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An edited collection of advanced computing news from Communications of the ACM, ACM TechNews, other ACM resources, and news sites around the Web.


Building a New Tor that Can Resist Next-Generation State Surveillance
From ACM News

Building a New Tor that Can Resist Next-Generation State Surveillance

Since Edward Snowden stepped into the limelight from a hotel room in Hong Kong three years ago, use of the Tor anonymity network has grown massively.

So Much for Counter-Phishing Training: Half of People Click Anything Sent to Them
From ACM News

So Much for Counter-Phishing Training: Half of People Click Anything Sent to Them

Security experts often talk about the importance of educating people about the risks of "phishing" e-mails containing links to malicious websites. But sometimes...

Stretching the Limit of Silicon Nanowires For Next-Generation Electronics
From ACM News

Stretching the Limit of Silicon Nanowires For Next-Generation Electronics

Flexible electronics, which could be used to control flexible robots, depend on the ability to produce electrical circuits that can be repeatedly stretched and...

Microsoft Sheds Some Light on Its Mysterious Holographic Processing ­nit
From ACM News

Microsoft Sheds Some Light on Its Mysterious Holographic Processing ­nit

Since it was first unveiled, we've learned bits and pieces about the hardware inside Microsoft's HoloLens augmented reality headset.

Hints Suggest an Insider Helped the Nsa 'equation Group' Hacking Tools Leak
From ACM News

Hints Suggest an Insider Helped the Nsa 'equation Group' Hacking Tools Leak

A group called the Shadow Brokers made headlines this month by leaking a hacking tool belonging to the NSA's Tailored Access Operations (TAO) team. Now this week...

Linux Turns 25, Is Bigger and More Professional Than Ever
From ACM News

Linux Turns 25, Is Bigger and More Professional Than Ever

The Linux operating system kernel is 25 years old this month. It was August 25, 1991 when Linus Torvalds posted his famous message announcing the project, claiming...

New Air-Gap Jumper Covertly Transmits Data in Hard-Drive Sounds
From ACM News

New Air-Gap Jumper Covertly Transmits Data in Hard-Drive Sounds

Researchers have devised a new way to siphon data out of an infected computer even when it has been physically disconnected from the Internet to prevent the leakage...

Fbi Chief Comey: 'we Have Never Had Absolute Privacy'
From ACM News

Fbi Chief Comey: 'we Have Never Had Absolute Privacy'

FBI Director James Comey has some phones—650 of them, to be exact—that he'd really, really like to take a look at.

Good News—the Robocalling Scourge May Not Be Unstoppable After All
From ACM News

Good News—the Robocalling Scourge May Not Be Unstoppable After All

New data shows that the majority of robot-enabled scam phone calls came from fewer than 40 call centers, a finding that offers hope the growing menace of robocalls...

Frequent Password Changes Are the Enemy of Security, Ftc Technologist Says
From ACM News

Frequent Password Changes Are the Enemy of Security, Ftc Technologist Says

Shortly after Carnegie Mellon University professor Lorrie Cranor became chief technologist at the Federal Trade Commission in January, she was surprised by an ...

Transistors Will Stop Shrinking in 2021, but Moore's Law Will Live On
From ACM News

Transistors Will Stop Shrinking in 2021, but Moore's Law Will Live On

Transistors will stop shrinking after 2021, but Moore's law will probably continue, according to the final International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors (ITRS)...

Tour De France to ­se Thermal Imaging to Fight Mechanical Doping
From ACM News

Tour De France to ­se Thermal Imaging to Fight Mechanical Doping

They call it "mechanical doping," but the name simply doesn't do it justice.

Do We Really Need Humans to Explore Mars?
From ACM News

Do We Really Need Humans to Explore Mars?

The dazzling sunlight that flooded the lake-front restaurant where I sat down with Chris Kraft in 2014 was nothing compared to the brightness in his eyes.

Smile, You're in the Fbi Face-Recognition Database
From ACM News

Smile, You're in the Fbi Face-Recognition Database

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has access to as many as 411.9 million images as part of its face-recognition database. 

Goodbye, Obamaberry. Hello, Obamadroid.
From ACM News

Goodbye, Obamaberry. Hello, Obamadroid.

When President Barack Obama took office in 2009, he pushed to keep his BlackBerry.

Red Astroturf: Chinese Government Makes Millions of Fake Social Media Posts
From ACM News

Red Astroturf: Chinese Government Makes Millions of Fake Social Media Posts

Data scientists at Harvard University have found that the government of the People's Republic of China generates an estimated 448 million fake social media posts...

Going Digital May Make Analog Quantum Computer Scaleable
From ACM News

Going Digital May Make Analog Quantum Computer Scaleable

There are many different schemes for making quantum computers work (most of them evil). But they pretty much all fall into two categories.

Four Wild Technologies Lawmakers Want Nasa to Pursue
From ACM News

Four Wild Technologies Lawmakers Want Nasa to Pursue

Imagine a tissue-box sized device, with blades a few feet long, whirring to life after charging for a full Sol on Mars.

Dronebuster Will Let You Point and Shoot Command Hacks at Pesky Drones
From ACM News

Dronebuster Will Let You Point and Shoot Command Hacks at Pesky Drones

Anti-drone technology has been high on the shopping list of public safety and military organizations at least since a drunken federal employee crashed a drone onto...

The Leap Second: Because Our Clocks Are More Accurate Than the Earth
From ACM News

The Leap Second: Because Our Clocks Are More Accurate Than the Earth

We've recently been treated to that extra day in February that reminds us that 2016 is a leap year.
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