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Computer scientists have discovered vulnerabilities in Samsung's Smart Home automation system that allowed them to carry out a host of remote attacks, including digitally picking connected door locks from anywhere in the world.

The attack, one of several proof-of-concept exploits devised by researchers from the University of Michigan, worked against Samsung's SmartThings, one of the leading Internet of Things (IoT) platforms for connecting electronic locks, thermostats, ovens, and security systems in homes. The researchers said the attacks were made possible by two intrinsic design flaws in the SmartThings framework that aren't easily fixed. They went on to say that consumers should think twice before using the system to connect door locks and other security-critical components.

"All of the above attacks expose a household to significant harm—break-ins, theft, misinformation, and vandalism," the researchers wrote in a paper scheduled to be presented later this month at the 2016 IEEE Symposium on Security and Privacy. "The attack vectors are not specific to a particular device and are broadly applicable."

If you want to get your hands on a Rift ASAP, better plan to camp out at Best Buy

Update, May 25, 2:40 p.m. EDT: Following the Oculus Rift's limited launch at Best Buy's physical locations, the virtual reality headset has now gone live at the retailer's web site. In-store pick-up is not available, so interested shoppers will want to rush to the site and pick a shipping option should they want a headset with estimated delivery as soon as June 3rd—which may still be quicker than trying to buy from Oculus's own site. We imagine this availability will be gone almost as quickly as this update goes live.

Original report, May 2, 2:20 p.m. EDT: The Oculus Rift virtual reality headset will be available for demonstration and purchase at select Best Buy stores starting May 7 (and for purchase through Amazon and Microsoft Stores online starting at 9am Pacific on May 6). That means walk-in customers at brick-and-mortar stores will be able to get their headset well before many who pre-ordered the system directly from Oculus months ago.

While Oculus started taking Rift pre-orders in January and officially started shipping the units in March, many early pre-orders have seen their shipping date estimates slip amid production delays. In April, Oculus admitted that an "unexpected component shortage" meant early adopters could have to wait an extra month or two from initial estimates to receive their units. Orders placed on the Oculus site right now are slated for August delivery.

(credit: Christopher Thompson)

An Australian man named Craig Wright told the world today he is "Satoshi Nakamoto," the man who created Bitcoin. Yet despite Wright's stunning declaration and the fact that it's backed by some of the most famous names in Bitcoin, others continue to cry foul.

Wright gave interviews and demonstrations to the BBC, GQ magazine, and The Economist, and he published his own blog post claiming the name of Satoshi Nakamoto. He has convinced Gavin Andresen, former lead Bitcoin developer, as well as former Bitcoin Foundation director Jon Matonis.

Wright was first identified as the possible creator of bitcoin in December, but he hid from public view at that time.

(credit: Descrier)

The Federal Communications Commission proposal to boost competition in the cable TV set-top box market is facing opposition from some members of Congress who claim the plan will lead to copyright violations.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) and ranking Democrat John Conyers (D-Mich.) described their concerns in a letter to FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler Thursday, as noted by Politico. The letter echoes arguments made by cable lobbyists and some groups representing copyright holders.

"Creators have shared concerns that under the FCC's proposed rule, future set-top boxes or their replacements could purposely be designed to distribute pirated content obtained from sources that primarily offer stolen content," Goodlatte and Conyers wrote.

(credit: Mike Licht)

The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, the one that NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden revealed is allowing the government to obtain the metadata of every phone call to and from the United States, approved every surveillance request from US authorities in 2015.

Reuters news service, which reviewed a secret document outlining the figures, reported that the FISA Court granted every one of the 1,457 surveillance applications last year. The scope of the surveillance is unknown but vast. A single application is all it takes for the FISA Court to require the nation's telcos to scoop up and retain the telephone metadata on all phone calls. The court, based in the District of Columbia and whose members are appointed by the Supreme Court's chief justice, approved every one of the 1,379 applications for the year 2014 as well, according to the memo.

The memo said the FISA Court, which was created in 1978 with the stated goal of acquiring intelligence on foreign suspects, had modified 80 warrant applications last year, up from 19 the year before.

Having apparently run out of incoherently threatening foreigners to shoot here on earth, Activision and Infinty Ward's next Call of Duty game will take the wholly original angle of shooting enemies in space, a concept which we believe has never before been done in video games.

A new three-minute trailer for the previously rumored Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare is heavy on the usual jump cuts and explosions amid rubble and showers of gunfire, only now some of those scenes are set in the vacuum of space (or the cold, dead light of a space station). There are a few shots of space-based combat that look more at home in a game like Elite: Dangerous than in a Call of Duty game. One shot of floating amid a ruined space station could have come right out of Adr1ft, while another scene walking through a dark corridor looks pulled directly from the Dead Space series.

The new trailer follows an earlier teaser that revealed the Settlement Defense Front, a new antagonist that promises, "You will know loss. We will be the architects of your pain. We will build monuments to your destruction."