15 posts tagged “national”
Security issues with Apple's Safari browser and the OS X operating system have come under fire by security expert Charles Miller.
Speaking last week, Mr Miller said he had remained quiet about flaws in Apple's security as he was concerned someone would be able to exploit the flaw. However, now that a patch has been issued to correct the problem, he states the firm had been "negligent" as problems with its security had made its iPhone product vulnerable to attack, reports CMP United Business Media.
Nevertheless, Mr Millar did state that Apple's proactive attitude in relation to potential security flaws raises it above its competitors. "One thing that Apple does do that Microsoft doesn't, is they proactively fix vulnerabilities that they find," he told the website. "Microsoft, only in rare cases will issue a security update for bugs they find internally until someone else finds it and reports it."
Mr Miller also concluded that, although the Mac OS X system is behind Microsoft in terms of development, he "still loves his iPhone". Apple expected to sell more iPhones than it actually did during the first month following the product's launch. for information on other digital products and services visit www.dsldance.com
Internet users have been warned of thousands of fake emails purporting to be from various government agencies being disseminated around the internet.
The emails pretend to be from agencies such as the Justice Department, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Those that receive the emails are asked to divulge personal details such as social security numbers and bank account information.
Lois Greisman, associate director of the FTC's division of marketing practices, said: "We are the agency that brought you the Do Not Call Registry and CAN-SPAM. "We're not likely to send out unsolicited emails." CAN-SPAM is a law from 2003 that restricts the sending of commercial spam emails. According to a report from the Anti-Phishing Working Group, the number of phishing websites rose to 37,438 in May of this year, compared to 11,976 during the same month in 2006.
Last month, the Treasury said that it has received thousands of complaints about spam emails claiming to be from the IRS. For more information on digital products and services visit www.dsldance.com
The popular Firefox web browser is has the same security flaw that Internet Explorer does, Mozilla has admitted.
Mozilla had originally stated that Microsoft was responsible for an input validation bug that passes possibly malicious URLs to other applications. However, Mozilla's chief security officer, Window Snyder, has admitted that Firefox has the same "critical vulnerability". Ms. Snyder said: "Over the weekend, we learned about a new scenario that identifies ways that Firefox could also be used as the entry point.
"We thought this was just a problem with IE. It turns out, it is a problem with Firefox as well." When a user is browsing the internet with Firefox, a special URL could be used to send malicious data to another application, she added. There is possibly another security issue that Mozilla must face in its password manager system, which stores user passwords. Snyder told internetnews.com recently that the programme was being considered for a total rewrite.
For information on other digital products and services visit www.dsldance.com
Apple's much-touted new iPhone has been hacked into by a team of security experts in Maryland.
Independent Security Evaluators (ISE) has claimed that it has found a flaw in the iPhone which could let hackers access private data kept on the phone. A cyber criminal could gain entry to the phone either through a wireless access point or a website, according to ISE. Since its release earlier this month hackers all over the world have been trying to find a weakness in iPhone, however this is the first successful attempt.
ISE explained that the iPhone connects to wireless internet networks by name, so an attacker could conceivably make up a network with the same name as one already used by the phone. Then instead of accessing a web page, the phone would access exploit code, allowing a hacker to control the phone. A spokesperson from Apple told the New York Times: "Apple takes security very seriously and has a great track record of addressing potential vulnerabilities before they can affect users."
For information on other digital products and services visit www.dsldance.com
A 75-year-old Swedish woman has become the owner of the fastest residential broadband connection in the world.
Sigbritt Lothberg's 40 gigabits-per-second connection was set up for her by her son, Peter, a networking expert who works for Cisco Systems. Mr. Lothberg said: "We wanted to show that that there are no limitations to Internet speed. "She's a brand new Internet user. She didn't even have a computer before."
A new modulation technique was used in setting up the connection, involving the sending of information between two routers spaced 1,240 miles apart, with no transponders in between. Using her high-speed Internet connection, Ms. Lothberg could download an entire movie in less than two seconds. This is thousands of times faster than a regular residential connection.
Ms Lothberg lives in Karlstad in central Sweden and mainly uses her connection to read online newspapers. The average residential internet connection speed is eight Mbps.
For more information on high-speed Internet connections visit www.dsldance.com
Communications giant AT&T is focusing on developing new products for its disabled customers, the company has claimed.
Those with impaired vision or blindness are being targeted by two new products called Mobile Speak and Mobile Magnifier. To develop the products, AT&T worked with Code Factory, a developer of software solutions for the blind. Currently AT&T is getting advice from experts within the disabled community on designing further services to aid the visually impaired.
Paul Schroeder, vice president of programs and policy for the American Foundation for the Blind, said: "The partnership of companies such as Code Factory and AT&T bodes well for those in the disabled community, demonstrating that they have not forgotten the visually impaired demographic." Such companies are looking for fresh and "unorthodox" ways of extending their services to the disabled community, Mr Schroeder added.
Meanwhile, AT&T has added its support to the Federal Communication Commission's proposals for the auction of the 700 MHz spectrum auction, which would expand choice for those who use wireless.
For more information on digital products and services visit www.dsldance.com
Internet search giant Google is to debut a new mobile search service that will let users search for ringtones, games and other content online, reports the Wall Street Journal.
The move is part of a wider effort by the company to invest more heavily in the wireless sector and challenge companies such as Verizon Wireless and AT&T. Though Google already has a mobile version of its popular web search, the company now plans to become a mobile access point for all internet content.
Seattle-based Medio, which currently runs a similar service for T-Mobile and Verizon, is another company that could be threatened by the new service. Google also unveiled at the beginning of this week a new service that will allow small and medium-sized companies to offer customers a search function on their websites. Dubbed Google Custom Search Business Edition, the product will cost $100 per year and will not require the businesses to display Google advertisements.
For more information on digital product6s and services visit www.dsldance.com
Yahoo! has announced the launch of a new customized advertising product that tailors promotions to the web users' characteristics.
SmartAds enables marketers to target Internet users by taking their age, gender, location and online use into account, CNET News reports. Yahoo! spokesperson Guade Paez described the new service, which also boasts an advertisement creation tool, as "behavioral targeting". "This makes display advertising more of a direct response vehicle than just branding," she commented.
According to the news provider, the new advertisements are expected to first appear on Yahoo!'s publisher sites before being rolled out across its other partner web sites. Last month, Yahoo! combined its US-based search and display advertising sales teams as part of its continuing effort to meet the requirements of its marketing customers. Sue Decker, president of the firm, said that by joining the two services, Yahoo! could "better serve" its advertisers and build upon its position in the market.
For more information on digital products and services visit www.broadbandnational.com
For the first time ever, Denver-based satellite broadband company
WildBlue has turned on its very own satellite, thereby substantially
expanding its capabilities.
The company predominantly provides broadband service to homes and
businesses in rural areas of the U.S. that previously used dial-up
services. Dubbed WildBlue-1, the new satellite will allow the company
to take on new subscribers in coastal states that previously it could
not service.
David Leonard, WildBlue's CEO, said: "The launch of WildBlue-1 went
extremely well, and we are now utilizing the additional capacity that
this new satellite provides. "WildBlue is eager to offer WildBlue's
high-speed Internet service to those rural consumers across the United
States who have been waiting for an affordable alternative to dial-up."
The company has approximately 130,000 customers and offers broadband
for a minimum of $49.95 per month. Currently, HughesNet is the
predominant satellite broadband supplier in the US, with 325,000
subscribers, reports the Associated Press.
“Although not as fast as cable, satellite broadband services are far superior to dial-up connections,” states Mark Weibel, EVP of Marketing for Broadband National whose website broadbandnational.com is considered the industry leader for users shopping for broadband and related digital products and services. “Broadband opens the door to other exciting digital products and services.”
For more information on broadband and other related products and services, or to comparative shop for the best possible broadband deal visit www.broadbandnational.com
San Diego-based Slacker.com has debuted its own
satellite-based radio service, which combines Internet radio, portable
music and satellite distribution.
Currently the service is only in the testing stage, but when it is
fully functioning could provide over 10,000 stations to users.
And by using the Slacker DJ function, the service also makes it
possible for listeners to devise their own stations based on the kind
of music they like.
Slacker co-founder and chief executive Dennis Mudd, said: "The only
problem is that until now, personalized radio has been stuck on the PC.
"Slacker solves that problem."
Though Slacker is ad-based and therefore free of charge, the company is
set to launch a premium service costing $7.50 per month, which will be
ad-free and provide more flexibility to users.
In addition, the company is also to release the Slacker Personal Radio
Player, which will be Wi-Fi enabled and able to play the user's
personal playlists.
“Slacker has a taken a unique approach to the radio business,” states Mark Weibel EVP of Marketing for Broadband National whose website broadbandnational.com is considered the industry leader for users shopping for broadband and related digital products and services. “It’s much like an MP3 player but instead of play lists of songs Slacker.com offers customized radio stations.”
For information on broadband and other digital products and services visit www.broadbandnational.com
