news.buyenne.com

About 11 percent of shared cloud folders contain nasty surprises, according to recent research.

Internet file sharing has long been a prime route for malware to spread. The situation is one of the reasons (aside from the exposure of proprietary data) that many companies restrict the use of cloud file sharing to corporate-approved systems. But it turns out that those enterprise cloud folders are just as bad. As more companies sanction the use of cloud applications for collaboration and sharing data—even just between individuals' computers and mobile devices—those cloud apps have increasingly become fertile ground for malware.

In a study based on data collected from millions of users over the first three months of 2016, cloud security company Netskope found that 11 percent of corporate-approved cloud applications harbored malware. That total more than doubled, up from just 4.1 percent in the previous quarter's data.The malware discovered included JavaScript exploits, droppers used to spread other malware, malicious embedded macros in document files, actual backdoor malware, spyware, and adware. Some mobile device malware was found as well.

All of the malware was found in file sharing applications, though only 26.2 percent of it appeared to be actually shared (whether internally to others in the affected company, externally with partners, or even publicly shared). That means the cloud folders were either infected because they were connected to a device exploited by malware, or the files were moved to the folders by the user.

Anwar Hadid sports a NASA flight suit. This is hip, folks. (credit: Teen Vogue)

Ars Technica will leave no stone unturned when it comes to space coverage—even if it means braving the pages of Teen Vogue. And so this week I found myself sidling into my pre-teen daughter's room and surreptitiously picking up the June/July issue of the magazine off her desk.

It was not an easy read for these middle-aged eyes, which haven't been fashion conscious for decades (if ever). But I eventually found Anwar Hadid on page something or other (fashion magazines rarely put page numbers on the pages). I had never heard of this guy, but he is apparently a big deal among the teens. He's the younger brother of "top models" Gigi and Bella and the son of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Yolanda and real estate mogul Mohamed. And now he's a model, too. (The article cites something called "Hadid mania.")

Anyway, Anwar is showing off a NASA flight suit in a full-page image. According to the article, this "Alpha Industries" designed suit retails for $111. It's a reproduction of NASA's Advanced Crew Escape Suit worn by space shuttle astronauts during ascent and entry. The new design, of course, is more suitable to wear on Earth, and it's based on one that can be bought at Kennedy Space Center's gift shop.

(credit: Imagination Technologies)

A company that designs MIPS processors for networking hardware says it is developing technology that would allow installation of open source firmware on wireless routers while still complying with the US Federal Communications Commission's latest anti-interference rules.

The FCC now requires router makers to prevent third-party firmware from changing radio frequency parameters in ways that could cause interference with other devices, such as FAA Doppler weather radar systems.

The easiest way for router makers to comply is to simply prevent installation of open source firmware altogether. Linksys came up with its own way of allowing open source firmware, but so far there's no method that scales across the industry, and at least some routers from TP-Link and Asus are being locked down.

(credit: Getty Images | Dimitri Otis)

Internet speed tests have shown that Time Warner Cable has repeatedly failed to provide the speeds it promises customers, according to a New York state government official. New York has not publicly released any data to back up the claim, but apparently shared the results with the cable company. Charter—TWC's new owner—received a letter demanding improvement yesterday from the New York attorney general's office.

"We recently called on New York customers of major broadband providers to use open-source tools to test the Internet speeds they were experiencing," NY Senior Enforcement Counsel Tim Wu wrote to Charter CEO Tom Rutledge. "The results we received from Time Warner Cable customers were abysmal. Not only did Time Warner Cable fail to achieve the speeds its customers were promised and paid for (which Time Warner Cable blamed on the testing method), it generally performed worse in this regard than other New York broadband providers."

The Washington Post published the full letter and has a related article.

This is a still from the December 2015 flamethrower drone video. (credit: Hogwit)

The outcome of new drone lawsuit out of Connecticut turns on what seems to be a simple question: does the Federal Aviation Administration have the authority to regulate consumer drones? More specifically, can the FAA come after a student who rigged up a gun to a drone and fired it in his backyard, with no one else around?

The FAA clearly thinks that it does and can. But some drone enthusiasts disagree, and believe that the FAA has exceeded its regulatory power—at least for now.

On July 6, FAA lawyers will face off in a New Haven courtroom against attorneys representing a Connecticut student who produced two provocative drone-related videos, one involving a handgun mounted on a drone, and another with a flamethrower.