BlackBerry Comes With Monthly Android Updates

Smartphone manufacturer BlackBerry is echoing include Google and Samsung also monthly Android updates will roll out, as it has announced. In the case of very serious Android leaks from the patch cycle will be rejected and the updates are immediately dispersed.

BlackBerry receives, like other manufacturers, each month a list of Google with recently discovered vulnerabilities in the Android platform. A month later, Google announced these vulnerabilities. According to David Kleidermacher BlackBerry is therefore important that the updates previously been patched. The smartphone manufacturer will therefore be rolling out monthly updates. The updates are currently only for the BlackBerry Priv, the privacy of the telephone company.

In the case of very serious vulnerabilities, for example, which are remote exploits, BlackBerry can intervene earlier.Depending on the severity of the vulnerability, the complexity of the update and time in relation to the monthly patch cycle, BlackBerry will roll out a "hotfix". In that case, the update for the problem is rolled out directly among users. Before rolling out the BlackBerry hotfixes working together with partners, but if necessary, the smartphone manufacturer may choose to distribute the update directly without the intervention of third parties.

Researcher: Samsung Software Disables Windows Update

The software Samsung on some laptops flour evert appears to disable Windows Update, so users do not receive critical security updates. Before warns Microsoft MVP Patrick Barker . He is active on a forum where someone had a problem with Windows Update.

Further research showed that a file on the laptop was named Disable_Windowsupdate.exe that, as the name suggests, Windows Update turned off. The file appeared to be part of the update software that installs on Samsung laptops. Through this software drivers and programs are updated. Barker decided to contact Samsung and was told that indeed Windows Update is turned off by the software.

The reason is that otherwise the standard drivers to be installed that do not necessarily work with the laptop. To prevent this, switches the Samsung software Windows Update. Experts are puzzled about the operation of the software, just because Windows Update is an important tool for users to automatically install updates. Samsung has not yet responded to the criticism. Barker takes at least that Samsung's software as malware should be considered.

Samsung Smart TV transmits voice audio unencrypted

The voice commands that smart saving TVs from Samsung and forwarding are sent unencrypted to a third party, as has discovered a security researcher. Recently there was great commotion about the voice recognition of the Samsung SmartTV which consumers via voice commands can control the TV.

Security Researcher David Lodge decided the traffic that comes to investigate the television. While he saw a connection on port 443, which normally indicates HTTPS. Lodge then decided to view the contents of the data stream and saw that it was not going to encrypted data. It was not even HTTP data, but a combination of XML, and a binary data packet. "The weasels, they use 443 / TCP to tunnel over the dates, probably because many standard default firewall configurations traffic to port 80 and 443 permit outside the network," said the researcher.

It also showed that all kinds of information on the screen is sent, such as MAC address and the version of the operating system. The voice command could be seen that he gave. It suggests Lodge that television does not listen to users unless it is activated by the command. Something, however, with each subsequent firmware update may change, making continuous listening which would be possible, he warns. Lodge Samsung therefore calls to use anyway SSL.

US Senator Concerned About Voice Recognition Smart TVs

US Senator Al Franken is concerned about voice recognition and call screening of smart TVs, which he both Samsung and LG has sent a letter to the manufacturers will be asked to further explain the operation of this feature and the use of data collected.

This week it was announced that Samsung televisions recorded words send it to a third party. In addition, consumers were warned that if they discuss confidential information, this data can be transmitted. "This relatively new technology has major implications for the privacy of people and I am concerned about the extent to which Samsung collects voice data SmartTV users and shares," said the senator's letter ( pdf ). He also worries that Samsung does not give customers the necessary information so that they understand how their voice data can be used by third parties.

A letter ( pdf ) with similar questions was sent to manufacturer LG. Senator wants to know how consumers can avoid voice and data viewing behavior are recorded and transmitted by the manufacturers. Samsung now has the operation of the voice recognition on their own blog clarified. So that the data is sent to Nuance Communications. Franks wants to know, however, whether there are other third parties that receive the data.

The American civil rights movement EFF warns of the privacy implications of smart TVs, which are present in the living room or bedroom and include cameras and microphones and have access to the viewing habits of users. This can provide very personal information. "If the software security researchers can not investigate on these devices and developers can not develop alternatives or adjustments, users are bound by the terms of the manufacturer and to trust that they are implemented as promised," the EFF.

The civil rights movement holds also that these smart TVs are often connected to the Internet and can be updated remotely.Therefore, the user's privacy is not just about delivering to the manufacturer, but to anyone who can access the television and can customize the software to gather additional information.

OK Google: "Google Voice Search Listening With Users"

Not only smart TVs Samsung listen to users, including Google Voice Search does this and sends a portion of the recorded words to Google. Through Voice Search, an extension for Chrome that is still in the beta phase, users can give oral searches.

The extension only works on Google.com and requires users "OK Google" say after listening to the Google search. Sean Sullivan of the Finnish F-Secure discovered that Chrome users on Google.com overhearing until "OK Google" say. The user is the recorded sound of what then says to send Google and the words "a few seconds" before were said.

Sullivan calls this wording interesting, because it is not clear how many seconds it goes. "That's the problem with vote" activated "devices. They always listen and always take. The question is how much is uploaded to the voice recognition service?", decides the researcher.

Preinstalled Malware on Cheap Android Devices - Death Ring

Researchers have found in several Android phones malware advance was already installed. It comes to phones that are sold mainly in Africa and Asia, such as Vietnam, Indonesia, India, Nigeria, Taiwan and China. The phones are standard Trojan horse called "Death Ring" that occurs as a ringtone app.

In reality, the app SMS and wapcontent of the Command & Control server to download to the phone, says security firm Lookout . The malware is activated in two ways, depending on how the user uses his phone. The malware is activated when the phone is restarted five times. In addition, start the malicious service if the victim fifty times are unlocked device.

Lookout has described various scenarios malware can do on a phone, but has no concrete examples. However, the company warns that the malware can not be removed by a virus app, as it is in the system directory. Which is added in the supply chain the malware is unknown. Consumers also are advised to pay attention to where the equipment they buy comes from.

The infections were detected forged Counterfeit Samsung GS4/Note II Various TECNO devices Gionee Gpad G1 Gionee GN708W Gionee GN800 Polytron Rocket S2350 Hi-Tech Amaze Tab Karbonn TA-FONE A34/A37 Jiayu G4S – Galaxy S4 Clone Haier H7 No manufacturer specified i9502+ Samsung Clone

It is not the first time that pre-installed malware on Android devices found .

USB Charger E-Cigarette Spreading Malwares.

Companies must not only pay attention to e-mail attachments and web traffic, even USB chargers can be used for electronic cigarettes to infect computers with malware. That leaves a self-proclaimed IT guy on the popular social news site Reddit know. The IT person tells how a not got closer to said large company with malware. It was the director of the computer where the infection was found.

The system was fully up to date and had up-to-date anti-virus. Seeking a declaration asked the IT department or the director for the past two weeks, maybe something had changed in his life. The man appeared to have switched to e-cigarettes. Further investigation revealed that contained the used USB charger for charging the e-cigarette malware. Once the charger was plugged touched the infected computer malware and made the connection to a remote server.

Boot-Sector Virus

While no further details are shared, let Rik Ferguson of Trend Micro anti-virus company opposite the Guardian know that it is a plausible scenario. "Malware in product lines has existed for years," he notes. There are several examples of MP3 players and digital photo frames that are already in the plant malware infection incur and it then passed on to the consumers who used the equipment. Thus warned consumer electronics giant Samsung still in 2008 that included the installation CD for a digital photo frame malware.

If you want to protect yourself from USB Malware start using USB Condoms by Sync Stop.

More Details by Srlabs : PDF & Video