The web based accounts are facing all sorts of threats these days and people are increasingly relying on their online accounts to store sensitive information. Google has now added an additional layer of security to the users of Google accounts including mail and Google Docs to make it much harder to crack.
This additional layer works by providing a two-step authentication process. In addition to the regular password step that was previously being used, there is a second step which sends a code to your pre-registered mobile phone number. You need to enter this first code to the web application or the Google Authenticator mobile app that is already available for popular mobile devices such as iPhone, Android and BlackBerry to generate a second code.
The second code generated in the last step is needed to complete the account authentication process. However due to the extra hassle involved, this new feature might not be appreciated by all the users and it’s being offered as opt-in for now. Moreover, the two step procedure needs to be repeated only while logging in through a different browser, application or mobile device.
“Your Gmail account, your photos, your private documents—if you reuse the same password on multiple sites and one of those sites gets hacked, or your password is conned out of you directly through a phishing scam, it can be used to access some of your most closely-held information”, says Nishit Shah, Product Manager Google Security.
You can follow the official guide for a step-by-step procedure to activate the 2-step authentication procedure for your account. Gmail’s blog post explain more.
Ok, we’re a bit late on this one but the popular Chrome browser from Google has finally hit version 9.0 with the stable release rolled out to users. This new version packs a bundle of new features, support for some enhanced web standards and fixes some security holes besides providing performance enhancements. The browser will automatically update itself to the new version else you can download it directly.
The most awaited feature is certainly the stable support for the WebGL standard. This will allow the developers to create 3D content that will run with full hardware acceleration from the GPUs. The WebGL standard provides OpenGL derived functionality to the developers that can create content which is both rich and runs smoothly due to offloading it to the graphics hardware.
Another large addition is the full support for Google Instant technology. This would enable the browser to load previously visited pages instantly by saving time while the user types the site URL. This feature is expected to provide a much swifter browsing experience.
The new version also brings support for Chrome Web Store to the browser which is accessible to the users instantly. The web store already supports a number of free and paid apps that users can directly purchase and run from within their browser.
Facebook, the largest social media network is getting more secure with the long awaited addition of HTTPS (HTTP Secure) feature. This update will provide encrypted communication between user’s platform and Facebook, increasing the security and privacy of its users.
The HTTPS encryption standard combines the SSL protocol with HTTP web standard to provide a protected connection. The protection is from outside sniffing attacks over wired or wireless networks which provides hackers an easy way to track your private data and possibly steal personal information. The addition of HTTPS will make it almost impossible for anyone to track such content.
Although it was earlier possible to enable HTTPS for Facebook using add-in plugins for browsers, though it proved to make the experience laggy and some features such as chat and uploading of photos and videos would not work. This official update is not free from bugs, though we believe they would be resolved over time.
Due to the stability issues, the update is not available by default. However you can enable it by checking “Secure Browsing (https)’ option from Account Security option from the settings menu in your Facebook profile. However the option is still not available for everyone and it might take a week or so before everyone can opt in to this security setting. We can expect the feature to be rolled out for everyone within a month’s time.
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This week The New Yorker released a very funny video of Jason Schwartzman demonstrating their new iPad app. It’s directed by Roman Coppola (Sofia’s brother) and could quite possibly be this weeks follow-up to the Old Spice viral videos.
The launch represents The New Yorker’s effort to join the digital magazine revolution that has been happening this year.
“We’re at once delighted and a little bewildered about this latest digital development and our place in it: delighted because of the quality of what the tablet provides and the speed with which the magazine can be distributed, but bewildered, too, because we’d be liars if we said we knew precisely where technology will lead,” the publication’s editors said in a note.
The iPad app itself is free but users will pay $4.99 per issue, new issues will be available each Monday. NewYork.com is still a free option to see the content but certainly does not have everything included in the print or digital magazine. We are hoping that companies like Conde Nast will start offering subscription rates for their digital magazines to keep users loyal.
