Quantum Key Distribution Gets a Speed Boost

A method for scrambling data to protect it from the super powerful computers of the future has received a speed boost from a team of researchers from Duke and Ohio State universities and the Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The method uses quantum key distribution to guard data from prying eyes. The problem in the past with the technology is it's slow. Transfer speeds typically are measured in kilobits per second. However, the researchers found a way to increase key transmission rates between five and 10 times, bringing them into the megabit per second range.

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Major Players Roll Up Sleeves to Solve Open Source Licensing Problems

Four big tech players this week moved to improve their handling of open source software licensing violations. Red Hat, Google, Facebook and IBM said they would apply error standards in the most recent GNU GPLv3 to all of their open source licensing, even licenses granted under older GPL agreements. "There is no procedure in the older GPLs that allowed a licensee to correct his mistakes," said Lawrence Rosen, former general counsel for the Open Source Initiative. "This will make everything consistent with GPLv3."

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Are innovative transport systems the way to go in the future? Some of these inventors think so.

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Can a zebra crossing change its stripes?

London-based tech company Umbrellium has invented a smart crosswalk that can change size, color and shape according to the needs of its urban environment.

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Starling Crossing, created by London-based firm Umbrellium, is capable of tracking and anticipating movements on the street, as well as analyzing road conditions, in real time.

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MacOS High Sierra Flaw Creates High Anxiety

Apple on Wednesday released Security Update 2017-001 to fix a serious flaw revealed earlier via Twitter. The patch is available for macOS High Sierra 10.13.1. macOS 10.12.6 and earlier versions aren't affected by the flaw. "This morning, as of 8 a.m., the update is available for download, and, starting later today, it will be immediately automatically installed on all systems running MacOS High Sierra 10.13.1," Apple said in a statement. "We greatly regret this error and we apologize to all Mac users."

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New AWS Platform Promises Fast AR, VR, 3D Development

AWS has announced Amazon Sumerian, a new Web-based platform to help developers quickly design and deploy VR, AR and 3D applications without the requirement for complicated tools and training. The platform lets developers build realistic VR, AR or 3D environments, populate them with animated characters and 3D objects, and create scripts to determine how they interact with users of a particular application and with each other. Sumerian is compatible with head-mounted displays, Web browsers, mobile devices and digital signage.

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Risky Scripts Pose Threat to Web Surfers, Say Researchers

A popular technique used by website operators to observe the keystrokes, mouse movements and scrolling behavior of visitors on Web pages is fraught with risk. The technique offered by a number of service providers uses scripts to capture the activity of a visitor on a Web page, store it on the provider's servers, and play it back on demand for a website's operators. The idea behind the practice is to give operators insights into how users are interacting with their websites and to identify broken and confusing pages.

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AWS to Help Build ONNX Open Source AI Platform

Amazon Web Services has become the latest tech firm to join the deep learning community's collaboration on the Open Neural Network Exchange, recently launched to advance artificial intelligence in a frictionless and interoperable environment. Facebook and Microsoft led the effort. As part of that collaboration, AWS made its open source Python package, ONNX-MxNet, available as a deep learning framework that offers APIs across multiple languages including Python, Scala and open source statistics software R.

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The Fake News Fueling the Uproar Over Self-Driving Vehicles

It may seem obvious that a major consequence of self-driving trucks would be a lot of unemployed truck drivers, but the reality -- at least for those who drive tractor trailers -- could be better jobs. Autonomous vehicles have massive potential benefits. Models suggest that in the U.S. alone, between 30 thousand and 40 thousand lives would be saved annually -- for perspective, about 3 thousand died on 9/11. There will be some job losses, and adjustments will need to be made.

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This virtual politician wants to run for office

Meet SAM, the world's first virtual politician. The AI-powered New Zealander talks to voters through Facebook Messenger.

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Facebook Messenger Promises Speedy Delivery of 4K Pics

Facebook on Tuesday raised the ante for messaging apps photo quality with the announcement of 4K support for Messenger. Starting Tuesday, "people can send and receive photos in Messenger at 4K resolution -- or up to 4,096 x 4,096 pixels per image -- the highest quality many smartphones support," wrote Facebook Messenger product managers Sean Kelly and Hagen Green. Although the need for speed in a messaging app and the size of 4K photo files would seem to be at odds with each other, that apparently is not the case with the Messenger upgrade.

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BlackBerry: The Most Important Mobile Company of the Future?

As BlackBerry phones left the market, the company fell out of sight. However, behind the scenes it has been moving into industries like automotive. Also, it remains the leading vendor providing mobile security to our politicians, military personnel and major corporations. As we move into an era when our smartphones become our key to everything, and when the machines around us are highly connected, mobile, and increasingly have our lives in their hands, the security of these things has become a critical weakness.

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Newly Revealed Flaw Could Subject IoT Devices to Airborne Attacks

Billions of voice-activated Internet of Things devices may be subject to external attack due to BlueBorne vulnerabilities, Armis revealed on Wednesday. Hackers could exploit BlueBorne to mount an airborne attack, using Bluetooth to spread malware and access critical data, including sensitive personal information. More than 20 million Amazon Echo and Google Home digital assistant speakers could have been impacted by the flaws, but both Amazon and Google already have taken the matter in hand.

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The Rise of AI: Give Me That New Time Religion?

Anthony Levandowski, known for his work developing self-driving auto technology, reportedly has started the world's first artificial intelligence-based religion. Levandowski, who has been at the center of a legal dispute between Google's Waymo self-driving unit and Uber, has cast himself as the frontman for the Way of the Future church. The mission of this "technotheistic" movement is spelled out as "the realization, acceptance, and worship of a Godhead based on Artificial Intelligence developed through computer and hardware and software," in documents filed with the IRS.

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Take Linux and Run With It

"How do you run an operating system?" may seem like a simple question, since most of us are accustomed to turning on our computers and seeing our system spin up. However, this common model is only one way of running an operating system. As one of Linux's greatest strengths is versatility, Linux offers the most methods and environments for running it. To unleash the full power of Linux, and maybe even find a use for it you hadn't thought of, consider some less conventional ways of running it.

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New Firefox Runs Like a Rabbit

New version releases of browsers don't get the buzz they used to get, but Firefox Quantum is an exception. The latest version of the Mozilla Foundation's browser, released Tuesday, is all about performance. Firefox is twice as fast as it was a year ago, Mozilla claimed. It is not only fast on startup -- it remains zippy even when taxed by multitudes of tabs. "We have a better balance of memory to performance than all the other browsers," said Firefox Vice President for Product Nick Nguyen.

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Gadget Ogling: A Waterproof Reader, a Phone That's Got Game, and Gloves That Make Paying Up Comfy

One of the great joys of reading is that you can do it anywhere. A relaxing bath is a prime opportunity for getting through a few chapters, but woe betide those who let their paperback slip into the tub or accidentally splash water into the most delicate part of an e-reader. And, lo! Amazon has a solution with its Kindle Oasis. The device can survive in fresh water up to a depth of two meters for as long as an hour -- perfect for those long soaks when you just know you'll end up snoozing for a bit. But wait, there's more!

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Fixes MIA for Many Linux Kernel Flaws

A Google code security researcher's recent discovery of 14 flaws in Linux kernel USB drivers led to last-minute fixes in the Linux 4.14 release candidate code set for distribution on Sunday. The flaws, which Google researcher Andrey Konovalov disclosed earlier this week, affect the Linux kernel before version 4.13.8. All 14 have available fixes. However, they are part of a much larger group of 79 flaws affecting the Linux kernel's USB drivers, some of which remain unpatched.

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Why Are Tech Companies Trying to Kill Us?

This is the question that keeps me up at night after seeing the news of Russian influence through social media, and the rapid rise of road deaths due to smartphone use. I wonder if the executives in these firms understand not only that dead customers don't generate revenue, but also that some of the victims could end up being their own kids, spouses or parents. I'm also convinced that they haven't grasped the fact that hostile foreign influence or distracted drivers could shorten their own life expectancies dramatically.

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Eavesdropper Vulnerability Exposes Hundreds of Mobile Apps

Appthority on Thursday warned that up to 700 apps in the enterprise mobile environment, including more than 170 that were live in official app stores, could be at risk to due to the Eavesdropper vulnerability. Affected Android apps already may have been downloaded up to 180 million times, the firm said, based on its recent research. The vulnerability has resulted in large-scale data exposure. Eavesdropper is the result of developers hard-coding credentials into mobile applications that utilize the Twilio Rest API or SDK.

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Amazon Cloud Cam Joins Burgeoning Smart-Home Ecosystem

Amazon on Wednesday began shipping its latest smart home product, a security camera that works with its Alexa personal assistant and Echo speakers. The Amazon Cloud Cam allows customers to live-stream activity inside their home 24/7. It features 1080p full HD resolution, two-way audio for communicating with family members or pets, night vision technology, and sophisticated algorithms that use machine learning to figure out if the stranger entering your house is the building super or a possible burglar.

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GeckoLinux Beta Does openSuse Better

The latest developmental beta release of GeckoLinux brings this custom spinoff distro of openSuse to new levels of performance and convenience. When I first looked at GeckoLinux in late 2015, I was impressed with the developer's efforts to smooth over what I did not like about using the Suse infrastructure. GeckoLinux impressed me then. It does not disappoint me now. That infant entry to LinuxLand has matured significantly in the beta release that became available late last month.

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Twitter is now 280 characters. Here's how to not be annoying

Just because we HAVE more than 140 characters doesn't mean we have to USE more than 140 characters in every single tweet. Here are some tips:

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