Among other things, the browser would offer security features like a VPN and secure cloud storage. The idea is to appeal to customers who require a little extra while opening another revenue stream. “We were founded on the belief that the internet should be open and accessible to all. A high-performing, free and private-by-default Firefox browser will continue to be central to our core service offerings,” said Beard. “We also recognize that there are consumers who want access to premium offerings, and we can serve those users too without compromising the development and reach of the existing products and services that Firefox users know and love....

Specifically, this IE flaw is located in the scripting engine of the browsers. Microsoft has the vulnerability has already been exploited in the wild. Named CVE-2019-1429, Microsoft describes the big as a remote execution flaw caused by “the way that the scripting engine handles objects in memory in Internet Explorer.” As this is a scripting bug, it extends beyond Internet Explorer and also into Office apps to help them display web content....

In this case, up-to-date means installing the latest security updates. Microsoft has patched its older platforms to protect against BlueKeep, but many users have not updated. BlueKeep is a dangerous vulnerability because it can be executed by bad actors remotely. It is located in Remote Desktop Services on older Windows legacy builds such as Windows 7, Windows XP, AND Server 2003 and 2008. “This [bug] would have the potential of a global WannaCry-level event,” said Chris Goettl, director of product management for security at Ivanti, during Patch Tuesday....

However, he later left Facebook after a controversy surrounding his contributions to an anti-Hillary Clinton campaign. Following a negative fallout, Luckey stepped down to pursue other projects. It now appears Luckey has put the inventor hat on one more, and it aligns somewhat with his political stance. The VR pioneer is working on a tech that sources say would use infrared cameras and sensors to monitor border crossings. In essence, it could be a high-tech, cheaper solution to Trump’s wall....

This information comes from Petri’s Brad Sams, who spoke with several sources at the companies in question and tested the theory for himself. At least some OEM devices are shipping with Windows 10 1803. The issue, according to sources, is that there wasn’t enough time to test the hardware of these devices with 1803. They were always planned to line up with Microsoft’s release schedule, shipping with 1809, the October 2018 update....

However, it is not the lenders themselves who were targeted. Instead, threat actors successfully breached Nelnet Servicing. Based in Lincoln, Nebraska, this is the servicing system and web portal provider for both EdFinancial and OSLA. NelNet Servicing sent a breach disclosure letter to loan customers who were affected by the breach. This letter was sent July 21, 2022 and highlighted how an investigation was underway: “[Our] cybersecurity team took immediate action to secure the information system, block the suspicious activity, fix the issue, and launched[sic] an investigation with third-party forensic experts to determine the nature and scope of the activity,” the letter reads....

We have previously reported on the potential of Snapdragon 850 to solve a problem for Microsoft. Currently, Qualcomm uses its mobile flagship processors for Always Connected PCs. The first generation of Windows 10 on ARM devices have been available since the start of the year. Unfortunately, reviews for Always Connected PCs have not been kind. Much of the problem lies with the Snapdragon 835, a chipset designed for mobile phones, not for laptops....

Qualcomm previously displayed its technology for under-screen finger reading tech as Mobile World Congress (MWC) back in March. Now, Chinese company Vivo has become the first to implement the technology into a handset. Vivo is among the Chinese companies that thrives on delivering super-spec’d hardware, even if quality sometime lacks. The company has released a video to show how the under-screen fingerprint tech has been implemented in is new XPlay 6 smartphone....

“On Friday, Dec 2, 2022, we became aware of an issue impacting our Hosted Exchange environment. We proactively powered down and disconnected the Hosted Exchange environment while we triaged to understand the extent and the severity of the impact. After further analysis, we have determined that this is a security incident.” Rackspace points out that this breach is “isolated to a portion” of its Microsoft Exchange services. However, the outage persisted for several days, with updates on December 3 and December 4 saying the company is still tackling the problem....

Canonical, the parent company of Ubuntu, has announced the launch of Skype as a snap app. The move to a universal package will make it accessible to more Linux distros, including Mint, Debian, Arch Linux, OpenSUSE, Manjaro, Solus, and more. “We’re delighted to welcome Skype to the snaps ecosystem,” said Jamie Bennett, VP of Engineering, Devices & IoT. “Skype, and the ever-growing number of snaps it joins, looks to put the Linux user first, allowing them to enjoy the latest versions upon release and provide a wider range of applications for users to choose from....

As mentioned, this is Skype Insider Preview, so is available to testers at the moment. This cross-platform update bumps the Skype experience to version 8.35.76.65 and comes with one significant addition. Microsoft now allows Skype users to disable incoming video calls. Some users simply never engage in video calls, while others may use the feature to save data or to make audio call quality better. You may notice there is one Skype version missing from the list of platforms receiving version 8....

Slack has integrated Microsoft OneDrive and Azure Active Directory for some time. Now the company is going all-in with Office 365 support. It’s a good move for Slack, which can now present a more even productivity level as Microsoft (although not all Office 365 integrations are available). As for Microsoft, it moves into an ever-increasing win-win situation. The company’s Microsoft Teams is thriving and now its productivity tools are available on a major competitor....

Despite showing prototypes of the hardware but kept details to a minimum. We do know the Surface Neo will run Windows 10X, a new SKU that is also known as Windows 10 Core OS (WCOS). As for the Surface Duo, it was more surprising as Microsoft confirmed it is an Android device. Elsewhere, the Duo boasts a pair of 5.6-inch screens that can be opened to 8.3-inches combined. Aside from that, information on the devices has been limited....

Consumer advocacy site Which asked its members whether they have experienced issues with Windows 10 updates. The results show 50% of respondents have had problems, and some were serious. 1,100 people were surveyed, with 21% pointing to software compatibility as the root of the issue they faced. 16% had hardware problems do deal with, such as keyboard malfunctions or other peripherals not working. Some users also reported their machines simply failed to work post update....

Adam Podgorski and Milind Bhargava, Deloitte Canada researchers, conducted separate research. Both found they could scoop user’s data from three Tor Exit Nodes and create user profiles. Tor is noted for its apparent encryption and Exit Nodes encrypt traffic on the network before it goes online. The researchers say Tor is moving the unencrypted data online without users known. Podgorski and Bhargava say this unencrypted traffic is 5 percent from iOS but 95 percent from Android....

However, we still see that Microsoft wants Xbox to serve has an entertainment hub for users. So, the more apps and services available through the Xbox Dashboard, the better for Microsoft’s vision. That means it is good news all-round that Twitch streaming is now coming back to the Xbox dashboard. You may remember Twitch was first made available on the dashboard for the Xbox One in 2014. It then disappeared from the dashboard, although the Twitch app remained....

It seems that developers are increasingly finding efficient ways for Linux to run on machines meant for Windows 10 on ARM. Specifically, the HP Envy x2, Asus NovaGo, and Lenovo Miix 630 Always Connected PC models. These devices are the first to gain the rewards of the AArch64 Laptop project, which brings Ubuntu installs for the machines. Currently, the Linux fork is only available as a pre-built image with some significant limitations....

However, it also introduces a feature developers have been requesting for some time: portable mode. The addition forces all data created by Visual Studio Code to live near the application. As a result, it’s far easier for developers to continue where they left off on another device. You can run your VS Code setup directly from a USB thumb drive or file share. The July 2018 update also introduces a grid editor layout for the app, meaning you can tile more than 3 editors side-by-side....

AppleInsider originally claimed the company will stop using Windows 10 PCs and push employees to use Macs. This would have been a big loss for Microsoft. Walmart is one of the biggest companies in the world and 100,000 employees would have ditched Windows. The initial report suggested Walmart made the announcement at the Kamf Nation User Conference. The world’s largest Apple-oriented IT event would be a good place for such a reveal....

Windows 10 lets you use Cortana to translate sentences, words, or phrases, with the results read back to you automatically. This makes it particularly useful for group scenarios, but you can also type if you’re unsure about pronunciation. Translating with Cortana doesn’t always produce perfect results and will in many cases depend on your individual scenario. Factors like the language you’re translating in, accent, and complexity can all affect whether the assistant hears you correctly....