Most of the Metaverse Platforms Lack Proper Security Measures and this Can Make them Vulnerable to Attackers

Metaverse platforms promise its users that they can access virtual worlds from the privacy and comfort of their homes and can interact with others in a secure and private manner. But research by CISPA found that this is just an empty promise, because metaverse can have significant risks like lack of privacy which can result in rise in cyberattacks. The researcher, Andrea Mengascini, said that during studing metaverse and virtual reality, he found that online games and metaverse use the same technology. Metaverse is a virtual social place where people can interact with each other, within the rules similar to that of the physical world. People can find digital copies of the real world and the system uses JavaScript to manage 3D environments. It not only provides a good interface to smoothly run the virtual world, but is also responsible for security.

The researcher put forward three questions for his research: What type of objects or things exist in Metaverse and how are they assigned? Where are all these things stored and how can attackers access those things in memory?, and how can attackers use memories to exploit the users of Metaverse. The researcher found that there are 27 Metaverse platforms that use WebXR API, and he examined three of them in detail. User activity, popularity, coverage and internet traffic were kept in mind before choosing three platforms. He then captures snapshots that were taken before and after doing a specific action. Afterwards, he checked if any changes took place and if that action he did could be read in the web browser’s memory.

The researcher found that most of the things can easily be read as the browser’s memory is easily accessible. Even if someone is not an expert, he can still have access to it. The developers of those sites have missed some common coding practices that could ensure the privacy of users and won't disclose any information about the client. As a result, hackers can easily access that information and attacks are possible.

Attackers are able to control avatars and even the scenarios that victims are using and they can position themselves in a room where they can hear and watch everything. It's like using VR glasses of users, without them realizing that an attacker is infiltrating their space. The researcher then contacted the developers of those three platforms that were examined and told them about the issue on their platforms. The developers haven't changed anything about their platforms yet, but they may soon try to do anything about it. Andrea Mengascini also said that he has proposed some protection mechanisms that can be implemented on those metaverse platforms to ensure the safety of clients.

Image: DIW-Aigen

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by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World

The Winners and Losers of 2024: Who Thrived and Who Fell Short?

The tech landscape in 2024 has been full of triumphs and failures. While some companies managed to adapt and push forward, others seemed to lose their way. The key to success? Vision, timing, and the ability to execute.

Here's a closer look at the companies that got it right—and those that missed the mark.

The Winners of 2024

OpenAI: Dominating the AI Space

OpenAI remains the undisputed leader in the AI field in 2024. Its models have only gotten better, and businesses worldwide are relying on its tools to enhance their products and services. The launch of GPT-5 was a game-changer, offering even more advanced capabilities that allowed companies to solve complex problems in record time. OpenAI isn't just offering AI—it’s shaping the future of industries like customer service, content creation, and even software development.

What sets OpenAI apart is its commitment to reliability and its ability to improve constantly. With seamless integrations into everyday tools and platforms, it’s hard to imagine a business in 2024 that isn’t using OpenAI in some form. This is a company that didn’t just predict the future—it built it.

Meta’s Threads: Quiet Success

Threads is Meta’s quiet success in 2024. While other social platforms have come and gone, Threads has found its place with over 200 million monthly active users. The platform succeeded not by trying to beat Twitter at its own game, but by offering something different. Threads is clean, simple, and easy to use, focusing on connecting people rather than creating a chaotic, content-driven experience.

Meta’s approach to Threads was all about listening to what users wanted—less noise and more value. And this attention to user needs has paid off. It’s a reminder that when you focus on giving people what they want, success follows.

Microsoft: Seamless Integration of AI

Microsoft has become the standard for integrating AI into business operations. By embedding AI across its entire suite of products—from Bing AI to Teams to Office—Microsoft has created a system that businesses trust and rely on. Its AI tools are practical and scalable, making them accessible to companies of all sizes.

Unlike some companies that use AI as a buzzword, Microsoft has integrated it into its ecosystem in a way that feels natural and useful. Whether it’s automating repetitive tasks or providing advanced data insights, Microsoft’s AI innovations have made it an essential part of the modern workplace.

The Losers of 2024

Apple’s Vision Pro: A Step Too Far

Apple’s Vision Pro, launched with great fanfare in 2024, turned out to be too ambitious. While the product showcased impressive AR technology, the price point and niche appeal limited its success. At $3,500, it was a hard sell to the average consumer, and even for those with the budget, there wasn’t enough practical use for the device to justify the cost.

The Vision Pro’s problems were not about the technology; it was about timing. Apple entered a space that was still too underdeveloped for mass adoption. The product’s potential is clear, but it felt like a bet on the future rather than something consumers needed right now.

Apple’s failure here lies in overestimating demand and underestimating the time it takes for a new category of product to mature. For now, the Vision Pro is a reminder that innovation must be matched with user readiness.

X (Formerly Twitter): Struggling with Identity

Elon Musk’s acquisition of Twitter was supposed to bring about a new era for the platform. However, 2024 saw X as a platform struggling to find its identity. The company’s attempt to diversify into banking and other services left its core user base confused. Instead of focusing on what made Twitter great—a space for real-time conversation and interaction—X became a confusing amalgamation of services.

User engagement has dropped, and advertisers are growing hesitant. The platform’s experiment with turning into a multi-purpose service may have worked in the short term, but it alienated the very users who built Twitter’s success. X’s inability to focus and refine its core offering is a clear example of what happens when you try to do everything at once.

Google’s AI Search Overviews: A Miss

Google’s new AI-driven search overviews were supposed to change the game in 2024. But the reality didn’t match the promise. Many users found the AI-generated overviews inaccurate, misleading, or just plain wrong. In a year when trust in information is more important than ever, Google’s missteps here were significant.

Google has built its reputation on providing reliable, accurate information. So when its AI-driven search overviews started failing on key topics—finance, healthcare, and technology—it lost credibility. The company's failure to get these details right hurt its brand, reminding us that AI can’t replace human expertise in every scenario.

What’s the Takeaway?

The tech landscape is ruthless. In 2024, the companies that thrived were the ones that understood the importance of focusing on their strengths and timing their moves carefully. OpenAI, Meta, and Microsoft all embraced change but stayed grounded in the needs of their users.

On the flip side, companies like Apple and X got too caught up in ambitious goals without understanding where the market was. Sometimes, innovation is more about waiting for the right moment than rushing ahead with the next big thing.

Success in tech isn’t just about being first or loud—it’s about being smart, reliable, and user-centric. The companies that excelled in 2024 showed us that patience, focus, and a deep understanding of the user’s needs are the true ingredients for success.

Image: DIW-Aigen

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by Web Desk via Digital Information World

Google's Gemini Struggles to Catch Up to OpenAI's ChatGPT in Download Race on App Stores

Gemini is one of the biggest competitors of ChatGPT, and recently it released its app version on iOS App Store. Everyone wants to see if it can catch up to ChatGPT on the App Store in terms of downloads, because when Claude released its app version on the same platform, it failed to reach ChatGPT’s numbers. Catching up to ChatGPT is challenging because ChatGPT is responsible for about half of the AI apps revenue on Google Play Store as well as Apple App Store.

Gemini was released on Google Play Store in February 2024, and since then it has gotten 64 million downloads. ChatGPT, on the other hand, got 130 million downloads in the same time period even though it isn't even a new app. So, this makes us wonder what will be the future of Gemini on Google Play as it doesn't seem to catch up with ChatGPT.

It has been well over a month since Gemini was released on the App Store, and according to data from Appfigures, it has gained 4.5 million downloads since then. Its peak was 250k daily downloads, which is about 25k downloads less when it was initially released on Google Play. Most of the downloads of Google Gemini on the App Store were from the USA, with 26% total downloads, followed by Japan, Brazil, India and the UK. It is an interesting thing because most of these countries have Android phones and Android apps excel there.

Claude was released on the Apple Store in May but has yet to catch up with ChatGPT’s numbers. Similarly, it was also released on Google Play Store in June and the situation is still the same on this platform. Claude has gotten 4 million downloads ever since its release on the App Store, which is even less than Gemini. It doesn't seem that both of these apps, Claude and Gemini, are going to reach ChatGPT’s numbers of downloads on the App Store. ChatGPT has enough brand recognition that it is still managing to capture millions of downloads every month on both Apple Store and Google Store. Many other third party AI apps are also doing better than Gemini and Claude on both platforms, with more downloads and making more money. It is predicted that Gemini and Claude are going to get forgotten between ChatGPT and other third party AI apps.

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by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World

New Survey Shows How Many Children Want to Pursue Influencing as a Career Path

Adobe surveyed 1,000 people in the US between the ages of 18 to 30, and 501 parents of under 18 kids to find out how influencing on social media is shaping career goals and aspirations of young people. The results of the survey showed that one in three people between the ages of 18 and 30 want to be an influencer, with gaming (49%) and lifestyle (46%) being the most desired content category. Boys are more inclined to become an influencer in the gaming category  (68%), while girls prefer influencing about lifestyle(61%). YouTube was the most preferred platform overall for influencing among the respondents.

Upon being asked why they prefer to become an influencer, most replies were of flexibility in work hours, opportunity to show creativity, better pay than other jobs and opportunities for travel. Respondents said that they are also looking for ways to improve their skills in influencing. 49% are learning social media strategy, 45% are learning personal branding and 44% are learning short-form video editing. Most of the aspiring influencers and parents said that influencers should be able to take influencer classes in high schools.

Parents are also facing challenges when it comes to their children’s online social media presence. 25% of the parents said that they allow their children to post on Instagram while 23% parents allow their children to post on YouTube. Overall, 82% of parents monitor their child’s followers on social media platforms, while 83% monitor their child’s posts too. 1 in 4 parents said that they have seen their children pretend to be an influencer while playing. 58% of the parents also said that they don’t allow their children to post on social media.

Parents also have mixed views when it comes to their children becoming influencers. 49% of the parents said that they’d only allow their children to become influencers if they are older than 18, while 24% answered with straight no. The top concerns parents feel if their child is becoming an influencer are loss of privacy (80%), safety risks (79%), negative effect on mental health (74%) and cyberbullying (71%). On the other hand, some parents (38%) think that becoming an influencer will be a good career move for their child.

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by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World

Meta Accuses OpenAI of Benefiting From Its Non-Profit Status In New Letter

Tech giant Meta is facing off with the makers of ChatGPT, accusing them of unlawfully benefitting from its non-profit title.

Facebook’s parent firm sent a new letter to the California AG regarding the matter and how it should be blocked from its transition of tranforming into a profitable entity. The company shared in the open letter how OpenAI was openly flouting the law by reappropriating assets designed for the sake of charity. They also made use of them to get more private gains.

The report was first shared by the WSJ which goes as far as to elaborate more on how Elon Musk is a more suitable candidate to represent those in California. This is clear evidence of Meta’s support in Musk’s fight against the AI giant.

At the start, the whole idea behind OpenAI was non-profit. But after getting so much global commercial success with its ChatGPT tool that made billions every year in terms of revenue, it really entered into a world of its own. Today, revenue hits billions annually and the CEO has made it clear that the non-profit status is non-existent.

This is the only way it can become more attractive to its investors and ensure funding of ambitions. At the moment, stakes are sky high because if it’s indeed found guilty, it might be forced to give back all the billions it earned in 2024 with the giant interest stake. This is only if it fails to move to its for-profit status within two years.

In a new letter shared with the government, Meta argued that the conduct might give rise to seismic implications for the whole of Silicon Valley. It could wrongly represent the shift that tech firms need by enticing investors to roll out bigger companies as a nonprofits and then go about making millions via donations for research and advancement. After that, they would get the for-profit status as popularity and success rises.

As one can expect, OpenAI is not happy with the news. They shared a new letter to the whole community about making attempts to fulfill its obligations in transforming into a profitable entity. This includes making sure it can continue the mission of securing AGI benefits for humanity.

Image: DIW-Aigen

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by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

The Rise of Instagram, Fall of Snapchat: Pew’s Take on Teen Social Media in 2024

According to a new Pew Research Center report, teen usage of social media apps has declined this year. The survey was based on 1391 US teens between the ages of 13 to 17 and it was conducted online through Ipsos’ Knowledge Panel. Even though teenagers constantly used their mobile phones, their time on some big social media apps decreased. For instance, 93% of teens used YouTube in 2023 but now its usage has declined to 90% in 2024. On the other hand, 71% teens daily viewed YouTube in 2023 and now their percentage has increased to 73% in 2024. Snapchat was another app that saw some decline in its usage in 2024. 55% teens used Snapchat in 2024 as compared to 60% in 2023. X saw a 3% decline, going from 20% in 2023 to 17% in 2024.

The apps that teens used steadily in 2024 were TikTok (63%) and Reddit (14%). The app that saw some gains in its usage was Instagram, which went from 59% in 2023 to 61% in 2024. Another app, WhatsApp, also climbed from 20% in 2023 to 23% in 2024. Even though Instagram gained some popularity in 2024, Threads still has a small number of users (6%). Pew Research center didn't talk about any X alternatives like Bluseky in their survey, as well as other platforms like Twitch and Discord.

The survey found that even though many teens are not spending as much time on social media as before, this doesn't mean their screen time has decreased. 46% teens reported always being online in 2022 and 2023, with Hispanic (58%) and Black (53%) being the chronically online internet users. 37% of White teens reported that they are constantly online according to a survey. There was no gender breakdown that Pew provided in the report.

95% of teens use their smartphones for their online activity while 88% reported using their desktop or laptops. Some teens also use their gaming consoles (83%) and tablets (70%) to spend their time online. According to a Pew study in 2022, teens said that they love being online because it helps them stay connected to their friends and provides emotional support. Survey by Family Online Safety also found that staying online helps teens to improve their well being and overall creativity. The latest report by Pew Research Center didn't assess how teenagers feel about staying online.

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by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World

Conversion Rates Differ Across Industries: Report Shows Email Leads with 28.6%, Instagram Tops Social Apps at 15.5%

Unbounced analyzed different conversion rates across more than 41,000 landing pages and found that conversion rates across different industries are at average 6.6%. Keep in mind that conversion rates vary across industries, devices and traffic sources. For instance, the conversion rate across financial services companies can be 8.4% while the conversion rate across SaaS companies can be as little as 3.8%.

The Events and Entertainment industry has a median 12.3% conversion rate while Education has 8.4% conversion rate. The report also found that even though mobile attracts more visitors, desktop convert 8% better. Health & Wellness industry also converts 22% better on desktop as compared to mobile.

Email Marketing is not dead and it has the highest conversion rate of 28.6%. The social media app with the highest conversion rate is Instagram with a median conversion rate of 15.5%.

To maximize conversions, businesses should experiment with dynamic landing pages tailored to user intent, device, and industry-specific behavior. Leveraging AI-driven personalization can dynamically adjust content layouts, messaging, or CTAs based on whether the visitor is on mobile or desktop. Industries like SaaS, which see lower conversion rates, could integrate interactive tools or demos directly on landing pages to reduce friction in decision-making. Such tailored strategies can help businesses bridge performance gaps and exceed industry benchmarks.

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by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World