Articles for March 2016

Microsoft’s hardware strategy harkens back to the company’s glory days in the ’80s.

Source: Microsoft is trying to bring back the ’80s with its Windows 10 strategy

If you recently installed Transmission version 2.90 onto your Apple system, you might have infected yourself with some time-delayed ransomware.

Source: Transmission BitTorrent App Infects OS X With First Ransomware

You can still hide your extensions’ icons, but that’ll only dump them into Chrome’s menu.

Source: Chrome 49 Update Fills Your Toolbar With Your Extensions

Windows 7 is still wildly popular on desktop and laptop PCs, but the support clock is ticking. What happens when time runs out? And how long until other currently supported versions of Windows and Office suffer the same fate?

Source: When will Microsoft pull the plug on your version of Windows or Office? | ZDNet

Commentary: It’s been a long time since anti-malware suites have found anything on my computers. Maybe the Windows Defender that comes with Windows 10 is good enough?

Source: Is paying for antivirus a waste of money? | ZDNet

Before John McAfee and his team of social engineers walk through the Pentagon’s doors, they will have done about three or four weeks of research, he says.

Source: JOHN McAFEE: Here’s how I would hack the Pentagon

The Cerber ransomware is sold as a service to cybercriminals and contains an audio message for victims, researchers find.

Source: Cerber ransomware sold as a service, speaks to victims | PCWorld

Screened high-tech specialists will be brought in to try to breach the United States Department of Defense’s public internet pages in a pilot program aimed at finding and fixing cybersecurity vulnerabilities.

According to the Pentagon, it is the first time the federal government has undertaken a program with outsiders attempting to breach its networks, with officials saying the department’s systems get probed and attacked millions of times a day.

Defense officials laid out the broad outlines of the plan on Wednesday, but had few details on how it will work, what Pentagon systems would be tested, and how the hackers would be compensated.

Source: ​The US Department of Defense searches for hackers to penetrate the Pentagon | ZDNet

Ercan Findikoglu has admitted his role in three cyberattacks which netted a criminal gang $55 million in a matter of hours.

Source: Turkish mastermind of $55m ATM card hacking spree pleads guilty | ZDNet

Report suggests organizations, be it because of embarrassment or ignorance, aren’t seeking help from the authorities when they’re victims of cybercrime.

Source: Businesses are still scared of reporting cyberattacks to the police | ZDNet