Rockstar video-sharing platform TikTok has been at odds with the US government for a while. It’s believed that the platform poses a major security risk, and this caused it to be banned from government officials’ phones. Now, it seems that TikTok could divest itself from its parent company ByteDance, according to Bloomberg. This is if a certain deal between TikTok and the US government falls through.
The reason why TikTok is being fingered as a security risk is that it’s a Chinese-owned company. A platform as heavily ad-ridden as TikTok needs to collect data from its users to deliver relevant ads to its users to encourage clicks. The more data it collects, the more accurately it can target its ads.
However, as you can imagine, the US government doesn’t like so much being collected and stored by a Chinese company. TikTok is a huge brand; its app is stored on over a billion devices. Millions of them are from the States. That’s a lot of data being collected from American users.
TikTok could divest from ByteDance
Right now, TikTok is working with the American government to quiet some of its concerns about national security. It’s been working on a project called “Project Texas”.
This is a multi-tier plan that will include having Oracle, an American company, host the data collected from US users. The company will also review TikTok’s software. This deal will also bring a three-person oversight board to keep an eye on the company.
While this plan sounds like it could help reassure us, we’re not sure that it will go through. For starters, certain members of the Justice Department have not accepted TikTok’s approval. That doesn’t bode well for TikTok.
Not only that, but TikTok is still facing an uphill battle with American lawmakers. There are several bills proposed by lawmakers that would actually require the separation of TikTok and ByteDance.
Right now, the future of this deal is still unclear. TikTok still has a long way to go to see that this deal will happen.
There are many different smart video doorbells on the market right now. Of course, we all know of the Ring, Nest, and Arlo video doorbells that are available on the market. But there are a few other options out there, however, which ones are the best for your home? That’s what we are aiming to find out with this list.
In this list, we are rounding up the best smart video doorbells, and will also be listing which digital assistant(s) they work with. To help you make an informed decision on which one you should buy.
Best Smart Video Doorbells
Here, you’ll find smart video doorbells from Arlo, Nest, Ring and many others. These are available in all sorts of price ranges. From under $100, to over $300. So there’s something here for everyone.
The Ring Battery Doorbell Plus is the latest doorbell from Ring. It offers up a square camera lens, which allows it to be ultrawide on the x and y axis. So you’ll be able to see all the way down to the persons feet. As well as packages sitting on your porch. So it’s easier to find those porch pirates.
It still uses Ring’s popular quick release battery. Making it super easy to replace the battery when the time comes. Depending on your usage, the battery should last around a month on a full charge.
The Blink Video Doorbell is a cheap one, but not a bad option. It does have all of the usual features that you’d expect from a video doorbell. Like two-way audio, HD video recording and it can even last up to two years on a single charge. Which is a theme with Blink products, since its cameras can last nearly as long.
Instead of rechargeable batteries, it uses two AA batteries. So you don’t need to worry about recharging them. Just pop in a new pair of batteries and you’re on your way.
There are many video doorbells on the market today, but the Arlo Smart Video Doorbell made our smart home gift guide because it works well with the other Arlo cameras. And it’s also less expensive compared to the other models.
There is a wide-angle camera built into this video doorbell, so it can see your entire front yard, and the ground in front of your door. Allowing you to see who is attempting to steal your Amazon packages. The Arlo Video Doorbell can send you notifications when it sees movement, as well as when someone presses the button on the doorbell. So even if they don’t want you to know they are there, you’ll know.
The Ring Video Doorbell Pro is the video doorbell to pick up for your home. It’s a really great gift, as you can watch and see who is taking your packages, or know who is at the door before they ring the doorbell.
With the Ring Video Doorbell Pro, you’re getting a wide-angle camera that can see all the way to the ground in front of your home. And the ability to interact with people via your smartphone, or even your Alexa products. Like the Echo Show or the Fire TV, which is really unique.
Blue has all of your favorite and expected features for a smart video doorbell. That includes getting alerts on your smartphone, as well as being able to see what’s going on at any time.
But where Blue really stands out, is in the compatible with ADT, if you already have ADT for your security system, then it is a really great smart video doorbell to add to your home.
The RemoBell S is a great video doorbell to pick up, and perhaps the cheapest on this list. It does require existing doorbell wiring, which is part of why it’s so much cheaper. As there is no battery inside to power it.
It can record your front yard and see what’s going on, giving you notifications and more. There is no subscription required, so it can record and keep everything for you. Without having to pay anything extra. Which is always nice.
The Nest Video Doorbell is one of the better looking doorbells on the market, and it works really well with the Google Assistant. It can give you notifications for motion, people and pets outside of your home. It also has “Known Faces” so it can tell you who it sees as well.
This doorbell is only available as a battery model, so you don’t need to worry about doorbell wiring. The battery will last you about a month on a charge, depending on how much you have it set to record. And it works well with the other Nest products on the market.
This is the fourth-generation of the original Ring Video Doorbell. The Ring Video Doorbell 4. It can stream video from your doorbell at 1080p HD resolution, with night vision. So you can see what’s happening outside your home, even at night. The Ring Video Doorbell 4 does also come with the corner mount, so that the doorbell is tilted a bit, giving you a better look at your porch, front yard and potentially your driveway.
It still includes a removable battery, which is now easier than ever to remove and charge. And you also have multiple batteries that you can buy and replace in your new Ring Video Doorbell 4.
The eufy Video Doorbell is a great option for those that use either Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant, and aren’t super invested in one over the other. eufy is a division of Anker, so this isn’t just some no-name video doorbell. But a good, and cheap video doorbell.
For $100, you’re getting a wireless chime that you can plug in your home and have it act as a regular doorbell. It has a camera, so you’ll still get alerts on your phone when something happens outside of your home. And with two-way audio, you can speak to whoever is out there too.
This is the video doorbell for those in apartments. This fits over the peephole on your door, and people that come to your door can easily press the button like a regular doorbell, and allow you to see who is at the door, without going to your door.
Now depending on the type of apartment you live in, the Ring Peephole Cam may not be the best choice. But it is a really good option. You still get all of the usual features for Ring, like the ability to see who’s there, two-way audio and such. It also works with Amazon Alexa.
There has been a recent cyber attack on Amazon’s popular security camera company, Ring, which was attributed to a ransomware group ALPHV that uses the BlackCat malware.
This group has now claimed responsibility for the attack and is now threatening to leak the data from the company.
There are at least two thousand police departments around the country that have partnered with Amazon to make sharing footage with law enforcement as easy as possible for their users.
It is no secret that the cameras and the footage they take, often posted online, have become so popular. In response, Amazon launched a television show called “Ring Nation,” which is a variety show around Ring cameras that includes mostly bloopers recorded by the cameras.
It is important to note that after the news of the data breach broke out, in a statement issued to Motherboard, Ring said it did not have evidence that any of its systems had been compromised but that a third-party vendor had been infected with ransomware.
A Ransomware Gang Claims to Have Hacked Ring
As part of the attack, ALPHV raised the alarm, saying that its malware, BlackCat, had been used to carry out the attack. Affiliate groups of victims who refuse to pay the ransom have access to a searchable database created by the BlackCat malware authors.
ALPHV has a dedicated “leak site,” as do many other groups of this kind, where its members selectively release data they have stolen during an attack. This week, ALPHV posted a message on its page for Ring that states:-
“There’s always the option to let us leak your data…”
But after the post, the threat actors have not posted anything about it.
No Customer Data Has Been Affected
The fact that companies initially deny that a hack has compromised customer data is not uncommon, but in reality, the data has been compromised due to a security breach.
A privacy and security practice of Ring has drawn controversy in the past since third parties are used to collect and share information about its users and its own privacy practices.
Although Ring claims that it prioritizes the security and privacy of its customers, we have seen numerous instances where these claims have failed to live up to the claims and have resulted in harming the customers and community members who use Ring.
As of now, Ring has not confirmed whether or not the hackers were able to access any of its users’ data, so there is not yet any guidance for Ring users on how to deal with the situation.
Almost all Ring doorbells and security cameras are compatible with E2EE (end-to-end) encryption, which is available in most regions. Therefore, neither any government entity, hackers, nor even its parent company, Amazon, will be able to access the footage that has been uploaded.
According to the FBI’s annual report, investment fraud overtook business email compromise as the most reported and most damaging type of fraud in 2022.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has published its 2022 Internet Crime Report. One of the most notable points is that investment fraud has now overtaken business email compromise (BEC) as the most reported and most damaging type of fraud.
The numbers are based on the complaints reported to the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). The IC3 serves as a public resource to submit reports of cyberattacks and incidents, which also allows the FBI to collect data and identify trends.
To fully understand the shift we need to clarify what the report considers as investment fraud. The general definition of investment fraud used by the FBI is:
“Deceptive practice that induces investors to make purchases based on false information. These scams usually offer the victims large returns with minimal risk. (Retirement, 401K, Ponzi, Pyramid, etc.).”
Within the category of investment fraud, a major role is taken up by crypto-investment fraud. Crypto-investment fraud saw an incredible growth in 2022, both in number of scams and in the amount of damage done. Investment fraud complaints increased from $1.45 billion in 2021 to $3.31 billion in 2022, which is a 127% rise. Within those complaints, cryptocurrency investment fraud rose from $907 million in 2021 to $2.57 billion in 2022, an increase of 183%.
There are a number of different methods that cryptocurrency investment fraudsters deploy:
Liquidity mining. Mostly by deploying social engineering, victims are tricked into linking their cryptocurrency wallet to a fraudulent liquidity mining application. Scammers then wipe out the victims’ funds without notification or permission from the victim.
Hacked social media accounts. Using several methods, scammers take over social media accounts to target existing friends of the hacked user.
Celebrity impersonation. By pretending to be a well-known celebrity or social figure, scammers begin a friendship with the targeted victim who is eventually enticed to learn how to invest in cryptocurrency or is given the opportunity to invest by the scammer.
Real estate professionals. The scammer contacts a real estate agent, usually offering to buy a very expensive property for cash or cryptocurrency. Once engaged, the fraudster will expose their control of fictitious accounts with a purported value of millions of dollars to entice them to engage in their investment scheme.
Employment. The victims are lured into applying for a fake position online at an investment firm or company supposedly affiliated with investing. Instead of a job, the victims are instead offered investment advice. The investment is fraudulent and designed to steal as much money from the target as possible.
Pig butchering. The fraudsters, posing as highly successful traders in cryptocurrency, entice victims to make purported investments in cryptocurrency providing fictitious returns to encourage additional investments.
Mitigation
It is helpful to know, which methods are popular among scammers, so you can recognize them when you run into them.
Some other points that can help you recognize fraud attempts are:
Stray messages for “someone else” appear out of the blue in a chat app, or on social media sites, or even work-related platforms.
Common scam opening lines may involve: sports, golfing, travel, fitness.
At some point the conversation will drift to topics like investments and/or cryptocurrency.
They will ask you to invest, or even take some of their money and use that instead just to try out how “profitable” it can be.
If something looks too good to be true
More notable numbers taken from the report
The FBI report contains a lot more information. These are some numbers we thought you might find interesting:
In 2022, the IC3 received 800,944 complaints, which is a 5 percent decrease from 2021. However, the potential total loss has grown from $6.9 billion in 2021 to more than $10.2 billion in 2022.
Total victim losses in 2022 amounted to $10.3 Billion
The largest number of victims are aged 30-39 but the age group that lost the most money are 60+
The number of reported ransomware incidents has decreased, but ransomware is still a big threat, especially to organizations in the healthcare, critical manufacturing, government, IT, and financial services sectors.
Malwarebytes removes all remnants of ransomware and prevents you from getting reinfected. Want to learn more about how we can help protect your business? Get a free trial below.
Google Play Pass. What’s that, you might ask? Well, it’s a service that Google offers to Android users which gives unlimited access to content on Google Play. That’s the most basic explanation of what it is anyway.
But there’s a lot more to it than that. So we wanted to do a deep dive into what it is, what its features are, what it costs, why you’d want it and a whole lot more. If you’re at all interested in Play Pass, which you’ve likely seen presented to you inside the Google Play app on your Android smartphone, then this guide is for you.
As it’ll seek to explain all of that in as much detail as possible.
What is Google Play Pass?
Google Play Pass is a subscription service that you can access through your Android smartphone or tablet. You pay a single monthly fee and in return, Google gives you access to a curated collection of games and apps.
You can use these as much as you want and install them on additional devices. So long as the Google account you used to subscribe to the service is on those additional devices.
If you need a comparison, Play Pass is pretty similar to Apple Arcade. The main difference being that Apple Arcade is strictly for games and Google Play Pass includes apps too.
How much does Google Play Pass cost?
Google Play Pass has a monthly fee and an annual fee. So you can subscribe for the length of time that you prefer. Whether you plan to utilize the service’s benefits for an entire year or you’d rather have the freedom to cancel month by month, Google Play Pass lets you choose either one.
For one month, Play Pass will cost you $4.99. For one year, Play Pass will cost you $29.99. Subscriptions are also set up to auto-renew. So make sure that you keep that in mind if you’re ever considering a cancellation.
If you have a Google Play family account set up, you can also share Play Pass with up to five other people.
Where is Google Play Pass available?
You would think that Play Pass is available in every country where the Play Store is available. But that’s actually not the case. The service is available in a rather large number of regions though.
Altogether, the service is available in 90 regions. This includes the US, UK, Russia, Poland, Italy, France, Angola, Chile, and many others. You can find the entire list of available regions for Play Pass at this link.
Also worth noting is that if Play Pass is available in your region, you should be able to see the option to sign up for it in the Play Store on your device. Simply tap on your profile picture in the top right corner of the Play Store app, and Play Pass should be listed further down in the menu.
What apps and games are available on Play Pass?
Honestly, there are too many to list them all here. But you’ll be happy to know that the service as a whole offers access to hundreds and hundreds of apps and games. And Google is constantly adding more so things are always staying fresh.
Having said that, the service did start off a little bit slow. Now however things seem to have picked up and there’s a lot more on offer. Some of the most recent things added to Play Pass include games like Evoland 2, Botanicula, Crying Suns, Night Of The Full Moon, The Ramen Sensei, Pocket League Story, Laser Quest and many, many more.
The absolute newest games and apps to join Play Pass include Shiny Ski Resort, Swapperoo, Brave hand, PicLab – Photo Editor, Hidden City Adventure and more.
If you’re interested in seeing everything Play Pass offers for yourself, head to the Play Pass section in the Play Store and tap on the Explore button. This will let you browse through the content that you get access to with your subscription.
What sorts of features does Play Pass have?
Really there aren’t many major features to speak of. You do get the ability to share the service with up to five people. And that’s really about it. What it has is pretty cut and dry. Pay a monthly fee, and get access to hundreds of apps and games.
Use and play them as much as you want as long as your subscription is active.
Does the content have in-app purchases?
No. All Play Pass content is completely free of in-app purchases. Which means you’ll never spend a single cent on anything. The thing is though that Play Pass will likely never include games that rely more heavily on micro transactions.
Then again, those types of apps and games are usually already free. The main benefit of Play Pass is that the games and apps that are included are premium games and apps. That would normally cost money if you wanted to install them. With Play Pass, you give up having to spend money on the individual installs for unlimited access with a subscription.
It’s a rather great deal if you use premium apps and play premium games a lot. There are some free games and apps included. These are likely to have at least one or two in-app purchases that would unlock the full versions of their content. But with Play Pass you get that at no charge.
How do I sign up?
Signing up is actually pretty easy to do. You can find out how to sign up in our guide here. Which walks you through the process step by step.
Are there ads to deal with?
Not a single one. All apps and games in the service that would potentially have ads, are completely ad-free when you have a Play Pass subscription. This goes along with the lack of micro transactions. As you also avoid in-app purchases when you subscribe.
Again, this is mostly premium content. And a lot of premium content doesn’t have ads or in-app purchases anyway. So that’s something to keep in mind. The real strength of the service is getting access to premium content without having to buy each piece of content individually.
Are downloads shared between family members?
No. Google set things up so that any downloads are not shared between Play Pass subscribers. Since the service is tied to the individual emails of each person in the family group, downloaded games or apps go directly to that person’s device and no one else’s.
This will help prevent your device from being loaded up with games or apps you would never play or use.
Do I need an Android device to access the service?
Yes. Play Pass is only available for Android devices. Though, that does include both smartphones and tablets. Your device will need to run Android 4.4 or later, and have the Play Store version 16.6.25 or later for it to work.
Google doesn’t list that it works with Chromebooks, but a Chromebook is pictured on the official Play Pass landing page and users have reported it working well over a year ago. So your Chromebook should work just fine if you have one.
What happens to downloads if I cancel Play Pass?
Play Pass is a subscription service. While it’s active, you can download and use games or apps free of charge instead of paying for them. They’ll also be free of ads and of in-app/in-game purchases, as mentioned above.
If you cancel your Play Pass subscription though, you will lose access to those games or apps. You will however be able to continue using them for the remaining days of your subscription. In the event that the apps or games were free, they will stay ad-free for the same time frame.
Will games or apps ever be removed from the service?
Sometimes, yes. Google states that every so often games and apps may leave the Play Pass service. If this happens, usage is still there, not too unlike it is for the remaining days of your subscription after you cancel it.
If the game or app removed is free, then access can continue but ads will start appearing. Google says access can continue for “some time” if the content was paid, but eventually users will have to buy that content.
How do I manage my Play Pass subscription?
This is pretty simple as well. The same as any other subscription from the Play Store – from the menu. Subscriptions will be listed right under the library option in the user menu that you access from the top right corner of the Play Store app.
Just like with signing up, tap on your profile picture and payments & subscriptions will be the third option down. Tap on that to open the subscriptions menu and if you’re subscribed to Play Pass you’ll see it in the list. You can then cancel at any time from this location.
Are there any issues with the service?
The main issue is still the same one that Play Pass has had since it launched. Though it’s less of an issue now than it was back in the beginning – that there aren’t really that many games or apps available as part of the service. This will continue to change over time however. Google said in the beginning that it was committed to adding more games and apps to Play Pass every single month. And it’s done that so far.
Another problem is the quality of the content that is available. Some of the content included is lacking. However everyone’s tastes are different and some users will find the library of content in Play Pass to be just fine. Again, this is another thing that will improve over time as Google adds in more new stuff.
Can I sign up for Play Pass with a work or school account?
Unfortunately, no. Play Pass is only available to personal Google accounts and not those tied to work or school.
Why should I sign up for Google Play Pass?
This is mainly for people who use a lot of app content. And even more specifically for people who tend to gravitate towards the premium content. If that’s you and you’re tried of paying full price for each thing you download, this is an alternative way to get access to hundreds of premium games and apps.
In which case, that’s a good reason to sign up. Another good reason is if you have family members or friends that are part of your Google Play Family account. This allows everyone access to the Play Pass service for the same monthly fee that you’re already paying. Which means lots of free content for everyone involved. Sharing is caring, and sharing Play Pass with friends and family is a neat little gift.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has just confirmed that the company will lay off 10,000 employees, and 5,000 open positions for hire will be closed.
Laying off employees to cut costs has become an epidemic in the United States. Tech companies are at the core of this change, and over 94,000 employees working in the US tech companies have been laid off so far in 2023 (via Crunchbase). Meta axed 11,000 jobs in November last year, and 10,000 more jobs will be removed soon. The company’s overall headcount will reduce to around 66,000 after these layoffs.
Meta has frozen its hiring to restructure the efforts and different departments. Zuckerberg says the process might take until the end of 2023 for the company’s headquarters in the US. After passing this transition period, Meta might begin hiring new employees again. The company’s tech departments will go through restructuring in late April, and business teams in late May.
Meta to lay off 10,000 workers and closes 5,000 job opportunities
According to Zuckerberg’s letter, Meta will “announce restructuring plans focused on flattening our orgs.” In simple terms, this statement means the company will reduce the number of departments and managers to reduce bureaucracy. It also suggests that Meta wants to focus on projects that are high priority. The CEO confirmed that Meta “will ask many managers to become individual contributors.”
Employees working at the Reality Labs hardware and metaverse division will reportedly get affected. We recently reported that Meta Quest Headsets are up to 33% off due to low sales, and the company has lost $13.7 billion on the Reality Labs unit. The company needs cash to stay operational, and that may be why it launched Twitter-like Meta Verified. A verified badge by Meta costs $11.99 monthly on the web and $14.99 on mobile apps.
Zuckerberg also asserted that 2023 would be the “year of efficiency” for Meta. He said the company is now working “faster” due to last year’s layoffs. “A leaner org will execute its highest priorities faster. People will be more productive, and their work will be more fun and fulfilling.” Zuckerberg said.
The most recent new feature launched by YouTube TV has been specifically designed for sports fans. To provide this incredibly passionate audience with the best viewing experience on TV, the streaming service announced that it has added a new multiview feature allowing them to switch audio and captions between streams.The new feature is only available in early access for the moment, so if you don’t see that feature yet in your YouTube TV app, then this is why. The streaming service revealed that “some members” will start to see a new option to watch up to four pre-selected, different streams at once in their “Top Picks for You” section.
As mentioned earlier, this will allow select YouTube TV members to switch audio and captions between streams, as well as jump in and out of a fullscreen view of a game. In development for quite a while, the new multiview feature joins a slew of improvements YouTube TV introduced in the last couple of years, including key plays, fantasy view, and 4K streaming.
YouTube TV’s multiview feature has been designed to work even on devices that have less processing power. According to German Cheung (Engineering lead, YouTube TV), the company decided to move the entire processing requirements to happen on YouTube’s servers, allowing subscribers to use the feature regardless of what device they’re using.
This is possible because your device will see only one life feed instead of two or four, so it won’t need any processing power to be able to playback multiple streams at once. It’s an ingenious approach that required some resources investments from YouTube TV, so let’s hope it will work as intended.
If you’re not among the early adopters, be patient as YouTube TV announced that the multiview feature will be gradually rolled out while the company gathers feedback from subscribers. More importantly, the feature will continue to be fine-tuned and refined, but expect more functionality to be added too, including the option to customize multiview streams.
This Patch Tuesday, Microsoft has released fixes for two actively exploited zero-days and Adobe has fixed one.
Microsoft, and other vendors, have released their monthly updates. In total Microsoft has fixed a total of 101 vulnerabilities for several titles (including Edge), with two of them being actively exploited zero-days. On top of that, Adobe has fixed an actively exploited vulnerability in ColdFusion.
The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) database lists publicly disclosed computer security flaws. The CVEs of the actively exploited vulnerabilities patched in these updates are:
CVE-2023-23397: a critical Microsoft Outlook Elevation of Privilege (EoP) vulnerability. External attackers could send specially crafted emails to cause a connection from the victim to an external UNC location of attackers’ control. This would leak the Net-NTLMv2 hash of the victim to the attacker who could then relay this to another service and authenticate as the victim. The mail would be triggered automatically when retrieved and processed by the Outlook client, which could result in exploitation even before the email is viewed in the Preview Pane.
This means this vulnerability could be used to obtain a hashed token, which could then be used in a so-called “pass-the-hash” attack. Windows NT LAN Manager (NTLM) is a challenge-response authentication protocol used to authenticate a client to a resource on an Active Directory domain. When the client requests access to a service associated with the domain, the service sends a challenge to the client, requiring the client to perform a mathematical operation using its authentication token, and then returns the result of this operation to the service. The service may validate the result or send it to the Domain Controller (DC) for validation. If the service or DC confirm that the client’s response is correct, the service allows access to the client. Sounds secure, right? Well, the fun part is that with the hash you have enough information to perform that mathematical operation required to gain access. The authentication process does not require the plaintext password. The hash is enough.
CVE-2023-24880: a moderate Windows SmartScreen Security Feature Bypass vulnerability. An attacker could craft a malicious file that would evade Mark of the Web (MOTW) defenses, resulting in a limited loss of integrity and availability of security features such as Protected View in Microsoft Office, which rely on MOTW tagging. Reportedly, this vulnerability was used in ransomware related attacks.
MOTW, the technology that ensures Windows pops a warning message when trying to open a file downloaded from the Internet makes another comeback. The MOTW is an attribute added to files by Windows when they have been sourced from an untrusted location, like the internet or a Restricted Zone. When you download a file from the internet, Windows adds the zone identifier or Mark of the Web as an NTFS stream to the file. And, when you run the file, Windows SmartScreen checks if there is a zone identifier Alternate Data Stream (ADS) attached to the file. If the ADS indicates ZoneId=3, which means that the file was downloaded from the internet, the SmartScreen does a reputation check.
CVE-2023-26360: classified as a priority 1 vulnerability in Adobe ColdFusion due to critical deserialization of untrusted data. This flaw can lead to arbitrary code execution, making it a high-priority target for attackers.
Adobe says it is aware that CVE-2023-26360 has been exploited in the wild in very limited attacks targeting Adobe ColdFusion.
Adobe recommends updating your ColdFusion versions 2021 and 2018 JDK/JRE to the latest version of the LTS releases for JDK 11. Applying the ColdFusion update without a corresponding JDK update will NOT secure the server.
Adobe also recommends customers apply the security configuration settings as outlined on the ColdFusion Security page as well as review the respective Lockdown guides.
Other vendors
Other vendors have synchronized their periodic updates with Microsoft. Here are few major ones that you may find in your environment.
SAP has released security updates for 19 vulnerabilities, five of which were rated as critical.
Malwarebytes removes all remnants of ransomware and prevents you from getting reinfected. Want to learn more about how we can help protect your business? Get a free trial below.
When we’re talking about the best camera smartphone out there, the Pixel 7 Pro and Xiaomi 13 Pro are difficult to avoid. That’s what we’re here for, to talk about those two devices. In this article, we’ll compare the Google Pixel 7 Pro vs Xiaomi 13 Pro. We won’t be focusing on the cameras alone, but they will be a part of the conversation, of course. It would be a shame not to talk about them.
We’ll first list the spec sheets of both smartphones, and will then get down to business. We’ll compare these two phones across a number of categories, including design, display, performance, battery, cameras, and audio. There’s plenty to talk about here, so let’s get started, shall we?
When it comes to the design, they don’t look all that different from the front, but things change when you flip them around. We’ll talk about that soon. The Pixel 7 Pro is made out of metal and glass, while the Xiaomi 13 Pro combines metal with a ceramic backplate. Both smartphones have curved displays, and both have thin bezels. A centered display camera hole is also included on both of them.
When we flip them around, you’ll notice that their camera modules are considerably different, design-wise. The Pixel 7 Pro has a camera visor on the back, which goes from the phone’s left side to its right side, it connects to the frame on both sides. The Xiaomi 13 Pro has a more regular-looking camera island in the top-left corner of its backplate, and Leica’s lenses on top of its cameras.
The two devices are identical when it comes to height, but the Xiaomi 13 Pro is noticeably narrower. It’s only 2mm, but you’ll definitely notice the difference. The Xiaomi 13 Pro is also slightly thinner than the Pixel 7 Pro. It is, however, heavier, mainly due to its ceramic backplate. It weighs 229 grams, compared to 212 grams of the Pixel 7 Pro. Only the ceramic variant of the Xiaomi 13 Pro was launched globally, by the way. Both phones are slippery, and both feel quite premium in the hand.
Google Pixel 7 Pro vs Xiaomi 13 Pro: Display
When it comes to displays, both are well-equipped. The Pixel 7 Pro has a 6.7-inch QHD+ (3120 x 1440) LTPO AMOLED display. This panel has an adaptive refresh rate up to 120Hz. It supports HDR10+ content, and gets up to 1,500 nits of brightness at its peak. The display aspect ratio here is 19.5:9, and the Pixel 7 Pro’s panel is covered by the Gorilla Glass Victus.
The Xiaomi 13 Pro, on the flip side, has a 6.73-inch QHD+ (3200 x 1440) LTPO AMOLED panel. This display can project up to 1 billion colors, and it has an adaptive refresh rate of up to 120Hz. Dolby Vision is supported, and the phone also supports HDR10+ content. It gets immensely bright, as its peak brightness is at 1,900 nits. It offers a 20:9 display aspect ratio, while the panel is protected by the Gorilla Glass Victus.
Both of these displays are outstanding, to say the least. They offer vivid colors, great viewing angles, and those deep AMOLED blacks. They’re also well-protected, and extremely sharp too. The Xiaomi 13 Pro does have an advantage in the form of its brightness. You will notice the difference in direct sunlight, for sure. The Xiaomi 13 Pro’s panel does get noticeably brighter, though the Pixel 7 Pro’s display is not dim by any means.
Google Pixel 7 Pro vs Xiaomi 13 Pro: Performance
The Google Pixel 7 Pro is powered by the Google Tensor G2 SoC. The phone includes 12GB of LPDDR5 RAM, and also UFS 3.1 flash storage. The Xiaomi 13 Pro is equipped with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 SoC, 12GB of LPDDR5X RAM, and UFS 4.0 flash storage (UFS 3.1 is included on the 128GB storage model only). So, as you can see, the Xiaomi 13 Pro does have the edge spec-wise.
The Tensor G2 is an excellent chip, but it cannot compete with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 in terms of sheer power. The Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 has also proven itself as being quite power-efficient. The Xiaomi 13 Pro also has faster and more efficient RAM and flash storage. Does that translate to better performance overall? Well, that’s a difficult question to answer, but if you look at everything altogether, then yes, it does. Let me elaborate.
The Xiaomi 13 Pro does feel a bit snappier when it comes to regular everyday tasks. The Pixel 7 Pro does all of those really fast too, but the Xiaomi 13 Pro does seem to be a small step ahead. We’re talking about app loading and such, general tasks. The Pixel 7 Pro is plenty fluid, but a bit slower than Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 phones, generally. The Pixel 7 Pro is also not great when it comes to gaming. It can play games just fine, until you come to the most demanding ones. The Xiaomi 13 Pro does chew through those with ease. Google never claimed the Pixel 7 Pro is great for gaming, though. The truth of the matter is, the vast majority of people will be more than happy with the performance of both phones.
Google Pixel 7 Pro vs Xiaomi 13 Pro: Battery
The Pixel 7 Pro has a 5,000mAh battery on the inside, while the Xiaomi 13 Pro packs in a 4,820mAh unit. Overall, we’ve seen better battery life on the Xiaomi 13 Pro. We managed to reach the 8-hour screen-on-time mark on a number of occasions, while the Pixel 7 Pro danced closer to the 7-hour screen-on-time mark. On some days, things were different, of course. The point is, both smartphones do offer really good battery life.
Your mileage, though, may vary. We use different apps, have different usage habits, and on top of that have different signal strengths. It also depends on how long in a day you spend on mobile data, and so on. There are just so many factors included here. Both of these phones do offer really good battery life, so getting to the end of the day shouldn’t be a problem for most of you. If you’re gaming, however, you’ll drain the battery considerably quicker. The same goes for hotspot sharing etc.
As far as charging is concerned, the Xiaomi 13 Pro blows away the Pixel 7 Pro. The Pixel 7 Pro offers support for 23W wired, 23W wireless, and also reverse wireless charging, while it does not include a charger. The Xiaomi 13 Pro supports 120W wired, 50W wireless, and 10W reverse wireless charging. A 120W charger is included in the box with the device. Needless to say, the Xiaomi 13 Pro charges a lot quicker. It can get you from 0 to 100% in only 19 minutes, while it takes the Pixel 7 Pro 30 minutes to get to 50%.
Google Pixel 7 Pro vs Xiaomi 13 Pro: Cameras
The Pixel 7 Pro features a 50-megapixel main camera, a 12-megapixel ultrawide unit (126-degree FoV), and a 48-megapixel telephoto camera (5x optical zoom). The Xiaomi 13 Pro, on the other hand, includes a 50.3-megapixel main camera (1-inch sensor), a 50-megapixel ultrawide camera (115-degree FoV), and a 50-megapixel telephoto unit (75mm lens, 3.2x optical zoom).
Now, these two phones are both outstanding when it comes to photography, but provide entirely different results. Google relies heavily on its processing, and it provides contrasty images, that are usually full of life. It does an outstanding job in HDR situations, and also in low light. The Xiaomi 13 Pro photos have that Leica style to them, and tend to look more moody in a way. The main camera on the phone can shoot outstanding shots with natural bokeh, though it’s not perfect. It does need some optimization when it comes to demanding HDR situations.
The Pixel 7 Pro tends to do better with zoomed-in shoots, especially for further zoom distances, while the telephoto camera on the Xiaomi 13 Pro takes outstanding portrait shots. That 75mm lens is really something else when it comes to portrait photography. You’ll be able to capture wider ultrawide shots with the Pixel 7 Pro, but both phones do a great job in that regard, and stay true to the color science of the main camera. The video recording is good on both phones, but they both shine more in the photography department.
Audio
Both of these phones include a set of stereo speakers. Those speakers are really good on both devices, actually. They’re loud enough, and also well-balanced. You won’t notice any obvious distortion or anything of the sort. We did prefer the Xiaomi 13 Pro’s output, though, as the speakers felt a bit more punchy.
What they both lack is a 3.5mm headphone jack, though. You’ll need to use their Type-C ports for wired connections. If you’d like to connect your headphones wirelessly, however, the Pixel 7 Pro and Xiaomi 13 Pro support Bluetooth 5.2 and 5.3, respectively.
With a recent partnership, the Boosteroid cloud gaming service aims to revive its industry. Microsoft and this cloud gaming firm have entered a partnership that will bring Xbox games to their platform. Well, not only Xbox games but also games from Activision Blizzard will be available for playing on the cloud.
This will allow gamers to play some of their favorite games on the cloud. The cloud gaming industry has had its ups and downs in recent times, but this partnership will draw more attention to the industry once again. Boosteroid’s partnership with Microsoft will draw more people into the gaming industry.
The Boosteroid cloud gaming service doesn’t require a user to have a gaming console or PC before letting them play. With just a laptop, smartphone, tablet, or smart TV, players can enjoy their favorite games. Here is everything you need to know about the Boosteroid and Microsoft cloud gaming partnership.
Play or access your Microsoft Xbox games via the Boosteroid cloud gaming service platform
Ever since the year 2017, Boosteroid has been operating in the cloud gaming industry. This company is of Ukrainian origin and continues to develop its business despite the country’s challenges. Now, they have entered a 10-year partnership with Microsoft to bring Xbox games to its cloud streaming platform.
The partnership will also bring Activision Blizzard games to the Boosteroid cloud gaming service. Microsoft is optimistic about this partnership as it will help introduce more people to some of its games. In a recent blog post announcing this partnership, Microsoft claimed that Call of Duty will amass “150 million additional players.”
This will be possible thanks to the Boosteroid and other partnerships (NVIDIA, Nintendo, and most recently Ubitus) the company has gone into. Boosteroid will also help make Microsoft games from Xbox, Bethesda, and Activision Blizzard available on the cloud. More people will be able to access and play these games without a gaming console.
Those using the Boosteroid cloud gaming service will be able to stream or play games over the cloud. The service is now available on Mac, Chromebooks, Android set-top boxes and LG TVs. Previously, it was mainly available on Windows but expanding support to other platforms means lots of people will be able to access the cloud gaming platform.
To access Xbox and Activision Blizzard games via the cloud, you need to sign up for the Boosteroid subscription service. You will then be prompted to pay a subscription fee of $10.47 monthly or $95.17 yearly. This will give users access to play games they own or any random game on the Boosteroid cloud gaming platform.
