DAN GOODIN, ARS TECHNICA SECURITY FEB 4, 2026 2:52 PM Notepad++ Users, You May Have Been Hacked by China Suspected Chinese state-backed hackers hijacked the Notepad++ update infrastructure to deliver a backdoored version of the popular free source code editor and note-taking app for Windows. PHOTO-ILLUSTRATION: TECHA TUNGATEJA/GETTY IMAGES Get our Tracker: ICE newsletter to understand what’s happening and what’s coming next SIGN UP By signing up, you agree to our user agreement (including class action waiver and arbitration provisions), and acknowledge our privacy policy. You’ve read your last free article. The intersection of technology, power, and culture. Start your free trial and get access to 5 all-new premium newsletters—cancel anytime. START FREE TRIAL Already a subscriber? Sign In The intersection of technology, power, and culture. Start your free trial and get access to 5 all-new premium newsletters START FREE TRIAL You Might Also Like In your inbox: Sign up for our new Tracker: ICE newsletter TikTok now collects even more of your data Big Story: ICE pretends it’s a military force, but it would get soldiers killed Microdosing for depression works about as well as drinking coffee Watch: We raced in exoskeletons to see if they actually help Dan Goodin is IT Security Editor at Ars Technica. ... Read More TOPICS ARS TECHNICA Don't Just Keep Up. Get Ahead Sign up for the Daily newsletter to get our biggest stories, handpicked for you each day. SIGN UP By signing up, you agree to our user agreement (including class action waiver and arbitration provisions), and acknowledge our privacy policy. READ MORE The Best Mesh Wi-Fi Systems Forget about patchy internet connections and dead spots in the house. These WIRED-tested multiroom mesh systems will get you online in no time. SIMON HILL Verizon Outage Knocks Out US Mobile Service, Including Some 911 Calls A major Verizon outage appeared to impact customers across the United States starting around noon ET on Wednesday. Calls to Verizon customers from other carriers may also be impacted. LILY HAY NEWMAN DOGE May Have Misused Social Security Data, DOJ Admits Plus: The FAA blocks drones over DHS operations, Microsoft admits it hands over Bitlocker encryption keys to the cops, and more. MADDY VARNER How to Film ICE Filming federal agents in public is legal, but avoiding a dangerous—even deadly—confrontation isn’t guaranteed. Here’s how to record ICE and CBP agents as safely as possible and have an impact. MADDY VARNER ICE Asks Companies About ‘Ad Tech and Big Data’ Tools It Could Use in Investigations A new federal filing from ICE demonstrates how commercial tools are increasingly being considered by the government for law enforcement and surveillance. CAROLINE HASKINS ICE Agents Are ‘Doxing’ Themselves The alleged risks of being publicly identified have not stopped DHS and ICE employees from creating profiles on LinkedIn, even as Kristi Noem threatens to treat revealing agents’ identities as a crime. MADDY VARNER Expert Wi-Fi Network Tips to Help You Stay Online Is your magic internet box giving you problems? Get back online and stay there with our expert Wi-Fi fixes and tips. SIMON HILL ICE Can Now Spy on Every Phone in Your Neighborhood Plus: Iran shuts down its internet amid sweeping protests, an alleged scam boss gets extradited to China, and more. MATT BURGESS China’s Hottest App Is a Daily Test of Whether You’re Still Alive Are You Dead Yet soared to the top of app-store charts and became a magnet for investors. In an exclusive interview with WIRED, one of its creators says they’re changing the name anyway. ZEYI YANG Meta Is Blocking Links to ICE List on Facebook, Instagram, and Threads Users of Meta’s social platforms can no longer share links to ICE List, a website listing what it claims are the names of thousands of DHS employees. DAVID GILBERT The Surface Laptop Is $400 Off Take home a sweet discount on Microsoft's first-party laptop. BRAD BOURQUE Revealed: Leaked Chats Expose the Daily Life of a Scam Compound’s Enslaved Workforce A whistleblower trapped inside a “pig butchering” scam compound gave WIRED a vast trove of its internal materials—including 4,200 pages of messages that lay out its operations in unprecedented detail. MATT BURGESS