General Gaming Article |
| Seagate Releases Wireless HDD Firmware to Thwart Remote Data Theft Posted: 07 Sep 2015 09:55 AM PDT Getting to the root of the problem Several of Seagate's wireless hard disk drives (HDDs) contain multiple vulnerabilities, including "undocumented Telnet services" that hackers could access by using the default credentials of "root" for the username and password of a built-in user account, Cert.org reports. Once inside, an anonymous hacker would have access to the compromised drive's contents and "unrestricted file download capability" with wireless access. The attacker would be able to directly download files from anywhere on the file system. The affected hard drives also provide file uploading capabilities with wireless access to the device's /media/sda2 file system, which is reserved for file sharing. So in other words, a hacker could steal your files and replace them with malware, all by using the default "root" password. Affected wireless models include the Seagate Wireless Plus Mobile Storage line, Seagate Wireless Mobile Storage line, and LaCie FUEL line. At minimum, the above-mentioned vulnerabilities are present in firmware versions 2.2.0.005 and 2.3.0.014, though they could exist in other firmware versions. That's the bad news. The good news is that Seagate has issued a new firmware release (3.4.1.105) that fixes the security issues. It can be found on Seagate's website. |
| Microsoft Tasks Bing with Recommending Edge Over Firefox or Chrome Posted: 07 Sep 2015 09:19 AM PDT Edging out the competition Though Windows 10 is off to a fast start with over 75 million installs in its first month of availability, Microsoft's fancy new Edge browser isn't proving quite as popular. Windows 10 users seem to be willing to give Edge a trial run only to end up going back to their browser of choice, according to market share data. Perhaps this is part of the reason why Microsoft is using Bing to promote Edge in a unique way. Jordan Novet over at VentureBeat noticed that Bing web searches for Firefox and Chrome initially are accompanied by a "serious looking message" at the top of the browser. I tried it myself and saw the same message -- a gray box just above the search results that reads, "Microsoft recommends Microsoft Edge for Windows 10." There's a "Learn why" button right next to the text that redirects visitors to Edge's product page touting its features. It's an interesting tactic. Presumably if you're performing a search for Firefox or Chrome, you're looking to download the browser. Savvy users aren't likely to be swayed by the messages, though it might sway less experienced users into sticking with Edge. In an email to VentureBeat, a Microsoft spokeswoman explained that "Microsoft Edge was designed exclusively for Windows 10 with features and functionality that enhance the browsing experience such as Cortana, Web Note, and Quick answers. These notifications were created to provide people with quick, easy information that can help them get to know these experiences better. That said, with Windows 10 you can easily choose the default browser and search engine of your choice." I only encountered the message once, which was the first time performing a search for Chrome. As for Novet, he saw it the first time he searched for Chrome and Firefox, but not Opera. Mozilla earlier this summer posted a scathing blog post criticizing Microsoft's upgrade process to Windows 10, which "appears to be purposely designed to throw away the choices its customers have made" with regards to default browsers. |
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