Hey, Google: It's time to step up your Pixel upgrade promise

Look, it’s no big secret that I’m a fan of Google’s Pixel program.

I’ve personally owned Pixel phones since the first-gen model graced our gunk-filled pockets way back in 2016. And Pixels have been the only Android devices I’ve wholeheartedly recommended for most folks ever since.

There’s a reason. And more than anything, it comes down to the software and the overall experience Google’s Pixel approach provides.

  • Part of that is the Pixel’s interface and the lack of any unnecessary meddling and complication — including the absence of confusing (and often privacy-compromising) duplicative apps and services larded onto the phone for the manufacturer’s business benefit and at the expense of your user experience.
  • Part of it is the unmatched integration of exceptional Google services and exclusive Google intelligence that puts genuinely useful stuff you’ll actually benefit from front and center and makes it an integrated part of the Pixel package.
  • And, yes, part of it is the Pixel upgrade promise and the fact that Pixel phones are still the only Android devices where both timely and reliable software updates are a built-in feature and guarantee.

[Psst: Got a Pixel? Any Pixel? Check out my free Pixel Academy e-course to uncover all sorts of advanced intelligence lurking within your phone!]

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ConnectWise Quietly Patches Flaw That Helps Phishers

Credit to Author: BrianKrebs| Date: Thu, 01 Dec 2022 19:35:11 +0000

ConnectWise, a self-hosted, remote desktop software application that is widely used by Managed Service Providers (MSPs), is warning about an unusually sophisticated phishing attack that can let attackers take remote control over user systems when recipients click the included link. The warning comes just days after the company quietly patched a vulnerability that makes it easier for phishers to launch these attacks.

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AWS brings Verified Access security to the Apple enterprise

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U.S. Govt. Apps Bundled Russian Code With Ties to Mobile Malware Developer

Credit to Author: BrianKrebs| Date: Mon, 28 Nov 2022 22:08:21 +0000

A recent scoop by Reuters revealed that mobile apps for the U.S. Army and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) were integrating software that sends visitor data to a Russian company called Pushwoosh, which claims to be based in the United States. But that story omitted an important historical detail about Pushwoosh: In 2013, one of its developers admitted to authoring the Pincer Trojan, malware designed to surreptitiously intercept and forward text messages from Android mobile devices.

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AWS releases Wickr, its encrypted messaging service for enterprises

Just days after announcing the close of its consumer-oriented Wickr Me encrypted messaging service, Amazon Web Services (AWS), at its annual re:Invent conference on Monday, said that it was making the enterprise version of the app generally available.

Dubbed simply AWS Wickr, the service was first announced in July and has been in preview till now.

The enterprise version of the messaging service, designed to allow enterprise users to securely collaborate via text, voice and video, along with file and screen sharing, is expected to help enterprises meet auditing and regulatory requirements such as e-discovery and US Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, the company said in a statement.

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The future of security: smarter devices that protect themselves

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Researchers Quietly Cracked Zeppelin Ransomware Keys

Credit to Author: BrianKrebs| Date: Fri, 18 Nov 2022 02:30:26 +0000

Peter is an IT manager for a technology manufacturer that got hit with a Russian ransomware strain called “Zeppelin” in May 2020. He’d been on the job less than six months, and because of the way his predecessor architected things,… Read More »

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Why Macs and iPhones should avoid installing 'orphan' apps

There are many reasons any business with a connected fleet of tech products needs robust security policies in place. But the need to protect the enterprise against vulnerabilities inherited with third-party software must be among the biggest motivators. While I shouldn’t need to convince Computerworld readers to keep things locked down, I want to reprise two recent reports to reinforce the warning.

Half of all macOS malware comes from one app

Elastic Security Labs (via 9to5Mac) recently estimated that half of all macOS malware is installed as a result of poor management of the MacKeeper utility app. The report said almost 50% of Mac malware arrives through its installation.

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