Closing the complexity gap in device management

The device landscape is becoming increasingly complex, as the proliferation of platforms, manufacturers and ownership options intersects with the need to track, manage and secure these devices in an ever-changing risk environment. Piece by piece, IT teams have picked up new devices and solution-specific tools to manage and track each device or pain point as it arises. Over time, organizations may develop entirely different teams to oversee similar management tasks for different platforms. While these specialized tools are effective individually, as the device landscape and management tasks expand, the net result of these devices and siloed tools is a "complexity… [Continue Reading]

Four ways your boss can access your private data

Privacy is a currency these days. With social media, target advertising, and constant connectivity, it’s harder than ever to keep elements of your private life truly private. This crisis of privacy becomes especially concerning in the context of the workplace. In the old days, it was easy to keep your work life and your personal life entirely separate. Today, those boundaries are blurrier than they used to be, and that fact has led to a big question for many employees: how much of my private data can my boss access? In this article, we will look at four tools that… [Continue Reading]

Microsoft releases Windows 10 20H1 Build 18950 and teases forthcoming 'Cloud download' feature

Microsoft released two Windows 10 20H1 builds to Insiders last week --18947, which was pushed out accidentally to all Insiders and sported an ugly revamped Start menu without Live titles, and 18945, which rolled out as expected and came with welcome improvements to Cortana, Windows Subsystem for Linux, and File Explorer. Today we’re back to how things usually run, with a new build for Insiders on the Fast ring. Build 18950 isn’t the most exciting of flights -- its headline addition covers Japanese IME improvements, although Microsoft does also reveal that it’s starting to roll out improvements to Snip &… [Continue Reading]

Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 is actually a really exciting Android tablet

Android tablets have fallen out of favor with consumers, and that's sad. Things have gotten so bad for this device type that Google -- the maker of Android -- has even pulled the plug on making them. Yikes! That is as ominous as it gets, folks. Why did this happen? Well, I blame the influx of cheap no-name tablets from China that crowded the market. Not to mention, smartphones started getting ridiculously large, making tablets a bit redundant. Ultimately, Android tablets became synonymous with crap. With the exception of Samsung and Huawei, quality tablets running Google's mobile OS have been… [Continue Reading]

Jaybird VISTA wireless headphones make Apple AirPods look like trash

AirPods are trash. Yeah, I know, they are very popular and Apple sells a ton of them, but that doesn't mean they are good. Look, the iPhone-maker could do much better than a set of rigid hard plastic things that you shove in your ear. They cause me, and others, severe ear canal pain. It doesn't have to be that way either -- Apple could very easily design them with replaceable tips to provide a customized experience. But no, Tim Cook and company would rather not. Oh well. Thankfully, there are other companies willing to acknowledge that not everyone has the… [Continue Reading]

NordVPN brings WireGuard-based NordLynx to Linux users

NordVPN has announced an important new option for users of the Linux version of its eponymous VPN tool. The company is introducing a new technology called NordLynx which is based on the WireGuard protocol. The company says that it successfully combines the highspeed connection offered by WireGuard with NordVPN's own privacy-protecting double NAT system. The change is NordVPN's recognition of the fact that the relatively new WireGuard protocol is outperforming existing favorites such as OpenVPN and IPSec in many ways. One of the key advantages of it is that WireGuard comprises a mere 4,000 lines of code (one hundredth of… [Continue Reading]

Chrome 76 arrives, blocking Flash and making paywalls easier to bypass

Google has released Chrome 76 for Windows, macOS and Linux. As expected from the preview releases, this version of the browser brings a couple of important changes: Flash is now blocked by default, and Incognito mode detection is also blocked. The blocking of Flash will be welcomed by many, and -- once word spreads about what the implications are (namely that it makes it far easier to get around paywalls) -- the same is likely to be true of the changes to the detection of Incognito mode. See also: Google boosts Chrome bug bounties Google is closing a Chrome API… [Continue Reading]

Phishing and credential stuffing remain top threats

As we have seen in another report today, the financial sector remains a prime target for cybercriminals. Phishing attacks and credential stuffing are the two most common forms of attack used against the industry according to another report from Akamai. In the six months between December 2018 and May 2019, nearly 200,000 phishing domains were discovered by the research and 50 percent of all unique organizations impacted are from the financial services sector. In addition the report reveals 3.5 billion attempts at credential stuffing during an 18-month period, putting the personal data and banking information of financial services customers at… [Continue Reading]

Financial sector faces a broad range of cyberthreats

The finance industry is a prime target for cyberattacks and a new report from F-Secure shows that it's facing a wide range of threats that go far beyond traditional theft. Attacks targeting banks, insurance companies, asset managers and similar organizations can range from common script-kiddies to organized criminals and state-sponsored actors. And these attackers have an equally diverse set of motivations for their actions, with many seeing the finance sector as a tempting target due to its importance in national economies. "This is a useful way to think about cyber threats, because it is easy to map attacker motivations across… [Continue Reading]

Special Report: The inside (their heads) scoop from Google Camp!

Get ready, boys and girls! It’s once again time for Google Camp, that exclusive, A-lister, invite-only event hosted each year by tech luminaries and all-around "crazy guys," Larry Paige and Sergey Brin! This year’s swanky shindig is being held at the posh Verdura Resort in beautiful sunny Sicily! And thanks to the magic of emerging brainwave-to-text technology, we’ve got the inside scoop on what these modern-day Illuminati were really thinking as they sunbathed on their mega yachts and tooled around town in $200,000 Maseratis! Note: Google Camp is ostensibly held to discuss issues of global importance, like climate change and… [Continue Reading]

Microsoft announces that Skype for Business Online will be retired

As Microsoft continue to push Teams, the company has announced that Skype for Business Online will be retired in 2021. While this is far from surprising, this is the first time a date has been mentioned so users can prepare to transition away. With the retirement date set at July 31, 2021, users have two years to get ready for a move to Teams. See also: Microsoft releases Windows 10 20H1 Build 18945 -- on purpose! -- with improvements to Cortana, Windows Subsystem for Linux and File Explorer Microsoft's web-based Outlook 365 is leaking users' IP addresses in emails Privacy… [Continue Reading]

Apple Card: The Apple credit card is coming in August

You might well be waiting for news of the new iPhone line-up, and we'll know more about that soon. In the meantime, however, Apple has a new product for its loyal fanbase. A credit card. The Apple Card has been talked about for some time, and now Tim Cook has revealed that it will be launching in August. The news came from the Apple CEO during an earnings call yesterday, and he said that the company's employees have been beta testing the Apple Card, which comes in both digital and physical forms. See also: Privacy: Apple workers may well hear… [Continue Reading]

Users still aren't in any rush to install newer versions of Windows 10

AdDuplex monitors the state of adoption for the various Windows 10 versions. Its figures for June showed the October 2018 Update (1809) was only on 30 percent of systems (down from 31.3 percent in May), while the May 2019 Update (1903) was to be found on 6.3 percent of devices in the same time frame. The monitoring firm has just released its figures for July and they show that the May 2019 Update has made its way on to more systems, but at a very cautious pace. In the past month the update has added just 5 percent share and… [Continue Reading]

Acer launches Predator XN253Q X G-SYNC monitor with 240Hz refresh

If you are a PC gamer, you should really check out this new monitor from Acer. Called "Predator XN253Q X," this 24.5-inch display features some impressive specifications, such as NVIDIA G-SYNC, 400 nit brightness, 1ms response rate (o.4ms in "overdrive mode"), and an impressive 240Hz refresh. While Predator XN253Q X has both HDMI and DisplayPort, you will need to use the latter to achieve 240Hz. The former maxes out at 60Hz. The monitor is a bit thick for my tastes, and that might be because of the integrated 4-port USB hub and stereo speakers. Thickness aside, it is a very attractive screen --… [Continue Reading]

Businesses still at risk from outdated operating systems

A new report reveals that 32 percent of businesses still have Windows XP installed on at least one device on their network and 79 percent of businesses are running Windows 7, which will reach its end of service in January 2020, on one or more devices. The study from IT industry marketplace Spiceworks also shows many businesses are turning to next-generation security solutions like AI-powered threat intelligence and security-as-a-service to face security threats and vulnerabilities including outdated operating systems, limited use of encryption, and a lack of in-house security expertise. The report reveals that 53 percent of businesses don't have… [Continue Reading]

Google Web Designer 6.0 introduces interactive video support, improves coding view

Google has released Google Web Designer 6.0, a major new version of its HTML-5 contenting-producing tool for Windows, Mac and Linux. Its WYSIWYG user interface and other user-friendly tools like syntax highlighting and code autocompletion make it popular among advertisers. Version 6.0 introduces improvements to its Code view and Events panel layout, supports focal points for responsive images and introduces interactive video features. The update implements numerous improvements to its Code view. Design view panels and toolbars are now automatically hidden to provide a wider viewing area. A new Files panel makes it easy to access and open other files… [Continue Reading]

More than half of enterprises don't know if their security tools are working

According to a new report, 53 percent of enterprise security leaders don't know if their security tools are working, despite massive spending. The study carried out for continuous validation specialist AttackIQ by the Ponemon Institute shows companies surveyed are spending an average of $18.4 million annually on cybersecurity and 58 percent will be increasing their IT security budget by an average of 14 percent in the next year. Yet 63 percent of respondents say they've observed a security control reporting that it blocked an attack when it actually failed to do so. In addition only 39 percent of respondents think… [Continue Reading]