Hackers arrested after stealing more than 30 Jeeps in Texas
This article has been updated with comments from FCA.
It seems the news regarding vehicle hacking continues to get worse, especially when it comes to products from Fiat Chrysler Automobiles. Last year, a Jeep Cherokee in St. Louis, Missouri, was wirelessly hacked from Pittsburgh. Nissan had to shut down its Leaf app because of vulnerabilities. Now, a pair of hackers in Houston, Texas, stole more than 30 Jeeps over a six-month period. The two were arrested by police last Friday while attempting to steal another vehicle.
ABC 13 in Houston reports that police had been following Michael Arcee and Jesse Zelay for several months but were unable to catch them in the act until now. The two were using a laptop to connect to and start a vehicle. It’s unclear if the connection was through OBD II or USB or, but FCA says that these thefts were not related to the UConnect remote hacks from last year.
In April, this surveillance video showed the theft of a Jeep Wrangler Unlimited. It was this footage that first led the police to Arcee and Zelay. The police began to follow and record the pair. That investigation eventually led to Friday’s arrest. Both are charged with unauthorized use of a motor vehicle. In addition, Arcee is charged with felon in possession of a weapon and possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance.
According to ABC 13, Homeland Security is investigating more than 100 stolen FCA vehicles that they believe were hacked using similar software. After their theft, the vehicles were brought across the border to Mexico. FCA is currently conducting an internal investigation into the matter.
After this article was posted, the company reached out to Autoblog, stating “FCA US takes the safety and security of its customers seriously and incorporates security features in its vehicles that help to reduce the risk of unauthorized and unlawful access to vehicle systems and wireless communications. FCA US has been cooperating with Houston Police Department since they first started the investigation. This investigation is ongoing and as such, the Company has no further comment.”
Related Video:
Source: ABC 13
3 ways cordcutters can still watch the Olympics – CNET
The world is watching this summer’s Olympic games…unless you are in the US and don’t pay for a traditional television subscription.
Is the antenna really the only way to watch the Olympics without a television subscription nowadays?
Sarah Tew/CNET
NBC, the network that has the rights to air the international event in the United States, will be offering live internet streams through its website, mobile and television apps — but only if you subscribe directly to a supported television provider such as cable or satellite.
But I — like a growing number of Americans — am forgoing expensive cable subscriptions to be a cordcutter, opting for a wide variety of online streaming options from Netflix, Hulu and YouTube to “skinny bundles” of channels like Sling TV or PlayStation Vue. In fact, I’m paying as much as $50 less than equivalent cable subscription prices that I’ve seen.
However, live events such as the Olympics are exactly the type of watching that still eludes those who have moved all of their television watching to the internet. While some sports organizations offer their own internet-only subscription services such as the WWE Network, NFL Sunday Ticket and MLB.TV, the Olympics are not currently available as part of an a la carte subscription model.
So until the theoretical day comes that NBC offers either its own subscription for the Olympics or finds a way to broadcast them for free online, there are a few ways to get an Olympics fix without committing to a cable or satellite provider:
Buy an antenna, if you have the signal
NBC is one of the “big four” broadcasters, and still has a free over-the-air signal in many parts of the US. (Fox, ABC and CBS — the owner of CNET — are the others.) So, if you live in an area with good reception, nearly any TV can pick up the signal with the addition of a TV antenna. (A notable exception: new 2016 Vizio TVs are among the few models without support for over-the-air TV, but you can buy a compatible DVR or tuner box.)
Antenna prices start dirt cheap for the decent options like the Channel Master Flatenna 35 ($10 directly from Channel Master, closer to $22 with shipping from Amazon). My colleague Ty Pendlebury found that the trade-offs for that antenna’s low price are a short, nonreplaceable cable and plasticky construction, but is otherwise almost as good as slightly costlier options.
The best option he found while testing out eight different indoor antennas was the $39 Antennas Direct ClearStream Eclipse, which pulled in the most channels in our Manhattan location while offering a good mix of features including a detachable cable and a set of sticky pads to attach the antenna to your window or wall.
That said, your mileage for picking up channels may vary based on where you live. In my day-to-day usage of an antenna, there are usually a number of channels I have difficulty picking up. From my apartment in Queens, I just can’t pick up CBS, and my signal for NBC can be unstable. When I lived in the suburbs about an hour’s train ride outside of Manhattan, my indoor antenna could only pick up three channels, and none of them were NBC.
And even if you do have a clear signal for NBC, you will not be able to watch games broadcast on the network’s cable channels, which include Bravo, CNBC, Golf Channel and USA Network.
To get those, you may want to eye two other streaming services…
Try PlayStation Vue or Sling TV
Sling TV and PlayStation Vue both offer streaming alternatives to cable service at prices starting at around $20 and $40 per month, respectively. The services are available for broadband customers on mobile devices and most living room streaming gadgets, including Roku and Fire TV (both), Apple TV and Xbox One (Sling TV) and PS3 and PS4 (Vue, naturally).
PlayStation Vue customers can watch most of the games using the Access tier at $39, or grab the Golf Channel as well using the Core tier at $45. Sling pricing is similar, with the Blue tier at $40 offering everything but the Golf Channel, which comes in the Sports Extra bundle for an additional $5.
PlayStation Vue (pictured here), along with Sling TV, are both available on Roku.
David Katzmaier/CNET
PlayStation Vue customers, however, get the added ability to use their log-in in order to access NBC’s website and apps for on-demand viewing on additional devices. Sling currently doesn’t offer that feature.
One other benefit to these services, if you haven’t given them a try yet, is that you may be able to watch most of the Olympics using the free trial period for each of them. Just start with one, cancel when the trial is ending, then sign up for the other. Then after trying both, keep the one you want, or cancel both — there’s no contract, and no long-term commitment.
And if you absolutely must watch the Olympics, and refuse to add additional equipment nor new services into your life, there is a more social option…
Hit the sports bar
While you might not want to pay for the Olympics, perhaps you can instead buy a beer and watch it at a bar that has cable instead. The benefits are obvious: be surrounded by other Olympics fans and cheer for athletes as if you are in Rio. On the other hand, that rowdiness might be why you prefer to stay at home. And your tab for drinks and wings could exceed the monthly streaming service bill mentioned above in one night.
That said, maybe your sports bar is also a PokeStop for Pokemon Go!
What to wish for in 2020
So what would be the most ideal situation for the Olympics to grab cordcutters? Maybe an ad/subscription-supported service that both pays for the service while getting as many Americans watching whether or not they pay for cable? Or (and this will probably never happen) a cable-provided Olympics-only package that cancels by itself after the end of the games? Tell us what you think should be the best, legal way to stream the Olympics come 2020 in the comments.
Jacob Krol contributed to this story.
Close
This Galaxy S7 Edge gets into the Olympic spirit
Drag
The Public Access Weekly: Squad goals
Happy Friday everyone! This week has pretty much zoomed by, so let’s dive right in: Tomorrow, I’ll be the guest host on ICYMI so look for my mug to show up on the Engadget home page. A hearty thank you to everyone in the comment system who has been diligently flagging spam. That is genuinely helpful, so please keep it up! Also, a quick heads up to those who are registering for Public Access — some of our reply emails with your confirmation codes are getting caught in spam folders, so if you’ve registered and haven’t heard back from us please check there! (And if you still haven’t received anything, give us a holler here for assistance.)
Speaking of Public Access, how about some stats from last month?
- 174 posts went live on Public Access in July, making it our best month ever! That’s even better than June, when 125 posts were published. I can’t lie — I’m pretty excited to see what y’all put up in August, so keep ’em coming!
- 65 total Public Access members wrote and published stories, including 34 new members. Congrats and welcome to those folks!
- The Public Access member with the most posts published in July is: Dianna Labrien (again!) with 13 posts, followed closely by Amit Sen with 11, and Allan Smith and Lovisa Alvin who are tied at 9.
The top 10 most read Public Access posts for July (not counting the Public Access Weekly posts) were:
How Technology Has Evolved in 2016? by James McArthur
Employee Tracking Tech by Leona Henryson
Taping Over Your Laptop Camera – Paranoia or a Smart Move? by Michael Harris
Pokémon Go is a Nightmare for Driving by Andrew Ressler
6 Coolest Cameras Available Today by Dianna Labrien
4 Tech Tips to Help Millennials Get Off Their Assets and Start Investing by Cosette Jarrett
Things That Suck About The Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge by Chandrakant Isi
The Tech Guide To Living a More Mindful Lifestyle by Dianna Labrien
A Closer Look at the Reality of Cord-Cutting by Sarah Pike
DMCA And Copyrights Claim – Is There Need For A Revision? by Lou Rushford
Congrats everyone!
Looking for something to read? Checkout:
Sometimes I get a ride home with Roberto Baldwin when he’s testing new cars. Sadly, I did not get to experience the passenger seat of the Tesla Model X SUV he just reviewed, so I guess “Exit a car with Falcon wing doors in slow-mo while a Jay-Z song plays in the background” is still on my bucket list.
Kris Naudus reviewed the “Impossible Burger”, a lab-developed patty that contains no actual meat (just plant proteins). Whether you’re a hard-core carnivore or a Level 5 vegan, you know you want to find out what it actually tastes like.
Our review of the Xbox One S discussed the upgrades to the new system, which include 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray player, as well as the console’s physical characteristics and the differences between the One S and the older systems. It also, predictably, ruffled a few feathers in the comment system. Overall, the system scored an 85 from our editor — but if you would like to submit your own review, you can do that here.
Looking for something to write about? Mull over:
Facebook is increasing its efforts to detect and demote articles that are considered ‘clickbait.’ In this instance, Facebook considers something clickbait-y if the headline appears to withhold information or is misleading. What do you consider to be the definition of clickbait? How do you avoid clickbait? And, since so many folks are eager to call us out, what is the most clickbait-y story you’ve ever seen on Engadget? Bonus: What information or details would you have added to keep the story from delving into clickbait territory?
Apple recently made some emoji upgrades, which included switching out the revolver emoji for a bright-green water pistol instead. This… was not a popular decision if the comments to that story are any indication. Meanwhile Microsoft went the opposite route and changed its toy gun emoji to an actual pistol. Weigh in with your thoughts: Should the revolver emoji be changed or phased out? Why or why not? Is a gun emoji of any kind an issue, or just silliness to argue over?
Okay, I know I’m about to open a Costco-sized can of worms with this one but: GIF or JIF? How do you pronounce the acronym for Graphics Interchange Format?
Disney Channel to release 12 original short films online
In an effort to better engage with young audiences, Disney Channel is set to release 12 short-form movies online. The original content is part of a new collection called “Free Period,” which will hit Disney Channel’s website as well as its apps on mobile devices, connected TVs and set-top boxes like the Apple TV. Free Period (also the name of one of the shorts) will have a presence on YouTube too, where movies are rolling out daily now through August 21st. Disney Channel says these short films offer something for every kid, since they include comedy, mystery and more.
Via: Variety
Source: Disney Channel
Torrentz.eu quietly shuts down its torrent search engine
Popular Poland-based torrent meta-search site Torrentz.eu has removed its key functionality, effectively shutting down a major portal for finding pirated material on the web. According to a message on the site, which refers to itself in the past tense: “Torrentz was a free, fast and powerful meta-search engine combining results from dozens of search engines. Torrentz will always love you. Farewell.” A click on the search box currently re-directs to a pop-up ad from Alibaba.
The end of Torrentz comes after the world’s biggest torrent site KickAssTorrents was shut down by the feds in July. The proprietor of KickAssTorrents, 30-year-old Ukrainian Artem Vaulin was arrested in Poland and charged with criminal copyright infringement and money laundering. Vaulin is accused of illegally reproducing and distributing more than $1 billion worth of pirated media. In 2014, the founders of the popular Pirate Bay torrent site were also rounded up and the site struggled to stay online as it was raided several times.
As for Torrentz.eu, the site managed to stay in the game a little longer because it didn’t host torrent links directly — only made it easier to find them elsewhere. As Variety notes, the site was moved to the .eu top-level domain after its .com was seized by the US Department of Homeland Security. The domain is also blocked in the several countries, including the UK.
Torrenting as a means of pirating material may generally be in decline, however. A study by a UK-based antipiracy firm found that most online piracy activity has shifted to streaming sites. And BitTorrent itself has already gone legit.
Chris Urmson leaves Google’s self-driving car project
After seven and a half years working on self-driving car tech for Google/Alphabet, Chris Urmson announced his departure from the team in a blog post tonight. He took over as director after Google X founder Sebastian Thrun left in 2013, and led until Google hired former Hyundai exec John Krafcik as the CEO of its car division. The New York Times reports Urmson was unhappy with the recent direction of the project under Krafcik and had “quarreled” with Larry Page, however his post simply says he’s “ready for a fresh challenge.”
Autonomous driving tech has come a long way since the first time we saw the fruits of Google’s labor, and a partnership with Chrysler indicates it has entered a much more practical phase of development. Urmson joined Google after working on self-driving tech at Carnegie Mellon to win DARPA challenges, and watched the project go from a goal of 100,000 miles self-driven to completing 1.8 million miles (with a few accidents, usually caused by human drivers). There’s no indication on what’s next, but he says “If I can find another project that turns into an obsession and becomes something more, I will consider myself twice lucky.”
Source: Chris Urmson (Medium)
MrMobile Gets His First Chromebook
As someone who edits video on a Mac and writes scripts on a Pixel C, I’ve never paid Chromebooks much mind. They always seemed too spartan, too reliant on a constant connection to the internet, so I basically ignored the entire category.
That is, until a few months ago. When the news broke that Chromebook shipments had eclipsed those of the Mac for the first time, it got my attention. Even if many of those units went to education and corporate customers, that was a whole lot of Chromebooks – so I started wondering what was I missing out on. If I were still a college student (or if I were as frugal as I should be) could I use a Chromebook on the daily?
I spent a few days with the ASUS Chromebook Flip to get a taste of what using ChromeOS was like. What I found was that it’s not for me – I’ll stick with the Pixel C for my convertible needs – but that it might be a perfect fit for an alternate-universe me who’s just now shipping off to school. Check out my first Chromebook experience … and if you have one, let me know what you use yours for!
Socialize!
- YouTube
- Le web
- Snapchat
Target starts selling Kindles again after a four-year break
Years ago, visiting a Target was one of the best ways to check out Amazon’s Kindle products in person before plunking down your hard-earned cash. But in 2012, Target stopped selling Kindles both online and in its stores. That’s changing, however — as of today, you can buy the Kindle Paperwhite and standard Kindle from Target online. And a report from Bloomberg indicates that you’ll soon be able to buy them in Target’s physical retail stores, as well.
Bloomberg also says that Target will sell Amazon’s Kindle Fire tablets and Fire TV devices, but those aren’t on the website yet. And it’ll be a few months before you can go pick these items up in the store, as they’re expected to return in October, just in time for the holiday shopping season.
Target didn’t publicly say why it pulled Amazon’s products back in 2012, but analysts believed it was because the company’s e-readers and tablets serve as portals into Amazon’s shopping experience. In one regard, Amazon rid itself of Trojan horse — but now, it seems that Target expects the devices to help provide its electronics sales with a boost. And while Amazon has opened a few brick-and-mortar stores, it’s still rather difficult to see its products in person before buying. This renewed partnership could end up proving mutually beneficial to both retail giants.
Via: The Verge
Source: Bloomberg
Microsoft has two big Windows 10 updates slated for 2017
While announcing the gradual rollout of its Anniversary update for Windows 10, Microsoft confirmed that there would be two feature updates coming in 2017. This means moving to a twice-a-year schedule the company had previously set up for its “Threshold” updates for Windows 8, which used the codename for that operating system. According to Windows Central, the first update for 10, called “Redstone 2” after this operating system’s nickname, will come in early 2017, followed by “Redstone 3” four to six months later in late summer or early fall. The latest internal builds are around the 14900 range, the site said, meaning testers should soon receive bits of Redstone 2 to try out and give feedback.
Source: Windows Central
Researcher-created Twitter bot phishes two out of three users
Phishing, the malevolent hacker technique of getting hapless folks to click malevolent links, just got a powerful new weapon. Black Hat researchers have created a Twitter bot that reads your tweets and sends you a message catered to your interests — along with a shortened URL leading to hacktown.
Baltimore security firm ZeroFox made the SNAP_R bot as a proof-of-concept for the next generation of phishing techniques, explaining its methods in a paper released at the recent Black Hat security conference. It uses machine learning to churn through a victim’s tweets and those of their followers, then sends a dynamic message relevant to their interests. It uses clustering to identify high-value targets based on social engagement, like followers and retweets, and measures the bot’s success by tracking clickthrough rates. In summary, the researchers claim it to be “the world’s first automated end to end spear phishing campaign generator for Twitter.”
The ZeroFox team created SNAP_R as an education and security assessment tool: like many firms, they are often hired to attack clients using cutting-edge methods that real hackers would use. Machine learning is often used defensively, so this method is one of the first to turn it around to target victims in the “spear” phishing school of anti-security.
Since links in tweets are automatically shortened, users largely aren’t able to sniff out shifty URL destinations, so spotting poor grammar or irrelevant content is the quickest way to suss out malevolent intent. Catering messages is a clever way to keep from arousing victim suspicions and ultimately getting them to click on links they would be too cautious to otherwise. Britain’s GCHQ intelligence agency exploited this technique when it used its own innocuous URL shortener to track activists and incite pro-revolutionary messages during the Arab Spring and Iranian uprisings. That ZeroFox tricked an unbelievable two-thirds of victims into clicking links, far higher than the five to 15 percent success rate for normal phishing methods, is evidence of a serious vulnerability in social network users’ security behaviors.
Source: The Register
AIVAnet 