Toshiba Launches Industry’s Smallest 8MP CMOS Sensor

Acouple of days back, Toshiba announced the world’s smallest 8MP CMOS sensor with 1.12 micrometer pixel size. Even with this size, it still manages to capture great quality, thanks to the back side illumination (BSI) technology, similar to the sensor currently being used in the iPhone 4. The smallest one yet Packing 8MP into a sensor that small would usually mean degradation in image quality due to the way in which the lens are packed which limits light absorption. Positioning the lens in the rear, boosts light sensitivity and allows finer image pixels in a smaller CMOS sensor. Toshiba have managed to pack in 8.08 million pixels in to a ¼-inch sensor.  This will most likely be used in upcoming mobile phones and tablets, but it could very well be used for compact cameras, as well. The new sensor will go into mass production from the end of 2011, so it doesn’t seem like the iPhone 5 would be packing one of these, or would it?

German Security Unit Points Out Loopholes in Apple’s Security

Early this week, the iPad manufacturer, Apple’s site suffered a data breach. Although the loss of data was passed as minor by the brand, it did raise a lot of questions about the security of the users’ data on the site. Now, in an official release by an IT security agency based in Germany, Apple’s iOS, in its current form is heading for a bigger fall, which by all means is preventable.

Needs fixing!

According to the official release, in German by the German Federal Office for Information Security, or the Bundesamt fur Sicherheit in der Informationstechnik (BSI), Apple’s iOS device could easily succumb to malicious code if an infected PDF file was opened on the device. Although, the system hasn’t been attacked yet, BSI senses a strong attack in the making, if Apple officials don’t fix up the flaws.


Here's an excerpt from the German press release (which can be accessed here) translated into English:

Acer Hacked; Hackers Assure a Press Conference in 24hrs

Security seems to have become the bone of contention for the major players in the tech space, today. It is if there isn’t enough mockery made out of security in the recent PSN hack case, that yet another player in the market has had its security compromised. In yet another instance, popular technology brand, Acer is now finding itself grappling with a data breach that has reportedly cost it the details of over 40,000 customers. The details compromised includes their names, addresses, phone numbers, e-mail addresses, as also the names of the products purchased by the customers.

A screenshot of the data compromised

As reported by The Hacker News, the hacking group, Pakistan Cyber Army is a well-known hacking outfit. Although, the motive behind the attack is still unclear, the hackers themselves have assured a detailed press conference to brief others about their motives, to be arranged very soon. At the press conference, the hacking group intends to give out all the data that’s in their possession.

This latest attack has exposed as to just how flaky is the security of most data, supposedly locked up in the systems of these major players in the space.