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Dual_EC weaknesses and Juniper error exploited, researchers say. Security researchers suspect the United States' National Security Agency may have had a hand in the planting of unauthorised backdoors in Juniper's enterprise firewalls. The network equipment vendor last week issued an urgent security alert for its NetScreen enterprise firewalls, after discovering "unauthorised code" in the device operating system that allows them to be fully compromised. Juniper had discovered the code during an internal review. The backdoors - which had been in existence since 2012 - meant attackers could gain administrative access and decrypt VPN connections unnoticed. Researchers have now said the...

The inspector general for the Federal Reserve is warning that a key database at the central bank needs more cybersecurity protections, according to a summary report. Compiled in the wake of a security control review of the board's Statistics and Reserves system, known as STAR, the report finds that overall, "the Division of Monetary Affairs and the Division of Information Technology have taken several steps to implement information security controls." But the inspector general staff warned that there are several cybersecurity deficiencies in the system. "We found that improvements are needed in the Board's security governance of STAR to ensure...

Hillary Clinton (Kate McKinnon) gets a visit from 2008's Hillary Clinton (Amy Poehler) and Sarah Palin (Tina Fey).

App pirates on vShare are letting you download free versions of paid iPhone apps. App pirates are letting you download free versions of paid iPhone apps by taking advantage of a quirk in Apple's iTunes approval process. The pirated app website, vShare, even works on iPhones that aren't "jailbroken." Apple goes through great lengths to control which iOS apps are allowed in its iTunes App Store. Traditionally, the only way to install an app from outside the official app store is to jailbreak your iPhone. But vShare has figured out how to get around that, according to cybersecurity firm...

Nothing can warm the frozen wiring of your brain on a cold winter morning like a cheerful Christmas-y puzzle. But as much as you'd like to think that it's easy to spot one panda amidst a sea of smiling, carrot-nosed snowmen, it's actually pretty frustrating. Hungarian artist Gergely Dudás (also known as Dudolf) shared this puzzle last Wednesday and people just can't stop staring at it.

Russian to sue computer company after 3-week-long gaming session led to loss of job & wife A Siberian gamer is suing the makers of Fallout-4 after he lost his job and broke up with his wife because of the video game. He wants 500,000 roubles (US$7,000) in compensation from the company, saying he did not know the game would "become so addictive." There have been similar cases around the world though. In 2010, a US federal judge said he would listen to a case brought by a Hawaiian man, who said he became addicted to video game Lineage II. Surprisingly,...

Comedian Steve Harvey introduces the Son of God.https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=KfCLS4hmj5U

We were all sad when one of the most popular music players ever, Winamp, was discontinued in 2014. But there are maybe some good news for all the millions of users out there who enjoyed using this media player before. Winamp's owner has a new parent company, and relaunch of the software is possible! Vivendi Group took over the majority stake in Radionomy, the company which previously bought Winamp from AOL in early 2014. There is still no official word about that, but the involvement of the new owners could indicate to Winamp's re-launch sometime in 2016. AOL originally planned...

According to the Russian-government-owned news publication RT, a Siberian man is suing Bethesda and its Russian localization crew over his addiction to Fallout 4, which cost him his job and his wife. The 28-year-old is seeking 500,000 roubles ($7,000) for emotional distress. He did not know Fallout 4, which he noticed on an advertisement and downloaded on his PC, would "become so addictive." Over a three week period he ceased showing up for work and got fired, ignored his friends and loved ones until his wife left him, and stopped sleeping or eating regularly. .. :If I knew that this...

The best big phones battle it out Phablets may be bigger than the rest of the phone market, but it doesn't necessarily mean they're better than everything else. We've taken the biggest phablets out there and put them through our speed test. Our phone selection includes the iPhone 6S Plus, Nexus 6P, Microsoft Lumia 950 XL, Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+ and Sony Xperia Z5 Premium. The test includes booting up the phones followed by running through 10 apps that mirror real life. We do two laps of those apps including Netflix, Asphalt 8, Instagram and Spotify. Who (sic) will win?...

Kathleen Richardson is worried about sex robots. Now a robot ethics researcher at De Montfort University, she's spent the last 15 years looking at robots "designed to take on intimate roles, that were once thought off-limits to machines—companions, friends, lovers." While the concept of a robo-girlfriend may seem farfetched, there is the prediction that most of us—yes, you read that right—will be having sex with robots by the year 2050. And although sex robots are nowhere near mainstream, companies like True Companion and RealDoll have already developed strikingly realistic models (if you have any doubt about how realistic, look at...

Happy Force Friday. If you're celebrating Force Friday, I assume you're reading this story while standing in line at your nearest Toys "R" Us. If you're not celebrating Force Friday, I assume you have no idea what I'm talking about. Force Friday, like May the Fourth, is a day devoted to Star Wars. (Yes, Star Wars has two unofficial holidays.) But while May the Fourth began as a fan-driven event, Force Friday is pure corporate synergy. Starting on Wednesday evening, and continuing for the next 18 hours in 12 countries around the world, Disney-affiliated YouTubers showed off the wide range...

Cortana is good, but is it a Siri killer? Move over Siri, here comes something different. For the first time since its launch in April 2014, Cortana, Microsoft's voice-activated assistant, is now available on smartphones other than Windows devices. A surprise move that speaks volumes about Microsoft's newfound flexibility and willingness to abandon convention, the Cortana app works quite well on Apple's iPhone. But a Siri replacement it is not. Instead, Cortana makes it clear that there's room for two voices on the iPhone. There are some key differences between Siri and Cortana. Both can fetch web-sourceable information like weather...

Donald Trump with a British accent..who knew?

As expected, this weekend’s episode of 60 Minutes on CBS was chockfull of Apple news and anecdotes. Retail chief Angela Ahrendts, design head Jony Ive, CEO Tim Cook, and many more all joined host Charlie Rose to discuss a wide range of topics, including encryption, terrorism, design, retail, and much more… First off, Cook again talked about how users shouldn’t have to choose between privacy and national security. “I think that’s an overly simplistic view,” Cook explained. “We’re America. We should have both.” Building on that, Cook reiterated the fact that there shouldn’t be a backdoor for anybody into...

Personal data belonging to the accounts of 3.3m Hello Kitty fans is available to download online - and much of it probably belongs to children. The database for sanriotown.com, the official online home of Hello Kitty and a large cast of other Sanrio characters, is easily accessible according to online security researcher Chris Vickery. This means that sensitive information including users' real names, email addresses, account passwords, genders, birthdays and country of origin is all exposed, or encoded in easy-to-crack form. Hello Kitty is popular amongst both adults and children, and internet security experts are warning parents to make sure...

Last week we noted how AT&T has effectively conned the press into believing the telecom giant is engaged in a massive gigabit fiber to the home build, despite the fact that the company's CAPEX and fixed-line network investment budget continues to drop. In reality, AT&T's singling out high-end developments and universities (where fiber is already in the ground) for highly selective gigabit service, then declaring an entire market "launched."

Microsoft Online Store has some discounts in time for the holiday but you would need to act fast Microsoft Corporation is holding a sale to celebrate the holiday season. Its online store is all dressed up with seasonal spirit for a sale, the highlights of which include Surface Pro 3, Surface 3 and Microsoft Band 2 discounts. The 128GB, Intel Core i3 version of the Surface Pro 3 usually retails for $899, but the discounted price puts it a $599, a $300 reduction a saving of 33%. Plus, the optional Type Cover keyboard, a portable, roll-out QWERTY keyboard will now...

Windows Phones are continuing to find solid footing in the market, even as Microsoft obtained the Lumia brand then turned things quiet around them. It seems now is the perfect time to make some serious noise. The Microsoft Lumia 950 XL is the best Windows Phone device - and we're not talking about small leaps. This one took the highest one that made a crater upon landing. On the surface, the Microsoft Lumia 950 XL is a good-looking phone. It's not all-metal, sadly, but it's comfortable to hold and feels solid. The power and volume buttons are well spaced and...

Good news for those who want a hands-on preview of the Microsoft HoloLens augmented reality headset - the company's New York City store is offering these immersive previews. Bad news - these previews are appointment-only, and are only open to developers, not regular consumers. Developers interested in working on HoloLens projects can pay $3,000 for Microsoft's Development Edition build. But first, Microsoft wants developers to give HoloLens a bit of a test drive before committing to that premium amount of money. The thing, however, is that you'll have to schedule an appointment if you're an interested developer, and that there...