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PATH: BS | Technology

McAffee Antivirus Goes Amok, Shuts Down Legitimate Apps Posted by Pile (9155 views) [E-Mail link]
Anti-virus vendor McAfee is scrambling to contain the damage from a faulty definition update that incorrectly flagged hundreds of legitimate software programs as W95/CTX, a low-risk Windows 95 virus that was first detected in 2004. The erroneous .DAT file (4715) was shipped late on March 10 with definitions for a wide range of new malware threats, but when the update was installed, it quarantined or deleted several widely deployed applications, including Microsoft Excel, Macromedia Flash Player, Adobe Update Manager and the Google Toolbar Installer.
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Judge Orders Users' Deleted Google E-Mails Turned Over Posted by Pile (8190 views) [E-Mail link]
We've been saying for some time, if you use the free e-mail services, they're not free. You pay for them dearly with a complete compromise of your privacy and personal security. This was nowhere more poignantly illustrated than earlier this week where a federal judge ordered Google to not only turn over a user's Google G-Mail correspondence, but also the deleted messages which are also seemingly stored forever.
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Homeland Security Gets F in Computer Security Posted by wizeGurl (7853 views) [E-Mail link]
After Katrina, maybe we shouldn't be surprised to learn that the Department of Homeland Security--in charge of setting the government's agenda on cyber security--scored an F for its own cyber protection, for the third year in a row. Overall, government computer systems remain at roughly the same level of security that they had in 2004--an average score of a D+.
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Malfunctioning BMW Becomes 120mph Death Trap Posted by Pile (10119 views) [E-Mail link]	[Faulty Products]
A motorist was trapped in his car driving at almost 130mph for 60 miles after the accelerator jammed. Boy those fancy computer-controlled cars now sure are cool!
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Yahoo, AOL Consider Charging for E-Mail Posted by wizeGurl (9459 views) [E-Mail link]
In an attempt to "protect users from spam"--and, coincidentally, earn themselves millions of dollars and create a two-tier e-mail system--Yahoo and AOL are both considering implementing systems in which large companies and frequent commercial e-mailers pay from 1/4 cent to a cent per e-mail. In return for this fee, the mail goes straight to user inboxes, skipping the spam filters that sometimes catch even requested mailings.
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Yet Another Threat to Internet Freedom Posted by wizeGurl (8314 views) [E-Mail link]
There's a new threat to the future of communications in the United States. It pits the nation's largest cable and telephone companies against those who believe the Internet should support the free and independent flow of ideas. Broadband is the key. As more Americans switch to high-speed Internet connections, the companies that control the "pipes" are dreaming up new ways to make more money from this hunger for speed. The telco and cable giants want to split the Internet into two tiers: one for those who pay extra to be pushed to the front of the broadband stream-�and the other for everyone else.
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Hackers Change Voting Results Four Times In Florida Posted by Pile (7896 views) [E-Mail link]
In another outlandish expose of the security of Diebold's new electronic voting machines, which the mainstream media continues to un-report, election officials in Florida test the security of new Diebold voting machines. Four times over the past year, Leon County supervisor of elections, Ion Sancho told computer specialists to break in to his voting system. And on all four occasions they did, changing results with what the specialists described as relatively unsophisticated hacking techniques. The results showed the vulnerability of voting equipment manufactured by Ohio-based Diebold Election Systems, which is used by Leon County and many other jurisdictions around the country.
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Bush Makes It A Crime To Annoy People Online Posted by Pile (9999 views) [E-Mail link]
It's no joke. Last Thursday, President Bush signed into law a prohibition on posting annoying Web messages or sending annoying e-mail messages without disclosing your true identity. As is the norm these days, this nasty law was snuck into another piece of legislation (Violence Against Women and Department of Justice Reauthorization Act) at the last minute and approved by Congress.
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Illegal Government Cookies, Anyone? Posted by wizeGurl (9144 views) [E-Mail link]
It seems that in addition to the warrentless spying that the NSA has been doing on American citizens, in clear violation of U.S. law, isn't the only way they've been keeping an eye on us. There was also the illegal cookies. In a posting on his googlewatch.org website a privacy activist, Daniel Brandt, says he discovered that the NSA was using tracking devices when he logged on to the agency website on Christmas Day. He found the site was using two persistent cookies that would not expire until 2035, well beyond the life of most computers.
READ MORE \| 1 comment since 2006-01-01 20:40:37 \| Comment on this Article

Million Dollar Home Page Idea Posted by wizeGurl (9150 views) [E-Mail link]	[Get-Rich-Quick]
Alex Tew, a 21-year-old student from a small town in England, is cleverer than you. And he is proving it by earning a million dollars in four months on the Internet. And, astonishingly enough, it's legal, and does not involve food items shaped vaguely like religious icons.
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Symantec Security Software Makes PCs Insecure Posted by Pile (9579 views) [E-Mail link]
A serious security flaw was announced today, discovered by an independent analyst which even Symantec acknowledges as "high risk". The flaw exists in a vast array of their security and anti-virus products across all major platforms, and could compromise PCs with no activity required of the user. Mac users are especially up in arms over this because the Mac version of Symantec's software makes their otherwise rock-solid OSX extremely vulnerable. At present, there is no patch for the vulnerability. Thanks Symantec!
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eBay Can't Even Tell Which "eBay E-Mail" is Fake Posted by Pile (9123 views) [E-Mail link]
A sophisticated phishing attack has proven to be so successful, it has tricked eBay Inc.'s own fraud investigations team into endorsing it as legitimate, according to an independent security consultant who reported the attack to eBay.
READ MORE \| 2 comments since 2005-12-21 01:09:11 \| Comment on this Article

You've Got Mail! (and Herpes) Posted by Pile (9147 views) [E-Mail link]
A new web site has been launched in Los Angeles with the noble concept of allowing people to e-mail others anonymously and notify them that they may have been exposed to a sexually-transmitted disease.
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Microsoft Bug Up For Auction on EBay Posted by Pile (9724 views) [E-Mail link]
In an amusing jab at Microsoft and their lackluster ability to promptly identify and fix vulnerabilities in their software, an IT guy has placed up for auction on eBay "One 0-day Microsoft Excel Vulnerability". Interestingly enough, eBay had the auction pulled, meanwhile they let several other auctions run where people misled others by selling an empty XBox360 carton.
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Is Overstock.com's CEO Completely Insane? Posted by Pile (12499 views) [E-Mail link]
Amidst a myriad of complaints over customer service, falling stock prices and other problems, revelations surface that Overstock.com, the online retailer that masquarades as a metaphor for an orgasm, has a CEO that may very well be a total nutjob. CEO Patrick Byrne has held calls with financial analysts in which he delved into his sexuality and experiences with cocaine, in the midst of a tirade on how a cabal led by a "Sith Lord" was out to destroy his company.
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Which Search Engine Is Most Relevent? Take the Blind Test. Posted by Pile (8271 views) [E-Mail link]
Here's an interesting process. You type in a search query, preferably something you're familiar with; the site displays un-branded results from popular search engines and you vote for which one you think is most relevant. Afterward, the results are revealed and you can see how others have voted. A nice, objective method of analyzing the usefulness of the Internet's most popular search engines.
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AOL Nailed For Refusing To Cancel Customer Accounts Posted by Pile (6936 views) [E-Mail link]
AOL and New York State have reached a settlement that includes AOL paying a $1.25 million fine and agreeing to reform its customer service procedures. The agreement stems from consumers' complaints that AOL customer service representatives would either ignore requests, or make it unduly difficult to cancel their service. In what they claim is an unrelated story, AOL has announced that it's relocating its Accounts Payable department to Nigeria.
READ MORE \| 1 comment since 2005-09-14 19:24:14 \| Comment on this Article

Google Talk ..is Cheap (If You Don't Care About Privacy) Posted by Pile (8046 views) [E-Mail link]
Today Google has announced Google Talk. This is their competition to AIM, ICQ and all the other instant messaging applications on the net. Since it centers around Google's Gmail account system, you can safely assume this is more information exchanging between people that Google will archive forever and exploit later. Nothing to be worried about, if you are comfortable sacrificing your personal security to a big corporation. Don't get me wrong. I like Google. I enjoy their services. But I know that online privacy policies are worth the paper they're written on. Any single company that has that much information passing through it, that never deletes anything, is a privacy accident waiting to happen.
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New Zotob Windows Worm Hits CNN, NY Times and ABC Posted by Pile (6352 views) [E-Mail link]
The ZOTOB virus appeared shortly after the world's largest software maker warned of three newly found "critical" security flaws in its software last week, including one that could allow attackers to take complete control of a computer. However, the latest version of the virus seems to be targeting Windows 2000 servers, an old and bug-ridden Microsoft software that apparently many prominent companies are still using. It's hard to be sympathetic to these companies when they have many more resources than us small-timers who are completely immune to infection by these worms.
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Spammer Faces Up to 640 Years In Prison Posted by Pile (8681 views) [E-Mail link]	[Spam]
Florida spammer, Scott Levine was found guilty in Federal court on 120 counts of unauthorized access to data, two counts of access device fraud and one count of obstruction of justice, and now faces up to $30M in fines and 640 years in a Federal pound-me-in-the-ass prison. The owner of spam company, Snipermail.com was caught stealing 1.6 billion user records from data-management company Acxiom Corp. No word if Acxiom got in trouble for the crappy security it had in place which allowed so much of its customer info to be pilfered. In any case, it's a happy day when one more spammer gets taken down. We have to give the Feds props for finally going after these people.
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