Is Flame something that we should worry about?

Is Flame something that we should worry about?


Is Flame something that we should worry about?

Posted: 31 May 2012 11:10 AM PDT

Much has been said and written in the last few days since the initial discovery of the so-called Flame (SkyWiper) toolkit. Security researchers have split in two camps: those who consider the thr...

Tiny but deadly banking Trojan discovered

Posted: 31 May 2012 09:08 AM PDT

The discovery of a new banking Trojan by the researchers working for CSIS Security Group has proved that a piece of malware doesn't have to be big and complex to get the job done. Dubbed "Tinba" (T...

FBI warns of joint threat by ransomware and banking Trojan

Posted: 31 May 2012 08:10 AM PDT

The combination of the Citadel banking Trojan and Reveton ransomware that Trusteer warned about at the beginning of May is apparently still targeting users. So much so, that the FBI's Internet Crim...

When syncing sinks your browser

Posted: 31 May 2012 08:00 AM PDT

Google Chrome's most recent version (v19) introduced a "tab sync" feature. When inspecting this feature from a security perspective we realized that a new type of threat can allow a hacker to comforta...

Programmer pleads guilty to US govt software source code theft

Posted: 31 May 2012 07:16 AM PDT

A Chinese computer programmer that was charged with stealing the source code of software developed by the US Treasury Department pleaded guilty to the charge on Tuesday. The 33-year-old Bo Zhang, l...

AuthenTec releases Eikon mini USB fingerprint reader

Posted: 31 May 2012 07:15 AM PDT

AuthenTec introduced the Eikon mini USB fingerprint reader. The ergonomically designed Eikon mini integrates AuthenTec's AES2660 smart fingerprint sensor and was designed specifically for notebooks, u...

Review: Securing the Cloud

Posted: 31 May 2012 06:00 AM PDT

Author: Vic (J.R.) Winkler Pages: 290 Publisher: Syngress ISBN: 1597495921 Introduction Cloud computing and cloud services have proliferated in the first place because of one simple reas...

iOS and Android security solutions from F-Secure

Posted: 31 May 2012 05:28 AM PDT

F-Secure Mobile Security, which provides protection for Android phones and tablets, can now be purchased on Google Play. F-Secure Child Safe, which is a browser for parental control and safe surfing f...

Cybercrime goes mobile

Posted: 31 May 2012 12:00 AM PDT

Corporate espionage has never been so easy. See how a simple app can transform your smartphone into an espionage tool in the hands of criminals, able to record your conversations, steal your text mess...

Malware detection for Nessus vulnerability scanner

Posted: 30 May 2012 11:23 PM PDT

Tenable announced new malicious process detection capabilities on Windows computers for the Nessus vulnerability scanner. This new functionality complements and extends AV solutions and empowers busin...

Gigabit network monitoring and forensics appliance

Posted: 30 May 2012 11:16 PM PDT

IPCopper released its newest packet capture appliance, which records and helps detect even the newest threats that bypass and overwhelm firewalls, anti-virus products and network security tools. ...

Juniper Networks enhances its Mykonos Web Security software

Posted: 30 May 2012 11:15 PM PDT

Juniper Networks announced major platform enhancements to its Mykonos Web Security software. The new release provides 30 new features and enhancements that strengthen protection against a wider range ...

Advanced Internet Protocols, Services, and Applications

Posted: 30 May 2012 11:15 PM PDT

Today, the internet and computer networking are essential parts of business, learning, and personal communications and entertainment. Virtually all messages or transactions sent over the internet...

Windows 8 Release Preview open for download

Windows 8 Release Preview open for download


Windows 8 Release Preview open for download

Posted: 31 May 2012 01:29 PM PDT

Sinofsky predicts two months to RTM

After much speculation, Microsoft has opened its Windows 8 Release Preview for download, the last major update before the client code is released to manufacturers.…

HP-Oracle Itanium smackdown starts

Posted: 31 May 2012 01:03 PM PDT

Larry versus Leo Meg

Jury selection is underway in the trial that pitting server maker HP against its formerly strong software partner Oracle as they argue about the future of a technology that neither one of them controls: Intel's Itanium processor.…

Milky Way DOOMED to high-speed smash with Andromeda galaxy

Posted: 31 May 2012 12:42 PM PDT

Faces possible three-way NASA warns

Observations from the Hubble telescope have shown that the Milky Way is on a high-speed collision course with the nearby Andromeda galaxy and the two will merge into a new elliptical system.…

HP 'overcharged New York City by $163m' on 911 system

Posted: 31 May 2012 11:01 AM PDT

IT titan fires back: 'Read the contract'

New York City comptroller John Liu has accused Hewlett-Packard of overbilling the Big Apple to the tune of $163m on a long-delayed upgrade to the 911 emergency call system. HP says Liu is misinterpreting the contract and it is delivering its part of the 911 call center upgrade under budget.…

Microsoft hands out tools to sneak Skype onto new PCs

Posted: 31 May 2012 10:02 AM PDT

'Silent installs' for victory, or at least growth

Microsoft is eliminating the download experience from Skype for consumers by giving OEMs the tools to slip the VoIP client into PCs.…

EU politicos put the boot into sickly ACTA

Posted: 31 May 2012 09:38 AM PDT

International Trade committee urged to kill anti-piracy treaty

Three European Parliament committees have rejected the barely breathing Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA).…

SpaceX Dragon SPLASHDOWN in Pacific! Private space triumph

Posted: 31 May 2012 09:19 AM PDT

Commercial cargo ship returns from space station

The SpaceX cargo capsule Dragon, first privately built ship to visit the International Space Station, has splashed down safely in the Pacific ocean at 10:42 Central Time after nine days in space.…

'Super-powerful' Flame worm actually boring BLOATWARE

Posted: 31 May 2012 08:32 AM PDT

More Jabba the Hutt than lean Windows killing machine

Analysis  Flame may be big in size but it's nothing like the supposedly devastating cyberwarfare mega-weapon early reports of the malware suggested. This new nasty is quite complex by design, yet researchers are still hunting for any truly evil and innovative attack techniques, or similar threats, within the code.…

EMC: Atmos CAN mix an excellent cloudy cocktail

Posted: 31 May 2012 08:02 AM PDT

You don't node, Nirvanix ...

It seems EMC thinks Nirvanix's marketing veep Steve Zivanic has got it wrong on Atmos. He put forward some opinions about EMC's Atmos which Hopkinton rebuts vigorously.…

Open API lessons for LinkedIn and Facebook

Posted: 31 May 2012 07:30 AM PDT

Code to play, not pay to play

Open... and Shut  One of the cardinal rules of open source is reciprocity: you can use my open-source code under the same terms that it was given to me. But as open source shifts to open APIs, "open" is increasingly a one-way street.…

Hands on with the Intel-powered Orange San Diego

Posted: 31 May 2012 07:05 AM PDT

Assault on battery?

First look  Orange joined forces with Intel today to launch its first Atom-powered smartphone, the San Diego, which I had the opportunity to play with ahead of release.…

Oracle will roll out cloudy services next week – Ellison

Posted: 31 May 2012 07:01 AM PDT

Larry says he likes the cloud now

Oracle is planning to launch a new suite of cloud software products and services in the first week of June, billionaire chief exec Larry Ellison said.…

Third-gen Ultrabooks must offer USB 3.0, anti-theft tech

Posted: 31 May 2012 06:45 AM PDT

Intel getting tough on bloatware too?

"Ultrabook", you'll recall, is an Intel trademark. If you want to use the name in association with your laptop, you need to follow the chip giant's rules. Those edicts have been extended for third-generation machines, which, Intel hopes, will spearhead the platform's entry into the mainstream.…

Steve Jobs speaks from beyond grave: 'iPads are toys'

Posted: 31 May 2012 06:29 AM PDT

Tablet computers? Like THAT'S going to do well

Videos starring the late Steve Jobs are now available on iTunes for anyone interested in retracing Apple's super-soaraway decade-long journey from niche player to fondleslab fever.…

SkyDrive slips snapshots into cloudy wallet

Posted: 31 May 2012 06:03 AM PDT

The Redmond cloud bulks up

Microsoft is updating SkyDrive, its cloud storage file gobbler, to add SkyDrive-accessed picture viewing in the Windows 8 Photo application.…

UK.gov beats down Microsoft software price hike to 1pc

Posted: 31 May 2012 05:48 AM PDT

Redmond and Cabinet Office ink 3-year deal

Government bodies and agencies will pay 1 per cent more for Microsoft volume licences from 1 July under the newly penned Public Sector Agreement (PSA) 12, The Register can reveal.…

Jeremy Hunt 'sympathetic' to Murdoch's BSkyB bid

Posted: 31 May 2012 05:19 AM PDT

He dismisses 'cheerleader' claims in Leveson probing

Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt fought for his political career this morning during questioning at the Leveson Inquiry over his handling of News Corp's failed BSkyB takeover.…

PayPal whips out barcode app for high-street glad rags

Posted: 31 May 2012 05:03 AM PDT

No bonking please, we're British

Vid  PayPal's barcode-driven payment app has crossed the pond and now works in all manner of UK high-street stores … as long as they're selling women's frocks.…

Digital music sales beat discs for first time in UK

Posted: 31 May 2012 04:43 AM PDT

But wait 'til Xmas: How do you wrap up an MP3 licence?

Digital music revenue has overtaken revenue hauled in from sales of plastic discs for the first time in the UK. British music industry trade group the BPI released figures showing that digital revenue – from downloads, subscriptions and advertising – had made up 55.5 per cent of income in the first three months of this year.…

Wealthy Kensington & Chelsea residents reject BT fibre cabinets

Posted: 31 May 2012 04:29 AM PDT

Quite ghastly, insist NIM-historic-streetscapers

BT has been forced to withdraw its plans to plonk 108 fibre optic cabling cabinets on the streets of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea.…

Google's 7in Jelly Bean Android tablet spied in benchmark

Posted: 31 May 2012 04:21 AM PDT

Asus made, Nvidia inside

Google's Asus-made 7in tablet has turned up in web-posted benchmark results. It's running Android 4.1.…

Richard Branson gets nod to strap rocket on SpaceShipTwo

Posted: 31 May 2012 04:13 AM PDT

Supersonic Virgin Galactic test flights this year

Virgin Galactic has finally got the green light to attempt supersonic rocket-powered SpaceShipTwo flights at the end of the year.…

Vyclone

Posted: 31 May 2012 04:01 AM PDT

Multi-angle mega movie mash-up mixer

iOS App of the Week  Everyone's looking for the new Instagram – an app with zero revenue that was bought by Facebook for $1 billion – and there's a lot of buzz on the web right now about video-sharing app Vyclone.…

Number 10 shuts wallet on closed-source IT projects

Posted: 31 May 2012 03:42 AM PDT

Come back when you've read Eric Raymond's The Cathedral and the Bazaar

Government IT projects that don't explore alternatives to closed and proprietary software are getting kicked back and denied funding.…

SpaceX Dragon freed to push off home

Posted: 31 May 2012 03:17 AM PDT

Cargoship detaches from ISS and tootles towards Earth

The Dragon is free of the International Space Station as it prepares for splashdown this afternoon around 17.40 BST (9.40 PDT, 12.40 EDT).…

BSkyB blocks The Pirate Bay for millions of Brits

Posted: 31 May 2012 03:02 AM PDT

BT will also obey court's banning order within weeks

BSkyB's broadband biz has cut off conventional access to The Pirate Bay website following a High Court order at the end of last month.…

Orange unveils Intel Atom smartphone

Posted: 31 May 2012 02:50 AM PDT

Keeps mum on San Diego's battery life, natch

Intel's first real threat to ARM will arrive in the UK next week in the form of the Orange San Diego smartphone.…

ISP Zen's slower customers choke over breakfast

Posted: 31 May 2012 02:44 AM PDT

Reboot your router to clear soggy cereal ports

Customers on Zen Internet's slowest package lost connectivity this morning, for an hour or two, but a rebooted router should now bring things back to normal.…

Amazon's Lovefilm HD shuns Sony fanboys

Posted: 31 May 2012 02:29 AM PDT

PS3, Bravia support coming. More than a trickle of content too

Amazon's Lovefilm video-on-demand service will begin offering HD streams today, but what resolution viewers get will depend on what gadget they're in front of.…

I need to multitask, but Windows 8's Metro won't let me

Posted: 31 May 2012 02:23 AM PDT

Er, Microsoft? Multi = more than 2

Sysadmin blog  What is multitasking? Different people seem to mean different things when they use the word multitasking. The definition chosen has implications for accepting or rejecting the prevailing design choices of modern user interfaces.…

Sony PlayStation 4 will not be download only

Posted: 31 May 2012 02:05 AM PDT

Disc not slipped

Sony's next PlayStation will feature an optical drive - Blu-ray, presumably - after all. Plans to drop disc and go download only have been seemingly shelved.…

CGI Group beds Logica in £1.7bn cash deal

Posted: 31 May 2012 02:03 AM PDT

Shares leap 64% at news of outsourcing nuptials

Anglo-Dutch tech group Logica is being scooped up by Canada's CGI Group in a £1.7bn cash deal.…

Online bookie can't scoop £50k losses made by 5-year-old

Posted: 31 May 2012 01:27 AM PDT

High Court rules the website contract terms were unfair

A man who blamed his girlfriend's five-year-old son for making loss-making trades in expensive natural resources through his online betting account is not bound by a term he agreed to on the bookmaker's website, the High Court has ruled. The term stated that an accountholder is deemed to have authorised all trading made under his or her account number.…

Australia bets on licences for offshore gambling websites

Posted: 31 May 2012 01:08 AM PDT

Review of gaming laws suggests licensing, blacklisting, for poker sites and bookies

Australian policymakers may have gotten themselves in another technological tangle, this time over which mediums are fit for the purpose of gambling.…

China sends likely pair to student cluster smackdown

Posted: 31 May 2012 01:02 AM PDT

Meet Tsinghua U and NUDT

ISC 2012  China is sending two teams to the ISC Student Cluster Competition (iSCC) this June in Hamburg. Tsinghua University and the National University of Defense Technology were survivors of a rigorous Hunger Games-style play-in competition; they had to beat out four other teams for the coveted Hamburg spots. Chinese server/services vendor Inspur is providing hardware and underwriting both teams.…

Most of Home Office's savings scored from haggling over ICT deals

Posted: 31 May 2012 12:39 AM PDT

But £24.2m just a drop in £1.8bn target

The majority of procurement cost savings in the Home Office for the third quarter of 2011-12 came from ICT, according to its permanent secretary Dame Helen Ghosh.…

Singapore pours cash into gov.cloud

Posted: 31 May 2012 12:06 AM PDT

S$1.2b up for grabs in "co-creation" projects between government, vendorland

The Singapore government has unleashed tenders for S$1.2 billion (£600,000) worth of technology projects for 2012.…

Facebook smacks away hardness, sticks MySQL stash on flash

Posted: 31 May 2012 12:04 AM PDT

Replaces HDD with Fusion-io flashiness

Facebook is using Fusion-io server flash cards in its datacentres to store MySQL data as well as process it faster because it's better than using disk drives.…

Alibaba's Linux phone pulls in one MILLION punters

Posted: 31 May 2012 12:00 AM PDT

Handset business buttresses bazaar's bank balance

Chinese web tat flogger Alibaba finally has some good news to report after sales of smartphones based on its Aliyun OS hit the million sales milestone in the People's Republic less than a year after its launch.…

Panasonic DMC-GX1 compact system camera

Posted: 30 May 2012 11:00 PM PDT

Micro Four Thirds maestro

Review  Panasonic's DMC-GX1 camera is the Lumix model many Micro Four Thirds enthusiasts have been waiting for since the release of popular DMC-GF1 back in 2009. This 16Mp shooter will appeal to seasoned users with easily accessible controls for customisation on an enticingly compact aluminium body – a combination that will take it places that wouldn't suit lugging a full-sized SLR. Furthermore, Micro Four Thirds offers one of the largest ranges interchangeable lenses in the compact system cameras category.…

Windows 8 release preview imminent

Posted: 30 May 2012 10:32 PM PDT

Missing post says 31 May, SkyDrive update says 'first week of June'

Microsoft is about to release a new Release Preview of Windows 8, according to a pair of blog posts.…

CIO says Telstra becoming 'best IT shop in APAC'

Posted: 30 May 2012 09:37 PM PDT

Agile methodologies and 'fail wall' changing culture

Telstra's CIO has boldly claimed that the carrier's ongoing Agile IT transformation will soon be one of the most successful stories of enterprise Agile at scale in the world.…

Thai webmaster walks after insulting royals

Posted: 30 May 2012 09:29 PM PDT

Suspended sentence sees activists warn of ominous future

If you plan to unleash the snark online over Jubilee weekend, spare a thought for a Thai webmaster Chiranuch Premchaiporn, who has just been sentenced to eight months porridge - thankfully suspended - for online statement deemed harmful to Thailand's monarchy.…

Flexibility needed to score expat gigs in Asia

Posted: 30 May 2012 08:14 PM PDT

Employers want to cut hiring costs and improve quality

Ex-pat IT pros are finding it increasingly difficult to persuade Asian employers to put them on the payroll, but opportunities exist for those who prove they can be flexible, adapt easily to a new working culture and have deep knowledge at the cutting edge of technology, according to experts.…

New Zealand considers <i>yourname.nz</i> domains

Posted: 30 May 2012 06:44 PM PDT

Kiwis want personalised internet

New Zealand's Domain Name Commission has commenced a consultation process to discuss the possible introduction of a yourname.nz domain name registration service.…

Microsoft offers Office 365 build tailored for government

Posted: 30 May 2012 06:30 PM PDT

FISMAed up and ready to go

Redmond has released a new build of its Office 365 cloudy productivity suite that's been specially hardened and certified for government use.…

Boffins build all-silicon CNOT gate

Posted: 30 May 2012 04:23 PM PDT

Only this time, 'it's quantum innit'

One of the challenges of putting quantum computing theory into practice is replacing large laboratory setups with integrated devices. A group of Cambridge researchers says it has demonstrated that a quantum controlled NOT gate can be implemented all in silicon devices.…

Privacy Commissioner unhooks Google again

Posted: 30 May 2012 04:22 PM PDT

Won't re-investigate StreetView slurp

Google is once again to be spared the nightmare horror of being savaged by Australia's privacy watchdog its StreetView data slurp.…

Old Computer Reborn: Set Up a Web Server

Old Computer Reborn: Set Up a Web Server


Old Computer Reborn: Set Up a Web Server

Posted:

A five-year-old PC can function just as well as a data center at serving Web pages -- just on a smaller scale.Ask the average computer user what a Web server looks like and you may hear stories about giant electronic boxes in bright, white rooms. While this image isn't wrong, it's also incomplete -- Web servers require surprisingly little hardware power to d...

Antitheft for Portable Tech

Posted:

Use several security techniques to reduce your overall risk associated with device theft.Stolen smartphones, laptops, e-readers, tablets, cameras and other portable electronics represent a financial loss, but the mere replacement cost for these devices pales in comparison to the potential harm you could suffer if your personal informatio...

Olympics fans targeted with lottery scam

Olympics fans targeted with lottery scam


Olympics fans targeted with lottery scam

Posted: 30 May 2012 10:46 AM PDT

An email purportedly coming from the promotion manager of the London 2012 Olympics has been hitting inboxes, trying to scam recipients into sending personal information and money in order to get the b...

Romanian hackers arrested for hitting government websites

Posted: 30 May 2012 09:42 AM PDT

Twelve individuals have been arrested across Romania for having allegedly compromised and defaced 29 websites of Romanian public institutions, and having stolen and leaked information exfiltrated from...

DNS-changing Trojan leads to phishing banking sites

Posted: 30 May 2012 08:24 AM PDT

Latin American Internet users are constantly attacked by cyber crooks who aim to get their online banking credentials in order to perpetrate identity theft and banking fraud. Two of the most often...

UFED Touch: Field-ready mobile forensics solution

Posted: 30 May 2012 08:20 AM PDT

Cellebrite launched UFED Touch, a solution for investigators to extract and decode digital evidence from mobile devices including smartphones, legacy phones, portable GPSs and handheld tablets. W...

17% of the world&apos;s PCs are unprotected

Posted: 30 May 2012 07:32 AM PDT

Lack of consumer PC protection is a global problem. In a study that analyzed data from voluntary scans from an average of 27-28 million computers per month, McAfee researchers found 17% of the world i...

Security posture management from FireMon

Posted: 30 May 2012 07:00 AM PDT

FireMon announced Security Manager 6.0, a security policy and posture management solution that integrates risk analysis with configuration management, enforcement and auditing of network devices like ...

(IN)SECURE Magazine issue 34 released

Posted: 30 May 2012 05:30 AM PDT

(IN)SECURE Magazine is a free digital security publication discussing some of the hottest information security topics. Issue 34 has been released today. Table of contents:Fitness as a model for s...

Dissecting modern privacy concerns

Posted: 30 May 2012 05:00 AM PDT

In this interview, Al Raymond, VP of Privacy & Records Management at ARAMARK Corporation, discusses the nature of identity in a digital society, the implications of over sharing on social networks, cy...

WikiLeaks founder Assange loses extradition appeal

Posted: 30 May 2012 04:44 AM PDT

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has lost his final extradition appeal as the Supreme Court in London decided that the Swedish Prosecuting Authority had the right to issue the extradition order. Ar...

Security and privacy in the AWS cloud

Posted: 30 May 2012 12:18 AM PDT

Security is the number one question that most C-Level executives ask about the cloud. In this video, Stephen E. Schmidt, General Manager and CISO, shares some of the details behind AWS Security, an...

Securing the Virtual Environment

Posted: 30 May 2012 12:15 AM PDT

As more and more data is moved into virtual environments the need to secure them becomes increasingly important. Useful for service providers as well as enterprise and small business IT profession...

Final countdown for NASA's NuSTAR X-ray black hole telescope

Final countdown for NASA's NuSTAR X-ray black hole telescope


Final countdown for NASA's NuSTAR X-ray black hole telescope

Posted: 30 May 2012 03:32 PM PDT

NASA hopes for local supernovas to study soon

NASA has confirmed that it is good to go with the delayed launch of the Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR) on June 13, and expects to begin spying out the supermassive black holes at the heart of galaxies within a month.…

HP taps VC to run software unit

Posted: 30 May 2012 03:29 PM PDT

Whitman asks ex-Microsoftie to assume the COO position

Ex-Microsoftie Bill Veghte was just getting comfortable in his dual roles as chief strategy officer and general manager of Hewlett-Packard's software business, and was just given the job of running HP's Autonomy big data business after last week's restructuring and the departure of Autonomy founder Mike Lynch. And today, Veghte was elevated to the position of chief operating officer and HP is bringing in an outsider from venture capitalist Silver Lake Partners to run HP Software.…

China wants to be techno SUPERPOWER

Posted: 30 May 2012 03:15 PM PDT

Er, aren't you already?

The Chinese government appears to be having a crisis of confidence over the ability of its IT industry to innovate over the next decade and propel the nation to become a major technology superpower.…

Unix, mainframes drag down servers in Q1

Posted: 30 May 2012 01:46 PM PDT

x86 machines can't fill the gaps

The server market is starting to run out of steam, and there's plenty of blame to go around as to why.…

Venerable VCs KPCB dish top technology trends for coming year

Posted: 30 May 2012 12:58 PM PDT

Mobile not paying its way yet and Facebook failures

In a speech on internet trends for the next year Mary Meeker, partner at bluer chip technology venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, predicted strong growth in mobile use but a cash shortfall for companies relying on ad revenue. She also took time to critique Facebook's recent IPO.…

HP boffins create net-zero energy data center

Posted: 30 May 2012 11:11 AM PDT

Crunch while the sun shines

Farmers make hay when the sun shines, and maybe data centers should crunch data and do the bulk of their work then, too. That's what the techies at HP Labs, who have been marrying renewable energy and data centers together in a testbed, are beginning to think.…

1 in 6 Windows PCs naked as a jaybird online

Posted: 30 May 2012 10:35 AM PDT

Millions snub antivirus, firewalls in web poll

One in six Windows PCs worldwide are hooked up to the internet with no basic security software, according to a study by McAfee.…

New compute-'n'-storage cluster-box like 'iPhone for the data centre'

Posted: 30 May 2012 09:59 AM PDT

Nutanix promises SAN-free storage

Nutanix's Complete Cluster product collapses separate compute and storage into a single hybrid flash-and-disk box that can scale out to a cluster of a 1,000 plus nodes. Nutanix says it is SAN storage without the SAN and NFS without the "N". We say it's a compute+storage cluster-box aimed squarely at the heart of every converged systems storage vendor.…

EU vows to make asylum-seeker database 'more efficient'

Posted: 30 May 2012 09:32 AM PDT

Gives police get powers to use it in 'serious crime' investigations

The European Commission has pledged to improve the efficiency of the fingerprint database EURODAC, which stores prints from the hundreds of thousands of people seeking asylum in the EU every year.…

Google+ deposits Places in toilet after hungry Zagat buy

Posted: 30 May 2012 09:09 AM PDT

Still stitching EVERYTHING into that other social network

Google+ users still aren't sharing anywhere near as much as Google might like them to, so, perhaps to help the reluctant Web2.0 networkers along, the company has added a new local tool that has effectively killed off the Places product.…

Scandal-hit Olympus plans to axe staff, flog off stake – reports

Posted: 30 May 2012 09:01 AM PDT

Japanese newspapers say firm could lay off 2,500 staff

Japan's Olympus is planning to cut 2,500 staff and sell an equity stake to either Sony or Panasonic, in a bid to get out from under its $1.7bn fraud scandal, local media reported.…

Steve Jobs was top of the flops, says Apple's Tim Cook

Posted: 30 May 2012 08:39 AM PDT

And Siri, is it true you're getting smarter?

Amid warm fuzzy words about how popular and loved Apple is, how popular and loved Siri is, and the wonders of the iPad, Apple CEO Tim Cook, speaking at the D10 tech conference, dropped a few hints about the future of his Foxconn-rebranding company.…

SpaceX signs deal to put its giant rocket to good use

Posted: 30 May 2012 08:21 AM PDT

First commercial contract for Falcon Heavy from Intelsat

SpaceX has signed a contract to blast off Intelsat's satellites on the back of their monster rocket the Falcon Heavy.…

EE splurges £50m on OS-specific experts

Posted: 30 May 2012 08:03 AM PDT

'Cos existing staff are just idiots

Everything Everywhere is to launch OS-specific training for its staff, awarding accreditations in iOS, Android, BlackBerry and Windows Phones, or in the ability to sell them at least.…

WD investigating origins of fake drives in UK channel

Posted: 30 May 2012 07:26 AM PDT

Year on from issue and HDD players no nearer to culprit

WD is no nearer to finding the origins of a batch of counterfeit internal hard drives a year after they found their way into the UK channel, despite the intervention of US authorities.…

BBC uses lifted Iraq war photo to depict Syrian slaughter

Posted: 30 May 2012 07:02 AM PDT

You, media giants, and your digital rights

Analysis  They're at it again. Who? Take a guess: if it's not the Daily Mail, then it's probably the BBC. The corporation has once again been caught pinching photos, wrongly attributing them, and pretending nothing ever happened - in a triumph of crowd-sourced "citizen journalism".…

Leaked snaps said to confirm iPhone 5 speculation

Posted: 30 May 2012 06:48 AM PDT

Case in point

Much of the speculation surrounding Apple's next iPhone appears to have been confirmed through allegedly leaked product shots which show the iPhone 5 to have a smaller dock connector, redesigned speaker grilles and a repositioned microphone on the rear.…

Trojan poses as privacy tool, spies on Iranian surfers

Posted: 30 May 2012 06:24 AM PDT

Looks like a popular free encrypted proxy tool

Backdoored versions of a widely used privacy tool have surfaced in Iran, raising fears that its government is using the Trojanised software to spy on its citizens.…

HTC slips One X, Evo 4G past Apple US patent ban

Posted: 30 May 2012 06:01 AM PDT

Fruity tech titan powerless to stop Android shipments

HTC's latest smartphones have passed inspection by US customs while en route to American pockets, rendering an import ban won by Apple useless.…

Apple's Ping has fatal pong, says CEO

Posted: 30 May 2012 05:42 AM PDT

Social networking fail

Apple's attempt to build social networking features into iTunes has failed, CEO Tim Cook has admitted. Speaking at the All Things D conference - D is for 'digital', apparently, and not 'deceased' - Cook said Apple had yet to decide the fate of the feature-cum-service.…

Julian Assange extradition: What's next for WikiLeaker-in-chief?

Posted: 30 May 2012 05:18 AM PDT

Supreme Court could be challenged on Vienna Treaty point

Julian Assange failed to arrive in time this morning to hear the Supreme Court's judgment on his appeal against extradition to Sweden to face allegations of sexual harassment and rape because he was reportedly stuck in traffic.…

John Lewis appears to punt Chromebook with Windows 7

Posted: 30 May 2012 05:07 AM PDT

Recognition Google's other OS isn't popular?

Careful, web designers: always check a gadget's specs before you tinker with images of the product. A salutary example of when they don't is provided by John Lewis.…

UPS death in Pulsant data centre knocks out websites

Posted: 30 May 2012 05:02 AM PDT

Four-minute outage sparks domino effect

IT infrastructure company Pulsant suffered a power outage at its Maidenhead data centre last night that cut websites off from the internet.…

Olympic Wenlock plod cops condemnation from Amazon wags

Posted: 30 May 2012 04:44 AM PDT

'Worse than masturbating to a pic of Lord Coe: I've tried'

The Amazon armchair critics are out in force to administer a righteous shoeing to the policeman figurine of Olympic mascot Wenlock, which is tasked with "the important job of protecting you on your journey to the London 2012 Games".…

Dot-word bidders in last-minute dash after ICANN reveals timetable

Posted: 30 May 2012 04:33 AM PDT

Just hours to go...

Domain name policy overseer ICANN has put an end to weeks of speculation by revealing a new timetable for the roll-out of its controversial new top-level domains programme.…

Phoenix burns engineering and Northampton call centre jobs

Posted: 30 May 2012 04:17 AM PDT

Staff told of redundancy risk as bosses slash costs

Phoenix IT Group has told HQ-based call centre staff and a bunch of field engineers that their jobs are at risk of redundancy, insiders have told The Channel.…

Samsung Galaxy S III

Posted: 30 May 2012 04:05 AM PDT

The ultimate Android?

Review  Samsung's Galaxy S III is one of the most feature-stuffed smartphones yet. Well, at least there's room, as it's equipped a 4.8in screen. Samsung's Galaxy Note 5.3in tablet-phone aside, this handset touts the largest display you'll find on a mainstream mobile and it packs a quad-core CPU too.…

Measure up your applications for their move to the cloud

Posted: 30 May 2012 04:00 AM PDT

Preparing for a new life

Are you ready to get your applications into the private cloud? If you understand the difference between virtualising something and making it part of a broader environment, then you are on your way.…

MPs brand BlackBerrys for bobbies scheme a failure

Posted: 30 May 2012 03:46 AM PDT

Millions of pounds spent while only thousands saved

Splurging £71m on BlackBerrys for bobbies on the beat was an almost total waste of money, according to a report from MPs.…

Intel inks deal to let Ultrabooks leech off Wi-Fi net

Posted: 30 May 2012 03:27 AM PDT

Lid-closed connectivity powered by Devicescape

Intel has signed a deal with Devicescape to integrate the company's freeloading Wi-Fi network into Ultrabooks as part of Intel's Smart Connect Technology, which lets devices link up even when they're not switched on.…

RIM seeks bailout buddies as banks count Heins' beans

Posted: 30 May 2012 03:16 AM PDT

CEO predicts more half-baked finances

RIM has hired bankers to give it a health check and possibly pair up the BlackBerry maker with other businesses. The mobe manufacturer added that it is likely to make an operating loss this quarter and struggle financially for several more.…

Galaxy S III pay-monthly tariffs compared

Posted: 30 May 2012 03:01 AM PDT

Priced for humans

The Samsung Galaxy S III went on sale today, although punters might not get their hands on it just yet. Delays with the 32GB version mean customers who want the extra memory will have to wait a few weeks, while production issues with the Pebble Blue model of either capacity has led to a similar wait for those averse to the white body.…

Nokia lights up Bat Signal for Lumia 900

Posted: 30 May 2012 02:51 AM PDT

Alfred not included

Nokia has once again been inspired Gotham City, bringing its limited edition Batman casing to the Lumia 900 in time for this summer's blockbuster, The Dark Knight Rises.…

Americans invade Euro cluster compo

Posted: 30 May 2012 02:41 AM PDT

Buffalo, Bear-O-Dactyl vie for cluster glory

ISC 2012  Two American universities vie for cluster fame and glory in the inaugural ISC'12 Student Cluster Competition (iSCC) in Hamburg next month. This competition, sponsored by Airbus, the HPC Advisory Council and ISC, gives university teams the chance to design, build, and benchmark their clusters against four teams of peers. They're limited only by a hard power cap of 13 amps and the requirement that the gear they use be commercially available.…

Sony to bring bog-friendly blowers to Blighty

Posted: 30 May 2012 02:22 AM PDT

Lav-loving Androids safe from spills

Is Sony taking the piss? Enter two loo-friendly Xperia smartphones, launched over here today but already on sale in Japan, which won't be spoiled by unanticipated drops into the bog.…

Amazon's Lovefilm to stream Universal films

Posted: 30 May 2012 02:21 AM PDT

Content cornucopia

Lovefilm has reached an agreement with NBC Universal to stream the studio's movies to its subscribers.…

Draft law lets council bods snoop your tax records

Posted: 30 May 2012 02:18 AM PDT

Powers extend well beyond justification for data-sharing

Opinion  The Local Government Finance Bill, now before Parliament, is drafted in such a way that it could permit the routine disclosure of tax records and other personal data held by HMRC to council officers for several council tax-related purposes.…

Score! Classic Goals

Posted: 30 May 2012 02:00 AM PDT

Score draw something

iGamer  Saturday, 6 October 2001 at Old Trafford. It's the nintey-third minute and England are staring into the abyss. Following a typically nervy performance, we're 2-1 down to Greece, facing the ignominy of gifting automatic qualification to Germany and the prospect of a tricky two-leg play-off against Ukraine to reach the 2002 World Cup Finals in Korea and Japan.…

Assange loses appeal against extradition to Sweden

Posted: 30 May 2012 01:56 AM PDT

Judge gives WikiLeaks founder two weeks to mull decision

WikiLeaker-in-chief Julian Assange has lost his appeal against extradition to Sweden to face accusations of sexual harassment and rape, the UK Supreme Court ruled in the last hour.…

Fedora 17: Mm.. this stew of beefy source tastes just right

Posted: 30 May 2012 01:32 AM PDT

No miracles, just more seasoning

Review  Fedora 17 arrived on Tuesday following a three-week delay. Nicknamed Beefy Miracle, the Fedora Project promised "over and under-the-bun improvements that show off the power and flexibility of the advancing state of free software".…

NHS helpline 'won't be cost-effective' to taxpayers - Capita

Posted: 30 May 2012 01:03 AM PDT

IT outsourcer won't confirm or deny withdrawal of bid

Capita has expressed concerns over the tender process to provide a replacement service for NHS Direct – following a report that it had withdrawn from the bidding.…

Friends fooled by Facebook Timeline 'removal tool' scams

Posted: 30 May 2012 12:34 AM PDT

Miscreants exploit users' keenness to get rid of crapness

Two separate "Timeline-removing" spam scams are doing the rounds on Facebook, security watchers warn.…

450-year-old football was hard to kick

Posted: 30 May 2012 12:14 AM PDT

Journal releases pile of sports research, possibly answers every pub argument forever

The Journal Procedia Engineering has published the proceeds of the 2012 Engineering of Sport Conference and may therefore have answered so many questions about sport that there is no longer any point in going to the pub.…

Publishing barons: Free speech a 'cloak for tawdry theft'

Posted: 30 May 2012 12:02 AM PDT

Chief hits out at those who 'seek to erode copyright'

Search engines, internet service providers and the British Library are among a number of bodies trying to scale back the scope of copyright, the head of a UK trade body has said.…

Cisco predicts 1.3 zettabytes of annual data movements

Posted: 29 May 2012 11:05 PM PDT

WiFi to account for >50% of fixed data downloads by 2016

Cisco has emitted its latest Visual Networking Index, a global study of how much data passes through the world's wires.…

Ghost Recon: Future Soldier

Posted: 29 May 2012 11:00 PM PDT

Gun lickers

Review  As with any dominant genre, the question keeps arising: is the military-shooter nearing the end of its hegemony? Well, on the evidence of Ghost Recon: Future Soldier this question appears to have an answer.…

China relaxes .cn registration rules

Posted: 29 May 2012 10:48 PM PDT

Individuals allowed domains again, but registration will be no 'pi.cn.ic'

China's .cn top level domain (TLD) is set to reclaim its position as the world's most popular ccTLD after the government decided to relax registration rules, effectively allowing individuals to once again own a .cn suffix.…

Symantec Australia MD Craig Scroggie to depart

Posted: 29 May 2012 09:53 PM PDT

symantec.cloud APAC boss Brenton Smith takes the reins

Symantec Australia's Managing Director Craig Scroggie has announced he will leave the company. He will be replaced by Brenton Smith.…

Chinese micro-blogs a hit with police

Posted: 29 May 2012 09:40 PM PDT

But Sina users urged to snitch on each other...

China's micro-blogging platforms are a hit with the country's web-savvy police forces, despite being forced to implement yet more prohibitive regulations this week.…

100-petabyte storage cloud names vendor panel

Posted: 29 May 2012 09:32 PM PDT

Who's who of storage on the list to build Australia's Research Data Storage Infrastructure

The Research Data Storage Infrastructure (RDSI) has named the vendors that will be permitted to construct nodes of the AUD$50m project.…