John Lister

Tech giant Cisco has warned that a new strain of malware is designed to render a Windows computer virtually useless if it's discovered by security software - effectively executing a boobytrap payload that eventually destroys all user data on the ... hard drive. Cisco says that Rombertik has "multiple layers of obfuscation and anti-analysis functionality" meaning that it is hard to discover and hard to examine. It's able to hide itself from both static and dynamic analysis, which respectively scan a computer's files and its currently active applications. (Source: cisco.com ) ... (view more)

One of the key figures in the creation of the Internet has warned that adding billions of gadgets with online connections could mean a slower Internet for many users. Vint Cerf said users need to enable a newer Internet addressing system to get the ... best results. Cerf is sometimes referred to as one of the "fathers of the Internet." He played a key role in the creation of ARPANET , the military network that established many of the technologies that were later at the heart of the Internet. Cerf also helped design the basic system by which Internet data is broken into small pieces, ... (view more)

Microsoft has made the announcement that Windows 10 will be able to run many iPhone, iPad and Android applications natively. That's just one of several revelations made about the new system this week, including the new name for Internet Explorer's ... successor. The announcements came at Microsoft's annual Build conference for software developers, which shows off new ways that the upcoming operating system will work with software. The real shocker, however, is the fact that rival operating systems will be supported in Windows 10. Microsoft is releasing toolkits for developers that ... (view more)

Yahoo is testing a system that could use your ear as a way to log in to a smartphone. It's designed as a cheaper and more practical alternative to using fingerprint recognition. Biometric identification has become more popular in recent years as a ... way to increase security, rather than relying on passwords or other inputs that could be guessed or hacked. The concept of biometrics has become ever increasingly mainstream, especially with the latest models of iPhones that include a fingerprint scanner. In fact, Barclays Bank has a system for online customers that scans the pattern of finger ... (view more)

Facebook has begun rolling out its free video and audio call service to other Facebook users via its Messenger app. It's arguably the biggest challenge yet to the Skype audio and video calling platform, which is now owned by Microsoft. Facebook ... began offering video calls back in 2011, when it partnered with Skype but has since developed its own technology. The new call service works in the dedicated Facebook 'Messenger' app, which is available only on smartphones and tablets and does not work through the Facebook website. Last year, Facebook removed the messaging feature from its main ' ... (view more)

Google has revealed the full details of its cellphone network. It will use a combination of space leased from existing cellphone firms, as well as WiFi hotspots to create the network. The service will be dubbed Project Fi. Initially it will only be ... available to users of Google's Nexus 6 phone, but that will only be used short term as an experiment. If all goes well, it's likely to be expanded to other Android phones. Project Fi Consists of WiFi, Sprint and T-Mobile Google will act as a mobile virtual network operator, meaning it leases space on existing networks. In this case, the leased ... (view more)

A key PC hardware firm has let slip that Windows 10 will be ready at the end of July. That may not be the date the public will get its hands on the new system, but suggests that Microsoft has taken additional steps towards the final launch date. The ... timeline revelation came in an investor conference call from AMD, one of the leading makers of computer processors. Chief executive officer and president Lisa Su made reference to the company's forecasts - particularly, when it will need to supply processors to computer makers with respect to Windows 10 launch date. "What we also are ... (view more)

Norway has confirmed it will switch off FM radio signals in 2017, making it the first country to do so. United States officials say they are likely to let the switch to digital radio happen more gradually. Several countries, including the US, have ... already switched off analog TV signals, with consumers instead either using digital over-the-air services or switching entirely to cable and satellite. In the US, only a few low-power, very local analog broadcasts remain, and they are due to switch off by this September. Analog Radio Sets Still Widely Used The digital switchover for radio worldwide ... (view more)

The European Union has formally accused Google of breaching competition rules by favoring its own sites in search rankings . It's a big step towards a potential $6.6 billion fine. The case involves specialist websites that let users compare prices ... and availability for retail products or travel deals. The EU claims that Google is effectively rigging the search results because it owns many of the sites in the list, and therefore places them higher in the search results ranking. It says that the favored sites are listed higher than they 'deserve', rather than listing the sites based ... (view more)

The company that operates website addresses ending in ".sucks" has been accused of trying to exploit people worried about sites set up to attack them. However, nobody seems quite sure if it breaks any rules or who, if anyone, has the authority to do ... something about it. The controversy involves a major change to the way website registration works that took effect in 2012. Until then, all website addresses ended in one of a limited number of "top level domains" such as .com, .org, or country-specific domains such as .ca for Canada. Anyone Can Become an Administrator of a Top ... (view more)