an extra hundred, the Geekom AX8 Max is even better with twice the memory and storage for greater performance. Best Black Friday deals on Intel mini PCs Acemagic V1, Intel N150, 16GB DDR4 RAM, 1TB SSD, dual 4K support — $187.24 (41% off on Amazon, was $319) HP Elite 805, Intel Core i5, 16GB DDR4 RAM, 512GB SSD, dual 4K support — $480 (20% off on Amazon, was $600) Acemagic M1, Intel Core i9 11900H, 32GB DDR4 RAM, 1TB SSD, triple 4K support — $460 (43% off on Amazon, was $800) Kamrui Hyper H2, Intel Core i9-11900H, 32GB DDR4 RAM, 1TB SSD, triple 4K support — $418 (45% off on Amazon, was $760) Geekom GT2 Mega, Intel Core Ultra 9 285H, 32GB DDR5 RAM, 2TB SSD, Intel Arc 140T iGPU, quad 4K support — $949 (27% off on Amazon, was $1,299) Top pick: If you’re looking for a mini PC you’ll use for years to come that can handle all your tasks and then some, the Kamrui Hyper H2 has the absolute best price-performance among these deals with that 45% discount. If you don’t want to spend a ton of money and just need a simple machine for browsing and email, the Acemagic V1 gives you 1TB of storage space and enough RAM to run Windows 11 without choking. Other best Black Friday tech deals Check out our other roundups for the best PC-related Black Friday deals going on in a wide span of categories! LIVE real-time Black Friday deals, picked by PCWorld’s experts Best Amazon Black Friday tech deals Best Buy’s best Black Friday tech deals Best Black Friday laptop deals Best Black Friday Chromebook deals Best Black Friday desktop computer deals Best Black Friday monitor deals Best Black Friday USB flash drive deals Best Black Friday SSD and storage deals Best Black Friday Thunderbolt dock deals Best Black Friday power bank deals Best Black Friday office chair and desk deals Best Black Friday VPN deals FAQ 1. When is Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2025? This year, Black Friday lands on November 28th. Cyber Monday is December 1. 2. What are some things you need to consider when getting a mini PC? The first thing you have to check off your list is just what configuration you need to get your job done. Are you going to use your new mini PC for browsing only? Do you want it to be able to juggle a bunch of apps and not choke on 50 browser tabs? Do you want to do some light gaming in your downtime? There are devices for each and every one of these scenarios, and they’re all quite affordable. The best part is that mini PCs are… well, small, and that they support multiple monitors out of the box, so you won’t need to pay for extra hubs. 3. Can a mini PC replace a desktop computer? For most people, the answer is “yes”! Mini PCs are definitely powerful enough to replace desktops for most users, especially if you’re going to use it for work, browsing, or streaming movies. If you want something for photo and video editing, or even gaming, there are models that allow you to do that, but they’ll cost a bit more. If you’re into proper gaming, however, you’re still better off with a gaming PC or laptop. Read...

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