Dienstag, 5. September 2017

Tech leaders slam Trump for ending DACA


Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg calls it a "sad day" and Microsoft vows to go to court as the giants of Silicon Valley speak out against President Donald Trump's repeal of the "Dreamers" immigration program. Subscribe to CNET: http://cnet.co/2heRhep Check out our playlists: http://cnet.co/2g8kcf4 Like us on Facebook: http://ift.tt/1930vfU Follow us on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/cnet Follow us on Instagram: http://bit.ly/2icCYYm Add us on Snapchat: http://cnet.co/2h4uoK3
by CNET via Endless Supplies .De - Brands

Hurricane Irma To Create Massive Travel Headaches In Florida, Caribbean

For the second time in as many weeks, a major hurricane is heading toward the southeast U.S. coast. This time, it’s Hurricane Irma that has its bullseye aiming towards us, and it’s expected to come through the Caribbean and up to the Florida coast.

The Storm

This far out, Hurricane Irma’s exact is still uncertain. However, the storm is a monster — currently, a true Category 5 hurricane — and is barreling westward from the Atlantic, toward Florida and the Caribbean.

Irma is tied for the second-strongest storm ever observed in the Atlantic, the Washington Post reports, and the warnings for everyone in its path are dire.

In the U.S., that includes Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Florida in particular. Irma is expected to take a right turn and carve a swath right up the Florida peninsula, more or less, although whether it will land harder on the east or west side of the state is unclear. It’s also unknown how long the hurricane will remain at its current strength.

Still, forecasters advise that residents of the Sunshine State should prepare for landfall on Sunday, Sept. 10, and all the destruction that comes with.

Travel Trouble

As we saw all too recently when Hurricane Harvey hit Texas, a big storm means massive disruption to travel by both air and sea.

Air
Many major airports — both domestic and foreign — lie in the storm’s path. As Irma’s projected landfall gets closer, you can view the statuses of many here:

Airlines that fly into or out of the affected cities (including Caribbean islands) are also already providing fee waivers for changing your travel date, including:

Sea
Ports in the region will also be severely affected by the storm. That means shipping delays, but it also means that all of the cruise itineraries that leave from or travel to ports in the region are affected. Many have already been canceled or rerouted.

Most major cruise lines have already reached out to affected passengers directly; you can also view your ship’s planned travel status directly on your cruise website, for most lines.

If you’re already there…

Florida’s major tourist destinations have hurricane policies that permit rebooking in the event of a weather emergency, including Walt Disney World and Universal Studios.


by Kate Cox via Consumerist

Fake Architect Sentenced In ‘Vandelay Industries’ Investigation

If someone is a successful architect, people assume that he or she actually is an architect. Yet a man in upstate New York who drew up renderings of over 100 buildings and received hundreds of thousands of dollars in payments for designing commercial and residential buildings has been charged with pretending to be an architect for more than half a decade.

According to New York’s state Attorney General, the alleged fake architect’s crimes go beyond just telling people that he was an architect when he wanted to impress them. He’s accused posed as an architect from 2010 to 2016, designing buildings and submitting site plans for projects in and around Albany, NY. These included apartment buildings with hundreds of units, a development of townhouses, and a a retail store.

He allegedly used a real architect’s license number, which the AG’s office says that he “found on the internet,” adding it to his name on stamps that were submitted to cities and towns around the area. He’s also accused of using the number of a state-registered Professional Engineer with whom he had worked in the past with a forged signature.

After learning that there had been complaints filed with the state Department of Education, which regulates professional licenses, he allegedly quietly changed his promotional materials to say “design” instead of “architecture.” The Education Department investigated and then handed the case over for criminal prosecution. The man was charged and pleaded guilty to grand larceny and fraud. After pleading guilty, he will serve 2 1/3 to 7 years in state prison.

Fake architecture and the fictitious company Vandelay Industries are both schemes perpetrated by the fictional George Costanza of Seinfeld. While the schemes weren’t related to each other on the show, it does make a better name for an investigation than “Operation Costanza.”

“Deceptively posing as a licensed and registered architect has real consequences – including prison time,” AG Schneiderman said in a statement. “Those who wish to game the system and take advantage of New Yorkers should take note: no license, no work for you.”

Perhaps he didn’t need to take the Seinfeld thing that far.


by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

FedEx Refuses To Believe Madonna Is Actually Madonna, Won’t Deliver Package

Madonna is perhaps one of the most easily recognized musician/actor/activist/whatever-else-she-does in the world, despite her frequently changing personas. But try telling that to FedEx.

The “Vogue” singer shared on Twitter today a frustrating experience with the delivery service: The company doesn’t believe she’s who she says she is.

As a result, FedEx won’t release a package to her.

The Tweet quickly caught the attention of the star’s fans, who noted that it was a very relatable problem, offered suggestions for next time the company delivers a package, and, of course, provided several puns related to the situation.

The Tweet was also seen by FedEx, with a customer service rep replying to Madonna.

It’s unclear if FedEx was able to resolve the issue for Madonna.

Consumerist has reached out to FedEx on the issue and for a list of ways in which customers can avoid similar situations or provide proof of identity. We’ll update this post when we hear back.


by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

Creating Space for the Human Experience


Today data storage is more than just archiving; it's not static. It’s about providing ways to analyze, manipulate, and interact with information, understand patterns and behavior, to re-live experiences and memories. Seagate (http://ift.tt/2xMMBBw) is building on its heritage of storage leadership to solve the challenge of getting more out of the living data produced everyday. Connect: Linkedin | http://ift.tt/2vJvT8P Facebook | http://ift.tt/1eTAUa0 Instagram | http://ift.tt/2vJmAWg Twitter | https://twitter.com/seagate Support: Web | http://ift.tt/1phbNn9 Twitter | http://twitter.com/AskSeagate Thanks for reading this far. You are a good person.
by SeagateTechnology via Endless Supplies .De - Brands

Seagate | Pioneering the Datasphere


Data is alive. The vibrant texture created by it the datasphere, an ever expanding dimension of data all around us, reflecting and amplifying life in infinite ways. Datasphere is who we are, who we have been, and who we are becoming. Seagate (http://ift.tt/2wFeag2) makes it its mission to harness the datasphere in order to create and maximize space for the human experience. Connect: Linkedin | http://ift.tt/2vJvT8P Facebook | http://ift.tt/1eTAUa0 Instagram | http://ift.tt/2vJmAWg Twitter | https://twitter.com/seagate Support: Web | http://ift.tt/1phbNn9 Twitter | http://twitter.com/AskSeagate Thanks for reading this far. You are a good person.
by SeagateTechnology via Endless Supplies .De - Brands

Google's new Street View camera rig will better map the world | Engadget Today


Its image-scouring algorithms will index better than the previous cameras allowed. http://ift.tt/2eZ9ycP Google's Street View cameras haven't changed significantly in 8 years, and that's a problem when the technology world most certainly has. How is the company supposed to fulfill its AI ambitions with 2009-era hardware? Thankfully, it won't have to. Google has revealed to Wired that it's implementing a brand new camera design that should not only produce higher quality Street View imagery, but will prove crucial to Google's use of AI to index real-world locations. Subscribe to Engadget on YouTube: http://engt.co/subscribe Get More Engadget: • Like us on Facebook: http://ift.tt/1k1iCZT • Follow us on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/engadget • Follow us on Instagram: http://ift.tt/1k1iCZV • Add us on Snapchat: http://ift.tt/1UqS18a • Read more: http://www.engadget.com Engadget is the definitive guide to this connected life.
by Engadget via Endless Supplies .De - Brands

Where Will The Water from Hurricane Harvey Go?


By the time Hurricane Harvey ended, 27 trillion gallons of rain poured down on Texas and Louisiana. The storm lasted for over a week, but it’s impossible to know how long it will take for the flood to recede throughout the region. Learn more: http://pops.ci/hQvWUH -- FOLLOW POPULAR SCIENCE http://www.popsci.com Facebook: http://ift.tt/1mDk8YO Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/popsci Instagram: http://ift.tt/2ieE7iU Snapchat: http://ift.tt/2fSZV2X Pinterest: http://ift.tt/2idLrLJ -- Media Used (CC BY 2.0) http://ift.tt/2vJvCCP http://ift.tt/2wFIQ0K http://ift.tt/2vJvEdV http://ift.tt/2wF97vO http://ift.tt/2vJjf9E http://ift.tt/2wF982Q Media Used (CC BY-ND 2.0) http://ift.tt/2vJvFhZ http://ift.tt/2wEUfxR Media Used (Public Domain) https://twitter.com/NWS/status/902174274571689984/ http://ift.tt/2gm80gG http://ift.tt/2wEUg4T http://ift.tt/2vJvGm3 http://ift.tt/2wEU8lP http://ift.tt/2vIKzFf http://ift.tt/2wF99nq http://ift.tt/2vJqM8r http://ift.tt/2wF9aru http://ift.tt/2vIts6m http://ift.tt/2wFfUWs http://ift.tt/2vJvKSP http://ift.tt/2wF9dDG
by Popular Science via Endless Supplies .De - Brands

The Future Of Tourism Is Public Toilets

There’s nothing that can ruin a great tourism experience quite like the intense need to go to the bathroom. That’s why officials in some U.S. cities are trying to figure out how to provide more public restrooms: If tourists have a place to go when they need to, they may be more likely to visit — and spend money — in those cities.

Roving toilets

For example in Denver, city officials have embarked on their own version of China’s toilet revolution, by introducing two mobile restrooms in the hope that giving people a place to do their bathroom business will not only help keep the city cleaner, but increase foot traffic and tourism.

Each toilet truck has three stalls, lights, running water, and flushing toilets. An attendant monitors the restrooms, cleaning up between uses, keeping any eye out for any illicit activity. The city also provides an online map so people can see where the roving bathrooms are on any given day.

“We’re encouraging people to walk and bike and use transit and it just makes sense then to offer a public restroom as well in these places where people are gathering,” Angela Casias, legislative services manager for the Denver Department of Public Works tells Stateline. “[We’re] trying to have a positive impact on all kinds of people.”

Denver officials say it seems to be working: They’re receiving fewer complaints about fecal matter in the areas where these mobile toilets roam, and that use is split between tourists, folks who work downtown, and homeless people.

The loo stands alone

In Portland, OR, standalone steel bathroom stalls — The Portland Loo — dot city sidewalks, and are connected to the city’s sewage and water system. They’re “designed to be durable in an urban setting,” with stainless steel construction and a graffiti-resistant finish.

Because these stalls don’t have an attendant, however, they’re open at the bottom and the top in an effort to dissuade folks from doing drugs inside or engaging in other unapproved uses.

“You don’t have complete privacy, and it’s not supposed to be comfortable,” Evan Madden of Portland Loo explained to Stateline. “It’s cold, sounds pass through and everything.”

Other cities like San Antonio, San Francisco, and Seattle have tried out similar bathroom systems, notes Stateline.

Giving folks a place to go can provide peace of mind, public restroom advocates say.

“Knowing that there’s a restroom there supports you physically and puts your mind at ease,” Carol McCreary, program manager for Public Hygiene Lets Us Stay Human (PHLUSH), tells Stateline. “People will not congregate in multigenerational groups in public space unless the restroom is there.”


by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

Honda To Pay $484M To Reimburse Some Drivers For Takata Airbag Recall Costs

Honda must pay more than $484 million to resolve customers’ financial losses related to vehicles equipped with shrapnel-shooting airbags from Takata and step up its efforts to ensure the dangerous safety devices are repaired.

The settlement, which must still be approved by a judge, resolves owners’ claims of economic damages suffered as a result of the massive and deadly airbag recall.

According to the settlement, Honda would pay $605 million to resolve customers’ claims. However, The Wall Street Journal notes that the company is receiving a 20% discount on the cost as consideration for its current recall efforts.

Reimbursements

Under the deal, the company will create a fund to provide reimbursement for out-of-pocket expenses incurred while car owners waited for the repair of their vehicles, including lost wages, child care costs, and rentals.

While the specific value of this fund was not released, lawyers for the owners say Honda will pay up to $500 to each individual and provide extended warranties on the vehicles.

“This fund will further supplement our already robust actions to repair every car on the road affected by the recall and assure the safety of drivers and passengers,” the carmaker said.

Ramping Up Repairs

Honda notes on its website that there is now an ample supply of replacement airbag inflators readily available for all of the remaining affected vehicles.

In addition to reimbursing customers, Honda will create a $200 million fund to expand Takata airbag inflator recall efforts.

This, the company notes, will include improving outreach to owners of affected vehicles, such as those who have not yet been located or have not responded to recall notices.

Owners of recalled Honda and Acura vehicles should immediately schedule a repair at authorized Acura and Honda dealers.

While waiting for the repairs to be finished, Honda says it will now provide all owners and lessees with a free rental or loaner vehicles until the remedy is complete.

Affected Vehicles

Honda, the largest customer of Takata, has been the most affected by the massive recall in which more than 46 million airbag inflators were recalled.

The company’s vehicles have been linked to 11 Takata-related deaths in the U.S. The only other vehicle linked to a death in the U.S. was the Ford Ranger pickup truck.

Owners of Honda and Acura vehicles can check to see if their automobiles are included by entering their 17 digit VIN on the SaferCar.gov website, which produces a list of all recalls associated with a particular vehicle.

Vehicle owners can also check their vehicles’ recall status at http://ift.tt/yYawDI for Honda owners or http://ift.tt/17RFzet for Acura owners or by calling their authorized dealer.


by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

Country Fresh Diced Vegetables And Kabobs Recalled For Possible Listeria

A skewer of fresh vegetables, with or without meat, is a great meal fresh off the grill. What you don’t want, though, is to add a marinade of potentially life-threatening bacteria to your roasted veggies. Country Fresh brand diced vegetables and pre-skewered kabobs sold at Southeastern Grocers, Publix, and Walmart stores in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, and Mississippi have been recalled because they might be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes.

What to look for

While these products have a “Use by” date back in August, they might still be lurking in refrigerators, or might have been frozen. Products include mixed stir fry vegetables, fajita blend vegetables, premade kabobs, and plastic clamshell containers of diced peppers. They were sold under the Country Fresh, Kabob Sensations, and Marketside brand names.

Description Store Description of Packaging Use By Date Range State
Fajita Blend 12oz Southeastern Grocers Overwrap 8/12/2017 8/18/2017 FL
Stir Fry Vegetable Southeastern Grocers Overwrap 8/12/2017 8/18/2017 FL
Vegetable Kabob 23oz Southeastern Grocers Overwrap 8/12/2017 8/18/2017 FL
Green Pepper Diced 6oz Southeastern Grocers Clamshell 8/13/2017 8/20/2017 FL, GA
Creole Mix 6oz Southeastern Grocers Clamshell 8/13/2017 8/19/2017
AL, FL, GA, LA, MS
Tri-Pepper Dice 6oz Southeastern Grocers Clamshell 8/12/2017 8/19/2017
AL, FL, GA, LA, MS
Fajita Mix 6oz Southeastern Grocers Clamshell 8/13/2017 8/19/2017
AL, FL, GA, LA, MS
Kabob Sensations Veggie Kabob 15oz Publix Supermarkets, Inc. Overwrap 8/12/2017 8/18/2017 AL, FL, GA
Dice Tri-Pepper 7oz Wal-Mart Stores Inc. Clamshell 8/13/2017 8/20/2017 AL, FL, GA
Marketside Veggie Kabobs 23oz Wal-Mart Stores Inc. Overwrap 8/13/2017 8/20/2017 AL, FL, GA

What to do

There have been no confirmed illnesses yet, according to Country Fresh and the Food and Drug Administration, but the incubation period for Listeria is up to 70 days. If you still have the products, bring them back to the store where they were purchased. If you have questions about the recall, call the company at 281-453-3305.

You’ve probably already eaten these products if you have them, but the long incubation period means that you may not be sick yet. Listeria can be especially dangerous for young children, elderly adults, pregnant women, and anyone with a compromised immune system.

Symptoms of infection include a high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea, but some people have no symptoms at all. Complications can include meningitis, stillbirth, and miscarriage.


by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

Betsy DeVos Refuses To Work With Consumer Protection Agency On Student Loans

The Department of Education will no longer work with the federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to root out bad players in the student loan servicing arena. That’s according to Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, who recently notified the CFPB that her department is ending years of formal cooperation combating student loan fraud. In the notice [PDF] sent late last week to CFPB Director Richard Cordray, DeVos accuses the Bureau of not living up to its end of agreements established in 2011 and 2013, by doing too much to hold loan servicers accountable.

The Secretary claims the Bureau overstepped its authority by taking enforcement actions against student loan servicers and collectors, rather than simply passing those matters on to the Education Dept. to handle.

Ending The Relationship

The memorandums established a working relationship between the CFPB and the Dept. of Education and created a pathway in which the agencies shared information related to oversight of federal loans.

According to the memorandums, the two agencies are to “collaborate to ensure coordination in providing assistance to and seeing borrowers seeking to resolve complaints” related to their student loans.

The notice accuses the CFPB of failing to abide by its agreement to provide the Department with all complaints related to federal student loans within 10 days of receiving the grievance.

According to DeVos, the CFBP — which is by definition an agency of the United States government responsible for consumer protection in the financial sector, including student loans — handled the complaints itself.

This, DeVos claims, confuses borrowers, as the Dept. of Education is supposed to work with “federal student loan borrowers to ensure that their issues are addressed within the rules applicable to its program.”

The memorandum suggests that the Department is more interested in upholding its relationship with servicers than protecting borrowers who have been wronged.

DeVos claims that the CFPB’s actions against student loan servicers undermines the Department’s mission to serve students and borrowers.

DeVos suggests that actions taken by the CFPB to rein in shoddy student loan servicers and collectors only confuses borrowers.

“The Department takes exception to the CFPB unilaterally expanding its oversight role to include the Department’s contracted federal student loan servicers,” DeVos wrote. “The Department has full oversight responsibility for federal student loans.”

However, the Department’s ability to root out fraud was thrown into question last week, when the agency appointed former for-profit college executive Julian Schmoke to run the Department’s enforcement division.

While Schmoke currently works as a high-ranking director at a community college in Georgia, he spent several years working for DeVry University, a college that has been repeatedly accused of fraud by both federal and state authorities.

A Disservice

Consumer advocates called the Department’s latest move an “outrageous and deeply troubling” attempt to block the CFPB’s efforts to protect student loan borrowers.

“The claim that the CFPB ‘unilaterally’ expanded its oversight role over servicers and collectors of federal student loans is unfounded,” Persus Yu, director of the National Consumer Law Center’s Student Loan Borrower Project, said in a statement.

Yu notes that the CFPB is just doing its job, adding that Congress gave the agency authority over those servicers and collectors.

“Education is now trying to stop the CFPB from handling loan-related complaints, but Education’s failures are what led Congress to give the CFPB authority to help students,” Yu said. “DeVos is prioritizing the interests of predatory for-profit schools, debt collectors, and troubled student loan services over the interests of student loan borrowers.”

More Complaints Than Ever Before

The notice to end its relationship between the agencies comes just months after the CFPB released a report that found student loan servicing complaints had increased in every state.

According to the report, the Bureau received 3,284 complaints during the first three months of 2017, a 325% increase over the 773 complaints received during same time period only a year earlier.

Those increases aren’t exactly surprising considering the CFPB’s March snapshot showed a 429% increase in complaints related to student loan servicing.

As of April 1, the Bureau says it has handled approximately 44,400 student loan complaints from consumers since it opened this complaint portal in Feb. 2016.

The CFPB notes that the surge in complaints is likely tied not only to an increased awareness of student loan servicing issues, but the fact that the Bureau updated its intake form on accepting complaints in Feb. 2016.

The Bureau noted that many of these complaints came after it took “major enforcement action” against a student loan servicer: Navient. In January, Navient, which is in the running for the new Dept. of Education contract, was sued by the CFPB and two states claiming the company cheated borrowers out of repayment rights.

The company responded to the complaint two months later, noting in a filing to dismiss the lawsuit that it was under no obligation to help student loan borrowers.

“There is no expectation that the servicer will act in the interest of the consumers,” Navient said in the March 24 filing, adding that courts routinely agree that servicers and lenders “do not owe borrowers any specific fiduciary duties based upon their servicer/borrower relationship.”

Just Another Harmful Decision

Since taking on the role of Secretary of Education, DeVos has taken several steps to roll back consumer protections related to federal student loans.

In April, DeVos rescinded a number of student loan servicing protections put in place by the previous administration intended to make the student loan repayment process more accurate and transparent.

In a memo sent to the Federal Student Aid office, DeVos withdrew two pieces of guidance from 2016 that required Federal Student Aid office to consider servicers’ past behavior when awarding contracts, including whether the company had misled or provided wrong information to borrowers or engaged in abusive consumer service.

Speaking of contracts between the Dept. of Equation and student loan servicers, DeVos announced in May the intention to put all federal student loan servicing under the control of just one company starting in 2019.

There are currently nine student loan servicers handling these accounts for the federal government.

To make matters worse, Navient is one of three in consideration to become the only student loan servicer contracting with the Department of Education.

The other two companies in contention for the contract are GreatNet and the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA).

Whichever company ultimately receives the contract will be required to build a platform to collect on and service an estimated 32 million federal direct student loans.

DeVos claimed that the changes were necessary in order to provide superior customer service and protections to borrowers.


by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

Arrow ECS Five Questions: Arrow Solution Lab


Join Adam Catbagan, Field CTO, Infrastructure Systems Group, as he discusses the Arrow Solution Lab.
by Arrow ECS North America via Endless Supplies .De - Brands

In Action: Lenovo Yoga 920 Laptop


Yoga 920 has landed. Tough and elegant as ever with that 360-degree hinge & CNC aluminum finish. Enabled with Windows Cortana & long-range voice-activated support. Industry-leading Lenovo Active pen. Learn more: http://ift.tt/2guaNnW #LenovoIFA
by Lenovo via Endless Supplies .De - Brands

In Action: Lenovo Explorer Headset


Swim with dolphins or take to the slopes with our immersive Windows Mixed Reality headset. Lightweight & high resolution with easy single-cable connection to a Windows 10 PC. Learn more: http://ift.tt/2guaNnW #LenovoIFA
by Lenovo via Endless Supplies .De - Brands

There’s A New Chocolate Color For The First Time In 80 Years

For the last 80 years, chocolate lovers have only had three types to choose from: dark, milk, and white (which some may argue isn’t really chocolate). But now there’s a new option heading for shelves — “ruby.”

This, according to the world’s largest cocoa-processing company, Barry Callebaut AG, which says the new type of chocolate is natural and does not contain any dyes or added flavors.

The company spent years developing the new flavor from the Ruby cocoa bean — sourced from different regions around the world — which Barry Callebaut claims “is unique because the fresh berry-fruitiness and color precursors are naturally present.”

“The fourth type in chocolate offers a totally new taste experience, which is not bitter, milky or sweet, but a tension between berry-fruitiness and luscious smoothness,” Barry Callebaut says.

Will people bite? After testing and “extensive consumer research” in the U.K., U.S., China, and Japan, Barry Callebaut says it thinks so, especially the younger set.

“It’s natural, it’s colorful, it’s hedonistic, there’s an indulgence aspect to it, but it keeps the authenticity of chocolate,” CEO Antoine de Saint-Affrique told Bloomberg. “It has a nice balance that speaks a lot to millennials.”

Nestle was the last company to produce a new kind of chocolate, introducing white chocolate to the market back in the 1930s.

And now, please enjoy the gloriousness of this classic ’80s commercial, as well as the iconic cover version by Faith No More.


by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

Lenovo Gets Slap On Wrist From Feds Over Pre-Installed Ad Software With Gaping Security Hole

Remember that time that Lenovo sold all those laptops with crappy ad-injection software built in, leaving users at risk for both bottom-of-the-barrel advertising and cyber attacks? Today, the tech company settled a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission, promising not to do this all again and not paying a penalty for its alleged transgressions.

Starting in the summer of 2014, Lenovo began selling laptops that included software called VisualDiscovery from a company called Superfish. For those not familiar with ad-injectors, they’re a way for a third-party to make your web-browsing experience even more obnoxious and ad-filled by inserting additional advertisements via pop-up ads and other things that no one with a soul actually appreciates.

According to the FTC complaint [PDF] against Lenovo, the company not only made a deal with Superfish to install this unwanted crud on new laptops, Lenovo also demanded that the ad-injector work on every web browser on the computer — including any browser installed after purchase.

VisualDiscovery also managed to inject ads on connections that are supposedly secure via https. See, when you’re communicating with a secure site, that site transmits a security certificate to your browser — basically a secret handshake that indicates to your computer that you’re actually on the website for Big Bob’s Bank and not some scammer who set up a clone of the Big Bob’s Bank website.

What VisualDiscovery did was insert itself into this conversation, accepting the secure site’s certificate then passing on its own certificate to your browser. This means that VisualDiscovery was acting as the man-in-the-middle, decrypting and and re-encrypting all the data you thought you were sending to and receiving from the secure website.

If that weren’t problem enough, Superfish stupidly — like, world class stupid — used the same security certificate every time to interrupt secure traffic… for every user, of every affected Lenovo.

A cybercriminal would have needed only to create a fake secure site using Superfish’s credentials to siphon off personal data from every user that visited it. Affected Lenovo users had no way of knowing that the sites they visited were authentic or not.

Within weeks of Lenovo unleashing this idiocy on the world, users began to complain and raise concerns about the security problems with VisualDiscovery. Lenovo responded by eventually updating the VisualDiscovery software on new laptops, but did not push out an update for those unlucky folks who had purchased a Lenovo with the gaping security flaw.

(In case you purchased a Lenovo between Aug. 2016 and Jan. 2017, and you’re somehow just hearing about this, here’s some info on how to find out if your computer is still affected.)

What really landed Lenovo in tepid water with the FTC was the company’s failure to disclose to customers that their new computers came with VisualDiscovery, and that the software was effectively hidden from users who didn’t navigate into the various folders in their PC’s Control Panel.

The only disclosure of VisualDiscovery came in a one-time pop-up window for each user. The first time a Lenovo owner opened a browser window on their new computer, the pop-up stated, “Explore shopping with VisualDiscovery: Your browser is enabled with VisualDiscovery which lets you discover visually similar products and best prices while you shop.”

There was an opt-out link in the pop-up box, but the complaint contends that it was too small. Additionally, there is no indication that the user is agreeing to or accepting this software; clicking anything but the opt-out was considered to be an acceptance of VisualDiscovery’s continued use.

The following screengrab from the FTC complaint gives you some idea of what that pop-up and opt-out looked like:

And even if there were some sort of “I Agree” button on the pop-up, the FTC notes that the notice fails to disclose the fact that VisualDiscovery would be interrupting and decrypting your connections to secure websites. This inane and insane aspect of the software was not even disclosed in the fine print of the privacy policy, says the FTC.

Also, the opt-out didn’t stop VisualDiscovery from acting as the man-in-the-middle. It just stopped the software from using that access to inject ads into your browser.

As part of the settlement [PDF] announced today, Lenovo is “prohibited from misrepresenting any features of software preloaded on laptops that will inject advertising into consumers’ Internet browsing sessions or transmit sensitive consumer information to third parties.” In other words, it must obey the law.

Lenovo must also get customers’ affirmative consent before pre-installing this type of software and implement — for the next 20 years — a comprehensive software security program for most of the consumer software that comes preloaded on its laptops. In all, some 750,000 laptops were sold containing this horrid software.

But one thing Lenovo won’t have to do is pay the FTC or any Lenovo customers a single dollar. Acting FTC Chair Maureen Ohlhausen explained at a Tuesday morning press event that the FTC doesn’t have the authority to obtain civil penalties for first-time violations of the FTC Act. The commission can seek civil penalties in cases involving other specific laws over which it has enforcement authority — like the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act — or for violations of the various industry-specific rules created by the FTC.

But the FTC Act — and its generalized prohibitions against unfair or deceptive business practices — does not allow for the commission to seek a financial penalty for initial violations. Failure to comply with an FTC Act-related settlement could, however, result in financial penalties for a company.

Ohlhausen also pointed out that Lenovo would experience some financial sting from the settlement due to the internal costs of the 20-year software security program it must implement.

Deceptive or not?
While the two sitting FTC commissioners (there are still three vacancies, including the chairmanship) agreed that the failure to adequately disclose the numerous troubling aspects of VisualDiscovery amounted to an unfair business practice, they disagreed on whether or not it rose to the level of a deceptive business practice.

Commissioner Terrell McSweeny argued in a statement [PDF] that Lenovo may have actively deceived customers by intentionally hiding software that had such a negative impact on the browsing experience. In addition to the privacy and security problems, and the unwanted ads, VisualDiscovery also slowed download speeds by around 25% and upload speeds by 125%.

“I believe that if consumers were fully aware of what VisualDiscovery was, how it compromised their system, and how they could have opted out, most would have decided to keep VisualDiscovery inactive,” writes McSweeny, saying that this allegation should have been included in the complaint. “The FTC should not turn a blind eye to deceptive disclosures and opt-ins, particularly when consumers’ privacy and security are at stake.”

However, Acting Chair Ohlhausen, disagreed, saying in her statement [PDF] that “Lenovo did disclose that the software would introduce advertising into consumers’ web browsing, although its disclosure could have been better.”

Ohlhausen also contends that — to the extent that consumers have any expectations of ad-injection software — “they likely expect it to affect their web browsing and to be intrusive.”

The ads injected by VisualDiscovery “may have been irritating to many,” writes Ohlhausen, but the did not render the software unfit for its intended use. “Therefore, I do not find Lenovo’s silence about those features to be a deceptive omission.”

In a statement released this morning, Lenovo says it stopped pre-installing VisualDiscovery in early 2015 and that it knows of no instances of the false security certificates being exploited by a third party.


by Chris Morran via Consumerist

DNA Center How To: Centralized IP Address Management


See how you can easily manage IP addresses across globally distributed sites and integrate with 3rd party infrastructure services. Learn more about DNA Center: http://cs.co/60578LcnF
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DNA Center How To: Manage Software Images & Updates


See how to easily download, deploy, and update device software images automatically with DNA Center. Learn more: http://cs.co/60538LcMd
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DNA Center How To: Automate Network Changes Centrally


See how you can eliminate manual errors, reduce complexity and simplify standard network changes across sites with DNA Center. Learn more: http://cs.co/60558Lcyd
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Alexa was everywhere at Europe's biggest tech show (The 3:59, EP. 278)


Starts @ 3:24 before edit Amazon's digital assistant showed up in roughly 30 products in the IFA trade show. Also we talk about AI's ability to protect us AND spark World War III. Alexa @ IFA: http://cnet.co/2gJ3kkZ Cyberattack Road Trip: http://cnet.co/2vPYGUc Elon Musk & AI: http://cnet.co/2gIt7Kp Traffic tracking: http://ift.tt/xPUnNK http://ift.tt/2bVrd1Y https://nmap.org/ Good morning from CNET NY Studios while we record the daily news-bite podcast: The 3:59. Hangout while we cover a multitude of stories from around the tech world and then Roger Cheng and Alfred Ng will take your questions and comments in the chat. Watch more episodes of 3:59 on Youtube: http://bit.ly/29LVP7F Livestream: http://ift.tt/2sd94Yk Periscope: http://ift.tt/2qU1nTf Subscribe to the audio podcast: iTunes: http://apple.co/29T3fbf Google Play: http://bit.ly/2hkXp5P Feedburner: http://bit.ly/2tVTkqw Soundcloud: http://bit.ly/2hlanQK TuneIn: http://bit.ly/2uVg9vN Stitcher: http://bit.ly/2vfeHXE Cnet: http://bit.ly/2veEfEw Subscribe to CNET: http://bit.ly/17qqqCs Watch more CNET videos: http://bit.ly/1BQxrGw Follow CNET on Twitter: http://twitter.com/CNET Follow CNET on Facebook: http://ift.tt/UQQ9wc Follow CNET on Instagram: http://ift.tt/1YieDuO
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Synology Webinar | Security Checklist for Storage Deployments


Learn how to enforce strong security practices in your environment with Synology's management tools and further enhance the safety of your data. Get more information: http://ift.tt/1IZOKrG
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Lenovo Tab 4 Home Assistant pack at IFA 2017


The Lenovo tab 4 just got handier with the new Home Assistant pack. it enriches Amazon's Alexa with visual information like the news, weather and even trivia questions. Weighing just 2/3 of a pound, it is light and portable. With 2 built-in mics, it can recognize your voice from up to 3 meters or about 10 feet away. Learn more here: http://ift.tt/2guaNnW
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Galaxy Note 8 review: The best Android phone comes at a price


Is the Galaxy Note 8 worth around $960? That depends on how much you love incredible cameras, using a stylus and a stunning screen. Here's the good and bad of Samsung's most power-packed phone: http://cnet.co/2wE4SRx Subscribe to CNET: http://cnet.co/2heRhep Check out our playlists: http://cnet.co/2g8kcf4 Like us on Facebook: http://ift.tt/1930vfU Follow us on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/cnet Follow us on Instagram: http://bit.ly/2icCYYm Add us on Snapchat: http://cnet.co/2h4uoK3
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Samsung’s Galaxy Note 8


Unveiled late last month, the Note 8 is the product of a newly cautious company. Read more here: http://ift.tt/2eBwluF TechCrunch is a leading technology media property, dedicated to obsessively profiling startups, reviewing new Internet products, and breaking tech news. Subscribe to TechCrunch today: http://bit.ly/18J0X2e
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Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Review


With the Note 7 cremated, it's down to the Galaxy Note 8 to redeem Samsung's phablet reputation. Happily, this big new flagship does just that. MORE http://ift.tt/2eBZ8zl MORE http://ift.tt/2joPhAR MORE http://ift.tt/2iZcbji
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Galaxy Note 8 Live Messages


New with the Samsung Galaxy Note 8 is Live Messages, which allow you to create animated images to send or share. They seemed like a gimmick at first, but since they're saved as standard animated GIFs they're surprisingly flexible and fun. Here, we've converted them into a video for easier watching. MORE http://ift.tt/2eBZ8zl MORE http://ift.tt/2udDLex
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Samsung Galaxy Note 8 UHD video camera sample


A sample of Ultra HD video taken on the Samsung Galaxy Note 8. MORE http://ift.tt/2eBZ8zl
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Samsung Galaxy Note 8 review


Subscribe to Engadget on YouTube: http://engt.co/subscribe Get More Engadget: • Like us on Facebook: http://ift.tt/1k1iCZT • Follow us on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/engadget • Follow us on Instagram: http://ift.tt/1k1iCZV • Add us on Snapchat: http://ift.tt/1UqS18a • Read more: http://www.engadget.com Engadget is the definitive guide to this connected life.
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Samsung Galaxy Note 8 review


Samsung's Galaxy Note 8 is here and it's trying to erase the memory of what happened with the Note 7 last year. By all accounts, the Note 8 is one of the best phones you can get right now, but it's also one of the most expensive. Can it pick up the ball the Note 7 dropped?Subscribe: http://goo.gl/G5RXGs Check out our full video catalog: http://goo.gl/lfcGfq Visit our playlists: http://goo.gl/94XbKx Like The Verge on Facebook: http://goo.gl/2P1aGc Follow on Instagram: http://goo.gl/7ZeLvX Read More: http://www.theverge.com
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Bar Shuts Down After Employees, Customers Learn Owner Donated To Former KKK Leader David Duke

A Minneapolis bar has gone from local hotspot to closed-for-business after employees, patrons, and entertainers learned that the club’s owner recently donated to the political campaign for a former head of the Ku Klux Klan.

Last week, CityPages confirmed that the owner of Minneapolis’ Club Jäger had donated $500 in 2016 to the senatorial campaign of David Duke, one of the nation’s most prominent white supremacists for several decades, a former member of the Louisiana House of Representatives, and a continual candidate for state and federal office.

The response to this news was immediate, with local entertainers canceling their regular dance and trivia nights at the club. Customers called for a boycott while a handful of racists began patronizing the bar in support of the donation. According to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, employees eventually walked off the job rather than being caught in the middle between the scandalized owner, the new bigoted patrons, and locals who accused them of sympathizing with the hate groups.

The owner of the bar was rarely on site, per local news reports, so the decision to shutter the club was made by the employees who actually controlled the day-to-day operation of the business. It’s possible the owner could simply reopen the bar with a new staff.

The bar’s website is still up, as is its Facebook page. The Club Jager Twitter feed has been deleted.

Other local businesses, including an improv theater and a used clothing store, found themselves caught up in the headlines because the bar owner also owns the properties where they operate. Both have publicly come out against their landlord’s political donation and stressed that he is not involved in their businesses in any way beyond collecting their rent payments.


by Chris Morran via Consumerist

Support: Heart Rate Monitor Care


Learn how to properly care for your chest strap style Garmin heart rate monitor. For more help, visit http://ift.tt/2b4gG6V
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Popular YouTube-To-MP3 Site Will Shut Down Following Recording Industry Lawsuit

Even though YouTube is primarily thought of as a video platform, many people use the site as a way to host and listen to just about any song they would want to hear for free. Some online services let users easily convert those streaming audio clips into MP3 files, but one of the more popular destinations for this conversion will be shutting down as part of a legal settlement with several record companies.

In 2016, several of the biggest names in music — including Warner Bros., Capitol, Sony, and Universal — sued the operators of YouTube-mp3.org (YTMP3), a site that takes the audio from any YouTube clip and creates a separate MP3 file for the user. They claimed the site aided and participated in an “enormous” level of copyright infringement.

YTMP3 is incredibly popular, with the lawsuit dubbing it “one of the most visited sites in the world,” and claiming that some 40% of all MP3s ripped from YouTube without authorization are made via YTMP3.

That lawsuit is now all but settled, with both parties signing off on a court document last week that proposes a permanent injunction against YTMP3 and its operators from continuing to offer this MP3-ripping service.

If approved, the proposed injunction [PDF] wouldn’t just shut down YTMP3, but would bar the defendants from creating or running any similar service anywhere in the world.

The YTMP3 operators must also turn over control of the YouTube-mp3.org URL to the plaintiffs and pay the record companies an amount that is not disclosed in the filing.

As of the posting of this story on the morning of Sept. 5, 2017, YTMP3 was still live, though attempting to convert a YouTube clip into an MP3 resulted in an error message stating, “We are sorry, this service is not available from your jurisdiction.”

[h/t TorrentFreak]


by Chris Morran via Consumerist

Samsung left 'without a captain,' China slows cryptocurrencies


In today's big tech news, Samsung's co-CEO raises leadership issues, China steps up cryptocurrency regulation and Hillary Clinton's tweets create a stir. Subscribe to CNET: http://cnet.co/2heRhep Check out our playlists: http://cnet.co/2g8kcf4 Like us on Facebook: http://ift.tt/1930vfU Follow us on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/cnet Follow us on Instagram: http://bit.ly/2icCYYm Add us on Snapchat: http://cnet.co/2h4uoK3
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Portugal. The Man - HD1 Artists & Headphones I Sennheiser


Sennheiser presents the one and only Portugal. The Man. By keeping on experiencing new things and be in motion every day, the American rock band from Portland strives to change and create different sounds. The Band is perpetually pushing forward, creating magical moments through taking chances and being driven For more information, visit http://sennheiser.com/ Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/sennheiserofficial Or follow Sennheiser on Facebook & Instagram: http://ift.tt/1B5w9WJ http://ift.tt/2oripuN Discover the future of audio and see more Sennheiser videos here: What's Your MOMENTUM? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bccuqpNWBWM&list=PLPv-clLIf8-rQwLmuLcAluy7QFQt8ze9W The Future of Audio https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OU5ROEBitZ4&list=PLPv-clLIf8-qIP51Vy139MJ4GmMynLLDr Headphones & Sound Equipment https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gcHE3wnepXA&list=PLPv-clLIf8-puk6ZhZkWTVGTVPJSyEjXY Microphones & Recording https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tci999960qc&list=PLPv-clLIf8-ozunBDKSmhdqzyjbE1oMnB Sennheiser – The future of audio! Sennheiser’s mission is to develop era-defining audio solutions. Be it headphones, microphones or integrated sound systems – with German engineering, decades of experience, and innovative science Sennheiser creates unsurpassed audio experiences that push the boundaries of today's technologies. Follow Sennheiser’s vision and discover audio solutions that challenge the status quo whilst offering profound new ways of experiencing integrated sound systems as well as pioneering headphones, microphones or headsets!
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Samsung, Panasonic, and the Future of Home Appliances at IFA 2017


Subscribe to Engadget on YouTube: http://engt.co/subscribe Get More Engadget: • Like us on Facebook: http://ift.tt/1k1iCZT • Follow us on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/engadget • Follow us on Instagram: http://ift.tt/1k1iCZV • Add us on Snapchat: http://ift.tt/1UqS18a • Read more: http://www.engadget.com Engadget is the definitive guide to this connected life.
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I survived zero gravity in the "Vomit Comet"


In the season finale of Space Craft, we booked a flight with the Zero Gravity Corporation, one of a handful of organizations in the world that currently offers parabolic flight experiences. Subscribe: http://goo.gl/G5RXGs Check out our full video catalog: http://goo.gl/lfcGfq Visit our playlists: http://goo.gl/94XbKx Like The Verge on Facebook: http://goo.gl/2P1aGc Follow on Instagram: http://goo.gl/7ZeLvX Read More: http://www.theverge.com
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Epic Upgrades for Google Maps Street View


Expect to see a new fleet of Google Street View cameras on the road. Their new images, and possibly yours, are helping the company's artificial intelligence index the world's places. Still haven’t subscribed to WIRED on YouTube? ►► http://wrd.cm/15fP7B7 CONNECT WITH WIRED Web: http://wired.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/WIRED Facebook: http://ift.tt/1dBz3Oa Pinterest: http://ift.tt/1JeJD7O Google+: http://ift.tt/1Ch4gR7 Instagram: http://ift.tt/1lUgynY Tumblr: http://WIRED.tumblr.com Want even more? Subscribe to The Scene: http://bit.ly/subthescene ABOUT WIRED WIRED is where tomorrow is realized. Through thought-provoking stories and videos, WIRED explores the future of business, innovation, and culture. Epic Upgrades for Google Maps Street View
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Sennheiser PRO TALK | Dave Rowland - Part 2 of 5 I Sennheiser


From building construction to recording engineer - Dave Rowland's path to becoming a professional sound engineer started off, unlike others. Today he works with big names, such as Ellie Goulding and Desiigner, at Germanos Studio. In this episode of Sennheiser PRO TALK, he reflects on his first steps in the music industry and gives important advice to everyone who wants to start a career as recording engineer. Subscribe to the channel and be sure not to miss the latest videos from Sennheiser. For more information, visit http://sennheiser.com/ Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/sennheiserofficial Or follow Sennheiser on Facebook & Instagram: http://ift.tt/1B5w9WJ http://ift.tt/2oripuN Discover the future of audio and see more Sennheiser videos here: What's Your MOMENTUM? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bccuqpNWBWM&list=PLPv-clLIf8-rQwLmuLcAluy7QFQt8ze9W The Future of Audio https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OU5ROEBitZ4&list=PLPv-clLIf8-qIP51Vy139MJ4GmMynLLDr Headphones & Sound Equipment https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gcHE3wnepXA&list=PLPv-clLIf8-puk6ZhZkWTVGTVPJSyEjXY Microphones & Recording https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tci999960qc&list=PLPv-clLIf8-ozunBDKSmhdqzyjbE1oMnB Sennheiser – The future of audio! Sennheiser’s mission is to develop era-defining audio solutions. Be it headphones, microphones or integrated sound systems – with German engineering, decades of experience, and innovative science Sennheiser creates unsurpassed audio experiences that push the boundaries of today's technologies. Follow Sennheiser’s vision and discover audio solutions that challenge the status quo whilst offering profound new ways of experiencing integrated sound systems as well as pioneering headphones, microphones or headsets!
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Dell Experience IFA 2017 - Where's Jim?


Help us find Jim Thompson at the Dell Experience IFA 2017 booth. Learn more : www.dell.de
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在家K歌?OceanKTV 專屬 K 歌系統與您一起歡唱


去哪裡 K 歌最舒服、最實惠?QNAP 首推業界第一套 NAS 結合 KTV 應用的軟體 – 鷗炫 OceanKTV,讓您輕鬆在家、在辦公室也能享受包廂級卡拉 OK 歡唱體驗!客廳變身 KTV 包廂,不限時間,同樂更盡興;獨自練歌不寂寞,練出好聲音,唱出歌手夢 ! 將大量歌曲收藏匯入 NAS,透過 OceanKTV 開始歡唱,一切都是為熱愛歌唱的您而誕生。
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ethOS USB Mining System on BIOSTAR Crypto Mining Motherboard


Here we’re going to guide you step by step, easily and quickly to finish ethOS system installation with ethOS 16GB USB preloaded with ethOS mining system on BIOSTAR crypto mining boards. Plug the USB and few steps to go, you can easily set up your mining pools and wallet. Let’s start mining! [ Step 1 ] Set up your crypto mining rig before installation *No need to set CSM Support enabled for NVIDIA graphics cards *Enable CSM Support for AMD graphics cards [ Step 2 ] Enter the ethOS mining system automatically [ Step 3 ] Input the specific command to turn off the remote config [ Step 4 ] Set up your wallet & mining pools [ Step 5 ] Reboot the system to make sure all the settings completed More BIOSTAR ▪ Website: http://ift.tt/1dndbhC ▪ Facebook: http://ift.tt/2rSXBud ▪ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/BiostarTaiwan ▪ Blog: http://ift.tt/24lFOJ1 ▪ Where to buy: http://ift.tt/2qfC6CC ▪ BIOSTAR crypto mining setup section as reference http://ift.tt/2u7IMI4 ABOUT BIOSTAR BIOSTAR, is a brand dedicated to the production of motherboards, graphics cards, industrial computing systems, IoT, and healthcare solution. Since its establishment in 1986, the BIOSTAR GROUP has become a major motherboard supplier in the IT industry as well as in IoT, Internet of Things. In order to pursue the best quality and aesthetic design, BIOSTAR has invested heavily in ID design, equipment, global marketing research as well as R & D. With a constant emphasis on quality, BIOSTAR always seeks to beyond better and race to the future.
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AORUS@PAX West 2017 Overview!


Check out the video of AORUS@PAX West 2017 Overview! Featuring most fun activity and game and just come to visit us!
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EVGA PAX West Day 4!


Multistreaming with https://restream.io/
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