Phishing campaign alerts DocuSign to customer data breach
A bizarre email address or an obvious misspelling are good indicators that the recent email telling you to reset your Apple ID password isn’t what it seems. But there are more sophisticated (and believable) phishing attacks you have to watch out for, like the recent Google Docs scam that linked out to a legit-looking web app. Last week, DocuSign spotted an uptick in phishing emails imitating the company’s branding. Being in the business of secure document management, it’s not uncommon for DocuSign’s name to be on the face of a phishing email; but upon further investigation the firm discovered why this particular campaign was so targeted: It’d been hacked.
As it turns out, “a malicious third party” had managed to break into a “non-core system” that DocuSign uses to send out service announcement emails. This is why the phishing campaign has been so accurately targeting customers, though the red flag here is that emails ask recipients to download a Microsoft Word document (containing malware), which isn’t something a genuine DocuSign email would ever request.
The company stresses the breached system contained only a list of email addresses, that it has since been secured, and that all other data and services were untouched. Obviously it’s still not a good look for DocuSign given data security is an integral part of its pitch, but it’s an important reminder that just because an email looks above board at first glance doesn’t mean it can be trusted.
Via: Krebs on Security
Source: DocuSign
Engadget giveaway: Win a GoPro Hero5 Session and CyberLink software!
With all that’s going on in the world, you could immerse yourself in the media or strike out to define your own narrative. This week’s giveaway is a starter kit for capturing the world as you see it and editing the output to your whims. CyberLink has provided us with its Director Suite 5 software package, including PowerDirector 15 for video editing (including 4K), PhotoDirector 8 for fine-tuning still images and more for audio and color editing. This software, along with a GoPro Hero5 Session for extremely portable capture, can get you started on your next creative project. All you need to do is head to the Rafflecopter widget below for up to three chances at winning this photo and video editing power combo, courtesy of CyberLink.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
- Entries are handled through the Rafflecopter widget above. Comments are no longer accepted as valid methods of entry. You may enter without any obligation to social media accounts, though we may offer them as opportunities for extra entries. Your email address is required so we can get in touch with you if you win, but it will not be given to third parties.
- Contest is open to all residents of the 50 States, the District of Columbia, and Canada (excluding Quebec), 18 or older! Sorry, we don’t make this rule (we hate excluding anyone), so direct your anger at our lawyers and contest laws if you have to be mad.
- Winners will be chosen randomly. One (1) winner will receive one (1) GoPro Hero5 Session camera and one (1) license for CyberLink’s Director Suite 5 software.
- If you are chosen, you will be notified by email. Winners must respond within three days of being contacted. If you do not respond within that period, another winner will be chosen. Make sure that the account you use to enter the contest includes your real name and a contact email. We do not track any of this information for marketing or third-party purposes.
- This unit is purely for promotional giveaway. Engadget and AOL are not held liable to honor warranties, exchanges or customer service.
- The full list of rules, in all its legalese glory, can be found here.
- Entries can be submitted until May 17th at 11:59PM ET. Good luck!
‘Sonic Forces’ will bring your fanfiction characters to life
Until now, Sonic Forces has looked like Sonic Generations 2 in all but name. With trailers showing off levels that switch between classic side scrolling and the 3D perspective of Sonic’s more modern adventures, you can forgive gamers for thinking they’ve played this all before. Today, however, Sega has revealed a third type of gameplay for Sonic Forces — levels where you control your very own customizable hero.
With Sonic’s cast of supporting characters not getting a lot of love from fans, Sega is throwing down the gauntlet to gamers and challenging them to do better. Players will be able to select one of seven different types of animal: wolf, rabbit, cat, dog, bear, bird and of course, hedgehog. While these options might just look like a way to bring fans’ wildest DeviantArt dreams to life, each animal will also offer their own unique passive ability. Wolf characters, for example, are able to automatically draw in nearby rings while bird-based heroes are blessed with the life-saving ability to double jump.
Thankfully, these levels also introduce a few active gameplay tweaks, introducing a slightly different take on your usual rapid ring collection. Instead of just Sonic’s standard platforming abilities, each loveably crafted mascot is also armed with a grappling hook and gadgets called Wispons. While the grappling hook allows players to traverse each level quickly, Wispons are versatile abilities that either come in the form of weapons or powerups that help you get around. It all sounds very Sonic Colors, but from where we’re sitting, that’s definite not a bad thing.
Sonic Forces is coming to PS4, Xbox One, PC and Nintendo Switch this holiday. Let’s just hope there’s some DLC to help gamers create the Sega’s ultimate memeing mascot — Sanic.
Instagram Copies Snapchat Yet Again With Face Filters and Rewinded Video
Instagram today introduced even more Snapchat-like features in the latest version of its app, including face filters, a customizable hashtag sticker, a “rewind” playback option for videos, and an eraser brush.
Just like Snapchat, the face filters allow users to add bunny ears, glasses, tiaras, and other virtual objects to their selfies. There are eight filters to choose from after tapping the new face icon in the bottom right corner of the camera.
The new customizable hashtag sticker can be added to photos by tapping the sticker icon at the top right of the screen. People watching an Instagram story can tap the sticker to visit the hashtag’s archive and explore related posts.
The new “Rewind” option simply enables users to make their videos play in reverse, while the eraser brush can remove parts of overlaid drawings or color.
The new features are available in the latest version of Instagram for iOS rolling out today on the App Store [Direct Link].
Tag: Instagram
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Behind-The-Scenes Look Into Apple Park Shares Up Close Photos, Sketches, and History of New Campus
In a new article by Wired today, Apple has shared the first in-depth look inside its new Apple Park campus, providing glimpses into the “Ring” building’s original design, up-close images of the campus’ construction and interiors, and even personal tidbits about former CEO Steve Jobs’ connection to Apple Campus 2. As construction and updates on the site have stretched out over the years, current Apple CEO Tim Cook referred to Apple Park as the company’s “biggest project ever.”
Jobs’ vision of the campus dates back to 2004, when he and Jony Ive began discussing a reimagined headquarters, but it wasn’t until the company hired architect Norman Foster in 2009 that the plans began to ramp up. Meetings that Jobs had with architects working on the project lasted five or six hours, “consuming a significant amount of time in the last two years of Jobs’ life.” Jobs was so deep into the project that he even knew at what time of year he wanted timber for the campus’ walls to be cut.
He also had an idea for creativity-boosting “pods,” which would be specified for work, teamwork, socializing, etc, that eventually led to the original design of Apple Park to be represented as a clover leaf, or a propeller. Multiple factors eventually caused Jobs and the designers to push for a basic, circular shape, including the fact pointed out by Jobs’ teenage son that the propeller looked like male genitalia from an aerial perspective.
As with any Apple product, its shape would be determined by its function. This would be a workplace where people were open to each other and open to nature, and the key to that would be modular sections, known as pods, for work or collaboration. Jobs’ idea was to repeat those pods over and over: pod for office work, pod for teamwork, pod for socializing, like a piano roll playing a Philip Glass composition. They would be distributed democratically.
Not even the CEO would get a suite or a similar incongruity. And while the company has long been notorious for internal secrecy, compartmentalizing its projects on a need-to-know basis, Jobs seemed to be proposing a more porous structure where ideas would be more freely shared across common spaces. Not totally open, of course—Ive’s design studio, for instance, would be shrouded by translucent glass—but more open than Infinite Loop.
By June 2010, Apple Park began a renewed life as the Spaceship building, or “Ring” as Apple calls it internally, that is now standing in Cupertino. Wired’s article goes into the day in 2011 when Jobs, weeks before he passed away, pitched the campus to the Cupertino City Council. “I think we do have a shot,” Jobs told the council, “of building the best office building in the world,” after mentioning that if Cupertino failed to approve of the company’s plans Apple could simply sell all of its property and move to somewhere nearby, like Mountain View.
A sketch of Apple Park’s evolution by Norman Foster
Looking back at the fall of 2011, when he succeeded Jobs, Tim Cook remembered the last time he held a conversation with Jobs. Cook said he and Jobs were watching Remember the Titans and discussing the mundane aspects of Apple Park — like figuring out which employees would reside in the main building — that nevertheless “was something that gave [Jobs] energy.”
Cook recalls the last time he discussed the campus with his boss and friend in the fall of 2011. “It was actually the last time I spoke to him, the Friday before he passed away,” Cook says. “We were watching a movie, Remember the Titans. I loved it, but I was so surprised he liked that movie. I remember talking to him about the site then. It was something that gave him energy. I was joking with him that we were all worried about some things being difficult, but we were missing the most important one, the biggest challenge of all.”
Which was?
“Deciding which employees are going to sit in the main building” and which would have to work in the outer buildings. “And he just got a big laugh out of it.”
The rest of the article goes into deep detail about the design and building materials Apple gathered when constructing Apple Park, and of course all the problems that came with construction. One roadblock was the canopies that are now adorned on the sides of the building, which Jobs was originally not a fan of, but were required to protect the all-glass building from the California sun.
Apple designers, including Ive’s own design team, and Foster + Partners architects had to overcome problems like finding the perfect color tint to the canopies, and ensure they had the right curve to deflect rain.
The purpose of the giant glass sliding doors of the Ring’s café — for which Apple even patented a take-home pizza container — was also inquired about by Wired:
“This might be a stupid question,” I say. “But why do you need a four-story glass door?”
Ive raises an eyebrow. “Well,” he says. “It depends how you define need, doesn’t it?”
Ultimately, the current designers and architects working on the campus believe that its end result represents Steve Jobs’ vision exactly as he had it all those years ago. “I would say that the big picture has not changed at all,” Foster mentioned. “If Steve could reappear, it would be as he conceived it when he last saw it as drawings. He’d find some of the details that were not addressed in his lifetime, but I believe he’d approve them.”
The rest of Wired’s look into Apple Park is worth a read, as it explores nearly every aspect of the campus’ construction, from the staircases, ventilation, door handles, text fonts in the elevators, and more. According to Ive, “This is our home, and everything we make in the future is going to start here.”
Tag: Apple Park
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Giphy iOS App Gains Ability to Turn GIFs Into Live Photos
A new update to the popular GIF-finding service Giphy this week has introduced Apple’s Live Photo support into the iOS app, letting users convert any GIF they want into a Live Photo (via Mac4Ever). This allows users to more easily see what is a GIF in their camera roll, since GIFs saved as images still don’t move when looked at in Photos. Giphy said the main point of the new update is to allow for custom animated iPhone lock screen wallpapers.
To create a Live Photo, users will need to first find a GIF they want in Giphy, tap on it, then tap the ellipses button underneath it to expand the sharing options. From there, Live Photos are represented by the same circular icon that Apple uses in the main Photos app, and tapping it will bring up two options: Save as Live Photo in Full Screen or Fit to Screen. In the Photos app, users can tap the image, tap the share sheet, and choose “use as wallpaper.”
There are a few compromises to using and saving GIFs as Live Photos, mainly including the low-quality nature of many of the GIFs on Giphy’s service, which won’t result in the best-looking iPhone wallpapers. Saving a GIF as a Live Photo also prevents it from being used natively as a GIF in Messages, where it would normally play on repeat. As a Live Photo, the image will move but only when pressed upon, as with any other Live Photo.
For those interested, Giphy is free to download on the iOS App Store [Direct Link], and anyone with an iPhone 6s or later can try out the new Live Photos feature.
Tag: Giphy
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Apple Rumored to Discontinue iPad Mini
Waiting for an iPad mini 5? You may be disappointed. BGR, citing a source close to Apple, claims the 7.9-inch tablet is being phased out. The report doesn’t offer a timeline as to when the iPad mini will be discontinued, and its sources couldn’t confirm if the iPad mini 4 will remain on sale for a period of time.
Apple is rumored to introduce a new 10.5-inch iPad Pro as early as the WWDC 2017 keynote on June 5, so it’s conceivable to think the iPad mini could be axed then if the report is accurate. Apple’s tablet lineup would then consist of the iPad Pro in 12.9-inch, 10.5-inch, and 9.7-inch sizes, and the new low-cost 9.7-inch iPad.
Apple launched the original iPad mini in 2012. Since the iPhone 6 Plus launched in 2014, it’s been speculated that the 5.5-inch smartphone may be at least partially cannibalizing sales of the iPad mini, but Apple doesn’t break out its tablet sales numbers on a model-by-model basis, so it’s hard to say for sure.
Nearly two months ago, Apple discontinued the iPad mini 2 and stopped selling a 32GB version of the iPad mini 4. It also lowered the starting price of the 128GB iPad mini 4 to $399, which was previously the 32GB model’s price point.
Japanese blog Mac Otakara claimed Apple would release a 7.9-inch iPad Pro in March with a Smart Connector, True Tone display, four speakers and microphones, a 12-megapixel rear camera with True Tone flash, and an improved processor, but it’s already May and the rumor has yet to materialize.
Related Roundup: iPad mini 4 (2015)
Tag: bgr.com
Buyer’s Guide: iPad Mini (Caution)
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Samsung Pay now available in UK for Galaxy smartphone users
Samsung Pay has been promised for the UK for over a year, since the launch of the Galaxy S6 and S6 edge smartphones in fact. Now it’s ready for public consumption and Samsung has launched it for Galaxy S8, S8+, S7, S7 edge, S6 and S6 edge phones. The latter is subject to a software update.
It will also be available on “additional devices” in the UK in the coming months.
Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8+ smartphone users also have the option to use the iris scanner on their devices to make payments, however the contactless payment service works similarly on all supported handsets.
Samsung Pay will work wherever you can use a contactless debit or credit card, including the London Underground and other travel networks.
You just swipe up from the bottom of the screen to bring up the last used credit or debit card and confirm the purchase through the fingerprint sensor or iris scanner.
It currently works with several UK payment cards, including Mastercard and Visa cards issued by MBNA, Nationwide and Santander. Other partners, such as American Express, First Direct, HSBC and M&S Bank will be added soon.
It is not yet known whether the system works with magnetic strip technology, as demonstrated on the Galaxy S6 at launch. That would expand the service’s reach to also include include compatibility with non-contactless payment devices in stores up and down the country.
What is Samsung Pay and how does it work?
Samsung Pay has been active in several countries, including the US and South Korea, for a while and is now available in the UK too.
It is a platform that allows you to pay for goods and services simply by waving your Samsung device near a cash register instead of swiping a credit card or doling out your payment information, a bit like Apple Pay or Google Pay on rival phones.
Here’s everything you need to know.
Samsung Pay: What do I need?
The payment platform is baked into Samsung Galaxy devices – from Galaxy S6, Note 5 and up – so it’ll work with a compatible device. You can also use it with the Gear S3 smartwatch in some regions.
You simply download and install the Samsung Pay Android app on your compatible phone, register desired cards and accounts and it will draw directly from these chosen sources when making a payment.
There are also plans for a Samsung Pay Mini app, it is said, which will work with other Android devices.
Pocket-lint
Samsung Pay: How does it work?
When using a phone: by swiping up from the bottom of the display (on either the sleep or home screens) the Samsung Pay app will launch and your default card will appear along with a message to authenticate a payment with their fingerprint (or iris scanner on Galaxy S8 and S8+). If a different card is needed, a simple left or right swipe will bring up others stored in your phone.
Once the payment has been biometrically authorised (hence compatibility with the latest devices only, as these have fingerprint or iris scanners) the phone tells you to tap it onto the contactless payment reader and bingo, a payment is made via NFC (near field communication).
Samsung Pay: More than NFC
Samsung Pay offers more than just NFC in some regions, such as the US. In an attempt to spearhead the mobile wallet space, while simultaneously taking on Apple Pay, Samsung acquired LoopPay – a startup that invented a mobile wallet technology called MST (Magnetic Strip Technology).
MST allows a contactless payment to be made with terminals that do not feature NFC readers (mostly outside the UK), which opens up a lot more retailers to the payment tech. It can also send the payment information to conventional terminals in stores that have the old-fashioned magnetic strip instead. Samsung told us during a demo that this covers the vast amount of payment terminals in the world.
Pocket-lint
A two-step payment process works like so: LoopPay’s app manages and securely stores all your payment cards (including credit, debit, loyalty, and gift cards) on a mobile device, while the LoopPay device (LoopPay Fob, ChargeCase, Card, or CardCase) processes your payment at the checkout as if you had swiped your card like usual.
What’s more, there is no danger of paying twice as the phone will prioritise an NFC signal if it finds one, while MST is passive and will only be utilised if no other contactless payment signal is found first.
Samsung Pay vs Apple Pay: What’s the difference?
Apple Pay employs an NFC chip into its smartphone, just like Samsung. Apple has steadily bulked its range of partners that accept Apple Pay and most recently included support for US federal payment cards.
The biggest difference between Apple Pay and Samsung Pay is that Apple Pay is accepted at fewer registers because it doesn’t include MST. Samsung Pay also has the potential of being accepted at 30-million merchant locations around the world, though both payment platforms have lined up several partners to back their payment systems.
Samsung Pay: Compatible banks and service providers
In its US guise, Samsung Pay has lots of available providers. Visa, Mastercard, American Express, JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America, Citi, US Bank, and PNC are the majors, along with a long list of additional providers. Furthermore the MST technology enables Samsung Pay to support private label credit cards from key partners like Synchrony Financial and First Data Corporation.
Samsung’s service is similar to Apple Pay in operation, in that different banks need to confirm their compatibility. When Apple Pay launched in the UK it took some time for all the major banks to be on board.
At present, Visa and Mastercard debit and credit cards from Santander, MBNA and Nationwide are launch partners for the UK. HSBC, American Express, M&S Bank and Fire Direct will follow.
Pocket-lint
Samsung Pay: Payment limits
The payment limit is set by the bank or vendor, not by Samsung, so is different in different regions – not a fixed £20/£30 maximum per transaction, as with contactless cards.
But if you need to pay for an item above the set limit, the app will simply request you to enter a PIN code to confirm for the larger amount.
Samsung Pay: How secure is it?
In terms of security, Samsung told Pocket-lint that not only are details protected by Samsung’s Knox real-time hacking surveillance and rooting prevention, but no card details are stored on either a Samsung server or the device itself.
Just like Apple Pay, Samsung Pay uses tokenisation. Card payments are made secure by creating a number or token that replaces your card details. This token is stored within a secure element chip on your device, and when a payment is initiated, the token is passed to the retailer or merchant. The retailer therefore never has direct access to your card details.
In addition Samsung Pay offers ARM TrustZone to further protect transaction information from attacks.
When will Samsung Pay launch in the UK?
Samsung Pay is now available in the UK, having launched on Tuesday 16 May 2017. It is also available in the US, South Korea, Spain, China, Thailand, UAE, Sweden, Hong Kong and Switzerland.
UploadVR sued for ‘rampant’ sexism, general awfulness
UploadVR is the workplace that has everything, at least if you enjoy walking around an office with condom wrappers on the floor. That’s just one of many charges being leveled against it by its former director of digital and social media in a recent lawsuit. She alleges that the company was a hotbed of “rampant” sexism and that its co-founders created a toxic working environment for women.
UploadVR’s founders, Will Mason and Taylor Freeman, stand accused of running their company more like a “boy’s club” than a startup. The list of charges directed at both them and the business’ employees more generally is staggering. Beyond UploadVR not paying women the same as men for the same work, female employees were told to do menial jobs like cleaning the office, because that was a “womanly task.”
Oh, it allegedly gets worse, because female employees were discussed, in their presence, by male employees in the office. For instance, one charming individual told his colleague that she had given him a “boner,” and that he was heading to the bathroom to “rub one out.”
The documents also allege that there is a room in the UploadVR offices containing a bed that is frequently garnished with discarded underwear and condom wrappers. Another employee is alleged to have brought their partner into the office, where they proceeded to “straddle” them in view of other workers.
TechCrunch received a statement from Mason and Freeman, denying the allegations and saying that its workplace culture is nothing like the description.
“We cannot comment directly on any pending litigation. What we want to express is that our employees are our greatest asset and the sole reason for the success of this company. We are committed to creating a positive community in VR/AR as well as within our company culture and will work to further develop that mission in the future. We are confident that the true nature of how we treat our employees and how we operate as leaders will shine through this unfortunate situation and confirm that these allegations are entirely without merit.”
Source: TechCrunch, Complaint (.PDF)
AIVAnet 