TikTok is testing a watch history feature

TikTok could soon make it easier for you to rediscover videos you’ve watched in the past. According to Hammod Oh, a Twitter user who’s known for uncovering new features social media companies are working on behind the scenes, TikTok is testing a watch history tool that would allow people to see a list of videos that appeared in their For You feed. The tool would effectively allow you to rediscover clips you may have not liked either in a rush or by accident.

As TechCrunch points out, there are existing ways you can browse through your TikTok watch history, but they’re not exactly easy to use or accessible. One method involves navigating to the Discover page, tapping search, entering an asterisk and then toggling on the “watch videos” option in the search filters tab. By contrast, the watch history feature would be more easily accessible through the app’s settings menu.

It’s unclear how many people currently have access to the test, and when (and if) TikTok plans to roll out the feature to its wider userbase. The company declined to provide details about the feature when Engadget reached out. “We’re always thinking about new ways to bring value to our community and enrich the TikTok experience,” a spokesperson for the company said. 

Apple and Google close loophole that allowed Russians to use Mir cards for mobile payments

Apple has closed a loophole that had allowed some Russians to continue using its mobile payments service despite the ongoing economic sanctions against Russia. According to Reuters, the company told the country’s largest lender on Thursday it would no longer support Russia’s homegrown Mir payments system through Apple Pay.

“Apple has informed NSPK it is suspending support for Mir cards in the Apple Pay payment service,” the National Card Payment System said Friday. “Starting from March 24th, users cannot add new Mir cards to the service. Apple will stop all operations of previously added cards over the next few days.”

Google took similar action last week as well. According to a separate report from The Wall Street Journal, the company paused a pilot that had allowed Russians to connect their Mir cards to Google Pay. “Google Pay is pausing payments-related services in Russia as a result of payment services disruption out of our control,” a Google spokesperson told the outlet.

As The Verge notes, the Central Bank of Russia established Mir after the US and other countries imposed sanctions on Russia in response to its annexation of Crimea in 2014. According to statistics shared by the Central Bank, Mir cards are involved in more than 25 percent of all card transactions within the country. Previously, cards from major Russian financial institutions like VTB Group and Sovcombank stopped working with Apple Pay and Google Pay shortly after the Kremlin launched its invasion of Ukraine on February 24th.

A massive DDoS attack leaves ‘Among Us’ unplayable in North America and Europe

Since late Friday afternoon, Among Us developer Innersloth has been trying to contain a DDoS attack against both its North American and European servers, leaving the popular game unplayable for many. “Service will be offline while the team works on fixing it, but might take a bit, hang tight! Sorry!” Innersloth said on Friday in a tweet spotted by Eurogamer.

As of the writing of this article, Innersloth has managed to restore some servers, but the situation does not appear to be fully resolved with the game’s official Twitter account still stating “Among Us servers down” in its profile. “Can’t believe I’m working on a Saturday right now, I was supposed to go and get a croissant,” Innersloth said in one particularly desperate-sounding update over the weekend.

Thanks to its popularity, Among Us is no stranger to disruptive hacking attacks. In 2020, the game experienced a far-reaching spam attack that affected as many 5 million players after an individual named “Eris Loris” found a way to hack millions of games. The event led to no small amount of grief and frustration among the game’s community, with many taking to Reddit to vent their frustration at the hacker.