Apple Sues Nexus One maker HTC over iPhone patents

Asked for his thoughts on iPhone rivals during a January 2009 earnings call, Apple COO Tim Cook said the company would not stand for having its intellectual property ripped off.

“We are watching the landscape,” Cook said. “We like competition, as long as they don’t rip off our IP, and if they do, we’re going to go after anybody that does….We think competition is good; it makes us all better. But we’re ready to suit up and go against anyone.”

Well, looks like Apple is suiting up, and against a big opponent. The iPhone maker has filed a suit against HTC, a Taiwanese handset manufacturer that makes a number of Android smartphones, including the operating system’s marquee device, Google’s Nexus One Read more

Facebook fuelling divorce, research claims

The social networking site, which connects old friends and allows users to make new ones online, is being blamed for an increasing number of marital breakdowns.

Divorce lawyers claim the explosion in the popularity of websites such as Facebook and Bebo is tempting to people to cheat on their partners.

Suspicious spouses have also used the websites to find evidence of flirting and even affairs which have led to divorce.

One law firm, which specialises in divorce, claimed almost one in five petitions they processed cited Facebook.

Mark Keenan, Managing Director of Divorce-Online said: “I had heard from my staff that there were a lot of people saying they had found out things about their partners on Facebook and I decided to see how prevalent it was I was really surprised to see 20 per cent of all the petitions containing references to Facebook. Read more

Apple vs. Google vs. Microsoft: Who Will Win?

Apple, Google and Microsoft are locked in a three-way struggle for industry dominance, competing to varying degrees on hardware, computer and cell phone operating systems, applications, entertainment, Internet search and more.

Today, Google owns Internet search, Microsoft owns operating systems and applications, and Apple owns high-end hardware and entertainment and media devices. That may well change, though. So it’s worthwhile to ask: As each company looks to encroach on the turf of the others, which one is best positioned for the future — and which is most likely to fall? Read more

Beware the return of Nigerian 419 fraud

The Nigerian 419 scam has returned to plague e-mail inboxes once again, with Symantec’s February 2010 spam analysis reporting that old-style social engineering fraud is at the highest levels ever measured by the company.

Although most spam is still made up of stock pharmacy and other product pitches, 21 per cent of the phenomenon now comes from phishing fraud of various types. After a period of years on the wane, the 419 scam has risen to 7 per cent of all spam.

According to the authors, part of the explanation for the comeback could be world events such as the earthquake in Haiti, which causes a temporary susceptibility to money scams which ask for “donations” via e-mail. Criminals appear to have picked up on the trend to give money, hijacking agencies such as UNICEF to push the scam.

In fact, there is plenty of evidence that the 419 scams have never gone away at all, simply been supplanted in the minds of researchers by newer and more novel threats.

Other interesting observations include that 92 per cent of adult phishing scams – those pushing porn – happen on or using social networking websites, an indicator that criminals value such communities as much as their users.

The monthly report has a few notes of optimism, such as the decision by the authorities in China to tighten the rules on registering .cn (China) domains from outside the county, which has reduced spam using URLs with a .cn suffix by half. Nevertheless, the .com remains the most popular suffix, used in 68.6 percent of spam URLs, with around a quarter of all spam arriving via US-based hosts.

Spam statistics fluctuate from month to month, but vendor reports act as an early warning of new trends. One thing is clear though. Spam tactics, including the 419 attack never die but simply go temporarily out of fashion until enough time has passed that a new generation of victims can be found.

Source: PC World

Experts Show How To Crack Chip And Pin Cards

IT experts say they have uncovered flaws in the chip and Pin system which are being exploited by fraudsters to use stolen debit and credit cards.

A team from Cambridge University’s Computer Laboratory found that criminals can insert a “wedge” between any stolen card and a terminal.

This tricks the terminal into believing the four-digit personal identification number, or Pin, was correctly entered.

However, in fact any Pin can be used to authorise the transaction, meaning bank records then show it was legitimate.

Dr Steven Murdoch said: “We have tested this attack against cards issued by most major UK banks. All have been found to be vulnerable.”

The discovery is likely to place some question marks over the existing chip and Pin design and its security.

Victims of this type of fraud may encounter problems obtaining refunds from their banks as the receipt produced states that the point-of-sale purchase was “verified by Pin”. Read more

Google Threatens China ‘Sister’ Site Goojje

Google has threatened the operators of a remarkably similar-looking Chinese search engine with legal action unless it changes its appearance.

Goojje has a Google-style logo and a homepage that is laid out just like the Western original’s.

A Google spokeswoman said the company has officially asked Goojje to stop copying its trademark-protected logo.

The search engine’s name is a play on words: “jje” sounds like the Chinese word “older sister”, while “gle” is pronounced like the Chinese word for “older brother.” Read more

Sky 3D football broadcast makes television history

Sky Sports made television history by becoming the first in the world to broadcast a live football match in 3D.

A selection of media, fans and industry executives were treated to Man Utd’s 3-1 win over Arsenal in full 3D at the Emirates Stadium and at nine secret pubs dotted around the UK all of which had been specially fitted with 3D ready TVs.

The broadcast served as a taster of what’s to come when Sky launches its 3D service in April. The company intends to deliver at least one Premier League match per week via 3D at no extra cost to viewers who already pick up their HD service – provided of course they’re watching on a 3D TV set. Read more

Inventor unveils $7,000 talking sex robot

To some men, she might seem like the perfect woman: She’s a willowy 5 feet 7 and 120 pounds. She’ll chat with you endlessly about your interests. And she’ll have sex whenever you please – as long as her battery doesn’t run out.

Meet Roxxxy, who may be the world’s most sophisticated talking female sex robot. For $7,000, she’s all yours.

“She doesn’t vacuum or cook, but she does almost everything else,” said her inventor, Douglas Hines, who unveiled Roxxxy last month at the Adult Entertainment Expo in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Lifelike dolls, artificial sex organs and sex-chat phone lines have been keeping the lonely company for decades. But Roxxxy takes virtual companionship to a new level.

Powered by a computer under her soft silicone “skin,” she employs voice-recognition and speech-synthesis software to answer questions and carry on conversations. She even comes loaded with five distinct “personalities,” from Frigid Farrah to Wild Wendy, that can be programmed to suit customers’ preferences.

“There’s a tremendous need for this kind of product,” said Hines, a computer scientist and former Bell Labs engineer. Read more

Phishing attack hits Twitter

If you’re on Twitter, it may be a good idea to change your password today.

The site appears to have been hit by a phishing attack that could be used to steal a user’s sensitive log-in information, according to reports on news sites and blogs.

Twitter has not commented on this incident; but, in a January blog post, site co-founder Biz Stone noted that some Web sites may be trying to masquerade as Twitter.com in an attempt to steal users’ password information. Read more

Ghana targets 2012 for Digital Broadcasting Migration

Ghana has set herself a 2012 deadline to complete the switch from analogue broadcasting services in favour of digital broadcasting ahead of an international deadline of June 17, 2015. Read more

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