Monday, September 23, 2013

For my Ethical Hackers: I told you there was a simpler way to do it!
The iPhone’s Fingerprint Sensor Has Already Been Hacked
A European hacker group has announced a simple, replicable method for spoofing Apple’s TouchID fingerprint authentication system. “A fingerprint of the phone user, photographed from a glass surface, was enough to create a fake finger that could unlock an iPhone 5s secured with TouchID,” claims the Chaos Computer Club, which demonstrated the hack in a video.
The technique is based on previous methods for spoofing fingerprint authentication systems, and needed only minor adaptation to be applied to the iPhone’s unusually high-resolution scanner.


Apple is really really good at marketing!
NYPD to iPhone owners: Hurry up and download iOS 7
Police in New York hand out fliers explaining to Apple faithful that iOS 7 brings with it Activation Lock, which makes it harder for a thief to turn off the "Find My Phone" feature.

(Related) Probably due more to reluctance to learn a new tool...
Political bias! 58 percent of US House of Reps. have iPhones


I would be more comfortable if they said the information was “anonymized” rather than “confidential.”
Angela Haggerty reports:
Privacy concerns have been raised after it emerged that mobile phone companies have been passing data to the Highways Agency allowing them to monitor motorists’ movements through their phone signals. The agency has been using data from phone companies and other firms to track the information, including collecting data collated by satnav systems, prompting serious questions about the protection of personal data.
According to the Telegraph, the Highways Agency said any information it receives is confidential and could not lead to the identification of motorists, but privacy campaign group Big Brother Watch said people were unlikely to have any idea that information was exchanged in this way and called for a less intrusive method to monitor traffic.
Read more on The Drum.


Some issues worth considering, some assumptions are more “ass” less “umption?”
White Paper – Avoiding BYOD Legal Issues
Avoiding BYOD Legal Issues - Route1 Inc. September 2013
“Today’s business landscape is facing emerging legal issues stemming from bring your own device (BYOD) initiatives. The shift towards the use of personal computing devices (laptops, tablets, smartphones and now watches) to conduct business in theory is a win-win strategy for both the Enterprise and its employees. Enterprises avoid costs associated with providing devices and employees can work using the personal devices they are already comfortable with. In reality, BYOD poses serious legal problems for the Enterprise.
Protecting Data or Breaking the Law? BYOD is undoubtedly convenient, but it poses grave risks to Enterprise security. Simply put, BYOD devices are not currently used in a secure manner. Although 90% of American workers use their smartphones for work, only 60% use password protection to lock their device.1 Perhaps more alarming, 50% frequently connect their smartphones to unsecured Wi-Fi networks.2 Poor BYOD security habits mean that sensitive Enterprise data is often unsecured and easily accessible to malicious third parties. Of course, Enterprises want to prevent their information from falling into the wrong hands. The question is: do security concerns give businesses the right to protect their data by remotely monitoring and wiping an employee’s personal device?
BYOD means that employees often co-mingle personal and business information on their devices. Generally, device software has few measures to distinguish between sensitive Enterprise data and the owner’s personal information. When an employee’s device is compromised (hacked, stolen, etc.), the Enterprise wipes all data on that device – both business and personal. Enterprises have no other option to protect their sensitive data, but the destruction of employees’ personal property is legally ambiguous. Another common practice is GPS tracking. If an employee’s personal device contains confidential Enterprise information and is lost or stolen, the Enterprise may use the device’s GPS capabilities in an attempt to locate it. Again, this strategy is legally unclear as it raises issues of monitoring employee whereabouts.”


I missed this in July, so it may be available now... Think it will be less distracting that chatting on your cell phone?
Garmin unveils hi-tech car windscreen HUD display
Sat-nav manufacturer Garmin has unveiled a sci-fi like portable head-up display for motorists which can project directions directly onto the owners windscreen.
Operating from a smartphone with a built-in app the device outputs navigational data in the form of directional arrows and speed via a reflector lens or onto a plastic film affixed to the windshield.
Available for iPhone, Android and Windows handsets the app can also relay voice prompts via the smartphone or car stereo.


For all my students
– is a quick, easy, and free citation generator that converts tweets into, properly formatted MLA and APA, citations. Paste a link to the tweet you want to cite in the field below, click ‘Go’, and you’re on your way. The service is very useful for students, journalists and academics.

(Related) I don't understand it completely. $2 per user per year?
Why You Should Care About Twitter
… Twitter currently has 250 million monthly active users.
… Just because Twitter hasn't gone mainstream yet doesn't mean it won't.
I'm of the strong opinion that Twitter is the most important consumer-facing company to go public since Google. I also see it outlasting Facebook.
I'm not alone. Matthew Knell, VP of social and community at About.com recently told CNBC's Carl Quintanilla: "I think Twitter's probably the best-positioned major social network, and I kind of see Facebook on a decline."
Also, Saudi billionaire Price Alwaleed and his investment arm, Kingdom Holding invested $300 million in Twitter in 2011. Alwaleed recently told Reuters he doesn't plan to sell a single share when Twitter goes public.
… Since the majority of people still don't use or understand Twitter, there's enormous growth potential for the company once it goes public. There's also unrealized advertising potential that could work a lot like Google ads, only better.
Currently, Twitter generates a little more than half-a-billion dollars annually. That money comes mostly from three types of ads: promoted tweets, promoted trends, and promoted accounts.

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