Chevy Bolt, the First Electric Car for the Masses

General Motors just beat Tesla Motors in the race to produce a truly affordable electric vehicle with triple-digit range.

Moments ago, GM CEO Mary Barra unveiled the all-electric Chevrolet Bolt at CES, providing the first look at what may be the most significant vehicle the automaker has built in decades. The little EV may look like just another five-door compact, but two figures make it an engineering masterstroke: 200 and 30,000.

That first number is its range: 200 miles on a fully charged battery. That’s a number exceeded only by Tesla, whose cheapest model starts north of $70,000. And that brings us to the second number. Chevy promises the Bolt will cost less than $30,000 after the $7,500 federal tax credit. Together, they make the Bolt the first EV that delivers excellent range at a great price. It is the electric car for the masses.

Source: 

Wired

Credit: Wired

Call us: 563-213-4015

Email us: sales@ripeva.com

Less Poking Around?

Google Seeks Patent on Needle-Free Blood Drawing Tech!

Google has filed for a patent on needle-free blood-drawing technology, described in a USPTO application published last week.

Application 20150342509 suggests four potential implementations of the technology, including its use in a device that has an evacuated negative-pressure barrel with a membrane sealing an aperture at the far end containing an accelerator barrel.

Upon activating a trigger, pressurized gas would shoot a microparticle within the accelerator barrel to subsonic speeds. The microparticle would consist of nano-sized gold particles bound with a biodegradable matrix consisting of polylactic-co-glycolic acid. That microparticle would pierce the membrane and a user's skin, drawing a drop of blood, which would be sucked up by the negative-pressure barrel.

The apparatus could be incorporated in a handheld or wearable device.

"Serving the diabetic community would be advantageous, both for Google, due to the size of the market, and for patients, for its ease of use," said Shane Walker, a medical technology analyst at IHS.

By Richard Adhikari

Email us: sales@ripeva.com

Call us: 563-213-4015

Toy company Hacked!

Information on more than 200,000 children has been Hacked and stolen!

VTech is the hacked maker of electronic toys and apps that leaked the data of 4.8 million customers, including hundreds of thousands of children, exposed gigabytes worth of pictures and chat histories on the same compromised servers. According to an article published on Motherboard, the website that first broke news of the breach, over 200,000 children's pictures and information has been stolen.

The Motherboard news site said a hacker who asked to remain anonymous was able to download almost 200 gigabytes worth of photos of both parents and children who had registered with the toy site. The hacker also obtained logs of chats conducted between parents and their kids and in some cases recordings of conversations. VTech encouraged parents to take the headshots and use them with apps that allow them to interact with children. The hacker, who said he didn't intend to publish or sell the data, provided Motherboard with 3,832 image files and at least one audio recording for verification purposes.

Source: 

Arstechnica

Email us: sales@ripeva.com
Call us: 563-213-4015

Windows 10 pulls update as concerns about bugs grow.

Windows 10 update mysteriously pulled!

The Downloadable versions of Windows 10 (version 1511), the November 2015 update have been removed after their release earlier this month.

Microsoft let people download the full copies of the installer using the Media Creation Tool (MCT). Media produced with the MCT can be used to perform both upgrades and clean installations and it's especially convenient when updating multiple systems. This ensures that only a single download is required. But the version 1511 MCT has been removed and replaced with the original July version. Systems can still be upgraded to the November update, but direct installation is no longer possible. Instead, the original RTM version must be in stalled and the upgrade to 1511 performed through Windows Updates.

This has become inconvenient. The ability to install 1511 on clean systems is quicker than going via the RTM version. It means on large download instead of two. Upgrading multiple systems with the MCT is also obviously preferable. It's mysterious because it's not really clean why the 1511 installer has been pulled.

Source:  Arstechnica T

Email us: sales@ripeva.com 
Call us: 563-213-4015

The Cryptowall Ransomware has Returned!

Intronis Industry and Tech Blog

CryptoWall returns for another round with CryptoWall 4.0

The gold standard in ransomware, CryptoWall, is making the rounds again with a new 4.0 release. In this revision, there are some pretty important changes that are going to make life more difficult for both infectees and security researchers looking to counter the software’s malicious activities.

If you aren’t already familiar with it, CryptoWall is a piece of software that falls under the category of “ransomware.” Ransomware products encrypt data on an infected system, preventing access until some amount of money is paid. The ransom for files is generally in the neighborhood of $500 but could be more or less depending on the developer. In most cases, the malware drops a list of targeted file types, such as .docx or .ppt, and attacks those. Once the files are encrypted, a message is displayed to inform the system’s user of the attack and how to pay the ransom.

Cryptowall 4.0 follows most of the “standards” for this type of malware. It uses the RSA-2048 algorithm, which is used by most major ransomware and is functionally unbreakable with current technology. It communicates with command, control, and communications (C3) systems using RC4 encryption, and communicates with its victims to collect the ransoms via the TOR browsing utility. It spreads via spam emails and so-called “drive-by downloads.” It also wipes shadow copies and disables system restore and startup repair, and network drives and local drives can both be affected.

What’s different about CryptoWall 4.0?

Where Cryptowall 4.0 differs is that it now encrypts the filenames as well as the files themselves, making it nearly impossible to identify which files are which. Previous iterations only encrypted the data within the files, not the filenames.

Additionally, the splash screen and ransom notes have been updated. Now, in addition to the usual instructions on how to pay for the decryption key and new filenames in each folder directory storing affected files, the ransom notes contain language that mocks the victim more than previous iterations.  Lastly, it seems that this version no longer uses the I2P protocol for communication, unlike version 3.0.

Recovering from CryptoWall 4.0 is essentially the same as in past versions: You either have to pay the ransom or restore from a backup. There’s no other way around it.

For more information on this variant, the helpful folks over at the BleepingComputer forums areactively peeling this bug apart, and they have a fantastic guide on removing the ransomwarehere.  For more information on ransomware, feel free to check out our Cybersecurity Resource Center or download our new e-book, The MSP’s Complete Guide to Cyber Security.

Call us : 1-855-974-7382  or Email us : sales@ripeva.com

Understanding the role of Information Technology in Regulations, Legislation, and Guidance

Technology has made implementations for small to midsize business more affordable than ever. With the technology implementations constantly evolving, the understanding of regulations and legislation for a particular business has become difficult and in some instances unmanageable for organization users that wear multiple "hats". Legislative bodies have been formed to assist with the requirements needed to maintain your business and minimize liability to you and your clients.

This post serves as an entry point for you to meet the legal technology related requirements for operating your business.

Industry	Standards and Legislation
Federal Government (non-DOD)	FIPS 199, 200, FISMA, NIST 800 Series, OMB A130 Appendix III
Department of Defense and other National Security Systems	DoD 8500.1 & 8500.2, DCID 6/3, DITSCAP,DIACAP
Health care	HIPAA, PCI
Financial institutions	GLBA, PCI
All publicly held organizations	Sarbanes-Oxley
Utilities	NERC,WISE
Education	FERPA, PCI

If you need further assistance with Information Technology compliance needs, please contact us to schedule a free consultation. We look forward to helping you maintain your business independence.

Call us : 1-855-974-7382

Mail us : sales@ripeva.com

5 Questions you should Ask Before Moving Email to the Cloud

Companies need the flexibility to deploy services in a private or public cloud depending on their unique needs or industry compliance requirements. In order to maximize flexibility and minimize the total cost of ownership.

If you are considering moving your email to the cloud, there are several questions to ask when deciding on which solution is right for your and your organization.

1. Can users access email both online and offline and on any device?

2. Is the platform based on an open, extensible standard?

3. What level of management support and security does your company require?

4. Does the vendor build on a modern, distributed and highly salable model?

5. What are your total costs, including software, infrastructure and operating expenses?

Cloud-based email solutions help companies meet growing expectations as well as cost reductions. It’s the next step for companies, and it’s one that will reward both employees and the bottom line.

If you need assistance, more information, or would like to schedule a free consultation, please give us a call at (855) 974-7382.  We look forward to helping you meet your needs.