gmail

How to create custom themes in Gmail

Themes in Gmail are a good way to quickly differentiate between multiple Gmail accounts, as well as adding a little flair to your account. Until now, you were limited to the selection of themes provided by Google. Within the next few days, Google will have completed rolling out the capability to create custom Gmail themes, using your own background photos.

To check if the new themes have been pushed out to your account, go to your Gmail settings and select themes. If the feature's been pushed to your account, you'll see the Light and Dark themes in a … Read more

Germany's 'Googlemail' finally becomes 'Gmail'

After years of being forced to use "@googlemail.com" addresses, Google's users in Germany can now join the rest of the world and embrace "@gmail.com."

"As a German working on the Gmail team, my friends and family back home often ask why they have a @googlemail address instead of @gmail.com," Google engineering director Mark Striebeck wrote today in a company blog post. "Today, I'm happy to announce that is no longer the case: Google Mail is becoming Gmail in Germany."

Google's e-mail troubles in Germany date back … Read more

State-sponsored attackers likely used IE exploit to target Gmail accounts

Microsoft is warning of "active attacks" using a hole in its XML Core Services technology that could allow an attacker to take control of a computer if a user was enticed to open a malicious Web page using Internet Explorer.

Microsoft has a Fix it tool that blocks the attack vector for the vulnerability, but has not issued a security patch yet. Computers running Windows, Office 2003 and Office 2007 are affected.

In its security advisory on the issue, Microsoft acknowledges the Google Security Team for working with the company on the MSXML Uninitialized Memory Corruption Vulnerability. Microsoft … Read more

How to protect your Gmail account from state-sponsored hacking

This week, Google began warning users of "state-sponsored attacks" -- if Google detects malicious attempts to access your account, a prominent warning will appear at the top of your Gmail inbox.

Scary, but the warnings do not necessarily mean that the government-related hacker accessed your account. Instead, your account may have simply been targeted, and Google wants you to take extra security measures.

When such attacks occur and user accounts become vulnerable, it's important that all users take precaution. So, even if you have not yet received the warning, follow this guide to ensure your account is … Read more

Google warns Gmail users about state-sponsored email hacking

Google hasn't been shy about wagging its finger at China recently. And in what appears to be another veiled snipe at Chinese authorities, the tech company says it is now warning users if state-sponsored phishing or malware attacks appear to have targeted their Gmail accounts.

"We are constantly on the lookout for malicious activity on our systems, in particular attempts by third parties to log into users' accounts unauthorized," Eric Grosse, vice president of security engineering at Google, wrote in a blog post today. "When we have specific intelligence -- either directly from users or from … Read more

The 404 1,067: Where tweets look better from behind (podcast)

Years from now, when our children are grown, we'll tell them we were all online when a single Web site changed the way we use the Internet. Unfortunately, Chatroulette stumbled after racking up more than a million users thanks to a certain part of the male anatomy, but Napster co-founders Sean Parker and Shawn Fanning have teamed up again for a video-chat pivot called Airtime.

Though it's not ready for deployment yet, Airtime is already getting support from celebrities like Jim Carrey, Alicia Keys, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus who can't wait to start a random conversation with a Facebook user online. The service is different from Chatroulette in that it actually protects the eyeballs of its users from "vulgar behavior, sexually suggestive behavior, violence, and animal cruelty". In other words, nobody associated with The 404 will receive an beta invite.… Read more

Save Gmail attachments to Google Drive with one click

Many of the files I receive attached to Gmail messages end up in my Google Drive account. Previously this required downloading or viewing the file, saving it to a drive of the PC I'm using, signing into and opening Google Drive (formerly Google Docs), and uploading the file.

That's a lot of mileage for a file to travel just to get from one Google service to another.

Last month, Jason Cipriani of CNET's Blog Network described a technique developed by Amit Agarwal that automatically adds Gmail attachments to Google Drive.

As Jason explains, the process entails copying … Read more

Google brings further tweaks to Gmail

Google announced two new tweaks to Gmail this week, including further integration with Google+.

Among other things, the changes bring Google profile photos of your friends and contacts to the top of your in-box under certain circumstances, and in a blog post, Product Manager Itamar Gilad said they were meant to "continue to bring people front and center in Gmail." Gilad spelled out the tweaks:

Quick access to contact details When you search for an e-mail address [in Gmail], the search results will now show you contact details in addition to that person's [Google] profile photo [if … Read more

Try an alternative e-mail client on iOS

Sparrow is an attempt to get away from supercomplex, feature-packed e-mail clients in favor of a simpler e-mail experience on iOS. The interface is elegant while remaining very straightforward: e-mails are listed with the newest on top, and all your actions can be completed with simple gestures. Setup only requires that you add accounts; then you can get started right away.

Though the interface is sparse you still get plenty of the common actions and options you'd expect from a basic e-mail app in Sparrow. You can save your draft e-mails; Star (or mark as favorite) specific conversations; add … Read more