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Google to protect users from IDN Homograph Attacks

GeneralEdward Kiledjian

What geeks call an International Domain Name Homograph Attack, the general public calls typo-squatting. This is when threat actors buy domain names that are close to popular ones hoping to trick users, examples:

  • gma1l.com instead of gmail.com

  • paypa1.com instead of paypal


To help protect users from these tricksters, Google is launching Navigation suggestions for lookalike URLs. Think of this as an AI powered auto-correct for URLs. This feature is in active experimentation in Canary 70 and should enter the mainstream version in the coming months. A google engineer even spoke about it at the Usenix conference.

If you are one of the courageous experimenters running Canary, you can enable this feature now using this flag:

chrome://flags/#enable-lookalike-url-navigation-suggestions

Best USB C Hub for your Pixelbook or PixelSlate

GeneralEdward Kiledjian

This is not a sponsored post. I was not provided with a sample product and the links are NOT affiliate links.

USB C is a thing of beauty. It means I can travel with one charging brick and charge all of my devices. It truly has been a liberating technology. The only additional accessory I truly need is a good USB C hub.

This is the on question I receive regularly “What is the best USBC hub?” I am not going to pretend this is the “best” for everyone but this is the best one (HooToo USB C Hub, 6-in-1 Premium USB C Adapter with Type C Charging Port, 4K HDMI, Card Reader, 3 x USB 3.0 Ports for MacBook/Pro/Air(2018), Chromebook, and More USB C Devices) I have found and this is the one I grab anytime I am leaving my house (even though I have over 20 available).

  • This Hub gives me 3 Type-A USB 3.0 ports. This is useful when connecting traditional USB devices like USB keys, external hard drives, etc.

  • It has an HDMI port (I’ve used it with an HDMI monitor at 30 fps).

  • It has a USBC cable you plug into your laptop and another one to receive power. It supports up to 100 watts so you can charge any device.

  • It has a full speed SD and micro-SD Card port.

It seems most other USBC hubs I have tried miss important ports, have slow ports or support low wattage charging. The only additional port I would like added would be a gigabit Ethernet port but I can live without that.