#GoogleSoWhite
Google has a diversity problem. Whereas the company's mobile app offerings were once colorful and full of highlights, more recent iterations -- like the newly released version 16 of the Google Play Store -- have been thoroughly and deliberately "whitewashed." Gone is the inclusive rainbow of headers that delineated each app type. In its place, a monochromatic sea of pure whiteness.
The transition is jarring -- and a bit intimidating. As someone who is married to a "person of color" I find the loss of background hue to be disquieting. The notion that it is better to suppress diversity of content in the name of "consistency" or "visual clarity" strikes me as downright bigoted. By ignoring the unique contributions that categories like "Movies" and "Games" have made to the overall Google landscape, you slight those behind the content that drives them.
Just ask auntie: BBC to launch its own digital assistant called Beeb
The BBC is working on a digital assistant to rival the likes of Siri and Alexa. Due to launch in 2020, the system goes by the name Beeb, and is being developed to handle regional accents better than current assistants.
The corporation has no plans -- for now at least -- to release a physical product along the lines of Google Home, as Beeb is destined to be used to allow people to use their voices to interact with online services and search for shows.
Apple puts the kibosh on vulnerability that let iPhone users jailbreak iOS 12.4
Apple has released an update to iOS 12.4, plugging a vulnerability that had been reintroduced which allowed for jailbreaking.
iOS 12.4.1 repatches a security flaw which Apple previously fixed and then, inexplicably or accidentally, unpatched. iPhone owners now face a dilemma: upgrade to iOS 12.4.1 and have the most up-to-date, secure operating system, or stick with iOS 12.4 and retain jailbreak.
MX Linux 19 Beta 1 is here -- download the Debian-based operating system now
Another day, another Linux distribution. Yeah, it can get a bit tedious reading about so many operating systems based on the open source kernel, so here at BetaNews we typically try to inform you about the better ones. You see, there are many garbage Linux distributions that can simply be ignored -- they are either low-quality or overly redundant. Ultimately, it all becomes noise, harming the Linux community overall. Yes, having too much choice can be a negative.
Today, a wildly popular operating system achieves Beta status, and you should be interested -- it is worth your attention. Called "MX Linux," it has quietly gained a fairly large following, topping the charts at the legendary DistroWatch. MX Linux 19 Beta 1 is based on Debian 10 Buster and features the recently released Xfce 4.14 desktop environment. So, yeah, this is fairly bleeding edge stuff, although the Linux kernel is only at 4.19.5.
Over half of social media logins are fraudulent
Social media sites are a popular target for cybercriminals. It shouldn't come as too much of a surprise therefore to find that 53 percent of logins on social media sites are fraudulent and 25 percent of all new account applications are too.
These are among the findings of a study by anti-fraud platform Arkose Labs which analyzed over 1.2 billion transactions spanning account registrations, logins and payments from financial services, e-commerce, travel, social media, gaming and entertainment industries, in real time.
How cloud-based training can help address the cybersecurity skills gap [Q&A]
It's widely acknowledged that there's a skills shortage in the cybersecurity field. Many businesses are looking to address this by training their own security talent, but this in itself can be a challenge.
We spoke to Zvi Guterman, founder and CEO of virtual IT labs company CloudShare to find out how the cloud can help address security training issues.
How to access Google's secret Wizard of Oz Easter egg
Yesterday was the 80th anniversary of the theatrical debut of the seminal movie The Wizard of Oz. To celebrate the release of the 1939 classic, Google has hidden a movie-related secret in its search engine.
Whether you're a friend of Dorothy, a lover of the cowardly lion, or just a hater of the Wicked Witch of the West, it's a cool little Easter egg that's well worth checking out. Repeat after me: "There's no place like home!"
Cyber-stalking from 240 miles in the sky
"In space, no one can hear you…stalk?" That's the phrase that comes to mind as I sift through the sensationalist coverage of astronaut and decorated combat veteran Anne McClain's brief sojourn into the world of cyber-stalking. And while the act of checking up on an estranged spouse's financial activity is relatively common in a world where roughly half of all marriages (at least in Western countries) end up in divorce, the fact that Ms McClain chose to do so while orbiting the Earth at over 17,000 mph adds a degree of novelty to an otherwise mundane story.
Indeed, the purported "scene of the crime" introduces several new wrinkles to the matter, including under which jurisdiction her apparently illegal actions should fall. According to official sources, inhabitants of the International Space Station (ISS) are subject to the laws and regulations of their home countries. So, a Japanese astronaut is subject to Japanese law, a Russian to Russian law, etc.
Google Calendar spam is a thing; here's how to protect yourself
Spam is something we've become used to in our email inboxes as well as via SMS, but it's certainly not the only way we can be pestered, harangued and irritated. Even Google Calendar can be used to spam you with ads.
The phenomenon is not entirely new, but it has been in the spotlight recently. Google Calendar spam takes advantage of a default setting that Google puts in place. By disabling this, you can protect yourself against unwanted intrusions... but there are side-effects to consider.
Web host Hostinger resets 14 million customer passwords following data breach
Hosting company Hostinger has reset passwords for all of its customers after a data breach in which a database containing information about 14 million users was accessed "by an unauthorized third party".
Hostinger says that the password reset is a "precautionary measure" and explains that the security incident occurred when hackers used an authorization token found on one of the company's servers to access an internal system API. While no financial data is thought to have been accessed, hackers were able to access "client usernames, emails, hashed passwords, first names and IP addresses".
Got Bluetooth problems in Windows 10? KB4505903 update could be to blame
We are frequently advised to ensure that all of the latest Windows updates are installed in the name of security, as well as to ensure that we have access to all of the latest features. But sometimes things go wrong, as the KB4505903 update for Windows 10 illustrates.
This cumulative update was released a little while back -- July 26, to be precise -- but over the intervening weeks, problems have emerged with Bluetooth. You may find that you're not able to connect your Bluetooth speaker, or that audio quality is terrible. Microsoft has a workaround.
ADATA unveils UFU33B USB Flash Drive and IESU317 external SSD
Despite the surge in cloud storage adoption nowadays, sometimes local storage is still needed -- particularly external drives. After all, fewer consumers are buying desktops these days, instead relying on laptops, tablets, and convertibles. These computer types typically don't allow the addition of a second internal storage drive -- some don't even allow an upgrade of the sole drive. Thankfully, good ol' USB is still here to expand storage.
Today, ADATA unveils two new drives that utilize the tried-and-true USB-A connection. One is a flash drive, while the other is an external solid state drive. Neither product is particularly remarkable, but that is OK -- these are designed for functionality only. In other words, they aren't supposed to revolutionize anything or win a beauty pageant. With that said, they both are rather pretty.
Five vendors account for nearly a quarter of all vulnerabilities
Just five major vendors account for 24.1 percent of disclosed vulnerabilities in 2019 so far, according to a new report from Risk Based Security.
The report also reveals that 54 percent of 2019 vulnerabilities are web-related, 34 percent have public exploits, 53 percent can be exploited remotely and that 34 percent of 2019 vulnerabilities don't yet have a documented solution.
Google seeks to make the web more private for Chromium users with Privacy Sandbox
Google is not a company synonymous with privacy, but the company increasingly recognizes the importance people place on it. With this in mind, it has launched a new initiative called Privacy Sandbox which aims to increase online privacy.
The bold goal is to "develop a set of open standards to fundamentally enhance privacy on the web", and one of the first proposals seeks to limit online track of users. It will limit fingerprinting, change the way targeted advertising works, and more.
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