BitLocker could be cutting the performance of SSDs almost in half in Windows 11
A new report goes some way to showing that the BitLocker security feature of Windows 11 could be massively reducing the performance of SSDs.
An investigation found that the data encryption tool, which is enabled by default in Windows 11 Pro, can slow solid state drives by as much as 45 percent. While it would be reasonable to expect a bit of a performance drop overall as the software works away encrypting and decrypting files, few people would expect the hit to be quite so significant.
Microsoft launches Azure AI Content Safety to filter harmful content from users and AI
Microsoft has announced the general availability of its Azure AI Content Safety service. The system is designed to help platform operators to detect and filter harmful user-generated content and that generated by artificial intelligence in their services and apps.
Azure AI Content Safety can be used to scan and block text and image-based content, and Microsoft has made it highly customizable so it can be tailored for various modalities. The company says that the service can be used to weed out content that is offensive, risky, or undesirable, such as profanity, adult content, gore, violence, hate speech, and so on.
Google has a quintet of improvements to supercharge Chrome's address bar
Google has announced a number of upcoming changes to the address bar in Chrome. The company says that the five improvements will help people to browse even faster.
Some of the enhancements are long-overdue, such as updating URL autocomplete so that characters you type do not have to be the first part of the address. Others are sensible ease-of use and security-related improvements, such as automatic typo correction for typed URLs.
WhatsApp will let you sign into two accounts at once... but there's a catch
Life is about to get a little easier for WhatsApp users with more than one account. Many people have a work phone and a personal device, each associated with a different WhatsApp account. There are also plenty of users with two phone numbers for other reasons.
Simplifying living with more than one account, WhatsApp is introducing the ability to log into two accounts simultaneously. This eliminates the need to keep logging in and out, or having to carry two phones around to stay connected. So what's the catch?
Netflix is increasing prices by as much as 20 percent for many US customers
As Netflix revealed its quarterly earnings, the company also announced a couple of subscription price hikes for its customers in the US, UK and France. The price increases come despite Netflix's recent password-sharing crackdown which it says has resulted in millions of new revenue-bringing subscribers.
Both the Premium plan and the Basic plans will increase in price, but the Standard and ad-supported plans will remain as they are. Although Netflix's Basic plan is no longer available to new customers, users who have been grandfathered on this tier face the largest price jump.
WhatsApp adds passkey support to boost security
The Meta-owned messaging app WhatsApp has joined the growing legions of apps and services to support passkeys.
Initially available to Android users, the passwordless authentication feature makes it possible to secure a WhatsApp account with face recognition, a fingerprint or a PIN. It is a security feature that is billed as not only offering greater protection than passwords, but also being faster to use.
Microsoft is ready to launch new System Components hub in Windows 11 23H2
It is a number of weeks since we first learned about Windows 11's new System Components section in Windows 11. Initially discovered hidden in a Canary build of the operating system, Microsoft is now readying the new hub for a wider launch.
When it is made available to everyone, the new System Component hub will make various aspects of system management easier. It serves as a handy portal through which it is possible to change default apps, and take control of built-in apps and components without the need to hunt around in numerous places.
Apple will soon be able to update iOS on new iPhones in sealed boxes
It can be frustrating to buy a new phone only to discover that there is an OS update to install before you can start using it. For iPhone users this could soon be a thing of the past thanks to an innovative new system developed by Apple.
The recently released iPhone 15 suffered with an overheating issue that was later fixed with a software update, putting the onus on owners of new devices to download and install the patch. But a new "proprietary pad-like device" will allow Apple Stores to install the latest software on handsets without the need to open the box.
Security researchers can pocket financial rewards in the new Microsoft AI Bounty Program
Microsoft now has a bug bounty program that aims to find issues in artificial intelligence. Specifically, the Microsoft AI Bounty Program is focused on tracking down vulnerabilities in the company’s own AI-powered "Bing experience". This catch-all term covers a surprising number of products and services.
Interestingly, with this bounty program Microsoft is only offering rewards for the discovery of vulnerabilities considered Critical or Important. Those that are deemed of Moderate or Low severity will go unrewarded.
Microsoft is investigating failed 8007000D errors and installations of Windows 10's KB5031356 update
This month’s Patch Tuesday update was a significant one for Windows 10 users. The release of the KB5031356 update saw Microsoft addressing a number of security flaws, as well as fixing other issues -- and even introducing some new features.
But there have been problems. Following reports from users, Microsoft has confirmed that it is investigating instances of the update failing to install. The company says that the most frequently encountered issue is Error 8007000D (ERROR_INVALID_DATA), and it is using a KIR (Known Issue Rollback) to recall the update for now.
Google.com could be about to undergo its biggest change in years
There are some significant changes being tested on Google.com. A major focus on news could on the horizon as Google explores adding a Google Discover-style newsfeed to its search engine homepage.
Google Discover is something that will be familiar to many mobile users, offering up an algorithm-driven personalized selection of news stories. Now very much the same feature is being tested for desktop users.
Canonical withdraws Ubuntu Desktop 23.10 ISO after discovery of hate speech in translations
Friday 13th has indeed proved unlucky for anyone looking to download the Ubuntu Desktop 23.10 ISO -- it is currently unavailable having been pulled just hours after launch.
The decision to withdraw the Mantic Minotaur ISO was taken after it was discovered that a contributor had inserted malicious translations into the installer. Although Canonical has not revealed the content of the user-submitted translations for the Linux distro, it has been described as "hate speech".
Microsoft Edge is snooping on your Chrome browsing activity; here's how to stop it
One web browser spying on another? Surely not! However, if you are using both Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge, Microsoft's browser could be grabbing all of your browsing history from Chrome every time you launch it.
If you decided to jump from Firefox to Chrome, from Edge to Firefox, from Opera to Edge or any other combination, you will probably have taken advantage of the option to import browsing history, saved passwords and so on. But you likely don’t want this cross-browser communication to continue indefinitely. Here’s how to check whether this sneaky data swapping is happening in the background and how to stop it if it is.
Microsoft no longer supports Windows 11 21H2 or Windows Server 2012
With the release of this month's security updates for Windows, Microsoft has brought to an end support for not only Windows Server 2012, but also Windows 11 21H2.
What this means for users of these versions of the operating system is that there will be no more updates of any sort made available -- and this means both security updates and non-security updates. For anyone who wants or needs to stick with Windows 2012, things could get expensive, but there are free upgrades available to those currently running Windows 11 21H2.
Microsoft is deprecating VBScript in Windows
Microsoft has quietly announced plans to deprecate VBScript in "future releases of Windows". The company has not been more specific about the timeline than this, but there are some details about the deprecation process.
As part of a phased withdrawal, VBScript (Visual Basic Scripting Edition) was initially removed from Internet Explorer, and before being killed off in Windows completely, it will become an optional component. While a useful scripting language in its day, VBScript became something of an abused security nightmare, and has since been replaced by PowerShell.
Sofia Elizabella's Bio
Sofia Wyciślik-Wilson is a queer, transgender journalist based in Poland. She has been writing about technology for more than two decades, and after years working for magazines, her writing moved online. She is fueled by literature, music, nature, and vegetables. You can find her on Bluesky and Mastodon. If you like what you read, you can Buy her a Coffee!
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