Security

Microsoft's demand that Windows 8.1 users install this week's major update was another signal that the company is very serious about forcing customers to adopt its faster release strategy, experts said today.

"Microsoft is going to drag organizations and users into this new world of faster updates kicking and screaming," said Michael Silver of Gartner in an email. "Microsoft wants users to trust it to keep their systems updated. Maybe they figure forcing organizations to deploy [Windows 8.1 Update] will get them used to taking updates and keeping current."

Since news of the OpenSSL bug started to spread on Monday, administrators and vendors have made a mad scramble to patch the Heartbleed bug, named for the flawed implementation of the heartbeat option in the cryptographic library.

On Monday, three researchers from Codenomicon and Neel Mehta (a Google staffer focused on security) detailed the flaw and the various problems it will create.

Computer security experts are advising administrators to patch a severe flaw in a software library used by millions of websites to encrypt sensitive communications.

The flaw, nicknamed “Heartbleed,” is contained in several versions of OpenSSL, a cryptographic library that enables SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) or TLS (Transport Security Layer) encryption. Most websites use either SSL or TLS, which is indicated in browsers with a padlock symbol.

"Jailbreaking" used to mean... well, breaking out of jail.

In the modern world though, it typically refers to the process of cracking software codes to take greater control of applications and user interfaces.

"Virus Shield", an app that briefly shot to the top of the charts on Google Play, has turned out to be a complete fake and has therefore been pulled by Google.

The scam, turned up by Android Police, is as simple as a con-man could wish for: the app includes almost no functionality whatever, yet it was briefly a chart-topper on Google Play, something that at $US3.99 for the download.

Researchers have discovered an extremely critical defect in the cryptographic software library an estimated two-thirds of Web servers use to identify themselves to end users and prevent the eavesdropping of passwords, banking credentials, and other sensitive data.

My girlfriend was on the prowl for a new vehicle not too long ago, and decided on a Subaru. Not only do the company's vehicles arguably receive some of the highest safety ratings in the States, but their policy of across-the-board all wheel drive is another nicety I love about them. Even so, she wouldn't think of ditching her safety belt, no matter how safe the cars claim to be.

Russia and Brazil are hacking Facebook, and the social network is paying them to do it.

Facebook paid out US$1.5 million to security researchers worldwide last year as part of its Bug Bounty programme, and the two emerging markets were responsible for reporting some of the most critical threats, according to a report Facebook released this week.

A 5-year-old San Diego boy has been commended by Microsoft for his security skills after finding a vulnerability in the company's Xbox games console.

Kristoffer Von Hasssel's parents noticed earlier this year that he was logged into his father's Xbox Live account and playing games he was not supposed to.

A Tesla enthusiast has sparked a thousand variations on headlines saying “Tesla hacked” by working out that in-car network traffic is visible on a port designed for service access to the network.

The thread on the Tesla Motors Club forum begins in March, and reveals various traffic types that are visible on the network segment that connects the centre console (192.168.0.100), the navigation screen (192.168.0.101) and a gateway device (192.168.0.102).