Entire North Korea Suffers from Internet Outage!

UPDATE:

After more than nine hours and 30 minutes, Internet service has been restored in North Korea,according to technology news service Dyn Research. Access is only partial, Reuters reports, but the country's main news service and newspaper both are back online.

ORIGINAL:

North Korea's Internet is offline — days after President Obama pledged a "proportional response" to the communist country's alleged hacking of Sony Pictures, multiple news reports say.

Doug Madory, the director of Internet analysis at Dyn Research, told The New York Times and other news organizations that North Korea's Internet access became unstable late Friday. By Monday, it was offline, he said.

San Francisco-based CloudFlare, a network and security company that monitors global Web access, told The Times that North Korea's Internet access was "toast."

It's unclear what caused the outage, but State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said today: "We aren't going to discuss publicly operational details about the possible response options or comment on those kind of reports in any way except to say that as we implement our responses, some will be seen, some may not be seen."

In an interview with NPR's Elise Hu, Matthew Prince, chief executive of CloudFlare, pointed to four possible scenarios: North Korea turned off its own Internet; China's upstream provider turned it off; the country's routers failed at an unfortunate time; or it was the result of a denial-of-service attack from either a hacking group or the U.S. Prince said he thinks it's unlikely the U.S. was behind the reported outage.

North Korea has one of the lowest Internet penetrations in the world — with access limited mostly to the country's elite. The U.S. has linked the recent hacking of Sony Pictures to North Korean hackers, though North Korea itself has denied it is responsible — even though it called the act righteous. (Some computer security experts have questioned whether Pyongyang is behind the hack.)

Threats against moviegoers and theaters attributed to the group that claimed responsibility for the hack were behind Sony's decision last week to cancel the planned Christmas Day release of The Interview, a comedy that centers on a plot to assassinate North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

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By: fdfffs On 10:22

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Nearly 7 Million Dropbox Passwords Have Been Hacked, But Dropbox says it was never hacked!

Nearly 7 million Dropbox usernames and passwords have been hacked, apparently from third-party apps that users allowed to access their accounts.


The Next Web was the first to notice the leak on a site called Pastebin, where hackers have already leaked about 400 accounts. The hackers promise to release more accounts in return for Bitcoin donations. The hackers claim to have over 6.9 million email addresses and passwords belonging to Dropbox users.

In a statement to The Next Web, Dropbox denied it was hacked:

Dropbox has not been hacked. These usernames and passwords were unfortunately stolen from other services and used in attempts to log in to Dropbox accounts. We'd previously detected these attacks and the vast majority of the passwords posted have been expired for some time now. All other remaining passwords have expired as well.

It's a similar response to the one Snapchat had when hackers were able to obtain about 100,000 photos from the service through a third-party app. Snapchat claimed its servers weren't hacked, but the servers of a third-party app designed to save Snapchat photos.

The real problem in both cases appears to be the way popular services allow third-party apps to use their platform. Even though Dropbox's own servers weren't hacked, the service still allows third-parties access, which has become the target for hackers to obtain personal information.

Dropbox is sending affected users emails encouraging them to reset their passwords, The Next Web reports.

This is an alarming trend. Services like Dropbox, Snapchat, and Apple have pushed blame on users and other third parties following recent hacks when it's clear they're not doing enough to scrutinize the kinds of apps that have access to their platforms.

Courtesy: Business Insider

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By: fdfffs On 22:20

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More than 1 Million users signed-up for Microsoft's Windows 10 Preview

Microsoft released its first Windows 10 Technical Preview at the beginning of October, and the company is now revealing that 1 million people are helping test the upcoming operating system through the Windows Insider Program. "That equates to a lot of people using the Windows 10 Technical Preview and sending us feedback," says Microsoft's Joe Belfiore. The software maker has received more than 200,000 pieces of feedback on the early version of Windows 10, with top requests that include options to remove the new search and task view buttons, as well as requests for a Start Menu animation or transition.


According to Belfiore, 64 percent of all Windows 10 Technical preview installs are on actual PCs rather than virtual machines. "This makes us confident that a lot of the feedback is based on 'medium-term' use and not just a few minutes of experimentation," explains Belfiore. 68 percent of all Windows 10 users are launching more than 7 apps per day, and 25 percent of all users are launching more than 26 apps per day so it's clear people are using this Technical Preview on their regular devices.

It's not yet clear when Microsoft plans to release a new Windows 10 Technical Preview build, but one is "coming soon" according to Belfiore, and the company is clearly working towards acting on some of the early feedback. "Even though we’re just two weeks into this huge collaborative project, we’re learning a lot and we’re working hard to keep up with your enthusiasm and passion," says Belfiore. Those 200,000 pieces of feedback will undoubtedly shape Windows 10 in interesting ways, and Microsoft is planning to release regular updates as the company moves towards a final version next year.

Courtesy: The Verge

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By: fdfffs On 22:16

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New launch: iPhone 6 Plus with 5.5 inch 1080p Retina HD Display

The wait is finally over - Apple CEO Tim Cook just officially revealed the hefty new iPhone 6 Plus and its 5.5-inch screen in Cupertino alongside a long-rumored (and handier) 4.7-inch model. This thing won't seem all that foreign if you frequent the geekier corners of the web, but it's a sure sign that Apple wants to give all those other pocket-stretching phablets out there a run for their metaphorical money. The company's live press event is still chugging along (with a sketchy stream, no less), but here's what we know so far.

There are no two ways about it: The star of the show here is the spacious 5.5-inch 1080p Retina HD display riding up front -- to hear Apple's Phil Schiller tell it, it's sRGB-accurate, has an ultrathin backlight, photo-aligned IPS liquid crystals, an improved polarizer and ion-strengthened glass. More importantly (and at long last!), the screen runs at 1080p.

You won't notice any dramatic design differences between this model and its little brother -- it's still dramatically thinner than the iPhones that came before it (the Plus comes in at7.1mm thick), and the angular edges of the 5s have given way to a smoother, rounder look in line with the company's most recent batch of iPads. Remember all those leaks? They absolutely nailed it, and the end result looks, well, really comfortable to latch onto.

But what of the tech powering the show? Let's look at Apple's snappy new 64-bit A8 chipset. Schiller says it's 50 percent more energy efficient (not to mention a hair smaller) than the A7 that graced earlier models, and about25 percent more powerful to boot. A new M8 coprocessor should also help keep better track of your activity levels, since it can hazard guesses at distance traveled and measure elevation changes for you avid stair-climbers. And speaking of power, you'll be able to squeeze 16 days of standby time out of the 6 Plus, 14 hours of continual video playback and or a full 24 hours of 3G talk time out of the non-removable battery.

Mobile photographers (which is really everyone these days, right?) may be a little bummed to see that the 6 Plus has an8-megapixel iSight camera and an f/2.2 aperture lens paired with the same True Tone flash as in the 5s. That's not to say that Apple's been slacking -- it's got phase-detecting autofocus (we've seen similar tech in SLRs), improved face detection and a new Best Shot mode. Extra bonus for Plus owners: you get optical image stabilization, so you can lord your crisper shots over everyone else when it launches. You'll be able to shoot 1080p video at either 30 or 60 frames per second, and slow-motion video has gotten even slower: think a whopping 240 frames-per-second mode. The front-facing camera has been updated with a sensor that's even greedier for photons, perfect for all those well-lit "LOOK I HAVE A NEW IPHONE" selfies you'll probably snap.

Apple's iOS 8 got the grand launch back at WWDC, but (to no one's surprise) it packs a few extra features to help it feel more at home on bigger screens. Perhaps the biggest is the inclusion of a two-paned landscape mode, which makes the whole thing feel a little more like a tiny iPad than an upscaled iPhone. If you use the Touch ID button (yeah, you're not escaping those sensors), you'll also invoke a one-handed mode that moves everything down to the lower half of the display for easy access

There's a decent chance that if you're reading this, you're already clamoring for a 6 Plus of your very own. Curiously, Apple has done away with the 32GB model entirely and added a 128GB model to the mix too in case you've got a few decades of movies that need to go with you everywhere. The 6 Plus will cost $299, $399 and $499 for the 16GB, 64GB and 128GB models, respectively, with your usual two-year contract. You'd better start saving up, too:Preorders start on September 12 and it'll start shipping in "several countries" on the 19th. Take that, oft-repeated rumors of a protracted launch!

Endgadget

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By: fdfffs On 05:18

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Xiaomi Redmi 1S | Motorola Moto E | Asus Zenfone 4: Top budget smartphones' Face-off

Earlier in the week, Xiaomi announced to release the much-awaited budget smartphone Redmi 1S in India on 2 September.

Considering the Redmi 1S' feature-rich specifications and its dirt-cheap price-tag, the Xiaomi phone in all probability will stir up a huge storm in the Indian budget smartphone just like its sibling Mi3 did in the mid-range segment.

Redmi 1S will give a stiff competition to two popular MNC brands Motorola Moto E and the newly introduced Asus Zenfone 4.

All the three handsets are worth more than their price compared to other devices in the market, considering that they get the latest OS updates, water-proof display and other value-added features, which you don't normally find in an entry-level smartphone.

This is an exciting time in the Indian smartphone market, where all brands (both MNCs and domestic) are flooding market with feature-rich devices. Indian consumers will be spoilt for choices to buy smartphone this holiday season.

Here is a brief description of the key specifications of the three popular smartphones - Xiaomi Redmi 1S, Motorola Moto E and Asus Zenfone 4.

Display and Design:

First up, Xiaomi Redmi 1S; It sports a candy bar rectangular design with curved corners and flaunts a 4.7-inch HD screen with pixel density of 312 ppi, highest in its class (entry-level smartphones).

On the other hand, Motorola Moto E is no less of a competitor; it flaunts a 4.3-inch qHD (960x540p) screen with Corning Gorilla Glass 3 scratch-resistant shield and has a pixel density of 256 ppi. It also boasts of splash-resistant screen/body enabling users to take/answer calls even in rain. No other smartphone under this price-range offers this feature.

Asus Zenfone 4 sports a 4.5-inch FWVGA (480x854p) resolution screen having Gorilla Glass 3 shield and pixel density of 218 ppi.

Processor, Storage and RAM:

In this aspect, Xiaomi Redmi 1S once again, comes on top, thanks to Qualcomm's faster 1.6GHz Snapdragon 400 series CPU. It is aptly backed by 1GB RAM and 8GB inbuilt memory (expandable up to 6GB).

Motorola phone too houses a Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 series processor, but the CPU consists of just two cores with maximum clock-rate is limited to just 1.2GHz. It comes packed with 1GB RAM and 4GB inbuilt memory (expandable up to 32GB).

Asus Zenfone 4 too ships with similar 1.2GHz dual-core processor, but it is made by Intel Corp. The company compensates this short coming with the sumptuous physical memory - 1GB RAM and 8GB storage space (expandable up to 64GB)

[Note: More the cores in the CPU, more smoothly the smartphone works]

Mobile Operating System:

In this aspect, all three phones almost stand even as they run on the ubiquitous Android platform, but Moto E owners will have slight advantage over the two competitors thanks to near stock Android OS. It also runs on the latest v4.4.4 KitKat OS.

On the other hand, Xiaomi Mi3 ships with v4.3 Jelly Bean with custom MIUI, whereas the Asus Zenfone is powered by Android 4.4.2 KitKat OS.

Camera:

Specification wise, Asus Zenfone 4 (A450CG) comes on top. It boasts 8.0-megapixel camera on the rear side and a 0.3-megapixel snapper on the front. To enhance photography experience, company has incorporated proprietary PixelMaster camera technology with features including Selfie Mode and Depth of Field Mode, Low Light Mode and Time Rewind.

Xiaomi too ships with 8.0-megapixe camera and a 1.3-megapixel front camera.

On the other hand, Motorola loses this battle as it comes with less superior 5.0-megapixel camera with no LED flash and neither a front-camera.

[Note: More mega-pixel count in the camera does not guarantee a good quality photograph. It all depends on the type of the lens, size and aperture.]

Price:

Price is one of the most important aspects of this comparison article as it plays a crucial role in the minds of the price-sensitive middle class and the aspiring youth population, which form the biggest chunk of the India's demography.

When Motorola Moto E set foot in India for ₹6,999, couple of months ago, it started a price-war among domestic and MNC brands and now Xiaomi has taken a notch up (read down), by keeping a ridiculous price-tag of ₹5,999 for the feature-rich Redmi 1S.

Asus Zenfone 4 (A450CG) is priced ₹6,999, if interested, consumers can also go for A400CG model, which costs ₹5,999. Only difference between two is their display size and camera specifications. 

Verdict:

All in all, the Xiaomi seems to weigh in better than its two counterparts, mainly from a hardware point of view, its on-board memory, battery power, camera, PPI and screen resolution. The OS however, may be a deciding factor for many users.

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By: fdfffs On 05:10

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After becoming a success in the market, Moto G to say goodbye!

Online retail major Flipkart has announced its plan to stop selling Moto G smartphone in the country.

At present only the 16GB version of MotoG is available in India, and Motorola and Flipkart will not replenish the inventory once the smartphone's stock runs out, according to a statement posted by the online company on its website. The 8GB model went out of stock soon after Motorola cut the prices of both variants of Moto G by Rs 2,000 in July, and it now appears that more units may not be on their way.

With 16GB variant of Moto G permanently going out of stock, it virtually means the end of Moto G's run in India. As, Flipkart is the exclusive seller for the smartphone range in the country. 

Launched in India in early March this year, Moto G is credited of bringing a major change in the country's smartphone market. The smartphone offered a quality display, snappy performance, day-long battery life and the latest version of Android at a starting price of Rs 12,499. However, it was criticized for its low-resolution camera and no storage expansion.

Moto G's attractive pricing helped it crack the sub-Rs 15,000 market, which was dominated by indigenous brands like Micromax, Karbonn and Lava. This dip in the low-end segment of the market proved fruitful for Motorola, with buyers' rush to purchase Moto G crashing Flipkart website. In fact, for nearly a month, Motorola struggled to meet the demand for Moto G in India. 

Both Moto G and Moto E helped Motorola score sales of one million units within five months of its re-entry.

However, lately Moto G has been facing tough competition from two new entrants in the Indian smartphone market: Xiaomi Mi 3 and Asus Zenfone 5. The Xiaomi phone offers much better hardware than Moto G at the same price as its 16GB unit. ZenFone 5 offers similar hardware, but has a higher resolution camera, sports a bigger screen and allows storage expansion via microSD cards.

On its part, Motorola is said to be already working on a Moto G successor. The company is hosting an event in New Delhi on September 5, where it is expected to showcase Moto G2, which is said to have upgrades like 5-inch screen and 8MP camera, while the remaining features are reported to be same as that of Moto G.

Motorola is also expected to launch Moto 360 smartwatch and Moto X smartphone's successor at the event.

By: fdfffs On 04:48

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ALS Ice Bucket Challenge - What is it and how it went Viral

The Internet is alight with the Ice Bucket Challenge, a silly joke that’s being shared on social media by billionaires. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg dumped a bucket of ice on his head. He was followed by Microsoft founder Bill Gates, who, in a playful video, built a contraption to do the dumping, and Sue Desmond-Hellmann, the drug development guru and chief executive of the Gates Foundation.

How it all Started?

One of the first ice-bucket-belittlers was Will Oremus at Slate. Oremus argues, fairly convincingly, that the ice bucket challenge initially had nothing to do with ALS (fair enough, but so what?) and then goes on to say that it seems unlikely that the campaign is actually increasing the amount of money being given to ALS – people are probably posting videos, but not donating.

Very catchy, very catty, Will. But the ALS Association has since said that it has raised $15.6 million as a result of the challenge, nine times what it normally raises in the same time frame. Another ALS charity, Project ALS, told the Washington Post that its donations were 50 times normal. ALS TDI, another ALS charity, says that has raised $580,000 since the beginning of August, 10 times what it normally receives.




Reasons behind the Viral Effect


The nature of the Ice Bucket Challenge is, in itself, inherently spreadable -- it's easy to do, you're being called out in a public forum, and there's a chain letter-like "pass it on" nature in tagging other people.

"People want to look good to others, so it’s hard to turn down a prosocial cause,"Jonah Berger, the author of Contagious: Why Things Catch On, wrote in an email to The Huffington Post. "ALS is a great cause, so when someone asks you directly to do this, it’s hard to turn them down without seeming like a bad person."

The Internet, after all, "revolves around" challenges, Zimmerman said, referring to the "cinnamon challenge," where people would upload videos of themselves attempting to gulp down a spoonful of cinnamon, and planking, where people would lay down in ridiculous places for the sake of showing they completed the challenge.



The Ice Bucket Challenge also has an element of hashtag activism, or slacktivism, said Zimmerman, who's now the editor in chief of Whisper, an app that allows people to share secrets anonymously. You can do something from your computer -- or from your yard -- that makes you feel good, but doesn't actually do anything. (In a versions of the challenge, you can get out of the donation if you douse yourself, which is something the campaign has been criticized for.)

Who can forget Kony 2012 -- and its hashtag #stopKony? -- the short video about the African warlord that spread on Facebook and Twitter, but was also criticized for, among other reasons, not actually doing anything other than "raising awareness"? This was also a criticism of the LGBT marriage equality movement last year, when 3 million people changed their Facebook profile pics to equal signs.

The Ice Bucket Challenge campaign has been great for the ALS Association, a nonprofit organization that does research and provides help for those with the debilitating neurological disorder, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. The organization said Tuesday morning that it's received $22.9 million since July 29 -- up from $1.9 million over the same period last year. And the donations are coming not only from existing donors, but from nearly half a million new donors, the group said.

Celebrities have latched on to the cause, which has undoubtedly hastened the spread. At this point, it's almost difficult to find a celebrity who hasn't had ice water dumped on his or her head. Gayle poured water on Oprah's head. Jimmy Fallon and some celebrity friends did it. Kobe and LeBron have done it. Bieber's done it -- twice.

"If you're doing the same thing they're doing, it's as if you can stand in for them," saidJennifer Cool, an anthropologist at USC who studies Internet culture and history. "You too can be in the shoes of Lady Gaga or Bill Gates."

And, of course, there's the showing off factor. Facebook is, at its core, a place to show off and promote yourself, filled with incredible vacation photos, reminders to all that you're in love and musings about challenges overcome (ideally while on vacation, like hiking in South America). You may have some friends who've seemed eager to show off their bikini or swim trunk bodies in their Ice Bucket Challenge videos.

At this point, some celebrities seem to be trying to one-up each other. Bill Gates released a highly produced (yet charming) video of himself designing an intricate method of dumping water on himself. Hockey player Paul Bissonnette, for some reason, had a helicopter drop glacier water on him. And Tyler Perry's video seems to have an element of "check out this ridiculous pool I'm standing in."

Celebrities also seem eager to name drop in their nominations. "I know where you live," Oprah says to Steven Spielberg as she nominates him to take the challenge.

Like all viral phenomena, the Ice Bucket Challenge may fade away just as quickly as it blew up.

"It's practically on the way out," said Zimmerman, who's critical of the celebrities and billionaires "co opting" the challenge for possible PR purposes. "Someone pushes it over the edge then it spends two weeks, three weeks in the news cycle and then fades."

List of Participants in the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge

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By: fdfffs On 18:28

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Japan has put "selfie stands" at popular destinations

The selfie has come out of nowhere like a narcissistic whirlwind and become one of the most popular things we can do with our smartphones.

Don't believe us? Sony has gone so far as to release a handset dedicated to taking selfies. And now, over in Japan there are even dedicated selfie stands at popular locations allowing you to snap yourself for social media bragging rights.

The stands feature a special slot where you can keep your smartphone secured for the duration of the selfie and are expertly positioned to take in the majesty of the surrounding scenery.

It's also an excellent hangout spot for snatch-and-run thieves, but that's probably just us being cynical.

We've not heard any news regarding UK-specific selfie stands but who knows, this could be the future of holiday photography.

By: fdfffs On 21:25

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Newly revealed details show how Microsoft plans to steal you away from iOS and Android

Is there anything that Microsoft can do at this point to create a substantially larger user base for Windows Phone? At this point things don't look great, but we wouldn't completely count Microsoft out just yet. Neowin's sources say that Microsoft is working on two new smartphones that will both have the most intriguing Windows Phone feature we've heard about so far: 3D Touch.

For those who need a refresher, 3D Touch is a new feature that will take advantage of Microsoft's Kinect technology to make your phone much more responsive to gestures and placements than any other phone now on the market. So for instance, 3D Touch will let you answer your phone just by holding it up to your ear and to turn on speaker phone just by placing your phone down on the table when you're on a call with someone. You'll also apparently be able to end your call by putting your phone into your pocket, as Kinect will be able to automatically tell what you'd like to do based on lighting and positioning.

Neowin says that the first device is a phone codenamed “McLaren” that will release by the end of the year and that will feature a 5.2-inch 1080p display with a 20-megapixel camera and 64GB of storage. The second device will be a massive 6-inch phablet that's on par with the gigantic Lumia 1520 and that may release by the end of the year.

The key in all this is whether Microsoft can show us why 3D Touch is a big differentiator from other smartphones — otherwise, it's likely to be seen as a Samsung-style gimmick that looks cool at first but is never really used.

Source: BGR

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Isis mobile wallet abandons name to militant group

Mobile wallet service Isis is changing its name to distance itself from an acronym used to refer to militant group Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.

US telecom companies AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon four years ago teamed together to back Isis, software that takes advantage of near-field communication chips in smartphones to allow people to consumate transactions by tapping mobile devices on sensor-enabled pads at shops.

"We wanted a name that brought life to our company and our values," Isis chief executive Michael Abbott said Monday in an online message about the decision to dump the name inspired by an Egyptian goddess.

"We have no interest in sharing a name with a group whose name has become synonymous with violence and our hearts go out to those who are suffering."

The company has not yet decided on a new name, Abbott said.

source: AFP

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Social Site Orkut to Close down after 10 years on September, 2014

Google's Social media platform Orkut is going to shut down on 30th of September this year. Orkut wrote on its blog about its dissolution yesterday.

Orkut, Google's first social
networking site, will cease to exist after
September, with the Internet giant deciding
to shut down the service launched 10 years
ago.

Google said it will shut down Orkut, which is
very popular in India and Brazil, on
September 30. The service, however, did not
do so well in other parts of the world and lost
sheen to rivals like Facebook.

Orkut, which popularised posts or "scraps"
between friends, did not disclose the number
of users on the website.

However, according to its website about
50.6 per cent of its users were from Brazil.
Another 20.44 per cent came from India,
while the US and Pakistan accounted for
17.78 per cent and 0.86 per cent,
respectively.

"Over the past decade, YouTube, Blogger
and Google+ have taken off, with
communities springing up in every corner of
the world. Because the growth of these
communities has outpaced Orkut's growth,
we've decided to bid Orkut farewell," Google
said in a post on the Orkut blog.

Orkut was launched in 2004, the same year
when Facebook was founded. Facebook is now the world's largest social network with 1.28
billion users.

Orkut was the result of a "20 per cent project" in which Google workers got to spend a fifth of
their time on ideas not necessarily related to their job responsibilities.

source: ET

source: http://en.blog.orkut.com/2014/06/tchau-orkut.html

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By: fdfffs On 19:49

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Companies Join 'Reset The Net' To Fight NSA

Big name opponents of the National Security Agency's (NSA) mass surveillance techniques are joining forces for "Reset the Net," an Internet-wide protest against the U.S. spy agency to be held on June 5. The protest will include a large Thunderclap on Thursday, blanketing social media with an anti-surveillance message.

Among those supporting Reset the Net are Reddit, Greenpeace, ACLU, DuckDuckGo, and the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF). Together they will promote encryption tools, implement additional anti-NSA security options on Web sites and services, or simply spread the message. A similar campaign was used to successfully fight SOPA (Stop Online Piracy Act), an anti-piracy bill that could have damaged the Internet.

Hurting The Internet

The basis for the Reset the Net campaign is that mass surveillance ultimately hurts the Internet, and therefore, it needs to be stopped or at least reformed. Many of the companies supporting the campaign have major stakes in the Internet's future, as Web sites like Reddit simply would not exist as they currently do with a more restricted Internet.

Thunderclap, a "crowdspeaking" platform, will be used by those involved with the campaign to increase the effect of their social media posts. Although individuals posting about the NSA won't have much of an effect but when millions of people post about the NSA, it is hard for their message to not be heard.

"Mass surveillance is toxic for the Internet," according to the EFF's blog post about Reset the Net. "The Internet is a powerful force that can promote democracy, innovation, and creativity, but it’s being subverted as a tool for government spying. That’s why EFF has joined with dozens of other organizations in calling for a day of action to Reset the Net."

Improving Security

Part of Reset the Net may be spreading the message about the NSA and its surveillance but that is not the only goal of the campaign. Those involved with Reset the Net are also trying to promote the use of more advanced encryption and security tools by informing people about them and getting "hundreds of sites & apps" to take advantage of the tools that are available.

On its Tumblr page, the campaign's organizers laid out a basic framework so that Web sites understand which security features they need to implement. "HTTPS, HSTS, and PFS (perfect forward secrecy) are powerful tools that make mass spying much more difficult," according to Reset the Net leaders. "Until Web sites use them, we’re sunk: agencies like the NSA can spy on everything. Once they’re ubiquitous, mass surveillance is much harder and more precarious -- even if you’re the NSA."

Reset the Net admitted that it is difficult to tell how beneficial the security technologies are because the NSA's capabilities are not fully known, but there are some noticeable benefits. With simple security features like HTTPS, Reset the Net said that Web sites can be protected from the vast majority of prying eyes.

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By: fdfffs On 22:36

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Password changing dance starts now: eBay accounts data compromised

If you have an eBay account, it's time to change your password. The company released a statement today saying their internal and customer databases were compromised earlier this year, and starting today they'll prompt everyone to change their passwords.

Attackers made off with names, addresses, email addresses, phone numbers, birth dates, and of course, encrypted passwords. eBay explained that financial info like credit card numbers and other sensitive data (like PayPal accounts) are kept in a separate encrypted database which wasn't compromised. They also said they've found no evidence of unauthorized access or activity by registered eBay users—which is code for "we don't think anyone's used these passwords yet." According to the statement, intruders compromised employee accounts first, and used their access to get the data they really wanted. They discovered the breach about two weeks ago, but the actual attack took place back in late February and early March.

To change your eBay password, log into your account, then click your name in the upper left corner. Select Account Settings. Click "Personal Information" on the left side of the page, and "edit" next to your password.

As always, if you use the same password on multiple sites, first, change those too, and second, stop using the same password on multiple sites. Instead, use a password manager that generates and remembers strong passwords for all the sites you use around the web.

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By: fdfffs On 21:15

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China Bans Microsoft Windows 8 for Government Computers

While US government is always prohibiting the purchase of Huawei products due to suspected backdoors from the Chinese government, China also keep itself totally apart from the US productions.

China is a bit famous for using its own operating systems, smartphone application services and lots more, rather than using the US developed Operating Systems, and now China has reportedly banned the installation of Microsoft Corporation’s latest operating system, Windows 8 on any of its government computers.
The Central Government Procurement Center issued a notice that was posted on its website last week prohibiting the use of Microsoft's latest operating system and the reason behind it is to support the use of energy-saving products, the report said.

But the state news agency ‘Xinhua’ pointed out a different reason for the ban saying the country wants to avoid any further losing of the support for an operating system like it did recently by pulling out its support from the oldest operating system Windows XP, which was widely used in China and is still estimated to be used on as much as half of the Chinese desktop market, the Chinese news agency claimed.
In the beginning of last month, Microsoft stopped providing the support for its longest running and most successful 13 year old Operating system, Windows XP, despite the fact that it has been used widely across the world than any other OS.

According to China's Central Government Procurement Center, all the desktops, laptops, and tablets used by central state agencies must run on an OS other than Windows 8. "All computer products are not allowed to install the Windows 8 operating system," reads the post on the center's website.
The ban applies only to the government offices, however the market of personal computers remains unaffected. Till now, Microsoft didn’t respond to comment on the issue.

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By: fdfffs On 19:49

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Microsoft Unveils 12-Inch Surface Pro 3

Software giant Microsoft unveiled its latest attempt to combine the power of a notebook computer with a tablet, the Surface Pro 3, at an event in New York.

Sporting a 12-inch display, it’s not the mini version that has been the subject of rumors. But the company says at 9.1 millimeters thick and 800 grams, it’s the thinnest and lightest of its kind. It also sports an Intel Core I7 processor.

Prices start at $799 and will be available for pre-order on May 21 and in stores on June 20.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella called it a major step in what he termed “the journey toward combining the capabilities of the company.”

Panos Panay, Microsoft’s vice president for Surface computing, said that 96 percent of people who have an iPad also have a notebook, creating for users a level of complexity. The new device, he said, is focused on “taking that conflict away.”

Patrick Moorhead, head of the research firm Moor Insights and Strategy, described it as a “flanking maneuver” for Microsoft versus Apple’s iPad.

“Microsoft is clearly focused on the ultimate productivity device, not focused on purely content consumption,” he said. “While Microsoft has not yet hit the high volume seven-to-eight inch tablet segment, Microsoft is clearly steering away from a straight-on confrontation with Apple.”

Panay spent a lot of time in his presentation playing up the combination of the Surface Pro 3’s capabilities. Adobe has created a version of its Photoshop photo-editing software that is optimized for running on the Surface. But Panay also demonstrated an app designed to emulate the New York Times crossword puzzle that allows users to do the puzzle with a digital pen.

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By: fdfffs On 22:31

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Lava Iris 406Q: A cool smartphone with 4.4 KitKat at 7k Price

Power that outperforms

The new Lava iris 406Q comes with a snappy 1.2 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon Processor with Adreno 302 Graphics Unit supported by a capacious 1 GB RAM + 4 GB ROM with 32 GB Expandable Memory which gives the power to outperform. The Quad core processor is designed to give you an unparalleled and rich gaming experience like never before.

Technology that outperforms

Operating on Android v4.3 Jelly Bean OS, this smartphone packs a more polished user-interface, fantastic performance, faster multi-tasking and an enormous list of features. Now get a guaranteed upgrade to Android v4.4 Kitkat over the air for a holistic immersive experience that will surely leave you spell bound.

Camera that outperforms

First day at college, your daughter’s first tooth, your best friend’s wedding or simply a vibrant flower at the near-by park. We understand the importance of memories. And that’s why we have armed the new Lava Iris 406Q smartphone with a powerful 5MP camera with image editor, which keeps you ready to capture the choicest moments at all times. So go ahead and create memories like never before.

Outperforming the ordinary!

• 1700mAhLi-Ion Battery
• 1.2GhzQuadcore processor
• 1GBRAM
• v4.3Android JB
• 
  

Watch it on Flipkart. Click Here.

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By: fdfffs On 19:38

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Attention! Malware stealing information from Jailbreaked iOS

A new piece of malicious malware infection targeting jailbroken Apple iOS devices in an attempt to steal users’ credentials, has been discovered by Reddit users.


The Reddit Jailbreak community discovered the malicious infection dubbed as ‘Unflod Baby Panda’, on some jailbroken Apple iOS devices on Thursday while a user noticed an unusual activity that the file was causing apps such as Snapchat and Google Hangouts to crash constantly on his jailbroken iPhone.

By: fdfffs On 19:13

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Heartbleed Bug - Explained with 10 FAQs

Heartbleed – I think now it’s not a new name for you, as every informational website, Media and Security researchers are talking about probably the biggest Internet vulnerability in recent history. It is a critical bug in the OpenSSL's implementation of the TLS/DTLS heartbeat extension that allows attackers to read portions of the affected server’s memory, potentially revealing users data, that the server did not intend to reveal.


After the story broke online, websites around the world flooded with the heartbleed articles, explaining how it works, how to protect, and exactly what it is. Yet many didn’t get it right. So based on the queries of Internet users, we answered some frequently asked questions about the bug.

By: fdfffs On 14:25

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Top 10 Paid Photography Apps for Android You Should Try..

Photo Mate Professional:

There are so Many Photo Editing and capturing apps But we have placed this on Number One because it is best seller Application in Android app store because of its cool features which makes it stand out of crowd. You can edit photos with xpm-sidefiles support.

Batch-Converting, Editing, renaming on bunch of images became so easy with this application, you can also share images to popular social media networks in a single click. There are other dozens of features in this application.

This application costs $6.25 from Google Play Store. you can buy and download or just view details of this application at This Link.

Night Camera +:

 Every one who captures a Photo with a Mobile Phone and posts it on Social networking sites writes:”Quality is bad, because it is a phone camera”. Even mobile phone devices are coming with high resolution camera and higher megapixels.

Main problem which occurs is “Light Source”, if you take photos with your mobile phone in daylight you may be satisfied with result but main problem comes in night or indoor conditions where light is not sufficient. Here is the solution of this problem.

This app is amazingly designed for taking pics in low light conditions with Advanced Low Light Technique. This Application costs $0.99 and it is really worth it. View More information or Buy this Application fromThis link

360 Panorama:

 Fed up with occasions which have more people and small range of camera? Now Solution is Here, 360 Panorama is an Application for Android devices which turns your android phone to full featured 360 degree panoramic camera.

You can easily take 360 Degree panoramas everywhere. This amazing app provides you with free space for panoramas online, it also allows you to share panoramas with your friends on popular social networks like Facebook, Twitter, etc.

This Application costs you very small price of $0.99. Buy and download or view more details for this application here at this Link.

Cartoon Camera Pro:

 I still remember when I was searching for Android apps whether paid or free for giving cartoon and sketching effects to my Pictures and I rarely found one. But this application is awesome for cartoon effects in Pictures.

It includes 12 different effects you can se on your pictures. This app costs $1.24 from Google Play Store but there is also a free version of it available with advertisements on Google Play store.

Buy and Download This App or view more details from This Link.

Add Watermark:

 You know that feeling that when you share photos on Social media networks captured by you and someone just copies it and shares that picture as it is his own. Now it is very difficult to do that because of Add Watermark App for Android.

This app adds a Customized Water mark, Your signature, picture, etc to the photo you captured. There are several features available in this Android application, for example: alignment, rotation, transparency, etc. This helps you to brand your creations.

This application is also available in free version but there are some limitations in free version. Buy and Download this application from This Link.

Camera WiFi LiveStream:

 This is another awesome application for photographers who want to capture something which cannot be captured with their existence like Wildlife Photography, etc.

This application allows you to place your smartphone at one place and access its camera and all of its functionality from a Browser through WiFi network. So that you can easily spy on someone without letting him know that you are watching him.

This application also have a free demo so that you can check that it is perfect application for your Android Phone. This Costs $0.85 from Google Play Store. Buy and Download or View More details at this link.

Camera ZOOM FX pro:

 This is another Awesome Application for users who want better and fast results from their Mobile Phone Cameras. this application enables up to 6X zoom. It is fastest camera on android, i.e: it can take upto 10 shots per second with Instant effects.

It allows you to apply different type of filters and also live previews for some of its filters. It also allows to fully customize hardware buttons, like volume buttons for zoom-in and zoom-out, etc.

This Android App costs $2.57 at Google Play Store, Buy and download or view details of This application through this link.

Paper Camera:

 This is another awesome app through which you can watch the world with new eye of cartoon version. this app enables camera to capture the world with cartoon effect and Painting effects.

You will really have fun watching your home and world with whole different eye. This application costs $1.71 and you can buy and download or view more details here through this link.

Adobe® Photoshop® Touch:

 This is just an incredible app designed for tablets by Adobe Systems and it have nearly all features of Adobe Photoshop like layers, selections, adjustments etc.

This is exclusive application from Adobe Systems and is available on Google Play store for $9.99 . Buy and download this app or read more about it here Through this link.

PicSay Pro – Photo Editor:

 This is an award winning app through which you can remove red-eye, sharpen,  Distort, crop, etc using your smartphone. This app can handle upto 13MP high resolution pictures with the devices which supports them.

This application costs $3.74 from Google Play Store. buy and Download this app or get more detail through this link.

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By: fdfffs On 20:36

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