On your own…

Time to update your operating system? Support for Windows 3.1 ended years ago, XP has now gone the same way.

Anticipating the mood swings, messy bedrooms and questionable hygiene to come, this week Microsoft did what most parents can’t and cut loose support for their thirteen year old ‘child’, Windows XP, before the troublesome teenage years really kicked in.

This means that they’ll no longer be releasing security updates and bug fixes for the still popular operating system and users will be largely on their own.

Using a computer without any sort of security support is a bit like lion-taming without a whip and a chair – it’s generally not a good idea and whilst you stand less chance of being eaten by a lion, you could be gobbled up by the digital equivalent.

As such, the large numbers of people still using XP, maybe a quarter of all users, are now realistically left with three options –

1. Upgrading their operating systems
2. Paying Microsoft several million pounds for extended support on an individual basis as some governments have done
3. Continuing on XP and hoping for the best

The reason you don’t want to go for option three is that the the internet bad guys are now free to exploit any vulnerabilities in the operating system for their own malicious ends, safe in the knowledge that nobody at Microsoft is countering them.

Option two is largely ruled out by the whole multi-million pound thing which really only leaves option one, abandoning XP in favour of a new program.

This could mean a newer version of Windows, 7 or 8 comes to mind which may require a hardware upgrade or new computer to run, joining the hipsters at Apple or alternatively, checking out one of the FREE open-source Linux operating systems on offer such as Ubuntu.

Whilst XP will still work, the lack of security support means any computer running it is now much more vulnerable to malware, viruses and other bugs that could see your files compromised and transactions across the interweb possibly open to interception.

Sure, updating your operating system isn’t particularly convenient but less convenient still is having your computer’s front door left wide open to the internet by a hormone plagued teenage operating system so please, act now to secure your PC from the criminals!

P.S. There are a couple of useful guides here and here on upgrading/securing your PC in light of the XP move, you’re also advised to change all website passwords after a recent bug found in the encryption that many sites use.

 

How low are you willing to go?

Stolen in a recent charity shop burglary, can you help with enquiries?

The below press release was issued by our Corporate Communications department recently following a burglary at the St Giles Hospice Shop in Walsall Town Centre, I’m republishing it here too in case anyone missed it.

I’m in charge of the case and with the victim being a cancer charity, I’m obviously keen to do all I can to find out who was responsible.

Please feel free to forward on this appeal and as per the below, if you have any information that may help then please let us know or pass it on anonymously via Crimestoppers.

Walsall Town Centre Charity Shop Targeted

Walsall Police are appealing for information following a burglary at a charity shop in the town centre.

Thieves smashed their way into the St Giles Hospice Shop on the High Street at some point between Saturday 22 March at 3:40pm and Monday 24 March at 8:20am.

A grey Navman iCN320 sat-nav was stolen from a display cabinet before the thieves made good their escape.

PC Stanley, from the Walsall Investigation Team, said: “This was a particularly cruel break in with the victim being a charity shop run by volunteers.

“The St Giles Shop raises money for people suffering from cancer and other serious illnesses, we are keen to catch and prosecute the persons responsible as soon as possible.

“We urge people in the local area to think if they have been offered such an item for sale in recent and if they may have information to pass to the investigation team.”

Anyone with information is urged to call PC Stanley on 101 or information can be given anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

He’s going to take me to that little room…

As Wiley will tell you, previous arrests might see you turned away from the USA or Canada if you’re not prepared (Image from Clozone)

Unlike three hundred years ago when to get to the USA or Canada would require a six month sea voyage during which you’d probably have to eat half the crew, things are much easier these days.

You buy a ticket, hop on a plane and you’re there by the time you’ve watched Meet The Fockers twice over.

The exception to things being this simple, as rapper Wiley has recently found out on a failed trip to Toronto, is if you’ve ever been arrested or have previous convictions.

This is because any arrest, even one not resulting in any charges, means you may no longer be eligible for a visa waiver and so will have to apply for a visa from an embassy.

Canada and the USA deal with previous arrests and convictions slightly differently but if you’ve any doubts over whether you may be considered ‘inadmissible’, you need to check with the immigration authorities before you go.

Not doing so may mean that as soon as you arrive, you’ll be turned straight back round and returned at your own expense.

To find out more about immigration to the US, you have to speak to a wizard (!) who will guide you through a set of simple questions to determine if you’ll need a visa or not.

The Canadian Government doesn’t appear to have a wizard (boo) but they do have a website that tells you a little more about their immigration criteria.

Previous arrests or convictions aren’t an automatic bar to travel and whilst the disruption to travel isn’t quite as inconvenient as being eaten during a crossing of the Atlantic, it’s much better to check visa requirements prior to booking rather than being turned away at customs when you land.

P.S. You can find out more about visa issues specific to the USA on the Ask The Police website

Bend me, shape me…

Republished via BBC News

Police to abandon traditional helmets after research shows they alter officers’ head shapes

The Custodian helmet is to be replaced.

Police forces across England & Wales are to replace the traditional Custodian helmet after researchers published data showing that over time, the helmets caused the shapes of their wearers’ heads to change.

Academics at the College of Policing demonstrated that over the course of several years, some officers’ heads were up to five inches longer than they had been when they had been measured as new recruits.

The Custodian, first adopted by the London Metropolitan Police in 1863, will be replaced by flat caps.

Long running research

The study into head shapes took place over twenty years with researchers gathering data from over 10,000 beat officers working in forces around England & Wales.

The data, published in the International Journal of Police Science, demonstrated a trend for officers’ heads to gradually assume the same shape as their helmets and to become noticeably more cone-shaped.

Changes in air pressure to blame

Report publisher Justin Lofter has said that the effect can be explained by “small changes in air pressure” within the helmet.

Speaking on the BBC’s Today programme, he said: “The air pressure inside the helmet is slightly lower than outside causing a small suction effect on the top of the head which after several years, begins to pull the head into the shape of the helmet”

Tradition important

But Police Federation leader Dixon Green has argued that the ‘cone head’ effect has long been known about and that many officers are proud that their heads get reshaped by the traditional headgear.

“It’s a sign of experience”, he said.

Police forces are set to phase out the helmets by the end of the year.