The Next Big Identity Threat

If you're the average person your phone holds your life. Schedules, appointments, reminders, personal pictures, notes, your favorite music, banking information, etc; New features being championed by credit card companies would even turn your phone into a credit card. This has made the cell phone a prime target for hackers and identity thieves alike. Most phones, however, offer little in the way of security make your phone a prime target.

If you're like me you have apps galore. Everything from Facebook and Twitter to Evernote, Pandora and everything in between. Most of us live our lives off our phones. From the alarm that wakes us up in the morning to the playlist that puts us to sleep at night. So much of our identity is stored to our phones and identity thieves want access. With many phones connecting directly to our content with out passwords for easy access, a cell phone in a thief or hacker's hands could be devastating.

What's more cell phone providers, credit card companies, Google and Paypal are rushing to push apps which could potentially give thieves direct access to our bank accounts. MasterCard, Citibank and Google have teamed up to bring you Google Wallet , which works anywhere that accepts MasterCard Paypass and would allow you to swipe your phone just like a Paypass card. AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile also have a similar app Isis in the works. These all work on what is called a NFC, near field communication, chip. The technology does seem like a promising development for the future of commerce, however, with few firewalls on phones to prevent catastrophe it may not prove to be viable.

The smart phone killed the phone as we once knew it. When cell phones first become popular most people had it glued to their ears or spent their time frantically texting away. However, with the rise of the data revolution many users spend much more time on the internet on their phones than actually talking to people. In fact most of us spend more time talking to our friends via facebook on our phone than actually directly talking our texting them. Many developers had that in mind and many operating systems are dangerously without protection. Like computers you can buy virus protection for your mobile device but few people actually do. Which leaves the devices open for security breeches. With added security issues mobile developers should evolve to take greater steps to provide security for their customers but if not people need to take security into their own hands. You have been warned.

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Kinect Sesame Street allows Kids to Interact With Show

Ever watched your kid jump and down and talk at your TV during Sesame Street like Elmo and company are really listening? Well, now they are. Microsoft and Sesame Street have teamed up to bring Kinect Sesame Street to kids across the nation. The plan is to uses the  Kinect for Xbox 360 to allow children to interact with the show. Instead of merely watching kids will be allowed to actively answer questions, communicate and interact with what is going on in the show. This could help be a boon for Sesame Street which is using the device to develop more interactive content for their television programming. The current Kinect Sesame Street offers only episodes from last season but will offer more episodes in the future and the shows direction will move towards more interactive content. The use of the Kinect for Sesame Street could have further implications for other children's programming and classrooms as a whole.

The Kinect Sesame Street allows children to communicate with what they are seeing in ways they never have before. The program, which is available next week, allows kids to throw balls back and forth with Elmo, count coconuts on with Grover, even communicate with on screen characters who react to what the child says. Sesame Street already has a host of apps, but this will be their first attempt at integrating their television content with your child's interactions.

What Sesame Street hopes to accomplish with this is an active learning environment for your child. With the television being a passive medium many children do not retain information by simply watching. However, through the act of participating with these programs the children are opened up to a more effective learning environment. Other educational programs could soon follow suit. Nat Geo WILD also has a plan in the works.

The impact could reach beyond television and into the classroom. The technology could allow for more advanced subjects to be taught through one-on-one interactive learning allowing individual students and classrooms to receive hands on interactive education. What are your thoughts? Is this something you would buy for your child and what do you think the further implications of this could be?

Nintendo's New TVii Puts Google TV On Notice

Nintendo has just released word of its new WiiU console and already pre-orders for the system are selling out. That's because once again Nintendo has out done itself and changed the way we interact with video games, even entertainment as a whole. The new Tvii for WiiU blows Google's Google TV out of the water by successfully integrating TV and Internet in a unique and user friendly experience. This development is huge and is likely the reason WiiU is already selling like hotcakes. The WiiU will come in two different specifications.One a white 8 GB device retailing at 299.99; the other a black 32 GB device retailing at 349.99. As can be seen above the WiiU comes with a tablet like controller that features a touchscreen. Like the Wii controllers this controller uses motion control and for multiplayer the Wii nunchuck controllers can still be used. The new Tvii feature, however, is truly what sets the device apart. Tvii integrates Hulu, Netflix, Tivo and your current cable providers content into one searchable location and then plays it on your television. No changing inputs required and works no matter who your cable provider may be. Tivo, as of right now may be the only DVR that Nintendo is working with, however, Nintendo indicates that may soon change. To show furthermore that they had pulled out all of the stops, while watching your favorite show, movie or sporting event the WiiU controller displays information and stats about what you are watching. This feature is most impressive when watching sports, giving you a breakdown of stats field position and other games. It even categorizes games in order of your personal preference. In all the WiiU looks pretty damn exciting and I personally can't wait to get my hands on one. Tell me what you think. What's your favorite thing about the new WiiU?

Space X Launch

  Tuesday morning at 3:44 A.M. Space X rocket, Falcon 9, blasted off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Emotions were riding high prior to launch as Space X's second attempt at a launch proved successful. The Falcon 9 will be delivering a 1000 lb. payload to the International Space Station. This marks a historic event in space flight as this is the first attempt by a privately owned company to pull off a mission into near space. Space X also was the first private company to successfully launch, orbit and recover a space craft. Space X plans to continue it's close work with NASA, with the goal of launching a Martian rover in 2018, as well as some other private companies and wealthy individuals. For a hefty fee individuals will be able to catch a ride on a Space X shuttle to the ISS. Elon Husk has stated his goals for the company are to land one of the companies' spacecrafts on an asteroid as well as eventually putting Humans on Mars and further colonization establishing a future human presence on the planet.

Google Wallet Makes Wallets A Thing Of The Past

In an effort to continually expand their market Google has developed Google Wallet, a cell phone app that turns your cellphone into a wallet. Currently the app only works only for the Sprint network and Nexus phone, however, Google seems poised to expand this, as Cnet has reported LG Optimus Elite Gains Access to the Google Wallet App. The app integrates bank and credit card accounts, namely Citi, MasterCard and Google Prepaid to be purchase items through stores offering Mastercard PayPass. It also allows savings via coupons earned through Google. Though locations and devices are currently limited, Google and other major companies in the financial, telecommunications, and retail industry seem ready to push forward with similar capabilities. Visa recently came to an agreement with the European Company Vodafone which would allow users in Europe to have similar capabilities to the Google Wallet. AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon have also announced a joint venture with Chase, Barclays and Capitol One called Isis which will be those companies' version of the Google Wallet. The technology that makes all this possible is referred to NFC, Near Field Communication  and most major phone carriers have committed to installing the chips into their cellphones in the near future. Not only would something like this permit you to use your phone at terminals accepting it, it would also allow money to be transferred from person to person via mobile devices with the built in chip set. Google pledges that the Google Wallet will be safer than a wallet by requiring passwords and never revealing any personal information on the screen and encryption to block any would be hackers. I myself would like to see this feature integrated with other financial institutions and more touch pay terminals, however, in effort to simplify finances I think the Google Wallet and others will likely complicate the market even more.    

FBI Looks To Expand Internet Wiretapping

Robert Mueller, Federal Bureau of Investigations Chief, recently appeared before Congress to lobby for expanding the FBI and other law enforcement agencies' wiretapping capabilities. Under the current law, The Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act or CALEA, the telecommunications industry is required to build back doors into their networks to allow law enforcement authorized interception of conversations. Yet, the FBI is still petitioning for greater power. In prepared remarks, FBI General Counsel, Valerie Caproni stated that wiretapping should include, "Web-based e-mail, social networking sites, and peer-to-peer communication technology." Currently, social networking sites like Facebook and peer-to-peer communication services like Skype or Xbox Live are not covered under the legislation. However, in the 1990's when the law was enacted proposals to use similar means to monitor the internet and similar services were rejected. Any amendment to the law would be great deviation from current practices. Spokespeople for the FBI say new legislation will be submitted in hopes that Congress grant the Bureau it's requests for greater access to such sites and applications, forcing the service providers to comply. However, some of these service providers are headquartered outside of the United States and the stretch of Justice Departments arm could be limited. Furthermore, the legislation would be extremely unpopular to the tech industry which had a hand in dismantling support for SOPA and PIPA, laws that sought to force internet providers to block certain websites in attempt to stop online piracy. Further legislation in favor of the bureau is supported by Conservative Republicans; but in an election year and with Democrats, who do not support it,  having control of the Senate the law would likely be dead in the water. I myself, being a strong proponent of personal privacy, think any further legislation would be an over-stepping of boundaries by the FBI and the Department of Justice, as well as, a violation of the power allotted to the Executive Branch of the Federal Government .

The Eagle Has Landed

Geeked Out Electronics is now in the early part of phase one in establishing total and complete dominance in the consumer electronics industry. That is we have finally gotten off the ground. With more products to come, my hope is that Geeked Out Electronics will become your premier provider of cutting-edge, high-end electronics at discount prices. Some of the first products we are offering now are The HP Envy 17 and The Samsung D7000 Smart TV through Ebay. The HP Envy 17 features a 3D screen and is on the cutting-edge of laptop capabilities. The one available through my Ebay actually boasts 2TB of hard drive space, 1080p resolution and clocks in at an impressive 2.3GHz using intel's 2nd generation i7 processor. The Samsung Smart TV is a 3D Smart TV, chock full of apps and allowing the complete immersion of 3D technology and measuring 55 inches so no squinting required on this bad boy. Geeks rejoice the future is here and it looks sweet.