Weekly Mac Security and Tech News Roundup: 4/5/13

Rebecca Kelley

12 years ago

Are you ready to get some more security and tech news crammed in your face? (Okay, not “crammed,” per se, but maybe “held a respectable distance in front of you so you can check out some interesting tidbits.”) Here’s what the Intego crew found intriguing from the past week.

Security News

Apparently AT&T bans users from having obscene passwords. F*#%!
We tweeted this out on Monday, but if you missed it, here it is again: 5 Myths of Two-Factor Authentication via Wired.
Brian Pennington has a good outline about what happens after a data breach.
Twitter users in Japan are encountering an annoying “browser crasher.”
California is introducing a bill in the state Assembly that would update the state’s data collection and privacy laws. This “Right to Know Act” would “compel companies to disclose, upon request, what data about a customer they hold and with whom they have shared it in the past year.”
Anonymous stole 15,000 membership records from Uriminzokkiri.com, a website that provides propaganda from North Korea’s central news agency. The hacking group has kicked off “Operation Free Korea” with the goal of bringing free democracy to the troubled country.

From the Intego Blog

Lysa shares some jailbreak tidbits from around the blogosphere.
Ever wondered what your antivirus scanner is actually doing?
Mozilla released a Firefox 20 update and patched some critical flaws. Opera, meanwhile, released 12.15 for the Mac, while Microsoft has announced they’re ending support for Office for Mac 2008.
Brian Krebs has identified the Flashback malware author.
It’s becoming increasingly difficult to try and maintain your privacy on the Internet, but we’ve shared some tips on how to preserve a little privacy when you go online.

Apple News

An Apple patent granted on Tuesday includes a technique that can apparently tell the difference between a user incorrectly entering his or her security credentials and an intruder trying to access a secure network.
Lately a group of iOS developers have been the targets of a sort of “denial of service prank” where they’re getting spammed with tons of texts that can lock up the Messages app.
Apple devices are projected to outsell Windows devices for the first time this year.
Apparently the iPhone 5 was designed before the death of Steve Jobs. The next two phone designs will have the influence of Tim Cook, the current CEO.
Apple’s “slide to unlock” patent has been invalidated by a German court. This decision can be appealed, but for now Motorola has won the ruling to invalidate Apple’s patent request.
You may have noticed a little facelift in Apple’s online store — it’s got an iOS friendly nav bar, larger search results, and other slight changes.
According to comScore, Apple has increased their lead as the top US smartphone maker. Samsung has made some gains while Android is down for the second straight month.
Apple Insider celebrates the iPad’s third birthday by taking a trip down memory lane and pulling up initial criticism of the tablet.
Speaking of anniversaries, April 1st was Apple’s 37th birthday…or was it? Steve Wozniak questions the April 1st anniversary date and thinks the actual date is the 4th or 5th of April.
CNBC’s Jim Cramer criticizes Apple by saying it’s “becoming the JC Penney of tech,” predicting the tech giant’s next product will be a huge disappointment.
Will you soon be able to buy a smartwatch from Apple?
iOS 7 is rumored to be behind schedule and facing a “significant overhaul.” Meanwhile, evad3rs’ pod2g confirmed that they are not currently working on a 6.1.3 jailbreak.
Apparently the Drug Enforcement Administration has complained that messages sent with Apple’s encrypted chat service are “impossible to intercept,” even with a warrant.

Notable Tech News

In the wake of Google Reader closing its doors July 1st, Reader announced that Reader for Mac and iPad are free.
Is too much tablet time detrimental to child development? This New York Times article looks at the use of gadgets during early development and whether they hinder learning about social cues and real interactions.
Surprise, surprise: Windows is still the dominant operating system in PCs.
The BlackBerry Z10 automatically tells your contacts list when you’re watching videos online. Good if you’re checking out a cute kitty video, not-so-good if you’re sneaking a peek at some raunchy porn.
First T-Mobile eliminated cell phone contracts, and now Verizon said they’d drop contracts if their customers demanded it.
The NYPD spent three weeks looking for a mugger, and when they failed they released a video of the attack online. The result? Commenters figured out his identity within an hour.

Random Awesomeness

If you’ve ever longed for furniture to grow like those “just add water” dinosaur sponges you used to play with as a kid, this self-assembling furniture that “grows like popcorn” could soon end up in your living room.
A reddit user uploaded an album containing photos of Tim Cook when he was in high school. Highlights: he was on the yearbook staff, was voted “Most Studious,” and had some pretty girly handwriting.
The claw swipe gesture for the iPad is a multitasker’s dream — check it out!
This got passed around the office and it’s partially hilarious, partially tortuous — it’s a grid displaying all six Star Wars films simultaneously. I died laughing at the mishmash of horns blaring across the opening credits.

We hope you all have a great weekend!