Washington Post and CNN hit by hack

Washington Post, CNN and Time magazine are affected by a hack carried out by supporters of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

BBC News – Technology

Monsoon Accessorize appoints new IT chief

John Bovill has taken over as head of the technology function at the womenswear retailer

ComputerWeekly: All Computer Weekly Content

Apple faces e-book clamp down

US regulators have called for Apple to be forced to cancel certain e-book contracts with major publishers.

BBC News – Technology

Cisco cuts 4,000 staff

Despite announcing record results, the networking giant Cisco says 4,000 jobs will go

ComputerWeekly: Enterprise software

Attackers are in the network, now what?

If attackers are inside the network, can disguise themselves and get close to sensitive corporate data, how can data be defended?

ComputerWeekly: Latest IT News

Vodly.to, PrimeWire.ag, LetMeWatchThis, 1Channel is a Streaming Fiasco

While BitTorrent sites have gone from strength to strength in recent years, so-called streaming portals have really gained traction.

These sites, which in appearance are not dissimilar to YouTube, provide links to all the latest movies and TV shows. This content, usually held on 3rd party file-hosting services, is then displayed in a window, accessible at the touch of the button. No need to download the whole thing before viewing and no wait times.

But for reasons that are not entirely clear, some of the leading sites in this field – which at times have been among the most popular sites on the Internet – have been involved in activity that has undermined confidence in their services and damaged their rankings.

The problem appears to be that they have rivals, enemies who are prepared to hack their domain names, hijack their sites and pass themselves off as the real thing.

The biggest disaster by far involves the famous 1Channel.ch. This site, which grew out of the LetMeWatchThis this domain, was apparently hacked back in May. 1Channel then pointed to a fake site which looked almost identical, which left the original site owner to revert back to the original LetMeWatchThis domain.

Then in June, LetMeWatchThis went down without explanation, only to reappear a few days later with a new domain – PrimeWire.ag. If you’re keeping up by this point you’re doing well – hold tight.

Now, just two months later, PrimeWire.ag is redirecting to a brand new domain – Vodly.to. There’s a notice on the front page as follows:

But there’s a problem. If 1Channel.ch was hijacked earlier this year and became a fake site, why would the owners of Vodly.to associate themselves with it? Why would they say that 1Channel.ch, PrimeWire.ag and now Vodly.to are one and the same? Why is there no mention of LetMeWatchThis.ch, a hugely popular domain that preceded 1Channel in its first incarnation, PrimeWire.ag in its second and it still online at this very moment?

Perhaps the most important question is this: are these all the same sites? The short answer to that is ‘No’.

Earlier this year the admin of LetMeWatchThis showed TorrentFreak a detail present on his site which enabled us to confirm he was the admin after 1Channel.ch was hijacked. That feature was also present on PrimeWire.ag which led us to feel moderately comfortable (entire server/backup takeover excepted) that PrimeWire was in fact the new name for LetMeWatchThis.

But now, if one goes to PrimeWire.ag (which diverts to the new name of Vodly.to) that feature is not present, which suggests that Vodly.to is probably a whole new site and nothing to do with the sites it claims to succeed. In the meantime the Twitter account for PrimeWire is advising people to use LetMeWatchThis.ch again.

So in summary…..no, let’s not even go there. This entire episode is a disaster from start to finish which has caused more uncertainty and doubt than any anti-piracy campaign could hope to achieve. There are countless users online wondering whether these sites are some sort of trap or have been set up for malicious purposes. Very few people know the answer to that question and those that do are not responding to their mails…..

Source: Vodly.to, PrimeWire.ag, LetMeWatchThis, 1Channel is a Streaming Fiasco

TorrentFreak

Apple Says Apps For New Users Under 13 In iOS 7 Can’t Use Behavioral Ads Or Link Out Without Parent Permission

Apple has updated its App Store Review Guidelines (via MacRumors) in anticipation of launching iOS 7, and the new rules feature a number of changes focused on kids. For the first time with iOS 7, Apple will allow children under 13 to sign up for and hold iTunes user accounts, so long as they’re funnelled through an “approved educational institution.”

The 13-and-under rule is about Apple furthering its educational goals. iOS 7 has built in Mobile Device Management features aimed at educators, and it is increasing its efforts to get iPads and other devices in schools, as evidenced by the $ 30 million contract it announced recently with the L.A. Unified School District, through which it will provide iPads to students in all of its area schools.

Making apps available directly to younger kids will mean Apple faces a lot more scrutiny, both formally and informally. The new guidelines address both, including a couple of items that address Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) requirements, and adding a whole new section about apps aimed specifically at the under-13 set.

The COPPA considerations include a rule that says developers can ask for date of birth “only for the purpose of complying with applicable children’s privacy statues,” i.e., not for gathering information on kids, and if they do, have to offer up something for the user depending on their age. So if an app is imposing an age gate, it can’t just shut down should the user be under 13 – it has to offer up an alternate and appropriate form of content or entertainment. There’s also a new rule stating simply that if an app can collect or share personal information, it has to comply with all applicable regulation.

Apps designed for the under-13 set have to include a privacy policy, can’t use ads that ask users to complete some kind of in-app activity or other behavior, and have to ask for parental permission before they can link outside of the app to the web or other software, or perform any kind of commercial activity (like in-app purchases). Kids apps will be split up into three categories based on age, spanning those 5 and under, those between 6 and 8, and finally kids between 9 and 11.

Of course, age gates can be bypassed and parental permissions faked, but at least Apple is putting measures in place to make sure that developers can’t easily take advantage of a highly suggestible new audience. The emphasis for the new under-13 accounts really is on education, since Apple stands to gain a lot from achieving widespread purchase in schools, so it will likely do all it can to keep favour with parents and teachers.

TechCrunch

Turnbull’s NBN contention contention is out of contention

This week’s Turnbull-Albanese debate on ABC’s Lateline shows both parties are still up to their usual political tricks when it comes to the NBN. But will this approach convince swing voters – or alienate them?

Latest Blog for ZDNet

How do you connect people in traditionally offline environments?

We’re used to using the computer to collaborate with colleagues. What if your job means you’re hardly online such as with restaurant staff? What are the tools that help an HQ coordinate and connect offline locations and teams?

Latest Blog for ZDNet

Barclays bank trials touchscreen devices in branches

Barclays bank is to trial touchscreen devices in branches to add to its digital credentials following its deployment of wireless

ComputerWeekly: Financial services IT news

Windows 8.1 to arrive on October 18, minus Start button

Microsoft will release Windows 8.1 on October 18, almost a year since the company introduced Windows 8, its first tablet-optimised OS

ComputerWeekly: Enterprise software

Smart meter comms bidders prepare to cash in on UK roll-out

The Department of Energy and Climate Change has announced key suppliers in the UK’s £12.6bn smart meter programme

ComputerWeekly: Public sector IT news