I hope everyone is enjoying their summer.  It is quiet time in the technology world as companies are preparing for their fall/holiday product releases.

As I previously mentioned, Microsoft has begun rolling out the latest Windows 10 version, build 1903.  Having learned from customer feedback, Microsoft will be pushing out build 1903 slowly over months instead of weeks.  Always remember to back up your PC before upgrading to build 1903.

Apple held their annual developers conference this month, and they announced many software upgrades that will be released in the fall.  As expected, Apple will be rolling out the following updates:

• MacOS Catalina for Mac computers
• TVOS 13 for Apple TV users
• WatchOS6 for Apple watch users
• IOS 13 for iPhone users

The surprise was that Apple also announced iPadOS, a new operating system variant for Apple iPad tablet users.  (in the past, iOS was used on both iPhones and iPads.)  iPadOS will continue to support iOS applications so your iOS applications will continue to run on your iPad tablet.  Apple decided to create a separate iPad operating system to take advantage of its larger display, power, RAM and keyboards.  I will post more information on these Apple operating systems when they are released.

In our monthly security watch, both Microsoft and the US Department of Homeland Security have warned Windows users about a rapidly spreading malware called “Bluekeeper” that effects 8 versions of Windows.  DHS believes the malware comes from North Korea: if your PC is infected, “Bluekeeper” will change, delete or encrypt your data.  Microsoft has patches available on their website to close this vulnerability on their website (including for older versions of Windows like Windows XP and Windows 7).   IBM also discovered an issue with TP-Link’s wireless range extenders that can compromise wireless networks and data; TP-Link has yet to respond to IBM’s post.