Archive for October 2017

Reading the signs: 5G is coming | EDN

https://www.edn.com/electronics-blogs/5g-waves/4458951/Reading-the-signs–5G-is-coming?utm_content=buffer9759f&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer One in 10 communications companies claim to have deployed 5G technology already, according to a recent survey (see: With 5G technology, the time is now). Some parts of the 5G standard are close to being finalized, but nothing has been ratified yet.  Furthermore, many of the constituent technologies (e.g., mmWave RF, beamforming, MIMO, etc.) are

4 website maintenance mistakes to avoid | Opensource.com

https://opensource.com/article/17/10/4-website-maintenance-mistakes-avoid?sc_cid=7016000000127ECAAY  Maintenance is a good idea for every website, but it’s a requirement for websites using open source code. The upside of open source is that everyone can participate. The downside is that means keeping up with everyone’s changes.  Maintenance is a simple process, but there are basic mistakes that many people make at least

An introduction to timekeeping in Linux VMs | Opensource.com

https://opensource.com/article/17/6/timekeeping-linux-vms?sc_cid=7016000000127ECAAY Keeping time in Linux is not simple, and virtualization adds additional challenges and opportunities. This article reviews KVM, Xen, and Hyper-V related time-keeping techniques and the corresponding parts of the Linux kernel.

Do we really need swap on modern systems?

https://www.redhat.com/en/blog/do-we-really-need-swap-modern-systems  Swap is used to give processes room, even when the physical RAM of the system is already used up. In the past, some application vendors recommended swap of a size equal to the RAM, or even twice the RAM. Once the physical memory is used up, swap gets used. As the swap disk is much slower

LiShield Can Block Smartphone Cameras for Privacy’s Sake – IEEE Spectrum

Phttps://spectrum.ieee.org/tech-talk/consumer-electronics/audiovideo/lishield-can-block-smartphone-cameras-for-privacys-sake Rules that prohibit photos or videos can prove almost impossible to enforce when nearly everyone carries a smartphone. But a new indoor privacy system has shown how the power of smart LED lighting could prevent people from taking illegal videos of a live events. LiShield has a capability to corrupt digital camera images and videos without

Managing devices in Linux

https://opensource.com/article/16/11/managing-devices-linux?sc_cid=7016000000127ECAAY  There are many interesting features of the Linux directory structure. This article covers some fascinating aspects of the /dev directory.  Device files are also known as device special files. Device files are employed to provide the operating system and users an interface to the devices that they represent. All Linux device files are located in the

Millions of high-security crypto keys crippled by newly discovered flaw | Ars Technica

https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2017/10/crypto-failure-cripples-millions-of-high-security-keys-750k-estonian-ids/  A crippling flaw in a widely used code library has fatally undermined the security of millions of encryption keys used in some of the highest-stakes settings, including national identity cards, software- and application-signing, and trusted platform modules protecting government and corporate computers. The weakness allows attackers to calculate the private portion of any vulnerable key

Severe flaw in WPA2 protocol leaves Wi-Fi traffic open to eavesdropping | Ars Technica

https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2017/10/severe-flaw-in-wpa2-protocol-leaves-wi-fi-traffic-open-to-eavesdropping/ An air of unease set into the security circles on Sunday as they prepared for the disclosure of high-severe vulnerabilities in the Wi-Fi Protected Access II protocol that make it possible for attackers to eavesdrop Wi-Fi traffic passing between computers and access points.  There is a proof-of-concept exploit called KRACK, short for Key Reinstallation Attacks. KRACK

Physicists Will Be Announcing An “Unprecedented Discovery” On Monday – Here’s How To Watch Live | IFLScience

http://www.iflscience.com/space/a-huge-new-gravitational-waves-announcement-is-happening-on-monday/  In the space of just a few weeks, the LIGO and VIRGO collaborations have announced the fourth detection of gravitational waves and three of their most prominent physicists received a Nobel Prize for their work. And on Monday they will announce something new. 

Troy Hunt: What Would It Look Like If We Put Warnings on IoT Devices Like We Do Cigarette Packets?

https://www.troyhunt.com/what-would-it-look-like-if-we-put-warnings-on-iot-devices-like-we-do-cigarette-packets/  So how would warning labels on IoT devices that have had serious security vulnerabilities look?   Hilarious and also so needed. “Intrusions can occur anywhere”…  Or maybe it doesn’t need to be tech/legalspeak. WARNING! This connects to the INTERNET and BAD THINGS may happen!