Best Windows 10 apps this week
Two-hundred-and-eighteen in a series. Welcome to this week's overview of the best apps, games and extensions released for Windows 10 on Windows Store in the past seven days.
Microsoft released another Windows 10 Creators Update build this week to the Fast Ring channel. You can read Wayne's summary of the build here.
WhatsApp adds two-step verification -- here's how to enable it
It has been a little while coming, but WhatsApp is finally rolling out support for two-step verification to its messaging app.
The extra layer of security means that it is now more difficult to gain unauthorized access to an account, and it is a feature that is being made available to iOS, Android and Windows users. With the feature enabled, if you -- or anyone else, for that matter -- tries to verify your phone number on WhatsApp, you -- or they -- will have to provide the 6-digit passcode you create.
Windows 10 Creators Update Build 15031 for Mobile arrives on the Fast ring
Microsoft released Insider Build 15031 for PC two days ago, and promised a build for Mobile would arrive by the end of the week.
The software giant is as good as its word, and Build 15031 is now available to install.
Microsoft enhances Bing weather experience with improved visuals and ski resort snow reports
If you want to know the current weather, you can simply gaze out a window. If you want to know the weather beyond the moment, however, there are many sources from where you can get it. Some folks will turn on the television or radio, but in the computer age, there are far more convenient ways, such as mobile apps and search engines.
One such search engine that can present you with the weather is Bing. Today, Microsoft is improving the weather functionality of its search engine by offering improved visuals. As you can see in the image above, it is much more pleasing than Google's. In addition, Bing is now offering ski resort snow reports for skiers and snowboarders.
The future of marketing -- from AI to voice control Apps
The marketing industry has experienced a surge of new technologies in the past few years. While this creates the potential for complete transformation, the marketing landscape over the past year has remained fairly steady. As 2017 begins, the question remains whether this will be the year that technology is fully embraced by the marketing community. Will it be a transitional year with common practices being adapted to reflect new technology trends or will it witness major developments that threaten to take marketers by surprise?
In a world where customers are constantly demanding more, customer experience (CX) has become difficult and challenging to perfect, putting extra pressure on marketers. Technology has been a driving force behind the development of solutions to enhance CX. However, embracing these technologies can be perplexing as a marketer, taking the business into new and unknown areas.
The next generation of cyber attacks -- PDoS, TDoS, and others
2016 was a landmark year in cyber security. The cyber landscape was rocked as Internet of Things (IoT) threats became a reality and unleashed the first 1TB DDoS attacks -- the largest in history.
Security experts had long warned of the potential of IoT attacks, and a number of other predictions also came true; Advanced Persistent Denial of Service (APDoS) attacks became standard, ransom attacks continued to grow and evolve and data protection agreements dominated privacy debates. So what’s coming in 2017?
Cortana Suggested Reminders now available for Windows 10 -- iOS and Android soon
Voice assistants are changing the way consumers interact with their computers and devices. Services like Alexa and Siri are enabling people to use voice to ask questions and control home components, such as thermostats and lights. It really is an exceptional thing.
Microsoft's Cortana is also a great voice assistant, and since "she" is included in Windows 10, countless consumers already have access. Today, Microsoft announces that it is improving Cortana with a new feature called "Suggested Reminders". The assistant will scan your emails for dates and appointments, and then suggest reminders -- for times when maybe you forgot to do so yourself. Previously available to Windows Insiders, it is now an option for all Windows 10 users. There is one very big catch, however.
The secrets of top performing information security officers
A new study based on two years of work by IANS Research looks at the work of chief information security officers (CISOs) and their role in enterprises.
The report identifies concrete actions CISOs should consider taking to progress their programs from where they are today to the next level.
Popular Windows development UI library goes open source
User interface controls are important to creating applications for use across different devices as they need to retain the native look and feel of the OS.
To make life easier for .NET developers development company Progress is making its Telerik UI for Universal Windows Platform (UWP) open source. Telerik UI offers developers a set of native UI controls for building Windows apps.
Sony announces new $249 'Call of Duty' and 'Uncharted' PlayStation 4 console bundles
As the news of the world gets crazier and crazier, people are increasingly needing distractions to cope. While TV, movies, and music are obvious choices, video games should not be forgotten. These games allow the player to escape into an alternate reality for a while, and can be more immersive than other media.
If you do not own a game console, you really can't go wrong with the PlayStation 4 or Xbox One -- both are powerful and have respectable game libraries. Today, however, Sony makes its offering very attractive. The company announces three new console bundles for a mere $249.
Next generation email security addresses advanced threats
Despite other developments in malware, email remains a favourite route for attackers because it's easy for people to fall victim to phishing and other threats.
Network security company SonicWall is launching a new next-generation email security platform to help guard against ransomware, zero-day and advanced threats.
Check your PC for malicious shortcuts with Shortcut Scanner
Shortcut Scanner is a free tool which scans your PC for potentially malicious shortcuts.
The program looks for multiple indicators. Does the shortcut point to PowerShell, cmd.exe or some other command prompt? Does it include dangerous keywords, have unusually long commands, is larger than 4KB in size?
Invisible malware targets financial information
Researchers at Kaspersky Lab have uncovered a series of targeted attacks that use legitimate software to avoid detection.
The attacks employ widely available penetration-testing and administration tools as well as the PowerShell framework for task automation in Windows. They drop no malware files onto the hard drive, but hide in the memory.
Forget prayers, thoughts and sad faces; Facebook Community Help lets you actually help those in crisis
When there is an emergency somewhere in the world -- be it a natural disaster, terrorist attack or humanitarian crisis -- it has become normal to see Facebook's Safety Check feature kick in. As well as letting those affected by the crisis in question let their loved ones know that they are OK, Safety Check activations also result in a flood of thoughts, prayers and sad-faced emoji being sent by Facebookers.
But what about sending actual help? Sending thoughts and prayers is something of an empty gesture, whereas offering shelter, food and other supplies could actually help to save lives. Facebook has now expanded its Safety Check tool to include Community Help, enabling helpful souls to lend support in times of need.
Wikipedia bans use of Daily Mail as a source because it is 'unreliable'
In a move that will surprise few people familiar with the newspaper, Wikipedia has chosen to ban the use of the British Daily Mail as a source. Editors for the site reached the conclusion that the paper "is generally unreliable, and its use as a reference is to be generally prohibited".
While this does not constitute an outright ban -- something which would probably not go down well with the Wikipedia community -- editors are strongly encouraged to find an alternative source wherever possible. The decision comes after a vote in which editors debated the Daily Mail's "reputation for poor fact checking, sensationalism, and flat-out fabrication". In other words: fake news.
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