Jeb BooneAugust 23, 2012 12:10

US lags behind in broadband access

Millions of Americans still lack access to broadband internet. With high prices and a lack of infrastructure, the US is falling behind other developed countries.

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A free Wi-Fi hotspot beams broadband internet from atop a public phone booth on July 11, 2012 in Manhattan, New York City. New York City launched a pilot program Wednesday to provide free public Wi-Fi at public phone booths around the five boroughs. The first ten booths were lit up with Wi-Fi routers attached to the top of existing phone booths, with six booths in Manhattan, two in Brooklyn, and one in Queens. Additional locations, including ones in the Bronx and Staten Island, are to be added soon. (John Moore/AFP/Getty Images)

The US is still lagging behind other developed nations in levels of broadband internet availability. Nineteen million Americans still lack broadband access, according to the Eight Broadband Progress Report, issued by the Federal Communications Commission.

“In an era when broadband is essential to innovation, jobs and global competitiveness, the report concludes that the FCC — and the nation — must continue to address obstacles impeding universal broadband deployment and availability,” read the report.

The US ranked 16th last year in fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants, according to a report by the International Telecommunications Union. Several European countries, along with South Korea and Hong Kong, beat out the United States.

Jeb BooneAugust 16, 2012 13:30

Anonymous hits Uganda in defense of LGBT rights

In Uganda, where homosexuality is officially illegal, Anonymous attacks government websites.

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Sister of gay Ugandan activist David Kato, Eva Mulumba (L) cries as she gives a speech beside Kato's mother, Nalango Lydia Mulumba (R) during a memorial service for Kato in Kampala, on January 26, 2012. Kato served as a Advocacy and Litigation Officer for sexual minorities in Uganda. Kato was brutally murdered at the age of 46 years his home in Kyetume, Mukono District on January 26, 2011. (Michele Sibiloni/AFP/Getty Images)

The Anonymous collective has hacked and vandalized a website belonging to Ugandan Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi in protest of the country’s laws concerning members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) communities.

In Uganda, homosexuality is officially illegal. The Ugandan parliament has also considered passing laws that would punish those who fail to report homosexuality to the police and have even considered executing members of Uganda’s LGBT community.

"Your violations of the rights of LGBT people have disgusted us. ALL people have the right to live in dignity free from the repression of someone else's political and religious beliefs. You should be PROUD of your LGBT citizens, because they clearly have more balls than you will ever have. Real Ugandan Pride is demonstrated in standing up to oppression despite fearing the abuse, torture and murder inflicted on LGBT at the hands of the corrupt government,” read a statement left by Anonymous on the Ugandan Prime Ministers website.

Jeb BooneAugust 9, 2012 13:41

Anonymous sets out to avenge Demonoid

Anonymous has launched an initial round of DDoS attacks against Ukrainian anti-piracy and government websites, pledging to restore Demonoid.

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Anonymous is a loosely organized international network of online activists suspected of the coordinated computer hacking of institutions, multinationals and government organizations around the globe. (LOUISA GOULIAMAKI/AFP/Getty Images)

Anonymous brought down three Ukrainian government websites in the first part of a plan to avenge the loss of Demonoid, a popular bittorrent tracker seized by Ukrainian authorities earlier this week.

“In retaliation for your criminal acts against us and the free flow of information, we have already begun an operation against those responsible. Lazers are already being fired,” read a press release on anonpr.net, the collective's public relations blog.

The collective also released a statement on YouTube, condemning authorities involved in shutting down Demonoid with language that could be described as provocative, even for Anonymous.

Jeb BooneAugust 8, 2012 10:56

Helicopter footage of raid on Dotcom home released to the public

Footage from the helicopter used in the raid on Megaupload founder Kim Dotcom's home is released to the public for the first time

At 6:46 a.m. on Jan. 20, a helicopter carrying officers belonging to New Zealand's elite special tactics group swooped down onto a mansion in the rural Coatesville community 30 kilometers northwest of Auckland. These operatives weren’t readying themselves to take down a drug kingpin or a tin pot dictator — they were enforcing copyright laws.

Jeb BooneAugust 7, 2012 13:27

Demonoid becomes next causality in war on online piracy

Following an extended DDoS attack, Demonoid's servers have been seized by the Ukranian government, a move, some say, to appease the US.

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Demonoid (Screengrab/Screengrab)

After an enormous distributed denial of service attack (DDoS), the web's oldest torrent tracker, Demonoid, has been shut down.

Last week, torrent enthusiasts feared the worst when Demonoid was brought down in a DDoS. They worried that the site had been busted and brought down by governments where the servers were hosted. It turned out they were right. Now, the site has been permanently shut down by the Ukrainian government, according to Kommersant, a Ukrainian news outlet, and file-sharing advocates TorrentFreak

ColoCall, Ukraine’s largest datacenter, housed most of Demonoid’s servers. Last week, government investigators descended upon ColoCall’s server bank to it all down.

Jeb BooneAugust 3, 2012 11:28

Jeter targeted in gender bending Facebook hack

Hackers found their way into several MLB teams' Facebook accounts last night, wreaking havoc on Facebook and poking fun at politicians and athletes.

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Derek Jeter #2 of the New York Yankees throws his bat after striking out to end the fourth-inning against the Toronto Blue Jays at Yankee Stadium on July 17, 2012 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Mike Strobe/AFP/Getty Images)

Major League Baseball bore the brunt of an all-night hacking spree as seven baseball teams had their social media platforms hijacked by online pranksters.

The Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, Miami Marlins, New York Yankees, San Diego Padres, San Francisco Giants and Washington Nationals all posted embarrassing messages on Facebook, including plans by Derek Jeter to undergo a sex change procedure.

“We regret to inform our fans that Derek Jeter will miss the rest of the season with sexual reassignment surgery. He promises to come back stronger than ever in 2013 as Minnie Mantlez,” said a hacked posting on the Yankees’ Facebook page.

Other posts featured political satire. The Chicago White Sox weighed in on the 2012 US presidential campaign, satirizing both candidates.

Jeb BooneJuly 31, 2012 15:04

French retailer trademarks Anonymous brand

Early Flicker has filed to trademark the brand and mantra belonging to the hacker collective Anonymous. Will Anons let it stand?

French e-commerce company Early Flicker has provoked the wrath of Anonymous.

Last February it filed to trademark the collective’s logo and its mantra, “we do not forgive….”

Early Flicker, specializing in t-shirt designs, may have been looking to capitalize on the popularity of Anonymous by printing shirts emblazoned with the collective’s logo. The Anonymous mantra and logo have been classified as a registered trademark in France’s National Institute of Industrial Property.

Jeb BooneJuly 27, 2012 12:42

Windows 8: A coming catastrophe?

Gabe Newell, PC gaming hero and CEO of Valve, says Windows 8 will spell "catastrophe" for PC gaming.

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Visitors watch a presentaiton of fetaures of the new Windows 8 operating system at the Microsoft stand on the first day of the CeBIT 2012 technology trade fair on March 6, 2012 in Hanover, Germany. CeBIT 2012, the world's largest information technology trade fair, will run from March 6-10, and advances in cloud computing and security are major features this year. (Sean Gallup/AFP/Getty Images)

Windows 8 will herald a catastrophe, according to Valve Software CEO Gabe Newell.

Newell is considered a hero among PC Gamers with Valve titles like Half-Life and Portal heralded as works of genius.

“I think that Windows 8 is kind of a catastrophe for everybody in the PC space. I think that we’re going to lose some of the top-tier PC [original equipment manufacturers]. They’ll exit the market. I think margins will be destroyed for a bunch of people,” Newell told VentureBeat at the Casual Connect video game conference in Seattle this week.

Newell's, however, is not an unbiased third party with the new Windows Stores possibly looking to compete with Steam, Valve's digital distribution and communications platform for gaming.

While discussing the frontiers of the gaming industry, the Valve boss criticized Windows 8 and offered up Linux as a possible alternative.

“…we’re trying to make sure that Linux thrives. Our perception is that one of the big problems holding Linux back is the absence of games. ” Newell said. “…we’re going to continue working with the Linux distribution guys, shipping Steam, shipping our games, and making it as easy as possible for anybody who’s engaged with us — putting their games on Steam and getting those running on Linux, as well. It’s a hedging strategy,” he added.

Jeb BooneJuly 23, 2012 15:12

Americans pay more for slower internet, study says

Study compares internet speed and affordability in 22 cities around the world. US cities don't rank too well.

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A PTT employee explains to a customer about subscribing to the new high-speed internet service at the post office in Hanoi, 01 July 2003. Vietnam's Data communication Company launched 01 July a new high-speed Internet service in three main Vietnamese cities namely Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh-City and the northern port city of Hai Phong. The Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (ASDL), whose maximum charge is fixed at 75 US dollars a month, can provide 24 hours access at a speed up to 40 times faster than a traditional 56 bps modem, on a standard analog phone line. (Hoang Dinh Nam/AFP/Getty Images)

Americans pay more money for slower internet speeds than the majority of the rest of the developed world, according to a report published by the New America Foundation, a US based non-profit public policy institute.

“The results add weight to a growing body of evidence that suggests that the US is lagging behind many of its international counterparts, most of whom have much higher levels of competition and, in turn, offer lower prices and faster Internet service,” the report says.

The report compared high speed broadband products in 22 cities around the world. Included are comparisons of the fastest available internet speed in each city, a survey of the best available internet speeds $35 could buy, and “triple play” packages bundling internet, phone and television.

Jeb BooneJuly 20, 2012 12:44

Enormous spam botnet brought down by online security champions

One of the world largest spam botnets, known as Grum, has been brought down after a days long campaign led by security experts and knights of internet justice.

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A computer screen inbox displaying unsolicited emails known as 'spam' in Hong Kong on March 20, 2009. The territory is under siege from legions of zombies attacking people with spam and leaving in their wake a trail of destruction costing millions of dollars a year, analysts have warned. (Mike Clarke/AFP/Getty Images)

One of the world’s largest spam botnets was taken down by security researchers on Wednesday, putting an end to upwards of 17 percent of worldwide email spam advertising fake prescription drugs.

The “Grum” botnet was made up of more than 120,000 hijacked computers and used by spammers to send out enormous amounts of emails to inboxes across the globe.

“I am glad to announce that, after three days of effort, the Grum botnet has finally been knocked down. All the known command and control (CnC) servers are dead, leaving their zombies orphaned,” wrote Atif Mushtaq, an employee of FireEye Malware Intelligence Lab. The anti-malware firm teamed up with The SpamHaus project and local internet service providers to bring down Grum’s servers based in Panama, Russia and Ukraine.