5 million Google accounts and passwords have been leaked, here’s how to check yours

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5 million Google accounts and passwords have been leaked, here’s how to check yours

This piece of news might not hit you well at first, but listen up: a fairly large database of over 5 million email accounts and passwords has been leaked. Many of the accounts are of Google origin, though some Russian email services such as Yandex have also been affected. First thing’s first: check here to see if your account was included in the leak. Simply input your email address and hit search. You should be OK if your email address turned up no results.

Speaking on the issue, Google says this leak is not tied to any security breach of their knowledge, and is most likely a collection of passwords that were unfortunately phished through online scams (always check that URL and security certificate before dishing over login information, folks). As such, many of the passwords in the leaked database are likely to be outdated, or the accounts may have been purged altogether as many of them are pretty old.

Whether you were affected by this or not, it’s always a good idea to do a couple of key things to make sure your account is secure:

• Change the password, preferably to something with at least 8 characters and a mix of letters, numbers and symbols.


• Setup 2-step authorization on your Google account so no one can get in unless they have access to your phone.

That should be enough to put a pretty secure digital padlock on your inbox should you be a bit paranoid about this whole ordeal. There should be little reason to worry for the most part, but it’s always important to stay up to date on issues like these.

[via RT]

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Everything you need to know about the new Moto X (2014)

Last year Motorola released the Moto X to much fanfare. It was the perfect size, ran an almost stock version of Android, and could be customized with a plethora of colors and materials. People who own the original Moto X really love it, so creating a successful sequel is important for Motorola. Enter the new Moto X. Same name, but new in almost every way. This is everything you need to know about it.

What’s New?

Motorola decided to keep the same name for their new flagship, but this Moto X is completely different from last year’s. The screen has been bumped up to 5.2-inches and 1080p resolution. The camera improved to 13MP. A more powerful processor has been thrown in. The battery is slightly bigger. Motorola even added more materials to Moto Maker.

Another thing that has changed is the price, but for the better. The new Moto X only costs $99 with a new contract, compared to the $199 price tag on the original. One reason for this price cut may be the closing of Motorola’s Texas factory. “Made in America” is a great tagline, but it makes things more expensive. So while the name may be the same, you can see why this is an all-new Moto X. A flagship that can compete with Samsung, HTC, and LG’s big dogs.

Moto X Specs

We’ve discussed what makes the new Moto X different from last years model, but here are the nitty-gritty details.

• 5.2-inch AMOLED display


• 1920×1080 resolution


• 13MP camera with LED ring flash


• 2MP front-camera


• Dual front-facing speakers


• 2.5GHz Snapdragon 801 processor


• 2GB of RAM


• 16/32GB of storage


• 2300mAh battery


• 5.54 x 2.85 x 0.39 inches


• New Moto Maker materials: 4 colors of leather, more wood

Here are the specs put up against the best from Samsung, HTC, and LG:

Moto Maker

One of the big selling points of the original Moto X was Moto Maker. This handy online interface allowed users to choose colors, materials, and engravings for their device. This year, Moto Maker has been updated with a refreshed color palette and features new natural materials. Wood materials were added in 2013 and include Bamboo, Teak, Walnut and Ebony. The leather, a brand new material in 2014, comes in four colors: Natural, Cognac, Black, and Navy. There are thousands of combinations.

Moto X hands-on, unboxing, first impressions

On paper everything looks great so far, but what about the Moto X in real life. We were at Motorola’s private event in Chicago last week to get a bunch of one-on-one time with the new phone. Check out our hands-on, unboxing, and first impressions videos below to get a taste of what this phone looks and feels like.

Moto X Pricing & Availability

Now that we’ve got you salivating over this device you are probably wondering when you can get it. The new Moto X will be coming to countries in North America, Latin America, Europe and Asia starting later this month. Moto X will be available for as low as $99.99 with a new two-year customer agreement on select carriers in the US. It will be available off-contract and unlocked in the US from $499.99 on Motorola.com.

Will you buy the Moto X 2014?

Now that you know everything about the new Moto X it’s time to decide if you will be getting one. Are you impressed with the changes Motorola made? Do you wish they would have kept the size of the original? What is holding you back from buying it? Let us know in the comments and vote in the poll below!

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