In today's world of hackers, stalkers, and cybercriminals, not to mention and commercial sites that collect information about you for advertising purposes, is there a way to surf the Web and keep your privacy intact? Or does that mere fact that you have an IP address mean that your identity is out there for the taking? Turns out, there's no easy answer to this question. (Watch the .) Legally, an IP address does not constitute personal identifiable information, according to two recent court cases. In July 2009, in a case involving Microsoft, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington ruled that IP addresses do not constitute personal identifiable information (PII). And in a separate case in 2011, the Illinois Central District Court also ruled that an IP address does not -- by itself -- qualify as personal information that can accurately identify a specific Internet user.
In his first year heading the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, Fadi Chehade has tried to establish a more international ICANN by opening hubs in Turkey, Singapore, Beijing, and Geneva. Governments, meanwhile, have found a new role within ICANN, mainly in respect to the while the traditional tussle between ICANN and the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) over who should govern and manage the global Internet seems to have lost some momentum. Chehade replaced Rod Beckstrom as president and CEO of the international nongovernmental organization that oversees Internet standards. He sat down with the IDG News Service at the ICANN 47 meeting in Durban to answer questions about his first year in office. The following is an edited transcript of the interview.
Sophos has selected its "dirty dozen" of countries that relay spam for the second quarter of 2013, and the U.S. has taken the top spot. With a population of more than 300 million people that makes up a large portion of the world's online traffic, Sophos security evangelist, Paul Ducklin, said it is no surprise that the U.S. is the leader. "Remember that the Dirty Dozen doesn't tell us from where the spam originates," he said. "It tells us how spam gets relayed from the crooks to their potential victims." Belarus has risen up to take the second spot, with Ukraine, Kazakhstan, and Argentina and making their debut as France, Peru, and South Korea drop from the list.
Microsoft must be ready to accept, as has Apple, that it's better to cannibalize one's own sales than to let others do it, a research analyst says. "This is going to be a tough shift for Microsoft, to ask them to now accept that the world is a very different place than it used to be," said Al Gillen of research firm IDC. That shift is the of retreating from decades of selling packaged software and advancing on sustainable services and potentially-lucrative devices. As part of the reorganization, all of its client operating systems, including Windows 8, Windows RT, Windows Phone 8, Windows Embedded, and Xbox, into a single engineering group led by Tony Myerson, head of Windows Phone, which was part of a soon-to-be-defunct Entertainment and Devices division.
Symantec has discovered a bizarre ransom Trojan that eschews the usual demand for payment in favor of asking its victims to fill in an online survey to get an unlock code. Given the name Infected Windows PCs display a dialogue box asking for the unlock code and the hint that they can find it after visiting a website linking to a list of different prize surveys or by downloading unnecessary software such as a media player. The box won't clear until the survey code has been entered, and can't be closed using the task manager; attempts to delve into matters using the command prompt, PowerShell, Regedit, or MSConfig are also denied as is the ability to bypass it by invoking a restore point.
On an 80-core computer at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, scientists have built a tool that might make networks significantly faster just by coming up with better algorithms. The system, called , generates its own algorithms for implementing TCP (Transmission Control Protocol), the framework used to prevent congestion on most networks. The algorithms are different from anything human developers have written, and so far they seem to work much better, according to the researchers. On one simulated network, they doubled the throughput. Remy is not designed to run on individual PCs and servers, but someday it may be used to develop better algorithms to run on those systems, said Hari Balakrishnan, the Fujitsu professor in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at MIT. For now, it’s churning out millions of possible algorithms and testing them against simulated networks to find the best possible one for a given objective. IP (Internet Protocol) networks don’t dictate how fast each attached computer sends out packets or whether they keep transmitting after the network has become congested. Instead, each system makes its own decisions using some implementation of the TCP framework. Each version of TCP uses its own algorithm to determine how best to act in different conditions.
Though software sales provided a ray of light in otherwise mixed results this week, gloom settled over the tech sector Friday in the wake of bellwether IT quarterly earnings reports. The broad Standard & Poor’s 500 Index managed to close Friday at a record high of 1,692.09, but the tech-heavy Nasdaq dropped 23.66 points to 3,587.61, and the Dow Jones industrial average declined 4.65 points to 15,543.89. Of the five tech stocks on the Dow, only Intel traded up slightly, while Microsoft, IBM, Cisco Systems and Hewlett-Packard were down. “Overall I’d say the earnings confirmed some common themes—software is going to do better than hardware and services,” said Forrester chief economist Andrew Bartels. In Forrester’s latest forecast for the global tech market, issued last week, Bartels lowered expectations for spending on IT goods and services to 2.3 percent growth measured in U.S. dollars, from the January estimate of 3.3 percent. Calculated in local currencies, the forecast looks better, at a 4.6 percent increase, but recession in Europe and slower growth in China is putting a damper on tech purchases by any measure.
On Friday, Google gave Windows users something that they’ve been pining for: A Start button. And even better than that, Google’s version keeps you on the desktop and actually opens a pop-up menu full of programs, unlike the nerfed Start button that’s slated to appear in . No, Larry Page hasn’t decided to jump into the crowded arena. Instead, Google’s engineers quietly dragged Chrome OS’s App Launcher—the Googlefied equivalent of a Start button—over to Chrome for Windows today. The seemingly simple addition is a major step in Google’s push to bring Web standards to walled gardens. The , such as Gmail, the Play Store, Angry Birds, and yep, even Chrome itself. Simple, right? But the little launcher is a Trojan horse for much bigger ambitions—especially when paired with packaged Chrome apps. Packaged apps available now, but since Google has yet to highlight them in the Chrome Web Store, you might not be familiar with them. Packaged apps are programs built on the bones of the Chrome browser. They use traditional Web languages such as HTML5 and CSS, but they run as separate, standalone software that can also be used offline, unlike traditional browsers.
Sixteen of the top 25 companies offering a good work-life balance are technology companies, according to a new ranking from the job site Glassdoor, with the SAS Institute and National Instruments leading the pack. The SAS Institute, which makes business analytics software for industries ranging from casinos to oil and gas providers, occupied the number-one spot on Glassdoor’s of the top companies for work-life balance, up from number four last year. National Instruments, which makes automated test equipment and virtual instrumentation software, was ranked second. Other enterprise IT companies such as Slalom Consulting, Mentor Graphics, FactSet and Agilent Technologies also ranked high on the list. Other companies offering consumer services and products, like Yahoo, AOL, Nokia and MasterCard, were also named. It is not surprising that SAS topped the list. The Cary, North Carolina-based company provides a dedicated work-life department staffed by eight full-time social workers who provide services to employees, for free, that include support services for child development, aging and elder care, and advising for the college search process.
The three most important device platform vendors—Apple, Google, and Microsoft—have each consolidated their mobile and desktop operating systems under a single product leader. This could be taken as a hint of a new industry trend, where each company is looking to consolidate onto single unified OS for all types of devices. . They’re different. Any attempt to force them together will fail. But blending the best characteristics of each type of platform? That just might work. Microsoft has always tried to insist that the tablet is a kind of PC. Microsoft created a variant of Windows XP for tablets way back in 2002. Its strategy around Windows 8 and Windows RT was summed up by then-Windows chief Steven Sinofsky’s “no compromises” rhetoric.
Advanced Micro Devices hopes for financial stability after years of struggles, but analysts said that a volatile PC market could derail the chip designer’s progress. Keeping with its projection earlier this year, AMD’s CEO Rory Read said Thursday that the company would deliver a profit in the third fiscal quarter, which will be reported in September. The company is making progress as part of a “three-step strategy to restructure, accelerate and ultimately transform AMD for growth,” Read said in a conference call about earnings. The return to profitability involves a mix of cost-cutting measures, shipments of new chips and less reliance on PCs, a market that has been slowing. As in past quarters, a majority of third-quarter revenue will be from PC chips, but the company is expecting a larger mix of revenue from chips for non-PC products such as gaming consoles. AMD’s chips will be used in Microsoft’s Xbox One and Sony’s PlayStation 4, which will ship later this year. AMD is projecting revenue to increase on a sequential basis by 22 percent, plus or minus 3 percent, in the third quarter. , falling from $1.41 billion recorded during the same quarter last year. The company reported a net loss of $65 million for the quarter.
Gmail just rolled out one of its best features in years: . (Actually, the feature was announced back in May, but is only just now starting to roll out to users.) Borrowing a page from services like , Gmail can now automatically organize certain kinds of messages into tabs, greatly reducing inbox clutter in the process. For example, all your notifications from social-media services (Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc.) will now be sorted into the Social tab, while offers from Groupon, LivingSocial, and other advertisers will land under Promos. If you're not yet seeing tabs when you sign into Gmail (in your Web browser, natch) or you want to make changes to the settings, do this:
SAP has provided an extensive window into the future direction of its HANA in-memory database platform, which has emerged as the central pillar of the company’s product strategy. A lengthy HANA , which was made public this week, reveals a wide array of upcoming features, although no specific release dates were given and it notes that plans can change “at any time.” Over time, HANA customers can expect improved integration with the Hadoop framework for large-scale data processing, including “tighter modeling and runtime integration with Hadoop structures and data,” according to the road map document. SAP will also enhance HANA’s integration with Sybase Power Designer, focused on “model interoperability and management” with HANA, it states.
If you're looking for a video transcoding product to compress your vacation vids, look to something other than the ultra-competent, but extremely pricey Sorenson Squeeze 9. If however, you're a busy professional who needs to produce video in a variety of formats in the shortest possible time, Squeeze is what you're looking for. It's a fast, comprehensive, extensible, and highly configurable transcoder. The client program comes in three flavors: a $799 standard version, a $999 pro version, and a $2000 server version.
When it comes to blogging, the conventional wisdom says that you should get your name and material out there as liberally as possible. Any place you can stuff a backlink to your business’s website is great, particularly if it’s on a noteworthy or popular site. Guest posts have long been thought to be a great way to do that: You get to reach a broader audience and link back to your own website, improving your search engine rankings while sharing your expertise. Meanwhile, the website owner gets free content. It’s win-win. But that conventional wisdom is changing, as many are questioning whether rather than better placement in search results. For the website owner who’s hosting the guest posts, the problem is relatively easy to see. Because you have limited control over the content of the guest post, you’re taking a leap of faith that you’re going to get quality work. Any links embedded in that post are also potentially troublesome. A guest blogger (who is rarely someone you actually know) may embed what looks like an innocuous link in the post, only to redirect it later to a less than savory site. And if your website links to a spam site—whether you or a guest writer does the linking—you can be subject to Google penalties and see your search ranking plummet. But what about the writer of the guest blog post? Well, there’s trouble emerging there, too. Posting your good work, name, and link on a questionable site can subject you to the exact same penalties as described above. And once Google starts to associate you with the gray areas of the Web, it can be hard to break that association. In fact, today, Google’s own advice is that if you do write a guest post for another site, you should include in order to avoid penalties.
The Federal Communications Commission has voted to take the first step toward revamping its program that subsidizes Internet connections to schools and libraries, with the focus in the future on big bandwidth instead of simple connectivity. The FCC on Friday voted to launch a notice of proposed rulemaking, or NPRM, focused on updating the 16-year-old E-Rate program. E-Rate, with a $2.25 billion annual budget, has helped bring Internet service to nearly all U.S. schools, but the program is outdated, commissioners said. About 80 percent of U.S. schools and libraries say they don’t have enough bandwidth, Margaret Spellings, former U.S. secretary of education, told commissioners at Friday’s FCC meeting. Schools need higher bandwidth to deliver modern technology-focused education, she said. Commissioners agreed. “We are quickly moving from a world where what matters is connectivity to what matters is capacity,” Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel said.
Seeking a foothold with businesses that run Microsoft software, Novell has introduced an application to streamline the process of connecting employees to workspace printers, even if they are using non-Microsoft computers and mobile devices, such as iPhones. “We’re giving the administrator a very easy way to do browser-based administration of the print environment,” said Kai Reichert, a Novell product manager for collaboration. For the end user, the iPrint software provides a web interface for easily setting up a new device relationship with a printer. IPrint has been available as part of Novell’s Open Enterprise Server (OES) for some time, though now it can be run as a stand-alone software package. This version of iPrint is packaged in a VMware-based virtual machine, so it can be run as a virtual appliance. IPrint provides a way for users to set up connections between their Microsoft Windows, Apple Mac, or Linux computers with their workplace’s network printers, without the need for contacting an administrator.
Windows Small Business Server. Microsoft is no longer making the popular small business platform, but thankfully Microsoft didn’t just pull the plug and leave small business customers with nothing to fill the void. . Microsoft officially moved it into the Windows Server family, and changed the name to Windows Server 2012 Essentials. It’s basically the entry-level offering for Windows Server 2012. For Loyal fans of SBS, though, moving to Windows Server 2012 Essentials is more than just a name change. Customers often balk at change of any kind, but in this case some are upset that major features and capabilities their businesses depend on are lost through the transition to Windows Server 2012 Essentials. Windows SBS was a great platform because it contained all of the elements a business might need in one box—the server operating system and management tools, along with Exchange Server and SharePoint Server. The problem with SBS, though, is that it maxed out at 25 licenses, and was a dead-end that didn’t provide an easy path for companies once their needs grew larger than what SBS could handle.
Okay, Microsoft. You had your fun fling with ARM processors, serenading your newfound love with glitzy dubstep ads full of creepy dancing schoolgirls. Thin and light tablets packing a—gasp!—free version of Office? Freedom from Intel and AMD's x86 processors? Sanctity from traditional Windows malware? How . But the honeymoon is over, and reality ain't happy with the frivolous romp. Thursday, Microsoft announced that it took an accounting hit to the tune of nearly $1 billion——thanks to the steep discount it had to apply to the millions of Surface RT tablets lying around unsold. The dream has become a nightmare, and not just for Surface. Microsoft, it's time for Windows RT to take a vacation. , but this week really crystallized that its time is not now.
Six British citizens were wrongly detained or accused of crimes as a result of mistakes made by authorities when requesting access to Internet data, the U.K. Interception of Communications Commissioner said. A report detailing law enforcement’s errors in the UK was published as interest in surveillance of ordinary citizens’ online activities runs high, in the wake of disclosures about the U.S. National Security Agency’s secret surveillance programs. published on Thursday. The principal users of this communications data are still the intelligence agencies, police forces and other law enforcement agencies, wrote Paul Kennedy who served as the Interception of Communications Commissioner through last year. However, because public authorities often make many requests for communications data in the course of a single investigation, the total figure does not indicate the number of individuals or addresses targeted, Kennedy said, adding that those numbers are not readily available, but would be much smaller.
After months of behind-the-scenes teases, Google appears to have quietly introduced the inside Chrome’s app store. First spotted by , the new feature is Google’s incursion into the desktop PC, creating a self-sufficient Chrome ecosystem inside Microsoft’s OS. The Chrome App Launcher lets you directly fire up any Chrome Web app or packaged app right from the Windows taskbar—even when Chrome itself isn’t running. Packaged apps are HTML 5-based standalone desktop apps based on Chrome that don’t look anything like your Web browser. There are no tabs, URL address bars, or bookmarks, but these apps do rely on Chrome’s underlying infrastructure and are installed via the Chrome Web Store. It’s still early days for packaged apps, but there are a number you can try out, such as a .
Panasonic and its subsidiary Sanyo have agreed to plead guilty to price fixing conspiracies involving laptop battery cells and automotive parts. They will pay a total of $56.5 million in criminal fines, the U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ) said. Sanyo agreed to pay $10.7 million for the battery cells conspiracy and Panasonic will pay $45.8 million for its role in the automotive parts conspiracy, the DoJ said in on Thursday. LG Chem, a manufacturer of rechargeable batteries, has also agreed to plead guilty and to pay a $1.056 million criminal fine for price fixing involving battery cells, the DoJ said. Sanyo and LG Chem were involved in a battery cell conspiracy from about April 2007 until about September 2008, it said. “The guilty pleas against Sanyo and LG Chem are the first in the department’s ongoing investigation into anticompetitive conduct in the cylindrical lithium-ion battery cell industry,” it said. Both companies conspired to fix the prices of battery cells sold worldwide for use in notebook computer battery packs, it added.
Cellphone users have a reasonable expectation of privacy of their cellphone location information, and police must obtain a search warrant before accessing that information, the Supreme Court of New Jersey ruled Thursday. on an appeal. “Instead, they can reasonably expect that their personal information will remain private.” requiring police and other agencies to obtain a search warrant from a court before tracking a person using location information from an electronic device. Federal courts have been divided on the issue of cellphone tracking by law enforcement. But historically the New Jersey Constitution has offered greater protection to New Jersey residents than the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, Rabner observed. The Fourth Amendment protects against unreasonable searches and seizures.
Twitter. Facebook. Evernote. Dropbox. Gmail. Instagram. YouTube. RSS feeds. Email. Keeping up with the growing list of social networks, essential apps, and incoming data streams that have become part of modern online life is difficult for even a Web dabbler. Getting them talking to one another is even tougher, which is where tools like “,” or simply “IFTTT,” have become invaluable. This , for the iPhone platform. The mobile app enhances the utility of IFTTT for all of its users, but its release is also a good time to take a hard look at whether IFTTT can now be put to use in the business world. IFTTT is so valuable because certain networks, like Facebook, are famously closed off, so doing something that should be simple—like saving your photos to your hard drive or republishing videos on YouTube—can be extremely tedious and time-consuming.
A plan to set up a massive database of every non-European Union citizen entering and leaving the bloc is disproportionate, Europe’s data privacy watchdog said Friday. The European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS), Peter Hustinx described the so-called “Smart Borders” initiative as intrusive and uneconomic, and said its aims could probably be achieved more efficiently by using already-existing databases. In February the European Commission proposed setting up a Registered Traveler Programme (RTP) aimed at frequent business travelers or those with relatives in the E.U.; and an Entry/Exit System (EES). The RTP would make use of automated border control systems such as automated gates for pre-screened visitors, while the EES would digitally record the time and place of entry and exit of third-country nationals and issue an alert to national authorities when there is no exit record by the expiry time. The current practice when checking a third-country national wanting to cross the E.U.’s external borders is based mainly on the stamps in the travel document. But, Hustinx said Friday, “There is no clear evidence that the Commission proposals will fulfil the aims that it has set out.” Even the Commission’s own assessments fail to prove that it will be sufficiently efficient to justify the expense and intrusions into privacy, he added.
As dynamic, productive, and exciting has Microsoft has tried to make the Surface RT tablet out to be, consumers can’t shake the perception that it’s just a bland bit of overpriced plastic—all its VaporMg cladding notwithstanding—that can do little more than surf the Web. Unfair? Maybe so. But as Wall Street digests that distasteful reality, so too should Microsoft’s marketing department. In fact, it’s eventually going to realize that as painful as the have gone, they didn’t go nearly far enough. Microsoft reported fourth-quarter revenues Thursday that came in nearly a billion dollars less than what analysts expected, thanks to a . To Hood’s credit, she dodged nimbly, scattering bland crumbs of data that the analysts meekly accepted. It shouldn’t be too hard to figure out how many Surface RT tablets the writedown represented: $900 million divided by the—equating to $150 for each version of the Surface RT—will equal the number of Surface RT tablets sitting idle on Microsoft’s shelves, said Patrick Moorhead of Moor Insights and Strategy.
It’s no stretch to say that PC power users aren’t united in their praise of Windows 8. The operating system’s modern-style Start screen and its focus on touch-friendly apps has ruffled quite a few feathers among users who just want their old desktops back. But if you own a home-theater PC, you might want to put the hate on hold. Although Microsoft clearly had tablets and touchscreens in mind when it designed Windows 8, the new look and new apps actually translate well to television screens. Windows 8’s modern side provides an almost console-like experience, offering quick access to video apps and a look that’s a lot prettier than an icon-laden desktop. I’ve been using Windows 8 on my three year-old HTPC, a , for about six months. The update has breathed new life into the machine, especially for streaming video and music. Although I still lean on the desktop for certain things, the modern side of Windows 8 has turned out to be a useful supplement. Let's take a peek at where Windows 8 shines and where it struggles on home theater PCs.
Think deeply. Plan your next move carefully, or it could be your last. Strategy games are the best ways to have fun and sharpen those acute decision-making skills we all love to flaunt. Whether you're planning the perfect assault, finding the most efficient supply chain, or simply running for your life to survive, it's important to be able to formulate a plan. These games are the way to do it—starting with captaining your own deathtrap, er, spaceship.
The U.K. government is launching a review of a vetting process for products from Huawei Technologies, reflecting continuing security concerns about the Chinese company. ordering a review of the center that will look at its effectiveness to protect the nation’s telecommunication infrastructure. about Huawei’s alleged ties with the Chinese government, which has been accused of state-sponsored hacking. In particular, the committee was “shocked” that Huawei was able to supply sensitive telecommunication infrastructure to U.K. operator BT without consultation with government ministers. As early as 2008, the U.K.’s own Security Service had determined that China could theoretically exploit vulnerabilities in Huawei products to conduct espionage over BT’s networks, the committee’s report said.
Was amerikanische Firmen tun, damit eine völlig klare Angelegenheit noch klarer wird.
Microsoft hat mit seinem App Store die 100'000er-Marke geknackt. Anlass genug, einen Blick auf empfehlenswerte kostenlose Programme zu werfen.
Im Internetauktionshaus Ebay steht ein angeblich originales Exemplar der Liste des deutschen Industriellen Oskar Schindler zum Verkauf. Der Startpreis für das 14-seitige Dokument liegt bei drei Millionen Dollar.
Trotz immer besseren Smartphones knipsen Herr und Frau Schweizer in den Ferien am liebsten mit Kameras. Und hier sind die Ansprüche gestiegen.
Huaweis neues Topmodel Ascend P6 macht vieles richtig, leistet sich aber auch Patzer, wie sich im Test zeigt. So befindet sich zum Beispiel der Kopfhöreranschluss an einer denkbar ungünstigen Stelle.
Ob auf ausgedehnten Fahrrad-Ausflügen oder beim Urlaub mit dem Zweirad: Smartphones und Tabletcomputer können Radfahrern wertvolle Dienste leisten.
Der Smartphone-Hersteller bringt einen kleineren Nachfolger seines Hoffnungsträgers auf den Markt.
Verschlüsselte Messenger-Apps made in Switzerland sind nach der NSA-Abhöraffäre plötzlich gefragt. Ein Anbieter rüstet mit seiner Technik sogar die indonesische Armee aus.
Eigentlich schon im Mai erwartet, verdichten sich die Anzeichen, dass das neue Nexus 7 nächste Woche vorgestellt wird. Bereits sind erste Bilder aufgetaucht.
Ein niederländisches Start-up bringt im Herbst das Fairphone auf den Markt – ein Smartphone, an dem kein Blut kleben soll.
Microsoft hat Windows 8.1 vorgestellt. konnte bereits die Vorabversion testen. Was die Änderungen taugen.
Marissa Mayer hat wieder zugeschlagen: Der von ihr geführte Internetkonzern schluckt den Videospezialisten Qwiki.
Wenn der Arbeitsplatz den Schweiss treiben lässt, bringen diese fünf kleinen Helfer die gewünschte Abkühlung.
Der südkoreanische Konzern lanciert Ende Juli sein XL-Handy auch in der Schweiz: Das Optimus G Pro ist mit einem 5,5-Zoll-Display ausgestattet.
Der Internetgigant Google will in den US-Markt für Bezahlfernsehen einsteigen. Auch andere Grosskonzerne erwägen Angebote für Fernsehen übers Internet.
Bislang dominieren bei Smartphone-Betriebssystemen iOS und Android. Doch auch Windows Phone, Blackberry OS und neuerdings Firefox OS wollen ein Wörtchen mitreden.
Eine 23-jährige Chinesin ist durch einen Elektroschock getötet worden, als sie mit ihrem iPhone telefonierte. Es ist jedoch noch unklar, ob das Gerät, das gerade aufgeladen wurde, für den Unfall verantwortlich ist.
Der Radiohead-Frontmann will seine Soloprojekte nicht länger auf Streamingdiensten anbieten.
Die neuen Kurznachrichtendienste versprechen, die Kommunikation zu vereinfachen, und machen doch alles komplizierter.
Wer Facebook, Twitter und Google nicht zu hundert Prozent vertraut, der sorgt durch eine Sicherung auf der eigenen Festplatte vor.