Buys Inc. Attorneys ICT Law Blog     Friday, August 31, 2007     Online gambling ‘no threat to casinos’ Internet gambling was expected to involve only about 2% of the gambling population compared with the 80% engaged in land-based casino activity. The politics of blogging Any marketeer, public relationista, brander or eventer worth their little black books fantasise about running a successful US presidential campaign. Helen Zille, Cape Town mayor and leader of the Democratic Alliance, has stolen a march and adopted some of the groundbreaking Web 2.0 communication technologies used in that race for her own office, including the newly launched blog on Capeinfo.co.za. Blogging? My PR set it up for me, on the Internet. The politics of blogging Any marketeer, public relationista, brander or eventer worth their little black books fantasise about running a successful US presidential campaign. Helen Zille, Cape Town mayor and leader of the Democratic Alliance, has stolen a march and adopted some of the groundbreaking Web 2.0 communication technologies used in that race for her own office, including the newly launched blog on Capeinfo.co.za. Blogging? My PR set it up for me, on the Internet. Microblogging for the enterprise A microblog is a smaller version of a blog, usually limiting posts to 140 characters. Woo-hoo, so it's a variation on the blogging theme, but less space to make an idiot of yourself. Why then is it one of the fastest-growing applications in the history of the Internet? Is there a place for it in your digital strategy? Hackers Using Blogger Site to Post Malicious Downloads Google's Blogger site is being used by malicious hackers who are posting fake entries to some blogs. The fake entries contain weblinks that lead to booby-trapped downloads that could infect a Windows PC. Send SMSs from your e-mail Yahoo Inc will introduce new features on Monday for its popular web-based e-mail program, including software that allows computer users to type text messages on a keyboard and send them directly to someone's cellphone. A slap in the Facebook I RETURNED from my annual pilgrimage to the Gartner Symposium in Cape Town to find that our beloved IT department had blocked access to Facebook and while I didn't take the news quite as hard as some of my colleagues, I was fairly miffed. YouTube removes SA paper's clip A doctored video interview with Sunday Times editor Mondli Makhanya has been removed from YouTube, following complaints from the daily newspaper The Times. MySpace nude pic leads to jail A Florida teen who posted a nude photo of his younger ex-girlfriend on her MySpace page was sentenced to 30 days in jail. Privacy and law: 10 ways to win public trust in a surveillance society | OUT-LAW.COM OPINION: The Data Protection Act is not strong enough to protect privacy in today's surveillance society. Dr Chris Pounder proposes 10 universal standards to buttress the Act and create balance whenever there is interference in private and family life. All of world's biggest firms hit by typosquatting | OUT-LAW.COM The world's 500 biggest companies have all fallen victim to typosquatting. OUT-LAW research has found that the fast-growing trend of making ad money from web domains similar to famous brands affects all the world's biggest firms. Google, Yahoo! and Amazon sued over email patent | OUT-LAW.COM The biggest names on the internet have been sued by a patent holding company which claims the firms are violating its rights by automatically routing email messages. Competition crack down for telecoms Telecommunications is among the sectors government has targeted for an anti-competitive behaviour clampdown, trade and industry minister Mandisi Mpahlwa said yesterday. ITWeb : ICASA guns for unlicensed WISPs The Independent Communications Authority of SA (ICASA) has vowed to crack down on wireless Internet service providers (WISPs) that operate without a licence or allocated spectrum. Rating video games globally Controversial video game Manhunt 2 has been granted a mature certificate in the US, lifting an effective ban on the game. But the title has been refused a certificate in the UK. So how do ratings for video games operate around the world? What's the buzz? Each week, CNN.com takes a look at trends in the blogosphere by tracking one topic across gender and generation with the help of analysis tools from Umbria Inc. This week, we focus on the editing of Wikipedia articles by corporations and other entities. According to its own Web site, Wikipedia is 'the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit, featuring 7.9 million articles in 253 languages.' Coming: Vista updates, fixes: Microsoft Corp said on Wednesday it will release a major package of updates and fixes for the Windows Vista operating system in the first half of 2008. YouTube strikes royalty deal Music artists from Cliff Richard to Amy Winehouse will be paid when their tracks are used as backing music for clips on video-sharing website YouTube following a deal with the British society that collects royalties for 50 000 composers, songwriters and publishers. UK Labour group says workers should be allowed to use Facebook Employers should allow their workers to befriend, chat and 'poke' each other through online networking sites while at work, Britain's largest labor federation said Thursday. Instant Messaging in Afrikaans Instant messaging (IM) is now available in Afrikaans, thanks to the efforts of the award-winning software translators, Translate.org.za. The Afrikaans version of the IM program Pidgin was released on its international web site this week. Court rules on Manto Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang may be overseas but she's 'delighted' at the ruling given on Thursday in her court battle against the Sunday Times. News editor welcomes court decision on Manto Sunday Times editor Mondli Makhanya hailed the Johannesburg High Court ruling in the newspaper's case against Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang as 'an important victory for press freedom'. Germany mulls 'Trojan' IT viruses as anti-terror measure Left-wing members of the ruling coalition have objected strongly to plans by the German interior ministry to enlist 'Trojans', malicious programmes sent in electronic mail, to spy on terror suspects. Speed tests ADSL speed tests. Court Rules Against Man for Viewing, Not Saving, Child Porn The Pennsylvania Superior Court isn't buying the argument that a man who viewed child pornography on his computer, but didn't save images, couldn't be charged with possession of child pornography. A 7-2 en banc panel reversed a prior three-judge panel that found, in an issue of first impression, that there was not sufficient evidence to show that Anthony Diodoro downloaded or saved images of child pornography he viewed. Technology News: Business: Open Source: Changing Models, Changing Mindsets, Part 2 'Through open source technology, organizations can more easily build applications and connect disparate parts of the organization. Further, open source software as part of an SOA strategy provides the flexibility to reuse existing services, increases time to value, and enables expanded access to core applications quickly,' said Sandy Carter, IBM vice president of SOA and WebSphere strategy. How Telkom tried to hijack the Internet A new academic paper highlights Telkom’s attempt to monopolize the Internet. Mbeki pushes for fatal blow to Telkom monopoly President Thabo Mbeki fired an indirect salvo at Telkom yesterday by calling on the telecoms regulator to find a speedy resolution to the country's local loop unbundling process. Telkom Media entry may affect SABC and e.tv's bottom line The final decision on which of the 18 applicants will be awarded a PayTV licence will be made before November. A spokesperson for the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa, told Moneyweb that the official deadline is in November but that an announcement may be made before that. Reading people like an open Facebook It never ceases to amaze me how seldom people seem to put any thought into how they use a new technology solution, or how open it may be to abuse of one kind or another Apply for ID, Passport online One of the major problems of the Home Affairs Department will be tackled by what the government is calling the 'Citizen Relations Portal' EFF condemns music download lawsuits - vnunet.com The policy of the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) to sue users caught downloading music illegally has done nothing to slow the trade of copyrighted music on peer-to-peer networks, according to the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF). Yahoo gives e-mail texting capability - USATODAY.com Yahoo Mail thinks there's more to life than just sending e-mail. Honesty the best online policy Regular columnist Bill Thompson says firms should tell customers when their computer security has been breached. Regular columnist Bill Thompson says firms should tell customers when their computer security has been breached. Legal threats halt iPhone crack A British firm's plan to sell software that could open the iPhone to non-US networks has been put on hold following legal threats. A British firm's plan to sell software that could open the iPhone to non-US networks has been put on hold following legal threats. Call to regulate the net rejected The internet should not be used as a scapegoat for society's ills, said Vint Cerf, Google's net evangelist and a founding father of the network. Speaking on the The internet should not be used as a scapegoat for society's ills, said Vint Cerf, Google's net evangelist and a founding father of the network. Bloggers battered by viral storm Google's Blogger site is being used by malicious hackers who are posting fake entries to some blogs. Creating an Employee IM Policy A few years ago, a technology startup's CEO was mortified to discover that thousands of his confidential instant messages had been posted on the internet. His messages were an enormous embarrassment for his company and its business partners, and the CEO even received death threats. Five steps to building information risk management frameworks : CIO Expert Tips It is no secret to security and risk management professionals that security is a function of people, processes and technology. But when it comes to spending, historical data tells a very different story. Most organisations have traditionally spent a disproportionately high percentage of their security dollars on technology, relying largely on product-based approaches to solve their security issues. Thursday, August 30, 2007     'Crime fighting' cellphone bill passed Legislation intended to help fight organised crime and the use of cellphones to commit crimes was approved in the National Assembly on Wednesday. Mbeki calls for faster unbundling President Thabo Mbeki is pushing the Independent Communications Authority of SA (ICASA) to speed up the process of unbundling the local loop. Govt attempts Wikipedia censorship An ITWeb investigation reveals at least one government employee has censored Wikipedia's entry on SA's HIV/Aids policies. Resurgent Facebook site a challenge for university Less than a week after Dalhousie University asked Facebook to pull a group titled “Stop dogs and puppies from being murdered at Dalhousie University,” the group is back online on the social networking site and with more members than before. Google Hasn't Given Information On Crimes Federal prosecutors said Wednesday Google's Brazilian subsidiary has not complied with repeated requests to provide information about users accused of using the company's Orkut social networking service to spread child pornography and hate speech. Linux-using movie pirate forced to adopt Windows: News - Software - ZDNet Australia A US court has told a Linux enthusiast he must switch to Windows if he wants to use a computer because the court's monitoring software will only work with Microsoft's operating system. Hackers deface NuMetro The website of a popular South African movie theatre was hacked recently as cybercriminals took advantage of a weakness in the NuMetro website and defaced it. Teenage hacker unlocks the iPhone A New Jersey teenager has unlocked the iPhone, opening the way to Apple's iconic mobile telephone being used by non-US networks. "Cyberslacking" Irresistible at Work, Professor Says Studies worldwide suggest employees spend about a fifth of their work shifts engaging in personal activities. Their favorite time waster? The Internet. Whois Working Group Reaches Little Agreement A working group set up by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers to thrash out differences over proposed privacy changes to the WHOIS database stopped work with little real agreement on how or even whether to implement the reforms. The group's failure to come up with a proposal that could have been accepted by ICANN continues a long-standing stalemate on efforts to reform the way WHOIS data is handled. Cerf Opposes Calls for Strict Controls on Internet The Internet should not be used as a scapegoat for society's ills, said Vint Cerf, Google's net evangelist and a founding father of the network. Speaking on the BBC Radio 4's Today program, he rejected calls for strict control of what is put online. Sunday, August 26, 2007     The Times go big online The Times newspaper is investing heavily in their online presence with initiatives like trained video teams, paid bloggers and professional podcasting. Monster.com tells of hack 5 days later Monster.com waited five days to tell its users about a security breach that resulted in the theft of confidential information from some 1,3-million job seekers, a company executive said. Hardeskyf as rugsteun Die dae dat jy die inligting op jou rekenaar op ’n hand vol CD’s of goeie ou “stiffies” moes dupliseer as rugsteun is vir altyd verby. ’n Nuwe waghond? Daar is heelwat verdienste in die Asmal-komitee se aanbeveling dat sommige Art.9-instellings saamgevoeg word in een institusionele sambreelliggaam wat waak oor burgerregte en staatsvergrype. Een met tande. Firms sign 'blogging pact' Yahoo China and MSN China confirmed on Friday they had signed a code of conduct for their blogging operations that committed them to protecting the interests of the Chinese state. Storage market continues to grow, despite analyst's reports For a considerable time now the storage sector has been cited as one of the fastest growing markets in IT, if not the fastest growing market in the technology space bar. Saturday, August 25, 2007     Fight for Online Gambling Challenges WTO's Authority The legal wrangling over online gambling challenges Washington's effort to prohibit the activity while simultaneously testing the ability of the World Trade Organization to enforce its own standards. The dispute stretches back to 2003, when attorney Mark E. Mendel first persuaded officials in Antigua and Barbuda, a tiny nation in the Caribbean with a population of around 70,000, to instigate a trade complaint against the United States, claiming its ban against Americans gambling over the Internet violated Antigua and Barbuda's rights as a member of the WTO. Telkom wins domain name dispute Telkom has won another battle in its war against cyber squatters. Friday, August 24, 2007     Skype issues apology for 'outage' Net phone firm Skype says its service is up and running again after three days of 'unprecedented' disruption. Net phone firm Skype says its service is up and running again after three days of 'unprecedented' disruption. Many parents now get domain names for kids too young to type - CNN.com Besides leaving the hospital with a birth certificate and a clean bill of health, baby Mila Belle Howells got something she won't likely use herself for several years: her very own Internet domain name. The telkombusiness.co.za et. al. Dispute is Decided The SAIIPL released its 3rd official ADR Decision on Thursday the 23rd of August 2007. The Decision, which was adjudicated by Mr. Deon Bouwer, and marks another successful use of the Regulations by a Complainant. Casino bosses rail against gambling bill Proposed legislation on online gambling has been met with a groundswell of opposition, with calls for it to be sent back to the drawing board Thursday, August 23, 2007     China Encourages Bloggers to Use Their Real Name Blog service providers in China are 'encouraged' to register users with their real names and contact information, according to a new government document that tones down an earlier proposal banning anonymous online blogging. At least 10 major Chinese blog service providers have agreed to sign the 'self-discipline pledge' issued by the Internet Society of China, the state-run Xinhua News Agency reported. Internet gambling bill ‘inadequate’ – CASA The Casino Association of South Africa (CASA) on Wednesday urged further consultation and research on the draft National Gambling Amendment Bill. Half of employees blocked from accessing Facebook at work Research conducted by IT security and control firm Sophos has revealed that fifty percent of workers are being blocked from accessing Facebook by their employers who are worried about the website's impact on productivity and security, and have therefore put policies or access controls in place to ban its use in the workplace. Wednesday, August 22, 2007     IOL Technology - SA to tighten up communications act Legislation that allows South Africa's police to monitor electronic communications is to be tightened up by an amendment bill to ensure that physical addresses registered by providers correspond to clients' cellphone users. SA speeds up on 2010 bandwidth: Companies: Fin24 Although it doesn't yet know how much international bandwidth capacity the country will need for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the Department of Communications (DoC) insists there should be sufficient capacity. New policy formalises SA domain name space The .za Domain Name Authority (.zaDNA) is taking its first steps to formalising the Internet space in South Africa. The Authority is tabling a policy document, which aims to establish and formalise various role players in the growth, maintenance and security of the South African Internet domain space, for public comment. New net phishing scam Brazen Internet fraudsters are targeting thousands of unsuspecting Internet users in the latest email scam sweeping the country. Phony ad on job sites leads to 100,000 stolen identities - Security - www.itnews.com.au Security researchers have unearthed the single largest cache of stolen identities, thanks in part to a Trojan stealing the data that has been hidden in a fraudulent advertisement on online job sites like Monster.com. No evidence against sex blogger: South Africa: News: News24 There's been a twist in the State's case against alleged sex blogger Juan-Duval Uys: the court heard on Monday that there's no evidence against him in the court affidavit. Hoax email: IT boffin sentenced Former intelligence technology specialist Funi Madlala was sentenced to three months' imprisonment, suspended for three years, after co-operating with the inspector-general in the hoax email saga that rocked the spy community two years ago. Hoax e-mail man sentenced: South Africa: News: News24 An information technology specialist has been given a suspended prison sentence for his role in the ANC's hoax e-mail saga, the Saturday Star reported. Teens Found to Commit Cyber Crime for Fun, Not Trouble A large minority of teenagers commit computer crimes such as hacking and software piracy, but it's done mostly out of curiosity and a hunger for excitement rather than wanting to cause trouble, a psychologist reported over the weekend. 'Parents are not savvy enough yet' to realize what's going on, said psychologist Shirley McGuire of the University of San Francisco. Alleged sex blogger gets his day in court Sex blog accused Juan Duval Uys has failed to have charges against him dropped after a magistrate granted the state a final postponement on Monday. Concourt to hear PAIA case On 21 August 2007 the Constitutional Court will hear a case (Van Wyk v Unitas Hospital and another, CCT No 12/07) involving the right of an individual to obtain records held by a private body in order to exercise or protect his or her rights. Skype: Patch Tuesday Led to Blackout Friday Skype said its outage last week was actually the result of a massive number of its users' machines rebooting nearly simultaneously after downloading a Microsoft Windows security patch. The peer-to-peer network saw a spike in reboots while at the same time fewer of its users' computers were online to handle the higher traffic. Additionally, a bug in Skype's self-healing capability contributed to the outage. Illegal "Simpsons Movie" Online Traced to Australia The first known pirated copy of 'The Simpsons Movie' uploaded on the Internet was tracked to a home raided by Australian police Friday, a film industry group said. An international operation involving the movie's owner Fox, Australian police, and the private investigation group Australian Federation Against Copyright Theft resulted in the copy's removal from the Internet, the Motion Picture Association said in a statement. Wikipedia Entries Edited by Computer Users at CIA, FBI People using CIA and FBI computers have edited entries in the online encyclopedia Wikipedia on topics including the Iraq war and the Guantanamo prison, according to a new tracing program. The changes may violate Wikipedia's conflict-of-interest guidelines, a spokeswoman for the site said. American Airlines Sues Google Over Keyword Advertising American Airlines wants Google to stop selling keyword-based sponsored search results tied to any of its trademarks and is seeking punitive damages over the alleged infringement. 'Google's search engine is helping third parties to mislead consumers and misappropriate the American Airlines Marks by using them as 'keyword' triggers for paid advertisements and by using them within the text or title of paid advertisements,' reads a copy of American's complaint. Monday, August 20, 2007     Broadband prices to be slashed 65% Public Enterprises Minister Alec Erwin promised this week that his new state- owned broadband company would slash Telkom’s current wholesale price for digital capacity by about two-thirds. Sunday, August 19, 2007     iBurst speed claims refuted – again iBurst’s inability to show that its service can realistically reach 1 Mbps – even under near ideal conditions – meant that they were on the wrong end of another ASA ruling. Anti-iBurst website launched An anti-iBurst website, similar to the popular Hellkom – was launched recently. The founder speaks out and iBurst responds. Court acquits allofmp3.com site owner - CNN.com A Russian court found the former boss of music download Web site www.allofmp3.com not guilty of breaching copyright on Wednesday in a case considered a crucial test of Russia's commitment to fighting piracy. Medical IT Contractor Folds After Breaches Verus Inc., the IT contractor that has been implicated in security breaches at at least five different hospitals across the country, has gone out of business. Students to Lose Internet Use for Illegal Downloading The Recording Industry Association of America's war on pirated music and videos is coming to the resident halls at University of California-Berkeley's campus. Starting this fall semester, students using campus computer networks to illegally download copyrighted audio and visual materials will automatically lose their in-room Internet connection for a minimum of one week, the university has announced. Company Pays $300,000 for Sharing News Articles Analyst firm Knowledge Networks has agreed to pay $300,000 to settle a complaint that it distributed news articles to its employees without permission of the copyright owners, a trade group announced. The Knowledge Networks settlement is the first under the Software & Information Industry Association's Corporate Content Anti-Piracy Program, launched in October. Spammers Finding New Ways to Avoid Filters Just when it appeared tech firms had the upper hand against spam, spammers have unleashed new forms of the meddlesome e-mail to trick filters. Spam in the form of popular PDF e-mail attachments and electronic greeting cards is confounding e-mail security systems and annoying consumers. Facebook given green light for contact-poaching case against ConnectU | OUT-LAW.COM Facebook has been allowed to proceed with a law suit against a company which it believes wrote software to gain unauthorised access to Facebook address books in order to promote rival firm ConnectU. Thursday, August 16, 2007     New tool reveals Wikipedia edits What edits on Wikipedia have been made by people in public offices, the CIA and the Church of Scientology? A new online tool called WikiScanner reveals answers to such questions. Free speech needs intensive care, says FXI Outspoken workers in the public health sector were being gagged by the government, the Freedom of Expression Institute (FXI) said on Wednesday. The Minister v The Sunday Times Shadrack Gutto, a legal expert, says the possible judicial battle between health minister, Manto Tshabalala-Msimang, and a Sunday newspaper, will determine how the media reports on politicians in the future. Internet firms urged to tackle cyber 'Wild West' Internet companies, retailers and the government must do far more to protect people from the dangers of the 'lawless Wild West' of cyberspace, an influential group of British lawmakers said on Friday. Nude Model Publisher Sues Microsoft Over Links, Images A publisher of nude model photography is suing Microsoft for putting links and images of the company's content in search results taken from other Web sites that are illegally reproducing the material. The company, Perfect 10, previously lost a similar suit seeking injunctions against Google and Amazon.com and its subsidiary search engine, A9.com, over alleged copyright infringement, but Perfect 10 is appealing that decision. MXit reaches 4.8 million milestone MXit has reached a major milestone 4.8 million registered users, with an imminent 200 000 users set to register shortly. This startup company has grown from a small handful of entrepreneurs to become a noted international player in low-cost, mobile phoned-based instant messaging technology since its commercial launch in May 2005. Mxit plans international expansion Mxit, the locally-developed mobile instant messaging (IM) platform, has almost reached its five million user milestone as it prepares to launch internationally within the next few months, says brand manager Laura Hallam. Is Facebook a safe read? The London Times reported that Facebook users were left contemplating the security of private details stored on the social networking site after part of its source code was leaked to the Internet. Facebook users happy to reveal all New research by Sophos suggests that 41 percent of Facebook users will divulge personal information to a complete stranger. CCTV operators must not record conversations, says privacy watchdog | OUT-LAW.COM Closed circuit television (CCTV) must not be used to record conversations, the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has warned. The Commissioner has proposed a new Code of Practice on the use of CCTV. US bloggers set for journalistic shield | OUT-LAW.COM A US bill that would shield journalists, including bloggers, from revealing their sources has cleared the House Judiciary Committee, an important stage in becoming law. There is already legislation in the UK which protects journalists and bloggers. Programmer granted royalties from commissioned software | OUT-LAW.COM A computer programmer has been granted royalties in systems he developed even though no proper copyright agreement existed when the material was commissioned. The programmer was awarded more than £45,000. JK Rowling judge made mistakes, says privacy law expert | OUT-LAW.COM The judge in the JK Rowling privacy case should have taken account of the fact that celebrities may be more vulnerable to media pressure than others and so entitled to stronger privacy protection a leading legal expert has said. Tuesday, August 07, 2007     Internet via TV still sucks Pity the fool who is stuck in a hotel room needing to surf the Web, but without a laptop or Web-accessible handheld device. Pta's name change in flux: South Africa: News: News24 The Freedom Front Plus has asked Tshwane mayor Gwen Ramokgopa to put on hold plans to change road signs from 'Pretoria' to 'Tshwane' pending a court case. Glitches cause delay in online tax-filing system : Mail & Guardian Online The launch of an online tax-filing facility was delayed after pilot tests revealed system flaws, the South African Revenue Service (Sars) said on Monday. SA companies block Facebook South African companies are beginning to follow their international counterparts in blocking workers' access to popular social networking site Facebook. Web 'medium of the moment Every US presidential candidate has a website, of course, but when the top Democratic hopefuls were asked on Saturday whether they would appoint a White House blogger if elected, all of them said yes. IM attacks up nearly 80%, Akonix says -- and P2P is worse Malicious code attacks over instant messaging networks are up almost 80 percent over last year, according to a new study from vendor Akonix. Data breach exposed 900,000 soldier, government employee health records | NetworkWorld.com Community In yet another case of seriously flawed security precautions, the personal health care records of nearly 900,000 troops, family members and other government employees stored on an a private defense contractor’s -- SAIC, Inc. – nonsecure computer server were exposed to compromise. Beware Fake Domain Renewal Notices - Security Watch A company named Domain Renewal is sending out renewal notices to domain owners. Domain Renewal is not the registrar and, despite their claims to the contrary, cannot renew your domain on your behalf. In all likelihood, they are just taking your money. Skype Phishing Scam Email claims that the recipient's Skype account has been suspended and requests that he or she re-activate the account by logging on and agreeing to a new Terms statement Bid to bypass Icasa spurs legal morass The government’s bid to speedily provide affordable broadband services has been sucked into a quagmire of legal complexity which places the whole enterprise in jeopardy and suggests its conceptualisation was bungled from the start. Zimbabwe passes eavesdropping law Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe has signed into law a bill allowing the state to eavesdrop on private phone conversations and monitor faxes and e-mails. Website left with egg on its Facebook Fans of social networking site Facebook were in a frenzy yesterday as their personal information was mistakenly made accessible to other web users. Monday, August 06, 2007     Hackers steal information from Facebook and MySpace members Hackers and computer security specialists gathered in Las Vegas on Friday took aim at popular social networking websites, exposing ways to plunder data from software 'cookies' used to track users. Licence to disagree Andile Ngcaba and Alan Knott-Craig couldn’t agree on the most effective way of providing universal access to telecommunications. Democrats Vow Push for Law Against Net Sex Predators Expect a new push in Congress this fall for laws aimed at keeping sexual predators off the likes of MySpace.com and elevating fines on Internet service providers that don't report child pornography. That was the message delivered by a handful of U.S. House Democrats, including Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers (D-Mich.) and Democratic Caucus leader Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill.). Storm E-mail Worm Gathering Force, Virus Companies Report Like a summer cyclone gathering force, the Storm e-mail worm is casting an expanding shadow on the Internet. Storm first spread to e-mail in-boxes in Europe and the USA in January -- enticing recipients to click on a link for a fake news story about a deadly storm or other dramatic event. Bush expands eavesdropping law US President George Bush has signed into law an expansion of the government's power to eavesdrop on foreign terror suspects without the need for warrants. Japanese Companies Blame YouTube for Infringements A coalition of Japanese television, music and film companies slammed YouTube, saying the online video sharing service was not doing enough to rid the site of cartoons and other clips that infringe copyright. The group also expressed skepticism over an automatic video recognition and purging system being developed by YouTube parent Google, questioning the reliability of the technology and saying it was taking too long for the system to kick in. Physicians Charged with Illegal Internet Prescription Sales Physicians and executives are among 18 people accused of selling prescription drugs over the Internet to people without any examinations, according to an indictment unsealed that charges them with federal racketeering. The 313-count indictment marks the first time organized-crime statutes designed to combat drug cartels and mafia rings have been used to charge anyone with selling prescription drugs over the Internet, said Lorraine Concha, an assistant special agent in charge for the Immigration and Customs Enforcement field office in San Diego. Friday, August 03, 2007     Politics and profit set stage for Internet security disaster The Internet is ripe for hacking chaos and rampant crime due to serious computer defense flaws, specialists told cyber security experts from around the world at a major conference. New Threat Pits Internet Explorer Against Firefox - Security Fix Blueprints have been posted online detailing a cross-browser security threat that uses Microsoft's Internet Explorer Web browser to force Mozilla's Firefox browser to provide inroads for virus writers. While fans of both software makers are pointing the finger of blame at one another, one thing seems virtually certain: It may only be a matter of time before criminals begin exploiting the confusion to compromise home and business computers running the Windows operating system.Blueprints have been posted online detailing a cross-browser security threat that uses Microsoft's Internet Explorer Web browser to force Mozilla's Firefox browser to provide inroads for virus writers. While fans of both software makers are pointing the finger of blame at one another, one thing seems virtually certain: It may only be a matter of time before criminals begin exploiting the confusion to compromise home and business computers running the Windows operating system. Secret Court Ruling Sparks Heated Government Surveillance Debate The president is pushing for revisions to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, citing a heightened terrorist threat for the action. However, privacy advocates say the president's efforts stem from a recent special court ruling that limits the government's authority to spy on e-mails and phone calls. Teachers in websites closure call Teachers have called for websites such as YouTube to be shut down as part of efforts to prevent pupils and staff being bullied. Teachers have called for websites such as YouTube to be shut down as part of efforts to prevent pupils and staff being bullied. Go ahead, post that dumb video online, you could get some work - CNN.com Voice-over work in Indiana wasn't too lucrative, so Daniel Geduld made a classic actor's move: He headed for Los Angeles, Califronia. And like most Hollywood dreamers, Geduld didn't get hired for much. SA company ‘nudging' Facebook A South African company has teamed up with Facebook to allow users of the social networking platform to send unlimited SMSes to one another. SABC denies anti-Semitic bias The SABC has denied assertions that it in effect blacklisted commentators on the Middle East. Shadduppa your Facebook South African companies are beginning to follow their international counterparts by blocking workers’ access to the popular social networking site Facebook. Google's Latest Play for Global Domination? Google's mysterious poking around in the wireless communications space is spawning rumors of an advertising-supported smartphone carrying the Google brand. The rumors have been given some support, however, by a Wall Street Journal article that says the search and advertising giant is courting wireless service providers for the would-be device. For its part, Google is saying very little. Thursday, August 02, 2007     Second Life Bans Gambling, Cites "Conflicting Regulations" The casinos of the virtual world Second Life have closed shop after a decision by its founders to forbid gambling in their online society. 'Because there are a variety of conflicting gambling regulations around the world we have chosen to restrict gambling in Second Life,' Robin Harper, senior vice president of marketing and business development for Linden Research, which runs Second Life, wrote in a posting to the company's blog July 25. Government backs private copying but ignores compensation | OUT-LAW.COM The Government will launch a public consultation this autumn on an exemption from copyright law for people who are moving music on to MP3 players. 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