Armed gang uses Grindr to target victims for gay-bashing
Dating services are big business these days, and they offer a modern way to meet a life partner. But there's also a dark side. Tinder is perhaps the most well-known dating app, and Grindr is a near identical service aimed at gay and bisexual men.
Police in London are warning that the app -- which is available for iOS and Android -- is being used by an armed gang to set up fake dates with men. With two million people using the app around the world, Grindr offers rich pickings for homophobes to look for victims.
Insane bug makes it incredibly easy to hack many Linux systems
Linux is usually touted as the operating system of choice for those concerned about privacy, but a recently discovered bug makes it unbelievably simple to bypass authentication. A vulnerability in Grub2 -- the bootloader used by many Linux distros -- means that all it takes to take control of a computer is to press the backspace key 28 times.
Two researchers from the Cybersecurity Group at Spain's Polytechnic University of Valencia published a paper that reveals just how easy it is to gain access to many Linux systems. It's not a problem that Ubuntu, Red Hat, and Debian users need to worry about too much as patches have already been issued, and users of other distros can make use of an emergency patch in the Grub2 git repository.
More 4K content on the way to your TV very soon
2016 is shaping up to be the year of 4K. Some is already available and much more is on the way, and there is a growing number of TVs that can handle it. For those purchasing a new set in the near future it is a prudent move to future-proof and be ready for what is coming.
Now UltraFlix is announcing its plans to provide a lot more content in the way of movies, TV shows and concerts, all using this new technology. The company boasts more than 1,000 Hollywood pictures as well as IMAX documentaries.
Stop doing quizzes on Facebook if you place any value on your privacy
You might think that talking about Facebook and privacy in the same breath is a little odd. The two just don’t go hand in hand, surely? Trying to use Facebook whilst maintaining your privacy is an exercise in futility, right? Well, yes, it’s certainly true that hitting a social network is not the thing to do if you want to fly under the radar, but many people do not realize just how easy it is to unwittingly hand over reams of personal information to companies and persons unknown.
While a majority of users are aware that anything they post -- essentially -- becomes Facebook's property, and can be exploited in a variety of ways. Anything shared to the social network can be used to dig up an ever-more accurate picture of who you are, where you are, what you do, what you like, and who you know. Quizzes, personality tests, friend comparisons, and year in review apps, however, are blackholes for personal data -- and the huge range of apps from Meaww have been singled out as being a major cause for concern.
Rdio shuts down December 22nd, provides a way to save your music
Recently streaming music service Rdio was purchased by Pandora which plans to merge it into its own offering. That process is about to become complete in the next few days, but there is good news for Rdio users, or at least as much as they can expect.
The streaming service will cease operations on December 22nd. The good news, if there is any in this, is that users will be able to save their music.
Outlook online to get a better address book and flight confirmations
Outlook has been a popular desktop app for what seems like ages and now it's online aiming to compete with services like Gmail and Yahoo. In order to differentiate itself from rivals Microsoft needs extras that attract customers to its offering.
Now the company is announcing a couple of updates including improvements to the address book and flight notifications for busy travelers.
Enterprise mobility will be the main IT focus in 2016
According to a new report from Harris Poll announced this week, enterprise mobility will top IT investments in 2016. The survey reveals that more than 90 percent of IT Decision Makers (ITDMs) see enterprise mobility as the critical function for customer engagement, competitiveness and operational productivity in 2016.
Additionally, nearly three in four (73 percent) respondents indicate that they intend to mobilize their whole organization.
Critical patches issued after spying backdoors found built into Juniper firewalls
Networking manufacturer Juniper has discovered backdoors built into its firewalls. The company says that a number of its devices running the ScreenOS operating system include serious vulnerabilities that could be used to take remote control of networked devices, or to decrypt VPN traffic.
The company says that the security issues were unearthed during an internal code review and has issued an out-of-cycle fix to address the vulnerabilities. Network admins are advised to treat the threats seriously, and to make use of the available patches immediately.
Holiday 2015 Gift Guide: Stocking stuffers
Here we are, days before Christmas, and you're thinking about last-minute stocking stuffers. I've got an eclectic selection of things I would want to get or give for December 25th. Some of them will demand rushing online to take advantage of last-minute shipping offers. Others require no shipping at all, like music subscription services. Confession: Some items will require a larger stocking but no wrapping.
I present the list alphabetically, and in no order of preference.
SmartThings adds 8 new products to beef up your connected home
The connected home, or The Internet of Things, as it's frequently called, is a growing market. New products seemingly come along on an almost daily basis and new businesses spring up around it. We recently told you about Mivetek, but it's far from the only player on the field in this game.
SmartThings, the home automation solution from Samsung, is announcing a new line of products that are compatible with its hub. Four are lights, three are locks, and one aims to help you with your gardening.
Microsoft will offer custom Windows 10 to the Chinese government
Microsoft has signed an important deal with the Chinese government, one which will see the American company deploy its latest operating system directly to the government agencies.
The Verge has reported how the Redmond-based software company will deploy a customized version of Windows 10 to the Chinese government through a newly-formed company called C&M Technologies.
Microsoft 'Hello Cloud Challenge' gives students chance to win $1,000 over Christmas vacation
High school can stink; it is no secret. Besides the arguably boring classes, isolating cliques, and mentally deranged bullies, getting up early in the morning as a teen is such a drag. Of course, getting an education is wonderful; it's just too bad that it can't be more exciting, and without the aforementioned baggage. Don't worry, things should get better at college.
Luckily, Christmas vacation is approaching, meaning students can get a break from school for a bit. This means sleeping in late, playing video games and hanging out with friends. But what if you could win $1,000 too? Well, thanks to Microsoft, you have the chance to do just that!
IT pros want more storage to keep up with the times
A survey commissioned by X-IO Technologies reveals that almost half of IT professionals (48 percent) do not believe their current storage array would work with the next generation of storage media
Furthermore, more than a half (57 percent) of IT professionals expect that their budgets are going to shrink or at the very least stay the same in 2016. This may indicate that any further changes to their storage requirements, especially in the wake of the IOT hype and big data explosion might not find a budget.
Google dedicates $1 million to independent research for Drive security
Google is placing an increased importance on security in 2016. The company has set aside $1 million to fund independent research into the security of its Drive cloud storage service, and will continue to offer a bug bounty program.
Acknowledging that "keeping files safe in Google Drive is super important", Google says that next year it will make the money available to independent security researchers. The money comes in addition to the funds that are used to employ hundreds of security experts at the company, with independence bringing an extra level of scrutiny.
Microsoft delays Windows 10 Mobile rollout
Microsoft announced in early October that the Windows 10 Mobile rollout for existing Windows Phone 8.1 devices would kick off in December. But, with less than two weeks to go before the end of the year, the software giant now says that the much-awaited software upgrades will not be available until later than expected.
Microsoft expects Windows 10 Mobile software upgrades to be made available starting "early next year" for "select existing Windows 8 and 8.1 phones". That is, assuming everything goes according to plan.
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