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  OS X, iOS and Linux have more vulnerabilities than Windows

  Publié: février 22, 2015, 7:55pm CET par Mark Wilson

  

  It might come as something of a surprise, but Windows is more secure than not only Apple's iOS and OS X, but also Linux. I'll just let that sink in for a moment...

  Windows, the operating system ridiculed for its vulnerabilities and susceptibility to viruses is actually more secure than the supposedly Fort Knox-like Linux and OS X. This startling fact comes from the National Vulnerability Database (described as the "US government repository of standards based vulnerability management data") which details security issues detected in different operating systems and software titles.

  The NVD has some revealing statistics for the number of vulnerabilities that were reported in each of the operating systems and GFI Blog has crunched the numbers; many will be surprised to find that Windows is not at the top of the list. In fact, in 2014 it is OS X that was found to be riddled with the greatest number of security problems -- 147 in total, including 64 rated as high severity, and 67 as medium. Also from the Apple stables, iOS did not fare all that much better: 127 vulnerabilities including 32 high and 72 with a medium rating.

  The latest version of Windows -- Windows 8.1 -- was found to have 36 vulnerabilities, and its predecessors -- Windows 8 and 7 -- both had the same number. For enterprise users, Windows Server 2007 and 2008 both have 38 vulnerabilities. Windows is reported as having no vulnerabilities of low severity; they cluster under the medium and high labels.

  

  Overall, there has been a huge increase in the number security vulnerabilities in the database. In 2013 the number stood at 4,794, but this shot up to 7,038 in 2014. A lower percentage are rated as high severity, but the number has still increased.

  While it is the vulnerabilities linked to individual operating systems that are probably most attention-grabbing, the main problem still lies with third-party software. 83 percent of reported vulnerabilities were to be found in applications, compared to 13 percent in OSes and 4 percent in hardware.

  Microsoft might celebrate coming ahead of Apple and Linux in one department, but Internet Explorer was found to be the most insecure web browser. IE had 242 vulnerabilities, compared to 124 in Chrome, and 117 in Firefox.

  Photo credit: Olivier Le Moal / Shutterstock

  
• 

  Tumblr now classifies all torrent talk as adult content

  Publié: février 22, 2015, 5:49pm CET par Mark Wilson

  

  The idea of online censorship is nothing new, particularly when it comes to content of questionable legality. Just last week it transpired that Valve was blocking talk about Kickass Torrents in Steam chat and now Tumblr is engaged in similar activity.

  Rather than blocking bloggers from posting about torrents, or stopping people from reading such posts, Tumblr now classifies torrent-related content as 'adult'. This means that many people will not be able to see posts that make reference to torrents unless they change their account settings.

  Torrent talk has fallen victim to Tumblr's safe mode setting which was introduced in a bid to help clean up the blogging platform for a wider audience. It's still possible to access such content, as Torrent Freak explains -- all you need to do is hit the padlock icon to the right hand side of the screen to switch off safe mode, and the previously invisible search results will show up once again.

  Classifying anything torrent-related as adult content seems a little extreme, although torrent talk on Tumblr does seem to have a more pornographic bent to it than other sites. But whether you're looking for Tumblr blogs that can point you in the direction of the best porn torrents, you want to discuss Linux distros, or you want to talk about the torrential rain you've been enduring, it's good to know that access to such content is just one filter-removing click away.

  Photo credit: bofotolux / Shutterstock

  
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  Android Wear works with iPhones and iPads -- no jailbreak required!

  Publié: février 22, 2015, 4:34pm CET par Brian Fagioli

  

  Wearables are awesome, the next big thing. Smartwatches in particular are very functional extensions of the smartphones, which have become ubiquitous nowadays. True, many tech pundits were dubious of the smartwatch's utility; including myself. I came around after actually using a smartwatch -- the Android Wear-based Samsung Gear Live -- for an extended period and loving it. My colleague Joe Wilcox is a recently converted proponent.

  As great as Android Wear is, there are problems. While the most glaring is the fairly short battery life of devices, its lack of cross-platform support is a bigger issue. In other words, it can be harmful to consumers to have a product that only works with a certain platform, as it limits their freedom. An Android user with Android Wear that wants to move to an iPhone for instance, will be left with a useless smartwatch. Thanks to a developer named Mohammad Abu-Garbeyyeh, this may no longer be an issue. This impressive dev has gotten Android Wear to work with iOS. The best part? No jailbreak needed!

  Abu-Garbeyyeh explains that his solution takes advantage of an iOS feature called ANCS. Apple explains this feature, "the purpose of the Apple Notification Center Service (ANCS) is to give Bluetooth accessories (that connect to iOS devices through a Bluetooth low-energy link) a simple and convenient way to access many kinds of notifications that are generated on iOS devices. The ANCS is designed around three principles: simplicity, efficiency and scalability. As a result, accessories ranging from simple LEDs to powerful 'companion' devices with large displays can find the service useful".

  The question is, how did Abu-Garbeyyeh get ANCS to speak with Android Wear? The developer explains on Reddit, "it's an APK on the watch that uses Android's Bluetooth LE APIs to connect to ANCS on the iPhone, it's what Apple added in iOS 7 (?) and it's what the Pebble uses afaik".

  In other words, his creation is loaded onto the Android Wear device that can then intercept ANCS alerts. It is quite brilliant actually, although it does not allow the full benefits of Android Wear to be realized. For now, it essentially makes an Android Wear watch the same as a Pebble smartwatch on iOS; only a means to intercept alerts. With that said, iOS users would be better off with a Pebble, as the battery life will be much better than Android Wear, with the same functionality -- for now.

  This is a cool hack, but beneficial only to people who already own an Android Wear smartwatch and an iOS device. iPhone users should not run out and buy Android Wear; wait for the Apple Watch or get a Pebble instead.

  You can see the proof of concept in the video below. Keep in mind, however, that the APK has not yet been released and videos can be faked. Could it be a hoax? Sure. With that said, he is a recognized developer on xda, so this should be on the up-and-up.

  Photo Credit: Axel Alvarez / Shutterstock

  
• 

  Watermark images easily with Photo Date Stamper

  Publié: février 22, 2015, 1:35am CET par Mike Williams

  

  Send a set of photos to someone and they might sometimes want to see when they were taken. This might be possible by checking their properties or otherwise displaying EXIF/ IPTC data (if they're tagged correctly, anyway), but that's not exactly convenient.

  Photo Date Stamper simplifies the process by watermarking a batch of images with their "taken" date.

  File format support is basic (JPG, PNG, BMP), and you can only import a set of individual images -- not an entire folder tree.

  The watermark is reasonably configurable. You can choose a font size, color and position (top left, top right, bottom left or bottom right).

  It's also possible to add a short description which appears under the date. A Preview button shows you how this will look.

  When you're ready, click Run and the photos are watermarked and saved to your preferred destination folder.

  If the files don't have a "date taken" tag then you'll be prompted to enter a date manually. This can be applied to every untagged image, or you can enter a new date for each one.

  There's no great depth here, no surprise extras. If you’re hoping you'll be able to format the date with some custom macro language, for instance, forget it -- you're stuck with the standard Windows short date format.

  Photo Date Stamper is at least easy to use, though, and if you need to watermark your images with their "taken" dates then it's a reasonable choice.