John Lister

Adobe is insisting that Mac and Windows users immediately update its Flash Player software. The company says it has just issued a new update designed to prevent hackers from exploiting two recently-discovered bugs. Adobe Flash is a multimedia and ... software platform often used by web browsers to display video, animations, and interactive games. Exploited Flaw Results in Crash By exploiting the bugs, hackers are causing serious problems. Reports indicate that it's possible for hackers to create websites that would trigger the bug and cause a user's computer to crash. That's a problem for ... (view more)

An estimated 40,000 businesses and organizations could find themselves legally bound to report any cyber security breaches they've suffered. The idea is to share information about cyber threats and increase the chances of catching hackers. The rules ... have been proposed by the European Union and would affect organizations across that continent. Companies from the United States and other countries that operate in Europe might also be covered by the rules. (Source: europa.eu ) The firms involved include banks, power companies, and medical facilities. The European Union has determined that a ... (view more)

In recent weeks we've received quite a few emails asking this pressing question: "Dear Infopackets, I recently bought a new Windows 8 computer and I've just about had enough with it. I'm sure some people love the system, but I find it too confusing. ... I can't afford to replace the computer, so is it possible for me to run Windows 7 on it, instead of Windows 8? George H." My response: Yes, George. The short answer is that you can retrofit a Windows 8 computer with Windows 7. But the process can be a lot of a hassle. Please read through all of our instructions before you decide whether ... (view more)

The President of the United States has the right to authorize an online attack on another nation if he has credible evidence to suggest that country plans to attack the US. That's the conclusion of a secret review of rules governing the US ... military's online behavior. Officials are said to be planning the first comprehensive set of guidelines for the military's online activities, though the rules themselves will be classified. The review was prompted by concerns over the current division between the military and intelligence services. For example, the armed forces are only allowed to launch ... (view more)

The US Federal Reserve has confirmed that it recently suffered a cyber attack that resulted in personal data being lost. It's also possible that this information has already been published online. A spokesman for the Federal Reserve said the attack ... was made possible by hackers "exploiting a temporary vulnerability in a website vendor product." That problem was quickly fixed once officials became aware of it. The spokesman didn't publicly confirm what information was stolen, but did say that the attack failed to negatively impact critical operations. There's no indication the hacking ... (view more)

A Harvard professor says the ads Google delivers on Internet web pages encourage racial stereotyping. But she adds that this could be related to social prejudices and may not be due to racism on the part of Google. Latanya Sweeney has investigated ... racism extensively. Her previous findings suggested that people with 'black' names were less likely to get a job interview than those with 'white' names, even when submitting an identical resume. More recently Sweeney examined the Google advertisements appearing alongside the company's search results. She also investigated Reuters' own search tool, ... (view more)

California officials have overturned a ban that prevented a smartphone app-based taxi-style service from legally operating. The case was prompted by a smartphone app called 'Uber,' which allows customers to summon a luxury car and driver to their ... location at the press of a button. The cost of the ride is automatically charged to a customer's credit card. The service was a welcome idea for customers who wanted to avoid trying to hail a cab. Unfortunately, Uber initially ran into problems with the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC). California Officials: Uber a Taxi Service Why? ... (view more)

In the past, someone upset by a newspaper article would write a letter of complaint to the editor. But The New York Times (NYT) says Chinese hackers have unleashed a campaign of cyber attacks in response to an article about Chinese leader Wen Jiabo. ... Though the hackers haven't publicly explained their actions, NYT staff believe the attacks are a response to an article published in October 2012 about Jiabao. The story reported that his relatives had made billions of dollars in business deals. (Source: nytimes.com ) The attackers gained access to New York Times computers through malicious ... (view more)

After months of hype, Microsoft has finally released a subscription edition of Office 365. The new package represents a huge change from the past, when consumers simply bought a physical copy of the Office software and installed it on their machine ... using a disc. Instead, buying Office 365 means signing up to pay an annual subscription fee. Currently, it costs $99 for the Office 365 Home Premium edition. Subscribers will automatically receive any software updates released during this time (and this could include significant new features in addition to bug and security fixes). Access Your ... (view more)

Google has, for the first time ever, detailed exactly what it does when a government agency or court demands to see a user's personal data. That data includes the terms someone has used for an online search and the content of Gmail messages. Google ... says that it's reporting on this issue in an attempt to show that it aims to protect privacy wherever possible. The search giant has for several years produced statistics about how many requests for personal data it gets in each country and what percentage of those requests it complies with. This publication is an attempt to draw attention to the ... (view more)