According to the FBI’s Internet Crime Report for 2022, Mississippi has the lowest rate of cybercrime among all US states. The state had around 69 cybercrime victims per 100,000 people last year. Nevada is at the highest risk of cybercrime in the country with around 300 victims per 100,000 people.
An analysis of the FBI data by WindowsReport.com showed that there were 2,043 cybercrime victims in Mississippi last year. When accounted for the state’s total population, the number breaks down to less than 70 victims per 100,000 residents. On average, each victim in the state lost about $13,810 to cybercrime in 2022. The total losses clocked in at $28,213,583.
Following Mississippi with the second-lowest cybercrime rate is Kansas. The state recorded 2,399 victims in 2022, which breaks down to around 82 people out of every 100,000 residents. Those 2,400-odd people cumulatively lost a whopping $58,149,297 to cybercrime. That’s an average loss of $24,239 per victim, over $1,000 more than what people in Mississippi lost on average.
With around 92 victims per 100,000 people, North Dakota is third on the list of US states with the lowest rate of cybercrime. The average loss of $20,312 is still relatively high, though. Louisiana (93), Iowa (94), Kentucky (95), and Arkansas (96) are the only other states with fewer than 100 cybercrime victims per 100,000 residents last year. The average amount lost per victim in these states ranged between $12,000 and $16,000.
Alabama recorded an average loss of more than $50,000 per cybercrime victim in 2022
Cybercrime victims in Alabama, meanwhile, suffered massive losses in 2022. The FBI’s data shows that the state had 4,893 victims last year, which is 100 people out of every 100,000 (or one out of every 1,000). The combined losses of those unfortunate Alabama residents clocked in at $247,930,058. That’s a loss of a staggering $50,670 for each victim. The 9,090 cybercrime victims in Nevada lost $14,006 on average, totaling $127,315,394 combined losses across the state.
“Cybercrime is becoming one of the most common cases of fraud nowadays,” said a spokesperson for the publication commenting on the findings from the FBI report. “Doing things like keeping up to date on data breaches, using strong passwords, not trusting unsolicited emails or messages, and using an effective antivirus software can all keep you well protected in the current climate.”
Verizon recently issued a warning to its subscribers about smashing attacks. These attacks use SMS texts to trick unsuspecting people into giving away confidential information such as their full name, address, banking details, passwords, or social security numbers. Always remember that your bank or government agencies will never ask you for sensitive information and never transfer any money to people you don’t know.
CTF (Capture The Flag) exercises have existed for several years. These CTF exercises provide a great challenge and provide great knowledge for ethical hackers and Bug Bounty Hunters.
Many companies have been conducting CTF competitions very often as a part of technological enhancement toward security.
Tech giants like Google, Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, etc, are currently having vulnerability disclosure programs for attracting security researchers to test their products.
However, Google has announced the CTF competition for this year, which is to be conducted from June 23, 2023, to June 25, 2023.
Google has started its registration for the competitors for this CTF.
Hackceler8
Hackceler8 is a game with a mixture of CTF and Speedrunning where there are possibilities intentionally available for cheating and abusing the mechanism, which is based upon regular CTF challenges like reverse engineering, shellcode, cryptography, etc.,
Hackers must have their own teams to participate in the Google CTF challenges. Teams are ranked based on the points they gain through the CTF challenges.
Only the top 8 teams in the Google CTF challenges are qualified for the Hackceler8 competition, which will be held in Tokyo later this year.
Google has also announced that the prize pool they quoted for this year is more than $32,000.
This will attract many hackers to participate in the year’s Google CTF challenges.
If you are a beginner and want to watch the previous competition, Google has provided a link for the 2022 highlight reel.
Google has also provided resources for previous challenges and also 2020 Hackceler8 videos which might provide an insight into how the competition will be.
Several training links are also available for people interested in learning security. A Beginner’s quest is also supposed to launch in August of this year.
Samsung‘s Galaxy S23 Ultra was the best-selling premium Android smartphone in Q1 2023. The base Galaxy S23 and Galaxy S23+ followed it as the second and third most popular Android phones in the premium segment (priced at $500 or more). Samsung devices captured the top five spots, with the Galaxy Z Flip 4 and Galaxy S22 being the other two models, in that order.
The Galaxy S23 series was the preferred choice of Android buyers in Q1 2023
According to research firm Canalys, the premium or high-end smartphone segment witnessed an unusual growth in shipment in the first three months of the year. While the overall market declined more than 13% year-on-year (YoY), the demand for the priciest phones never dipped. Instead, this segment bucked the global trend by growing 4.7% YoY. Almost one out of every three smartphones sold globally between January and March 2023 was priced at $500 or higher.
As usual, Apple’s latest iPhones sold like hotcakes everywhere. The 14 Pro Max, iPhone 14 Pro, and iPhone 14 were the top three best-selling premium phones globally this past quarter. The discounted iPhone 13 captured the fourth spot on this chart.
Following the four apples is the Galaxy S23 Ultra, making it the best-selling Android phone in this segment in Q1 2023. The base Galaxy S23 sits in the seventh spot, sandwiched between the iPhone 14+ and iPhone 12. The Galaxy S23+ and Galaxy Z Flip 4 make up the top ten.
Further below the chart are the iPhone SE (3rd Gen), Galaxy S22, Xiaomi 13, Huawei Mate 50, and Galaxy S21 FE 5G. The latter is also the oldest Android phone on the chart (launched in January 2022). Overall, Apple had seven models among the top 15 best-selling premium phones globally in the first three months of 2023.
Out of the remaining eight spots for Android devices, Samsung captured six of them, including the top five. The Galaxy Z Flip 4 was the only foldable phone to make it into this chart from Canalys.
Apple is closing the gap with Samsung in the smartphone market
Apple may have a lion’s share in the premium segment, but Samsung still leads the overall smartphone market globally. However, the gap between the top two firms is closing down fast. Samsung’s share dropped from 24% in Q1 2022 to 22% this past quarter.
On the other hand, Apple managed to grow from 18% to 21% during the same period. It remains to be seen if the iPhone maker takes the lead in the coming quarters or if Samsung fights back strongly.
The entire iPhone 15 lineup just got shown thanks to dummy units. It all happened in a video shared by MacRumors, a site that already shared some CAD renders and some other information.
The entire iPhone 15 series gets shown thanks to dummy units
Considering the source, chances are these dummy units are very close to the real design. Considering the detail on them, these should be able to give you a great look at all four upcoming iPhone 15 handsets. The video is embedded below the article.
You can see the Dynamic Island on both the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus here. That is the first time that vanilla iPhones are getting the Dynamic Island. All four devices do feature a Type-C port at the bottom too, as expected.
The source also notes that the corners on the iPhone 15 models are slightly more rounded, which makes them more enjoyable to hold. They should cut into your hand less than the iPhone 14 series.
Don’t pay much attention to the matte and shiny finish on these devices, as that part is probably not accurate across devices. The iPhone 15 Pro series is also tipped to offer a frame made out of titanium. That’s not exactly something we can see here.
The real iPhone 15 Pro & iPhone 15 Pro Max probably won’t have a unified volume button
Another thing worth noting is that the iPhone 15 Pro series dummy units have a unified volume button, but that may not be the case with real iPhones. Apple allegedly changed its mind at the last minute and ditched solid-state buttons.
There will also be an ‘Action Button’ above the volume buttons. Apple is looking to ditch the mute switch, and use this instead. That button will be customizable, so it’ll do more than just mute your device.
The entire iPhone 15 lineup will likely launch in September, so stay tuned for that.
So, picture this: you get a call from your mom on your Android phone and she is having some sort of issue with her Galaxy S23. You can’t quite get what’s wrong, but you are also traveling and can’t visit her to help out.
Total bummer. And most of us techies have been in this position, be it with parents, grandparents or friends. So having a solid option for an app that supports safe screen sharing is so important, yet somewhat rare.
Now, don’t get me wrong — I’ve used a couple over the years, precisely because of this type of scenario. But I never used the technology the app used and I rushed to remove it as soon as I was done.
But now, if — say, WhatsApp — with its status and end-to-end encryption would begin offering such a feature… I’d be interested. And would you look at that? WABetaInfo have uncovered traces of screen sharing in the latest WhatsApp beta version.
Here’s a quick demo of the workflow from WABetaInfo.
The feature is available through version 2.23.11.19 of the texting app for Android. And the gist of it is pretty simple: there is a new button that you can tap while on a video call, after which you’ll be able to share your screen with everyone else on the call.
Users will be able to interrupt the stream at any time too! And by the way, speaking of a new button: the entire in-call button layout seems to have been refreshed, so that it looks more clean and aesthetically pleasing.
That being said, this appears to be only available for newer versions of Android. This is to say that if you are rocking an older version of Android, you won’t be able to share your screen. Vice-versa too: if your recipient is with an old ‘droid, they won’t be able to see a shared screen.
As is usually the case with uncovered features such as this one, we don’t know when it will be available for everyone in the live version. But we sure know that it will be quite useful when it finally arrives!
Motorola just released its next budget-friendly device with a built-in pen. The Moto G Stylus 2023 is here to carry the torch from its 2022 predecessor. Its trademark is the built-in stylus pen. Is the Moto G Stylus 2023 something of note, or is the writing on the wall for this phone? Let’s find out in this review.
If you’re curious about other Motorola content that we have on the site, you can check out our Motorola page. It has information on other Motorola products that you might want to check out. Also, you’ll see news about Moto devices set to come out. It’s for all of you Motorola fans.
Moto G Stylus 2023 Review: Build and design
The design of this phone isn’t quite premium, but it’s not bad for $200. The back is made of a smooth matte glass that, in Motorola fashion, plays with the light in an interesting way. When it catches the light, you’ll see this pleasing shimmer run down the phone. It’s quite a pretty phone.
The build quality of the phone is similar to the design. It’s nothing to write home about, but it’s really good at the $200 price point. It has some decent heft to it, and it feels solid. Comparing it to a more premium phone, the Moto won’t really feel like much, but it’ll feel better than most other $200 phones.
I can tell that Motorola put just a little bit of extra work into the design and build to make it feel more premium than its $200 counterparts.
Moto G Stylus 2023 Review: Display
The display is one of this phone’s strong suits despite the resolution. The Moto G Stylus 2023 is sporting a 6.5-inch IPS LCD display with a resolution of 1600 x 720. So, it’s a 720p+ display, and that might turn some people away from it. However, there are some strong points to the display.
For starters, it does have a pleasing 90Hz refresh rate. It’s not the smoothest, out there, of course, but it does provide some fluidity in the software. It’s a pleasing addition.
Second, the quality of the display is very nice. Honestly, this display punches far higher than its $200 price. I was surprised at how much the colors popped when I assigned the wallpaper and saw the color scheme change. The colors aren’t only relatively punchy, but they have a nice color temperature.
I watched content on this phone, and I didn’t feel like I was using a budget device. That was for two reasons. The first reason is the display. The second reason is the…
Moto G Stylus 2023 Review: Speakers
The Moto G Stylus comes with a set of speakers that do not belong on a phone this affordable. At $200, you’d expect the speakers to be of poor quality with a tinny sound. However, that’s not the case. The speakers on this phone are really good. Not only are they good for the price, but they’re also pleasing in general.
The sound isn’t the most immersive, but it’s still rather full. This is helped by the fact that this is a set of stereo speakers. There’s a healthy balance between the lows and highs without either one overpowering the other.
While they are balanced, they still pop. You can hear the crisp high hats in late 80s hip-hop clearly along with the warm bass of 70s pop. Along with the nice sound, the speakers also get rather loud. So, the speakers in the Moto G Stylus 2023 are definitely better than what the price will suggest.
Moto G Stylus 2023 Review: Battery
Motorola has a thing about giving its mid-range phones large batteries, and this one is no exception. The Motorola G stylus 2023 has a large 5000mAh battery. When you pair that with the mid-range processor and the modest screen resolution, you can expect some nice battery life.
And, that’s exactly what I got! I had no trouble getting through the day with this phone on moderate to heavy usage. Heavy days involved hours of playing games, watching videos, and taking pictures. With all of this activity, I was able to get north of 8 hours of screen-on-time.
When I turned down my usage, I was able to get almost two days of battery life. These lighter days consisted of light gaming, occasional social media, basic messaging, and music streaming. Battery life is not a problem at all with this phone.
Moto G Stylus 2023 Review: Performance
Performance is the main area where the Moto G Stylus 2023 shows its mid-range ways. As you’d expect from a phone using a mid-range MediaTek processor, the performance is slow at times. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not as bad as the OnePlus Nord N300, but it’s not great.
Navigating the software, I ran into a healthy amount of stutters and jitters. Apps take a few seconds to hop out of the splash screen. Scrolling through social media is literally a slideshow. It’s nothing out of the ordinary for a phone in this price bracket. It’s just that the display, speakers, and battery life all betrayed its $200 price tag, but the performance is there to bring it back down to earth.
Gaming
As you can expect, this phone’s gaming chops aren’t robust. Right off the bat, games like Genshin Impact are a no-go. It’s a choppy experience even on its lowest settings.
But, don’t let that paint the scene darker than it is. Genshin is in a league of its own. Playing less graphically intensive 3D games like Sky: Children Of Light is much better. The game runs smoothly with the occasional stutter.
Now, when it comes to 2D titles, you shouldn’t worry about the performance. You’ll be able to tackle those games with no issue at all.
Overall, you’re not going to pick up the Moto G Stylus 2023 for its performance. It’s not terrible, but it’s not all that good.
Moto G Stylus 2023 Review: Camera
The camera on this phone won’t win any awards for its quality. The Moto G Stylus is rocking a 50MP main camera with an 8MP macro camera. The pictures that this phone produces are decent for the price. They have decent contrast and a good amount of detail.
The main thing about the photos would be the colors. The camera produces images with some nice juicy colors. Even when the scene is pretty flat, the camera manages to pull out some nice colors. The images are meant to be seen on the phone’s nice display. It’s not a bad camera.
Moto G Stylus 2023 Review: Software
The Moto G Stylus 2023 comes with Android 13 out of the box which is a major win for this phone. Since Motorola’s MyUX is very similar to stock Android, you’ll be getting a relatively pure software experience.
Most of what you’d see on a Pixel is on this phone. So, you’ll have a faithful Material You experience complete with all of the visual and functional features. This is great for people who want to know what Material You is all about.
Stylus
A major part of the software experience is the built-in stylus pen. This allows you to write or draw directly on the screen when you need to. When you take the pen out of its silo, you’ll see a little toolbar pop-up that has different tools to help you utilize the stylus. Using the stylus is pretty smooth, and it’s as you’d expect from this series of phones.
Conclusion
The Moto G stylus is a good phone in general, but it’s great for the price.
The full extent of the database, whether it is complete or partial, remains uncertain. Furthermore, the motives behind the leak also remain unknown.
Raidforums.com, a notorious cybercrime and now seized hacker forum, has fallen victim to a major security breach. The website’s entire user database, comprising sensitive information of approximately 460,000 registered users, has been leaked by a rival hacking community known as ExposedForums.
The leaked data includes a wealth of personally identifiable information, such as usernames, email addresses, and password hashes.
Screenshot from the ExposedForums (Image credit: Hackread.com)
Raidforums.com, which gained infamy for facilitating discussions related to hacking techniques, stolen data, and cybercriminal activities, served as a hub for hackers, cybercriminals, and other individuals involved in illegal online activities.
The forum allowed users to exchange tools, and guides, and even buy and sell stolen data, making it a prominent and lucrative target for law enforcement agencies. However, the forum was seized in January 2022 while its founder and owner Diogo Santos Coelho, aka Omnipotent (21), a Portuguese national was arrested in the United Kingdom the same year.
Is the Raidforums leak legit?
The leaked data, which has been examined exclusively by Hackread.com, confirms the legitimacy of the breach; however, it remains unclear whether the leaked information represents the entire dataset or only a partial portion. Notably, the leaked records also contain details of a user known as “Omnipotent,” further substantiating the authenticity of the leak.
A screenshot from the data shows Omnipotent’s email and other information (Image credit: Hackread.com)
While the motives behind the leak remain unclear, it is evident that this act represents a significant blow to Raidforums users. In recent times, the internet has proven to be an unpredictable landscape, with numerous databases falling prey to security breaches. Given this trend, it would not be surprising if BreachForums, a hacker forum that emerged as an alternative to Raidforums, also finds itself exposed online.
It is worth noting that the FBI had already seized BreachForums earlier this year and arrested its owner, adding to the likelihood of its information becoming public.
Are you looking to pick up a new smartphone? Then Motorola is a really great brand to check out. Motorola has plenty of great phone deals that are also pretty cheap. And that’s what we’ll be rounding up here in this post.
Motorola is now the third largest smartphone maker in North America, behind Apple and Samsung, taking over LG’s spot when they left the smartphone market. Motorola has done this by offering pretty decent phones in almost every price range, and almost every set of features. Want a stylus? Motorola has a few options available. Want a big screen, Motorola has many options available. Want a flagship? Motorola has an option for you.
Motorola’s phones are often available unlocked and will work on all of the US carriers. Though the only caveat here is that mmWave 5G may not work on Verizon for a number of these phones.
Best Motorola Android Phone Deals
Motorola has phones ranging from just under $100, all the way up to $900. So depending on your budget, Motorola has something for you. They’ve also been getting very good with their software updates in recent years. Still not on the same level as Samsung and Google these days, but they are getting there.
Motorola even has a foldable phone, in the razr. Which is a little old at this point, but still pretty functional. One of the cheaper foldables out there, besides Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip 3 actually. Most of Motorola’s smartphones also have 5G, so you’re going to be able to take advantage of the faster speeds that 5G offers, all for a much lower price.
So without further ado, here are all of the current deals that Motorola has for its smartphones. This is across Amazon, Motorola.com, Verizon, T-Mobile and AT&T’s website, along with a few other retailers.
It’s no secret that ever since Netflix announced a crackdown on password sharing, people have been unwelcoming of this decision as it forces them to pay for family members or friends who do not live in the same household. Now, just days after implementing its password-sharing ban, many Netflix users have taken to social media to express their frustrations, leading to a surge in cancellations and the emergence of the trending hashtag #CancelNetflix on platforms like Twitter.
This shift in policy represents a significant departure from Netflix’s previous strategy in 2017 when it tweeted in support of password sharing, stating that “Love is sharing a password.” And although it’s unclear whether the company anticipated such a backlash, the password-sharing ban is just one of the reasons behind the wave of cancellations. These reasons include the subpar quality of Netflix’s original content, such as the new Cleopatra documentary, and the cancellations of many fan-favorite series.
As a result, frustrated users took to Twitter to express their disappointments, with one long-term subscriber named “Ben” publicly announcing his departure from the service and another user, gfgm223, declaring their decision to move on after 11 years of paying for a subscription.
“I cancelled my Netflix membership so fast. It’s the principle. They already charge us to share our accounts, that’s how it went from $8 to $15. Like no, you’re not charging me to tell me who I’m allowed to share my password with,” said Twitter user T_Nitchelle.
Netflix still expects revenue growth
While the severe backlash on social media platforms is concerning, the company remains optimistic about its revenue growth prospects. As, during a recent earnings conference, Netflix acknowledged that there would be cancellations, but they believe that overall, this crackdown on password sharing will be beneficial for the platform.
“This is an important transition for us, and so we’re working hard to make sure that we do it well and as thoughtfully as we can,” said Gregory Peters, co-CEO and director of Netflix.
However, convincing existing subscribers to pay more for adding an account will entirely depend on Netflix’s ability to produce good content, an area that has been on a downfall for some time.
Google recently released new top-level domains (TLDs) like .dad, .phd, .mov, and .zip, raising concerns within the security community due to the potential confusion with file extensions, particularly .mov and .zip.
A new phishing kit, “file archiver in the browser,” exploits ZIP domains by presenting fraudulent WinRAR or Windows File Explorer windows in the browser, tricking users into executing malicious files.
Last week, security researcher mr.d0x revealed a phishing attack that involved mimicking a browser-based file archiver software like WinRAR using a .zip domain to enhance its credibility.
How the Attack Works
To perform this attack, emulate the WinRAR file archive utility using HTML/CSS, with the expert uploading 2 samples on GitHub for public access.
The other one mimics the File Explorer window found in Windows 11.
The WinRAR sample incorporates cosmetic features, such as a ‘Scan’ icon that generates a message box confirming file safety, enhancing the legitimacy of the phishing page.
The toolkit enables embedding a counterfeit WinRar window in the browser, creating the illusion of opening a ZIP archive and displaying its contents when accessing a .zip domain.
It looks great in the browser, but it truly stands out as a popup window, as with the address bar and scrollbar removed, it resembles a WinRar window on the screen.
An intriguing application involves listing a non-executable file that, upon user click, triggers the download of an executable file or any desired file format, such as a .exe, even when the user expects to download an “invoice.pdf” file.
File Explorer Search Bar
Several Twitter users highlighted that the Windows File Explorer search bar serves as an effective delivery method, as searching for a non-existent file like “mrd0x.zip” prompts automatic opening in the browser, which aligns perfectly with user expectations of encountering a ZIP file.
Once the user performs this action, it automatically launches the .zip domain containing the file archive template, creating a convincingly authentic appearance.
Introducing new top-level domains (TLDs) expands the phishing possibilities for attackers, prompting organizations to block .zip and .mov domains due to their current and expected future exploitation for phishing activities.
Phishing attacks are growing in sophistication as cybercriminals increasingly incorporate detection evasion features like antibots and dynamic directories into their kits.
In 2022, the number of advanced phishing attacks by threat actors surged by 356%, while the overall attack count saw an 87% increase throughout the year.
A new wave of phishing attacks is using compromised Microsoft 365 accounts and restricted-permission message (.rpmsg) encrypted emails to steal users’ credentials, showcasing the ongoing evolution of phishing schemes.
