IT Executive news

• Latest WikiLeaks dump exposes CIA methods to mask malware

  31-03-2017 23:30
  
  WikiLeaks may have dealt another blow to the CIA’s hacking operations by releasing files that allegedly show how the agency was masking its malware attacks.On Friday, the site dumped the source code to the Marble Framework, a set of anti-forensic tools that WikiLeaks claims the CIA used last year.The files do appear to show “obfuscation techniques” that can hide CIA-developed malicious coding from detection, said Jake Williams, a security researcher at Rendition InfoSec, who ha
  
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• April Fools' 2017 roundup: The pranks start early this year

  31-03-2017 22:38
  
  It is April 1, which means pranks abound all over the interwebs. We here at Computerworld are taking one for the team, doing the hard work of researching the best pranks around so that we can share them with you. It is a thankless job, but somebody's gotta do it. Everyone is getting in on the fun this year -- so many that we couldn't possibly include them all. But the ones that made the cut are sure to make you laugh. So pull up a seat and put down your coffee -- because if you don't,
  
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• Microsoft to sell Galaxy S8 phones pre-loaded with its own apps

  31-03-2017 22:20
  
  Microsoft will sell Samsung's newest Android-powered phones, the Galaxy S8 and S8+, in its brick-and-mortar stores next month.[ Related: Samsung Introduces Galaxy S8 and S8+, featuring Infinity displays ]The phones can be pre-ordered now at Microsoft's retail outlets -- but not online -- and will also be available for purchase in the stores beginning April 21, Samsung's release date for the new, larger models. Microsoft's prices will be the same as Samsung's: $750 for the Galaxy S8, $850 for the
  
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• Tech to help protect Final Four crowds

  31-03-2017 22:06
  
  At this weekend’s Final Four college basketball tournament, sophisticated technology is in place to help public safety officials monitor crowds, vehicles, social networks and unauthorized drones from a command center at an undisclosed location in downtown Phoenix.An array of thousands of cameras and other sensors are already in place across public venues and roadways in the Phoenix area. The games will take take place Saturday night and Monday night at the University of Phoenix Stadium in
  
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• 39% off Cheetah Mounts Universal TV Wall Mount, Fits 20-75-Inch TVs - Deal Alert

  31-03-2017 22:06
  
  The universal design of this mount fits most 20-75" TVs up to VESA 600 x 400 and 165lbs. The profile is only 1.5" for today's thin TVs, and it tilts to improve viewing and reduce glare. This bundle comes with a 10-foot HDMI cable and a 6-inch 3-axis bubble level. It averages 4.5 out of 5 stars from over 14,000 people on Amazon (read recent reviews), where its typical list price of $41 has been reduced to just $25. See the discounted mount now on Amazon.To read this article in full or to leave a
  
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• 11 treadmill desks to step up your fitness game

  31-03-2017 21:40
  
  Which of these 11 treadmill desks walks the walk?Image by ThinkstockA friend of mine, a college professor in Massachusetts, has me seriously considering a treadmill desk. Somehow, despite his job and the New England winter, and the fact I exercise daily, he’s beating me in Fitbit steps. Consistently.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
  
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• Google's Android hacking contest fails to attract exploits

  31-03-2017 20:32
  
  Six months ago, Google offered to pay US$200,000 to any researcher who could remotely hack into an Android device by knowing only the victim's phone number and email address. No one stepped up to the challenge.While that might sound like good news and a testament to the mobile operating system's strong security, that's likely not the reason why the company's Project Zero Prize contest attracted so little interest. From the start, people pointed out that $200,000 was too low a prize for a remote
  
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• Android device updates: Unlocked Galaxy S7, Axon 7 Mini, and Huawei Mate 9 score new software

  31-03-2017 19:39
  
  Most of the Android world was focused on new hardware, instead of software, this week. The Galaxy S8 and S8+ that got all the attention, with that gorgeous screen, tiny bezels, and somewhat useful software.But it’s updates you’ve come for, and we have some to deliver. And there’s more information about why Android Wear 2.0 hasn’t exactly pouring out of the gates, a major frustration for many.Each week, we round up all the major software updates to hit the Android eco
  
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• Intel's Cannonlake PC chip shipments may slip into next year

  31-03-2017 19:37
  
  If you're expecting to buy laptops with Intel's next-generation Core chips code-named Cannonlake chips by the end of this year, you may be disappointed.There's a chance that shipments of Cannonlake -- Intel's first on the 10-nanometer production process -- may slip into next year.Intel previously said Cannonlake would ship by year end, but that's now uncertain.Whether Cannonlake shipments will happen before or after Christmas is hard to predict, Venkata Renduchintala, president of Intel's PC, Io
  
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• How a CEO can kill a company in 5 easy steps

  31-03-2017 19:04
  
  I’ve been on the road this week and the topic of turnarounds that resulted from bone-headed CEO moves came up. In my youth, I had no filter when it came to telling a top executive they were doing something stupid. I, surprisingly, survived better than the executives did. Still it didn’t exactly help my career and often the company didn’t survive the mistake. Being right and having to find a new job anyway really wasn’t an ideal outcome, so I thought I’d share some t
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: Technology and promotions: the digital face of marketing

  31-03-2017 18:26
  
  Technology is at the forefront of marketing and promotions, now more than ever.I can attest to that assertion, thanks to my conversation with Charlie Gaffney, president and CEO of Index Promotions, a global, full-service product promotions and marketing agency based in Los Angeles. His agency works with some of the world’s biggest brands, including Burger King, MetLife, Macy’s and Cereal Partners Worldwide (CPW), to name a few.He says that for product promotions — such as
  
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• No joke, Google lets you play Ms. Pac-Mac in Google Maps for April Fool's

  31-03-2017 18:16
  
  April Fools Day is practically a national holiday in Mountain View, so you can expect a series of pranks and jokes over the weekend. But Google is starting early this year, and everyone can get in on the joke.Open up your Google Maps app and you’ll find a new icon above compass symbol that looks suspiciously like an 8-bit Ms. Pacman. Tap it and you’ll be transported to a random location (we were sent to Jakarta, Indonesia, and Munich, Germany) where the roads will be filled with dots
  
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• Broadband privacy: What happened, what it means and what you can do

  31-03-2017 17:51
  
  The latest political upheaval to hit the U.S. is very relevant to anyone involved in tech: Congress has voted to overturn recent FCC rulings that would have forced ISPs to get your permission to collect and sell data on your various online habits. You know all that targeted advertising that makes you crazy (and provides a nice income for broadband providers)? It's not going to stop.One thing to keep in mind: What this basically means is that nothing will change. The FCC rules had not yet gone in
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: Why your online testimonials are failing to convert

  31-03-2017 17:44
  
  In a digital era where people are constantly bombarded with brand messaging, reviews and testimonials on a company website provide social proof that feels like a breath of fresh air from aggressive sales tactics. In fact, studies show that this type of social proofing can lead to conversions as high as 68.7 percent.Sounds like a slam-dunk right?So you’ve worked hard to get customers to review your product or service. You’ve even offered incentives like coupons and discounts for a tes
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: The wrap: Ubuntu 16.04 comes to Windows 10, Galaxy S8 announced, Red Hat reports 2017 revenue

  31-03-2017 17:19
  
  Windows 10 users will soon be getting the Creators Update, which brings many new capabilities to users who want to run Linux command line utilities in Windows 10 through its Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL). Those who are trying WSL for the first time will get Ubuntu 16.04 by default instead of 14.04.Mary Branscombe writes at The New Stack:Ubuntu 16.04 will be installed by default if the Creators Update is the first time you’re using WSL on a PC. If you already have 14.04, Windows won&rsq
  
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• Verizon picks up ex-Ericsson CEO on the rebound

  31-03-2017 17:09
  
  Verizon has hired Hans Vestberg, the CEO Ericsson bounced last summer amid cost cutting and failing financials, to head up its Network and Technology team.Network and Technology is one of three areas Verizon will focus on under a new operating structure, with the other two being Media and Telematics, and Customer and Product Operations.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
  
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• Former CIO catches AI, RPA fever

  31-03-2017 17:02
  
  Companies are exploring ways to automate manual business operations but few have the institutional knowledge to do so. Jeff Donaldson, however, does. Donaldson, who spent 16 years building IT systems for video game retailer GameStop, is building a methodology that combines robotic process automation (RPA), artificial intelligence (AI) and design thinking to help companies automate manual and routine tasks such as data processing and workforce optimization.To read this article in full or to leave
  
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• PSA: You probably don't want to use face recognition to unlock your Galaxy S8

  31-03-2017 16:39
  
  The Galaxy S8 is one of the most stunning phones we’ve ever laid eyes on, but there’s one design element we can’t quite wrap our heads around. Instead of centering the fingerprint sensor on the back like so many other phone makers have done, Samsung has placed it next to the camera, virtually assuring that most people will use one of the other myriad ways to unlock.But the one people are most likely to use is also one of the least secure. Instead of a pattern or a passcode
  
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• Facebook challenges GoFundMe with personal fundraising features

  31-03-2017 16:38
  Facebook is making it easier to support your friends' causes. The company recently announced a new feature that lets users create personal fundraisers. The new option is meant to raise money for medical treatments, classroom support, and similar efforts.A GoFundMe-style feature is a no-brainer for the social network, as Facebook sees it. When you're trying to crowdfund for a personal cause you go straight to Facebook to enlist your friends' help anyway. This new feature simply cuts out the middl
  
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• 74% off TekHome Laptop Cooling Fan - Deal Alert

  31-03-2017 16:29
  
  This highly efficient fan cools your laptop down in seconds. Lowering the surface and internal GPU/CPU temperature helps improve performance for gaming or long-time normal use.
  
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• Russian hacking goes far beyond 2016 pro-Trump effort

  31-03-2017 15:48
  
  As the Senate Intelligence Committee held its first public hearings examining Russian hacking yesterday, lawmakers received a stark warning that the intrusions have been far broader in scope than the intelligence community's finding that Russian hackers meddled in the 2016 presidential election to help Donald Trump defeat Hillary Clinton.Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) seemed to confirm as much when he announced that former aides to his presidential campaign, had been targeted by an apparent cyberatta
  
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• 2 big mistakes CIOs make with digital strategy

  31-03-2017 15:29
  
  Traditionally, CIOs won acclaim for managing lengthy IT projects. But that methodical, project-focused approach isn’t ideal for digital transformations, where the goal is to deliver a great customer experience, according to a Forrester Research report.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here(Insider Story)
  
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• Report: Criminals find profit rates of up to 95 percent with DDoS attacks

  31-03-2017 15:00
  
  The emergence of the DDoS-as-a-service industry has lowered the costs for attacks to $25 or less, allowing criminals with no technical expertise to reach profit margins of up to 95 percent, according to a report released last week.And the prices of the attacks are likely to drop even further, as more insecure connected devices come online and are hijacked by criminal botnet operators, said Michael Canavan, senior vice president for Kaspersky Lab North America at Kaspersky Lab ZAO, which produced
  
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• Today 41% off Logitech Harmony Ultimate All in One Remote, Touch Screen, Closed Cabinet RF Control, works with Alexa - Deal Alert

  31-03-2017 14:15
  
  The most powerful Harmony remote. It redefines ultimate control over your entertainment system—including game consoles and devices behind closed cabinet doors. One simple tap of the touch screen adjusts your entire home entertainment system so you can switch between movies, game consoles, favorite TV stations and music without fumbling with multiple remotes or button presses. Customize it the way you enjoy your entertainment. It has the power and intelligence to do what you demand.  T
  
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• Non-malware attacks grow – there are tools for IT security to fight back with

  31-03-2017 14:13
  
  More and more attackers are carrying out their work without using malware so they can evade detection by traditional, file-based security platforms, which presents a tough problem for security pros trying to defend against them.Nearly two-thirds of security researchers polled by Carbon Black say they’ve noted an uptick in these attacks just since the beginning of the year, and aren’t confident that traditional anti-virus software can deal with them.+More on Network World: IBM says cy
  
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• After Amazon outage, HealthExpense worries about cloud lock-in

  31-03-2017 14:00
  
  Financial services companies as popular targets of cybercriminals for the obvious reason -- they're where the money's at. And health care companies have medical records, which are very valuable on the black market since the information there can be abused in so many ways, and doesn't expire.HealthExpense, which provides health care payment services to banks and their enterprise customers, straddles both worlds."When we started, every new client asked us about security," said Marco Smit, CEO at S
  
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• How to evaluate domestic IT service provider locations

  31-03-2017 13:00
  
  It remains unclear what – if anything – President Donald Trump's administration will do to change the U.S. H-1B program. But uncertainty and fears of bad press are causing some IT service providers and customers to rethink their approach to offshoring and the associated use of foreign-born temporary visa holders to fill U.S. roles. With some proposed legislation calling for more than doubling the minimum salary of H-1B visa holders, both enterprises and IT outsourcers may be evaluati
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: Don’t rush into outsourcing software development

  31-03-2017 12:30
  
  Too often, enterprise leaders, CIOs and CTOs get dollar signs in their eyes when they think or hear about inexpensive software engineers offshore. Those business leaders then jump into outsourcing software development at the lowest possible cost and wonder why the results don’t satisfy their needs or help them meet their software objectives.In a rush to save money, companies often plunge into software development outsourcing, quickly select a supplier — more than likely the wrong one
  
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• React JavaScript library gets an IDE

  31-03-2017 12:00
  
  React, Facebook's JavaScript library for building UIs, is getting a dedicated IDE for web development, called Reactide.Offered by developers calling themselves Team Reactide, the IDE serves as a cross-platform desktop application that provides a custom browser simulator; build tool and server configuration become unnecessary, the project description said. Team Reactide said the IDE, offered under an MIT license, was the first ever for dedicated React web development.To read this article in full
  
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• Jenkins users can shore up software security with plugins

  31-03-2017 12:00
  
  Developers keep finding new ways to deliver higher-quality software faster—and automation is playing a big part in that transformation. But to avoid introducing new flaws at that same hurry-up pace, security needs to be integrated directly into the development lifecycle.For many modern dev shops, Jenkins has become the open source engine of CI/CD (continuous integration/continuous delivery). Jenkins and its community have given rise to hundreds of plugins, including those that automat
  
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• Inside the Windows 10 Creators Update: The 17 best hidden features

  31-03-2017 12:00
  
  A supporting cast of smaller features add valueImage by Mark Hachman / IDGMicrosoft may have talked up the creativity aspects of the Windows 10 Creators Update, but some of the best things about Windows’ major releases are all the little conveniences that fly under the radar.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
  
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• CW@50: Data storage comes into its own

  31-03-2017 12:00
  
  [ Editor's note: This is the second and last part of our story about the storage industry's evolution over the past 50 years. Part 1 is here.]In 1973, CDC saw a chance to one-up IBM and produced the 9760 Storage Module Drive (SMC). It held 40MB of data and represented the first significant departure from IBM standards for disk storage media.While increasing the capacity of its drives, CDC and others were also decreasing the gap between a read/write head and the magnetic platters on which data wa
  
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• 7 sexy high-tech enterprise ‘surveillance engineering’ techniques that criminal hackers use

  31-03-2017 11:57
  
  Picture that key in the palm of the wrong handImage by ThinkstockUsing a telephoto lens from up to 200-feet or a smartphone up close, attackers can turn a clear pic of a master key or high-security key into easy enterprise access, using a 3D printer to create the duplicate. With special software code like what two MIT students created for DefCon 21, criminal hackers can ensure that the necessary key measurements make it from the photo to the new key.To read this article in full or to leave a com
  
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• In mining user data, US ISPs must weigh cash vs. privacy

  31-03-2017 02:01
  
  U.S. internet service providers are about to face temptation.Now that the broadband privacy rule repeal is almost certain, will they sell their customers' data to marketers, or will they keep it private?The U.S. broadband industry is telling consumers not to worry. Verizon, for instance, said that it remains committed to protecting users’ privacy.What that exactly means is unclear, and some in the industry are skeptical.Major broadband providers will be enticed to monetize their custo
  
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• BrandPost: Enabling the future of connected devices

  31-03-2017 01:29
  
  The Fog Rolls InThere is an IT market segment, with roots dating back to the 1800s, that is growing at 60% CAGR and yet, almost no one has heard of it. There is even an industry consortium for this market, with big-name founding members like Dell Technologies, Cisco, Intel and Microsoft.  And when you hear the name for the first couple of times, you think it might be a prank.  It’s called Fog Computing.The first time I heard the actual phrase “fog computing” was
  
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