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Submission Summary: 0 pending, 93 declined, 42 accepted (135 total, 31.11% accepted)

The Courts

Submission + - No Right to Privacy When Your Computer Is Repaired (zdnet.com) 3

Submitted by
Billosaur
Billosaur writes: "ZDNet's Police Blotter bring us the interesting story of a Pennsylvania man who brought his computer into Circuit City to have a DVD burner installed on his computer and wound up being arrested for having child pornography on his hard drive. Circuit City employees discovered the child pornography while perusing Kenneth Sodomsky's hard drive for files to test the burner, then proceeded to call the police, who arrested Sodomsky and confiscated the computer. Sodomsky's lawyer argued in court that the Circuit City techs had no right to go rifling through the hard drive, and the trial court agreed, but prosecutors appealed and the appeals court overturned the lower court's decision, based on the fact that Sodomsky had consented to the installation of the DVD drive and the techs "weren't randomly perusing the drive for contraband, but instead were testing its functioning in a 'commercially accepted manner.'""
Security

Submission + - IT Pro Admits Stealing 8.4M Consumer Records (channelregister.co.uk)

Submitted by
Billosaur
Billosaur writes: "The Channel Register is reporting that a database administrator at Fidelity National Information Services, a consumer reporting agency in Florida, has admitted to stealing more than 8.4 million account records and selling them to a data broker. The DBA, William Gary Sullivan, faces up to 10 years in prison and fines of $500,000. He worked at a subsidiary of Fidelity and used his access to its database to steal customer names, addresses and financial account information, then used a business he incorporated to sell the list to an accomplice, who eventually sold it to direct marketing firms."
The Internet

Submission + - Flawed Online Dating Bill Being Pushed in NJ (arstechnica.com)

Submitted by
Billosaur
Billosaur writes: "According to a report on ars technica, a committee of the New Jersey Assembly is trying to push an on-line dating bill even though it contains significant flaws. The Internet Dating Safety Act would require dating web sites that interact with customers in New Jersey to indicate whether they do criminal background checks and if people who fail such checks are still allowed to register with the site. In addition, the warnings would be displayed in all emails and all sign-up web pages where the site interacts with a New Jersey customer, in a bold, 12-point font. For sites the do background checks, they would be required to inform NJ users of that fact, in the same type of font. And for sites that might allow convicted criminals to sign up, there would be a strict admonition that background checks are not infallible and that the data they use might be incomplete. While perhaps there is merit in the attempt to make online dating safer, you have to wonder what the NJ Assembly actually hopes to accomplish."
The Courts

Submission + - Vonage Lose Appeal; Verizon Owed $120 Million (bloomberg.com)

Submitted by
Billosaur
Billosaur writes: "Things do not look good for Vonage. Yesterday, they lost their request for reconsideration of their settlement with Verizon. This means Vonage owes Verizon $120 million to end the patent lawsuit filed against them. The costs associated with defending the case have cut into Vonage's bottom line, and despite attempts to cut costs by laying off 10% of their workforce, they may be unable to make a payment against their debt come December. According to the settlement, Vonage will pay $117.5 million to Verizon and another $2.5 million dollars to charity. Vonage's shares have dropped 87% since their IPO, now hovering around $1.50 per share."
The Internet

Submission + - MLB Fans Who Bought DRM Videos Get Hosed

Submitted by
Billosaur
Billosaur writes: "Found via BoingBoing, Major League Baseball has just strengthened the case against DRM. If you downloaded videos of baseball games from MLB.com before 2006, apparently they no longer work and you are out of luck. MLB.com, sometime during 2006, changed their DRM system. Result: game videos purchased before that time will now no longer work, as the previous DRM system is no longer supported. When the video is played, apparently the MLB.com servers are contacted and a license obtained to verify the authenticity of the video; this is done by a web link. That link no longer exists, and so now the videos will no longer play, even though the MLB FAQ says that a license is only obtained once and will not need to be re-obtained. The blogger who is reporting this contacted MLB technical support, only to be told there are no refunds due to this problem."
It's funny. Laugh.

Submission + - Note to Criminals: Don't Call Tech Support (arstechnica.com)

Submitted by
Billosaur
Billosaur writes: "Darwin Awards, here he comes: according to Ars Technica, a would-be identity thief did himself in by calling tech support about printer drivers. It seems that Timothy Short hit the mother-lode when he stole a PC and a Digimarc printer from the Missouri Department of Revenue, perhaps with dreams of cranking out thousands of fake ids. Problem: he could not unlock the computer he stole and without the necessary drivers, he couldn't use the printer. Ever resourceful, Short called Digimarc tech support a couple of days later (twice), which brought him to the attention of a Secret Service agent, who recognized his voice from a recording of the calls. Short now faces a $250,000 fine and up to 10 years in prison."
Privacy

Submission + - New England Patriots Get Ticket Sellers' Names (go.com)

Submitted by
Billosaur
Billosaur writes: "The New England Patriots sued on-line ticket re-seller StubHub (a subsidiary of eBay) to obtain the list of names of people who tried to buy or sell Patriots tickets using the service. StubHub lost an appeal in Massachusetts state court last week, and was compelled to hand over the list of 13,000 names. It is currently not clear what the Patriots organization intends to do with the names, but they have intimated that they may revoke the privileges of any season ticket holders on the list. The Center for Democracy and Technology, a Washington D.C.-based advocacy group, said the court order to turn over the names infringes on the privacy rights of Patriots fans. At issue, is whether using the on-line service allows an end-run around team rules and Massachusetts state law, by allowing ticket holders to charge extreme mark-ups on their tickets."
Communications

Submission + - T-Mobile Phone Unlocking Lawsuit May Proceed (wired.com)

Submitted by
Billosaur
Billosaur writes: "Wired is reporting that the California Supreme Court has refused to review two lower court decisions involving a class-action lawsuit against T-Mobile over their policies regarding early termination and phone unlocking. The Court rejected the reviews without comment, opening the door to the lawsuit, which aims to block T-Mobile from collecting a $200 early termination fee from users. Also on the table: an order for T-Mobile to disclose the types of phone-locking technology that may be in use on customer's phones. The ramifications if the lawsuit is successful would be to allow phone users in California to unlock their phones, and might lead to further lawsuits nationwide."
Space

Submission + - Missing Potenital Earth-busting Asteroid Found (wired.com)

Submitted by
Billosaur
Billosaur writes: "A potentially disastrous 40-year-old mystery has been solved: Where is asteroid 6344 P-L? Back in 1960, asteroid 6344 P-L was identified and classified as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid," meaning that it's orbit brings it perilously close to Earth's orbit (on the cosmic scale). Unfortunately, it then disappeared, or more precisely, was lost from view. Flash forward to 2007 and scientists believe that 6344 P-L has been rediscovered as 2007 RR9. Further, they are not sure it is an actual asteroid, but actually a comet fragment, which won't hit the Earth anytime soon but bears watching."
Security

Submission + - PEBKAC Still Plagues PC Security (arstechnica.com)

Submitted by
Billosaur
Billosaur writes: "ARS Technica is reporting on a study release by McAfee and the National Cyber Security Alliance (as part of the beginning of National Cyber Security Awareness Month) that suggests when it comes to PC security, the problem between the keyboard and the chair is even worse. PEBKAC has always been a problem, but the study highlights just how prevalent it has become. 87 percent of the users contacted said they used anti-virus software, while 70 percent use anti-spyware software. Fewer (64 percent) reported having their firewalls turned on, and only 27 percent use software designed to stop phishing attempts. Researchers were allowed to scan the computers of a subset of the users, and while 70 percent claimed to be using anti-spyware software, only 55 percent of the machines of those users scanned showed evidence of the software."
Data Storage

Submission + - Germany Says Copying of DVDs, CDs Is Verboten (variety.com)

Submitted by
Billosaur
Billosaur writes: "In what can only be seen as the opening salvo in an attempt to control what users can do with content, the German parliament has approved a controversial copyright law which will make it illegal to make copies of CDs and DVDs, even for personal use. The Bundesrat, the upper part of the German parliament, approved the legislation over the objections of consumer protection groups. The law, set to take effect in 2008, covers CDs, DVDs, recordings from IPTV, and TV recordings."
Space

Submission + - Do You Need a Permit to Land on the Moon? (slate.com) 4

Submitted by
Billosaur
Billosaur writes: "With the recent announcement of Google's X-prize for a successful private landing of a robot on the Moon, someone has asked the Explainer at Slate.com if permission is required to land something on the Moon? Turns out that while there is no authority that regulates landing objects on another world, getting there does require the permission of the national government from where the launch takes place. This is in accordance with the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, signed by 91 nations, which regulates the uses of outer space by the nations of Earth. Specifically, Article VI enjoins: "The activities of non-governmental entities in outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, shall require authorization and continuing supervision by the appropriate State Party to the Treaty." Start your paperwork!"
Portables

Submission + - The $100 Laptop Now Costs $188 (cnn.com)

Submitted by
Billosaur
Billosaur writes: "CNN is reporting that the cost of the $100 laptop, the centerpiece of the "One Laptop Per Child" initiative, has increased to $188. The increase from a previous price of $176 is blamed "on a variety of factors, including currency fluctuations and rising costs of such components as nickel and silicon." As the price continues to rise, it will make it harder to sell to the governments looking to use the machines to spur computer literacy and learning in their countries. The OLPC program is working hard to head off further price increases, but a cost of $200 is looming on the horizon."
Communications

Submission + - Bones Could Become Conduits For Data Swaps

Submitted by
Billosaur
Billosaur writes: "New Scientist Tech has an intriguing article about researchers at Rice University in Houston, TX who are looking at ways to use the human skeleton to transmit data. The idea is to use bones to conduct sound waves, with 0's and 1's being represented by different frequencies. Preliminary results, shared with a conference on body networks in Florence, Italy, this week, show that bones can conduct even low-power vibrations with few errors. The idea is that the conduction of sound along bone would be more secure that via radio waves, leading to the possibility of swapping data with someone by shaking their hand."
Security

Submission + - VeriSign to Offer Passwords on Bank Card

Submitted by
Billosaur
Billosaur writes: "Imagine the PayPal security tool embedded on a credit card. VeriSign is announcing that a deal is in the works to provide credit cards with one-time use passwords. By placing the technology directly on the card, it becomes more convenient and provides and extra layer of security for on-line credit card transactions. A card-holder would type in their information as normal and then would be prompted to enter the passcode displayed on the card. This means a user would have to have the physical card to use, which would thwart identity thieves who steal credit card information, but do not possess the card itself."

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