A belt and braces approach is wise. Modern Relics, CC BYAfter various celebrities' accounts on Apple’s iCloud servers were hacked, the company has made a point of addressing these issues. It has made new claims for the security of iOS 8, the firm’s latest phone operating system, and for its cloud services. Similarly, Google announced the next version of its Android phone operating system will encrypt all data by default. But what sort of security do these measures provide?

Security in the hand

New research from Cisco points to a "South Park"-inspired IT threat; there's no word yet if Cartman is to blame.

Home Depot recently confirmed that it has been the victim of the largest credit card breach in history, with 56 million payment cards having been stolen by clever hackers, who managed to access the giant retailer’s systems for more than four months. A report from The New York Times further reveals that while the recent hack was possible thanks to advanced malware programs that went undetected by existing security measures, Home Depot apparently has a history of ignoring the security of its customers’ payment data.

Bookpad Inc, which enables customers to preview, edit and manage any documents on the cloud, has been acquired by internet giant Yahoo, as per separate media reports. The precise value of the deal could not be ascertained, but media reports pegged it between $10-15 million. A formal announcement is still pending and may come at [...]