The great hack: A famous fraudster explains the Equifax data breach

Hackers look for open doors. If your personal data isn't protected, it's that much easier to compromise your identity.

  • Legendary con-man-turned-FBI-consultant Frank W. Abagnale breaks down the 2017 Equifax data breach.
  • Hackers were able to access the personal data of millions of Americans through faulty software — and they might wait years before using the stolen social security numbers and dates of birth.
  • Abagnale blames Equifax for this oversight. If a company is entrusted with an individual's personal data they need to do a better job of protecting it. "Hackers don't cause breaches, people do," he says.
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Privacy is a human right, we need a GDPR for the world: Microsoft CEO

Half of Americans do not trust the federal government or social media sites to protect their data.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella answers a shareholders question during the Microsoft Annual Shareholders Meeting at the Meydenbauer Center on November 28, 2018 in Bellevue, Washington. Microsoft recently surpassed Apple, Inc. to become the world's most valuable publicly traded company. (Photo by Stephen Brashear/Getty Images)

Against the backdrop of a "techlash", the CEO of Microsoft called for new global norms on privacy, data and Artificial Intelligence.

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ACLU urges Amazon, Microsoft & Google not to sell face recognition tech to government

And you thought red-light cameras were bad...

Photo credit: Ian Waldie / Getty Images
  • The coalition argues that government agencies might abuse facial recognition technology.
  • Google and Microsoft have expressed concern about the potential problems of facial recognition technology.
  • Meanwhile, Amazon has been actively marketing the technology to law enforcement agencies in the U.S.
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Microsoft to supply U.S. Army with thermal, night-vision AR goggles

The $480 million contract could lead the company to make more than 100,000 augmented reality headsets for the military.

  • Microsoft is set to make prototypes of AR headsets that will feature capabilities including night vision, thermal sensing and instruments that measure vital signs.
  • The military already uses AR in some applications, but it's yet to implement the relatively new technology on a large scale.
  • It's unclear whether Microsoft employees will protest the recently announced contract.
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There Are "Two Halves" To Great Design, Says iPod Co-Designer

Anyone can develop a great eye for design, according to the designer who led the team that created the iPod.

Eilsariva via pixabay

Posting and discussing examples of bad design has recently become a curiously popular online hobby. The subreddit r/crappydesign, perhaps the mecca of ridiculing design faux pas, boasts nearly 700,000 subscribers and features posts like an elevator with completely unordered buttons and a height chart that's placed several feet off the ground. (r/crappydesign's motto, for the record, is: "MAY THE COMIC SANS AND LENS FLARES FLOW UNFILTERED}".)

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