December 2022
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Microsoft will end support for Windows 10 version 21H1 on December 13, 2022.
Windows 10 22H2 is the current version.
Microsoft Turns Off Basic Authentication for Autodiscover (used by smartphones and devices).
This is part of disabling Exchange basic authentication for email.
Microsoft is testing several additions to the Windows 11 Start Menu that will introduce advertisements.
Google side-rail ads for web pages.
The Matter Smart Home Standard.
The connectivity protocol from Amazon, Apple, Google, Samsung, and others promises to make all your smart home devices work together.
Why you shouldn’t plug space heaters into power strips.
CloudFlare price increase. The Pro plan will be $25/month, Business plan $250/month.
PayPal’s Inactivity Fee. Log in or use your account at least annually to avoid problems.
Amazon Alexa’s ‘Colossal Failure’.
Voice assistants are not being used for purchasing as hoped.
The chaos of Elon Musk’s Twitter takeover (Fortune).
Twitter Quietly Removes Its Covid-19 Misinformation Policy.
Twitter alternatives that users are turning to.
Mastadon – a popular Twitter alternative.
Twitter competitor Hive has been taken offline due to security concerns.
Twitter Data Breach is bigger than initially reported.
The database contained phone numbers, account names, account bios, and verified status.
A few days before a potential new breach at Twitter, the previously announced database of 5.4 million accounts was made available on a popular hacker forum for free.
ECONOMY
Holiday return policies for major retailers.
China’s tech suppliers brace for disruption after COVID protests.
US bans sales of Huawei, Hikvision, ZTE, and Dahua equipment.
Huawei leads the way in stealthily building a domestic semiconductor supply chain.
California Cities Brace for Water Cuts and a Fourth Year of Drought.
“..the worst drought the country has experienced in over 1,000 years.”
California’s Water Thieves.
SECURITY
Russian Gangs Obtain 50 Million Passwords.
LastPass customer data accessed after cloud storage service hack. According to LastPass, no passwords were compromised.
Sirius XM Bug could be used to hijack cars.
Researchers discovered flaws in some apps linked to car brands that allowed for personal details and remote control of vehicles using easily-obtained IDs. Brands include Nissan, Honda, Infiniti, FCA, and Acura. The bug was patched, but it shows how cars are vulnerable to hacking.
Major tax-filing websites secretly share income data with Meta (FaceBook).
HUMOR
Icon Gender equality
TORIAN GROUP
We will raise our hourly rate to $150/Hour (7% increase) starting on April 1, 2023 to keep up with costs. Travel time will be $80/Hour.
Tim Torian