Millions of Android devices have been infected with malware
This week in Hard Refresh: Tech we review WhatsApp privacy, NFTs on Instagram, a battery breakthrough, & more!
Published in
2 min readAug 11, 2022
CYBERSECURITY
- Millions of Android devices are infected by a malicious wallpaper app that signs users up for premium services.
- Thousands of Solana users lost about $4.5 million worth of SOL this week due to a private key exploit tied to mobile software wallet, Slope.
- Cybersecurity and tech leaders announced a new open-source effort this week, focusing on helping organizations spot and stop cyberattacks faster and more efficiently.
PRIVACY
- Zuckerberg announced new privacy features for WhatsApp, including silently leaving group chats and controlling online status, however…
- …Head of WhatsApp, Will Cathcart, has no plans to allow AI filters to police encrypted chats on the app, in defiance of the UK government’s wishes.
- Prominent researchers are requesting that the U.S. Census Bureau abandon some of their controversial privacy methods.
AR, VR, & AI
- Meta is planning on expanding NFT support on Instagram to 100 countries.
- Augmented reality books are one step closer to mass-market production, where readers can swipe a line on a print book and have related content flash onto their smart devices. It took me about ten years to accept e-books into my life, but this one sounds pretty cool.
TECH TOPICS
- About ten years ago, U.S. engineers made a huge battery breakthrough discovery, but then gave the technology to China.
- Bank of America has weighed in on crypto, and disagrees that it has no intrinsic value.
SECURITY & TECH UPDATES
- Parallels Desktop Version 18 has been released.
- Multiple vulnerabilities have been discovered in Microsoft products, the most severe of which could allow for remote code execution in the context of the logged on user.
- Security update available for Adobe Commerce.
- Multiple vulnerabilities in Google Android OS could allow for remote code execution.
