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19th August 2004 Archive

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  • British Gas warns punters about rogue diallers

    Let's be careful out there

    British Gas is writing to all of its 400,000 telephone customers warning them about rogue dialler scams that hijack their computers and run up huge phone bills. The leaflets are being sent to British Gas's home phone customers with advice on what premium rate numbers are, how to spot them on bills and how to complain to the …

    Music and Media 19 Aug 2004, 09:39

  • DIY phishing kits hit the Net

    My little fraudster

    Do-it-yourself phishing kits are being made available for download free of charge from the Internet, according to anti-virus firm Sophos. Anyone surfing the Web can now get their hands on these kits, launch their own phishing attack and potentially defraud computer users of the contents of their bank accounts. These DIY kits …

    Spam 19 Aug 2004, 09:42

  • Nintendo patents key console online gaming features

    Newly granted IP extends 1999 Net-connected video game patent

    Nintendo has been granted a US patent that yields it the ownership of key online multi-player gaming facilities, including player league tables, voice communications and online gaming host services. The patent, number 6,769,989, was granted on 3 August this year, but is essentially a continuation of another Nintendo patent, 6, …

    Consoles 19 Aug 2004, 10:06

  • Lindows postpones IPO

    Fickle stock market

    Lindows is postponing its IPO, citing market conditions. The Linux distro vendor has not abandoned the idea altogether - its S-1 registration statement remains on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Now for a statement from Michael Robertson, Lindows CEO: "Lindows won't be forced into a cut-rate IPO by a fickle …

    Business 19 Aug 2004, 10:23

  • Cornice countersues Seagate

    Hard drive rival's patents 'invalid', company claims

    Cornice has countersued hard drive rival Seagate, the maker of micro hard drives said yesterday. In a complaint filed with the US District Court for Delaware, the Cornice asked the court not only to determine that certain Seagate patents are invalid but to rule that the latter's attempt to sue Cornice for alleged violation of …

    Storage 19 Aug 2004, 10:34

  • Microsoft wins another Eolas web patent battle

    But the fat lady isn't even humming

    The US Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) has ruled, once again, that The University of Califonia's controversial '906' browser patent is invalid. The decision gives Microsoft the upper hand in its battle with university spin-off Eolas, the sole licensee of the patent. A source "familiar with the documents" said the PTO ruling …

    Developer 19 Aug 2004, 10:41

  • Sony, MS trim UK console prices

    Not before time, says games biz

    Microsoft and Sony yesterday trimmed the prices of the Xbox and PlayStation 2 as the pair square up against each other for the coming Christmas sales period - not to mention couch potatoes who've spent the summer on the sofa, eyes glued to the Olympics. In the UK, the Xbox will retail for £100 ($182) - or €150 ($185) on the …

    Consoles 19 Aug 2004, 10:53

  • Aussie wireless broadband firm hints at iTunes launch

    Unwired goes online in Sydney

    An Australian WISP has signed a deal with Apple that suggests the Mac maker will soon open its iTunes Music Store down under. Apple Australia apparently won't talk about a local ITMS. However, Sydney-based Wireless ISP Unwired, which launched this week, said it is teaming up with Apple and the focus of the deal is "music in …

    Telecoms 19 Aug 2004, 11:44

  • Number crunching boffins unearth crypto flaws

    Making a hash of it

    Cryptographic researchers have discovered weaknesses in the encryption algorithms that underpin the security and integrity of electronic signatures. The issue concerns hash functions - one way mathematical functions that produce a small fixed length string from a much longer message. This is sometimes called a message digest. …

    Enterprise Security 19 Aug 2004, 12:24

  • Google goes GOOG at $85 a share

    Long awaited IPO goes ahead

    Google has finally set its IPO share price at $85 and will debut on the Nasdaq today as GOOG. The news follows the Securities and Exchange Commission's decision, yesterday afternoon, to greenlight the IPO. The share price, determined by Dutch auction, is at the bottom end of the revised price range Google said it would accept, …

    Financial News 19 Aug 2004, 12:26

  • 3 UK claims 1.2m subscribers

    Took a little time

    3 UK today claimed 1.2 million subscribers, at last taking it above the million subscriber target it set for itself to reach by Christmas last year. Worldwide, the Hutchison Whampoa-owned 3G mobile phone network operator has 3.2 million subscribers as of today, a net gain of 2.5 million customers in six months. 3's UK launch …

    Mobile 19 Aug 2004, 12:58

  • Virgin Radio touts Napster chart deal

    Nothing to do with Branson's Virgin Digital

    UK station Virgin Radio is to begin broadcasting weekly chart rundowns based on Napster's online single sales figures, even as the Virgin Group's own digital music business, Virgin Digital, prepares to launch in the US and UK. Napster announced the tie-in today. Virgin Radio will begin presenting the company's top 20 sales …

    Music and Media 19 Aug 2004, 13:22

  • Alienware evolves from gamers to corporates

    Revamped website signals desire for broader customer base

    Alienware UK has updated its web site in a bid to shed its image as a purveyor of odd-looking, geek-friendly systems and recast itself as a provider of odd-looking business, creative consumer-friendly products. The changes undertaken in the UK follow a similar make-over for the US operation, which saw the company attempt to …

    Channel 19 Aug 2004, 14:32

  • Nortel fires seven beancounters (and 3,500 more)

    North America bears brunt

    Nortel Networks is firing seven finance employees in the wake of an accounting scandal which has already claimed the scalps of its former president and chief executive officer, chief financial officer and controller. At the same time the data networking equipment vendor is waving goodbye to 3,500 staff, mostly in North America, …

    Financial News 19 Aug 2004, 14:32

  • US broadband use tops dial-up

    It rocks

    More people access the Net in the US using a broadband connection than by dial-up, according to the latest stats from Nielsen//NetRatings. In July, 63m people accessed the Net by broadband, compared to 61.3m by a narrowband connection. Nielsen//NetRatings counts ISDN, cable modems and DSL as broadband, while narrowband includes …

    Telecoms 19 Aug 2004, 14:36

  • Oracle joins the monthly patch bandwagon

    Breaks cover

    Oracle is following Microsoft's lead in adopting as monthly patch cycle starting at the end of this month. Like Microsoft before it, Oracle reckons a monthly patch schedule is easier for its customers. Oracle was heavily criticised earlier this month by UK-based Next Generation Security Software (NGS Software) for its delay in …

    Enterprise Security 19 Aug 2004, 14:48

  • Amazon snaps up Chinese etailer

    Oh, what Joyo.com

    Amazon.com is moving in on China, by buying Joyo.com, the country's biggest retailer of books, music and videos. The deal values Joyo.com - which is headquartered in the British Virgin Islands - at $75m (£41m). Said Amazon.com founder and chief exec Jeff Bezos: "We are very pleased to be entering the Chinese market with Joyo. …

    Financial News 19 Aug 2004, 15:57

  • Epson parades tea cup-sized flying robot

    Buzz over tiny whirlybird

    Epson has developed a flying-robot that is the size of a teacup, but which is controlled remotely by Bluetooth for the duration of its three-minute flights. The FR-II micro flying-robot is the latest in a long line of Seiko Epson's flying micro-robots. The craft can take off, vary its altitude, follow flight path instructions …

    Science 19 Aug 2004, 15:58

  • Neptune shows off five new moons

    Gas giants battle for headlines

    A team of international astronomers has found five new moons orbiting Neptune. Previously the planet had seven known moons, including a couple of oddities: Triton and Nereid. The moons were discovered in observations made from ground-based telescopes in Chile and Hawaii. It is almost as if the larger planets of our solar system …

    Science 19 Aug 2004, 16:00

  • Motorola plumps for HP Linux-on-Itanium bozes

    Surprise move

    In a somewhat surprising move, telecommunications equipment maker Motorola has chosen a variant of Hewlett-Packard's Itanium rack servers and Carrier-Grade Linux as the foundation of two of its next-generation lines of mobile telecom switching equipment. HP will be pleased with the news, as it proves that its Itanium platform …

    Servers 19 Aug 2004, 16:16

  • South Pole 'cyberterrorist' hack wasn't the first

    Threat over-egged

    It's a tale Tom Clancy might have written. From their lair in distant Romania, shadowy cyber extortionists penetrate the computers controlling the life support systems at a Antarctic research station, confronting the 58 scientists and contractors wintering over at the remote post with the sudden prospect of an icy death. After …

    Enterprise Security 19 Aug 2004, 16:33

  • Cisco warns on router bug

    In brief Moderate risk

    Cisco yesterday warned of a bug in its routing software that could be exploited in denial of service attacks. The network giant has issued a software patch for its Internetwork Operating System (IOS) software to defend against exploitation. The vuln stems from a flaw in processing Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) protocol …

    Enterprise Security 19 Aug 2004, 16:48

  • IBM threatens SCO with GPL hearing

    SCO in lose/lose situation

    Tech behemoth IBM has accused SCO of copyright infringement because it did not abide by the GNU General Public License (GPL) in using IBM's copyrighted work. IBM is seeking summary judgment for an injunction against SCO. At issue is a chunk of IBM's Linux code that SCO was authorized to use and distribute on condition that it …

    Operating Systems 19 Aug 2004, 16:54

  • Should Google blame Foot in Mouth disease, or Evil Bankers?

    Analysis Lost in Space

    Thanks to a cocktail of junk science and blind faith, techno-utopians love to believe that markets are "self-correcting". Only this doesn't apply to the stock market this week, they now tell us. Google's admirers are determined to believe that Wall Street has somehow conspired to wreck the company's initial public offering. But …

    Music and Media 19 Aug 2004, 18:30

  • Court tells RIAA and Congress to let P2P software thrive

    Keep on trading for the sake of innovation

    The same court that once helped shutdown Napster delivered a punishing blow today to the record labels, confirming an earlier decision that P2P networks are legal. The court then went one step further to say it's unwise to alter copyright law in a way that could stifle innovation just to suit well-established players in a market …

    Music and Media 19 Aug 2004, 20:29

  • Database snafu puts US Senator on terror watch list

    Good thing he wasn't wearing a turban

    US Senator Ted Kennedy (Democrat, Massachusetts) was prohibited from flying because his name sparked a terror alert, the Associated Press reports. Apparently, the Senator's name came up on a terrorist watch list, or no-fly list, while attempting to board a US Airways shuttle out of Washington. A vigilant airline clerk refused …

    ID 19 Aug 2004, 20:58

  • Infected in 20 minutes

    Opinion Stepping in and taking charge

    What normally happens within twenty minutes? That's how long your average unprotected PC running Windows XP, fresh out of the box, will last once it's connected to the Internet. It's interesting to ponder just how much time - in hours, in minutes, sometimes in mere seconds - it takes for a disaster to occur. The space shuttle …

    PCs 19 Aug 2004, 21:48