Archive for August, 2007
Hackers are coming out of the woodwork, taking aim at the Apple iPhone. Just this week, three Israeli hackers claimed they unlocked the iPhone, making it possible for iPhone owners to use their shiny new mobile devices without AT&T activation. The Israeli hacker coup follows closely on the heals of a similar story about 17-year-old George Hotz, the New Jersey teen who set iPhone users free from the tethers of AT&T.Yet another group posting information at iPhoneSimFree.com indicates users can break the iPhone’s SIM lock and equip the phone with a SIM card that allows the operation of the phone on competing GSM networks.
In all, five hackers have laid claim to the iPhone-cracking crown since July, leaving AT&T out of the loop despite a five-year exclusive contract with Apple. AT&T could not immediately be reached for comment.
Click here to read the rest of this story on NewsFactor.
August 29th, 2007
Call it the end of an era. Google announced that George Reyes plans to retire as CFO of the world’s most popular search company.Reyes, 53, is credited with helping Google woo Wall Street, despite some controversial statements about the company and its industry. Reyes said he plans to stay on board to assist Google in the search for his successor and to assure an orderly transition. Google executives said they expect to have a new CFO in place by the end of the year.
“As Google’s CFO, George successfully navigated our innovative IPO, the regulatory demands of Sarbanes-Oxley, and the management challenges of scaling a global finance organization,” Google Chairman and CEO Eric Schmidt said in a statement. “Though we fully appreciate his decision to step back from active management, we’ll miss his thoughtfulness, good humor, and wisdom.”
Click here to read the rest of this story on NewsFactor.
August 29th, 2007
The hacker group known as “Storm Botnet” is tapping the popularity of online video to propagate an attack with the pesky Storm worm. The hackers sent barrages of e-mails out over the weekend, inviting people to watch a scandalous video of themselves on YouTube.Headlines like “OMG, what are you thinking,” offer storylines that read “this i [sic] not good. If this video gets to her husband your both dead. see for yourself.” Alternative subject lines read, “LMAO, your crazy man” and open up to text that alleges, “You can see your face right in the video. its all over the web dude. take a look, lol.”
The e-mail then offers up what appears to be a link to the clip. The link, of course, does not go to YouTube. It sends the victims to servers that download malicious apps.
Click here to read the rest of this story on NewsFactor.
August 28th, 2007
In the wake of a scandalous phishing 
attack that gave identity thieves access to personal information of 1.3 million Monster.com users, questions are emerging about the way the online job board company handled the ordeal.The company first learned about the issue on August 17. That’s when Symantec told Monster malicious hackers were targeting its machines. By August 21, Symantec published a report revealing the scam e-mails attackers were using. The attackers’ goal was to get personal financial data.
Monster finally notified its customers on August 22. A notice on the monster.com Web site warned users they might be the target of e-mail scams. Monster executives have publicly stated the company wanted to make sure it knew the nature of the attack before announcing details.
Click here to read the rest of this story on NewsFactor.
August 27th, 2007
On Wednesday, IBM made an announcement that got the tech world talking about Web conferencing again. Big Blue bought WebDialogs, a Web conferencing and communications services vendor that boasts more than 500,000 users worldwide.WebDialogs offers online meeting and collaboration services that, as its name suggests, combine Web and audio conferencing into one experience. It is deployed as a service rather than a product that has to be installed on the corporate server .
The WebDialogs acquisition expands IBM’s offerings in the Web conferencing space, particularly for the small and midsize business (SMB) segment, and departments within larger organizations.
IBM will integrate the WebDialogs Unyte service with its collaboration portfolio, including IBM Lotus Notes and IBM Lotus Sametime software. The acquisition adds a missing software-as-a-service element to the Lotus Sametime family.
Click here to read the rest of this story on NewsFactor.
August 27th, 2007
Wii worldwide sales are making history. According to VG Chartz, Wii sales passed up lifetime Xbox 360 sales in less than a year. That makes the Wii the fastest-selling console in the chronicles of video games.VG Chartz’s assessment is based on sample data from retailers all over the world. That data shows the Wii sold 10.57 million consoles as of August 23. By comparison, the Xbox 360 has sold 10.51 million units by that date. The figures look close until you consider that the Wii was launched one year later than the Xbox 360.
The accomplishment is a double honor, marking the first time since 1994 the same company has been the leader in the home console and handheld markets. Nintendo is repeating history, then, as its Super NES and Gameboy dominated their respective markets in 1994.
Click here to read the rest of this story on NewsFactor.
August 24th, 2007
Facebook is planning to launch a new ad platform in the coming months, according to a Wall Street Journal report. The new system would target ads according to the personal information people have added to their profiles.The ad platform would resemble Google’s AdSense tool, the Journal reported, but leverage user profile data, such as favorite activities and music preferences. Facebook profiles offer up all kinds of data, including relationship status, hometowns, political and religious views, and many personal interests.
The ads would appear in the Facebook member’s news feed, complementing banners that surround the page. If Facebook succeeds in taking a page out of Google’s game plan, it could be a financial boon for the popular social-networking property. Most of Google’s $10.6 billion in revenue last year stemmed from its advertising division.
Click here to read the rest of this story on NewsFactor.
August 24th, 2007
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