iOS 11.3 lets iPhone users disable performance throttling

iOS 11.3 AR experience

Apple has damaged its reputation by secretly throttling the performance of aging iPhones. The smartphone maker says that it took this course to prevent a drop in battery life, though many folks believe that the reason was to get customers to switch to a newer model. Still, CEO Tim Cook promised that iPhone users would soon be able to opt out.

And, today, the iPhone maker officially reveals that this feature will be introduced in iOS 11.3. This version of the mobile operating system is currently in preview and it will be rolled out "this spring."

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UK organizations urged to get ready for tougher data protection laws

gdpr prepared

New research released today by the UK government shows that fewer than half of all businesses and charities are aware of new data protection laws with just four months to go before they come into force.

Knowledge varies by industry, businesses in the finance and insurance sectors have the highest awareness of the changes to be brought in through the EU's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which is to be implemented in UK law via the Data Protection Bill in May 2018.

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Official app stores targeted by malicious Bitcoin apps

Bitcoin mobile

With increasing interest in cryptocurrency it's inevitable that cyber criminals will see the potential to make money from investors and users.

Threat management company RiskIQ has found that hackers are targeting the Apple, Google Play, SameAPK, APKPlz and other app store users with malicious cryptocurrency apps aiming to steal money and personal data.

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Organizations blame their own staff for cloud security incidents

When systems are in the cloud, 45 percent of organizations perceive their own employees to be the biggest security risk, according to a new report.

According to user behavior specialist Netwrix, even though the majority of attacks they experienced over the year were external, organizations blame their own IT staff (39 percent) and business users (33 percent) as much as or more than their cloud providers (33 percent).

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Tablet Hotels 2.0 is our new go-to app for booking a hotel

There are so many options out there for finding and booking a discounted hotel. Indeed, there are websites which will attempt to collate various booking options to pull together the best deals in a single location.

Although it’s great to obtain a discount from your hotel (and let’s face it here, if you call the hotel direct, you’ll often be able to negotiate your own deal), we want a website which pulls together feedback from people who have stayed in the hotel, take this feedback seriously, providing a good deal on the back of this.
Tablet Hotels has recently become our go-to booking site of choice having had had a very pleasant experience booking a hotel in Williamsburg, New York. At the last minute, we had to push back our flight due to bad weather in Texas, but Tablet took these circumstances into account and negotiated with the hotel to rearrange our last minute plans to accommodate. No cancellation or changes fees, at all. When we arrived at the hotel, we found Tablet had added its Plus feature automatically to our booking so were offered a room upgrade, free gifts and a (very) late checkout option.

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How moving inventory to the cloud can streamline your business [Q&A ]

Cloud

A major trend we've been seeing in inventory management (and business, in general) is for companies to move from a desktop solution to a cloud solution. This has profound implications for the nature of how businesses manage their inventory, and we thought it would be interesting to get the low down on this trend from an industry expert.

Christy Hair is an inventory solution specialist with Boxstorm,  an online inventory management specialist. We asked her a series of questions about cloud inventory management and how moving a company's inventory to the cloud can help it streamline its processes in new ways.

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UK government to monitor social networks and fight fake news with National Security Communications Unit

Fake news on a mobile phone

In a bid to tackle the ongoing problem of fake news, the UK government is setting up the National Security Communications Unit. The NSCU is tasked with "combating disinformation by state actors and others."

It's a mission that the likes of Microsoft, Facebook and Google have already taken on in various ways, each with varying degrees of success. One of the aims of the NSCU is to "more systematically deter our adversaries and help us deliver on national security priorities," and part of its work will involve monitoring social networks.

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Samsung unveils 860 PRO and EVO SATA SSDs with improved Linux compatibility

If you haven’t yet upgraded your operating system drive from a mechanical hard disk to a solid state drive, you are really missing out. Prices have dropped dramatically over the years, while at the same time, reliability has improved. Swapping an HDD for an SSD can be very easy too, thanks to cloning software that often comes with the drive.

Before you buy some random SSD, please know that they are not all the same. True, SATA models largely have equal speeds these days, but the brand really matters from a reliability standpoint. If you want a dependable solid state drive for your data, you should take a look at Samsung. Its offerings are top notch, and today the  company launches its newest SATA models -- the 860 PRO and EVO.

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Now you can buy audiobooks from Google Play

Google audiobooks

Google has added a new audiobooks section to its Play Store. The announcement was widely expected, as over the weekend imagery came to light suggesting Google had plans to start selling audiobooks -- but no one knew quite how far off it might be.

There's some good news for anyone who has been put off by the likes of Audible in the past -- audiobooks in Google Play are being offered without a subscription. Available in 45 countries and nine languages, Google offers support for Android, iOS and Google Assistant.

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TVAddons launches new GitHub Browser to deliver Kodi addons

Kodi and TVAddons logos

TVAddons has previously promised to 'change how people access streaming media forever', and now it is delivering on the first phase of the Kodi addon revolution. The newly announced GitHub Browser makes it easier than ever to browse and install Kodi addons.

The browser makes it possible to install any Kodi addon directly from its developer's own GitHub repository. It's all part of a plan that will make the TVAddons community "more resilient and decentralized."

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Facebook to roll out new privacy tools ahead of European GDPR laws

Facebook icon on iPhone 8

Facebook has faced numerous complaints and accusations when it comes to privacy, and nowhere has this been more obvious than in Europe. In response to European Union plans to change the laws concerning the privacy of personal data, the social network is on the verge of rolling out a new privacy center to users.

The upcoming General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is designed to give people more control over their personal data, and it is due to come into force in May. Facebook's response means that its millions of global users will all benefit from additional privacy controls.

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Fewer than five percent of enterprise apps will move to the cloud in 2018

cloud stop sign

A new study of over 160 IT directors and chief technology officers at companies with more than 1,000 employees shows that while 78 percent are planning to upgrade their enterprise applications, the cloud doesn't feature in many plans.

The survey by digital experience platform Sapho reveals that fewer than five percent of enterprise apps will migrate to the cloud from on-premises in 2018, mainly because of security and compliance issues, but also because many of these apps are so ingrained in daily business processes, they can't be moved.

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Crypto exchange bitFlyer lands in Europe

bitcoin-eu

BitFlyer, one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world, is now available in Europe, after receiving a license to operate in the EU. The Japan-based company, which has a daily volume in excess of $260 million, claims that it's "the most compliant virtual currency exchange in the world," as a result.

BitFlyer first opened its doors to Japanese crypto enthusiasts and expanded in the US last year. In 2017, it reached a volume of over $250billion from cryptocurrency trades, mainly in Bitcoin.

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State-sponsored attacks expected to dominate 2018 threat landscape

World map with code

With 1.9 billion records stolen in the first six months, more than in the whole of 2016, 2017 proved a bumper year for cyber crime.

According to cyber security company Venafi, this trend is set to continue into 2018, with state-sponsored attacks to the fore.

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Apple's HomePod launches February 9 for $349

Pre-orders for Apple's eagerly anticipated smart speaker -- the HomePod -- start in just a few days' time. Today the iPhone-maker announces that the HomePod will launch on February 9, but you can pre-order from Friday January 26.

The smart speaker will be available in the US, UK and Australia first of all, and springtime will see it launch in France and Germany. The voice-controlled HomePod had been planned for 2017, but was delayed before Christmas. Now Apple is finally ready to offer a premium alternative to the likes of the Amazon Echo and Google Home, with the company placing a firm emphasis on not just the familiarity of Siri, but also audio quality.

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