Samsung to release monthly security updates to its Android devices in wake of Stagefright exploit
A number of mobile devices on AT&T and Sprint have already begun receiving security patches for the Stagefright exploit in Android. Most of the devices that are already receiving updates are from Samsung, and that’s not a coincidence. The Korean tech company has just announced a new Android security update process that “fast tracks” security patches over the air when certain vulnerabilities are uncovered. These small updates will make their way to Samsung devices roughly once per month.
Prior to introducing this new update method, Samsung, like many other OEMs, would likely struggle to push out security patches in a timely fashion. Many security exploits are very time sensitive, so this is great news for owners of Samsung devices.
Dong Jin Koh, Executive Vice President and Head of Mobile Research at Samsung Electronics explains:
Since software is constantly exploited in new ways, developing a fast response process to deliver security patches to our devices is critical to keep them protected. We believe that this new process will vastly improve the security of our devices and will aim to provide the best mobile experience possible for our users.
Google also recently announced a new initiative that will bring monthly security OTA updates to Nexus devices, in addition to regular platform updates. The updates from Google will also be available through AOSP.
Samsung says it’s working with carriers around the world to figure out a way to best implement this new update approach, and that more details on the new method will be released soon.
Apple will patch the DYLD bug in its next OS X release
Apple will patch the dangerous DYLD “privilege escalation” bug in its next OS release, Mac OS X 10.10.5, The Guardian reports. The DYLD bug allows a program to run with administrator access but without requiring an admin-level password. And unlike the Thunderstrike 2 worm, which has already been partially patched, the DYLD bug has been both spotted in the wild and remains unaddressed at this time.
[Image Credit: the Associated Press]
Source:
The Guardian
Tags: apple, bugs, DYLD, infection, privilegeescalation, security, Thunderstrike2
Facebook does live video streaming, if you’re a celebrity
After months of sitting on the sidelines while Meerkat and Periscope dominate the livestreaming space, Facebook is rolling out its own offering… well, sort of. It’s launching Facebook Live, a service that lets “public figures” (that is, celebrities with verified public pages) stream real-time video of their adventures through Facebook Mentions. You can comment on and share these feeds if you’re a mere commoner, but you can’t record them yourself. Some of the first broadcasts will come from the likes of Dwayne Johnson, Michael Bublé and Serena Williams, if you’re wondering about the intended users.
The move is a bit odd when the very allure of competing services is that anyone can set up and share a stream for any purpose — T-Mobile CEO John Legere, for example, has used Periscope for everything from documenting runs in Central Park through to earnings calls. However, it makes sense in light of Facebook’s big push toward covering events as they happen. The social network isn’t so much interested in creating the go-to livestreaming service as it is keeping you on Facebook for as long as possible. Its ultimate goal is to prevent you from drifting over to Twitter when there’s a big premiere or Q&A session, and Live’s celebrity focus may be more than enough to make that happen.
Filed under:
Cellphones, Internet, Mobile, Facebook
Via:
TechCrunch
Source:
Facebook Newsroom
Tags: celebrity, facebook, facebooklive, facebookmentions, internet, livestream, livestreaming, mobilepostcross, socialnetwork, socialnetworking
Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 820 specs leak: 35 percent faster than 810
The cat appears to be out of the bag for Qualcomm’s next major mobile chip, the Snapdragon 820. Analyst Pan Jiutang posted some slides on Weibo detailing pretty much all of the important information about the new processor, ahead of Qualcomm’s expected launch later this month. First, the big stuff: The 820’s newer Hydra CPU is apparently 35 percent faster than the 810, Qualcomm’s current high-end processor, and its Adreno 530 graphics processor is 40 percent faster while also being 30 percent more power efficient. Additionally, the chip’s 14 nanometer manufacturing process should also make it more efficient than the 20nm 810. The 820s’ improvements are all fairly standard, and quite honestly most people won’t even see the performance differences with its predecessors. But it should open the door for even more complex games on smartphones and tablets, as well as more apps that might need more horsepower than today’s chips.
[Photo: Eric Reed/Invision for Qualcomm]
Filed under:
Mobile
Via:
TechnoBuffalo
Source:
Weibo
Tags: mobilepostcross, Qualcomm, Snapdragon, Snapdragon820
San Antonio is getting Google Fiber
Nearly six months after the city cleared a steeplechase-worth of legal hurdles, Google has finally announced that it will be installing its ultrafast fiber-optic network in San Antonio, Texas. Google cites San Antonio’s 1.4 million residents and thriving tech scene — including the country’s first all-digital library, the Bexar BiblioTech — as reasons for the selection. The fact that San Antonio was recently chosen for the President Tech Hire and Connect Home initiatives didn’t hurt, either. The company will spend the next few months coordinating with city leaders on how best to lay the 4,000 miles of necessary fiber-optic cable. There’s no word yet on when the 1,000 Mbps service will actually begin.
San Antonio joins Austin, Provo, and Kansas City as the only cities with Google Fiber actually installed. Nashville, Raleigh, Charlotte, Atlanta and Salt Lake City are all in talks with Google while San Jose, Portland, and Phoenix are all in the early consideration stages as well.
[Image Credit: Top – Bloomberg via Getty Images, inline – Google]
Tags: Austin, Texas, fiberoptic, google, Google Fiber, googlefiber, Kansas City, mbps, Nashville, Tennessee, Phoenix, Arizona, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, San Jose, California
Google Slides and Google Keep gain new powers
Today is Google’s update Wednesday, and it seems today’s focus is on Google Slides and Google Keep, gaining some neat new abilities.
First off, they’re is updating Slides with the ability to share presentations over video calls.
“All you need is your Android phone or tablet, and with one tap of the present button, you’ll see the option to present to a video call.“
This will certainly be helpful for the business world, where video calls and presentations occur frequently. It is already easy to use Slides with Chromecast or Airplay, or simply sharing the presentation. This feature will make things even easier.
Controlling the presentation is done through the mobile device you’re sharing the presentation from, allowing you to advance slides, view speaker notes, and use a timer
Next up is Google Keep, which can now export notes directly into Google Drive from a mobile device.
Google is always adding new things to their products to help make them more real-world-friendly, and these new features certainly add to that.
SOURCE: Google Docs Blog
The post Google Slides and Google Keep gain new powers appeared first on AndroidGuys.
T-Mobile drops the Galaxy S6/S6 Edge price by up to $200
There were talks of the Samsung Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge price being dropped and it looks like T-Mobile is the first carrier to do so.
T-Mobile has dropped the price by $100 off the 32GB and 64GB Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge. Already a good savings, but the real drop in price is for the 128GB models as they have been dropped by $200. That makes them the same price as the 64GB models.
New prices are $579 for a regular 32GB Galaxy S6 or for only $659 get the huge 128GB model. The Galaxy S6 Edge is priced at $679 for the 32GB or $759 for the 128GB. Obviously there is no point in getting the 64GB anymore.
Come comment on this article: T-Mobile drops the Galaxy S6/S6 Edge price by up to $200
AT&T and Sprint are pushing Stagefright updates to many Samsung phones
Stagefright is a new Android security vulnerability that affects millions of Android devices. It is critical it gets fixed right away. Google is pushing out an update to Nexus phones today, but now AT&T and Sprint are pushing the update to many Samsung phones.
The phones AT&T will be updating are:
- Galaxy Note 4 (N910AUCU2COC6)
- Galaxy S6 Active (G890AUCU2AU2AOF4)
- Galaxy S5 (G900AUCU4BOF3)
- Galaxy S5 Active (G870AUCU2BOF3)
Sprint will be updating:
- Galaxy S6 (G920PVPU2BOGA)
- Galaxy S6 Edge (G925PVPU2BOGA)
- Galaxy S5 (G900PVPU3BOG1)
- Galaxy Note Edge (N915PVPU4COG1)
To check for these updates, head into Settings>System update>Update now.
Source: AT&T (1), (2), (3), (4), Sprint (1), (2), (3), (4)
Come comment on this article: AT&T and Sprint are pushing Stagefright updates to many Samsung phones
Google to roll out security-focused updates to Nexus devices on a monthly basis
Just a few hours ago, we let you know that owners of the Nexus 6 and Nexus 5 should soon be receiving a security patch for the Stagefright exploit. That came as no surprise, as Nexus devices are normally among the first to receive timely OTA updates. It looks like the security patch we saw earlier today is part of a bigger initiative from Google, which the company just announced a few moments ago.
In a blog post, Google explained that from this week on, it will push out monthly security-focused over-the-air updates to Nexus devices, in addition to regular platform updates. These fixes will also be released to the public through the Android Open Source Project (AOSP). The company explains:
Nexus devices will continue to receive major updates for at least two years and security patches for the longer of three years from initial availability or 18 months from last sale of the device via the Google Store.
In addition, Google says the Nexus 4, 7, 9, 10 and Player are all receiving the Stagefright patch sometime today, as well.
Nexus in video
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Thanks to Google’s current security measures, fewer than .15% of all Android devices that solely install apps from Google Play have a potentially harmful app installed. Obviously this is great news for Nexus owners, as this new monthly update initiative will provide more security to users than ever before.
Snapdragon 820 specs leak ahead of launch
Pan Jiutang, Chinese analyst, spilt the beans on the supposed specs of Snapdragon 820. Announced on Weibo, some of the specs include 14nm construction, a new Adreno 530 GPU and support for 28 megapixel cameras. He seems to have gotten a few handfuls of information on it, as there is a rather bountiful load of information.
Named the MSM8996, the chip is expected to come in with 4 64-bit cores. Interestingly enough, these are said to be Hydra chips, which Qualcomm has been developing, instead of the old Kryo that Qualcomm also made. The Adreno 530 is said to deliver up to 40% better performance and, coupled with the 30% better battery efficiency, should also provide a better user experience.
Dual-channel, LPDDR4 memory that supports up to 1866MHz and the ability to record 4K video at 60fps should help manufacturers out in the spec wars. There will also be a dedicated, low-power sensor that will enable the phone to determine idle use and save battery.
Lastly, the chipset is expected to see commercial release by the end of 2015, and to be seen on phones in early 2016, suggesting the inevitable announcement will be in the near future. It seems a bit late considering the specs are similar to Samsung’s Exynos 7420, and we can only pray that Qualcomm learnt their lesson with the 810.
Let’s just hope it doesn’t overheat this time.
As these specs aren’t confirmed, take them with a pinch of salt.
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