Information Of Technology

In a recent study, Surfshark analyzed search results obtained by Googling for downloads of popular software, and their findings are enough to make you shudder: up to 64 per cent of links in search results for some programs were to sites spreading malware.

The search for “Avid software” appears to be the most dangerous, with search results containing 64.4 per cent of potentially dangerous links.

The methodology used by Surfshark was simple. The company first compiled a list of the most popular software, divided into five categories: social media, web browsers, crypto wallets, small business and creativity. It used softwareadvice.com‘s extensive database to determine the most popular applications.

Then it ran Google searches using the names of the software paired with the terms “download” and “torrent.” It finally analyzed the first five pages of results using a malware scanner. All results identified as medium or higher risk were considered potentially

News that Avaya Holdings Corp. could imminently file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection means that both channel partners and corporate clients are watching anxiously to see what will happen next.

Should a filing end up happening, “part of Avaya’s Chapter 11 filing requires a simplification of their product lines,” Thomas Randall, advisory director with London, Ont.-based Info-Tech Research Group, said today. “Both channel partners and clients are watching for whether parts of Avaya will be sold off (e.g., their contact centre solution) to meet financial objectives, or whether certain products will just reach end of life from lack of R&D investment.”

News of the pending bankruptcy protection plan first broke on Thursday when the Wall Street Journal reported that the “company is reaching a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing to restructure its balance sheet, in a bid to turn around its business and move past accounting problems.”

Company shares at the

Starting next year, Canadians working for the federal public service will have to spend at least two or three days per week in the office, Treasury Board president Mona Fortier announced Thursday. 

Fortier said that the new “hybrid work model,” will ensure employees return to the office for between 40 and 60 per cent of their regular work schedule.

The announcement also noted that since the pandemic restrictions began to lift, a portion of Canada’s 335,000 federal government employees have already returned to working on site for a few days each week.

“Creating a new work model was always going to require learning and evolution. This new approach is about refining how hybrid is applied,” the government wrote in its announcement. “Departments and agencies have been experimenting to see how a hybrid work model can best support our mandates, and many have already introduced models similar to the direction provided.

It’s that time of year again. The holiday season is approaching quickly, and gift buying is probably taking over your mind. If you’re stumped on what to buy and need some inspiration, take a look at part four of our holiday gift guide.

Amazon Kindle Scribe

If you are uncertain about introducing ebooks to an avid reader in your family, Amazon’s Kindle series might be your best bet. The Kindle Scribe also marks Amazon’s long-awaited step into e-note territory. “Feels like writing on paper”, Amazon boasts. Readers can scribble thoughts, annotate documents, and jot down to-dos on their ebook without the bane of the constant phone or tablet notifications. Also expect the classic e-reader features, including adjustable warm light, auto-adjusting front light and USB-C charging with a battery advertised as “designed to last for months”. Priced at C$429, Scribe is available in Tungsten with 16, 32 or 64

The impact of a full-scale probe by European Union (EU) regulators into Broadcom’s US$61 billion purchase of VMware earlier this year will hinge on the framework of the investigation, which will reveal much about what regulators are thinking, said John Annand, a director of the infrastructure team at Info-Tech Research.

That framework, according to a Reuters report, could be announced as early as next week, following an initial series of meetings known as “state of play” between EU regulators and Broadcom officials.

According to Reuters, EU officials usually convey their concerns during such meetings, and if companies fail to convince them of the merits of their takeovers, they then launch a full-scale four-month long investigation once their preliminary review of the deal ends.

Annand said there is a multitude of issues associated with the sale, chief among them being “continued uncertainty” and how that is impacting VMware product sales.

“Amazing