December 6 Tech news roundup: SmartTube infected by malware, Windows 11’s woes continue, EU investigates WhatsApp’s AI policy

Developer warns that SmartTube app was infected by malware

Yuliskov, the developer of the popular SmartTube app has revealed that their computer was infected by malware. This in turn has affected their app, and the key used to sign the open source client for YouTube, was leaked. As a result of this, some versions of SmartTube that contain malicious code has been uploaded online by third-parties. User reports indicate that Google Play Protect and Amazon Fire TV notified them that the app was unsafe, with an option to uninstall the app from their TVs.

The app’s developer has confirmed this, and also said the key has been changed. Yuliskov has released a new version of the SmartTube app that is clean. The developer has advised users not to download the APK from unauthorized sources, as they could still be affected by malware.

EU begins antitrust investigations against Meta’s WhatsApp AI policy

The European Commission has begun an antitrust investigation to probe Meta’s WhatsApp AI policy. Meta had updated its policies in October, prohibiting AI companies from using WhatsApp’s Business API to distribute their services. Following this, Microsoft and OpenAI announced that they would be removing Copilot and ChatGPT, respectively, from WhatsApp in January 2026. This policy change would leave Meta AI as the only option available for WhatsApp’s users.

Antitrust authorities in the European Union are concerned that this could harm the competition, and have begun investigating the matter. Meta has denied the allegations, stating that allowing other AI services to access its Business API puts a strain on its systems that they were not designed to support.

Crucial will not make SSD and RAM for consumers anymore

Micron has announced that Crucial is exiting its consumer business. The company is popular among PC builders for their SSD and RAM products. Micron says that AI has driven a surge in demand for memory and storage, and that Crucial will now focus on catering to AI data centers and business clients, instead of consumers. PC gamers and enthusiasts have been shocked by the sudden announcement, especially as the news comes at a time of crisis where RAM and NAND prices have shot up like crazy.

And to make things worse, Samsung and SK Hynix have decided to minimize the risk of oversupply. This could result in RAM modules and SSDs being sold for inflated prices for an indefinite time. This could also result in other devices becoming costlier. Gaming consoles, for example, have already seen price hikes this year, putting them well out of the reach of average consumers.

Windows 11 affected by several bugs in recent updates

What if you booted up your PC but couldn’t enter the password? Well, that’s exactly what happened to some users on Windows 11 versions 24H2 and 25H2. A bug is preventing the password button from appearing on the lock screen page, where you sign in to the operating system. The issue seems to have been surfaced in the August 2025 non-security preview updates, but also affects updates that have been released since. Microsoft says that this is just a glitch, that the button is invisible, but users can still click on the area where the password button is, and enter the password. Over three months later, there is no fix for the issue.

Another issue that users may encounter affects the File Explorer. Users who have enabled dark mode may see a white screen flash when opening File Explorer. This bug affects PCs that have the KB5070311 update installed. The only fix for it at the moment is to disable dark mode.

And it gets worse. Microsoft has confirmed that more bugs exist. Explorer.exe may crash, Windows booting to a black screen, the Taskbar failing to appear, the Start Menu not opening, and ShellHost.exe crashing. These issues are related to apps which have a dependency on XAML packages, and it seems that the apps are not registering in time after Windows updates were installed. Despite Microsoft’s claims, some people say that they have experienced such bugs on their PCs.

The Redmond company has, for some unknown reason, removed the list of CPUs supported by Windows 11, from its website. It is now listing processor series instead, which could confuse users who aren’t tech-savvy, and wish to check whether their PC can run Windows 11.

Users have criticized Microsoft for their poor quality of Windows Updates, which has been a point of concern for quite some time now.

First beta of Linux Mint 22.3 Zena to be released soon

Linux Mint 22.3 ‘Zena’ is heading close to a beta release. The upcoming update will bring a handful of quality of life improvements such as pausing file operations in the Nemo default file manager, and Snapshots in the Timeshift app. Warpinator will let users send text messages. Night Light will get an always-on toggle. In addition to these, Mint is getting template management, and notification indicators on a per-app panel basis.

Mint 22.3 beta will be released in the first half of this month, and if everything goes well, the stable release could be available by the end of this month, or in early January 2026.

Total War: Medieval III announced

Creative Assembly and Sega have announced the next historical game in the Total War series. Total War: Medieval III is now in early pre-production phase. The game will use the studio’s next gen engine, Warcore. It will allow CA to release Total War games on Xbox and PlayStation. But Medieval 3 is still a few years away from release.

Meanwhile, Creative Assembly is set to reveal its next Total War game, which, according to rumors, could be set in the Star Wars universe. It will be unveiled at The Game Awards 2025, which is scheduled to be held on December 11.

Sega and Creative Assembly have also surprised fans in a pleasant way, by releasing some Total War games on GOG.  Rome: Total War Collection, SHOGUN: Total War Collection, Medieval: Total War Collection, and Total War: MEDIEVAL II Definitive Edition are available DRM-free on GOG. Additionally, Total War: PHARAOH DYNASTIES, Total War: ROME II – Emperor Edition, Total War: THREE KINGDOMS, and Total War: ATTILA are coming soon to the DRM-free game store.