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Privacy

Submission + - TorrentSpy ruling a 'weapon of mass discovery' (com.com)

Submitted by SwordsmanLuke
SwordsmanLuke writes: A California judge has declared that TorrentSpy must generate log files of the IP addresses of visitors to their site so that these logs may then be turned over to the MPAA. In a bizarre move, the judge ruled that anything stored in a computer's RAM is "electronically stored information" and as such, must be turned over for examination in a lawsuit. Besides demonstrating such a gross lack of technical savvy in our courts, this case also has heavy privacy implications. The judge is, in essence, requiring the creation of documents for the *sole* purpose of supplying a plaintiff (in this case the MPAA) with the data it requires to "discover" illegal file-sharing.

FTA:

"There's never been a requirement that (defendants) must create documents that they wouldn't ordinarily maintain for the purpose of satisfying some (plaintiff's) discovery requests," said Withers.
The Courts

Submission + - Hans Reiser Assigned New Judge, Jury Delayed (cbs5.com)

Submitted by
nz17
nz17 writes: "After being assigned to Alameda County Superior Court Judge Larry Goodman, Hans Reiser, main programmer and designer behind the Reiser File System (Reiser FS), has agreed to a delay on jury selection until August 28. His trial is most likely to begin in October or September. Reiser stands accused of the murder of his wife, Nina Reiser, from whom he is separated. The news article on KPIX TV has the history of the trial, news video segments about its events, and the official statement of the police department in this matter."
Portables (Apple)

Submission + - Apple iPhone to need AT&T Activation

Submitted by
SinaK
SinaK writes: ""According to an AT&T store representative, the majority of the new Apple iPhones will initially be offered through Apple stores around the country rather than through AT&T stores. However, phones purchased at Apple Stores will apparently need direct activation through AT&T.

This may indicate that Apple has built some sort of additional security measure into the iPhone that goes beyond the standard subsidy-locks used by other manufacturers. GSM phones are typically sold with a software subsidy-lock that customers from using their phones with another network. Numerous online services offer code and software based unlocking solutions that remove these subsidy-locks from the majority of phone makes and models.

However, phones operating on CDMA networks such as Sprint and Verizon cannot be easily unlocked, since each phone is individually registered to operate on the network. If Apple have developed a similar network-side activation system with AT&T it may be impossible to unlock the iPhone. If this turns out to be true, users tied into contracts with other networks will not be able to purchase and use iPhones without switching to AT&T service.""
Google

Submission + - Ebay finds Google Checkout revolting (ft.com)

Submitted by
An anonymous reader writes: The Financial Times reports that Google Checkout (a rival to Ebay's Paypal) advertised plans to hold a party in Boston celebrating user choice, at the "same spot where revolutionaries launched the Boston tea party to celebrate freedom". Clearly an attempt to provoke Ebay, the party was scheduled to coincide with Ebay Live, an annual conference that has become Ebay's biggest customer event. Well, they did get a reaction: Ebay apparently promptly cut advertising spending on Google's search site.
Education

Submission + - External Web Traffic Statistics Are Generally Crap (timbuchalka.com)

Submitted by
An anonymous reader writes: Why do Website owners waste so much time trying to rank highly in traffic ranking sites such as Alexa, Compete, and Quantcast? They would be far better off spending their time and money on relevant quality content that gives people a reason to visit their website (and to return).
The Courts

Submission + - No anonymity for Colorado P2P defendants (internetcases.com)

Submitted by
Pablo Saga
Pablo Saga writes: "From Internet Cases: Finding that the RIAA and other record companies might not get access to precious data including the names, addresses and MAC address of unknown defendants in a new file sharing case, a federal court in Colorado has allowed the service of a special subpoena on Qwest so that the defendants can be tracked down. Colorado file sharers beware!"
Media

Submission + - Ipods make people dress badly.

Submitted by
Whiney Mac Fanboy
Whiney Mac Fanboy writes: "David Hockney, Britain's best-loved living painter has launched an attack on Apple's mp3 player, saying Ipods have combined with a decline in art education to create a "fallow period of painting", where people are more interested in sound than visual awareness — even leading to poor dress sense. He said of the proliferation of iPods:

"We are not in a very visual age," Hockney said. "I think it's all about sound. People plug in their ears and don't look much, whereas for me my eyes are the biggest pleasure.
"
Quickies

Submission + - Man applies for patent: "Godly Powers"

Submitted by omnifrog
omnifrog writes: An inventor(?) in Burnsville, MN has filed a patent application for "Godly Powers." Christopher Anthony Roller claims to be a godly entity and then continues to patent the business method of using godly powers for financial gain. Should this patent be granted, it will create a new class of patents and a new patent rush — those dealing with patenting divine intervention.
Security

Submission + - Mysterious Hacked Security Researcher Revealed

Submitted by Tavon X
Tavon X writes: After the 2006 Shmoocon conference, a story broke revealing that a researcher's Apple Powerbook got hacked. The researcher managed to remain anonymous, until this year, when she had the guts to return. A recent video posted on YouTube reveals the researcher, Raven, getting asked about the incident from an audience member, that was able to figure out it was her. Maybe this will quiet Apple users on OS X security, and instill fear in researchers that know nothing about security but dare to present at security conferences.
Security

Submission + - Twitter & Jott vulnerable to sms/callerid spoo

Submitted by
loothoot
loothoot writes: "According to Nitesh Dhanjani, Twitter is vulnerable to SMS spoofing allowing anyone who knows a Twitter user's cell phone number to post a Twitter message as that person. The Jott application is also vulnerable to caller ID spoofing allowing someone to send a Jott message as another Jott user. Dhanjani steps through details on how he tested these vulnerabilities. He writes: "Because it is so easy to spoof Caller ID, it is clear that Caller ID information should never be trusted to authenticate users, and many financial institutions have learnt this the hard way.... Given the popularity of Twitter, similar phone+IM+email mash-up services are likely to be created in the very near future. I sincerely hope these services realize the implications of authenticating users based on incoming SMS headers and Caller ID information.""
Quickies

Submission + - Geeks are Better Lovers

Submitted by
rcastro0
rcastro0 writes: "Regina Lynn, at Wired, wrote a short piece named "The 10 Real Reasons Why Geeks Make Better Lovers". No, it's not that geeks are so unaccostumed to romance that they will do anything for their mates, she points out. There actually are logical reasons. Of course in order to scientifically test her point one would have to have a minimum sample of geeks doing it. Which would not be simple, according to an older Salon article, "No sex please, we're geeks", by Paulina Borsook. The topic stays open for controversy. Should the hypothesis be explored by research ? And if so, how ?"

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