Google says that it is keen for Android to be a secure platform for developers and end users alike. It's not a unique claim; Apple would likely say much the same about iOS, and Microsoft about Windows Phone/Windows 10 for Phones.

To demonstrate how fervently it has been working away at improving security and introducing new security-focused features, Google today published a report looking back on Android security in 2014. Dubbed the Android Security State of the Union 2014, it makes for interesting reading. It includes the revelation that nearly 10 million Android devices have potentially harmful apps installed.

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Windows Phone is Microsoft's mobile offering to the world, and some people love it. Unfortunately, the operating system's market share is extremely low, meaning many of the cool features and exclusives do not receive wide exposure. Slowly but surely, benefits that Windows Phone users pointed to as exclusives to the OS are being brought to competing platforms.

Today, Microsoft brings another Windows Phone exclusive to Android and iPhone -- Office Lens. Yes, the super-cool scanning feature is finally available to the large majority of mobile devices. Will you try it?

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You’re browsing Explorer and find an image you’d like to paste into another program. You could right-click it, select Copy, but that won’t work: Explorer copies the location of the file to the clipboard, not its contents.

One workaround is to double-click the image, open it in your default viewer, and copy it to the clipboard from there. That gets the job done, but it’s hardly convenient.

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Google no longer recognizes security certificates issued by CNNIC, China's domain name registry. The news comes after unauthorized certificates were issued for Google domains, and at the time Google said that CNNIC contractor MCS Holdings had issued the certificates.

What was worrying was the fact that MCS Holdings installed private security keys in a man-in-the-middle proxy rather than keeping them secure. MCS said that human error was to blame, but Google is taking no chances. The search giant is, for now at least, no longer recognizing certificates from the agency.

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Keeping systems secure is still heavily reliant on the use of passwords. But in order to be secure these need to be complex which makes them hard to remember.

An answer to the problem may lie with a product from enterprise software platform suppler MicroStrategy. Called Usher it replaces traditional passwords with biometric mobile identity and multi-factor authentication, and offers streamlined security administration.

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Shortly after introducing the new One M9, Taiwanese maker HTC has announced an updated version of its former flagship, One M8. Called One M8s, it packs a 64-bit processor, larger battery and more common camera module on the back.

What that means is instead of featuring the same 2.3 GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor, 2,600 mAh battery and 4 MP UltraPixel main camera as its older brother, the new One M8s comes with an octa-core Snapdragon 615 processor, 2,840 mAh battery and 13 MP camera on the back.

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In 1995 a group of just 21 web masters got together to develop some server software. They became the Apache Group and today the project they started powers over 500 million websites, around half the internet.

Open source software specialist Lucidworks has produced an infographic that looks at the history of Apache and how it has succeeded by becoming a collaborative, consensus-based development process with an open and pragmatic software license.

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OW Shredder is a free Windows tool which securely wipes files, folders, free space or entire drives, ensuring any confidential data can’t be recovered.

The program is a compact 600KB download. There’s no installation involved, no adware or other hassles -- just unzip the program to a USB key and you can run it anywhere.

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Skype is a fantastic communication service. What makes Skype so much better than its competitors, is the cross-platform availability. Microsoft supports pretty much all major platforms with this service. Whether you are on Windows, OS X, Android, Ubuntu, iOS or Windows Phone, you can utilize Skype.

Today, Microsoft announces a partnership with Western Union, giving Skype users a new way to buy Skype Credit. Plus, if a user buys Credit from the money-transfer company, they will receive bonus Credit too -- very cool!

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Just this morning I opined about my experience with Sling TV. On the whole I like it, though I have a few gripes. I have also written of my plans to purchase an Apple TV for two reasons -- price drop and HBO NOW. The HBO was the real key in my decision making, but perhaps it's a blessing I haven't yet pulled the trigger.

That's because Sling is announcing the service in its menu of viewing options. In fact, it promises to be up and running in time for the big season debut of Game of Thrones which takes place on April 12th. Pricing is in line with what you'd expect -- $15 per month.

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Microsoft's Surface Pro took many people by surprise. It was a bit of a late entry to the tablet game, but it showed how to do things properly. This was full caffeine, full sugar, full alcohol Windows in tablet form. For those who need a little more flexibility, there's the option of adding a keyboard. With Surface Pro, Microsoft carved out a niche for itself.

It tried to do the same with Surface, and Surface 2, but there was one problem. Windows RT. With the Windows 10 wheels now in full motion, Surface 3 has been pulled out of the bag. Microsoft has made the sensible decision to ditch Windows RT and provide a cut-price tablet with full-blown Windows 8 -- and ultimately Windows 10. This is Microsoft's chance to take on the iPad head to head.

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Chrome OS is a wonderful operating system for some users. If you live in the web browser, Google's Linux-based OS can be a brilliant way to  both work and play. Some people may have trepidation in investing in such a limited ecosystem, where only one web browser is permitted, and that does make sense. However, others are comfortable with one company controlling their window to the web, and that is OK too. In other words, people have different needs and ideology, and that is a beautiful thing.

While many associate Chrome OS with Chromebooks, there are many other form factors too, such as Chromebox, Chromebase and the recently announced Chromebit. Today, Acer announces the world's first Chromebase with a touchscreen. Yes, you can finally have a Chrome OS All-In-One with touch-friendly design.

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Google got me. Not because I didn't get the joke but for how far it actually goes. Perhaps you saw the April 1st post, "Re-rethinking computing", which introduces the project from a "rogue team of engineers...Today, we’re excited to announce a way to make your Chromebook self-browsing". Of course, it's an April Fools gag.

I first saw the post on my Nexus 9 tablet while exercising on the stationary bike. Later, thinking to post a quickie to Google+, I pulled up the URL from synced History on Chromebook Pixel LS. On the N9, I had clicked the post's last link, which did nothing special but when opened on the Pixel took me to the Chrome Web Store with option to install the self-browsing extension. Now that was unexpected. What to do, what to do?

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The Machine is the name of a project HP is developing for data centers based on several novel technologies. At this distance, The Machine seems like a fantasy as it’s still at least two years from its launch as a unified product.

If the project is successful, it may replace what we consider computers now; the promised changes to server power draw alone would be revolutionary. It’s initially intended for data centre use, but established, expensive technologies tend to trickle down to individual consumers eventually. Examples of the trickle down effect of technologies first widely implemented on a business level are numerous, and include tech such as solid state disks, 64 bit operating systems, and multiple cores. It may be that the technologies HP is developing will become ubiquitous in the industry for both consumers and businesses.

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Cloud security firm Skyhigh Networks has released its Cloud Adoption and Risk Report for Q1 2015, with some unsettling findings in terms of the risks businesses are taking.

The report is compiled by analyzing real-world cloud usage over some 17 million employees, and for the first time in this sixth report, it delved into the risk to enterprises posed by business partners connected via the cloud. This follows a spate of recent data breaches which have been the fault of a third-party, of course.

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