Your daily dose of practical, easy to follow tech tips!
Mobile security firm Zimperium zLabs has discovered a flaw in Android that potentially leaves up to 1 billion Android phones susceptible to being hacked simply by receiving a malicious text message.
And guess what? You don’t even have to open the message in order for a hacker to gain access to your phone!
Dubbed “Stagefright”, this super-bug is being referred to in the security industry as the largest potential security threat in history. [Read more…]
Do you own a vehicle that was made by the Fiat Chrysler Corporation and falls within the model years 2013-2015? If so, guess what? Your car or truck just might be vulnerable to a hacking attack!
According to the company, approximately 1.4 million recent model vehicles are capable of being remotely accessed and controlled by cyber crooks.
And if that alone isn’t scary enough, get this: The hack and take-over of your vehicle could take place as you are literally driving down the highway. Pretty scary stuff if you ask me.
All of the 1.4 million vehicles that are vulnerable to hackers have been recalled so that a security update (aka patch) can be applied to the vehicles’ digital Uconnect systems. Here is a list of the affected models: [Read more…]
Question from Kelly T.: Rick, I have a question that I need for you to clarify for me if you don’t mind.
I bought a used computer from a guy off of Craigslist. It’s running Windows 8.1/32 bit. I checked, and this PC has a 64 bit CPU.
I know that this computer is eligible for a free upgrade to Windows 10, but I’d like to know if I’ll be able to upgrade to the 64 bit version of Windows 10 or if I’ll be stuck with the 32 bit version because the Windows 8.1 that’s on it now is 32 bit?
I have asked several people about this and they gave me conflicting answers.
Rick’s answer: [Read more…]
A while back Microsoft announced that participants in the Windows Insider Program will be eligible to receive a free copy of Windows 10 after its July 29 release. Well, it now appears they are having second thoughts.
After Microsoft made the announcement detailing that very generous Windows Insider bonus, thousands of users took Microsoft at their Word. They quickly began signing up for the Windows Insider Program just so they could qualify for a free copy of Windows 10 to install on machines that otherwise wouldn’t qualify for the free upgrade. [Read more…]
Google has just announced that they will begin shutting down their Google+ Photos service on August 1. Android users will be the first to lose access to the service, with iOS and web users not far behind.
Google+ Photos has long been the glue that has held many users within the larger Google+ community, and now that Google is getting ready to ditch it I am left wondering what Google has in mind for the future of Google+ itself. [Read more…]