Starbucks embraces voice ordering through both its iOS app and Amazon Alexa
Starbucks coffee fuels the days of many people. While the company's beverages are a bit expensive compared to, say, McDonalds or 7-11, they are chock full of caffeine and very tasty. Quite frankly, I drink Starbucks coffee or tea pretty much every day, as I often work in its locations -- they have clean tables and free Wi-Fi.
The company has often embraced technology within its stores -- it offers a nice mobile app with Spotify integration, and many of its tables offer wireless smartphone charging. Today, the company rolls out voice ordering through its own mobile iOS app or Amazon Alexa. Unfortunately, the iOS feature will be limited to 1,000 beta testers at first.
datAshur PRO -- The ultimate secure USB flash drive [Review]
USB flash drives are great for storing personal files on, so you can have easy access to them wherever you go. But what happens if you lose a drive or it gets stolen? All of your personal data could be at risk.
While there are ways to secure the contents of a flash drive using software, you need to remember to do so every time. The datAshur PRO, from iStorage, offers a hardware solution that’s simple to use and will protect your data with military grade XTS-AES 256-bit encryption.
Apple's iPhone Activation Lock status checker has gone AWOL
Buy an iPhone -- or any other phone -- from somewhere other than an official reseller, and you run the risk of getting your hands on a stolen device. Apple has a tool that allows would be buyers to check whether the phone they are planning to buy is secured with Activation Lock. Until very recently, that is; the tool has now disappeared.
The Activation Lock status checker was available on iCloud.com, and by simply entering the IMEI or serial number of a phone it was possible to perform a quick check to see if it is already locked to another user. But no more!
Kaspersky and ESET top the security charts
The way people access the internet is changing, with a shift towards portable devices, and that in turn has led to a shift in the software they use.
Independent testing company AV-Comparatives has conducted its annual survey focusing on which security products (free and paid) are employed by users, along with their OS and browser usage.
The effect of cybercrime on businesses and consumers
Here we are, at the end of the first month of a new year and where are we? Well, I guess that very much depends on who you are. If you're a hacker, then things are looking good for you. If you're a consumer, the evidence suggests you won't be fooled twice, but is that good enough? And if you're a business, you've got the same security problems as last year but with enhanced threats from hackers and careless employees as well as enhanced expectations from consumers.
So, exactly what is happening in today's security world and what does it mean for you?
Vulnerabilities could leave thousands of NETGEAR routers exposed
New vulnerabilities discovered in 31 models of NETGEAR router are reckoned to leave at least 10,000 devices at risk and could affect many more.
Cyber security company Trustwave has released details of the vulnerabilities which allow an attacker to discover or completely bypass any password on a NETGEAR router, giving them complete control of the router, including the ability to change configuration, turn infected routers into botnets or even upload entirely new firmware.
New platform offers holistic risk assessment for enterprises
The proliferation of cloud services and diverse platforms in modern enterprises makes guarding against risk and protecting data a major challenge.
Cyber risk assurance company TechDemocracy is addressing this problem with the launch of a new platform to analyze the effectiveness of existing cyber risk and compliance solutions and offers a consolidated view of enterprise risk posture.
Optimize images for the web with pingo
Pingo is a free PNG and JPEG optimizer which supports both lossless and lossy compression. There are plenty of similar tools around, but pingo stands out from the competition in several ways -- some good, some not.
The program is a compact 521KB download, unpacking to a single executable which you must run from the command line.
WhatsApp update will allow users to track a contact's location in real time
Facebook-owned WhatsApp was in the headlines recently because of concerns over the way it implemented end-to-end-encryption. Analysis of a beta version of the chat app showed that there seem to be plans to introduce message editing and deletion options, and new reports suggest that real-time location tracking could also be on the cards.
As reported by the Independent, version 2.16.399 of WhatsApp for Android and version 2.17.3.28 for iOS include a feature called Live Location Tracking. It's an option designed to make it easier to meet up in the flesh, but it's also something that will be of concern for privacy advocates.
Winstep Nexus and Xtreme updated to 17.10
Winstep Software Technologies has updated its flagship products, Winstep Xtreme and Winstep Nexus, to version 17.10.
Winstep Xtreme, the company’s powerful set of desktop applications, gains a new Moon Phases module which shows you how the moon will appear on any day of the month.
Cisco acquires intelligence software company AppDynamics
Tech giant Cisco has announced that it is buying AppDynamics, a privately-held application intelligence software company headquartered in San Francisco.
The deal is worth $3.7 billion, and will be completed in cash and assumed equity awards.
The future of home technology
Technology tends to creep up on us and before we know it is an essential part of our lives. In the home we're already seeing increasing numbers of smart devices like thermostats and light bulbs, but what else is on the horizon?
Electronics company RS Components has produced an interactive graphic showing some of the things we can look forward too.
DevDocs offline API browser now available for desktops
Last month we wrote about DevDocs for Chrome, a free extension which gives access to API documentation for around 200 programming languages and technologies.
Now an unofficial Electron-based applet, DevDocs, brings the service specifically to the desktop, with downloads available for Windows, Linux and Mac.
Twitter reveals the worrying content of two secret National Security Letters
All the big players in the world of tech release transparency reports these days, and Twitter is no different. Like other companies, Twitter has been unable to report details of any National Security Letters (NSLs) it receives from the FBI asking for access to user account information.
These data requests are accompanied by gagging orders that prevent the recipients from informing either the public or the subject of the letter about the request. The gag has now been lifted and Twitter has shared the contents of two letters which ask for a "large amount of data."
Really, Google? Chrome 57 kills the ability to control and disable plugins
With web browsers being among the most frequently used pieces of software out there, it's little wonder that there is so much concern about security surrounding them. Browser plugins can be a major security worry, and with Chrome 57 Google has taken the strange decision to block users from disabling them or changing their settings.
While this is not the same as preventing users from changing the settings for extensions, or removing them, it still has important implications -- particularly if a security problem should be discovered in a plugin Google bundles with Chrome.
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