Category: Tech

If you are a WhatsApp user, WhatsApp has a message for you.

As you most probably know that there is a shuffle going on between Indian Govt. and Whatsapp for the traceability of the messages. WhatsApp has a message for its users.

Recently Whatsapp notified its users that the end-to-end encryption service it provides for messaging between users may no longer work if they choose to store the message backup in Google Drive.

Pact With Google

If you think that there is any kind of shuffle is going on between Whatsapp and Google, you are wrong. On August 16, Whatsapp signed a pact with Google to allow its users to save their backup messages on its cloud server. Now message backup will not impact users allowed a quota of 15GB google drive space. Till now, Whatsapp uses users allowed a quota of 15GB for backup storage.

Messages are decrypted before save

Then what happened between Google and Whatsapp which led to the messaging platform to says this. Well, this is not the first time. Even in 2017, Whatsapp explained to its users that data stored in Google Drive is not encrypted. This is because, Whatsapp serve the end to end encryption messages between two users but if you choose to store your data somewhere else, the data need to be decrypted.

Recently Indian government called to the messaging platform to offer traceability of the message to fight against the fake news. But it reiterated that its messages are encrypted and it cannot offer traceability. End to end encryption means the messages a user sends can only be read by the recipient and vice versa. No one can read the message by any means. For the users who choose to back up, the messages are decrypted on the phone and sent to the drive for backup. If law enforcement agencies request Google for specific user data, then they have to comply.

Gmail recently launched “Confidential Mode” feature for Gmail users of smartphones. Here we will discuss this feature and how to use it.

Many of you already aware of the conversational thread enabling /disabling feature by Gmail. For those who are unaware, this feature let emails with the same subject groups together. You can turn off/on this feature by visiting the setting page. Now Google bought another great feature named “Confidential mode” for Gmail users for Android and iOS. Google launched this feature earlier this year for Desktop users but was unavailable for Android and iOS till now.

This “Confidential mode” will prevent a mail from being forwarded, copied and downloaded on the desktop or a smartphone. You can set expiry date for self-destructive email and if it contains highly sensitive content, you can even set an SMS passcode lock for it. This feature also allows you to prevent the recipient from opening the message before the expiry date. You will be able to set these options while composing the email.

According to Google, although the “Confidential Mode” brings all the security feature required to prevent misuse of the message, it can’t prevent one from taking a screenshot of the content and sharing with others.

Let’s see how you can set “Confidential mode”

For those using Desktop

1. Open Gmail on your browser and click on “Compose” button.
2. On the bottom of the message window, you can see the “Confidential mode” icon which resembles a lock with a clock.
3. Now you can set message expiration date and passcode here. It will protect both the text and its attachments.
4. Once you are done, click on save and it will close the “Confidential Mode” box.

For Android / iOS (iPhones/iPad) users

1. Open Gmail app and tap on “Compose” option.
2. On the top right, tap on the three dots “More” option and select “Confidential Mode”.
3. Set up the expiry date and passcode and click on Save.
4. Now compose the message or if already composed then send it.

If you would like to prevent the recipient from opening the email before the expiry date, follow the below steps

For both Desktop and Smartphone users

1. Open Gmail app, tap on “Sent” option to open sent messages.
2. Click / Tap on the confidential email (the email which is set as confidential email) to open it.
3. Click / Tap on “Remove access” option. This will prevent the recipient to view the message before the expiry date.

High speed internet can harm your health, yes that’s right and you might be thinking that, what is the relation between your health and internet speed? Yes that’s right, everyone at first think that these are completely unrelated but a recent study published in London based Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization found that the internet speed affects individuals sleep time.

According to the Journal, individuals using Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) tend to sleep 25 minutes less than their others who don’t have DSL internet. DSL is a technology which bought high-bandwidth internet to home and small offices over ordinary copper telephone lines.

Researchers from Bocconi University, Italy and University of Pittsburg in the US also conclude that access to high speed internet affects sleep duration. The study shows People using high speed internet access sleep less than those who does not have access to high speed internet access. This also leads to dissatisfaction in sleep in the individuals that face time constraints in the morning for work or family reasons.

Francesco Billari, a professor at Bacconi University quotes as

“Individuals with DSL access tend to sleep 25 minutes less than their counterparts without DSL internet. They are significantly less likely to sleep between seven and nine hours, the amount recommended by the scientific community, and are less likely to be satisfied with their sleep”.

The study is conducted on the individuals facing time constraints in the morning and using electronic device in the evening.

Billari also mentioned that

“Digital temptation may lead to a delay in bedtime, which ultimately decreases sleep duration for individuals who are not able to compensate for later bedtime by waking up later in the morning.”

According to researchers, there is a significant association between insufficient sleep and time spent on computer games or watching TV or videos in the evening among the teenagers and young adults mostly aged between 13 and 30.

Today I am going to provide you 7 tips for a safe online transaction.

Day by day our life is becoming easier and easier with the rise of the internet and other technology. Nowadays, many of us prefer online shopping over traditional shopping. This is why online shopping is becoming a hit in the country.

The growing fetish for online shopping is now proven by the e-commerce giants like Flipkart and Amazon by their high volume sales figure.

With the growing technologies and internet, we are not only habituated with online shopping but also with other online transaction like online banking, bill payment, ticket booking etc.. On one hand it makes our life easier and on the other, it made us vulnerable to hackers. The biggest example in the recent time is the banking system hack, which affected top banks like SBI, HDFC, ICICI, Axis Bank etc. So this is the time to know how hackers work and prevent ourselves from being hacked and do the safe online transaction.

Here I am going to provide you with few tips for the safe online transaction and how hackers using to steal your information.

1. Phishing

In this technique, hackers used to make a website or web page which looks exactly like the original website and provide you the link to it via email or other social networking technique. People take it as the original website and try to transact with it by providing their username, password, debit card or credit card information.

Once you provide your personal information, it sends the details to hacker and then closes the page by showing some kind of error. Now the hackers have the information they wanted.

Preventive Measure

You should always go to the website by directly typing its URL (address) manually or if you go through any link always check out the URL of the website where you are transacting before any kind of transaction for a safe online transaction. If you believe something suspicious in the URL, close it and type fresh URL in the address bar. Do not ever trust the looks.

2. Farming

Hacker used this technique to modify your router’s configuration and change the DNS setting so that when a user types the actual intended website’s address on the address bar, it will open the phishing website which will look similar to original one. You won’t even notice any change in the address bar as you typed the address of an original website. Now onwards, it will work just exactly like phishing attack as mentioned on the previous point.

In this technique, hackers will send you a link via email or via any social networking website/app which may look exactly like from the original sender. Once you open the link, a malicious script will try to login to your router by a combination of different username and password automatically. Once they succeed in opening your router’s configuration, they will change routers DNS configuration so that when you open the originally intended website, it will redirect to their phishing website.

Preventive Measure

Almost all routers now come with common username and password. You should always change the default username and password of your router whenever you install any which will help you in a safe online transaction.

3. Vishing

This is also called Voice Phishing, in this kind of attack, the hackers generally target bank customers. In this technique, hackers will call you by claiming themselves as banks representative and lures you to provide them your personal details like Debit Card/Credit Card number, Customer ID, Password, ATM Number, ATM Pin, OTP, CVV etc. by creating the sense of urgency in your mind. Once you provide the information, hackers will use that information for fraudulent activity.

Preventive Measure

You should always remember that Bank never asks such a thing over the phone or call. If you think this is a genuine case, contact your bank before providing any information. If you suspect that you compromised yourself, contact your bank immediately and change the details as early as possible.

4. Keystroke Logger

This comes in both software and hardware variant. The software variant comes with infected software or came to you intentionally using social networking or email. Once you click the link, it downloads to your computer unintentionally. Whether it downloaded unintentionally or comes with infected software, it installs itself silently on the computer without your knowledge and sends the hacker whatever you type.

The hardware variant is different and can be identified if you check the computer thoroughly which you are going to use, you can find it. It may come with PS2 or USB port and can be attached to the available port on your computer.

Preventive Measure

Always use updated antivirus on your system which you use regularly for online transaction. Never click on any link which you do not recognize. If you are in urgent and need to use a public computer, make sure the system is properly protected with updated antivirus and check the available ports to identify if any suspicious object attached to it.

5. Malware / Viru

Hackers use these tools to damage your computer or take control of it. Virus and malware come with infected software or infected web page and website. Once Virus and malware infect your system, hackers collected sensitive and personal information for fraudulent activity.

Preventive Measure

Always use updated antivirus on your computer system and mobile phone in which you use your online transaction. Never click on an unwanted link or install any unknown software on your computer or mobile.

6. Sim Swap

Hackers used to get the new sim with your number by contacting your mobile network service provider with a fake id. Once they get your number, they can access your mobile banking as nowadays most of the bank providing mobile banking with your phone number. They can get OTP and anything which is related to you with your mobile number.

Preventive Measure

To prevent such kind of mobile number theft, always contact your mobile operator if you do not receive any call or SMS for an extended period or if you think there is no service. If you receive any SMS from your mobile operator for probable SIM swap, immediately contact them. Register for the instant alert on both your mobile number and email in case of any activity on your account.

7. Unsafe Apps

As the use of mobile is increasing, this kind of threat is imminent. We tend to use a lot of apps on our phone. An unsafe app can gain access to your personal information stored on your phone and send it to hackers for fraudulent activity.

Preventive Measure

Never install any app from an unknown source or authority. Only install apps if you know the source is good enough.

Last but not least, if you believe that your personal data is compromised in any way, change those data immediately without any delay. Always prevent yourself from getting into the trap of hackers and do a safe transaction.

Today I am going to cover 11 Things to Consider While Buying a Smartphone.

Nowadays mobile phones became an integral part of human life, it’s now not limited to only for communication, we used to capture photos, videos, browse the internet, shop online, save documents, banking online and a lot more with our smartphone.

While buying a smartphone, there are wide varieties of smartphone available on the market. Therefore it’s a little bit tough task to decide which one to buy. So here I prepared a list of things to consider before purchasing your next smartphone.

1. Body

Body is the most important factor while choosing a smartphone. This is not only about the durability of your smartphone but also how it looks and feels when you handle it. There are three types of body available for smartphones. These are Metal, Plastic and Glass. Glass panel phones are very rare but still available on the market.If you are prone to drop your phone frequently, it’s advisable that you should go for Metal or Plastic panel body as these type of body can survive drops from 2 – 3 feet, while glass panel will definitely shatter.

2. Display Size & Resolution

It depends on how you use your device. If you use your smartphone for streaming videos, edit your photos and videos, download and view movies, then you should choose anything between 5.5” to 6” size with HD or QHD resolution. Size beyond 6” not only makes it bulky but it will also make you uncomfortable to control.If you use your smartphone for regular documents handling, social networking, email checking etc. apart from communication, you can choose between 5” to 5.5” with HD or Full HD resolution.

3. Processor 

The processor is the heart of the phone. The more powerful it is, the more powerful things it can handle. The processing power of phone varies from phone to phone depending upon its Operating System, User Interface, bloatware etc.If you use your phone for multitasking like using two apps on a split screen, stream videos, edit photos and videos, play heavy games then processor like Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 or Snapdragon 820/821 is best suited for you.If you are a light user, then even MediaTek processors are also fine for you.

4. RAM

While buying a smartphone, you should also consider how much RAM you need. This also depends on how you use your smartphone. If you use your smartphone for heavy gaming, video streaming and using apps on a split screen, then you must choose higher RAM than regular. If you are a heavy gamer and like entertainment, you should go with around 4GB ram or above.If you intend to use it for less memory intensive work, then you can go even with 1 GB ram.

5. Camera

If you think that the number of megapixels makes your phone’s camera better, then you are wrong. The quality of camera does not depend upon only on megapixel. Sometimes you can find a 12MP camera is better than a 16MP camera. The quality of camera depends upon camera aperture, ISO levels, pixel size, autofocus and more apart from megapixel.Megapixel makes the size of the image. If you have a greater megapixel camera, it will capture bigger picture and it will become sharper when you see it on the small screen. If you are a photographer, you can choose between 12MP or 16MP camera along with f/2.0 or lower aperture. Of course, you can go with more megapixel camera, if available and according to your like, the lower aperture makes it possible speedy shots even in low lights.If you are a casual shooter, you can choose anything between 8MP to 12MP camera along with f/2.0-f/2.2 aperture.

6. Battery 

The battery is one of the most important factors you need to keep in mind while buying a smartphone. It depends on how you use your smartphone. If you are a heavy user and use your phone primarily for apps, game, video stream etc. then you should choose around 3500mAh or greater battery. The more mAh battery you have, the longer it last.If you are a light user, then even 3000mAh will make your battery last full day.

7. Operating System

This is also one of the key factors you should consider while choosing a smartphone. This makes User Interface in which you have to go through every time you need to do anything with your smartphone. So it must be easy and simple.This is the area where your own like and choice is required. Some people consider windows is simple, others Android and iOS. So it is recommended to check out the different operating system on other phones before you choose anything to go with. Sometimes the same version of the operating system comes with different flavor and simplicity with a different brand of phones. Therefore you should check the OS before you buy.

8. Storage

It depends on how you use your phone. If you like to store a lot of movies, music, apps on your phone, the higher storage you would require. You should remember that a large chunk of the phone’s storage is occupied by the operating system and pre-installed apps. Apart from the occupied space, the storage does not come with exact mentioned available space. Some space is reserved for hardware level on storage. Any storage memory is not available completely for storage.If you like to store a lot of movies, music and install lots of apps, you could go with 64GB or 128GB variant or else you can go with 32GB. If you like, you can also find that if 16GB with microSD card support best suits you.

9. Extra Security

While buying a smartphone, you should also look for the security features it provides. Most of the smartphones nowadays come with security features like a fingerprint sensor and iris scanner. These do not only help you to lock and unlock your phone but also keep your important document and other files safe with protection. Fingerprint sensors are common but iris scanner comes with very few smartphones. You should consider that whether these types of extra security you require or not because it comes with a price. It is advisable to go with these kinds of extra security feature while buying a smartphone because nowadays, we all tend to store a lot of personal and important files on our smartphones.

10. Speaker and Quality of Audio

This is the important factor for those who heavily use their smartphone for video streaming and video conference. If you are one of them and would like entertainment on the go, buy a smartphone which comes with front-facing speakers. Front facing speakers will give you clear sound when holding the smartphone in landscape mode. If you do not use much video streaming or video conference, then you could go with the bottom facing speaker or back-facing speaker.

11. USB Port 

Although smartphone these days comes with both micro USB and USB Type C Port. It is advisable that you go with USB Type C port because this is future proof. More and more smartphone manufacturers are shifting to USB Type C port standard. Even a few manufacturers moving to USB Type C port as Audio Jack from traditional 3.5mm Jack.

These are few things everyone must keep in mind while buying a smartphone. You can visit www.gsmarena.com to check the specification of any before buying.

Every tech industry trying to grow their user base and when it comes to social networking, there is a lot of potentials to grow as you directly connect with users. Now Google’s Tez wants to join chat service.

In 2014 social networking giant Facebook took over Whatsapp which is widely used chat service in the market. Even though Facebook has its own Facebook Chat messenger, they took Whatsapp so that they can extend their user base to a huge crowd as Whatsapp messenger was in the top. Just recently we got big news that Facebook integrating UPI based payment services to its Whatsapp app.

UPI based payment system is growing very fast in India due to demonetization and Government’s cashless push. This is why Google launched its UPI payment service app Tez in September 2017.  As now Whatsapp which is already a chat service entering into payment industry, Tez which is already an established UPI payment service in India now wants to join instant messaging or chat service to grow its user base.

According to Google spokesperson who has given a statement to Gadgetsnow.com, the messaging features are currently available only for some users and not available to all of its users. He said

“We’ve added a feature to Tez that allows you to send simple messages back and forth to your contacts about the payments you make,”

He continued

“Further, your transaction history with each person or business is grouped together like a conversation — just as a chat apps group your messages together. This experience feels natural and enables richer, more engaging interactions,”

Google has already many instant messaging apps available like Hangouts, Allo, Voice, Messages, Hangouts Chat and Duo apart from Youtube which has its own chat interface. With this new messaging feature Tez is expected to become more popular than it’s any other instant messaging services.

With this new update, I hope that Google’s Tez app make itself a good competitor to Whatsapp and other established instant messaging services.