Tuesday, April 24, 2018

The City of Atlanta spent at least $2.6 million on ransomware recovery.

Atlanta spent at least $2.6 million on ransomware recovery
The ransom was never paid because the payment portal was pulled offline by the attacker.

I wonder how much they spend on their IT support people and security software, obviously not enough.



Windows warning: Tech-support scammers are ramping up attacks, says Microsoft
Windows 10 security won't protect you from tech-support scammers' lies and trickery.






Wednesday, April 18, 2018

Chrome Browser 66 rolls out: Autoplay videos silenced by default and a slew of Bug patches


Chrome 66 mutes audio on autoplay video by default unless a user tends to watch video on a site with sound on.

One of the most annoying things I experience when using the internet is the autoplay videos that occur when visiting many sites.  Many times I want to READ the article in peace but there are these background ads or videos that I don't care to watch must less listen to.

In the more recent versions of Chrome, there was a Mute Site option that you could set for each individual website you visited by right-clicking on the Chrome browser tab for the site and selecting Mute Site.  That allowed you to permanently block sound on a site by site basis.  That was a big help, however, have you ever had many instances of Chrome open, needing most of them and all of a sudden sound starts playing and it's difficult to track which tab is playing the video or ad.  I have had to shut down all before, very annoying.

Starting with Chrome 66, it is now an option to block unexpected video playback by default on the first visit to a site.

Google is accomplishing this using technology called MEI, Media Engagement Index.

The MEI gauges users' tendency to consume media on a site and will allow sites to ignore the rule if the user's engagement passes a certain threshold.

In addition to adding this outstanding feature, Chrome 66 brings 62 security patches for previously found bugs.  Google paid $34,000 to researchers who found and reported bugs.  

To read this and more visit;


To download Chrome 66 visit, http://chrome.com  download and install Chrome!

Once you have installed it you can check your version by clicking on Settings in the upper left corner of the Chrome browser,
and select About Chrome.

You can check your Advanced settings by clicking on the 3 vertical dots on the right side of  the Chrome Browser,


and then under Advanced Settings, Privacy and Security, Content settings,




here are some of the sites that I blocked with the previous version;



Remember Safe Surfing!


In addition to the above, here are Five tricks to make Google Chrome faster and better;



Wednesday, April 11, 2018

Intel 8th Gen vs 7th Gen CPUs: Kaby Lake Refresh Is a Lot Faster

The introduction of the new Gen 8 Intel Core series processors has significantly increased the performance of computers.  The number of cores (processors) for all lines has been increased,

the Core i3 has increased from 2 to 4 cores, the Core i5 and Core i7 chips have gone from 4 cores to 6 cores and the enhancements are noticeable in Microsoft Office applications.

Spreadsheets

If you're crunching large spreadsheets with Excel, you want 8th Gen Core. When we ran a macro that matches 65,000 names with their addresses, the 7th Gen-powered Swift 3 finished in 2 minutes and 36 seconds while the new model completed the same task in just 1:32, a 70 percent improvement. The 8th Gen-powered XPS 13 was even quicker, finishing the macro in 1:08, compared to the 7th Gen-powered model's 2:30., a 55 percent jump.


to read about all the improvements and benchmark tests visit:

https://www.laptopmag.com/articles/kaby-lake-refresh-8th-gen-vs-7th-gen

Monday, April 9, 2018

Facebook to let you know if your data was shared with Cambridge Analytica

According to a news report by CNBC, starting today, Monday 04/09/18,  Facebook will display a link at the top of your news feed call "protecting your information."  If your data was shared with Cambridge Analytica, a message above that link will let you know.

So far this a.m. I am yet to see this on my Facebook page.

Facebook disclosed last week that 87 million users' data possibly was compromised.

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/04/09/facebook-to-notify-users-if-data-was-shared-with-cambridge-analytica.html

One thing I did find interesting on my Facebook page was an item called Photo Review which had an alert on it.  I clicked on it and there was a photo which I was in attending a BJJ tournament this spring.  I do not know the person but Facebook had identified me standing in the crowd.



Photo Review shows you photos you might be in, which are found using face recognition technology. 

Now that's some scary stuff.

Other tech news you may want to read,

Facebook disclosed last week that 87 million users' data possibly was compromised.


and this...

A group of protestor's called 'Raging Grannies' have been protesting outside Facebook's HQs.  Not making this up, hahaha!!!!!!





Avoid Windows 10 crapware: How to get rid of Candy Crush and all the rest



The End of Windows
Posted on Monday, April 2, 2018

https://stratechery.com/2018/the-end-of-windows/?utm_source=hackernewsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_term=fav




 8x8 Cloud PBX

Thursday, April 5, 2018

Windows 10 Spring Creators Update - Act fast if you want to DELAY this big upgrade

In the next few weeks, Microsoft will start rolling out the first of two planned major updates in 2018 for Windows 10.  The upcoming update is dubbed the Spring Creators Update and could be available as soon as April 10th.

I am a big proponent of installing updates so that your machine has the latest patches and bug fixes for security sake, however, Windows Updates can be painfully slow and in some cases break your computer.  Another issue is updates are given without warning.  I can't tell you how many times I have been in the process of shutting down my notebook to rush to another client and have received the message, "Installing updates, do not turn off computer".  The new version is supposed to address this along with other issues.  However, if you wish to delay please read the following.

Each time Microsoft rolls out a major upgrade to Windows 10, you have the option to wait a few months before you install it on PCs running Windows 10 Pro or Enterprise. But you have to act quickly.

https://www.zdnet.com/article/windows-10-spring-creators-update-act-fast-to-delay-this-big-upgrade/

I'll give you 3 other examples of my own personal Windows update woes that may give you further reason to delay the planned update.

1.  When I installed last Fall's Creators update on my desktop, I ended up reinstalling Windows 10 & all software after winding up with a mouse cursor, black screens (no icons) and no way to roll back with no solution in sight.

2.  I updated my notebook last week and when finished I had a bubble and unuseable mouse on the screen.  Upon investigating I learned I was not alone, it is an issue with touchscreen computers.  I had to disable my touchscreen to be able to use my notebook.  I am still waiting for a solution to that problem.

3.  Spent 3 hours at my CPA Tuesday updating his computer which was way behind on updates including Fall Creator update.  He had been thwarted from updating his computer by an issue with a  long gone version of Neo 8, disc burning software.  After finding and deleting all references to Neo in the registry and on his hard drives we were ready to update.  Well 1 hour and 45 minutes later his system finished updating and we were out of time to finish my taxes.  Reschedule for this Sunday at 2 pm, at least I have some time to offset his bill.  In hindsight I would have scheduled his computer to update that night but since he had been so long without Windows update working. he wanted to be sure it would update.


Version 1803, coming soon to a Windows 10 PC near you is supposed to help address some of the above issues.

"One of the most common complaints about earlier feature updates is that the update arrives unexpectedly and commandeers the system for an hour or more, usually at a time when the PC's owner is unprepared for it."

This update addresses that complaint in two ways.

First, there are additional options to warn that the update is about to be installed, with options to schedule the installation for a convenient time.


Second, most of the update takes place in the background, which means that the visible port will take less time and allow you to get back to work more quickly.

To read more about these improvements and for a list of improvements and new features please read;

https://www.zdnet.com/pictures/whats-new-in-windows-10-version-1803-the-spring-creators-update/2/


Panera Bread’s data leak might affect more than 37 million customers

It’s getting to the point where no matter what kind of business you conduct, there is a very real risk of seeing your personal information leaked to nefarious parties. So far, hackers have gained access to banking, credit reporting, health insurance, email, and seemingly just about every other modern circumstance where your data is saved in a database. The latest: That soup and salad you ordered online at Panera Bread might have cost you some peace of mind.

Customer data may have been exposed for as long as 8 months before Panera Bread acknowledged the breach.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/leemathews/2018/04/04/panera-bread-exposed-data-on-millions-of-customers-for-8-long-months/nth#217483cc2242

Sears Holding, Delta Air hit by customer data breach at Tech firm

On a smaller scale, both Sears Holding and Delta Air announced data hacks of customer information.  Sears said that less than 100,000 of its customers were affected by the unauthorized access of credit card data.

The breach was supposed to have happened on or after Sept. 26, 2017, discovered and stopped on Oct. 12 according
Both firms used the same technology firm { 24}7.ai for online support services.  The firm was hit by a cybersecurity incident which exposed the customer payment info of their customers.  The firm also provides services to KMart and other customers.  Sears said its stores and internal systems were not affected.

and finally some good news,

IBM says breached records dropped by nearly 25 percent to 2.9 billion last year

https://www.zdnet.com/article/ibm-says-breached-records-dropped-by-nearly-25-percent-to-2-9-billion-last-year/


Korean cryptocurrency exchange boss arrested for fraud

Cryptocurrency continues to fall, Bitcoin now below $7,000 and Ethereum sub $400.  South Korean authorities arrest Coinnest head for embezzlement and fraud. The arrest follows the prosecutors' raid last month of three cryptocurrency exchanges at Yeouido, South Korea's equivalent of the US' Wall Street.

https://www.zdnet.com/article/korean-cyrptocurrency-exchange-boss-arrested-for-fraud/


Intel Generation 8 processors.

Did you know that the biggest advancement in processors occurred with the latest release of the Intel Generation 8 lineup?

Entry level Core i3s now have 4 core processors vs 2 in Gen 7.

Core i5s and Core i7s have 6 core processors vs 4 in previous generations.

Call Driving Force today about upgrading your computers, www.drivingforce.net




Say it's not so! Windows 12 is coming in 2024. Apple iPhone malware/exploits.

Windows 12 is coming soon in 2024 I've read too many emails and articles hinting at a new Windows in the months leading up to 2024 and n...