In the early days of the Internet, using Oh Flash was a sign that a website was ahead of the times. It was impressive and sought-after. These days it is akin to a technologically-transmitted-disease --we've all heard about Flash content and we all know of websites that feature it, but for the most part we really just hope to avoid it. Thanks to Google, users searching from an … [Read more...] about Google Search Results Warn Against Sites With Flash Content
Security
Android Anti-virus Apps Are Useless
Useless might be a strong word, but when it comes to being protected from security threats it would seem that the issue is necessarily black and white: you're protected or you aren't. So imagine the surprise (heard, read) around the world when Google's chief security engineer for Android, Adrian Ludwig, announced that anti-virus apps may not be terribly valuable on that … [Read more...] about Android Anti-virus Apps Are Useless
Android Adds Personal Unlocking In Trusted Environments
How many times a day do you unlock your smartphone? I'd be willing to wager that for a great number of you, the answer is in the hundreds. Having your phone locked is responsible and pretty much required, while unlocking it is annoying and frustrating. Fortunately, Google gave the answer during their I/O 2014 keynote: Personal Unlocking. Under the new Android "L" release, … [Read more...] about Android Adds Personal Unlocking In Trusted Environments
Amnesty App Morphs Power Button Into Panic Button
Sometimes things aren't actually as they seem, a truth that now applies to Android apps as well. While it masquerades as the sweet and innocent calculator app, Amnesty International's Panic Button might just save the lives of their human rights activists frequently at risk of facing arrest, attack, kidnapping or torture. After downloading the app, users can setup three … [Read more...] about Amnesty App Morphs Power Button Into Panic Button
Nest Purchases Dropcam for $555M of Google’s Money
A lot of companies are buying a lot of other companies these days, with one of the latest acquisitions being Nest's $555 million dollar grab for Dropcam. Designed to be a cloud-based WiFi video streaming service, Dropcam may seem like an unusual investment for a company known best for thermostats and smoke/carbon monoxide detectors; at least until you consider that there seems … [Read more...] about Nest Purchases Dropcam for $555M of Google’s Money
Yo Raises $1M and Gets Hacked in the Same Week
It seems like the kind of story that should be later-revealed as a joke: a crazy simple app is released with $1 million in venture capital funding and then a few days later it gets hacked. This is what happened to Yo --an app that lets you say "Yo" to your friends. Literally. The app, developed by Life Before Us LLC, is actually the result of an April Fool's joke gone wild. By … [Read more...] about Yo Raises $1M and Gets Hacked in the Same Week
Lookout Theft Alerts Offer Some Consolation if Your Phone is Stolen
One of the scariest things that can happen to us in these modern times is to find ourselves suddenly without our smartphone. It was there a minute ago and now it is gone, and the first thoughts through our head include: what did I have stored on there? We can replace a piece of hardware, but the information stored inside it can be revealing and damaging: access to your email? … [Read more...] about Lookout Theft Alerts Offer Some Consolation if Your Phone is Stolen
Unlock Your Phone Just By Picking It Up Using NFC
We've all heard a thing or two about NFC (near-field communication) --but Adafruit has come up with one of the most clever and convenient uses for the technology: unlocking your device just by picking it up! When you think about how many times a day you swipe or tap in your password, the appeal is impossible to ignore. The way it works is simple: keep an NFC tag close by … [Read more...] about Unlock Your Phone Just By Picking It Up Using NFC
Android Security Hole Could Be Capturing and Sharing Your Photos
That little phone in your pocket is really a pretty amazing piece of technology: beyond making and receiving phone calls, it happily serves as a hub for nearly every other aspect of your life. Consider for a moment how many things are stored in your smartphone --your schedule? your photographs? your music? your passwords? While you contemplate this, be sure to exercise a little … [Read more...] about Android Security Hole Could Be Capturing and Sharing Your Photos
Cisco Reports Android Devices are the Most Prone to Malware Attacks
Android may be accounting for a phenomenal growth in the mobile segment though all of that is fraught with risks of being infected with malware, warns senior vice president of marketing at Apple, Phil Schiller. Quoting Cisco 2014 Annual Security Report, the Apple executive pointed out that Android alone accounted for an unprecedented 99 percent malware threat in 2013. The same … [Read more...] about Cisco Reports Android Devices are the Most Prone to Malware Attacks
RIM Does Not Want Users to Hack Their PlayBook Tablet
Hacking the BlackBerry Playbook is something that many an individual has been up to in order to gain root access to their device. The intention is usually to enhance performance by installing an upgraded or a different OS and different applications than what comes officially with the device. RIM on its part has not made much of an issue of this, though of course this isn't … [Read more...] about RIM Does Not Want Users to Hack Their PlayBook Tablet
Researchers Develop Software to Secure Data on Android Devices
How about having an Android device on hand where you can store even the most sensitive of data without ever having to worry of them falling into the wrong hands? A group of researchers at Virginia Tech claim to have achieved just such a feat, as the software they have developed for the Android OS works on the basis of the current location of the device where it is situated. Or … [Read more...] about Researchers Develop Software to Secure Data on Android Devices
Russia Might Ban the iPad over Security Reasons, May Adopt the PlayBook
The Russians' quest for cryptographically secure tablet PCs' may come in as a much needed shot in the arm for the BlackBerry PlayBook that has been reeling under a lackluster demand so far. Also, guess which tablet PC is at the receiving end of the latest development in Russia -- its the Apple iPad whose sales figures the world over is counted in many many millions while others … [Read more...] about Russia Might Ban the iPad over Security Reasons, May Adopt the PlayBook