John Lister

An FBI branch has warned people not to use free USB charging points as they could spread malware. The agency says it's safer to use a charger plug and power outlet. However, the FCC notes that while such attacks are technically possible, there's no ... evidence of it actually happening. The FBI Denver Officer posted on Twitter: "Avoid using free charging stations in airports, hotels or shopping centers. Bad actors have figured out ways to use public USB ports to introduce malware and monitoring software onto devices. Carry your own charger and USB cord and use an electrical outlet instead." The ... (view more)

A company that manipulated Amazon listings to deceive customers has been fined $600,000. It's the first time the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has punished a business for "review hijacking." The Bountiful Company sells a range of nutritional ... supplements. According to the FTC it listed more than 1,000 products on Amazon. (Source: ftc.gov ) One of the tactics it used took advantage of the way Amazon groups "variation" products. This is meant to cover situations such as an identical t-shirt that's available in multiple colors, or a medicine that's available in different size bottles. ... (view more)

Quantum computers could produce genuinely random numbers according to new research. It could boost security, an ironic effect given fears over the ways cyber criminals could use quantum computing. In extremely simplified terms, a quantum computer ... uses quantum physics in which something can exist in more than one state at a time. That's in contrast to traditional computing where data is stored in bits that represent either a 0 or a 1 at any given time. To date, the main claimed advantage of quantum computing has been processing speed. The same "bit" representing multiple states removes a ... (view more)

Apple has patented a folding smartphone that would automatically close up when dropped in an attempt to protect the screen. Several manufacturers of high-end smartphones already offer folding display screens. The idea is to allow a much larger ... screen size without being too bulky for a pocket. Analysts note one of the reasons Apple has yet to make a folding iPhone is fears that folding screens are more vulnerable to cracking, particularly when dropped. It's possible it may have intentionally waited for other manufacturers to lead the way so that it can then see such problems with a new ... (view more)

Google has warned users of some Android handsets to turn off some voice call features. A series of vulnerabilities could mean attackers can compromise a handset just by knowing its phone number. The problem involves four vulnerabilities in a ... Samsung-made component called an Exynos chipset. It's used for voice calls made over mobile data rather than the voice network. At the time of writing, Google says the affected products include phones made by Samsung (A04, A12, A13, A21s, A33, A53, A71, M12, M13, M33, S22), Google itself (Pixel 6 and 7) and Vivo (S6, S15, S16, X30, X60, X70) along with ... (view more)

Amazon has unveiled home devices for receiving its satellite broadband service. It hopes to offer service by late next year but hasn't yet revealed pricing. Satellite Internet is one of the major ways tech firms are attempting to solve the problem ... of high-speed Internet access in rural areas. Installing fiber cable there doesn't usually make financial sense to profit-driven businesses because there aren't enough potential customers to justify the cost of installing it and/or paying for the parts to install it in non-densely populated areas. Such locations are also often outside the range of ... (view more)

A notorious botnet that spreads malware through fake emails is back in action. Emotet has returned with some new tactics to try to bypass security checks. Emotet had already gained a reputation for being (comparatively) successful at fooling humans ... and computers alike. Its most notable characteristic was that it not only used messages that appeared to come from a trusted contact, but that it addressed the recipient by name and even appeared to be a reply to a previous genuine message. Most commonly, Emotet sends malware through Microsoft Word documents with macros. These are now disabled by ... (view more)

An investigation has revealed the tactics of a company that offers to hide negative information about clients on the Internet. A newspaper has accused Eliminalia of using "unethical or deceptive methods" to achieve its goals, sometimes helping ... serious criminals. The company says its main approach is taking advantage of the European Union's "right to be forgotten". This gives people the right to ask websites to remove information that is inaccurate or no longer relevant. The site doesn't have to comply but may have to justify a refusal later on. While the law is theoretically about websites ... (view more)

Governments in 35 countries imposed complete blackouts of the Internet at some point in 2022 according to a new report. It's the highest figure in the seven years that "digital rights group" Access Now has been compiling data. Perhaps surprisingly, ... China only had one Internet shutdown, while Russia had just two. That's slightly misleading as Russian forces imposed 22 shutdowns in parts of Ukraine during the ongoing war. (Source: accessnow.org ) The country with the most blackouts (for the fifth straight year) was India, with 84. That's a hugely controversial topic as officials say the ... (view more)

Netflix has rejected proposals that would help fund network infrastructure by companies responsible for large amounts of Internet traffic. It says the European idea would effectively mean customers paying twice for the same technology. Officials in ... Europe are currently consulting on the proposals. The idea is that companies which deliver the most traffic would pay a tax with the proceeds going towards projects to expand and improve Internet connections. The officials argue that companies such as Netflix benefit from the wide availability of Internet connections, but don't currently contribute ... (view more)