In recent times spyware has become quite a threat to society and information stored on your smartphones is under an even greater threat than before.
A representation image of the Pegasus spyware by Kaspersky.
Isreali company NSO, whose bread and butter is developing spyware, has been put in the limelight the past couple of days for allegedly using WhatsApp to snoop around several high-profile individuals in many countries including India. The word Pegasus keeps cropping up in association with NSO and the spying that the company is doing.
What is Pegasus?
Pegasus is a modular malware that can initiate total surveillance on the targeted device, says a report by digital security company Kaspersky. It installs the necessary modules to read the user’s messages and mail, listen to calls, send back the browser history and more, which basically means taking control of nearly all aspects of your digital life. It can even listen in to encrypted audio and text files on your device that makes all the data on your device up for grabs.
It was first discovered to Ahmed Mansoor, a UAE human rights activist, who happened to be one of its targets. He received several suspicious SMS’ on his device containing what he believed to be malicious links. He sent these messages to security experts from Citizen Lab, who along with another cybersecurity firm called Lookout confirmed the existence of Pegasus and also called it the most sophisticated malware currently in existence.
So how can we detect if our device has been infected with Pegasus? As per the report, that is not an easy task to do as the malware tries to hide quite diligently. It will self-delete if it does not hear from the command server for more than 60 days, or if it detects that it has been downloaded on the wrong device.
Are both Android and iOS devices affected?
Researchers from Lookout revealed that Pegasus exists not only for iOS but for Android as well. For the latter, the malware has been dubbed Chrysaor and it is quite similar to Pegasus, which attacks only iOS devices, but different in terms of the techniques it uses to penetrate the device.
The report states that for iOS users, Pegasus relies on three zero-day (previously unknown) vulnerabilities which could be used to remotely jailbreak the device. A zero-day vulnerability means that the developers or software experts have just learned about the flaw and as such, there is no security patch to prevent the flaw. For Android, Chrysaor does not rely on a zero-day vulnerability but instead uses a sophisticated rooting method called Framaroot to install surveillance on the target device.
Is your device safe?
Learning about the Pegasus vulnerability, Apple has immediately issued a security update (9.3.5) that patched all three of the aforementioned vulnerabilities. Google has notified directly to all those Android users who have been affected by Pegasus and it is in the process of issuing a patch for the issue.
Our list of phones under Rs 20,000 this month is dominated by Xiaomi and its sub-brands. But there’s some stiff competition too. What’s more important is the kind of features and processing power that buyers can get in this budget these days. From sharp Super AMOLED displays to 64 MP cameras to 256 GB of internal storage, you can find it all here. So let’s jump into the action and check what your best options are under 20K currently.
Best phones under Rs 20,000 in India
Realme XT
Realme XT (Review) was the first phone with a 64 MP camera that the Oppo sub-brand launched in India. And if that wasn’t enough, Realme chose to add three more cameras at the back to give it company. The quad-camera setup comprises of the main 64 MP camera, an 8 MP ultra-wide shooter, 2 MP dedicated macro camera, and a 2 MP depth sensor. The main camera supports pixel binning and captures some impressive 16 MP images in varied lighting conditions including low light. The images have a good amount of detail along with natural colours.
Realme XT runs Android 9.0 Pie with the pleasant Color OS 6.0 UI on top.
While the 64 MP camera is its marketing mouthpiece, the other features of the phone are even more impressive. The design is elegant and has a glass back that is protected by a layer of Corning Gorilla Glass 5, and so is its sharp 6.4-inch Super AMOLED Full HD+ display. There’s an in-display fingerprint scanner too. The phone is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 712 SoC which is a great choice in this segment. Its 4,000 mAh battery keeps the phone powered for a day and a half of moderate usage. But what’s even better is the bundled VOOC 3.0 fast charger that refills it from 0 to 100 in under 90 minutes, with the first 50 percent recharge taking just 30 minutes.
Realme XT runs Android 9.0 Pie with the pleasant Color OS 6.0 UI on top. The 8 GB RAM and 128 GB internal storage variant is available in this budget too, but 8 GB RAM is a bit of an overkill on this chipset. So, you can choose to save a couple of thousand Rupees and opt for the 6 GB RAM / 64 GB storage variant instead. You can always pop in a micro SD card and increase the storage.
Redmi Note 8 Pro (Review) is Xiaomi’s answer to Realme XT. This too comes with the exact quad camera combination at the back, with the 64 MP sensor being the flag-bearer. Camera performance is comparable but the colours and contrast are slightly spiced up. While purists won’t appreciate it, social media enthusiasts may actually like it. The phone’s design is as good as the XT’s with a glass back and Gorilla Glass 5 protection at the front as well as at the back. The phone is on the larger side courtesy of its 6.53-inch Full HD+ display. The company hasn’t opted for an AMOLED screen here but the display is sharp and supports HDR.
Redmi Note 8 Pro is powered by Mediatek Helio G90T SoC which raises the performance bar in the midrange segment.
The protagonist of the Redmi Note 8 Pro is its Mediatek Helio G90T SoC which raises the performance bar in the midrange segment. Not only does it outperform its Qualcomm counterparts in system benchmarks, it comfortably takes the honours in gaming performance as well. One can play PUBG Mobile on it in Ultra mode with HDR on — that’s some performance for the segment. It has a 4,500 mAh battery that can last you for a couple of days of moderate usage without much gaming, and just over a day if you indulge in ample gaming.
It runs Android 9.0 Pie with MIUI 10 on top. You again get an 8 GB variant of the phone with 128 GB storage for 2K more, but you won’t see any noticeable performance gain over the 6 GB RAM variant.
The next Xiaomi phone on the list is the Redmi K20. The K20 has a more practical but competent triple camera setup comprising a 48 MP main camera with a Sony IMX582 sensor, 13 MP ultra-wide camera with a 125-degrees FOV, and an 8 MP telephoto lens that facilitates 2X optical zoom. They manage to capture some really sharp images in varied lighting conditions. You also get an option to record super slo-mo 720p videos at 960 fps. And there’s a 20 MP pop-up selfie camera too that adds to the cool quotient of this device.
The Redmi K20 runs Android Pie with MIUI 10 on top and is equipped with a 4,000 mAh battery.
With a glass body and Aura Prime design, the Redmi K20 has one of the most attractive designs among mid-range phones. There’s a 6.4-inch Full HD+ all-screen notch-less AMOLED display protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 5. There’s also an in-display fingerprint scanner. The phone is powered by an upper-midrange Snapdragon 730 SoC and comes bundled with 6 GB RAM and 64 GB storage. There’s also a 128 GB variant that sells for 3K more and one can give it a serious thought as there is no memory card slot here. A 4,000 mAh battery keeps the phone running for over a day of moderate usage. The Redmi K20 runs Android Pie with MIUI 10 on top.
We can’t keep this phone out of our lists, can we? Xiaomi sub-brand, Poco last year launched a phone with Qualcomm’s then flagship Snapdragon 845 SoC for just over 20K in India. While its base variant was priced at 21K at launch, you can now get its top end variant with 8 GB RAM and 256 GB storage for just Rs 18,999. You can add another 256 GB to it using a microSD card, just in case. The design isn’t the most eye-catching, but it is still a beast when it comes to performance.
The Poco F1 (Review) comes with a 6.18-inch full HD+ notched display and a 12 MP + 5 MP dual camera setup at the back that does a good job in average to good lighting. The image quality is pretty good, but is nothing fancy. There’s also a more than decent 20 MP front camera for selfies. But this is mainly a phone for gamers on a budget than for camera enthusiasts. If you are looking to play PUBG in its full glory on a tight budget, Poco F1 is still an excellent option. The Poco launcher on top of Android 9.0 Pie remains a better alternative to MIUI that you get in most Xiaomi phones.
If you are looking for a classier version of the Poco F1, Asus Zenfone 5Z (Review) is a great option. This too boasts of a Snapdragon 845 chip, and now you can buy its mid variant with 6 GB RAM and 128 GB storage under 20K, which is a great deal. The storage can be expanded further up to 2 TB with a microSD card.
It has 12 MP+8 MP dual rear cameras that do an impressive job in most lighting conditions courtesy of an f/1.8, 24 mm wide-angle lens with large pixel size and 4-axis optical image stabilisation. It can also record 4K videos at 30 fps and slow-mo videos at 1080p and 720p resolution at 120 and 240 fps respectively.
The Zenfone 5Z looks and feels premium thanks to its glass and aluminium body. The 6.2-inch Full HD+ notched display is really sharp and the phone feels fairly compact in hand. The Zenfone 5Z is a solid all-round phone with premium looks, very good cameras, a powerful SoC, and now at a great price. The phone runs Android 9.0 Pie with ZenUI on top.
Shares in Nintendo Co Ltd jumped almost 7% on Friday, a day after the Japanese gaming company reported strong demand for a low-cost version of its hybrid home-portable Switch console.
This is a preview of a research report from Business Insider Intelligence, Business Insider’s premium research service. To learn more about Business Insider Intelligence, click here.
The healthcare industry is undergoing a profound transformation.Costs are skyrocketing, consumer demand for more accessible care is growing rapidly, and healthcare companies are unable to keep up.
Health organizations are increasingly turning to tech companies to facilitate this transformation in care delivery and lower health expenditures. The potential for tech-led digital health initiatives to help healthcare providers and insurers deliver safer, more efficient, and cost-effective care is significant. For healthcare organizations of all types, the collection, analyses, and application of patient data can minimize avoidable service use, improve health outcomes, and promote patient independence, which can assuage swelling costs.
For their part, the “Big Four” tech companies — Google-parent Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, and Microsoft — see an opportunity to tap into the lucrative health market. These same players are accelerating their efforts to reshape healthcare by developing and collaborating on new tools for consumers, medical professionals, and insurers.
In this report, Business Insider Intelligence explores the key strengths and offerings the Big Four will bring to the healthcare industry, as well as their approaches into the market. We’ll then explore how these services and solutions are creating opportunities for health systems and insurers. Finally, the report will outline the barriers that are inhibiting the adoption and usage of the Big Four tech companies’ offerings and how these barriers can be circumvented.
Here are some of the key takeaways from the report:
Tech companies’ expertise in data management and analysis, along with their significant compute power, can help support healthcare payers, health systems, and consumers by providing a broader overview of how health is accessed and delivered.
Each of the Big Four tech companies — vying for a piece of the lucrative healthcare market — is leaning on their specific field of expertise to develop tools and solutions for consumers, providers, and payers.
Alphabet is focused on leveraging its dominance in data storage and analytics to become the leader in population health.
Amazon is leaning on its experience as a distribution platform for medical supplies, and developing its AI-assistant Alexa as an in-home health concierge.
Apple is actively turning its consumer products into patient health hubs.
Microsoft is focusing on cloud storage and analytics to tap into precision medicine.
Health organizations can further tap into the opportunity presented by tech’s entry into healthcare by collaborating with tech giants to realize cost savings and bolster their top lines. But understanding how each tech giant is approaching healthcare is crucial.
In full, the report:
Pinpoints the key themes and industry-wide shifts that are driving the transformation of healthcare in the US.
Defines the main healthcare businesses and strategies of the Big Four tech companies.
Highlights the biggest potential impacts of each of the Big Four’s healthcare strategies for health systems and insurers.
Discusses the potential barriers that will challenge the adoption of the Big Four tech companies’ initiatives and how these hurdles can be overcome.
Subscribe to a Premium pass to Business Insider Intelligence and gain immediate access to:
This report and more than 250 other expertly researched reports
Access to all future reports and daily newsletters
Forecasts of new and emerging technologies in your industry
Ten minutes charging time to add 200 miles of driving range: scientists in the US have claimed a technological breakthrough that could resolve one of the key concerns surrounding all-electric vehicles. Writing in the journal Joule on Wednesday, researchers at The Pennsylvania State University said that such a speedy charge rate required a battery to rapidly take in 400 kilowatts of energy.
Current generation vehicles are not capable of this feat as it risks the lithium plating, the formation of metallic lithium around the anode, which would severely deteriorate battery life. To get around this constraint, the researchers raised the temperature of their experimental battery to 60 degrees Celsius during the charge cycle, then lowered it back down as it was used.
Current generation Tesla vehicles require about 30 minutes for a partial charge. Representational Image: Pixabay
What this does is “limit the battery’s exposure to the elevated charge temperature, thus generating a very long cycle life,” said senior author Chao-Yang Wang, a mechanical engineer at The Pennsylvania State University. But scaling up the design and bringing it to market may take a decade, Rick Sachleben, a member of the American Chemical Society told AFP. Makers will need to make sure that rapidly raising the temperature is safe and stable, and doesn’t lead to explosions given the phenomenal amount of energy that is being transferred.
“Fast charging is one of the holy grails of electric vehicles,” he said. “It’s one of the things that is necessary for them to compete with petroleum-fueled internal combustion engines.”
Current generation Tesla vehicles require about 30 minutes for a partial charge.
For as often as detractors like to categorize Tesla as a flash in the pan with no long-term prospects for success, the electric automaker has made a habit of proving those naysayers wrong. While Tesla’s ability to sell cars has never been an issue, the company’s ability to actually turn a profit has long been called into question. Recently, though, Tesla surprised almost everyone when the company posted a quarterly profit of $342 million when most analysts were anticipating a steep quarterly loss.
During the ensuing earnings conference call, Musk couldn’t help but heap praise on the company’s upcoming Model Y, a crossover version of Tesla’s immensely popular Model 3. Notably, Musk said that the Model Y may arrive sooner than anticipated given that production may commence by summer of 2020.
Recently, a Model Y prototype was spotted driving along a highway in California and provides us with a clearer view of the vehicle’s size. As evidenced via the video below, you can see the Model Y driving next to a Model 3, which provides us with a good sense of scale. Notably, the Model Y appears to be significantly taller than the Model 3.
If Tesla manages to release the Model Y on schedule, it will be interesting to see how well it sells. Suffice it to say, Tesla has extremely high expectations, with Musk recently claiming that the Model Y could easily become Tesla’s most popular vehicle.
“I’ve actually recently driven the Model Y release candidate, and I think it’s going to be an amazing product and very well received,” Musk said last week. “I think it’s quite likely it will — and this just my opinion — outsell the S, X, and 3 combined.”
This is a preview of a research report from Business Insider Intelligence, Business Insider’s premium research service. To learn more about Business Insider Intelligence, click here.
The healthcare industry is undergoing a profound transformation.Costs are skyrocketing, consumer demand for more accessible care is growing rapidly, and healthcare companies are unable to keep up.
Health organizations are increasingly turning to tech companies to facilitate this transformation in care delivery and lower health expenditures. The potential for tech-led digital health initiatives to help healthcare providers and insurers deliver safer, more efficient, and cost-effective care is significant. For healthcare organizations of all types, the collection, analyses, and application of patient data can minimize avoidable service use, improve health outcomes, and promote patient independence, which can assuage swelling costs.
For their part, the “Big Four” tech companies — Google-parent Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, and Microsoft — see an opportunity to tap into the lucrative health market. These same players are accelerating their efforts to reshape healthcare by developing and collaborating on new tools for consumers, medical professionals, and insurers.
In this report, Business Insider Intelligence explores the key strengths and offerings the Big Four will bring to the healthcare industry, as well as their approaches into the market. We’ll then explore how these services and solutions are creating opportunities for health systems and insurers. Finally, the report will outline the barriers that are inhibiting the adoption and usage of the Big Four tech companies’ offerings and how these barriers can be circumvented.
Here are some of the key takeaways from the report:
Tech companies’ expertise in data management and analysis, along with their significant compute power, can help support healthcare payers, health systems, and consumers by providing a broader overview of how health is accessed and delivered.
Each of the Big Four tech companies — vying for a piece of the lucrative healthcare market — is leaning on their specific field of expertise to develop tools and solutions for consumers, providers, and payers.
Alphabet is focused on leveraging its dominance in data storage and analytics to become the leader in population health.
Amazon is leaning on its experience as a distribution platform for medical supplies, and developing its AI-assistant Alexa as an in-home health concierge.
Apple is actively turning its consumer products into patient health hubs.
Microsoft is focusing on cloud storage and analytics to tap into precision medicine.
Health organizations can further tap into the opportunity presented by tech’s entry into healthcare by collaborating with tech giants to realize cost savings and bolster their top lines. But understanding how each tech giant is approaching healthcare is crucial.
In full, the report:
Pinpoints the key themes and industry-wide shifts that are driving the transformation of healthcare in the US.
Defines the main healthcare businesses and strategies of the Big Four tech companies.
Highlights the biggest potential impacts of each of the Big Four’s healthcare strategies for health systems and insurers.
Discusses the potential barriers that will challenge the adoption of the Big Four tech companies’ initiatives and how these hurdles can be overcome.
Subscribe to a Premium pass to Business Insider Intelligence and gain immediate access to:
This report and more than 250 other expertly researched reports
Access to all future reports and daily newsletters
Forecasts of new and emerging technologies in your industry
Another day, another new media streaming service. This one courtesy of WarnerMedia. HBO Max is a streaming service offering the entire HBO service, plus original programming, and older content from the vaults. HBO Max is set to launch in May 2020.
From Cable Companies to Streaming Services
A decade ago, cable companies had consumers in their pockets. They could charge what they wanted, force bundles of unwanted channels on viewers, and generally take their customers for granted. Then Netflix arrived, and people started cutting the cord in droves.
Now, there are dozens of streaming services to choose from. All offering different movies and TV shows. The most recent additions being Apple TV+ and Disney+, which are priced at $4.99/month and $6.99/month, accordingly. And now HBO Max is joining the party.
Everything You Need to Know About HBO Max
As revealed at a glossy launch event in Burbank, California, HBO Max is launching in the US in May 2020. It will initially be priced at $14.99/month. An ad-supported tier will follow in 2021, with WarnerMedia also looking to expand into Latin America and Europe.
At launch, HBO Max will offer “10,000 hours of curated premium content”. This includes existing HBO shows, new original series, and content from Warner Bros., New Line, DC, CNN, TNT, TBS, truTV, TCM, Cartoon Network, Adult Swim, and more.
The price point of $14.99/month mirrors that of HBO Now, which seems fair enough. However, it means HBO Max will be more expensive than any other major streaming service, including Netflix, Hulu, Apple TV+, Disney+, and Amazon Prime Video.
The caveat is that people already pay for HBO, so some of you will end up getting HBO Max for no extra charge. The exact details are yet to be confirmed, but existing HBO subscribers on AT&T plus HBO Now direct-billed customers should get HBO Max for free.
Are There Too Many Streaming Services?
WarnerMedia is keenly aware it’s entering a crowded market. So it’s trying to differentiate HBO Max from the competition. So, besides the usual downloads, profiles, and parental controls, HBO Max will offer human-curated content and a co-viewing feature.
Whether this all pays off remains to be seen, but HBO Max stands as good a chance as any of the other newcomers of securing a foothold in the sector. All we know is that there are too many streaming services, and some will inevitably end up failing.
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