Google Launches a Spy-Free Gmail through Emails' Encryption

 

By The CoolAge Reporter From Buzz@Bangalore, Bangalore In a bid to stop snooping on its users, Google has overhauled its Gmail service in a big way - encrypting every single email you send or receive. According to the firm, "this ensures that your messages are safe not only when they move between you and Gmail's servers, but also as they move between Google's data centres", said the firm. Gmail now always uses an encrypted HTTPS connection when you check or send email and it can not be turned off. "No one can listen in on your messages as they go back and forth between you and Gmail's servers," the firm said in a press release. Your email is important to you and making sure it stays safe and always available is important to us, said Google. As you go about your day reading, writing and checking messages, there are tonnes of security measures running behind the scenes to keep your email safe, secure, and there whenever you need it, said the firm officials. The effort is in the wake of the revelations made last year when National Security Agency (NSA) whistle-blower Edward Snowden told the world that the NSA had access to Google's servers. According to Google, new change means that no one can listen in on your messages no matter if you are using public WiFi or logging in from your computer, phone or tablet. Want to write for us? Please click here

Teaching Through Cartoons

Shaunak Samvatsar is a budding political cartoonist, who has illustrated a few books for Karadi Tales, and has a gag comic strip, 'Phuskuman', in Tinkle. He has also worked in the pre production design for animated films like Tripura: The Three Cities of Maya and Swami Ayyappan. Growing up in Aurangabad, Samvatsar was a voracious reader thanks to a local lending library. He read a lot of poetry, story books and comics and also dabbled in cartooning and doodling. All this has helped him make unique observations and come up with enjoyable narratives. His father, a mechanical engineer, had a flair for working with machines and his mother had her own industrial unit at Aurangabad. This was one of the reasons for Samvatsar to study mechanical engineering at Jawaharlal Nehru Engineering College in the city. He then worked in sales for an engineering company before joining IIT-Bombay for the master of design programme. He was a keen Judoka (one who practices Judo), which has taught him the importance of teamwork and how to deflect an opponent's attack. Samvatsar's i-SAW Ventures creates awareness and conducts training on Information Security (defending information from unauthorised access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification, perusal, inspection, recording or destruction), using eye-catching animated artwork. His schoolmate and co-founder, Ashwin Gangakhedkar, understood the need for effective communication in the field of IS and they started contributing cartoons to the ISACA (international association focused on IT governance) Journal that addressed many e-security concerns. The readers had never seen such animated content before, and loved their work. That even artists could understand such a complex topic and explain it to a layman, made their work much sought after. Their artwork-powered programmes have become a boon for IT companies, BPOs and banks, where the percolation of IS awareness to the last node is often missing. Their posters and screensavers greatly reduce the IS risks that cannot be addressed by software and hardware policies, and is a fun way of learning for the employees of their customers. They are also creating interactive animations, based on extensive research on IS pain points faced by companies that can be deployed to give a better learning experience to the employees. "My stint in the creative world taught me that good communication leads to an effective product. Design is about self expression as much as it is about understanding what one wants to communicate. I had to improve my skills in this area," recounts Samvatsar, who also teaches at the Symbiosis Institute of Design, Pune. - rohit@learnbizsolutions.com