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May 27, 2020 by Vertical Axion
The latest release of iOS and iPadOS (13.5) is out, and contains the usual variety of bug fixes and modest improvements. In addition to the usual fare though, it also makes an important change to the way FaceID works for users wearing a mask. Also, it contains an important new COVID-19 Contact Tracing feature. Some […]
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May 26, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Recently, Google announced a change that should be a welcome relief to many users, especially those who surf primarily on laptops or handhelds. Beginning in late August, the browser will automatically unload ad iframes that soak up an excessive amount of computing resources. Advertising is, of course, ubiquitous on the web. There’s little you can […]
May 25, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Do you use SiteOrigin’s Pagebuilder plugin for WordPress? If so, you’ve got plenty of company. The intuitive, widget-based plugin has been installed more than a million times and is used by webmasters all over the world to create responsive grid pages for websites. Unfortunately, a pair of security flaws in the plugin’s code recently came […]
May 21, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Hackers who use ransomware to conduct their attacks have a new trick up their sleeves. A ransomware family has begun employing the tactic of not only demanding payment to unlock infected systems, but also demanding an additional payment. They’re demanding an extra payment to keep them from publishing copies of the files they stole before […]
May 20, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Google Meet is a video conferencing tool the company originally designed for Enterprise users. There are serious security issues with some of the more popular free or low-cost options available for the masses. So, Google made the decision to make Meet free to anyone with an email address. The rollout took two weeks to complete, […]
May 19, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Facebook recently released an intriguing research paper called “The Hateful Memes Challenge: Detecting Hate Speech in Multimodal Memes.” It’s well worth the read and a closer look at the database developed over the course of the research. The idea is simple: Use machine learning to help identify ‘mean’ and hateful memes. If such a tool […]
May 18, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Do you have a Chinese-made Xiaomi phone? If so, you should be aware that there is a security issue. According to research conducted by Forbes, the Mi Browser that comes built into the phone sends your internet searches to Xiaomi servers located in both Russia and Singapore. Worse, it sends search data associated with incognito […]
May 16, 2020 by Vertical Axion
A great many companies selling antivirus software have affiliate programs that help them expand their reach. Each time an affiliate sells a copy of the software, they get a cut. It’s a good business model used in a wide range of industries, and antivirus software companies have strict rules governing how their affiliates can market. […]
May 15, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Are you one of the million-plus website owners making use of Ninja Forms for WordPress? If so, be aware that the company has recently patched a serious security flaw that allowed hackers to inject malicious code and take over websites. The attack is accomplished via a Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) that leads to a Stored […]
May 14, 2020 by Vertical Axion
If you use Twitter on a regular basis, then you probably saw the official tweet from the company. Effective immediately, they’ve shut down the functionality that allowed users to tweet via SMS, something that has been a part of the platform since its earliest days. For the time being, the company is keeping SMS-based two-factor […]
May 11, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Are you working from home right now? If so, you’re certainly not alone. Tens of millions of people are doing the same, and there are untold millions around the world doing likewise. Working from home presents a host of new challenges, not the least of which is finding ways of communicating face to face without […]
May 9, 2020 by Vertical Axion
If you’re like a lot of people stuck at home during the pandemic, you probably ran out of Netflix titles to watch a couple of weeks ago. As a result, researchers have noted a huge surge in traffic to torrent sites as more and more people are drawn to downloading movies illegally in search of […]
May 8, 2020 by Vertical Axion
If you’re like a lot of people, right now, you’re doing what work you can from home. If that’s the case, you’ve probably noticed that your home WiFi network is struggling. The current signal spectrum is getting awfully crowded, and its beginning to impact performance. That’s exactly why the FCC recently approved a new connection […]
May 7, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Just about everyone in the country has been negatively impacted by the pandemic. That is why the government is sending relief via the Payment Protection Program, the stimulus program, and other programs. These programs are aimed directly at small and medium sized businesses to help keep them afloat until life can get back to normal. […]
May 6, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Microsoft recently re-reinvented its web browser. After finally giving up on bug-plagued Internet Explorer, the company introduced Microsoft Edge, which it hoped would take the internet community by storm. When that didn’t happen, they re-introduced Edge, this time as a Chromium-based browser, which essentially made it a Google Chrome clone. The company is clearly not […]
May 5, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Recently, Google announced they were making some important changes to their rules governing online ads. They’re adding verifications that they normally reserve for political advertisements,. This step is in a bid to combat what many industry experts are calling an ‘Infodemic’ of bad information, fake cures, and false hopes arising from the chaos surrounding the […]
May 4, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Microsoft Teams (which is the company’s Enterprise chat app) isn’t all business. Like most other chat apps, it allows those who use it to send amusing animated Gif images. Unfortunately, that proved to be problematic. Recently, researchers from CyberArk discovered a serious security issue with Teams that allowed hackers to exploit the Gif function to […]
May 2, 2020 by Vertical Axion
The more things change, the more they stay the same. When Apple released iOS 11 a few years back, the company had a serious issue revolving around text messages and foreign language character sets. In that earlier case, the problem revolved around a certain string of Sindhi characters that had the result of locking the […]
April 30, 2020 by Vertical Axion
If you have a home network, odds are good that you use a Linksys router. In fact, it’s a brand that a great many small and medium sized businesses rely on as well. With that in mind, be advised that recently, the company locked user accounts on its Smart WiFi cloud service. The company is […]
April 29, 2020 by Vertical Axion
A few new variants of the Agent Tesla info-stealer malware have been spotted in the wild and should be on your radar if they’re not already. The new variants are more dangerous than previous versions of the malware. They now sport a module that enables them to scrape WiFi passwords from devices they invest. That […]
April 27, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Microsoft’s Digital Crimes Unit (DCU) recently played an instrumental role in taking down a botnet made up of more than 400,000 devices. A botnet is a tool that hackers use to invade systems. The botnets were rented out to a variety of groups to conduct DDoS attacks, launch phishing campaigns, and deliver a variety of […]
April 24, 2020 by Vertical Axion
The Digital Security firm Inky reports that they’ve discovered a new, disturbing phishing campaign you should be aware of. The company has spotted a disturbing number of scam emails purporting to be from Mike Pence, the Vice President of the United States. The emails bear titles like “Coronavirus Guidelines for America.” It’s bad enough that […]
April 22, 2020 by Vertical Axion
WooCommerce is a WordPress-based, free plugin that makes it incredibly easy to sell just about anything online. With more than five million installations, it’s clearly a favorite on the web. Unfortunately, its popularity also makes it an easy target. Ben Martin and Willem de Groot are researchers with Sanguine Security. They found a new attack […]
April 21, 2020 by Vertical Axion
Big tech firms are lining up to help us get a better handle on the data concerning this pandemic. Data includes who has Covid-19 and how fast and far the virus is spreading around the country (and around the world). Recently, tech giants Apple and Google announced a partnership that will focus on the use […]
