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24th January 2013 Archive

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  • Asia has fastest internet, launches most cyber-attacks

    Hong Kong, South Korea good – China, not so much

    Not only is Asia home to the world's fastest internet connections, but it's also the source of the most internet attack traffic, according to new data from content delivery provider Akamai. The latest edition of the company's quarterly "State of the Internet" report once again crowns Hong Kong as home of the fastest broadband …

    Broadband 24 Jan 01:13

  • Asteroid mining and a post-scarcity economy

    Show me the (lack of) money

    In the last year, we've seen two commercial ventures announce different plans to harvest the material bounty of the solar system by mining asteroids. So are we at the foothills of a post-scarcity economy or are people blowing a lot of hot air on the latest fad du jour? In April, Planetary Resources announced a scheme to fire …

    Science 24 Jan 01:30

  • Microsoft to stream blue movies

    Azure Media Services ready to send your bits to almost any device

    Microsoft has unveiled a cloudy content distribution service that will intensify its competition with Amazon Web Services (AWS). Azure Media Services is billed as a “cloud platform for managing and distributing media to any screen, anywhere” and as a cloudified version of Microsoft's existing Media Platform. Users can encode …

    Cloud 24 Jan 01:35

  • Sorry, Apple-haters, but Cupertinian doom not on the horizon

    Let's take a closer look at those 'disappointing' numbers, shall we?

    As these words are being typed, Apple's stock is taking a beating, down around 10 per cent from its $514.01 Wednesday close, in reaction to what Wall Street has clearly characterized as disappointing financial results for the first quarter of Apple's 2013 fiscal year. May your humble Reg reporter take this opportunity to point …

    Financial News 24 Jan 01:46

  • Samsung set for compensation talks over staff death claims

    Toxic gases in chip plants caused leukaemia, says group

    Samsung looks close to concluding a six-year dispute over conditions in the firm’s chip plants, which have been blamed for scores of worker deaths from leukemia and other diseases. The Supporters for the Health And Rights of People in the Semiconductor industry (SHARPS), which represents the ill workers and family members, …

    Business 24 Jan 03:12

  • Dotcom says German authors' society canned Mega launch vid

    When GEMA met MEGA

    Another day, another controversy: storage locker launcher Kim Dotcom says a video of the all-singing, all-dancing party at which the ON switch was flicked for his new Mega service was taken down from YouTube on suspicion of copyright naughtiness after a request from German authors' society GEMA. Dotcom made his allegation in …

    Networks 24 Jan 04:27

  • Boffins take the temperature of the cosmos

    Who needs global warming when science finds universal cooling?

    The universe is cold and getting colder, according to work by an international team of scientists working with CSIRO’s Australia Telescope Compact Array near the NSW town of Narrabri. The group has pinned the average temperature of the universe at 2.73 Kelvin – not far above absolute zero – but more impressively, it’s also …

    Science 24 Jan 04:52

  • Intel to leave desktop motherboard market

    Chipzilla checks out

    Intel has decided to stop making desktop motherboards. Except one. In a statement sent to El Reg, a Chipzilla spokesdroid told us “In order to focus on new and innovative areas in desktop computing, Intel has made the decision to ramp down the Desktop Motherboard Business over the course of the next three years.” Motherboard …

    Hardware 24 Jan 05:44

  • Inspur's K1 marks China's high-end server debut

    Itanium box has grunt to spare, little application support

    Little-known Chinese vendor Inspur has finally unveiled what it claims is the country’s first fully home-grown, high-end server. The Inspur Tiansuo K1, which was actually showcased at IDF Beijing last year, has taken four years and 750 million yuan (£76m) to develop, according to Xinhua. Its development was part of the “863 …

    Servers 24 Jan 05:53

  • CA new CEO says biz has 'room for improvement'

    Time for honesty as Q3 sales and profits dip

    Just three weeks into his tenure as CA CEO, Michael Gregoire clearly isn't culpable for the fall in both turnover and profits at the software biz and his upbeat tone confirms this. The firm generated $1.2bn in sales, down four per cent in its fiscal Q3 ended 31 December including a $12m currency headwind. Operating profit slid …

    The Channel 24 Jan 07:05

  • UK way behind pack on broadband speed in Europe

    Needs lessons from Swiss Toni (probably)

    While superfast fibre lobbyists continue to try and push nations around the world into deploying more nimble broadband networks, a report out today showed a 7 per cent slip in average global connection speeds between the second and third quarter of 2012. Content delivery outfit Akamai revealed its latest analysis relating to …

    Broadband 24 Jan 07:28

  • Microsoftie's tell-all on 'rival-flinging' Ballmer: The politics of disbelief

    Analysis Corporate cut-throats, bluster... but what about the tech?

    A former Microsoft executive has sketched an unflattering portrait of Steve Ballmer that depicts him as a cut-throat Machiavellian schemer, and claimed in his new book that the top man at Redmond has forced out rivals who challenged his authority. Joachim Kempin, a former head of Microsoft's OEM business, claims chief …

    CIO 24 Jan 08:03

  • RAT-flingers target human right activists in watering-hole attack

    Jeux sans Frontières

    The Reporters without Borders website was compromised on Tuesday to run a watering-hole attack. Researchers speculated that the attackers were likely targeting the human rights activists who visit the NGO's online address. So-called watering hole attacks are named for the passive technique of injecting malicious code where its …

    Security 24 Jan 08:27

  • 'Most US banks' were DDoSed last year - survey

    One in 10 banking IT bods say 'budget constraints' an issue

    Nearly two-thirds of retail banks experienced at least one distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack in the past year, according to a new survey. In a new report, (12-page/941KB PDF) commissioned by Corero Network Security, 64 per cent of 650 IT and IT security experts from 351 banks said a DDoS attack had been carried out …

    Security 24 Jan 09:01

  • Tech titans sell yesterday's idea wrapped in tomorrow's dream

    Open ... and Shut Cloud-washing: The process of making legacy look cool

    News flash: Oracle and SAP are both "cloud washers" who pretend to have sexy, cool technology, but actually are encumbered by legacy systems. This is the charge that cloud consultant David Linthicum and Deal Architect founder Vinnie Mirchandani level against the two giants, but one wonders why they bother. It's standard …

    CIO 24 Jan 09:34

  • Microsoft blasts PC makers: It's YOUR fault Windows 8 crash landed

    Exclusive Slab builders ignored Redmond, claims Reg source

    Microsoft blames PC makers for underwhelming Windows 8 sales over Christmas, The Register has learned. The software giant accused manufacturers of not building enough attractive Win 8-powered touchscreen tablets. But the computer makers are fighting back: they claimed that if they’d followed Microsoft’s hardware requirements …

    Hardware 24 Jan 10:04

  • App poked through Twitter hole, probed my privates - security bod

    OAuth permission snafu spooks researcher

    Security researchers have outlined the danger that tweeters face if they "save time" by signing into third-party applications using a Twitter account. Developers can allow users to log into their applications using Twitter or Facebook using the OAuth authentication standard - which saves the user time as well as minimising the …

    Security 24 Jan 10:34

  • Phone-hack saga: Cops cuff ex-health worker in pre-dawn swoop

    Bloke, 59, quizzed in bung probe

    A 59-year-old ex-healthcare worker was arrested today by cops probing allegations of bribes paid to public officials and police alongside an investigation into phone-hacking by journalists. The Met said its officers cuffed the suspect at about 6.30am at his home in the Knowsley area of Merseyside, and the property was searched …

    Media 24 Jan 10:46

  • Crap security lands Sony £250k fine for PlayStation Network hack

    Leak of millions of Brits' sensitive info preventable, says ICO

    Sony has been fined £250,000 ($395k) for allowing million of UK gamers’ details to be spilled online by PlayStation Network hackers. The UK's Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) levied the heavy fine against Sony Computer Entertainment Europe for a serious breach of the Data Protection Act. Personal information of …

    Security 24 Jan 11:02

  • Cameron's speech puts UK adoption of EU data directive in doubt

    Opinion Biz types have Tories' ear... so if they win election, all bets are off

    Cameron’s speech puts UK accession to any Data Protection Regulation and Directive in doubt. In yesterday’s speech on the relationship between the UK and the Europe Union, the Prime Minister raised doubts as to whether the UK will adopt both the proposed Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Directive in the field …

    Law 24 Jan 11:18

  • Oh, those crazy Frenchies: Facebook faces family photo tax in France

    And Google, Amazon, Twitter told: 'We'll tax data like we tax pollution'

    Facebook should pay the French government for hosting the holiday photos and status updates of the French people, a new report commissioned by the French government has suggested. The new 200-page report* on taxing the digital economy - commissioned by four French Cabinet Ministers - proposes that France should tax data …

    Business 24 Jan 11:41

  • No UK date, no biz disties: Will Microsoft cock-up the Surface Pro too?

    Office PC replacement not being sold to offices, say insiders

    Microsoft may be playing its cards too closely to his chest for its Windows 8 Surface Pro slate: there's no word on a UK launch date nor any effort to bring the business-to-business distribution channel onside. As revealed yesterday, the Intel-powered Pro slab - billed as an office PC replacement - will be rolled out in North …

    The Channel 24 Jan 12:05

  • Ofcom mulls dishing out a world of hertz for RFID tags, radio cars

    US garage openers might work in Blighty - if mobe operators pipe down

    A lot more short-range devices, including US-safe models, could be used in the UK, as Ofcom asks if anyone minds another 12MHz of spectrum being released for public use. Ofcom is consulting on whether two 4MHz chunks of spectrum should be opened for unlicensed use by short-range devices (SRDs), noting that if the MoD stumps up …

    Policy 24 Jan 12:22

  • Google: Gov demands for YOUR web data up 70% in just 3 years

    US way out in front on snooping on citizens

    The hunger for more and more user data demanded from Google by governments around the world showed no sign of abating, according to the company's latest figures. Google said in its "Transparency Report" that requests from authorities had climbed in the second half of 2012. For the first time since the company started …

    Law 24 Jan 12:49

  • Netflix shares jump as outfit adds 10 million subscribers in 2012

    Streaming service might want to Friend you on Facebook... bitch

    Netflix watched its stock blow up - spiking 35 per cent - on Wall Street on Wednesday after the company reported better-than-expected profit in the company's fourth quarter and a climb in global subscribers to 33 million. The outfit's outspoken boss Reed Hastings also took the opportunity to have a dig at the competition in …

    Media 24 Jan 12:59

  • 'Gozi Trojan trio' blamed for multimillion-dollar bank raid spree

    NASA systems among 1,000,000 computers suspects accused of infecting

    US prosecutors have accused three people of using a bank-account raiding Trojan to infect at least one million computers and steal millions of dollars. Russian national Nikita Kuzmin, 25, Latvian resident Deniss Calovskis, 27, and Mihai Ionut Paunescu, a 28-year-old Romanian, were behind the scam, according to charges filed …

    Security 24 Jan 13:22

  • Just what is GOOGLE'S MYSTERIOUS NEW WIRELESS NETWORK?

    El Reg drills into search giant's radio boffinry

    Google wants permission to build an experimental wireless 2.5GHz network to test secret technology using 50 base stations and 200 devices. The network will squeeze into two 2MHz-wide slots, starting at 2524MHz and 2567MHz, and will use both directional and omni-directional antennas mounted on walls and ceilings across the …

    Networks 24 Jan 14:04

  • Latest Symantec CEO's 'revolution' could axe 1,000 jobs

    Report: Portfolio changes, staff cuts, R&D upped

    Symantec's latest CEO plans a "revolution" to create a 4.0 version of the firm by slashing bureaucracy, shaking up its portfolio, renewing a direct sales push in the enterprise, and cutting staffers. An insider told Bloomberg that the reorganisation could impact up to 1,000 employees. The plan was formed by Steve Bennett, who …

    The Channel 24 Jan 14:34

  • Victims of 'revenge pr0n' sue GoDaddy, smut site

    Reader poll said we should, er, stay up, claims web filth den

    Seventeen female victims of a "revenge porn" website have banded together to sue an online outfit that published their names and compromising pictures of them without permission. The class-action lawsuit against TeXXXan.com and its hosting provider GoDaddy describes the revenge-porn site as a "blight upon society" and a "sick …

    Hosting 24 Jan 15:04

  • Greenland ice SIMPLY WOULD NOT MELT in baking +8°C era 120k years ago

    Scratch off yet another IPCC doom warning

    Scientists analysing ancient ice samples say that the Greenland ice sheet withstood temperatures much higher than today's for many thousands of years during a period of global warming more than 120,000 years ago, losing just a quarter of its mass. It had been widely suggested - by the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change …

    Science 24 Jan 15:29

  • Western Digital leaps out of a plane, forgets to pull the 'chute

    Sales fall from a height, bosses 'optimistic' they'll find the cord

    Western Digital's latest quarterly financial results signal a retreat in revenue and profits. Recession helped reduce both figures and the floor is not yet in sight. For its second quarter of fiscal 2013, which ended 28 December 2012, revenues were $3.8bn, an impressive 89 per cent increase on the year-ago quarter. Net income …

    Financial News 24 Jan 16:05

  • Pope: Catholics, go forth and multiply... your Twitter followers

    Faithful told to convert atheists 140 characters at a time

    The Pope has urged Catholics to use Twitter as a "portal of truth" and a way of converting non-believers to Catholicism. In a letter published today, "Social Networks: portals of truth and faith; new spaces for evangelization" the Pope, a new Twitter convert, warmly endorses the Web 2.0. "Unless the Good News is made known …

    Networks 24 Jan 16:32

  • Avnet CEO: Sales flat, profit down... but 'outlook' is better

    800 staff shown the door as cost-cutting takes effect

    Avnet's CEO says the distributor is moving in the right direction after reporting fiscal Q2 numbers that were dramatically better than the opening three months of its new financial year. Sales came in essentially flat on a year ago period at $6.7bn but contain the financials of four firms acquired in October and November …

    The Channel 24 Jan 17:01

  • Backdoor root login found in Barracuda gear - and Barracuda is OK with this

    Hidden accounts 'needed for remote tech support'

    Multiple Barracuda Networks products feature an undocumented backdoor, leaving widely deployed data centre kit vulnerable to hijacking. Secret privileged user accounts were found in various Barracuda appliances, including its flagship Spam and Virus Firewall, Web Application Firewall, Web Filter, SSL VPN, and other gear. The …

    Security 24 Jan 17:02

  • Nokia turns a PROFIT. Sort of

    Ship may not be sinking but passengers seemingly prefer lifeboats

    Nokia announced a pre-tax profit of €375m for the fourth quarter of last year today, suggesting the deep cuts of the past year, including the axing of around 20,000 employees, have allowed management to steady the ship. The profit included sales of its corporate HQ and $250m support payments from Microsoft. Group net sales in …

    Financial News 24 Jan 18:01

  • Brit mastermind of Anonymous PayPal attack gets 18 months' porridge

    Payback for Op Payback's $5.5m web cannon blast

    A British member of the hacking group Anonymous was jailed today for orchestrating attacks that knocked PayPal, Visa and Mastercard offline. Christopher Weatherhead, 22, who used the online nickname "Nerdo" and was described by prosecutors as "a high-level operator", was sent down for 18 months by Southwark Crown Court. Ashley …

    Security 24 Jan 18:19

  • Mellanox profits explode even as sales slip in Q4

    Breaks a half billion bucks for all of 2012

    Networking chip, switch, and adapter supplier Mellanox Technologies gave Wall Street a bit of a start earlier this month when faulty InfiniBand FDR cables caused it to miss its revenue estimates for the fourth quarter. But the company still turned in a record year and has squeezed a lot more profit out of its InfiniBand and …

    Business 24 Jan 19:47

  • Twitter adds loopy videos with Vine integration

    Six-second shots to spam your friends

    Twitter users can now add six-second looping videos to their daily 140-character vignettes using technology the company bought from the developer start-up Vine. "Like Tweets, the brevity of videos on Vine (6 seconds or less) inspires creativity. Now that you can easily capture motion and sound, we look forward to seeing what …

    Media 24 Jan 19:52

  • Kernel hacker Alan Cox quits Linux, Intel

    Former Linus lieutenant leaving for 'family reasons'

    Top Linux kernel contributor Alan Cox has announced that he is stepping down from his position at Intel and will no longer be involved with Linux development, citing family reasons. The British-born Cox, who makes his home in Swansea, Wales, has been one of the most active developers of the Linux kernel since the early days of …

    Operating Systems 24 Jan 21:14

  • Public genome databases can leak identity

    Anonymity only goes so far

    Public genome data is a significant risk to individuals, according to research led out by Yaniv Elrich, a geneticist at the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research. The team that Elrich led was able to de-anonymise genome data using only public information and careful Internet searches. A little chillingly, individuals …

    Science 24 Jan 22:02

  • Windows growth keeps Microsoft earnings relatively stable

    Quarterly profits slip slightly

    Microsoft's latest quarterly financial results are a mixed bag: good performance from the Windows division, but overall profits down slightly. Redmond's revenues for the quarter are $21.46bn, with an operating income of $7.77bn and profits of $6.38bn – which, while down nearly 4 per cent, is still a sizeable chunk of change. …

    Financial News 24 Jan 22:40