Sony Denies PSN Hack, Confirms PSN Web Exploit
The PlayStation Network wasn't hacked so much as threatened yesterday when a password exploit accessible through its PSN web page login page came to light, claims Sony.
The PlayStation Network wasn't hacked so much as threatened yesterday when a password exploit accessible through its PSN web page login page came to light, claims Sony.
Sony spokesperson Patrick Seybold confirmed the exploit in an official PlayStation blog dispatch yesterday afternoon.
"We temporarily took down the PSN and Qriocity password reset page," wrote Seybold, quickly adding "Contrary to some reports, there was no hack involved."
The "exploit" involved the PSN web-based password reset page, where Read more...
Google: We’ll Fight Anti-Piracy Blocking Laws
During a speech on Wednesday, Google executive chairman Eric Schmidt said that proposals from both the U.S. and British governments to block access to file-sharing websites would threaten freedom of speech. Google, he said, is opposed to such measures and will fight them, presumably in court, if necessary.
There can be little doubt that when it comes to hot tools for dealing with sites allegedly infringing the copyrights of the music and movie industries, site blocking and web filtering is absolutely in fashion this year.
The United States (with its IP protection bill) and the United Kingdom (with its Digital Economy Act), are both preparing what they believe could be their best chance at a silver bullet approach to piracy – the complete blocking of ‘infringing’ domains. Read more...
Ford developing in-car health monitoring tech
Ford announced on Wednesday that it is developing voice-controlled wireless technology that connects drivers to various health monitoring technology and services for things such as web-based allergen alerts, asthma management tools and diabetes control.
Ford said it's developing its initial offering by working with medical device maker Medtronic, mobile health vendor WellDoc, and health analytics provider SDI Health, which developed the allergy website pollen.com. Pollen.com tracks pollen counts around the U.S. Read more...
Data centers, under strain, expand at furious pace
About a third to half of all data centers will be physically expanding or leasing new space in the next two years, according to recent surveys.
These surveys are providing a picture of strains facing the facilities that cradle the digital economy, as well as the pressure data center and IT managers are under to keep up with demand.
The Uptime Institute, for the first time, recently surveyed 525 data center operators and owners, 71% of whom are in North America. Of respondents, 36% said they will run out of power, cooling and space through 2012. Read more...
Fake security software catches out Apple owners
The fake software tries hard to look like a legitimate program
A fake security program for Apple computers called MACDefender has racked up a significant number of victims.
Hundreds of people who installed the software have turned to Apple's forums for help to remove it.
The program's tactic of peppering screens with pornographic pictures has made many keen to get rid of it.
MACDefender seems to have been successful because of the work its creators did to make it appear high up in search results.
The number of people seeking help was uncovered by ZDNet journalist Ed Bott. In a blog post, he wrote about finding more than 200 separate discussions on Apple's official forums about MACDefender. Read more...
Google announces new Chromebook
Just as Google delved into the world of smartphones a few years ago when they purchased Android in 2005, they are now jumping into the realm of portable computers with partners Samsung and Acer.
On June 15, the new Google Chromebook will be available in the U.S., U.K., France, Germany, Netherlands, Italy and Spain, according to Google's official blog.
The company promised the new computers will boot in a matter of seconds, the battery life will last a day with a single charge and there is no need to back up files, because the laptop will be using cloud-based apps. The cloud computing, instead of traditional software-based computing, will allow users to access their information wherever they can connect to a Web Browser. Read more...
How to Effectively Use Social Media When Job Hunting
Employers and recruiters are relying more and more on social media to find valuable employees. In a survey of 600 employers, conducted by Jobvite.com in 2010, 73% of respondents stated they use social networks or social media to support their recruitment process.
Also, an additional 9% stated they plan on using social networks in the near future. Beef up your old strategy of relying on Internet job boards by incorporating a few social media platforms. Don’t be content with simply peppering companies with your resume and hoping for the best.
The majority of jobs are not posted on the Internet. Some studies report that 80% of jobs are found through networking. Employers typically use a list of employee referral candidates before taking the time to check out resumes submitted online. Read more...
Linux kernel runs inside web browser
An independent programmer has used JavaScript to build a PC emulator capable of running Linux inside a web browser.
French hacker Fabrice Bellard says his JavaScript PC Emulator can run the 2.6.20 Linux kernel inside Mozilla's Firefox 4 and Google's Chrome 11, two browsers designed to significantly advance JavaScript speeds. "I did it for fun, just because newer JavaScript engines are fast enough to do complicated things," Belllard writes. But he believes the emulator could be used to benchmark JavaScript engines. Read more...
Apple wants smaller SIM cards for future smartphones
Apple has proposed a standard for new, smaller SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) cards, in an effort to free up more space on future smartphones.
The Apple proposal was filed last week, when ETSI's (European Telecommunications Standards Institute) Smart Card Platform technical committee met, according to a spokesman. So far, no decision has been made on whether accept the proposal.
If ETSI agrees to accept Apple's proposal for a new miniaturized SIM card as an industry standard, manufacturers could potentially start producing the devices by the end of the year. But for that to happen ETSI members, which include industry and government representatives, have to agree on technical details. If not that is not the case, it will take longer, ETSI said. Read more...
SAP preps low-cost alternative to Oracle
amazons server could be used for attack on sony
SAP will finish porting its ERP (enterprise resource planning) application to the Sybase Adaptive Server Enterprise (ASE) database later this year, giving customers now running Oracle and other platforms a lower-cost alternative, the company announced Tuesday during the Sapphire conference in Orlando.
Sybase ASE has only a fraction of the database market share held by Oracle, IBM and Microsoft, but it is widely used by financial institutions. SAP noted this in its announcement, saying its ERP customers will now get to use the same database "that powers Wall Street." Read more...
Adobe Acrobat Ten Suite: Your Alternative to Creative Suite?
There was something a little different on tap with the Acrobat release this time around – Acrobat Suite. This is the newest member of the Acrobat family and aside from a very slight annoyance at yet another Adobe edition to sort through, we think this is an incredibly useful and appropriate combination of tools for Acrobat users.
In fact, if your job entails things like frequent presentations and customer facing materials, but you don’t need the other bells and whistles in the full blown Creative Suite, Acrobat Ten Suite could be a cheaper alternative to Creative Suite. Read more...
Google and the NFL: Saviours of the free internet?
Almost a decade has passed since Skype brought free phone calls to the world. In the intervening years, consumers have grown to expect that if it's online, it's gratis.
Many free sites and services online rely on money from adverts to keep themselves afloat but despite expectations that advertisers will spend $106bn online this year, the bulk of the cash goes to major players such as Google, leaving slim pickings for smaller ad-supported ventures.
If the bulk of ad-supported sites and services are to survive, then Michael Cusumano, professor at MIT Sloan School of Management and tech guru, believes online firms should look to an unlikely source for inspiration - American football.
Since the 1960s, the US National Football League (NFL) has pooled the revenue generated from various sources including TV broadcasting rights to all games, and split the takings evenly between each team. Read more...
Google Promises Automatic Android Security Fix
In the wake of Google's self-proclaimed momentum at the Google I/O conference last week, the creator of Android is getting hit with some stark realities about the security of its open-source operating system. A newly discovered flaw has widespread potential.
There are 100 million activated Android devices, according to Google, and 400,000 new devices are activated every day. In all, researchers at Ulm University in Germany who discovered the flaw last week estimate about 98 percent of Android users are vulnerable. Read more...
Open Source Software Is Now a Norm in Businesses
We've already seen mounting evidence that the numerous benefits of open source software are making a big impression on businesses far and wide, and this week saw the release of yet more data corroborating that fact.
At the Computerworld-sponsored Future of Open Source Survey."
Currently in its fifth year, the study's results for 2011 suggest that open source is now fully embraced by organizations in both the public and private sectors, and that user confidence in such open technologies is growing "dramatically," North Bridge said. Read more...
Why Doesn’t Google Polish Android With Chrome?
Search engine giant Google had a bold strategy: Create a new operating system and try to take down the top dog. What made this really bold is that Google is trying to do this not once but twice, and at the same time. In the mobile space Google's Android has gone after Apple's iOS, while on the PC front it's going against Microsoft's Windows dominance with the cloud-based Chrome.
So the question is, why two different operating systems? The answer is simple: Because it can. Google has been extremely successful in many areas, and this move could be seen as the company hedging its bets. Rather than putting all its eggs into one basket, Google is opting to develop two operating systems that operate differently. Read more...