'Independence Day 2' welcomes back President Whitmore and Dr. Okun

Ben Gourlay | Celebrities & Entertainment | Apr 21, 2015 12:19 AM CDT

With filming set to start in a matter of weeks on the sequel to the 1996 sci-fi classic 'Independence Day', casting news is coming thick and fast. Now, two of the original 'ID4' stars have joined the production.

According to ComingSoon, three veterans from the original film, including Bill Pullman, who played fighter pilot turned President James Whitmore, 'Star Trek: The Next Generation' star Brent Spiner who played eccentric Area 51 scientist Dr. Okun, and Judd Hirsch who played Jeff Goldblum's dad have all signed to reprise their roles. Directed by Roland Emmerich with a script by Carter Blanchard, there's currently little known about the plot - but expect more aliens and explosions.

'Independence Day 2' hits cinemas worldwide on June 24, 2016.

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AMD Radeon R9 390X rumored to be in very short supply at launch

Anthony Garreffa | Video Cards & GPUs | Apr 20, 2015 10:11 PM CDT

We're getting closer and closer to the release of the Radeon R9 390X, but we've been hearing some rumblings from within the industry. Our sources have said that AMD will have two Radeon R9 390X cards to launch: one of them will be the Radeon R9 395X2 (a dual-GPU version) with 8GB of VRAM. The second card will be a 4GB version that won't beat the GeForce GTX Titan X.

The dual-GPU will beat the GeForce GTX Titan X, but the normal 4GB won't be capable of beating NVIDIA's GM200-based beast. Our industry sources also tell us that there are some hurdles with yields on HBM, which will see a very limited supply of Radeon R9 390X and Radeon R9 395X2 cards right through to the end of the year.

We're expecting AMD to launch their Radeon R9 390X and R9 395X2 at Computex 2015, which kicks off in the first week of June. With NVIDIA having some 74% of the discrete GPU market, AMD needs to sell as many cards as they can, and these yield issues are something we don't need to hear about right now.

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Report: Better cybersecurity, safety standards needed for patient data

Michael Hatamoto | Hacking, Security & Privacy | Apr 20, 2015 9:36 PM CDT

Cybercriminals find healthcare data to be an appealing target, as medical records contain a large amount of personal information. There is a drastic need for better cybersecurity protocols - and how hospitals and other medical agencies handle paper and electronic records.

Thirty four percent of reported medical data breaches over the past three years took place in California, Florida, Texas, New York and Illinois - with a mix of healthcare system partners, insurers, and other third parties helping contribute to the problem.

"News of hacking incidents and cybersecurity [breaches] have been in the news so much lately, [that] both for industries inside and outside healthcare, one might get the impression that hacking is the most common reason for data breaches," said Dr. Vincent Liu, from the division of research for Kaiser Permanente, in a statement to Medpage Today. "In fact, we found that theft of paper or electronic records accounted for the majority - protecting the security and privacy of patient data needs to be a priority in many different venues, and with all types of patient data, including paper records."

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'Star Wars: Rebels' Season 2 trailer reveals role for Darth Vader

Ben Gourlay | Celebrities & Entertainment | Apr 20, 2015 8:36 PM CDT

The 'Star Wars' Celebration has just wrapped up in Anaheim, an exciting week for fans which revealed a new trailer for the forthcoming sequel 'The Force Awakens', along with more details on the first stand-alone feature 'Rogue One'. Now, Disney and Lucasfilm have unveiled a trailer for the second season of the 'Star Wars: Rebels' animated TV show, which reveals a bigger role for Darth Vader - with James Earl Jones returning to voice the legendary character.

Unfolding between the events of 'Star Wars: Episodes III' and 'IV', 'Rebels' tells the story of the crew of the Ghost, with characters from the original and prequel trilogies popping up throughout.

'Rebels' returns to screens later this year.

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Full 'Jurassic World' trailer delivers the dino goods

Ben Gourlay | Celebrities & Entertainment | Apr 20, 2015 6:33 PM CDT

With all the main studios battling it out to 'win' the summer blockbuster season, and with Universal Studios emboldened by their $1B payday for 'Furious 7' they're going in all guns blazing (literally) with their promotion plans for the much anticipated sequel 'Jurassic World' - the first entry in the dinosaur franchise since 2001's 'Jurassic Park III'.

With visual effects provided by Industrial Light and Magic, the dinosaurs of 'Jurassic World' should look more impressive that ever - a far cry from the low res renders from the original classic 'Jurassic Park'.

Starring Chris Pratt from last years sci-fi mega-hit 'Guardians of the Galaxy', 'Jurassic World' hits hits in 3D, 2D and IMAX screens worldwide starting on June 11.

Continue reading: Full 'Jurassic World' trailer delivers the dino goods (full post)

Cryptzone: Insider threats still pose biggest threat to companies

Michael Hatamoto | Hacking, Security & Privacy | Apr 20, 2015 3:53 PM CDT

Insider threats remain a significant threat to corporations, causing the most actual damage and harm, according to a recent survey published by the Cryptzone cybersecurity firm.

"It's remarkable that many organizations are still utilizing network security technologies developed in the nineties - a time when the Internet was still in its infancy," said Kurt Mueffelmann, president and CEO of Cryptzone. "The cyberattacks we have seen over the last few years have demonstrated that it's far too easy for hackers to steal user credentials, and then use those credentials to traverse the enterprise network in search of the most valuable data."

Forty-eight percent of respondents said IT departments are main controllers related to cybersecurity policy, 36 percent said information security owns policy control, and 12 percent noted compliance or risk management teams are responsible for security policies.

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Expert: Cyberattacks on nuclear power plants could be next 9/11

Michael Hatamoto | Hacking, Security & Privacy | Apr 20, 2015 12:43 PM CDT

Cybercriminals are finding security vulnerabilities that allow them to target critical infrastructure like electric grids, and could also begin targeting nuclear power plants, according to a cybersecurity specialist in Israel.

"The disruption and possible infiltration of critical infrastructure is the most severe form of cyberattack," said Col. Dr. Gabi Siboni, director of the cyber security program at the Institute for National Security Studies program, in a statement to the Jerusalem Post. "Such attacks on airplanes or air traffic control towers, for instance, means that hackers could cause accidents, or even paralyze entire flight systems. As of now, this area of capabilities is the exclusive domain of developed states."

The United States, UK, Israel, South Korea, and other nations have expressed concern related to critical infrastructure cybersecurity. Recently, South Korea - which has blamed North Korea - suffered a breach at its national nuclear plant operator, though quickly confirmed its 23 atomic reactors weren't at risk.

Continue reading: Expert: Cyberattacks on nuclear power plants could be next 9/11 (full post)

SentryBay shows off anti-keylogging solution for mobile users

Michael Hatamoto | Hacking, Security & Privacy | Apr 20, 2015 11:35 AM CDT

Enterprise security company SentryBay has unveiled a new anti-keylogging solution designed for smartphones, tablets, and other mobile products. To help keep mobile users secure, the product generates a dedicated secure keyboard, keystroke encryption, screen capture protection, and the generation of fake random characters.

Both Google Android and Apple iOS cache user keypad entries, providing savvy hackers with the ability to monitor and uplift what is entered.

"We are pleased to announce these latest innovations," said Dave Waterson, CEO of SentryBay. "For a long time we have been a leader in PC-based anti-keylogging technology, but after years of R&D we finally feel the solution we have developed for mobile can provide the strong data entry security that app developers are looking for."

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Cybersecurity in full display during RSA Conference in San Francisco

Michael Hatamoto | Hacking, Security & Privacy | Apr 20, 2015 10:50 AM CDT

Cybersecurity experts from around the world will descend on the Moscone Center in San Francisco for RSA Conference 2015 this week. The growing security industry is expected to be worth up to $20 billion within the next three years, as the US government and private sector companies purchase new software and hardware.

"Seven or eight years ago you could hear a pin drop at RSA," said Dan Ives, analyst at FBR Capital Markets, in a statement to FT. "Now it is going to be like a Bon Jovi concert. It is the seminal event in cybersecurity: the new year's eve, the wedding, the bar mitzvah."

A number of high-profile security incidents in 2013, 2014 and so far in 2015 have shown the need for next-generation cybersecurity solutions. More than $1 billion in venture capitalist funds have been invested in cybersecurity during Q1 2015 alone - and it appears more investors are preparing to flock to the market.

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NVIDIA reportedly allowing custom versions of its GeForce GTX 980 Ti

Anthony Garreffa | Video Cards & GPUs | Apr 20, 2015 7:48 AM CDT

One of the downsides of the GeForce GTX Titan X is that NVIDIA didn't allow add-in board (AIB) partners to modify the card with a non-reference cooler. This should all change with the GM200-powered GeForce GTX 980 Ti, with NVIDIA reportedly greenlighting custom variants of the GTX 980 Ti.

But it gets better: the current rumors have NVIDIA announcing the card sometime in late May or early June, which is right around the time of Computex. It's also the time frame in which AMD will reportedly announce its new Radeon 300 series, led by the flagship Radeon R9 390X. This could be NVIDIA's way of taking some of that thunder away, and if the GeForce GTX 980 Ti is as powerful as it should end up being (thanks to it being powered by the same GPU as the GTX Titan X), we should expect some fierce competition in terms of pricing from both camps.

The alleged specifications of the GTX 980 Ti has it powered by the GM200 core, with the same specifications as the GTX Titan X, but with a reduced framebuffer. The GTX 980 Ti should feature 6GB of VRAM, but with higher clocks than the Titan X. With custom variants, we should expect the GeForce GTX 980 Ti to be one of the fastest video cards on the market when it's released. That is, until we know what makes the Radeon R9 390X tick.

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