« First...102030...109110111112113...120130140...Last »

Ohio lawyers given the green light to hold cryptocurrency in escrow – Lexology

Posted on by

Just last month, Ohio issued Opinion 2022-07, which allows lawyers to hold cryptocurrency in escrow, under certain conditions. It is no secret that technology tends to outpace the law, so the clarity is certainly welcomed. While this opinion sheds light on murky territory, lawyers still must proceed carefully as many ethical concerns remain.

Property vs. monetary funds

Lawyers must keep client and third party property separate from their own, per Ohio Rule 1.15 (also see Model Rule 1.15). When that type of property is in the form of monetary funds, the rules require it be kept in a separate interest-bearing account, designated with a fiduciary title (such as IOLTA), and must be in an Ohio financial institution. Only monetary funds can be placed into an interest-bearing fund, and therefore, unless cryptocurrency is converted to funds upon receipt by the lawyer, it cannot be put into an IOLTA. Cryptocurrency is not considered a monetary fund but is treated as property. The Board concluded that since cryptocurrency is property, lawyers are permitted to hold it for clients or third persons in connection with a representation or law related business.

Technological Competence

This Opinion reminds us that in order to maintain the knowledge and skill required by Ohio Rule 1.1, a lawyer should keep abreast of the changes in the law and its practice, including the benefits and risks associated with relevant technology. Cryptocurrency is now part of the mainstream lexicon. What seemed like a far-off concept to many appears to be here to stay. If you plan to hold cryptocurrency in escrow, you must become knowledgeable about how to appropriately safeguard it in a suitable place. Recommendations on methods to safeguard cryptocurrency held in escrow are found in the opinion and include cold storage wallets, encryption and back up of private keys, and multi-signature accounts.

Illegal activity

Because of the anonymity of cryptocurrency transactions, lawyer escrow services may be a potential target of persons seeking to engage in money laundering or other fraud. Counseling a client to engage in illegal conduct or assisting a client in conduct that the lawyer knows is illegal or fraudulent is a violation of Ohio Rule 1.2(d)(1) . To avoid unknowingly assisting in illegal activity, the opinion instructs lawyers to have a detailed escrow agreement identifying the parties to the transaction and the underlying transaction for which the escrow account will be used.

What others are saying

Several other states have issued opinions on the use of cryptocurrency. Nebraska allows lawyers to hold bitcoins and other digital currencies in escrow or trust for clients or third parties. DC allows lawyers to accept cryptocurrency instead of more traditional forms of payment if the fee is reasonable and does not violate Rule 1.8(a). North Carolina also allows lawyers to accept virtual currency from clients as a flat fee in exchange for legal services so long as the fee is not clearly excessive and the lawyer complies with the requirements in Rule 1.8(a). Yet, that opinion also concluded that methods in which virtual currency are held are not yet suitable places of safekeeping for the purpose of protecting entrusted client property under Rule 1.15-2(d). As for other states, we will have to see what the future holds.

More here:
Ohio lawyers given the green light to hold cryptocurrency in escrow - Lexology

(STETH/USD) Cryptocurrency Lido Staked Ether Down More Than 3% Within 24 hours – Benzinga

Posted on by

Over the past 24 hours, Lido Staked Ether's STETH/USD price has fallen 3.17% to $1,680.94. This is opposite to its positive trend over the past week where it has experienced a 8.0% gain, moving from $1,544.78 to its current price.

The chart below compares the price movement and volatility for Lido Staked Ether over the past 24 hours (left) to its price movement over the past week (right). The gray bands are Bollinger Bands, measuring the volatility for both the daily and weekly price movements. The wider the bands are, or the larger the gray area is at any given moment, the larger the volatility.

Lido Staked Ether's trading volume has climbed 292.0% over the past week along with the circulating supply of the coin, which has increased 0.21%. This brings the circulating supply to 4.31 million, which makes up an estimated 100.0% of its max supply of 4.31 million. According to our data, the current market cap ranking for STETH is #13 at $7.19 billion.

Powered by CoinGecko API

This article was generated by Benzinga's automated content engine and reviewed by an editor.

Go here to see the original:
(STETH/USD) Cryptocurrency Lido Staked Ether Down More Than 3% Within 24 hours - Benzinga

3 Events May Shape the Cryptocurrency Markets this Week – Watcher Guru

Posted on by

Bitcoin started on the front foot this week spiking above the $22,500 mark and is inching towards $23K next. The overall crypto markets are in the green today after trading on the back foot last week. However, three important events are scheduled this week that could shape the cryptocurrency markets either for the good or bad. The week is touted to be a deciding factor that might make Bitcoin spike above $25,000 or dip below the $20K mark again.

The consumer price index (CPI) report is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, September 13, 2022. Analysts have given mixed reactions ahead of the CPI data release that could affect the cryptocurrency markets heavily.

If the inflation rate gets lower, the markets could breathe a sigh of relief but could face corrections if the inflation rate is higher. Tuesday will be a deciding factor if Bitcoin can go higher above $23K or plummet to $20K yet again.

Also Read: AISC Commissioner calls Crypto risky: 336m AUD lost in scams

The much-awaited Ethereum Merge is scheduled to be completed sometime between September 15 to 20. The Ethereum systems will move from proof-of-work to proof-of-stake ushering in a new era in the crypto sphere. The transition from PoW to PoS will make Ethereum switch over to the new method of validating transactions. The price of the cryptocurrency is expected to rise above the $2,000 mark in the days leading up to the Merge.

However, several analysts claim that the Merge is a buy the rumor, sell the news event. The analysts predict that the price of ETH could move backward once the transition is complete. Nonetheless, we will have to wait and watch for Ethereum fares this month after the upgradation.

Also Read: When is the Ethereum Merge? Official Release Dates

The Federal Reserve will convene on September 20 and 21 after the FED Chair Jerome Powell gave a speech saying he vows to crush inflation. Reports are doing the rounds that the Feds will raise interest rates yet again to combat inflation. It is expected that the Feds might increase interest rates to 25 BPS or higher.

In conclusion, the cryptocurrency markets are now dependent on these three developments. The important events can break or make the cryptocurrency markets in September.

Originally posted here:
3 Events May Shape the Cryptocurrency Markets this Week - Watcher Guru

This cryptocurrency exchange becomes the latest to set up shop in the UAE – AMBCrypto News

Posted on by

Blockchain.com, London-based crypto exchange, has been granted a provisional regulatory approval by the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA), Dubai. With granted provisions, institutional and retail clients can use the crypt platform in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Blockchain.com, via ablogpost, stated that the organization is in the process of setting up a local office in the area. Furthermore, the company has full intentions of hiring for the same. The platform also underlined the importance of the licensing process as critical to its commitment to global compliance and regulation.

Peter Smith, CEO and co-founder, Blockchain.com appreciated the efforts of the local team via Twitter.

It was on 9 March 2022 that HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai approved the crypto assets law. Furthermore, with the establishment of VARA the goal of establishing the UAEs position as a global player in the virtual assets industry becomes easier.

The countrys crypto assets law necessitates cryptocurrency exchanges and users to register with the regulatory body before engaging in crypto-related activities, such as operating a crypto exchange, transferring crypto assets, and trading tokens or other assets. Since then, a number of cryptocurrency exchanges have been granted regulatory approval in the UAE by VARA.

Furthermore, on 3 June, Crypto.com received provisional approval of its Virtual Asset MVP from VARA. Thus, allowing crypto.com to offer crypto products and services. On 21 June, Hex Trust received a provisional approval from VARA.

On 14 July, crypto trading application OKX was provided a provisional virtual assets license by VARA. On 29 July, FZE, a division of the cryptocurrency exchange FTX, received the Minimal Viable Product (MVP) license by VARA. This proves that the country is open to offering virtual asset exchange products and services in the UAE.

In July, HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum announced a new metaverse strategy. This strategy aims at increasing the number of blockchain and metaverse companies by 5x in the next five years.

The plan also aims to generate $4 billion. He further added that the move will help Dubai become a metaverse leader in the region. Thus, making it one of the 10 leading economies, besides generating 40,000 virtual jobs.

On 2 August, Blockchain.com successfully registered itself in the Cayman Islands to offer a range of crypto services to institutional clients. Soon after, the company secured regulatory approval from Italys Organismo Agenti e Mediatori (OAM) as a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP).

Blockchain.com said that the company is actively pursuing additional licenses in other countries as well. These include Germany, the Netherlands, France, Spain, and Ireland.

The crypto firm operates several offices in North America, Europe, South America, and Singapore.

Link:
This cryptocurrency exchange becomes the latest to set up shop in the UAE - AMBCrypto News

Roger Waters at the Moda Center on 09/10/22 – Oregon Music News

Posted on by

Home > Rock 09/12/2022

Photos and Review by Brent Angelo

To say that Roger Waters has had a huge impact on the culture of music is a major understatement.

As a founding member of Pink Floyd, he was a driving force in that band as a songwriter, co-lead singer, instrumentalist, and concept director. Pink Floyd pushed the limits of what was possible at that time.

Albums like 1973s Dark Side of the Moon remain one of the most respected and beloved albums of all time by both fans and critics. Pink Floyds success would grow through the seventies and by the eighties, Pink Floyd were one of the biggest bands in the world reaching a super stardom level that not too many have achieved.

In the mid-eighties, Roger Waters left Pink Floyd and would again then push musical boundaries on his own. In 1990 for example, he staged one of the biggest concerts ever done to celebrate the fall of the Berlin Wall. The Wall was an epic performance and done at pivotal time in world history.

Roger Waters' current tour is titled This Is Not a Drilladdresses many world issues and packs a lot of punches. The tour was originally scheduled to take place in 2020, but the Covid 19 pandemic pushed back those plans until this year. Portland just got its rescheduled show on September 10th at the Moda Center. The tours stage is set in the round stage and is adorned with large video screens filled with his stunning visuals. With the music of Pink Floyd and Roger Waters' solo work, the show is a brutally honest reminder of things going on in our world.

Right before the concert starts, he makes a public announcement over the speakers and on the video screens. The audio/visual message goes if you are one of those I love Pink Floyd but I cant stand Rogers politics you might do well to fuck off to the bar right now, which was followed by massive applause.

As the show began, video screens showed an animated city with its people, who were seen in the dark as Comfortably Numb filled the arena. That stripped-down version of the song along with that video created such a heavy mood in the arena and painted a dark picture of people in the world right now.

Roger Waters then walked up on stage to start the show officially with The Happiest Days of Our Lives, which segued into, Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2. Roger Waters' solo song The Bravery Of Being Out Of Range called out recent US Presidents as War Criminals for things like the use of drone strikes. The first act would include a new Roger Waters song The Bar. The song was written during the pandemic lockdown period. This is Roger Waters explanation of the song.

The Bar is a place in my head, an imaginary place, but its also a real place. There are bars all over the world. In my head, its a place where you can maybe have a drink, certainly meet your friends, and hopefully meet strangers. You can exchange opinions with strangers and friends with no fear or favor, and its somewhere where you are welcome and can exchange your love for your fellow man without fear. There are two characters towards the end of this little bit of this song, and theyre two women. One of them is a homeless Black lady who lives in a cardboard box somewhere with a chihuahua. The other younger lady, a Lakota Sioux from North Dakota, sees this lady and decides to cross over and help her. She helps by bringing her to the bar, where we all look after her.

The first act would also see Pink Floyd classics like Wish You Were Here and Shine of You Crazy Diamond then close with Sheep before the show Intermission.

The second act would be hardest hitting. Run Like Hell would shine a light on the terrible story behind Chelsea Mannings leaked video of an US military attack on Iraqi civilians in Baghdad. It is a hard video to watch telling some awful truths about some of our own in the US military. First it was Rogers angry response to what happened, and it was also Rogers plea with the audience to get WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange set free from prison. Dj Vu would tackle tough issues as well with screens displaying Fuck the Supreme Court, Fuck Drones, and Fuck Your Guns. You could see the last one didnt sit too well with many in the crowd. Remember he warned you at the start of the show.

It was Pink Floyds Two Suns in the Sunset along with video animation that hit me the hardest. The video showed a van driving through an area that could be a forested area like we have in the Pacific Northwest. On that road, a van comes to a screeching halt, the driver gets out as he watches in horror as a nuclear bomb mushroom cloud goes up into the sky and now sees the fires of destruction are headed his way. It was a terrifying visual and one that could honestly happen with increased tensions in our world right now especially with Russia and Ukraine, Roger Waters argued that the US specifically Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin need to get together, have real talks, and bring an end to what is going on with Ukraine.

Roger Waters is very passionate about what he believes in. He continues to fight for the human rights of all people in our world and continues to use his musical theater as his way of getting his views through to the people. This Is Not a Drill delivers great music, amazing imagery and a hope for real changes to be made in our world.

Roger WatersThis Is Not a Drill (Tour 2022)Moda Center, Portland, OregonSeptember 10, 2022

Set OneComfortably Numb (Pink Floyd)The Happiest Days of Our Lives (Pink Floyd)Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2 (Pink Floyd)Another Brick in the Wall, Part 3 (Pink Floyd)The Powers That BeThe Bravery of Being Out of RangeThe Bar (new song)Have a Cigar (Pink Floyd)Wish You Were Here (Pink Floyd)Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts VI-IX) (Pink Floyd)Sheep (Pink Floyd)

Set TwoIn the Flesh (Pink Floyd)Run Like Hell (Pink Floyd)Dj VuDj Vu (Reprise)Is This the Life We Really Want?Money (Pink Floyd)Us and Them (Pink Floyd)Any Colour You Like (Pink Floyd)Brain Damage (Pink Floyd)Eclipse (Pink Floyd)Two Suns in the Sunset (Pink Floyd)The Bar (Reprise)Outside the Wall (Pink Floyd)

More here:

Roger Waters at the Moda Center on 09/10/22 - Oregon Music News

Life Sciences Increases its Doses of the Metaverse – RTInsights

Posted on by

The constellation of metaverse technologies includes extended reality, blockchain, artificial intelligence, digital twins, non-fungible tokens, and smart devices.

The potential value of the metaverse is still an uncertainty at best theres still more hype around it than there is real-life applications. However, thats not stopping one of the most research-intensive and cutting-edge industries life sciences from seriously studying leveraging components of the metaverse.

Thats the word from Accenture, which says the life sciences industry is getting bullish on the metaverse, with 91% of 100 medical technology and 85% of 100 biopharma executives anticipating metaverse-related technologies to have a positive impact on their industries. Such immersive technologies may play a role in helping to solve manufacturing and device problems, improve equity in clinical trial participation and build more resilient supply chains to provide patients and healthcare professionals with more personalized experiences.

The constellation of metaverse technologies includes extended reality, blockchain, artificial intelligence, digital twins, non-fungible tokens, and smart devices. According to the report, life sciences leaders (91% of medical technology executives and 85% biopharma executives) expect the metaverse to have a positive impact on their organizations, while nearly half of the biopharma executives surveyed believe the metaverse will have a breakthrough or transformational impact on their organizations.

See also: Quantum Computing Acceleration of AI in Pharma on the Rise

The Accenture report says metaverse capabilities are evolving from four different directions:

Data collection: The internet is being reimagined with the metaverse as a platform for digital experiences that provide boundless places where people can meet and interact, and Web3 is reinventing how data can be owned by individuals and moved with the person and not the platform, the reports authors said. In the future, a new generation of digital devices will integrate into the metaverse and could include smart technology in everyday objects like home appliances, and smart cars that provide salient data on healthy human behaviors along with medically regulated devices such as Donisi, which can simultaneously detect and analyze multiple bio-parameters.

Programmable physical assets: Nearly nine in 10 of the MedTech and biopharma executives surveyed believe that programming the physical environment will emerge as a competitive differentiation in their industry, the report states. Augmented reality, 5G, ambient computing, 3D printing, and smart materials are converging in sophisticated ways, turning the physical world into an environment that is as smart, customizable, and as programmable as the digital one.

Artificial intelligence and its supporting data: Unreal qualities that are becoming fundamental to artificial intelligence, and even data, making the synthetic seem authentic, the report states. Synthetic data is being used to train AI models in ways that real-world data practically cannot or should not. Synthetic data can represent patient datasets for use in research, training, or other applications. This realistic (yet unreal) data can be shared, maintaining the same statistical properties while protecting confidentiality and privacy. It can be developed to accommodate increased diversity to counter bias, thus overcoming the pitfalls of real-world data. More than nine-tenths of biopharma (92%) and MedTech (91%) executives report that their organization is dependent on AI technologies to function effectively.

Quantum leaps: The metaverse will be boosted by a new class of machines quantum computing stretching the boundaries of what computers can do, the Accenture analysts state. Problems once thought impossible to solve because they require computing large, complex datasets are now in the realm of the possible. Nearly all the surveyed biopharma (94%) and MedTech (96%) executives are looking to deploy quantum-level power when it becomes available, the survey shows.

Link:
Life Sciences Increases its Doses of the Metaverse - RTInsights

IIT Madras 1st Indian institution to ride on IBM quantum network – Awaz The Voice

Posted on by

Bengaluru

IIT-Madras has become the first Indian institution to join IBM's quantum network to advance quantum computing skills development and research in the country, the tech major announced on Monday.

IIT Madras' Centre for Quantum Information, Communication and Computing (CQuICC) will focus on advancing core algorithms in research areas like quantum machine learning, quantum optimisation and applications research in finance.

IBM said that IIT Madras will get cloud-based access to its most advanced quantum computing systems and quantum expertise to explore practical applications for businesses and the society.

"This collaboration with the IBM Quantum Network marks an exciting new phase for our Centre. It builds on our successful collaboration on quantum computing education, last year, and promises to open up new avenues and directions for research and innovation," said Dr Anil Prabhakar, professor, Department of Electrical Engineering, IIT Madras.

They will use IBM Quantum services alongside the open-source 'Qiskit' framework to explore areas such as quantum algorithms, quantum machine learning, quantum error correction and error mitigation, quantum tomography, and quantum chemistry, and to also advance and grow the quantum computing ecosystem in the country.

Researchers from IIT Madras will contribute to the advancement of research in the application of quantum computing with support from IBM Research India in such domains that are relevant to India. "The collaboration will open new avenues to work with industry partners to accelerate research, make quantum real and create a vibrant quantum ecosystem in India," said Sandip Patel, managing director, IBM India.

IBM and IIT Madras have a long association in education and research areas like Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning.A Last year, IIT Madras joined IBM's Quantum Education Programme to provide its students and faculty access to IBM quantum learning resources, quantum tools, and quantum systems for education and research purposes.

ALSO READ: Faqir Chand Book Store: A slice of Peshawar in Delhi

IBM Quantum and IIT Madras also jointly offered a course on quantum computing on the NPTEL Platform to over 10,000 participants. "This collaboration with the IBM Quantum Network marks an exciting new phase for our Centre" said Dr Anil Prabhakar, professor, Department of Electrical Engineering, IIT Madras.

See more here:
IIT Madras 1st Indian institution to ride on IBM quantum network - Awaz The Voice

Amazon’s Ring video doorbells now have end-to-end encryption but they’re still unsafe – Mashable

Posted on by

Ring, everyone's least favorite technological narc, seems to be making steps to keep its footage secure.

The Amazon-owned home security system company now offers end-to-end encryption of the video and audio collected on its battery-powered video doorbells and security cameras. This comes about a year after it enabled end-to-end encryption on its plug-in devices.

End-to-end encryption prevents anyone from grabbing videos or messages as they travel between you and the person you're sending them to. That means it ensures that no one including hackers, government officials, or, ideally, the company that owns the device can read your message or watch your video while it's being sent.

This newly enabled privacy feature also means the video picked up from a Ring camera can only be accessible from the iOS or Android device linked to an owner's account. According to the Verge, if you have end-to-end encryption enabled on your Ring camera, no one but you can access the recorded footage. This change is basically increasing the security features on Ring, which already encrypts video and audio recordings by default when they're uploaded to the cloud or stored on Ring's servers.

"Even if law enforcement asked Ring, or its parent company Amazon, for the video, they couldn't provide it," according to the Verge. "Only the enrolled mobile device can unlock the video."

As Mashable previously explained, end-to-end encryption "basically takes your message, jumbles it up, sends it, and unjumbles it once it reaches your recipient. So anyone who tries to intercept your message in between you and your recipient just gets a bunch of mess instead of the message itself."

That doesn't mean your Ring video cameras are completely harmless or safe from bad actors, though. End-to-end encryption protects your privacy against anything trying to mess with your messages while they're in transit, but it doesn't protect the video metadata and also can't do anything about the recipient of your message sharing whatever information you send them.

And, ultimately, even with end-to-end encryption, there are plenty of problems tied to having a video camera doorbell like Ring.

See original here:
Amazon's Ring video doorbells now have end-to-end encryption but they're still unsafe - Mashable

Kingston Announces Hardware-Encrypted IronKey Keypad 200 USB Drive – Business Wire

Posted on by

FOUNTAIN VALLEY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Kingston Digital, Inc., the Flash memory affiliate of Kingston Technology Company, Inc., a world leader in memory products and technology solutions, today announced the release of the Kingston IronKey Keypad 200 (KP200), the industrys first drive to deliver the latest FIPS 140-3 Level 3 security for your data.

The IronKey Keypad 200 is built with robust protection and flexibility of use in mind offering XTS-AES 256-bit hardware-based encryption in a feature-rich and OS-independent alphanumeric keypad. KP200 incorporates a built-in rechargeable battery, so users can unlock the drive using the keypad for easy-to-use PIN access, without using software. Once unlocked, users can access their data by plugging the drive into any device that supports USB Type-A Flash storage, making it a plug-and-play device across IT ecosystems.

KP200 is FIPS-140-3 Level 3 (Pending) certified for military-grade security, and the drives circuitry is coated with tamper-evident, tough epoxy to prevent access to its internal components without damaging them. For another level of protection, the keypad is coated with a protective polymer layer to prevent the analysis of fingerprints on the keys.

KP200 supports a multi-PIN option, allowing the use of separate Admin or User PINs. KP200 locks the User PIN after ten failed login attempts, but if both PINs are enabled the Admin can be used to restore a User PIN and access to the drive. If the Admin PIN itself is incorrectly entered ten times in a row, the built-in Brute Force attack protection will crypto-erase the drive, permanently destroying the data and resetting the device. Additionally, KP200 can safeguard against malware from untrusted systems with two different Read-Only modes, empowering Admin to write-protect the drive during a specific session or globally across all User sessions.

The Kingston IronKey KP200 is the first drive to successfully pass certification lab testing for the latest FIPS 140-3 Level 3 military-grade security level from NIST, said Richard Kanadjian, encrypted unit manager at Kingston. With no need for software and ease of use of the keypad, KP200 is the best solution for those looking for flexibility while maintaining the highest-level security for storing sensitive data on the go.

KP200 adds security enhancements for FIPS 140-3 Level 3:

- Minimum PIN length goes from 7 to 8 digits (max is 15) for stronger PIN security- No factory-preset PIN User must set up PIN upon first use- Periodic self-testing to ensure fully-functional security features KP200 will shut down if a problem is detected- Automatic shutdown under excessive thermal and voltage conditions- Enhanced Random Number Generator to strengthen encryption key generation

The Kingston IronKey Keypad 200 has available storage capacities ranging from 8GB - 128GB and is backed by a limited three-year warranty, with free technical support, and the legendary Kingston reliability. For more information, visit kingston.com.

Kingston IronKey Keypad 200

Part Number

Capacity

IKKP200/8GB

8GB IronKey Keypad 200

IKKP200/16GB

16GB IronKey Keypad 200

IKKP200/32GB

32GB IronKey Keypad 200

IKKP200/64GB

64GB IronKey Keypad 200

IKKP200/128GB

128GB IronKey Keypad 200

Kingston IronKey Keypad 200 Features and Specifications:

Kingston IronKey Keypad 200 incorporates DataLock Secured Technology licensed from ClevX, LLC. http://www.clevx.com/patents

1 Some of the listed capacity on a flash storage device is used for formatting and other functions and thus is not available for data storage. As such, the actual available capacity for data storage is less than what is listed on the products. For more information, go to Kingstons Flash Memory Guide.2 Speed may vary due to host hardware, software, and usage.3 Product must be clean and dry before use.4 Compatible systems.

About Kingston Technology Company, Inc.

From big data, to laptops and PCs, to IoT-based devices like smart and wearable technology, to design-in and contract manufacturing, Kingston helps deliver the solutions used to live, work and play. The worlds largest PC makers and cloud-hosting companies depend on Kingston for their manufacturing needs, and our passion fuels the technology the world uses every day. We strive beyond our products to see the bigger picture, to meet the needs of our customers and offer solutions that make a difference. To learn more about how Kingston Is With You, visit Kingston.com.

See the original post:
Kingston Announces Hardware-Encrypted IronKey Keypad 200 USB Drive - Business Wire

Beware, That VPN May Not Be What You Think It Is – CNET

Posted on by

There are some excellent, well-tested virtual private networks we recommend you try. But if you're exploring the competitive market of VPNs on your own, you're likely to find some shoddy VPNs companies that scatter hints of their dubiousness everywhere they go. Learning to identify a few of these red flags can save you hours of research and a hefty annual subscription cost for supposedly getting connected to the internet more securely.

Is the price too good to be true? Has the company been caught keeping logs? How are your connection speeds?

To save you time, here are a few of the biggest red flags to watch out for when taking your new VPN out for a test drive. And on the flip side, here are three things to look for in a VPN.

Read more: Best iPhone VPN of 2022

There's no such thing as a free lunch. Maintaining the hardware and expertise needed for large VPN networks isn't cheap. As a VPN customer, you either pay for a premium service with your dollars, or you pay for free services with your usage data when it's collected by the free VPN and bargained away to advertisers or malicious actors.

As recently as August 2019, 90% of apps flagged as potentially unsafe in Top10VPN's investigation into free VPN ownership still posed a privacy risk to users. Free VPNs can also leave you open to quiet malware installation, pop-up ad barrages and brutally slow internet speeds.

Read more: Best Free VPN 2022: Try These Risk-Free Services for a Privacy Boost

If a VPN is caught keeping or sharing user activity logs, I won't recommend it. While most VPN services claim they don't track or keep logs of user activity, that claim can sometimes be impossible to verify. In other instances, the claim falls apart publicly when a VPN company hands over internet records to law enforcement.

The latter has happened in a few cases. EarthVPN, Hide My Ass VPN and PureVPN have all been clocked by privacy advocates for handing over logs to authorities, as hasIPVanish.

To be clear, it is entirely possible to be grateful for the arrest of reprehensible scumbags while ardently advocating for consumer privacy interests. My beef isn't with any VPN company helping cops catch a child abuser via usage logs; it's with any VPN company that lies to its customers about doing so. The lie that helps law enforcement in the US catch a legitimate criminal is the same lie that helps law enforcement in China arrest a person watching footage of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests.

Ideally, the VPN you choose should have undergone -- and published the results of -- an independent third-party audit of its operations, including its use of activity logs.

Read more: All the VPN Terms You Need to Know

Now playing: Watch this: Top 5 Reasons to Use a VPN

2:42

Another red flag to watch for when choosing a VPN is shoddy encryption standards. Users should expect AES-256 encryption or better from VPN services. Nearly every web browser and app already uses AES, often touted as "military-grade" encryption, after it was adopted by the US government in 2002. If your VPN only offers PPTP and L2TP encryption, look elsewhere.

While you're snooping around for encryption details, keep an eye out for one of our favorite phrases, "Perfect Forward Secrecy." Those three little words can have a hefty impact on your privacy: If one of your VPN's servers is ever breached, Perfect Forward Secrecy ensures that any keys used to decrypt private internet traffic quickly become useless -- giving you more security.

Read more: How We Evaluate and Review VPNs

With just a little bit of elbow grease, any moderately skilled internet jerk can throw together a service that looks like a VPN but is actually little more than a proxy service reselling your internet bandwidth. Not only can that slow your internet speed, it could potentially leave you on the legal hook for whatever they do with that resold bandwidth.

Hola's case was the most famous. The company was caught in 2015 quietly stealing users' bandwidth and reselling it to whatever group wanted to deploy its user base as a botnet. Hola CEO Ofer Vilenski admitted it'd been had, but contended this harvesting of bandwidth was typical for this type of technology.

Read more:How to Set up a VPN on our iPhone or Android Phone: Yes, You Need One

"We assumed that by stating that Hola is a (peer-to-peer) network, it was clear that people were sharing their bandwidth with the community network in return for their free service," he wrote.

Nearly all VPNs slow your browsing speed, some by as much as half. But a brutal crawl can be a sign of something worse than a simple lack of servers. So if being pressed into service as part of a botnet isn't your cup of tea, double-check those suspiciously slow speeds and the reputation of the VPN you're paying for.

For more VPN buying advice, here's how to pick the right VPN for your work-from-home setup. Plus, why we don't recommend US-based VPNs, and three things a VPN can't help you with.

See the rest here:
Beware, That VPN May Not Be What You Think It Is - CNET


« First...102030...109110111112113...120130140...Last »