Posts by newsguy

Security researchers at McAfee have uncovered one of the biggest attacks of its kind to date, with some 10,000 web pages which had been rigged to entrap unsuspecting visitors.

Although the infected web pages look the same as they always did, under the hood the cyber-crooks had added some redirection JavaScript code to drive them to an invisible attack launched from China-based servers according to McAfee Avert Labs. Upon successful redirection, the exploit will install a password-stealing program on the user's computer.

A variety of web pages were found to have been compromised, including travel, government and hobbyist sites. "Often you hear warnings about not going to un-trusted sites," said Craig Schmugar, threat researcher at McAfee Avert Labs. "That is good advice, but it is not enough. Even sites you know can become compromised. You went to a place before that you trust, but that trust was violated through a vulnerability that was exploited."

To everyone who thought the social networking revolution had started to falter, Bebo has 850 million reasons to disagree after AOL agreed to acquire them for $850 million in cash. Analyst eMarketer predicts that by 2011, $4.1 billion will be spent worldwide for social network advertising, and in 2008 alone the global ad spend for social networking is expected to increase 75% year over year, amounting to $2.1 billion.

The Bebo community has something in the region of 40 million members worldwide, with a particular focus in the UK, Ireland and New Zealand. The deal comes just seven days after AOL's launch of Open AIM 2.0 to allow the developer community greater freedom to access the AIM network and integrate AIM into its sites and applications.

"Bebo is the perfect complement to AOL's personal communications network and puts us in a leading position in social media," said Randy Falco, Chairman and CEO, AOL. "What drew us to Bebo was its substantial and fast-growing worldwide user-base, its vision of a truly social web, and the monetisation opportunities that leverage Platform-A across our combined global audience. This positions us to offer advertisers even greater reach and marketers significant insights into the desires and needs of consumers."

"AOL understands the shifting dynamics of the Web and has clearly demonstrated its commitment to leveraging the ever-increasing power of social networks," said Bebo President, Joanna Shields. "With one and the same vision in this area, it was a natural progression for Bebo …

Remember those X-Ray Specs you could order as a kid from the newspaper classifieds that promised the ability to see through clothes to the undergarments below? I do, and I can report that they most certainly did not work - much to my disappointment as a 10 year old kid.

Well it appears that now a British developer has come up with a camera that does work, and that can see under clothes from a distance of 25 meters away.

The T5000 ThruVision camera is, of course, destined for anti-terror and security usage rather than to satisfy the juvenile desires of young boys, but is interesting none the less.

It works by using passive image technology to detect natural electromagnetic rays, also known as T-rays, that are emitted by objects.

Legendary guitar manufacturer Gibson has warned Guitar Hero developer Activision over an alleged patent infringement. It would seem that the crux of the matter is a 1999 patent by Gibson which deals with the technology used to simulate a musical performance. Gibson claims the Guitar Hero software and the Guitar Hero controller both violate the patent.

Of course, the bizarre thing is that Gibson had already signed a licensing agreement with Activision over replicating Gibson guitar designs for the Guitar Hero III game. If Activision does not obtain a new license under the terms of that patent then Gibson will look to halt sales of all Guitar Hero game editions according to the news report.

YouTube Product Manager Jim Patterson has announced the availability of new YouTube Everywhere APIs. These enable more integration of YouTube content and community into other websites, desktop applications, mobile devices, even cameras, televisions and video games according to Patterson.

"For partners and developers, YouTube has grown into much more than a website. It has become an open, general purpose, video services platform, available for use by just about any third-party website, desktop application, or consumer device." Patterson says, continuing "We now provide a complete set of (CRUD) capabilities for uploading, managing, searching, and playing back user videos and metadata from the YouTube "cloud," managed by us. We do all of the hard work of transcoding and hosting and streaming and thumbnailing your videos, and we provide open access to our sizable global audience, enabling you to generate traffic for your site, visibility for your brand, or support for your cause."

Building upon the existing APIs for querying the YouTube library and playing embedded YouTube videos, the following new API services for external developers and partners have been added:

• Upload videos and video responses to YouTube
• Add/Edit user and video metadata
• Fetch localized standard feeds for 18 international locales
• Perform custom queries optimized for 18 international locales
• Customize player UI and control video playback through software

Firefox 3.0 Beta 4 has been released and brings with it more than 900 additional enhancements according to Mozilla. These are said to include improvements to stability and performance, memory usage and general usability. The latter including stuff like full page zooming and a new downloads manager.

According to a PC Pro news story the rapid growth of mobile broadband across Europe could make Wireless hotspots extinct. Mind you, it is an executive from a mobile telephone company that is making the prediction…

Do you remember the MPMan F10 which was launched way back in March 1998? Probably not, which is a shame as it was a hugely important, and rather huge, device in the overall scheme of things. The first MP3 player, 10 years old this month, is fondly remembered in detail here.

Google has opened a new research and development centre, based in Zurich (Switzerland), which is home to more than 300 engineers which makes it Google's largest engineering centre outside the U.S. and promises to be a hub for ongoing product innovation and development. Google has announced its intention to hire some of the best engineers from throughout Europe, attracting the best talent from world class universities. Indeed, it is no coincidence that Google bases its R&D centres near those centres of educational excellence. As far as Europe is concerned the Zurich centre joins others located in Aarhus (Denmark), Dublin (Ireland), Haifa (Israel), Krakow (Poland), London (UK), Lulea (Sweden), Moscow (Russia), Munich (Germany), St Petersburg (Russia), Tel Aviv (Israel) and Trondheim (Norway.)

Nelson Mattos, Google's VP of Engineering, EMEA, told us "Google's distributed approach to engineering means that the engineers here are working on core projects with global impact. Our international teams encourage the cross-pollination of ideas and foster the culture of innovation that has been key to Google's success."

"In the past few years, Google has made substantial investments in Europe. Teams in EMEA now drive the development of some of Google's most popular products" added Mario Quieroz, Google's VP of Product Management, EMEA and Latin America. "Google has always believed in hiring the brightest people, wherever they are. The growth of our European engineering organisation shows how successful that strategy has been.

Epson is making a play for the green printer market by launching a laser toner cartridge return and recycle programme as part of a long term commitment to be more environmentally friendly in its dealings with customers regarding printing solutions. The new scheme, here in the UK at any rate, pretty much ensures that all users of Epson laser printers can reduce their carbon footprint if they wish so to do.

The new scheme allows for organisations of any size, from the one man band to the biggest enterprise, by offering two different free to use options in order to make the whole recycling process as easy and efficient as possible. Larger organisations can visit the Epson website to order a reusable branded recycle-box made from recycled materials, which can hold up to 30 laser toner cartridges. Place empty carts in the box, when full contact Epson via the website and they will come and collect it. Smaller outfits can do the same via downloading bar-coded pre-paid postage labels for individual cart returns. The collected cartridges are returned by the most environmentally efficient means to a European hub where the components are recycled, ensuring optimal re-use of all the different materials.

Mark Karsey, Business Manager at Epson UK commented, "Epson has demonstrated a clear commitment to reducing its impact on the environment for many years now, and the new toner cartridge Return&Recycle programme is another example of our global focus on sustainability. This new scheme complements …

Well, not as rich as you might think. Well, not as rich as Warren Buffet anyway. In fact, not even as rich as Carlos Slim Helu. The Boy God, co-founder of Microsoft, has lost the richest man on the planet crown, a position he held for the last 13 years according to Forbes magazine.

I guess it was only a matter of time before Warrant Buffet inherited the title, a man who rather ironically has pledged a large swathe of his own fortune to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation charity. His $62 billion is really rather impressive, as is the second on the list with $60 billion from building a Mexican telecom dynasty. Carlos Slim Helu might not be a household name around the world but at least he can now claim to being richer than Bill Gates and those are words that just a few years ago no sane person would ever be heard to utter.

Let’s not feel too sorry for Gates though, his $58 billion ensures that he won’t be seen working at McDonalds anytime soon. His Microsoft buddies are also looking safe from burger flipping hell, with co-founder Paul Allen nestled at 41st richest person on $16 billion and Barmy Steve Ballmer only two places lower with his $15 billion.

However, the real surprise and the man to watch in my mind has to be Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg who is scraping by on $1.5 billion. Can I just say that I …

According to a story in, of all the unlikely places, the New Zealand Herald IBM is to start ditching Windows and introducing Red Hat Linux on a range of computers aimed at the Eastern European market. The newspaper reports that IBM is working with Red Hat software distributor VDEL of Austria and services firm LX Polska of Poland, who will build the hardware, to meet demand for Linux based PCs coming from the direction of Russian IT companies.

As well as Red Hat, the Russian PCs will come complete with IBM Lotus Symphony pre-installed which will no doubt please Microsoft as it pushes the Open XML document format as an ISO approved standard. It should come as no surprise that Russia is emerging as the front line when it comes to the ongoing war between Microsoft and Linux, considering the business and technology boom that has exploded over there in recent years. With the arrival of real money, and real investment opportunities, large enterprise computer systems are being commissioned by public service and private sector organisations often for the first time. There has already been interest from the likes of the Ministry of Defence, Aeroflot and the Alfa bank. Value is key, and open-source holds the upper hand. IBM reckons the 'Open Referent' line of Linux PCs would cut the cost of desktop computing in half when compared to buying Windows machines. That said, Microsoft is not sitting on its laurels, and only last month is kick-started …

Microsoft has today announced the immediate public availability of the beta version of Microsoft Office Live Workspace which allows users to access their Office documents from anywhere via a web-based interface, and share them with others the same way. This is part of the Microsoft strategy to provide a 'software plus services' experience and according to Stephen Elop, President of the Microsoft Business Division will provide a seamless computing environment for 500 million Office users by "combining the rich client experience of Microsoft Office with flexible, intuitive service offerings."

Essentially, Office Live Workspace enables the organization of 1000 documents and projects to a single online archive which can be worked upon from pretty much any computer. Users can also view and comment on documents in their web browser as well as create simple Web lists and Web notes, and not forgetting the ability to share documents in real time through integration with Microsoft SharedView.

In response to feedback from earlier beta testing, Microsoft has also announced several new features to extend the functionality of the service, including:

• A new activity panel shows all the activity in a workspace at a glance.
  
• People can now receive e-mail notifications about changes made to their workspaces or documents.
  
• People can now bookmark their workspace or a workspace item via a unique URL in a browser window.
  
• People can now upload several files simultaneously by simply dragging and dropping from their desktop.
  
• New sharing functionality …

Unified threat management specialists Fortinet has announced the most reported high-risk threats during the course of the last month, and it makes interesting reading. According to Fortinet it proves that birds of a feather do flock together as the most definable malware trend was most definitely the fact that the mass-mailer families of MyTob and MyDoom used their collective strength to dominate the top ten 10 list both individually and as a family force.

"The mass-mailer families of MyTob and MyDoom showed strong activity in February and represent a significant portion of this month's malware attacks." Fortinet reports, adding "As an individual contributor, Trojan Pushdo!tr's pornography-laced zip-file attachments pulled out an aggressive two-day attack, allowing the Pushdo variant to make its debut onto the Top Ten."

The consistent attacks by malware families just did not let up throughout the month, with only a periodic rapid-fire approach by individual variants punctuating the monotony. "Mutations of accessible malware code have allowed families, such as MyTob, to thrive and form a visible presence in today's threatscape," said Derek Manky, security research engineer for Fortinet.

Here's that family top 10 in full:

1 Netsky (Mass mailer)
2 MyTob (Mass mailer)
3 HTML/Iframe_CID!exploit (Exploit)
4 Pushdo (Trojan)
5 Storm (Trojan)
6 MyDoom (Mass mailer)
7 Bagle (Mass mailer)
8 Agent (Adware)
9 Grew (Worm)
10 W32/Istbar.PK!tr.dldr (Trojan)

While the individual threat list looks like this:

1 W32/Netsky!similar (Mass …

McAfee Avert Labs has warned that the number of spammers which use the 'out of office' functionality of web-based email systems to distribute junk mail is on the increase. The particular technique in question, which involves spammers setting up web-based email accounts which are configured to auto-respond with spam instead of a genuine 'sorry but I am away from the office right now' message, is reaching new heights of popularity.

One spammer seen using this technique is advertising an adult Web site. The auto-responder spam does not look like a typical out of office reply. The message subject does always contain "Re:" because that's added by the Web mail service, but the spammer controls the rest of the subject line and the message body text. Indeed, pretty much the only way to determine the auto-responder nature of the mail is to carefully inspect the headers.

"In recent weeks we have seen an increasing number of spam apparently sent by legitimate Web-based e-mail systems," said Jeremy Gilliat, an Aylesbury, UK-based anti-spam engineer at McAfee. "Interestingly we see spam from a number of accounts being abused in this way. I suspect the spammer has a program that automatically creates accounts and sets the responder text, all with no manual work required. This gives the spammer the capability to have lots of Web-mail accounts, all used to spam lots of people."

From the perspective of the spammer it makes plenty of sense, because it is yet another method …

The Black Hat security conferences are always good for a crowd pleasing demonstration or two, and security researcher Adam Laurie was happy to oblige at the latest DC based event. In a 'look no hands' fashion, he was able to pull up account data including name, account number and expiration date from an AMEX credit card and display it on the big screen to the attending masses, without actually removing the card from the wallet of the man who owned it.

Yet this was no trick, but rather a demonstration to get a debate started on the potential security weakness of the RFID smart-chip-enabled technology implemented on some credit cards these days. Laurie combined some simple hardware with a Python-based script to performing his magic. The impact was lessened a little by the fact that the account number shown on-screen was not the one embossed on the card itself and cannot actually be used to make an online transaction. Indeed, American Express has confirmed that this 'alias' number alone would not be accepted as transactionally valid and numerous other security mechanisms would need to kick in to authenticate the payment authorisation. As such, all that was demonstrated here was the potential ease with which data can be read from smart-cards using RFID scanning techniques, without any actual physical contact.

With close on 50 countries around the world using RFID enabled passports, many places also opting for RFID enabled public transit cards and so on, the security …

Who could forget DVD Jon, the Linux guru who was co-author of DeCSS? This Linux application 'unlocked' DVDs with content otherwise protected by Content Scrambling System (CSS) encryption and landed DVD Jon in front of a judge. Which did not stop him from continuing his quest to free audiovisual content from the chains of whatever encryption is being used to tie it to the original format. Perhaps most notoriously with his uncanny ability to quickly break new DRM systems such as the Fairplay wrapper for iTunes music for example.

DVD Jon has now moved on from his Linux PC and has established a new company called DoubleTwist which has just released a desktop application that makes the movement and management of these DRM-protected AAC format files literally child's play. Sure, it is not the first to find a workaround to iTunes device sharing, and those with enough time on their hands will burn tracks to CD and then re-rip them off again in a different format. DoubleTwist takes iTunes purchased AAC files and turns them into MP3s that will play on any device, not just the 'authorised' PC, all at the press of a button.

Interestingly, a Facebook app called Twist me has also been released today, adopting a different approach: that of sharing audio and video content on their profile pages with other users. In fact, it provides a sync ability between a number of devices such as the Nokia N …

So it would appear that the long and bloody war between the next-generation of high definition DVD formats is coming to a close, with word on the grapevine suggesting that the HD DVD commander-in-chief Toshiba is ready to surrender. While there will be the inevitable continuation of small skirmishes, mainly amongst geeks in both technology and home entertainment camps, the consumer should be greeting this news with open arms. After all, we have pretty much had enough after a couple of years of not knowing which format to buy, not knowing which format will be, for all intents and purposes, a dead duck in another couple of years. The news that Toshiba is, according to a 'company source' reported by the Reuters agency, planning to axe its HD DVD format line-up effectively puts and end to the final battle and leaves Blu-ray the undisputed victors.

The decisive battles in this war would appear to have been getting both Hollywood (especially Warner Brothers which defected from HD DVD in January, bringing its movie library to Blu-ray) and Wal-Mart to support the Blu-ray camp, a crushing blow from which HD DVD stood little chance of recovery. The majority of consumers who had taken the plunge and invested in one camp or another seem to have sided with Blu-ray as well. So in addition to the format commanding some 70 percent of the Hollywood movie titles out there, when it came to hardware player sales it was almost a clean sweep. The …

Yesterday was, so am I told, Safer Internet Day 2008. A global initiative driven by the likes of the Virtual Global Taskforce (a network of law enforcement agencies around the planet that work to protect kids online and make the Internet a safer place) and the Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) Centre here in the UK for example. The notion of getting the message across to a wider audience and ensuring kids are safe online is to be applauded, but the concept of a Safer Internet Day is all wrong in my opinion. What is needed is for the safety message to be pummeled home every day or every week of every year until it is finally understood.

I mean, apparently Kaspersky gave away 1000 one year license to its Internet Security suite yesterday to the first 1000 people to email and ask for a copy. Great, but where does that leave everyone else and was there any filtering to ensure those licenses went to families so as to protect kids rather than some tight fisted guy living on his own? Kaspersky, like most security vendors, do offer advice about staying safe online at their website and have even published a free 'Safe Online Guide' for download which is commendable. David Emm, the author the guide, asks "Parents and teachers take care to educate children not to accept sweets from strangers. But do children know that the same caution applies when they surf the …

According to HP an incredible 92% of top IT decision makers in Europe do not feel that their organisation is exploiting the competitive advantages offered by information management. In fact, respondents who took part in the 2008 Pressure Point Index survey were pretty dissatisfied overall with both the quality and delivery of information across the board: 67% admitted it was 'poor and inconsistent' while 69% felt they did not get the 'right amount of information to make business decisions.' Only 7% claimed they had the access to all the information they required.

The findings were published at the Gartner Business Intelligence Summit in Amsterdam, where Valerie Logan, worldwide leader, Information Management, Consulting & Integration, HP Services commented "Many companies are sitting on data goldmines, but lack the necessary investment and ability to extract value from the information. While senior IT executives recognise the potential competitive advantage contained in the data, they are hampered from investing in comprehensive information management programs by a number of factors, including complexity and management alignment".

Indeed, despite a clear recognition and understanding of the issue and its importance, many respondents felt unable to turn data into business insight and exploit its business potential for a number of reasons. Right at the top were the 80% who felt the implementation of new systems was too complex, while 75% agreed it was difficult to build a business case for the investment and 74% simply blamed dispersed and poorly managed data depositories.

Perhaps most worryingly, …

Azingo, a specialist Mobile Linux outfit which used to go by the name of Celunite, has announced what it claims to be the industry's first Mobile Linux platform based on LiMO Foundation software in the form of a comprehensive suite of open software and services designed to help deliver web 2.0 applications, music and video to a wide range of mobile phones. Azingo Mobile promises to be cheaper and more flexible than existing solutions when it comes to developing, designing and deploying mobile

You can see it in action for yourself at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona between the 11th and 14th February. But if you cannot wait then I am told Azingo Mobile is actually available for immediate licensing. What you get is something that enables both handset manufacturers and operators to leverage a rich suite of out of the box mobile applications that simply plug-in to a comprehensive and pre-integrated open mobile middleware framework and kernel. Azingo Mobile's one-stop-shop approach reduces development costs, shortens the time to bring new handset designs to market, and enables lower cost phones offering the latest multimedia and UI innovations.

Guido Arnone, director of terminals technology at Vodafone says of the announcement "We welcome Azingo's mobile Linux platform to the LiMo Foundation. Azingo Mobile's ability to provide lower-cost, Internet-enabled mobile phones helps support LiMo's goal to create a true mass-market platform and surrounding ecosystem that will deliver compelling handsets and rich user experiences." While Mahesh Veerina, Azingo CEO, …

Although there has been no great fuss made, no pin badges sold and no banners waved, Monday 4th February is for all intents and purposes the day IPv6 grows up. Because from that day, IPv6 IP addresses will be able to be directly translated into domain names and vice versa, without the need for the old IPv4 protocol. Some see this as the single most important step so far in the race towards IPv6 implementation before the store of IPv4 addresses is finally exhausted. Most experts seem to agree that these will start running out in earnest from the start of 2010. So Monday 4th February is a date for the geek calendar because for the first time any user will be able to visit a website without having to use the old IPv4 internet.

Here in the UK, Claranet has been one of the few Internet Service Providers to bring IPv6 capabilities to its customers, launching a native IPv6 service as far back as 2002. Claranet's Group Network Manager, Dave Freedman, is talking up the advantages which, he says, include vastly greater IP address space, ease of administration and integrated encryption capability. He's also talking down the response of the Internet industry as a whole and central UK Government in particular to the problem of IPv4 address exhaustion.

"Many ISPs haven't implemented IPv6 for a very simple reason" he told DaniWeb "customers haven't asked for it yet. It is only now, with IPv4 exhaustion just …

It has been a long time coming, but a virus writer has finally been arrested by the Japanese authorities. According to security specialists Sophos law enforcement agencies in Kyoto, Japan, have arrested three men who stand accused of plotting to infect users of a popular P2P file-sharing network with a Trojan. The Trojan itself displays images of popular anime characters on-screen, all very lovely and Japanese, while at the same time deleting MP3 and movie files from the system: not so nice, obviously.

The malware which was targeted at Winny P2P users has been identified as ‘Harada’ in various media reports and Sophos say this is related to the similar Pirlames Trojan horse which it first reported intercepting in Japan last year. According to Japanese media reports, the three men have admitted their involvement in the crime. One of the men is said to have written the malware, while the other two are believed to have distributed the malicious code via Winny.

"It isn't illegal to write viruses in Japan, so the author of the Trojan horse has been arrested for breaching copyright because he used cartoon graphics without permission in his malware. Because this is the first arrest in Japan of a virus writer, it's likely to generate a lot of attention and there may be calls for cybercrime laws to be made tighter," said Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant for Sophos. "Malware is truly a global menace, impacting on every user of …

The W3C HTML Working Group has published the first public draft of HTML 5, itself being the first real upgrade to the language of the web for more than 10 years.

Don't get too excited though, as the final specification for the language is not expected to get approval until at least 2010. However, when it does, if this draft is anything to go by, then there are some interesting times ahead as HTML gets a firm boot into new world of web multimedia with supporting APIs for embedding and controlling audio as well as controlling two dimensional video content, for example. Indeed, the HTML Working Group is creating HTML 5 to be an open, royalty-free specification for rich Web content and Web applications no less.

World Wide Web creator Tim Berners-Lee says "HTML is of course a very important standard, I am glad to see that the community of developers, including browser vendors, is working together to create the best possible path for the Web. To integrate the input of so many people is hard work, as is the challenge of balancing stability with innovation, pragmatism with idealism."

The HTML 5 specification helps to improve interoperability and reduce software costs by giving precise rules not only about how to handle all correct HTML documents but also how to recover from errors. This is the first version of HTML developed under W3C's Royalty-Free Patent Policy.

That is what we could be asking by 2012, and be answered with a resounding cry of to the job centre looking for new employment if Fujitsu Siemens Computers is correct with its prediction. FSC today suggested that within just four years unmanned data centres will not only be fully commercially operational but will also outnumber the manned data centres that we have at the moment. It also warned that this will have a profound skills impact upon the IT sector, leading to a potential skills surplus in IT across the UK and Europe.

Sure, these ‘lights out’ data centres are not unknown today and there are a number running here in the UK that I know about. By lights out I mean those which have operational management carried out either remotely or automatically. However technology strategists at Fujitsu Siemens Computers predict that this is just the start of a growing trend and foresee an increased level of automation in the not too distant future.

Dave Pritchard, senior technology strategist, Fujitsu Siemens Computers explains: “Tomorrow’s data centre will resemble more of a “one man and a dog” set-up - the dog is there for security and the man is there to feed the dog. Many factors are already at work to bring an incredible level of automation and remote control to the data centre and these factors will only accelerate. Firstly, companies are realising that simplicity in a data centre means that it can be run remotely. As …

It doesn’t really matter where you live in the world, the chances are that your country has been hit by some high profile data loss scandal during the course of the last year or so. Everything from retail operations such as TJ Maxx losing the odd 40 million or so customer credit card details to a clever hacker right through to the UK Government literally losing personal and financial data about 25 million people when two discs containing a social security benefits database went missing in the post. The common thread is that there is a need for better information classification, and a consequent implementation of data protection measures based on the level of sensitivity and confidentiality that classification demands, according to the Information Security Forum (ISF).

In its latest report, the ISF suggests that because many existing approaches to information classification are overly complex they rarely deliver business benefits and are often simply ignored. "Traditional Information classification is characterised by the 'Top Secret' rubber stamp in James Bond films," says Nick Frost, the report's author and senior research consultant at the ISF. "Today, information exists in many different forms, from paper documents and verbal communications to the masses of electronic data stored, transmitted and processed. While introducing an effective enterprise wide scheme is daunting, organisations can no longer afford to ignore its importance if further embarrassing data loses are to be avoided." Information classification requires a consistent process to determine the level of confidentiality of a …

Microsoft and the US Army Sniper School have teamed up for a forthcoming Halo 3 tournament, and players will get a chance to participate in some US Army based pre-match training sessions. The special training videos provided by the army are to include sniper school training, heavy weapons training and vehicles training. Although the tournament itself doesn't start until April, if you sign up for the 'Microsoft Play and Win' tournament now you get access to the US Army training videos from the 19th January.

You do have to play a Halo 3 multi player match online in order to get an entry into the tournament sweepstakes, but you can do this every day apparently. It might be one for hardcore Halo 3 gamers only though as of the thousands of prizes on offer, the main one is not exactly full of bling but rather a framed piece of limited edition Halo 3 artwork instead.

The whole thing does have a kind of science fiction in reverse feeling to it though. Instead of the army using immersive 3D computer games to train for war, sponsored by Microsoft and ending up with some Terminatoresque SkyNet scenario, we have the US Army offering Basic Combat Training Exercises to members of the public playing immersive 3D computer games on a Microsoft console.

It seems to be something of a win-win for all concerned: Halo 3 players get some real world military tactics training to better their gameplay, Microsoft …

A posting at Daily Dave, which is part of the Insecure.org security website, by the founder of a Moscow based security vendor called Gleg, would suggest that it's not a very good start to the new year for RealPlayer 11 users.

Gleg Ltd chief technology officer Evgeny Legerov made a very brief announcement regarding the exploit code, a stack overflow bug, which was revealed during a code audit as part of ongoing updates for the VulnDisco penetration testing software that Gleg sells. Interestingly, the posting also contained a link to an online Flash based demo showing the working code exploit in action.

According to Legerov, the version of RealPlayer that was tested an found vulnerable is 11, build 6.0.14.748 and a US-CERT warning confirms that RealPlayer 11 running under WIndows XP SP2 is effected by the exploit. That said, there would appear to be no evidence of this exploit being in the wild, no reports of end users being compromised, and no word from Real as to whether the code works or not, nor if a fix is forthcoming if it does. It has criticised Legerov for posting the exploit code demo without first contacting Real to enable them to investigate and patch oif necessary though.

A press release landed on my computer today, claiming that Samsung has launched the world's toughest cellphone. The Samsung Solid, so the release assures me, has "strengths that make it stand out from other mobiles" which include built in anti-shock and water and dust resistance. The release goes on to claim that "encased in a thick rubber body this phone lives up to its name to withstand the tough treatment, making it ideal for any trades man, extreme sports enthusiasts or those who simply need a durable phone."

Well, maybe.

Let's look at the features. You might expect a truly tough mobile phone to do away with the little luxuries that could get broken during the kind of rough and ready exposure such a handset will endure. But no, Samsung has stuffed an FM radio (who needs a radio in their cellphone anyway) and most remarkably a camera into the device. The inclusion of a camera just seems to be asking for trouble, as these mechanisms are easily broken after all. Still, the toughest mobile on the planet will have it covered, won't it? I guess it will be totally waterproof and have an anti-shock mechanism capable of protecting it from the roughest handling and longest drops.

Actually, no. The Samsung Solid's water and dust resistancy is effective to an IP rating of 54, which as Samsung itself admits means it will "survive water splashes and the occasional knock or drop". The Ingress Protection rating, …

In an interview with Australian publication Computerworld and ahead of his appearance as a keynote speaker at the Australian Linux Conference 2008, renowned security expert Bruce Schneier has compared Linux to Star Wars and suggests fanboys feel the force a bit more.

Schneier will give a presentation entitled "Reconceptualising Security" which will focus on the need for Linux technologists to remember the human aspect of security issues, and asks what Linux has done for security as a whole as far as the IT world is concerned. Schneier argues that while most people have a natural tendency to focus on the reality of security issues within the development process, they also ignore the ‘feeling’ which should be considered as an important factor also.

“Security is both a feeling and a reality” he says “you can feel secure even if you’re not and you can be secure even if you don’t feel it.”

Addressing Linux specifically, and Schneier does tend to wander down the esoteric inevitability of cyber-war path a tad during the interview it has to be said, Bruce says that the most important thing Linux has done to improve security is simply being a competitive force against Windows in the market. “Monopolies are complacent, and by being an alternative, Linux forces Microsoft to improve its own operating system” he argues.

Overall, it is an interesting interview with the man who is now CTO of BT Counterpane, was the creator of the Blowfish symmetric block …

According to the Managing Your Organisation’s E-mail and Messaging survey, the results of which were announced today by network management developer Ipswitch Inc., the feeling that you are drowning in spam happens for a reason: you are.

The survey revealed that 20% of those responding reported more than a 100% annual increase in spam on their organisations’ e-mail servers. Overall, 76% of IT managers reported some sort of increase in spam volumes. 27% of those surveyed reported receiving complaints from e-mail users about spam on a daily basis, while 25% reported receiving complaints on a weekly basis.

Regarding the number of incidents of viruses and malware installed on e-mail users’ computers, IT managers claimed an average of 30 infections of viruses, worms or Trojans over the past 12 months and 22 incidents of spyware or key logger installations over the same period. According to those surveyed, the total cost of defending against these threats averaged more than $13,000 annually when factoring in the costs of technology solutions, staff, recovery, remediation and end-user training. At the same time, the respondents indicated that the total annual cost of damages caused by e-mail related events, including lost productivity, staff time, and fines related to compliance regulations, averaged $5,600. Small to mid-size organisations spent 40% less than average while sustaining similar annual losses due to e-mail events.

IT managers rated white lists and black lists as the most important spam control tools to the management of their organisations’ messaging …

There has been much debate over the last week as to how the forthcoming Windows Server 2008 release from Microsoft will embrace Linux, specifically with regard to the interoperability between Windows and Linux as evidenced by Release Candidate 1 code.

The two sides of the story seem to be either:

Windows Server 2008 Hyper-V Beta is built upon Xen source code, a project partially funded by Microsoft, so Linux interoperability is a given. Xen will be a core part of Hyper-V, and when you run a Linux Virtual Machine calls to Xen will be translated into Hyper-V hypercalls. Hyper-V is integrated at the service level in Windows Server 2008 rather than being a hosted platform, ipso facto Linux interoperability gets the edge and VMware gets edged out on the back of this value for money equation.

Or

Hyper-V has an architecture that bears more of a resemblance to Xen than it does to something like ESX Server for example. Xen itself runs as a guest within the parent partition, nothing more and nothing less, and certainly any suggestion that there is a similarity between the Linux kernel paravirtualisation for Xen and Hyper-V is wishful but blinkered thinking.

At the end of the day the question that needs to be asked is whether anyone seriously believes that Microsoft would stuff some open source code within the Windows kernel?

The clever money would say not on your nelly.

Microsoft has today announced the availability of Service Pack 1 for the 2007 Office system product range, and you don't have to wait the 3-6 months which Microsoft says it will take to appear in the automatic updates either. In actual fact you can download it right now from OfficeOnline.

So what can you expect to find in Office SP1?

Unsurprisingly, SP1 focuses on the issues that have been raised by customers through direct feedback and error reporting tools including:

• Stability. Using data from the Dr. Watson bug-reporting system, Microsoft have fixed the top software issues for each application in the 2007 Office system. The 2007 Office system SP1 also improves the stability of server components in the 2007 Office system and delivers compatibility with Windows Server 2008, so you can confidently plan for future upgrades.
  
• Performance. The 2007 Office system SP1 improves performance in applications and servers. Performance improvements can be found in Microsoft Office Excel 2007, Microsoft Office Outlook 2007, Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2007, and Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007.
  
• Security. By incorporating incremental advances in security and results from application testing, the 2007 Office system SP1 offers home and office users better protection against malicious software and potential threats to privacy.

Microsoft promises that SP1 eliminates distractions and performance issues that disrupt workflow, allowing employees to be more productive in the work that they do. For the full list of improvements, check out the Microsoft SP1 whitepaper

Truphone has announced the first free telephone application for Facebook users. The Call Me application does not require a Truphone account, l nor a special phone, just a Facebook account. It works by enabling the user to choose a number on which they want to take inbound calls, and the Call Me button in their profile can then be used to make free calls.

But, as with all such things, you need to read beyond the marketing hype and headlines to reveal the devil hiding in the detail. Much is being made of this being a 'free' Facebook phone system, but actually the deal is that calls are free only until 'at least December 31st 2007' which is in line with the current Truphone pricing policy. What happens in 2008, which is only a matter of a few weeks away remember, is not clear.

Still, for now at least, it's an interesting and useful addition to the Facebook application armoury, which allows anyone to make a call directly from their PC by simply clicking on the Call Me button to initiate a Truphone softphone call. The softphone application is embedded into Facebook, but interestingly does not require both caller and callee to add their numbers to a directory list.

You could say it is click to call rather than click to call back in fact.

The fact that is can be set to only be visible to a user's friends, and that actual phone …

Want a sneaky peek at Ubuntu 8.04? Then you are in luck as the Hardy Heron Tribe 1 Alpha pre-release has just been made available for download. This will, in time, morph into 8.04 and is the first in a series of milestone CD images that is slated for distribution throughout the Hardy development cycle.

According to Ubuntu developer Steve Langasek, posting at lists.ubuntu.com the Hardy Heron Tribe 1 images are “known to be reasonably free of showstopper CD build or installer bugs, while representing a very recent snapshot of Hardy.”

So what has changed since the Ubuntu 7 ‘Gutsy Gibbon’ release? Well there is the inclusion of Xorg 7.3 with a vastly improved automatic graphics config support, various packages that have been merged in from Debian, and installation images that are available for x86 and AMD 64 servers, SPARC, Kubuntu, Edubuntu, Xubuntu and Gobuntu.

Most importantly though, the entire Hardy development cycle is focusing on ensuring that existing features are as robust as possible instead of dumping tons of new functionality into the mix as happened with Gutsy Gibbon. Being a long-term support release this is, perhaps, just as well. Especially as Linux is starting to become a more attractive option to hardware vendors such as Dell.

A full list of the bugs uncovered so far can be found here.

Nick Breese is a researcher with New Zealand based security outfit Security-Assessment.com and found himself giving a presentation at the Kiwicon hacker conference in Wellington earlier this week. His presentation looked at the use of the PlayStation 3 games console to crack passwords, and Breese concluded that when compared to the current best speeds of Intel for the same purpose, the PS3 performed an incredible 100 times faster.

According to Breese, eight character strong passwords can be brute force broken in just a couple of days by making the most of the Cell processor in the PS3 whereas before it would have taken weeks. The PlayStation 3 can be also be used to break basic encryption schemes with ease according to Breese who admits that when you reach levels even as low as the commonly used 128-bit SSL system which protects many an online banking transaction it will have little real world impact.

But there are many reasons why this is not, to be absolutely honest, a big deal for most of us. For a start, yes, it does mean that your average Office or PDF password could be cracked in the blink of an eye. However, where a password is handled more securely in software, say an eight character Linux password for example, the PS3 would still struggle to make an impact. Unless, according to Breese, “you had access to a thousand PlayStations” in which case it would take a few days. Yeah, right, a …

The new version of the GNU Affero General Public License has been published by the Free Software Foundation, based upon the existing GNU GPLv3 license but with one important difference: support for on-demand software-as-a-service (SaaS) applications. By publishing this license, the FSF aims to foster user and development communities around network-oriented free software.

The GNU Affero General Public License is a free, copyleft license for software which has been specifically designed to ensure cooperation with the community in the case of network server software. It is intended to guarantee the freedom to share and change versions of a program, ensuring it remains free for all its users. So while the GNU General Public License enables the user to make a modified version of the software and provide pubic access to it via a server but without ever actually releasing its source code, the Affero version is designed from the ground up to ensure that this modified source code is made available to the wider community. Specifically, it requires the operator of that network server to provide the source code of the modified version running upon it to the users.

Although this new license is based upon developments by San Francisco-based volunteers rating and reputation company Affero, responsible for the Affero General Public License based upon GPLv2, and which aimed to achieve similar ends, it is not the same and should not be thought of as a version of that license. According to the FSF, Affero has …

Matthew Finnie is Chief Technology Officer at Interoute, the company which owns and operates the most densely connected voice and data network in Europe with more than 54,000 kilometres of lit fibre. So when he voices his concern that the Internet is facing some kind of meltdown, caused by the sheer scale of data being carried across it, and mentions a countdown to this brownout explosion that hits ground zero in 2010, you have to pay attention. When he adds that much of the problem is being driven by a reluctance on the part of many operators to actually invest in a business where they perhaps feel they have lost the value end of the service, well, your ears really prick up.

“There has a phenomenal rise in bandwidth in the past 3 years with the ever increasing growth of TV, music, social networking and commerce that pressure is only set to increase” Finnie told DaniWeb, continuing “We are seeing a doubling of data capacity from this year to next, going from 2.5 Terabits to more than 5 Terabits. It comes as shock to many access providers that the traditional rules of telecoms have been overturned by the Internet and many are frustrated at their inability to participate in the value to same extent as Facebook, Google and Myspace.”

Of course, bandwidth providers are enjoying what can only be described as a boom time on the back of all of this activity. The real issue can …

The security experts at McAfee's Avert labs have been consulting the Tarot card, rubbing their crystal balls and generally predicting what levels of IT doom and gloom we can expect to be experiencing during the course of 2008. Unsurprisingly, they expect to see an increase in web exploits and those threats targetting Windows Vista, while adware will decrease as it continues its retreat from the radar of most IT systems. "Threats are increasingly moving to the Web and migrating to newer technologies such as VoIP and instant messaging," said Jeff Green, senior vice president of McAfee Avert Labs and product development. "Professional and organised criminals continue to drive a lot of the malicious activity. As they become increasingly sophisticated, it is more important than ever to be aware and secure when traversing the Web."

So what are the top ten predictions for 2008 security then?

Bull's Eye on Web 2.0
Compromises and malware at Salesforce.com, Monster.com and MySpace, among others, represent a new trend in attacking online applications and social networking sites. Attackers are using Web 2.0 sites as a way to distribute malware and are data mining the Web, looking for information people share to give their attacks more authenticity. McAfee Avert Labs expects a large increase in this activity in 2008.

Botnets follow the Storm
With a handful of high-profile prosecutions of bot herders in 2007, criminals will be seeking better ways to cover their tracks. The …

At simultaneous launch events held in both London and New York today, Bebo announced its Open Media vision for social media and entertainment to provide media companies totally free access to its community of some 40 million users. In return, those 40 million members of the social networking community who, one assumes, are mainly there to find and make friends (the clue is in the social networking name after all) get free access to what Bebo refers to as 'thousands of hours of premium entertainment content from some of the world's best known media brands' and what the rest of us might refer to as advertising. OK, perhaps that is a bit unfair, after all the launch partners do include such global media giants as the BBC, BSkyB, CBS, ESPN and MTV but at the end of the day these companies are not here just to give some free content to the kids on Bebo, they are here to stamp their brand impressions upon the impressionable users of the social network. Let's be clear, if you wanted to watch a news clip, a music video or some sports related media for free then you could do so by visiting those media sites on the web, or YouTube or one of the many other places that exist to do just that.

At the launch and in the press release Bebo talks about this ushering in a new and legitimate way for people to 'explore and experience content on …

Sony Computer Entertainment Europe has announced the availability of the latest system software for the PlayStation 3, finally taking it into V2.00 territory. To be honest it isn't that great a leap forward, although there is one nice new feature: the ability to turn a PS3 system on and off remotely, using a PlayStation Portable via the Remote Play1 function, allowing for a truly mobile partnership between the two systems.

Assuming, that is, your PSP has firmware version 3.50 (so none of the naughty rolling back of PSP software to allow game 'backups' to be played) and also assuming that you don't mind paying for the remote ability sometime next year. Sony Computer Entertainment Europe is being rather coy about the actual pricing, just saying that the service "will be provided free of charge until the end of April, 2008 on a trial basis. The date and method to switch to a pay service and the price will be announced as soon as a decision is made."

The success of the Remote Play1 function does really rather hang upon the cost, it seems to me. However, there is no doubt that it does further cement the bond between PS3 and PSP and has the potential to create a truly global experience. Once turned on in this way, across the Internet via a Wi-fi connection, it is possible to listen to the music, look at the photos and watch the videos saved on the PS3 Hard Disk …

Research commissioned by Internet security software makers AVG has revealed that one in three people in the UK have experienced some kind of cyber theft over the Internet. What's more, it is also one of the UK's most feared crimes, outranking burglary, assault and robbery according to the independent study of Internet users. In fact 43 percent of Britons feel most vulnerable to cyber theft than burglary which sits on 29 percent, assault on 18 percent and robbery on just 11 percent. Given the levels of street crime, and widespread media reporting on muggings and the like, these figures are nothing short of remarkable.

Approximately 1-in-3 people in the study had experienced some form of cyber theft activity over the internet including fraudulent emails, credit card fraud, and unauthorised bank transfers. Amounts taken ranged from just a few pounds to several thousand pounds. The survey confirms that financial transactions over the internet are on the rise with 85 percent of people now using the internet for shopping and over two thirds doing their banking online. Notwithstanding this, as many as 87 percent admitted they are worried about the threat of cyber theft from online fraudsters.

90 percent have some form of threat protection on their computer although a third of respondents were not convinced they had adequate measures in place to protect themselves. Just three percent said they used no protection at all. Some 25 percent of respondents also claimed there is not enough information available …

Microsoft is announcing the availability of its new Windows Home Server product today. The WHS solution is targeted directly at a family audience, helping them to protect, connect and share digital media and documents.

The stay-at-home server delivers the same type of benefits that the corporate and academic server technology markets have been enjoying, but wrapped up within a simple and easy-to-use home solution. So, what do you get? Well WHS will automatically back up either Windows XP-based or Windows Vista-based home computers every night while at the same time providing a central hub for digital document and media organisation, distribution and archiving. Every WHS installation comes with a free Windows Live Internet address to enable access from virtually anywhere, and the ability to share content with friends and family regardless of location. WHS will monitor the health and security status of home computers, stream media to other home devices such as the Xbox 360, and allow consumers to enjoy digital music, photos and videos on their television.

"Digital devices and content are everywhere in our day-to-day lives and they are more important all the time," said Bill Gates, chairman of Microsoft. "With the launch of Windows Home Server, Microsoft and its partners are creating a new consumer product category that will help people keep their digital media safe and make it easier for them to enjoy it with friends and family."

The HP MediaSmart Server, powered by the AMD LIVE! solution, was designed for …

The last few days have been interesting ones for those of us who have nothing better to do than follow online gossip and trends. Especially so when you consider that the big gossip in the world of search has been how some rather well known sites have seen their PageRank shot down in flames by an invisible assassin. Well, perhaps not so invisible as the sniper has come out from cover and revealed itself to be Google. No surprise there of course, who else could have been responsible for the Great PageRank Massacre?

The interesting question to ask is who were the victims and why were they targeted, oh and is anyone else on the Google hit list?

The victims have been plentiful, I guess we will never know the full extent of the drive by PageRank shooting as some sites will have chosen not to draw attention to the fact. However, wander around the usual blogging suspects and it becomes very clear very quickly that Google has not shied away from hitting some rather well known names squarely between the eyes. The Washington Post, Forbes, Engadget and The New Scientist have all dropped from PR7 to PR5. Search Engine Guide and Search Engine Journal were both hit harder, taking a fall from PR7 to PR4.

As for the why and who else parts of the question, they are answered in part by …

Remember when SCO used to be known as a big fish in the Unix OS pond, well respected and pretty much a pillar in this particular vendor community? No, neither do I. The image of a company that sought to claim IBM had somehow inappropriately contributed to Linux development, a bizarre tactical strategy to leverage some kind of financial settlement from Big Blue if you listen to many industry analysts, is the one that pops into my head every time I see the letters S, C and O now.

Not for much longer, I would imagine, considering that SCO was not in the healthiest of financial positions before the lawsuit (and hence the reason for it, many will argue) and the millions of dollars in legal fees it has accrued have really not helped at all. Nor did the federal judge ruling that Novel and not SCO is the legal owner of the Unix copyright, meaning that SCO owes Novell big bucks for those lucrative licensing deals it has reached with both Microsoft and Sun Microsystems in the past.

Currently under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, SCO would seem to be set to bail out of the Unix business altogether if filings published at Groklaw are anything to go by. The snazzy named 'Motion to Approve Emergency Motion of the Debtors for An Order (A) Approving Asset Purchase Agreement, (B) Establishing Sale and Bidding Procedures, and (C) Approving the Form and Manner of Notice of Sale' reveals …

If the Asian networking out of the box specialists NorhTec are to be believed the answer is very low indeed: how does $85 (£41) sound? Remarkably that is how much the new NorhTec MicroClient JrSX is set to cost, making it what must be the lowest priced Linux powered thin client PC around.

According to LinuxDevices the MicroClient JrSX is a 300MHz Vortex86SX system-on-chip device, ultra low power it only consumes 0.9W at 300MHz. It includes CompactFlash and 2.5" hard drive storage as well as 10/100Mbps Ethernet, 128Mb DDR RAM, triple USB 2 sockets and all in a box measuring 115x115x35mm which weighs 505gm. The size and weight making it ideal for attaching directly to the back of a flat panel display, which is made even easier by the inclusion of VESA mounting holes on the chassis.

Because of the ultra low power requirement the MicroClient is fan-less, being passively cooled but not adverse to operating in areas of high temperature or humidity for that matter. McDonalds Canada is said to be a customer for just this reason. As far as Linux is concerned, NorhTec reckon it can run any distribution that is compiled to support floating point emulation. Obviously you don't get bells and whistles at this price point, but throw something like Puppy Linux at it and you do get one of the cheapest fully functional PCs on the planet.

Some major corporations, including Intel and Deloitte & Touche, are apparently spearheading a 'no email Friday' concept in order to crack down on non-essential messages, boost productivity and encourage better face-to-face communications between employees. It appears that some companies are even using the carrot and stick approach, well stick mainly, by imposing small fines or naming and shaming those members of staff who violate the no email rule.

The phrase 'cutting off one's nose to spite one's face' comes to mind here. This is not like dress down Friday where casual clothing fosters a more social attitude amongst employees and as a result helps productivity (in theory at least) but is more akin to suggesting that in order to get more work done staff should do less work.

Alan Elliot, senior director of business development at email specialist Mirapoint, takes over the argument:

"Depicting email as some kind of resource-draining monster that we'd all be better off without is not only counter-productive, but willfully ignores the realities of the modern business world. Instead of bringing email to a grinding halt at the end of the week - which of course just means that most of Monday is wasted catching up - companies need to educate their staff on the appropriate use and management of email. Yes, email can induce stress if recipients are cc'ed on chains of unnecessary messages or if it is used as a substitute for instant messaging - …

Yahoo! has complained to the European Commission that Google's $3.1 billion acquisition of Doubleclick, the online advertising business, could reduce competition and ultimately push up pricing for European customers.

The fear, naturally enough considering that Google has always been in the advertising business just as much as it has the search one, is that the purchase could give it a dominant position as far as online display advertising is concerned.

Andrew Cecil, Public Policy Head at Yahoo! has broken the silence to go on the record saying that "The end result will be higher prices for internet publishers and advertisers and less choice for European consumers."

The European Commission is set to reveal at the end of October if a three month formal inquiry into the acquisition is to be held. At the heart of the argument is the contention that by having such a dominant position in the search space and also owning Doubleclick would allow Google to grow its own display advertising business at an unfairly faster rate than everyone else.

Certainly there seems little doubt given the high price paid for Doubleclick, $3.1 billion, that Google was looking at a strategic purchase decision rather than a straight valuation. Many have suggested that the fact Microsoft has shown an interest helped kick the price skywards as the last people Google would have wanted to control Doubleclick would be its Seattle-based competition. The relationships within the marketing space that Doubleclick brings with it, …

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for 2007 to Albert Fert from France and Peter Grünberg from Germany for their discovery of Giant Magnetoresistance. Working independently, the two discovered the Giant Magnetoresistance effect in 1988, although it wasn't until 1997 that the first hard drives using the subsequent technology appeared.

It is directly as a result of that 1988 discovery that hard drives have been able to shrink so dramatically in physical size whilst increasing in capacity over recent years.

Giant Magnetoresistance, or GMR, in a nutshell is where very weak magnetic changes give rise to major differences in electrical resistance. Such a system is ideal for reading data from hard disks when information registered magnetically has to be converted to electric current. A hard disk stores information, such as music, in the form of microscopically small areas magnetized in different directions. The information is retrieved by a read-out head that scans the disk and registers the magnetic changes. The smaller and more compact the hard disk, the smaller and weaker the individual magnetic areas. More sensitive read-out heads are therefore required if information has to be packed more densely on a hard disk. A read-out head based on the GMR effect can convert very small magnetic changes into differences in electrical resistance and there-fore into changes in the current emitted by the read-out head. The current is the signal from the read-out head and its different strengths represent …

McAfee Inc. has today released the results of new research which found that nearly one in four people in Europe are putting themselves at increased risk of online fraud or identity theft simply because of poor password habits. The research, of 3500 consumers in the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and The Netherlands, reveals 24% of those questioned always use the same password to access all their online accounts and 43% never change it. The latter increasing the risk of people giving away their complete identity should that password be hacked or stolen.

The research also revealed that expert advice is falling on deaf ears, especially with regard to using longer and more complex passwords. 30% used passwords of only one-to-six characters in length, while 22% were only using alpha characters with no numerical input.

59% of respondents 'always' or 'mostly' use the one same password for everything. A hugely dangerous strategy, but nonetheless a common one as it helps people to remember passwords across multiple sites and services. Across Europe, respondents from France were the worst offenders with 39% claiming they 'always' use one password for everything, they are closely followed by Spain on 37%, Italy with 22%, The Netherlands on 20%, Germany on 17% and the UK doing best of the worst with 16%.

"People are signing up to more and more online accounts and as result more people are leaving their 'digital DNA' online - 41% of our respondents claim to register …