Mobile World Congress canceled over coronavirus fears
In a move that probably won’t come as a big surprise to many people, this year's Mobile World Congress (MWC) -- the world’s largest mobile phone showcase -- has been canceled due to coronavirus concerns.
MWC was due to be held in Barcelona on February 24-27, but over the past couple of weeks or so, many of the world's major tech firms have pulled out of the event, including BT, Cisco, Facebook, Amazon, Deutsche Telekom, Intel, LG, Sprint, and Vodafone.
Microsoft releases Windows 10 Build 19564, updates Calendar
Today, Microsoft rolls out the latest Windows 10 Preview build to Insiders on the Fast ring.
Build 19564 includes some graphics settings improvements and updates the Windows Calendar app. In addition, when you install Build 19564.1000, you’ll be offered Build 19564.1005 (KB4541095) as a Cumulative Update via Windows Update. This is designed to help Microsoft test its servicing pipeline.
Add the classic Windows XP Start menu to Windows 10
The Windows 10 Start menu gives you easy access to all of your programs and important settings, and -- for now at least -- optional Live Tiles. The search box makes it easy to find what you’re looking for too... when it works.
But if you hanker for the days when Start menus were simpler, you might want to consider adding a Windows XP style menu to Windows 10.
Election scams get creative and voters take the bait
The upcoming US presidential election is wrought with emotions. That makes it the perfect ruse for email scams targeting citizens, politicians, and government organizations. While election phishing is the top concern, there are a host of other scams that are making the rounds.
Your favorite politician -- or the one you’re most likely to vote for -- needs money to successfully run their campaign. Hackers are relying on our devotion not only to politicians but to our affiliated political party to lure us into a trap.
Six keys to successful digital transformation
Digital transformation is a prime objective for many businesses, with 93 percent of enterprises undergoing some kind of project according to a new report.
The survey conducted by Hanover Research and commissioned by digital platform company AHEAD shows these efforts are driven primarily by a desire to cut costs (77 percent) and improve customer experience (71 percent).
Avast under investigation for the sale of personal data to third-parties
It’s fair to say that Avast has been engaging in some rather sketchy behavior over the past couple of years. These include a privacy controversy with CCleaner back in 2018, and then a couple of weeks ago it was revealed that Avast Free Antivirus was sending browser history to marketers.
After attempting to defend its data gathering and sharing practices, Avast finally apologized and shut down its marketing analytics subsidiary Jumpshot with immediate effect. But it seems that isn’t the end of the matter as far as the Czech authorities are concerned.
Security pros are overconfident in the effectiveness of their tools
Half of respondents to a new survey report that they have experienced a breach because one or more of their security tools wasn't working as expected.
The Security Operations Effectiveness survey from Keysight Technologies questioned over 300 individuals involved in enterprise security solutions and found that only just over half (57 percent) of security professionals are confident their current security solutions are working as intended.
Reuters will fact-check content on Facebook and Instagram
Reuters has teamed up with Facebook to launch a new fact-checking initiative. It is looking to identify misinformation on social media, and will draw on the news agency's history of verifying data.
The partnership will see Reuters fact-checking content on Facebook and Instagram, working with Facebook's Third-Party Fact-Checking Program. The fact-checking program is seen as being particularly important in the run-up to the US presidential election, but it will continue beyond this.
UK government wants Ofcom to police social media
The UK government has long wanted to police the internet, and now it has expressed a desire for Ofcom to regulate social media.
The government would like to give the telecoms watchdog greater powers to enable it to serve as regulator for the likes of Facebook, Google, Twitter, Snapchat and TikTok. The aim is to protect internet users from "harmful and illegal content" while maintaining free speech.
Fraudsters turn to the human factor to boost their attacks
For all of today's sophisticated technology, sometimes there's no substitute for the human touch when it comes to getting the job done and it seems this applies to fraud as much as legitimate business.
Online fraud prevention specialist Arkose Labs has released its latest Fraud and Abuse Report, which shows that human-driven attacks are up 90 percent in the last quarter of 2019 compared to the previous six months.
Can technology help employees with their mental health?
Mental illness in the workplace is a costly problem for employers. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that depression and anxiety cost the global economy $1 trillion per year in lost productivity. Productivity problems can have a trickle-down effect, impacting everything from company culture to employee retention -- and the problem is getting worse, not better. Studies show that mental illness diagnosis rates are rising, particularly among adolescents and young adults.
As this problem grows, employers must establish policies that identify mental illness in the workplace, reduce the on-the-job stressors that exacerbate the problem, and create a more supportive environment that helps employees to work through their hurdles. Here are a few ways that organizations can accomplish these goals with technology.
Microsoft releases patch for serious Internet Explorer vulnerability
Microsoft has released a series of patches for a zero-day vulnerability in Internet Explorer that was being actively exploited.
The remote code execution flaw was discovered a few weeks ago, and while 0patch released a micropatch to fix the problem, Microsoft only suggested a workaround which ended up breaking printing for many people. But now patches have been made available for Windows 7, Windows 8.x, Windows 10, Windows Server 2008 and Windows Server 2012.
Microsoft drops boneheaded plan to force Bing search on Office 365 users
Is Bing a bad search engine? Actually, no. Believe it or not, Microsoft's search offering is actually quite good. There's just one big problem -- it isn't Google. It is unfortunate for Bing, but there's no reason for anyone to choose the second best search engine. Bottom line, Google is great, Bing is good, and no one wants to use the latter. It is the same with the Chromium-based Edge -- it's not bad, but people want real Google Chrome rather than a bastardization.
And that's why people were upset when Microsoft announced an asinine plan to force Bing on Office 365 ProPlus users through a browser extension. Not only would this anger and annoy end users, but it would lead to huge headaches for IT departments as employees start complaining about Bing showing up over Google. The thing is, even if Bing was better than Google (which it definitely isn't), nobody likes to have things forced upon them. Google, for instance, became dominant organically because people liked its results. If Microsoft thinks it can gain Bing users by forcing it on people, then the company just hasn't been paying attention.
Samsung announces the Galaxy S20, S20+ and Galaxy S20 Ultra
If you were hoping that Samsung would be taking the wraps off its Galaxy S11 today, then you’re in for a surprise as the company has gone straight to the S20.
Its new flagship smartphone is available in three versions -- the Galaxy S20, S20+ and S20 Ultra -- and as you’d expect they don’t come cheap, but you do get a lot for your money. As was the case with Apple’s new iPhones announced last year, Samsung’s new devices focus on the imaging side of things with an entirely new camera system, powered by AI and with Samsung’s biggest sensor yet.
Logitech StreamCam webcam is designed for YouTube vloggers, Twitch streamers, and other content creators
Nowadays, anyone can easily become a YouTuber or Twitch streamer. With that said, not everyone can become rich and famous from doing it. Many young folks have big dreams about becoming the next iJustine or Pewdiepie, but that is rarefied air. Instead, it would be wise to just do it for fun. Look, if you get fame and fortune from it, that is great. If not, oh well. Just have fun and hope for the best!
Today, Logitech releases a new webcam that should be a great choice for YouTube vloggers, Twitch streamers, and other content creators. Called "StreamCam," it can record video in 1080p60, connects via USB-C, and comes with a complimentary tripod. It is even optimized for Logitech's excellent Capture software. Best of all, it can be easily rotated to capture vertical video -- yeah, that's a thing.
© 1998-2025 BetaNews, Inc. All Rights Reserved. About Us - Privacy Policy - Cookie Policy - Sitemap.