Today’s topics include VW using cheating software in emissions systems, Samsung will now lease its phones to customers, malware takes aim at Apple’s App Store, and rumors swirl over a new display for Microsoft’s Band 2.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency alleged Sept. 18 that German vehicle makers Volkswagen and Audi sold 482,000 diesel vehicles in the U.S. that carried a so-called “defeat device”—illegal emissions control software designed to make cars appear to run cleaner in testing situations than they normally do.
On Sept. 21, the plot thickened when The New York Times reported that Volkswagen officials told the EPA for nearly a year that discrepancies between the formal air quality tests on its diesel cars and the much higher pollution levels out on the road were the result of technical errors.
Volkswagen backtracked earlier this month, admitting that defeat device software was included on VW and Audi vehicles from the 2009-2015 model years with 2.0-liter turbo-diesel engines.
Samsung is creating a program that will allow smartphone leasing directly to consumers, bypassing mobile carriers as the primary means of getting its Galaxy phones into the hands of users, according to reports.
The effort would mimic the plans of Apple, which earlier this month announced its own iPhone Upgrade Program that will let consumers lease iPhones from Apple and get new devices once a year when new models are released.
Since 2003, Xcode has been Apple’s premier integrated development environment, first for OS X and beginning in 2007 for iOS. Xcode, or at least a fraudulent version of Xcode, is now at the heart of a new malware attack on Apple’s App Store and is affecting at least 39 apps, including We Chat, which has approximately 500 million users in Asia.
Researchers at Alibaba dubbed the Xcode malware XcodeGhost after the first reports of a new strain of iOS malware appeared on Sina Weibo. Further investigation and analysis confirmed that XcodeGhost is compiler malware that was injected into unofficial Xcode installers.
Microsoft’s Band fitness band could be getting a makeover with a new curved display and other improvements as the company prepares to unveil an assortment of new devices at its upcoming Oct. 6 press event.
Microsoft is expected to announce the sleeker, curved-display Microsoft Band 2 fitness band at the event, ushering in key changes for the Band line, according to a Sept. 21 article in Tech Times.