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October 21, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Since Google introduced Google Analytics back in 2005, it has become the industry standard. A simple, free method of getting a bird’s eye view into who’s searching for what on the internet. Millions of business owners around the world rely on Google Analytics to make informed decisions about how to position and present the products […]
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October 20, 2020 by Vertical Axion
The year 2020 could well be described as the Year of Ransomware. Security researchers around the globe who monitor such things have noted a sharp uptick in the use of ransomware this year, with well known threats like REvil, Ryuk, and Maze being the most common variants deployed by hackers. That’s bad enough by itself, […]
October 17, 2020 by Vertical Axion
What do you primarily use your PC for? It’s a more important question than you might think, because different use cases for your PC require it to be configured in different ways to optimize your user experience. Until now, that’s something that each individual user has attended to, making tweaks as necessary to the core […]
October 16, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Do you own a newer HP laptop? If so, do you make use of the HP Battery Health Manager? If you don’t know what that is, then the answer to the second question is probably no, but you’re about to find out what it is. Windows has partnered with HP, and has released an update […]
October 15, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Hackers are relentless when it comes to testing the boundaries of software for potential weaknesses to exploit. It seems that an unknown group of hackers has found a new one. Based on what researchers at Malwarebytes are seeing, a group of hackers has developed a new fileless attack technique designed to abuse Microsoft’s WER (Windows […]
October 14, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Security researchers at Netlab have recently reported on their discovery of a terrifying new botnet on the web. Dubbed HEH, this botnet is a different sort of threat. Unlike most others, this one is not designed to launch DDOS attacks or install malicious code. Its purpose is much simpler, and it only does two things. […]
October 12, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Do you have a solid state drive (SSD) inside your PC? An increasing percentage of newer models are including them, taking advantage of their better speeds, relative to HDDs. Unfortunately, a recent Microsoft Windows 10 update wasn’t very kind to SSD owners, and caused SSDs to defrag much more frequently than is recommended, which had […]
October 10, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Hackers have long used the lure of software cracks to infect unsuspecting users, but recently, a new group is making waves and finding significant success in using the Exorcist 2.0 ransomware to lock a user’s files and extort them. It’s a nasty combination. The user thinks he’s getting a free unlock for some piece of […]
October 9, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Does your business rely on QNAP NAS storage devices? If so, be aware that the company recently issued an advisory, stating that an unknown group of hackers has begun targeting them specifically with ransomware attacks. The advisory reads, in part, as follows: “QNAP Product Security Incident Response Team (PSIRT) has found evidence that the ransomware […]
October 8, 2020 by Vertical Axion
If you’re a fan of the luxury fashion brand Louis Vuitton, be advised that the company recently and quietly fixed an issue on their website that may have been exploited by hackers before the company became aware of it. The problem was discovered by independent researcher Sabri Haddouche, who, following proper responsible reporting protocols, reached […]
October 7, 2020 by Vertical Axion
If you use both Facebook and Instagram, either personally or in the conduct of your business, then a recent Facebook announcement regarding interoperability will make you smile. The company has been working for years toward the goal of greater interoperability among all of its core services and this is a huge step in that direction. […]
October 6, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Reading PDFs on a smartphone can be a lesson in frustration. Even at full-screen width, most smartphone display screens are just too small to display it comfortably, which inevitably results in some awkward scrolling as you try to read whatever information the PDF contains. That’s about to change. Recently, Adobe rolled out a new AI-based […]
October 3, 2020 by Vertical Axion
The Coronavirus pandemic has changed a number of things about how the world works. One of the bigger and more noticeable changes is, of course, the fact that so many people are working from home these days. They’re relying on video conferencing software in lieu of face to face meetings. This year, Google and Microsoft […]
October 2, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Do you use the Strava app when you run or bike? If so, it may be sharing your personal information in ways you hadn’t expected. Andrew Seward, the head of Data and Product Development at Experian was out for a morning run when he noticed something so unusual that he felt compelled to tweet about it. […]
October 1, 2020 by Vertical Axion
You may not be familiar with the name Luxottica, but the Italian-based eyewear manufacturer is the largest company of its kind in the world. It has popular brands such as Ferrari, Michael Kors, Ray-Ban, Armani, Coach, and others in its expansive portfolio. Unfortunately, the company recently found itself on the receiving end of a ransomware […]
September 30, 2020 by Vertical Axion
There’s a new threat actor on the hacking world stage, going by the name “OldGremlin”, and they’re causing some serious damage to corporate networks around the world. The group’s malware campaign seems to have begun back in March of this year (2020) and for the moment, at least, is centered in Russia. Of course, it […]
September 29, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Hackers aren’t picky when it comes to target selection, and no one is safe. Unfortunately, that includes the Department of Veterans Affairs, which recently disclosed that a hacker successfully breached their system and made off with personal information belonging to more than 46,000 veterans served by the department. According to the official breach notification, the […]
September 28, 2020 by Vertical Axion
If you’re a customer of US retail chain Staples, you may have recently received a notification from the company regarding a problem with their Order Tracking system. According to information in the notification, the data was left exposed due to insufficient protections of the data stream accessed when a customer clicked to review their current […]
September 26, 2020 by Vertical Axion
If you’re more than a casual gamer, you’re probably already quite familiar with Nvidia, one of the industry’s leaders when it comes to graphics cards. Recently, the company announced a massive $40 billion deal that should push the tech giant to new heights. Nvidia has been in talks for months with Arm Holdings, Ltd. ARM […]
September 23, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Do you have a smartphone, tablet, laptop or a “smart” device in your home? Or perhaps the better question is, how many of those devices do you have? Whatever your number is, be aware that researchers have unearthed a potentially devastating Bluetooth flaw that leaves billions of devices all over the planet vulnerable. The recently […]
September 21, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Are you a regular Chrome user? If so, you’ve got yet another reason to love the most popular browser in the world. Recently, Google announced the pending rollout of another new feature designed to minimize the use of your CPU’s resources. The coming update will evaluate the resource load requirements of web-based ads on every […]
September 19, 2020 by Vertical Axion
One of the more common complaints people have about mobile devices is the fact that it’s still harder than it should be to do certain kinds of work. Manipulating spreadsheets on a mobile device, for example, can be a lesson in frustration. If that’s something you’ve experienced firsthand, and if you’re a Microsoft 365 user […]
September 18, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Do you have a solid- state drive (SSD)? If so, you’re probably aware that recent builds of Windows 10 have introduced an unexpected issue. It causes the automatic maintenance feature of the OS to kick in and defragment SSDs much more frequently than they should be, which greatly reduces their useful lives. The way the […]
September 17, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Recently, Intel released a very important update designed to address nine separate security flaws in their chipsets as part of their September 2020 Platform Update. Of the flaws addressed by this fix, one of them is a critical issue revolving around the company’s Active Management Technology (AMT) and Intel Standard Manageability platforms. That’s important because […]