Which smartphone people prefer depends on many things: design, user experience, applications available, enterprise support and security, camera, cloud services, voice-activated services, and performance issues such as browser speed. Openness–the ability to customize the phone without limitation—is also important to some people. In this regard, Apple and Google sit on opposite ends of the spectrum with Microsoft somewhere in between. READ MORE
It’s a good time to be a spy. Even better, a maker of spy technology. According to documents The Wall Street Journal obtained from a secretive surveillance conference held near Washington, D.C., the market for “off-the-shelf” spying products is booming, up from near zero before the September 11, 2001 attacks to $5 billion a year today. READ MORE
Google appears to have an interesting relationship with the U.S. government. And it boils down to one thing: privacy. On the one hand, the company’s Transparency Report tool makes the government’s requests for citizen’s information transparent. On the other hand, Google’s own privacy policies will now be monitored twice a year, for the next 20 years, by the Federal Trade Commission. READ MORE
Last year, security firms identified Stuxnet, a disabling virus that appeared aimed at Iran’s nuclear facilities but then spread around the world. Stuxnet pointed up a well-known vulnerability in industrial control systems, which often have little or no security. READ MORE
Google was handed a $7.2 million deal in 2009 by Los Angeles in which the city, including the Los Angeles Police Department, would shift its email and office applications to Google’s hosting service. Now that deal is falling apart. READ MORE
Airlines are gearing up for a fight with companies that enable consumers to manage frequent-flier miles online for multiple accounts. The past year alone, Southwest and American airlines have sent “cease and desist” letters to companies that track airline loyalty programs. Each airline points out a different reason for its objection: American’s complaint is about data “scraping,” while Southwest says the process threatens customer security. Delta Air Lines, which hasn’t yet joined the fray, is also not a fan of the sites. READ MORE
One challenge for companies that allow employees to bring their own devices such as smartphones and tablets to work is separating personal usage from business usage, with the latter having different requirements in terms of security. To address that issue, AT&T has announced its Toggle application and service that lets users create two distinct identities on a smartphone or tablet. READ MORE
Last month, we reported on Apple’s loss of yet another iPhone prototype misplaced in yet another bar. Apple apparently used location technology to trace the phone to the home of Sergio Calderon, who had been at the bar that evening. His home was searched and no prototype was found. READ MORE
A security hole affecting some of HTC’s most popular Android phones, including the Thunderbolt and EVO 4G, could give apps with Internet permissions access to key user data such as email address, location and even text messages. READ MORE
When it comes to the issue of privacy, recent attention has been focused on social networking sites—particularly on Facebook and Google. But consumers often overlook one other potential source of privacy breach: mobile phone records. READ MORE
