Reports that 3 million "smart" toothbrushes were hacked and weaponized turn out to be misleading at best. It appears to have been a mistranslation or misunderstanding. The reports first surfaced last week in Switzerland and involved toothbrushes ... supposedly running the Java computer language. They were said to have been hacked and used for a distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack that caused huge disruption and financial costs to a targeted business. Not every element of the story is as completely ridiculous as it might seem. "Smart" toothbrushes do exist, with connections to smartphone ... (view more)

Google has shown bogus ads for a scam website at the top of its results page according to a consumer group. The ads had somehow bypassed checks designed to make sure only legitimate businesses appear in the "sponsored" section of the results. These ... results, labeled as sponsored, appear at the top of the rankings. They come above the "organic" results which are based on Google's algorithm that takes into account factors such as the relevance of a page to the search term, the authority and expertise of the creator, and whether people who click on the result quickly return to the search results ... (view more)

Researchers in China have found a way to make flexible computer memory using liquid metal. It could one day revolutionize the physical design of computer devices. Anyone who has handled either internal computer RAM or a flash memory device will know ... that bending them even slightly would not end well. That's partly because the electronics is housed on often-brittle plastics, but partly because those electronics need to be flat and inflexible themselves. In very simple terms, RAM uses flat, two-dimensional electronic grids. Each point where a horizontal and vertical line crosses is a cell that ... (view more)

Users have reported Microsoft Edge opening up and displaying tabs they'd just had open in Chrome. The most generous reading is that a "helpful" feature is triggering by mistake. Users have been extremely confused to start up their computer and not ... only find Edge open unexpectedly, but that it had replicated the sites they'd been using on Chrome. The Verge's Tom Warren noted he didn't even realize it was Edge running at first until he investigated why he was logged out on several of the open sites. The mystery isn't how this is happening but rather why it is happening. Edge has several ... (view more)

If you still have the skills for Windows 3.11, you may have been a candidate for a recent job ad in Germany. It appears the role, using the 30-year-old system, has been filled. The vacancy was advertised by national railway company Deutsche Bahn. ... The successful candidate would be assigned to Siemens, which is responsible for the rail tech division for the train control system. The role would involve keeping old systems operational so that train drivers could get real time information about equipment. The Register notes that although Windows 3.11's release in November 1993 is almost ... (view more)

Windows 10 devices are set to become insecure next year unless users pay an extra fee. But with warnings of 240 million devices "going to landfill", it remains possible Microsoft will blink at the last moment. That Windows 10 reaches the end of its ... support period on October 14, 2025 is no secret: it's long been on Microsoft's support calendar and is in line with the company's policy of 10 years support. From that date, Microsoft will no longer issue free security updates. As happened with Windows 7, Microsoft will offer a paid update service for people in "circumstances that could prevent you ... (view more)

Apple appears to be exploring loopholes in its recent agreement to allow iPhone users to install apps from sources other than its official store. It wants to continue reviewing apps and taking commission from developers, which could significantly ... undermine the effect of the changes. The company has until March 7 to comply with new rules in Europe. Rather than fight the rules or pull out of the market altogether, it decided to allow sideloading for users in European Union countries . Unlike with some physical device changes made to meet European rules, Apple won't be extending the policy to ... (view more)

A physical limitation in traditional computers could be harnessed to power artificial intelligence according to a start-up business. They've demonstrated what they call a "thermodynamic computer." The research is all about the way that computers use ... a physical process to carry out a digital, mathematical operation. All traditional computing boils down to a circuit board using electronic switches to represent and process data as either a 1 (for "true") or a 0 (for "false"). The physical aspect can lead to problems, however. New Scientist gives the example of a component ... (view more)

A leak of around 26 billion user records has been labeled "the mother of all breaches." It's a major reminder of the downsides of reusing the same passwords on multiple sites. The collection of records is not a single stolen database. Instead, it ... appears to be a massive compilation of databases that have either been leaked before or sold on the black market. The database was spotted online by security researchers, likely a sign that whoever compiled it screwed up somewhere by mistakenly making it accessible. The researchers noted the database was extremely well indexed and organized. The ... (view more)

Google has come up with a new twist when it comes to searching on mobile devices. Users of some Android handsets can draw a circle round text or images on their screen to search. The "Circle to Search" feature will also let users ask specific ... questions relating to what they have selected. Unlike many search tools, this will work directly in any app, not just the Chrome browser or other Google applications. Google gives the example of searching for information relating to a video or social media posts. (Source: blog.google ) The search results will then appear in a pop-up window. Users can tap ... (view more)