What if Apple buys Nokia's HERE?

HERE iOS Apple iPhone Nokia

It is no secret that Nokia is pondering the sale of its HERE division. The Finnish company wants to focus on the telecommunications market, and HERE, which offers location services, mapping and navigation software, seems to be nothing but extra weight to lug around. Seeing as a sale is inevitable, the question is, who is going to buy it?

A rumor that's floating around now suggests that Nokia has pitched the sale of HERE to Apple, among other companies. The Cupertino, Calif.-based corporation would certainly stand to benefit from acquiring the technology that powers HERE, as its own attempt at offering navigation software to iOS users has not gone particularly well. Such a purchase, while extremely interesting for Apple, would have deep implications for HERE's current clients, which will most certainly not be favored by it. Here's what it could entail.

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Conficker remains top of the threats as existing malware for Windows dominates

Threat

Though we're constantly being warned about the threat offered by new malware it seems that, for Windows systems at least, the old favorites continue to catch us out.

The latest threat report from security company F-Secure shows that Conficker continues to be the number one Windows threat, kept alive by the number of unpatched legacy systems still around.

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Windows 10 Build 10061 -- buggy, but a huge leap in the right direction

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I’ve been playing around with the latest build of Windows 10 Technical Preview that was released yesterday, and I have to say I'm liking what I'm seeing so far.

I have been critical of previous Windows 10 releases, opining that the OS wasn’t going to be what I was hoping for, and calling the previous build, 10049, dull, boring and bland. Fortunately, with Build 10061 Microsoft addresses a lot of my concerns and you can now see the operating system’s true potential. Here’s what I like about the new build.

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Confirmed: An Android 5.0 and Windows 10 dual-boot capable smartphone with 2K display to launch in June

Elephone upcoming smartphone

Chinese smartphone manufacturer Elephone is working on a feature-rich flagship smartphone which will ship in two variants -- one running on Android 5.0 Lollipop, and the other one offering dual-boot capability with Windows 10 for phones, the company confirms to BetaNews. The Android counterpart will launch next month while the dual-boot capable phone will launch in June.

Windows Phone enthusiasts will be pleased to know that the upcoming smartphone will carry high-end hardware modules. As reported by Chinese tech portal GizChina -- and confirmed to us by the company -- the smartphone will feature a 5.5-inch 2K display. As of now, there is no flagship smartphone with 2K display running Windows OS. Other features of the handset include a mammoth 4GB RAM, and the touch ID fingerprint security. On the camera front, the smartphone will carry a 21-megapixel Sony IMX 230 shooter at the rear end. The dual-boot version will have a 20.7-megapixel sensor.

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BlackBerry unveils CHACE, a new Internet of Things security initiative

Risk dial

BlackBerry has announced the launch of a new initiative called the BlackBerry Center for High Assurance Computing Excellence, or CHACE for short, which aims to further bolster security in the Internet of Things age.

The idea of CHACE is to reverse the current fail-then-patch approach to security, BlackBerry notes, with the development of security tools that offer a far better level of security protection than is now available -- a proactive approach to vulnerability prevention which is far more cost effective.

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Google Project Fi is calling -- will you answer?

Project Fi

The waiting begins. This afternoon I asked the great Google god to bless me with an invite. If my homage is accepted, someday soon I can pay for the privilege of using the company's new piggyback cellular phone service. The thing is so exclusive, only one smartphone is supported. It's Nexus 6, or nothing, baby. I own one, so happens.

Project Fi switches between Sprint and T-Mobile cellular networks for core connectivity alongside wireless hotspots. That's why I call it a piggyback service; Google is not building out its own infrastructure. Fi is contextually conceived and consumed. Nexus 6 switches networks based on location and availability. Your phone number traverses devices, providing access on laptops and tablets, too. Context is what differentiates this service from every other.

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Microsoft releases Windows 10 Technical Preview Build 10061 -- get it now

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While Windows 8 was a very polarizing operating system, Windows 10 is much less so. In fact, many users testing the operating system under the Technical Preview program find it to be wonderful. Quite frankly, I think when the dust settles, it will be the best version of Windows ever.

Today, Microsoft releases yet another Windows 10 build under the preview program -- 10061. While the foundation and style is very much the same, there are some new features and apps to be found. Unfortunately, this release also has some significant bugs. Still, if you are committed to the preview program, you should not hesitate to jump head-first into 10061.

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Groupon refuses to pay security expert who found serious XSS site bugs

Groupon refuses to pay security expert who found serious XSS site bugs

Bounty programs benefit everyone. Companies like Microsoft get help from security experts, customers gain improved security, and those who discover and report vulnerabilities reap the rewards financially. Or at least that's how things are supposed to work.

Having reported a series of security problems to discount and deal site Groupon, security researcher Brute Logic from XSSposed.org was expecting a pay-out -- but the site refuses to stump up the cash. In all, Brute Logic reported more than 30 security issues with Groupon's site, but the company cites its Responsible Disclosure policy as the reason for not handing over the cash.

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Bag yourself $15,000 as an Azure or Project Spartan bounty hunter

Bag yourself $15,000 as an Azure or Project Spartan bounty hunter

It's not unknown for technology companies to run bounty programs that reward bug hunters for unearthing problems with software. Discover a security vulnerability and you could be in line for a nice cash bonus. Microsoft is one firm that runs such a program, and today the Microsoft Bounty Program is being expanded -- with a particular focus on Azure and Project Spartan.

Microsoft has already been asking for feedback about Windows 10 Technical Preview, but this is the first time a financial reward has been offered for pointing out security issues with any of its components. The maximum pay-out has been increased to $15,000 USD, so there's more incentive than ever to seek out problems and report them to Microsoft.

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Facebook Hello tells you who's calling before you pick up

Facebook's Hello app tells you who's calling before you pick up

It's easily forgotten with the number of apps available, but mobile phones are primarily designed for making calls on the move -- whodda thunk it? When you receive a call you'll usually see the number of the caller, but this may not be helpful in identifying them before you decide whether to pick up. Facebook's answer to this problem is Hello.

This new app comes from the Facebook Messenger team and aims to tell you more about the person getting in touch with you even if you don’t have their number saved in your address book. Currently available for Android, the dialer app also allows for the blocking of calls from individuals.

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Ubuntu Linux 15.04 Vivid Vervet is here

vividvminkeyubuntu

Today is Wednesday, aka "Hump Day". The middle of the work week can be quite the miserable day. If you are stuck in a soul-sucking corporate job, it means you still have a long way to go before the weekend brings sweet release.

Don't worry, people, I have good news; this is a very special Wednesday. Why? One of the world's best Linux-based operating systems, Ubuntu, sees a stable and final release of 15.04, codenamed Vivid Vervet (it's a type of monkey). At the end of today's work day, you can hopefully go home and try out the latest version of the popular Linux distribution -- once the download links go live, that is.

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Anonymous, LulzSec, Guardians of Peace... A guide to the most notorious hacking groups

Anonymous declares war on Lizard Squad after DDoS attacks on game networks

In 2015, the number of cyber-attacks and data breaches being reported by companies and governments across the world does not appear to be decreasing. Many high profile attacks have taken place in the past year alone. As a result of government investigations into cyber-attacks, it was discovered that many of these attacks are not the work of a single criminal acting alone.

In fact, organized hacking groups are increasingly responsible for these incidents. As time goes on, the data breaches and attacks are becoming more devastating and authorities are looking to see who is behind these events in order to stop these groups from organizing further. As the world becomes more technologically integrated, cyber-attacks pose issues of national security that need to be addressed.

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Corporate privacy policies are out of step with protecting sensitive data

Privacy policy

Technology makes it easier than ever for businesses to collect data but that also means they have greater responsibility for looking after it.

Data protection specialist Druva has released the results of a new study conducted by Dimensional Research which examines companies' efforts to protect sensitive data, the challenges they face ensuring data privacy and gathers respondent views on protecting data privacy in the cloud.

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You're more likely to be struck by lightning than hit by mobile malware

mobile lightning

We constantly see stories about the latest threat from malware, particularly relating to mobile devices. But is it really as bad as it's made out to be?

No, says threat detection and containment specialist Damballa which is unveiling new research based on its big data analysis of almost half of US mobile traffic.

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Safari is king of the mobile browsers -- which could be bad news for Google

safari king

Google’s dominance of the web is best illustrated by Mobilegeddon. The search giant has made changes to its algorithm, prioritizing sites that are "mobile friendly" and demoting those that aren’t. Google says that mobile-friendliness is just one of 200 signals that it uses to determine the ranking of results and that sites which don’t have mobile versions won’t disappear as a result of this change. That said, the truth is if Google says you need a mobile site -- that it approves of -- then you need a mobile site.

But while Google is forcing sites to offer mobile friendly versions or suffer the consequences, it’s Apple’s browser that the majority of people are using to access the web while on the go.

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