Android rush

BlackBerry 10 users rejoice! The awesome folks over at the CrackBerry forums have leaked a few screenshots of BlackBerry's upcoming OS 10.2 (build 10.2.0.483, to be exact) which reveal a bunch of new features, including actionable notifications and WiFi Direct. With the former, you'll be able to pull down on notifications and respond to them (as shown above). This OS version will also provide a way to mute notifications or view them on the lock screen. WiFi Direct, which was hinted at during BlackBerry Live, is now confirmed with this build. It enables simple peer-to-peer wireless connectivity between various devices like phones, tablets, printers and TVs. This update also include a new native Evernote app, settings app and app manager.

If you enjoyed Windows 8's central Photos app that not only stored your local images but also those from other sites, you might be disappointed with Windows 8.1, if a post in Microsoft's forums is any indication. After a commenter noticed that Facebook and Flickr integration was gone, one of Redmond's employees said it was no longer necessary since other apps (including one arriving soon from Facebook) can now do that, unlike when Windows 8 was first launched. The spokesperson added that Microsoft "welcome(s) Flickr to do the same" and recommended the People app as another way to "socially engage" with your photos. Subsequent commenters felt differently, with one summing up the sentiment by saying the OS was moving backwards from its Hub pinnings and "forc(ing) you to be app-centric (like Android or iOS) instead of content-centric."

The video game developer, known for creating Assassin's Creed, announces that its account database was breached and that all users should to reset their passwords.

Anyone that has an account with video game developer Ubisoft is being advised to change their password immediately. The game maker announced Tuesday that its user account database was breached by hackers who gained access to user names, e-mail addresses, and encrypted passwords.

"We recently discovered that one of our Web sites was exploited to gain unauthorized access to some of our online systems," Ubisoft wrote in a statement. "During this process, we learned that data had been illegally accessed from our account database."

The game maker emphasized that the company doesn't store personal payment information, so no credit or debit card information was stolen. However, since passwords could have been stolen, the company is recommending that users change their passwords on any other Web site where they used the same or a similar password.

Ubisoft makes hit video games such as Assassin's Creed, Just Dance, and Tom Clancy's The Division. The company won't specify how hackers breached its system; it only said, "credentials were stolen and used to illegally access our online network."

This isn't the first time that Ubisoft's network has been hacked. In 2010, a consortium of hackers known as Skid Row claimed responsibility for breaching Ubisoft's Web site in protest over a policy that required gamers to have a constant Internet connection to play their games. This hack didn't affect users' personal information, however, but instead removed the company's digital rights management technology for PC games.

As far as the most recent hack, Ubisoft said it is investigating the breach with the "relevant authorities" and working on restoring their systems.

"Ubisoft's security teams are exploring all available means to expand and strengthen our security measures in order to better protect our customers," the game maker wrote. "Unfortunately, no company or organization is completely immune to these kinds of criminal attacks."

Now that a leaked build of Android 4.3 is in the wild, curious users have been poring over the code to see exactly what's new. Kevin from TeslaCoil Software may have found one of the first real gems: there's now a notification listening service under the hood. The feature would let third-party apps read notifications and perform common notification-level tasks. While we don't have new software to show exactly how the service will work, it's possible that future apps will have limited control over each other without relying on the hacks that we see today. We'll know the full story when Google makes Android 4.3 official -- whenever that is.