MacworldAt a glanceExpert's RatingProsFast charging timesLarge displayFolding kickstandConsNo wattage displayOur Verdict If you are looking for an inexpensive, powerful Qi2 power bank, the ESR power bank matches price and performance just right.Price When ReviewedThis value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefinedBest Pricing TodayPrice When Reviewed51,99 EuroBest Prices Today: ESR Qi2 Kickstand Power Bank 10KRetailerPriceESR62,99 View DealPrice comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwideProductPricePrice comparison from BackmarketThe ESR Qi2 MagSlim Kickstand Power Bank uses fast 15W magnetic wireless chargingthe same speed you find with Apples MagSafe. It also has a USB-C port that can simultaneously charge another device with a maximum of 27W and is used to charge the power bank itself. The charging performance meets expectations for a modern wireless power bank. An iPhone 15 is charged to 50 percent within 30 minutes using USB-C and 32 percent via the Qi2 charging pad. The 11-inch iPad Pro and MacBook Air M3 both charged to 36 percent using a USB-C cable, in line with expectations.The fold-out stand offers an adjustable angle of 45 to 70 degrees. A stand is always handy if you want to charge your iPhone at the same time as using it to watch or participate in a video.Thomas Bergbold The integrated LED display shows the charging process and battery status. Some power banks show you the wattage that the power is being output at, but this bit of information is lacking with the ESR. A built-in NTC sensor, which monitors the temperature in conjunction with an AI algorithm and a graph layer, protects the technology.This is designed to prevent overcharging and overheating. A case is not included, but a 24-month guarantee is. If black is too plain for you, you can choose from other colors including white, sky blue, titanium, and lavender via Amazon or direct from ESR.Thomas Bergbold PriceThe ESR Qi2 MagSlim Kickstand Power Bank is priced at $59.99 / 64.99, which we think is reasonable for this high-capacity battery pack. Check out all our reviews of the best magnetic and MagSafe power banks.A 60cm USB-C charging cable is included in the box.Thomas Bergbold If you dont need the high 10K capacity, the 5K Qi2 Kickstand Power Bank is a cheaper alternative. There is also available another model without the kickstand, which is therefore thinner and cheaper. If you need it for just one device and short hops, the 5K makes more sense, but it is always reassuring to know even more power is available to you with the 10K version.Thomas Bergbold Should you buy the ESR Qi2 MagSlim Kickstand Power Bank?You quickly learn to appreciate it when a wireless power bank not only charges the connected devices quickly but also has additional features such as a stand or display.An integrated stand is no longer a rarity these days, and ESR realizes this in a simple but functional way. However, the highlight is the large display, which provides clear information about the remaining capacity. The strong magnetic holding force and the attractive price are also convincinga harmonious combination.

Unless youve been in a coma for the past couple of years, youve seen countless headlines about how generative AI (genAI) is revolutionizing how we work, automating some jobs out of existence while empowering workers to move into new and more creative roles. GenAI features have been added to almost every type of business app there is, sometimes with more real-world uses than others.The mobile device management (MDM) market is no exception. But is genAI really changing how IT professionals manage and secure devices in the workplace?Several major MDM vendors have announced or introduced genAI feature sets in recent months. But just what they mean by AI varies widely when it comes to their solutions and workflows, so its often unclear just how useful these additions will be for IT.Heres what to look for when eyeing the overall market and deciding which direction to take.Working with MDM dataOne obvious way genAI can deliver value is by making it easier (and faster) to request, interpret, summarize, and react to data. This isnt the most ground-breaking function, but it can be extremely useful and save a lot of time. Simply being able to ask about a given device or policy or to query information about a large swath of devices and their configurations and use is a big advantage, particularly if you want granular data about various groups or subsets of devices you manage.MDM users arent so much getting new information as getting to ask questions about that data in a more straightforward way. Instead of having to run a series of queries and reports and then collating and summarizing that information, IT admins can simply ask questions about device configuration, usage, policies and groups.Of the major MDM options available,Intune with Copilot from Microsoftseems to have gone further in this area than any other. In addition to natural language processing, Copilot has several Intune-specific prompts that users can try, such as comparing multiple devices to each other or against corporate policies.This might not take the place of running regular reports about device inventory or compliance, but it can make it much easier if you need to get specific information quickly in addition to those regular reports.Automating tasksAnother common use for genAI is to automate tasks. Most MDM suites already offer some degree of automation, but learning to create those automations in the first place often requires a learning curve. Being able to describe a task that needs to be performed (repeatedly or for specific needs) can be a game changer.VMWaresees this as a major focus by allowing its tool to create and run scripts based onnatural language prompts.Put natural language and automation together and you have a powerful way to allocate resources. One use case: being able to automate app licensing based on how devices are actually being used as opposed to how you might expect them to be used.Threat detectionThreat and malware detection, along with policy compliance, is one of the biggest ways genAI can unlock value when it comes to MDM. JAMF,Kandjiand Intune all boast features that leverage genAIs ability to retrieve, interpret, and act on information indicating suspicious or malicious activity. Not only do MDM tools give you information about potential threats, but responses can be automated. This means that if something looks concerning, access to resources can be immediately halted and the user informed they must work with IT to regain access to information and features.This allows for a much more proactive approach to security, particularly when threat detection is based on user behavior not just on configuration or policy compliance data.Device troubleshooting and supportOne of the features Copilot in Intune boasts is theability to identify errors, their causes, and potential resolutions. Copilot can provide general device, configuration, or app information related to troubleshooting and even provide information about specific errors encountered on a device. Its not a complete self-service tool or something that will walk you through each step of troubleshooting a specific problem. But being able to find relevant device data and get a suggested explanation for a problem are real advantages when it comes to supporting mobile devices in your environment. This can save significant time (and user frustration) when it comes to responding a problem.Troubleshooting MDM systems and exploring functionalityAlso in the support bucket is the ability to resolve problems with configurations and learn more about how to proactively work with your MDM software. This could represent a big win for organizations, particularly as you onboard additional IT staffers, switch MDM products, or seek to remain updated on the latest capabilities your solution offers.JAMF andHexnodeare both implementing chatbots designed to help IT workers troubleshoot problems, learn about new features, and understand how to use them.JAMFincorporates an exceptional set of resourcesits genAI model has access to, including product information, knowledge base articles, curated posts from its JAMF Nation forums, sessions from the companys user conference, and selected Apple support documents.Should you switch MDM providers based on genAI tweaks?Though genAI technology is still evolving, its good to see each MDM vendor staking out its own territory when it comes to adding new functions. (Itll be interesting to see if these differing tacks become a meaningful area of differentiation or whether everyone will eventually end up offering essentially the same feature set.)As for the market right now, its too soon to say that AI alone should influence whether you continue with your current provider or consider switching. Unless youre already actively planning to migrate to a new company, the AI roadmaps of the competition are worth taking into consideration (with a grain of salt). If youre satisfied with what you have, taking a wait-and-see approach to how this plays out over of the next couple of years makes more sense than any rash moves.

My friend and fellow Android appreciator, allow me to shower you with two delightfully simultaneous truths from here in the land o Googley matters:I love using Googles Pixel devices in part because of all the genuinely useful features they add into the Android equation.I love the fact that Android itself makes it not only possible but also incredibly easy to bring similar bits of sorcery to any other device no matter who made the thing or how old it might be.Its something most mere mortals take for granted, but man, what an awesome duality. On the one hand, youve got Googles software smarts showing up and creating an exceptional all-around experience in the Pixel arena and on the other, youve got Androids open approach to app development empowering the community to take that inspiration and bring it anywhere else in a way that frequently wouldnt be possible on (ahem) any other platform.Thats precisely whats happening with the treasure I want to share with you today. Its a clever recreation of one of Googles most recent Pixel-exclusive features one so new, its still available only on the latest Pixel 9 gadgets.Or so itd seem, anyway.Ready for an instant upgrade?[Get more Googley goodness in your inbox with my Android Intelligence newsletter. Three new things to try each Friday and my Android Notification Power-Pack as a special welcome bonus!]Googles Pixel Screenshots no Pixel requiredThe Google-given Pixel goodness were gonna grab revolves around the simple-seeming act of saving a screenshot on your favorite Android phone.As you may or may not recall, Google whipped up a nifty new feature for its Pixel 9 series called Pixel Screenshots. Its a system-level app on the devices that graces you with two time-saving treats:It analyzes every screenshot you take to make it quick n easy to dig back and find important info effectively transforming regular ol screenshots into a simple yet robust save-it-for-later system.It allows you to set reminders for any screenshot you snag right as you capture it, further fleshing out that remarkably sensible new role.The latter part is honestly my favorite Pixel 9 feature and something that has the potential to seriously step up your productivity and change the way you use your phone. Its also something Ive already shown you how to emulate on any other Android device in a roundabout way, with a pinch of tinkering and a touch of creative thinking.The first part, though, is something thats been limited only to those Pixel 9 models until now.Allow me to introduce you to a crafty little creation called, rather fittingly, PixelShot. PixelShot brings the same screenshot-organizing prowess from the Pixel 9 series to whatever Android device youre using a Samsung Galaxy gizmo, a Motorola monster, or even an older Pixel model. Whatever phone is in front of you, it should work and give you some welcome new abilities.At the apps core is an eerily similar replica of the native Pixel-9-exclusive Pixel Screenshots app interface. I mean, seriously look at the two setups side by side:PixelShot (left) and the native Google Pixel Screenshots app (right).JR Raphael, IDGAnd the similarities stretch far beyond the surface. Just like Pixel Screenshots, PixelShot works to analyze your screenshots and make em more useful as an ongoing reference and resource. There really isnt much to it, either: Once you open it up and go through its initial setup and grant it the access to your devices storage that it clearly needs in order to operate the app will take a few minutes to catch up and process all of your existing screenshots up to that point.Then, itll show you all your screenshots in a single streamlined and easy-to-access spot with auto-generated summaries of each item that make it extra easy to search and find anything you need, anytime, even if its visible only as part of an image.PixelShots auto-generated summaries make it fast and easy to find any screenshot youve captured.JR Raphael, IDG(As a reminder, by the way, you can capture a screenshot on Android by pressing your phones physical power button and volume-down button together from anywhere no matter what else you might be doing on your device.)PixelShot lets you manually organize your screenshots into collections, too, just like the native Google Pixel Screenshots app does. If theres something in particular youre capturing and you know youll want to reference again later, thats a handy way to proactively organize it and make it easy to resurface something that typically isnt so simple, in an ordinary Android image gallery.You can also add in notes to go along with any screenshot for extra info and context as well as extra searching power down the road.You can add notes to your screenshots and then use that for extra searching power.JR Raphael, IDGBut its really the automatic elements of PixelShot that seem most broadly useful the way it enhances your existing Android screenshot setup and reframes it as a memo-making, info-saving system with simple future finding and discovery. Even if you think of it as nothing more than a powerful way to search through your screenshots and find important stuff youve saved, its worth keeping around solely for that purpose.To be fair, for all its positives and similarities to the actual Pixel 9 Screenshots tool, PixelShot does have a few noteworthy limitations compared to the original:First, while the original Google-made Pixel Screenshots service imports and analyzes every screenshot on its own as its captured in the background PixelShot updates only when you actually open the app. So every time you fire it up, youll see it take a few seconds to catch up and catalogue and analyze all the screenshots youve taken since you last looked at it. (Not too big of a deal, really.)Second, while Pixel Screenshots works entirely on your own device, PixelShot works by uploading extracted text from your screenshots to a cloud server in order to summarize it. That being said, the developer says the extraction is all done locally, that screenshots themselves are never uploaded anywhere, and that the text sent to a server for summarization is never stored or shared in any way.And finally, given its lack of native system-level integration, PixelShot doesnt include the super-useful on-the-fly reminder-setting feature thats a part of Googles version on the Pixel 9. (But remember: Ive got a separate way to set up something similar on any device, if youre so inspired!)PixelShot is completely free to use for now, with no ads or asterisks. It does seem like it could shift to a more freemium and/or ad-supported model eventually which is understandable, given the costs associated with all the AI-powered summarization stuff but for the moment, at least, theres really no catch whatsoever.Its just a fast and easy upgrade for any phone and a fantastic illustration of the power and flexibility Android affords us even if you dont opt for the latest top-of-the-line Google goody.Love this stuff as much as I do? Check out my free Android Intelligence newsletter for three new things to try in your inbox every Friday and my free Android Notification Power-Pack as soon as you sign up!

This article first appeared in The Checkup,MIT Technology Reviewsweekly biotech newsletter. To receive it in your inbox every Thursday, and read articles like this first,sign up here.On January 20, his first day in office, US president Donald Trump signed an executive order to withdraw the US from the World Health Organization. Ooh, thats a big one, he said as he was handed the document.The US is the biggest donor to the WHO, and the loss of this income is likely to have a significant impact on the organization, which develops international health guidelines, investigates disease outbreaks, and acts as an information-sharing hub for member states.But the US will also lose out. Its a very tragic and sad event that could only hurt the United States in the long run, says William Moss, an epidemiologist at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore.Trump appears to take issue with the amount the US donates to the WHO. He points out that it makes a much bigger contribution than China, a country with a population four times that of the US. It seems a little unfair to me, he said as he prepared to sign the executive order.It is true that the US is far and away the biggest financial supporter of the WHO. The US contributed $1.28 billion over the two-year period covering 2022 and 2023. By comparison, the second-largest donor, Germany, contributed $856 million in the same period. The US currently contributes 14.5% of the WHOs total budget.But its not as though the WHO sends a billion-dollar bill to the US. All member states are required to pay membership dues, which are calculated as a percentage of a countrys gross domestic product. For the US, this figure comes to $130 million. China pays $87.6 million. But the vast majority of the USs contributions to the WHO are made on a voluntary basisin recent years, the donations have been part of multibillion-dollar spending on global health by the US government. (Separately, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation contributed $830 million over 2022 and 2023.)Theres a possibility that other member nations will increase their donations to help cover the shortfall left by the USs withdrawal. But it is not clear who will step upor what implications it will have to change the structure of donations.Martin McKee, a professor of European public health at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, thinks it is unlikely that European members will increase their contributions by much. China, India, Brazil, South Africa, and the Gulf states, on the other hand, may be more likely to pay more. But again, it isnt clear how this will pan out, or whether any of these countries will expect greater influence over global health policy decisions as a result of increasing their donations.WHO funds are spent on a range of global health projectsprograms to eradicate polio, rapidly respond to health emergencies, improve access to vaccines and medicines, develop pandemic prevention strategies, and more. The loss of US funding is likely to have a significant impact on at least some of these programs.Diseases dont stick to national boundaries, hence this decision is not only concerning for the US, but in fact for every country in the world, says Pauline Scheelbeek at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.With the US no longer reporting to the WHO nor funding part of this process, the evidence on which public health interventions and solutions should be based is incomplete.Its going to hurt global health, adds Moss. Its going to come back to bite us.Theres more on how the withdrawal could affect health programs, vaccine coverage, and pandemic preparedness in this weeks coverage.Now read the rest of The CheckupRead more from MIT Technology Reviews archiveThis isnt the first time Donald Trump has signaled his desire for the US to leave the WHO. He proposed a withdrawal during his last term, in 2020. While the WHO is not perfect, it needs more power and funding, not less, Charles Kenny, director of technology and development at the Center for Global Development, argued at the time.The move drew condemnation from those working in public health then, too. The editor in chief of the medical journal The Lancet called it a crime against humanity, as Charlotte Jee reported.In 1974, the WHO launched an ambitious program to get lifesaving vaccines to all children around the world. Fifty years on, vaccines are thought to have averted 154 million deathsincluding 146 million in children under the age of five.The WHO has also seen huge success in its efforts to eradicate polio. Today, wild forms of the virus have been eradicated in all but two countries. But vaccine-derived forms of the virus can still crop up around the world.At the end of a round of discussions in September among WHO member states working on a pandemic agreement, director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus remarked, The next pandemic will not wait for us, whether from a flu virus like H5N1, another coronavirus, or another family of viruses we dont yet know about. The H5N1 virus has been circulating on US dairy farms for months now, and the US is preparing for potential human outbreaks.From around the webPeople with cancer paid $45,000 for an experimental blood-filtering treatment, delivered at a clinic in Antigua, after being misled about its effectiveness. Six of them have died since their treatments. (The New York Times)The Trump administration has instructed federal health agencies to pause all external communications, such as health advisories, weekly scientific reports, updates to websites, and social media posts. (The Washington Post)A new virtual retina, modeled on human retinas, has been developed to study the impact of retinal implants. The three-dimensional model simulates over 10,000 neurons. (Brain Stimulation)Trump has signed an executive order stating that it is the policy of the United States to recognize two sexes, male and female. The document defies decades of research into how human bodies grow and develop, STAT reports, and represents a dramatic failure to understand biology, according to a neuroscientist who studies the development of sex. (STAT)Attention, summer holiday planners: Biting sandflies in the Mediterranean region are transmitting Toscana virus at an increasing rate. The virus is a major cause of central nervous system disorders in the region. Italy saw a 2.6-fold increase in the number of reported infections between the 201621 period and 202223. (Eurosurveillance)

Apple has issued a rare statement concerning its CarPlay project, saying that despite delays, the company continues to work with several car makers to bring it to market.The new CarPlay would take over all car information and entertainment functions image credit: AppleThis is another rare move from Apple, following its 2022 unusual sneak peek at what it calls the next generation of CarPlay. While various car manufacturers have expressed support for the new system, nothing actually drove out of the showrooms by Apple's planned date of the end of 2024.Now the company has finally removed that 2024 date from its website, and also issued a statement. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

FStorm Tile Dummy sets up tiles size, shape and UVW mapping.FStorm Tile Dummy has to be selected in FStorm Tile texture.FStorm Tile Dummyallows to use a shape/spline object to specify tiles shape. Shape object has to be selected in geometry slot.Length and width parameters specify size of tiles repetition area.Tiles height specifies tiles thickness.Tiles slope sets tiles slopes/bevelsSlopes can be controlled with map and map poweradding more edges details and imperfection.Tile edge sets slope edges softness.Tile random tilt produces randomincline giving irregular and artistic reflections.

While Assassins Creed Shadows has seen quite a few delay, game director Charles Benoit has revealed that the latest one, which was announced earlier this month, was due to the studio wanting to further polish up the games parkour mechanics.In an interview with IGN, Benoit revealed that, while there werent any changes to the games major systems, the delay was mostly due to the nature of the roofs of the games Feudal Japan setting and how these roofs interacted with the games parkour system.The Japanese architecture, the roofs [are] super complex, said Benoit. Probably the most complex thing that I ever worked with if we compared to Odyssey and Syndicate. We needed specific codes and specific animations to support something super fluid, changing the transition of the parkour to make it even more fluid. So thats one of the specific feedback that we heard that we wanted to address, and it really improved since the last few months.Aside from this, Benoit mentioned that the studio was working on a couple of things in progression to make it more engaging, also balancing a bit more.More recently, Ubisoft had revealed the hardware specs that would be required to play Assassins Creed Shadows on PC. Among the specifications, Ubisoft listed hardware options for a variety of settings, ranging from selective ray tracing, standard ray tracing, and extended ray tracing. Interestingly, no ray tracing was not an option.Aside from that, players will will need, at minimum an Intel Core i7 8700K or AMD Ryzen 5 3600 CPU, an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 8GB, an AMD Radeon RX 5700 8GB, or an Intel Arc A580 8GB GPU, and 16GB of RAM. Interestingly these lowest specs would not be capable of pushing too much on the ray tracing front, and will only help run the game at 1080p and 30 frames per second with visual settings on low.Aside from the hardware specs, Ubisoft has also confirmed that Assassins Creed Shadows will feature plenty of extra options for PC players to tinker with, including support for Nvidia DLSS 3.7, AMD FSR 3.1 and Intel XeSS 2. The game will also support ultrawide displays, and will feature a benchmark mode to allow players to further tune in their settings.While the title itself hasnt been released yet, Ubisoft also confirmed its first DLC, dubbed Claws of Awaji, with a trailer. The DLC will be part of the pre-order bonuses for Assassins Creed Shadows, and will feature more than 10 hours of content, including a host of new gear, as well as an entire new zone for players to explore. The DLC was confirmed earlier this week, shortly after being leaked thanks to an errant listing on the games Steam store page.Assassins Creed Shadows will revolve around dual protagonist in Naoe and Yasuke, and takes place in Feudal Japan. The game got a story trailer earlier this week where we saw the dynamics for the two characters, as well as their relationship with Oda Nobunaga.The game is coming to PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S on March 20.

The Spring Festival, better known as Chinese New Year, is in full swing, and many titles, like Palworld, are celebrating. Pocketpair has added five new skins to the title, which all players can equip on Cattiva, Lyleen, Chillet, Lyleen Noct, and Chillet Ignis.The update otherwise features changes and adjustments, like summoned Pals targeting the nearest enemy and large Pals functioning similarly to smaller ones at base. This should ideally prevent them from getting stuck in narrow spots or colliding with ceilings. Killamari now has the Water element and can handle watering crops, while Mammorest and its Cryst variant get the Earth element.There are also balance adjustments, including the Oil Rigs large treasure chest, which no longe awards an Uncommon Plasma Cannon blueprint. Less Plasteel is required to craft gear, while the crude oil extractor should produce crude oil more quickly.Check out the full patch notes below for more details. Palworld is available for Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC. Head here for Pocketpairs latest roadmap, outlining upcoming content and features (including the ending scenario).https://t.co/oODXFkklRc Palworld (@Palworld_EN) January 24, 2025

Sutter's Mill, California, where John Augustus Sutter struck gold, accidentally starting the gold rush. Photo by MPI/Getty ImagesOn January 24, 1848, American carpenter and sawmill operator James Wilson Marshall discovered gold in the foothills of Californias Sierra Nevada mountains. The discovery facilitated by Native American guides who knew about the gold but did not value it like white settlers, spurred the largest mass migration in the United States, altering the course of history for both California and the nation.Marshall was overseeing construction of a sawmill for influential landowner John Sutter, a Swiss immigrant, in whats now Californias Coloma Valley when he noticed something shiny at the bottom of the ditch. I reached my hand down and picked it up, Marshall later said. It made my heart thump, for I was certain it was gold. Then I saw another."Once word got out about Marshalls find, approximately 300,000 people from around the country and even the globe flocked to California hoping to strike it rich. Known as forty-niners, a name referring to the year that thousands of prospectors began arriving, they came by both land and by sea, traveling from the U.S. Eastern seaboard as well as places like Latin America, Asia and Europe.This mass influx created a surge in new wealth and population. San Francisco, for example, transformed from a sleepy port town of fewer than 1,000 inhabitants into a booming city of 25,000 residents seemingly overnight. The increased population also brought a need for civil government, fast-tracking California to statehood. On September 9, 1850, it was admitted as the 31st state.With no existing laws regarding property rights in the gold fields, early prospectors simply staked claims, asserting their rights to a gold field as long as it was being actively worked. Initially, they panned for gold in the streams and riverbeds. When these methods were no longer profitable, they turned to digging in the soil and later, hydraulic mininga highly destructive practice that used mercury-coated sluice boxes for gold recovery. This contaminated both water and fish, with environmental effects that still linger in California today.A relative few who partook in the Gold Rush got wealthymostly earlier prospectors. But the development that sprung up around this mass migration of fortune seekers had a lasting impact on the states economy. This included the building of infrastructure like roads and bridges, the rapid growth of agriculture, and a stimulated interest in building what would later become the Panama Canal, which significantly cut travel time between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.Californias swiftly growing population also inspired the formation of banks like Wells Fargo and dry goods companies such as Levi Strauss, whose eponymous Bavarian immigrant founder sought to bring durable clothing to gold seekers.But as miners became increasingly territorial over their claims, Californias Native American populationmany of whom had been enslaved by earlier settlers during Californias days as a Mexican provincesuffered. Tens of thousands succumbed to disease, starvation and mining-related accidents, while others were killed as part of a larger genocide. In the two decades following Californias Gold Rush beginnings, 80 percent of its Native American population was lost.Between 1848 and 1855, California produced an estimated 750,000 pounds of gold. After that the take gradually declined, and by the end of the decade it was over. But not its impact: The Gold Rush may be long over, but its aftereffects still linger.Get the latest stories in your inbox every weekday.

Google will take firmer action against British businesses that use fake reviews to boost their star ratings on the search giants reviews platform. The UKs Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) announced on Friday that Google has agreed to improve its processes for detecting and removing fake reviews, and will take action against the businesses and reviewers that post them.This includes deactivating the ability to add new reviews for businesses found to be using fake reviews, and deleting all existing reviews for at least six months if they repeatedly engage in suspicious review activity. Google will also place prominent warning alerts on the Google profiles of businesses using fake reviews to help consumers be more aware of potentially misleading feedback. Individuals who repeatedly post fake or misleading reviews on UK business pages will be banned and have their review history deleted, even if theyre located in another country.Google is required to report to the CMA over the next three years to ensure its complying with the agreement.The changes weve secured from Google ensure robust processes are in place, so people can have confidence in reviews and make the best possible choices, CMA chief executive Sarah Cardell said in a statement. This is a matter of fairness for both business and consumers and we encourage the entire sector to take note.Google made similar changes to reviews in Maps last year, saying that contributions should reflect a genuine experience at a place or business. However, those changes apply globally while Googles commitment to improving reviews across all its properties appears to just apply to the UK for now.The changes to reviews follow a CMA investigation launched against Google and Amazon in 2021 over concerns the companies had violated consumer protection laws by not doing enough to tackle fake reviews on their platforms. The CMA says its probe into Amazon is still ongoing and that an update will be announced in due course.