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Periodically, albums become available for live streaming on iTunes prior to their official release date. The hope is that not only do consumers get a chance to hear the album before buying it, but also that by offering a free and legal way to listen to the album before it’s available, there will be less motivation for eager fans to pirate leaked albums. With unreleased albums from Daft Punk and The National currently streaming on iTunes, 9to5Mac has discovered that the streams are being left completely unprotected, offering an easy way for pirates to get high-quality cuts of the albums before they’re officially released.

The U.S. Department of Defense has approved the use of iOS 6 devices, which may help Apple to build some strength in a market still dominated by BlackBerry devices. The US D.O.D. currently has about 470,000 BlackBerrys in use across its networks, with 41,000 Apple mobile devices and 8,700 Android devices.

The Department of Defense is building a multivendor environment, it said in a press release, with BlackBerry and Samsung Knox devices also receiving similar approval.

The D.O.D. has cracked the door open to Apple and Android users, but it's not a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) environment: The organization doesn't support personal phones to connect to the network.

The big talk of the week has definitely been cross-platform messaging. First up at BlackBerry Live, BlackBerry CEO Thorsten Heins dropped the huge news that their signature messaging platform, BBM, would be going cross-platform this summer and coming to iOS as well as Android. Then, literally 24 hours later Google stepped up and introduced their cross-platform offering, Google+ Hangouts, released the same day on iOS. What we want to know is; are you excited by either of these products?

Bad news this week for any users of the iOS file management apps File Lite and File Pro. Researchers over at Vulnerability Laboratory have published details for three vulnerabilities that they discovered in the latest versions of both apps.

Apple recently released iTunes 11.0.3 with a number of cosmetic improvements including an updated MiniPlayer and songs view. However, this release is more than just a pretty face, bringing a number of security patches which address a wide range of vulnerabilities. Even users not interested in the visual treatments will want to grab this update.

Intel CEO Paul Otellini has stepped down from his post, but not before divulging some interesting revelations in the process. As it turns out, Otellini and Intel turned down the chance to work on the original iPhone, now with some element of regret. As Otellini told The Atlantic:

Moshi makes some great accessories for the iPhone and the iPad, and their latest is no exception. Lightning cables are always a handy commodity to have around, but Moshi has done something a little different with theirs. They've encased them in aluminum.

Password managers are a mightily useful thing to have around, but at the same time they're not the most affordable apps for your iOS devices or your Mac. It's tough to put a price on security, but if you've been holding off for a sale then mSecure might be just what you're looking for. For a limited time, both iOS and Mac versions are 50% off their regular price, and with the latest updates iCloud sync is now also included!

• mSecure for Mac ($9.99) - Download Now
• mSecure for iOS ($4.99) - Download Now

If you're looking for some new games to play this weekend on your iOS device, Gameloft wants to help you out. Starting today for a limited time only -- this weekend to be precise -- premium titles N.O.V.A. 3 and Gangstar Rio can be had completely free of charge. That's a combined saving of just under $12 if you're counting.

• N.O.V.A 3 (Free) - Download Now
• Gangstar Rio (Free) - Download Now