Cutting Edge Technology in the news

[calikid]

In the "two wrongs don't make a right" catagory. Piracy may be bad, but IMO censorship is even worse.

DNS provision pulled from SOPA, victory for opponents
by Greg Sandoval and Declan McCullagh

In a move the technology sector will surely see as a victory, a controversial antipiracy bill being debated in Congress will no longer include a provision that would require Internet service providers to block access to overseas Web sites accused of piracy.

Rep. Chairman Lamar Smith (R-Texas), one of the biggest backers of the Stop Online Piracy Act, today said he plans to remove the Domain Name System requirements from the Stop Online Piracy Act.

"After consultation with industry groups across the country," Smith said in a statement released by his office, "I feel we should remove DNS-blocking from the Stop Online Piracy Act so that the [U.S. House Judiciary] Committee can further examine the issues surrounding this provision.

"We will continue to look for ways," Smith continued, "to ensure that foreign Web sites cannot sell and distribute illegal content to U.S. consumers."

Smith's decision comes a day after Sen. Patrick Leahy, announced he would strip SOPA's sister bill in the senate, known as the Protect IP Act, of all DNS requirements.

Both bills are heavily supported by a wide group of copyright owners, including the big record companies and Hollywood film studios. The tech sector has claimed that if the bills became law, they would rob the Web of free speech Story Continues

[CasperParks]

I fear there are masked laws with-in the bill that will censor freedom of speech, not simply someone using a "song" by whatever famous band to promote their "wedding video services". The internet is not "radio" where songs are played and commericals aired to support the station. Youtube for example, people do videos of favorite songs posting lyrics or photos. Youtube is profiting via ads, however the "uploader" is not. I would put Youtube in the same class as radio. That said; "A bill has been bouncing around for decades attempting to force radio stations to pay for usage of aired music".

Musicans benfit from their songs aired, raising awarness of the band's music to buy. Years ago, you could record music from the radio onto cassette tape. "Who has a cassatte tape player/recorder anymore?" lol...

Youtube it is not easy to record music from.

"Are masked laws/bylines with-in the bill that censor freedom of speech?"

If ever there was a doubt that government dances to the tune of big business, SOPA will end that fantasy.
Anti-piracy bill meets Web-freedom backlash
By Doug Gross, CNN

(CNN) -- A bill moving through Congress is intended, on its surface at least, to do something relatively simple: Crack down on the illegal pirating of movies, music and other copyrighted material.

But a major online backlash has evolved, with everyone from lawmakers to Web-freedom advocates to some of technology's biggest players calling it a greedy and dangerous overreach that could have a chilling effect on free speech and innovation.

Google, Yahoo and Facebook are among the Web heavyweights who have joined the chorus against the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), which backers hope to have ready for a vote by the end of the year.

Its intent is to help put a stop to foreign websites that illegally post, and sometimes sell, intellectual property from the United States. Federal law-enforcement agencies would be empowered to shut down those sites, and cut off advertising and online payments to them.

"The Stop Online Piracy Act helps stop the flow of revenue to rogue websites and ensures that the profits from American innovations go to American innovators," Rep. Lamar Smith, a Texas Republican, chairman of the powerful House Judiciary committee and the sponsor of the plan, said when the bill was introduced last month.

"The bill prevents online thieves from selling counterfeit goods in the U.S., expands international protections for intellectual property, and protects American consumers from dangerous counterfeit products. "

Its supporters include some powerful lobbying groups, including the Motion Picture Association of America, the pharmaceutical industry and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

On the other side are Web-freedom advocates, who were quick to say the effort goes too far. And this week, in the wake of a Wednesday hearing on the plan, that discontent grew louder and more widespread.

"Our government is tampering with its basic structure so people will maybe buy more Hollywood movies," says an animated video by Kirby Ferguson, the New York filmmaker behind the Web video series "Everything Is a Remix," that is making the rounds online.

"But Hollywood movies don't get grassroots candidates elected. They don't overthrow corrupt regimes, and the entire entertainment industry doesn't even contribute that much to our economy. The Internet does all these and more."

Story Continues

[Doc]

The Entertainment Industry has bought a lot of political support, but so far not enough to screw with the internet in a big way. It is time to be vigilant. Digital is the future and old media are dying. They won't go without trying to survive no matter who they have to screw.

[calikid]

First Sony and now Zappos, is our data EVERY going to be safe?
Maybe laws REQUIRING vendors to purge CC numbers, once orders have been fulfilled and payments honored, could solve the problem.

Zappos customer data accessed in security breach
by Steven Musil

Zappos is urging its customers to change their passwords after an intruder gained unauthorized access to the online shoe retailer's servers.

Customers' names, e-mail addresses, billing and shipping addresses, phone numbers, the last four digits of their credit card numbers, and their scrambled passwords may have been illegally accessed, Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh said in a letter sent to the company's 24 million customers today. Story Continues

[Doc]

...and they always call it a "Secure Server".

[CasperParks]

Saw that Zappos thing on the news today. Shame, I've watched a number of interviews with Zappos' CEO. He seemed like a nice person who take care of his employees.

[calikid]

I can't help but wonder if this isn't a ploy to get everyone to upgrade their old anti-virus?

Hackers threaten to release Symantec source code Tuesday

by Steven Musil

Hackers thought to have stolen source code from the Symantec's extended network have threatened to release the source code for Norton Antivirus on Tuesday, but the company says such a release poses no threat.

The hackers, who call themselves "Yama Tough" and employ the "Anonymous" mask in its Twitter avatar, said in a tweet Saturday it would release the 1.7GB source code on Tuesday, along with the message "the rest will follow..."

Several reports surfaced earlier this month that hackers had managed to access the source code for certain Symantec products. Symantec identified the products as Symantec Endpoint Protection (SEP) 11.0 and Symantec Antivirus 10.2 but said the attack did not affect any current Norton consumer products.

The hackers said they found the code after breaking into servers run by Indian military intelligence. The code was apparently left on there by mistake after Indian authorities inspected the sourced code to ensure it was secure, which is where the hackers found the code.

The group said in a Pastebin post that it had the "source codes of dozens of companies" and contained documentation describing the API procedures for Symantec's virus definition generation service. The group's post on the Pastebin site has since been removed, though a Google cached version still exists.

Symantec said in a statement to CNET sister site ZDNet that code posted to Pastebin was related to a 2006 version and is "no longer sold or supported." Story continues

[calikid]

Nice. An organized, non-violent protest.
The stuff true democracy is based upon.
The type of democracy that embraces rule by the people, NOT big business.
Wikipedia, Google blackout sites to protest SOPA
by Declan McCullagh

Three of the Internet's most popular destinations--Google, Wikipedia, and Craigslist--launched an audacious experiment in political activism this evening by urging their users to protest a pair of Hollywood-backed copyright laws.

Wikipedia's English-language pages went completely black at 9 p.m. PT, with a splash page saying "the U.S. Congress is considering legislation that could fatally damage the free and open Internet." The online encyclopedia's blackout, intended to precede next week's Senate floor vote on the legislation, is scheduled to last 24 hours.

Craigslist and Google have taken a more modest approach. Unlike Wikipedia, the sites will remain online during Wednesday's virtual protest, but the home pages now feature exhortations to contact members of Congress and urge them to vote against the Stop Online Piracy Act and the Senate version called Protect IP.
Craiglist's snarky note: "Corporate paymasters, KEEP THOSE CLAMMY HANDS OFF THE INTERNET!"

It's a novel experiment in grassroots-outreach-by-the-millions that could, if successful, derail SOPA and Protect IP, which have come under increasing criticism since last fall. Their authors -- Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Tex.) and Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) -- responded in the last week by offering some changes. But Smith said in a statement today that, one way or another, a House committee vote will be held in February.

CNET predicted the protest in a December 29 article that said opponents of the bills may "simultaneously turn" their home pages "black with anti-censorship warnings that ask users to contact politicians about a vote in the U.S. Congress."

This is "classic Hollywood trying to do heavy handed legislation to protect its business interests," Casey Rae-Hunter, deputy director of the Future of Music Coalition, told reporters this morning. Story Continues

[calikid]

Faster smartphones may bring home the internet to many who did not have access.
A worthy goal.... keeping people connected.
Really? IBM predicts the end of the digital divide in 5 years
By Amy Gahran


(CNN) -- IBM recently released its annual 5 in 5 list, in which the technology company tries to predict emerging trends and technologies that will transform our lives over the next five years.

No. 4 on this year's list concerned mobile technology. Specifically, IBM says that, thanks to mobile technology, the digital divide will soon cease to exist.

In a video, IBM put it this way: "In our global society, the wealth of economies are decided by the level of access to information. And in five years, the gap between information haves and have-nots will cease to exist due to the advent of mobile technology."

The digital divide (a term that refers to the gap between people who do and don't have high-speed Internet access) is an increasingly important issue for the nation, the economy and the world. Without Internet access, it's getting harder to apply for jobs, get an education, stay in touch with friends and family -- and keep up with news that affects your life.

Still, it will probably take much longer than five years -- if ever -- for significant inequities in access to digital information and services to disappear entirely. The digital divide may look quite different in five years, but it will probably still be with us.

Here's why:

Mobile phones can help close the digital divide, but using the Internet on a phone has some drawbacks.

That's a point Kathryn Zickhur makes in an upcoming report on the digital divide for the Pew Internet and American Life project.

"Mobile Internet users experience the Internet differently because they have a small screen and often slower data connections. But they tend to always have their device with them -- which means they can constant access to information," she said. "So mobile net users might not be able to engage with certain online services as easily as they could on a laptop computer, but they do have more ubiquitous access."

According to Pew, once consumers acquired a wireless device, they start using the Internet more actively -- especially to connect with others. People go online from their phones not just to get information, but to share and create -- even more than before.

Pew also found that a substantial portion of U.S. adults are choosing smartphones over computers for Internet access.

Young adults (aged 18-29), blacks and Hispanics, people who never attended college, and those with an annual household income of less than $30,000 are not only more likely than the average American to use smartphones -- they're also especially likely use their phone as their main way to get online. Furthermore, about a third of Americans who mostly go online from their phones don't have high-speed broadband internet access at home STORY CONTINUES

[calikid]

If the US can extradite suspected "pirates" from half way around the world under current laws, why do they need to enact new legislation (SOPA)?

FBI charges Megaupload operators with piracy crimes
by Greg Sandoval
The FBI has busted the alleged operators of Internet locker service Megaupload, which had become one of the most popular video destinations on the Web, according to a statement from the U.S. Justice Department and FBI.

Seven people have been named in an indictment and four suspects have been taken into custody, according to the statement today. They have been charged in Virginia with crimes related to online piracy, including racketeering conspiracy, conspiring to commit copyright infringement, and conspiring to commit money laundering.

The suspects face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, the government said.

According to the statement, the indictment alleges that Megaupload is led by Kim DotCom, aka Kim Schmitz, a German with a colorful history who was once convicted of a felony but who has repeatedly denied engaging in piracy.

DotCom and three others were arrested today in Auckland, New Zealand, by New Zealand police, "who executed provisional arrest warrants requested by the United States," the Justice Department said. The Wall Street Journal first reported on the arrest.

Along with DotCom, Kim Tim Jim Vestor, 37, a resident of Hong Kong and New Zealand was also arrested. Authorities say that DotCom founded Megaupload and is the director and sole shareholder of Vestor Limited, which has been used to hold his ownership interests in the Mega-affiliated sites.
Story Continues