The Andromeda botnet still lingers as nations struggle to clean infected PCs
A report published by Fortinet suggests that although the FBI and European law enforcement ended the Andromeda botnet’s reign in late 2017, there are still systems infected with the malware. The process of cleaning up the infected PCs isn’t progressing at the same pace across various regions.
Steam survey shows PC gamers are still mostly playing in 1080p and lower
Valve Software’s latest hardware and software survey for July reveals that 63.72 percent of Steam’s registered members still play games with a 1,920 x 1,080 resolution. Even more, 13.33 percent of Steam’s gamers play at 1,366 x 768 while only 1.14 percent are playing at 3,840 x 2,160.
Intel’s ninth-generation CPUs could launch on October 1
New rumors suggest that Intel could launch its new-generation CPUs as soon as October 1, bringing the 9900K, 9700K, and 9600K chips to consumers eager for more power and better multithreaded support. This rumor backs up slides seen earlier this year that suggested Intel's new chips would debut in late 2018.
AMD’s new 32-core Ryzen Threadripper chip is out, and you can get one for free
AMD’s new 32-core Ryzen Threadripper 2990WX desktop CPU is now available for a hefty $1,800. It’s compatible with motherboards packing the TR4 socket and the X399 chipset. The only other new Threadripper chip arriving this month will be the 16-core Threadripper 2950X, which costs half the price.
Intel’s ruler-shaped SSD packs 32TB of storage, aims to redesign servers
Intel now provides what it deems as the world’s densest and totally silent solid-state drive, but you’ll never install it in your desktop PC. Instead, it’s a long device resembling an old 12-inch ruler that’s designed to bring 32TB of speedy storage to data centers. It joins two other “ruler” SSDs.
Lenovo’s new mobile workstations pack a punch with Xeon CPUs, Quadro graphics
Lenovo introduced two new mobile workstations arriving at the end of August that are based on eighth-generation Intel Core and Xeon processors. The ThinkPad P1 is the thinnest of the two, measuring 0.7 inches while the bigger ThinkPad P72 is thicker at 1 inch. Both support huge amounts of system memory.
Network routers with roaming enabled are likely susceptible to a new attack
Jens Steube discovered a new method to break into network routers. He was researching new ways to attack the WPA3 security standard but stumbled onto an attack technique capable of cracking hashed passwords based on the Wi-Fi Protected Access Pre-Shared Key (WPA-PSK) security standard.
Programmer trains artificial intelligence to draw faces from text descriptions
Programmer Animesh Karnewar wanted to know how characters described in books would appear in reality, so he turned to artificial intelligence to see if it could properly render these fictional people. He used machine learning to train the A.I. using 400 random images and their text descriptions.
Razer heads to Kickstarter to create its Naga Trinity gaming mouse for lefties
When it comes to computer mice, scissors, spiral notebooks and more, lefties are a neglected crowd. Peripherals and tools catering to southpaws are few and far in-between. Luckily Razer wants to help fix that -- at least for the left-handed MMO gamer -- by creating a left-handed Naga Trinity mouse.
AMD’s new 32-core Ryzen Threadripper desktop CPU rips into wallets at $1,800
AMD now provides a new batch of Ryzen Threadripper desktop processors for enthusiasts based on its refreshed Zen design. Leading this second wave is the 32-core chip AMD teased in June that uses the same TR4 motherboard socket seating the first Threadripper chips but consumes a bit more power.
‘Destiny 2’ players spent 25.6 years combined deleting their unwanted shaders
Bungie's latest Destiny 2 statistics reveal that players deleted 807,635,124 shaders in the 77 days spanning between the launch of Warmind and the final Season 3 Faction Rally. At a one-second-per-shader deletion rate, that number tallies up to a combined 25.6 years across all active Guardians.
Microsoft’s latest patent application hints to ‘page flipping’ on Andromeda
A patent application describes a two-screen pocket-sized device that's likely tied to Microsoft's Andromeda project. Labeled “Navigational Aid for a Hinged Device via Semantic Abstraction,” it describes how the hinge can be used to locate specific sections of content displayed on the screens.
Pictures of a blank GeForce GTX 1180 card reveal connectors and memory slots
Pictures of the upcoming GeForce GTX 1180 graphics card have supposedly surfaced on Baidu showcasing only the card’s printed circuit board. Based on the certification logos, it’s a final design and likely a reference board used by Nvidia’s hardware partners to create their own GTX 1180 cards.
Microsoft’s two-screen Andromeda may arrive in 2019 with Productivity Mode
A clue regarding Microsoft’s Andromeda device was recently discovered inside a Windows 10 driver, indicating that the device will have a productivity mode. It’s used in a class -- a set of attributes that Windows 10 uses to make a window -- called MultiTaskMode. The driver handles display settings.
Attacker stole user data from Reddit through employee accounts
An official update posted by Reddit reveals that an attacker broke into a few systems on the company’s network and stole user data. The theft consisted of a 2007 database backup containing salted hashed passwords along with “some” current email addresses. Reddit is currently working with law enforcement.
Earn up to $10,000 by squashing printer-based bugs in HP’s bounty program
HP is calling an “industry first” in launching a print security bug bounty program providing rewards up to $10,000. It’s backed by Bugcrowd, a crowdsourced security platform that manages bug bounties, vulnerability disclosures, and more. The program will focus on bugs related to printers.
SamSam ransomware has generated $5.9 million from victims since 2015
Sophos reports that the SamSam ransomware has done more financial damage than previously believed, generating $5.9 million from its victims since it appeared in December 2015. Hackers use SamSam in attacks about once per day, but the typical web surfer will likely never experience its devastation.
Email shows Nvidia’s GTX 11 Series will start being released in late August
A leaked email purportedly written by a Nvidia graphics card partner for a retailer provides the release dates of the upcoming GeForce GTX 11 Series. The letter also confirms what we’ve heard over the last several months: That Nvidia pushed back the launch due to unsold GTX 10 Series stock.
Leaked Android app shows message scheduling is coming to Google’s Gmail
A recent build of Google’s Gmail Android app reveals the service will eventually support email scheduling. Evidence appears within a line of the app’s code, assigning the “menu_schedule_send” command to a “Schedule send” menu entry. An excerpt from an XML file also refers to this specific command.
Use your face or finger to log into accounts using Microsoft Edge
Microsoft Edge now supports the Web Authentication specification for password-free logins. Support actually appeared in Build 17723 for Windows Insider Fast Ring participants and Build 18204 in the Skip Ahead program last week, but Microsoft didn’t mention the feature until this week’s report.
Microsoft patent points to a 2-screen device for 3-way video calls
Although Microsoft’s two-screen pocket-sized Andromeda device appears to be dead in the water for now, the company apparently still has multi-screen devices on its radar. A patent application published earlier this month describes a hinged multi-screen device that supports three-way video calling.
Deep learning vs. machine learning: What’s the difference between the two?
Deep learning vs. machine learning: what's the difference between the two? We provide a simplified explanation of both AI-based technologies.
Microsoft will take charge of your Windows 10 device in a monthly lease
Microsoft is supposedly gearing up to launch a subscription service for Windows 10 that will see customers paying a monthly fee for leasing the entire PC, not just the operating system. Dubbed as Microsoft Managed Desktop, the company would manage the device on an operating system level.
Intel’s 10nm ‘Cannon Lake’ processors won’t arrive until the 2019 holiday season
Intel chief engineering officer Venkata Renduchintala said the company’s 10mn processors won’t appear in products until the 2019 holiday season. He revealed the new launch window during Intel’s second quarter 2018 financial results conference call, reporting that the yields are improving.
New Spectre attack lets hackers steal data without having to run local code on PCs
A new white paper by researchers at the Graz University of Technology reveals a new attack called NetSpectre. Unlike the internet-based Spectre attack that requires a hacker to run code locally on the target PC, this version can steal data from the target PC’s memory without running any local code.
Reality shines into your ‘Minecraft’ escape via Windows Mixed Reality Flashlight
What’s great about VR is that you can get the full building experience in Minecraft given the blocky world consumes your entire view. The drawback is that you don’t have visual access to the real world without lifting the headset or completely removing the device altogether. Microsoft has a fix.
Apple’s MacBook Pro throttling fix seems to be working
A recent benchmark showed Intel’s Core i9-8950HK CPU in Apple’s latest 15-inch MacBook Pro severely throttled in performance presumably due to cooling issues. Apple has since confirmed the problem and released a software fix which appears to have cleared up most users problems, restoring the MacBook Pro's performance.
Apple’s T2 chip may be causing issues in iMac Pro and 2018 MacBook Pros
Many iMac Pro owners have reportedly suffered kernel panics since they hit the market at the end of 2017. You can find a handful of threads on Apple’s community forums detailing the trials and tribulations customers are experiencing, speculating that the T2 security chip may be the culprit.