Tag: Microsoft

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Microsoft To Release Two Face-Recognition Webcams In 2019

As reported by blogger Paul Thurrott, Microsoft is planning to roll out two Ultra-HD webcams in 2019. The technology giant company is, more specifically, working on launching two face-recognition webcams in 2019, one dedicated to Windows 10 computers, while the other would be compatible with Xbox One.

Microsoft to offer Windows 10 users access to biometric functions via a face-recognition webcam in 2019

Microsoft is planning to roll out a face-recognition webcam in 2019 to provide Windows 10 users access to biometric functions. Biometric authentication would be, therefore, available for all Windows 10 computers thanks to the new Ultra-HD camera the giant tech company is thinking to release in 2019.

Face recognition, fingerprint authentication, and other biometric features would be available via the Windows Hello platform. Noteworthy, these functions are already accessible via Microsoft Surface computers. Thus, Microsoft’s final goal would be to make biometric authentication available, at least limited to facial recognition, for the time being, to all Windows 10 users.

Microsoft would also roll out a second face-recognition webcam, but for the Xbox One

Similarly to the camera model the company plans to launch for Windows 10 computers, to expand biometric authentication via face-recognition features, Microsoft will release another Ultra-HD camera for Xbox One.

This face-recognition camera for Xbox One would work similarly to that one for Windows 10. It would also come out in 2019, most likely at the same time with that model for Windows 10 computer, that we’ve debated in the section above. This Xbox One face-recognition camera would allow gamers to log in faster, while will also enable multiple users to sign in, so it would expedite the start of gaming sessions.

According to the information presented by industry blogger Paul Thurrott, both these face-recognition webcams Microsoft plans to roll out in 2019 would be compatible with USB-C and would have the final goal to ease up the users’ authentication process on Windows 10 and Xbox One consoles.

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New Office App For Windows 10 Rolled Out

In their struggle to make Office apps more straightforward to use, Microsoft released a new Office app for Windows 10. The new application is, in reality, an “Office hub” for all the Microsoft office users’ needs. The new “Office hub” makes it easier for users to move back and forth and access productivity apps and the most recent documents people worked on before.

According to Microsoft, the new Office app for Windows 10 was inspired by the web-based variant of the Office suite, Office.com. As the company reported, Office.com also acts as a “hub,” permitting web-based users to access productivity apps and recent documents in just a couple of clicks, thus, easing up the job of users.

Also, recently, Microsoft also implemented new visuals to its Office suite apps, in particular to Microsoft Outlook for iOS, which is now boasting several UI and navigational changes. Also, the company added the new “sensory feedback” in its Outlook variant for iOS.

New Office App For Windows 10 Rolled Out

For the time being, the new Office app for Windows 10 is only available for Windows Insiders. Soon, however, it would come out for every Windows 10 user out there, worldwide, but Microsoft did not reveal when that would be happening. The new “Office hub” application is compatible with any Office 365 subscription, Office 2019, Office 2016 and Office Online, as well.

According to Microsoft, the new Office app for Windows 10 will become available via Microsoft Store. However, starting with the summer of 2019, the new Office application would come out preinstalled on new Windows 10 devices.

In short, Microsoft released a new Office app for Windows 10. The new application is, in reality, an “Office hub” which offers quick access to Office suite programs and recent documents, in a very similar way to what we already have on the web-based version of Office, available on Office.com.

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New Internet Explorer Zero-Day Vulnerability Made Microsoft Release A Security Patch

A couple of days ago, Microsoft released a security patch to fix a new Internet Explorer zero-day vulnerability. According to many reports, the IE 0-day security flaw is used massively lately. As Microsoft reported, the credits for discovering and reporting the vulnerability goes for Clement Lecigne of Google’s Threat Analysis Group.

As reported by a security advisory published along with the security patch, the new Internet Explorer zero-day vulnerability permits cyberattackers to execute malicious code on a victim’s computer. Dubbed as CVE-2018-8653, this security flaw is exploitable in web-based environments where a hacker attracts a visitor on an infected site and then runs malicious code on the user’s PC.

According to Microsoft, the cyberattacker would execute the malicious code under the same privileges the user has on a computer. Therefore, if an Internet Explorer user with limited access is lured on an infected site, the hacker also has to execute the code in a restricted environment, mostly contained to simple operations.

Microsoft Released A Security Patch To Tackle A New Internet Explorer Zero-Day Vulnerability

The situation is challenging for Microsoft. The company already patched other IE 0-day vulnerabilities during the last months, namely, the so-called CVE-2018-8611, CVE-2018-8589, CVE-2018-8453, CVE-2018-8440 security flaws. So, a user who did not update its IE with the previous security patches might be exposed to more than just the recently tackled Internet Explorer zero-day vulnerability.

On December 19th, 2018, Microsoft released KB4483187, KB4483230, KB4483234, KB 4483235, KB4483232, KB4483228, KB4483229, and KB4483187 to tackle the new Internet Explorer zero-day vulnerability.

As the winter holidays are getting closer and many IT departments in companies around the world might not have the time to install the security patches, Microsoft also published a security advisory with some workarounds for the IT specialists to use to restrict access to the IE scripting engine until they install the recently released updates.

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Windows Lite – Can It Outperform Chrome OS?

Many of you might already know about Windows RT and Windows 10 S, but how many of you have heard of Windows Lite? Not many, and that may be so because Windows Lite is currently under development at Microsoft. However, from what we know so far, the next operating software would be a fascinating one. Also, can it outperform Chrome OS in the sector of notebooks?

Windows Lite would be the future Microsoft operating system dedicated for notebooks and, allegedly, a competitor for Chrome OS and Chromebooks. It would be a lightweight version of Windows, and it will run UWP applications downloaded from the Microsoft store, along with Progressive Web Apps that operates similarly to an offline app but via an online service.

Windows Lite, as a part of Microsoft’s Always-Connected laptop project, would work with any type of CPU to give more options for manufacturers and customers, as well.

Windows Lite – Can It Outperform Chrome OS?

Now, Microsoft did not announce anything about how when it will release Windows Lite. However, the company might announce Windows Lite at the Microsoft Build 2019 conference which would be held somewhen between April and May 2019. Also, some rumors said that Windows Lite wouldn’t be available for purchase, but it would come pre-installed on various notebooks targeting students and home users.

We don’t know yet if Windows Lite would outperform Chrome OS but, thinking that Windows 10 S was a disaster, to some extent, Windows Lite has to be better, so, eventually, it might be a fierce competitor for Chrome OS in the sector of notebooks.

Also, as Chrome OS is “builds off of the familiarity of the Chrome browser,” as Digital Trends reported, Windows Lite might also try to “overhaul the idea of what an operating system should look and feel like,” and head to a new direction.

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Windows Sandbox Would Reach Windows 10 Next Year

The features that Microsoft has gradually been incorporating in Windows 10 focus on a multitude of aspects, not only in the general performance of the system, but also in its appearance, functionality and, of course, security. Now, Microsoft announced the launch of Windows Sandbox, a new function that will reach Windows 10 next year.

Microsoft’s Windows Sandbox is actually a lightweight virtual machine that will allow users to run potentially suspicious software isolated from the operating system itself. According to some reports, this feature could reach every Windows 10 users in the next update, the 19H1. However, Microsoft chose to reveal some more details about the new function, Windows Sandbox, a feature related to security.

Windows Sandbox will be part of Windows 10 Pro and Enterprise editions only and will create an isolated and temporary desktop environment in which users can run potentially suspicious software without putting the entire system in danger.

Windows Sandbox Would Reach Windows 10 Next Year

Earlier this year, some rumors said that Microsoft was preparing a new security feature for Windows 10 called, at that time, “InPrivate Desktop.”

Now, via the company’s blog, the so-called Windows Sandbox has been officially announced, a feature about which Microsoft officials said that would be available to Windows 10 Pro or Enterprise users running 18301 or later. However, Microsoft has not yet made it available to the tester within Windows 10 Insider program, but it is expected to do so later this week.

At the same time, some said that Windows Sandbox could work on the build 18292 of Windows 10 Pro or Enterprise, also, although that function requires AMD64 and virtualization capabilities enabled in the BIOS. Thus, this lightweight virtual machine is based on the technologies used in Windows containers, which uses a new technology called Microsoft integrated programmer and allows the host to decide when to run the Windows Sandbox to safeguard the security of the system.

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