Google first introduced this technology in early 2019 as the Password Checkup extension. In October 2019, it became a part of the Password Checkup in your Google Account, where you can conduct a scan of your saved passwords anytime. It has evolved to offer warnings as you browse the web in Chrome. 

While this is a useful feature, and the integration with the Chrome browser makes it seamless, one important point that most coverage ignores or downplays is that the browser can only check passwords that the user is storing in their Google account as part of Chrome's built-in Password Manager. If you're using a separte password manager (e.g., LastPass, 1Password), Chrome's Password Checkup feature will not be able to access your stored passwords to check them.

Similarly, if you have set up a passphrase to encrypt the passwords stored in your Google account (recommended) the Password Checkup feture cannot acces them to check them.

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Anyone using public wi-fi hotspots to connect to the Internet should be concerned about the security and privacy of the information they are sending back and forth over those connections.

There are many security options you can employ to better-insure that privacy and security - like using services that encrypt your data in transit or Virtual Private Networks (VPNs). For many casual, or even business users, the added step of having to install and configure VPN software may seem like too much. For some others, remembering to connect via the VPN software once it is installed is the hurdle between them and greater security. 

As the name implies, Virtual Private Network products add a (virtual private) layer of security over the available public wi-fi network connection.

The developers behind the Opera web browser are trying to make it easier for anyone to connect to the Internet using an encrypted connection with the inclusion of "a free, unlimited, native VPN that just works out-of-the-box and doesn’t require any subscription," in the newest versions of the browser.

Most existing VPN services have only been available on some sort of subscription basis. "Opera wants to make VPNs available to everyone," the company said in a blog post announcing the VPN feature.

The Opera web browser is available as a free download for computers running Windows, Mac, and Linux operating systems. 

To activate the VPN:

• Mac - click the Opera menu, select “Preferences” and toggle the feature VPN to "On."
• Windows and Linux - go to the “Privacy and Security” section in “Settings” and enable VPN there. A button will appear in the browser address field, from which the user can see and change location (more locations will appear later), check whether their IP is exposed and review statistics for their data used.

Some of the options it offers include:

• Hide your IP address – Opera will replace your IP address with a virtual IP address, so it’s harder for sites to track your location and identify your computer. This means you can browse the web more privately.
• Unblocking of firewalls and websites – Many schools and workplaces block video-streaming sites, social networks and other services. By using a VPN you can access your favorite content, no matter where you are.
• Public Wi-Fi security – When you’re surfing the web on public Wi-Fi, intruders can easily sniff data. By using a VPN, you can improve the security of your personal information.

The post Opera Web Browser Introduces Free Virtual Private Network (VPN) Connection appeared first on Continuing Legal Education (MCLE) in California, MCLE Los Angeles, CLE Orange County, Irvine & San Francisco.

According to the announcement on Microsoft's IEBlog, "Spartan is a single browser designed to work great across the entire Windows 10 device family - from keyboard and mouse on the Windows 10 desktop to touch, gestures, voice, controllers and sensors."

However, Microsoft is not abandoning Internet Explorer completely...yet. That post, targeted at Web developers, hints that there are some "older technologies" used to create Web pages, specific to Internet Explorer, that might not function properly in the Spartan browser.

We recognize some enterprises have legacy web sites that use older technologies designed only for Internet Explorer, such as custom ActiveX controls and Browser Helper Objects. For these users, Internet Explorer will also be available on Windows 10. Internet Explorer will use the same dual rendering engines as Spartan, ensuring web developers can consistently target the latest web standards.

So, Internet Explorer will still be available for Windows 10.

Previews of Windows 10 and Spartan are available to the "PC experts" and "IT Pros" in the Windows Insiders program.

The post Microsoft Killing Internet Explorer Web Browser appeared first on Continuing Legal Education (MCLE) in California, MCLE Los Angeles, CLE Orange County, Irvine & San Francisco.

Once installed, you must select your library (if available) from the list of supported libraries. (Be sure to click the green "plus sign" button to add your selection to your list.) You can add more than one library to your preference list.

Library Extension connects to more than 800 library collections in 48 states and the District of Columbia, six Canadian provinces, and two Australian states.

Once installed and configured, if a book you've searched for at Amazon.com is available at one of your preferred libraries, an indicator will appear on the upper right-hand side of the browser window, indicating the number of copies and formats available.

Clicking the "Borrow" button takes you directly to the library's catalog.

The post Browser Extension Tells You if Books From Amazon Available at Your Library appeared first on Continuing Legal Education (MCLE) in California, MCLE Los Angeles, CLE Orange County, Irvine & San Francisco.

By offering “comprehensive…private browsing” as its default, the Epic Privacy Browser eliminates or blocks many of the convenience features now common in Web browsers that store information about the user that could be accessed by unauthorized parties. The company describes “11 Potential Privacy Leaks that Epic Blocks.” They are:

1. No Address Bar Suggestions
2. No URL Checking
3. Removal of Auto-Translate
4. No URL Tracking
5. Removal of Installation ID
6. Removal of RLZ-Tracking Numbers
7. No Default Updater
8. Removal of the Installation Time Stamp
9. Removal of Alternate Error Pages
10. Removal of Navigation Error Suggestions
11. Removal of Error Reporting

Users will not find any of these features in the Epic Privacy Browser:

• History
• Third Party Cookies
• Password Saving
• Auto Suggest
• Web Cache
• Extensions
• Google Sync
• DNS Pre-Fetching
• Spell Check
• DNS Cahe
• Automated “Most Visited Sites” list
• Autofill

Additionally, the Epic Privacy Browser includes comprehensive ad and tracker blocking and a “one click proxy” to hide your IP address. The browser does not send your search terms to the web pages you visit when perfoming search engine searches and has its “Do Not Track” signal always on.  The browser also clears all browsing data when you close the browser at the end of a session.

The Epic Privacy Browser is available as a free download for Mac and Windows operating systems at http://www.epicbrowser.com.

Founded by Alok Bhardwaj, Hidden Reflex based in Washington, DC and Bangalore, India. The company’s investors include the Washington Post Company.

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