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Operational technology is critical in areas like energy, oil and gas, manufacturing, and transportation, but it's often be based on legacy systems which can be difficult to keep secure, with updates often needing to be carried out using USB devices.

The threat of attacks is very real though and the consequences especially disastrous, yet many control systems are running outdated software, leaving them vulnerable to attack.

Malware is constantly evolving in an attempt to steal data or make money for the people behind it. A new report by Malwarebytes Labs reveals the latest shift towards attacks that can avoid detection but also stay on a system to be reactivated later.

Using fileless malware is just one example among many attack methodologies currently evading traditional security defenses and maintaining persistence.

As far as I'm concerned, wireless charging is one of the greatest inventions of the last decade. OK, true, there is still a wire involved since the charger plugs into the AC outlet, but it is just so elegant to not need to plug a cable into your phone. Convenience aside, this will also reduce wear and tear on the port, potentially causing your device to last longer.

Case-maker X-Doria has a new wireless charger, but it is not designed for your home -- unless you live in your car, that is. Yes, the "Defense Helix Car Mount," as it is called, is designed for your vehicle. Not only does it charge your phone (both 7.5W and 10W), but it props it up on your dashboard too.

Risk management and cybersecurity specialist SureCloud has discovered that the popular VTech Storio Max children's tablet can easily be hacked, enabling criminals to take control of the devices and snoop on unsuspecting victims.

This can be done by simply adding an image or link to a website. When accessed by a child via the tablet's web browser, the exploit would attack the tablet and enable the attacker to take full control of the device.

Razer is a company that is known for its gaming accessories, but also, its gaming-focused notebooks. Its Blade Stealth laptop isn't a gaming machine, but it is quite svelte and beautiful. Seriously, folks, the Blade Stealth is an impressive Windows 10 notebook.

Today, the Razer Blade Stealth gets a massive refresh. It now has a 4K screen option, thinner bezels, a Windows Hello camera, and significantly improved battery life (up to 13 hours). Best of all, you can opt for NVIDIA GeForce MX150 graphics for modest gaming capability. Thanks to Thunderbolt 3, you can also add an eGPU for when even more power is needed.

You might well expect that if you perform a Google search while signed into your Google account that the results will be tailored according to what that company has learned about you over the years. But what about when you're not signed into your account?

A study carried out by the privacy-centric search engine DuckDuckGo yielded some slightly surprising results. In tests earlier in the year, it was found that even when people searched without logging into a Google account -- or when they used private browsing mode --  "most participants saw results unique to them", suggesting there was still personalization of results.

The end of the year approaches and so the "best of" lists start to emerge. Jumping on the bandwagon is Apple, providing us with a lengthy list of the best apps, games, music, podcasts, TV shows, and just about everything else digital you can think of.

The charts have not been compiled by simply calculating which apps have proved most popular with user. Apple describes it as "an invariable list of the who's who and what's what from the past year" which is a combination of both "top charts and selects from our editors". Are your favorites featured?

If Microsoft isn't careful, it is going to start getting through web browsers faster than Google gets through messaging tools. Having moved on from Internet Explorer to Edge, the company is now said to be looking to transition to a Chromium-based browser for Windows 10.

It's fair to say that Edge hasn't won itself too many fans since it first appeared three years ago, so the suggestion that Microsoft may ditch EdgeHTML in favour of a browser based on Chromium is likely to be widely welcomed. Said to be codenamed Anaheim, the news Microsoft has a new rendering engine on the horizon will go down well with those who have been disappointed by Edge.

In an interesting new trend some companies are claiming to be able to unlock encrypted files following a ransomware attack, but are in fact simply acting as brokers between victims and attackers.

Researchers at Check Point have discovered a Russian IT consultancy named Dr. Shifro that claims to unlock and recover consumers' and businesses' encrypted files.

Santa Claus is real. While it is popular to think the jolly fat man is merely fiction, that simply isn't true. Don't believe me? Back in the early 90s, when I was a kid, I asked Santa for a Super Nintendo and I got it! How else can that be explained? Exactly.

If you want further proof that Mr. Claus exists, every year, Google launches a Santa Tracker that allows you to track his gift-delivering journey around the world. The search giant's offering is more than just monitoring Santa's route, however. Actually, Google also shares a fun interactive online "village" with cool games and activities. This year, the Santa Tracker village is better than ever, with such things as an "Elf Maker" which allows you (or your child) design a custom elf. Beginning December 23, users of Google Assistant can ask it "Google, where’s Santa?” to get live location updates.

After listening to years of security advice, many of us now use different passwords to access various websites. Problem is, how do you store and synchronize this data across your devices? You can’t remember every unique password.

The secret is a password manager which enables you to store a central 'master password' (which you can remember) and then gain access to this securely stored data on any supported device. Problem is, can you trust a centralized password manager after previous security issues?

Question and answer site Quora has revealed that its user data has been compromised as a result of unauthorized access to its systems by a 'malicious third party'.

The breach occurred on Friday and Quora is still investigating the causes. It has taken the step of logging out all users who may have been affected and forcing them to reset their passwords. It also says it will continue to make security improvements.

The iPad remains by far and away the most popular tablet, with Apple securing 34.9 percent market share this year, up from 29.9 percent in 2017. The iPad is one of the few tablets to enjoy any kind of growth this year -- the market as a whole was down 13.5 percent during the second quarter of 2018.

Apple’s tablet is therefore the obvious target for any rival companies to aim for, and Microsoft has really gone on the attack with a new holiday ad for Surface Go.

We are edging ever closer to the full and final release of the next big version of Kodi, codenamed Leia.

The second release candidate drops today, meaning the Kodi Foundation is still on target to release the final build this year.

Tumblr has announced that it is to introduce a ban on all adult content across the platform in a major reversal of policy. The site has long been home to all manner of explicit content, and this lack of censorship is part of the reason for Tumblr's popularity.

The site says that, as of December 17, "adult content will not be allowed on Tumblr, regardless of how old you are". The announcement was made in the Tumblr Help Center, and it comes as the company aims to appeal to a wider age range.