Gregarius » BetaNews.Com » août 3, 2015

BetaNews.Com (18 non lus)

Macs are vulnerable to Thunderstrike 2 firmware malware that survives formatting

Publié: août 3, 2015, 11:27pm CEST par Mark Wilson

Macs have long been touted as being immune to viruses and malware -- but there have been plenty of vulnerabilities that show this to be a fallacy. Apple's own claims that its hardware was not susceptible to the same firmware security flaws as PCs served only to encourage people to prove the company wrong.

At Black Hat USA on Thursday, researchers will demonstrate that not only can Macs be remotely infected with malware, but that this malware can survive a user formatting the system. In a talk at the InfoSec event in Las Vegas that focuses on all manner of security topics, Trammell Hudson, Xeno Kovah, and Corey Kallenberg will show that Macs are just as vulnerable to remote attacks as PCs using the Thunderstrike 2 backdoor.

Thunderstrike 2 is impressive in its efficacy. The malware can be remotely installed and can spread between Macs even if they are air-gapped or not networked. The way Thunderstrike 2 locks itself into firmware means that the infection remains in place even if OS X is wiped out and reinstalled; it is also very difficult for security software to detect, let alone do anything about. Xeno Kovah says:

For most users that's really a throw-your-machine-away kind of situation. Most people and organizations don't have the wherewithal to physically open up their machine and electrically reprogram the chip.

The world will get a chance to see the attack in action at Black Hat USA later in the week. The billing for the demonstration says:

This talk will provide conclusive evidence that Macs are in fact vulnerable to many of the software only firmware attacks that also affect PC systems. In addition, to emphasize the consequences of successful exploitation of these attack vectors, we will demonstrate the power of the dark side by showing what Mac firmware malware is capable of.

Apple has previously stated that in order to become infected with firmware malware, direct physical access to a Mac is required. The team behind the revelation is not entirely new to this: it is the same team who demonstrated the LightEater vulnerability that afflicted millions of BIOSes. Although there is a widely-held belief that Macs are more secure than PCs, the counter-argument is that this is simply because of the numbers involved. There are far more PCs in use than Macs, so it make sense for a malware peddler to hit as many system as possible with PC-specific attacks.

Thunderstrike 2 will also be demonstrated at Def Con this weekend.
You don't need to use a Microsoft Account to download apps from Window 10's Store

Publié: août 3, 2015, 9:24pm CEST par Mark Wilson

With Windows 10, Microsoft is particularly keen for you to use a Microsoft Account. It's something that was present in Windows 8, and it is still billed as a way to sync settings and apps between computers. While you may be encouraged to use a Microsoft Account, it is not necessary -- you can use a local account, but if you decide to download apps from the Store, you'll be prompted to switch this to a Microsoft Account.

If you're concerned about the privacy implications of using a Microsoft Account, you may want to avoid using it whenever possible. Sign into the Store with a Microsoft ID, however, and you'll find that your local account is converted into a Microsoft account. Here's how to download apps without having to switch.

Fire up the Store using your preferred method -- Start menu, taskbar, or whatever -- and then click the person icon to the upper right of the window, just to the left of the Search bar. Select Microsoft Account in the popup that appears and then enter your email address and password.

You now need to take care.

Microsoft wants you to convert your local account into a Microsoft Account; it is easy to miss, but you do have the option to skip this if you prefer. Rather than entering your password, click the link below the password field that reads Sign in to just this app instead.

You're now free to browse the Store and download apps whilst leaving your local account as a local account.
The 12 most-destructive viruses [Infographic]

Publié: août 3, 2015, 7:40pm CEST par BetaNews Staff

The world of computer viruses has changed drastically over the last 25 or so years. In the early days, internet users were very naïve towards email attachments, contributing to the alarming speed that viruses could spread across the globe.

These days, viruses very rarely land in our inboxes due to preconfigured firewalls and strict measures from the likes of Gmail and Outlook.

However, when viruses do successfully infect machines and propagate effectively, they can be highly destructive in their nature and bring some of the largest corporations to their knees. While some viruses are created to simply spread as far and wide as possible, others have more sinister payloads such as the construction of botnets and execution of denial of service attacks.

We took a look at the most destructive viruses to wreak havoc on the internet, and compiled the infographic below.

And once you’ve checked that out, head to the SSLs blog for a step-by-step guide of how each virus works.

Published under license from ITProPortal.com, a Net Communities Ltd Publication. All rights reserved.

Photo Credit: Thomas Bethge/Shutterstock
Nest Learning Thermostat gets new security update

Publié: août 3, 2015, 7:38pm CEST par Alan Buckingham

The Internet of Things can be a blessing and a curse. We all want devices that work for us, and home automation has become big business. Lights, among many other things, can be set or simply controlled from a phone or tablet, and thermostats are going that way as well.

The problem is security, as IoT devices can have all sorts of problems that people haven't faced before. Nest can change your home's temperature on its own and a hacker could, potentially, do the same. That's part of what this update is designed to address, though there are other features as well.

The Google-owned company is today announcing new safety software. "Every Nest Thermostat has a Safety Temperature. You tell it what temperature your house should never reach -- like when your pipes could freeze -- and Nest will turn on the heat if it’s getting too cold. It works even when you’ve turned the thermostat off", Nest states.

The app can now send you an alert if the temperature gets too high or too low. The update also adds smoke and carbon monoxide alerts to your thermostat, providing you are also using a Nest Protect.

"The Nest Thermostat and Nest Protect have always worked together to help keep you safe from carbon monoxide. Because furnaces are one of the top sources of deadly CO leaks, a CO alarm on Nest Protect will prompt your thermostat to turn off the heat".

In addition, the Nest account will now allow for control of up to 40 thermostats. Quite a lot and likely much more than anyone will use.

The update is rolling out now, so expect it anytime.
Privacy alert: your laptop or phone battery could track you online

Publié: août 3, 2015, 6:46pm CEST par Mark Wilson

Is the battery in your smartphone being used to track your online activities? It might seem unlikely, but it's not quite as farfetched as you might first think. This is not a case of malware or hacking, but a built-in component of the HTML5 specification.

Originally designed to help reduce power consumption, the Battery Status API makes it possible for websites and apps to monitor the battery level of laptops, tablets, and phones. A paper published by a team of security researchers suggests that this represents a huge privacy risk. Using little more than the amount of power remaining in your battery, it is possible for people to be identified and tracked online.

As reported by The Guardian, a paper entitled The Leaking Battery by Belgian and French privacy and security experts say that the API can be used in device fingerprinting. The API can be used to determine the capacity of a website visitor's battery, as well as its current charge level, and the length of time it will take to fully discharge. When combined, these pieces of information create a unique identifier which can be used like a supercookie.

Supported by Firefox, Opera, and Chrome (but not Internet Explorer or Microsoft Edge), Battery Status API has raised the security hackles of the researchers who say:

We hope to draw attention to this privacy issue by demonstrating the ways to abuse the API for fingerprinting and tracking.

At particular risk are older phones. The age of the battery reduces the battery life, making it easier to generate unique identifiers. What is especially concerning is the fact that users do not need to be warned when the Battery Status API is being used. This is because when drawing up the HTML5 standard, the W3C said:

The information disclosed has minimal impact on privacy or fingerprinting, and therefore is exposed without permission grants.

To overcome the security and privacy issues, the authors of the report suggest that the readings gathered by the API be rounded. They say this would not interfere with the functionality of the API, but would eliminate the problem of tracking. At the moment, nothing more than a simple script is needed to monitor someone's movement from one website to another. The creation of a unique identifier also opens up the possibility of a phenomenon known as respawning. Even if a user goes to the trouble of deleting local-stored cookies, they could instead be remotely stored and reinstate when a user is identified through Battery Status API data.

The researchers also suggest that permission to access the API should be sought from users rather than just allowing its use by default.

Photo credit: scyther5 / Shutterstock
Microsoft acquires gamification platform FantasySalesTeam to bring fun to Dynamics CRM

Publié: août 3, 2015, 6:38pm CEST par Brian Fagioli

When you work in sales, there can be rewarding moments, but there are many negative moments too. Not only can the career be boring at times, but it can also be very stressful. You constantly have to worry about meeting goals and performing well. A bad month or quarter could mean a loss of employment or the inability to pay bills.

Gamification, however, can make reaching goals fun. If you aren't familiar, this is a method of integrating video game type badges and levels into boring work tasks in an effort to make it more fun and less stressful. Today, Microsoft announces the acquisition of Incent Games Inc, and its gamification platform, FantasySalesTeam.

"With Microsoft’s focus on productivity and our obsession with customer success, this acquisition is a great fit. To help drive adoption of our CRM solutions in fun and creative ways, we are integrating FantasySalesTeam into our offering. Our focus continues to be on not only providing the best solutions to our customers, but also helping them be wildly successful. We are committed to going the last mile in helping them impact revenue growth. We believe that motivating users of Dynamics CRM to focus on their most important metrics while simultaneously increasing usage and adoption can help drive tremendous impact on our customer’s success", says Bob Stutz, Corporate Vice President, Microsoft Dynamics CRM.

Stutz further explains, "in the coming months, we will integrate and offer this service to our customers and will continue to support customers using FantasySalesTeam with other CRM solutions. The potential of applying this feature beyond the sales scenario to other fields and areas within a business is exciting as well. We will evaluate these other scenarios closely as we integrate and evolve FantasySalesTeam into the Dynamics ecosystem".

This acquisition can really make Dynamics a fun platform for salespeople and other workers too. Imagine selling 10 cars and getting an "Elite Sales" badge, or "leveling-up" based on the number of extended warranties you sell. Rather than a salesman being Bob, the guy who met his sales goals, he could be Bob the Great, Level 4 salesperson with Platinum warranty powers.

Does it seem childish? Sort of, but you'd be surprised how quickly people buy into gamification. It can increase sales, performance, and employee engagement too, as workers focus on the metrics that matter most.

Does your company use gamification as a motivator? Tell me about it in the comments.
How to activate Windows 10's secret God Modes

Publié: août 3, 2015, 6:03pm CEST par Wayne Williams

Windows 7 introduced a useful hidden God Mode that displays all of the admin tools and control options on a single screen. This feature was carried over to Windows 8.x, and the good news is, because Microsoft has yet to phase out Control Panel, it also works just fine in Windows 10.

It’s very easy to action God Mode -- you just need to create a folder and give it a special name -- and there’s actually quite a few alternative God Modes available. Here’s what you need to do.

To activate God Mode, right-click the desktop and select New > Folder. Highlight this folder, press F2 and name it:

GodMode.{ED7BA470-8E54-465E-825C-99712043E01C}

Hit enter. Open that folder and you’ll have instant access to a wide range of system settings.

If one God Mode isn’t enough for you, there are several other options available. Follow the same process as above, but use one of the following alternative strings:

Default Programs.{17cd9488-1228-4b2f-88ce-4298e93e0966}

My Computer.{20D04FE0-3AEA-1069-A2D8-08002B30309D}

Network.{208D2C60-3AEA-1069-A2D7-08002B30309D}

All Networks For Current Connection.{1FA9085F-25A2-489B-85D4-86326EEDCD87}

Performance.{78F3955E-3B90-4184-BD14-5397C15F1EFC}

Programs and Features.{15eae92e-f17a-4431-9f28-805e482dafd4}

Location Settings.{00C6D95F-329C-409a-81D7-C46C66EA7F33}

Power Settings.{025A5937-A6BE-4686-A844-36FE4BEC8B6D}

Printers.{2227A280-3AEA-1069-A2DE-08002B30309D}

Icons And Notifications.{05d7b0f4-2121-4eff-bf6b-ed3f69b894d9}

Firewall and Security.{4026492F-2F69-46B8-B9BF-5654FC07E423}

All NET Frameworks and COM Libraries.{1D2680C9-0E2A-469d-B787-065558BC7D43}

Application Connections.{241D7C96-F8BF-4F85-B01F-E2B043341A4B}

Credentials and Logins.{1206F5F1-0569-412C-8FEC-3204630DFB70}

Photo Credit: Stocksnapper/Shutterstock
New version of RIG exploit kit sees 34 percent attack success rate

Publié: août 3, 2015, 5:59pm CEST par Ian Barker

At the beginning of this year the RIG exploit kit had its source code leaked online by an unhappy reseller. This led to a hit in its success rate as security company Trustwave published details of its workings.

Trustwave has revealed today at BlackHat that RIG's authors have been working on a new RIG 3.0 version. The company's researchers say there are now up to 1.25 million victims worldwide and more than 3.6 million attack attempts. A remarkable success rate of 34 percent.

RIG 3.0 has multiple layers making it more robust. It targets via outdated versions of Internet Explorer and browser plugins, particularly Flash. RIG attacks via three routes, infected adverts which account for over 90 percent of victims, already infected computers being re-infected (the malware enables hidden browsing on an already infected computer so it browses other exploit kits to then re-infect the machine) and by simply visiting a compromised website.

The developers have also learned from the leaking of RIG 2.0's code. "This time around they're not using resellers but hosting the kit directly in Russia and protecting the server using CloudFlare," says Arseny Levin, Lead Security Researcher at Trustwave SpiderLabs. "They've also fixed the vulnerabilities that allowed the leak back in February".

The country most hit by RIG 3.0 is Brazil with 450,529 infected victims followed by Vietnam with 302,705 infections. The US has 45,889 victims, Canada 3,913 and the UK 9,662. The software is able to deliver various payloads, each depending on the specific customer, but the top one delivered so far is the Tofsee spam bot, representing 70 percent of all infections.

To avoid falling victim to this attack, users should make sure all software -- including browser plugins -- is up to date, and uninstall any software that is actually not in use to reduce the attack surface. "It's also worth enabling click-to-play in your browser so that plug-in content from Java, Flash, Silverlight, etc isn't automatically opened when you visit a website," says Levin. Businesses should be using managed anti-malware controls, such as gateway technologies that can detect and strip out malware in real-time.

More information about RIG 3.0 is available on Trustwave SpiderLabs' blog.

Photo Credit: ra2studio/Shutterstock
The resurgence of the business landline phone

Publié: août 3, 2015, 5:30pm CEST par Ed Fox

With each new generation comes a new object, trend or fad that people point back to down the road and say "I remember the days when THAT was popular!" Baby boomers grew up with parents who told tales of walking uphill both ways to school, and Millennials heard their parents talk about waiting in line for gasoline and when penny candy actually cost one cent. For Millennials who grew up with VCRs and CD players, there’s no question they’ll be telling their future children and grandchildren of the days of rewinding tapes and scratched CDs.

One technology that has dominated the 21st century is the mobile phone. After adoption began growing at an exponential rate, it was clear that mobile phones would disrupt the telecommunications industry as it had existed for decades. It seemed that the popularity of landlines in both businesses and homes might fall into the "what used to be" category -- that is, until a recent study from Invoca found that not only is the landline far from dead, it’s thriving when it comes to business use.

"I’m not dead, yet!" -- Landline Phone

According to the research, 75 percent of consumers said a phone call was the quickest way to get a response from a company. However, many businesses still rely solely on online forms for inbound leads, narrowing down their possible conversations drastically. The numbers speak for themselves -- when consumers call a company, the average call duration is 16 times longer than a website interaction, and 75 percent of consumers say a phone call is the quickest way to get a response.

The widespread adoption of mobile devices is mirrored in consumers’ interactions with business lines, with 75 percent of calls originating on a mobile phone. Invoca predicts that as marketers increase mobile usability of digital content and websites, this will continue to increase.

A survey put out by the National Center for Health Statistics last year found that 41 percent of American homes had disconnected telephone landlines and instead used only cellular phones. While many use mobile devices for access to the Internet, the Invoca study shows clear evidence that businesses should use mobile advertising to drive call volume, not just clicks, to drive conversions. Respondents confirmed that there was only a two percent conversion rate for clicks and between a 30-50 percent conversation rate for phone calls.

The industries that benefit the most from business landlines are those that wish to take a closer look at customer demographics. Call analytics can share a deeper level of understanding of customers and their path to purchase, which in turn assists businesses when creating marketing plans to best suit customers’ needs. By emphasizing the call channel and making it easy for customers to move seamlessly from digital to voice interactions, these businesses will come out substantially ahead.

This is not the end

There’s no denying that the introduction and subsequent widespread adoption of mobile devices has drastically changed the telecommunications landscape. Marketing initiatives will continue to take mobile into consideration, and consumers will continue to access information via their mobile devices. Despite the previous assumption that this will kill the landline, we can now see that instead mobile provides additional incentive to keep the landline active, monitored and alive.

Photo credit: Kenishirotie / Shutterstock

Ed Fox is VP of Network Services at MetTel and is responsible for the planning, deployment, and operations of MetTel's broadband, data, and VoIP network infrastructure. He has over 20 years of telecommunications and network experience managing massive organizational and customer growth at major telecommunications providers.
Choosing the right software for your startup [Infographic]

Publié: août 3, 2015, 5:30pm CEST par Sam Pudwell

So, you’ve perfected the business plan, moved into a brand new office and hired your first employees to get things started.

But, there’s one area of your startup that you probably haven’t thought about as much: the software. The efficiency and effectiveness of your startup will be impacted depending on the software you choose, so getting it right is vital.

To help any new startups out there, QuickBooks has created an infographic highlighting some of the key things to think about.

Like with email, for example. Do you go for a web client which can be accessed by any device and stores all data in the cloud, or a desktop client which requires local storage and allows better offline access?

Settling on an email solution is an important decision for any company -- as much as 13 hours of the average work week is taken up by email management according to software firm Contatta -- but its not the only one. There’s also Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software, accounting software and security software which all needs to be chosen to best suit the needs of the startup.

Check out the full infographic below for a run-through of the key software areas that any startup needs to consider and the important questions that should be asked along the way.

Published under license from ITProPortal.com, a Net Communities Ltd Publication. All rights reserved.

Photo Credit: Eugenio Marongiu/Shutterstock
Nokia sells HERE to Audi, BMW and Daimler for €2.8 billion

Publié: août 3, 2015, 3:57pm CEST par Mihaita Bamburic

It's finally official. Nokia today announced the sale of its HERE division to German car makers Audi, BMW and Daimler. The mapping and location services business is probably best known for powering products offered by major tech companies like Baidu, Facebook and Microsoft.

Audi, BMW and Daimler have agreed to pay €2.8 billion ($3.07 billion at the time of writing this article) to gain ownership of HERE, with Nokia expecting to receive "slightly above €2.5 billion", after factoring in "certain defined liabilities" coming in at just under €300 million. Not too shabby, but well below the rumored asking price of $4 billion.

Nokia revealed that it was considering the sale of HERE back in mid-April, when it announced the purchase of Alcatel-Lucent for €15.6 billion ($16.6 billion). Since then, multiple companies have lined up to purchase the business, among which Alibaba, Baidu, Facebook and Uber were the most noteworthy bidders.

"With this step we complete the latest stage of Nokia's transformation", says Nokia CEO Rajeev Suri. "We integrated the former Nokia Siemens Networks, divested our Devices & Services business, and have now reached agreement on a transaction for HERE that we believe is the best path forward for our shareholders, as well as the customers and employees of HERE. Going forward, we will focus on our planned combination with Alcatel-Lucent. Once that is complete, Nokia will be a renewed company, with a world-leading network technology and services business, as well as the licensing and innovation engine of Nokia Technologies".

Once Audi, BMW and Daimler take ownership of HERE, the trio will continue to offer the business' services to existing customers. Of course, the immediate reason why they are snapping up HERE is to minimize the licensing costs associated with using maps and location services in the cars they manufacture.

"HERE will be able to offer users a continuously improving product, bringing highly automated driving and location based services a step further. As the volume of anonymized data from the vehicles increases, services will become more convenient, more connected and further tailored to the users’ individual requirements", says the trio.

The purchase of HERE will also allow Audi, BMW and Daimler to more easily customize HERE to fit their future needs, and, perhaps, control which of their rivals gain access to HERE maps and location services. We also have to consider the companies that surround the trio, which are not few.

Audi is part of the Volkswagen group, which also includes Bentley, Bugatti, Ducati, Lamborghini, MAN, Porsche, Scania, SEAT, and Skoda. BMW owns Mini and Rolls Royce, while Daimler includes Bharat-Benz, Freightliner, Fuso, Maybach, Mercedes-Benz, Setra, Smart, Thomas Built, and Western Star. So we are talking about many car brands which will be benefitting from this acquisition.

Audi, BMW and Daimler say that each player will control an equal stake in HERE, with none interested in seeking "to acquire a majority interest". They are adamant that HERE will remain independent.
Windows 10 will be a great operating system -- when it's finished

Publié: août 3, 2015, 2:19pm CEST par Wayne Williams

It could be said, with Windows now a service, Windows 10 will never truly be finished, but the truth is the version of the new operating system that’s out now is a long way from being polished enough for prime time. It’s like an Insider Preview build that’s been released entirely in error.

In an effort to wash away the stench of Windows 8, Microsoft has chosen to rush release Windows 10, and the result is an operating system that is clearly still very much a work in progress. The new OS isn’t anywhere near as half-baked as Windows 8 was when that launched, but there are still far too many issues to be ignored. Put bluntly, it's a bit of a mess in places.

It’s Schizophrenic

One of the things that really bugs me about Windows 10 is the duplication. There’s Settings and Control Panel, both offering two ways to do similar, or identical things, but wrapped up in entirely different interfaces. How do you know which you need? Good question. Want to change your screen resolution? Windows will push you to use the new UI, but the old Change the appearance of your displays version still exists.

Microsoft should have chosen one method for changing settings and customizing the OS and stuck with it, wiping out all traces of the other.

One annoyance I’ve encountered is that certain legacy buttons don’t work. Clicking on Set Associations in Internet Explorer doesn’t let you set the file types that the browser opens by default -- as you might reasonably expect -- but instead displays a message stating "To change your default apps, go to Settings > System > Default apps". Clicking OK doesn’t take you there, just closes the message. Thanks for your help Microsoft, let me go grab a pen.

And having two browsers is stupid too. Just include one browser that works. Edge will be quite good when it’s finished, I suspect. But it is clearly more of a proof of concept than a fully formed browser at the moment, lacking support for extensions and so on.

Want to uninstall a program? Well, if it’s an app, you can do it through Settings > Apps & Features. If it’s a legacy app (program, dammit!), then you may be able to uninstall it that way, but I’ve found many applications don’t show up there. Go to the old Programs and Features interface, and every program you can uninstall is listed there. Except apps. They don’t appear in that list at all.

There are small, but fundamental design inconsistencies throughout, including (but not limited to) old icons cropping up next to new ones and at least four entirely different styles of context menu.

These aren’t problems unique to Windows 10 of course. Windows 8.x had the same issues. Microsoft just hasn’t bothered to fix them. But with Windows as a service, maybe it will get around to it. One day.

It’s Buggy

Since the upgrade I have a problem on my PC with graphics going missing in browsers, and Firefox seems to hate Windows 10. It just crashes without warning. My graphics drivers are fully up to date, as are my browsers. Maybe I need to uninstall and reinstall everything, or do a clean Windows 10 install.

But clearly I’m not the only person experiencing issues with the new OS. We’ve posted loads of guides and stories on BetaNews covering how to do things with Windows 10, but what do you think the most popular article on the site currently is? Overcoming sound problems. It’s such an in-demand article, we’ve covered the issue twice.

A brand new OS is always going to be buggy -- there are so many different types of hardware, so many configurations, that it’s to be expected -- but I feel Microsoft should have taken a little longer to iron out potential issues before declaring Windows 10 done.

Final Thoughts

Microsoft passed quality assurance over to millions of Windows Insiders but yet quality is far from assured in Windows 10. There’s lots to like about the new OS, and lots to dislike too. As my headline says, I think Windows 10 will be great, when it’s "finished". I just have no idea when that might be.

Have you encountered problems with Windows 10? Share your experiences and frustrations in the comments below.

Photo Credit: Haryadi CH/Shutterstock
ISPs in India told to block access to 857 porn sites

Publié: août 3, 2015, 2:08pm CEST par Mark Wilson

Porn is big business online, but it's also at the center of many a debate surrounding decency, child protection, and censorship. The Indian government has ordered that ISPs in the country block access to more than 800 porn sites in a bid to stop children viewing unsuitable material.

Interestingly, while access to porn is being restricted, it is not being blocked outright. The aim is not to stop adults from viewing pornography but to "protect India's cultural fabric" in addition to protecting children.

Adults with a penchant for porn will still be able to get their fix by turning to VPN tools and services. The government is looking for alternative ways to prevent children from accessing online pornography, and it is believed that the current measures are just a stop-gap until a long term policy is written up.

The Hindustan Times quotes a source at the Indian communications ministry who said:

Certain websites have been reviewed and found to be spreading anti-social activities as hyperlinks from these websites, some of them were pornographic, so we have sent letters to internet service providers to block them. The action has been taken in reference to section 79 of IT Act.

Unsurprisingly, the ban has led to a huge number of complaints. ISPs around the country took action to respond to letters from Department of Telecommunications about implementing blocks, and pornophiles took to Twitter using the #PornBan hashtag to express disappointment at what many regard as censorship and an infringement on rights.

Photo credit: Pavel Ignatov / Shutterstock
.NET check and repair tools now support Windows 10

Publié: août 3, 2015, 1:55pm CEST par Mike Williams

Aaron Stebner’s .NET Framework Setup Verification Utility and .NET Framework Cleanup Tool have been updated to support .NET 4.6 and Windows 10.

The programs still support every release of .NET from 1.0 upwards, and although they’re mostly targeted at expert users, there’s something here for everyone.

Not sure which versions of .NET are installed on a system, maybe? Download, unzip and run the Setup Verification Utility. The "Product to verify" list contains every .NET version detected on your PC.

If you think a version of .NET might be corrupted, perhaps because you’ve installed 4.6 on a PC but some applications still aren’t working, then choose .NET 4.6 in the list and click "Verify Now". The tool scans your system and should return a succeeded/ failed verdict in seconds.

If verification fails, and you’re an expert Windows user, click View Log. The Setup Verification Utility records everything it does -- the files it checks, the Registry keys -- and that might give you clues to the cause of any problems.

If you know for sure that a .NET version is corrupted, and repairs and reinstallations have failed, then the Cleanup Tool should properly remove it for you. But as the author says, this is absolutely a last resort, which will probably break various applications on your PC, and you’ll have to repair and/ or reinstall every other .NET installation on your PC afterwards before it’ll work correctly.

The .NET Framework Setup Verification Utility and .NET Framework Cleanup Tool are available now for Windows XP and later.
Why killing Flash may be a huge mistake

Publié: août 3, 2015, 1:29pm CEST par Sead Fadilpašić

Flash might be a buggy program with multiple holes in its system. Flash might also be extremely vulnerable and a potential risk to millions of users out there.

But Flash should not be discarded, believes Cisco security veteran John Stewart, saying it might in fact be the lesser of two evils.

Facebook’s CSO Alex Stamos has called for the death of Flash, and Mozilla was one of the companies to follow that trend, labelling Flash a threat, and later dumping it from its Firefox browser.

TrendMicro also labelled Flash a threat. However, Stewart believes Flash should not be discarded easily as whatever replaces it might be worse.

"I have a lot of sympathy for the (Adobe) teams. They need to weather the storm", Stewart told The Register in a media call on Friday. "Adobe is zeroing in on ensuring security testing happens across their portfolio in a big way".

"If anyone thinks something is better than Flash then they need to consider what that alternative is against doubling-down security efforts on what we already have", added Stewart

The number of malware attacks through Flash rose 317 percent in the first quarter of 2015.

The McAfee Labs Threats Report May 2015 paper (PDF) says that the number of recorded Flash malware instances was almost 200,000 in Q1 2015, compared with 47,000 in Q4 2014.

Flash has been drawing a lot of attention to itself with the frequent attacks on unsuspecting browsers done through the platform.

For example, back in February this year, one of the most popular websites in the United States, Forbes, was used for a similar attack.

Published under license from ITProPortal.com, a Net Communities Ltd Publication. All rights reserved.

Photo Credit: bahri altay/Shutterstock
MODECOM FreePC is so small it can fit in your pocket [Review]

Publié: août 3, 2015, 12:42pm CEST par Ian Barker

A portable PC used to mean something the size of a suitcase, then it became a laptop or notebook. Now with the FreePC you get one that you can slip into your pocket with no need for specialist tailoring.

You’ll need to have an HDMI screen, keyboard and mouse available to be able to use it, but if you know they’re going to be available at your destination why take anything bigger?

The FreePC is about four times the size of a USB memory stick, but it manages to pack in a lot of technology. There’s a 1.83GHz quad-core Intel Atom CPU, 2GB of RAM and 16GB of storage, it comes with Windows 8.1 pre-installed. You can extend the storage with a microSDHC card. It also has Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, a USB 2.0 port and a micro USB port with OTG, and it’s capable of driving a full HD, 1080p screen.

In the box you get a short HDMI extension cable, a power adaptor and a microUSB to USB adaptor. There’s a multi-language quick start guide which only devotes four pages to each, so doesn’t tell you a lot. You’ll search in vain for more documentation on the maker’s website, so if you need to access the BIOS or perform a system refresh you’re left to figure it out for yourself or contact support.

Performance

Being Windows 8.1 and having solid state storage the FreePC boots fast and is ready to use within 30 seconds or so of you pressing the power button. Performance for surfing the web is perfectly fine, but try to do other things and you do notice the lack of storage.

It comes with a trial of Office 365 pre-installed, so out of the box you’re left with just 3.7GB of free space. This means that file operations like copying documents and unpacking zip files can seem painfully slow so you will want to budget for an SD card. You can of course use OneDrive -- which comes installed -- or your choice of cloud storage to store your files and documents.

You aren’t really going to be using this in the same way you would a desktop or laptop so file performance isn’t the whole picture. For the sort of things it will be used for it works well. The FreePC is quite at home playing videos from YouTube, iPlayer or the like so you can use it to turn your television into a smart TV.

For business use the FreePC is ideal for presentations as you can simply hook it up to a big screen or even a projector with minimal hassle.

Should You Buy One?

This isn’t a machine you’d choose to play the latest games or crunch massive spreadsheets, but for making presentations, or to turn a TV into a smart media centre, it’s a lot better than you might expect from something so tiny.

Of course for multimedia use there are cheaper, Android powered, options. Worth noting too that you can buy a full size desktop PC -- less portable but more powerful -- for around the same money. That leaves the FreePC appealing to a particular type of business user who needs to access cloud apps or make presentations on the go with the comfort of a familiar Windows environment.

The FreePC costs £159.99 on Amazon and you can find more information on the MODECOM website.

Published under license from ITProPortal.com, a Net Communities Ltd Publication. All rights reserved.
Why millennials want self-service solutions [Q&A]

Publié: août 3, 2015, 11:05am CEST par Ian Barker

The millennial generation has grown up with the internet, so naturally they demand more from their business systems and online service providers. Product managers need to recognize this dynamic and ensure that their SaaS products deliver.

We spoke to William Colleran, CEO of online contextual help provider AnswerDash to explore this wake-up call for businesses.

BN: What impact is the millennial generation having on service delivery?

WC: Millennials are influencing service delivery more than any generation, especially by expecting and demanding efficient, reliable and intuitive technologies. At over 75 million strong according to Pew Research, millennials are now the largest demographic cohort, and with immigration expanding this group more than any other, that population is projected to peak in 2036 at over 80 million. Because of these huge numbers, the preferences of millennials strongly influence the user experience that technology companies are designing into their products and services, impacting everything from tablets to smartphones and from SaaS apps to mobile apps. This emphasis on enhanced user experiences requires not just intuitive, easy-to-use interfaces but also systems that respond rapidly to create interactive, real-time experiences. Millennials want information at their fingertips, they want it easy to consume, and they want it now.

BN: Are businesses going to lose out if they don't embrace this trend?

WC: To put it simply, yes. Being steeped in technology, millennials are self-reliant with no patience for poor customer service, and businesses must cater to this generation to stay relevant and trusted. Industry research indicates that by 2017, the millennial generation will comprise the largest online audience and will have more buying power than any prior generation, including baby boomers. Given millennials' massive market impact, businesses must appeal to their values, lifestyle and preferences.

BN: How can virtual service agents and alternatives enhance the customer experience?

WC: We see self-service options, such as that offered by AnswerDash, as improvements over the experience that virtual agents provide. A "virtual service agent" is a software program that imitates live chat but without the "live" part -- meaning, there’s no human in the communication loop. Instead, the software program provides responses to textual inquiries by mining information in a knowledgebase. We advocate a more direct interaction, where users point and click on questions and answers that are selected from the knowledgebase because they are highly relevant based on the history of prior users in similar contexts. We have found this approach to be more effective and less burdensome on users than the mock-dialogue (typing large amounts of text back and forth) required by a virtual agent. AnswerDash's approach is more familiar to users, since people are accustomed to tapping on content via their smartphones and tablets. Tapping an image or text takes less effort than typing and is more intuitive, making it easy for users to find answers they are looking for.

BN: Can we expect to see enterprise systems adopting a similar self-service approach in future?

WC: Absolutely. In fact, we all see rapid adoption of self-service kiosks in airport terminals, grocery stores, banks, movie theaters and many other venues. Online businesses are starting to see the same value in adopting self-service on their websites. Self-service kiosks in the physical world reduce the time for customers to achieve their goals while simultaneously reducing the labor costs for business owners to service those customers. Similarly, online self-service enables users to help themselves, obviating the need for customers to engage with customer service agents. This approach saves businesses time and money while enhancing customer satisfaction.

BN: Isn't there a risk that adopting a 'millennial approach' will alienate older users?

WC: Adopting a millennial approach with self-service solutions doesn't mean abandoning other options, such as email, FAQ, phone or live-chat, that appeal to older generations. Rather, adopting millennial-friendly, self-service technologies represents an evolved approach to customer care, providing a faster, more efficient option for customers who grew up with technology. Businesses that provide a variety of customer care options, allow customers to make their own decisions on what level of attention is best.

Image Credit: Zurijeta / Shutterstock
Paint.NET gains custom shapes

Publié: août 3, 2015, 11:04am CEST par Mike Williams

Popular freeware image editor Paint.NET has hit version 4.06 with new support for installing custom shapes.

As well as the arrows, callouts, and other basic shapes, you can now equip the program with 3D objects, vehicles, company logos or anything else you can find, then scale, rotate or fill them in the usual way.

There’s no GUI for adding these, but it’s not difficult: just find your shapes in XAML format and copy them to the Paint.NET Shapes folder. BoltBait has the instructions you need, and a pack of custom shapes to get you started.

Elsewhere, the program now supports brush sizes of up to 2000, while internal optimizations mean that kind of large brush size should now use less RAM.

Plugin developers get more features, including the ability to access the current palette, there are a scattering of bug fixes, and the package now works better with Windows 10.

Paint.NET 4.06 is a freeware drawing and image editing tool for Windows 7 and later.