Amazon values encryption so much that it drops support on Kindle Fire tablets

Amazon has came out in support of encryption, following Apple's recent legal battles with the US government, saying that it "plays a very, very important role" in protecting customer data.

But you might be surprised to learn that Amazon has also decided to quietly drop support for full disk encryption on its Android-based Kindle Fire tablets. Since it is portraying itself as an encryption and consumer advocate, its decision to go in the opposite direction strikes me as sheer hypocrisy.

Amazon says that the reason why full disk encryption is no longer supported on its Kindle Fire tablets is that few customers were taking advantage of this feature. As you may know, full disk encryption is not enforced by default, but users who want the extra protection can turn it on easily from the Android's settings menu. The average user probably does not even know it exists, but power users are obviously more knowledgeable and more willing to go the extra mile.

Amazon wants to look good in the eyes of privacy advocates and its own customers, but it no longer seems to want to deal with any of the implications that encryption support entails: added costs. And I am not talking just about maintaining the software.

The hardware can most likely handle full disk encryption, because, after all, this feature was available until recently. But, if users have issues, support teams have to take their complaints, testers have to investigate those problems, and, finally, developers have to create patches. This all takes time and resources, which ultimately costs Amazon money. Meanwhile, if the US government needs access to Amazon's customers' data, its agencies will be able to easily extract that information from Kindle Fire devices -- and, just like that, Amazon avoids any costly legal battles.

But, in doing that, Amazon has created a new problem: its decision to drop encryption support is backfiring. Normally, this would not be such a big issue, but considering all the talk surrounding encryption and privacy coupled with Amazon's public stance, you can understand why this is "stupid", as cryptologist Bruce Schneier put it.

"Removing device encryption due to lack of customer use is an incredibly poor excuse for weakening the security of those customers that did use the feature", explains Jeremy Gillula, Electronic Frontier Foundation staff technologist. "Given that the information stored on a tablet can be just as sensitive as that stored on a phone or on a computer, Amazon should instead be pushing to make device encryption the default -- not removing it".

Amazon's CTO seems to share the same opinion, as Werner Vogels says that "encrypting your data... of your customers is mandatory. It is not only mandatory from a business point or in the cloud, but also on premise. You should be encrypting your data".

"So we are very strong believers that encryption should be in the hands of our customers and they should be the ones who decide who has access to the data and nobody else", Vogels adds. I suspect that after this whole fiasco Amazon will learn that you cannot say one thing and do another, if it inconveniences you in any way.

Photo Credit: mikute/Shutterstock

Source: Amazon values encryption so much that it drops support on Kindle Fire tablets

Toshiba tablets at Black Friday prices

Matt Granite , WGRZ 11:04 PM. EST March 03, 2016

Toshiba Encore

BUFFALO, NY -- - In my continued quest to save you as much cash as humanly possible, today a tablet deal that makes this Friday feel more like Black Friday. 

Before we get to the deal, I will be on vacation next week and not posting daily savings articles. If you'd like to have the biggest deals in the country emailed to you, subscribe to my deal list right here. 

The problem with most of the tablet deals we see these days is they are completely under-equipped. While many tablets in the $150 - $200 range look nice, they are designed for consuming content (watching videos, and browsing the web) rather than producing content. 

Today's Toshiba Tablet deal packs enough punch for productivity, work correspondence and the power of Windows to get many common jobs done on the fly. 

The Toshiba Encore 2 just dropped to its lowest recorded price and what makes this tablet different is the quad-core processor, generous 64 GB of storage (8 times more than the entry level fire tablet), superb speakers and solid display. 

Check out my unboxing of the Toshiba Encore 2 tablet right here alongside a speed demo. 

The operating system, front and read cameras, battery life and expandable storage makes this a no-brainer buy at $169. While I would never pay $300+ for this tablet, the under $170 price plunge is very enticing. 

$160 Off 8" Toshiba Encore 2 Tablet + Free ShippingWas: $329.99Now: $169.99**There is a slightly different color and older model of this tablet available online for $10 less. 

Additional features include:

·         1.33 GHz Intel Atom Quad-Core Processor

·         8.0" 10-Point Multi-Touch IPS Display

·         WXGA 1280 x 800 Native Resolution

·         Integrated 64GB Storage & 2GB of RAM, Expandable storage

·         5 megapixel read camera and 1.2 megapixel front camera

·         Stereo speakers and integrated microphone

Matt Granite is host and producer of "Ways to Save", a daily deal and consumer segment for TV, web and USA Today. No company pays us to feature their products. For exclusive daily deals and freebies, get on his list. 

Source: Toshiba tablets at Black Friday prices

We have a serious problem in the Church with a secrecy default button

03 March 2016 | by Sara Maitland | Comments: 0

I have never watched Downton Abbey and have thankfully never had to manage a large servants' hall, but I am pretty certain that secret meetings of the upper servants in the Housekeeper's Room (or should that be Butler's Pantry; housekeepers tend to be female) designed to circumvent the known wishes of the family would be a sacking offence.

Yet thi s is what the English bishops did last month when they rejected a request from the Council of Priests, of Hexham and Newcastle diocese, to support the ordination of married men. The bishops' plenary sessions are held as private meetings and they only tell us what they choose us to know, and we would not even have heard that they had discussed the issue if Bishop Seamus Cunningham had not properly reported back to his clergy.

This would be pretty bizarre behaviour anywhere except in the Church (for us it is normal). Apart from anything else, what on earth does it say about the bishops' teaching office? We know that a substantial number of the laity believe that the celibacy of the clergy is less important than regular and widespread access to the sacraments; we could be wrong but it would be quite good to know why.

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Source: We have a serious problem in the Church with a secrecy default button

Dell Venue 8 7000 tablet with Intel RealSense drops to $200 (50 percent off)

If you're sick and tired of the same old ultra-low-cost, low-end Android tablets rehashed over and over again these past few years, with more compromises offered than decent features, the Dell Venue 8 7000 Series was quite the original alternative ever since late 2014.

Only one problem there – the "world's thinnest tablet" couldn't compete with entry-level Amazon Fires or Samsung Galaxy Tabs in terms of affordability. Which is still the case today, but at least the Quad HD 8-incher no longer goes for eight times as much as the Fire 7. Just four times now, namely $200, down from the initial list price of $400.

Apart from a super-sharp OLED screen with 359 ppi pixel density, the Dell Venue 8 7000 also shines in the display-to-body ratio department. Oh, yes, this bad boy is over 76 percent screen, and it measures a measly 6.1mm in depth.

It almost completely does without vertical bezels and the top horizontal edge, though it's got a chin like no other, needed to provide grip, as well as house front-firing stereo speakers and a 2MP cam. Of course, when it comes to photography, the standout function is called Intel RealSense, and basically lets you re-focus your lens to highlight any section of a pic after said snapshot is taken.

Innovation or gimmick? Given the technology hasn't really spread since two years ago, the latter sounds closer to reality. Still, at $200, it's a gimmick worth having, alongside 2GB RAM, quad-core Intel Atom Z3580 processing power, 9.5-hour battery life, and Android 5.0 Lollipop software.

If you want more than the base 16GB storage space, the 32GB Venue 8 7000 variant is heavily discounted too, from $450 to $250, both at Dell and Amazon.

Sources: Dell US Store, Amazon.comVia: Android Police

Source: Dell Venue 8 7000 tablet with Intel RealSense drops to $200 (50 percent off)

Amazon Recalls Kindle Fire Tablet Chargers Amid Electrocution Fears

Amazon has issued an urgent safety warning and admitted the plugs on its Kindle Fire tablets could deliver risky electric shocks.

The retail giant told customers that it would replace the wall plugs for the devices after it was found it may "create a risk of electrical shock".

Amazon stressed the problem lies specifically with the power adapters, rather than the tablets themselves.

However, it insisted the issue was "rare" and reassured parents it took action as soon as the problem was spotted. "We wanted to proactively reach out to customers out of an abundance of caution".

Customers can either request a free replacement direct from Amazon, or they can request a £12 credit to their account, so that they can purchase an alternative adapter of their choice.

Users of 7 inch Amazon Fire Tablets in the UK may be interested to know that Amazon has today announced the voluntary recall and exchange programme for power adapters sold with select Fire Tablets within the United Kingdom and Ireland.

"Power adapters sold in other countries and power adapters shipped with Fire HD and Fire HDX tablets are not affected and need not be exchanged". Amazon has contacted owners via email to warn them that these adapters may cause electric shocks.

Amazon has advised its customer to charge their tablets via a USB cable attached to a PC while they wait for replacement parts.

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Source: Amazon Recalls Kindle Fire Tablet Chargers Amid Electrocution Fears

Second hand shop staff found child porn on Nuneaton man's tablet and laptop

When staff at the Cash Generators shop in Nuneaton began to prepare a tablet computer for resale, they were horrified to find child pornography on it.

So the police were contacted – and when a laptop computer sold by the same customer was checked, that also had child porn on it - Warwick Crown Court has heard.

As a result, Russell Wilkin was arrested and, after first trying to blame his son or his lodger, pleaded guilty to four charges of making indecent images of children.

Wilkin, aged 34, of Vernons Lane, Nuneaton, was given a three-year community order and was ordered to take part in a three-year internet sex offender's treatment programme.

Judge Andrew Lockhart QC also ordered him to carry out 100 hours of unpaid work and to register as a sex offender for five years.

Read More Shock report: Paedophiles plying girls with drink and drugs in Coventry park

Prosecutor William Douglas-Jones said that on a laptop hard drive found at Wilkin's home were 3,704 indecent images of children aged from 12 to 15 classed as being in category C – showing them in indecent poses but without any sexual activity.

The police also found two category A images showing pre-pubescent children being subjected to penetrative sexual abuse.

On another laptop and a tablet, both of which had been sold to the Cash Generators shop in Bridge Street, Nuneaton, were 749 and 452 category C images respectively.

They had been sold to the shop on a buy-back agreement, but Wilkin had failed to do so at the end of the agreement period in relation to the tablet.

So staff began to prepare it for sale, and when they came across indecent images of children on it, they reported it to the police.

A check revealed that the same customer had sold them a laptop, so that was checked as well and more images were found.

When Wilkin was arrested and interviewed in June, he denied being responsible.

Wilkin was sentenced at Warwick Crown Court, below

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He accepted he had accessed an adult site, but suggested that his lodger or his son might have viewed the younger images, which Judge Lockhart said was "an unattractive feature."

Mr Douglas-Jones added that in a later interview Wilkin said he wanted to tell the truth and admitted being responsible, but had not intended to download that many and had not noticed the category A images.

Judge Lockhart commented: "The aggravating features are that they were left on a laptop that some other poor person has to clear down, and that he lies in interview and lays the blame at the door of others."

Nick Devine, defending, said: "It was a childish reaction of trying to blame others.

"But long before that second interview he told the person who represented him at the police station that he wanted to change his statement.

"There is remorse. He does regret what he did, and he did plead guilty at the first opportunity. Plainly he does have problems which need to be addressed."

Read More Appeal court says school caretaker who filmed children going to the toilet is "not dangerous"

Sentencing Wilkin, Judge Lockhart told him: "In 2015 you sold a tablet and a laptop to Cash Generators which contained the vilest type of material.

"Every time someone looks at an image of a child, that child suffers further abuse. Every separate viewing is a separate act of abuse.

"You had not deleted those images, and other people had the displeasure of having to view that material.

"You then acted like a complete coward and sought to blame your son or your lodger. That was a very unpleasant thing to do.

"But in October you decided to tell the truth, and you said you did it alone when you were high on drink and drugs. You were suffering from a certain amount of depression and social isolation at the time.

"The appropriate way forward is for me to pass a stringent community order, because I want you to have to face up to this behaviour day in and day out across the table in front of a probation officer."

If you've been a victim of sexual crime you can contact Coventry Rape And Sexual Abuse Centre on 024 7627 7777 or visit www.crasac.org.uk

Source: Second hand shop staff found child porn on Nuneaton man's tablet and laptop

Tablet, '90s Deep Ellum Heroes, Make a Comeback After Nearly 20 Years Away

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Tablet played a private reunion at Poor David's last December.

Courtesy Tablet

There was a time in the 1990s when Tablet was inescapable around Dallas. Between 1993 and 1997, they were pegged to go the way of Tripping Daisy, the Toadies and Old 97's, with their songs on the radio and playing live quite a bit. But when frontman Steve Holt stepped away from the band after one album on Mercury Records, it was all over.

Now, almost 20 years later, Holt and Tablet are back together for a vinyl reissue of their album Pinned and a show in April at Gas Monkey Bar N' Grill. And we have Holt's teenage son to thank for why the band got back together.

Holt had moved on to a few different bands after Tablet, including Ohno, Fireworks, the Now and Binary Sunrise. He loved making a living as a science teacher, but the desire to play music again never went away. He kept a copy of Pinned in his car as a memento, but never listened to it. One day on a long drive, his son and friend wanted to hear the CD. Remembering what he loved about the band and their songs, he thought about playing them again.

"Their reaction cleared my head a little bit," Holt remembers. "[Tablet] had a lot of baggage around it. I had changed a lot. I'm proud of what we did, but at the same time I always want to keep moving forward." His son and friend liked what they heard and Holt got to thinking. "I set all my prejudices aside and listened to it with an open mind," Holt says.

While there had been talk of reuniting the band in the past few years, it finally came together after Holt called Tablet guitarist Paul Williams about a reunion. Williams himself had found a lucrative career working as a producer and engineer. After Tablet had worked with Matt Hyde on Pinned, Williams got more interested in the production side of things. Working with a number of acts like Eleven Hundred Springs, Flickerstick, Salim Nourallah and Chris Holt, he's remained very busy on that end, as well as in his roles as co-owner of State Fair Records and a member of Mur.

Holt and Williams contacted Tablet's drummer, David Christopher, and he was game. As far as the bassist situation, the band had included a handful of different ones during their original time together. They decided to ask Williams' Mur bandmate Max Hartman to play bass, thus rounding out the lineup. The new version played a private show at Poor David's Pub last December.

"When we first got in the room to play together, there's an undeniable sound that we make," Williams says. "The type of energy and power we have as a group is unique in what we do. There's a lot of quirky stuff and melodies in the songs."

With a 180-gram vinyl reissue of Pinned on State Fair happening, plus work underway on songs the band never released, there is considerable excitement going into the show in April. "We're doing a lot of songs from Pinned and we have another 10 or 12 tunes that we all liked that we played back then," Williams says. Holt realizes how rare it was that bands like Caulk, Funland and Radish got major label interest just off of local momentum. "We worked really hard, but the way things lined up, the timing — it was amazing," he says. "You can either get really negative about it or you can say, 'God damn, we were lucky to actually be a part of that and live through it.'"

But while other '90s bands like Jibe have also reunited recently, Holt isn't living in the past. "I mean, there's a shitload of interesting things going on right now," he says. He sees no end in sight of amazing bands and with streaming making music so accessible to hear now, he looks forward to the future. "If you focus on the problem, the problem gets bigger," he adds. "If you focus on the solution, the solution gets bigger."

Holt loves seeing venues like Dada, Three Links and Trees bring in local and national acts, and he hopes matters in Deep Ellum continue on an uphill swing. "In retrospect, I hope it happens again for my son," Holt says. "Whatever he experiences, I hope there's something amazing that he can look back on and feel happy that he was a part of something significant."

Tablet, the Orange and Manny the Martyr play a free show at Gas Monkey Bar N Grill on Saturday, April 16, 2016

Source: Tablet, '90s Deep Ellum Heroes, Make a Comeback After Nearly 20 Years Away