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Text messages via SMS are often used as part of two-factor authentication strategies to protect login accounts.

But a new and worrying study from Positive Technologies shows that real-world attempts to intercept SMS messages are 100 percent successful.

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Data breaches dominated headlines in 2017, with more than 1200 breaches affecting up to half of the US population. Almost every week brings a new unsettling headline.

The current threat environment accelerates pressure on already overworked and understaffed security teams to shore up their organization’s defenses. There simply aren’t enough well-trained workers to cover the need. The Center for Cyber Safety and Education’s 2017 Global Information Workforce Study forecasted a 1.8 million cyber worker shortage by 2022. Solving it is one of the most important challenges our economy will face over the next 20 years.

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The words "data security" made news once again last month when researchers revealed that Tesla’s AWS cloud systems were compromised for the purpose of cryptojacking. Cryptojacking, which is defined as the secret use of a computing device to mine cryptocurrency, has risen in popularity over the past few months. This is primarily due to 1) the surge in cryptocurrency value and 2) the discovery of clever mechanisms hackers can use to mine coins while going unnoticed.

According to RedLock researchers, the hackers infiltrated Tesla’s Kubernetes console, which is an open-source platform used for managing containerized workloads and services. They were able to access the console because it was not password protected. Within the Kubernetes pod, were Tesla AWS environment credentials which contained an Amazon S3 bucket that had sensitive data such as telemetry, mapping and vehicle servicing data.

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It still seems unreal, but yes, you can install Linux distributions from the Microsoft Store on Windows 10. This remains shocking for many people (including me), as Microsoft was a longtime enemy of both open source and Linux. Of course, that is no longer true, as the Windows-maker embraces both nowadays.

Today, yet another Linux distribution comes to the Microsoft Store for Windows 10, joining such favorites as SUSE and Ubuntu. While not as popular as those two, Kali Linux is still an important distro, as it focuses on security and penetration testing.

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Back in the day, Microsoft was definitely not an open company. Quite frankly, its guarded and secretive behavior tended to annoy many consumers. Its closed nature also lended to conspiracy theories -- some folks felt they couldn't trust the seemingly big and scary corporation.

While those feelings still exist a bit (ahem, Windows 10 telemetry), it has largely changed under the leadership of Satya Nadella. The CEO has transformed the company into a much more transparent one. The Windows Insiders program, for instance, was born during his tenure. That program pulled back the curtain and let Windows users peek a bit at how the proverbial sausage was being made. Today, Microsoft announces yet another initiative to be more open with its customers, this time for Xbox.

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Google has released an update for its iOS app that adds an extension to iMessage. This allows for easy searching -- be it for GIFs or restaurant opening times -- while you chat, so there's no need to leave the app. More than this, it is also possible to share the information you find as a card.

The update also brings an expansion of sharing to all web browsers, including Safari. Share a page to the Google app, and you'll see a list of related suggestions. But it doesn't end there. Google has also introduced new options for iPad users.

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Sleep. We all need it, yet many of us do not get enough. While it is common knowledge that we need 7-8 hours per night, the average American will sleep for around 5-6 hours, falling well short.

How can we increase the amount of time we sleep, yet also increase our sleep quality so we don’t hear that dreaded alarm and snooze and then wake up feeling like we’ve barely slept at all? We’ve found three apps which will help you nod off, stay asleep and wake up feeling more refreshed.

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Facebook frequently uses surveys to gauge user opinion about features, changes and ideas. One recent such survey raised more than a few eyebrows as the social network asked whether it was OK for a man to ask a child for sexual pictures.

That any company should, essentially, ask whether pedophilia is acceptable is more than a little strange, but for such a question to come from such a big name as Facebook almost defies belief. The survey appeared over the weekend, surprising those who saw the questions.

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A new report from information security specialist Thales e-Security reveals that 48 percent of US healthcare organizations reported getting breached in the last year, more than 2.5 times the rate from two years ago.

In addition 56 percent report feeling either 'very' or 'extremely' vulnerable to data breaches. More than three-quarters (77 percent) reported at least one breach at some time in the past. This is the highest percentage among all US vertical industries polled in this year’s report.

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Just over a week ago, YouTube decided to remove an InfoWars video from the Alex Jones' channel for breaching site rules about harassment. In videos, students who had spoken on TV about the Parkland, Florida shooting were described as "crisis actors". Jones described the move as "giant, massive censorship" and went as far as saying his channel was about to be shut down.

Now advertisers are showing how they feel about InfoWars, with a number of large companies -- including Acer, 20th Century Fox, Grammarly, Paramount Network, Alibaba and  Mozilla -- pulling advertising after learning that their ads were appearing on Jones' channel.

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Kodi continues to be in the news, often for all the wrong reasons. The media center software is synonymous with piracy, even though you need to install third-party add-ons to use it for illegal streaming purposes.

Today, however, there’s good news for Kodi users -- the team behind the software releases the first version of Kodi 18 (Leia), the next generation of its media center software, and you can download the brand new build now.

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Ever since I bought my 2016 MacBook Pro, I have been obsessed with Thunderbolt 3 docks. Why? Because I like to use my laptop as a desktop when I am home. I need to connect a monitor, keyboard, mouse, external hard drive, USB webcam, and more. A TB3 docking station allows me to easily connect all these things to my MacBook Pro with a single cable, while also charging it. This solution works with compatible Windows machines too.

Today, StarTech launches the Thunderbolt 3 Dual-4K Docking Station with SD Card Slot and it looks amazing. As the name implies, it can push two 4K monitors -- one using its DisplayPort, and the other with an included (and optional) USB-C to DisplayPort cable. In addition to dual-4K, it can also handle a single 5K display. Also indicated by the product name, there is an SD card slot on the front. This is very much appreciated, as the MacBook Pro has no such card reader.

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If you want the most powerful video game console, you should buy the Xbox One X. If you want the absolute best media player on the market, buy the Xbox One X. Yes, Microsoft's console is a wonderful device, allowing 4K video streaming, 4K Blu-ray playback, and 4K gaming. PlayStation 4 Pro cannot match the power or capabilities. You really can't go wrong buying Xbox One X.

There is one big downside to the Xbox One X, however -- its price tag. Having the best entertainment device will not come cheap. As they say, you must pay to play, and in this case, playing will cost you $500! That price is totally justified given its capabilities and specs, but it is still a hard pill to swallow. If you have been on the fence, Microsoft has a new promotion that might get you to pull the trigger -- a second controller for free! Best of all, the savings are instant -- there are no silly rebate forms to fill out.

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Google is testing a new AI green screen tool for YouTube called Mobile Real-time Video Segmentation. We've become used to every chat tool worth its salt offering AR overlays and masks, but this technology makes it possible to change backgrounds -- in real time.

The technique makes use of neural networks to determine which parts of a scene are foreground to be left alone and which are background to be replaced. No special equipment is needed, and it has the potential to be used for serious videos as well as the more frivolous things masks tend to be used for at the moment.

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While a lot of Android users are still waiting for Oreo to arrive on their handsets -- well, let's face it, there are still plenty waiting for Nougat -- Google is hard at work on Android P. The P may or may not stand for pistachio (or possibly pie, leading to speculation of a March 14 -- Pi day -- release), but what people really care about is what's new and when they can try it out.

It shouldn't be too long until we find out more about what to expect from the latest version of Google's mobile operating system. The company is expected to release the first Android P Developer Preview later this month. This will give us a chance to see whether there really is notch support and a "dramatic redesign".

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