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More and more cybercriminals are attempting to cast fraudulent 'apps' in the Google Play Android store. If you download them you can be subscribing to a premium SMS service without knowing it.

Many do not reach age 30 and write spelling mistakes, but drive expensive cars and post on Facebook videos of luxury hotels they call. They are worthy representatives of a national computer crime that lives in the diffuse border that separates the aggressive marketing of the fraud. Among its most profitable businesses, subscribing people to special pricing services without being aware, using supposedly official applications. But some have passed and the Civil Guard is now looking for you.

At the end of last year, the Guardia Civil alerted about an Android app called "Big Brother 17", which was offered on Google Play as legitimate. But it was actually fraudulent. The program subscribed to its victims to an SMS service of payment, with a cost of 1.45 € per SMS received. It was only a week in Google Play, which was withdrawn when the 'cake' was discovered, but at this time more than 10,000 users downloaded it. Its authors are a band that could be from Barcelona. The Civil Guard began an investigation and this one is still open, as the police confirmed to Teknautas.

Sergio de los Santos, director of innovation and laboratory area of ​​ElevenPaths, has been investigating this type of bands and applications. Together with Kaspersky Labs, they released a report on the Big Brother app and how the cybercriminals put it on Google Play: they first uploaded a clean version, which passed the controls with no problem. A few days later, they updated the application and there added the possibility of being able to subscribe to payment services.

This is an old trick, which would also have gone up other applications last year, as Big Brother 16 and Big Brother VIP. The first managed to stay two months in Google Play undetected and was downloaded 50,000 times. Now, warns Sergio de los Santos, the discharges are not synonymous with victims: "Being cautious, it is possible that 10% would subscribe for at least a month, because normally does not warn the fraud until the invoice arrives to them."

According to Vicente Díaz, senior analyst at Kaspersky Lab, "the scam sending SMS to premium numbers was one of the first forms of monetization that used 'malware' for Android." In some countries, such as Spain, this scam has become very popular because no documentation is needed to contract the service. At first, the victim just had to give his phone number and multiple tricks were invented to do it: in exchange for participating in a contest, to download a file, when responding to an SMS.

Fraudulent 'apps' are the latest trick of the saga. In Spain there is and there has been enough activity with these scams. We have come to know up to three bands, one in the south and others in the Spanish east, explains Sergio de los Santos. The key is to use applications with very popular themes, such as television programs, pornography, cooking recipes, games, love tests, jokes, antivirus or a flashlight that lights more than any.

Part of the creators and broadcasters of these applications are independent bands, operating with premium SMS companies who prefer not to know how subscriptions are collected. They tend to be good programmers familiar with advanced Android programming, because "by having to subscribe to the victim in the most hidden way possible and forced to be programmed not to be detected by Google or by antivirus, they have to innovate," he explains. the Saints.

Recently, the researcher detected what appeared to be the message of one of these programmers in a forum, where he asked for help "while the application is open, camouflage as much as possible the reception of the SMS, prevent the mobile phone ringing or vibrate when receiving the SMS and delete it after answering".

Every hindrance to these scams is a new challenge for programmers. For example, to register a paid SMS service, the law now obliges to send a PIN to the applicant, who must respond by sending the same PIN to confirm that he does want the subscription. The trick: the 'app' processes the message, searches the PIN inside, creates a new message and sends the confirmation response in less than a second, without the user noticing anything.

The same goes for Google Play quality control, increasingly demanding. "In Spain it seems that there is a great ability to paste 'apps' in Google Play", says of the Saints. Proof of this are the aforementioned programs on Big Brother and other strategies, such as the use of JavaScript instead of Java, which the Saints calls "a technical move to take off his hat."

The Spanish programmers also emphasize when developing techniques to maintain the subscription without the victim realizes, explains the researcher: "To prevent you realize that you are subscribing to the horoscope of the day, every incoming message of this service 'Put the phone in silence and change the date of the SMS, so that the message silently sinks in the inbox of your SMS.

Alongside these blatantly 'dirty' businesses coexists a gray area, that of companies that operate premium SMS and create their own 'apps'. These warn in very very small letter of the subscription to the service. According to Santos, maybe it's not 'malware' as such, but it's certainly not seen by users or Google Play.

Big Brother's "apps" would enter this field because they included a "Terms and Conditions" text that would have given them a patina of legality, although according to the report of Kasperksy and ElevenPaths, "we could not verify that this information was shown to the Users, and in any case, there is no opportunity to reject this agreement and not to subscribe. "

Being on the border between legitimate business and fraudulent activity, these 'apps' test Google Play's automatic detection systems, which often causes them to enter, even after they are retired. The time they have spent in the official market will have been enough to collect a good number of downloads and be profitable.

As explained by ElevenPaths and Kaspersky Lab in this report, the Big Brother applications being investigated subscribed the user to a service promoted by Yourmob.com, which in Linkedin describes itself as "Spanish company specialized in mobile technology, with activity in 7 countries of the world, since 2014 develops innovative solutions for the distribution, promotion and monetization of digital content ". On their Facebook page they look for Android programmers.

Hismob is from Madrid although, according to de los Santos, where more companies are concentrated this type is "in the area of ​​Castellón and Levante." In principle they are legal, there is public information about them, they have CIF, but most of the 'apps' that subscribe to these services are detected as "SMS malware" and their domains, as the report explains, as Malicious for distribution of 'adware' and 'malware'.

These companies are called interactive marketing, a euphemism that could include non-voluntary subscriptions to premium SMS, telephone and email spam. They are legitimate, but sometimes they can break through that subtle line that differentiates the subscription app from 'More aggressive' adware, explains ElevenPaths researcher. Behind them are companies that reroute numbers to third parties to win subscribers, no matter how they get them.

In 2015, the Civil Guard detained those responsible for the largest fraud plot through SMS pay in Spain, with 2.4 million affected. The band, led by two brothers from Alicante, spent 10 years operating, with a profit of 22 million, 14 screen companies, six local and dozens of workers. Although his business was centered on sending SMS messages with hook for the victims to respond, they also used malicious apps.

There are several corpuscles that from 2011 to 2015 have created many undercover subscription apps and have distributed them, explains de los Santos. When they get the app on Google Play, they use fraudulent positioning techniques to make it visible: fictitious positive comments, inflated downloads, etc. This same script followed the Spanish creators of the false applications of Big Brother.

The police can not act in these cases if there are no complaints. Maybe it's this, or the youth, that makes you feel immune, which makes Facebook photos smile at those low-level computer criminals in their pool villas built thanks to the "gray marketing" of mobile apps, Social networks and anything that sounds like easy money on the net.

Neither 'admin', nor '1234' nor an inexplicable sequence of uppercase, lowercase letters, symbols and numbers. With these programs you can have your access keys saved.

There is no month in which a 'hacking' or massive filtering of user accounts and passwords is not revealed. Therefore, it is increasingly important to have a collection of access words that are sufficiently complex and differentiated from each other so as not to expose our data to the highest bidder.

The best solution to this problem has its own name: password managers. Its use is simple although there are a number of options throughout the network: from those that show for its simplicity to those that come loaded with options for the most demanding users. The choice, as usual, rests on the specific use that each user wants to give.

The operation of these managers is simple. Just imagine a safe in which all our passwords are stored. To access that safe we ​​will need a password that we know by heart. From there, we can opt for the application to generate random passwords so that we ourselves will not be able to remember them.

Managers usually add an option that generates these keys randomly and some even allows us to choose parameters such as the length of the same, the repetition of letters or numbers or if we want to include acronyms. What's more, we can even achieve, at the moment, save other sensitive information to use on the network as you can be our credit card details.

1Password

It is one of the most popular and works solvent on different platforms. 1Password included in the latest versions an integration with the fingerprint of the user so that it does not even need a password that will unlock all our arsenal of private information.

Among the advantages of this manager is the integration of different platforms (iOS, Android, Mac or Windows) and the possibility of creating different profiles. For example, we can have one for our personal accounts and another one in which we group all those keys that we use in the work to differentiate from each other. In addition, the application creates an encrypted file with all our passwords that we can store, for example, in Dropbox so that we never lose them

One last interesting point of 1Password is the ability of the application to allow us to store information such as credit cards or bank accounts, very useful if we do not want to store that information in our browser and that avoids the trouble of having to consult the card or the Account every time we make a purchase on the net.

LastPass

The fact that it is free (although it has payment functionalities for $ 12 a year) is one of the great attractions of LastPass, an application that works with AES-256 bit encryption and does not store the password with which we keep all our data.

Another interesting aspect that highlights this application is the additional layer of security it adds. If the user is going to enter a website that is not secure, LastPass does not activate the default datafill to prevent you from being the victim of a phishing scam.

Finally, and also important for those users who do not pay much attention to their passwords, LastPass monitors your browsing habits and warns you if you have a duplicate password to change it.

Dashlane 4

One of the most complete managers is also the most expensive to use. Accessing the premium version of Dashlane 4 will cost you $ 39.99 a year but with it you have the possibility to use this manager through different devices or authentication in two steps.

Against Dashlane 4 is the fact that it is a much more expensive application than 1Password although it does not include many options than its competitor. Moreover, during the use process we will find in more than one occasion a slight spam that will remind us to spread the word to share the application with our friends.

Dashlane is an 'app' with two very marked faces. Its free version is one of the most complete you can throw in the face. The payment, besides expensive, does not offer the same advantages that you can find in other more complete password managers, as in the case of 1Password.

With Easter just around the corner, holiday condo scammers work at full capacity. Common sense and prudence are fundamental.

With Easter just around the corner, holiday condo scammers work at full capacity. They look for their victims in specialized portals in holiday rentals such as Airbnb, Niumba and Homeaway, convince them to close the deal off the platform and "raise" them between 1.000 and 3.000 € that will never recover.

I wanted to die of rage, recalls María Puig, who has just been swindled 2,400 euros. "When I entered the Airbnb page and saw that my reservation was not there, it is like entering your house and seeing that you have been robbed, the same feeling of palpitations and impotence." Maria is the mother of two children and, along with another family that also has two children, wanted to spend Easter in New York.

We were looking for a lot of months in advance and so we were not surprised that there were real bargains in Manhattan, now I think they should be scams as well," he explains. They fell in love with a large and luxurious loft they saw on Airbnb, at the foot of Harlem and near Central Park. It was advertised as "Elegant 5th Avenue Penthouse" and cost € 320 a night.

"Everything seemed right," says Maria. On the Airbnb page there were several photos of the 'loft', along with opinions of other users who had spent their vacations there. He contacted the owner, Larry, through the Airbnb platform's messaging system, but Larry responded by email, with the excuse that he had the flat on several platforms and it was better for him to speak in the mail.

Larry's email address was booking@airbnbview.com, false as a tough Sevillian, but containing the word "airbnb" made the family suspicious. "He told us that he needed us to confirm the dates, to give us confirmation and a better service," explains María. A couple of mails later, when everything was already talked about and the reservation had to be closed, Larry stopped responding.

This made the families nervous, who had already bought the plane tickets, and relaxed their defenses: "We were so eager to enjoy New York that when we finally answered to tell us that we should confirm the reservation with a transfer, we do not hesitate and We did it, "explains María. To make it more credible, at the same time they got a supposedly Airbnb mail message, with their corporate logos, photos, same typography, links to a fake website and a reservation code: "PGR109".

The address to which the money was to be sent was in Poland. Here Maria acknowledges that "we had to have thought about it", but right now she was traveling, with a lot of work, and paid. "And when you've paid, all that information disappears and you can no longer find the flat on Airbnb or Larry," he explains. It was then when Maria searched Google and found that "it is full of Airbnb scams".

Indeed, with the hatching of tourist floors and their reservation through the internet, have also sprung the scams that take advantage of this flourishing market, being Airbnb the main affected by the fact of being the best known platform. According to the Organization of Consumers and Users (OCU), 72% of Spaniards booked their home over the Internet in the past holidays.

The "fashion" in previous years were the "owners" who were abroad and could not teach the floor, but they asked for an advance in exchange for the keys. These scammers used to swarm through general-floor rental websites and Airbnb appeared only as an "intermediary" to make payments.

But, as we see in the forums of the network, in recent years other "modus operandi is being strengthened: opening false tokens on holiday rental platforms, with their comments and everything. If someone wants information, they are asked to follow the conversation by email, off the platform. When the victim is already "hot", websites and emails are created on the corporate side, making haste to make the transfer in 24 hours.

This happened to me exactly with a flat in London, explains Abel in an internet forum formed, like many, spontaneously after an article on the subject, followed by dozens of comments from people cheated: Sylvia has been stolen 3,000 euros; To Carmen, still stunned, 1700 euros: "It was all ok but I never got the confirmation receipt for my reservation." Abel, who stole 1,000 euros, explains that he was told that he "gave them payment problems", so "they indicated alternative mails to me to transfer to an account owned by Airbnb Lisboa, all with mails whose structure and everything is Airbnb ".

There are travelers' forums that have their own dedicated AirBnb sub forum, such as "Bad Experiences with Airbnb: Apartments and Rooms" or, on TripAdvisor forums, "AirBnb Scams". It is possible to say that some complaints must be caught with pliers, since the platforms pay people to write against the competition.

But, even taking this into account, the number of stories like Mary's is important. And most affected are very angry with Airbnb: "They do not pay attention, a bad call center that does not even help you, you stay like a fool," explains Abel. When Mary claimed she was informed that, having made the transaction off the shelf, she had no right to anything.

Andreu Castellano, an Airbnb spokesperson, reiterates "It is always clear that you should never leave the platform. This ensures that payments are secure, are made for the exact amount and the transaction is correct." The owner-guest communication through the messaging system is recorded and can be analyzed in case of complaints.

María says that "at no time appeared on the Airbnb page any message warning of possible scams, nor asking that you do not have contact with the owners outside the platform." Teknautas has proven it, carrying out the same steps carried out by María Puig to rent a similar apartment and at no time were we actively warned or with alerts regarding scams or leaving the platform. "There are no alerts, but at all times we show a very clear message that says 'Protect your payments. Never pay a reservation outside Airbnb,'" a spokesman for the company said.

According to the Airbnb spokesperson, the messaging system has "an automatic system that if it detects that you are typing an email address, a phone or a web address, the layer automatically". As for the floors being offered, "all the reviews are authentic, travelers can only leave a review of the place after having been there".

But if we listen to the stories of Abel or Maria, we see that something has failed because the criminals have been able to put false comments and also discover the email addresses of those interested. Most of these scammers are part of international mafias, especially from Eastern Europe. They are artists of the scam of all life and their tricks to hurry the pardillo. And also experts in cloning the pages and official messaging of these platforms.

Our friend María was cheated with a loft in New York, but in Spain there are also cases of this type of scam, especially in tourist sites. According to the Office of the National Police of the Balearic Islands, only 200 complaints were filed last year. Little can the police do in these cases because thieves use methods to be anonymous and many are not even in Spain, which is very difficult to locate them.

The company, led by Travis Kalanick, admits that it did use the program, but only in those cities where it was "feared" for the safety of its drivers.

Private transport company Uber has been immersed in a worldwide program to circumvent the police in those markets where its alternative low cost taxi service was limited and subject to strict restrictions or even prohibited.

This is revealed by the American newspaper 'The New York Time' along with information from several employees and former employees of the company. In this revelation it is detailed that Uber used a program that used the tool Greyball, in charge of using the data obtained from Uber's own application and other techniques to identify and elude police officers trying to fine the drivers of Uber. According to the New York newspaper, the transportation company used this method in several cities such as Boston, Paris and Las Vegas, as well as in countries such as Australia, China and South Korea.

The paper explains that Greyball belongs to a program called VTOS (Violation of Terms of Service), which was created by Uber to detect users who were using their service inappropriately. Currently the program, which was used for the first time in 2014, is still in use and has the approval of Uber's legal team.

Greyball and the so-called VTOS was created in order to bypass the competition and dangerous customers, but finally, as The New York Times has proven, Uber has taken advantage of this computer spying program to avoid police, and its Fines, and operate irregularly.

Three years ago a police inspector managed to videotape how Greyball operated in Portland, United States. The author of the video was Erich England, who used the fraudulent service in the framework of an operation against Uber. England posed as a user, but could not make use of the service, since when he asked for a car the drivers canceled the trip and never showed up. Apparently, the inspector was identified by Greyball as a police officer and automatically directed to a fake version of the application with ghost cars, to avoid being cuddled.

In a statement, the transport company claims to have used this service, but claims that it made use of Greyball in cities where its service is not prohibited and always ensuring that it was due to "security reasons". "The program seeks to prevent fraudulent users who violate the terms of service, who are people who want to assault drivers, alter our operations or competitors who allied with the authorities in secret operations to fine and arrest our drivers," has Declared a porter of Uber to the agency AFP.

The spokesman also states that this program has been used in cities where "feared for the safety of drivers" and only "occasionally" to avoid the police.

It is an old phenomenon like war, that is, old as the world the enemy ends up using the weapons you use against him against you.

It is an old phenomenon like war, that is, old as the world the enemy ends up using the weapons you use against him against you. Any effective tool on the battlefield will be copied, because the enemy always learns, and the use of unmanned drones by the military would be no exception.

Since at least 2014 terrorist groups such as Hizbulah, Al Qaeda or Daesh have demonstrated the ability to use flying drones for surveillance, control, espionage and propaganda purposes, but since the end of last year they have also used them in offensive tasks. Have recorded numerous attacks and not a few casualties, especially in the Battle of Mosul. Daesh even has workshops and factories to assemble and adapt their own models, and has developed specific ammunition for use in them.

At the same time the Houthi rebels of Yemen have used a remote-controlled boat to attack a Saudi frigate in the Red Sea. The drones, which were born as a symbol of technological supremacy only within reach of the greatest powers, are now also in the hands of terrorists. Anti-drip systems will therefore be increasingly needed.

Conceptually drones, understood as such to unmanned vehicles designed to damage the enemy, are as old as bullets, mines, torpedoes or missiles. For example, in World War II, (although unsuccessfully) remote-controlled bombers were used in Operation Aphrodite, one of whose attacks killed Joe Kennedy, and the Germans used Fritz-X guided bombs to sink the Italian battleship Rome and other Allied ships .

During the Cold War, spy drones were deployed as the D-M-21 of the A-12 OXCART (predecessor of the SR-71 Blackbird), lures to attract enemy missiles and also unmanned drones as training targets or weapons tests. The American armed forces used them profusely in Vietnam, although the technological limitations of the time caused a high rate of losses of apparatuses.

In its modern incarnation unmanned combat aircraft were developed by Israel from the 70s and 80s to expand their tactical reconnaissance capabilities without putting their pilots at risk. In the 1990s US forces acquired Israeli models that they used in the First Gulf War and began to develop their own projects.

One of the most well-known is the MQ-1 Predator, launched in 1995 as a reconnaissance and missile weapon since the early 2000s, which became the banner of the global war on terror following the attacks of September 11, 2001. This and other models like its derivative MQ-9 Reaper have been and still are profusely used in the low intensity wars of Iraq and Afghanistan and in antiterrorist actions in numerous countries of Middle East: its success has led to the proliferation of these systems, Which now form part of the arsenal of numerous nations.

Devices like the Predator and its equivalents have capabilities that only nations with powerful military resources can aspire to. They can be directed from the other end of the planet, making extensive use of satellite communications networks, geo-positioning systems and semiautomated navigation electronics. They are often serviced by several crews, one distant who is in charge of the mission, and another who is more concerned with maintenance, and in both cases rotating to ensure very long mission times.

Armed with air-to-surface missiles and various types of 'smart' bombs have proven to be very useful as surveillance systems with great persistence and quick and lethal attack capability, always in environments where air control is firmly in the hands of friendly and enemy It lacks anti-aircraft capability. No terrorist group has the resources to deploy such a system.

Which does not mean they do not crave it. Already since the middle of the first decade of the century, organizations like Hizbulah began using drones to perform tactical reconnaissance tasks, threatening to use them as a 'cruise missile for the poor' to carry out explosive charges in Israel. The models used were of Iranian manufacture and much less sophisticated than those of the western countries but the organization used them during the Israeli incursion to the south of the Lebanon in 2006, without much success.

In 2012, however, a drone incursion from Lebanon, across the Mediterranean and into Gaza came within a few miles of the Dimona nuclear power plant [pdf], the center of the Israeli atomic program, in what was interpreted as a Warning of Iran to deter a possible attack on its own atomic program. Most recently an Israeli F-16 knocked down a drone that had taken off from Gaza. And Houthi forces used a remote-controlled boat to attack a Saudi frigate in the Red Sea.

At the same time, and due to the improvements in battery technologies and automatic control systems, there was an important development of the commercial drones, both for the amateur and aeromodelling market and for the professional, where these devices began to be Used in tasks such as monitoring electric lines or capturing aerial images. Popular models like the Parrot AR helped to normalize the use among fans by facilitating both flight and imaging; Its two versions have among other things automatic stabilization and landing and can be piloted in a simple way using a smartphone.

At the same time as this type of apparatus entered the civilian market the military began to demand adapted versions mainly for the short-range recognition that now form part of the standard equipment of many professional units. Terrorist groups, unable to develop their own technology, began to use the models available in the open market. Thus in the civil war of Syria several factions have used as much military drones of Russian or Iranian origin as commercial devices more or less adapted to their needs. Among the different participants one of the most active has been the Daesh group, especially these days in Mosul.

At first Daesh used commercial tetra or hexacoptera models likely to be acquired in the free market and on surveillance and reconnaissance missions. On several occasions the forces that reconquer the Iraqi territory have detected the use of this type of systems to escort and to watch the route followed by suicide cars or trucks, one of the favorite tactics of the terrorist group. Drones were also used in the making of propaganda videos, a vital activity for the group.

Later on they began to detect models equipped with explosive charges and turned into a kind of 'flying bombs', although their low capacity of transport and their relative slowness and low speed make them vulnerable to being demolished with simple assault rifles or machine guns. Although success did not accompany them however the group continued with the development of this type of armament, which has given rise to some surprises and even a few casualties.

First appeared, both in flight and in the videos, drones adapted for the bombing developed in the own workshops of the group. Phantom 3 Advanced, from Maverick Drone Systems (or its clones) adapted for the launching of bombs made in Daesh's own arsenals began to be seen.

Adapted from 40 mm grenades, with or without mortar fuses added and stabilized with an ex-professed plastic 'tail' Daesh has managed to create launchable mini-bombs by simple mechanisms added to the commercial drones, armament that manufactures in large numbers . Several videos analyzed by Bellingcat discuss different systems of launching, armament and stabilization (queues of various types, including one similar to a ball of badminton and several types of parachutes) tested by the group; In some cases these bombs have come to cause a pair of casualties among the Kurdish Peshmerga, although their effectiveness is more than limited.

A more advanced version baptized by the group like Reaper seems to be a derivative of the commercial model of fixed wing drone Skywalker X-8 endowed with a rudimentary systems of launching of this type of small pumps, insufficient to cause great damage but that can be dangerous For naked infantry or even for light armored vehicles. Fixed wing drones, faster and capable of flying higher, have the drawback that their precision in the launches is much lower.

And it gets even worse when it comes to homemade drones like those that have appeared in Mosul, built with plastic parts, masking tape and model aircraft engines and employed as 'flying bombs', but with very limited success Iraqi troops advancing in Mosul have knocked down dozens of them without causing major damage. To complicate Daesh's plans to increase the use of such devices, US intelligence has succeeded in locating and facilitating the destruction of some of the workshop networks that made both bombs and planes and unmanned helicopters, which will undoubtedly contribute To reduce their use on the battlefield.

What is clear is that drones are already part of the battle, and not only in clashes between advanced armies Hence the interest of many armed forces in deploying the most effective anti-aircraft systems possible. It is the eternal tug-of-war between attack and defense, army and guerrilla, law enforcement and terrorists What one uses the other tries copies and adapts to their own abilities and needs. Helicopters and planes that were recently toys could be effective military tools and lethal risks in the hands of terrorists. Because in war no technological advance remains long unilateral.

Internet Connection Sharing (ICS), which is the release of an Internet connection for other computers on the network, has been included in Windows operating system since Windows 98. In the Anniversary Update for Windows 10, Microsoft has reworked this feature: In the "settings", where only mobile data connections could be shared, there is now also a possibility to share an Ethernet connection in the graphical interface. The Windows computer is set up as an access point, via which WLAN other devices can connect to the Internet. This is handy to open up to other users at short notice. This is not a permanent solution.

In order to use the function, your computer must be connected to the Internet via an Ethernet cable and also equipped with a WLAN adapter. From the Start menu, open the "Settings" and select "Network and Internet". On the left, select "Mobile Hotspot" and click "Edit". Select a network name for your hotspot, define a password and accept the settings with "Save". You can now set the switch to "On" for "My network connection for others".

Unfortunately, the function is not completely error-free. When attempting to turn on the enable, the message "Mobile hotspots can not be set up." Activate the WLAN function. "

If Windows permanently denies you can switch to the freeware My Public WiFi. For the installation you need administrator rights, as well for the start.

Click on the program icon with the right mouse button and select "Run as administrator". Under "Management", set the language to German, go to the "Settings" tab and enter a network name and a password. Please ensure that "Internet connection is enabled" and "Ethernet" is set. Under "Clients" you will then see the connected devices; in addition, under "Administration" you can prohibit the use of file sharing and P2P protocols via your hotspot.

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Scientists and companies around the world are working to find the key component that improves battery performance. Which one has more ballots?.

Research focused on increasing the quality and duration of batteries has been going on for decades, but recently there has been a clear increase in interest from researchers and companies. Working for improvements, scientists experiment with a long list of components called to become the secret ingredient for batteries to last longer. Graphene, magnesium, variations based on lithium, sodium and even other candidates that may sound more surreal like beer or beach sand, among many others, star studios and advertisements.

"There are more and more portable devices and tools: vacuum cleaners, computers, telephones ..." explains Teknautas Carlos Roldán Porta, professor and director of the Department of Electrical Engineering of the Polytechnic University of Valencia, justifying the increase in research. "But it's mainly because of the proximity of the electric vehicle, which means there will be an immense market for batteries," adds the expert.

Zachary Favors, Scientific Director at NexTech Batteries, a startup focused on developing new batteries, and postdoctoral researcher at the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab also points to electric cars as one of the main reasons for this investigative peak. "Companies like Tesla have made batteries a bit 'sexy' for the first time in history, and researchers want to be part of that growing electrification of the world around us," he explains.

"Another reason for this popularity is the explosive growth in the field of nanotechnology, which has opened the door to countless advances and new materials in the field of energy storage," adds the researcher. In addition to working on the development of lithium-sulfide batteries one of the great hopes in the field of electric vehicles this scientist was the main signatory of the study that proposed beach sand as a possible solution to improve the duration of Lithium-ion batteries present on most of our mobile phones, laptops and music players.

Talking about a winning ingredient called to revolutionize the battery market is tremendously complicated. Rather, and according to researchers, different components will improve certain aspects. "If a company found something that would improve everything, all the characteristics of the battery, would revolutionize the market, and that is more difficult to produce," says Roldan.

Even so, there are materials with which progress is being made: "I believe that progressive improvements are being achieved. The batteries have improved compared to what they had a few years ago, "he adds. Favors shares his opinion and notes that it all depends on the application: "If we think of batteries for electric vehicles and aircraft, we are seeing the introduction of silicon oxide in the anodes and a continued reliance on cobalt and nickel based metal oxides for The cathodes, "says the researcher.

"In addition, lithium is gaining widespread attention as a possible successor to graphite at the anode, while materials such as metal oxides rich in sulfide and lithium metal are gaining popularity in research for cathodes," he adds.

For his part, Roldan admits that investigations with lithium are certainly interesting, but it is a metal more expensive than aluminum or sodium. "With the lithium batteries is progressing a lot. It improves aspects, like with a solid electrolyte instead of liquid that makes them safer, for example ". According to their point of view, the sodium batteries also look promising, although there are still no conclusive results that allow to affirm that they will replace others.

The professor also points to graphene as a possible engine of change. "It can play an important role in improving current batteries," he says. A great interest of the scientific world, which considers it the material of the future, and large injections of funding also point in that direction.

Along with these ingredients, which seem to be leading the battle for the materials of the future, there are others who also have options. "Although there are now things and materials that do not seem profitable, in a few years they may be. That's why it's hard to dismiss ideas, "he says. "I intuit that there are organic and lithium air batteries that may be important in the future, but now they are very green."

Although in many cases the discoveries regarding batteries are in their early stages, the media announce from time to time something that seems destined to revolutionize the market: graphene, hydrogen, vanadium, magnesium and all kinds of organic materials from the Sugar to the remains of the beer seem to be at a certain time the great find.

Faced with this, both experts ask for patience. "Since the launch of an idea, based on laboratory results, and since it is said that it can be until it is commercial, there may be a period of five years and a great technological investment," explains the professor of the Polytechnic University From Valencia.

"Behind any innovation and any scientific commitment is always the risk that nothing comes out," adds Roldan. However, without means can not be reached until the end, so scientists need to publish studies and star headlines. "That's why a lot of people announce things that are not completely done, with the objective of attracting the economic investment", remarca.

However, there is still a long way to go. Batteries with lithium as the main component but in different versions, the still developing sodium batteries and materials such as graphene or magnesium will have to solve a long list of problems. "Current batteries have a number of drawbacks that limit their use: they are heavy, their useful life is short ...", quotes Roldan. It is also necessary to improve the charge density, that is, the amount of energy that is stored per kilogram of battery. "They are trying to weigh less, but they store the same energy," he adds.

In addition, they are also looking for faster loading especially for the vehicle market and extend their useful life in terms of the number of loading and unloading cycles. "In the field of portable electronics, the devices consume more energy year after year, because they increase their capacities and the power of computation", indicates Factors. "The development of the batteries will ensure that consumers do not experience shorter battery life and their devices do not burn."

Solving these problems is also to combat the use of fossil fuels. "One of the most important reasons for continuing research is climate change. The development of safer, longer-lasting and more energy-efficient batteries will allow electric cars to have the same scope and cost as those of internal combustion and that renewable energy can provide an increasing amount of clean and reliable energy for These work ", defends the scientist.

Many challenges and important reasons to continue with the research in a great obstacle course that, at least for the moment, does not have a clear favorite. If there was, the revolution would have started, our devices would be different and the main material would be on everyone's lips. Since this has not happened, we still have to wait.

There are a number of basic concepts when looking for information about them, and according to the use we give them will have to invest more or less money.

Whether at work or at home, to watch a movie or to play a video game, no model is worth. We are talking about computer monitors, those screens bigger or smaller and whose size is precisely one of the variables that can not be disdained when buying or replacing it: it is not the same if we just use the computer for leisure that if we work As graphic designers.

It's not a matter of keeping their eyes on them, either. Equally, not all budgets are the same. Therefore, today we will talk about the best monitors and what we should look for when selecting one. Which one fits your needs?

In the same way that when we buy a television, the type of light is very important. There may be LED monitors (whose light source are LEDs) and OLED (pixels are LEDs that generate light), although the most affordable and popular are LED technology. Also 4K, 5K and UHD, but these only get the maximum performance with a computer powerful enough.

Take into account where the monitor will be placed, to adjust the size that we are going to buy. That is to say, if it is going to be very close to our face, it does not compensate for a 28-inch one, but if it is going to be far away (for example, installed on the wall or at a distance to watch movies and videos) higher. Before acquiring it or starting to look at options, let's also measure the space available to discard an excessive width.

Also, when you consult the different options of monitors, you will see the concept of resolution in pixels, ie how sharp the image of the screen. For professionals of design and workers or lovers of the cinema will be necessary a greater resolution, but this will not be so important for the computers of an office. Today it is generally considered that at least to operate without forcing the view too much, it must be 1920 x 1080 pixels.

You can also find a concept called panel type, which refers to the image quality. It is considered that the IPS is the best quality, but also the most expensive and with the worst response times. There are also TN and VA, which looks like TN: it improves the image quality, but it raises its response time.

Finally is the aspect ratio. In other words: if the monitor is more square or more rectangular (panoramic). This will especially interest film fans, because if we do not buy a widescreen monitor we will probably see the movies with the classic black bands above and below. One of the most popular formats is the 16: 9 widescreen type. Probably this feature only interests you for professional uses or watching movies.

In addition to these concepts, you should look at some physical characteristics. For example, the number of connectors and their nature (HDMI, USB, USB Type-C ...) or a monitor foot that allows you to put it higher or lower and vary its angle. The first thing is especially interesting if you want to connect the monitor to cinematographic equipment, such as a DVD; The second, if several people are going to use that computer and want to adjust it.

Sure you want a size as big as possible and at a good price and that can serve to browse Facebook and watch a movie. However, some 18.5 inches is more than fine for a home use or labor intensive. For this, for example, you have a model of the V5 brand of 1366 x 768 pixels for just 66 euros through Amazon sellers. LED technology with 16.78 million colors, is also ideal for certain moviegoers and creative workers (editors, photographers, musicians ...).

The LG company also has computer monitors. An affordable 19.5-inch model, which can be used for the office or home, is the TN type 20M38A-B.AEU (81 euros on Amazon). With a screen resolution of 1600 x 900 pixels, it has two USB ports.

If you are looking for a VA (because you are interested in a better response time), something more in size and you can afford to spend something more, an attractive option could be the BenQ GW2270H (99 euros on Amazon), 21.5 inches 1080 pixels) and with 2 HDMI ports.

Those who use the computer for jobs such as photography, graphic design or video editing probably want a large monitor (or two) and something better than the previous options. The alternatives are expensive in these cases, but it is a question of investigating well, knowing our needs at the same time.

For example, the Philips BDM3270QP2 / 00 (505 euros on Amazon) will serve the most demanding professionals: 32 inches, 2560 x 1440 pixels and up to 4 USB ports. It is an LCD backlit LED display, included speakers and DVI-D and DisplayPort ports. According to the manufacturer, it has 1074 million colors. In addition, it can be adjusted in numerous positions and even placed vertically.

Some of the monitors we have talked about could pass perfectly the test of the best moviegoers, but there are other models that we could not fail to review. For example, the LG 29UM68-P, 29-inch screen and 2560 x 1080 pixels. Its panoramic aspect (the ratio is 21: 9) is ideal for watching movies as if they were in the cinema. Its price, yes, can pull back: 289 euros on Amazon. Now, it can also serve you to enjoy video games, so consider this option if you have a budget.

Another model, if you are one of those people who wants to see 3D movies at home, is the ASUS ROG Swift PG248Q (477 euros on Amazon). This Full HD 24-inch 16: 9 ratio is compatible with NVIDIA 3D Vision 2, suitable for playing three-dimensional content, also video games.

And since we talk so much of video games, let's now focus on the 'gamers', that there is also cloth to cut there.

While an IPS monitor is the most common type, gamers should opt for a VA or their TN brother, as responsiveness and refreshment is greater. Here the inches are very important. For example, you can opt for a BenQ ZOWIE RL2755, 27 inches and 1920 x 1080 pixels resolution (279 euros on Amazon) and with a frame that reduces the reflexes with the goal, according to the manufacturer, not to distract. BenQ also ensures that the response time is 0, in real time, ideal for players who can not stand a millisecond delay.

This model has 2 HDMI ports, but for ports that have AOC G2460PF and G2770PF (277.92 euros the first and 387.92 euros the second), 24 and 27 inches respectively. 2 USB, VGA, DVI, DisplayPort ... The response time is 1 millisecond, the resolution of 1920 x 1080 and the refresh rate of 144 Hz. With built-in speakers, it draws much attention that can be turned up to 90 Degrees and place it in a completely vertical position, a feature that may also interest graphic designers or photographers.

And if your budget is exorbitant and you want to throw the house out the window, you have curved screen models, such as the LG 34UC98-W, 34-inch IPS bestiality (3440 x 1440 pixels) and 21: 9 ratio, 5 millisecond refresh rate Image or the most diverse ports (two USB 2.0, two HDMI, two Thunderbolt ...). Lovely to work and watch movies. Its price? 816 euros on Amazon. Now, is it what you need or is pure whim? If your answer is the second, you may want to go back to the beginning and stick with one of the economic options that we have proposed.

It is half table and half portable, comes with a game (the new 'Zelda') and does not look anything like what you have played to date. Yes, we have fallen in love.

Nintendo is back. And he has done it by the big door. The Switch, that hybrid between console and laptop, is one of the most exciting pieces of hardware that we have been able to test in the video game industry over the last few years. And that's saying a lot. After the commercial failure of Wii U and the exhaustion of the model started with Wii, the Japanese had only to reinvent itself. But if there is a firm capable of doing that, an equivalent of Madonna in videojueguil format, that is Nintendo.

At Teknautas, we had the opportunity to try the Switch a few weeks ago. The sensations were good, as were the first impressions when the console was announced and it was confirmed that Nintendo was behind that hybrid between console and laptop. Now, after a few days of testing and despite the meager of its catalog (we have only been able to test the new 'Zelda', which has a look unbeatable), all our feelings have been confirmed: the console has a huge potential that should be deployed Over the years if the catalog accompanies. In other words: on paper everything is very beautiful, but now it is necessary to confirm where it really counts, on the screen.

Let's go at the beginning. Switch gives off, to a certain extent, an old school scent. Not precisely because of its proposal, which is completely new in this industry, but because it is simple to remove it from the box and play. It does not even need to be connected to the television. Just adapt the two controls, called 'joy with', to the sides of the screen to start playing. After a few very brief steps, the machine is ready to boot. In the version that has come to us, it was not possible to update the 'firmware' first, but we have done during these first hours and, aware of the fact, the process has lasted no more than 30 seconds. A blessing compared to the hours that Wii U was upgraded before being able to play the first match.

But Nintendo is bent on selling Switch as a desktop console with laptop heart. Removing the 'marketing', comes to tell us that it is a two in one more focused on the traditional game but that allows you to take it out. And if something is necessary to remove the hat with the console is in the facility that gives the user to move from one to another mode. The installation of all the components (the base from which the power cable and the hdmi come out) only lasts a few minutes and the transition between desktop and laptop mode takes everything that is used to transfer the 'joy with' from The base that acts as traditional control until the sides of the tablet.

The transition time is so fast that in the first few occasions you will be surprised. But what really gets the console, and in our case is still difficult for us to adapt still to it, is to dilute that barrier between playing in the traditional way and do it anywhere, not from home, but the street or the public transport.

For example, I am very clear that television is where I play 'FIFA', 'Skyrim' or 'The Last Guardian'. And that mobile, which has become a companion inseparable from fatigue, is an ideal format for games that are designed for it, either 'Hearthstone' or an 'Animal Crossing' in a 3DS. With Switch, that border is erased: you can take it to the bathroom in a time of trouble or take advantage of dead times in public transport.

This last point may be somewhat controversial. We are facing a console that is something larger than a PlayStation Vita (the screen of the Switch is the approximate size of the latest Sony laptop), so we take it out for very short trips, something that we would do with the mobile phone, it seems outside of place. Even some games, the same 'Zelda' that we have tried, ask you for a little longer game sessions. Maybe four or five subway stops do not give you a chance to enjoy the game, but those people who have half-an-hour routes a day in public transport will appreciate being able to dedicate that window to games that, to date, To the TV and sitting on a sofa.

In the background, the idea of ​​Switch is not far from what was in a way pointed to Wii U. That the command had a large screen that would give some independence of the console itself. This time, the console 'is' the controller and to my surprise, I spent more time playing with it in portable mode than in my traditional room dedicated to games with a generously sized TV. If this attitude has been the result of novelty, it is something that only time can solve.

We do not refer to the famous degreaser, but the 'joy with' can be used in up to three different formats. Glued to side and side of the tablet in portable mode, on a plastic holder to turn them into a traditional controller, and each separately in very specific games. In our experience, we have tried the first two, while the third mode, designed for '1-2-Switch' mini-game titles, we could taste it in our test with the console a few months ago.

In their two most traditional formats, the controls have their pros and cons. It misses once more, and there are already a few, that Nintendo includes analog triggers that only respond to two 'inputs' as opposed to the triggers that can be found in the controls of PlayStation or Xbox. The loss of the traditional crosshead, the first in a console from NES, is also missing, although the philosophy of the console has forced the Japanese to leave it on the way.

Perhaps more surprising is the performance of the remote with the bracket. At first glance, and seeing the photo on these lines, it does not look like it will be a comfortable driver. With my partner Sergio Ferrer we have discussed on more than one occasion: after Sony and Xbox have nailed the guidelines of what should be a driver, it is not necessary to go off on the tangent. Steam and its Controller are a good example.

Despite this, the command emerged from the union of a base next to the two 'joy with' (and that, putting a lot of imagination, looks like a perrete) is not especially uncomfortable. Moreover, after a few minutes, you have forgotten the same, which is the best you can say of a command. I wish the same could be said about triggers.

What's wrong with Switch? Perhaps the most important is the battery of the tablet and it could be argued that the catalog is somewhat scarce. Nintendo, once again, wanted to point out that we are not before a portable console but before a desktop that can be taken to the street and take you wherever you want. Yes, on the paper is a very nice definition, but when it comes to the truth is a bit short. A three-hour 'Zelda' game has been enough for us to squeeze it all the way, and while Nintendo claims that some games may reach up to six hours of life, it is a statement that, for the moment, has to be taken with tweezers.

Another controversial aspect is the console's output catalog. In 2017, a new 'Super Mario' ('Odissey', which we will not see until the end of the year) is expected to appear, and an updated version of 'Mario Kart 8' should be released in a matter of weeks. There are few new features (next to 'Splatoon 2' or 'Arms') to convince the user to be undecided.

Much has been said about the console catalog compared to PS4 or Xbox One, although some voices have recalled that not so much, in the days of NES, Super Nintendo or Nintendo 64, the consoles came to the street with a meager catalog. What does it mean for the user that there are so few exit games? That patience is your best ally. These first months, at least until the arrival of the Christmas period, will serve to see which route the Switch takes and which games are announced for 2018.

But that the catalog is small does not imply that you should not run to buy it. If you're a fan of Nintendo, Switch is the type of console that will return to ingratiar with the Japanese manufacturer. And if you are also a lover of 'Zelda', you should know that the first criticisms have not been exceptional but have put it through the clouds, with several websites specialized as the best title of the franchise ever created, above even 'OCarina Of Time '.

In our case, we think it may be soon enough to get a Switch unless you have it very clear or you know that you're going to pay it off with 'Zelda' now, 'Mario Kart' in a few months and the next 'Super Mario' In Christmas. In that case, you should do it with a head.

It seems almost impossible to make a forecast of the commercial performance of Switch in the market. The console has everything to win the player: has a reasonable price (320 euros), works great in both portable and desktop mode and offers something that, to date, neither Sony nor Microsoft have been able to provide. It remains to be seen whether the catalog of the console, which really gives it meaning, will be up to the consequences.