IWF’s wiki actions are totally 404
Posted in podcast on December 12, 2008 at 1:39 pm
Did the Internet Watch Foundation make the right move blocking a Wikipedia page over child porn concerns? According to our debaters in this week’s podcast… no. But when they flipped on the issue and removed the ban, that was indeed the right move.
We also discuss how tech-related slang is slipping into our modern language — and Benny does his Dizzee Rascal impression. That’s book, man. (Apparently, that means ‘cool’.) 404, dude. LOL. (Did that make sense to you? Didn’t to us.)
We also name the BlackBerry Bold our gadget of the week — which “is just a really nice looking phone.” And has some hot features, too. And interferes with our podcast (sorry about that.)
And we lay out our gadget wishlist for the end of the year…
You can download the IT PRO Podcast here, or click here to find The IT PRO Podcast on iTunes, or just listen below.
www.itpro.co.uk
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Google's new browser app is moving towards final release status as it looks to take on more established rivals.
By Benny Har-Even
Google's Chrome web browser could become a full release product shortly, according to a report.
Marissa Mayer, Google's vice president in charge of search products, made the revelation to TechCrunch's Michael Arrington at LeWeb 08. However, no exact release date was revealed.
Many companies that might want to use Chrome will not do so until it is properly released and a fully-supported product. The browser is currently available for Windows but Mac and Linux versions have yet to be released, though they are reportedly being worked on.
The first Beta of Chrome was released in early September, to a generally positive response.
If it does secure a final release, Chrome would have shed Beta status much faster than other high profile Google projects, such as Gmail, which is still in Beta despite having been first released in early 2004 and being widely used.
www.itpro.co.uk
Google's Chrome web browser could become a full release product shortly, according to a report.
Marissa Mayer, Google's vice president in charge of search products, made the revelation to TechCrunch's Michael Arrington at LeWeb 08. However, no exact release date was revealed.
Many companies that might want to use Chrome will not do so until it is properly released and a fully-supported product. The browser is currently available for Windows but Mac and Linux versions have yet to be released, though they are reportedly being worked on.
The first Beta of Chrome was released in early September, to a generally positive response.
If it does secure a final release, Chrome would have shed Beta status much faster than other high profile Google projects, such as Gmail, which is still in Beta despite having been first released in early 2004 and being widely used.
www.itpro.co.uk
Yogyakarta Animal Rescue Center
PPSJ (Euless, wildlife rescue center) is an institution to accommodate the results of protected wildlife security officials confiscated goods from the trade or have them as pets. In Indonesia, this issue became a serious environmental problem because threat a major addition to the damage to forest preservation in wildlife habitat.
apakabarjogja.com
apakabarjogja.com
Party Politics Updates From the More Important Election
(PEMBARUAN PARTAI POLITIK LEBIH PENTING DARI PEMILU)
People who are cynical and pessimistic to the establishment of a new, generally will be difficult to create the new party, because a new party that will appear cottage and less voice.
March of the Democratic Renewal Party (PDP) Mr. Sukardi, in the event the campaign dialogue in UGM convey a sense of optimism that the Party experience name in presidential nomination will not stay silent and become a vassal of the games big winner of the election. In fact, this nomination will bring a change for the nation.
Orang yang bersifat sinis dan pesimis terhadap pendirian baru, pada umumnya akan mengatakan susah untuk membuat partai baru, karena partai baru yang muncul akan berguguran dan kurang suara.
Capres dari Partai Demokrasi Pembaharuan (PDP) Laksamana Sukardi, dalam acara kampanye dialogis di UGM menyampaikan rasa optimis bahwa Partai yang menggusung namanya dalam pencapresan tidak akan tinggal diam dan menjadi pengikut dari partai-partai yang besar pemenang pemilu. Bahkan, pencalonannya kali ini akan membawa suatu perubahan bagi bangsa.
apakabarjogja.com
People who are cynical and pessimistic to the establishment of a new, generally will be difficult to create the new party, because a new party that will appear cottage and less voice.
March of the Democratic Renewal Party (PDP) Mr. Sukardi, in the event the campaign dialogue in UGM convey a sense of optimism that the Party experience name in presidential nomination will not stay silent and become a vassal of the games big winner of the election. In fact, this nomination will bring a change for the nation.
Orang yang bersifat sinis dan pesimis terhadap pendirian baru, pada umumnya akan mengatakan susah untuk membuat partai baru, karena partai baru yang muncul akan berguguran dan kurang suara.
Capres dari Partai Demokrasi Pembaharuan (PDP) Laksamana Sukardi, dalam acara kampanye dialogis di UGM menyampaikan rasa optimis bahwa Partai yang menggusung namanya dalam pencapresan tidak akan tinggal diam dan menjadi pengikut dari partai-partai yang besar pemenang pemilu. Bahkan, pencalonannya kali ini akan membawa suatu perubahan bagi bangsa.
apakabarjogja.com
Wahyu dalam Selebaran
Lia Eden Minta Agama Islam Dihapus
Ari Saputra - detikNews
Jakarta - 28 pengikut komunitas Eden ditangkap polisi. Belum ada keterangan resmi dari polisi. Tetapi, kemungkinan penangkapan Lia Aminuddin terkait dengan selebaran yang memerintahkan penghapusan agama Islam.
"Ini selebarannya," kata Surivita, Ketua RT RT 5/8 Bungur, di kompleks markas Kerajaan Tuhan, Jalan Mahoni, Senen, Jakarta, Senin (15/12/2008).
Tebal selebaran itu sekitar 40 halaman. Tulisan itu, menurut Eden dalam selebaran itu, merupakan wahyu Tuhan yang diperoleh Lia Eden secara berkala.
2 poin penting dalam "wahyu" itu turun tanggal 17 November dan 23 November 2008.
"Yang pertama meminta pemerintah menghapus agama Islam. Yang kedua menilai pemerintahan SBY-JK sudah tidak layak memimpin," imbuh Surivita menunjuk poin penting itu.
Belum diperoleh kepastian orisininalitas selebaran itu. Apakah benar-benar dibuat Eden ataukah hanya fitnah. Sebab, selebaran yang beredar berupa fotokopi saja.
Rencananya, polisi dari Polda Metro Jaya akan menggelar jumpa pers pukul 16.00 WIB terkait dengan penangkapan ini.
www.detiknews.com
Ari Saputra - detikNews
Jakarta - 28 pengikut komunitas Eden ditangkap polisi. Belum ada keterangan resmi dari polisi. Tetapi, kemungkinan penangkapan Lia Aminuddin terkait dengan selebaran yang memerintahkan penghapusan agama Islam.
"Ini selebarannya," kata Surivita, Ketua RT RT 5/8 Bungur, di kompleks markas Kerajaan Tuhan, Jalan Mahoni, Senen, Jakarta, Senin (15/12/2008).
Tebal selebaran itu sekitar 40 halaman. Tulisan itu, menurut Eden dalam selebaran itu, merupakan wahyu Tuhan yang diperoleh Lia Eden secara berkala.
2 poin penting dalam "wahyu" itu turun tanggal 17 November dan 23 November 2008.
"Yang pertama meminta pemerintah menghapus agama Islam. Yang kedua menilai pemerintahan SBY-JK sudah tidak layak memimpin," imbuh Surivita menunjuk poin penting itu.
Belum diperoleh kepastian orisininalitas selebaran itu. Apakah benar-benar dibuat Eden ataukah hanya fitnah. Sebab, selebaran yang beredar berupa fotokopi saja.
Rencananya, polisi dari Polda Metro Jaya akan menggelar jumpa pers pukul 16.00 WIB terkait dengan penangkapan ini.
www.detiknews.com
Friday, December 5, 2008
Public Sector Roundup: New tech recognised
Teachers are recognised for using tech, Hillingdon’s website is voted best, Dell provides computers to amplify work, and York Traffic shows citizens traffic conditions on-the-road.
By Janae Olinger, 4 Dec 2008 at 14:04
New award for teachers using tech
Becta is sponsoring a new teaching award for educators who regularly use multiple forms of technology in the classroom.
Anyone from a bellowing pupil to an educational colleague can nominate a teacher for the award which is a part of Becta’s Next Generation Learning Campaign, where parents and teachers are encouraged to use more technology.
“Technology has the potential to improve standards and to engage all learners, even those facing the biggest challenges,” Stephen Crowe, Becta’s chief executive said. “But it is not an end in itself because computers don't teach pupils; teachers do, and when they use technology to support learning they can enrich the learning experience like never before.”
The first winners of the award will be announced in 2009.
London Borough of Hillingdon’s website is best in London
The London Borough of Hillingdon’s website was rated best council website in London and third in the whole of the UK by SiteMorse.
Websites were judged on various aspects including accessibility, reliability and performance. Hillingdon’s entered into the top 10 of UK’s local government websites in October, where it continued to rise in the ranks.
“Our web team have achieved a fantastic result which highlights our commitment to ensuring we are delivering the best services to the people of Hillingdon,” Fran Beasley, deputy chief executive said. “The quality of the information we send out, and the communications channels we have available are of the utmost importance and it is good to be able to show our residents that we are achieving our aims.”
Dell provides computers and services for European Patent Office
Dell and the European Patent Office (EPO) have signed a minimum six-year contract to help improve EPO employee productivity.
To date, Dell has replaced 7,000 existing EPO PCs with Dell OptiPlex 755 desktops as well as delivered managed desktop services. Dell is expected to deliver over 1,000 Dell Latitude E-Series notebooks by mid-2009.
The machines have energy smart configurations and power management settings that will reduce noise and energy consumption. The new services will make the IT team more efficient in responding to service calls.
York Traffic to provide live coverage of everyday congestion
The City of York Council has teamed up with mxData to launch York Traffic, a mobile and online traffic application.
York Traffic is a free service, available to residents and visitors to York. Both online and mobile services show up-to-date CCTV footage of traffic, buses, and car park occupancy.
Darren Capes, systems team manager for York Council, said: “Our goal is to give residents and visitors relevant information in a straight forward way, and we believe that this project with mxData will help to realise this vision.”
The mobile service is compatible with all mobile phones, and is to go live next spring.
www.itpro.co.uk
By Janae Olinger, 4 Dec 2008 at 14:04
New award for teachers using tech
Becta is sponsoring a new teaching award for educators who regularly use multiple forms of technology in the classroom.
Anyone from a bellowing pupil to an educational colleague can nominate a teacher for the award which is a part of Becta’s Next Generation Learning Campaign, where parents and teachers are encouraged to use more technology.
“Technology has the potential to improve standards and to engage all learners, even those facing the biggest challenges,” Stephen Crowe, Becta’s chief executive said. “But it is not an end in itself because computers don't teach pupils; teachers do, and when they use technology to support learning they can enrich the learning experience like never before.”
The first winners of the award will be announced in 2009.
London Borough of Hillingdon’s website is best in London
The London Borough of Hillingdon’s website was rated best council website in London and third in the whole of the UK by SiteMorse.
Websites were judged on various aspects including accessibility, reliability and performance. Hillingdon’s entered into the top 10 of UK’s local government websites in October, where it continued to rise in the ranks.
“Our web team have achieved a fantastic result which highlights our commitment to ensuring we are delivering the best services to the people of Hillingdon,” Fran Beasley, deputy chief executive said. “The quality of the information we send out, and the communications channels we have available are of the utmost importance and it is good to be able to show our residents that we are achieving our aims.”
Dell provides computers and services for European Patent Office
Dell and the European Patent Office (EPO) have signed a minimum six-year contract to help improve EPO employee productivity.
To date, Dell has replaced 7,000 existing EPO PCs with Dell OptiPlex 755 desktops as well as delivered managed desktop services. Dell is expected to deliver over 1,000 Dell Latitude E-Series notebooks by mid-2009.
The machines have energy smart configurations and power management settings that will reduce noise and energy consumption. The new services will make the IT team more efficient in responding to service calls.
York Traffic to provide live coverage of everyday congestion
The City of York Council has teamed up with mxData to launch York Traffic, a mobile and online traffic application.
York Traffic is a free service, available to residents and visitors to York. Both online and mobile services show up-to-date CCTV footage of traffic, buses, and car park occupancy.
Darren Capes, systems team manager for York Council, said: “Our goal is to give residents and visitors relevant information in a straight forward way, and we believe that this project with mxData will help to realise this vision.”
The mobile service is compatible with all mobile phones, and is to go live next spring.
www.itpro.co.uk
Data centre heads north for cooler climate
Alchemy Plus is looking to build a £20 million state-of-the-art facility in Scotland because of its cooler climate.
By Janae Olinger, 3 Dec 2008 at 12:13
Scottish IT company Alchemy Plus is looking to build a cloud computing centre on the Inverness harbour.
With its cool climate, the highland region will reduce the need for artificial refrigeration, as well as cool the many computers used at the centre.
The 20,000 square foot facility would be Scotland’s first green data centre, with the waste energy from the building being used to warm nearby neighbourhoods.
The cloud computing centre will give businesses access to applications and services over the internet, allowing employees to work from home as well as on-the-go. The resources will be available on a pay-as-you-go basis.
“Demand for premium data centre space continues to far outstrip available supply and the current economic downturn is driving a rapid shift towards 'cloud' based services, which offer greater economy and flexibility,” project chairman Peter Swanson said. “Utility computing will revolutionise the way businesses use computers and seriously cut costs for many companies and public sector organisations.”
Companies who took part in an 18-month test run in Dingwall saw an average cost savings of 28 per cent.
Alchemy Plus is preparing a planning application to be submitted in January of next year with hopes to have the centre running by the end of 2010. Chief executive Steve Chisholm stated that the centre could create 400 jobs.
Another green-powered data farm was announced to be built in Scotland earlier this year.
www.itpro.co.uk
By Janae Olinger, 3 Dec 2008 at 12:13
Scottish IT company Alchemy Plus is looking to build a cloud computing centre on the Inverness harbour.
With its cool climate, the highland region will reduce the need for artificial refrigeration, as well as cool the many computers used at the centre.
The 20,000 square foot facility would be Scotland’s first green data centre, with the waste energy from the building being used to warm nearby neighbourhoods.
The cloud computing centre will give businesses access to applications and services over the internet, allowing employees to work from home as well as on-the-go. The resources will be available on a pay-as-you-go basis.
“Demand for premium data centre space continues to far outstrip available supply and the current economic downturn is driving a rapid shift towards 'cloud' based services, which offer greater economy and flexibility,” project chairman Peter Swanson said. “Utility computing will revolutionise the way businesses use computers and seriously cut costs for many companies and public sector organisations.”
Companies who took part in an 18-month test run in Dingwall saw an average cost savings of 28 per cent.
Alchemy Plus is preparing a planning application to be submitted in January of next year with hopes to have the centre running by the end of 2010. Chief executive Steve Chisholm stated that the centre could create 400 jobs.
Another green-powered data farm was announced to be built in Scotland earlier this year.
www.itpro.co.uk
Data centre heads north for cooler climate
Alchemy Plus is looking to build a £20 million state-of-the-art facility in Scotland because of its cooler climate.
By Janae Olinger, 3 Dec 2008 at 12:13
Scottish IT company Alchemy Plus is looking to build a cloud computing centre on the Inverness harbour.
With its cool climate, the highland region will reduce the need for artificial refrigeration, as well as cool the many computers used at the centre.
The 20,000 square foot facility would be Scotland’s first green data centre, with the waste energy from the building being used to warm nearby neighbourhoods.
The cloud computing centre will give businesses access to applications and services over the internet, allowing employees to work from home as well as on-the-go. The resources will be available on a pay-as-you-go basis.
“Demand for premium data centre space continues to far outstrip available supply and the current economic downturn is driving a rapid shift towards 'cloud' based services, which offer greater economy and flexibility,” project chairman Peter Swanson said. “Utility computing will revolutionise the way businesses use computers and seriously cut costs for many companies and public sector organisations.”
Companies who took part in an 18-month test run in Dingwall saw an average cost savings of 28 per cent.
Alchemy Plus is preparing a planning application to be submitted in January of next year with hopes to have the centre running by the end of 2010. Chief executive Steve Chisholm stated that the centre could create 400 jobs.
Another green-powered data farm was announced to be built in Scotland earlier this year.
www.itpro.co.uk
By Janae Olinger, 3 Dec 2008 at 12:13
Scottish IT company Alchemy Plus is looking to build a cloud computing centre on the Inverness harbour.
With its cool climate, the highland region will reduce the need for artificial refrigeration, as well as cool the many computers used at the centre.
The 20,000 square foot facility would be Scotland’s first green data centre, with the waste energy from the building being used to warm nearby neighbourhoods.
The cloud computing centre will give businesses access to applications and services over the internet, allowing employees to work from home as well as on-the-go. The resources will be available on a pay-as-you-go basis.
“Demand for premium data centre space continues to far outstrip available supply and the current economic downturn is driving a rapid shift towards 'cloud' based services, which offer greater economy and flexibility,” project chairman Peter Swanson said. “Utility computing will revolutionise the way businesses use computers and seriously cut costs for many companies and public sector organisations.”
Companies who took part in an 18-month test run in Dingwall saw an average cost savings of 28 per cent.
Alchemy Plus is preparing a planning application to be submitted in January of next year with hopes to have the centre running by the end of 2010. Chief executive Steve Chisholm stated that the centre could create 400 jobs.
Another green-powered data farm was announced to be built in Scotland earlier this year.
www.itpro.co.uk
Microsoft to issue six critical patches on Tuesday
The last set of security updates from Microsoft for 2008 features six critical patches.
By Nicole Kobie, 5 Dec 2008 at 11:30
Microsoft will end the year on a busy note for IT security professionals next week, with its last Patch Tuesday of 2008 featuring six critical and two important updates.
The six critical patches all protect against remote code execution problems in the Windows operating system, Internet Explorer and Visual Basic, as well as Word and Excel in the Office suite.
The first important fix, for Windows Media Centre, also involves remote code execution, while the second fixes an elevation of privacy issue in SharePoint.
The “critical” rating is the highest level in Microsoft’s security system.
The patches will roll out on 9 December as part of Microsoft’s monthly update schedule. More information on the vulnerabilities is available here.
www.itpro.co.uk
By Nicole Kobie, 5 Dec 2008 at 11:30
Microsoft will end the year on a busy note for IT security professionals next week, with its last Patch Tuesday of 2008 featuring six critical and two important updates.
The six critical patches all protect against remote code execution problems in the Windows operating system, Internet Explorer and Visual Basic, as well as Word and Excel in the Office suite.
The first important fix, for Windows Media Centre, also involves remote code execution, while the second fixes an elevation of privacy issue in SharePoint.
The “critical” rating is the highest level in Microsoft’s security system.
The patches will roll out on 9 December as part of Microsoft’s monthly update schedule. More information on the vulnerabilities is available here.
www.itpro.co.uk
IBM pushes virtual desktops without Microsoft
IBM is looking to convince companies to run "Microsoft-free" virtual desktops.
By Barry Collins, 4 Dec 2008 at 11:11
IBM is looking to convince companies to run "Microsoft-free" virtual desktops.
Big Blue is partnering with Ubuntu distributor, Canonical, and virtual desktop firm Virtual Bridges to deliver an all-in-one package for companies.
The trio hope to persuade recession-stricken companies of the cost benefits of moving to the "Microsoft-free" virtual environment.
The offering sees employees run an Ubuntu Linux virtual desktop that comes pre-installed with IBM's Symphony office suite, and Lotus Notes and Sametime for email, calendaring and business communications.
The virtual desktops are supported by a Linux-based server, with costs starting from $49 (£33) per seat in a 1,000-seat deployment.
Users could access their virtual desktop on dedicated thin clients, or any conventional PC or laptop with a network connection.
Virtual Bridges, which is providing its VERDE virtual desktop software, claimed companies will make huge savings on desktop management and provisioning. "By consolidating these desktop sessions on to centrally-managed servers, users no longer have to self-maintain their desktops or put unnecessary burdens on the help desk," it claimed in a statement.
"This is literally putting your desktops in the data center and allowing access to them securely over the network."
However, it's by no means the first time that Microsoft has faced the threat of virtual desktops. Competitors including Sun and IBM itself have been pushing the thin-client philosophy for more than a decade, without ever seriously denting Microsoft's core operating-system business.
www.itpro.co.uk
By Barry Collins, 4 Dec 2008 at 11:11
IBM is looking to convince companies to run "Microsoft-free" virtual desktops.
Big Blue is partnering with Ubuntu distributor, Canonical, and virtual desktop firm Virtual Bridges to deliver an all-in-one package for companies.
The trio hope to persuade recession-stricken companies of the cost benefits of moving to the "Microsoft-free" virtual environment.
The offering sees employees run an Ubuntu Linux virtual desktop that comes pre-installed with IBM's Symphony office suite, and Lotus Notes and Sametime for email, calendaring and business communications.
The virtual desktops are supported by a Linux-based server, with costs starting from $49 (£33) per seat in a 1,000-seat deployment.
Users could access their virtual desktop on dedicated thin clients, or any conventional PC or laptop with a network connection.
Virtual Bridges, which is providing its VERDE virtual desktop software, claimed companies will make huge savings on desktop management and provisioning. "By consolidating these desktop sessions on to centrally-managed servers, users no longer have to self-maintain their desktops or put unnecessary burdens on the help desk," it claimed in a statement.
"This is literally putting your desktops in the data center and allowing access to them securely over the network."
However, it's by no means the first time that Microsoft has faced the threat of virtual desktops. Competitors including Sun and IBM itself have been pushing the thin-client philosophy for more than a decade, without ever seriously denting Microsoft's core operating-system business.
www.itpro.co.uk
Why enterprise search is not internet search
We explain why you can’t always get the best search results for your business from Google.
By Mary Branscombe, 4 Dec 2008 at 14:55
There’s a reason why Google is a verb. Yahoo may get more visitors than the stock price might lead you to expect, Microsoft is still pumping research and money into Live Search, and there are plenty of new search engines trying to steal even a few percentage points.
But with around 60 per cent of search traffic, Google is where most of us turn when we need to find something on the web. Wouldn’t it make sense to use the same techniques to make it easier to find information within the enterprise?
Depending on which survey you look at, businesses waste the equivalent of 10 per cent of salary costs (says the Butler Group) or information workers waste around three to four hours a week – a total of five weeks a year - because they don’t find the information they’re looking for a third to a half of the time (IDC and HP).
In small and medium enterprises in the UK, a YouGov survey this summer found 80 per cent of managers and directors waste up to an hour a day looking for documents. And according the same HP survey, 60 per cent of IT managers spend “a high proportion of their time” dealing with employee requests for help finding basic information on the network.
That means it’s worth investing in the right search technology. That doesn't necessarily mean using Google’s free SiteSearch on your intranet, familiar as the interface may be to users. For one thing, the information people need to work with is rarely in the intranet to start with, and more importantly, the techniques that work well on the web aren’t as well suited to internal search.
www.itpro.co.uk
By Mary Branscombe, 4 Dec 2008 at 14:55
There’s a reason why Google is a verb. Yahoo may get more visitors than the stock price might lead you to expect, Microsoft is still pumping research and money into Live Search, and there are plenty of new search engines trying to steal even a few percentage points.
But with around 60 per cent of search traffic, Google is where most of us turn when we need to find something on the web. Wouldn’t it make sense to use the same techniques to make it easier to find information within the enterprise?
Depending on which survey you look at, businesses waste the equivalent of 10 per cent of salary costs (says the Butler Group) or information workers waste around three to four hours a week – a total of five weeks a year - because they don’t find the information they’re looking for a third to a half of the time (IDC and HP).
In small and medium enterprises in the UK, a YouGov survey this summer found 80 per cent of managers and directors waste up to an hour a day looking for documents. And according the same HP survey, 60 per cent of IT managers spend “a high proportion of their time” dealing with employee requests for help finding basic information on the network.
That means it’s worth investing in the right search technology. That doesn't necessarily mean using Google’s free SiteSearch on your intranet, familiar as the interface may be to users. For one thing, the information people need to work with is rarely in the intranet to start with, and more importantly, the techniques that work well on the web aren’t as well suited to internal search.
www.itpro.co.uk
IT industry celebrates at the BCS Awards
Public and private sector IT professionals came together for the industry’s flagship awards ceremony, with the healthcare sector leading the list of winners.
By IT PRO Staff, 5 Dec 2008 at 13:32
An innovative software application that helps hospitals plan and provide care for cancer patients needing chemotherapy headed an impressive list of award winners at the 2008 BCS IT Industry Awards.
The awards ceremony, which took place last night at the Grosvenor House Hotel on London’s Park Lane, saw 23 awards handed out in three categories: Individual Excellence, Organisational Excellence and Project Excellence.
“The BCS IT Industry awards are regarded as the hallmark of excellence, best practice and professionalism in the industry,” said David Clarke, chief executive of the BCS.
Concentra claimed two awards for its pioneering C-Port software application. Produced for the NHS, C-Port applies advanced modelling and simulation techniques to tackle the problem of chemotherapy capacity planning, which has never been done before.
The application can forecast how each individual patient will experience care, how long they wait, who they see, and when. It creates in simulated form real life events that influence treatment such as equipment breakdowns, phone calls, meetings and absenteeism.
The judging panel - which included IT PRO Editor Chris Green - praised C-Port for its innovation, its contribution to the healthcare industry and for the benefit it delivered for patients and their families by improving the efficiency of care.
Other high-profile winners included Garlik for its DataPatrol identity theft prevention technology and CSC’s Emergency Care Solution for NHS Ambulance Services, which enables paramedics, using a rugged touch screen tablet, to access a summary of the patient's notes to help them determine the best course of treatment and avoid unnecessary hospital admission.
Full details of the winning projects, companies and individuals can be found here.
www.itpro.co.uk
By IT PRO Staff, 5 Dec 2008 at 13:32
An innovative software application that helps hospitals plan and provide care for cancer patients needing chemotherapy headed an impressive list of award winners at the 2008 BCS IT Industry Awards.
The awards ceremony, which took place last night at the Grosvenor House Hotel on London’s Park Lane, saw 23 awards handed out in three categories: Individual Excellence, Organisational Excellence and Project Excellence.
“The BCS IT Industry awards are regarded as the hallmark of excellence, best practice and professionalism in the industry,” said David Clarke, chief executive of the BCS.
Concentra claimed two awards for its pioneering C-Port software application. Produced for the NHS, C-Port applies advanced modelling and simulation techniques to tackle the problem of chemotherapy capacity planning, which has never been done before.
The application can forecast how each individual patient will experience care, how long they wait, who they see, and when. It creates in simulated form real life events that influence treatment such as equipment breakdowns, phone calls, meetings and absenteeism.
The judging panel - which included IT PRO Editor Chris Green - praised C-Port for its innovation, its contribution to the healthcare industry and for the benefit it delivered for patients and their families by improving the efficiency of care.
Other high-profile winners included Garlik for its DataPatrol identity theft prevention technology and CSC’s Emergency Care Solution for NHS Ambulance Services, which enables paramedics, using a rugged touch screen tablet, to access a summary of the patient's notes to help them determine the best course of treatment and avoid unnecessary hospital admission.
Full details of the winning projects, companies and individuals can be found here.
www.itpro.co.uk
LHC to restart in summer of 2009
After being shutdown in mid-September, the world’s largest science experiment will be restarted next year with a new early warning system.
By Nicole Kobie, 5 Dec 2008 at 15:51
The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN will be switched back on next summer, according to the Geneva-based research organisation.
After kicking off last summer, the particle smashing experiment was shut down following a malfunction in mid-September, after a failure in the electrical connection between two magnets lead to helium escaping into the 27-kilometre underground tunnel, according to a report by CERN.
“The top priority for CERN today is to provide collision data for the experiments as soon as reasonably possible,” said CERN Director General Robert Aymar in a statement. “This will be in the summer of 2009.”
The delay in restarting the experiment is because 53 of the massive magnet units need to be replaced. That is set to finish by March, but cooling and testing the LHC will take until the end of June.
The engineers are also designing a new early warning protection system for the machine, to prevent a similar failure.
Full details of the repair timetable are available here.
Click here to read how UK technology and systems are supporting the analysis of the data coming from the particle smashing experiment, and click here for photos of the system.
www.itpro.co.uk
By Nicole Kobie, 5 Dec 2008 at 15:51
The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN will be switched back on next summer, according to the Geneva-based research organisation.
After kicking off last summer, the particle smashing experiment was shut down following a malfunction in mid-September, after a failure in the electrical connection between two magnets lead to helium escaping into the 27-kilometre underground tunnel, according to a report by CERN.
“The top priority for CERN today is to provide collision data for the experiments as soon as reasonably possible,” said CERN Director General Robert Aymar in a statement. “This will be in the summer of 2009.”
The delay in restarting the experiment is because 53 of the massive magnet units need to be replaced. That is set to finish by March, but cooling and testing the LHC will take until the end of June.
The engineers are also designing a new early warning protection system for the machine, to prevent a similar failure.
Full details of the repair timetable are available here.
Click here to read how UK technology and systems are supporting the analysis of the data coming from the particle smashing experiment, and click here for photos of the system.
www.itpro.co.uk
A dangerous piece of malware can disguise itself as a legitimate Firefox app.
By Asavin Wattanajantra, 5 Dec 2008 at 15:41
A new type of password-stealing Trojan which is disguised as a Firefox add-on has been discovered by security company BitDefender.
Trojan.PWS.ChromeInject.A downloads to the Mozilla Firefox folder when the browser is opened and filters data sent by the user to over 100 different online banking websites.
These include bankofamerica.com, chase.com, Halifax-online.co.uk, Wachovia.com, paypal.com and e-gold.com.
Once the user is infected, their login credentials are sent to a particular web address, with BitDefender stating that the domain and hosting server were located in Russia.
It has been reported that the malware disguises itself as Greasemonkey, a program which customises the way a webpage displays using JavaScript.
“Users should be aware of the risks they are facing if such confidential information is stolen,” said Viorel Canja, head of BitDefender anti-virus lab.
www.itpro.co.uk
A new type of password-stealing Trojan which is disguised as a Firefox add-on has been discovered by security company BitDefender.
Trojan.PWS.ChromeInject.A downloads to the Mozilla Firefox folder when the browser is opened and filters data sent by the user to over 100 different online banking websites.
These include bankofamerica.com, chase.com, Halifax-online.co.uk, Wachovia.com, paypal.com and e-gold.com.
Once the user is infected, their login credentials are sent to a particular web address, with BitDefender stating that the domain and hosting server were located in Russia.
It has been reported that the malware disguises itself as Greasemonkey, a program which customises the way a webpage displays using JavaScript.
“Users should be aware of the risks they are facing if such confidential information is stolen,” said Viorel Canja, head of BitDefender anti-virus lab.
www.itpro.co.uk
If you don't like SANs look away now, as recently that's what has been mainly floating our boat reviews-wise. But there's also a smartphone in there -
By Benny Har-Even, 5 Dec 2008 at 12:39
HTC has been ploughing the Windows Mobile route for a long time now, and arguably its perseverance has helped keep a struggling mobile platform alive with some decent hardware. Recently, we’ve had the Touch Diamond and the Touch Pro, but the Touch HD could be the best on of the lot, thanks to a stupendous 480 x 800 resolution as well as a host of other features. All in all though, it still failed to convince us.
Meanwhile, if your company has serious storage needs, then ProWare SB-3164E-G1A3 will have to be worth a look – our review IP SAN offered 8TB of storage for less than £5,000. For less than £5,500, that can be increased to 16TB.
One question though – where does Proware get the inspiration for its names? SB-3164E-G1A3 doesn't really get the heart all a-flutter.
If that kind of money is a bit rich, and your storage requirements are more modest, you could always try Iomega’s StorCenter Pro 200rL. It only offers 1TB of storage, but this 1U rack system will set you back less than a grand.
If you’re a Linux head, you’ll also be very excited to discover that this is Iomega’s first Linux based rack-based storage appliance – normally it goes for Windows. While this is all good, we found it overall rather lacking in the features department compared to competing products, leaving it trailing for value.
Finally, we've got British stalwart Boston serving up another SuperMicro-based IP SAN disk array in the guise of the Boston iGloo 24-T-StorMagic - complete with 24TB of storage and 10Gbe ports, the fastest Ethernet standard there is.
The solitary RAID controller is a potential point of failure, but for ten grand, what do you really expect?
www.itpro.co.uk
HTC has been ploughing the Windows Mobile route for a long time now, and arguably its perseverance has helped keep a struggling mobile platform alive with some decent hardware. Recently, we’ve had the Touch Diamond and the Touch Pro, but the Touch HD could be the best on of the lot, thanks to a stupendous 480 x 800 resolution as well as a host of other features. All in all though, it still failed to convince us.
Meanwhile, if your company has serious storage needs, then ProWare SB-3164E-G1A3 will have to be worth a look – our review IP SAN offered 8TB of storage for less than £5,000. For less than £5,500, that can be increased to 16TB.
One question though – where does Proware get the inspiration for its names? SB-3164E-G1A3 doesn't really get the heart all a-flutter.
If that kind of money is a bit rich, and your storage requirements are more modest, you could always try Iomega’s StorCenter Pro 200rL. It only offers 1TB of storage, but this 1U rack system will set you back less than a grand.
If you’re a Linux head, you’ll also be very excited to discover that this is Iomega’s first Linux based rack-based storage appliance – normally it goes for Windows. While this is all good, we found it overall rather lacking in the features department compared to competing products, leaving it trailing for value.
Finally, we've got British stalwart Boston serving up another SuperMicro-based IP SAN disk array in the guise of the Boston iGloo 24-T-StorMagic - complete with 24TB of storage and 10Gbe ports, the fastest Ethernet standard there is.
The solitary RAID controller is a potential point of failure, but for ten grand, what do you really expect?
www.itpro.co.uk
The software giant is taking steps to protect customers and partners from counterfeit software risks by taking action against counterfeit software onl
By Miya Knights, 5 Dec 2008 at 16:20
Microsoft today announced it was taking legal action against 63 online auctioneers in 12 different countries for selling counterfeit software.
The software maker said these firms allegedly orchestrated international marketing schemes to sell counterfeit software on online auction sites to unsuspecting customers, including the alleged fraudulent sale of so-called “Blue Edition” counterfeit Windows XP software and illicit other components.
While genuine Windows XP products are still available through some PC maker channels, the product is coming to the end of its sales cycle. So, the fictional “Blue Edition” marketing scheme fools unsuspecting consumers into purchasing a counterfeit software CD.
In the UK, Microsoft has initiated seven civil cases for alleged trademark infringement against internet auctioneers, accusing them of selling the high-quality counterfeit Windows software, as well as copies of Office 2007 and 2003.
Microsoft said that these UK sellers may have sold over 900 individual counterfeits, with an estimated value of over £69,000. The majority of the sellers were found after investigators made test purchases, although Microsoft said it was also reacting – in these cases – to complaints raised by concerned customers.
Although some global internet auction platforms, like eBay, proactively cooperate with Microsoft in the fight against counterfeiters, David Finn, associate general counsel for worldwide anti-piracy and anti-counterfeiting at Microsoft, said dishonest auctioneers were too often taking advantage of them.
In one case, counterfeiters in New Zealand allegedly sold counterfeit they obtained in China to customers in six countries.
Finn pointed out: “None of these actions we have filed today have been brought against eBay or other auction sites. In many cases, sites like eBay can and do play a role in fighting the problem.”
But he added: “These dealers are peddling bogus products that can put customers and their personal information at serious risk.”
Microsoft also highlighted its June 2006 forensic analysis of counterfeit Windows XP disks, which found that 34 per cent of the disks could not be installed correctly and 43 per cent contained tampered code that could leave a victim open to data loss, identity theft or other malicious attacks.
The lawsuits form part of Microsoft’s Genuine Software Initiative, which is aimed at increasing awareness about the consequences of software piracy, advancing engineering technologies to protect its intellectual property and supporting anti-piracy policy and law enforcement.
The 63 legal actions are taking place in the UK, US, Germany, France, Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Japan, Mexico and New Zealand.
Microsoft also urged businesses and consumers to be wary of counterfeit software, directing them to www.howtotell.com for information on how to make safe software purchasing decisions.
www.itpro.co.uk
Microsoft today announced it was taking legal action against 63 online auctioneers in 12 different countries for selling counterfeit software.
The software maker said these firms allegedly orchestrated international marketing schemes to sell counterfeit software on online auction sites to unsuspecting customers, including the alleged fraudulent sale of so-called “Blue Edition” counterfeit Windows XP software and illicit other components.
While genuine Windows XP products are still available through some PC maker channels, the product is coming to the end of its sales cycle. So, the fictional “Blue Edition” marketing scheme fools unsuspecting consumers into purchasing a counterfeit software CD.
In the UK, Microsoft has initiated seven civil cases for alleged trademark infringement against internet auctioneers, accusing them of selling the high-quality counterfeit Windows software, as well as copies of Office 2007 and 2003.
Microsoft said that these UK sellers may have sold over 900 individual counterfeits, with an estimated value of over £69,000. The majority of the sellers were found after investigators made test purchases, although Microsoft said it was also reacting – in these cases – to complaints raised by concerned customers.
Although some global internet auction platforms, like eBay, proactively cooperate with Microsoft in the fight against counterfeiters, David Finn, associate general counsel for worldwide anti-piracy and anti-counterfeiting at Microsoft, said dishonest auctioneers were too often taking advantage of them.
In one case, counterfeiters in New Zealand allegedly sold counterfeit they obtained in China to customers in six countries.
Finn pointed out: “None of these actions we have filed today have been brought against eBay or other auction sites. In many cases, sites like eBay can and do play a role in fighting the problem.”
But he added: “These dealers are peddling bogus products that can put customers and their personal information at serious risk.”
Microsoft also highlighted its June 2006 forensic analysis of counterfeit Windows XP disks, which found that 34 per cent of the disks could not be installed correctly and 43 per cent contained tampered code that could leave a victim open to data loss, identity theft or other malicious attacks.
The lawsuits form part of Microsoft’s Genuine Software Initiative, which is aimed at increasing awareness about the consequences of software piracy, advancing engineering technologies to protect its intellectual property and supporting anti-piracy policy and law enforcement.
The 63 legal actions are taking place in the UK, US, Germany, France, Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Japan, Mexico and New Zealand.
Microsoft also urged businesses and consumers to be wary of counterfeit software, directing them to www.howtotell.com for information on how to make safe software purchasing decisions.
www.itpro.co.uk
New malware images from MessageLabs and computational artist Alex Dragulescu.
By Asavin Wattanajantra, 5 Dec 2008 at 14:02
MessageLabs has released a new collection of malware which has been turned into fantastic computer images.
The vendor released the first images earlier this year, marking the first time that computer images had been developed which visualised internet threats.
The pictures were created by computational artist Alex Dragulescu, who used his own computer program and generated the individual features of each piece of malware.
The art was released alongside MessageLabs' 2008 annual security report, where it also made predictions about the new types of malware we will see in 2009.
Click here or on the 'Gallery' tab above to see the new images, while the previous images drawn up by Dragulescu are available here.
www.itpro.co.uk
MessageLabs has released a new collection of malware which has been turned into fantastic computer images.
The vendor released the first images earlier this year, marking the first time that computer images had been developed which visualised internet threats.
The pictures were created by computational artist Alex Dragulescu, who used his own computer program and generated the individual features of each piece of malware.
The art was released alongside MessageLabs' 2008 annual security report, where it also made predictions about the new types of malware we will see in 2009.
Click here or on the 'Gallery' tab above to see the new images, while the previous images drawn up by Dragulescu are available here.
www.itpro.co.uk
This week, Apple's attitude to security confuses, as does the drive to make mobile phones work on underground trains.
By Asavin Wattanajantra, 5 Dec 2008 at 13:35
Anti-virus security is a major part of IT, and Microsoft for all its sins has made big steps in trying to make its platform as safe as it possibly can be given the number of users.
But this week, Apple updated a statement they’ve always had that anti-virus software was encouraged, but then pulled it after a bit of negative publicity - and then stated that it’s not necessary because Macs are supposed to be ready “out of the box”.
Many people don’t feel anti-virus is necessary for Macs, with good reason - such as the problems coming from the anti-virus software outweighs the cost of actually getting infected. But others say Mac anti-virus is vital.
It’s confusing, and with security at the heart of any operating system, and more so with Apple given its increasing market share – necessary to get clear.
OK rant over - we did actually do some other stories this week.
Particularly interesting was the installation of a mobile service on the Glasgow underground system by O2.
It’s pretty much agreed by the IT PRO team that this might be a good idea on paper, we don’t want it anywhere near the Tube that we have in London. In rush hour, with a train packed full of commuters, the last thing we want to hear is somebody rabbiting away down their phone.
A better use of a handset is a new mobile mapping service which allows owners to track missing dogs using a combination of GPS, GSM and radio frequency technology.
Finally, Nokia revealed a rather snazzy successor to the N96. It's claimed the ‘world’s most advanced mobile computer’ is the new N97.
It sounds like it's got a lot to recommend it, such as a 16:9 widescreen display and links to social networking sites... as well as some cool-sounding multiple A-GPS sensors and an electronic compass.
It just sounds incredibly cool that its possible to get lost in unmapped territory, and by whipping out your phone you may well have in your hands a life-saving tool...
For more on this week's news, listen to our editorial team's unique take on the week’s news in our podcast, available here.
www.itpro.co.uk
Anti-virus security is a major part of IT, and Microsoft for all its sins has made big steps in trying to make its platform as safe as it possibly can be given the number of users.
But this week, Apple updated a statement they’ve always had that anti-virus software was encouraged, but then pulled it after a bit of negative publicity - and then stated that it’s not necessary because Macs are supposed to be ready “out of the box”.
Many people don’t feel anti-virus is necessary for Macs, with good reason - such as the problems coming from the anti-virus software outweighs the cost of actually getting infected. But others say Mac anti-virus is vital.
It’s confusing, and with security at the heart of any operating system, and more so with Apple given its increasing market share – necessary to get clear.
OK rant over - we did actually do some other stories this week.
Particularly interesting was the installation of a mobile service on the Glasgow underground system by O2.
It’s pretty much agreed by the IT PRO team that this might be a good idea on paper, we don’t want it anywhere near the Tube that we have in London. In rush hour, with a train packed full of commuters, the last thing we want to hear is somebody rabbiting away down their phone.
A better use of a handset is a new mobile mapping service which allows owners to track missing dogs using a combination of GPS, GSM and radio frequency technology.
Finally, Nokia revealed a rather snazzy successor to the N96. It's claimed the ‘world’s most advanced mobile computer’ is the new N97.
It sounds like it's got a lot to recommend it, such as a 16:9 widescreen display and links to social networking sites... as well as some cool-sounding multiple A-GPS sensors and an electronic compass.
It just sounds incredibly cool that its possible to get lost in unmapped territory, and by whipping out your phone you may well have in your hands a life-saving tool...
For more on this week's news, listen to our editorial team's unique take on the week’s news in our podcast, available here.
www.itpro.co.uk
Researchers at the University of Southampton are looking into the use of provenance technology and process auditing to improve trust in organisations
By Nicole Kobie, 5 Dec 2008 at 14:51
University of Southampton researchers have put their heads together to develop an application to track the use and security of private data, in order to rebuild public trust in organisations holding sensitive information.
Recent – and rather frequent – government data breaches prompted Professors Luc Moreau and Rocio Aldeco-Perez at the university's school of electronics and computer science to examine how auditing of the processes surrounding the collection, encryption and use of private data can be used to keep information secure. The pair came up with the idea of using the concept of “provenance” – an idea based on finding the origins of a piece of art.
“Provenance is a term which comes from diverse areas such as art, archaeology and palaeontology and describes the history of an object since its creation,” said Professor Moreau in a statement. “Its main focus is to establish that the object has not been forged or altered, we have found that we can now do the same audit with private data.”
The idea of provenance has been used previously – by Moreau and others – as a way of ensuring data is correct. Here, the researchers are applying it to the Data Protection Act.
The essential idea is to use an application to track a piece of data as it moves through the system, so its origins and use can be examined, such as following a data breach. “At the moment when data is leaked, there is no systematic way to analyse the scenario,” said Professor Moreau.
It could also be used in a more preventative form, according to the paper the pair published at a British Computer Society (BCS) conference.
Enforcement agencies – such as the Information Commissioner’s Office – could use auditing to check compliance with the Data Protection Act, while businesses could monitor themselves and set up alarms for when policies are breached and a leak is possible.
Essentially, embedding provenance technology into IT systems or with an add-on application could let organisations monitor their policies are being adhered to – key in the battle against such breaches, as many are caused by employees breaking company guidelines.
With that in mind, the pair developed a tool to tack onto systems to securely audit such data. A prototype of the tool will be available within six months, the university said.
The researchers plan to examine the potential to use middleware to track data. “Part of this work is to develop a provenance-based generic middleware to audit the processing of private information that can be used in applications independently of platforms and programming languages,” the paper said.
Click here to read the top 11 lessons we all should have learned from a year of data breaches.
www.itpro.co.uk
University of Southampton researchers have put their heads together to develop an application to track the use and security of private data, in order to rebuild public trust in organisations holding sensitive information.
Recent – and rather frequent – government data breaches prompted Professors Luc Moreau and Rocio Aldeco-Perez at the university's school of electronics and computer science to examine how auditing of the processes surrounding the collection, encryption and use of private data can be used to keep information secure. The pair came up with the idea of using the concept of “provenance” – an idea based on finding the origins of a piece of art.
“Provenance is a term which comes from diverse areas such as art, archaeology and palaeontology and describes the history of an object since its creation,” said Professor Moreau in a statement. “Its main focus is to establish that the object has not been forged or altered, we have found that we can now do the same audit with private data.”
The idea of provenance has been used previously – by Moreau and others – as a way of ensuring data is correct. Here, the researchers are applying it to the Data Protection Act.
The essential idea is to use an application to track a piece of data as it moves through the system, so its origins and use can be examined, such as following a data breach. “At the moment when data is leaked, there is no systematic way to analyse the scenario,” said Professor Moreau.
It could also be used in a more preventative form, according to the paper the pair published at a British Computer Society (BCS) conference.
Enforcement agencies – such as the Information Commissioner’s Office – could use auditing to check compliance with the Data Protection Act, while businesses could monitor themselves and set up alarms for when policies are breached and a leak is possible.
Essentially, embedding provenance technology into IT systems or with an add-on application could let organisations monitor their policies are being adhered to – key in the battle against such breaches, as many are caused by employees breaking company guidelines.
With that in mind, the pair developed a tool to tack onto systems to securely audit such data. A prototype of the tool will be available within six months, the university said.
The researchers plan to examine the potential to use middleware to track data. “Part of this work is to develop a provenance-based generic middleware to audit the processing of private information that can be used in applications independently of platforms and programming languages,” the paper said.
Click here to read the top 11 lessons we all should have learned from a year of data breaches.
www.itpro.co.uk
It's a constant arms race between IT and the criminals - so what is the new malware tech that we can expect to see next year?
By Asavin Wattanajantra
As IT gets more complex and sophisticated, so does the malware. MessageLabs revealed some of the new tricks and dangers we need to look out for next year.
1 - Mash-up malware
Web 2.0 is the ideal environment for malware which can change depending on the event or circumstances of a situation. Separately they may be harmless, but they can be constructed and combined to create a malicious attack.
With mash-ups users are able to combine data from many websites, but these can be used to construct a malicious attack. Malware-as-service will also be more common, which allows automated malware to be bought and released to order.
Cybercriminals are also very likely to find new ways to change and modify malware, making some undetectable even to the very best anti-virus solutions.
2 - Personal social network phishing
2008 saw the first time that criminals were making a much more concerted effort to phish social networking sites such as Facebook.
This will continue, but as bad guys will learn the way that members use the site they will develop better tricks to collect as much personal information as they can.
Regular email phishing will be a problem, but it’s unlikely to be the traditional Nigerian-style 419 scam which end up fooling you. Targeted emails are becoming more common as it becomes easier for anybody to become to phish thanks to malware-as-a-service.
3 - The battle to CAPTCHA
Surfing the net you may have noticed that CAPTCHA letters are becoming more difficult to read. This is because botnets have been advanced enough to break them thanks to CAPTCHA-breaking software.
Providers have tried to fight back by enhancing the CAPTCHA process, which usually means making the letters difficult to read so CAPTCHA breaking software won’t read it.
Like many aspects of computer security, it’s an arms race between the CAPTCHA provider and the CAPTCHA breaker to see who has the best technology, either for defence or attack.
4 - Increased reputation hijacking
Thanks to the discovery of a fundamental flaw in the design of the internet DNS (Domain Name Service) protocol, it is in theory possible to poison a cache and cause somebody to be given the wrong IP address when it comes to something like email or simply surfing a website.
If in 2009 criminals successfully manage to take advantage of this flaw, it could lead to extremely serious repercussions. This is because criminals would be able to masquerade as a legitimate server and create a website which many people will be fooled into divulging credit confidential details.
5 - The new botnet generation
With the major botnets suffering a few hits at the back end of 2008 due to hosting services being taken down, these could move to other areas like Russia or China which may carry the technology for a more evolved type of malware.
MessageLabs described a particularly sophisticated type of botnet using hypervisor technology. This is where malware can exist as a virtualisation layer running directly on the hardware and intercepting key operating system calls.
This would mean the real operating system will remain unaware of the existence of underlying malware which is controlling the computer
www.itpro.co.uk
As IT gets more complex and sophisticated, so does the malware. MessageLabs revealed some of the new tricks and dangers we need to look out for next year.
1 - Mash-up malware
Web 2.0 is the ideal environment for malware which can change depending on the event or circumstances of a situation. Separately they may be harmless, but they can be constructed and combined to create a malicious attack.
With mash-ups users are able to combine data from many websites, but these can be used to construct a malicious attack. Malware-as-service will also be more common, which allows automated malware to be bought and released to order.
Cybercriminals are also very likely to find new ways to change and modify malware, making some undetectable even to the very best anti-virus solutions.
2 - Personal social network phishing
2008 saw the first time that criminals were making a much more concerted effort to phish social networking sites such as Facebook.
This will continue, but as bad guys will learn the way that members use the site they will develop better tricks to collect as much personal information as they can.
Regular email phishing will be a problem, but it’s unlikely to be the traditional Nigerian-style 419 scam which end up fooling you. Targeted emails are becoming more common as it becomes easier for anybody to become to phish thanks to malware-as-a-service.
3 - The battle to CAPTCHA
Surfing the net you may have noticed that CAPTCHA letters are becoming more difficult to read. This is because botnets have been advanced enough to break them thanks to CAPTCHA-breaking software.
Providers have tried to fight back by enhancing the CAPTCHA process, which usually means making the letters difficult to read so CAPTCHA breaking software won’t read it.
Like many aspects of computer security, it’s an arms race between the CAPTCHA provider and the CAPTCHA breaker to see who has the best technology, either for defence or attack.
4 - Increased reputation hijacking
Thanks to the discovery of a fundamental flaw in the design of the internet DNS (Domain Name Service) protocol, it is in theory possible to poison a cache and cause somebody to be given the wrong IP address when it comes to something like email or simply surfing a website.
If in 2009 criminals successfully manage to take advantage of this flaw, it could lead to extremely serious repercussions. This is because criminals would be able to masquerade as a legitimate server and create a website which many people will be fooled into divulging credit confidential details.
5 - The new botnet generation
With the major botnets suffering a few hits at the back end of 2008 due to hosting services being taken down, these could move to other areas like Russia or China which may carry the technology for a more evolved type of malware.
MessageLabs described a particularly sophisticated type of botnet using hypervisor technology. This is where malware can exist as a virtualisation layer running directly on the hardware and intercepting key operating system calls.
This would mean the real operating system will remain unaware of the existence of underlying malware which is controlling the computer
www.itpro.co.uk
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