The PS4 will soon support external drives and 3D movies in VR

It’s been a little while since we last saw an update for the PlayStation 4, but that doesn’t mean Sony hasn’t been hammering away on new tweaks for the console. Today, the company unveiled plans for its version 4.50 (codenamed Sasuke) system update, confirming support for some oft-requested and useful new features like external hard drive support for games, custom wallpaper and and the ability to view 3D Blu-rays via PSVR. PS4 Pro owners will also be pleased to know that they may be getting some love too (more on that later).

Although the PlayStation 4 has supported external hard drives for some time now, Sony limited it to system upgrades and media like videos and music, not games. With Sasuke, Sony will let you download and install games directly to USB 3.0 hard drives up to 8TB in size, so if you’ve converted to an all-digital library — and still own the basic 500GB model — you no longer have to worry about constantly managing or deleting old games. Everything you install will appear in the Content Launcher, ensuring apps and games are a button press away.

Like on Xbox One, the update will also enable you to select any in-game screenshot as your home screen background. Sony will offer tools to adapt it to your liking, allowing you to add drop shadows to text and dim the Function Area to make your icons easier to see. Staying with the visual theme, both the Quick Menu and Notification List have been given a tune-up, making it easier for you to invite friends and join parties, and parse Alerts, Downloads and Uploads in one simple list (removing the old tabs completely).

In its announcement, Sony notes that there are more features included in 4.50, but isn’t sharing all of them right now. Thanks to NeoGAF, we know that one of those tweaks could be the addition of a new “Boost Mode,” which forces the console to support higher framerates for games that have yet to be optimized for the Pro.

If you signed up for the beta update programme, there’s every chance you will have been selected to receive version 4.50, which begins rolling out today. For everyone else, additional features and launch timing will be disclosed “in the weeks to come.”

Source: PlayStation Blog

LG is fixing its 5K monitor so it’ll work near your WiFi router

It’s not a good sign when your pricey new 5K monitor is affected by proximity to your wireless router. After reports of the monitor becoming unstable, if not unusable, when in close company — under two meters away — to WiFi routers. It’s a difficult issue to resolve if your router is already close to your internet pipeline. LG now tells Engadget that signal interference is to blame, when said routers are placed near to the rear of the display.

The company still advises you move the router for the quickest fix, but says that those “continuing to experience issues with their UltraFine displays” can contact their nearest LG customer center for “prompt service” — although the statement doesn’t specify whether the fix would involve some sort of after-sale refit or simply replacing the 5K monitor with a new one. We’ve reached out to check with LG which one it’ll be. The company added that displays manufactured after February 2017 will be fitted with enhanced shielding to solve the issue.

Hacker Leaks Cellebrite’s iOS Bypassing Tools, Tells FBI ‘Be Careful What You Wish For’

It’s been nearly a year since a U.S. federal judge originally ordered Apple to help the FBI hack into an iPhone owned by Syed Farook, one of the shooters in the December 2015 attacks in San Bernardino. As we learned in the months after the initial court order — which Apple continually opposed — the FBI enlisted the help of Israeli mobile software developer Cellebrite to open up the iPhone 5c in question.

Now a hacker has reportedly stolen and publicly released a cache of Cellebrite’s most sensitive data, including its tools used to hack into older iPhones, as well as Android and BlackBerry smartphones (via Motherboard). Techniques that the firm uses to open “newer iPhones” were not included in the public posting, but it’s also not clear exactly which models of iPhone are considered “older.” Farook’s iPhone 5c, which launched in 2013, is likely in that category.

Apple’s main stance against the court order last year was its fear that creating such an operating system that bypassed the iPhone’s basic security features — essentially creating a “master key” for all iOS devices — would set a “dangerous precedent” for the future of encryption and security. The bypass could also potentially make its way into the public and affect hundreds of millions of Apple customers, with Apple CEO Tim Cook claiming that the software the FBI wanted to use to force open Farook’s iPhone was “the equivalent of cancer.”

As pointed out by Motherboard, the newly leaked tools “demonstrate that those worries were justified.” According to the hacker in question who shared Cellebrite’s tools on Pastebin, the purpose behind the leak was to highlight the importance of the inevitability that any brute force tools aimed at bypassing encryption software “will make it out” into the public.

“The debate around backdoors is not going to go away, rather, its is almost certainly going to get more intense as we lurch toward a more authoritarian society,” the hacker told Motherboard in an online chat.

“It’s important to demonstrate that when you create these tools, they will make it out. History should make that clear,” they continued.

Back in January the same hacker stole 900GB of sensitive Cellebrite data, but according to a Cellebrite spokesperson, only its customers’ “basic contact information” had been put at risk. Delving into the cache of information, it was proven that the breach had uncovered much more detailed “customer information, databases, and a vast amount of technical data regarding Cellebrite’s products.”

In a README file posted alongside the more recent data dump on Pastebin, the hacker in question left a message directly addressing the FBI: “@FBI Be careful in what you wish for.”

Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Tags: Apple-FBI, Cellebrite
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Apple accused of intentionally breaking FaceTime on iOS 6

We don’t normally cover individual lawsuits against corporations because, hey, they make a lot of money, and everyone wants a slice. But the circumstances around this one are sufficiently controversial that we’ve made an exception. A woman from California has filed a claim against Apple saying that the company intentionally broke FaceTime on iOS 6 to force users to upgrade to iOS 7.

The complaint stems from internal emails that were released as evidence in a case Apple fought against a patent troll, VirnetX. The story goes that when Apple launched FaceTime, it used third-party servers from Akamai to help handle the calls. But as time progressed, Akamai began hosting a significant proportion of all FaceTime calls, costing Apple millions of dollars a month in fees.

iOS 7 altered the way that FaceTime worked, reducing the load on Akamai’s servers and potentially saving Apple a fat stack of cash. But some users of older handsets, in this case the iPhone 4 and 4S, were still clinging to the older operating system. So, the company allegedly let a security certificate lapse well ahead of time, breaking FaceTime for iOS 6 users. At the time, it was described as a bug that was only fixed if people upgraded to the newer OS.

There is, apparently, a smoking gun buried in the paperwork, although it’s worth noting that we can’t substantiate this ourselves. According to the claim, Apple engineer Patrick Gates sent an email asking what the company had done “in April around iOS 6 to reduce relay utilization.” In response, engineer Gokul Thirumalai responded by saying “It was a big user of relay bandwidth. We broke iOS 6, and the only way to get FaceTime working again is to upgrade to iOS 7.”

But iPhone 4 and 4S users upgrading to iOS 7 found that the user experience was actually pretty damn bad. To quote AnandTech’s detailed review of the operating system, “performance however on the iPhone 4 and iPad 3 leaves a lot to be desired.” That same piece added, “the iPhone 4 stutters through all of its animations.” and “generally feels like it’s on its last legs.”

As both AppleInsider and MacRumors have pointed out, at the time that FaceTime was allegedly broken 87 percent of iPhone users were on iOS 7. Although if all of this is true, then it’ll give plenty of fuel to those folks who love to crow about planned obsolescence. Not to mention what a court will decide should it decide to take the case further, or potentially mark it as a class action lawsuit. We’ve emailed Apple, but the company has yet to tell us that it has no official comment at this time, but will update this when it does.

Source: AppleInsider, Scribd

Government watchdog says SpaceX Falcon 9s are prone to cracks

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rockets apparently have a serious issue that could delay the company’s manned missions. According to the Wall Street Journal, the Government Accountability Office investigated both Boeing and SpaceX — the corporations that won NASA’s space taxi contracts — and found that Falcon 9’s turbine blades suffer from persistent cracks. GAO’s preliminary report says these turboblades’ tendency to crack is a “major threat to rocket safety,” since they pump fuel into Falcon 9’s rocket engines.

NASA’s acting administrator Robert Lightfoot told the WSJ that government officials have known about the issue for months or even years. The agency even told SpaceX that the cracks are too much risk for manned flights. However, the congressional watchdog will still write about the issue in the final report it’s slated to publish in the next few weeks because the company found cracks in their turboblades as recently as September 2016.

A spokesperson said SpaceX has “qualified [its] engines to be robust” to cracks, but it’s now “modifying the design to avoid them altogether.” The company has been working with NASA to fix the problem, though they’re unsure if it would require a complete redesign. If it does, it’ll likely take a lot of time, which will, in turn, push back the company’s launch schedule.

In fact, GAO has already determined that both companies will likely miss their goal to start ferrying astronauts to the ISS in 2018. Besides this particular problem, the investigators cite Falcon 9’s frequent modifications for the delay. In Boeing’s case, the investigators have raised concerns about the status of the tests designed to determine if its manned capsules’ landing parachutes are reliable.

Source: The Wall Street Journal

Apple Raises $10 Billion in Debt Ahead of Trump’s Plans for Tax Holiday

Apple has raised $10 billion in debt through a nine-part bond sale of both fixed and floating rate notes, according to the company’s final pricing term sheet filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday.

The nine-part sale includes:

• $500 million maturing in 2019 with a floating interest rate based on three month LIBOR plus 8 basis points
• $500 million maturing in 2020 with a floating interest rate based on three month LIBOR plus 20 basis points
• $1 billion maturing in 2022 with a floating interest rate based on three month LIBOR plus 50 basis points
• $500 million maturing in 2019 with a fixed 1.55% interest rate
• $1 billion maturing in 2020 with a fixed 1.9% interest rate
• $1.5 billion maturing in 2022 with a fixed 2.5% interest rate
• $1.75 billion maturing in 2024 with a fixed 3% interest rate
• $2.25 billion maturing in 2027 with a fixed 3.35% interest rate
• $1 billion maturing in 2047 with a fixed 4.25% interest rate

Apple held $246.1 billion in cash and marketable securities last quarter, but around 94% of that money is held overseas and would be subject to high U.S. taxes upon repatriation—something U.S. President Donald Trump plans to change. In the meantime, by raising debt through bonds, Apple can pay for its U.S. operations at a much lower rate, particularly given its low-risk Aa1/AA+ bond credit rating.

Apple typically uses the capital raised to fund dividend payments to shareholders and its share buyback program. Last quarter, Apple returned almost $15 billion to investors through dividends and buybacks. $201 billion of $250 billion capital return program has been completed. The company also uses the capital for general corporate purposes, such as the repayment of earlier debt and acquisitions.

Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Tags: bonds, SEC
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Next time you’re in London, watch out for shameless scooter-riding phone thieves

Why it matters to you

A reminder that criminals will try and steal our phones by any means, so stay vigilant when out and about in the city

Anyone who lives in a major city knows the dangers of pick-pockets or opportunistic thieves, but not everyone will be on the lookout for phone-snatchers riding scooters. However, video footage released by London’s Metropolitan Police shows why we should all be a little more aware of our surroundings, and tuned to the usually awful sound that accompanies an approaching moped.

The incident in the latest video occurred in November last year, and shows a man in a suit walking casually along the sidewalk while using his phone. A moped with two people riding it suddenly enters the frame, and the pillion rider casually reaches out and grabs the phone from the man, leaving him bewildered as he watches the bike and his phone speed away.

More: Man takes down bike-riding phone thief with a kick

It all happens in less than 6 seconds, and even though the man isn’t making a call at the time of the theft, he’s engrossed enough in what he’s doing not to notice the bike coming up behind him. The police hope by showing how quickly this type of crime happens, people will avoid having their phone on display unless absolutely necessary. And just in case you’re not familiar with London, motorbikes, regardless of the type, are usually found on the road, not the sidewalk.

Sadly, it’s not an isolated incident. At the beginning of the year, CCTV cameras caught another pair of criminals on a moped, targeting various people, snatching phones, and riding away. Another, from October, captures a moped crime spree where 21 phones are stolen in just an hour. At the end of 2016, data from the Metropolitan Police estimated 22 moped-related offenses took place everyday in the city, and that bikes were often stolen before being used in a further crime. Police particularly warn tourists enjoying the city to be protective of their phones.

The Metropolitan Police department is battling what it calls two-wheel-enabled crime in Operation Attrition.

Daddy’s dead: Terrifying ad shows faking death is one way out of a phone contract

Why it matters to you

Sprint illustrates why switching phone carriers isn’t the big deal many fear, and may save money in the long run

Phone contract getting you down? Considering something drastic like faking your own death to get out of it? Probably not, but that hasn’t stopped Sprint from using exactly that scenario in its latest TV ad, and weirdest jab at competitor Verizon yet. The thing is, it plays like a horrific blend of The Shining and Fargo.

The ad opens with our clearly disturbed protagonist pushing his SUV over the edge of a quarry. Inside the vehicle is a dummy made to look something like the owner, ready to fool the insurance company when it investigates the incident. Because faking your death is always wholesome family fun, he has brought his son and daughter along to watch, telling them in a tone that would make Jack Torrance proud, “Well kids, Daddy’s dead!” What a monster.

More: Sprint buys into music service Tidal

However, the cunning plan is foiled when Paul turns up. Out for a brisk walk on a rainy day, Paul and his lovely yellow gilet suss out the ruse immediately. He asks, “Faking your own death to get our of your Verizon contract?” Nervous chatter about cops and the legal consequences of their actions spreads among the family, Paul, realizing his life is now in danger after confronting a man so obviously at the end of his tether, quickly — but still rather smugly for someone about to follow the car down the quarry — talks about how awesome Sprint is, and how easy it is to switch. The ad ends abruptly, and we may never know if Paul makes it out the quarry alive.

Of course, it’s all lighthearted tomfoolery, plus there’s a handy “Do Not Attempt” warning on the screen when dad’s pushing the car into the quarry, so that’s all right then. Watch the message disappear when everyone talks about switching to Sprint though. Leaving it on screen at that time may give the wrong impression.

Sprint is keen to take unhappy phone owners away from Verizon and other carriers, and even has a special deal to attract defectors, which includes unlimited data, text, and minutes for a monthly cost of $50. It has seen plenty of growth recently too, but is still the fourth largest network in the United States, behind AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon.

A 30 second version of the ad exists, and the extended 45 second version seen here will play during the Super Bowl; but it still leaves the big question unanswered. What was Paul’s fate? Is he at the bottom of the quarry with the car, was he paid off to keep the terrible secret, or did they all live happily ever after following a visit to the Sprint store?

‘Everest ’53’ VR project will take you back to the historic first ascent

Why it matters to you

The latest project from CGO Studios is another historically accurate experience that demonstrates the power of VR to both entertain and educate.

CGO Studios has made a name for itself creating virtual reality experiences that immerse viewers in historical events. The company’s current project, Everest ’53, take viewers on a time traveling journey back to Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay’s monumental first ascent of Mount Everest in 1953. The project, which is being developed for the Oculus Rift and Touch controller, will initially be available later this year.

“Since starting the project over a year ago, we’ve constantly been inspired by these two historical figures and we are very excited to share their story in the most immersive and engaging way possible,” producer and CGO founder Jonah Hirsch said in a statement. The studios’ previous projects included stories about Anne Frank, and the Wright Brothers’ first flight.

More: How VR can help humanity by putting you in someone else’s shoes

Everest ’53 seeks to accurately recreate the conditions Hillary and Norgay climbed in and the tools and equipment they had at their disposal. To help with this, Hillary and Norgay’s sons, Peter Hillary and Jamling Tenzing Norgay, are assisting on the project. Both followed in their fathers’ footsteps in summiting Everest in 2003 on the 50th anniversary of the first climb.

Director Danny Abrahms (left) observes as Jamling Tenzing Norgay (center) demonstrates proper climbing technique.

“In 1953, they were climbing into the unknown,” Peter Hillary said. “Could it be done? Was the altitude going to be too much for our human physiology? And of course they were using old wooden ice axes to cut steps in the steep ice.”

Tenzing Norgay’s other son, Norbu, is vice president of the American Himalayan Foundation and will also be contributing his experience to Everest ’53. He added, “To relive and experience history in VR and know what it felt like to be the first humans on the highest point on earth, this project will be an extraordinary experience. It was at that time the closest man had come to getting to the moon.”

DARPA prize-winning bot Mayhem deploys to seek flaws, shut out botnets

Why it matters to you

Software that automatically seeks and fixes vulnerability in internet hardware firmware could make the internet safe for us all.

In a riff on Hitchcock’s To Catch a Thief, a powerful software bot is being used to defeat botnets. Carnegie Mellon spinoff ForAllSecure’s Mayhem software won $2 million in a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Pentagon hacking contest in Las Vegas last August, according to MIT Technology Review.

Mayhem is the creation of Carnegie Mellon professor David Brumley and two of his graduate students. In the DARPA contest, called the Cyber Grand Challenge, the competitors had two tasks: Fix and defend assigned server software and hack the server code assigned to other teams. The purpose of the contest, which awarded a total of $4 million in prizes, was to encourage the automating computer security tasks. DARPA states the primary focus is the development of defensive software, MIT Technology Review reports.

More: How to keep your gadgets from being part of a botnet

Fresh from the bot battle, Brumley and his company are adopting Mayhem for commercial applications, intended to find flaws in internet firmware, starting with, but not limited to, routers. In 2016 the group tested some parts of Mayhem’s code with nearly 2,000 router firmware images. In the course of testing, the code found that more than 40 percent of the routers had at least one vulnerability including 14 that had never before been detected and were involved in 69 separate software builds.

One of the biggest challenges with internet device vulnerabilities is chasing down and updating products from past product cycles. The promise of Mayhem is its potential to both detect and repair or defend against vulnerabilities quickly. One example is a botnet — a large number of computers or devices, often in the tens and hundreds of thousands, that are unknowingly recruited for malicious purposes by computer malware. When each of the multitude of devices is directed to make multiple, rapid requests of a single website in order to overwhelm servers and effectively shut down the site, it’s called a “distributed denial of service” (DDoS) attack.

After last October’s massive DDoS attack using vulnerability in smart home web cameras, the need for better screening and protection was underscored, particularly in devices purchased by less-knowledgeable users.

Mayhem’s job will be to find and patch immediately. “Now when a machine is compromised it takes days or weeks for someone to notice and then days or weeks — or never — until a patch is put out,” Brumley said. “Imagine a world where the first-time a hacker exploits a vulnerability he can only exploit one machine and then it’s patched.”

Answering concerns that human security experts will still want to check the work of defensive bots, according to Brumley even the United States government still wants to have a “human in the loop.”

“I’m not against that, but I feel that it slows down the process,” Brumley said.