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Crime

Submission + - Anonymous Warhead Targets US Sentencing Commission

Submitted by theodp
theodp writes: Late Friday, Violet Blue reports, the U.S. Sentencing Commission website was hacked and government files distributed by Anonymous in 'Operation Last Resort.' The U.S. Sentencing Commission sets guidelines for sentencing in United States Federal courts, and on the defaced ussc.gov website Anonymous cited the recent suicide of Aaron Swartz as 'a line that has been crossed.' Calling the launch of its new campaign a "warhead," Anonymous vowed, 'This time there will be change, or there will be chaos.'
Idle

Submission + - Trees to call for help if illegally felled (mongabay.com)

Submitted by Damien1972
Damien1972 writes: The Brazilian government has begun fixing trees in the Amazon rainforest with a wireless device, known as Invisible Tracck, which will allow trees to contact authorities once they are felled and moved. Here's how it works: Brazilian authorities fix the Invisible Tracck onto a tree. An illegal logger cuts down the tree and puts it onto a truck for removal, unaware that they are carrying a tracking device. Once Invisible Tracck comes within 20 miles (32 kilometers) of a cellular network it will 'wake up' and alert authorities.

Submission + - Man With 4th Amendment Written on Chest Wins Trial Over Airport Arrest (wired.com)

Submitted by TempestRose
TempestRose writes: Tobey didn’t want to go through the advanced imaging technology X-ray machines, or so-called nude body scanners, that were cropping up at airports nationwide. Instead, when it was his turn to be screened, he was going to opt for an intrusive pat-down, and removed most of his clothing in the process.

Is there yet hope for this country?

Submission + - Trojanized SSH daemon in the wild (eset.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: It is no secret the SSH binaries can be backdoored. It is nonetheless interesting to see analysis of real cases where trojanized version of the daemon are found in the wild. In this case, the binary not only lets the attacker log onto the server if he has a hardcoded password, the attacker is also granted access if he/she has the right SSH key. The backdoor also logs all username and passwords to exfiltrate them to a server hosted in Iceland.
Iphone

Submission + - Every Apple-Made App On Your iPhone Can Be Replaced By A Better App (businessinsider.com)

Submitted by
Andy Prough
Andy Prough writes: "Business Insider's Steve Kovach writes that he has now replaced all of Apple's built-in iPhone apps with those made by 3rd-party developers: Gmail for Mail, Google Maps for Apple Maps, Fantastical for Calendar, Chrome for Safari, Camera+ for Camera, Clear for Reminders, Evernote for Note, Adappt for Contacts, and others. Kovach states, "And now, all of the Apple-made apps are now in a folder labeled with an Emoji of a smiling pile of poop." While Kovach believes this is a good thing for iPhone users to have access to superior software, the San Francisco Chronicle posits that "it's becoming conventional wisdom that Apple isn't particularly good at making software for the iPhone"."
Facebook

Submission + - Ayatollah's Granddaughter Bypasses Censors to Join Facebook and Criticize Iran (ibtimes.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Censorship doesn't work too well in Iran since millions of people use VPNs, including Ayatollah Khomeini's own granddaughter, who has 5,000 Facebook friends and says Iran "should stop fearing the transfer of new communications technology."
http://www.ibtimes.com/khomeinis-granddaughter-knows-how-win-facebook-friends-influence-ayatollahs-946776

Submission + - Mother Found Guilty After Protesting TSA Pat-down of Daughter (tennessean.com)

Submitted by Penurious Penguin
Penurious Penguin writes: In 2011, en route to Baltimore, Tennessee mother Andrea Abbott was arrested after squabbling with the TSA over their pat-down and "naked" body-scan process. Initially Abbott had protested a pat-down of her 14 year-old daughter, though eventually backed off. When her own turn came, she refused both a pat-down and body-scan. This week, despite having no criminal record, Abbott was found guilty of disorderly conduct and sentenced to one year of probation.

A surveillance video of the affair shows what appears an agitated Abbott surrounded by various TSA agents, but seemingly contradicts the premise by which she was convicted. In the case against Abbott it was claimed that her behavior impeded the flow security-lines and lawful activity. Beyond Abbott's confession of issuing some verbal abuse, the video does not appear to display a significant blockage of traffic nor anything noticeably criminal.
Android

Submission + - Accuweather app update hijacks phone lock screens (google.com)

Submitted by willyg
willyg writes: Accuweather pushed out an update to their paid Android phone app earlier today. One of the new "features" of the update was to replace the lock screen on your phone with their own lockscreen. To the casual glance, there is little indication on the lockscreen as to which app is responsible for the new lockscreen.

The Google play store has been reporting nothing but one star reviews today as users discover who is responsible for the new lock screen, installed with no apparent warning to them.

Accuweather has been responding, and promises to fix the issue as soon as possible.

Anyone feel like trusting their "fix"???

Comment Re:Healthy or Nutritious? (Score 1) 497

by whitesea (#41279279) Attached to: Scientists Say Organic Food May Not Be Healthier For You

Actually, the study looks at both issues, and says that in fact organics do contain less pesticide residue. However, for some reason what's actually said in newspaper reports that link to the study is that "organics are no different." So don't blame Stanford for this—blame the reporters. If you ever thought the news was unbiased, this ought to give you some food for thought...

Yes, but would this food for thought be organic, pesticide-covered or genetically engineered?

Submission + - Inventor cultivates no-mow, easy-grow grass (foxnews.com)

Submitted by schwit1
schwit1 writes: After more than ten years of experimenting with thousands of seeds, Jackson Madnick cultivated Pearl’s Premium — a specific mix of red fescue, tall fescue, sheep fescue and other grasses.

It’s all in the grassroots. Pearl’s Premium develops 12- to14-inch roots and pulls water from underground, meaning it requires a quarter as much water as comparable grasses.

“It grows slow so you only have to mow it every four or six weeks,” he said. “And if you don’t mow it, it flips over and becomes a meadow.”

Madnick began experimenting with different grasses because he wanted to create environmentally sustainable lawns. “I took a weekend course on water management and learned that the number one enemy of ponds is fertilizer” He wanted a healthy alternative to a chemically-maintained lawn — deemed one of the "most toxic areas in your home" by Health Magazine.
Security

Submission + - Cyber Security: Are Users to Blame? (esecurityplanet.com) 1

Submitted by
kongshem
kongshem writes: "On the topic of cybersecurity, the issue of personal responsibility raises a lot of questions. To what extent should end-users be held accountable for patching their systems and running up-to-date antivirus software?

In an interview with eSecurity Planet, HP's Chief Technology Officer comes out strongly in favor of the expectation that users should take responsibility for the maintenance and operation of their computer systems.

"As individuals, we don't take responsibility for our own data and privacy," said Andrzej Kawalec, Global Chief Technology Officer at HP Enterprise Security Services. "We have locks on windows and doors at home .... [but] I don't think people are doing that with their personal data in the online world."

It's a good point, but the question remains: Where do you draw the line between the responsibility of the vendor (Microsoft, Apple, Adobe, Cisco, etc.) and the user?

The question is somewhat analogous to the automobile industry, in which carmakers are held to safety standards by government regulation — but users (drivers) also have to pass competency exams, obey laws, and maintain their vehicles. But the key flaw in that analogy, I think, is that Internet security is a lot more complicated than learning to drive, obeying the rules of the road, and keeping your tires properly inflated. (At least for non-technical users.)

What do you think? Should users be held to a higher standard of personal responsibility when it comes to online security?"

Submission + - Teen Marijuana Use Linked To IQ Loss

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Frequent marijuana use before the age of 18 may cause irreversible harm to a person's intelligence, attention and memory, scientists claim. Middle-aged people who had started using marijuana in their teens showed an average decline in IQ by about 8 points and quitting pot did not appear to reverse the loss either, according to researchers at Duke University.
Communications

Submission + - Google Launches Hurricane Isaac Site (ibtimes.com)

Submitted by
redletterdave
redletterdave writes: "Google Crisis Response, one of Google's thousands of active projects that merges various Google tools like Maps, Docs, Forms and Earth, posted a new webpage on Monday dedicated to Tropical Storm Isaac — soon to be Hurricane Isaac — in an effort to disseminate helpful information about the hurricane's path, its forecasted track, and how local residents can stay safe during this emergency situation. Google's Crisis Map for Hurricane Isaac allows the user to set up and see public alerts from weather.gov, flood gauge forecasts, surge zones, evacuation zones and routes, barrier resources and relevant YouTube videos for each impacted area."
The Internet

Submission + - FAA to reevaluate inflight electronic device use – no cell phones though (networkworld.com)

Submitted by
coondoggie
coondoggie writes: "If you have been on a commercial airline, the phrase “The use of any portable electronic equipment while the aircraft is taxiing, during takeoff and climb, or during approach and landing,” is as ubiquitous but not quite as tedious as “make sure your tray tables are in the secure locked upright position.” But the electronic equipment restrictions may change. The Federal Aviation Administration today said it was forming a government-industry group to study the current portable electronic device use policies commercial aviation use to determine when these devices can be used safely during flight."

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