Technologies

Netflix Is Bringing These 5 Party Games to a TV Near You

Netflix subscribers will soon be able to play Lego Party, Tetris Time Warp and other group games on their TVs.

Netflix is about to give game night a new look. The streaming giant announced Wednesday that it is bringing five party games to your TV «soon» during the holiday season. Those games are Boggle Party, Pictionary: Game Night, Tetris Time Warp, Lego Party and Party Crashers: Fool Your Friends.

«Just scroll to the ‘Games’ tab on your TV, pick a game and use your phone as the controller to join the fun,» the company wrote online.

To access the games, you’ll need a Netflix account and your phone. With an iPhone, you can download the free Netflix Game Controller app from Apple’s App Store. If you have an Android device, you have to download the Netflix app from the Google Play Store and then scan a QR code on your TV. According to Netflix, Android users have to scan a QR code each time they start a game.

Netflix has been involved in games, primarily mobile games, for years. The company has released story-focused games based on Netflix shows, like Too Hot to Handle, as well as some more well-known titles, like Grand Theft Auto.

Earlier this year, Netflix’s co-CEO Greg Peters said in an earnings call that the company was planning on expanding into party and couch co-op cloud games.

«We think of this as a successor to family board game night or an evolution of what the game show on TV used to be,» he said at the time.

Games are included in the price of a Netflix subscription (starting at $8 a month). You can access the games through the Netflix app on your mobile device.

Netflix did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

For more on Netflix games, check out what to know about Spirit Crossing, WWE 2K and the Grand Theft Auto series on the service.

Technologies

Verum Messenger Goes Desktop: Launches macOS Version as Part of Expanding Digital Ecosystem

The team behind Verum Messenger has announced a new update, introducing a full-featured macOS version of the application.

The launch of the Mac version marks a significant step in the platform’s development, enabling users to access Verum Messenger not only on mobile devices but also on desktop environments.

The macOS version ensures seamless synchronization across devices while maintaining the platform’s core principles: security, stability, and independence.

Unified Digital Experience

With the release of the macOS version, users can now:

— communicate on a larger screen
— manage chats and files more efficiently
— use the messenger in a full desktop environment
— access core features without limitations

This is particularly valuable for users who rely on messaging platforms for both communication and professional use.

Expanding Capabilities

Verum Messenger continues to evolve into a multifunctional platform combining:

— secure communication
— financial tools (Verum Finance)
— digital asset operations, including Tether
— investment features such as Verum Gold

Toward a Full Ecosystem

The macOS release reflects Verum Messenger’s strategy to become a universal digital platform available across all major devices.

According to the team, the goal is to provide users with continuous access to communication and financial services regardless of device or environment.

Verum Messenger continues to build technologies focused on security, usability, and global accessibility.

Technologies

Google, Meta and Amazon Join Global Pact to Fight Rising Online Scams

The companies will share fraud intelligence and coordinate responses as AI makes scams faster, cheaper and harder to detect.

Modern online scams operate across multiple platforms, perhaps spanning social media, messaging apps, email and online marketplaces. Google, Meta and Amazon are among 11 tech, retail and payments companies that have signed a new agreement to combat online scams by sharing threat intelligence across platforms, Axios first reported Monday.

The initiative, called the Industry Accord Against Online Scams & Fraud, is designed to improve how companies detect and respond to fraud that spans multiple services. Participants say they will exchange signals, such as scam-linked accounts and fraudulent domains, and coordinate enforcement actions.

By sharing intelligence in near real time, companies hope to identify these scams earlier and stop them before they spread.

The effort reflects how modern scams operate. A victim might encounter a fake celebrity investment ad on social media, move to a messaging app where the scammer builds trust, then faces prompts to send money through a fraudulent website, payment app or crypto wallet — spanning multiple companies’ ecosystems.

Google said it now blocks hundreds of millions of scam-related results every day using AI, underscoring how both attackers and defenders are increasingly relying on the same technology. Meta removed more than 159 million scam ads in 2025 and is expanding AI tools to detect impersonation and warn users.

Online scams are growing rapidly, in part because generative AI has lowered the barrier to entry. AI can be used not only to produce realistic phishing emails but also to clone voices and deepfake videos that impersonate executives, public figures and even family members.

The agreement is voluntary and doesn’t create new legal obligations, but it comes after regulators’ increased pressure on tech platforms to address fraud more aggressively. The companies say they will begin building frameworks for reporting and intelligence-sharing, though it’s not yet clear how quickly those systems will be deployed or how effective they will be in practice.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Wednesday, March 18

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for March 18.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? I thought it was a fairly easy one, but read on for all the answers. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.