Threat actors have launched another malvertising campaign on Google Search. While that is not really anything to write about anymore in this day and age, this time is special. Not only did the threat actors manage to plant scam ads on Google, they did furthermore impersonate Google’s entire product line and used Google domains for…
Author: Martin Brinkmann
Brand Love: Google’s unethical attempt to get only positive Pixel reviews
Influencers play an important role in marketing today. They tend to have a certain reach that makes cooperations with them attractive to companies. It should not come as a surprise that influencers get offers to test devices. Companies send them the devices free of charge in the hope that they get a review by the…
WhatsApp: the end of Spam? New feature is a tiny step towards that goal
WhatsApp is working on a new feature that will block messages from unknown accounts. Before you get too excited about it, there is a big but coming up soon. If you are using WhatsApp, you may have experienced your fair share of spam. Be it messages from unknown accounts or even calls. Over the past…
A first look at Google’s new Weather app
Google announced several new Pixel devices this week as well as new AI and services, some of them exclusive at the time of writing. The company’s main announcement on its official The Keyword website focuses more on software and services, and less on the hardware of the Pixel devices. Among the new features is a…
Windows 11: Device Encryption will be enabled automatically in these cases
The next feature update for Windows 11 enables automatic device encryption for users of the operating system. This happens automatically in the background and for most users, but there are exceptions. What is Device Encryption and how does it differ from BitLocker Drive Encryption? Device Encryption is based on BitLocker, Microsoft’s encryption technology. It is…
Beyond hardware: these Pixel 9 features launch with the phones
Google announced this year’s Pixel upgrade on its Made by Google event yesterday. As Google puts it, these are the most powerful Pixel devices ever. They are also the most expensive ones. You find information about the hardware features of the four Pixel devices — Pixel 9, Pro, Pro XL, and Fold — on numerous…
Three year old Malvertising Campaign is still going strong
One of the most important skills of any Internet user is the ability to distinguish between advertising and organic links. A core reason for that is that advertising is regularly abused for malvertising campaigns. Malvertising refers to ads that in one way or another attack the user or the user’s device. A simple example is…
Android Apps: Exodus reveals trackers and permissions before installation
Much of what happens during the installation of an Android app happens in the background. While Android may highlight permissions that an app requires, it stays silent when it comes to privacy. Many apps include trackers and may also contain ads, but ad-free apps may still have trackers. If you are particularly worried about tracking,…
Microsoft is retiring a Windows app this year that it at one time had high hopes for
When it comes to the dozen or so Windows app that Microsoft ships with Windows, there are several that most users would probably never touch. Of these, Paint 3D is probably high up on the list of the majority of Windows users. It sits there at the top with the likes of 3D Builder. Paint…
0.0.0.0 Day: decade-old vulnerability affects all browsers
Security researchers have disclosed a vulnerability that affects all modern browsers. What makes it particularly worrisome is that it has been known for 18 years; that goes back to a time before Google even thought of creating Chrome. The details: In other words: the security issue allows the circumvention of security protections by malicious websites….