Locked In

Elon Musk is locked in a €120 million legal battle with the European Union in Brussels, and the United States government is now seeking to insert itself into the dispute. The move escalates tensions between Washington and Brussels over EU regulatory actions affecting American tech companies, with observers weighing in on the implications for transatlantic relations and platform regulation.

Dutch homeowners are searching heavily for information on interest-only mortgages ('aflossingsvrije hypotheek') as questions pile up about the reformed Box 3 tax system. AD.nl has published answers to a wave of reader questions about the new rules, while industry outlet VVP warns of a growing 'locked-up' risk for homeowners who face difficulties remortgaging or selling under the changed conditions.

Forensic tools such as GrayKey can reportedly get past the iPhone's automatic inactivity reboot, a security feature designed to lock devices and make them harder to crack. The finding suggests law enforcement can still extract data from phones that have rebooted themselves, raising fresh concerns about the effectiveness of Apple's protections against police searches.

Attention is on how former footballers fared in Brazil's 2026 elections, with Luis Fabiano among the ex-players on the ballot. Outlets report that sports idols were locked in tight races, with mixed outcomes: some former athletes won seats while others, like Marcelinho Carioca, disappointed with only around 2,400 votes, and several ex-players failed to win election in different regions of the country.

The discount on fuel excise duties in Italy expires today, raising concerns about rising diesel and petrol prices. Eni and Q8 have announced price caps and discounts on diesel until early October, while the government faces pressure to renew the excise cuts. Eni's Plenitude is also offering a 30% discount on electricity and gas bills, with prices locked for two years.

Barcelona sporting director Deco has begun an operation to secure the club's key players after the transfer window closed. According to Crónica Global, the plan covers five contract renewals and also targets a star player whose current deal runs until 2027. The move aims to lock in the core of the squad before their market value rises further.

Anthropic is broadening its Claude Startups program, which gives early-stage and fast-growing companies access to its Claude AI tools, credits and support. The move is aimed at winning over founders before rivals do, as competition intensifies among AI providers to become the default assistant inside young companies that could scale into major customers.

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has suggested her party would not reverse Labour's legislation on the pensions triple lock, the guarantee that the state pension rises each year by the highest of inflation, earnings growth or 2.5%. The remark, reported in UK politics live coverage by the Guardian, signals a degree of continuity on pensioner entitlements despite opposition to other Labour measures. Commentators are weighing what the pledge means for the Tories' fiscal positioning and their appeal to older voters.

The Major League Baseball playoff bracket is now complete after the final day of the regular season. The Houston Astros clinched the AL West, while the Philadelphia Phillies held on for a National League wild card spot, locking in seeding and the full postseason schedule. Coverage is focused on the final picture, matchups, and storylines such as the Yankees and Aaron Judge heading into October.

Mexico and Chile are playing an international friendly match, with the score locked at 0-0. The game is being followed live by fans in France and elsewhere, with commentary focusing on the run of play as both sides test line-ups. Interest centres on how each squad is shaping up in this international window.

Swedish economist Lars Calmfors is being discussed in Sweden after presenting what Expressen calls an unexpected solution aimed at breaking a locked political or economic deadlock. The details of the proposal remain unclear, but the framing suggests he is offering a way past a stalemate where the usual positions have failed to produce agreement.

Union Bordeaux Begles are tracking South African second-row Corne Rahl as a leading candidate to replace Adam Coleman, who is leaving the club. The powerful lock is described as heavily courted, with several clubs competing for his signature ahead of next season.

A new analysis warns that making daylight saving time permanent could disrupt circadian rhythms, harming sleep quality and mental health. The findings add to ongoing debate in the United States over whether to lock the clock forward or adopt standard time year-round, with health researchers generally favoring permanent standard time for better alignment with natural light cycles.

France and Italy are locked at 0-0 at the Stade de France, with the closest moment coming when Sandro Tonali deflected Michael Olise's cross onto Gianluigi Donnarumma's crossbar. Les Bleus have gradually grown into the match, and the home crowd has responded strongly as the hosts press for an opener.

Home Assistant, the open-source smart home project, is renaming its cloud offering, arguing that large technology companies have degraded what the word 'cloud' stands for. The company says the term now evokes subscription lock-in and data harvesting rather than simple remote connectivity, so it is relabeling its service to better reflect what it actually does for users.

The Yomiuri Giants have brought pitcher Iori Yamazaki back to the first team as the Central League race enters its final stretch, with the club locked in a title fight against the Hanshin Tigers and fixtures against the Yakult Swallows drawing attention. Yamazaki said he wants to turn the chance of pitching in the run-in into strength.

WhatsApp is introducing a new security barrier that blocks the messenger from running on devices with outdated operating system versions. The company says the measure is meant to protect users, since old systems no longer receive security updates. Notably, the app will still support Android 6, a version released in 2015, meaning the cutoff affects only much older systems. Users on affected devices will need to update their operating system or switch devices to keep using the service.

CNET has published a rundown of the lock screen customization options expected in iOS 27, Apple's next major iPhone software update. The piece details the ways users will reportedly be able to personalize fonts, widgets and other lock screen elements. Coverage suggests Apple is continuing to expand lock screen personalization, an area it has built out steadily in recent iOS releases.

Shakira has released a statement while locked in a judicial dispute with her ex-partner Gerard Piqué, saying the effort should not fall only on the children. The remarks, reported by HOLA, come amid the ongoing custody and legal proceedings between the former couple, keeping their split and family arrangements in the headlines in Spain and Latin America.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and state Representative James Talarico are locked in an increasingly heated race for the US Senate seat currently held by John Cornyn. The likely matchup between the conservative incumbent attorney general and the rising Democratic legislator is drawing national attention, with both parties viewing the contest as a bellwether for Texas's shifting political landscape heading into 2026.

A developer has written about being locked out of Vanguard because its login form caps password input at 20 characters using the maxlength attribute, silently truncating longer passwords. The post argues this practice is harmful, since users with long passwords cannot know why authentication fails, and it highlights a broader web security and usability problem with password field restrictions.

Drone ownership is under debate, with renewed questions about whether buyers truly own the flying hardware they purchase or merely license the software that runs it. The discussion touches on manufacturer restrictions, firmware lock-ins and what happens when companies limit repairs or updates. Enthusiasts and pilots are weighing in on where control of consumer and commercial drones should ultimately sit.

Developers are discussing an approach that brings Java Persistence API-style features to SQLite, allowing managed ORM sessions, relationships, lazy loading, JPQL queries, and optimistic locking with entities shared between a mobile client and backend. The idea is that the same Java entity classes can be reused across Android, iOS-adjacent tooling, and server code, reducing duplication in data layers.

Political tension is building in Telangana around the Kaleshwaram irrigation project and drought conditions, with the ruling Congress and opposition BRS holding competing meetings and trading accusations over water management and farm distress. Attention is also on ministers reportedly travelling by Metro and RTC buses instead of official vehicles, a move being read as an austerity or publicity gesture amid the drought debate.

Japanese media are covering episode five of the NHK morning drama 'Brassam', in which Tamayo, played by Ran Murakami, explosively reveals her feelings for Ryo at a locked front door. Outlets are also recapping the character's father Seiji, played by Atsuro Watabe, reacting to the canary's disappearance, while features explore Uno Chiyo, the writer on whom the drama is based, and her pursuit of freedom and love.

A new AtlasIntel poll shows Carlos Bolsonaro, son of former president Jair Bolsonaro, locked in a close contest for a Senate seat in Santa Catarina. The survey suggests the race in the state remains highly competitive, keeping attention on the Bolsonaro family's political fortunes ahead of Brazil's elections.

Andy Burnham, the Greater Manchester mayor widely seen as a potential Labour leadership contender, has pledged to scrap the state pension triple lock after the next general election. He said that from April 2030 the pension would instead rise every year by at least prices or 2.5%. The proposal has drawn heavy attention in the UK, with pensioners' incomes a sensitive issue and the triple lock long considered politically untouchable.

The Los Angeles Rams versus Philadelphia Eagles matchup is a trending topic among NFL fans, with search interest spiking in the United States. Sports coverage around the game includes fantasy football advice, such as whether Davante Adams remains a lineup lock even when Puka Nacua returns from injury for the Rams.

Hampshire Police imposed a lockdown in Gosport as officers prepared for the arrival of a migrant boat on the south coast. Roads and the waterfront area were restricted while the operation was under way. The police presence and the migrant arrival have drawn strong reactions locally, with residents debating the force's handling of the incident and the broader issue of Channel crossings.

A new Quaest poll for the Senate race in Alagoas shows Marina leading with 29% of valid votes, followed by Arthur Lira at 27% and Renan Filho at 25%. The three figures are locked in a tight contest, with only four points separating first from third place, making the race one of the closest Senate battles to watch.

Brazilians are following election results showing a very tight contest between leftist incumbent President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and his right-wing rival Jair Bolsonaro. Lula is seeking a fourth term in office, with early counts showing neither candidate clearly ahead, keeping the outcome of the vote uncertain.