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PerlaStudio/Getty Images Between unencrypted messaging hacks, data breaches, and AI scam calls, smartphone-centered security threats appear to be everywhere. iVerify found that one type of spyware is trying to make a comeback. Also: Why you should power off your phone once a week – according to the NSA Last week, the mobile security firm resurfaced findings from its spyware detection feature: Out of 2,500 device scans that customers submitted for inspection, seven devices had been infected by the infamous…

Maria Diaz/ZDNET During the iOS 18 unveiling at WWDC 2024, Apple announced plans to give the Apple Home app support for the core functionality of vacuum cleaners by the end of 2024 — but those plans were delayed. Now that iOS 18.2 is live, new clues indicate that the next big iOS drop of 18.3 could finally bring Apple Home support for robot vacuums.  Along with delaying robot vacuum support for HomeKit, Apple had already…

Adrian Kingsley-Hughes/ZDNET I’ve spent a long time traveling dumb. Overpacking. Underpacking. Having everything crammed into a bulging suitcase or uncomfortable backpack. I’ve traveled for six weeks with little more than a bunch of drones and no space for much more than a change of underwear, and I’ve gone away for three days with 50 lbs of luggage, most of which came back untouched. I’ve lost things, broken things, misplaced things, and had some heart-stopping moments…

CompTIA this week made available its CompTIA SecurityX certification program, which is an updated version of the CompTIA Advanced Security Practitioner (CASP+) cert and part of CompTIA’s Xpert Series of certifications. SecurityX follows CompTIA’s release of DataX earlier this year, and it is designed for IT professionals with multiple years of work experience who want to validate their expert-level knowledge of business-critical technologies. The program will be useful for security architects and senior security engineers…

Andriy Onufriyenko/Getty Images It’s old news by now that business processes are being transformed into artificial intelligence (AI) operations. Companies such as Salesforce, Hubspot, and Microsoft unveiled a slew of AI “agent” capabilities this year for business functions such as customer service and sales.  Now, a wave of privately backed software firms are using AI to build brand-new applications from the ground up, to re-invent areas traditionally resistant to technology such as legal services and…

ZDNET It’s the time of year when people start to struggle to find last-minute gifts for those who are not (or are) on your naughty list. If those wonderful people are MacOS users, why not give them something to make their digital life a bit more enjoyable and/or productive? Also: 5 Apple products you shouldn’t buy right now (including this popular iPhone model) There are plenty of MacOS-related gifts to have, but for me, these…

Incase Phone case and accessory makers Incase just announced a new line of peripherals “designed by Microsoft,” unveiling the first products from the two brands’ partnership that will revive Microsoft’s discontinued devices. Incase, best known for its collection of cases, laptop sleeves, and bags, announced the collaboration earlier this year, marking the company’s first line of PC accessories.  Last year, Microsoft discontinued its own line of peripherals, including mice, keyboards, and audio devices, consolidating its manufacturing into…

Richard Drury/Getty Images A long, long time ago, I built websites by hand using the vi editor to write HTML. It was hard. Then along came NoteTab and Bluefish, which made writing and editing HTML easier but still a pain.  DreamWeaver, one of the first what-you-see-is-what-you-get (WYSIWYG) tools, was a big jump forward. But, the real game-changer was when content management systems showed up, which combined creation, editing, and production in one package. The first…

David Merron Photography/Getty Images I’ve been covering Linux and open-source since 1999 (the year of Prince). During that long stretch, a year hasn’t gone by that I haven’t experienced someone (or a group of someones) still believing the myths that seem to be forever churning about the open-source operating system. Also: The 3 most Windows-like Linux distros you can try because change is hard It would be impossible to calculate the hours I’ve spent trying to…