OSINT -- the security technique you might never have heard of [Q&A]
Traditionally used by intelligence agencies and the military, the OSINT technique is used to gather information about people, organisations or companies from freely accessible sources, then analyse the data obtained and draw useful conclusions and information from it.
But IT security experts can also benefit from the technique to discover potential vulnerabilities and remediate them before they're exploited by attackers.
Why app modernization shouldn't hold back digital transformation [Q&A]
Digital transformation projects often rely on the updating or replacing of apps, but that can put a brake on the speed of progress.
Many enterprise apps rely on established systems like Java which have been around for a long time but still remain popular. We spoke to Kim Weins, VP of products at open source web development platform Vaadin, to find out more about the challenges of bringing enterprise apps up to date.
Dashlane makes its password manager open-source
In something of a surprising move, Dashlane has made the source code for its password manager publicly available on GitHub.
Published under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 license, the open-sourcing applies to Dashlane's iOS and Android apps. The company says that is made the decision in the name of transparency and trust, and that the projects will be update four times a year -- although this may increase further down the line.
Xubuntu-based Freespire 9.0 Linux distribution now available
Ubuntu is a Linux distribution based on the Debian operating system. Xubuntu is an operating system that is based on Ubuntu, but using the Xfce desktop environment instead of GNOME. Freespire is an OS that is based on Xubuntu. What does this mean? Well, besides too many Linux distributions existing, it means Freespire is, very loosely speaking, sort of like the great-grandson of Debian.
Anyway, today, Freespire 9.0 becomes available for download. A 64-bit ISO of the Linux-based operating system can be had immediately. It is notable for using Xfce 4.18.
New Linux malware up 50 percent in 2022
Although it has a reputation as a safe and secure operating system, Linux is not immune to malware. Indeed it's become an attractive target as increasing numbers of servers and other devices run Linux-based OSes.
Data analyzed by the Atlas VPN team, based on malware threat statistics from AV-ATLAS, shows new Linux malware threats hit record numbers in 2022, increasing by 50 percent to 1.9 million.
MX Linux 21.3 'Wildflower' is ready for download
Today, the Linux community is treated to yet another new distribution version. An ISO of MX Linux 21.3, the third point release in the "Wildflower" series, can be downloaded here immediately with your choice of Xfce, KDE Plasma, or Fluxbox.
Most notably, the operating system (which is based on Debian 11.6 "Bullseye") has Linux kernel 6.0 available (in addition to 5.10). The Xfce variant of MX 21.3 now uses version 4.18 of the desktop environment, which is the latest and greatest. Obviously, many packages and applications have been updated too.
Apps gain more security flaws as they get older
Just as machinery becomes less reliable as it gets older and people develop more health issues with age, so it seems software is more likely to have security flaws later in its life.
A new report from security testing company Veracode shows that while 32 percent of applications are found to have flaws at the first scan, by the time they have been in production for five years, nearly 70 percent contain at least one security flaw.
Geopolitical threats, supply chain issues and phishing scams -- cybersecurity predictions for 2023
The cybersecurity world never stands still, with threats and the technology to combat them constantly evolving.
That makes predicting what might happen difficult, but we can still extrapolate current trends to get an indication of where things might be headed. Here are some expert predictions for cybersecurity in 2023.
Celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ by installing Manjaro Linux 22.0 'Sikaris'
Tomorrow is one of the most important days of the year -- Jesus Christ's birthday! Also known as "Christmas," many people celebrate the holiday by giving gifts to friends and family. And of course, Santa Claus will be delivering many great presents to all the non-naughty children of the world too.
As an early Christmas gift, the Linux community is getting something very special today -- Manjaro 22.0! Code-named "Sikaris," this operating system is based on the excellent Arch Linux. If you love using a modern kernel, you will be happy to know Manjaro 22.0 comes with version 6.1. There are three desktop environments from which to choose -- GNOME (43), KDE Plasma (5.26), and Xfce (4.18).
You should replace Windows 11 with Linux Mint 21.1 on grandma's PC this Christmas
Grandmothers can be great ladies, but let's be honest -- they aren't very good at using computers. It's not their fault though -- they didn't grow up with them. That's why every time you visit grandma for Christmas, she asks you to fix her computer.
If you are sick of removing malware from grandma's PC, there is a simple solution -- install Linux! Yes, by formatting grandma's hard drive and replacing Windows with Linux, she will have the best Christmas ever.
Google launches OSV-Scanner to help identify vulnerabilities in open source software
Google has announced a new tool designed to help identify vulnerabilities in open source software.
The OSV-Scanner is described as a frontend to the existing OSV (open source vulnerabilities) database and one of the aims is to alert developers to security issues in the code their projects depend on.
Open Source video editor OpenShot 3.0 now available for Windows, Mac, and Linux
One of the big reasons some people don't switch to Linux is a lack of video editors. While it's true there are more video editing programs on macOS and Windows, there are some great options on Linux too, such as Kdenlive and DaVinci Resolve.
Another popular video editing application that runs on Linux is the open source OpenShot. This cross-platform video editor can run on Windows and macOS too, meaning you can try it on one of those platforms to see if it meets your needs before switching to Linux. And now, OpenShot has reached a new major milestone -- version 3.0. The developers brag that it includes over a thousand changes.
Number of vulnerable Log4j downloads remains high one year on
This week marks the first anniversary of the Log4j/Log4Shell vulnerability affecting the Java logging library and as we noted recently many organizations are still vulnerable even though patched versions were quickly available.
Sonatype has produced a resource center to show the current state of the vulnerability, along with a tool to help businesses scan their open source code to see if it's affected.
Why cross-platform capability is vital to the future of development [Q&A]
Increasingly consumers and businesses alike are relying on portable devices, and that means it's important that apps are available across several different systems.
We spoke to Jerome Laban, CTO of Uno Platform -- which allows Microsoft developers, using traditional C# and XAML, to take their apps to iOS, Android, Mac, Linux, and the web -- to find out more about cross-platform development and how it can future-proof applications.
AI-powered gardening app wins IBM Call for Code
This year's annual Call for Code Global Challenge, backed by IBM and the Linux Foundation, invited innovators across the world to help accelerate sustainability and combat climate change with open source-powered technology.
It's been won by GardenMate for creating an app that uses the IBM Watson AI platform to connect gardeners with excess produce to people in need.
Recent Headlines
BetaNews, your source for breaking tech news, reviews, and in-depth reporting since 1998.
© 1998-2025 BetaNews, Inc. All Rights Reserved. About Us - Privacy Policy - Cookie Policy - Sitemap.