Sofia Elizabella Wyciślik-Wilson

Crypto-ransomware is the malware du jour, and the likes of TelsaCrypt 4 and KeRanger are just some of the names to hit the headlines recently. One of the latest examples of ransomware, PETYA, is taking a slightly different and more worrying approach -- it not only targets enterprise users, but also encrypts entire hard drives rather than just a selection of files.

PETYA -- also known as RANSOM_PETYA.A -- goes to some lengths to make sure that victims know that their computers are infected, overwriting the MBR (Master Boot Record) to display a ransom note during the boot process. The malware uses a "military grade encryption algorithm" to lock users out of their files, and victims are directed to venture onto the dark web using the Tor browser to make a Bitcoin ransom payment.

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Tensions could be set to mount between the US and China after the Communist government's Global Times newspaper praised Su Bin, the Chinese "government soldier" who pled guilty to trying to steal military secrets from US defense contractors.

Despite the Chinese government having previously said that it does not support cybercrime or online espionage, the state newspaper used an editorial to say "Su Bin deserves respect whether guilty or innocent". The hack was designed to gather data about, amongst other things, the F-22 and F-35 fighter jets and C-17 military transport aircraft.

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Proving that artificial intelligence has the potential to go horrendously wrong, Microsoft has been forced to pull the plug on Tay, its artificial intelligence-powered chat bot that had been unleashed on Twitter. Initially designed as an exercise in engaging millennials, it didn’t take long for Tay to go rogue -- albeit with a little help from a number of hardcore users.

Microsoft was almost certainly proud of bagging itself a verified account on Twitter for Tay, but it really didn’t take long for things to turn sour. Twitter users quickly learned that the very nature of an AI bot meant that it was ripe for moulding, and it was a mere matter of hours before the bot had been transformed from a mild-mannered female Twitter user into a Nazi-loving racist who hates feminists and loves Hitler... and Donald Trump.

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Victims of online fraud are to blame for their misfortune and should not be rewarded with a refund for money they lose. This is the view of UK Metropolitan police commissioner Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe who says that banks should not pay money lost to online fraud as the victims have not taken their security seriously.

Rather than offering refunds to customers, banks should instead be encouraging them to use stronger password, keep antivirus software up to date, and generally be more careful. It's a view that’s certainly going to prove controversial and raises the question of whether the carrot or the stick is the best approach to tackling online fraud.

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How do you check to see what apps you have installed on your Windows 10 computer? Your first port of call might be the Start menu. While this might seem logical -- there's an All Apps entry, after all! -- it's not necessarily the best option.

If you've spent any time working in File Explorer, you'll know that there are various views to choose from; different views suit different tasks. What you might not know is that there's a secret Apps View which is great for not only showing you what you have installed, but also makes it easy to perform actions such as Start menu pinning with multiple apps.

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The FBI attempts to force Apple to unlock the San Bernardino shooter's iPhone have been in the headlines for a while now, stirring up debate about which side of the argument is in the right. Apple has refused point blank to help, but a recent twist saw the FBI changing its mind by saying it doesn't need Apple's help after all.

An outside party -- believed, but not known, to be Israeli security firm Cellebrite -- contacted the FBI to help access Syed Farook's iPhone. The Justice Department said it is "cautiously optimistic" that the proposed method, which is currently being tested, will be successful, but some reports suggest that it has already been used to break into some iPhones. Apple will obviously want to take steps to secure other devices if the hack is effective, but it has been classified to keep it secret.

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Sometimes sharing a plain old image just isn't enough. Sometimes you might feel the need to adorn an otherwise dull image with clipart-style graphics. Sound like you? If so you're going to love the sound of a new image tool Twitter is testing... if not, brace yourself for an influx of irritation in you timeline.

Currently being referred to as Stickers (sound familiar?) -- although names including Stamptags, Taptags or Stickits are also in the running -- the tool is undergoing testing with a select group of tweeters. It allows users to add graphic overlays to photos and also introduces some extra social features in a bid to stand out from other tools available elsewhere. Meme creator, anyone?

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Ready to compete with the already-established Apple Pay, Google's Android Pay is due to make its first foray into Europe when it launches in the UK in the coming months. To make things easy for retailers, Android Pay can be accepted anywhere that already supports contactless payments.

In addition to places such as Starbucks, Costa, KFC and Waitrose, Android Pay can also be used to pay for Tube, bus and train journey with Transport for London. The UK debt will follow a successful US launch and growth into Australia, but Google has not yet revealed whether the reward schemes enjoyed by those in the US will also make their way to the UK.

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After something of a delay, Microsoft finally released a version of its newest browser -- Microsoft Edge -- that supports extensions. We've already seen the first extensions appear in the Windows Store, but there are some big names that people are waiting for.

Included on this list is Adblock Plus, and its fans are clamoring for a version they can use in Edge. The good news is that one is in the works -- the only thing standing in the way now is Microsoft.

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At Apple's event today, it was the iPhone SE that people were intrigued to find out more about -- but there were plenty of other things to get excited about as well. In addition to the launch of iOS 9.3, it also announced a new 9.7-inch iPad Pro.

The reason for releasing a Pro device with these dimensions is that 9.7-inch remains the most popular size for iPads -- with more than 200 million units sold. It's not just the size of the screen that has changed, however.

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It has been rumored for some time now, but at its Let us loop you in event in Cupertino Apple finally took the wraps off the iPhone SE. It's a new iPhone, perhaps not the new iPhone everyone wants, but a new iPhone nonetheless. Speculation has been rife about what corners would be cut to keep the price down -- and, indeed, what the price would be -- and now we know.

As expected, the iPhone SE is a 4-inch handset and it blends features from the iPhone 5s and iPhone 6s to create a mid-range device that Apple hopes will not only appeal to new markets, but also help to retain existing customers put off by the price of higher-end iPhones. But what's inside the case? (And, no... there's no word on the iPhone 7 yet.)

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The gradual move from physical media to digital downloads has taken its toll on one section of the video games business -- the second hand market. The idea of selling back a digital copy of a game may seem as strange as the idea of selling an MP3 you no longer listen to, but it could be something that Microsoft is considering.

In a survey apparently being shown to Xbox gamers, Microsoft asks whether they would be interested in the idea of selling back their digital purchases. Presented in the way it is -- it's suggested that games could be bought back for 10 percent of their original price -- it may not seem like a great deal, but it's interesting to see that Microsoft is thinking about testing the water in this area.

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We're living in the age of the smartphone and Apple has managed to carve itself a decent-sized chunk of the pie. But while each new iPhone is greeted with rapturous excitement, growth has declined recently to the point that a drop in sales in expected next quarter. Later today Apple is expected to launch the iPhone SE to counter this decline.

This smaller, cheaper handset would see the company venturing into new territory in a couple of ways. It would not only be the second time Apple has tried to appeal to the cheaper end of the smartphone smart -- the iPhone 5c being the first attempt -- but the iPhone SE could also see the company making in-roads into China as well as India and emerging markets.

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At the Free Software Foundation's LibrePlanet 2016 conference, Edward Snowden credited free software with enabling him to blow the whistle about government surveillance. Speaking via video link from Russia, the former NSA contractor said that "what happened in 2013 couldn't have happened without free software".

But as well as indicating his preference for free, open source software, Snowden revealed that he refused to use Microsoft software because he "couldn't be sure" that there weren't backdoors built in.

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Apple might be currently talking about its unbreakable encryption and how it's a good thing for privacy, but the FBI ruing it. The privacy arguement certainly stannds up to scrutiny, but strong encryption can also be used as a weapon, as demonstrated by countless examples of ransomware. There are numerous breeds of ransomware out there, but one of the most prolific is TeslaCrypt.

It's just a year since the first version of TeslaCrypt appeared on the scene, and it's gone through various updates and iterations over the ensuing months. Now it's hit version 4 and as well as continuing to threaten victims with sharing their files online, it also boasts what is being referred to as 'unbreakable encryption'.

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