Texting has become the king of communication—gone are the days where everyone called each other. These days, it's down-right weird when someone calls first. Whether it be on a phone or on a computer, SMS and MMS messages are the most common way people keep in contact, so why n ...more
Welcome back, my rookie hackers! For some time now, I have been contemplating this issue, can we hack back the hackers? As someone who plays on both sides of the cyber security ping pong match, I've wondered whether I can use my hacking skills in self-defense of my clients. A ...more
In most cases, when the free trial of software is over, that's it—you're left to either pay for it or find an alternative. But what happens if the trial wasn't long enough to sell you on the product? It'd be nice if there was a way to test it out again without having to whip o ...more
Apple just showed off iOS 9 and its new features at WWDC 2015, including multitasking support for iPads (finally!), a new Low Power Mode to save battery, local area search and transit directions in Maps, a highly improved "Proactive" Siri, a better Spotlight search, new apps, ...more
Welcome back, my tenderfoot hackers! Have you ever wondered where the physical location of an IP address is? Maybe you want to know if that proxy server you are using is actually out of your local legal jurisdiction. Or, maybe you have the IP address of someone you are corres ...more
Sriracha has quickly become one of the country's most universally loved condiments. The addictive and affordable chili sauce seemingly goes on anything, and with anything, and never seems to get old. To wit: when I studied abroad, all of our food was boring, pre-packaged Sysco ...more
Today I am going to teach the various ways that you can use social engineering to hack a system. For those of you that have followed my past tutorials, you know that social engineering can unlock a world of possibilities. This is because no matter how many firewalls, no matter ...more
Welcome back, my tenderfoot hackers! A short while ago, I started a new series called "How to Spy on Anyone." The idea behind this series is that computer hacking is increasingly being used in espionage and cyber warfare, as well as by private detectives and law enforcement t ...more
Essay writing is the bane of most students' educational existence. Whether you're a college student tired of slaving away over 30-plus page research papers or a high school student just trying to get through AP Language, chances are you'd love to find a way to cut down on all ...more
Can you tell when your friends are serving up a bunch of BS, or are you constantly oblivious, unsure if they're spinning a valid story? With so many ways to lie and fake information floating around, it can be impossible to tell what's the truth from what's complete BS. Here's ...more
Being the bearer of bad news is unpleasant; there's nothing more uncomfortable than offering up a spoonful of negativity. Whether you're a supervisor who spends a lot of time interviewing and rejecting candidates, or simply someone who has to say "no" to a friend, it's never f ...more
Coffee mugs: nothing proliferates more quickly in my kitchen cabinets. People are always handing them out as gifts or as swag, plus I always seem to find a vintage model or two at a garage sale that I'm compelled to buy. I used to do a yearly purge of my excess muggage, but it ...more
I hate to break it to you, but you're probably here because you were trolled. Thanks to a Photoshopped image making rounds across Twitter, Apple fans were tricked into believing that iOS 8 allowed them to lock individual apps, accessible only through a passcode or fingerprint ...more
Welcome back, my budding hackers! People often ask me, "Why are you training hackers? Isn't that illegal?" Although I usually give them a short version of this post, there are MANY reasons why YOU should be studying hacking. Before I begin, I want to re-emphasize to all of y ...more
The autocorrect feature in Apple's default iOS keyboard is anything but perfect. Sometimes it can't autocorrect things on your iPhone to want you want, while other times there's a software bug that just flat out gets it wrong. These autocorrect issues can get even worse thanks ...more
Contrary to popular belief, taking someone's mind off their sadness and telling them to "cheer up" doesn't do much good. Misery loves company, and while it may be a tiresome cliché, there's actually some science behind it. By joining a friend's moody state and commiserating w ...more
Just what are probiotics and why are they so good for you? Probiotics are "viable microorganisms" that can confer lots and lots of health benefits if they reach your intestine while they're alive. You may have heard them described as "friendly bacteria." These bacteria aren't ...more
Watermelon is the perfect snack for hot temperatures. It's hydrating, crisp, and refreshing, especially when it's chilled. Yet some people aren't content with leaving a good thing alone, which has given us many watermelon-based innovations, some great (vodka-filled watermelons ...more
Humans in general are great at keeping things about themselves private, from feelings to personality traits. While smartphones and social networks are making these secrets more open, narcissists have and always will love being out in the open with everyone's attention on them. ...more
A friend of mine has a crazy amount of Reddit karma and gold, and yesterday he let me in on his secret. This person, who will remain unnamed for obvious reasons, created a Python script called Reddit Karma Crawler that finds rising posts before they get too popular. Every goo ...more
Bees are the key to pollination and healthy vegetation, and wasps may help by assisting in pest control, but despite their benefits in the world, they're still a real pain in the ass if they're in your face. This would probably warrant an expression stronger than "pain in the ...more
Seeing that you probably can't go ten minutes without lying (according to this study), you're probably interested in becoming a better liar. The best way to do so is to learn what makes a bad liar, and then do the opposite. 1. Liars Have Revealing Micro Expressions According ...more
What is gluten, why do some people think it is pure culinary evil, and why are there more and more products devoted to being free of this mysterious substance? Here's what one person thinks: What Is Gluten Really? Gluten is a protein found in wheat (including lesser-known spe ...more
Welcome back, my hackers apprentices! To own a network and retrieve the key data, we only need to find ONE weak link in the network. It makes little sense to beat our heads against heavily fortified systems like the file and database server when we can take advantage of the b ...more
To steal a quote from Mean Girls, Halloween is the one night when a girl can dress like a total slut and no one can say anything about it—but why do girls get to have all the fun? Why can't guys use the day to be good looking? Scary good looking? Well, use one of the followin ...more
Whenever a friend borrows my Samsung Galaxy S3 to browse the web or make a quick call, I always pause to make sure there's nothing incriminating on it. I'm no superfreak, but some of my friends are, so I have more than a few photos on my device that I wouldn't wish upon anyone ...more
In the UK, 20 percent of divorce filings include the word "Facebook." You may think you're being slick by using the site to chat with your ex, but the problem is that Facebook saves everything, and I mean everything. All someone needs is your login information and they have ac ...more
Why is transferring contacts from an old smartphone to a new one still insanely difficult? I can check my bank account, upload a picture to Instagram, email someone across the globe, and check the weather forecast on my phone—all in under five minutes. So why does transferrin ...more
Parking. Ugh. Parking is about as fun as running through a swarm of bees while being chased by a pack of wolves from The Grey. There have been many times when I have come across some of the most terrible, idiotic parking jobs in the world, and really could do nothing about i ...more
Caller ID is great to have, but there are certain situations where you don't want the person you're calling to have your number. People who sometimes use their personal phones for work may not want clients knowing where to reach them outside of work, and anytime you're dealing ...more
Prepaid phones are becoming more and more popular, and tons of people can see the benefits of switching now that some companies are offering prepaid services that are on par with the big players. For a lot of folks, the only thing keeping them from switching is the huge early ...more
Everyone listens to music. I've got over 3,000 songs in my iTunes library, but am always looking for more, and I'm sure you are too. You can never have enough tunes to rock out to, right? If you're using Windows 8 like I currently am, these are some of the best apps in the Win ...more
A Steampunk's Guide to Sex was the subject of a recent successful Kickstarter campaign, and I now hold the finished book in my hands. As such, I can say (mostly) unreservedly that you should buy this book. Allow me to tell you why, before I get into the nitty-gritty about the ...more
Back in 2010, iOS developer Daniel Amitay developed a camera security app for iPhones that used an unlock screen almost identical to that of the iPhone. The app was removed in mid-2011 (though, it eventually reappeared in early-2013, still available in the iOS App Store today ...more
Apple is notoriously cryptic when it comes to the reveals of its new products, and as usual, they've kept us guessing about the release of the iPhone 5 (or "New iPhone?"). It's expected to be officially revealed on September 12, and rumor has it that sales will begin on the 21 ...more
If you've never heard of geocaching, it's kind of a grown-up treasure hunt you play everywhere in the world. GPS coordinates are given as clues and the players must find the cache box. There is usually a log book to write your name and a small toy or present to collect. The l ...more
There are a few significant improvements for your iPhone with the iOS 17.5 software update, released May 13, but my favorite is Apple's enhancements to the Apple News app, which is making its Puzzles section even more fun with Game Center integration and even a new type of wor ...more
Apple has finally given Siri the power to tell you things such as your current elevation and the ETA to your destination during navigation in Maps, thanks to the iOS 17.2 software update — but those aren't the biggest Siri improvements. The most significant update to Siri with ...more
There is a whole world of smartphone accessories out there, some of which are more quirky than others and don't get the recognition they deserve. But these sometimes strange, sometimes embarrassing products can really make life easier on your iPhone or Android phone. We've fo ...more
The initiative known as Project Aria has been the focus of curiosity around Facebook's augmented reality plans ever since Mark Zuckerberg revealed the device around this time last year. Now more details about the device have emerged to flesh out more about how it works. • Do ...more
When learning Wi-Fi hacking, picking a compatible Wi-Fi network adapter is the first step to learning to crack Wi-Fi passwords. Many compatible adapters have swappable antennas, and there are several different kinds of specialized antennas you can add to a network adapter to ...more
Even for those of us who enjoy spending time alone at home, at a certain point, it just gets boring. We all need social interaction, but with stay-at-home orders, that can be hard to come by. If you're feeling the itch to hang out with friends and have a good time, you should ...more
Arduino is a language that's easy to learn and supported on many incredibly low-cost devices, two of which are the $2 Digispark and a $3 ESP8266-based board. We can program these devices in Arduino to hijack the Wi-Fi data connection of any unlocked macOS computer in seconds, ...more
One of my favorite perks of this job is the opportunity to try out all the big flagship phones each year. Whether it's rating their suitability for a particular use-case or just entering their specs into our comparison tool, we have to get our hands on all major phones release ...more
There's never been a better time for streaming movies and TV shows on the go. With so many services available, the only limitation to your enjoyment is your phone's accessories. Whether you're buying for yourself or someone else, here are some of the best gifts that improve th ...more
I already know what you're thinking: this guide is blasphemy. I am showing you how to turn a Galaxy Note 10 or 10+ into an iPhone 11 Pro Max. And while I'd usually agree with you, hear me out. How can you know you don't like something until you try it? So here is your way of t ...more
While iOS 13 introduces over 200 new features for your iPhone, one of the biggest focuses this year is Photos and Camera. The update completely overhauls the Photos app, creating a more organized and natural way to interact with your pictures and videos. You'll also find a few ...more
I think we all like the idea of getting paid games for free with minimal effort. Typically, though, anything claiming to help you do that is either illegal or a scam. But there are actually quite a few no-fuss methods that can get you paid games without going too far out of yo ...more
The Pixel 3a came out of nowhere and flexed its muscles to show the industry that you can have a great phone without a hefty price tag. Since Pixel smartphones are first-party devices straight from Google, you can be sure you'll have root access one way or another. For right n ...more
You're in constant communication with your friends and family. The only issue? Nobody uses the same app. Messenger, Instagram, WhatsApp — you have contacts spanning all three, and the resulting balancing-act to keep in touch can be overwhelming. That's why Facebook — who owns ...more
You would think that recovering your smartphone or another important item that you leave behind in an Uber ride would be a simple process, but it can actually be a pain in the ass. You have to find out how to report it to the driver, hope the driver is honest, pay a fee, and c ...more
Encrypting payloads and encoding stagers are more effective against macOS than one might think. It's very easy to evade VirusTotal and macOS antivirus software using a few simple tricks. The goal of this project was to locate a known and easily detectable macOS payload, then ...more
Over the years, Magic Leap's long-cultivated shroud of mystery led some onlookers to buy into the company's dream before even trying the device, while for others, the secrecy seems to have stoked the kind of resentment and overcorrecting critique usually reserved for the might ...more
Following the launch of the Magic Leap One earlier this month, the device and the company took a few hits from early reviewers. But it turns out those were just love taps compared to the absolute scorched earth acidic screed penned this weekend by someone well credentialed to ...more
Something that always brings a tear to my eye is uninspired Instagram stories. When you have a bunch of like-minded friends, you end up with like-minded stories. While it may seem difficult to stand out, stickers were designed so that you can differentiate yourself from other ...more
Many operators use elevators to control access to particular floors, whether it be the penthouse at a hotel or a server room in an office building. However, the law requires them all to have a fire service mode, which gives emergency access to restricted floors, and a hacker c ...more
Nova Launcher is one of the most popular apps on the Play Store thanks to its rich features and fluid navigation. But one downside that comes with this abundance of features is that much of Nova's functionality is lost on the masses. Fortunately, I've used Nova for several yea ...more
The augmented reality industry made great strides in 2017, but its apex is not even in sight. In terms of software, augmented reality is approaching meaningful mainstream awareness, thanks mostly to Apple and ARKit. Meanwhile, on the hardware side, AR is very much in its infa ...more
Cruise Automation, the driverless car startup General Motors (GM) bought for $1 billion in 2016, is readying a formidable fleet of robo-taxis for rollout in cities throughout the US. But when it comes to details about how the company plans to realize these lofty goals, it's be ...more
Tossing an old Android smartphone with a decent battery into your hacking kit can let you quickly map hundreds of vulnerable networks in your area just by walking or driving by them. The practice of wardriving uses a Wi-Fi network card and GPS receiver to stealthily discover a ...more