Mike Slocombe

Sober.P Virus Targets World Cup Fans. Now 77% Of All Viruses
According to a survey carried out over the Easter period by network management company, Ipswitch, a thumping 93% of all e-mail received was unwanted spam.
A new beast of a virus is on the loose, with anti virus firm Sophos claiming that the Sober.P worm has “broken records in terms of the number of infected messages sent out and speed of propagation throughout Western European segments of the Internet.”
The UK security company reported that the Sober.P virus, first detected on Monday, now accounts for 77 percent of all viruses detected by their threat-monitoring stations worldwide.
“This is a pretty significant virus. We usually don’t see it spread to 77 percent of all inbound viruses,” warned Gregg Mastoras, a senior security analyst at Sophos.
“Usually, it spreads much slower, and users have time to update their computers,” he added.
Variants of Sober have been around since 2003, with the mass-mailing worm continuing to spread as crazy mad fools still open attachments in infected email.
The latest version, variously tagged Sober.N, Sober.O or Sober.S, uses email written in both English and German with one variant luring victims with a message saying the recipient has won free tickets to the 2006 World Cup in Germany.
Once the infected attachment is opened, the virus copies itself onto the host computer, scoops up email addresses from the user’s machine and then blasts out similar infected emails to the harvested addresses.
Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant for Sophos, thinks the World Cup message is aiding the rapid spread of the virus: “Many people will be eager to attend one of the biggest sporting events in the world next year, and may think it’s worth the risk of opening the email attachment just in case the prize is for real.”
Showing a Tommy Cooper-esque flair for comedy, Cluley added, “Computer users who don’t practice safe computing will feel as sick as a parrot, and will only be passing this worm onto other unsuspecting victims.”
Sober.P may end 2005 as one of the worst viruses, replacing last year’s bad boy, Netsky.P, which accounted for 22.6 percent of all virus incidents, according to Sophos.
Sophos
4 May, 2005
IPSwitch Survey Reveals 93% Of Global e-mail Is Spam
According to a survey carried out over the Easter period by network management company, Ipswitch, a thumping 93% of all e-mail received was unwanted spam.
According to the company’s research, 44% of the spam surveyed was offering mortgage and loan ‘deals’, 18% of spam e-mails were offering various types of medication with 9% of pesky spam offering pirated software.
The survey also highlighted a new trend of e-mails attempting to ‘phish’ recipients’ banking details in lottery scams, with 7% of spam e-mails recorded being of this type, and a further 7% of the spam was made up of various pornographic offerings.
Naturally, the company had a shiny new product on hand to sort out the problem they’d just highlighted, the anti-spam Ipswitch Collaboration Suite 2.0.
Elsewhere, AOL’s anti-spam software backfired spectacularly in the hurricane-hit state of Florida, where emergency managers in Indian River County discovered that their email weather alerts were being tagged as spam.
After an unusually busy hurricane season, around 4,200 people signed up for the county’s e-mail alert service, offering quick alerts on hurricanes, tornadoes and other weather emergencies.
But not everyone was receiving the alerts, as AOL’s filters were trapping the emergency emails as spam.
Basil Dancy, a county computer software engineer, explained, “Because we send out mail in large numbers, it becomes a pattern for spam senders.”
The county is now working with AOL to fix the problem
Ipswitch
4 May, 2005
Google News Looks To Improve Quality Of Search Results
Google is busily hatching plans to dramatically improve the results of internet news searches by introducing a system that ranks articles by quality rather than just their date and relevance to search terms.
Currently, typing something like ‘Iraq’ into Google, will generate zillions of “hits”, ranked in order of relevance or by date, so that the most recent or most focused appear at the top of a monster list.
The problem with this approach is that news stories from more authoritative sources – say the CNN or the BBC – can be knocked off the first page of results because they are not as recent or as relevant to the keywords typed into the search box.
Google hopes to address this problem by building a smartypants database that will compare the track record and credibility of global news sources and adjust the ranking of any search results accordingly.
The database will do its thang by continually monitoring the number of stories from all news sources while making a note of average story length, number with bylines, the number of the news agencies cited, along with how long they have been in business.
And there’s more! Google’s database will also record the number of staff a news source employs, monitor the volume of internet traffic to its website and check its international appeal by counting the number of countries accessing the site.
A big box stuffed full of levers and blinking lights will then absorb all these parameters, weigh them according to a clever-clogs formulae it is constructing, and then distil them down to create a single value.
We like to think that this number – then used to rank the results of any news search – is noisily outputted on a long string of ticker tape, but we might be getting a bit carried away.
Google’s ambitious system was unveiled by patents filed in the US and around the world in 2003 which revealed that the same methodology could be employed to rank other search results, such as sales and services.
Campaigners and activists may not welcome this news though, as Google’s proposed system suggests that it will be harder for independent, non-mainstream news sites to appear in the top rankings.
One of the beauties of the web is that of you type in the name of the uber-corporates Nestle into Google, the Nestlé boycott campaign appears on the first page of results.
I wouldn’t like that to change.
Google
4 May, 2005
Nokia Set To Become World’s Biggest Camera And MP3 Manufacturer
Nokia continues to be the Big Cheese of the worldwide mobile handset market, shipping nearly twice as many phones as its nearest competitor, Motorola.
According to a report by IDC, Nokia shipped 53.8 million handsets in the first quarter of 2005, representing a chunky 30.9% share of the market.
Motorola lagged a fair way behind with 28.7 million shipments (16.5% of the market), followed by fast-rising Samsung, who had 24.5 million shipments and 14.1% of the market.
Nokia anticipates continued success and expects to shift 25 million smartphones in 2005 – twice as many as the 12 million it sold in 2004.
According to data from Canalys, it’s already off to a flying start, shipping almost 5.4 million smartphones in the traditionally slow first quarter, a triple fold increase from last year.
Overall, global shipments of smart mobile devices were up 82% year on year in Q1 2005, with Nokia grabbing half the market, followed by palmOne, RIM (Blackberry) and Fujitsu.
Phenomenal camera phone sales are also predicted by Nokia, which looks to ship 100 million camera phones and 40 million phones offering MP3 playback.
This would make Nokia the biggest camera and MP3 player sellers in the world, toppling Canon and Apple respectively off their thrones.
As we reported last week, Nokia has announced a range of high quality two-megapixel camera phones, making the phones an attractive alternative to a dedicated digital camera.
Similarly, their spanking new N91 phone has both a camera and an MP3 player built in, with a 4 gig hard drive rivalling standalone digital music players like the iPod mini.
The new phone is expected to come with a wallet draining price sting of around $800-$900 (~$422-£475 ~ €623-€700), although telecom carrier deals are expected to bring the price down to around $500 (~£264 ~€390) in the US.
Things are heating up in the handset industry, with the big players trying to out do each other on the feature lists.
Sony are about to release the W800, their first walkman phone, while Samsung is already offering camera phones offering higher resolution images than Nokia.
It’s not all going Nokia’s way though. In the US, Motorola remain the top dogs with a mobile market share of 31.7%, while Samsung overtook Nokia, grabbing 18.2% of the market compared with Nokia’s 14.6%. In fourth place was LG Electronics with a market share of 12.6%, with Kyocera in fifth at 5.2%.
Nokia
Canalys
IDC
3 May, 2005
Yahoo 360 To Import Content From Non-Yahoo Services
Yahoo has announced plans to ramp up the feature set of its Yahoo 360 social networking and blogging service, currently in beta.
According to Paul Brody, director of community products at Yahoo, the company intends to let users import content, such as photos and music, from non-Yahoo applications.
“Some of the things that people very much want to do is to share content from other sources outside of Yahoo,” observed Brody, “[Yahoo] 360 right now does a great job of allowing you to share the content you might have already on Yahoo.”
The Yahoo 360 service entered an invite-only limited beta period in late March allowing participating users to publish blogs, share content and post pictures with control over who they shared their content with.
The service currently only allows users to include content from other Yahoo services such as Yahoo Photos and Yahoo Music, but now Yahoo are to offer the inclusion of RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feeds from other sources.
Brody stated that he wanted the Yahoo 360 service to be an “open” product, adding, “If you have content anywhere on the Internet, you should be able to share it with friends and family through Yahoo 360.”
The beta period has given Yahoo some useful feedback about their users’ needs – with the company now working with bloggers to give them greater flexibility in customising their blogs and adding features such “trackback.” Trackbacks create a links between related information on different blogs, further explained in a link below.
“Yahoo 360 should be made available to the public in the next few weeks, by which time the capability to share non-Yahoo content will also be included.” Brody commented.
Localised versions of Yahoo 360 will be launched soon in some countries in Asia and Europe, according to Brody. The Yahoo blog service is already available in some countries like Japan and Korea.
Yahoo’s My Web Upgrades Personal Search Tools
Google Introduces Local Search To UK
Yahoo 360 Service Blends Blogging And Social Networking Tools
TrackBack description from sixapart
3 May, 2005
Firefox Hits 50 Million Downloads
Like a hungry, hyperactive terrier, Firefox continues to take great chunks out of Microsoft’s market share as the Mozilla Foundation announces its 50 millionth download.
To commemorate this grand occasion, the foundation has created 50 limited edition coins, to be dished out to the best contributors to their forums.
An additional mystery prize will be given to the owner of the Web site responsible for the 50 millionth download.
“It’s funny how the counter just blows by 50 million without a care in the world, isn’t it?” Mozilla developer Blake Ross purred on the foundation’s Web site. “But it’s not just a number to us. It’s a validation of half a decade of work, and the beginning of half a decade more.”
Fully released last November, Firefox has delivered a turbo-charged size nine up the backside of the Web browser market which seemed to be heading for stagnant domination by Microsoft’s ubiquitous Internet Explorer.
The adoption of Firefox has been driven by reports of seemingly endless security holes found in Internet Explorer, with some prominent security researchers even recommending against using IE if possible.
Security conscious companies have taken heed of this advice, with TechWeb News reporting that the Firefox browser is used by more than 10 percent of business professionals, adding that the number could “more than double” by the end of the first half of the year.
Victor Janulaitis, chief executive of management consultants Janco, commented: “Since the fourth quarter of 2004, Firefox usage has more than doubled among business professionals. That rate of adoption is expected to continue next quarter, when the open-source browser is expected to reach up to 25 percent of the market.”
The next version of Internet Explorer is expected to include enhanced security and many of Firefox’s popular features (such tabbed browsing), but Microsoft won’t be shipping the IE 7 beta until this summer.
Firefox has also seen several critical security flaws emerging over the past few months, but it is still generally perceived as a ‘safer’ browser.
FireFox Browser Gains Popularity
Firefox Used By 1 Out 10 Business Professionals
Mozilla
3 May, 2005
Google Video Search Adds 14 US TV Channels
Google continues to sink its teeth into the potentially lucrative TV search business, with the announcement that it has added 14 new channels to its Google Video service.
The search titans are yet to declare the full line-up, but Discovery Channel, TLC, Animal Planet, Travel Channel, Discovery Health Channel, and CNN are among the new channels covered by the service.
Google Video archives television content by searching the closed captioning text of TV programs and returning a selection of still frames with matching dialogue excerpts.
Due to unsettled licensing terms, Google cannot provide full transcripts or video clips, although their website teasingly suggests that we “stay tuned” for news.
Although the service is in beta, Google have said that programming will be expanded internationally when work is completed in the U.S. television market.
Development of the TV indexing service is being developed at the same time as Google’s new ‘video blogging’ distribution platform.
This lets video makers upload their videos to Google’s servers and maintain control over distribution rights, ultimately letting users search, preview, purchase and play videos through Google.
Naturally, Google’s arch-nemesis Yahoo is also competing for a slice of the juicy TV and video search pie, offering a similar service that indexes the text surrounding video links, including metadata.
Google Video
3 May, 2005
Toshiba Quantum Key Server To Secure Video
The clever-clogs at Toshiba Research Europe have announced that they have been successful in applying quantum cryptography to the transmission of video and voice over IP.
This means that it will be next to impossible for hackers to “tap” into voice and video files streamed over the net.
White coated boffins at Toshiba’s Cambridge UK labs demonstrated their Quantum Key Server system, which involves encoding bits of encryption data onto particles of light (photons).
This ultra secure technology looks set to revolutionise digital security by replacing the current distribution methods for keys, which are needed to decrypt secure messages.
Toshiba’s quantum video link increases the security of communication systems by encrypting every single video frame with a unique digital key – so cracking one frame of a video would be useless unless all the other frames were cracked too.
The secrecy of each of these keys is ensured by quantum cryptography, an ultra-secure key distribution method.
Dr Andrew Shields, head honcho of the Toshiba group developing the system, said, “Corporate networks are increasingly vulnerable to the theft of keys from the desktop, either by hacking, Trojans or fraudulent employees. The Toshiba Quantum Key Server mitigates this risk by allowing frequent key refresh.”
“The Toshiba Quantum Key Server can be used to enhance the security of not just video and speech, but also a wide range of other high bandwidth data communications, ranging from sensitive legal documents to medical and tax records.” he added.
Quantum cryptography also allows the key distribution link to be monitored for tapping and other skulduggery, and although we can’t pretend to understand half of what the good Doctor is on about, we liked this bit:
“Imagine if you received a letter, you opened that letter and read it, there is no way of telling if someone has read that letter en route. When you encode the information on single particles, the letter self destructs whenever someone else reads it.”
“I sometimes say it is like the messages in Mission Impossible,” he added, “If anyone tries to read the messages, they self destruct.”
Toshiba has so far received “good feedback” from government and financial institutions shown the demonstrations, although commercial implementation looks to be some years away.
Toshiba Europe Research
29 April, 2005
Sony RDR-GXD500 Review: DVD Recorder With Freeview
As the number of digital TV-enabled households continues to rise and the analogue switch off looms ever closer, it seems strange that Sony’s RDR-GXD500 is the first DVD recorder to come equipped with a built-in digital TV tuner.
Over 60% of UK households can now receive digital TV, but trying to record the content can involve nightmarish battles with endless cables and component boxes.
Sony’s RDR-GXD500 is a one-stop solution that’s easy to set up and use, with its all-in-one functionality letting users view Freeview digital channels, make digital recordings and play discs all from a single compact unit.
The included ‘learning’ multi-function remote control lets you jettison your TV remote too, leaving one less thing to have to find on a drunken Saturday night.
Setting up the recorder is a breeze: plug it into your telly, turn it on and then let it automatically scan for channels.
The unit’s onscreen interface is simplicity itself, with the eight-day electronic programme guide (EPG) banishing those video timer nightmares forever – this puppy is so simple, even a granny overdosed on Christmas sherry would have no problem setting up a recording of Des and Mel.
Selecting programs to record is as simple as clicking on the programme you wish to record from the EPG and that’s it. Easy!
Things look pretty good under the hood too, with the unit sporting high quality components such as a 12-bit/108Mhz DAC and both digital and analogue tuners, allowing you to record one channel while you watch another.
Conveniently, the RDR-GXD500 offers simultaneous record/playback and chase play (this lets you begin watching a recorded programme before it’s finished) as well as a veritable armoury of advanced editing, archiving and organising functions.
In use, the Sony performed flawlessly. Memories of long hours endlessly fast forwarding and rewinding video tapes looking for a programme, were banished forever thanks to the recorder’s indexing and multi speed search facilities.
The digital reception was crisp and sharp and infinitely superior to the vintage On Digital box lurking downstairs. Images were rock solid, the black is Bible black, and the colours are vibrant and richly balanced.
A range of recording quality modes let you increase recording time at the expense of image quality.
The highest setting (HQ) produced copies that were indistinguishable from the original broadcast, although this brought the recording time down to a just over two hours.
With the lowest quality mode, SLP (super long play) time-rich viewers could squeeze in up to six hours of recording with that old school ‘snow storm’ dodgy video feel.
DVD playback was pretty damn good on the machine, with a stable image output providing very little in the way of ‘smearing’ and digital artifacts.
Overall, the Sony RDR-GXD500 gave a consistently good account of itself in all areas, and as such, this is a DVD recorder I can wholeheartedly recommend.
Highly recommended
Pros: Great all round performance, integrated digital tuner and simple Cons: The baffling lack of progressive scan video capability
Specifications:
Size (WxHxD): 49x9x38cm
Weight: 5.1kg
Recording formats: DVD-R/-RW, DVD+R/+RW
Playback formats: DVD, DVD-R/-RW, DVD+R/+RW, CD, CD-R/-RW, VCD
Video outputs: Component, SCART (RGB), S-Video, composite, RF
Audio outputs: Line out, optical digital, coaxial digital
Street price: Under £400 (~US$762 ~€591)
Sony RDR-GXD500
29 April, 2005
Yahoo’s My Web Upgrades Personal Search Tools
The battle between Google and Yahoo continues to heat up, with Yahoo ramping up the feature set of its ‘My Web’ suite of personal search tools.
My Web is a personal search engine that lets users save, recall and share resources with others using a selection of Yahoo tools, such as email and IM (instant messaging).
“Yahoo Search is focused on providing innovative, useful technologies that enable people to find, use, share, and expand knowledge,” boomed Salim Mitha, director, Yahoo Search, UK & Ireland.
“My Web is the next step in our vision of integrating search, personal search and community by providing users an easy way to have their own personal web search experience that incorporates the best of the Web and what matters most to them.”
Yahoo claim that their service is “better than bookmarks”, with users able to save an exact copy of a page along with the link, so that saved content will always be there when users return to the page.
Users can store thousands of pages, with tools allowing users to organise and search the content and access it from any computer.
Shared pages can be published using RSS (Rich Site Summary) with users given the option of creating public links pages.
My Web users will soon be able to share data with the Yahoo 360 social network, which allows users to share pictures, music and other data.
Yahoo’s search history tool bears more than a passing similarity to the one released by Google last week and reflects the fierce competition between the two companies.
Yahoo are hoping that these new features will send people flocking to their portal services and thus generate lots and lots of lovely advertising revenue.
UPDATE: Thanks to Steve Rioux for getting in touch, telling us of a very similar service he started almost a year ago called “Smart Note”. You can find it at Klogger.com
Yahoo My Web
28 April, 2005