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This summer, one year after the initial launch of Windows 10, Microsoft will release its first major update: the Windows 10 Anniversary Update. It will be delivered in the usual way -- via Windows Update -- and will install automatically on its own. However, if you're curious (or apprehensive) about the upcoming update, you don't have to wait until the final release date to check it out. Microsoft has been releasing public preview builds, each one a little bit closer to the final version. Anyone can get and install those builds by first becoming part of Microsoft's Windows Insider Program,...

"It's a presidential race that many political experts say could be thrilling, punishing, or maddening, depending on your opinion of the candidates."

Software vendor Citrix is asking all customers to reset their passwords for the GoToMyPC remote access service after it suffered what appears to be a full credentials compromise. In its advisory, Citrix said the GoToMyPC service had "unfortunately" been targeted by "a very sophisticated password attack". Citrix provided no further details of the hack, but apologised "for the frustration this is causing".

The script is disguised as a document Security researchers have discovered a new strain of ransomware coded entirely in Javascript, which could increase its chances of being activated. Unlike executable program files, Javascript documents do not always trigger a security warning on Windows or require administrator access to run. Named RAA, the malware is disguised as a document and starts encrypting files immediately when opened. One security expert said the approach was likely to fool many victims. "It's an interesting approach to ransomware," said Ken Munro of security company Pen Test Partners. "Using Javascript as an attachment to an email...

HP has recalled batteries sold with a range of its of consumer and business notebooks over concerns the devices could catch fire. The tech giant has asked customers who purchased certain Compaq, ProBook, Envy, and Pavilion laptops between March 1 2013 and August 30 2015 nationally to turn off the device, remove the battery and check its identification number. It is warning the affected devices could catch fire and burn the user.

“Apple should really have caught the potential patent violation before it reached the courts, said Benjamin Bai, the head of Allen & Overy’s IP practice,” Ramli and Wang report. “‘They should’ve found the patent and dealt with it – this should never be a surprise,’ said Bai, who previously had Apple as a client at his former firm. But ‘there are a lot more things Apple can do to get out of this mess. You pay license fees and settle this mess. The second is to appeal and in the meantime try to invalidate the patent.'”

Adobe’s Flash plug-in has a big target painted on it. A recent leak shows there’s another Flash Player 0-day that allows attackers to compromise your computer, and that it’s been for sale for the last four years. Flash is going away, and everyone should uninstall it at some point in the future. Here’s how to get rid of Flash, whether you’re using a browser’s built-in plug-in or a system-wide plug-in on Windows, Mac OS X, Chrome OS, or Linux. Can You Live Without Flash? Flash is much less necessary than it’s ever been. Modern mobile platforms like Android and Apple’s...

Adobe has released an update for Flash that addresses three dozen CVE-listed vulnerabilities. The update includes a fix for the CVE-2016-4171 remote code execution vulnerability that is right now being exploited in the wild to install malware on victims' computers. Adobe is recommending that users running Flash for Windows, macOS, Linux, and ChromeOS update the plugin as quickly as possible, giving the update the "Priority 1" ranking, a designation reserved for flaws that are, according to Adobe, "being targeted, or which have a higher risk of being targeted." Adobe credited security researchers at Cisco Talos, Google Project Zero, FireEye, Microsoft...

Apple is in a court battle in China that isn’t going so well. Baili, a Chinese device maker, has sued Apple for allegedly copying its smartphone design in the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. A Chinese court recently granted Baili an injunction that would have forced Apple to remove the iPhone 6 line from store shelves. However, Apple quickly appealed the ruling to a higher court, which will allow it to continue selling the iPhone 6 line until that court makes its own ruling on the case.Gadget site Engadget previously reported on the lawsuit.The smartphone in question is Baili’s...

As state after state has legalized marijuana in one way or another, big names in corporate America have stayed away entirely. Marijuana, after all, is still illegal, according to the federal government. But Microsoft is breaking the corporate taboo on pot this week by announcing a partnership to begin offering software that tracks marijuana plants from “seed to sale,” as the pot industry puts it. The software — a new product in Microsoft’s cloud computing business — is meant to help states that have legalized the medical or recreational use of marijuana keep tabs on sales and commerce, ensuring that...

During the keynote of the recent WWDC, Tim Cook argued that every child should be taught a programming language in school. Further, he argued that Apple's Swift programming language is the best choice for the programming language children should learn. He pointed out that SWIFT is open source, is used and useful for Apple developers, is very easy to learn, and creates very fast code In furtherance of the objective of teaching children SWIFT, Apple announced and demonstrated “Swift Playground” for the iPad. Swift Playground will allow the learner to use SWIFT statements to command turns and motion by a...

Today, I’m happy to announce the release of our user blocking feature. As one of the most requested features from commenters over the years, user blocking provides you with the ability to manage who you interact with on Disqus. Blocking someone removes their activity from your experience across the network. This means that you’ll no longer get notifications from them via email or in your Disqus Inbox, nor will you see discussions or comments by them in your Home feed or on discussion threads.

The web platform is capable of amazing things. Thanks to the ongoing hard work of standards bodies, browser vendors, and web developers, web standards are feature-rich and continuously improving. The WebKit project in particular emphasizes security, performance, and battery life when evaluating and implementing web standards. These standards now include most of the functionality needed to support rich media and interactive experiences that used to require legacy plug-ins like Adobe Flash. When Safari 10 ships this fall, by default, Safari will behave as though common legacy plug-ins on users’ Macs are not installed. On websites that offer both Flash and...

The Intel Management Engine (ME) is a subsystem composed of a special 32-bit ARC microprocessor that's physically located inside the chipset. It is an extra general purpose computer running a firmware blob that is sold as a management system for big enterprise deployments. When you purchase your system with a mainboard and Intel x86 CPU, you are also buying this hardware add-on: an extra computer that controls the main CPU. This extra computer runs completely out-of-band with the main x86 CPU meaning that it can function totally independently even when your main CPU is in a low power state like...

Microsoft is today closing off a vulnerability that one Chinese researcher claims has “probably the widest impact in the history of Windows.” Every version of the Microsoft operating system going back to Windows 95 is affected, leaving anyone still running unsupported operating systems, such as XP, in danger of being surreptitiously surveilled. According to Yang Yu, founder of Tencent’s Xuanwu Lab, the bug can be exploited silently with a “near-perfect success rate”, as the problems lie in the design of Windows. The ultimate impact? An attacker can hijack all a target’s web use, granting the hacker ”Big Brother power”, as...

Apple's success in China has been spectacular. Truly outstanding. But while the "Apple in China" story is usually told in terms of the rise (and now leveling off) of iPhone sales, it has been just as big a success in terms of brand building and customer capture. Apple today is known and pretty loved by China's increasingly wealthy urban middle class. And the company has a commanding position in the lucrative "affordable luxury" market segment. Apple’s success in rising consumer China is even better than its growth numbers imply. However... (you knew it was coming) While capturing Chinese consumers has...

There are scams aplenty out there on the internet, and I’ve already had fun investigating some. Today I’m going to tell you about a unique one involving PayPal that a reader recently told me about. Robert, a New York guy, tried to sell a very expensive Breitling Swiss watch. Because he wanted someone to buy it locally for cash, Robert listed it on Craigslist. Yes, I know, there’s a lot of nonsense that happens on that site. But that’s not where Robert encountered his problem. “You’d have thought I’d thrown bloody chum into the shark-infested waters,” Robert said. Even though...

The Microsoft Security Bulletin Critical fixes for Office, Internet Explorer, and Windows DNS Server highlight this month's edition of Patch Update Tuesday. The Redmond Windows slinger has kicked out 16 bulletins this month, five rated as "critical" and the remaining 11 considered "important" risks. [Detailed listing clipped, see comment] Not to be outdone, Adobe is also dumping a load of patches for the second Tuesday of the month. The Adobe patches include an actively targeted vulnerability in Flash and multiple updates for ColdFusion, Brackets, Creative Cloud desktop application and DNG SDK.

Monday night before I went to sleep I was watching the news and on my Note 5 going thru websites like Freep and others. I was on Twitter going thru the comments on #TrumpTrain & #Trump2016 I was at the Trump rally last weekend in Tampa and I posted some pictures to those two hashes. I noticed a message with #GayForTrump one one post and clicked to check it out. I started reading thru the messages posted.I was touched.There were gays that after last weekend saw that the Liberal Establishment has sold them out. Many of the posters from #TrumpTrain...

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