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Security

Submission + - Malware authors evading detection via domain generation algorithms (networkworld.com)

Submitted by alphadogg
alphadogg writes: Malware authors are increasingly adopting flexible domain generation algorithms (DGAs) in order to evade detection and prevent their botnets from being shut down by security researchers or law enforcement agencies. DGAs are generally used as a fallback mechanism for sending instructions to infected computers when the hard-coded command and control servers become unavailable. The algorithms generate a list of unique pseudo-random domain names every day. Clients in a botnet attempt to connect to them and receive commands when the primary servers can't be reached. Knowing the algorithm allows malware authors to predict which domain names infected computers will attempt to access on a certain date, so they can register one of them in advance.
IBM

Submission + - IBM shows off quantum computing advances (extremetech.com)

Submitted by
MrSeb
MrSeb writes: "IBM has presented a handful of major quantum computing breakthroughs to the American Physical Society. According to IBM, these advances mean that real, practical quantum computers could be available within the next 10 years. The main breakthrough revolves around the long-term integrity of qubits. To perform quantum computing, you need to be able to reliably store and interrogate qubits — but qubits are incredibly flighty creatures that readily change their state through decoherence. IBM has created a high-coherence 3D qubit that retains its state for up to 100 microseconds, or 0.1 milliseconds. This is stable enough that engineers can now shift their focus to scaling up the number of qubits and actually creating a quantum logic computer. Also demonstrated was a 3-qubit 2D chip, built using standard semiconductor fabrication processes, that performed a controlled-NOT logic operation. While IBM admits that we still don't really understand the applications of quantum computing, it does throw in this rather awesome tidbit: 'The special properties of qubits will allow quantum computers to work on millions of computations at once, while desktop PCs can typically handle minimal simultaneous computations. For example, a single 250-qubit state contains more bits of information than there are atoms in the universe. '"

Submission + - UK Network Rail places virtual archive online (networkrail.co.uk)

Submitted by GeoffB
GeoffB writes: Network Rail, the company that runs, maintains and develops much of the UK railway infrastructure, has placed some of their archive material online. The new material includes drawings of stations, tunnels and bridges by Brunel, Stephenson and other railway engineering greats. Network Rail intends to continue developing the archive and there is an "ask the archivist" section to request further information.
Apple

Submission + - Behind Apple's packaging designs (networkworld.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Now it's no secret that Apple sweats every last detail when it comes to their products — which if anything, is quite an understatement.

Apple's attention to detail stretches out far beyond the product itself and even encompasses the packaging said products are shipped in. Is it any surprise that Apple, in addition to its slew of technical and design patents, also has a number of patents pertaining to package design?

While packaging may seem secondary to most consumer electronics companies, Apple takes package design very seriously and even has a secretive packaging room within Apple HQ that is only accessible to a select few.
Google

Submission + - Norwegian Data Inspectorate forbids Google Aps (www.digi.no)

Submitted by
phun-ky
phun-ky writes: "Excerpt from google translate (article is in norwegian)
"Then it's settled. Inspectorate has a very comprehensive and thorough assessment concluded that the use of Google Apps in breach of Norwegian law.

Or rather: Norwegian companies that make use of Google cloud solution with its standard terms violate the law.

Because Google currently only offer standard contracts, without adaptation to local conditions, it probably breaks all the Norwegian company that uses Google Apps law.

It is clear the consequences of a decision by the Norwegian Data Inspectorate has now done.

Narvik lost
digi.no have in a long series of articles covering the issue of how Narvik municipality was guinea pig for the legal clarification and the Data Inspectorate Review.

"The municipality has not adequately ensured that the use of Google Apps is in line with the Data Protection Act. This is particularly the signing of a valid data processor contract (...) with respect to the transfer of personal data to other countries (...) and fulfillment of the requirements for information security "for it in the conclusion of the Data Inspectorate.

- We have gone through and looked at the requirements of the legislation to the Google Apps product. We have seen the opportunity to get information about how data is stored, as required by law. It does not know Narvik municipality, and Google can not explain. The same applies to the requirements to conduct safety audits. They have no real data processor agreement, such personal information as required by law.

It says the director of the Inspectorate Bjorn Erik Thon to digi.no""
Facebook

Submission + - Anonymous Threatens To Shutdown Facebook On Januar (gizmocrazed.com) 1

Submitted by
Diggester
Diggester writes: "According to a video released by Hacktivist group Anonymous, they are planning to take down Facebook on January 28. This comes after shutdown of popular file-sharing site Megaupload by the United States Government.

Anonymous asks for the participation of Americans in the operation by downloading Low Orbit Ion Cannon (LOIC), a tool used to send thousands of requests to servers. Anyone who wish to support Anonymous has to download this tool and follow the instructions given in the video."
Google

Submission + - The Google+ Name Game Continues

Submitted by theodp
theodp writes: 'Sticks and stones will break my bones,' the old nursery rhyme goes, 'but names will never hurt me.' Unless, of course, you're on Google+. While touting what it calls a move toward a more inclusive naming policy for Google+, the search giant's Name Policy would still make Sister Aloysius Beauvier smile. Names like 'Doctor Stan Livingston,' 'Bill Smithwick DDS,' and 'Rev. Jim Copley, S. P.' are cited as examples of violations that could cost you your Google+ privileges. And since new Google account users are reportedly now forced to join Google+, one wonders if the Name Policy might even preclude one from establishing one of those adorable dear.sophie.lee or dear.hollie accounts.
EU

Submission + - Spanish Extremadura Moving 40,000 Desktops to Linu (europa.eu)

Submitted by
jrepin
jrepin writes: "The administration of Spain’s autonomous region of Extremadura is moving to a complete open source desktop, confirms the region's CIO, Teodomiro Cayetano López. The IT department started a project to install the Debian distribution on all 40,000 desktop PCs. "The project is really advanced and we hope to start the deployment the next spring, finishing it in December." The project makes it Europe's second largest open source desktop migration, between the French Gendarmerie (90,000 desktops) and the German city of Munich (14,000 desktops)."

Comment Media Hysteria (Score 1) 591

by Martin Spamer (#38704002) Attached to: The New Transparency of War and Lethality of Hatred

Comment Automation (Score 1) 545

by Martin Spamer (#38690158) Attached to: How To Get Developers To Document Code

There are tools that will reverse engineer code to produce UML, or DB schema to produce ER diagrams. Add good naming conventions, IDE automatic code completion in IDEs combined with tools like JavaDoc go a long way. These need to be ubiquitous.

The same process improvement we've seen automating the build, unit testing and deployment needs to be applied to take the donkey work out of the documentation process.
Your Rights Online

Submission + - ICANN and .xxx taken to court by biggest porn comp (theregister.co.uk)

Submitted by SharkLaser
SharkLaser writes: Two of the largest porn companies on the internet, Manwin and Digital Playground, yesterday sued both ICANN and ICM Registry, which runs .xxx TLD, to court over extorting defensive registrations with ICANN's blessing. 'The complaint focuses on ICM's recently concluded "sunrise" period, during which porn companies, for about $200, could apply to own a .xxx address matching their trademark or .com domain.' Schools also felt the same way, and had to reserve domains under their name so that no porn content could be put up on them. The .xxx TLD has also previously been subject to criticism by both religious groups and adult industry, but for different reasons. Religious groups believe the .xxx TLD legitimases pornography, while adult industry believes it could lead to censorship.

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