Geekly Update - 04 September 2019
Do you qualify to get Amazon Prime at half price? Why was Google just fined $170 million by the FTC? Are we making any progress at taking down the cybercrime infrastructure? And what's your best cord-cutting option for streaming live TV channels? Get answers in today's Geekly Update -- it's jam-packed with the latest tech news. This issue is guaranteed to make you 146% smarter -- you'll see why. Read, think, and, comment! |
The AskBobRankin Geekly Update
Back to School? Students Can Get 6 Months of Amazon Prime FREE. Includes Prime Delivery (Free Two-Day, One-Day, and Same-Day delivery), Prime Student deals and discounts, Prime Video (movies, TV shows, live sports), Amazon Music Unlimited, Prime Reading (eBooks, magazines, comics, books with Audible narration), and free product samples. Cost is discounted to $6.49/month after the free trial period. Not a student? Get Amazon Prime at 50% off ($5.99/month) if you have Medicaid or an EBT/TANF card.
Krebs on Security reports that in 2017, 19-year-old Kenneth Schuchman and two others created the "Satori" botnet, to conduct denial-of-service attacks. Schuchman was arrested in 2018, but created a new botnet variant while on supervised release. Now 21, he has has pleaded guilty to federal hacking charges. Schuchman, who has been diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome and autism, will likely receive a sentence much less severe than the max of 10 years in prison $250,000 fine.
Need a little extra protection online? Malwarebytes Browser Guard is an add-on for Google Chrome and Firefox, that protects against threats such as malware, scams, and potentially unwanted programs.
CNet offers five Gmail tips to "minimize regret, frustration and spam." Learn how to unsend an "oops" message, create aliases, use filters, and some other clever tricks.
Anything digital can be hacked, and the latest case in point is a serious vulnerability discovered on the Bitcoin Lightning Network, which could result in users losing their funds if action is not taken soon.
Confused by all the options for streaming live tv? Cordcutter News compares the offerings of PlayStation Vue, Philo, FuboTV, Hulu, Sling TV, YouTube TV, Watch TV and AT&T TV NOW.
Security firm Avast discovered a flaw in a massive botnet infecting over 800,000 computers in the USA, Russia, and South America. With the help of French police, they were able to hijack and take down the botnet. The botnet was designed to mine cryptocurrency, but was also used to steal passwords and spread ransomware.
The Federal Trade Commission has fined Google $170 million over alleged violations of a children’s privacy law on Youtube. The FTC says that the YouTube video service illegally collected personal information from children without their parents’ consent, to deliver targeted ads.
Laptop maker Asus has unveiled the AsusPro B9, which is currently the world's lightest 14-inch laptop. The B9 sports a 10th-generation Intel Core CPU, a 1-terabyte SSD drive, and camera.
Rival Acer decided to go big. The Predator Thronos Air gaming chair is a steel structure that supports up to three gaming monitors and costs $14,000. With a price tag like that, it had better include built-in massage motors. And so it does.
Is there such a thing as too much internet? The creators of the Light Phone say yes. The minimalist Light Phone 2 currently has only three functions: Phone, Alarm, and Settings. The developers probably noticed that description sounds even less appealing than a 15-year-old flip phone, so they plan to add apps for mapping, rideshare, music, and hotspot.
Your thoughts on these topics are welcome. Post your comment or question below...
This article was posted by Bob Rankin on 4 Sep 2019
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Article information: AskBobRankin -- Geekly Update - 04 September 2019 (Posted: 4 Sep 2019)
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Most recent comments on "Geekly Update - 04 September 2019"
Posted by:
RandiO
04 Sep 2019
It may be opportune time to stop continuing to endorse google with such fervent.
Notifying us that the the $170million FTC fine is "alleged" (although your linked article uses the same word) is like putting lipstick on a pig. Thus far, in 2019, France fined google $57Million and EU penalized them to the tune of $1.7Billion. Fan-boys would also label these fines as "alleged" as well; while continuing to insist that goggle's poop still smells like a bouquet of roses!
Posted by:
Laurie
04 Sep 2019
Streaming service choice really is all about your needs. Some people live in areas where the only way to get locals channels is via a cable/satellite/streaming service. I am fortunate to live in an area where we get excellent OTA reception. This covers local programming, allowing us to choose a streaming service that doesn’t include these price-raising options.
About a year ago, we dumped expensive DirecTV for OTA, Philo and Amazon Prime (which we already had anyway.) We don’t regret it one bit. Philo costs us $20 per month. It does not include the expensive sports and local channels, but since those weren’t something we needed, we were able to take advantage of this lower priced option. The service has been really good. We get to enjoy favorites such as Investigation Discovery and History Channel without the high price. We also notice that Philo has made noticeable improvements to the UX, including a better UI and more channels at no extra cost over the time we’ve had them.
Broadcast TV has the benefit of much less compression than satellite, cable or internet streaming. The better picture quality is noticeable. As an OTA user, I am looking forward to ATSC 3.0 in a few years, as well.
Posted by:
Charlie
05 Sep 2019
The Malwarebytes for Firefox does not exist, or at least I couldn't find it.
EDITOR'S NOTE: That was noted in the article that I linked. I expect it will return soon.
Posted by:
Clive McCloughan
05 Sep 2019
Will Microsoft support of Windows 10 after December, 2019? If not Windows 10 didn't last very long did it?
EDITOR'S NOTE: No truth to that. In fact, Windows 7 support will extend into January 2020.