Microsoft explains bland Young Windows logo
Published February 18, 2012 | 
Microsoft has detailed the thinking behind the latest alter in its logo for Windows, saying the new intent brings the software back to its roots.
If you feel back to the origins of the logo you see that it actually was intended to exist a window, blogged Sam Moreau, chief director of user get for Windows. “Windows actually is a beautiful metaphor for computing and with the young logo we wanted to celebrate the thought of a window, in perspective.
The logo was created by design house Pentagram, which has too worked for Dell, Netgear, Nike, and the One Laptop Per Kid initiative. The firm’s designers spent an integral day being briefed on the Windows 8 aim philosophy and Redmond’s corporate thinking ahead coming up with the young logo. One of Pentagram’s designers asked, Your name is Windows. Why are you a flag?
Windows logos were grown to both suit the mode of the times, equally considerably equally the current state of the computer industry, Moreau explained. The original Windows 1.0 logo was a simple, two-color affair, merely evolved into the classic four-color flag aim for Windows 3.1, which was adapted for XP with ameliorate rendering and a 3D feel.
Microsoft kept the four-color flag aim for Vista, merely changed it to jibed into the Aero styling that some Vista users would exist applied to, provided they received the right hardware. Those who bought some of the systems marketed by Microsoft equally “Vista Capable” were, however, in for a disappointment when they were felt to be not powerful decent to handgrip Aero. Moreau claimed the young logo was humble, however confident.
Consumer watchdog sues FTC to Stop Google privacy rules changes
Published February 9, 2012 | A consumer watchdog grouping is suing the Federal Trade Commission in an attempt to prevent Google from making sweeping changes to its privacy policies succeeding month.
The planned revisions would enable Google to bundle the personal info gathered by its Internet hunt locomotive and other services, such equally Gmail, YouTube and Plus, therefore the company could gain a amend understanding of its users and potentially sell more advertising. Google has pictured the switch equally an improvement that will make its privacy policies easier to understand and helper deliver more helpful information to users.
But the Electronic Privacy Info Centre (EPIC) contends that Google’s new policies would violate restrictions imposed in an agreement reached with the FTC lastly year. Google submitted to the rules to resolve complaints that the society received improperly divulged users’ e-mail contacts in a now-defunct service prognosticated Buzz.
A case filed Wednesday by EPIC maintains that the agreement gives FTC the powerfulness to block Google from making the planned privacy change. The complaint too is seeking an club from a Washington federal courtroom to block Google’s policy changes from taking issue March 1.
European regulators already receive necessitated Google to delay the policy changes.
Among other things, EPIC says Google’s new privacy guidelines ask users’ consent. The grouping besides says Google hasn’t thoroughly explained the motives for the changes, making it an “unfair and deceptive job practice.”
In a statement, Google pronounced it has gone to nifty lengths to explain the changes to users since announcing the planned switch two weeks ago.
Google, Microsoft Survival Struggle With Internet Data Privacy
Published February 7, 2012 | Microsoft, Google and Facebook should do more to protect their users’ privacy online, only these types of safeguards conflict with how these technology and Web giants build their profits, granting to one expert.
Privacy should exist made into online services by default, simply it won’t pass therefore long equally companies, such as Microsoft, Google and Facebook, rely on advertising to build money, granting to a prominent privacy activist.
Major technology vendors are providing sophisticated applications in exchange for user data, such as their preferences, online activities and behavior, Christopher Soghoian, a Washington, D.C.-based graduate fellow at the Sum for Used Cyber-Security Research, pronounced in his keynote language at the Kaspersky Lab Security Analyst Top Feb. 3. When the companies experience to decide between making money and protecting user privacy, line needs have priority, he stated attendees.
“When their job models and your privacy conflict, solely one will survive,” articulated Soghoian.
Browsers are not “cheap” to develop, only companies are liberal them go in guild to build33333 it easier to gather user data, pronounced Soghoian. Near popular browsers by default are set to take cookies that Websites and third-party advertiser networks could utilisation for online tracking. Apple’s Safari accepts cookies from the Website, but actually disables third-party cookies by default. Apple took the “responsible route,” enounced Soghoian.
The advertising-based business example relies on Internet users to surrender increasing amounts of information, Soghoian said. If the interface “sucks,” users won’t employment the privacy settings effectively and will construct mistakes, resulting in data being exposed. The difficulty is intentional, since companies know that users are less likely to bother with becoming on privacy settings if the options are difficult to find or understand.
Google, Microsoft, Facebook and Twitter altogether offer HTTPS on their online services to encrypt connections and keep malicious attackers from intercepting user data while in transit. It takes six distinct steps to bit on HTTPS in Microsoft’s Hotmail, and Facebook has been criticized for its confusing array of privacy pages. Ahead Google brought the step to enable HTTPS by default for entirely Gmail users, the HTTPS choice was sunk at the undersurface of the settings pages. It was the “least important” option, articulated Soghoian.
The interfaces are generally not designed by security-minded developers or developers thinking almost the best user experience, simply kinda by the people who experience an “understanding of human psychology” and not concerned near the user’s best interest, pronounced Soghoian. What settings are on or exit by default is simply3 as important as what the interface is like, he said.
“These companies get default settings that are not private and not secure, because they know consumers will never change these defaults,” enounced Soghoian.
When Google implemented HTTPS, it initially justified the decision to number away the choice by default by claiming that encryption potentially slowed down page performance and received additional performance overhead. A hard privacy interrogation over encryption and privacy was only “left up to the users,” pronounced Soghoian.
The fellowship switched to employing HTTPS by default presently subsequently it broke several Gmail accounts belonging to United States authorities officials had been breached by Chinese attackers.
Facebook and Twitter yet get HTTPS turned die by default, even though Facebook enabled it by default for its Tunisian users afterwards reports emerged of the authorities eavesdropping on its citizens finally year.
Toolbars are ofttimes bundled into other software installers. The average Internet user doesn’t desire the toolbar only0505050505 are tricked into installing them. When installing Adobe Reader, users are opted in by default to install Google Toolbar, and the Java installer has a like choice for the Yahoo toolbar. Often, users don’t even know how they would up having several toolbars taking up space at the summit of the Web browser.
Torrent Hunt Locomotive BTJunkie voluntarily shuts down
Published February 6, 2012 | Torrent hunt locomotive BTjunkie is the latest file-sharing service to fall on its sword in the wake of the Megaupload sting. Junkie, one of the largest BitTorrent indexes, decided to closed down voluntarily.
A command on the website reads, “This is the closing of the job my friends. The decision does not come easy, just we’ve decided to voluntarily shut down. We’ve been combat for years for your right to communicate, simply it’s time to motion on. It’s been an experience of a lifetime, we wish you wholly the best!”
The site was never forthwith targeted by copyright holders, an unnamed BTJunkie founder stated TorrentFreak. However, the site was reported to the US Trade Instance (USTR) in 2011, the RIAA and MPAA listed the torrent index as a ‘rogue’ site, and Google censored the hunting term.
Despite avoiding legal tending hence far, the site’s founder told TorrentFreak that the legal action against file-sharing sites Megaupload and The Pirate Bay played an important role in its closure.
Online storage locker Megaupload was seized and shut down by the US Department of Justice in January 2012, for allegedly breaching copyright infringement law. The site’s staff members were arrested and founder Kim Dotcom was recently been denied bail.
Meanwhile, the founders of The Pirate Embayment were arrested for copyright infringement in 2009. This month, the supreme court of Sweden created the ruling final, and announced that the founders will not be able to appeal their months-long prison sentences or combined fines of 46 million kronor (around $6.83 million).
In response to Megaupload’s shutdown, a peck of popular Web lockers experience neutered the ability to percentage files with others. FileSonic, FileServe and Uploaded.to all cut die file-sharing in the days after Megaupload was seized.
The Pirate Bay, on the other hand, impressed its domain mention from .org to the Swedish .se. A Pirate Bay insider told TorrentFreak that this was to prevent US government from seizing the popular domain.
Hackers Intercept FBI Call With U.K.
Published February 4, 2012 | The Federal Bureau of Investigation enunciated cybercriminals hacked into a cybercrime conference yell between its agents and law enforcement officials overseas.
The 16-minute shout was posted on the Internet on Friday. The hacker collective Anonymous claimed responsibility, though the FBI didn’t name the group and articulated a criminal investigation was under way.
Anonymous enounced it made the call public equally part of a series of similar actions against law enforcement about the world. The grouping is a free affiliation of hackers and activists with no formal construction or membership.
The breach is an embarrassment for law enforcement, which is wrestling with how to blockage cybercrime that crosses borders. One Twitter account that claims to be associated with Anonymous hinted hackers get been monitoring FBI communications for some time.
The outcry largely consists of FBI agents in the U.S. and Scotland 1000 counterparts in Britain discussing developments in investigations.
The FBI enunciated666 the breach wasn’t created on the agency’s secure email or other computer systems. Instead it appeared to be consequence of a law enforcement officer overseas who was invited to be on the FBI yell333 and who forwarded the information to his private email account, which was compromised by hackers.
“The information was intended for law enforcement officers alone and was illegally obtained,” the FBI said. “A criminal investigation is under way to identify and hold accountable those responsible.”
On the call, the British officers discussed efforts to assist U.S. investigations into hackers, some of whom are also facing charges in the U.K. They discussed what they described equally impressive investigative form to recover data from difficult drives of suspects.
British officers also provided info about a U.K. teenage suspect in a reported breach of Steam, a U.S.-based gaming website. In November, Steam advised its customers that its site had been defaced and that accounts may receive been compromised. The FBI agent on the yell told his counterparts that agents in Baltimore were investigating.
It appeared from the word that the British police didn’t take the suspect, who uses the moniker TehWongZ, likewise seriously, referring to him as a “wannabe” and a “pain in the butt.”
A Scotland G spokesman pronounced the agencyoffice was cognisant of the intercepted cry and that “no operational risks have been identified.” The subject is being investigated by the FBI, the spokesman said.
A Twitter feed purportedly for TehWongZ articulated he suspected his difficult drive was in the hands of the FBI but, “Still, I never got arrested.”
The parent company of Steam didn’t straightaway respond to a request for comment.
Much of the yell involves joking and conversational asides that aren’t work-related.
Amazon Kindle Flaming Hijacks Android Tablet Market
Published January 30, 2012 | Amazon’s (NASDAQ:AMZN) Kindle Fire has dealt to got the first tablet based on Google’s (NASDAQ:GOOG) Android operating arrangement to see demonstrable application employment in a short period, suggesting that the 7-inch slate has got quite the substance driver for the e-commerce giant.
The tablet, which exclusively launched Nov. 15, has already matched the Samsung Galaxy Tab in application utilization by an Android tablet, granting to mobile analytics house Flurry.
Before the Fire4444 launched in November, the Galaxy Tab comprised 63 percentage of Android app sessions. Nonetheless through January, the Galaxy Tab and Kindle Fire7777 accounted for 36 percentage of app usage, showing the Fire9999 paired with Amazon’s Appstore has proven to be popular among consumers.
Flurry besides looked at data from 5 popular paid apps and found that the Kindle Flame drove over 2.5 times more paid downloads to consumers than the Samsung Galaxy Tab, which has at least doubly equally many active units in the real world equally the Fire.
“This shows that for tablets, the Amazon App Store can already deliver more guide revenue to developers than the Android Market,” illustrious Flurry, which tracks tens of thous of Android apps, tracks over 20 percentage of entirely consumer sessions on more than 90 pct of all Android devices each day.
These are telling stats at a time when analysts receive wholly only written dead Android tablets as non-starters in a young tablet market that industry watchers get taken to calling the iPad market.
Indeed, one of the reasons Apple’s (NASDAQ:AAPL) has crushed the nascent Android slate market in market portion and application exercise is that consumers don’t receive decent compelling content or applications to access via Google’s Android Market. There are exclusively nigh 200 or therefore Android apps designed for tablets based on the Android “Honeycomb” operating system.
The findings are drenched in irony. Google launched Honeycomb nearly a year ago with the belief that the software would be powerful enough to challenge the popular iPad.
Yet Google never capable sourced Honeycomb and developers were cool on writing for that leg of Android, eve equally the smartphone leg became the virtually popular Bone platform in the world. Indeed, Google expected the hardware and Os to sell itself, simply it never haped to the manoeuvre that Google expected it to
Seizing on this dearth in tablet traffic, Amazon came away of nowhere to offering a $199 tablet that was less than half of existing tablets. Moreover, the company eschewed Honeycomb to “fork” or customize its own Android build, and sold apps through its own Appstore instead of the Android Market.
The successful approach has passed RBC Capital analysts to claim Amazon makes $136 from substance and service per Kindle Flame unit.
Now Flurry is looking at the Flame equally perchance the ascent tide the lifts whole boats in the Android tablet market. “Total Android tablet sessions in Jan more than tripled over November, with Galaxy Tab sessions increasing by more than 50 percent, Flurry noted. “Overall, Android Tablets are development aggressively equally a category.”
This seems to be true, according to late data culled from Strategy Analytics, which felt that Android’s tablet market share arose from 29 percent in the tertiary quarter of 2011 to 39 pct by Q4. Conversely, iPad market portion fell from 68 percent to 58 percentage over the same period.
Facebook, Washington Country sue Alleged ad scammer
Published January 28, 2012 | It was a complicated scam that Facebook has blocked, executives from the companionship articulated during a press conference in Seattle. Facebook users would see a link to a provocative video recommended by a supporter on Facebook. A user would click on the video link and see a pop-up that might require the user to verify that he or she is over age 13. By clicking on the verification box, the user would unknowingly portion the video on his or her Facebook page.
After clicking the box, another pop-up would look taking the user to an advertiser site that might require the somebody to furnish personal info or buy an detail alike a telephone ringtone.
“Every time a user links to one of these advertiser sites, Adscend is paid a commission by the advertiser,” enounced Paula Selis, supporter attorney general in Washington.
The attorneys said that advertisers didn’t necessarily know that Adscend was utilizing these methods to drive traffic to their advertisements. The advertiser might be a big company working with a bit of online advertising companies alike Adscend, paying them for the traffic they generate to their ads, articulated4 Washington Attorney General Rob McKenna. “What happens is an advertiser doesn’t know every post the ads are being placed,” he said.
Facebook alleges that Adscend was earning more than $1 million a month, articulated66666 Craig Clark, Facebook’s star litigation counsel. He refused to enunciate how long the action got on.
Facebook articulated that a browser vulnerability that allowed the exploit has been fixed so users shouldn’t proceed to see the scam.
Neither Facebook nor the state attorney general’s post required Adscend to blockage the activity before they filed the lawsuit. When necessitated why, Selis said: “There’s no specific reason. They are big, they are pernicious, they receive been doing this for a while and they know they are violating the law.”
Adscend, which is based in Delaware, could not instantly be strained for comment.
In addition to the attorney general’s lawsuit in the U.S. District Courtroom for the Western District of Washington, Facebook also filed a lawsuit against the companionship in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, charging that Adscend violated Facebook’s damage of use and a U.S. anti-spam law.
Google Maps Straightaway displays emergency alerts
Published January 26, 2012 | 
Emergency alerts have now been subtly added to Google Maps, and are directly live across the United States. Never again will you receive to navigate from page to page look for specific information on flood warnings, earthquakes, or eve snowstorms. Maps will directly demonstrate whole the specifics: from the warning duration, to evening how severe it may be.
Google uses more than one source to collect this young information. Warnings are provided by the National Endure Service, US Geological Survey, and US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. If you are rum equally to what the latest alerts are, navigate here to see areas under ticker about the US. Equally you may see, the residue of the world has been left out. Only afterwards Google adds more services from other countries, it will easily populate imminent disasters around the globe.
Google Widens Its Tracks
Published January 25, 2012 | n a move that could construct it harder for Google users to remain anonymous, Google Inc. enunciated it would commencement compounding nearly completely the information it has on its users.
This could mean, for instance, that when users hunting via Google, the fellowship will employment their activities on sister sites like Gmail and YouTube to influence those users’ search results. Google hasn’t done that before.
Google’s move4 which was broke in a privacy policy that will accept effect on March 1is a signal of the vehement competition between Google and Facebook Inc. over personal data. Facebook has amassed an unprecedented quantity of data most the lives of its more than 800 million members information that is coveted by advertisers.
Google traditionally hasn’t had the same sum of personal data nearly its users, and has held much of its personal data separate. But equally Facebook gears up for its planned initial public offering this spring, Google has amped up the competition.
Last year, Google launched its ain social network, anticipated Google+, and earlier this month Google started including data from Google+ in members’ hunting results. Google’s latest motility would let the fellowship to include insights from services such equally Gmail and YouTube to search results equally well.
This could effectively rewrite the kinship between users and the world’s most-popular search engine.
Google has long treated users’ hunt queries equally sacrosanct in share because they could curb very personal sensitive info virtually topics such equally wellness and finances.
Google+ names policy goes Just far Decent
Published January 24, 2012 | 
There are lots of places where you may be anonymous online. Google+ isn’t one of them. Previous today, Google announced a revision to the G+ names policy that doesn’t change this, but it does allow people to utilization nicknames and established pseudonyms. If anonymity is your thing, go someplace else. I don’t desire you on Google+. You may2great pulpit somewhere else. Equally for those folks whose lives might be at risk for employing genuine names, please exist safe somewhere else — Facebook, Reddit, Twitter, Tumblr or WordPress, for example. Those services experience proven they may protect your identity.
But, of course, the griping will proceed from the Internet rabble determined to hide their identities everywhere. They desire more from Google than only nicknames. What are you afraid of? I utilisation my literal cite everywhere, equally I receive perpetually done. I see that as being in the selfsame tone of the open — and transparent — Internet. Exist who you are, not individual else. And if that comment — or other online interaction — requires you to hide your identity, closed the frak up. Vent someplace else. For everyone else, and this includes people who experience constructed up choice identities, Google+ welcomes you.