Neowin: Bing now lets you search the web using your phone’s camera. “Today, Microsoft announced new visual search features for Bing, allowing you to search the web using your phone’s camera. All you have to do is tap the camera icon, snap a pic, and Bing will search for similar things. It’s not just going to search for similar images though. The idea is to allow you to find out more about an item that you’re looking at, such as a landmark or a flower. If you’ve ever been looking at a flower and wanted to know what kind it is, you now have a solution.”
Microsoft
Krebs on Security: Microsoft Patch Tuesday, June 2018 Edition
Krebs on Security: Microsoft Patch Tuesday, June 2018 Edition. “Microsoft today [last week – RB] pushed out a bevy of software updates to fix more than four dozen security holes in Windows and related software. Almost a quarter of the vulnerabilities addressed in this month’s patch batch earned Microsoft’s “critical” rating, meaning malware or miscreants can exploit the flaws to break into vulnerable systems without any help from users.”
InformationWeek: Why Microsoft’s GitHub Deal Isn’t a Sign of the Apocalypse
InformationWeek: Why Microsoft’s GitHub Deal Isn’t a Sign of the Apocalypse. “By picking up GitHub, Microsoft immediately becomes a major force in open source software development. As of June 2018, there were 28 million developers in the GitHub community, as well as 85 million code repositories, making it the world’s largest host of source code. Still, it’s easy to understand why developers generally mistrust Microsoft.”
Ars Technica: Microsoft snaps up GitHub for $7.5 billion
Ars Technica: Microsoft snaps up GitHub for $7.5 billion. “Microsoft has reached an agreement to buy GitHub, the source repository and collaboration platform, in a deal worth $7.5 billion. The all-stock deal is expected to close by the end of the year, subject to regulatory approval in the US and EU.”
New York Times: Facebook Gave Device Makers Deep Access to Data on Users and Friends
New York Times: Facebook Gave Device Makers Deep Access to Data on Users and Friends. “As Facebook sought to become the world’s dominant social media service, it struck agreements allowing phone and other device makers access to vast amounts of its users’ personal information. Facebook has reached data-sharing partnerships with at least 60 device makers — including Apple, Amazon, BlackBerry, Microsoft and Samsung — over the last decade, starting before Facebook apps were widely available on smartphones, company officials said.”
Washington Post: Hands off my data! 15 default privacy settings you should change right now
Washington Post: Hands off my data! 15 default privacy settings you should change right now. “Give me 15 minutes, and I can help you join the 5 percent who are actually in control. I dug through the privacy settings for the five biggest consumer tech companies and picked a few of the most egregious defaults you should consider changing. These links will take you directly to what to tap, click and toggle for Facebook, Google, Amazon, Microsoft and Apple.”
Neowin: A Microsoft acquisition of GitHub, valued at $2 billion, said to be in the works
Neowin: A Microsoft acquisition of GitHub, valued at $2 billion, said to be in the works. “Microsoft is said to be in serious talks about a possible acquisition of GitHub, the largest source-code repository in the world. A report by Business Insider suggests the Redmond giant has been in talks regarding a buyout for years now but that the discussions have heated up recently, possibly owing to the impending departure of GitHub CEO Chris Wanstrath.” Uhhhhh…
