Sprint decides to remove Carrier IQ from users’ devices

There are many features on the cell phones that users pay for, and don’t need but in return, affect their privacy because the providers use it without their consent to gather important information they probably share with the federal intelligence. The carrier IQ software incorporated to the Sprint phones is tracking software capable to record every call, every keystroke the user is typing, every text message the user is sending or receiving. Now Sprint has decided to remove Carrier IQ from all devices through a maintenance release process that will be done over-the-air software update process. The reason advanced for this removal is that Sprint is no longer used the tool. The providers, Sprint, AT&T, and T-Mobile have claimed using the information collected by the software to quell ongoing concerns. Now Carrier IQ reached a level that U.S government members have asked the House of Energy and Commerce Committee chairman Fred Upton to open an investigation. That is on example of how your own money can cause you a big trouble.

                                              

Nuclear Plan Safety Test details lost

A data breach caused from a lost of an USB memory that carries the stress-test which is not very sensitive become fearful for the simple reason that the USB is not encrypted. The lost of the data is not troublesome because the report of the stress-test would have been made public after the completion, but the violation of the policy of the company is the most important. According to the policy of the company, the USB has to be encrypted but it was not the case. It has been always said that most of the threats come from inside than outside. If the policy has been respected, this incident can be avoided. But the takeaway of this is that, the policy needs to be enforced, so the official must assume the responsibility. The use of EasyLock creates a hidden and encrypted area on the USB flash drive.

                                        

Chocking news

Symantec agrees today to pay $ 50,000 to hackers that claim detaining the source code of some its security products used on the Internet. Sam Thomas, a high ranked Symantec employee is negotiating the deal with Yamatough, one of the hacker to prevent the release of PCAnywhere and Norton Antivirus code. Now, Symantec is looking for proof of deletion of the source code by the hackers after payment. Then Sam Thomas is proposing $2,500 for first three months and after the destruction of the code, Symantec will disburse the balance. The hackers pretend to be part of “Anonymous” group. Symantec has already contacted law enforcement to raise the question of a theft of an intellectual property. As the investigation is still on the way, Symantec is trying to prevent hacker for a catastrophic disclosure of the code. Symantec and hackers cannot agree on a common way of payment and hackers are treating to release the source code to the public.

Importance of Encryption

One agent of the department of aging has his laptop stolen from a locked car, included flash drive and paper files. The department has stated that there is probably lost of social security numbers for at least 100 people that are part of senior Care Act program. The department thought that other 7,000 senior citizens might be at risk because other personal items have disappeared too. Some people have been contacted by phone and other by letters. The stolen items are full customer names, addresses, dates of birth, social security numbers, gender, Medicaid identification numbers, telephone numbers. What lesson can we draw from this? I think if you know the data on your computer is very important and critical, the first protection is to encrypt the computer and the data, because this incident can happen anytime.

                         

Anonymous target Facebook, the giant social network

The group Anonymous warned Facebook today to take its servers down as it happened to FBI, CBS, and Warner Brothers. It becomes a veritable online war between Anonymous, Facebook, and the government, while SOPA and PIPA perceive threat to Internet right. Anonymous invites many persons to participate to a coordination attack on a specific time by downloading a program to bring Facebook down at 12:00 AM on January 28. Anonymous’ narrator confirms that the fate of the Internet is at the stake of this decision. Why Facebook is the target? Maybe because of its support to SOPA and PIPA that fights online piracy. But will Anonymous attack be successful? It did not succeed against Sony Electronic yet. Wait and See.

Futuristic Security schemes could kill passwords

The idea is coming and looks more possible to be realized today. Pentagon’s DARPA is stepping to get rid of countless passwords and replace it by human factors, not fingerprints or iris scan, but individual’s language patterns, typing speed, or computer keystrokes. That’s being said, a computer user can come back from coffee break and start typing again with no password and the software developed by Pentagon’s DARPA can recognize the person based on factors such as his typing speed or Google search patterns or lock him out of the system that reflect an unauthorized user. But the system will be designed to the department of defense first before reaching the commercial interest. Nice idea I believe because we don’t need to remember bunch of passwords anymore

Creator of ‘Ika-tako virus sentenced

Masato Nakatsuji of Izumisamo in Osaka Prefecture was sentenced Wednesday by creating a data-destroying virus called Ika-tako (squid-octopus) that he uploaded to the Internet via files sharing software.   Three people download the files and set off the virus in the hard disks of their computers. The presiding judge considered the act as an ingenious planned crime and sentenced the defendant who is on probation for similar crime to tasato Nakatsuji of Izumisamo in Osaka Prefecture was sentenced Wednesday by creating a data-wo years and six months in prison. And this represents the first time property destruction charges have been applied to a computer virus creator. The interesting part is that the defense lawyer rejected the accusation advancing that the virus did not damage the hard disks, but only made them temporarily unusable. The judge replied back saying the performance of the hard disks was damaged and the computer experts could not completely recover data in the infected computers.