Tech Talk - ON-SITE Computing IT blog

Security researcher credited with stopping spread of the WannaCry ransomware, arrested for spreading malware

August 10, 2017

Marcus Hutchins was a name revered in the Cyber security community a few short months ago. He was credited with finding a kill switch to stop the massive WannaCry ransomware attack. August 2, Hutchins found himself again in the headlines, this time on the other side. Hutchins was arrested on hacking charges. Hutchins, a UK citizen, was arrested by the FBI in Las Vegas while attending a hacking convention. The charges stem from Hutchins alleged involvement in the spreading of a separate malware attack. He faces six federal charges dating back to July of 2014, including conspiracy to commit computer…

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What should you do with a found USB?

August 1, 2017

Don’t plug it in You are strolling back to the office after grabbing some lunch and you notice a USB laying on the ground. You have multiple options on how to proceed: A) you can just leave it there and not worry about; B) you can just chuck it into the nearest garbage as you are no fan of littering; C) you can feed your curiosity and take the USB and plug it into your computer. If you answered “C” you are not alone. In a study published by researchers from the University of Illinois, the University of Michigan and…

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What’s in your PC?

July 19, 2017

Computers are finely tuned machines with many components that all work in harmony for all your Facebook driven needs. But What’s going on under the hood that allows an everyday user to hit ‘like’ on your bff’s post? Now don’t worry, this will be a basic rundown of the more major components inside of your pc. There are a handful of main components inside of each computer, whether it’s a big tower that sits next to your computer desk collecting dust or the tiny phone small enough to fit in your pocket. The main components consist of: The power supply…

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Millions of Verizon customers data leaked

July 18, 2017

The private data of some Verizon customers was made publicly available by one of Verizon’s vendors. The Israeli based company Nice Systems exposed the names, addresses and phone numbers of millions of Verizon customers. The software security firm UpGuard, who uncovered the leak, also believes some security pins were exposed. According to UpGuard, calls to Verizon customer service made between January until June 22, 2017, were logged and make publicly available after a security setting was inputted wrong. Verizon says about 6 million customer accounts were made publicly available when an employee of Nice Systems put information into a cloud…

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Petya Ransomware Attack Not Ransomware?

June 29, 2017

What happened? Tuesday, June 27th, A massive cyber attack began to spread across Europe, mostly effecting systems in the Ukraine. The central bank of the Ukraine, government departments, the airport in Kiev, a state-run aircraft manufacturer, and the metro network were all paralyzed by the attack. Even the Chernobyl nuclear plant was hit and had to be switched to manual radiation sensing systems. Companies in the US effected included hospitals, the pharmaceutical company Merck, Nabisco and Oreo. The largest terminal in the Port of Los Angeles had to close due to the attack. Originally it was thought that this attack…

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Google Fined $2.7 Billion by the EU

June 27, 2017

Today, Google was slapped with the largest fine in the history of the EU, a cool $2.7 billion for violating the EU’s antitrust law. Google was accused of using its dominance as a search engine to direct customers to its own shopping resources. The investigation into Google was formally announced back on April 15th, 2015. The charge centers on Google’s search algorithm for its shopping service. The EU said that when a user would search for a product, Google’s shopping link would show at the top of the page, above competitors like Amazon or eBay. In a statement, the European…

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Firefox Focus: The Private Mobile Browser

June 20, 2017

Today, June 20th, Mozilla announced that the popular iOS browser, Firefox Focus, was making the leap to Android. Mozilla had previously released the browser on iOS back in November of 2016. The browser is officially available on the Google Play Store. The Android version includes some features not available on its iOS counterpart. Users have access to an ad tracker counter which informs users how many ads Focus is currently blocking. When users switch to another app, a notification will appear that allows the user to erase their history. Focus can also be set as the default browser for Android,…

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WWDC 2017

June 6, 2017

Apple’s Annual Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC) kicked off again last night. Announced were changes to the Operating Systems (OS) used to run on the many Apple products including: iOS, macOS, watchOS, and tvOS. Along with those were updated and new product announcements. tvOS To start out they announced that tvOS will have support for Amazon Prime later this year, and that’s it. They announced nothing else about tvOS. watchOS They announced some new watch faces along with watchOS 4. A Siri watch face that automatically displays what’s most relevant to you: reminders, photo memories, dynamically updated whenever you raise your…

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Intel Core i9 – The Intel and AMD Battle Rages!

June 5, 2017

Announced at Computex in Taipei, Intel’s answer to AMD’s 16-core, 32-thread Thread ripper is an 18-core, 36-thread monster microprocessor of its own, tailor-made for elite PC enthusiasts. The Core i9 Extreme Edition i9-7980XE, what Intel calls the first teraflop desktop PC processor ever, will be priced at $1,999 when it ships later this year. In a slightly lower tier will be the meat of the Core i9 family: Core i9 X-series chips in 16-core, 14-core, 12-core, and 10-core versions, with prices ranging from $999 to $1,699. Most of the Core i9 chips will incorporate an updated Intel Turbo Boost Max Technology…

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Net Neutrality: The Continuing Fight

May 30, 2017

What is Net Neutrality: The concept of net neutrality is the idea that Internet Service Providers (ISPs) should treat all web traffic equally, and not speed up, slow down, or otherwise manipulate internet content in a way that favors certain traffic over others. It means that ISPs shouldn’t be able to slow down a service like Netflix and force them to pay for faster speeds for their users. What has happened: In 2015 the FCC voted 3-2 to adapt what is referred to as the “Open Internet Order” which implemented strict net neutrality rules, including prohibitions on site and app blocking,…