Latest Technology News

For a long time I was very high on Skype. As a Windows, Linux, and iOS user, its cross-platform nature made it a dream. Unfortunately, Microsoft started neglecting the Linux desktop client, causing it to become outdated from a design perspective and not entirely functional. I assumed the Windows 10-maker simply no longer cared about Linux on the desktop.

I assumed wrong. Shockingly, Microsoft announces a new Skype client for Linux -- currently in Alpha. In other words, Skype for Linux is back, figuratively speaking.  The company is pledging its support for desktop operating systems based on the open source kernel. Will Linux users embrace it?

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More than 400 businesses get targeted by CEO fraud scams every day, a new report by security researchers Symantec says. CEO fraud is a type of scam in which cyber-criminals target financial staff, often posing as CEOs or other executives, and request large money transfers.

Even though it sounds too simple to work, its success rate is actually quite high, and relies mostly on putting financial staff under a lot of pressure through a sense of urgency, not giving them enough time to think things through.

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Samsung typically launches new Galaxy Note flagships at IFA, but this year its next high-end phablet will arrive a bit sooner. The South Korean maker today announces that its second Unpacked event of 2016, which will see the latest Galaxy Note device or devices debut, will take place on August 2.

This announcement is different than what we have come to expect from Samsung, as, on top of the usual launch date, it also reveals the name of the Galaxy Note device and even hints at some of the changes that we should look forward to.

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Oracle has released VirtualBox 5.1, a major new point release of its open-source virtual machine tool for Windows, Mac and Linux. The software enables users to run virtual PCs within a software environment.

Version 5.1 comes with the promise of improved performance, improved bug reporting and logging, wider support for different USB devices, multi-channel audio, flash storage emulation and better integration into Linux.

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Worldwide PC shipments are still in decline, but they’re showing slow signs of recovery, according to new and preliminary market research results by Gartner. In the second quarter of 2016, 64.3 million units were shipped, equating to a 5.2 percent decline compared to a year before.

This is the seventh consecutive quarter PC shipments have been falling, but Gartner says there’s no reason to despair.

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In part one we learned about data and how it can be used to find knowledge or meaning. Part two explained the term Big Data and showed how it became an industry mainly in response to economic forces. This is part three, where it all has to fit together and make sense -- rueful, sometimes ironic, and occasionally frightening sense. You see our technological, business, and even social futures are being redefined right now by Big Data in ways we are only now coming to understand and may no longer be able to control.

Whether the analysis is done by a supercomputer or using a hand-written table compiled in 1665 from the Bills of Mortality, some aspects of Big Data have been with us far longer than we realize.

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The Windows 10 Anniversary Update edges ever-nearer to release, and the new Insider builds are coming thick and fast. We even had a surprise weekend build last week.

Even though new Insider chief Dona Sarkar is away at the Worldwide Partner Conference (WPC), she still found time to announce a new build, and as you might expect so close to the official release this one mostly focuses on fixing problems and improving reliability.

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Industrial control systems (ICS) are not supposed to be connected to the Internet, Kaspersky Lab says, as it opens a sea of opportunities for hackers. Such systems are run by energy, transportation, aerospace, oil and gas, chemicals, automotive and manufacturing, food and drink, governmental, financial and medical institutions, and should be, for the sake of security, run in a physically isolated environment.

However, Kaspersky Lab says that is not the case, and that it has found 13,698 ICS hosts exposed to the Internet, which very likely belong to large organizations. More than nine in ten (91.1 percent) host remotely-exploitable vulnerabilities, and 3.3 percent contain "critical and remotely executable vulnerabilities".

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Autonomous driving is an exciting prospect, but it’s not without its problems and ethical dilemmas. Recently, two Teslas were involved in accidents (two separate incidents), and in one of them the driver was killed.

Such exciting technology also begs the question: who’s to blame when two autonomous vehicles collide, and what happens if someone gets killed in the process? The UK, which has stated on multiple occasions that it wants to be the global leader in autonomous vehicles, is tackling the issue from the insurance perspective.

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When buying a router for your home, there are many things to consider. While price is always a factor, you never want to save money by going with a low-quality offering. You should do your research and get the best hardware for your budget -- while sticking with a reputable brand, of course.

ZyXEL is not a household name, but the Taiwan-based company does offer solid hardware at affordable prices. When I've needed something like a network switch or USB Wi-Fi dongle, I have chosen its products due to low prices, but have been very satisfied with the quality. I've never tried its wireless routers, but today, the company announces its newest such model -- the ARMOR Z2 AC2600 -- and it has me intrigued.

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After months of hype, Pokémon Go finally began rolling out in a few countries this week. At this point, I can safely say, it has turned out to be one of the biggest viral hits in recent years. While the Pokémon IP played a significant role in the game's quick uptake, I believe that Pokémon Go's status as the first accessible augmented reality game at scale will be much more important to its long-term success. There are multiple elements of business model innovation at play here, far deeper than a simple extension of pre-existing IP.

Many analysts have already put out their takes on the game's success. Essentially, they believe that this was a long overdue move for Nintendo and they should develop similar mobile games to monetize their IP (e.g. Mario). If it were that simple, wouldn't Nintendo have done it years ago? Mobile isn't exactly a brand new platform. If we look deeper, it becomes obvious that the business model behind Pokémon Go was only possible at this point in time and is not scalable to all Nintendo IP.

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Google wants to make Project Fi an attractive plan not only in the US but also internationally as today it announces that it is expanding the coverage of its service in more than a dozen additional countries. Project Fi now provides high-speed data access in nearly all the places visited by Americans across the globe, claims Google.

To cover "over 97 percent of the places Americans travel internationally", Google is adding Three, which is present in Austria, Denmark, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Sweden and UK, to the list of mobile operators that work with Project Fi.

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As you're no doubt already aware, Amazon Prime Day is upon us. You have to be a Prime Member to take part in this day of deals, but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial if you're not already a Prime subscriber.

The team over at TechBargains has prepared some of the best, longer lasting deals but be warned, this is a pretty crazy day and a lot of offers are going fast. For full coverage be sure to check out TechBargains for the most up to date coverage on the Lightning Deals which launch every 5 minutes and will have a limited supply and time limit, so act fast.

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Finding an SSD that meets your needs should be relatively easy these days, but if are looking for a high-capacity model then your options are severely limited. Manufacturers have mostly focused on introducing devices for the masses, leaving HDDs to continue their domination in the high storage tiers.

With its new 850 Evo option, however, Samsung is looking to change that. The latest entry in its consumer line features a whopping 4TB of storage and competitive transfer speeds, but also a price tag that will make your jaw drop.

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Protecting against data breaches is always better than dealing with their aftermath. And since phishing is still one of the most popular attack methods businesses and employees need to be alert to the risks.

Authentication specialist Duo Security is launching a new, free tool to let IT teams run internal phishing simulations and assess their vulnerability to such attacks.

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