goodbadorugly - Slashdot User

Submission + - 22,000 names and SSNs stolen at the U. of Missouri

Submitted by

Ardeaem

on Wednesday May 09, 2007 @12:33AM

Ardeaem writes: "The University of Missouri is reporting that a security breach has allowed over 22,000 names and social security numbers to be stolen. It appears that an insecure application is to blame; used by the help desk to track issues, the application allowed the retrieval of names and SSNs. The "hacker" simply used the application to get the SSNs one by one. Of course, if the person's name is known, getting more information about them is possible through the school's directory, enabling the "hackers" to possibly compile a disturbing amount of information about each person. Why do organizations still use SSNs for identification, and can they be held liable for it? When will they learn?"

Submission + - U.S. Lags World In Broadband Access

Submitted by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 15, 2007 @09:32AM

An anonymous reader writes: When It Comes To Broadband, U.S. Plays Follow The Leader says a story in IWeek. The thesis is that, while broadband access in the United States rose from 60 million users in March 2005 to 84 million in March 2006, the U.S. is well behind countries like England and China. Indeed, what you may not realize is that the U.S. ranks a surprisingly poor 12th in worldwide broadband access, a situation which could threaten its ability to maintain its technological lead. Do you think this is the case; indeed, has the U.S. lost its lead already, we just haven't admitted it?

Charter Implements SiteFinder-Like DNS 206

Posted by kdawson on Thursday February 15, 2007 @09:26AM from the fun-and-games dept.

paulbiz writes "Charter Cable's DNS servers have just started resolving all invalid hostnames and pointing them to their own error page. The About page states: 'This service automatically eliminates many of the error pages you may encounter as you surf the web. No software was installed on your computer for this service to work.' It has an 'opt-out' page, but when you use it Charter simply sets a cookie that makes their page redirect errors to Microsoft Live Search instead!" One more reason to use OpenDNS, where you can actually opt out of the custom error page.

Submission + - MS malware engine vulnerable to malware

Submitted by connah0047 on Thursday February 15, 2007 @09:21AM

connah0047 writes: If there was one piece of software you'd expect to be secure from malware attacks it would have to be malware protection software itself. Sadly, this is not the case with Microsoft Defender, the software giant's all-singing, all-dancing user security package.

Huh. Go figure.

Submission + - First Commercial Quantum Computer Demonstrated

Submitted by StarfishOne on Thursday February 15, 2007 @09:09AM

StarfishOne writes: (I'm very sorry, but personally I don't have the time at the moment to send in a more worked out scoop.. hence why I add some snippets below to give an impression of the news item.)

The world's first commercially viable quantum computer was unveiled and demonstrated today in Silicon Valley by D-Wave Systems, Inc., a privately-held Canadian firm headquartered near Vancouver.

-snip-

"D-Wave's breakthrough in quantum technology represents a substantial step forward in solving commercial and scientific problems which, until now, were considered intractable. Digital technology stands to reap the benefits of enhanced performance and broader application," said Herb Martin, chief executive officer.

-snip-

D-Wave overcame this challenge in part by using the processes and infrastructure associated with the semiconductor industry. This and components such as a new type of analog processor, one that uses quantum mechanics rather than the conventional physics associated with digital processing, to drive the computation.

-snip-

Source:
http://www.dwavesys.com/index.php?mact=News,cntnt0 1,detail,0&cntnt01articleid=4&cntnt01origid=15&cnt nt01returnid=21

Submission + - IAEA Introduces New Radiation Warning Symbol

Submitted by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 15, 2007 @09:06AM

An anonymous reader writes: According to the International Atomic Energy Agency, the new ionizing radiation warning symbol with radiating waves, a skull and crossbones and a running person is tested with different population groups to ensure that its message of "danger — stay away" was crystal clear and understood by all.

Submission + - 14 Hewlett-Packard Company Secrets

Submitted by bennett77 on Thursday February 15, 2007 @08:08AM

bennett77 writes: Frostfirepulse have details of a former Hewlett-Packard worker who could barely wait for their non-disclosure-agreement to end so they could spill 14 company secrets. These include if a set of cartridges cost more than the printer, don't buy the printer. Any HP printer that has been on the market for 6 months has its tech support outsourced. To get past the voice prompt system, repeatedly say "Agent."

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