| Malware writers exploring Software as a Service model
The business of writing, buying, and selling malware has become increasingly commercial over the past few years, but a new report from online security firm Finjan sheds light on just how mainstream the crimeware business has gone. Earlier this month, the company discovered a small, standalone application gathering data on over 8,700 servers, including web sites from 2,500 North American companies and a handful of sites in Alexa's top 100 ranking. Potential buyers were able to log into the malicious server hosting the data-gathering service and evaluate any given web site's size and Google Page Rank to decide whether or not the site's FTP information was worth purchasing or not. The concept of Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) is nothing new, but this is the first time anyone has organized the purchase of FTP login credentials, with additional tools available to help a buyer confirm he's making a smart purchase.
Tons of Food Aid Rotting in Haiti Ports
Krabacher's group says it has paid nearly $16,000 in fees in the first six weeks of 2008 alone, compared to $23,418 for all of 2007. Lawmakers concerned about the situation questioned Prime Minister Jacques Edouard Alexis about the port delays during a February no-confidence vote. "There is a lot of work being done in terms of the ports," Alexis maintained. "We are looking at a way to implement a 'fast-track' policy, so people can get their merchandise out more quickly." He also recommended splitting the National Port Authority into two agencies, one focusing on the logistics of port management and the other overseeing customs because he does not believe the current agency can handle both tasks. Haitian President Rene Preval echoed those concerns in a speech to parliament in January, calling for a crackdown on illegal contraband and a lowering of exorbitant container fees that are three times higher than those in neighboring Dominican Republic.
Is it the end for shopping fever?
You're bombarded with images saying look at Posh's new bag, look at what Coleen's wearing, and you think: why can't I have that?' she says. Hall would scour the high street like a woman possessed buying blouses, skirts and jackets - sometimes in duplicate - from favourite stores such as Jaeger and Hobbs. Her passion ran to designer accessories with a handbag collection in double figures, including six prized Mulberry totes. Then there were designer shoes. She wistfully describes a £300 pair of embroidered black velvet Ginas she has still never worn. 'They are beautiful, but the special occasion has just never come along - also they are size 4½ and I'm a 5,' she adds - a mistake many shoppers have made in the heady moment of securing a sale 'bargain'. Adam Smith called Britain a 'nation of shopkeepers', but over the past decade the country has turned into a nation of shoppers, high on cheap credit and booming house prices.
Drive-by download menace spreading fast
Booby-trapped web pages are growing at an alarming rate with unsuspecting firms acting for nurseries for botnet farmers, according to a new study. Security watchers at Sophos are discovering 6,000 new infected webpages every day, the equivalent of one every 14 seconds. Four in five (83 per cent) of these webpages actually belong to innocent companies and individuals, unaware that their sites have been hacked. Websites of all types, from those of antique dealers to ice cream manufacturers and wedding photographers, have hosted malware on behalf of virus writers, Sophos reports. .
Microsoft offers confusing viewpoints on SaaS
Microsoft is making a concerted effort to move itself towards a software-as-a-service model, Microsoft Subnet blogger Mitchell Ashley believes, "But lets face it. Microsoft has a long, long way to go," he says. Part of the problem is that Microsoft seems unwilling to acknowledge that the Linux platform (and to some extent, the Google cloud) is where so much of the SaaS action is today. Ashley conducted a candid interview with Michael van Dijken, head of Microsoft's marketing efforts in the hosting and communications sectors while at the SaaS Summit 2008 conference in San Francisco. (Ashley posted a "micro-interview podcast" of the meeting in his "Converging on Microsoft" blog.). van Dijken works with network providers, media and entertainment companies, and service providers/hosted services.
Humanitarian Aid and Nation Building: Can Outsiders Really Help?
All of these are life saving activities.
The second obligation is governance and capacity building. We need to assist governments at all levels to develop transparent and accountable governments, promote rule of law, and develop civil society. This is not the same as elections. I would not suggest that elections are an immediate requirement in a nation-building exercise. They should come later, but rule of law is a critical element in governance and capacity building.
The third obligation is disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration, and that's an activity that the military has to do. If you look at Haiti and at the current events in Iraq, the military is very reluctant to engage in the disarmament of populations. It is not really what they do.
Machete gang attack leaves man with severed hand
ESSEX police are urging parents with children who might have returned home covered in blood last night to contact them after a man's hand was almost severed in a machete attack. The 27-year-old man was attacked by a group of teenagers who chased him and one of them attacked him with the machete. The incident happened late on Friday night on Eastham Estate in Brentwood The teenagers are described as white, in their teens and wearing hoodies. .
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