Avast, one of our past favourite desktop antivirus applications, is acquiring one of it's biggest rivals, AVG Technologies, for $US1.3 billion ($1.7 billion) in cash. The deal will give Avast access to hundreds of millions of devices.

Security vendor, AVG, has updated the privacy policy of its free antivirus software offering which will allow the company to monetise users' "non-personal" data, including their browser history. If you're an AVG software user, there is a way to opt out of this new arrangement.

AVG's latest Android App Report has named and shamed the biggest battery hogs on the Android market, with the Telstra app proving to be the worst offender in Australia. If your phone is constantly running out of juice, here are the apps you need to use sparingly or completely uninstall.

Barely half of Australian small businesses are familiar with the phrase ‘Internet of Things’ – with an embarrassingly large chunk thinking it’s some kind of email system. These are the findings of a recent international survey by AVG which found Aussie businesses to be among the least familiar with IoT concepts. But is this an indication of poor ICT knowledge or simply a cultural resistance to corporate wank-speak?

The 'Connected Man' survey from AVG Technologies attempts to shed light on the impact of connected devices on the lifestyles of Australian males. Interestingly, among the findings was the revelation that men are nearly three times more likely than women to have content on their phones that they wouldn't show their children. We wonder what they're hiding?

The continuing fallout from the US government's PRISM controversy appears to be causing significant reverberations around the globe. In a recent VGA poll, more than two thirds of Australians expressed rising concerns about the invasiveness of future technology. In addition, 49 percent indicated that they have changed their attitude towards privacy since the PRISM surveillance program was publicly revealed.

Anyone with half a brain should realise that moaning about your job and befriending your colleagues on Facebook can be dangerous (and that you should set privacy options carefully when you do befriend colleagues). But it seems we need reminding: this infographic, based on research by AVG, highlights that people around the world are still happy to befriend their boss on Facebook.

Criminals who write malware generally rely on users not realising their intentions, and often go to elaborate lengths to make fake sites and software look legitimate. But there's a secondary group of users afflicted by malware: those who get told a site or application is dangerous but can't resist looking to find out just why it's dodgy.