Damballa Discovers New Wide-Spread Global Botnet Offering ‘Commercial’ DDoS Services

(BUSINESS WIRE)--Damballa Inc., the company transforming the fight against cyber threats, today announced the discovery of a new botnet that offers pay-for-delivery Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks. The ‘IMDDOS’ Botnet, named after the commercial name on the botnet website, has grown to be one of the largest active global botnets in less than four months from initial testing. According to Damballa, the infected hosts used in the DDoS attacks have become unwitting participants in the botnet and are widespread. The vast majority of infected hosts are in China, with the United States being in the top 10 countries affected. Internet Service Providers (ISPs) worldwide were affected, including the majority of North American ISPs, and a number of major corporate networks are hosting bot agents for the IMDDOS Botnet.

“The commercial nature of this botnet and the rapid growth and ultimate size are what make this discovery interesting”

The IMDDOS Botnet offers a commercial service for delivering DDoS attacks against any desired target. Hosted in China, this publicly available service is available for lease to anyone willing to establish an online account, input the domain(s) they wish to attack, and pay for the service. Throughout the Damballa period of study, the botnet grew large very quickly. Following testing by the criminal operators in April 2010, it reached a production peak of activity with 25,000 unique Recursive DNS (RDNS) lookups per hour attempting to resolve to the botnet’s command-and-control (CnC) servers. Damballa is currently working with ISPs and law enforcement officials to contain and nullify the threat.

A 16-page analysis of the discovery can be viewed at: www.damballa.com/IMDDOS. This analysis includes details of the technical infrastructure of the botnet and associated malware as well as an animated illustration of the IMDDOS Botnet’s global growth and impact from early testing stage to peak activity rendered in hourly increments.

A Denial of Service (DoS) attack is a technique used to overwhelm a website/domain in an effort to reduce its responsiveness or completely eliminate its ability to respond to new connection attempts. DoS attacks have historically been used to ‘take down’ political sites, abuse sites, commercial business websites and even military command centers as part of a coordinated targeted campaign.

A DDoS attack utilizes multiple PCs or servers to initiate a coordinated attack against a targeted system. The more assets involved in the attack, the larger the flood of requests and data that can be targeted at the victim. To create a very large army of assets that can launch DDoS attacks, botnets are used to rally and command unwitting victim machines into participating in the attacks.

“The commercial nature of this botnet and the rapid growth and ultimate size are what make this discovery interesting,” stated Gunter Ollmann, vice president of research for Damballa. “The public website hosting the DDoS service offering, with various ‘plans’ and attack options, speaks to the ease with which anyone can leverage criminal infrastructure. The malware used is simplistic, yet it was successful in spreading rapidly. And while it appears to be primarily a DDoS delivery platform, the size of the botnet reached impressive proportions, certainly large enough to wreak major havoc on any victim organization should it be pointed in the right direction.”

This discovery was made possible due to a global array of Damballa sensors, which provide worldwide visibility into CnC activity, combined with the understanding and quantification of statistical heuristics that can explain, and most importantly, quickly detect, the malicious nature of this botnet operation. Damballa tracks thousands of botnet operators and their growing cache of botnets every day. Each criminal botnet building campaign is observed, analyzed, automatically catalogued and categorized using a sophisticated array of clustering and machine learning systems. As the criminal botnet operators attempt to grow the botnet, their investments and modifications to their CnC hosting infrastructure are tracked and used as markers for eventual attribution. Damballa customers benefit from this advanced knowledge of the threat, being alerted to the presence of the malware and being able to terminate the CnC communications.

“Botnets are recognized by industry experts as being the delivery mechanism of choice for the vast majority of today’s cyber threats that plague corporate and ISP networks,” said Val Rahmani, CEO of Damballa. “Botnets and other cyber threats are attacking corporate networks and service providers at an alarmingly high rate and are causing security teams around the world to reevaluate their security investments. Damballa leads the security industry in delivering solutions that detect and terminate botnets and cyber threats, and our research and product teams are constantly innovating and bringing more powerful and automated weapons to the war against cybercrime.”

-----
Community News You Can Use
www.fayettefrontpage.com
Fayette Front Page
www.georgiafrontpage.com
Georgia Front Page
Follow us on Twitter:  @GAFrontPage

First-Ever Study of Google's Impact on Internet, Economy, Pricing & Jobs

/PRNewswire/ -- Today Precursor LLC released a first-of-its-kind research study on the impact of the largest and most powerful Internet company, Google Inc., on the Internet, economy, pricing and jobs. Google Inc. is expanding beyond its search monopoly to dominate other parts of the Internet at such an alarming rate that Google Inc. increasingly is the Internet for most consumers.

Precursor President Scott Cleland said:
-- "There is no net-economic growth or job creation from Google's 'free'
Internet sector model, only a deflationary price spiral, negative
growth, property devaluation, and hundreds of thousands of job losses
in over 20 industries. Consumers don't win long term from a
monopoly-gatekeeper of 'free' information access and distribution."
-- "Many will be amazed to learn that when Google rebrands its current
YouTube-Double-Click video advertising business as 'Google TV' this
fall, it already will own an Internet video-streaming monopoly with
80% of the Internet audience, almost a billion viewers, 2 billion
daily monetized views, and 45 billion ads served daily."
-- "Lax antitrust merger enforcement is responsible for tipping Google to
monopoly and facilitating its monopolization of consumer Internet
media. If antitrust authorities do not wake up soon, a wide swath of a
trillion dollar sector with millions of jobs - i.e. video, maps,
books, analytics, travel, etc. - will suffer the same fate as the
music and newspaper industries."
-- "While I expect the study to generate a healthy debate over whether
Google's behavior is pro or anti-competitive, pro or anti-consumer,
and pro or anti-innovation, any rigorous analysis of the facts will
lead to the same conclusion of this study - that Google's exercise of
its market power is spreading to many other industries and spreading
at an alarming rate."


The core recommendation of the study is that the U.S. Department of Justice's Antitrust Division and the European Commission's Competition Directorate should sue Google for monopolization.

About the study's author:


The study was conducted over the last few months by Scott Cleland, President of Precursor LLC, a leading techcom research and consulting firm. (See: www.Precursor.com.)


-- Formerly, Cleland was an Institutional Investor Magazine top
independent telecom analyst in 2004 and 2005.
-- He has a high-profile track record of being first to spot big
anomalies involving the Internet.
-- In late 2000, Cleland was the first analyst to expose that
Internet traffic was in reality growing 90% slower than what the
market assumed, heralding the bust of the dot.com bubble that
wiped out $4 trillion in market capitalization.
-- In 2002, Cleland was the first analyst to discern that WorldCom's
model did not add up and to predict its bankruptcy.
-- In 2007, Cleland was the first analyst to predict that Google's
acquisition of DoubleClick would tip Google to monopoly; an
assessment the DOJ affirmed in 2008 in blocking the Google-Yahoo
ad agreement via a threatened monopolization case.
-- A leading expert on Google, Cleland publishes two Google watchdog
sites www.GoogleMonitor.com and www.Googleopoly.net, and he has
testified before both House and Senate subcommittees on Google.


The views expressed in the Googleopoly VI study are solely those of the author and not the views of any Precursor LLC clients.

-----
Community News You Can Use
www.fayettefrontpage.com
Fayette Front Page
www.georgiafrontpage.com
Georgia Front Page
Follow us on Twitter:  @GAFrontPage

GSLO: Turn Your Apple iPod Touch Into a Smartphone

(BUSINESS WIRE)--Does your iPod Touch suffer from iPhone Envy? Not for long: GoSolarUSA Inc. (PinkSheets:GSLO) announced a deal today with innovative Chinese developer Yosion to bring that company’s cutting-edge Apple Peel 520 product to the United States.

“We see the Apple Peel 520 as a stunning breakthrough in mobile technology, and we’re proud to work with Yosion to develop this product for the U.S. market.”

Both companies signed a funding option agreement last week. Under the agreement, GoSolarUSA will work with Yosion to develop the Apple Peel 520, file for a U.S. patent and distribute it in the U.S.

When used with Apple’s (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPod Touch, the Apple Peel 520 functions as a protective skin that adds mobile voice and text messaging capabilities to the touch-screen media player. The startling new technology represents a more affordable alternative to purchasing Apple’s pricier iPhone, and with 275 million iPods already on the market, the Apple Peel could be an instant hit. Yosion announced last week that September’s initial manufacturing run is already sold out.

“We are so pleased to have reached this agreement with Yosion,” said Tyson Rohde, President of GSLO. “We see the Apple Peel 520 as a stunning breakthrough in mobile technology, and we’re proud to work with Yosion to develop this product for the U.S. market.”

The Apple Peel 520 is the creation of 22-year-old Chinese programmer Pan Yong. The gadget slips over the iPod Touch’s case and includes a battery, dock connector and SIM card. Once the proper software is installed, the Apple Peel adds the ability to make voice calls and text messages using the iPod Touch. When fully charged, the Apple Peel’s 800mAh battery offers nearly five hours of talk time and 120 hours of standby use.

The Apple Peel 520 first made waves online in the U.S. last month when it was featured on CNN.com [http://articles.cnn.com/2010-08-16/tech/china.apple.peel_1_apple-smart-phone-iphone-ipod?_s=PM:TECH] and earned positive buzz from Engadget.com [http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/28/ipod-touch-turned-into-a-phone-using-yosions-apple-peel-520/], among other Web sites.

“For right around $60, this device really does transform the iPod Touch into a smartphone,” Rohde said. “If there is a hotter iPod accessory anywhere in the world, we certainly haven’t seen it.”

The option agreement signed by both companies on Wednesday requires that both parties negotiate in good faith to reach terms on a profit-sharing agreement. It has been filed as a material contract with GSLO’s public filings.

GoSolarUSA is dedicated to aggressively acquiring, developing and marketing promising and potentially profitable technology. The iPod Touch and the iPhone are products of Apple Inc., which competes in the global smartphone market against the Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) Android and Research in Motion’s (NASDAQ:RIMM) BlackBerry line.

For more information, please visit www.GoSolarUSA.com.

-----
Community News You Can Use
www.fayettefrontpage.com
Fayette Front Page
www.georgiafrontpage.com
Georgia Front Page
Follow us on Twitter:  @GAFrontPage

GFI Software Announces Top 10 Malware Threats for August

(BUSINESS WIRE)--GFI Software, a leading IT solutions provider for small and medium-sized enterprises, today announced the top 10 most prevalent malware threats for the month of August 2010. The report, compiled from monthly scans performed by GFI's award-winning anti-malware solution, VIPRE® Antivirus, and its antispyware tool, CounterSpy®, is a service of GFI Labs™.

“Our research group is analyzing new rogues too, but what we’re seeing through ThreatNet indicates that VIPRE is preventing these rogue downloads.”

GFI VIPRE ThreatNet™ statistics for the month of August show that GFI customers were under attack throughout the month primarily by the same Trojan horse programs that have persisted for several months. In fact, the top four threats were unchanged in order from the month of July. Trojans detected as Trojan.Win32.Generic!BT were still the chief detection, slightly down to 25.11 percent of total detections. This particular Trojan detection has been in the top spot for some time: in July with 29.08 percent and in June with 27.16 percent of the total detections.

The number two detection, Trojan-Spy.Win32.Zbot.gen is a detection of password-stealing Trojans with many versions. The third largest detection, Trojan.Win32.Generic.pak!cobra, is a generic detection for a variety of malware that can infect 32- and 64-bit Windows installations.

“Detections of this malicious code indicate that botnet operators continue to try to infect machines and use them in their spamming networks,” said Francis Montesino, manager of the malware processing team, GFI Labs. “Our ThreatNet detections for the month also agree with other reports we’ve heard in the last few weeks that have found a high level of traffic in rogue security products. These are often referred to as scareware. We’re seeing a multitude of detections of the downloaders and installers that are associated with the rogues.

Montesino continued, “Our research group is analyzing new rogues too, but what we’re seeing through ThreatNet indicates that VIPRE is preventing these rogue downloads.”

The top 10 results represent the number of times a particular malware infection was detected during VIPRE and CounterSpy scans that report back to ThreatNet, GFI’s community of opt-in users. These threats are classified as moderate to severe based on method of installation among other criteria established by GFI Labs. The majority of these threats propagate through stealth installations or social engineering.

The top 10 most prevalent malware threats for the month of August are:
1. Trojan.Win32.Generic!BT 25.11%

2. Trojan-Spy.Win32.Zbot.gen 4.23%

3. Trojan.Win32.Generic.pak!cobra 3.61%

4. INF.Autorun (v) 3.27%

5. Trojan.Win32.Generic!SB.0 2.01%

6. BehavesLike.Win32.Malware (v) 1.04%

7. Worm.Win32.Downad.Gen (v) 0.96%

8. Trojan.Win32.Malware.a 0.93%

9. Trojan.Win32.Meredrop 0.92%

10. Exploit.PDF-JS.Gen (v) 0.84%

-----
Community News You Can Use
www.fayettefrontpage.com
Fayette Front Page
www.georgiafrontpage.com
Georgia Front Page
Follow us on Twitter:  @GAFrontPage

FCC Terminates AWS-3 Rulemaking to Auction Spectrum with Free Broadband Requirement; Breaks National Broadband Plan Commitment

/PRNewswire/ -- On Friday, August 27, 2010, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) notified M2Z Networks, Inc. (M2Z) and its Silicon Valley investors including Kleiner Perkins, Charles River Ventures, and Redpoint Ventures, that it has terminated the AWS-3 spectrum (2155-2180 MHz) public interest rulemaking, thereby closing off the possibility of providing free nationwide broadband service in the United States for the foreseeable future. The FCC has been considering M2Z's proposal for a free nationwide broadband network using AWS-3 since 2006. This decision reverses the FCC's National Broadband Plan commitment to finalize the AWS-3 spectrum rulemaking in the fourth quarter of 2010 and for the spectrum to be auctioned by the second quarter of 2011.

The FCC's AWS-3 rulemaking, pending since 2007, consisted of three key issues:

-- A requirement that the AWS-3 licensee provide free broadband service
to at least 95% of the U.S. population in order to address the digital
divide;
-- A requirement that the AWS-3 licensee adhere to Net Neutrality
principles of open access (end-user access to all lawful content) and
open platforms (end-users to have the choice of devices);
-- An enforceable requirement on the AWS-3 licensee to build-out a
national broadband network covering 50% of the population in 4 years
and 95% in 10 years.


According to the FCC's own National Broadband Plan, 28 million Americans today cannot afford to subscribe to broadband. A free nationwide broadband service using the AWS-3 spectrum band would have addressed this persistent digital divide. While campaigning for the White House in 2008, President Obama told the U.S. Conference of Mayors, "Every American should have broadband access - no matter where you live, or how much money you have. We'll connect our schools and libraries and hospitals. And we'll take on the special interests to realize the potential of wireless spectrum for our safety and connectivity."

There continues to be considerable support from the public for a free nationwide broadband service. The FCC record shows that during the pendency of the AWS-3 rulemaking, more than 50,000 Americans signed a petition supporting the proposed rules while the FCC and members of Congress received over 20,000 letters and emails in support of the proposed rules. Government officials outside of Washington--faced with a growing digital divide and a poor economy--also saw merit in this innovative private sector solution. The FCC record shows that over 300 local, state and federal officials from all 50 states wrote to the FCC in support of the proposed AWS-3 rules.

"The FCC's decision to delay the use of this valuable spectrum forgoes the consumer welfare and economic stimulus that would result from putting new spectrum into the marketplace," said John Muleta, CEO of M2Z Networks. "A new nationwide broadband entrant that provided a free broadband service would have created tens of thousands of direct and indirect jobs throughout the country while giving all Americans an equal opportunity to participate in the digital economy. Despite the spectrum crisis facing the U.S. as documented by the FCC's National Broadband Plan, the AWS-3 spectrum will continue to lie fallow providing no economic value to American consumers."

-----
Community News You Can Use
www.fayettefrontpage.com
Fayette Front Page
www.georgiafrontpage.com
Georgia Front Page
Follow us on Twitter:  @GAFrontPage

Facebook Accused of Misappropriating Likenesses of Teens for Profit

/PRNewswire/ -- A class action lawsuit was just filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court, Central Division, alleging that Facebook is misappropriating the names and pictures of minors for profit.

David Cohen, a minor, by and through Robin Cohen as Guardian ad Litem; Shelby Orland, a minor, by and through Marcia J. Orland as Guardian ad Litem; for all others similarly situated v. Facebook, Inc., a Delaware corporation, and DOES 1 through 100, Inclusive (Case #BC444482), alleges that Facebook encourages the participation of teenagers on its social network. Without any attempt to obtain parental consent, Facebook sells the names and likenesses of those minors for use by advertisers as an endorsement of the advertisers' products or services.

"When a teenager sees that their Facebook friends 'Like' an ad, it piques their curiosity, making them more likely to click the ad or visit the page," says Los Angeles plaintiff attorney John Torjesen of John C. Torjesen & Associates. "We believe it is a clear case of exploitation of children for the sake of profits."

"The consent of the minor for this commercial use of his or her name and likeness is not obtained by Facebook," says plaintiff attorney and co-counsel Antony Stuart of Stuart Law Firm. "Under California law, the minor's consent cannot be obtained without the consent of the parent or guardian. Facebook makes no effort to obtain parental consent."

The class action lawsuit is filed on behalf of all California residents who are or were under the age of 18 and members of Facebook from Aug. 26, 2007 to Aug. 26, 2010 whose likenesses or names were used in a Facebook advertisement or landing page.

"Facebook's actions violate the inalienable right to privacy guaranteed by the California Constitution," says Torjesen. "It derives illegal profits by charging advertisers for the use of children's names and photographs. As the father of a teenager, I view this to be exploitation of children."

-----
Community News You Can Use
www.fayettefrontpage.com
Fayette Front Page
www.georgiafrontpage.com
Georgia Front Page
Follow us on Twitter:  @GAFrontPage

Tech Industry Opposes Possible FM Chip Mandate for Mobile Devices

/PRNewswire/ -- A coalition of six technology industry associations sent a letter today to the Chairmen and Ranking Members of the U.S. House and Senate Judiciary Committees urging them to resist efforts to include an FM technology mandate for mobile devices in any legislation addressing an unrelated conflict between the broadcast and recording industries over royalties.

"Calls for an FM chip mandate are not about public safety but are instead about propping up a business which consumers are abandoning as they avail themselves of new, more consumer-friendly options," the associations wrote. "It is simply wrong for two entrenched industries to resolve their differences by agreeing to burden a third industry - which has no relationship to or other interest in the performance royalty dispute - with a costly, ill-considered and unnecessary new mandate."

The proposed imposition of an FM chip mandate is not necessary for resolution of the dispute between performance artists and broadcasters and, if adopted, it would be bad policy for several reasons:

-- Mandating that every wireless device include an FM chip would require
consumers to pay more for a function that they may not desire or ever
use.
-- The groups that are parties to the discussions over the performance
rights royalty issue lack any expertise in the development of wireless
devices and are in no position to dictate what type of functionality
is included in a wireless device.
-- Development by the technology industry and government of a mobile
broadcast emergency alerting system makes the requirement unnecessary.


The following Presidents and Chief Executive Officers of CTIA-The Wireless Association®, the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)®, the Information Technology Industry Council, the Rural Cellular Association, TechAmerica and the Telecommunications Industry Association signed the letter.

-----
Community News You Can Use
www.fayettefrontpage.com
Fayette Front Page
www.georgiafrontpage.com
Georgia Front Page
Follow us on Twitter:  @GAFrontPage

EarthLink Files Reply in Comcast-NBCU Merger; Urges FCC to Require Wholesale Standalone Broadband Access Condition

/PRNewswire/-- EarthLink, Inc. (NASDAQ:ELNK) , one of the nation's leading Internet service providers, on August 18 filed at the Federal Communications Commission a response to the opposition of applicants to conditions proposed in the Comcast-NBCU merger. In June, EarthLink asked the FCC to deny the merger or adopt a condition requiring Comcast to offer wholesale standalone broadband access to independent Internet service providers.

EarthLink urged the FCC to adopt the condition to ensure the merger does not result in anti-competitive activity that will reduce consumer choice, restrict content diversity, and interfere with Internet competition. In addition to providing consumers a choice for broadband access service, the condition would allow consumers to "break the bundle" and take advantage of video programming available on the Internet without subscribing to cable television service, thereby encouraging broadband investment, competition and adoption.

"The Comcast-NBCU transaction raises the substantial risk that Comcast will use its market power to stifle competition, growth and innovation of online video and other broadband content," said EarthLink General Counsel Samuel R. DeSimone, Jr. "The access condition proposed by EarthLink is a cost-effective solution to these concerns and will benefit U.S. consumers."

-----
Community News You Can Use
www.fayettefrontpage.com
Fayette Front Page
www.georgiafrontpage.com
Georgia Front Page
Follow us on Twitter:  @GAFrontPage

Vice President Biden Announces Recovery Act Investments in Broadband Projects to Bring Jobs, Economic Opportunity to Communities Nationwide

Vice President Biden today (August 18) announced 94 Recovery Act investments in broadband projects that will create jobs and expand economic opportunities within 37 states.  These investments in high-speed Internet infrastructure will help bridge the technological divide in communities that are being left in the 20th century economy and support improvements in education, healthcare, and public safety.  Today’s announcement, an investment totaling $1.8 billion, is part of a nearly $7 billion Recovery Act initiative.

“Today's (August 18) investment in broadband technology will create jobs across the country and expand opportunities for millions of Americans and American companies. In addition to bringing 21st century infrastructure to underserved communities and rural areas, these investments will begin to harness the power of broadband to improve education, health care, and public safety,” said Vice President Biden. “The awards are another great example of how the Recovery Act is creating jobs upfront, while also building a foundation for sustainable job creation and global competitiveness.”

The projects receiving funds today are part of a program – administered by the Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and the Department of Agriculture’s Rural Utilities Service (RUS) – to expand broadband access and adoption across the country.

“The broadband investments announced today(August 18) are going to put people to work in the near term, but they also will lay the groundwork for sustainable economic growth down the road,” U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke said. “These projects will connect Americans who have for too long been without the full economic, educational and social benefits of high-speed Internet access – access central to success in the 21st Century.”

“The broadband projects announced today(August 18) will give rural Americans access to the tools they need to attract new businesses, jobs, health care and educational opportunities,” Secretary of Agriculture Vilsack said. “The Obama Administration understands that bringing broadband to rural America provides a gateway for businesses and key anchor institutions – such as libraries, schools, public safety and community centers – to provide services to thousands of Americans. These projects will create jobs building these networks, and the completed systems will provide a platform for rural economic growth for years to come.”

Today’s(August 18) announcement includes 66 grants awarded by the Commerce Department for projects to deploy broadband infrastructure and connect community anchor institutions to broadband, create and upgrade public computer centers, and encourage the sustainable adoption of broadband service.  It also includes 28 awards from USDA for broadband infrastructure and satellite projects that will provide rural residents in 16 states and Native American tribal areas access to improved service.

The Department of Commerce awards also contain grants for public safety broadband networks that will improve response times and communication at the scene of emergencies.   These projects constitute a critical set of demonstration projects and a head start on President Obama’s commitment to support the development of a nationwide, interoperable public safety wireless broadband network.  

According to an analysis released by the National Economic Council last year, overall Recovery Act investments in broadband are expected to create tens of thousands of jobs in the near term and expand economic development and job opportunities in communities that are being left behind in the new knowledge-based economy. Recovery Act broadband projects help bring down the cost of private investment, attract Internet service providers to new areas, improve digital literacy among students and workers, and help create new opportunities in employment, education, and entrepreneurship by wiring homes and businesses. With new or increased broadband access, communities can compete on a level playing field to attract new businesses, schools can create distance learning opportunities, medical professionals can provide cost-efficient remote diagnoses and care, and business owners can expand the market for their products beyond their neighborhoods to better compete in the global economy.

Funding is contingent upon the recipient meeting the terms of the loan, grant or loan/grant agreement.  A complete list of projects receiving Recovery Act broadband grant awards today(August 18) can be viewed in full.

President Obama signed The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 into law on February 17, 2009. It is designed to jumpstart the nation’s economy, create or save millions of jobs, and put a down payment on addressing long-neglected challenges so that the country can thrive in the 21st century. The Act includes measures to modernize our nation’s infrastructure, enhance energy independence, expand educational opportunities, preserve and improve affordable health care, provide tax relief, and protect those in greatest need.


-----
Community News You Can Use
www.fayettefrontpage.com
Fayette Front Page
www.georgiafrontpage.com
Georgia Front Page
Follow us on Twitter:  @GAFrontPage

State Legislators Oppose FCC's Plans to Re-label and Regulate Internet

/PRNewswire/ -- The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) voices its opposition to plans by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to change the status of broadband Internet Service from a lightly-regulated "information service" to a more heavily regulated "telecommunications service."

At its meeting late last week, ALEC's Telecommunications & Information Technology Task Force approved its ALEC Broadband Regulation Resolution. The Resolution declares ALEC's opposition to the FCC's controversial plan to subject broadband Internet service to a handful of older monopoly-era telephone regulations.

Today the Resolution was delivered to the FCC along with a letter by Connecticut State Representative Bill Hamzy, who serves as Public Sector Chair of ALEC's Telecom & IT Task Force. In the letter, the state legislator insists the agency should back off from its controversial plan to subject broadband Internet to heavier regulatory burdens.

"ALEC supports the continuation of federal policies that have kept the Internet free from government regulation. Marketplace freedom has encouraged the explosive growth of the Internet and e-commerce in recent years. It would be a grave mistake for the FCC to suddenly reverse course and saddle the Internet with burdensome new regulation. ALEC remains concerned that attempts by federal regulators to impose new restrictions on broadband Internet service will hurt technological innovation, deter private infrastructure investment, and threaten job growth in the states," said Representative Hamzy.

As declared in the Resolution, "ALEC urges that the FCC, Congress and state regulatory and legislative bodies refocus their efforts on specific and limited initiatives targeted at ensuring that broadband service is made universally available and affordable to consumers, rejecting overly prescriptive regulations that would harm innovation, investment, and job growth."

In January, over 90 other state legislators submitted a letter to the FCC opposing its plans to impose net neutrality regulation. In 2007, ALEC adopted a Resolution on Net Neutrality, opposing federal and state regulation of network management practices.

The American Legislative Exchange Council is the nation's largest nonpartisan, individual membership organization of state legislators.

-----
Community News You Can Use
www.fayettefrontpage.com
Fayette Front Page
www.georgiafrontpage.com
Georgia Front Page
Follow us on Twitter:  @GAFrontPage

Google-Verizon Broadband Proposal Undermines Internet, Consumer Watchdog Says

/PRNewswire/ -- Google and Verizon's new joint broadband proposal pays lip service to the idea of "net neutrality," but actually would completely undermine the open and free Internet we enjoy, Consumer Watchdog said today.

There are two fundamental flaws, said John M. Simpson, consumer advocate with the nonpartisan, nonprofit public interest group:

"First, it sets up a two-tiered structure. There would be a so-called 'Public Internet,' but then the ISPs would be allowed to offer new premium services outside that basic service. How long to you think anything of interest would be available on the 'Public Internet'?

"Second, no neutrality principles would apply to the wireless world. Everyone agrees mobile is clearly the Internet's future. Allowing data discrimination in the broadband wireless world completely undermines the future of the Internet."

Essentially, this proposal is nothing more than two corporations meeting together and trying to carve up the Internet for their own advantage, Consumer Watchdog said.

-----
Community News You Can Use
www.fayettefrontpage.com
Fayette Front Page
www.georgiafrontpage.com
Georgia Front Page
Follow us on Twitter:  @GAFrontPage

The Real Estate Book Introduces Powerful Search Tool for House Hunters on the Go, Launches App for iPhone, iTouch, iPad

(BUSINESS WIRE)--More Americans are relying on their mobile devices to access information, quickly and easily. The number of people who sought local information on their smart phones grew 51% last year, with the fastest growing method of accessing this info through downloaded apps.*

For on-the-go home buyers, The Real Estate Book / RealEstateBook.com, the leading publisher of real estate information online and in print in North America, launches a new application that provides iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad users with access to all its listings – millions of homes for sale across the U.S. and around the world. With its latest offering, The Real Estate Book delivers a one-stop marketing solution for agents and brokers to reach home buyers and sellers through their local The Real Estate Book, a network of online listing sites, social media tools, direct mail and now an iPhone app.

“We’re always looking to expand our media offerings for real estate agents and brokers to give them a competitive edge”

“We’re always looking to expand our media offerings for real estate agents and brokers to give them a competitive edge,” says Todd Walker, senior vice president of sales and operations. “With our multi-channel marketing solution, they can go into a listing presentation and show the seller how by advertising with The Real Estate Book, they are reaching more prospective buyers than agents who just use an online-only, one-dimensional, channel to market their home.”

The Real Estate Book iPhone app features the millions of property listings for sale across the U.S. and the world available on RealEstateBook.com. The application, available as a free download from Apple’s online App Store, enhances the user experience, offering a suite of features including:

* Search for home listings by city and state/province or zip/postal code
* Map and receive directions to property listings from current location
* View property details and photos of home listings
* Save favorites and share or write notes and attach photos about properties that can be emailed or viewed later
* Email or call the Real Estate Agent directly from the listing
* View past searches and perform advanced searching by bedroom/bath, price, MLS #, or property type

Scott Dixon, president of Network Communication Inc.’s Real Estate Division adds, “Agents today are inundated with marketing options and can spend enormous amounts of time sifting through them. We seek to make it easy and efficient for them to gain the most exposure for their listings. Our new iPhone app delivers on our commitment to drive more leads and the best value to our advertisers.”

To download the The Real Estate Book iPhone application, visit: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/the-real-estate-book/id379869228?mt=8

The Real Estate Book has been helping real estate professionals connect with buyers and sellers for over 30 years. Available in print and online in over 400 markets across the U.S., Canada and the Caribbean, The Real Estate Book delivers credible, proven results to its advertisers who benefit from a wealth of experience and an integrated media platform that showcases their listings in a variety of ways. With 8 million magazines in print every 4 weeks, The Real Estate Book gets nearly 2 million unique visitors on its Web site, www.RealEstateBook.com, and features thousands of homes for sale, new home communities, and local information.

* comScore, June 2009

-----
Community News You Can Use
www.fayettefrontpage.com
Fayette Front Page
www.georgiafrontpage.com
Georgia Front Page
Follow us on Twitter:  @GAFrontPage

Google Betrays Internet Principle to Fatten Bottom Line, Consumer Watchdog Says

/PRNewswire/ -- Google is compromising a long standing principle it claimed to support in an effort to boost profits as it backs away from a key premise of an open Internet -- "net neutrality," Consumer Watchdog said today.

Net neutrality -- the idea that all data is treated equally by Internet service providers -- is a key principle of the Internet. Google has long claimed to be an advocate of the principle. Today, both the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times reported that Google and Verizon are close to a deal that would let Verizon speed some online content more quickly to Internet users if content providers paid for the privilege.

Wednesday, Google Chairman offered a new definition of net neutrality. Speaking at a technology symposium in Lake Tahoe, he said: "I want to make sure that everybody understands what we mean about it. What we mean is that if you have one data type, like video, you don't discriminate against one person's video in favor of another. It's OK to discriminate across different types..."

"Apparently Google redefines principles to suit the business need of the moment," said John M. Simpson, consumer advocate with the nonpartisan, nonprofit group. "Google and Verizon have great incentive to cut deals because of the relationship between their rivals, Apple and AT&T. What Google and Verizon are trying to do is carve up the Internet behind closed doors for their own benefit."

Consumer Watchdog said that net neutrality has always meant that all types of data are treated equally by an Internet service provider. Net neutrality should apply to both the wired and wireless Internet, the nonprofit, nonpartisan group said.

Meanwhile, a national poll released by Consumer Watchdog found that a significant majority of Americans are troubled by recent revelations that Google's Street View cars gathered communications from home WiFi networks, and they want stronger legal protection to preserve their online privacy.

While Google received an overall 74% favorable rating, nearly two-thirds of those polled (65%) say the Wi-Spy scandal is one of the things that "worries them most" or a "great deal" with another 20% saying it "raises some concern" when considering Internet issues.

The poll, conducted for Consumer Watchdog by Grove Insight, Ltd., found a solid majority (55%) is also bothered ("one of the most" or "great deal") by Google's cooperation with the National Security Agency without saying what information is being shared. Even more voters call for Congressional hearings on "Google's gathering data from home WiFi networks and its sharing of information with U.S. spy agencies like the National Security Administration, the NSA" (69% favor, 19% oppose).

-----
Community News You Can Use
www.fayettefrontpage.com
Fayette Front Page
www.georgiafrontpage.com
Georgia Front Page
Follow us on Twitter:  @GAFrontPage

FTC Settles Charges of Anticompetitive Conduct Against Intel

/PRNewswire/ -- The Federal Trade Commission approved a settlement with Intel Corp. that resolves charges the company illegally stifled competition in the market for computer chips. Intel has agreed to provisions that will open the door to renewed competition and prevent Intel from suppressing competition in the future.

The settlement goes beyond the terms applied to Intel in previous actions against the company and will help restore competition that was lost as a result of Intel's alleged past anticompetitive tactics. At the same time, the settlement will leave the company room to innovate and offer competitive pricing.

"This case demonstrates that the FTC is willing to challenge anticompetitive conduct by even the most powerful companies in the fastest-moving industries," said Chairman Jon Leibowitz. "By accepting this settlement, we open the door to competition today and address Intel's anticompetitive conduct in a way that may not have been available in a final judgment years from now. Everyone, including Intel, gets a greater degree of certainty about the rules of the road going forward, which allows all the companies in this dynamic industry to move ahead and build better, more innovative products."

The FTC settlement applies to Central Processing Units, Graphics Processing Units and chipsets and prohibits Intel from using threats, bundled prices, or other offers to exclude or hamper competition or otherwise unreasonably inhibit the sale of competitive CPUs or GPUs. The settlement also prohibits Intel from deceiving computer manufacturers about the performance of non-Intel CPUs or GPUs.

The FTC settlement goes beyond those reached in previous antitrust cases against Intel in a number of ways. For example, the FTC settlement order protects competition and not any single competitor in the CPU, graphics, and chipset markets. It also addresses Intel's disclosures related to its compiler - a product that plays an important role in CPU performance. The settlement order also ensures that manufacturers of complementary products such as discrete GPUs will be assured access to Intel's CPU for the next six years.

The FTC sued Intel in December 2009 alleging that the company used anticompetitive tactics to cut off rivals' access to the marketplace and deprive consumers of choice and innovation in the microchips that comprise computers' central processing unit, or CPU. These chips are critical components that often are referred to as the "brains" of a computer. The action also challenged Intel's conduct in markets for graphics processing units and other chips.

The FTC alleged that Intel's anticompetitive practices violated Section 5 of the FTC Act, which is broader than the antitrust laws and prohibits unfair methods of competition and deceptive acts and practices in commerce. Unlike an antitrust violation, a violation of Section 5 cannot be used to establish liability for plaintiffs to seek triple damages in private litigation against the same defendant.

Under the settlement, Intel will be prohibited from:
-- conditioning benefits to computer makers in exchange for their promise
to buy chips from Intel exclusively or to refuse to buy chips from
others; and
-- retaliating against computer makers if they do business with non-Intel
suppliers by withholding benefits from them.


In addition, the FTC settlement order will require Intel to:
-- modify its intellectual property agreements with AMD, Nvidia, and Via
so that those companies have more freedom to consider mergers or joint
ventures with other companies, without the threat of being sued by
Intel for patent infringement;
-- offer to extend Via's x86 licensing agreement for five years beyond
the current agreement, which expires in 2013;
-- maintain a key interface, known as the PCI Express Bus, for at least
six years in a way that will not limit the performance of graphics
processing chips. These assurances will provide incentives to
manufacturers of complementary, and potentially competitive, products
to Intel's CPUs to continue to innovate; and
-- disclose to software developers that Intel computer compilers
discriminate between Intel chips and non-Intel chips, and that they
may not register all the features of non-Intel chips. Intel also will
have to reimburse all software vendors who want to recompile their
software using a non-Intel compiler.



The FTC vote approving the proposed settlement order was 4-0, with Commissioner William E. Kovacic recused. The order will be subject to public comment for 30 days, until September 7, 2010, after which the Commission will decide whether to make it final. Comments should be sent to: FTC, Office of the Secretary, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC 20580. To submit a comment electronically, please click on: https://ftcpublic.commentworks.com/ftc/intel/.

-----
Community News You Can Use
www.fayettefrontpage.com
Fayette Front Page
www.georgiafrontpage.com
Georgia Front Page
Follow us on Twitter:  @GAFrontPage

How to Keep Jailbroken iPhones off Corporate Networks

/PRNewswire/ -- Now that jailbreaking the iPhone and iPad is legal, corporate enterprises have even more to worry about.

Until 26 July 2010, corporate IT and security managers only had to worry about keeping rogue iPhones and their associated security and compliance holes in check. With the latest government ruling, however, jailbroken iPhones and iPads present even greater threats to the privacy and security of corporate networks.

Winn Schwartau, Chairman of M.A.D. Partners, LLC, the smartphone security company said, "iPhone users can now download apps from anywhere they choose, not just the iTunes store. This signifies a far greater risk to companies who are trying to leverage the unique capabilities of the Apple platform. But Mobile Active Defense provides a strong, workable and automatic solution that solves the jailbreaking problem on corporate networks."

To maintain high levels of security, privacy and compliance across the enterprise, IT administrators must have complete control over devices that connect to the company network, use company resources and store or process sensitive data. They must meet HIPAA, GLBA, PCI, SOX and myriad other compliance guidelines, especially in the mobile arena.

With M.A.D.'s powerful Mobile Enterprise Compliance and Security (MECS) Server, says Schwartau, "we can detect jailbreaking within one minute. That's pretty cool. Once this clear violation of security policy is discovered, the MECS managed firewall issues immediate remediation options to the administrator."

With Mobile Active Defense, the iPhone stays in communication with the MECS Server. If any company-defined "out of compliance" or "out of policy" conditions are detected on any of the organization's iPhones, an immediate alert is generated.

According to M.A.D. Partners' CTO, Rob Smith, "The administrator configures the MECS Server to inspect the security state of the iPhone. How do we do it? That's our secret sauce. How quickly the administrator responds to a remediation request from the MECS Server is what is really important. We give him all the tools he needs."

The remediation response taken by the company is policy driven and enforced through the MECS Server. The administrator can choose to isolate the offending iPhone/iPad from connecting to anything, pending further investigation. Or he can choose to wipe the entire device with no notification to the user. Lastly, the administrator can choose to be notified by email, SMS or MECS Server console popup, allowing him to individually choose the remediation response.

The M.A.D. Mobile Enterprise Compliance and Security (MECS) Server supports the U.S. Government's NIST 800-53 critical guidance for mobile device access control and media storage, as well as those for ISO 27001 that map directly to HIPAA, GLBA, PCI and SOX.

Adding MECS Servers to any enterprise does not require any changes to existing security or IT infrastructures and can be up and running within one day.

------
Community News You Can Use
www.fayettefrontpage.com
Fayette Front Page
www.georgiafrontpage.com
Georgia Front Page
Follow us on Twitter:  @GAFrontPage