Chances are you’ve heard all about Square, a small dongle that plugs into the earphone jack of iPhones, iPads, iPod Touches, and Android devices, turning them into a wireless credit-card swipe machine. It’s a great idea, it turns out, but not an overly secure one. READ MORE
The government of the U.K. wants to turn the nation into a technology and innovation hub, Prime Minister David Cameron announced last November. And to get there, the country took a long look at its intellectual property laws, and decided to make some changes. READ MORE
The Korea Communications Commission has determined that Apple violated South Korea’s information laws when its iPhones collected location data about their users without first obtaining permission from the Commission. So the regulator levied a fine of 3 million won, or $2,829. It has also instructed Apple to change its location tracking practices. READ MORE
If you’ve got an Android device you are 2.5 times more likely to encounter malware on it today compared to six months ago, while mobile users have a 30 percent chance of clicking on a malicious link, writes Elinor Mills for CNET, referring to a report released this week from mobile security firm Lookout at the Black Hat security conference in Las Vegas. READ MORE
You’re traveling out of state when a client calls with an emergency task. Unfortunately, the files you need are saved on your desktop computer back at the office. Sure, if you use a cloud storage service such as Dropbox or Box.net, you’ll be able to access those files remotely and help your client. But some people don’t trust the cloud with their valuable business information. For them, iTwin might be a good alternative. READ MORE
While Congress and the White House are engaged in a very public battle about the debt ceiling, a House panel has quietly approved a bill that would give the government greater access to your online activities. In a 19-10 vote, a House committee approved a bill requiring Internet service providers to keep logs of their customers’ use for one year, should law enforcement require the data. READ MORE
Back in the 1980s, comedian Billy Crystal, in a Fernando Lamas impression, crooned, “Just looking into your eyes, darling, I can tell you have the legs of a dancer.” That was then. Now, what information will your social connections be able to glean from a picture of your face? Google might have some ideas. READ MORE
Aaron Swartz first came to prominence for inventing part of the RSS code, and later for co-founding Reddit before selling it to Conde Nast. He’s also an Internet activist, so committed to the idea of open access that he’s been downloading millions of academic articles from the nonprofit academic service JSTOR, at one point crashing its servers. The plan was to put them online for free and make a larger point about free access to data. READ MORE
Ludovic Fauvet is mad as hell—and he’s not taking it anymore. The VideoLAN developer is calling out companies that bundle adware and spyware with the open-source VLC media player, says ZDNet’s Ryan Naraine. These companies, Fauvet says, have been distributing tools that “trick” consumers into downloading malware. Fauvet has outed 25 companies that he says bundle “crapware” with the VLC media player. READ MORE
On Monday, CIO.com reported that the notorious hacker group Anonymous which has been behind many high-profile attacks, including one that paralyzed tourism and info sites about Orlando, was now setting its sites on Google+. Its user group had been booted from the new social network, and in retaliation, the hackers’ news site Your Anon News reported that it knew of an “operation” targeting G+. READ MORE
