IT Executive news

• Competing hackers dampen the power of Mirai botnets

  08-11-2016 22:46
  The malware behind last month's massive distributed denial-of-service attack in the U.S. appears to be losing its potency. Ironically, hackers are to blame for diluting its power.  
  The malware known as Mirai -- which is now available on the internet -- has become a bit too popular in the hacking community, according to security firm Flashpoint.
  Competing hackers have all been trying to take advantage of Mirai to launch new DDoS attacks. To do so, that means infecting the poorly
  
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• Tableau to launch visual data-prep software

  08-11-2016 22:21
  
  Tableau is moving into the data-wrangling business, announcing plans for visual data-preparation software code-named Project Maestro.
  The idea is to bring the same sort of "self-service" visualization to the prepping and cleaning of data as they've built for data analysis, Dan Jewett, Tableau vice president of product management, told Tableau's user conference this morning. "Maestro is going to make data preparation a breeze."
  The software is expected to be available "later next year."
  In a bri
  
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• Self-driving car startup now valued at $1.5B

  08-11-2016 22:21
  
  Zoox Labs, a two-year-old Silicon Valley company that like Alphabet and Apple is developing a self-driving car from the ground up, has scored another $50 million in funding, bringing its total to $240 million, according to published reports.
  The latest round of funding for the Menlo Park, Calif., startup raises its market value to a staggering $1.55 billion, according to the Wall Street Journal, even before it has put a single vehicle on the road.
  Zoox, which is currently in "stealth" mode, rep
  
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• Google: Cloud won't require customers to worry about infrastructure

  08-11-2016 22:09
  
  Google infrastructure czar Urs Hölzle is focused on a cloud future where customers don't think about the infrastructure underlying all of the workloads they're running.In his view, one of the key advantages of the cloud is that customers can get the benefits of new hardware without having to completely rework their software."So that means you can have a million customers who move to that new hardware platform, not knowing they did," he said Tuesday at the Structure Conference in San Francis
  
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• Microsoft fixes Windows flaw that Google divulged

  08-11-2016 22:02
  
  Microsoft today patched a Windows vulnerability that was disclosed just over a week ago by researchers from Alphabet Inc.'s Google.
  In one of several security updates -- 14 to be exact -- Microsoft fixed the bug in the Windows kernel drivers that Google security engineers had revealed on Oct. 31, 10 days after notifying Microsoft of the vulnerability.
  Microsoft credited Neel Mehta and Billy Leonard of Google's Threat Analysis Group for reporting the flaw. Last week, the two said that because th
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: IT leaders: you don’t have to be the business

  08-11-2016 21:45
  
  “The greatest ability in business is to get along with others and influence their actions.” – John HancockIt’s a common refrain these days: in order to gain the respect and support of their C-suite colleagues, IT leaders need to "be the business." It’s a handy mantra for many executives who either work for companies that don’t truly understand technology’s importance to their success or need to buttress their own shaky self-confidence.Who is "the busines
  
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• 26% off Western Digital 2TB My Passport Ultra Portable External Hard Drive - Deal Alert

  08-11-2016 21:26
  
  If you're looking for a ton of portable storage at a rock bottom price, you may want to consider this deal currently available on Amazon. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars from nearly 6,200 people (read reviews), this Western Digital external hard drive features fast USB 3.0 connectivity, is compatible with both PC and Mac, has optional 256-bit AES hardware encryption, automatic cloud backup, and comes with a 3-year warranty. List price is $119.99 but with the current 26% discount you can buy it now for
  
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• Samsung embroiled in South Korean political scandal

  08-11-2016 21:17
  
  South Korean investigators on Tuesday raided the offices of Samsung Electronics, as part of a probe into alleged political corruption at the highest levels of that country’s government.
  The administration of President Park Guen-hye – who is South Korea’s first female president, and the daughter of former President Park Chung-hee – has been rocked by allegations of influence peddling centered on a mysterious figure said to have influenced policy decisions in exchange for
  
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• Nvidia's Pascal GPUs reach the cloud via IBM and Nimbix

  08-11-2016 21:17
  
  Google, Amazon, and Facebook can magically recognize images and voices, thanks to superfast servers equipped with GPUs in their mega data centers.But not all companies can afford that level of resources for deep learning, so they turn to cloud services, where servers in remote data centers do the heavy lifting.Microsoft has made such cloud services trendy with Azure and is one of the few companies offering remote servers with GPUs, which excel in machine-learning tasks. But Azure uses
  
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• In presidential campaign, Twitter was a powerful political tool

  08-11-2016 20:32
  
  The contentious presidential election lit up Twitter with users posting more than 1 billion tweets about the election since the Republican debates began in August 2015.
  “This has been called the Twitter Election, with every step of the campaign playing out in Tweets from voters, candidates, and journalists,” wrote Bridget Coyne, Twitter's senior manager of government and politics, in a blog post.
  That 1 billion tweets figure, however, was reported Monday night – the eve of the
  
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• Samsung apologizes for the exploding Note7 with a full-page ad

  08-11-2016 18:17
  
  In an effort to show full contrition for the Note7 debacle, Samsung took out a full-page ad in three newspapers Tuesday to apologize.
  The ad appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post. The letter is attributed to Gregory Lee, the president and CEO of Samsung Electronics North America.Rurik Bradbury
  Samsung is really sorry that its phones are blowing up. To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
  
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• Web of Trust browser extensions yanked after proving untrustworthy

  08-11-2016 18:01
  
  Well this is bad.
  Earlier in November, a report out of Germany claimed the popular Web of Trust (WoT) browser add-on was selling its users’ browser histories to third-parties without properly anonymizing the data, resulting in the personal identification of Web of Trust users. There was also some debate over whether the company behind WoT (WOT Services) properly informed its users of data collection actions performed by the extension.
  Web of Trust's web of trust was broken. Following the
  
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• 15% off LifeStraw Personal Water Filter - Deal Alert

  08-11-2016 17:51
  
  Having a LifeStraw Personal Water Filter at hand provides access to clean, safe drinking water whenever needed.  Weighing only 2 oz. (54g), LifeStraw is the perfect water filter for hiking and camping. LifeStraw uses advanced 0.2 micron hollow fiber membrane technology.  This highly efficient method of filtration requires no chemicals, batteries, or moving parts and can be easily backflushed to clean the filter. Perfect for a vehicle or home emergency kit.  The LifeStraw aver
  
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• After protest, Lenovo brings Linux compatibility to Yoga 900 and 900S

  08-11-2016 17:16
  
  Lenovo created a stir when it said the Yoga 900 and 900S hybrids would work only with Windows, not Linux. The company has now changed its stance, bringing Linux support to those PCs.The PC maker earlier this month issued a BIOS update so Linux can be loaded on Yoga 900, 900S and IdeaPad 710 models.The BIOS update adds an AHCI (Advance Host Controller Interface) SATA controller mode so users can load Linux on the laptops.This is a Linux-only BIOS, meaning it should be used only by those who want
  
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• Aon beefs up its cyber insurance portfolio with acquisition

  08-11-2016 16:54
  
  Cyberattacks against Target, Home Depot, Sony and several other large companies have galvanized what was a formerly niche cyber insurance market. As a result of those high-profile breaches, corporatedemand for policies that hedge against hackers has soared.Seizing on this opportunity, Aon last month acquired Stroz Friedberg, adding incident response and other capabilities to its portfolio of cybersecurity assessment and risk transfer services. Aon further plans to round its portfolio with risk a
  
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• BrandPost: Is There any Risk Associated with Outsourcing IT?

  08-11-2016 16:15
  
  As more IT leaders rely on outsourced application development, operational resources, and more, the importance of governing and securing privileged access has grown dramatically, especially in light of recent massive data breaches.Protecting against the leading attack vector — compromised credentials — is an important consideration when outsourcing IT functionality. Traditional privileged identity management solutions require organizations to create and manage identities for outsourc
  
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• 5 screen-sharing apps offer easy collaboration

  08-11-2016 15:59
  
  5 collaboration apps worth a lookImage by ThinkstockThe modern office has changed drastically in the last 10 years, which means the way we collaborate has evolved as well. Whether your company has remote workers, international offices or employees who are always on the road, you need fast and easy ways to stay connected. There are plenty of apps that promise to help you collaborate with colleagues, whether you need basic messaging, video chat, remote access or screen-share capabilities. We previ
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: Review: iPhone 7 Plus camera

  08-11-2016 15:54
  
  Apple must be very happy indeed with sales of its flagship iPhone 7 Plus phone. So far the larger iPhone has been outselling its smaller sibling by a ratio of two to one.One of the biggest selling points of the iPhone 7 Plus is its camera. The larger version of the iPhone gets a dual camera system that is not available in the smaller iPhone 7. But how good is the iPhone 7 Plus’ camera?Despite getting a ton of media attention, it’s hard to find a review that is solely about the camera
  
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• Android patches fix Drammer RAM attack, but not Dirty Cow exploit

  08-11-2016 15:46
  
  Google released a new monthly batch of security patches for Android, fixing a dozen critical vulnerabilities that could allow attackers to compromise devices. One of the mitigated issues is a bit-flipping attack against memory chips that could lead to privilege escalation, but a more widespread rooting vulnerability in the Linux kernel remains unpatched.While Google releases firmware updates for its Nexus and Pixel devices on the first Monday of every month, the security patches are shared with
  
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• 4 cheap and easy ways to speed up home Wi-Fi

  08-11-2016 15:42
  
  If you’re like many consumers, you’re watching more video and streaming more music on more devices than ever. And if you are, you may have noticed that video streams are stuttering and web pages, particularly on your smartphone, are taking forever to load. If that’s the case, there’s a good chance that the root of the problem is a Wi-Fi network that simply can’t handle the demands of all those bandwidth-hungry apps and devices.“We’re seeing reports that
  
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• Beware dodgy data analysis

  08-11-2016 15:41
  
  Data science is having its 15 minutes of fame.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here(Insider Story)
  
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• French plan for biometric database of 60 million people sparks outcry

  08-11-2016 14:51
  
  When the French government quietly announced, in the middle of a holiday weekend, the merging of two files to create a megadatabase holding the biometrics of almost 60 million French citizens, it was clearly hoping to avoid an outcry.
  It failed.
  Among those lining up to criticize the government's move are its own minister of state for the Digital Sector and Innovation, and the National Digital Council, a body created by the government to provide independent recommendations on all matters relati
  
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• How to crack the coding challenge

  08-11-2016 14:27
  
  Even for the most seasoned software engineer or developer with a background education in computer science or engineering, completing a coding challenge or a technical screening can be nerve-wracking. Now, imagine you’re a self-taught developer -- the anxiety levels skyrocket.
  But formal education in computer science, software programming and/or engineering is not mandatory, and in the current IT talent war, the need for those credentials is diminishing further. Many self-taught coders are
  
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• 7 steps to start a bug bounty program

  08-11-2016 12:44
  
  A new approachImage by ThinkstockVulnerability assessment and identification strategies have evolved to include the concept of crowd sourced security testing through bug bounty programs. While bug bounty programs have been used for over 20 years, widespread adoption by enterprise organizations has just begun to take off within the last few. The bug bounty path, paved by tech giants, is widening, enabling security teams of all sizes to create and manage robust security assessment programs, get a
  
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• AI makes security systems more flexible

  08-11-2016 12:35
  
  Advances in machine learning are making security systems easier to train and more flexible in dealing with changing conditions, but not all use cases are benefitting at the same rate.
  Machine learning, and artificial intelligence, has been getting a lot of attention lately and there's a lot of justified excitement about the technology.
  One of the side effects is that pretty much everything is now being relabeled as "machine learning," making the term extremely difficult to pin down. Just as the
  
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• The next MacBook Pro could sport Intel's new 3D XPoint SSD

  08-11-2016 12:01
  
  If Apple sticks with its typical 12-to 18-month refresh for the MacBook Pro line, Intel's Optane solid state drives (SSDs) stand a good chance of being used in the next generation computers.
  Why is that noteworthy? Because Optane SSDs are purported to have 1,000 times the performance of typical flash drives.
  When Intel's new storage technology does arrive, it will be compatible with the newest PCIe SSDs that use the NVM Express (NVMe) or Non-Volatile Memory Host Controller Interface Specif
  
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• Make your emails more trusted with DKIM

  08-11-2016 12:00
  
  The war against spam has been a long one. Just as we get better filtering, spammers and phishers turn to more sophisticated techniques. We are even seeing ransomware attacks like Cryptolocker and Cryptowall become commonly spread over email. There must be a technical way to stop some of this, right?Getting DKIM set up with Microsoft Exchange ServerTo read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here(Insider Story)
  
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• JavaScript insiders predict its future features

  08-11-2016 12:00
  
  At one time, JavaScript evolved slowly. But its pace of evolution has stepped up considerably, particularly with last year's ECMAScript 2015 specification. In the coming years, developers could see innovations like a type system and multithreading.
  In a discussion on JavaScript at the QCon conference in San Francisco on Monday, Stefan Penner and Jafar Husain elaborated on what they see potentially happening with JavaScript. Penner and Husain are both insiders key to the ECMAScript specification
  
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• Grassley criticizes university over its IT offshoring

  08-11-2016 12:00
  
  A political backlash is growing over a plan by the University of California, San Francisco, to shift IT jobs overseas. The school is hiring an India-based IT services contractor, and IT workers are expecting to train their foreign replacements.
  Several lawmakers have written letters questioning the university's plan, including Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa), chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, which oversees immigration.
  "It is clear that the University is seeking to replace American wo
  
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• Facebook is bringing artsy neural networks to a phone near you

  08-11-2016 11:00
  
  Facebook users will be able to record smartphone videos that ape the style of famous artworks with a new feature unveiled Tuesday. Using a technique called style transfer, the feature takes live video and turns it into something that resembles the work of Van Gogh, Picasso and other artists.That effect is probably familiar to people who have used the app Prisma, which uses similar techniques to change the look of photos. Prisma's app can't perform live filtering, and some filters require a conne
  
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• SAP aims to simplify innovation with update to HANA in-memory database

  08-11-2016 09:00
  
  SAP wants businesses struggling to keep up with the pace of innovation in its HANA in-memory database to relax as it readies a new version, to be known as HANA 2.Since introducing HANA in 2010, SAP has been releasing updates twice a year, providing customers with new capabilities but also pushing them to keep their software current to benefit from continuing support.The new version gives businesses two reasons to relax, according to Marie Goodell, vice president of product marketing at SAP.HANA
  
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• China's vague cybersecurity law has foreign businesses guessing

  08-11-2016 02:52
  The most disturbing thing for foreign businesses facing China's new cybersecurity law may just be how vague and broad it is.
  Under the new law, adopted on Monday and taking effect next June, it's possible that any major company working in the country might be subject to "security reviews" from the Chinese government.
  Any company involved in telecommunications, information services, finance or any sector "where the loss of data can harm the country's security" is subject to a possible revie
  
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• Why scripts are better than politicians

  08-11-2016 02:39
  
  The day that we've all been waiting for or waiting to get beyond is now upon us. As one of the most contentious political elections ever crashes to a close, it's time to think like the techies we are. So, here are some reasons why scripts are so much better and often more reliable than politicians.You have a lot of control over how much your script ends up being able to do
  If you like a script, you can keep it for more than 8 years
  Other countries won't laugh behind your back because of your sc
  
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• Google Home: the good, the bad, and the potential

  08-11-2016 00:37
  
  Google Home was released to consumers earlier this month, but some journalists got a chance to test out Google's favorite personal assistant before it hit store shelves.So what did they think?
  Most agreed that Google Home was generally smarter than the Amazon Echo, in part because it's connected to Google's omniscient search engine. In addition, many liked Google Home's rather responsive microphone, though having to say "OK Google" every time you wanted to interact with the device could get tire
  
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