On-Prem

• WhatsApp: Share your data with Facebook, or we'll make our own app useless to you

  Zuck gets tough just as Germany blocks privacy policy roll-out
  Iain Thomson in San Francisco Tue 11 May 2021 // 21:41 UTC

  WhatsApp users who refuse to accept its new privacy policy will slowly but surely be cut off from the chat app, the social network has confirmed.

  In January, WhatsApp users were told if they wanted to keep using the software, they must agree to an updated fine print that, among other things, allows their data to be passed onto not only WhatsApp's parent Facebook but also its subsidiaries as and when decided by the tech giant.

  This information includes names, profile pictures, status updates, phone numbers, contacts lists, and details about mobile devices and connections, though not the contents of encrypted messages and calls. Those who did not accept the terms and conditions would not be allowed to use the application from February.

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• SolarWinds CEO describes overhauled Orion build system after that 'very small, unique' security breach

  'This can happen to anybody. There's always learning in any crisis. And we were no exception'
  Gareth Corfield Tue 11 May 2021 // 19:59 UTC

  CyberUK 21 SolarWinds’ chief exec has described the 18,000 customers who downloaded backdoored versions of its Orion software as a “very small” number while giving a speech to an infosec event.

  Sudhakar Ramakrishna, who joined the biz in January, made the comparison while giving the opening keynote at the CyberUK conference, organised by Britain’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC). He'll also be giving a talk on the topic at this month's RSA Conference in the US, presumably part of an extended apology tour.

  “Although the number of affected customers is very small, that we eventually discovered, it is still a very important thing to discover, because this is a unique and very novel attack on the supply chain of a company,” said Ramakrishna in his opening remarks – adding that “none of our source code control systems were tampered with.”

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• Microsoft emits more fixes for Exchange Server plus patches for remote-code exec holes in HTTP stack, Visual Studio

  Plus: Grab your updates for Adobe, SAP, Android, Intel
  Thomas Claburn in San Francisco Tue 11 May 2021 // 19:08 UTC

  Patch Tuesday Microsoft's May Patch Tuesday brought a lighter-than-usual load of 55 fixes for 32 of the Windows giant's applications and services, which is about half what was served up in April.

  The Redmond-based firm's Office and Windows flagships house many of the identified vulnerabilities, alongside Internet Explorer, Visual Studio, Visual Studio Code, Skype, and other software.

  Among the 55 CVEs identified by Microsoft, four are rated critical, 50 are rated important, and one is rated moderate.

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• IBM wheels out AutoSQL, Watson Orchestrate in bid to fend off cloud irrelevance

  AI here, there and everywhere
  Richard Speed Tue 11 May 2021 // 17:58 UTC

  Think IBM's latest attempt at relevance in the cloud world continued at its Think conference by giving its Cloud Pak for Data another beating with the AI stick and unleashing Watson on IT pros.

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• Rude awakening for O2 customers after network runs surprise test of emergency mobile alert system

  Sorry, there's no nuclear missile inbound. You have to go to work
  Matthew Hughes Tue 11 May 2021 // 17:01 UTC

  Birds chirping, the gentle burbling of coffee brewing – these are the sounds we typically associate with the dawn hours.

  Everyone, that is, except customers of O2, who arose this morning to a noise described as akin to a "nuclear siren" after the network performed an unannounced test of the UK's emergency alert system.

  The two alerts, sent around 0745 and 0800, were accompanied by a forebodingly shrill beep, the kind of which you'd expect to hear if a cruise missile was heading to your house. Meanwhile, a disembodied computerised voice read out the alert's message, which said as follows:

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• UK's Computer Misuse Act to be reviewed, says Home Secretary as she condemns ransomware payoffs

  Priti Patel doesn't say a word about encryption, though
  Gareth Corfield Tue 11 May 2021 // 16:00 UTC

  CyberUK 21 Priti Patel has promised a government review of the UK's 30-year-old Computer Misuse Act "this year" as well as condemning companies that buy off ransomware criminals.

  The Home Secretary pledged the legal review in a speech at the CyberUK conference this afternoon, organised by the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC).

  "As part of ensuring that we have the right tools and mechanisms to detect, disrupt and deter our adversaries, I believe now is the right time to undertake a formal review of the Computer Misuse Act," said Patel.

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• NHS App gets go-ahead for vaccine passport use despite protest from privacy groups

  Big Brother Watch warns app contains too much sensitive medical information
  Lindsay Clark Tue 11 May 2021 // 15:15 UTC

  Folks in England can from next week use the NHS App to confer their vaccination status, in the face of warnings that the technology could lead to identifiable medical information being exposed.

  The British government has announced that from 17 May, people will be able to demonstrate their COVID-19 vaccination status – a so-called vaccine passport or certificate – using the NHS App, which began its public rollout in January 2019, well before the pandemic. Connected to a GP's practice systems, it is designed to help users book appointments, order repeat prescriptions, and view medical records. This feature is so far available to people registered with a GP in England only.

  "You can access the app through mobile devices such as a smartphone or by tablet. Proof of your COVID-19 vaccination status will be shown within the NHS App," the government said this week.

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• Copper load of this: Openreach outlines 77 new locations where it'll stop selling legacy phone and broadband products

  You can't buy this kind of service. No, literally
  Matthew Hughes Tue 11 May 2021 // 14:27 UTC

  BT-owned infrastructure provider Openreach has confirmed plans to stop sales of copper-based phone and broadband services in 77 exchange locations across the UK, affecting roughly 700,000 premises.

  The “stop-sell” order will come into effect on April 29, 2022. Included in the 77 locations are Ellesmere Port in Cheshire, Hayes in Greater London, Kelso in Scotland, and Coleraine in Northern Ireland.

  Those clinging to their legacy-based copper phone lines won’t necessarily see any immediate changes to service. However, the “stop sell” order means that anyone who switches broadband or landline providers will only be able to choose from products delivered over fibre.

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• App Tracking: Apps plead for users to press allow, but 85% of Apple iOS consumers are not opting in

  The data is in: most users do not opt in to third-party tracking
  Tim Anderson Tue 11 May 2021 // 13:45 UTC

  Mobile app analytics company Flurry is measuring how many users of iOS 14.5 are opting in to allow apps to request to track them - and so far only 15 per cent worldwide have done so.

  iOS 14.5 was released on April 26 and is gradually rolling out to users with compatible iOS devices. One of its new features is enforcement of what Apple calls AppTrackingTransparency, which means that apps must request permission from the user before tracking them or accessing the Apple device identifier (IDFA).

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• Proposed collective action aims to take Apple to task over its 30% App Store cut on behalf of 20 million Brits

  Spent money in the walled garden since October 2015?
  Matthew Hughes Tue 11 May 2021 // 13:02 UTC

  The day ends with "y" so Apple is facing fresh legal scrutiny of its App Store policies. This time the battleground is the UK's Competition Appeal Tribunal, where a potential collective action is being launched on behalf of circa 20 million users over claims Apple's 30 per cent "tax" is excessive and unjustified.

  The claim, brought by King's College academic Dr Rachel Kent, aims to pry up to £1.5bn from Apple's coffers and includes anyone who purchased paid apps, content, or subscriptions using an iPhone or iPad after 1 October 2015.

  Kent alleges Apple has abused its control over the iOS platform by preventing the entrance of other app marketplaces, and forcing developers to pay onerous fees to distribute software and in-app content through the App Store.

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• Preliminary report on Texas Tesla crash finds Autosteer was 'not available' along road where both passengers died

  Probable cause of accident and fire still under investigation
  Richard Speed Tue 11 May 2021 // 12:15 UTC

  The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has published a preliminary report into last month's fatal crash involving a 2019 Tesla Model S in Texas.

  The crash happened at approximately 21:07 local time on 17 April this year. Two men entered the car, one in the driver's seat and the other in the front passenger seat (according to home security camera footage).

  The Tesla then drove off, travelled about 167 metres before leaving the road on a curve, driving over a curb, hitting a drainage culvert, a raised manhole and a tree, the report found.

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