Duncan Riley
Latest from Duncan Riley
Newly discovered Mac malware uses pre-OS X code
Security researchers at Malwarebytes have discovered a new type of Mac malware that, surprisingly enough, uses antiquated code to gain access to infected Apple computers. Dubbed Fruitfly, the malware, which is believed to have been created some time ago but has only now been detected, features antique system calls, some dating back to pre-OS X days. ...
Robots start delivering food in Silicon Valley and Washington D.C.
People who order their food online in Washington D.C. and Silicon Valley may soon notice a different sort of delivery driver: a robot. The deployment of autonomous delivery robots is part of a trial involving Estonian company Starship Technologies, a startup founded by Skype co-founders Ahti Heinla and Janus Friis, and food delivery companies Postmates Inc. in Washington ...
Oracle sued by Department of Labor for alleged employment discrimination
The U.S. Department of Labor Wednesday sued Oracle America Inc. over accusations that it discriminated in hiring and pay in violation of equal employment laws. The lawsuit, filed by the department’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, alleges that Oracle pays Caucasian male workers more than their female, African-American and Asian counterparts. It also alleges ...
Gmail phishing scheme fools targets by pretending to be from people they know
A phishing scam targeting Gmail users is running riot by using emails that appear to come from contacts of the person targeted. The scam, which was first spotted last year but has gathered steam in the last few weeks, involves the attacker sending an email to a Gmail account with the address of a known contact ...
Obama pardons retired General behind Stuxnet leaks
In an act of clemency in his final days in office, President Barack Obama has pardoned retired General James “Hoss” Cartwright for lying to investigators over his role in leaking details of the United States’ efforts to cripple Iran’s nuclear program using the Stuxnet internet worm. Cartwright (pictured), who previously held the role of vice ...
Doubling down on AI, Baidu hires former top Microsoft exec Qi Lu as COO
Former Microsoft Corp. executive Qi Lu on Monday joined Chinese web services giant Baidu Inc. as group president and chief operating officer. Lu, a noted software engineer and programmer, spent time at IBM Corp. and Yahoo Inc. before taking on the role of president of the Online Services Group at Microsoft in 2008. He headed up ...
Spora ransomware brings a freemium model to hijacked data decryption
The creators of a recently discovered form of ransomware have devised a way to extort customers with hijacked files borrowed from the world of apps: a freemium model. Called Spora after the Russian word for spore, the ransomware offers five levels of decryption to those unfortunate enough to be infected. An initial tier allows a ...
Bitcoin ATM lawsuit charges vandalism, extortion and ransom demands
Bitcoin is considered by some to be nothing more than the virtual currency of choice for drug dealers and other nefarious actors. But a strange case out of the U.S. Midwest shows that bitcoin-related crime can occur in the offline world as well. In a complaint filed in the Northern Illinois District Court, bitcoin automatic teller machine ...
Intel launches new IoT platform in a bid to revolutionize retail
Intel Corp. wants to revolutionize the retail environment through a new Internet of Things retail platform that delivers a deeper understanding of how stores and people interact. Called the Responsive Retail Platform or RRP for short, the offering promises to allow retailers to unify every part of their operations to bolster their bottom line and solve longstanding business ...
Google uses machine learning to deliver high-quality images using less data
Google Inc. has rolled out a new imaging technique that cuts down on bandwidth required to view an image by 75 percent. For now, the technique, called Rapid and Accurate Image Super Resolution, or RAISR for short, is being used only on the little-used Google+ social sharing service. But Google signaled that it will be rolled ...