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October |
Newsletter |
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Issue
59 |
Included in this month's issue:
Virus phone scam being run from call centres in India
Tesco barcode app lets iPhone users shop by scanning
The supermarket giant has added the barcode technology to its existing Groceries iPhone app and it is being targeted at busy parents and time-poor professionals.
Tesco envisages customers will find it particularly useful when they try food at a friend's house and want to find the product easily.
Laura Wade-Gery, chief executive of Tesco.com and Tesco Direct said: "The barcode scanner will make online ordering much quicker for those that have an iPhone. Customers can simply scan the barcode of grocery products stocked by Tesco whilst on the go and add them into their online shopping basket.
"This is the perfect solution for iPhone lovers that are always forgetting to add items to their shopping list or haven't the time to even write one."
From www.thedrum.co.uk
Virus phone scam being run from call centres in India
Beware cold callers - especially those claiming your computer has a virus.
The scam always starts the same way: the phone rings at someone's home, and the caller – usually with an Indian accent – asks for the householder, quoting their name and address before saying "I'm calling for Microsoft. We've had a report from your internet service provider of serious virus problems from your computer."
Dire forecasts are made that if the problem is not solved, the computer will become unusable.
The puzzled owner is then directed to their computer, and asked to open a program called "Windows Event Viewer". Its contents are, to the average user, worrying: they look like a long list of errors, some labelled "critical". "Yes, that's it," says the caller. "Now let me guide you through the steps to fixing it."
The computer owner is directed to a website and told to download a program that hands over remote control of the computer, and the caller "installs" various "fixes" for the problem. And then it's time to pay a fee: £185 for a "subscription" to the "preventative service".
The only catch: there was never anything wrong with the computer, the caller is not working for Microsoft or the internet service provider, and the owner has given a complete stranger access to every piece of data on their machine.
By Charles Arthur
Privacy body to re-examine Google
Britain's privacy watchdog is to look again at what personal information internet giant Google gathered from private wi-fi networks.
The Information Commissioner's Office had investigated a sample earlier this year after it was revealed that Google had collected personal data during its Street View project.
At the time, it said no "significant" personal details were collected.
But Google has since admitted that e-mails and passwords were copied.
From BBC Technology News
What's the difference between an iPod and an iPood?
The iPood, a small spade used by Aussie campers to bury their shit, has a new name following an intervention by Apple lawyers.
In a letter to the iPood makers, Apple's legal eagles said: "iPood is clearly similar to Apple's iPod, there being merely a single letter difference."
That could have been worded better, don't you think?
"For obvious reasons," the letter continues," Apple's reputation for clean design and high-tech electronics will suffer should it be associated with latrines and the like through Sea to Summit's use of iPood."
iPood is to be renamed the Pocket Trowel by the manufacturer, a Perth outdoor adventure equipment supplier called Sea to Summit.
The company registered iPood as a trademark in Australia in 2006, after "identifying a hole in the market". We are not making this up.
It is sturdy and alumnium and ethically sound. And it has, or had, a great name.
We are sure that the publicity surrounding the name change will help sales. It also shows that lawyers don't always have to be attack dogs to get the results their clients require.
By Drew Cullen
Windows 8 in 2012 rumours re-surface
We've long suspected that Windows 8 would make an appearance in 2012, with the company moving away from the interminable development processes of past versions.
According to Microsoft Netherlands, Windows 8 is around two years away, with a mention on an official press release celebrating the first birthday of Windows 7.
The Microsoft Netherlands release contains the following phrase: "Furthermore, Microsoft is of course the next version of Windows," continuing with the vague disclaimer, "But it will take about two years before "Windows 8" [is] on the market."
By Adam Hartley
iOS bug unlocks iPhones sans password
A recently discovered bug in Apple's iOS 4.1 allows users to make iPhone calls without first entering a passcode.
The bug means there is no way to prevent unauthorized people from using the devices in the event they're lost or stolen. All that's required to unlock a phone is to press the Emergency Call button, enter a non-emergency number such as ###, tap the call button and immediately hit the lock button. Voila, the iPhone's contacts page will open, from which calls can be made.
Like most smartphones, the iPhone comes with a lock that requires a user to enter a password before calls and other features can be used. The ability to bypass the protection was reported on Friday by a MacForums user. Other members quickly confirmed it worked on iPhones running iOS 4.1 and that the technique also allowed unauthorized users to active the device's voice control mode.
By Dan Goodwin
HP’s Slate tablet: The early reviews
Hewlett-Packard, at long last, has released the tablet computer first glimpsed at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas last January, and it is a decidedly different take than what we’ve seen so far in the tablet space. Basically a business netbook sans a keyboard. That’s a far cry from Apple’s iPad — and maybe that’s the point.
The initial reviews of the HP Slate 500 are starting to trickle in and they are something of a mixed bag. There is plenty to debate, to be sure. The device sports Windows 7, Wi-Fi but no 3G, and has no app store link-up. But it features a digital stylus pen, has a relatively fast processor and plenty of room for storage. And then there is the little matter of that hefty $799 price tag, which has surprised more than a few people, given that the iPad starts at $499.
HP is not even pretending to be targeting the same buyers as the iPad. And a more interesting HP vs Apple showdown is likely to come next year, when HP releases the webOS tablet thateveryone is curious to get a peek at.
With that in mind, a sampling of some early critiques on the Slate 500:
PCWorld: “Put alongside other tablets, the HP Slate could disappoint you, again.”
The Inquirer: “As a tablet device to rival the iPad or the Galaxy S, the price, weight and operating system of the Slate 500 make alternative devices seem far more attractive. However viewing the HP Slate 500 as a touch sensitive netbook makes it look slightly more palatable.”
CrunchGear: The Slate 500 is a very nice tablet. In fact I’d say the Samsung Galaxy Tab and the 500 are close cousins in terms of style and usability. The iPad may be the gold standard, but someone needs to think of the legacy applications! That’s what the 500 is here for. This thing runs Windows 7. It runs it just well enough to make it a compelling device for point-of service and other niche markets. It doesn’t run it well enough to, say, convince me to get rid of my laptop.”
CNet: “We got a chance to sit down with the HP Slate 500 recently, and found it to be a lightweight, sturdy device, with a slick industrial design and several hardware advantages over the iPad, especially when it comes to ports and connections.”
From Reuters Media File
Google Android security improves, but trails iPhone and BlackBerry
With the growing popularity of Android, IT administrators are facing demands to support smartphones from employees that use the open source mobile operating system. But while security of Google Android is improving, IT pros say it hasn't quite caught up to the more mature platforms.
"Android still needs to make some improvements in its security model," says Randy Nunez, mobile computing lead at Ford Motor Co., which supports employee use of iPhone, BlackBerry, Symbian and Windows Mobile, but does not currently support Android. "Windows Mobile and BlackBerry had a head start and they have some very mature products in the space."
The iPhone as well has become an accepted enterprise device, even though it was initially aimed at consumers.
Android is "following a parallel path with the iPhone," Nunez says. "With the iPhone 2.0, once they released support for Exchange ActiveSync and the passcode and security policies, it made it more difficult to say no," Nunez says. "And Android, with their 2.2 release, is following in the iPhone's footsteps in that way."
David Glenn, director of enterprise operations for Del Monte Foods, a San Francisco-based food production and distribution company, says smartphones need to provide at least three key security features in order for his company to support it. The phone must force users to type a password in order to bring it up from an idle state; IT must be able to remotely wipe data from the phone; and data on the phone must be encrypted.
"It has to meet those requirements or we cannot roll it out," Glenn says.
By Jon Brodkin
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