phobia

When tech reporters get hacked, it seems like tech companies pay attention.

Wired reporter Mat Honan's entire online life was compromised by a hacker named Phobia four days ago. Phobia used Honan's AppleCare and Amazon IDs, along with his billing address and last four digits of his credit card to get into his various online accounts. Apple responded yesterday saying that it was looking into how users can reset their account passwords to ensure data protection; and Amazon responded today.

"We have investigated the reported exploit, and can confirm that the exploit has been closed as of … Read more

We humans seem to have the capacity to fear just about anything these days. From chromophobia (fear of colors) to genuphobia (fear of knees or kneeling), optophobia (fear of opening one's eyes) to selenophobia (fear of the moon), we've been able to identify just about any phobia imaginable.

So it should come as no surprise that nomophobia, the fear of being out of mobile phone contact, exists at all, let alone may afflict as many as two in three adults, according to a new survey out of the U.K.

Commissioned by SecurEnvoy, creator of tokenless two-factor authentication, … Read more

I'll admit that I've never understood the fear of needles. Ever since I was little, I thought it was cool that something could go so deep with only a tiny little sting. My mom told me to think of Strawberry Shortcake, and I'd push out my little chin, watch the needle go in, and cheer.

Yet several people in my life, whose anonymity I'll do them the favor of preserving, practically faint at the mere sight of a needle. Score one for the afflicted, because a new "microneedle patch" supposedly takes the sting out of shots.… Read more

What do you worry about?

Some people worry that their underwear, or even significant parts of their derriere, will show when they bend down. (None of these people, strangely, is a plumber.) Other people worry that their bosses don't like them.

Colin Gant, 41, of Lowestoft in the United Kingdom, worries that speed cameras don't like him.

He has spent countless minutes and hours inventing routes that will take him on roads last traveled by horse and cart in order to avoid the beady eye of the technological highway patrolman.

"Every time I drove past one, I … Read more

There's nothing we hate more on the face of the planet than cockroaches--the mere thought of them can send us into a skin-crawling fit. So we think that the geniuses at Bandai Japan who invented the "Hex Bug" should be shot or, better yet, ordered to serve a life sentence in a gigantic Roach Motel.

Just reading Technabob's description of the $16 bug-bots makes us twitch: "The Hex Bug series of miniature insect robots scurry along on six legs, just like real bugs," and will "change direction when you clap in their vicinity.&… Read more

As we part of our self-awareness work, we've admitted to having issues with exposed cords, an unfortunate situation that has led us on exhaustive searches for solutions. But here's one that had never occurred to us: a pot. Especially a pot from an Italian lamp maker.

The "Multipot Personal Electric Charger" hides five power outlets behind a "soothing light," according to Ubergizmo. Just jam all your cords into the pot like you were making a wire stew and let the lamp make it all seem like a planned look.

The $178 might seem a … Read more