China Does Not Want to Learn from US 01/27/2010

China needs no lessons about its Internet from the United States, the head of an online media association said through official media on Saturday after the United States rapped Beijing over information freedom.

Increased Security Risks 01/27/2010

Consumers are growing increasingly comfortable storing sensitive information on their computers, USB flash drives, and external hard drives, as well as using Web-based solutions to automate regular tasks such as shopping for holiday gifts, paying bills, and tracking financial portfolios. The push from vendors encouraging their customers to move toward e-billing has also played a major role in more personal information being stored locally on personal computers.

Cyber Fraud 01/26/2010

A survey of more than 5,000 active Internet users across 10 cities in India suggests that users are becoming increasingly concerned about online security. Ninety one percent of the respondent Internet users have experienced some case of cyber fraud, such as phishing, key logging, identity theft and account takeover. Despite the exposure to cyber fraud, a majority of respondents were unaware of ways to combat it.

Google Vs China 01/25/2010

In the beginning, there was one Internet, born from American research and embraced by academics around the world. It was in English and homogeneous, operating according to Western standards of openness. It's no surprise that China polices sites like Google.cn, but now nations like France are also cracking down on Internet users. Can Google Beat China? It is just a matter of time before technologists find a way to defeat censorship? As the Internet grew, it became fragmented and linguistically diversified. It developed borders, across which it now works in different ways. In Spain, for instance, you can share music and movies with virtual impunity; in France, doing that is likely to cost you your Internet connection. In China, meanwhile, it may soon be nearly impossible to use Google. The company, saying the security of its e-mail had been breached in a campaign to spy on Chinese dissidents, announced last week that it would stop censoring Google.cn, its Chinese Web site, and might have to withdraw from China.

Zero Day Exploit 01/24/2010

BitDefender, provider of innovative anti-malware security solutions, has discovered separate, critical zero-day exploits in two of the most heavily used applications in the world: Microsofts Internet Explorer and Adobe Reader. According to preliminary reports, the Internet Explorer vulnerability has already been used in targeted attacks against 34 major corporations including Google and Adobe. At the moment, Microsoft has released an advisory, but there is no patch available for this vulnerability. BitDefender has pushed an emergency update to users of its security products that intercepts and blocks the malicious code before it adversely impacts on the target system.

Malaysia Against Social Sites 01/23/2010

The Malaysian government has warned against excessive use of micro-blogging sites like Facebook and Twitter, arguing that they could erode the countrys culture, a report said Sunday. Rais Yatim, the information and communication minister, said Muslims and other religious groups must be wary of the Internet as it was introduced by the West.

Illegal Wild Life Trade 01/22/2010

Illegal wildlife traders are turning to the Internet to reach a wider customer base, circumvent laws and evade authorities, an animal rights activist told a conference on Sunday. Items such as rhinoceros horns, leopard pelts and even live tiger cubs are being hawked openly in online advertisements on public websites, said Grace Ge, Asian regional director of the International Fund for Animal Welfare.

Terrorist Trials 01/21/2010

Federal prosecutors charged more suspects with terrorism in 2009 than in any year since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, providing evidence of what experts call a rise in plots spurred by Internet recruitment, the spread of al-Qaida overseas and ever-shifting tactics of terror chiefs.

German Government Says Stop Using IE 01/20/2010

Germany: The Federal Office for Information Security has warned users to stop using all versions Microsoft Internet Explorer after details of the vulnerability used to attack Google in China appeared online. Microsoft has voiced its disagreement, saying that changing the security zone to high minimises risk. The German government says that it is not enough to make the browser safe. Running IE in high security mode makes many web sites unusable.

Google Security for GMail 01/19/2010

Google has upgraded Gmail’s security by encrypting all email traffic from the service using Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure. HTTPS is used by online banking and shopping site to protect data from interception.

Ukranian Voters Selling Votes 01/18/2010

For sale: my vote in Ukraine's election. From 300 to 500 hryvnias $US37-$US63. Can gather others who want to sell. Several offers have appeared on the internet from disenchanted citizens in the ex-Soviet republic who say they are ready to sell their votes in the January 17 election for president.

Another Chinese Crackdown 01/17/2010

Chinas recent moves to tighten control of its online and mobile content industries have brought some uncertainty into the market but may not have a major immediate impact on the sectors biggest players.

Colorado Launches Internet Safety Campaign 01/16/2010

Colorado Attorney General John Suthers has joined Democratic Rep. Nancy Todd, the Entertainment Software Association and Web Wise Kids to unveil an Internet safety program to help parents keep their children safe online. Suthers said Monday that children are naive about dangers on the Internet and some parents are clueless about ways to protect them. Sponsors say the program, called Wired With Wisdom, addresses the dangers associated with social networking, e-mail, cell phones, chat rooms, instant messaging and other technology so adults can educate young people about safe and responsible online practices.

Security Solutions for Mac 01/15/2010

Symantec, the world leader in Internet security, today announced Norton Internet Security 3.0 for Macintosh, the most complete Internet security solution for the Macintosh platform, and Norton SystemWorks 3.0 for Macintosh, the worlds first complete antivirus and problem solving solution optimised for Mac OS X.

GSM Not Interested in Security 01/14/2010

The cracking of GSM encryption by 28-year-old German security expert Karsten Nohl has sent shock waves through the wireless industry. But the crack should come as no surprise to an industry that has long given short shrift to security, an analyst says. Nohl -- working with others around the Internet -- has created a guidebook for cracking the Global System for Mobile communication's 64-bit A5-1 algorithm, which was adopted in 1988.

Three Quarters of the US Use the Internet 01/13/2010

Nearly three-quarters of American adults use the Internet, more than half connect wirelessly via laptop or handheld, and 60 percent use broadband connections at home, according to a survey released Tuesday. The Pew Research Center survey also found that Internet users in the U.S. tend to be young, white, and educated, with an equal distribution between men and women.

The Internet in 2020 01/12/2010

As they imagine the Internet of 2020, computer scientists across the country are starting from scratch and re-thinking everything: from IP addresses to DNS to routing tables to Internet security in general. They are envisioning how the Internet might work without some of the most fundamental features of todays ISP and enterprise networks. Their goal is audacious: To create an Internet without so many security breaches, with better trust and built-in identity management.

Security Software Slow Down 01/11/2010

One security software program caused its computer to boot up almost 10 seconds more slowly than normal, while another led to a delay of almost 81 seconds during the downloading of a 190-megabyte file. Two solutions proved to be especially nasty speed bumps, with one slowing down work on Office documents by a hefty 59 percent. Each of the top Internet security packages slows down computers significantly at some point. That's the conclusion of a recent comparative test of seven solutions conducted by Germanys Computerbild magazine.

Unionizing TSA 01/10/2010

Current law gives the TSA Administrator discretion over whether to collectively bargain with airport security screeners. The TSA has determined that collective bargaining would endanger the safety of Americas air passengers. TSA screeners may belong to a union, and the TSA withholds union dues for screeners who request it. But the union may not collectively negotiate how TSA screeners perform their jobs. However, Southers may change this policy – to the detriment of the American people. The TSA has avoided collective bargaining for good reason: the bureaucracy and delays of collective bargaining hurt the agencys ability to defend Americans.

What is Hot for 2010 01/08/2010

Top 10 Winners Predicted for 2010 1. Healthy Living 2. The Cloud 3. Savings 4. Simplicity in Design 5. Web Applications 6. Instant and Virtual 7. Portability 8. Energy 9. Green Shopping 10. Security Top 10 Losers Predicted for 2010 1. Capitalism 2. Health Care 3. Credit Card Companies 4. The Left 5. Acorn 6. Big Government 7. Privacy 8. Super Star Atheletes 9. Facebook 10. Reality... What is Hot for 2010

2009 Reflections, 2010 Predictions 01/07/2010

Another year has rolled by marked by miracles, political milestones and tragedies alike. 2009 was the year of financial uproar with bailouts and ponzi schemes dominating the news on a regular basis. Chrysler and GM stalwart car giants struggled to survive. Bernie Madoffs financial pyramid came tumbling down, taking average citizen's retirement plans with it, emptying the coffers of trusting non-profits and celebrities alike. complete article

Top 10 Security Concerns for the Last Decade 01/06/2010

Blame the Internet for the latest decade of security lessons. Without it, you probably wouldn't even recognize the terms phishing, cybercrime, data breach, or botnet. Lets revisit the top security horrors of the past ten years, and try to remember what we learned from each. complete article

GSM Cracks 01/05/2010

The cracking of GSM encryption by 28-year-old German security expert Karsten Nohl has sent shock waves through the wireless industry. But the crack should come as no surprise to an industry that has long given short shrift to security, an analyst says.

Prisoner Access to Mobiles is Security Issue 01/04/2010

Mobile phones smuggled into British prisons could be used by Islamist militants to spread their extremist ideology and threaten national security, Conservatives claimed today. Tory security spokeswoman Baroness Neville-Jones quoted official Justice Ministry figures which show that more mobile phones and SIM cards than ever are being secretly brought into jails, despite a ban on their use.

China arrests thousands in Web porn crackdown 01/03/2010

China says it arrested thousands of people over the course of 2009 in a crackdown on Web pornography and says it will continue the push in the new year, according to a report. The Chinese government announced late this week that the sweeping effort resulted in 5,394 arrests and 4,186 criminal investigations, a fourfold increase over the year prior, Reuters reports. And those numbers could rise still higher. Reuters says Chinas Ministry of Public Security warned that in 2010 it will intensify punishments for illegal Internet operations, ramp up information monitoring, and press Internet service providers to use preventive technology.

Security in 2010 12/30/2009

As usual, we can expect the Internet to be rife with potential cyber crimes and annoyances next year - more spam, more fake antivirus software and more computers hijacked by criminals. But 2010 will also see more attacks moving to smartphones, now that the devices are being used more like mobile computers, predict security experts.

Twitter Hacks 12/29/2009

The third computer hacker attack this year on the popular Internet site Twitter shows the weakness of the companys security systems, U.S. experts say. Twitter officials say no user information appears to have been stolen in Fridays attack, in which a hacker obtained the password to enter the popular sites master directory of Internet addresses. But experts told The New York Times the incident illustrates continuing problems.

Iranian Tensions 12/28/2009

Political conflict and public piety converged on tension-filled streets in Tehran, Iran, on Saturday. Clashes erupted between riot police and opposition protesters as hundreds of people solemnly took part in an annual Shiite Muslim observance.

Pope Protection Difficult 12/28/2009

It is impossible to ensure 100% security for the pope without erecting a barrier between him and believers, the Vatican spokesman said after an attack at Benedict XVI on Thursday night. A woman jumped a barrier and rushed at Pope Benedict XVI during the Christmas Eve Mass, for the second time in two years, managing to knock him down. Benedict, 82, was not hurt and continued the procession to the altar at St. Peter's Basilica. On Friday, he delivered traditional Christmas greetings and urged people worldwide to abandon violence and coexist peacefully.

Heightened Security 12/27/2009

U.S. and European airports were tightening security Saturday following an attempt Friday by a suspected terrorist, who allegedly claimed Qaeda ties, to blow up a Northwest Airlines plane as it approached a landing in Detroit, according to media reports.

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