New app-wrapping tablet may be most secure on the market

By on April 13, 2015 in Blog, New technology, Security

A new high-security tablet incorporating IBM’s ‘app-wrapping’ technology has been unveiled by Blackberry-owned voice and data encryption firm Secusmart.

The device has been built in collaboration with Samsung, to provide additional security features for business and governments alike. IBM’s app technology allows organisations to contain their enterprise apps and integrate security controls without needing to modify a single layer of code.

Currently undergoing security certification at the German Federal Office for Information Security, the Secutablet will offer organisations extra layers of security for their sensitive data. However, whilst the device was made with corporate and government pain points in mind, Secusmart has confirmed that less vigorously protected social media and video platforms can also be used.

Secutablets are “based on” the Samsung Galaxy 10.5, according to the manufacturer, and also run on Samsung hardware. They are compatible with the Blackberry 10, and it’s likely they will run on Android. This, according to CCS Insight vice-president Nick McQuire, is due to “Blackberry’s focus on becoming more of a cross-platform security company,” as well as the fact that Samsung is a partner.

Dr Hans-Christoph Quelle, CEO of Secusmart GmbH, said: “Security is ingrained in every part of Blackberry’s portfolio, which includes voice and data encryption solutions.

“Subject to certification of the Secutablet, German government agencies will have a new way to access Blackberry’s most secure and complete communications network in the world.”

Blackberry purchased the German firm in December 2014. It clearly got to work straight away, with Secusmart revealing the Secutablet at the CeBit technology fair in mid-March. Having struggled in the tablet market in the past with the now-discontinued 2010 PlayBook device, Blackberry will be hoping this new device performs much better.

The Secutablet is expected to cost roughly £1,600. It will face stiff competition from Silent Circle, the privacy platform behind the encrypted Blackphone, which announced the new security-focused Blackphone 2 smartphone in March.

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Poor brand image results in the death of Internet Explorer

By on April 13, 2015 in Blog, Internet, Topical

The Internet Explorer (IE) brand will soon be no more, as Microsoft feels the public’s perception of its long-standing browser has become too negative.

Microsoft isn’t moving away from the web browser market completely though, instead it will overhaul its current offering. This new version doesn’t yet have a name; it is simply known as ‘Project Spartan’. IE has acquired a reputation for slow performance and numerous security issues, so Microsoft aims to ensure this new browser will be much faster and sleeker.

The company has tried and failed to dispel people’s negative attitude towards IE – it even ran adverts stating IE is the browser “everyone loves to hate”. At one point, more than 90 per cent of internet users accessed their favourite sites via IE but, for a long time, this was partly down to the fact computers with a Microsoft operating system came pre-installed with the browser. In 2013, Microsoft was sued for not giving users a choice in browsers by EU regulators.

IE is still alive and kicking for now, but this will change once Windows 10 is released this summer. The new browser will allow users to write on webpages using a stylus and promises to be much more compatible with the “modern web”. Moreover, Cortana and Bing will also be built into the new browser.

Joe Belfiore, corporate vice president of Operating Systems Group at Microsoft, said that customers who still want to use and download IE will be able to.

“Project Spartan is designed to work the way you do, with features enabling you to do cool things like write or type on a webpage,” he explained. “It’s a browser that is made for easy sharing, reading, discovery and getting things done online.

“At the same time, we recognise that for some of our enterprise customers, it’s important they have the support they need and can continue to use Internet Explorer when and where they need it.”

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Vodafone reveals summer rollout of Wi-Fi calling and voice over 4G

By on April 13, 2015 in Blog, Mobile devices, Telecoms and mobile data

Vodafone has announced it will rollout Wi-Fi calling and voice over 4G (VoLTE) in the UK this summer, following similar recent announcements from rivals EE, Three and O2.

Wi-Fi calling uses wireless connections to provide a voice signal, allowing customers to make and receive calls and texts when signal is patchy or even non-existent. The difference in Vodafone’s service, however, compared with that of Three, is that customers won’t be required to download an app.

It’s good news for those customers living in areas of the UK with poor mobile signal but good broadband connectivity. Large buildings and office blocks in which mobile signal struggles to penetrate also stand to benefit. Provided a user is connected to a Wi-Fi network, if network coverage becomes too weak, the mobile device will automatically switch to Wi-Fi calling.

In addition, Vodafone will be providing VoLTE, which offers many more advantages than 2G and 3G calling. The 4G network makes it simpler and easier to transfer larger amounts of data, resulting in an improved connection speed and call quality. Handset battery life is also improved, as devices no longer need to switch to a 2G or 3G network when making voice calls.

While Three and O2 have hinted that they will provide VoLTE at some point in 2015, EE is currently the only provider offering it, although the service has its limitations. For example, calls cannot switch from one service to another mid-call. If Vodafone can be the first to achieve this, many believe it would be a ‘huge feather in its cap’. Vodafone will be looking to build on its reputation for top-notch coverage and will need every weapon in its arsenal to keep competing.

All in all, Vodafone’s developments will be funded by a £1 billion investment into its UK network quality. The first stage of its plan is to launch a residential broadband service (due in spring 2015), which was first announced in November 2014.

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Microsoft Word: Three features you didn’t know existed

By on April 13, 2015 in Blog, Microsoft, Tips & tricks

Of all the different Microsoft Office applications, Word is perhaps the most commonly used. It has an extremely rich feature set; one that allows you to achieve all kinds of things with your text and imagery. To realise its true potential, though, you’ll need to delve a little deeper than the Font and Paragraph sections.

Below are a few of the lesser known yet rather useful features of Microsoft’s trusty word processing tool.

[themecolor]The Clipboard Panel[/themecolor]

Copy & paste is a feature we all use from time to time; it helps us save valuable minutes by making it possible to collate and shuffle sentences, paragraphs and individual words. What many people don’t realise, though, is that you can handle multiple sections of text at one time. Using the Clipboard Panel feature, you can actually store as many as 24 pieces of text to paste as and when you like.

Once in the Home tab, move the cursor to the Clipboard section, and expand it by clicking the arrow button in the bottom right corner. You should see a new panel showing everything you’ve copied recently.

[themecolor]Remove the Ribbon[/themecolor]

The bar that runs across the top of your Word window is crucial as it houses all of the features you need to be productive. That’s not to say you need to see it all of the time, though.

If you press Ctrl + F1, the Ribbon will disappear from view, leaving you to concentrate on your work in peace. The next time you need something, simply click the relevant tab and it should show again. In Office 2013, you can also tweak this feature by clicking the Ribbon Display Option button.

[themecolor]Add a screenshot[/themecolor]

This one is pretty self-explanatory but it can be extremely useful. Inserting a screenshot can be a great way to illustrate your text and support the message you’re trying to get across, especially if you’re producing a tutorial. Most people would find the window they want to copy and press the Print Screen button, but there is a quicker way.

Go to the Insert tab at the top of the screen and click on Screenshot; it should give you the choice of what you want to paste into your document. You can even just take a section of that page with the handy Screen Clipping tool.

When used regularly, the tips above can help even the most seasoned Word user to save valuable time as they work. These are only a few examples as well – there are plenty more handy features to uncover if you take the time to look.

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M2 Welcomes Reston Waste Management Ltd

By on March 23, 2015 in Blog, Company news

We would like to welcome a new client Reston Waste Management Ltd.  A family run business operating for over 16 years, the company provides waste management and recycling services across the London and Surrey area. The team at Reston Waste Management have selected the M2 Assist Gold level IT support package to cover their IT requirements and will shortly be migrating to Microsoft Office 365.

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TalkTalk warns customers of data hack

By on March 13, 2015 in Blog, Security

It seems with every passing month comes news of another high profile security breach. Now telecoms company TalkTalk confirms it has been the victim of a hacking scandal affecting thousands of users.

TalkTalk has emailed customers to warn them of the scam in which hackers stole account numbers and names from the company’s database. Believed to have taken place last year, the theft was uncovered following a sudden rise in complaints about scam calls between October and December 2014.

[themecolor]Stolen data used to defraud customers[/themecolor]

Worryingly, fraudsters have been using the stolen data to trick customers into handing over bank details. TalkTalk sent the email out to its entire client base – around four million customers in total – although the data theft is thought to have only affected a small number of these. The company has been unwilling to announce the exact number, but has confirmed it is in the “small thousands”, according to some press sources.

A spokesperson for TalkTalk said: “We have now concluded a thorough investigation working with an external security company, and we have become aware that some limited non-sensitive information may have been illegally accessed in violation of our security procedure.

“We are aware of a small, but nonetheless significant, number of customers who have been directly targeted by these criminals and we have been supporting them directly”.

[themecolor]Legal action now underway[/themecolor]

The information stolen includes names, addresses, phone numbers and TalkTalk account numbers, but the telecoms company is confident that no sensitive or payment data went astray. Its internal systems were targeted through a third party who had access to its network. Legal action is now being taken against this unnamed party.

Scammers have been using the information to pose as TalkTalk customer service staff and tricking people into handing over bank details or paying for security software and services they don’t need.

TalkTalk have urged their customers to get in touch if they have any concerns regarding data security.

 

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Smartphone-charging furniture unveiled

By on March 13, 2015 in Blog, Mobile devices, New technology, Product releases

Items of furniture that incorporate wireless smartphone charging spots have been unveiled in Barcelona at the Mobile World Congress.

No longer will homeowners be scrabbling around to find their phone charger; Ikea has come to the rescue by developing the Home Smart range of lamps, bedside tables and office furniture – all of which feature a charger.

Eighty models, including the Samsung Galaxy S6, will be compatible with the household items, which use the QI wireless charging standard. Ikea says that a special wireless charging cover will be needed for phones that don’t support this standard – which include the iPhone 5 and 6, plus the Samsung Galaxy S5. This cover is available to buy in store.

[themecolor]Ikea to launch new range in April[/themecolor]

The furniture, which has been designed in typically sleek Ikea fashion, is aimed squarely at both the home and office market, and will go on sale in the UK and USA in April. The range was created after extensive research and many home visits, in which Ikea’s team noted how ‘people hate cable mess…they worry about not finding a charger and running out of power’.

QI is not the only charging standard that is being developed; attendees at the Consumer Electronics Show would have seen a non-inductive system called WattUp, which can apparently charge items which are located in a 30ft radius, according to the BBC.

Speaking about the Home Smart range, Ikea’s Jeanette Skjelmose said: “Our new innovative solutions, which integrate wireless charging into home furnishings, will make life at home simpler.”

The items will additionally include a USB outlet so that devices other than smart phones can be charged. The range is priced from £30.

With device charging now a primary concern for furniture designers, forecasters have claimed that this will be one of the biggest trends to hit the market in the coming years. In response, green campaigners have called for consideration to be paid to the environmental aspects, such as the time when owners decide to upgrade their furniture and sell on or throw out what they currently have.

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How secure is the cloud?

By on March 13, 2015 in Blog, Cloud computing

In 2014, the cloud was hitting the headlines on almost a weekly basis. Online storage was being talked about for all the wrong reasons, such as ‘The Snappening’, where thousands of Snapchat images were leaked by hackers, and the iCloud breach that saw nude pictures of Jennifer Lawrence and other celebrities distributed online.

Questions and concerns have been raised about the security of ‘the cloud’ but is there any substance to these fears?

[themecolor]Risk and reward[/themecolor]

Hackers clearly stand to reap great rewards by breaking into a cloud than attacking a single computer, especially since all sorts of businesses are now choosing to store customer data this way. Therefore, cloud providers have had to redouble their security efforts to deal with this risk.

However, the level of security required can vary depending on what’s being protected. Government documents, for example, are going to be safeguarded using additional layers of security, whereas consumer documents and photos don’t need as much protection. Indeed, there is more than one type of cloud – public, private or hybrid to name but a few. One size does not fit all and cloud-enabled resources needed to be considered carefully on a case by case basis.

In a bid to increase customer confidence, some cloud providers are now opting to demonstrate their security credentials by proving they conform to certain standards. Microsoft recently became the first major cloud provider to adopt ISO 27018 – the world’s first international standard for cloud privacy.

It is argued by some that, because of this increased security, the cloud is much better equipped to protect people’s data than any individual. After all, physical data centres are constantly monitored, as is the cloud itself.

[themecolor]Data breaches aren’t always the fault of the cloud[/themecolor]

In the case of the iCloud ‘hack’, the cloud wasn’t at fault. The devices were hacked, not the cloud itself, which is why the attackers were able to gain access to private photos. Moreover, vulnerabilities can be introduced to the cloud if a user installs an application containing a virus or malicious software onto their device. Making the cloud secure is not just the job of the provider; software writers and the devices’ manufacturers are equally responsible.

Since almost every web-based service uses the cloud in some way, it’s nigh-on impossible to avoid using the cloud. Ultimately, it falls to the user to decide how much data they want to share, and with whom.

If you have questions regarding cloud security or wish to discuss your own online storage strategy, call our team on 01293 871971.

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A seismic shift for faster computing

By on March 13, 2015 in Blog, Tips & tricks

The shift key on your computer keyboard can be used for so much more than capital letters and the special characters that appear on the number keys. Our tips and tricks article this month describes 3 ways in which Windows 7 and 8 users can use the shift key to work faster and smarter.

Launch a new instance of a program

Many users use the Windows taskbar as a handy launch pad for the most commonly used applications such as Windows Explorer, your favourite browser and your primary business software.

Opening these programs requires a simple click of the icon but what about opening a second instance of the same application? For example, you may wish to open a fresh browser window alongside one that is already populated. Or you might need to open two instances of Windows Explorer in order to drag and drop files between different locations on your network.

Just hold down your shift key and open the program by clicking on the icon. A second, fresh instance will appear on screen.

screenshot1

Copy a file path to the clipboard

Have you ever wanted to send someone a file path to an important document or make a note of a link for your own future reference? There is a handy function available in Windows Explorer but it requires the shift key to access it.

Just hold down your shift key and right-click a file or folder in Windows Explorer. This will reveal a ‘Copy as path’ option, which copies the link to your clipboard. Now you can simply paste that link wherever you need it.

screenshot2

Secret right-click options for sending files

Just like the ‘Copy as path’ option, Windows hides away some other useful links which require the shift key to make them fully available.

The basic Send to tool, which appears when you right-click a file or folder, is a handy tool to move documents to a different location or send them via email. But there are additional options that you can reveal by holding down your shift key.

Just hold down you shift key as you right-click a file or folder and an array of new locations will be added to the basic ‘Send to’ menu.

screenshot3

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Hardware giant Lenovo victim of cyber attack

By on March 13, 2015 in Blog, Security

Chinese computer manufacturer Lenovo has become a victim of a cyber-attack that took down its website and redirected traffic.

Coming at a bad timing for the company, the hack took place just a week after it publicly apologised for pre-loading adware called Superfish on to some of its laptops, making the gadgets vulnerable to hackers.

This most recent attack took down Lenovo’s website for several hours on Wednesday 25th February and showed a blank page, which stated that the site was unavailable due to maintenance. In addition, the URL lenovo.com redirected users to a slideshow of bored-looking teens, set to the song ‘Breaking Free’ from High School Musical.

[themecolor]Taking steps to protect user information[/themecolor]

The company said in a statement: “Unfortunately, Lenovo has been the victim of a cyber-attack. One effect of this attack was to redirect traffic from the Lenovo website. We are also actively investigating other aspects of the attack.

“We are responding and have already restored certain functionality to our public-facing website. We are actively reviewing our network security and will take appropriate steps to bolster our site and to protect the integrity of our users’ information and experience.

“We are also working proactively with third parties to address this attack and we will provide additional information as it becomes available.”

[themecolor]Lizard Squad and Superfish[/themecolor]

Hacking group Lizard Squad claimed responsibility for the DNS attack via its Twitter account. It is thought that the slideshow images depicted the hackers themselves and clicking on the slideshow took users to the Lizard Squad Twitter page. This group is also thought to be responsible for several other high profile cybercrimes including the PlayStation Network and Xbox breaches over Christmas.

Following its attack, the group posted screenshots of emails allegedly sent to lenovo.com addresses, including one discussing the Superfish software.

Lenovo is already in hot water; the preloaded software has landed the company in court under accusations of ‘fraudulent’ business practices. The adware was found to hijack browsers and insert third-party ads into Google searches, but has since been disabled.

Whilst there is every chance these attacks were targeted in their nature, if an organisation with the technical and financial resources of Lenovo can fall prey to hackers, it may be worth considering the vulnerability of your own organisation.

If you have any questions regarding online security, please call our team on 01293 871971.

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