Geek Links of the Week: March 2019

Friday, March 29, 2019

Tech Links for March.29.2019

Are drones a cybersecurity risk? They can be (LINK).
'Operation Shadowhammer': Dropping back-doors into PCs with ASUS firmware updates (LINK).
A new batch of critical Cisco patches - and more on the way for a couple of their small business routers (LINK).
The WinRAR zero day bug is still being exploited in *big* ways (LINK).
Office Depot rigged malware scans to sell more tech support (LINK).
Researchers discover and abuse an undocumented new Intel chipset feature (LINK).
Security breach at Toyota for the second time in five weeks (LINK).
Former NSA contractor hoarded more than 50TB of sensitive data in his home! (LINK).
FCC 'fined' robocallers $208 million since 2015 - but has only collected $6,790 (LINK).
Security researcher pleads guilty to hacking into Microsoft & Nintendo (LINK).
Some apps in the Google Play store were actually government-backed malware (LINK).

Fun / Curious / Silly

Ski-Doo has a new 850cc/200HP ride that can do 0-60mph in 3 seconds - on snow! (LINK).
It's Lamborghini wheelie time! (LINK).
Though Don Rickles passed away in 2017, he will still voice Mr. Potato Head in Toy Story 4 (LINK).
The mystery of Garfield Phone Beach has been solved (LINK).

GLotW Music Club

Tech Links for March.20.2019
a little earlier this week, to make up for last week's day late ;)

Fourth major credential spill in a month hits. This time, includes ~26M user names / passwords (LINK).

It is important to note that all of the compromised user/pass combos (so far) have been (a) unencrypted or using old encryption AND/OR (b) easy-to-break passwords. Laziness continues to give predictable results.

Google gives users more choice with location-tracking apps (LINK).
U.S. building a $500M 'exascale' computer that will be the world's most powerful (LINK).
Threat actors leveraging credential dumps, phishing, and legacy email protocols to breach cloud accounts (LINK).
A huge asteroid exploded above Earth - and you totally missed it. For the record, so did I (LINK).
Lenovo patches Intel firmware flaws in multiple product lines (LINK).
Firefox silences annoying auto-playing videos (LINK).
If you're one of the few that use the 'Inbox by GMail' app, get ready to join the rest of us outside of that app - 'cause it's officially going away on April 2nd (LINK).

Note: Your email is fine. GMail will still work - only the app is going away. Save your panic for something else.

Netflix will not integrate with Apple's new TV service (LINK).
Why you should consider changing your default search engine (LINK).
Google unveils its new gaming platform, 'Stadia'. A possible competitor to Xbox, PlayStation & PC gaming (LINK).

Fun / Silly / Curious

Spring is almost here! (LINK).
Wednesday night will be your last chance to see a supermoon this year - and it's gonna be special (LINK).
A drug that makes human blood deadly to mosquitoes could drastically reduce the spread of disease (LINK).
A recently-discovered shipwreck on the Nile proves Herodotus was telling the truth about Egyptian boats (LINK).
Silly and cruel beauty gadgets that were destined for failure (LINK).

Tech Links for Mar.14.2019

When you plan poorly, you get what you deserve; The outage at Facebook/Instagram/WhatsApp might have been caused by poor project rollout (LINK)
Apple's iCloud is battling downtime also (LINK)
GlitchPOS malware appears to steal credit-card numbers (LINK)
Cisco patches critical 'default password' bug (LINK)
The next update of Windows 10 (1903) might automatically remove 'broken' updates (LINK).
Purveyor of cracked Netflix, Hulu, Spotify accounts has been arrested (LINK)
Who's the legal 'driver' of a self-driving car? (LINK)
Retired Air Force pilot & commercial flight instructor gives his input on the 737 Max. If you think he's gonna defend the pilots, think again... (LINK)
Intel's Windows 10 graphics drivers riddled with flaws (LINK).

Fun / Silly / Curious

Happy Pi Day! (LINK)
... and here are some deals you can get today (LINK)
'Abandonware' (the web site) allows you to download PC retro games for free! (LINK)
You can now buy a new Bugatti for only $34,000. Sadly, its horsepower is limited to a whopping 13.4 (LINK).

Tech Links for Mar.7.2019

Google Chrome has a serious security problem - update now (LINK).
Ransomware warning: The gang behind 'GandCrab' are at it again - and their aiming for bigger targets / more money (LINK).
NSA releases GHIDRA, an open-source tool for reverse-engineering software (LINK).
The makers of Gorilla Glass are working on fold-able actual glass (LINK).
Why is 'ji32k7au4a83' a remarkably common password? (LINK).
Welding glass to metal is now possible (LINK).
Samsung patents wireless TV with no power cable (LINK).
A password-free web may be in the future (LINK).
Microsoft's Windows 10 Insider Program (beta testing) Status: 'Slow Ring' now has April 2019 update - while the 'Fast Ring' has the October 2019 update (LINK).
USB4 is coming, and it will change USB in big ways (LINK).

Curious / Fun / Silly