Security: Microsoft a Threat to National Security and Computer Security
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Interview with Hardbit Ransomware, a new group with great ambitions
Marco A. DeFelice (@amvinfe) interviewed a relatively new ransomware group called “Hardbit.” At one point in the interview, the exchange went: [...]
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Being back in the office is not making UK workers more productive: report
New research from Slack has found that two and a half years after the UK government enforced its work from home order in response to the Coronavirus pandemic, 88% of desk-based employees in the UK are working from the office at least one day a week, with the average worker visiting the office three days a week.
While 60% of survey respondents coordinate their office attendance with their teams, the survey, based on responses from 1,000 knowledge workers of all ages, job levels and locations across the UK, found that being in the office actually makes employees feel less productive due to the wrong tasks being prioritised, a disorganised approach to communications and meetings, and time spent catching up with colleagues.
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Toyota Suffered a Data Breach by Accidentally Exposing A Secret Key Publicly On GitHub
This incident adds Toyota to the list of companies that have had similar exposures; a list that includes Samsung, Nvidia, and Twitch, just to name a few. While this breach at Toyota is currently understood as fairly limited, compared to the 6,695 secrets exposed in the Samsung case, the growing number of companies experiencing such issues is still a very disturbing trend.
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iTWire - LinkedIn kicks out Infosec expert, then restores his profile [Ed: Microsoft hates security, loves back doors]
Professional networking site LinkedIn has reinstated British security guru Kevin Beaumont's account, after kicking him off the platform for unspecified reasons.
Beaumont told iTWire that LinkedIn had apologised for its action, adding that he may have been wrong about the reason he advanced as being behind the expulsion.
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Microsoft’s AR glasses aren’t cutting it with US soldiers, says leaked report
Soldiers testing the headsets have complained about their “mission-affecting physical impairments,” and say that wearing the goggles can cause headaches, nausea, and eyestrain. Acceptance of the tech “remains low,” says a summary prepared for Army and Defense Department officials and seen by Bloomberg, with soldiers complaining that the headsets don’t “contribute to their ability to complete their mission.”
One testimony reported by Insider was even blunter. “The devices would have gotten us killed,” said the tester — referring to the light emitted by the goggles’ head-up display, which could alert enemy troops to the wearer’s presence.
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Microsoft’s Army Goggles Left US Soldiers With Nausea, Headaches in Test
More than 80% of those who experienced discomfort had symptoms after less than three hours using the customized version of Microsoft’s HoloLens goggles, Nickolas Guertin, director of Operation Test and Evaluation, said in a summary for Army and Defense Department officials. He said the system also is still experiencing too many failures of essential functions.
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U.S. Soldiers Worry Microsoft's HoloLens Headset Will Make Them Puke and Get Them Killed
Over 80% of the soldiers who experienced symptoms after strapping on the headsets did after less than three hours of use. HoloLens reportedly failed four out of six of the Army’s evaluation tests, with at least one tester expressing concern the device could put soldiers’ lives in danger. Glowing lights emanating from the headset are reportedly visible from hundreds of meters away, a crucial flaw that could potentially give off a soldier’s position during battle.
“The devices would have gotten us killed,” one of the testers said, according to Insider. In addition to the lights, testers claimed the device limited their field of view and restricted their movement due to its bulky, heavy design.
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Microsoft's Army Goggles Fails 4 Out of 6 Field Evaluations, Caused Nausea to US Army Testers
More than 80% of people who complained of discomfort reportedly started to feel their symptoms less than three hours after donning the specially adapted HoloLens glasses from Microsoft. The system itself continues to fail far too frequently at performing crucial tasks, according to officials.
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[Old] US Army soldiers experienced physical side-effects using IVAS, Pentagon report finds
US Army soldiers experienced a range of physical ailments from headaches and nausea to neck strain while donning Microsoft's militarised HoloLens 2 augmented reality (AR) system during testing last year and they were unable to complete essential combat tasks, according to the Pentagon's chief weapons tester.
Service leaders postponed the initial operational test and evaluation benchmark for the new Integrated Visual Augmentation System (IVAS) last year after deciding they first needed to fix several hardware and software shortcomings. Pending changes include reducing the heads-up display's field-of-view from 80° to 70°, addressing a humidity issue with one component, and fixing software ‘reliability and stability' issues that sometimes ‘crash' the system, Janes has previously reported.
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Report finds Microsoft’s HoloLens gives soldiers headaches
Bloomberg reported today that a study by the Pentagon’s testing office found most soldiers using HoloLens suffered “mission-affecting physical impairments,” including headaches, eyestrain and nausea. The numbers are significant, with more than 80% of Army users experiencing discomfort after less than three hours of using a customized version of HoloLens (pictured).
Headaches are one thing, but it gets worse. It was also found that the HoloLens was not reliable. In a report for Defense Department officials, Nickolas Guertin, director of operation test and evaluation, said the system fails at many essential functions. The findings were outlined in a report that was not meant to be made public.
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New Chinese Malware Attack Framework Targets Windows, macOS, and Linux Systems [Ed: So don't install it. The FUD wave badmouths the programming language because malware was written using it.]
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iTWire - Medibank Group latest to feel icy hand of network attackers
Medical insurer Medibank Group says it has isolated some customer-facing systems following the discovery of a breach of its systems.
The company provides private health insurance and health services to more than 3.9 million people in Australia.
In a statement issued on Thursday, the company said it had called in specialised security firms after detecting what it characterised as "unusual activity" on its network.
It said that at this stage there was no indication of any sensitive data having leaked.