Volume 12, Issue 03        Atari Online News, Etc.       January 15, 2010   
                                                                           
                                                                              
                  Published and Copyright (c) 1999 - 2010
                            All Rights Reserved

                          Atari Online News, Etc.
                           A-ONE Online Magazine
                Dana P. Jacobson, Publisher/Managing Editor
                      Joseph Mirando, Managing Editor
                       Rob Mahlert, Associate Editor


                       Atari Online News, Etc. Staff

                        Dana P. Jacobson  --  Editor
                   Joe Mirando  --  "People Are Talking"
                Michael Burkley  --  "Unabashed Atariophile"
                   Albert Dayes  --  "CC: Classic Chips"
                         Rob Mahlert  --  Web site
                Thomas J. Andrews  --  "Keeper of the Flame"


                           With Contributions by:

					  Fred Horvat
                                 Uwe Seimet



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                                  =~=~=~=



A-ONE #1203                                                 01/15/10

   ~ Avoiding Haiti Scams!  ~ People Are Talking!    ~ HDDriver Forum Open!
   ~ More Net Neutrality BS ~ USB 3.0 Finally Here!  ~ Conficker Still Here!
   ~ iTablet Scavenger Hunt ~ Cerny Gets the Call!   ~ Call of Duty: Billion!
   ~ Proof of the iTablet?  ~ Donate to Haiti Funds! ~ Duke Nukem Forever?  

                  -* FBI Warns of Bad Haiti Scams *-
               -* IE Flaw Allows China Google Attack? *-
           -* US, Google, and China in Internet Squabble *-



                                  =~=~=~=



->From the Editor's Keyboard              "Saying it like it is!"
  """"""""""""""""""""""""""



It's been another one of those long weeks here.  And, as usual, I'm tired.
But, that's nothing compared to what the people of Haiti have been facing
the past few days.  A part of a impoverished nation has been destroyed by
a devastating earthquake.  They need help, so if you can send a little
something to help in the rescue and relief effort, please do so quickly.
It's that simple.  Anything else that I could be writing about this week
would only pale in comparison to this disaster, so I'm not going to add
any other comments this week.

Until 



                                  =~=~=~=



                  The Official HDDRIVER Forum Is Now Open


Hi!

In order to extend the support for HDDRIVER there is now a special forum
for HDDRIVER-related issues: http://www.seimet.de/atari/forum/.
This forum will provide news and first-hand information on anything
concerning HDDRIVER and the tools included in the HDDRIVER distribution.

Best regards

Uwe

Dr. Uwe Seimet
http://www.linkbylink.net/



                                  =~=~=~=



                             PEOPLE ARE TALKING
                          compiled by Joe Mirando
                             joe@atarinews.org



Hidi ho friends and neighbors. Okay, let's get it out of the way right at
the top, shall we?

Haiti.

What else is there to say? By now, unless you've been living in a cave
with no modern media of any kind (in which case you wouldn't be reading
this either), you've heard about the earthquake that hit Haiti. Yeah,
it is a catastrophe in the true sense of the word. No, it wasn't the
biggest earthquake ever recorded, but pretty darned big, and certainly
bigger than the buildings in Port-au-Prince were built to withstand. 

And yeah, the devastation there is terrible. The lack of building codes
made it worse, of course, but let's face it, this earthquake was going to
cause damage no matter what.

The toll in material things is going to be huge, but even that will be
dwarfed by the human cost. In a country where half the population doesn't
have running water and lives on less than a dollar a day, ANY added
turmoil is an extreme hardship.

And the hell of it is that the past several years have seen a fairly
stable Haiti. Political turmoil has been at a minimum. That is going to
change now, mark my words. People are going to lose patience and are
going to start "looking out for number one". It's human nature when faced
with disaster.

I want to move on to other things, but let me finish up with saying that
the Haiti just can't seem to get a fair shake. Even in the movie Pirates
of the Caribbean... remember the port of Tortuga? That's the little
island just off the coast up above Haiti... it seems it's always been a
place of that's had problems. From pirates to tin-pot despots and now
natural catastrophe, it seems that this little island nation just can't
catch a break.

I won't belabor the thought, but seriously consider donating to the Red
Cross or any other org that's helping out. Or you can help those who are
helping... I'm sure that the Fairfax, VA fire department (one of the
first on the ground in Haiti after the quake) would appreciate a little
bit of a donation to defray costs.

Also, if you KNOW somebody in Haiti and want to send something to them,
consider using UPS... UPS announced the other day that anything that goes
to Haiti goes for free until things get going again... I don't have any
details, but an official UPS shipper should be able to give you info on
it.

But that's not the end of it. Now take the money that it would have cost
you to ship whatever it is and DONATE that to the Red Cross or to any org
that's helping out. Come on. You can afford that. We're not talking
about a lot of money. Do it just because you CAN. THERE. How's THAT for
paying it forward?

Okay. On to the other topic I want to touch on: Google vs. the Great
FireWall of China.

This past week, Google announced that some gmail accounts in China had
been... and I love this phrasing... 'compromised'. We're talking not only
about corporate-type accounts, but also the accounts of Chinese civil
rights activists.

That's nothing new. There have been attacks of all sorts coming out of
China for several years now. What IS different is that Google is now
taking a stand. Evidently, they're ready to take a stand and say "Y'know
what, China? We're not going to censor stuff the way you want anymore."

Of course, China will then block all kinds of stuff, basically punishing
not only it's own citizens, but Google as well.

 This is bad stuff no matter who you are, and I don't think that anyone
other than Google has realized exactly why just yet.

Think about it.. if China can do it, so can about 200,000 other
countries, companies and organizations around the world. It's not just
Chinese dissidents that are at risk. Its anyone who assumes they have any
expectation of privacy. China is a monster organization; a behemoth of
malice and restriction and suppression. That's how it maintains its
existence. And like any organization, the bigger it is, the more
desperate it becomes to continue its own existence at the cost of
anything else.

Google? Well, it's the same thing with Google without the tanks rolling
through the square to squash some college student. They have softer,
gentler means. I'm not saying that they are the technological equivalent
to China. Not by any means. But an organization will act like a living
organism to maintain its own existence. Fortunately, Google is, for now,
much more beneficent and benign than the most populace country in the
world. I mean, their motto IS "Don't Be Evil", after all, isn't it? [grin]

But there are some new developments in this thing that you may well have
heard about by now, but they're brand new to me at the time of this
writing... things like China reminding Google... gently, of course...
that they must obey Chinese laws while operating in China.

Google.cn has since lifted censorship and, by the time you read this,
they may have clamped down again, or they may be blocked completely by
the government.

It also looks like hacking these accounts was part of a much broader
effort on the part of the Chinese government... part of a wide system of
corporate and political espionage. Something that's been going on for
years. Did China just make the mistake of messin' with the baddest dude
on the block? Is Google going to risk walking away from the fastest
growing and possibly largest potential audience in the entire world?
Would Ask or Yahoo! or Bing do the same? Would Google assume that they
would?

And shortly after Google stopped censoring results and the government
warned them about following existing laws, 'researchers' have identified
the IPs used in some of the attacks... yeah, they originated in China. No
big news there. But I wonder if there could possibly be someone else
involved. Someone intent on making use of China's reputation in the
computing world and world of politics, and able mount a coordinated
attack and making it look like it was the work of the Chinese government.
Does anybody ELSE remember SPECTRE from the James Bond novels? C'mon,
people.

Of course, it could simply be, as I believe it is, that China IS SPECTRE.

But I do have one last, final (for now) thought. What if they have a
'partner'... After all, we now know that most of these intrusions were
carried out using a flaw in Internet Explorer.. the "0-Day Flaw". And, of
course, Microsoft has been very slow to do anything about a lot of the
security flaws in Internet Explorer. Could it possibly be that they... 

Nahhhhhh... I've been reading too many espionage novels. [grin]


Well folks, that's it for this time around. Tune in again next week, same
time, same station, and be ready to listen to what they are saying
when [shhhh! The Chinese government might hear us!]...

People Are Talking


[Editor's note: Sorry folks. It turns out that the "UPS ships free to
Haiti" thing is a hoax. Dammit.
See: http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/charity/haiti.asp

But on the up-side, UP side, UPS is donating a million dollars to the
relief effort. Here's their blog entry on the subject:

But that doesn't mean you can't donate. Remember: UPS can give a million
dollars, and that's great!.. but if two million of us give a buck each,
we've got 'em beat by a country mile. Let's pitch in and do a little bit
of good, huh?

Thanks again, and see ya next week,

Joe



                                  =~=~=~=



->In This Week's Gaming Section  - 'Call of Duty' Makes $1 Billion!
  """""""""""""""""""""""""""""    Duke Nukem Forever To Be Released?
                                   Mark Cerny Into Hall Of Fame!
                                   


        
                                  =~=~=~=



->A-ONE's Game Console Industry News   -  The Latest Gaming News!
  """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""



          Activision Blizzard: 'Call of Duty' Has Made $1 Billion


Video game publisher Activision Blizzard Inc. said Wednesday that the game
"Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2" has brought in more than $1 billion in
revenue since it went on sale in November.

Given that pace, the game is on track to become the best selling video
game ever by number of copies sold, said Michael Pachter, an analyst at
Wedbush Morgan.

Based on the revenue figure, Pachter said the company has probably
shipped about 17 million copies of the game so far. And he expects it to
surpass the roughly 23 million copies sold of "Grand Theft Auto: San
Andreas," which was released in 2004 and holds the previous record.

"Call of Duty" has an edge because of its online multi-player mode. New
updates to the online version can give titles a longer shelf life.

Still, Pachter said he doesn't expect Activision's fourth-quarter
financial results to surpass expectations. "They're not killing it, but
they're making it," he said.

While "Call of Duty" sales are "impressive," titles such as "Guitar
Hero" have been lackluster.

Others in the video game industry have given indications of weak holiday
sales. Rival Electronic Arts Inc. this week slashed its 2009 earnings
estimate for the second time. GameStop Corp., the world's biggest video
game retailer, said sales during the shopping season dropped 8.6 percent
from the year before.



    Duke Nukem Actor Hints that Duke Nukem Forever Will be Released


The voice of Duke Nukem has apparently rekindled hope among fans that the
stuck-in-limbo Duke Nukem Forever may yet see the light of day. Actor Jon
St. John spoke during a panel at the recent Music and Games Festival held
in Alexandria, Virginia, where he responded to a question from a fan about
the status of 3DRealm's sordid affair. According to Pixel Enemy the actor
said the following:

    "I'm not allowed to speak on that subject, sir. He's asking about Duke
Nukem Forever, let me go ahead and tell you right now that I'm not allowed
to talk about Dukem Nukem Forever.

    No, no, don't be disappointed, read between the lines... why am I not
allowed to talk about it?"

Clearly hinting that Duke Nukem Forever will eventually see the light of
day, St. John's comment backs up 3DRealms' Scott Miller's claim from last
month, which suggested that development of the project is still ongoing.
To be continued...


                    Gran Turismo 5 Delayed Indefinitely


In a surprise press statement, Sony today revealed its much anticipated
uber-racer Gran Turismo 5 for the PlayStation 3 has been delayed with a
new release date as yet unsettled. The game had been due in Japan this
March, with a US and European release date targeting summer 2010.

'To Be Announced', that's the racer's new status, and while Sony isn't
saying why the game's been delayed, they are apologizing for the
unanticipated hangup.

If you've followed the game, you know it's been in development forever,
that it's cost incredible sums (the game's 'godfather' Kazunori Yamauchi
put the figure at $60 million as of last November), that it's supposed to
be breathtakingly realistic with 1,000 cars and over 20 track locales, and
that the skeletal prologue version released over two year ago has itself
sold around 3.5 million copies to date.

Sony told game news site CVG that GT5's delay applies to the Japanese
market alone. Japan's the only territory where the game had received a
firm release date.



                                  =~=~=~=



->A-ONE Gaming Online       -       Online Users Growl & Purr!
  """""""""""""""""""
 


                AIAS To Induct Mark Cerny Into Hall Of Fame


The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences will honor legendary game
developer Mark Cerny with an induction into its Hall of Fame alongside
luminaries such as Shigeru Miyamoto, Sid Meier, John Carmack, and Will
Wright.

Cerny, a 25-year programming and design veteran, first gained fame for his
1984 hit Marble Madness while working at Atari. Throughout the 1990s and
2000s he worked extensively with Los Angeles-area PlayStation developers
Naughty Dog and Insomniac Games, proving crucial to the early success of
those studios. More recently he has worked with Sony's internal core
development group, Ice Team.

"I'm thrilled to accept this award, which clearly has a lot to do with the
drive and talent of the many teams that I've had the pleasure to work with
over the years," he said in response to the announcement.

"Mark Cerny is the closest we have come to a modern-day Da Vinci," said
AIAS president Joseph Olin in a statement. "What he does isnt restricted
to a single aspect of game creation, he really is a Renaissance man."

"He is a diversely accomplished game designer, producer, programmer and
technologist, fluent in Japanese and one of the foremost Western experts
on the Japanese game market. Hes also one of the only top-level
independents in a business dominated by institutions."

"Mark is one of the only individuals who have managed to stay on the
cutting edge of game development from the heyday of arcade games all the
way up to the current generation of gaming consoles. Each step of the way
he's redefined how the industry thinks about game design, technology, and
production philosophies," said Naughty Dog co-president Evan Wells.

Cerny also received the similar Lifetime Achievement Award at 2004's Game
Developers Choice Awards. He joins Wright, Miyamoto, Meier, and Carmack
as overlapping recipients of both honors.

He will be formally inducted during the AIAS' award show held during the
DICE Summit in Las Vegas this February.



                                  =~=~=~=



                           A-ONE's Headline News
                   The Latest in Computer Technology News
                       Compiled by: Dana P. Jacobson



             U.S., Google and China Square Off over Internet


Google's threat to quit China over censorship and hacking intensified
Sino-U.S. frictions on Wednesday as Washington said it had serious
concerns and demanded an explanation from Beijing.

China has not made any significant comment since Google, the world's top
search engine, said it will not abide by censorship and may shut its
Chinese-language google.cn website because of attacks from China on human
rights activists using its Gmail service and on dozens of companies,
including Adobe Systems.

"Google's action should be a wake-up call to everyone involved in
China's economy - U.S. businesses, the U.S. administration and the
Chinese themselves," said Tony Fratto of the Hamilton Place Strategies
consulting firm.

Media freedom groups who had severely criticized Google's previous
compliance with Chinese curbs praised the company's decision and called
for other firms to follow suit.

"A foreign IT company has finally accepted its responsibilities toward
Chinese users and is standing up to the Chinese authorities, who keep
clamping down more and more on the Internet," said Reporters Without
Borders.

However, investors were spooked and U.S. and Chinese analysts warned of
turbulent bilateral ties in 2010.

Technology business analysts noted in reports issued on Wednesday that
Google draws $300-600 million in revenue from China - less than 5
percent of its sales. But they voiced concerns about Google's future
prospects in that huge market.

Friction over the Internet, part of a long-running dispute over human
rights, appears likely to stoke U.S.-China tensions. Analysts predicted
clashes on climate change, China's crackdown on dissidents, Iran's
nuclear ambitions and other issues.

President Barack Obama's administration, which in 2009 strived to
embrace China as a partner in tackling global issues, has angered China
by approving arms sales to Taiwan and by slapping tariffs on Chinese
tires and steel products.

Obama is also expected to meet with the Dalai Lama of Tibet, a world
religious figure whom China reviles and accuses of leading a Tibetan
separatist drive. Obama avoided meeting the exiled Tibetan leader last
year to pave the way for a summit with Chinese President Hu Jintao in
November.

Writing before the Google decision, The Eurasia Group consultancy said
looming economic friction made U.S.-China relations the top global risk
of 2010.

"In the future, we'll look back at that summit as the peak of the
relationship, and we'll see significant deterioration in U.S.-Chinese
relations in the coming year," the group wrote.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs sidestepped questions about the
possible impact on U.S.-China relations and said Washington awaited an
explanation from China on the attacks.

"The president and this administration have beliefs about freedom of the
Internet," he said.

Chinese authorities were "seeking more information on Google's
statement," the Xinhua news agency reported, citing an unnamed official
from China's State Council Information Office, the government arm of the
country's propaganda system.

Admiral Robert Willard, head of the U.S. Pacific Command, told a
congressional hearing that "U.S. military and government networks and
computer systems continue to be the target of intrusions" that appear to
have originated from China.

While most cyber-attacks focus on prying out data, "the skills being
demonstrated would also apply to wartime computer network attacks," he
said.

Sen. Joe Lieberman, chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and
Governmental Affairs Committee, said he was drafting legislation to
strengthen U.S. cyber security.

"Google's experience should be a lesson to us all to confront this ever
growing problem aggressively and with all available means," he said in a
statement.

China has said it does not sponsor hacking.

Pressing China for an explanation, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary
Clinton said: "The ability to operate with confidence in cyberspace is
critical in a modern society and economy.

With China the largest lender to the United States, holding $800 billion
in Treasury bills, Internet tensions will make steering this vast,
fast-evolving relationship all the more tricky, especially with the U.S.
Congress in an election year.

"China has been taking a harder line," said Shi Yinhong, an expert on
relations with the United States at Renmin University in Beijing. "The
next few months are going to see some turbulence in China-U.S.
relations. We may see some tactical concessions from China, but the
general trend isn't toward compromise."

Chinese industry analysts said the issue had snowballed beyond Google.

"If this becomes heavily politicized, and there are signs that it is,
and people in the Chinese government say, 'This is good. It serves you
right, and we won't bow our heads to the United States,' then there'll
be no way out," said Xie Wen, a former executive in China for Yahoo and
other big Internet companies, who is now an industry commentator.

"The impact on China's image will gradually also affect the enthusiasm
of investors," he added. "It's not the pure economic losses - a billion
or so - it's the deteriorating environment."

China's policy of filtering and restricting access to Web sites has been
a frequent source of tension with the United States and tech companies,
such as Google and Yahoo Inc.

Google's announcement suggested the recent intrusions were more than
isolated hacker attacks.

"These attacks and the surveillance they have uncovered -- combined with
the attempts over the past year to further limit free speech on the Web
-- have led us to conclude that we should review the feasibility of our
business operations in China," Google's chief legal officer David
Drummond said in a statement posted on the company's blog.

Some 20 other companies also were attacked by unknown assailants based
in China, said Google.

Google's potential withdrawal from China shocked investors and analysts,
who fear the web search leader's strategic plans may be threatened.

"For investors this is clearly a negative," Broadpoint AmTech analyst
Benjamin Schachter said in a research note. "The obvious concern is that
China's growth has been solid and its market potential is enormous."

Such concerns pushed investors toward Chinese search engine Baidu Inc,
which leads Google in China's search market with more than 60 percent
share. Shares of Baidu jumped 12 percent to $432 in early trading, while
Google shares slipped 2 percent to $579.

Obama, during a visit to China in November, told an online town hall
that he was "a big supporter of non-censorship."

After the Google announcement, searches on its google.cn search engine
turned up images and sites previously blocked, including pictures from the
1989 crackdown on pro-democracy protests in Beijing. Other searches
remained restricted, carrying messages warning users that some content was
blocked.

China's ruling Communist Party, wary of the Internet becoming an
uncontrolled forum for the country's 360 million Internet users, is
unlikely to allow Google to avoid repercussions.

If google.cn, launched in 2006, shuts down, Beijing could seek to
restrict access to Google's main search engine, which can also do
searches in Chinese, although China's "firewall" of filters blocks many
users from opening up the results.

"The general tendency over the past year has been to accuse foreigners
of having a Cold War mentality and being anti-China," said Rebecca
MacKinnon, an expert on the Chinese Internet at the Open Society
Institute.

"How exactly they are going to react to this, I cannot anticipate, but
it's likely that it will not be pretty."



           IE Exploit Used to Launch Chinese Attacks on Google


Early speculation focused on the Abobe Reader zero-day exploit as the
source of the Chinese attacks on Google and other corporations earlier
this week, but Adobe may be off the hook - or at least share the blame.
Microsoft has determined that an unknown flaw in Internet Explorer was
one of the holes used to launch the attacks which have led to Google
threatening to shut down its Chinese operations.

Microsoft Security Response Center director Mike Reavey said in an
e-mailed statement "This afternoon, Microsoft issued Security Advisory
979352 to help customers mitigate a Remote Code Execution (RCE)
vulnerability in Internet Explorer. The company has determined that
Internet Explorer was one of the vectors used in targeted and
sophisticated attacks targeted against Google and other corporate
networks."

Reavey continued "Microsoft continues to work with Google, other
industry partners and authorities to actively investigate this issue. To
date, Microsoft has not seen widespread customer impact, rather only
targeted and limited attacks exploiting IE 6."

The revelation of the zero-day bug in Internet Explorer, and the release
of the security advisory from Microsoft, comes just two days after
Microsoft's regularly scheduled Patch Tuesday for the month of January.
Coincidentally, Adobe also issued a security update this past Tuesday
which addresses the zero-day flaw in Adobe Reader that has been exploited
in-the-wild since at least mid-December.

Microsoft is continuing to investigate the issue, and no patch or update
has yet been issued, but the security advisory from Microsoft does
contain some mitigating factors you can focus on to protect your PC's
from this flaw in the meantime:

* Protected Mode in IE7 on Windows Vista limits the impact of the
vulnerability.

* In a Web-based attack scenario, an attacker could host a webpage that
is used to exploit this vulnerability or do so via a webpage that
accepts or hosts user-provided content or advertisements. In all cases,
however, an attacker would have no way to force users to visit these
websites and would have to convince them to do so, which is typically
achieved via an e-mail or instant message.

* By default, Internet Explorer on Windows Server 2003 and Windows
Server 2008 runs in a restricted mode that is known as Enhanced Security
Configuration. This mode sets the security level for the Internet zone
to High and so is a mitigating factor for websites that you have not
added to the Internet Explorer Trusted sites zone.

* An attacker who successfully exploited this vulnerability could gain
the same user rights as the local user. Users whose accounts are
configured to have fewer user rights on the system could be less
affected than users who operate with administrative user rights.

* By default, all supported versions of Outlook, Outlook Express, and
Windows Mail open HTML e-mail messages in the Restricted sites zone,
which should mitigate attacks trying to exploit this vulnerability by
preventing Active Scripting and ActiveX controls from being used.
However, if a user clicks a link in an e-mail message, the user could
still be vulnerable to exploitation of this vulnerability through the
Web-based attack scenario.

"It could also be possible to display specially crafted Web content
using banner advertisements or other methods to deliver Web content to
affected systems. The Microsoft investigation concluded that setting the
Internet zone security setting to "high" will protect users from the
vulnerability addressed in this advisory," added Reavey.

There is no indication from Microsoft yet about whether we should expect
an out-of-band patch to address this issue before the next
regularly-scheduled Patch Tuesday, but I wouldn't be surprised. Take a
look at the security advisory and take the appropriate steps to protect
your PC's from the Internet Explorer vulnerability. You should also
apply the Adobe security update to protect your systems from the Adobe
Reader zero-day exploit.



               FBI Warns of Bogus Haiti Online Donation Scams


The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation is advising people to be
careful when evaluating donation programs related to the earthquake in
Haiti as one security firm is already seeing scam e-mails circulate.

People should apply a "critical eye" to requests for financial donations
following Tuesday's earthquake in Haiti, which caused an unknown number
of deaths and severe damage to the country's infrastructure.

"Make contributions directly to known organizations rather than relying
on others to make the donation on your behalf to ensure contributions
are received and used for intended purposes," the FBI said in its
advisory.

Scam e-mails are already emerging. Symantec noted a so-called 419-style
e-mail that purported to come from the British Red Cross. A 419 scam,
named after the number of a statute in Nigeria's criminal code banning
the practice, is one in which an e-mail or a letter implores a person to
send money for some bogus reason.

Although most people dismiss the appeals, people still do fall for them,
especially when they're linked to events such as a natural disaster.

The fake British Red Cross e-mail uses the real London address of the
organization, according to Mathew Nisbet, a malware data analyst with
Symantec Hosted Services. The contact e-mail for the British Red Cross
is wrong, however, and the organization doesn't collect donations using
the Western Union money transfer service, either.

"Any money sent using the instructions in this e-mail would not help
anyone in Haiti," Nisbet wrote. "It would end up in the pockets of a
cybercriminal."

Other cybercriminals are using the tragedy in Haiti as part of a hook to
trick people into visiting other harmful Web sites seeded with fake
antivirus applications, according to another security vendor, Websense.

The scammers build a shell of a Web site loaded with, for example,
information that purports to relate to the earthquake in Haiti. Using
techniques generally banned by various search engines, the scammers are
able to get their Web site returned on the first page of results when
someone does a search.

Websense researchers show in a video on their blog that, at one point
since the tragedy happened, typing "Haiti relief" in Google turned up some
of those sites.

When clicked, the sites redirect to other sites hosting fake antivirus
programs. Deceptive means are used to trick people into installing the
applications. Also, security vulnerabilities can be exploited in order
to install the programs. The programs then display pop-up messages and
warnings in order to goad users into paying for the programs.

The fake antivirus application scam has become widely prevalent.
Security vendor PandaLabs estimated last year that 35 million computers
worldwide were infected with those kinds of programs per month.



                      How to Avoid Haiti Quake Scams


When a major disaster like the quake in Haiti hits, good people and
groups around the world step up to offer help and donations. Right
behind them evil scammers around the world scramble to intercept those
donations. In the next few days you'll probably encounter numerous
e-mails, Facebook groups, and tweets with links to sites requesting
donations to help the quake victims. How can you separate the valid
charities from the frauds?

Here are ten tips to ensure your donations go to the right place.

   1. *Sanity-check URLs*. Some scammers are sloppy. If an e-mail
      message claims to be from the International Red Cross, say, but
      the URL links point to something wildly different, stay away! Not
      sure? In most e-mail clients you can point to a link with the
      mouse and see the actual URL in the status bar or in a tooltip.
   2. *Decode Short URLs*. If a tweet or other post includes a shortened
      URL pointing to a charity site, don't click it. Instead, use one
      of the many services that retrieve the full URL. Here again, if it
      looks wrong, stay away.
   3. *Don't Even Click Valid URLs*. Even if the links in an e-mail
      appear to be valid, don't click them. Instead, navigate directly
      to the organization's web site and look for information about
      helping disaster victims.
   4. *Run a Background Check*. We can't all be familiar with every
      legitimate aid group. Before visiting a group you don't recognize,
      check the site's ownership using www.whois.net or another site that
      supplies whois data. This should give you the full company name, an
      address, a contact name, and a phone number. If the results don't
      jibe with the stated name, stay away.
   5. *Do a History Check*. You'll surely feel safer donating to a
      charity Web site that's been around for a while. Go to the
      Internet Archive and check the site's history. If there's no history,
      the site is very recent. Yes, it could be that the organization was
      formed to help with the current crisis, but it could also point to an
      opportunistic scam.
   6. *Ask the Better Business Bureau*. The Better Business Bureau
      online offers a page that lets you check their charity reviews.
      You can search by name, URL, e-mail address or phone number. A
      positive response means it's a valid charity, but "not found"
      isn't necessarily a black mark. For example www.icrc.org,
      the Web site for the International Committee of the Red Cross,
      isn't in the BBB database.
   7. *Don't Donate Cash*. If the charity asks for cash, offers to send
      a messenger to pick up your donation, pressures you to donate more
      than you've offered, or otherwise seems over-eager, disengage
      right away. Your safest donation is a check, made out to the
      organization and not to any individual.
   8. *Beware Collateral Damage*. Scammers trolling for cash aren't your
      only worry. As with other newsworthy search terms, searches about
      the Haiti quake may turn up malicious Web sites. The bad guys get
      these sites into search results using what's called "SEO
      poisoning" (SEO means Search Engine Optimization). Click the wrong
      one and you may be hit with a drive-by download; let's hope your
      security suite blocks it.
   9. *Give to Groups*. You may get an appeal through e-mail or social
      networking from an unfamiliar individual claiming to be a victim
      and asking for your direct help. It may seem hard-hearted, but
      don't respond. Impersonating a victim is much easier than
      impersonating a charity. If the appeal touches your heart, make
      your donation to a known aid organization.
  10. *Give Proactively*. Supposing you do want to donate money toward
      aiding the quake victims, don't wait for an invitation. Locate a
      likely charity that's helping in that area and contact them to
      make your donation. Now you can ignore any other possibly-unsafe
      requests for donations with a clear conscience.

Of course these tips aren't limited to the Haiti quake. You should take
care whenever responding to requests for help, or to any unsolicited
e-mail or social networking contact. That way your help will go to those
who need it, not to the vultures.



         Court Questions FCC Authority to Impose Net Neutrality


No decision has been made yet, but, if Friday's arguments before the
U.S. Court of Appeals in DC are any indication, it doesn't appear that
the FCC will prevail in exerting its authority over Comcast. Losing this
battle may be just what the FCC needs to move forward with its efforts
to formalize net neutrality guidelines.

The case before the court is an appeal from Comcast related to sanctions
imposed on it by the FCC for discriminating against peer-to-peer
networking file traffic in an effort to throttle bandwidth demand on its
broadband network. Comcast's challenge claims the FCC has no such
authority.

FCC chairman Julius Genachowski has stated that the FCC acted based on
the Four Freedoms outlined by the previous FCC administration in 2005.
These principles, while not formal rules, have been used to govern net
neutrality on a case-by-case basis:

* 1. Consumers are entitled to access the lawful Internet content of
their choice.
* 2. Consumers are entitled to run applications and use services of their
choice, subject to the needs of law enforcement.

* 3. Consumers are entitled to connect their choice of legal devices that
do not harm the network.

* 4. Consumers are entitled to competition among network providers,
application and service providers, and content providers.

The crux of the FCC sanctions lies with the first and second principles.
However, the caveats of "subject to the needs of law enforcement" and
"that do not harm the network" provide ample latitude for providers to
act to restrict certain activities or types of network traffic.

The Comcast appeal claims "There was simply no federal law to interpret,
enforce, or apply against Comcast" in challenging the FCC authority,
and the three-judge panel of the appeals court appears to agree with
that assertion.

The reality is that Comcast, and the appeals court if it ultimately
sides with Comcast, have a valid point. While the Four Freedoms were
established and documented, they represent more of a general framework
rather than established rules. The fact is that the FCC does not have
formal net neutrality rules in place and its authority to implement them
is up for debate.

Based on how the case is proceeding now, it seems obvious that the
appeals court will decide in favor of Comcast, leading to misguided
speculation that the case will validate opposition to the FCC authority
over Internet providers and put a nail in the coffin of its efforts at
establishing formal net neutrality rules.

On the contrary, losing this case could provide the impetus to more
formally define the FCC authority over Internet providers, and provide
momentum to push through the net neutrality rules. The FCC is fortunate
that the court makes decisions based on established rules and precedent,
but it does not make policy or have any authority itself to define or
restrict the scope of the FCC.

If, in fact, Comcast wins its appeal based on the fact that the Four
Freedoms are merely a loose set of principles rather than a formalized
regulatory framework, it underscores the importance of creating such a
framework.

Losing this court case will provide the FCC with tangible proof for why
the pursuit of net neutrality is so urgent, and give Congress incentive
to more clearly specify the scope of the FCC's authority to oversee and
police wired and wireless broadband providers.

Comcast prevailing in this appeal could be just the incentive needed to
drive FCC efforts to develop formal net neutrality rules.



               Conficker Worm Hasn't Gone Away, Akamai Says


Variants of the Conficker worm were still active and spreading during
the third quarter, accounting for much of attack traffic on the
Internet, according to Akamai Technologies.

"Although mainstream and industry media coverage of the Conficker worm
and its variants has dropped significantly since peaking in the second
quarter, it is clear from this data that the worm (and its variants) is
apparently still quite active, searching out new systems to infect,"
Akamai said in its State of the Internet report for the third quarter of
2009, released Thursday.

During the third quarter, 78 percent of Internet attacks observed by
Akamai targeted port 445, up from 68 percent during the previous
quarter. Port 445, which is used by Microsoft Directory Services, is the
same port that Conficker targets, aiming to exploit a buffer overflow
vulnerability in Windows and infect the targeted computer.

Most attacks originated from Russia and Brazil, which replaced China and
the U.S., as the top two sources of attack traffic. Russia and Brazil
accounted for 13 percent and 8.6 percent of attack traffic,
respectively, Akamai said. The U.S., which came in at No. 3, accounted
for 6.9 percent of attack traffic and No. 4 China accounted for 6.5
percent, it said.

"Port 445 was overwhelmingly the top port targeted by attacks
originating in Russia and Brazil, which may indicate the presence of a
large number of systems in both countries actively participating in
Conficker-related botnets," Akamai said.

While Microsoft has issued a patch that fixes the vulnerability
exploited by earlier versions of Conficker, experts believes the worm
remains active because many infected machines are running unlicensed
copies of Windows and don't have access to security updates.

Citing figures from the Conficker Working Group, Akamai noted that the
number of Conficker.A and Conficker.B infections worldwide rose during
the third quarter, while infections of Conficker.C declined during the
same period.

However, recent numbers estimates for the number of Conficker infections
appear to have moderated somewhat, with the number of computers infected
with Conficker.A or Conficker.B dropping from a high of around 6.7
million in late October to around 6.3 million machines today.

The number of Conficker.C infections has declined from 400,000 computers
in late October to roughly 280,000 today.



                            USB 3.0 Finally Arrives


When you're in front of your PC, waiting for something to trans fer to
removable media, that's when seconds feel like minutes, and minutes feel
like hours. And data storage scenarios such as that one is where the new
SuperSpeed USB 3.0's greatest impact will be felt first. As of CES, 17
SuperSpeed USB 3.0-certified products were introduced, including host
controllers, adapter cards, motherboards, and hard drives (but no
other consumer electronics devices). Still more uncertified USB 3.0
products are on the way, and they can't get here fast enough.

The beauty of USB 3.0 is its backward compatibility with USB 2.0; you
need a new cable and new host adapter (or, one of the Asus or Gigabyte
motherboards that supports USB 3.0) to achieve USB 3.0, but you can still
use the device on a USB 2.0 port and achieve typical USB 2.0 performance.
In reducing some overhead requirements of USB (now, the interface only
transmits data to the link and device that need it, so devices can go into
low power state when not needed), the new incarnation now uses one-third
the power of USB 2.0.

The theoretical throughput improvement offered by USB 3.0 is dramatic -
a theoretical 10X jump over existing USB 2.0 hardware. USB 2.0 maxed out
at a theoretical 480Mbps, while USB 3.0 can theoretically handle up to
5Gbps. Mind you, applications like storage will still be limited by the
type of drive inside; so, for example, you can expect better performance
from RAIDed hard drives or fast solid-state drives (SSDs) than from,
say, a standalone single drive connected to the computer via USB 3.0.

The real-world examples are fairly convincing - and underscore USB
3.0's advantage for high-def video, music, and digital imaging
applications. Our early test results are encouraging as well: We tested
Western Digital's My Book 3.0, the first USB 3.0-certified external hard
drive. The performance was on a par with that of eSATA-but the benefit here
is that USB 3.0 is a powered port, so you don't need to have another
external power supply running to the drive (as you do with eSATA; unless
the eSATA drive you're using is designed to steal power from a USB port
while transferring data over the eSATA interface).

While the WD drive was the first to announce, a slew of other hard drive
makers either announced products at the show, or discussed plans to
release products in the coming months. Among them: Seagate (which is doing
a portable drive), LaCie, Rocstor, and Iomega. Even non-traditional hard
drive vendors like Dane-Elec and A-Data showed products they billed as
USB 3.0 (the latter two even had USB 3.0-connected SSDs, the first
external drives to use solid-state storage inside.

One of the things to look for in the coming months is the certified
SuperSpeed USB 3.0 logo. Products are currently filling the queues at the
official certification testing labs, but presence of that certification
logo will give you some peace of mind that the product you're buying truly
does live up to the USB 3.0 spec.

Given that the certification labs are jammed up, though, you can expect
companies to release USB 3.0 products without official certification.
(Buffalo Technologies' drive, released late 2009, is not certified;
LaCie's drives are in the process of certification, but will initially
carry LaCie's own logo for USB 3.0, and will gain a sticker on the box
once certification is completed.) And in those cases, it will be hard to
know whether the device truly lives up to its performance potential.

And this time around, the way the USB spec is written, says Jeff
Ravencraft, consumers should have an easier time finding products that
are truly USB 3.0. Before, in the transition from USB 1.1 to USB 2.0,
the USB 2.0 spec was written in a way where it "encompassed low, full
and high-speed USB," explains Ravencraft, president and chairman of the
USB Implementers Forum. "Since those are all encapsulated in the USB 2.0
spec, [vendors] could have a certified product that's low-speed, but
still call it USB 2.0.

"We don't have that issue with USB 3.0 To claim you're USB 3.0, you have
to deliver 5Gbps. There's no other way to get the certification."

Ravencraft adds that the group is prepared to protect the USB 3.0 logo,
to make sure that only manufacturers who go through certification use
it. "We'll take legal action if anyone infringes on our marks."

By end of year, Ravencraft says the loggerjam of products awaiting
certification should be past, and the organization's network of
worldwide test labs will be handling USB 3.0 certification.

According to In-Stat Research, by 2013, more than one-quarter of USB 3.0
products will support SuperSpeed USB 3.0.

Ravencraft says this is the fastest ramp up of USB products he's seen in
the past ten years, across the previous versions of USB.

I say the change can't come fast enough. The trick, though, will be
getting the interface into our notebooks (without requiring a kludgy
ExpressCard adapter). So far, though, only HP and Fujitsu have announced
limited USB 3.0 support on notebooks. And Taiwanese notebook and desktop
maker MSI indicated that it wouldn't have USB 3.0 until, at the
earliest, the third-quarter of this year; product managers for both
notebooks and desktops cited manufacturing concerns like chipset
availability in large quantities, and the need to test USB 3.0 chipsets.

And in the meantime, the only announced peripherals remain storage
devices. At next year's CES, it's likely we'll hear more about specific
consumer electronics devices such as digital cameras and camcorders and
video cameras moving to USB 3.0. Hopefully by then we'll start getting a
critical mass of PC hardware with USB 3.0 integrated, too.



              iTablet Scavenger Hunt Raises Apple Hackles


A Silicon Valley gossip website has evidently triggered Apple's ire by
offering rewards for proof that the notoriously secretive company has made
a tablet computer.

Valleywag.com on Wednesday offered 10,000 dollars for "bona fide" pictures
of an Apple tablet; 20,000 dollars for video of one in action, and 50,000
dollars if Apple chief executive Steve Jobs was in the pictures or video.

The reward would jump to 100,000 dollars "if you let us play with it for
an hour," the website promised while announcing what it dubbed the
"Apple Tablet Scavenger Hunt."

By Friday, Valleywag had declared Apple the first winner of its contest
due to a letter it said it received from the iconic California company's
lawyers.

"We believe you and your company have crossed the line by offering a
bounty for the theft of Apple's trade secrets," an Apple lawyer said in
a copy of the letter posted online by Gawker-owned Valleywag.

"Apple demands that Gawker Media discontinue this program and retract
the offer to pay for photos, video, or samples of Apple's unannounced
product."

The Valleywag scavenger hunt was still on Friday, with Gawker warning
anyone considering going for the prize not to break the law in the process.

Silicon Valley has been buzzing with rumors that Apple will hold a press
event the last week of January to unveil an "iTablet" computer that
builds on the popularity of its iPhone and iPod Touch devices.

True to form, Apple has refused to comment on iTablet talk, letting
anticipation and speculation build.

The specter of an iTablet hovered over the international Consumer
Electronics Show in Las Vegas last week, with manufacturers of tablet
computers jockeying for head-starts in the marketplace.



  Gag Prize Awarded in Apple Tablet Scavenger Hunt: Proof at Last?


Technology blog Valleywag says it has a winner in its Apple Tablet
scavenger hunt offering prizes to anyone who can provide proof the
mythical device exists. And the winner is: Apple? That's right; Gawker
Media's tech blog is awarding a prize to Apple attorney Michael Spillner
of the law firm Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe for "proving" the existence
of Apple's Tablet. What was the evidence Spillner sent over? A
cease-and-desist letter addressed to Valleywag's Editor-in-Chief demanding
an end to the scavenger hunt.

And what was the amazing prize awarded for such a heroic effort? Read on
and find out.

On Wednesday, Valleywag promised cash prizes to anyone able to provide
authentic photos of the tablet or access to the device itself. Valleywag's
prizes varied depending on the type of evidence provided: $10,000 for
actual pictures of the device; $20,000 for a video of the device in action;
$50,000 for photos of Steve Jobs holding the tablet; and $100,000 for
giving Valleywag one hour of quality time with the device.

Valleywag's tablet bounty attracted a lot of attention, but many
wondered about the legality of the offer since it encourages Apple's
employees and partners to break any non-disclosure agreements they may
have signed with Apple. Considering Apple's penchant for absolute
secrecy when it comes to new devices, it's no surprise the company
wanted to end Valleywag's quest for evidence before things got out of hand.

[Is the] letter from Apple's attorneys proof positive of the tablet's
existence? Here are the relevant quotes: "I am writing on behalf of Apple
regarding the notices...that Gawker Media will pay someone a financial
reward for sending you photos, video, or a sample of an unannounced and
highly confidential Apple product...The information you are willing to
pay for...constitutes Apple trade secrets...Apple has maintained the
types of information and things that you are soliciting...in strict
confidence."

On the one hand it's awfully tempting to take this letter at face value,
and assume it proves the tablet's existence since the letter refers to
"an unannounced and highly confidential Apple product" as if it actually
existed.

But then again how could Apple not send this letter? If, as expected,
Apple really is making a major product announcement later this month, the
company must do everything in its power to stop information leaks. Even
if Apple isn't working on a tablet, but some other type of wonder device,
there's no way they'd want any information about upcoming devices getting
out before a company announcement. So while it makes for an interesting
discussion, it's hard to take this letter as proof of anything other than
Apple's desire to control access to its intellectual property.

Apple's request gave Valleywag until 6 p.m. Thursday to end the
scavenger hunt or risk further legal penalties. So far, Valleywag says
the contest is still on.

As for Spillner, Valleywag says he is getting a gift basket for his
"entry" that includes a DVD of Legally Blonde 2, one $25 Zune
Marketplace giftcard, and a "fabulous set of steak knives."



                                =~=~=~=




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