6th July 2001 Archive

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IIS buffer-overrun attack has been scripted

No skillz? No worriez

A Japanese computer enthusiast named 'HighSpeed Junkie' has developed an attack script for a recently-identified unchecked buffer in the Microsoft IIS (Internet Information Services) Indexing Service ISAPI filter, which, if exploited, can yield system-level access to an intruder. At issue is IDQ.DLL, a component of Index Server …

Software 6 Jul 2001, 07:42
Win2K becomes a spam relay

SMTP authentication out of control

A flaw in the Win-2K SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) authentication scheme allows unauthorized users to access the system using bogus credentials and bounce spam and death threats off unwitting users' machines with impunity. "An attacker who exploited the vulnerability could gain user-level privileges on the SMTP service, …

Software 6 Jul 2001, 08:11
Phoenix BIOS phone-home questions addressed

Technical details to follow, we're told

It's taken time and a number of e-mail exchanges, but we have got a preliminary response from Phoenix on the questions we raised in a recent story regarding the new PhoenixNet-enabled BIOS, which automatically connects users to Phoenix servers. Anecdotal reports had suggested that the Phoenix installation CD enables the Net …

Personal 6 Jul 2001, 09:00
IP Telephony poised to take off, at last

Cisco breaks cover to urge firms to junk their PBXs

Productivity applications will drive adoption of IP Telephony, according to Cisco Systems, which argues companies are at last ready to junk their PBXs and embrace a converged network architecture. Networking vendors have been promoting the idea that firms should integrate their voice and data networks for years, citing benefits …

Data Networking 6 Jul 2001, 09:33
iomart mops up OnCue's punters

Failed broadband provider sells off customers cheap

Scottish broadband outfit iomart has paid £200,000 to acquire more than 600 business DSL customers from failed start-up, OnCue Telecommunications Ltd. iomart claims the acquisition of OnCue's customer base will add around £1 million a year to its revenue. It also claims this makes it the second largest DSL operator in the UK, …

Broadband 6 Jul 2001, 09:35
'Ballmer doesn't look like Uncle Fester' MS flack lashes out

And The Guardian steals our jokes...

The Register is saddened to have to report yet another instance of Microsoft giving preferential treatment to certain elements of the press. In today's Guardian Richard Adams (who we note has not been round to ply us with beers recently) writes that colleague Jane Martinson has received a complaint from MS spinner Mark Thomas …

Bootnotes 6 Jul 2001, 10:03
MS uk.gov deal wobbles as spin doctors seek revenge

Time for the horse's head in the bed?

Microsoft's cosy relationship with the UK government may be about to go critical, thanks to a combination of outraged Unix boffins and vengeful government spin doctors. E-envoy Andrew Pinder himself seems to be back-tracking like crazy on the Microsoft connection, while cabals of Whitehall techies plot the counter-revolution. …

Software 6 Jul 2001, 11:35
‘Bill Gates’ hacker escapes jail

Psychiatric and community service order for teen cracker Curador

A Welsh cracker whose "campaign" to expose the insecurity of ecommerce sites led to an FBI investigation has escaped jail. 19 year-old Raphael Gray was sentenced to a psychiatric and community service rehabilitation order of three years, in a hearing before Judge Gareth Davies at Swansea Crown Court today. Gray (whose handle …

Security 6 Jul 2001, 11:38
MSN Instant Messenger still dead. But why?

And do we really care?

Microsoft's Instant Messenger service is still giving people problems across the world - with those capable of actually getting on finding their contact lists are missing. The service was down throughout the world on Wednesday. It started working on Thursday but many people were reporting difficulty in getting on and a complete …

Media 6 Jul 2001, 11:43
BT mulls price cut for DSL

Don't hold your breath

BT is toying with the idea of reducing the wholesale cost of DSL services in the UK. The monster telco is currently looking at two initiatives which could give it scope to reduce prices. As reported last week, BT is considering introducing a "wires only" option leaving customers free to shop around for their modems. It is …

Broadband 6 Jul 2001, 11:45
Technophobia drives politician from office

Says can't cope with email, pulls out plug

A Dutch politician has quit his job after claiming he can't take the pressures of the wired world. Alderman Edgar Kaldijk resigned from the local council in Peleka, saying he was unable to cope with the amount of emails he received each day, AP reports. The 64-year-old said he was fed up with people asking him why he hadn't …

Media 6 Jul 2001, 11:47
AMD Q2 profits will miss forecasts by a mile

Weak flash memory demand blamed

AMD has warned its second quarter earnings will fall miles short of forecasts. The chipmaker yesterday said sales for the three months ended July 1 were $985 million, down 17 per cent down on the first quarter. In April the company said it was expecting a maximum drop in sales of ten per cent. Revenue is also down 11 per cent …

Channel 6 Jul 2001, 11:48
Marconi drops even further; everyone suffers

Seems folk ain't too happy

Marconi's shares are continuing to fall this morning. Down 4.5 per cent to 107.5p - the lowest for 20 years and then by 11am down to 104p. Shareholders are furious and are calling for the head of CEO Lord Simpson and his deputy John Mayo. Not only this but Marconi's fall has had a knock-on effect across the whole market (it …

Business 6 Jul 2001, 11:50
iDesk ex-employees mount slagfest

Enough to make you wince

Employees at iDesk are taking their own revenge on the company following its decision to axe 120 staff. In postings to a forum set up in the wake of redundancies, employees past and present paint an unpleasant picture of life at the company. There are, for example, allegations of drug-taking among staff working the night shift …

Media 6 Jul 2001, 13:28
Nautilus resurfaces from Eazel wreckage

File mangler breathes again

It's a terrible thought, but Eazel's demise may prove to be the best thing ever to happen to Nautilus, the software libre file manager. Eazel went titsup.tar.gz in March, having burned through $13 million trying to make a business of selling services around Nautilus. But the GPL software lives on. A new release 1.04 issued …

Software 6 Jul 2001, 13:32
Bright Station retags itself smartly

Raises £12 million

UK Internet group Bright Station plc has changed its name to Smartlogik Group plc, after securing £12 million to bail out the company. In May the outfit warned that unless it received additional funding it would run out of cash by the end of the summer. Then, it was losing £3 million a month and only had £4 million left in the …

Media 6 Jul 2001, 15:24
Europe should tackle home-grown Echelons, says MEP

European spying as much a menace as US bugging

A European Parliamentary committee report on Echelon has failed to censure Holland, Germany and France who are likely to be equally active in spying on their citizens electronically. That's the view of Maurizio Turco, an Italian member of the European Parliament, who sat on its temporary committee on Echelon and whose opinions …

Security 6 Jul 2001, 15:31
If you downloaded VirtuaGirl click here

Don't panic. Just a small thing

Okay, so we wrote a story about VirtuaGirl this week. Now while you may be enjoying your two-inch-high lady dancing on your PC, the software does install a little bit of spyware on your PC. Fortunately, it's not malicious. It simply queries when you last ran VirtuaGirl, where and how you last started it and whether you have …

Media 6 Jul 2001, 17:28
Dot-commers to blame for anti-capitalist violence, says WTO boss

Roll over, Lehrer

"Dot com types" are to blame for the violence at recent gatherings of the World Trade Organisation, according to WTO director general Mike Moore. Moore made his remarks in Geneva, in an appeal for citizens groups (NGOs) to distance themselves from "masked stone-throwers who claim to want more transparency, anti-globalization …

Media 6 Jul 2001, 22:13