Cloud security: is Android the weakest link?

Monday, March 7th, 2011

Much has been written about the security of data in the cloud, and even more about the insecurity of the same. Until now, things have been somewhat quieter when it comes to how we access cloud-based data on the move. That, I suspect, is about to change.

Plenty of effort has been poured into securing online data stores, and plenty is made by the providers of those cloud services in making sure potential customers know about it. Which is why the bad guys are understandably looking for the soft targets, and at the moment that would appear to be Android apps.

I’ve said it before, and I will say it again: the smaller your business, the bigger the benefits of cloud computing. That rings especially true at the ‘free’ end of the cloud scale where the attraction of services such as those provided by Google can offer real bottom-line savings for hard pressed small business concerns. Security within the free or low-cost cloud isn’t somehow automatically weaker than that found at the expensive end of the cloud provision market either.

You can be sure that Google has invested heavily in securing the data at rest within those cloud bases, incorporating all the multi-layered protocols and synchronous replication processes you might expect. But perhaps it needs to invest more at the other end, the smartphone to be precise. What you need to ask yourself is whether Android could be the weak link in the cloud security chain?

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Android App of the Week: Androidify

Friday, February 25th, 2011

Google sometimes gets a bad rap, and it’s easy to forget that the company that started out with the line “don’t be evil” can occasionally churn out something that’s actually pretty fun. Take Androidify, our latest Android App of the Week.

It’s not one of the firm’s most useful or innovative apps, but it’s one of the most addictive and funniest: a little tool that grants you free rein to create your own Android avatars.

It’s devilishly simply: scroll horizontally between hair style and colour, tops, trousers, shoes, accessories and more, and use the vertical bar to pick which garment to use on your avatar. (more…)

Can you trust Google sponsored results?

Friday, February 18th, 2011

It’s a simple question, do you trust Google? My confusing answer is yes and no. Yes, I trust Google to find more relevant information in less time than other search engines. No, I don’t trust Google to filter out all the cons and scams.

Indeed, the level of trust that I associate with Google search declines dramatically when it comes to those results that appear at the top and side of the page, you know, the ones with the very light text saying ‘Ads’ next to them. I cannot recall ever clicking on a ’sponsored search result’ for a couple of very good reasons:

1. The whole point of using Google is to uncover information that has been deemed relevant courtesy of the hugely complex algorithm at the heart of the search engine’s success, and not which has been dropped onto the page simply because someone paid for it to be there.

2. The bad guys have, for as long as I can remember, been using such sponsored results to lure people to their sites and whatever nefarious activity lies within.

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Android App of the Week: BBC iPlayer

Monday, February 14th, 2011

The sluggish attitude of the BBC to Android apps has meant that numerous pretenders have appeared: search for BBC in the Android Market and you’ll find dozens of tools that provide stories from the corporation’s news and sports sites, as well as a couple that provide iPlayer content unofficially.

That’s changed with the release of an official iPlayer app. It’s potentially one of the biggest apps to ever hit the market, and it’s been released simultaneously with the iPad edition.

Boot up the app and it’s immediately obvious this is something special. Featured programmes sit at the top of the screen, and scrolling down sees more fade into view smoothly. Switch your phone around and you’re able to scroll horizontally through Auntie’s top content.

Click on a show and the familiar iPlayer layout appears, with options to share the the show over any social-networking apps you’ve got installed or add it to your favourites for later viewing. Graphics illustrate the programme’s channel, duration and availability on iPlayer, and there are eight links to recommend shows at the bottom of the screen – just scroll through them horizontally and click. (more…)

Google doesn’t know what an “app” is

Thursday, February 3rd, 2011

Words are frequently abused in the tech industry. There are “hacks” that involve zero hacking, “downloads” when people mean uploads, “viruses” used to refer to anything faintly malicious on a computer.

Yet, the one that’s been so wildly abused that it deserves a sugary cup of tea and its own counsellor is the word “app”.

Until the iPhone came along, the word “application” largely meant a self-contained piece of software installed on a PC or Mac. Then Apple took ownership, trimmed it to three letters, and within months the word “app” became synonymous with small widgets of code for smartphones. Now, Google’s pushing the boundaries of the “app” definition even further.

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Android App of the Week: Alarm Clock Xtreme

Friday, January 28th, 2011

Our latest Android App of the Week selection comes from laptops editor Sasha Muller, who recommended Alarm Clock Xtreme as a sure-fire way to wake up alert every single day.

“It wakes you up with maths!” he proclaimed, before reeling off a list of features that puts Android’s stock alarm app to shame.

As sales pitches go, the promise of early morning mathematics isn’t the finest I’ve heard, but I reckon he might be on to something: while maths isn’t the most palatable way to start the day, it does seem to make me more alert than my previous alarm, which needed just a single tap to be beaten into submission.

The mathematical teasers pop up on to your home screen at the time your alarm’s been set, and Alarm Clock Xtreme offers five levels of difficulty, from easiest (sample question: 14 x 3) to hardest (39 x 33 – 1205). (more…)

vBulletin forums hit by reCAPTCHA cracking spam bot

Wednesday, January 12th, 2011

Since the holidays ended, security vendors have been happily telling me that spam levels have dropped dramatically. The spammers, they say, have taken some time off.

That may well have been the case as far as email spam was concerned, but back in the real world — which includes any business running a vBulletin forum for customer support — things have been far from quiet. In fact, there’s something of a spam crisis going on right now as it appears the bad guys have worked out how to crack the reCAPTCHA system that safeguards vBulletin-powered forum registrations from automated bots.

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Stuart Turton’s Alternative Tech Awards of 2010

Tuesday, December 28th, 2010

As we usher in 2011, how better to reflect on 2010 than with some awards. To that end, I present the “Stuart Turton in association with PC Pro but not officially endorsed by them Awards”. For convenience sake, this will henceforth be abbreviated to the STIAWPPBNOEBTAs – which admittedly sounds like a gulag in Stalinist Russia, but will have to suffice.

So without further ado, it’s the first annual STIAWPPBNOEBTAs! Drum roll, please.

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Google Nexus S review: first look

Wednesday, December 8th, 2010

With the launch of Android 2.3 (aka Gingerbread), Google will also be ringing the changes on the handset front. It’s replacing the Nexus One, manufactured by HTC, with the Nexus S, which is made by Samsung. And we’ve just had our first chance to experience one.

Anyone familiar with Samsung’s current flagship — the Galaxy S — will immediately notice some similarities. The screen is the same size and resolution as the Galaxy (4in, and 480 x 800) and uses the same eye-wateringly bright Super AMOLED technology. It feels very similar to the Galaxy in the hand too — it’s very light and a little bit plasticky at the rear.

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Android App of the Week: Miren Browser

Friday, December 3rd, 2010

Miren Browser isn’t exactly a unique proposition – after all, Android’s Market boasts dozens of third-party browsers – but this new contender boasts a shedload of features alongside one of the slickest interfaces we’ve seen.

It’s much easier to use than many of its rivals, which are feature-packed but often fiddly. Open a page in Miren and it’ll default to its full-screen view – which automatically hides Android’s status bar, too – so you can take advantage of every one of your device’s precious pixels.

Navigation options are both useful and unobtrusive, hidden in the corners of the screen and fading from view if they’re not in use. The right-hand corner houses a button to open Miren’s address bar as well as a handy loading dial, and the bottom-left corner provides a back button. The top of the screen provides links to your tabs alongside a small symbol to open a new page.

Desktop-style features are present elsewhere to make life easier. Chrome users will be familiar with the eight thumbnail images of your favourite sites that appear on boot, and they’re present here, too, alongside links to your bookmarks, history and downloads. Those eight thumbnails can also be customised with links to either a selection of bookmarks or simply the sites you visit most. (more…)