device

A new gadget is designed to keep emails "totally secure and private." It comes with a big financial and convenience cost, however. Helm is promoted as an alternative to web-based email such as Gmail. It's based on the idea that such services pose a ... risk because they could be hacked or the providers forced by a court to hand over messages. Instead, Helm wants people to use a personal email server in their home - a bit like an ultra-secure mailbox. Normally email servers are bulky and require considerable technical knowledge. Device Requires Physical Key The Helm device is instead ... (view more)

Skype has added a new "private conversations" feature. Calls made this way will be encrypted so that it's impossible for anyone to usefully intercept or listen in. The data for such calls will use end-to-end encryption. That means the data is ... encrypted on one user's device and kept that way throughout its journey over the Internet until it reaches the other user's device. If the data is intercepted, it won't be of any use. The system will work on a "conversation" basis rather than a call-by-call basis. One user must select the feature, which will then send ... (view more)

The next edition of the Google Android operating system for phones and tablets will include measures to help users spend less time on their mobile devices. The update also makes notifications more useful and addresses battery life problems. The ... changes come in a new version of the operating system that's officially called Android 9.0 but nicknamed Android Pie (or "Android P"), continuing a pattern of naming updates after food. It's already available for Google's own Pixel phones and will then start gradually rolling out to other models, though older handsets may not get the update. ... (view more)

Google is to mark Android apps to show they originated in the Google Play store. It's described as a security measure that could be particularly helpful in places with unreliable data connections. The change is to APK files, which stands for ... "Android PacKage"; these are files used to install an Android application on an Android device. Whenever you download an app from the Google Play store, it's always an APK file which is installed. However, the format is also the same if the app were to be downloaded from a third party website. Google is adding security metadata to all APKs ... (view more)

One of the key security protections in WiFi has a serious vulnerability, a researcher has revealed. The exploit has to do with the protocol "WPA2" - currently considered the most secure protocol commonly used on WiFi routers and hotspots. Here's ... what you need to know about the WPA2 exploit. What's the problem and what does it affect? Security researcher Mathy Vanhoef has published a demonstration for what he's called "KRACKs," short for key reinstallation attacks. That's a way of exploiting a weakness in WPA2 (WiFi Protected Access II), the security system that is most ... (view more)

The majority of Bluetooth devices could be vulnerable to a malware attack. The attack, dubbed BlueBorne, can reportedly spread to devices without needing any action from the victim. The attack takes advantage of a bug in the Bluetooth technology ... itself rather than a specific operating system. At one point this summer an estimated 5.3 billion devices were at risk, running Windows, Android or Linux, as well as Apple devices running systems before the current iOS 10. Fixing the problem will require patches for specific devices and operating systems. Microsoft has patched the issue already, ... (view more)

The makers of a remote controlled device for personal pleasure have agreed to pay $3.75 million after allegedly collecting data on how the device was used. Standard Innovations has not formally admitted any wrongdoing. The company makes several ... models in the We-Vibe line, each designed for intimate female use. Some of them include a Bluetooth connection that in turn connects to a smartphone. That allows the user or a partner to remotely control the operation and settings of the device, with an option for partners in long-distance relationships to operate the device over the Internet. ... (view more)

A $30 tracking device could make it easier to find lost wallets or other items, but there's a big catch. While the "TrackR" range works fine around the house, if you lose your wallet while away from home, you may be reliant on other people having ... subscribed to the service. The range is billed as being the smallest tracking devices on the market. It comes in two models: the $30 TrackrR wallet 2.0, which is a two millimeter thick credit card-sized device for putting into a wallet, and the $25 TrackR Pixel, which is a similar size to a quarter coin but a little thicker, designed ... (view more)

Samsung is to remotely block the controversial Galaxy Note 7 phone from recharging. It's an attempt to persuade users who've hung on to the potentially-exploding handset to return the device for a refund. The phone was officially recalled by Samsung ... after reports of handsets overheating and causing burns, and in some cases catching fire. While Samsung is yet to release an official report into the causes of the problem, independent analysis suggests the phone's thin design put too much stress on the battery . To date, around 93 percent of the Note 7's sold to the public have ... (view more)

Amazon has released a luxury version of the Kindle e-Reader, with a price tag to match. It's drawn comparisons to Apple's high-priced iPads, despite being a single-purpose device. New Kindle editions over the past few years have mainly involved very ... small tweaks to an established design. The new Kindle Oasis has been redesigned to be easier to hold. The most notable difference is that the device is no longer a perfectly flat device. One side of it is the thinnest a Kindle has ever been, at barely an eighth of an inch. However, the other side has a tapered bump that takes it up to a ... (view more)