Published June 15, 2025 10:00am EDT close IPhone users instructed to take immediate action to avoid data breach: 'Urgent threat' Kurt 'The CyberGuy' Knutsson discusses Elon Musk's possible priorities as he exits his role with the White House and explains the urgent warning for iPhone users to update devices after a 'massive security gap.' NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! In the past decade, healthcare data has become one of the most sought-after targets in cybercrime. From insurers to clinics, every player in the ecosystem handles some form of sensitive information. However, breaches do not always originate from hospitals or health apps. Increasingly, patient data is managed by third-party vendors offering digital services such as scheduling, billing and marketing. One such breach at a digital marketing agency serving dental practices recently exposed approximately 2.7 million patient profiles and more than 8.8 million appointment records.Sign up for my FREE CyberGuy ReportGet my best tech tips, urgent security alerts, and exclusive deals delivered straight to your inbox. Plus, you’ll get instant access to my Ultimate Scam Survival Guide — free when you join. Illustration of a hacker at work   (Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson)Massive healthcare data leak exposes millions: What you need to knowCybernews researchers have discovered a misconfigured MongoDB database exposing 2.7 million patient profiles and 8.8 million appointment records. The database was publicly accessible online, unprotected by passwords or authentication protocols. Anyone with basic knowledge of database scanning tools could have accessed it.The exposed data included names, birthdates, addresses, emails, phone numbers, gender, chart IDs, language preferences and billing classifications. Appointment records also contained metadata such as timestamps and institutional identifiers.MASSIVE DATA BREACH EXPOSES 184 MILLION PASSWORDS AND LOGINSClues within the data structure point toward Gargle, a Utah-based company that builds websites and offers marketing tools for dental practices. While not a confirmed source, several internal references and system details suggest a strong connection. Gargle provides appointment scheduling, form submission and patient communication services. These functions require access to patient information, making the firm a likely link in the exposure.After the issue was reported, the database was secured. The duration of the exposure remains unknown, and there is no public evidence indicating whether the data was downloaded by malicious actors before being locked down.We reached out to Gargle for a comment but did not hear back before our deadline. A healthcare professional viewing heath data      (Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson)How healthcare data breaches lead to identity theft and insurance fraudThe exposed data presents a broad risk profile. On its own, a phone number or billing record might seem limited in scope. Combined, however, the dataset forms a complete profile that could be exploited for identity theft, insurance fraud and targeted phishing campaigns.Medical identity theft allows attackers to impersonate patients and access services under a false identity. Victims often remain unaware until significant damage is done, ranging from incorrect medical records to unpaid bills in their names. The leak also opens the door to insurance fraud, with actors using institutional references and chart data to submit false claims.This type of breach raises questions about compliance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, which mandates strong security protections for entities handling patient data. Although Gargle is not a healthcare provider, its access to patient-facing infrastructure could place it under the scope of that regulation as a business associate. A healthcare professional working on a laptop   (Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson)5 ways you can stay safe from healthcare data breachesIf your information was part of the healthcare breach or any similar one, it’s worth taking a few steps to protect yourself.1. Consider identity theft protection services: Since the healthcare data breach exposed personal and financial information, it’s crucial to stay proactive against identity theft. Identity theft protection services offer continuous monitoring of your credit reports, Social Security number and even the dark web to detect if your information is being misused. These services send you real-time alerts about suspicious activity, such as new credit inquiries or attempts to open accounts in your name, helping you act quickly before serious damage occurs. Beyond monitoring, many identity theft protection companies provide dedicated recovery specialists who assist you in resolving fraud issues, disputing unauthorized charges and restoring your identity if it’s compromised. See my tips and best picks on how to protect yourself from identity theft.2. Use personal data removal services: The healthcare data breach leaks loads of information about you, and all this could end up in the public domain, which essentially gives anyone an opportunity to scam you.  One proactive step is to consider personal data removal services, which specialize in continuously monitoring and removing your information from various online databases and websites. While no service promises to remove all your data from the internet, having a removal service is great if you want to constantly monitor and automate the process of removing your information from hundreds of sites continuously over a longer period of time. Check out my top picks for data removal services here. GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HEREGet a free scan to find out if your personal information is already out on the web3. Have strong antivirus software: Hackers have people’s email addresses and full names, which makes it easy for them to send you a phishing link that installs malware and steals all your data. These messages are socially engineered to catch them, and catching them is nearly impossible if you’re not careful. However, you’re not without defenses.The best way to safeguard yourself from malicious links that install malware, potentially accessing your private information, is to have strong antivirus software installed on all your devices. This protection can also alert you to phishing emails and ransomware scams, keeping your personal information and digital assets safe. Get my picks for the best 2025 antivirus protection winners for your Windows, Mac, Android and iOS devices.4. Enable two-factor authentication: While passwords weren’t part of the data breach, you still need to enable two-factor authentication (2FA). It gives you an extra layer of security on all your important accounts, including email, banking and social media. 2FA requires you to provide a second piece of information, such as a code sent to your phone, in addition to your password when logging in. This makes it significantly harder for hackers to access your accounts, even if they have your password. Enabling 2FA can greatly reduce the risk of unauthorized access and protect your sensitive data.5. Be wary of mailbox communications: Bad actors may also try to scam you through snail mail. The data leak gives them access to your address. They may impersonate people or brands you know and use themes that require urgent attention, such as missed deliveries, account suspensions and security alerts. Kurt’s key takeawayIf nothing else, this latest leak shows just how poorly patient data is being handled today. More and more, non-medical vendors are getting access to sensitive information without facing the same rules or oversight as hospitals and clinics. These third-party services are now a regular part of how patients book appointments, pay bills or fill out forms. But when something goes wrong, the fallout is just as serious. Even though the database was taken offline, the bigger problem hasn't gone away. Your data is only as safe as the least careful company that gets access to it.CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APPDo you think healthcare companies are investing enough in their cybersecurity infrastructure? Let us know by writing us at Cyberguy.com/ContactFor more of my tech tips and security alerts, subscribe to my free CyberGuy Report Newsletter by heading to Cyberguy.com/NewsletterAsk Kurt a question or let us know what stories you'd like us to coverFollow Kurt on his social channelsAnswers to the most asked CyberGuy questions:New from Kurt:Copyright 2025 CyberGuy.com.  All rights reserved.   Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson is an award-winning tech journalist who has a deep love of technology, gear and gadgets that make life better with his contributions for Fox News & FOX Business beginning mornings on "FOX & Friends." Got a tech question? Get Kurt’s free CyberGuy Newsletter, share your voice, a story idea or comment at CyberGuy.com.

Jun 13, 2025Ravie LakshmananWeb Security / Network Security Cybersecurity researchers are calling attention to a "large-scale campaign" that has been observed compromising legitimate websites with malicious JavaScript injections. According to Palo Alto Networks Unit 42, these malicious injects are obfuscated using JSFuck, which refers to an "esoteric and educational programming style" that uses only a limited set of characters to write and execute code. The cybersecurity company has given the technique an alternate name JSFireTruck owing to the profanity involved. "Multiple websites have been identified with injected malicious JavaScript that uses JSFireTruck obfuscation, which is composed primarily of the symbols [, ], +, $, {, and }," security researchers Hardik Shah, Brad Duncan, and Pranay Kumar Chhaparwal said. "The code's obfuscation hides its true purpose, hindering analysis." Further analysis has determined that the injected code is designed to check the website referrer ("document.referrer"), which identifies the address of the web page from which a request originated. Should the referrer be a search engine such as Google, Bing, DuckDuckGo, Yahoo!, or AOL, the JavaScript code redirects victims to malicious URLs that can deliver malware, exploits, traffic monetization, and malvertising. Unit 42 said its telemetry uncovered 269,552 web pages that have been infected with JavaScript code using the JSFireTruck technique between March 26 and April 25, 2025. A spike in the campaign was first recorded on April 12, when over 50,000 infected web pages were observed in a single day. "The campaign's scale and stealth pose a significant threat," the researchers said. "The widespread nature of these infections suggests a coordinated effort to compromise legitimate websites as attack vectors for further malicious activities." Say Hello to HelloTDS The development comes as Gen Digital took the wraps off a sophisticated Traffic Distribution Service (TDS) called HelloTDS that's designed to conditionally redirect site visitors to fake CAPTCHA pages, tech support scams, fake browser updates, unwanted browser extensions, and cryptocurrency scams through remotely-hosted JavaScript code injected into the sites. The primary objective of the TDS is to act as a gateway, determining the exact nature of content to be delivered to the victims after fingerprinting their devices. If the user is not deemed a suitable target, the victim is redirected to a benign web page. "The campaign entry points are infected or otherwise attacker-controlled streaming websites, file sharing services, as well as malvertising campaigns," researchers Vojtěch Krejsa and Milan Špinka said in a report published this month. "Victims are evaluated based on geolocation, IP address, and browser fingerprinting; for example, connections through VPNs or headless browsers are detected and rejected." Some of these attack chains have been found to serve bogus CAPTCHA pages that leverage the ClickFix strategy to trick users into running malicious code and infecting their machines with a malware known as PEAKLIGHT (aka Emmenhtal Loader), which is known to server information stealers like Lumma. Central to the HelloTDS infrastructure is the use of .top, .shop, and .com top-level domains that are used to host the JavaScript code and trigger the redirections following a multi-stage fingerprinting process engineered to collect network and browser information. "The HelloTDS infrastructure behind fake CAPTCHA campaigns demonstrates how attackers continue to refine their methods to bypass traditional protections, evade detection, and selectively target victims," the researchers said. "By leveraging sophisticated fingerprinting, dynamic domain infrastructure, and deception tactics (such as mimicking legitimate websites and serving benign content to researchers) these campaigns achieve both stealth and scale." Found this article interesting? Follow us on Twitter  and LinkedIn to read more exclusive content we post. SHARE    

Bar stools aren't intended for hours of lounging. What they are intended for, however, is constant use. Because what’s a bar if not a counter by another name? And a counter, in many cases, is also a breakfast table, the after-school snack buffet, the take-out and basketball-watching hub, and, eventually, the cocktail bar, come hosting hour. For each activity, the same seat does its duty. Unlike dining room chairs, bar stools suffer thoughtlessness: We yank them out, half asleep in the morning. We hike our feet up their pegs, lost in a TV show's plot. When friends come over, we lean forward, animatedly. All the while unwittingly testing each little joint and bolt beneath us. That’s why shopping for them requires a good deal of thought. So, we went ahead and did a lot of that thinking for you. Below, you’ll find some of ELLE Decor's favorite stools, from the design-forward to the budget-conscious. You'll also find a little about what went into our choices. The Classic (with a Back) Carter Counter Stool$398 at Serena and LilyThere's a lot to be said for a classic. With this elevated chair-like stool, you can rest against the back and bring your feet up to its pegs. Also, it comes in six colorways.Dimensions37"H x 18.25" W x 21" DFeaturesSolid beech, painted finish. No assembly required. Holds up to 275 lbsThe Vacationer Avalon Rattan Swivel Bar Stool$648 at Serena and Lily If there's a material evocative of vacation, it's rattan. This version also has a swivel seat and basket-weave back. But, you'll have to appreciate the natural wear on a material—it's part of the appeal. Dimensions38.5"H x 20.5"W x 22"DFeaturesMade with hand-wrapped rattan, holds up to 300 lbsAdvertisement - Continue Reading BelowLaurel Foundry Modern Farmhouse® Baggett Solid Wood Windsor Back StoolNow 15% Off$165 $140 at WayfairIf you like the look of light wood but at an affordable pricepoint, this option from Wayfair is totally serviceable. And, it comes in three classic colorways. Dimensions14.8'' W X 14.2'' D; back is 12.5'' HFeaturesWood frame, some assembly required; holds up to 300 lbsMartha Stewart Martha Stewart Playa Handcrafted Rattan Counter StoolNow 36% Off$399 $256 at WayfairTDimensions35'' H x 23'' W x 22.5'' DFeaturessolid wood; some assembly required. Holds up to 300 lbsAdvertisement - Continue Reading BelowElegant designVanity Counter Stool$3,400 at nickeykehoe.comAnd what if you want the back, the cushioned seat, and a considered, elevated design? Time to check on Nickey Kehoe. Says our own Interiors Director, Bebe Howorth: “I love a stool with a little bit of back support, but doesn’t impose on the space like a chair.” Dimensions33.25" H x 18" W x 19.5" DFeaturesNatural oak; Susan Deliss, constanza in denimBarely-there backrestSede Counter Stool $249 at ArticleA short back, a cushioned seat, and an elegant, tapered leg, this stool has a lovely silhouette at a low price point. Available in three colorways and the option of a leather (versus fabric) seat. Dimensions31"H x 16"W x 17"DFeaturesSolid and veneered wood, holds up to 300 lbsAdvertisement - Continue Reading BelowWayne Swivel Bar & Counter Stools$449 at West ElmThere's no denying the appeal of the swivel. And if you foresee your bar stools serving a primarily social function, you'll want to seek that out. As Dorothy Scarborough, Editorial Assistant at ELLE Decor and Town & Country says: "Bar stools, by their very design, are tricky. When you're a few martinis in, it's fun to swing your legs and turn in circles, but when you're trying to enjoy a bowl of cereal, bar stools make for a less than ideal experience. This West Elm design has a higher back and arms, and at only 26 inches off the ground, doesn't make you feel like you're sitting on a tower. It's almost like a real chair, but it has all the jazzy chicness of a barstool."Adam Stool$610 at framacph.comOf course, not all stools need to be tall chairs. The perch-type stool can serve its function expertly, even with a minimal design, like this one from Frama. Dimension30" H x 17" W x 10" DFeaturesPowder coated frame, oiled seat; steel frame, oak seatAdvertisement - Continue Reading BelowErgonomic PerchWayland stool $1,110 at oandgstudio.comPrepare for a comfortable perch with this statuesque stool from O&G Studio. Says ELLE Decor's Market Director, Benjamin Reynaert: "I personally sit-tested the Wayland Stool, and let me tell you—the carved solid wood seat isn’t just a design detail, it’s a comfort revelation, perfectly pairing form with the casual functionality of its bamboo-inspired turnings and classic box stretcher base, all available in a palette of 19 hand-applied stained finishes that highlight the American craftsmanship of O&G Studio."Dimensions25" H x 21.25" W x 18" DFeaturesMade with ash and maple wood, stained; "stylized bamboo turnings of the Wayland Family."Industrial chicSteel Stool$129 at ZARA HomeFrom Zara Home comes this sharp number. Not as tall as some, and, clearly, not intended for hours of sitting, this steel stool brings a chic taste of the industrial to any room. Dimensions17" H x 11" W x 11" DAdvertisement - Continue Reading BelowWinsome Winsome Satori Stool$36 at AmazonWith a curved wooden seat and a classic, ladder-leg construction, this Winsome Satori stool is chic, simple, and affordable. Bonus: It's available in multiple heights.Dimensions16" H x 18" W x 29" DFeaturesSolid beech wood with a walnut finishLancaster Stool $48 at webstaurantstore.comIndustrial but make it comfortable: The Lancaster stool comes in multiple colors and heights. Plus: the cushion is removable, making these stools stackable for easy storage. Dimensions24" H x 16 " D x 16" WFeaturesFrame is coated steel, and the cushion is corrosion-resistant powder coated vinyl. Holds up to 400 lbsAdvertisement - Continue Reading BelowCurvy and Cushy Lulu and Georgia Ashford Bar Stool$598 at Lulu and GeorgiaThis curvy stool from Lulu and Georgia comes with the brusque silhouette of its industrial cousins tempered by the soft edges, arched lines, and plush seat of a comfortable chair.Dimensions30" H x 18.25" W x 18.25" DFeaturesAsh wood frame, foam cushion; hand-crafted and made from sustainable materialsThe Heavy-Lifting VacationerAlastair Bar & Counter StoolNow 37% Off$264 $167 at Joss & MainA return to the vacation rattan, this classic, backless stool comes with all the attitude of a beach cabana at a reasonable price. Offered in multiple colors and heights for beach-adjacent rooms of all sorts. Surprisingly, perhaps, this stool claims to hold up to 500 lbs, making it the heaviest lifter of them all. Dimensinos24'' H X 16'' W X 16'' DFeaturesMade from rattan and plastic, it can hold up to 500 lbsAdvertisement - Continue Reading BelowInnovative eleganceMoon Stool$880 at sunatsix.comIt's all about the considered design on these moon stools. But, made from solid white oak treated with tenna oil, they're also stain resistant and built for use. Dimensions30” H x 19.5” W x 16”DFeatureshand-made from white oak using traditional joinery; three finishes availableHigh-quality classic Range Stool$1,200 at assemblyline.coThese classic stools are solid wood, handmade, and all about the understated beauty of quality. Which also means you'll need to order these well in advance of your first soiree, as they take roughly 12 to 14 weeks to make. Dimensions25” H x 13” L x 13” WFeaturesMade from white oak; multiple finishes available.Advertisement - Continue Reading BelowMainstays Natural wood stool$35 at WalmartYes, Walmart makes a totally serviceable, classic wooden bar stool. Sold in packs of two, and available in multiple heights, they get the job done. Dimensions13.50" H x 29.00" D x 13.50" WFeaturesMade from woodFrequently Asked QuestionsWhat makes a bar stool comfortable? Let's be honest: Most stools are not built for comfort. Especially the perch variety, as we're calling it—stools with just a flat shelf or round disk to sit on—are functional. If comfort is high on the must-have list, look for a perch with a slightly concave seat, engineered for the shape of a human body. Or skip the perch and go for stools with backrests and cushions. Here's a rule of thumb: the thicker the cushion, the higher the back, the longer you'll want to sit. Ideally, however, you'll find a showroom to test out any piece you're looking to invest in. How do you clean a stool? Most of the stools we've listed have specific instructions for cleaning, but non-abrasive cleaners are always recommended. And, most if not all of the stools we've chosen are intended for indoor use only. Even indoors, however, keeping your stools out of direct sunlight will help preserve the finish. Advertisement - Continue Reading BelowWhy Trust Us?For more than three decades, ELLE DECOR has covered stylemakers, trendsetting interiors, and must-have home furnishings. With a focus on the latest design trends and ideas about how to incorporate them into improving your own space, we’re your go-to resource for elevating and beautifying your home. Our team of editors and interior design pros research and review every new article we publish to ensure you have the most up-to-date, expert-approved information.

Solar air heating is among the most cost-effective applications of solar thermal energy. These systems are used for space heating and preheating fresh air for ventilation, typically using glazed or unglazed perforated solar collectors. The collectors draw in outside air, heat it using solar energy, and then distribute it through ductwork to meet building heating and fresh air needs. In 2024, Canada led again the world for the at least seventh year in a row in solar air heating adoption. The four key suppliers – Trigo Energies, Conserval Engineering, Matrix Energy, and Aéronergie – reported a combined 26,203 m2 (282,046 ft2) of collector area sold last year. Several of these providers are optimistic about the growing demand. These findings come from the newly released Canadian Solar Thermal Market Survey 2024, commissioned by Natural Resources Canada. Canada is the global leader in solar air heating. The market is driven by a strong network of experienced system suppliers, optimized technologies, and a few small favorable funding programs – especially in the province of Quebec. Architects and developers are increasingly turning to these cost-effective, façade-integrated systems as a practical solution for reducing onsite natural gas consumption. Despite its cold climate, Canada benefits from strong solar potential with solar irradiance in many areas rivaling or even exceeding that of parts of Europe. This makes solar air heating not only viable, but especially valuable in buildings with high fresh air requirements including schools, hospitals, and offices. The projects highlighted in this article showcase the versatility and relevance of solar air heating across a range of building types, from new constructions to retrofits. Figure 1: Preheating air for industrial buildings: 2,750 m2 (29,600 ft2) of Calento SL solar air collectors cover all south-west and south-east facing facades of the FAB3R factory in Trois-Rivières, Quebec. The hourly unitary flow rate is set at 41 m3/m2 or 2.23 cfm/ft2 of collector area, at the lower range because only a limited number of intake fans was close enough to the solar façade to avoid long ventilation ductwork. Photo: Trigo Energies Quebec’s solar air heating boom: the Trigo Energies story Trigo Energies makes almost 90 per cent of its sales in Quebec. “We profit from great subsidies, as solar air systems are supported by several organizations in our province – the electricity utility Hydro Quebec, the gas utility Energir and the Ministry of Natural Resources,” explained Christian Vachon, Vice President Technologies and R&D at Trigo Energies. Trigo Energies currently has nine employees directly involved in planning, engineering and installing solar air heating systems and teams up with several partner contractors to install mostly retrofit projects. “A high degree of engineering is required to fit a solar heating system into an existing factory,” emphasized Vachon. “Knowledge about HVAC engineering is as important as experience with solar thermal and architecture.” One recent Trigo installation is at the FAB3R factory in Trois-Rivières. FAB3R specializes in manufacturing, repairing, and refurbishing large industrial equipment. Its air heating and ventilation system needed urgent renovation because of leakages and discomfort for the workers. “Due to many positive references he had from industries in the area, the owner of FAB3R contacted us,” explained Vachon. “The existence of subsidies helped the client to go for a retrofitting project including solar façade at once instead of fixing the problems one bit at a time.” Approximately 50 per cent of the investment costs for both the solar air heating and the renovation of the indoor ventilation system were covered by grants and subsidies. FAB3R profited from an Energir grant targeted at solar preheating, plus an investment subsidy from the Government of Quebec’s EcoPerformance Programme.   Blue or black, but always efficient: the advanced absorber coating In October 2024, the majority of the new 2,750 m² (29,600 ft2) solar façade at FAB3R began operation (see figure 1). According to Vachon, the system is expected to cover approximately 13 per cent of the factory’s annual heating demand, which is otherwise met by natural gas. Trigo Energies equipped the façade with its high-performance Calento SL collectors, featuring a notable innovation: a selective, low-emissivity coating that withstands outdoor conditions. Introduced by Trigo in 2019 and manufactured by Almeco Group from Italy, this advanced coating is engineered to maximize solar absorption while minimizing heat loss via infrared emission, enhancing the overall efficiency of the system. The high efficiency coating is now standard in Trigo’s air heating systems. According to the manufacturer, the improved collector design shows a 25 to 35 per cent increase in yield over the former generation of solar air collectors with black paint. Testing conducted at Queen’s University confirms this performance advantage. Researchers measured the performance of transpired solar air collectors both with and without a selective coating, mounted side-by-side on a south-facing vertical wall. The results showed that the collectors with the selective coating produced 1.3 to 1.5 times more energy than those without it. In 2024, the monitoring results were jointly published by Queen’s University and Canmat Energy in a paper titled Performance Comparison of a Transpired Air Solar Collector with Low-E Surface Coating. Selective coating, also used on other solar thermal technologies including glazed flat plate or vacuum tube collectors, has a distinctive blue color. Trigo customers can, however, choose between blue and black finishes. “By going from the normal blue selective coating to black selective coating, which Almeco is specially producing for Trigo, we lose about 1 per cent in solar efficiency,” explained Vachon. Figure 2: Building-integrated solar air heating façade with MatrixAir collectors at the firehall building in Mont Saint Hilaire, south of Montreal. The 190 m2 (2,045 ft2) south-facing wall preheats the fresh air, reducing natural gas consumption by 18 per cent compared to the conventional make-up system. Architect: Leclerc Architecture. Photo: Matrix Energy Matrix Energy: collaborating with architects and engineers in new builds The key target customer group of Matrix Energy are public buildings – mainly new construction. “Since the pandemic, schools are more conscious about fresh air, and solar preheating of the incoming fresh air has a positive impact over the entire school year,” noted Brian Wilkinson, President of Matrix Energy. Matrix Energy supplies systems across Canada, working with local partners to source and process the metal sheets used in their MatrixAir collectors. These metal sheets are perforated and then formed into architectural cladding profiles. The company exclusively offers unglazed, single-stage collectors, citing fire safety concerns associated with polymeric covers. “We have strong relationships with many architects and engineers who appreciate the simplicity and cost-effectiveness of transpired solar air heating systems,” said President Brian Wilkinson, describing the company’s sales approach. “Matrix handles system design and supplies the necessary materials, while installation is carried out by specialized cladding and HVAC contractors overseen by on-site architects and engineers,” Wilkinson added. Finding the right flow: the importance of unitary airflow rates One of the key design factors in solar air heating systems is the amount of air that passes through each square meter of the perforated metal absorber,  known as the unitary airflow rate. The principle is straightforward: higher airflow rates deliver more total heat to the building, while lower flow rates result in higher outlet air temperatures. Striking the right balance between air volume and temperature gain is essential for efficient system performance. For unglazed collectors mounted on building façades, typical hourly flow rates should range between 120 and 170 (m3/h/m2), or 6.6 to 9.4 cfm/ft2. However, Wilkinson suggests that an hourly airflow rate of around 130 m³/h/m² (7.2 cfm/ft2) offers the best cost-benefit balance for building owners. If the airflow is lower, the system will deliver higher air temperatures, but it would then need a much larger collector area to achieve the same air volume and optimum performance, he explained. It’s also crucial for the flow rate to overcome external wind pressure. As wind passes over the absorber, air flow through the collector’s perforations is reduced, resulting in heat losses to the environment. This effect becomes even more pronounced in taller buildings, where wind exposure is greater. To ensure the system performs well even in these conditions, higher hourly airflow rates typically between 150 and 170 m³/m² (8.3 to 9.4 cfm/ft2)  are necessary. Figure 3: One of three apartment blocks of the Maple House in Toronto’s Canary District. Around 160 m2 (1,722 ft2) of SolarWall collectors clad the two-storey mechanical penthouse on the roof. The rental flats have been occupied since the beginning of 2024. Collaborators: architects-Alliance, Claude Cormier et Associés, Thornton Tomasetti, RWDI, Cole Engineering, DesignAgency, MVShore, BA Group, EllisDon. Photo: Conserval Engineering Solar air heating systems support LEED-certified building designs Solar air collectors are also well-suited for use in multi-unit residential buildings. A prime example is the Canary District in Toronto (see Figure 3), where single-stage SolarWall collectors from Conserval Engineering have been installed on several MURBs to clad the mechanical penthouses. “These penthouses are an ideal location for our air heating collectors, as they contain the make-up air units that supply corridor ventilation throughout the building,” explained Victoria Hollick, Vice President of Conserval Engineering. “The walls are typically finished with metal façades, which can be seamlessly replaced with a SolarWall system – maintaining the architectural language without disruption.” To date, nine solar air heating systems have been commissioned in the Canary District, covering a total collector area of over 1,000 m² (10,764 ft2). “Our customers have many motivations to integrate SolarWall technology into their new construction or retrofit projects, either carbon reduction, ESG, or green building certification targets,” explained Hollick. The use of solar air collectors in the Canary District was proposed by architects from the Danish firm Cobe. The black-colored SolarWall system preheats incoming air before it is distributed to the building’s corridors and common areas, reducing reliance on natural gas heating and supporting the pursuit of LEED Gold certification. Hollick estimates the amount of gas saved between 10 to 20 per cent of the total heating load for the corridor ventilation of the multi-unit residential buildings. Additional energy-saving strategies include a 50/50 window-to-wall ratio with high-performance glazing, green roofs, high-efficiency mechanical systems, LED lighting, and Energy Star-certified appliances. The ideal orientation for a SolarWall system is due south. However, the systems can be built at any orientation up to 90° east and west, explained Hollick. A SolarWall at 90° would have approximately 60 per cent of the energy production of the same area facing south.Canada’s expertise in solar air heating continues to set a global benchmark, driven by supporting R&D, by innovative technologies, strategic partnerships, and a growing portfolio of high-impact projects. With strong policy support and proven performance, solar air heating is poised to play a key role in the country’s energy-efficient building future. Figure 4: Claude-Bechard Building in Quebec is a showcase project for sustainable architecture with a 72 m2 (775 ft2) Lubi solar air heating wall from Aéronergie. It serves as a regional administrative center. Architectural firm: Goulet et Lebel Architectes. Photo: Art Massif Bärbel Epp is the general manager of the German Agency solrico, whose focus is on solar market research and international communication. The post Op-ed: Canada’s leadership in solar air heating—Innovation and flagship projects appeared first on Canadian Architect.

Jun 14, 2025Ravie LakshmananMalware / Threat Intelligence A new malware campaign is exploiting a weakness in Discord's invitation system to deliver an information stealer called Skuld and the AsyncRAT remote access trojan. "Attackers hijacked the links through vanity link registration, allowing them to silently redirect users from trusted sources to malicious servers," Check Point said in a technical report. "The attackers combined the ClickFix phishing technique, multi-stage loaders, and time-based evasions to stealthily deliver AsyncRAT, and a customized Skuld Stealer targeting crypto wallets." The issue with Discord's invite mechanism is that it allows attackers to hijack expired or deleted invite links and secretly redirect unsuspecting users to malicious servers under their control. This also means that a Discord invite link that was once trusted and shared on forums or social media platforms could unwittingly lead users to malicious sites. Details of the campaign come a little over a month after the cybersecurity company revealed another sophisticated phishing campaign that hijacked expired vanity invite links to entice users into joining a Discord server and instruct them to visit a phishing site to verify ownership, only to have their digital assets drained upon connecting their wallets. While users can create temporary, permanent, or custom (vanity) invite links on Discord, the platform prevents other legitimate servers from reclaiming a previously expired or deleted invite. However, Check Point found that creating custom invite links allows the reuse of expired invite codes and even deleted permanent invite codes in some cases. This ability to reuse Discord expired or deleted codes when creating custom vanity invite links opens the door to abuse, allowing attackers to claim it for their malicious server. "This creates a serious risk: Users who follow previously trusted invite links (e.g., on websites, blogs, or forums) can unknowingly be redirected to fake Discord servers created by threat actors," Check Point said. The Discord invite-link hijacking, in a nutshell, involves taking control of invite links originally shared by legitimate communities and then using them to redirect users to the malicious server. Users who fall prey to the scheme and join the server are asked to complete a verification step in order to gain full server access by authorizing a bot, which then leads them to a fake website with a prominent "Verify" button. This is where the attackers take the attack to the next level by incorporating the infamous ClickFix social engineering tactic to trick users into infecting their systems under the pretext of verification. Specifically, clicking the "Verify" button surreptitiously executes JavaScript that copies a PowerShell command to the machine's clipboard, after which the users are urged to launch the Windows Run dialog, paste the already copied "verification string" (i.e., the PowerShell command), and press Enter to authenticate their accounts. But in reality, performing these steps triggers the download of a PowerShell script hosted on Pastebin that subsequently retrieves and executes a first-stage downloader, which is ultimately used to drop AsyncRAT and Skuld Stealer from a remote server and execute them. At the heart of this attack lies a meticulously engineered, multi-stage infection process designed for both precision and stealth, while also taking steps to subvert security protections through sandbox security checks. AsyncRAT, which offers comprehensive remote control capabilities over infected systems, has been found to employ a technique called dead drop resolver to access the actual command-and-control (C2) server by reading a Pastebin file. The other payload is a Golang information stealer that's downloaded from Bitbucket. It's equipped to steal sensitive user data from Discord, various browsers, crypto wallets, and gaming platforms. Skuld is also capable of harvesting crypto wallet seed phrases and passwords from the Exodus and Atomic crypto wallets. It accomplishes this using an approach called wallet injection that replaces legitimate application files with trojanized versions downloaded from GitHub. It's worth noting that a similar technique was recently put to use by a rogue npm package named pdf-to-office. The attack also employs a custom version of an open-source tool known as ChromeKatz to bypass Chrome's app-bound encryption protections. The collected data is exfiltrated to the miscreants via a Discord webhook. The fact that payload delivery and data exfiltration occur via trusted cloud services such as GitHub, Bitbucket, Pastebin, and Discord allows the threat actors to blend in with normal traffic and fly under the radar. Discord has since disabled the malicious bot, effectively breaking the attack chain. Check Point said it also identified another campaign mounted by the same threat actor that distributes the loader as a modified version of a hacktool for unlocking pirated games. The malicious program, also hosted on Bitbucket, has been downloaded 350 times. It has been assessed that the victims of these campaigns are primarily located in the United States, Vietnam, France, Germany, Slovakia, Austria, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. The findings represent the latest example of how cybercriminals are targeting the popular social platform, which has had its content delivery network (CDN) abused to host malware in the past. "This campaign illustrates how a subtle feature of Discord's invite system, the ability to reuse expired or deleted invite codes in vanity invite links, can be exploited as a powerful attack vector," the researchers said. "By hijacking legitimate invite links, threat actors silently redirect unsuspecting users to malicious Discord servers." "The choice of payloads, including a powerful stealer specifically targeting cryptocurrency wallets, suggests that the attackers are primarily focused on crypto users and motivated by financial gain." Found this article interesting? Follow us on Twitter  and LinkedIn to read more exclusive content we post. SHARE    

Inside Apple’s high-gloss standoff with AI ambition and the uncanny choreography of WWDC 2025There was a time when watching an Apple keynote — like Steve Jobs introducing the iPhone in 2007, the masterclass of all masterclasses in product launching — felt like watching a tightrope act. There was suspense. Live demos happened — sometimes they failed, and when they didn’t, the applause was real, not piped through a Dolby mix.These days, that tension is gone. Since 2020, in the wake of the pandemic, Apple events have become pre-recorded masterworks: drone shots sweeping over Apple Park, transitions smoother than a Pixar short, and executives delivering their lines like odd, IRL spatial personas. They move like human renderings: poised, confident, and just robotic enough to raise a brow. The kind of people who, if encountered in real life, would probably light up half a dozen red flags before a handshake is even offered. A case in point: the official “Liquid Glass” UI demo — it’s visually stunning, yes, but also uncanny, like a concept reel that forgot it needed to ship.https://medium.com/media/fcb3b16cc42621ba32153aff80ea1805/hrefAnd that’s the paradox. Not only has Apple trimmed down the content of WWDC, it’s also polished the delivery into something almost inhumanly controlled. Every keynote beat feels engineered to avoid risk, reduce friction, and glide past doubt. But in doing so, something vital slips away: the tension, the spontaneity, the sense that the future is being made, not just performed.Just one year earlier, WWDC 2024 opened with a cinematic cold open “somewhere over California”:https://medium.com/media/f97f45387353363264d99c341d4571b0/hrefPhil Schiller piloting an Apple-branded plane, iPod in hand, muttering “I’m getting too old for this stuff.” A perfect mix of Lethal Weapon camp and a winking message that yes, Classic-Apple was still at the controls — literally — flying its senior leadership straight toward Cupertino. Out the hatch, like high-altitude paratroopers of optimism, leapt the entire exec team, with Craig Federighi, always the go-to for Apple’s auto-ironic set pieces, leading the charge, donning a helmet literally resembling his own legendary mane. It was peak-bold, bizarre, and unmistakably Apple. That intro now reads like the final act of full-throttle confidence.This year’s WWDC offered a particularly crisp contrast. Aside from the new intro — which features Craig Federighi drifting an F1-style race car across the inner rooftop ring of Apple Park as a “therapy session”, a not-so-subtle nod to the upcoming Formula 1 blockbuster but also to the accountability for the failure to deliver the system-wide AI on time — WWDC 2025 pulled back dramatically. The new “Apple Intelligence” was introduced in a keynote with zero stumbles, zero awkward transitions, and visuals so pristine they could have been rendered on a Vision Pro. Not only had the scope of WWDC been trimmed down to safer talking points, but even the tone had shifted — less like a tech summit, more like a handsomely lit containment-mode seminar. And that, perhaps, was the problem. The presentation wasn’t a reveal — it was a performance. And performances can be edited in post. Demos can’t.So when Apple in march 2025 quietly admitted, for the first time, in a formal press release addressed to reporters like John Gruber, that the personalized Siri and system-wide AI features would be delayed — the reaction wasn’t outrage. It was something subtler: disillusionment. Gruber’s response cracked the façade wide open. His post opened a slow but persistent wave of unease, rippling through developer Slack channels and private comment threads alike. John Gruber’s reaction, published under the headline “Something is rotten in the State of Cupertino”, was devastating. His critique opened the floodgates to a wave of murmurs and public unease among developers and insiders, many of whom had begun to question what was really happening at the helm of key divisions central to Apple’s future.Many still believe Apple is the only company truly capable of pulling off hardware-software integrated AI at scale. But there’s a sense that the company is now operating in damage-control mode. The delay didn’t just push back a feature — it disrupted the entire strategic arc of WWDC 2025. What could have been a milestone in system-level AI became a cautious sidestep, repackaged through visual polish and feature tweaks. The result: a presentation focused on UI refinements and safe bets, far removed from the sweeping revolution that had been teased as the main selling point for promoting the iPhone 16 launch, “Built for Apple Intelligence”.That tension surfaced during Joanna Stern’s recent live interview with Craig Federighi and Greg Joswiak. These are two of Apple’s most media-savvy execs, and yet, in a setting where questions weren’t scripted, you could see the seams. Their usual fluency gave way to something stiffer. More careful. Less certain. And even the absences speak volumes: for the first time in a decade, no one from Apple’s top team joined John Gruber’s Talk Show at WWDC. It wasn’t a scheduling fluke — nor a petty retaliation for Gruber’s damning March article. It was a retreat — one that Stratechery’s Ben Thompson described as exactly that: a strategic fallback, not a brave reset.Meanwhile, the keynote narrative quietly shifted from AI ambition to UI innovation: new visual effects, tighter integration, call screening. Credit here goes to Alan Dye — Apple VP of Human Interface Design and one of the last remaining members of Jony Ive’s inner circle not yet absorbed into LoveFrom — whose long-arc work on interface aesthetics, from the early stages of the Dynamic Island onward, is finally starting to click into place. This is classic Apple: refinement as substance, design as coherence. But it was meant to be the cherry on top of a much deeper AI-system transformation — not the whole sundae. All useful. All safe. And yet, the thing that Apple could uniquely deliver — a seamless, deeply integrated, user-controlled and privacy-safe Apple Intelligence — is now the thing it seems most reluctant to show.There is no doubt the groundwork has been laid. And to Apple’s credit, Jason Snell notes that the company is shifting gears, scaling ambitions to something that feels more tangible. But in scaling back the risk, something else has been scaled back too: the willingness to look your audience of stakeholders, developers and users live, in the eye, and show the future for how you have carefully crafted it and how you can put it in the market immediately, or in mere weeks. Showing things as they are, or as they will be very soon. Rehearsed, yes, but never faked.Even James Dyson’s live demo of a new vacuum showed more courage. No camera cuts. No soft lighting. Just a human being, showing a thing. It might have sucked, literally or figuratively. But it didn’t. And it stuck. That’s what feels missing in Cupertino.Some have started using the term glasslighting — a coined pun blending Apple’s signature glassy aesthetics with the soft manipulations of marketing, like a gentle fog of polished perfection that leaves expectations quietly disoriented. It’s not deception. It’s damage control. But that instinct, understandable as it is, doesn’t build momentum. It builds inertia. And inertia doesn’t sell intelligence. It only delays the reckoning.Before the curtain falls, it’s hard not to revisit the uncanny polish of Apple’s speakers presence. One might start to wonder whether Apple is really late on AI — or whether it’s simply developed such a hyper-advanced internal model that its leadership team has been replaced by real-time human avatars, flawlessly animated, fed directly by the Neural Engine. Not the constrained humanity of two floating eyes behind an Apple Vision headset, but full-on flawless embodiment — if this is Apple’s augmented AI at work, it may be the only undisclosed and underpromised demo actually shipping.OS30 live demoMeanwhile, just as Apple was soft-pedaling its A.I. story with maximum visual polish, a very different tone landed from across the bay: Sam Altman and Jony Ive, sitting in a bar, talking about the future.https://medium.com/media/5cdea73d7fde0b538e038af1990afa44/hrefNo stage. No teleprompter. No uncanny valley. Just two “old friends”, with one hell of a budget, quietly sketching the next era of computing. A vision Apple once claimed effortlessly.There’s still the question of whether Apple, as many hope, can reclaim — and lock down — that leadership for itself. A healthy dose of competition, at the very least, can only help.Too big, fail too was originally published in UX Collective on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

By CHRIS McGOWAN Images courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures. Final Destination Bloodlines, the sixth installment in the graphic horror series, kicks off with the film’s biggest challenge – deploying an elaborate, large-scale set piece involving the 400-foot-high Skyview Tower restaurant. While there in 1968, young Iris Campbell (Brec Bassinger) has a premonition about the Skyview burning, cracking, crumbling and collapsing. Then, when she sees these events actually starting to happen around her, she intervenes and causes an evacuation of the tower, thus thwarting death’s design and saving many lives. Years later, her granddaughter, Stefani Reyes (Kaitlyn Santa Juana), inherits the vision of the destruction that could have occurred and realizes death is still coming for the survivors. “I knew we couldn’t put the whole [Skyview restaurant] on fire, but Tony [Lazarowich, Special Effects Supervisor] tried and put as much fire as he could safely and then we just built off that [in VFX] and added a lot more. Even when it’s just a little bit of real fire, the lighting and interaction that can’t be simulated, so I think it was a success in terms of blending that practical with the visual.” —Nordin Rahhali, VFX Supervisor The film opens with an elaborate, large-scale set piece involving the 400-foot-high Skyview Tower restaurant – and its collapse. Drone footage was digitized to create a 3D asset for the LED wall so the time of day could be changed as needed. “The set that the directors wanted was very large,” says Nordin Rahhali, VFX Supervisor. “We had limited space options in stages given the scale and the footprint of the actual restaurant that they wanted. It was the first set piece, the first big thing we shot, so we had to get it all ready and going right off the bat. We built a bigger volume for our needs, including an LED wall that we built the assets for.” “We were outside Vancouver at Bridge Studios in Burnaby. The custom-built LED volume was a little over 200 feet in length” states Christian Sebaldt, ASC, the movie’s DP. The volume was 98 feet in diameter and 24 feet tall. Rahhali explains, “Pixomondo was the vendor that we contracted to come in and build the volume. They also built the asset that went on the LED wall, so they were part of our filming team and production shoot. Subsequently, they were also the main vendor doing post, which was by design. By having them design and take care of the asset during production, we were able to leverage their assets, tools and builds for some of the post VFX.” Rahhali adds, “It was really important to make sure we had days with the volume team and with Christian and his camera team ahead of the shoot so we could dial it in.” Built at Bridge Studios in Burnaby outside Vancouver, the custom-built LED volume for events at the Skyview restaurant was over 200 feet long, 98 feet wide and 24 feet tall. Extensive previs with Digital Domain was done to advance key shots. (Photo: Eric Milner) Zach Lipovsky and Adam Stein directed Final Destination Bloodlines for New Line film, distributed by Warner Bros., in which chain reactions of small and big events lead to bloody catastrophes befalling those who have cheated death at some point. Pixomondo was the lead VFX vendor, followed by FOLKS VFX. Picture Shop also contributed. There were around 800 VFX shots. Tony Lazarowich was the Special Effects Supervisor. “The Skyview restaurant involved building a massive set [that] was fire retardant, which meant the construction took longer than normal because they had to build it with certain materials and coat it with certain things because, obviously, it serves for the set piece. As it’s falling into chaos, a lot of that fire was practical. I really jived with what Christian and directors wanted and how Tony likes to work – to augment as much real practical stuff as possible,” Rahhali remarks. “I knew we couldn’t put the whole thing on fire, but Tony tried and put as much fire as he could safely, and then we just built off that [in VFX] and added a lot more. Even when it’s just a little bit of real fire, the lighting and interaction can’t be simulated, so I think it was a success in terms of blending that practical with the visual.” The Skyview restaurant required building a massive set that was fire retardant. Construction on the set took longer because it had to be built and coated with special materials. As the Skyview restaurant falls into chaos, much of the fire was practical. (Photo: Eric Milner) “We got all the Vancouver skyline [with drones] so we could rebuild our version of the city, which was based a little on the Vancouver footprint. So, we used all that to build a digital recreation of a city that was in line with what the directors wanted, which was a coastal city somewhere in the States that doesn’t necessarily have to be Vancouver or Seattle, but it looks a little like the Pacific Northwest.” —Christian Sebaldt, ASC, Director of Photography For drone shots, the team utilized a custom heavy-lift drone with three RED Komodo Digital Cinema cameras “giving us almost 180 degrees with overlap that we would then stitch in post and have a ridiculous amount of resolution off these three cameras,” Sebaldt states. “The other drone we used was a DJI Inspire 3, which was also very good. And we flew these drones up at the height [we needed]. We flew them at different times of day. We flew full 360s, and we also used them for photogrammetry. We got all the Vancouver skyline so we could rebuild our version of the city, which was based a little on the Vancouver footprint. So, we used all that to build a digital recreation of a city that was in line with what the directors wanted, which was a coastal city somewhere in the States that doesn’t necessarily have to be Vancouver or Seattle, but it looks a little like the Pacific Northwest.” Rahhali adds, “All of this allowed us to figure out what we were going to shoot. We had the stage build, and we had the drone footage that we then digitized and created a 3D asset to go on the wall [so] we could change the times of day” Pixomondo built the volume and the asset that went on the LED wall for the Skyview sequence. They were also the main vendor during post. FOLKS VFX and Picture Shop contributed. (Photo: Eric Milner) “We did extensive previs with Digital Domain,” Rahhali explains. “That was important because we knew the key shots that the directors wanted. With a combination of those key shots, we then kind of reverse-engineered [them] while we did techvis off the previs and worked with Christian and the art department so we would have proper flexibility with the set to be able to pull off some of these shots. [For example,] some of these shots required the Skyview restaurant ceiling to be lifted and partially removed for us to get a crane to shoot Paul [Max Lloyd-Jones] as he’s about to fall and the camera’s going through a roof, that we then digitally had to recreate. Had we not done the previs to know those shots in advance, we would not have been able to build that in time to accomplish the look. We had many other shots that were driven off the previs that allowed the art department, construction and camera teams to work out how they would get those shots.” Some shots required the Skyview’s ceiling to be lifted and partially removed to get a crane to shoot Paul Campbell (Max Lloyd-Jones) as he’s about to fall. The character Iris lived in a fortified house, isolating herself methodically to avoid the Grim Reaper. Rahhali comments, “That was a beautiful location [in] GVRD [Greater Vancouver], very cold. It was a long, hard shoot, because it was all nights. It was just this beautiful pocket out in the middle of the mountains. We in visual effects didn’t do a ton other than a couple of clean-ups of the big establishing shots when you see them pull up to the compound. We had to clean up small roads we wanted to make look like one road and make the road look like dirt.” There were flames involved. Sebaldt says, “The explosion [of Iris’s home] was unbelievably big. We had eight cameras on it at night and shot it at high speed, and we’re all going ‘Whoa.’” Rahhali notes, “There was some clean-up, but the explosion was 100% practical. Our Special Effects Supervisor, Tony, went to town on that. He blew up the whole house, and it looked spectacular.” The tattoo shop piercing scene is one of the most talked-about sequences in the movie, where a dangling chain from a ceiling fan attaches itself to the septum nose piercing of Erik Campbell (Richard Harmon) and drags him toward a raging fire. Rahhali observes, “That was very Final Destination and a great Rube Goldberg build-up event. Richard was great. He was tied up on a stunt line for most of it, balancing on top of furniture. All of that was him doing it for real with a stunt line.” Some effects solutions can be surprisingly extremely simple. Rahhali continues, “Our producer [Craig Perry] came up with a great gag [for the] septum ring.” Richard’s nose was connected with just a nose plug that went inside his nostrils. “All that tugging and everything that you’re seeing was real. For weeks and weeks, we were all trying to figure out how to do it without it being a big visual effects thing. ‘How are we gonna pull his nose for real?’ Craig said, ‘I have these things I use to help me open up my nose and you can’t really see them.’ They built it off of that, and it looked great.” Filmmakers spent weeks figuring out how to execute the harrowing tattoo shop scene. A dangling chain from a ceiling fan attaches itself to the septum nose ring of Erik Campbell (Richard Harmon) – with the actor’s nose being tugged by the chain connected to a nose plug that went inside his nostrils. “[S]ome of these shots required the Skyview restaurant ceiling to be lifted and partially removed for us to get a crane to shoot Paul [Campbell] as he’s about to fall and the camera’s going through a roof, that we then digitally had to recreate. Had we not done the previs to know those shots in advance, we would not have been able to build that in time to accomplish the look. We had many other shots that were driven off the previs that allowed the art department, construction and camera teams to work out how they would get those shots.” —Nordin Rahhali, VFX Supervisor Most of the fire in the tattoo parlor was practical. “There are some fire bars and stuff that you’re seeing in there from SFX and the big pool of fire on the wide shots.” Sebaldt adds, “That was a lot of fun to shoot because it’s so insane when he’s dancing and balancing on all this stuff – we were laughing and laughing. We were convinced that this was going to be the best scene in the movie up to that moment.” Rahhali says, “They used the scene wholesale for the trailer. It went viral – people were taking out their septum rings.” Erik survives the parlor blaze only to meet his fate in a hospital when he is pulled by a wheelchair into an out-of-control MRI machine at its highest magnetic level. Rahhali comments, “That is a good combination of a bunch of different departments. Our Stunt Coordinator, Simon Burnett, came up with this hard pull-wire line [for] when Erik flies and hits the MRI. That’s a real stunt with a double, and he hit hard. All the other shots are all CG wheelchairs because the directors wanted to art-direct how the crumpling metal was snapping and bending to show pressure on him as his body starts going into the MRI.” To augment the believability that comes with reality, the directors aimed to capture as much practically as possible, then VFX Supervisor Nordin Rahhali and his team built on that result. (Photo: Eric Milner) A train derailment concludes the film after Stefani and her brother, Charlie, realize they are still on death’s list. A train goes off the tracks, and logs from one of the cars fly though the air and kills them. “That one was special because it’s a hard sequence and was also shot quite late, so we didn’t have a lot of time. We went back to Vancouver and shot the actual street, and we shot our actors performing. They fell onto stunt pads, and the moment they get touched by the logs, it turns into CG as it was the only way to pull that off and the train of course. We had to add all that. The destruction of the houses and everything was done in visual effects.” Erik survives the tattoo parlor blaze only to meet his fate in a hospital when he is crushed by a wheelchair while being pulled into an out-of-control MRI machine. Erik (Richard Harmon) appears about to be run over by a delivery truck at the corner of 21A Ave. and 132A St., but he’s not – at least not then. The truck is actually on the opposite side of the road, and the person being run over is Howard. A rolling penny plays a major part in the catastrophic chain reactions and seems to be a character itself. “The magic penny was a mix from two vendors, Pixomondo and FOLKS; both had penny shots,” Rahhali says. “All the bouncing pennies you see going through the vents and hitting the fan blade are all FOLKS. The bouncing penny at the end as a lady takes it out of her purse, that goes down the ramp and into the rail – that’s FOLKS. The big explosion shots in the Skyview with the penny slowing down after the kid throws it [off the deck] are all Pixomondo shots. It was a mix. We took a little time to find that balance between readability and believability.” Approximately 800 VFX shots were required for Final Destination Bloodlines. (Photo: Eric Milner) Chain reactions of small and big events lead to bloody catastrophes befalling those who have cheated Death at some point in the Final Destination films. From left: Kaitlyn Santa Juana as Stefani Reyes, director Adam Stein, director Zach Lipovsky and Gabrielle Rose as Iris. (Photo: Eric Milner) Rahhali adds, “The film is a great collaboration of departments. Good visual effects are always a good combination of special effects, makeup effects and cinematography; it’s all the planning of all the pieces coming together. For a film of this size, I’m really proud of the work. I think we punched above our weight class, and it looks quite good.”