Security

Google’s Giving $60,000 to Whoever Can Exploit Chrome

While both Safari and IE collapsed under the pressure from hackers at last year’s Pwn2Own contest, not one person was able to crack Chrome. This year, Google’s sweetening the pot with a million dollars in prizes to successful exploiters. In fact, Chrome is the only browser in the contest’s six year history to not be…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola

The Weirdest Tweets and Facebook Posts That Could Get You in Trouble with the Department of Homeland Security

Animal has discovered the list of words that the Department of Homeland Security specifically target when they monitor Tweets and Facebook posts and it’s, um, comprehensive. Ever tweet about the weather? Or used ‘closure’, ‘cloud’, ‘home grown’, ‘bart’, ‘subway’ or hell even ‘social media’ in your posts? YOU’RE ATTRACTING ATTENTION FROM THE DHS!! The full…

Social Media Casey Chan

South Korea’s Awesome Real Life Counter-Terrorist Plan Can Save World Leaders from Nuclear Death

This isn’t a scene from John Woo’s latest movie but are rather of real life security guards practicing their counter-terrorist plan in South Korea. It’s a run through of what could go wrong at the Nuclear Security Summit and how the security force would react: rappelling, spiderman webs, martial arts and more. I’d totally watch…

Privacy & Security Casey Chan

Easily Understand Encryption Using… Paint and Clocks?

Getting your head around public key encryption isn’t easy, even if you’re a dab hand at math. Prime factors? Modular arithmetic? Say what? Instead, here’s a totally straightforward explanation that starts from the basics, using paint mixing as an example. No, really! The key to understanding public key encryption is realising that it’s easy to…

Privacy & Security Jamie Condliffe

iBook’s DRM Defenses Are Now Only for Show

Apple’s iBooks have always been protected from running on unauthorized devices thanks to the company’s FairPlay DRM. That is, until Requiem version 3.3 decided to throw a cow over iBook’s walls. Requiem is a popular app designed to remove the protections placed on music and movie content purchased from the iTunes store. However, the newest…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola

Court Says Cops Can’t Make You Decrypt Your Secure Hard Drives

Remember the defendant in that fraud case who was prepared to claim she forgot the password to her laptop if ordered to decrypt it? Adding some more intrigue to the matter is the fact that the 11th Circuit Court says defendants won’t have to decrypt drives if the contents are unknown. Huh? https://gizmodo.com/defendant-ordered-to-decrypt-hard-drive-says-she-forgot-5882811 The Fifth…

Privacy & Security Adrian Covert

How to Remove Your Google Search History Before Google’s New Privacy Policy Takes Effect

On March 1st, Google will implement its new, unified privacy policy, which will affect data Google has collected on you prior to March 1st as well as data it collects on you in the future. Until now, your Google Web History (your Google searches and sites visited) was cordoned off from Google’s other products. This…

Tech News Eva Galperin - Electronic Frontier Foundation

Internet Giants to Adopt a Do-Not-Track Button

While many browsers already feature a “do not track” button, in truth they’re largely ineffectual, because advertisers and tracking companies hadn’t agreed to honor the system. Now, prompted by the Obama administration’s attempt to ensure our online privacy, that is about to change. https://gizmodo.com/can-obamas-new-consumer-privacy-bill-keep-your-data-saf-5887573 The Wall Street Journal reports that a coalition of internet companies,…

Tech News Jamie Condliffe

Can Obama’s New Consumer Privacy Bill Keep Your Data Safe?

Today, the Obama administration is to unveil a new Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights, which it hopes to roll out in order to protect people’s privacy online. The question is, can it work? The bill sets out to give users more control: to police what data is collected, how it’s used and shared, even how…

Privacy & Security Jamie Condliffe

YouPorn Gets Caught With Its Pants Down—Users’ Email and Passwords Compromised

It looks like the Internet sex site YouPorn just took one in the eye. A years-old coding error has exposed the emails and passwords of over a million of its smut-loving chat users. The YP site itself wasn’t hacked but rather its associated sex-chat site—which is run by an outside company—somehow left bales of unencrypted…

Privacy & Security Andrew Tarantola

Apps That Abuse Privacy Will Now Be Punished By the Law

Kamala Harris, California’s Attorney General, says the state has reached an agreement with Apple, Google, Microsoft, RIM and others to prosecute developers who do not abide by new privacy policies. Basically, this new agreement will protect you from rogue apps that broadcast your data without your knowledge. https://gizmodo.com/paths-big-mistake-updated-5883395 According to the NY Times, the new…

Privacy & Security Casey Chan

iOS Bug Allows Access to Contacts Without a Passcode

If you think that your iPhone is impenetrable thanks to its security passcode, think again. A new bug has been exposed in iOS 5.0.1 that allows unauthorized access to contacts and the calling features of the iPhone. Admitedly, it is a long-winded hack, that involves inserting and ejecting the SIM card whilst trying to call…

Tech News Jamie Condliffe

Visualize How Dumb Your Password Reuse Is

Depending on what tactics you use, your passwords might be great or they might be awful. One thing is certain, though: if you reuse the same password across multiple websites, that is definitely a bad idea. Mozilla are keen to show you just how bad. https://gizmodo.com/how-the-gizmodo-crew-manages-their-passwords-5881219 If you use the same password across multiple websites,…

Privacy & Security Jamie Condliffe

NSA: Anonymous Could Cause Power Outages Through Cyberattacks

Anonymous already has a diverse set of tactics, including showing up to awards ceremonies. But the NSA is worried that its cyberattacks could bring about power outages across the US. https://gizmodo.com/anonymous-invades-the-spanish-academy-awards-ceremony-f-5886437 The Wall Street Journal reports that Gen. Keith Alexander, director of the NSA, has described in private meetings how “Anonymous could have the ability…

Privacy & Security Jamie Condliffe

Microsoft Says Google Secretly Planted Cookies in Internet Explorer Too

Fresh off the report that Google was bypassing the privacy settings of Safari users by installing cookies that could track browsing habits, Microsoft has discovered that Google has been doing the same thing on Internet Explorer. This is not good. https://gizmodo.com/wsj-google-planted-cookies-on-iphones-without-anyones-5885929 According to Microsoft VP Dean Hachamovitch, after the Safari Google cookies snafu hit, the…

Tech News Casey Chan

The Simple, Brilliant Way to Stop RFID Robbers

The money of the future won’t be cash, or even sliding plastic—it’ll just be a wave of the hand, we’re all told. RFID-enabled credit cards sound great, but add an unprecedented theft risk. So how about an on/off switch? The idea is wonderfully clever: just hold the card on a certain spot if you want…

Privacy & Security Sam Biddle

Here’s How to See If the FBI Might Cut Off Your Internet March 8th

We just learned that the FBI might shut off the internet for millions of people in an effort to rid the country’s Internet infrastructure of the DNSChanger Trojan. You should really check if you’re infected—here’s how. https://gizmodo.com/the-fbi-might-cut-off-the-internet-for-millions-of-peop-5885716 In the possible-but-unlikely event that the FBI decides to cut off the internet to infected systems on March…

Privacy & Security Mario Aguilar

WSJ: Google Planted Cookies on iPhones Without Anyone’s Permission (Updated)

A report from the Wall Street Journal suggests that Google has been bypassing the privacy settings of millions of Safari users by installing cookies that could track the browsing habits of people—even if they thought they had blocked them. The WSJ explains how Google has developed code that installs cookies on a users’ device—without their…

Tech News Jamie Condliffe

The FBI Might Cut Off the Internet For Millions of People on March 8th

In an unprecedented move, the FBI may cut off Internet access to millions of people on March 8th to try to rid the country of a Trojan. Millions of computers are infected worldwide—maybe even yours. The DNSChanger Trojan originated in Estonia and might be lurking undetected on as many as a half-million computers in the…

Privacy & Security Mario Aguilar

Prepaid Cards Are Safe Again as Google Plugs One of Wallet’s Security Holes

Google Wallet’s no-hacking-required hack from last week has reportedly been resolved. Now the only person you can blame for being broke is yourself. https://gizmodo.com/google-wallet-hacked-again-5883913 According to Google, the company has closed the security hole that could have potentially allowed thieves to access the balance on your existing prepaid Wallet card by resetting the app and…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola

Google’s Giving $60,000 to Whoever Can Exploit Chrome

The Weirdest Tweets and Facebook Posts That Could Get You in Trouble with the Department of Homeland Security

South Korea’s Awesome Real Life Counter-Terrorist Plan Can Save World Leaders from Nuclear Death

Easily Understand Encryption Using… Paint and Clocks?

iBook’s DRM Defenses Are Now Only for Show

Court Says Cops Can’t Make You Decrypt Your Secure Hard Drives

How to Remove Your Google Search History Before Google’s New Privacy Policy Takes Effect

Internet Giants to Adopt a Do-Not-Track Button

Can Obama’s New Consumer Privacy Bill Keep Your Data Safe?

YouPorn Gets Caught With Its Pants Down—Users’ Email and Passwords Compromised

Apps That Abuse Privacy Will Now Be Punished By the Law

iOS Bug Allows Access to Contacts Without a Passcode

Visualize How Dumb Your Password Reuse Is

NSA: Anonymous Could Cause Power Outages Through Cyberattacks

Microsoft Says Google Secretly Planted Cookies in Internet Explorer Too

The Simple, Brilliant Way to Stop RFID Robbers

Here’s How to See If the FBI Might Cut Off Your Internet March 8th

WSJ: Google Planted Cookies on iPhones Without Anyone’s Permission (Updated)

The FBI Might Cut Off the Internet For Millions of People on March 8th

Prepaid Cards Are Safe Again as Google Plugs One of Wallet’s Security Holes

White House’s Mysterious ‘Covfefe Moment’ Was Stupider Than We Imagined

Gym Bros Are Pushing Mystery Muscle Drugs Doctors Barely Recognize, Study Warns

The Head of HBO Explains What it Takes to Get a ‘Game of Thrones’ Spinoff Going

Elon Musk’s Lawyer Claims Jury’s 420 ‘Joke’ Proves He Didn’t Receive a Fair Trial

‘Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice’ Is a Genre Blending Delight

Leaked Anthropic Model Presents ‘Unprecedented Cybersecurity Risks,’ Much to Pentagon’s Pleasure

Don’t miss out: Bitdefender, One of the World’s Best Antiviruses, Is Now on Sale

The Secret to Better Sperm? It’s Probably Already on Your Schedule

Sonos Play Review: Call It a Comeback

Sonos Era 100 SL Review: The Cheapest Way Into Wired Sonos Sound

Asus ROG’s Massive Swift OLED Gaming Monitor Epitomizes Excess in the Best Way

The Ikea Varmblixt Smart Lamp Fills a Donut Hole in My Life

Nothing Headphone A vs. Headphone 1: Which Pair of ANC Wireless Headphones Wins?

Asus ROG’s Cetra Open Wireless Gaming Earbuds Might Be Better Than Wearing a Headset

Nintendo’s Talking Flower Is Annoying as Hell. I Love It

Level Lock Pro Review: As Good as a Secret Smart Lock Gets

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