Gregarius » BetaNews.Com » août 18, 2015

BetaNews.Com (23 non lus)

Here we go again! Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 10525 arrives on the Fast ring

Publié: août 18, 2015, 8:31pm CEST par Wayne Williams

Happy PC

Windows 10 has officially launched and is available to all, but that doesn't mean the end of the Insider Preview program. Far from it. Sure, there haven't been any major updates since the OS arrived at the tail end of last month, but that's only because the primary focus has been on fixing issues and improving performance on the mainstream version. If you're a Windows Insider on the Fast ring it's time to get excited once more, as Microsoft has just rolled out a brand new build.

Build 10525 offers a couple of changes, but the biggest addition by far is the introduction of updated color options. If you want to change the default color for Start, Action Center, Taskbar, and Title bars, you can now do so easily. The new feature is potentially buggy, and disabled by default, but you can toggle it on by going to Settings > Personalization > Colors.

Other changes include memory manager improvements. If you start running out of memory, Windows 10 will now compress unused pages instead of writing them to disk, reducing the amount of memory used per process, and allowing Windows to keep more applications in RAM. Handy, and obviously you’ll see performance benefits.

Fast ring releases usually have issues, and Build 10525 is no different.

Microsoft lists the following problems to be aware of:

Mobile hotspot doesn’t work in this build. When sharing the Internet from your device with mobile broadband using Mobile Hotspot, it will fail to get a valid IP address from your device and will show no Internet access.
An update to Movies & TV application from the Store will be required to fix an issue with video playback.
Optional languages packs will not be available during the initial launch of this flight, it will be available later this week.

If you were a Windows Insider before the official release, you may still be opted into the program. If you opted out and want back in, or want to join, you can do so by going to Settings > Windows Update and clicking on Advanced Options. Click the 'Get started' button under 'Get Insider builds'.

Click Next to acknowledge the risks, and then click Confirm. You’ll need to restart your PC before you can begin to get Insider builds.

Color-Option Build 10525

Photo Credit: Syda Productions/Shutterstock

Want to upgrade to a solid state drive? SanDisk SSD Concierge Service can help

Publié: août 18, 2015, 7:33pm CEST par Brian Fagioli

71EEemrsbuL._SL1500_

Whether you have a laptop or desktop, switching to a solid state drive from a hard disk drive can be one of the best performance upgrades you can make. Your operating system should boot faster, and applications may open faster as well. Laptop users may experience improved battery life too.

Unfortunately, for many consumers, opening their computer for an upgrade can be a scary ordeal. If you have never done such a thing before, this is totally understandable. Luckily, SanDisk is aiming to make this easier for you. Today, the company announces its SSD Concierge Service, making an SSD upgrade far less scary.

"Many customers understand the benefits an SSD can bring to an aging laptop but they also feel anxious about performing an upgrade by themselves. The SanDisk SSD Concierge Service’s step-by-step live support will give consumers the confidence to install an SSD and enjoy the benefits of speed, performance and reliability", said Philippe Williams, director of product marketing, SanDisk.

Williams explains, "once data has been successfully migrated, consumers will have the ability to schedule a video conference via mobile device with a SanDisk technician, who will walk them through the final steps of removing the existing storage device and installing their new SSD. The SanDisk SSD Concierge Service will support all SanDisk consumer SSDs".

The company shares the contents of the box.

Quick Start Guide
USB to SATA data cable
Magnetic screwdriver
Access to cloning software
Appointment scheduler and contact info for your expert

71-iJbbrubL._SL1500_

Of course, the question becomes, how do you access the video assistance if your computer is off and disassembled? SanDisk offers smartphone video conferencing powered by Cisco WebEx. This is pretty cool.

Best of all, the consumer learns a lesson in the process. Rather than dropping their computer off at a shop and having it done for them, they can install the SSD themselves -- with guidance. In other words, they may learn to fish rather than having some Best Buy Geek Squad punk give them a fish.

So, how much does the service cost? A pretty reasonable $39.99. You can buy the SanDisk SSD Concierge Service kit from Amazon or Tigerdirect.

Only a quarter of businesses feel confident about stopping data breaches

Publié: août 18, 2015, 7:29pm CEST par Sead Fadilpašić

hand stop

Only a quarter of U.K. businesses believe their organization could detect a data breach at any time, a survey by software provider Informatica has shown.

The survey further shows that 33 percent say their organization is very good to excellent at detecting and containing breaches.

Meanwhile, nearly half (49 percent) of respondents admit to having experienced a breach in the past 12 months and believe it could have been avoided if certain processes and intelligent technologies had been in place.

Fifty-six percent of responding businesses say securing and protecting data is a high priority for them. In total, 59 percent say that they worry about mistakes from a temporary worker or contractor, up from 53 percent in 2014. Additionally, 52 percent fear third party or outsourcers’ management of data.

An overwhelming majority (61 percent) of businesses listed customer data as the information most at risk, followed by business intelligence (32 percent) and the data contained within emails or attachments (29 percent).

According to the survey, top data security solutions in place today include data classification, monitoring and discovery tools, with respondents believing that compliance and security could be improved through intelligent solutions, such as automated user access history with real-time monitoring (74 percent), policy workflow automation (74 percent) and automated data discovery/risk assessment (69 percent).

"As the gap between believing in data security intelligence solutions and actually possessing them diminishes, so inevitably will the risk of data breaches", said Dr. Larry Ponemon, chairman and founder, Ponemon Institute. "Given the growing business and societal costs of breaches, and the runaway proliferation of sensitive data, organizations need to seriously consider adopting a data-centric security stance without delay. To do otherwise may soon be construed as negligence".

The survey of 118 U.K. IT and IT security professionals with responsibility for data protection was completed by the Ponemon Institute as part of the annual 2015 State of Data Security Intelligence study sponsored by Informatica.

Photo Credit: AlexandreNunes/Shutterstock

Lock down Windows 10's privacy settings with O&O ShutUp10

Publié: août 18, 2015, 7:12pm CEST par Mike Williams

O&O ShutUp10

Berlin-based developer O&O Software has released O&O ShutUp10, a tiny portable tool for controlling Windows 10′s many privacy-related settings.

Amongst its near 50 tweaks are options to disable telemetry, Wi-Fi Sense, key app permissions, peer-to-peer updates, automatic Windows updates and more.

ShutUp10 can apply its "recommended" tweaks in a couple of clicks, disabling the worst offenders while leaving Windows updates, SmartScreen and other technologies you might actually need. But if you know what you’re doing, you can turn off everything, or configure items individually.

This kind of batch tweakery is always risky, but ShutUp10 does offer to create a system restore point before it does anything, handy if you need to undo your changes later.

There’s also a separate option to restore Windows 10′s default privacy settings, which might be useful if they’re generally messed up and you’d like to start again.

O&O ShutUp10 is a 109KB freeware application for Windows 10.

Google announces $200 OnHub wireless router -- but why?

Publié: août 18, 2015, 7:07pm CEST par Brian Fagioli

onhub

Wireless routers are rather ubiquitous nowadays. Many homes and businesses have them installed, making connecting to the internet a fairly mindless affair. They have even dropped in price -- a solid router can be had for under $50, while some ISPs give them to users at no charge.

With that said, why the heck would Google expect people to pay $200 for a rather basic router? Today, the search giant announces OnHub -- a run-of-the-mill TP-Link router, without external antennas, for an insanely high price. Don't get me wrong, some routers are worthy of the money, but surely not the Amazon Echo design-inspired, OnHub.

"Ugh...not again. You get home at the end of the day, and sit down to stream a new movie or upload vacation photos -- and your Wi-Fi slows to a crawl or just stops working. Instead of relaxing in front of the screen or sharing those photos with friends, you spend it unplugging and re-plugging cords, trying to decipher blinking lights, or contemplating a call to customer support", says Google.

The search giant further explains, "while we count on Wi-Fi more than ever to be entertained, productive, and stay connected, we’re streaming and sharing in new ways our old routers were never built to handle. So today, with our partner TP-LINK, we’re launching OnHub, a different kind of router for a new way to Wi-Fi. Instead of headaches and spotty connections, OnHub gives you Wi-Fi that’s fast, secure, and easy to use".

As you can see in the above video, Google seems to paint a picture where setting up a router is painfully difficult and they are constantly dropping connections. Maybe that was the case a decade ago, but quite frankly, modern routers can be configured fairly easily and offer dependable service.

Google touts the benefits of having an app that can monitor the router, but that is not new -- many router manufacturers offer such a thing. Luckily, Google is supporting both Android and iOS.

Google explains the benefits of the app by saying it "tells you how much bandwidth your devices are using, lets you run a network check, and if there's an issue with your Wi-Fi, the app offers suggestions to help. And, instead of lost passwords and sticky notes, it even reveals your password with a single tap and lets you text or email it to friends".

Why the heck does Google think the world needs this? Emailing my router password in plain text to friends? No way.

The search giant promises to roll out more 'OnHub' routers in the future, and mentions ASUS as a partner. This comes across as an attempt by Google to control router software.

The problem is -- and I'm not a conspiracy theorist -- I don't know that I want Google controlling my router software. The company already has access to my search history and email -- this sort of crosses a line. Let's not forget how disastrous Android has been from a security standpoint lately -- maybe Google should focus on that operating system instead.

If you want to buy this thing for some reason, you can pre-order now at the Google Store, Amazon, and Walmart.com.

Will you buy this router? Tell me in the comments.

New AudioEffect vulnerability affects every version of Android back to 2.3

Publié: août 18, 2015, 6:30pm CEST par Mark Wilson

sick_android

Stagefright was one of the biggest and most worrying security vulnerabilities to be discovered in Android for quite some time. Affecting the mediaserver component, Stagefright allowed for the remote bricking of devices with nothing more than a message. Now a new, yet-to-be-named vulnerability has been discovered in the same component, specifically the AudioEffect element.

Known as CVE-2015-3842, the vulnerability allows a hacker to run their own code on a phone using whatever permission they want. Security researchers at TrendMicro discovered the vulnerability and explain that it can be implemented by simply tricking users into installing a specially-designed app that has no permission requirements and is therefore unlikely to raise suspicions.

One of the positive side effects of Stagefright was that it forced manufacturers to agree to monthly security updates. Despite this, and the fact that Google has issued a patch, millions of handset remain vulnerable not only to Stagefright, but also to the more recent AudioEffect exploit. A patch might well be available, but it could take months to make its way to users, and huge numbers of handsets are simply no longer supported.

It's not all doom and gloom, however. TrendMicro brings the news that there are not currently known to be any active attacks that exploit this vulnerability -- but this could change. Google may have published details of a fix, but the length of time it takes for carriers to push out updates, coupled with the spread of information about the exploit, means that many people are likely to fall victim before the problem is properly contained.

Writing about the vulnerability on the TrendMicro blog, mobile threat response engineer Wish Wu says:

This attack can be fully controlled, which means a malicious app can decide when to start the attack and also when to stop. An attacker would be able to run their code with the same permissions that mediaserver already has as part of its normal routines. Since the mediaserver component deals with a lot of media-related tasks including taking pictures, reading MP4 files, and recording videos, the privacy of the victim may be at risk. Devices with customized versions of Android but with no modification made to the mediaserver component are also affected.

The advice at the moment is to use the Trend Micro Mobile Security (TMMS) to detect any malicious apps that might be installed and then remove them through safe mode.

Photo credit: Ladislav Krajca / Shutterstock

Uber wants to keep your data safe, so it's quadrupling its security staff

Publié: août 18, 2015, 6:24pm CEST par David Curry

uber_logo_black

Uber intends to quadruple its security staff by the end of 2015, from 25 to 100 full-time staff members. This investment comes a few months after hiring ex-Facebook chief security officer Joe Sullivan to work as security chief for the mobile cab firm.

The security staff will make back-end data even more secure, while also protecting customers and drivers on the road. Uber is also working on security for staff in volatile countries like China, India and France.

Even though Uber isn’t the only company attempting cab rides over mobile, it has come under enormous amounts of pressure from governments and regular cab drivers. It was forced out of South Korea for "illegal transportation" and had to shut down UberPOP in France after protests spiraled out of control.

"Every company is a data company now, no one can be unsophisticated", said Joe Sullivan in an interview with the Financial Times. "The challenge is half the company needs access to customer data some of the time -- it is not just customer support, it is marking, engineering as they iterate, communications when they need to figure out what happened in an incident".

Uber beefed up protection for customers inside cabs a few months back, after two rape allegations in India. Customers are now able to press a button that alerts security teams inside Uber and the police, a feature that is coming to other countries in the near future.

It is a start for the cab firm when it comes to security. Uber is still being hit hard by multiple lawsuits from ex-drivers and unions, wanting to see worker’s rights established for cab drivers. These rights would include paid leave and minimum wage.

The most dangerous places to use your mobile on vacation

Publié: août 18, 2015, 5:39pm CEST par Ian Barker

Times Square tourists

We all know that using public wireless hotspots can be risky, but is seems that some places are more of a threat than others.

Mobile threat defense company Skycure has put together a study into the most dangerous tourist destinations to use your mobile device, the type of threats you might encounter, and offers some tips on how to avoid falling victim to an attack.

Large city locations dominate the list but Disney theme parks, places where you might expect to feel pretty safe, also feature -- insert your own Mickey Mouse security joke here.

The safest attraction is India's Taj Mahal, though the good karma there is largely down to limited connectivity and a ban on using mobile phones within the monument. The safest destination in the US is the Great Smoky Mountains national park in Tennessee, again largely because it's hard to get a signal.

The research also finds that Android devices encounter network related threats almost twice as often as iOS devices. Even though iOS devices connect on average to more Wi-Fi networks, Android devices manage to connect to more threatening ones.

"Unfortunately for mobile tourists, the most magical places on earth can sometimes be the most dangerous," says Adi Sharabani, CEO of Skycure. "When you’re in a high-traffic area like these famous destinations, you're a target for hackers. Unlike your computer, your phone is always on, even when you're taking in the sights. Mobile tourists are a lucrative target for cyber criminals".

The most frequent threat comes from SSL decryption attacks, which allow cyber criminals to capture personal and work information like logins, passwords and corporate credentials even when the user thinks they're secure. The research also revealed cases of SSL stripping, which downgrades secure URLs (https) to non-secure URLs (http). Like SSL decryption attacks, this allows hackers to gain access to private information and communication while the user thinks they're safe.

To protect yourself, Skycure suggests avoiding networks with 'Free' in their name, eight percent of the total reported threats originated from these. You should also read the warnings on your device and don’t continue if you’re not comfortable with the exposure. You should also ensure you have the latest updates on your device and use a mobile security app. If your phone begins to behave oddly you should disconnect immediately.

You can see the list of the riskiest and safest destinations in the infographic below. You can also check for threats in your area using Skycure's interactive map.

Skycure_MapInfographic-v15

Photo Credit: William Perugini / Shutterstock

As of yesterday, Windows 10 has been installed on 67 million devices

Publié: août 18, 2015, 5:31pm CEST par Wayne Williams

Graph

I’ve read some interesting guestimates on the number of Windows 10 downloads lately. One blog plucks a figure out of the air -- "50 million sound fair to you?" -- another blog inflates the number -- "Let’s go with 53 million!" -- and then a whole bunch of other blogs and sites that should know better run with these numbers as if they are real.

The only way we’ll actually know how many Windows 10 downloads there have been to date is if Microsoft releases numbers (and even then, they probably need to be taken with a slight pinch of salt), but we can get a rough, and reasonably accurate idea of Windows 10’s usage share and, from there, the number of downloads to date.

The likes of NetMarketShare and StatCounter monitor millions of websites and look at which operating systems and browsers visitors to those sites use. From there they can work out the usage share. It’s not exact -- there can be variations for all sorts of reasons -- so figures are released at the end of the month, providing an average, and painting a picture of the general increasing and decreasing of popularity.

At the start of September we’ll have a good idea of how well Windows 10 is doing. The new OS was released at the end of July, but on a staggered roll out. When the next set of figures from NetMarketShare/StatCounter arrive, it will show the first full month of Windows 10, and that will give us a proper idea of how well, or otherwise, the new OS is doing.

But while we’re waiting for that we can get an indication of how things are progressing because StatCounter provides daily figures. This allows us to follow Windows 10’s share from pre-launch until now (well, yesterday). And also filter the share by country.

Looking at the numbers, when Windows 10 launched on July 29, the new OS had 0.53 percent of the global market. By yesterday, that had risen to 5.84 percent. Not bad.

In the US alone, share went from 0.5 percent to 6.8 percent. In Europe it stands at an even more impressive 7.8 percent.

If we want to guess at download numbers, we can. Microsoft announced on the 30 July that Windows 10 had been downloaded onto 14 million devices. StatCounter says that on that date, Windows 10’s usage share was 1.22 percent. With a simple bit of math, we can work out that the share increase -- 1.22 percent then, to 5.84 percent now -- means globally, Windows 10 is running on 67 million devices.

(The same math says Windows 8.x is on 195 million devices, globally).

Of course the figures aren’t exact -- share yesterday (and on the 30 July) could have been significantly higher or lower than share on a day either side -- and the 14 million that Microsoft announced could have been rounded up, rounded down, and so on. Other operating systems could have gained or lost share, causing Windows 10's share to alter. Also, while downloads and installs are pretty much the same thing in the case of Windows 10 there's nothing to say that those 14 million downloads were in use on 30 July, and it's usage share that StatCounter measures.

But even so this does still provide a rough idea of the state of play, and shows Windows 10 is progressing steadily.

So is Windows 10 really on 67 million devices? Maybe, maybe not. But right now that’s as good a guess (probably better) as any others you’ll find on the web.

Photo Credit: Sergey Nivens/Shutterstock

Protect your digital images with Easy Watermark Studio Lite

Publié: août 18, 2015, 4:37pm CEST par Mike Williams

Easy Watermark Studio Lite

Easy Watermark Studio Lite is a well-designed Windows application for applying text and image watermarks to your digital pictures.

Point the program at your source images and it’s ready to go. Well, probably -- the Lite version only imports JPGs, BMPs and TIFFs, and it’ll process a maximum of 30 images in one batch -- but if the restrictions aren’t an issue then it works very well.

Configurability is a strong point. You’re not just adding a plain text caption to your image: there are options to set the font, size, alignment, color, position, rotation, opacity and more.

These individual settings often have real depth of their own. If a single text color isn’t enough, you can use a gradient fill, for example, with your choice of direction. And the Drop Shadow tool gives you settings for position, distance, color, glow, opacity and size, amongst others.

Easy Watermark Studio Lite also supports image watermarks, with most of the same options: position, size, rotation, opacity and so on.

The program adds your watermarks using layers. The full version supports as many as you need, but even the Lite edition gives you two, which means you’re able to add two image watermarks, two text, or one of each, all customized to suit your needs.

The "Output Settings" pane allows you to configure your export format (must be JPG, BMP or TIFF in the Lite build) and a custom output file mask. There’s also a built-in batch file resizer, which was a surprise.

It can take a while to set all this up, but fortunately you only have to do it once. Your settings may then be saved in separate Profiles for easy recall later, and all you have to do is point the program at your target images and click "Start".

Easy Watermark Studio Lite’s restricted file format support and 30 image limit might be a hassle for some, and the program is also strictly for personal use only. Its extreme configurability and ease of use make it worth a try, though, and if you need more, the full edition lifts these limits, adds a host of extras, and is reasonably priced from $24.99 for a lifetime license.

Google expands Android One into Africa

Publié: août 18, 2015, 4:11pm CEST par Mihaita Bamburic

Infinix HOT 2

Android One is slowly but surely making its way to major emerging markets across the globe. The latest expansion sees the program being introduced today in Africa. For the moment there is only one Android One smartphone available to local consumers, which retails for roughly $87.

There is huge growth potential for Google and Android One in Africa, as Internet use remains relatively low on the continent. A study by Internet Society estimates that, by the end of 2015, 23 percent of mobile phones will be able to have Internet access, a figure which is extremely low when compared to Asia, Europe or North America. So it is very important for Google to get Android One right in Africa.

Google is launching Android One in Africa, but it is not bringing the program to all local markets. At the moment, it is only targeting Egypt, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Morocco, and Nigeria -- bringing the tally of countries where Android One is available to 16, up from the previous 10 -- through HOT 2, a smartphone made by Infinix. The device is available through online retailer Jumia in all aforementioned markets, and, in Nigeria, also through local retailers.

To better cater to local consumers' needs, Google also says that it will introduce offline support to YouTube in the six African markets later this year. This feature is designed to allow users to download videos when connected to a Wi-Fi or cellular network and watch them later in an area with poor coverage, a situation that is no doubt common on the continent. Not all YouTube content is, however, available for offline viewing, and there is a 48 hour limitation on how long offline content is available to watch.

As far as HOT 2 is concerned, we are looking at a pretty well-equipped smartphone for the money. Its main features include dual SIM support, which is popular with consumers in emerging markets, front and rear cameras, FM radio, 16 GB of internal storage, microSD card slot, and 1 GB of RAM for the base version -- a "premium" version doubles that capacity, giving users 2 GB of RAM to play with.

As is typical of new Android One releases, HOT 2 runs the latest version of Android, Android 5.1 Lollipop. It will, of course, receive a software upgrade to Android Marshmallow, which is expected to be released in the coming months.

Is this the new Google Nexus 5?

Publié: août 18, 2015, 4:11pm CEST par Sead Fadilpašić

2015 Google Nexus 5 leak

It looks like the first photo of the next Google Nexus phone leaked online, and it shows some interesting details.

According to the Irish Examiner, which says the photo was "posted online", the Nexus 5 phone is on course for a refresh.

The back of the alleged Nexus 5 phone was photographed, and it has a couple of interesting features. First, it’s white in color and has a protruding camera sensor. We can also see a circular fingerprint scanner, as well as a large "not for sale" sticker.

The back also features a large Nexus logo, as well as a sticker with the LG logo.

According to the Irish Examiner, this photo features some of the elements that were showcased in recent renders. "These renders were apparently based on detailed factory schematics sent out to third-party accessory makers", it says in the report.

Rumors indicate that the device will be available in 5.2-inch and 5.7-inch variants. The smaller will be made by LG, while Huawei will handle the larger model.

According to a report by Engadget, the device could be somewhat cheaper because of its plastic casing.

"It could mean that Google will take the Nexus back to its lower priced roots -- LG’s original Nexus 5 was $349 (£223), while the Motorola Nexus 6 was $649 (£415)", it says.

Previous rumors have been saying that Google was actually collaborating with both Huawei and LG for their upcoming Nexus phone, but it seems as it is only LG who will be making the new device.

Apparently this is the new Nexus. Looks fine from this angle. Give us more, Mr Blurricam! pic.twitter.com/qmmvDDCZyY

— Marques Brownlee (@MKBHD) August 17, 2015

Wombat Security helps employees report phishing attacks

Publié: août 18, 2015, 4:03pm CEST par Ian Barker

Phishing magnified

Phishing is a popular route for cyber criminals to gain a foothold in organizations as the weakest link in security is usually the person sitting at the keyboard.

To help combat this Wombat Security is adding a new PhishAlarm to its security awareness and training platform. PhishAlarm is a plug-in for Microsoft Outlook that enables end users to report suspected phishing emails to security and incident response teams with a single mouse click.

The software reinforces the right actions that are key to achieving long term behavior change and protecting organizations from attack. It simplifies the reporting process and therefore shortens the time it takes information security analysts to recognize and respond to phishing attacks. PhishAlarm also provides positive behavior reinforcement by immediately thanking end users (via a pop-up message or email) for reporting suspected phishing emails and encouraging them to continue those actions in the future.

"Future versions of PhishAlarm will give security officers enhanced intelligence to quickly act on phishing attacks as they are reported," says Joe Ferrara President and CEO, Wombat Security. "We continue to keep the needs of security officers as a driving force behind our solutions. Wombat's best-of-breed security education solutions, including our anti-phishing products, are appreciated by our customers because of their effectiveness and ability to deliver results for the organization".

You can find more information on Wombat's security and phishing awareness products on the company's website.

Image Credit: Maksim Kabakou / Shutterstock

This (!) is precisely why phones without removable batteries are a terrible idea

Publié: août 18, 2015, 3:22pm CEST par Mark Wilson

When looking for a new phone, people place importance on numerous things -- different strokes for different folks, and all that. Two things that are frequent bones of contention are the absence of a microSD slot, and a battery that cannot be replaced by the user. It used to be the case that every phone out there (well, let's ignore the iPhone for now) had a battery that you could easily be replaced if needed. Or perhaps you wanted a spare battery so you could use your phone for longer.

But recently there has been a worrying move towards delivering phones that are sealed units -- if your battery gives out on you, you have no option but to send it back to the manufacturer for a replacement. This takes time and money, but the problem of batteries that can't be replaced by users runs deeper than this. Just look at the image above.

OK, OK, that's a photo of a MacBook Pro battery, but it's still relevant. I've had batteries in phones puff up in the same way, thankfully in phones that I have been able to buy replacements for -- just as with the MacBook Pro. This battery swelling is something that, usually, happens very gradually; you tend not to wake up in the morning and discover that it has doubled in size overnight. This glacial creep can make it hard to notice when it's happening, but there will eventually be warning signs.

Battery life will almost certainly be impaired. A swelling battery is not a healthy battery, and you'll almost certainly notice a substantial drop in how long the charge lasts. There will probably be other power-related issues such as random restarts and overheating. Leave things for long enough, let the battery swell too much, and you might well notice that the rear cover starts to pop off. At least this is the case with phones whose batteries you can replace yourself.

It's a different story for phones that are sold as sealed units. It's not just the iPhone, Samsung's recently announced Galaxy Note 5 and Galaxy S6 Edge+ are also culprits. Because the case is sealed, because the back is screwed on -- or maybe the body is one solid piece of material -- you can't see the battery or the physical effect it might be having on your phone... at least until it is too late. With a phone whose back can pop off, this is exactly what a swelling battery will cause to happen. There's not enough room to continue to swell, so it makes a bit more room by pushing the obstacle out of the way.

With a sealed unit this just can't happen. Sure, the rear of the phone could bulge a bit, but it is designed not to move. But that swelling battery's not going to stop growing just because the back's not shifting. Rather than pushing a cover out the way, that puffed-up power pack is going to expand into, and start crushing, anything that's nearby -- circuit board, chips, the screen. That's when your repair bills start to get a lot steeper.

This was all prompted by splashing out £46 (around $72) this weekend on a couple of replacement batteries for a pair of Samsung phones. Both handsets are slightly aging, but both fully functional aside from atrocious battery life thanks to worn out batteries. The problem was easily diagnosed -- when battery life started to drop, it was initially put down to just general aging. But when it dropped more and more, it became clear that something more serious was wrong. It was very simple and, more importantly, free to slip off the back, remove the battery and perform a table top spin test (not that this was really necessary thanks to the obvious bloating).

It would have been a very different story had the phones' backs not been removable. I would have either had to send them off to be looked at, or take them into a store for repair. Time. Money. Both valuable commodities to me. And paying someone to operate on my phone rather than just being able to buy an aftermarket replacement battery will be the more expensive option in just about every case.

Or I may just have put up with it because I couldn't do something about it myself. Left to itself, the swelling battery could have become seriously problematic, potentially exploding or leaking. Without the ability to remove the back and look at my battery, I could have been none the wiser until it was too late. That's why sealed unit phones are bad. That's why users should be able to replace their own batteries.

Photo credit: Mark Wilson

TiVo Bolt on the way, clears FCC

Publié: août 18, 2015, 2:59pm CEST par Alan Buckingham

TiVo logo 200 pix When it comes to DVRs there are many choices. Most come from cable and satellite service providers. While these have improved over time, like Dish Hopper and DirecTV Genie, they aren't perfect, although they are getting more usable.

Now TiVo is readying it's own new device. The company produces what some feel is the best DVR you can get. The latest version is called Bolt and it's just cleared the FCC.

This is apparently not a large device, as forum commenters have pegged it at 11.2 x 6.8 x 1.7, so it's quite a bit slimmer than the Roamio it will replace.

Zatz Not Funny reports that "With a max height of only 1.77″, we wonder if TiVo is sticking with full-sized hard drives for storage and can effectively disperse heat. Beyond its unusual appearance, perhaps the Bolt’s arch will assist in the thermodynamics department".

Beyond the FCC filing and speculation, we have little to go on. How many tuners? What size storage? Those are all questions that will be answered when it hits the market. What are you hoping for in the department of capability and capacity?

Private clouds for VMware customers made easy

Publié: août 18, 2015, 1:42pm CEST par Ian Barker

Private cloud

VMware vSphere is the world’s leading virtualization platform, estimated to run on more than six million physical servers in businesses. But enterprises looking to implement private clouds often turn to OpenStack and up till now this has had limited support for vSphere.

Cloud specialist Platform9 has an answer with the general availability of Platform9 Managed OpenStack for VMware vSphere environments. This is a SaaS solution that transforms an organization's existing servers into an AWS-like agile, self-service private cloud.

"Platform9's mission is to make private clouds easy to deploy and manage for the enterprise. By fully supporting VMware vSphere, we are enabling every VMware customer to instantly derive greater value and infrastructure agility from existing virtualized infrastructure," says Sirish Raghuram, Co-founder and CEO of Platform9. "Customers no longer need to choose between the world's leading private cloud platform (OpenStack) and the world's leading virtualization platform (VMware vSphere): Platform9 Managed OpenStack is 100 percent interoperable with VMware vSphere, allowing customers to integrate OpenStack and vSphere seamlessly. Developers can have self-service provisioning using OpenStack while at the same time, IT Operations manages the underlying infrastructure using vSphere".

Using a SaaS delivery model Platform9 Managed OpenStack not only makes it easy for IT to quickly deploy an OpenStack private cloud but also provides ongoing operational support by including monitoring, troubleshooting and updates for OpenStack. It fully supports VMware vSphere environments and a new VMware specific Virtual Appliance is now available to integrate the OpenStack controller services with vSphere resources.

It offers self-service automation making life easier for developers, support for OpenStack APIs, a single pain view with KVM and VMware vSphere virtualization. Docker support is in development with a beta expected later this year. Platform9 takes care of monitoring, troubleshooting and upgrading the OpenStack framework, ensuring customers have a reliable production environment.

Platform9 Managed OpenStack is available now and there's a free trial available on the Platform9 website.

Photo credit: Maksim Kabakou / Shutterstock

AMC Security 5 for Android: Review and 3-month free trial of Pro edition

Publié: août 18, 2015, 12:42pm CEST par Wayne Williams

AMC

Despite its name, AMC (Advanced Mobile Care) Security 5.0 doesn’t just keep your Android phone safe from malware and other threats. The recently updated app can also clean up junk, boost your device by killing unnecessary tasks, extend its battery life, block calls and SMS messages, and uninstall unwanted apps.

The security side of things is of course the app’s main focus and this includes an antivirus scanner, surfing guard, and anti-theft. There’s also a security guard which lets you toggle settings like Bluetooth, and GPS on or off.

The interface is very simple with a large Scan button in the center of the screen, and Booster and Security buttons below.

The hamburger button at the top left is where you’ll find all of the other options, including an App Manager, Privacy Locker, and Privacy Advisor. The Advisor displays installed apps and lets you view their permissions and uninstall any items you’re not happy with.

Running a scan from the front screen will show you how much space can be reclaimed by cleaning up junk, and you can choose which areas and apps to target. The amount of space that can be freed is shown next to each app and you can check or uncheck each one accordingly. There’s a choice of Deep and Smart scans available.

The Antivirus feature will check your device for threats, and you can choose to run either Fast or Deep scans. A Fast scan will complete in a matter of seconds, while a Deep scan will likely take a minute or two. On test it seems very thorough and spotted a couple of "risky programs" on my phone, including Towelroot, a rooting tool I use from time to time.

There are free and paid versions of the app available. Upgrading gives you access to additional features, such as the ability to run the app on three devices at the same time, scheduled scan and clean, database auto updates, real-time anti-phishing, payment guard (makes online shopping more secure), remote wipe, contacts & SMS vault. Promotional messages are also removed throughout.

If you’re not sure whether it’s worth spending money on the Pro edition there’s a 7-day free trial available, but IObit has given us a special code that will let you try out the Pro version for three months (see below).

As an all-in-one tool, AMC Security does a good job of cleaning of junk and protecting you from malware. Sure, like all such tools, it's debatable whether you actually need it or not -- using common sense is a greater form of protection -- but the breadth of features available make it well worth trying. It doesn’t hog resources and scans complete very quickly.

I'm personally a fan, and have it installed on a couple of Android devices. You can grab it from Google Play, or download the APK from here.

AMC code

To get your free 3-month trial of AMC Security Pro, tap the hamburger button at the top left and tap on Enter Code. The code you'll need is: JE60MTZXW5VPT3B5. The last activation date is 20th August at 11:59 pm UTC time, so you'll need to act quickly.

Microsoft releases free Windows 10 virtual machines

Publié: août 18, 2015, 12:16pm CEST par Mark Wilson

windows_10_finger

If you're wary about going the whole hog and installing Windows 10 as your main operating system, you might consider going down the dual boot route, or installing Windows 10 in a virtual machine. Virtualization is a neat option and Microsoft has released a trio of readymade virtual machines that let you test out Windows 10 with Microsoft Edge.

The downloads are provided with web developers in mind -- they're meant to be used to test how websites function under different versions of Microsoft's web browser and these latest releases see the dropping of the beta tag from Edge. But these downloads are not going to just be of interest to developers as they give anyone the chance to try out Windows 10 in a safe environment.

At the moment there are virtual machines available for VMware, HyperV, and VirtualBox. This has most bases covered, but Microsoft promises that in the coming weeks new formats will also be added, starting with Vagrant boxes and QEMU. Introducing the downloads on the Windows Edge Dev blog, the Microsoft Edge team says that improvements have been made to accessibility and promises that the development roadmap will be clearer moving forward.

Microsoft warns that there is a known issue with the virtual machines:

Known issues: Windows 10 virtual machines may display a message in the Settings app that reads "Connect to the Internet to activate". This is due to a bug and does not impact the activation state or functionality of the virtual machine.

The company also offers up a reminder about how long you are able to use the virtual machines:

Please note that these virtual machines expire after 90 days. We recommend setting a snapshot when you first install the virtual machine which you can roll back to later.

To download your free virtual machine, head over to the Microsoft Edge Dev site and look to the Free Tools section.

Photo credit: Anton Watman / Shutterstock

Apple has two more vulnerabilities to fix in OS X 10.10 Yosemite

Publié: août 18, 2015, 12:13pm CEST par Nabil Ansari

MacBook Pro 2015

Two zero-day vulnerabilities in Apple’s OS X, that have been discovered by an Italian teenager, could potentially be used to gain remote access to a computer.

Luca Todesco, 18, found that there are two bugs in the OS that can be used to corrupt the memory in the OS X’s kernel. Once the memory is corrupt, the attacker can then circumvent the kernel address space layout randomization (kASLR), which is a defensive technique of the OS to protect itself from giving the attacker the root shell. But once the attacker circumvents through the kASLR, they can gain a root shell.

The exploit works in 10.9.5 through to 10.10.5 versions of OS X. One good news for OS X lovers is that this exploit has been fixed in the upcoming El Capitan update. But El Capitan is currently in beta, which means that you are still most likely using a vulnerable version

This exploit was discovered just after the latest patch that Apple released last week to prevent attackers and miscreants from loading programs onto computers through remote access. The patch was for a local privilege escalation vulnerability.

Todesco said that he does security research in his spare time, which was when he found this exploit. He also said that he notified Apple a few hours before publishing the exploit on GitHub.

Photo Credit: Joe Wilcox

PeStudio gains VirusTotal URL checking

Publié: août 18, 2015, 11:06am CEST par Mike Williams

PeStudio

Popular malware investigator PeStudio has been updated to version 8.51 with extended VirusTotal support.

Drag and drop an executable onto the new build, and after checking the file with VirusTotal to see if it’s a known threat, a new Network Watchdog will update the VirusTotal score automatically.

Even better, the program now checks any hardcoded URLs with VirusTotal, too, so even brand new executables will be highlighted if they have references to a dangerous site.

Elsewhere, detection of pipes may give you a better idea of what a target file is doing, and there’s the usual assortment of maintenance tweaks and bug fixes (check ChangeLog.txt in the download to find out more).

PeStudi0 8.51 is a freeware application for Windows XP and later.

Acronis True Image Cloud 2016 gets mobile backup

Publié: août 18, 2015, 8:42am CEST par Mike Williams

acronis

Acronis has unveiled its 2016 consumer range, with Acronis True Image 2016 handling all your local backup needs, and the new Acronis True Image Cloud 2016 adding much-improved cloud tools.

Strong mobile supports means the Cloud edition can back up pictures, videos, contacts and events from iPhones, iPads, Android smartphones and tablets, and Windows tablets, and transfer them to other devices.

Desktops aren’t left out. You’re now able to free up drive space by "smart archiving" little-used files to the cloud; True Image Cloud can upload Bitlocker-encrypted partitions; and unlimited storage means you can use it just as much as you like.

With licenses for up to 5 computers and 15 desktops, this could get confusing, but fortunately you’re able to monitor all your devices from a new online dashboard.

The package also has all the local backup functionality of the previous editions. You’re able to back up files, folders, partitions or hard drives, to local or network drives, with your own backup scheme, schedule, encryption, notifications, exclude filters, pre/ post commands and more.

Better still, after being inexplicably dropped last time, True Image 2016 sees the welcome return of "Try&Decide". It’s a handy feature which allows you to take a system snapshot, then carry out some potentially risky action -- install a new program, maybe -- and optionally revert to your snapshot if there are any problems.

There have also been some interface tweaks to make the program easier to use, and Acronis says backup and recovery performance is better than ever.

Acronis True Image Cloud 2016 is priced from $99.99 for a 1 computer, 3 device license, $69.99 as an upgrade, and runs on Windows XP-10 and OS X.

If you don’t need online backup then Acronis True Image 2016 is essentially the same program, without the cloud subscription. It’s priced from $49.99 for a 1 computer license, and is also available for Windows XP-10 and OS X.

How to uninstall Windows 10 and go back to Windows 7 or 8.1

Publié: août 18, 2015, 3:23am CEST par Mark Wilson

no_thanks

As Windows 10 is free, it's hard not to be tempted into upgrading. But just because the operating system is free, it does not mean it is necessarily right for you. You may have tried Windows 10 for a few weeks and come to the conclusion that you hate it. Perhaps you yearn to move back to the comfort of Windows 7 or Windows 8.1.

If you've decided that you simply do not like Windows 10, you can downgrade with ease. Of course, this is not possible if you have performed a clean installation of Windows 10, but it's an option that's available to you if you upgraded from Windows 7 or Windows 8.1. So, are you ready to ditch Windows 10? Here's what you need to do.

Anyone who upgraded to Windows 10 is granted a 30 day cooling off period. Change your mind about Windows 10 within a month and you can roll back to your previous version of Windows with ease. If you're indecisive and change your mind again, you can always reinstall Windows 10 as it remains free for a year. Note that if you have followed our guide to freeing up space after a Windows 10 upgrade, you will have wiped out your old version of Windows, so the rollback option will not be available to you. Otherwise, if you want to revert to your previous version of Windows, just follow these simple steps.

Open up Settings via the Start menu or the taskbar icon.
Click Update & Security and then move to the Recovery section.
Under the Go back to Windows 7 or Go back to Windows 8.1 heading, click Get started and you'll be guided through the rest of the process.

Remember, this option will not be available to you if you have been using Windows 10 for more than a month, or if you have cleaned up the files related to your previous version of Windows.

If you change your mind about Windows 10 after the month is up, there is no built-in downgrade option available to you. In order to go back to Windows 7 or Windows 8.1, you will need to back up all of your files and then reinstall the older version of Windows from your original installation media, or by downloading the ISOs from Microsoft.

Photo credit: Imilian / Shutterstock

Google Hangouts finally gets a webpage, so I switched from Chrome to Firefox

Publié: août 18, 2015, 2:05am CEST par Brian Fagioli

hangoutshappywebpage

Google Hangouts is my choice for a communication service, so even though I prefer Firefox, I've been using Chrome lately since it worked better with it. Shockingly, the service did not have a dedicated web page. Yeah, Google touts the open web and web apps for its Chromebooks, but Hangouts was sort of missing from the equation.

Guess what? Today, this changes. Yeah, Google officially launches a Hangouts webpage and it is pretty damn good. It is so good, in fact, that I uninstalled the Chrome browser today and went back to Firefox full time -- I had no good reason to stay on Google's web browser.

"We are launching another way to use Hangouts today. From our new site you'll be able to take advantage of the best of Hangouts in the browser, along with an inspiring image to get you through the day. Check it out and let us know what you think. [https:]", says Jordanna Chord, Software Engineer, Google.

As you can see in the below screenshot, featuring my bro Joe Wilcox, the layout is very pretty and clean. Rather than mess around with cruddy Chrome plugins, I can just leave the tab open in Firefox. The tab alerts me to activity, so I will not miss important messages. Video and phone calls will require the Hangouts plugin, however. The overall experience is very good, though.

hangouts

While I chose to ditch Chrome, you don't have to; you can use this new Hangouts with Google's browser too. With that said, Firefox 40+ is a great web browser experience. While Mozilla has made some questionable choices lately, version 40 is a winner, and I highly recommend trying it. It runs the Hangouts web page, and other web pages, like a champ. It is damn beautiful too.

I tested the new webpage with Microsoft Edge, and while text conversations works, video chat does not. The Hangouts plugin is not supported at this time.

What do you think of the new Hangouts webpage? Tell me in the comments.

Photo Credit: Edyta Pawlowska/Shutterstock