Security

A photo of iPhone 8 Plus with Google Home Mini and a power extension plugged in socket showing smart and secure home

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Your home can be smart or secure, but probably not both

Jessica Baron, PhD
March 25, 2019
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We’ve heard over and over again that the Internet of Things and the connection of devices poses security risks. While having your thermostat, lights, televisions, security cameras etc. hooked up…

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The FBI is cracking down on fraud against the elderly

Jessica Baron, PhD
March 19, 2019
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On March 7th, the FBI announced the results of its year-long effort to investigate and prosecute those who use technology – from telephones to social media – to prey on…

a collage of two images with US and China flags on it showing US and Chinese scientists working in different labs

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Is the NIH trying to discourage collaboration between U.S. and Chinese researchers?

Jessica Baron, PhD
March 5, 2019
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According to a report in the journal Science, Francis Collins, the director of the National Institutes of Health, sent a letter to 10,000 U.S.-based research institutions last summer stating his…

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Russia to briefly “turn off” country’s Internet access. But why?

Jessica Baron, PhD
February 23, 2019

If I asked you to picture the Internet for a moment – the actual, physical Internet – what would you imagine? Many of us have no idea how this thing…

An Airside view of Dubai International Airport

2 minute read

Drone shuts down Dubai International Airport

Noor Imtiaz
February 16, 2019

On Friday morning, a drone sighting forced authorities to ground flights to and from the Dubai International Airport. The halt remained in effect for half an hour. Between 10:13 to 10:45…

3 minute read

LipPass verifies your identity based on your mouth movements

Jessica Baron, PhD
February 15, 2019

A new platform called LipPass is one of many new behavioral verification techniques for smartphones. Up until recently, identity verification involved simple password protection, followed by physical biometric scans such as fingerprints,…

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Google is now making it easier to encrypt cheap smart devices

Fazeel Ashraf
February 9, 2019
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Data encryption has become a key feature of smart devices. It ‘s an underrated feature, and it’s key to understanding one’s privacy. Not every smartphone offers data encryption because it…

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WeDo Technologies shows us why we should care about telecom fraud

Jessica Baron, PhD
February 1, 2019

TechEngage was a guest at WeDo Technologies’ WeMeet Asia event last week, where we had the opportunity to learn about the challenges posed by 5G technology, the Internet of Things,…

2 minute read

Google also has a data-collecting app, just like Facebook

Noor Imtiaz
February 1, 2019

After the shocking revelation on Tuesday about a Facebook app that collected web browsing and other sensitive data from its users, TechCrunch is back with a similar bombshell about Google.…

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Judge rejects Yahoo’s settlement offer over data breaches

Noor Imtiaz
January 30, 2019

On Monday night, a US judge rejected Yahoo’s attempt to pay its way out of explaining data breaches. Yahoo had been attempting to settle with victims of several data breaches…

Facetime bug lets caller hear audio before call

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FaceTime bug transmits audio and video before you pick up a call

Muhammad Abdullah
January 29, 2019

Beware Apple users! It seems you might want to stay off and deactivate FaceTime for a few days. A recently discovered bug in iOS is allowing FaceTime callers to listen…

2 minute read

773 million emails have been leaked

Muhammad Zeshan Sarwar
January 18, 2019

It is only the third week of January and we’ve already experienced an enormous hack. Security expert Troy Hunt reported today that a huge data leak of 773 million unique…

3 minute read

Tor gets record number of donations from users

Fazeel Ashraf
January 15, 2019

The Tor Project, makers of the Tor private browser, just announced a record number of donations from individual users in their 2018 funding campaign which totaled $460,000. This will allow…

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Ethereum aims to cut its enormous energy consumption

Jessica Baron, PhD
January 8, 2019

We’ve long known that cryptocurrency is an energy hog. Currencies like Bitcoin, the worst offender, have to be “mined,” meaning that it takes long, intense hours for computers to encrypt…