Insights on RCS and how it will replace SMS [Q&A]
Over the past 25 years, SMS text messaging has become the most personal and ubiquitous form of communication in the digital era. In fact, it hasn’t simply held its ground, it’s actually gained momentum -- with global consumers preferring to communicate with businesses through this intuitive channel. As technology continues to bolster SMS capabilities, a new form of mobile messaging known as Rich Communications Services (RCS) is making waves in the mobile revolution.
Leading the charge, OpenMarket has joined forces with Google to help businesses realize the full capabilities of RCS messaging for customer engagement. We caught up with its senior market development manager Oisin Lunny, to learn about the company’s recent partnership with Google and details on what’s fast becoming the next generation of A2P (application to person) texting -- RCS.
Microsoft brings Cortana to the Android lock screen
Cortana has been available on Android for a year now (in the US at least), and Microsoft recently made its virtual assistant even more useful by making it accessible on the lock screen.
Today, however, the company takes things a stage further by making it possible to interact with Cortana above the lock.
How the dark web creates a fraud pandemic
The statistics continue to chill. Two point three million estimated fraud victims in the UK alone in 2015 according to the ONS. 173,000 confirmed reports of identity theft amongst CiFas members (largely utilities and finance companies) in 2015.
From a consumer perspective the chances are that over a period of three to four years you are now more likely than not to be a victim of a successful fraudulent act of some kind.
CIA's internal hacking tools rival those of the NSA
Debate and discourse around WikiLeaks’ announcement about a series of leaks from the CIA continue unabated. Codenamed "Vault 7," WikiLeaks claims this is the largest classified information leak to have come from the CIA to date. Added to that, only one percent of documents have been made public so far.
From the leaked documents it’s become clear that the CIA has created its own internal hacking capabilities to rival that of the NSA. It may be more tactical than strategic -- but with exploit sets including Android, IoS, Samsung TVs, Linux, Mac, zero day attacks and more, it could certainly give the NSA a run for its money.
Facebook Messenger now lets you share your location for an hour at a time
Facebook is introducing a new feature to its Messenger app for iOS and Android that makes it possible to share your current location with contacts. It is also possible to share other static locations to enable you to point out places on a map.
With Facebook and location-sharing mentioned in the same sentence, there will be obvious concerns about privacy. To try to allay these fears, the current location is only shared for a maximum of an hour, and can be manually stopped at any time before the countdown reaches zero.
Samsung will sell refurbished Galaxy Note7
Shortly after we learned that Samsung is getting ready to remotely kill Galaxy Note7 units still in use in its home market, the South Korean maker announced that the Galaxy Note7 is going back on sale. Talk about a turn of events...
What Samsung has actually decided to do is sell refurbished Galaxy Note7 units, not produce new ones. It makes sense for the company to want to recoup some of the lost revenue from recalling millions of Galaxy Note7s across the globe.
Microsoft hit with lawsuit alleging Windows 10 upgrades 'destroyed people's data and damaged PCs'
Windows 10 has certainly not been short of controversy. Between forced upgrades, telemetry and privacy concerns, and the introduction of increasing numbers of ads, Microsoft has been on the receiving end of a good deal of criticism for the latest version of its operating system. And the trouble is not over.
With the launch of Windows 10 Creators Update just around the corner, Microsoft faces a lawsuit from three people from Illinois who claim that the upgrade not only resulted in data loss, but also damaged their computers. The lawsuit makes reference to the difficulty many users found in declining the offer of upgrading to Windows 10.
OnePlus starts selling Midnight Black OnePlus 3T
If you are looking to get your hands on the special Midnight Black OnePlus 3T then you should know that OnePlus will start to sell the new limited edition model through its online store this week.
The Midnight Black version is basically identical to the colette edition, which OnePlus unveiled in mid-march, save for the fact that there is no colette branding on the back. It first went on sale through Hypebeast last week, as part of an exclusive launch deal.
European information security execs face major challenge from insider threats
New research shows that 35 percent of employees across the UK, France, Germany and Italy admit to have been involved in a security breach.
This presents CISOs with a significant challenge when it comes to protecting company data, particularly in light of the forthcoming European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) which comes into effect in early 2018.
Sony PS4 Pro Media Player app gets 4K video support -- still can't play UHD Blu-ray discs
The Sony PS4 Pro is a more powerful version version of the traditional PlayStation 4 game console. Besides having more horsepower, it can output 4K video. Sony's console only does UHD through streaming apps, such as Netflix. Unfortunately, it cannot play 4K Blu-ray discs -- something Microsoft's Xbox One S can do. This is a hardware limitation, as Sony's offering does not have a compatible optical drive.
Today, Sony is enabling a new way to enjoy 4K video on the PS4 Pro. Thanks to a software update, the Media Player app can now play 4K mp4 files. While this is appreciated, the ability to play these files is probably more beneficial for movie pirates than honest consumers. After all, 4K studio films are not typically sold in mp4 file format. Of course, I suppose some folks are recording home movies in UHD -- the PS4 Pro would be a great device for that.
How consumers are using AI and how they see its future
AI is starting to worm its way into our homes and workplaces, but a new study reveals that many consumers are currently unaware of the role it already plays in their lives.
The survey of almost 2,000 US consumers by predictive sales platform InsideSales.com shows that in both their personal and work lives, people are split in their use of AI. Outside the office, more than half (55 percent) report that they have used AI before, but only about 10 percent can be considered early adopters, using AI on a regular basis.
Microsoft's Docs.com search feature leaks sensitive files
Users of Microsoft's Docs.com website took to Twitter to complain after files marked as private were made public by the sites' search function.
In response, Microsoft pulled the search feature from the site, but it is now back up and running. Even during the time it was not possible to search the site directly, Google and Bing searches could still be conducted to reveal social security numbers, job applications, contact details, and other private information.
Is it time for Microsoft to rethink Windows 10?
It’s easy to understand why Microsoft took the decision to take Windows 8 in a new direction. PC sales were falling, and people were transitioning to iPhone, iPad, and Android devices. Microsoft felt it needed to do something radical to remain relevant in this changing world, and an operating system that could run on PCs, tablets, and smartphones seemed like a smart move.
The problem, of course, is the Start menu-less Windows 8 was too radical an approach for PC owners -- the bulk of Windows users -- and the OS itself was simply too half baked. There were too few decent non-PC devices around, and Microsoft had to build a Windows Store from scratch -- not easy.
Businesses want rugged two-in-one devices
Organizations are very much interested in equipping their mobile workforce with detachables, according to a new report by Panasonic.
Released during CeBIT 2017, it says detachable devices with screens ranging from 12 to 13.3 inches are in the "sweet spot," when it comes to screen size. The second key element to a well-built device is ruggedization.
Encrypted messaging service WhatsApp criticized as 'a secret place to hide' for terrorists
WhatsApp has been criticized for failing to help police following the revelation that Khalid Masood used the encrypted messaging service shortly before running down numerous people and stabbing a policeman to death in London last week.
The UK home secretary Amber Rudd spoke out over the weekend, saying that police and other agencies should be granted access to encrypted messages with a view to countering future terrorist attacks. Later this week, Rudd is due to meet with technology leaders to talk about how the government should be able to access messages protected by end-to-end encryption -- something already dropped from the controversial snooper's charter.
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