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Submission Summary: 0 pending, 57 declined, 18 accepted (75 total, 24.00% accepted)

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Submission + - U.S. and Russia Open Talks on Limits to Cyberwar (nytimes.com)

Submitted by andy1307
andy1307 writes: According to the New York Times, "The United States has begun talks with Russia and a United Nations arms control committee about strengthening Internet security and limiting military use of cyberspace. American and Russian officials have different interpretations of the talks so far, but the mere fact that the United States is participating represents a significant policy shift after years of rejecting Russia’s overtures. Officials familiar with the talks said the Obama administration realized that more nations were developing cyberweapons and that a new approach was needed to blunt an international arms race. While the Russians have continued to focus on treaties that may restrict weapons development, the United States is hoping to use the talks to increase international cooperation in opposing Internet crime. Strengthening defenses against Internet criminals would also strengthen defenses against any military-directed cyberattacks, the United States maintains.

Submission + - whitehouse.gov switches to Drupal (nytimes.com)

Submitted by andy1307
andy1307 writes: According to the New York Times, whitehouse.gov has switched to Drupal. In an example of how little mainstream media understands FOSS, the article headline from the AP is "White House Opens Web Site Programming to Public ". From the article "It will be a much faster way to change the programming behind the Web site. When the model was owned solely by the government, federal contractors would have to work through the reams of code to troubleshoot it or upgrade it. Now, it can be done in the matter of days and free to taxpayers."
Government

Submission + - US govt Launches Web Site to Track IT Spending

Submitted by andy1307
andy1307 writes:

According to this article in the Washington Post, Vivek Kundra, the federal chief information officer, on Tuesday announced a new Web site designed to track more than $70 billion in government information technology spending, showing all contracts held by major firms within every agency. The site shows detailed information about whether IT contracts are being monitored and budgets being met. The data also show which contracts were won through a competitive process or in a no-bid method, which has been criticized by good-government advocates for excluding firms from business opportunities. Each prime contractor is listed as well as the status of that project; sub-contractors are not yet shown on the site.

The website is http://usaspending.gov/. The view dashboard link has already been slashdoted.

Security

Submission + - Bill introduced to federalize "Cybersecurity&#

Submitted by andy1307
andy1307 writes: According to the Washington Post, lawmakers are crafting proposals that would empower the government to set and enforce security standards for private industry for the first time. The private systems would include systems that control essentials such as electricity and water distribution. The bill calls for the appointment of a White House cybersecurity "czar" with unprecedented authority to shut down computer networks, including private ones, if a cyberattack is underway, the officials said. The Rockefeller-Snowe measure would create the Office of the National Cybersecurity Adviser, whose leader would report directly to the president and would coordinate defense efforts across government agencies. It would require the National Institute of Standards and Technology to establish "measurable and auditable cybersecurity standards" that would apply to private companies as well as the government. It also would require licensing and certification of cybersecurity professionals.
Businesses

Submission + - FCC report supports use of white spaces. 2

Submitted by andy1307
andy1307 writes: According to this article in the Washington Post, the major telcos disagree with the FCC's report that concluded that using white spaces to provide free wireless internet would not cause major interference with other services. But several large wireless carriers, including T-Mobile, Verizon Wireless and AT&T, argue that using the spectrum will in fact interfere with their own broadband services operating in adjacent airwaves. FCC engineers conducted field tests last month in Seattle to determine the level of static between the services. The FCC concluded that sufficient technical protections would prevent major problems. FCC chairman Martin's proposal is to auction off the spectrum, with some rules attached. Some of the spectrum would be used for free Internet service, which would have content filters to block material considered inappropriate for children.
United States

Submission + - DHS allowed to take laptops indefinitely

Submitted by andy1307
andy1307 writes: According to this article in the Washington Post, Federal agents may take a traveler's laptop or other electronic device to an off-site location for an unspecified period of time without any suspicion of wrongdoing, as part of border search policies the Department of Homeland Security recently disclosed. Also, officials may share copies of the laptop's contents with other agencies and private entities for language translation, data decryption or other reasons, according to the policies, dated July 16 and issued by two DHS agencies, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. DHS officials said that the newly disclosed policies — which apply to anyone entering the country, including U.S. citizens — are reasonable and necessary to prevent terrorism. Officials said such procedures have long been in place but were disclosed last month because of public interest in the matter. The policies cover "any device capable of storing information in digital or analog form," including hard drives, flash drives, cell phones, iPods, pagers, beepers, and video and audio tapes. They also cover "all papers and other written documentation," including books, pamphlets and "written materials commonly referred to as 'pocket trash' or 'pocket litter.' "
The Internet

Submission + - Al-Qaeda's Growing Online Offensive

Submitted by andy1307
andy1307 writes: The Washington Post has an article on Al-Qaeda's online presence. U.S. and European intelligence officials attribute the al-Qaeda propaganda boom in part to the network's ability to establish a secure base in the ungoverned tribal areas of western Pakistan. When Osama bin Laden wants to deliver a speech, a trusted video cameraman is summoned to a safe house somewhere in Pakistan, according to U.S. counterterrorism officials and analysts. The video file is then edited, stored on a tiny computer memory stick and given to a human courier. The memory stick usually passes through several sets of hands to disguise its route, until an operative finally sits down in an Internet cafe and saves the data to a password-protected Web site, they said. Analysts said that as-Sahab(AQ's propaganda network) is outfitted with some of the best technology available. Editors and producers use ultralight Sony Vaio laptops and top-end video cameras. Files are protected using PGP, or Pretty Good Privacy, a virtually unbreakable form of encryption software that is also used by intelligence agencies around the world.

My favorite line from the article: "Al-Qaeda doesn't have a whole lot of choice. If they want to know something about the U.S., they either go to Gadahn(a California native and convert to Islam who moved to Pakistan a decade ago) or to Wikipedia."
Intel

Submission + - FTC opens formal antitrust investigation of Intel

Submitted by andy1307
andy1307 writes: According to the New York Times, The Federal Trade Commission has opened a formal antitrust investigation of Intel. The officials and lawyers said that in recent days Intel, its smaller rival Advanced Micro Devices, and several of the world's largest personal computer makers that buy semiconductors from the two companies have begun to receive subpoenas from the commission. The investigation into accusations that Intel's pricing policies have been designed to maintain a near-monopoly on the microprocessor market was authorized by William E. Kovacic, the new chairman of the trade commission, and has the support of the agency's other commissioners. It reversed a decision by his predecessor, Deborah P. Majoras, who had been blocking the formal inquiry for many months, frustrating other senior commission officials and some lawmakers on Capitol Hill. Ms. Majoras is a former senior official in the antitrust division at the Justice Department who was an architect of the Bush administration's antitrust settlement with Microsoft in 2001.
Patents

Submission + - Seagate files lawsuit against SSD company

Submitted by andy1307
andy1307 writes: According to this NYT article, Seagate has filed a lawsuit against SSD manufacturer STEC. Seagate contends that STEC's solid-state drive products violate four Seagate patents covering how such drives interface with computers. At the center of the suit is how solid-state drive technology interacts with computers, for purposes like error correction. Is this a desperate attempt by Seagate to stop the march of solid state devices? Of course not, says William D. Watkins, chief executive of Seagate. Mr. Watkins said the goal of the suit was to promote the kind of cross-licensing and partnerships that have always been part of the hard-drive market. We discussed the possibility of Seagate suing SSD manufacturers less than a month ago.
Yahoo!

Submission + - Microsoft and NewsCorp in Yahoo bid talks

Submitted by andy1307
andy1307 writes: According to the New York Times, Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation is in talks with Microsoft about joining in its contested bid for Yahoo.Yahoo, which wants to remain independent, has been in a desperate search for white knights, holding conversations with Time Warner's AOL and News Corporation. If News Corporation throws its weight behind Microsoft's offer, that could allow Microsoft to raise its bid, putting even more pressure on Yahoo and its shareholders. At the same time, the alignment of Microsoft and News Corporation would remove a possible alternative for Yahoo, leaving it with fewer opportunities to escape Microsoft's grasp. The talks between Microsoft and News Corporation are at a sensitive stage, people involved in the discussions said. "There's a long way to go before anything is definite," one person involved in the talks said. On Wednesday, Yahoo suggested that it might be willing to cede part of its core business to Google, an archrival, to remain independent. Yahoo said it would begin outsourcing a small portion of its search advertising to Google. The limited test is meant to determine whether the company could extract more revenue if Google ran its search advertising system. The test results might also back Yahoo's contention that Microsoft's offer undervalues the company, a person briefed on the plan said. In the two-week test, Yahoo will use Google's search advertising system to deliver ads that appear alongside Yahoo's search results. Microsoft immediately blasted the idea of a search advertising partnership between Yahoo and Google, saying it would be anticompetitive. "Any definitive agreement between Yahoo and Google would consolidate over 90 percent of the search advertising market in Google's hands," Microsoft said in a statement.
Wireless Networking

Submission + - Comcast, Time Warner to fund Sprint WiMax

Submitted by andy1307
andy1307 writes: According to this AP article quoting a Wall Street Journal report, Comcast Corp. and Time Warner Cable Inc. are discussing a plan to fund a new wireless Internet venture that would be run by Sprint Nextel Corp. and Clearwire Corp.The partnership would create a nationwide network using WiMax technology. Under the plan, Philadelphia-based Comcast would put up as much as $1 billion, while No. 2 Time Warner Cable would add $500 million, the Journal reported, citing unnamed people familiar with the matter. Another cable operator, Bright House Networks, would contribute $100 million to $200 million, the Journal said. The failure of a WiMax rollout in Australia was previously discussed on slashdot.
Businesses

Submission + - Microsoft Bids $44.6 Billion for Yahoo

Submitted by andy1307
andy1307 writes: According to the Washington Post, Microsoft has offered to buy struggling internet search provider Yahoo for $44.6 billion. Microsoft has been struggling for a strategy to capture more of the internet search and advertising traffic that has been Google's undisputed province. The Web advertising market is growing rapidly, anticipated to increase from around $40 billion last year to $80 billion in 2010, Microsoft said in a press release. At $31 a share, the purchase price represents a roughly 60 percent premium over Yahoo's closing stock price on Thursday of $19.18. "Today, the market is increasingly dominated by one player who is consolidating its dominance through acquisition," Ballmer wrote. "Together, Microsoft and Yahoo can offer a credible alternative for consumers, advertisers, and publishers."
Businesses

Submission + - Sprint to allow handset unlocking

Submitted by andy1307
andy1307 writes: According to this article in the New York Times, "Sprint Nextel has agreed to provide departing customers with the code necessary to unlock their phones' software so the handsets they own can be used on competitors' networks.The agreement is part of the proposed settlement of a class-action lawsuit brought last year by a group of California consumers against the company, which is based in Reston, Va. The settlement, which is awaiting final approval by a Superior Court judge in Alameda County, Calif., would allow the phones to operate on any technically compatible network using code division multiple access technology, or CDMA. Other carriers that use CDMA include Alltel and Verizon. Sprint said it would share the unlocking code with all current and former subscribers once they had completed the terms of their contracts, had their phones deactivated and paid their final bills. The company will also add information about the unlocking codes as part of the terms and conditions of service given to new customers and will instruct its customer service representatives on connecting a non-Sprint phone to the Sprint network. "We're not admitting guilt," said Matthew Sullivan, a spokesman for Sprint Nextel. "We think what was agreed upon is reasonable based on the claims made by the plaintiffs."" . What does this mean for the iPhone?
Businesses

Submission + - Oracle makes 6.6 billion $ bid for BEA

Submitted by andy1307
andy1307 writes: According to this article in the San Jose Mercury News, Oracle has made an unsolicited bid to buy BEA Systems for about $6.7 billion. BEA confirmed that it rejected the $17 a share bid as too low in a letter to Oracle's president, Charles Phillips. Oracle's aggressive bid may be an attempt to pre-empt an acquisition by others, Finley said. Those named in the past as potential suitors include IBM, the German software company SAP AG and Hewlett-Packard. Trip Chowdhry of Global Equity Research said he expects a counterbid from SAP, which he said needs BEA to survive. "If they don't get BEA, probably in two years SAP will be on the block to sell itself," Chowdhry predicted. Oracle needs to keep BEA out of competitors' hands, he said.
Businesses

Submission + - The end of Vonage?

Submitted by andy1307
andy1307 writes: According to this article in the Washington Post, Internet telephone company Vonage Holdings Corp. was ordered in federal court Tuesday to pay Sprint Nextel $69.5 million in damages for infringing on six telecommunications patents owned by competitor Sprint Nextel Corp. In addition to the $69.5 million damages, jurors awarded Sprint Nextel a 5 percent royalty from Vonage on future revenues. It was the second verdict against the Holmden, N.J.-based company this year. A jury in Virginia determined in March that Vonage had violated three Verizon patents in building its Internet phone system. The jury awarded Verizon $58 million in damages plus 5.5 percent royalties on future revenues. Greg Gorbatenko, a telecommunications and media analyst for Jackson Securities, said the decision "feels like a death knell" for Vonage because future revenue will likely dry up, preventing the company from investing in better technology or improving customer service.

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