Don't forget to check out http://www.auda.org.au/domain-news/ for the archive of the last 3 months of the news. And see my website - http://technewsreview.com.au/ - for daily updates in between postings. *************************************************** The domain name news is supported by auDA *************************************************** Berlusconi plans to use G8 presidency to 'regulate the internet' http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/12/03/berlusconi_g8_internet/ The Path Towards Centralization of Internet Governance Under UN: Part 3 http://www.circleid.com/posts/20081203_centralization_of_internet_governance_un_part_3/ UN forum advocating an ?Internet for All? is under way in India [news release] http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=29195 UN forum wraps up with call for collaboration to achieve 'Internet for All' [news release] http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=29216 China threatens to leave IGF by Milton Mueller http://blog.internetgovernance.org/blog/_archives/2008/12/5/4008174.html UN Internet Governance Forum 2008: Friends And Foes, But More Friends http://ip-watch.org/weblog/index.php?p=1346 What Internet Governance Boils Down To http://www.circleid.com/posts/20081204_what_internet_governance_boils_down_to/ More Time and Additional Materials Posted for Applicant Guidebook http://icann.org/en/announcements/announcement-03dec08-en.htm Nominet governance update [news release] http://www.nominet.org.uk/news/latest/?contentId=5814 Marching off to cyberwar: Estonian and Georgian attacks highlight "cyberwar" difficulties http://www.economist.com/science/tq/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12673385 Australian PM to beef up cybersecurity http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/security/soa/Hacker-threat-Rudd-promises-action/0,130061744,339293665,00.htm What's in a Name? More and More, a Number http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122844055171581735.html 174 Million Domain Names Worldwide, But Registration Growth Slows says VeriSign http://technewsreview.com.au/article.php?article=6703 VeriSign Releases Third Quarter Domain Name Industry Brief [news release] https://press.verisign.com/easyir/customrel.do?easyirid=AFC0FF0DB5C560D3&version=live&prid=457640&releasejsp=custom_97 ********************** GOVERNANCE ********************** Berlusconi plans to use G8 presidency to 'regulate the internet' Italian president and media baron Silvio Berlusconi said today that he would use his country's imminent presidency of the G8 group to push for an international agreement to "regulate the internet". http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/12/03/berlusconi_g8_internet/ The Path Towards Centralization of Internet Governance Under UN: Part 3 The first essay in this series introduces the idea that the course of Internet governance may be following the same incremental steps that international strategists follow when wishing to establish a permanent body with authority to deal with a given area. The second essay details the steps as applied to recent moves for Internet governance under a UN umbrella. This final essay discusses reasons for concern and suggests that participation in the process may nonetheless be the best way forward given those reservations. http://www.circleid.com/posts/20081203_centralization_of_internet_governance_un_part_3/ UN forum advocating an ?Internet for All? is under way in India [news release] A United Nations-backed international forum focusing on Internet governance issues, particularly the potential expansion of access to greater numbers of people, is under way in India. http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=29195 UN forum wraps up with call for collaboration to achieve 'Internet for All' [news release] A United Nations-sponsored gathering on Internet governance issues wrapped up in Hyderabad, India, today, with the more than 1,200 participants recognizing the need for greater cooperation to allow access to the greatest number of people worldwide to a safe, secure and diverse Internet. http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=29216 China threatens to leave IGF by Milton Mueller At the Hyderabad Internet Governance Forum, the Chinese delegate threatened to withdraw from IGF and "use other mechanisms" unless the IGF stops trying to avoid the controversial issues that led to its creation. http://blog.internetgovernance.org/blog/_archives/2008/12/5/4008174.html DNSSEC, Incentives and the Color of Bicycle Sheds by Michel van Eeten It is the first day of the program of the Internet Governance Forum itself. The first workshop I attended was on ?Understanding Internet Infrastructure.? It could also have been called ?Everything you always wanted to know about the Internet, but where afraid to ask.? The answers revealed some suprising gaps in how we think about infrastructure issues. http://blog.internetgovernance.org/blog/_archives/2008/12/4/4005309.html UN Internet Governance Forum 2008: Friends And Foes, But More Friends The Internet Governance Forum of the United Nations is halfway through its first term and starting to think about its future after 2010. Gathering in Hyderabad, India this week, it brings together friends and foes of what has been cast as a multi-stakeholder experiment, a fairly open dialogue between governments, industry and non-governmental organisations. http://ip-watch.org/weblog/index.php?p=1346 What Internet Governance Boils Down To Listening to several of the discussions here at the IGF (so far), my post from yesterday seems to be close to what the focus of this meeting is, control and access to resources. Yesterday I highlighted areas of Governance where Governments actually could help, and make difference. Admittedly, that is not all the aspects of governance though. http://www.circleid.com/posts/20081204_what_internet_governance_boils_down_to/ Internet Governance Forum can't even set up Listserv right The Internet Governance Forum is a United Nations body that has no real decision-making power but would certainly love to get some. Until it can set up a listserv and website correctly, though, it's unlikely that groups like ICANN will want the IGF to be anything more than an advisory body. http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081204-internet-governance-forum-cant-even-set-up-listserv-right.html 'Make Internet cyber crime free' The Internet Governance Forum (IGF) Thursday called for collaboration and cooperation among countries to make Internet free from cyber crime. http://www.calcuttanews.net/story/438314 Internet needs to be multilingual If the Internet wants to reach out to the next billion people to arrive on the planet, it must get its language skates on to support the large number of tongues across the world at all levels including content, software, hardware as well as internationalised domain names. http://itnews.com.au/News/NewsStory.aspx?story=90460 'Make Internet cyber crime free' [IANS] The Internet Governance Forum (IGF) Thursday called for collaboration and cooperation among countries to make Internet free from cyber crime. http://www.siliconindia.com/shownews/Make_Internet_cyber_crime_free-nid-49568.html Internet development depends on multistakeholder processes The Internet Society (ISOC) has called for ongoing commitment to multistakeholder processes for internet development at the United Nations forum?s third annual meeting in Hyderabad. http://www.itexaminer.com/internet-development-depends-on-multistakeholder-processes.aspx IT Act amendments to be in line with European Cyber Convention The proposed amendments in the legal framework of the IT Act 2006 will be in line with the European Cyber Convention, said Gulshan Rai, director-general of the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In). http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/it-act-amendments-to-be-in-lineeuropean-cyber-convention/14/06/50610/on IGF should defend public-ness and egalitarian nature of Internet The IGF must act now against the threat to the public-ness and the egalitarian nature of the Internet http://www.alainet.org/active/27867&lang=es UN Forum Promoting ?Internet For All? is Underway in India A United Nations-backed international forum focusing on Internet governance issues, particularly the potential expansion of access to greater numbers of people, is currently under way in India. http://www.asiantribune.com/?q=node/14571 Internet overload: Surviving the exaflood The internet: Predictions that an ?exaflood? of traffic will overload the internet have been doing the rounds. But will it really happen? http://www.economist.com/science/tq/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12673221 ********************** DOMAIN NAMES ********************** ********************** - ICANN ********************** More Time and Additional Materials Posted for Applicant Guidebook ICANN is extending the New gTLDs Applicant Guidebook public comment deadline until December 15. The new deadline applies to the English posting only. For the remaining languages the deadline is still January 7. (The extension is in line with recent community discussion that time during ICANN meetings (i.e., the recent Cairo meeting) should not toll comment periods.) ICANN urges the Internet community to continue providing feedback. This consultative process is key to assist the organization to further improve the New gTLDs program. http://icann.org/en/announcements/announcement-03dec08-en.htm Apply now to join the Board and Councils (2009 NomCom) ICANN's Nominating Committee invites Statements of Interest and candidate recommendations from the Internet community as it seeks qualified candidates to assist in the organization's technical and policy coordination role. Interested individuals are invited to submit a Statement of Interest to the 2009 Committee for the following positions: http://icann.org/en/announcements/announcement-02dec08-en.htm Call for Expressions of Interest for Nom Com Assessment Provider ICANN seeks an organization capable of interviewing and helping to initially assess candidates for ICANN leadership positions. Such work will help inform the overall selection process undertaken by ICANN's Nominating Committee. http://icann.org/en/announcements/announcement-05dec08-en.htm Making the Internet Work It just matches names and numbers, but without the services of ICANN, the internet would be a very different place. http://www.businesstodayegypt.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=8262 Sorry Guys, If You Plan To Launder Money; Commit Credit Card Fraud and Forge Documents ICANN Will Take Away All Your Domain Names. ICANN has announced that they will be placing the roughly 281,000 domain names seized from EstDomains in the care of accredited registrar Directi Internet Solutions. http://www.namesmash.com/?p=174 ********************** - ccTLD & gTLD NEWS ********************** ICANN Approves 1 and 2 Character Domain Names for .Coop [news release] .Coop now supports the registration of both single and two character domain names. These special domains can be registered through participating .coop registrars after the submission of a brief Expression of Interest and dotCoop approval. http://nic.coop//News/coopNews-128.aspx rs: Extraordinary session of RNIDS on Sunday [news release] An extraordinary session of the Serbian Register of Internet Domain Names (RNIDS) will take place on Sunday, 7 December 2008 in the hotel Holiday Inn in Belgrade. Assembly members will discuss work of the Director and the Managing Board, ratify the operating plan and the financial plan for 2009, amend and modify regulations, elect new members of the Managing Board and determine strategic directions for future operations of RNIDS. http://rnids.rs/en/node/67?lang=en First .tel domains go on sale today [news release] Telnic Limited, the registry operator of the new .tel TLD, begins accepting applications for trademarks from businesses and organizations worldwide. From today until February 2nd, trademark owners can register .tel domains for their brands and company names, providing them with a "live" comprehensive listing in the first global, mobile-optimized online directory. http://telnic.com/downloads/Launch_Announcement.pdf Nominet governance update [news release] Following our communication on 18th November 2008 outlining recent developments at Nominet, we want to ensure our members and other stakeholders remain fully informed of new developments. http://www.nominet.org.uk/news/latest/?contentId=5814 ********************** - DNS SECURITY ********************** Marching off to cyberwar: Estonian and Georgian attacks highlight "cyberwar" difficulties The internet: Attacks launched over the internet on Estonia and Georgia highlight the difficulty of defining and dealing with ?cyberwar? http://www.economist.com/science/tq/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12673385 Australian PM to beef up cybersecurity Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has promised to bolster Australia's cyberdefenses to fend off the threat posed by hackers. http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/security/soa/Hacker-threat-Rudd-promises-action/0,130061744,339293665,00.htm http://www.zdnetasia.com/news/security/0,39044215,62049094,00.htm Industry Coalition Announced to Increase Adoption of DNSSEC [news release] The DNSSEC Industry Coalition is a global group of registries and industry experts whose mission is to work collaboratively to facilitate adoption of Domain Name Security Extensions (DNSSEC) and streamline the implementations across Domain Name Registries. Members work together to establish a consistent set of tools and applications, shared best practices, specifications and shared nomenclature. DNSSEC Industry Coalition members include both generic TLD and ccTLD registries along with industry and educational experts of the Domain Name System. http://pir.org/index.php?db=content/News&tbl=Press&id=14 Digging Deeper Into the CheckFree Attack The hijacking of the nation's largest e-bill payment system this week offers a glimpse of an attack that experts say is likely to become more common in 2009. http://voices.washingtonpost.com/securityfix/2008/12/digging_deeper_into_the_checkf.html Network Solutions Phishing Came Before Web Attack [IDG] A late October phishing campaign may have given online criminals the information they needed to seize control of payment processor CheckFree's Internet domain this week. http://www.pcworld.com/article/154991/.html http://www.techworld.com/news/index.cfm?NewsID=108007 WARNING: Stolen Domain Names Being Reportedly Offered For Sale The domaining message boards have been buzzing ever since a purported domain thief created a website to offer his long list of stolen domains for sale. The purported thief, sometimes referred to as Omid J, has been tracked down by other domainers in the past but he hasn?t typically been as brazen to create a website to list and sell the domain names. However, over the last week many domainers have been receiving emails advising them to go to LuxaryDomains.com to receive great deals on premium domain names. It wasn?t long until the domaining community caught on. According to several reports, after responding to the emails the seller reported that some of the domains had already been sold. http://www.domainnamenews.com/legal-issues/warning-stolen-domains-being-offered-for-sale/3384 F-Secure: 12 million 'active' bots worldwide There are at least 12 million "active" bots or zombie computers, in the world, according to a new report from security company F-Secure. http://www.zdnetasia.com/news/security/0,39044215,62049067,00.htm China shuts down over 300 phishing websites The mechanism for fast processing of anti-phishing, which is based on .CN domain name management system, had stopped domain name analysis of over 300 phishing websites by Oct 30 2008, said Anti-phishing Alliance of China (APAC). http://digital.asiaone.com/Digital/News/Story/A1Story20081204-105519.html Cyber attacks rising 15% annually The number of cyber attacks, including viruses, worms and frauds, is rising by over 15 per cent annually with many of them doubling, according to Gulshan Rai, director of the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In), a nodal agency for the security and protection of critical infrastructure. http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/cyber-attacks-rising-15-annually/09/27/342234/ New trojan in mass DNS hijack Researchers have identified a new trojan that can tamper with a wide array of devices on a local network, an exploit that sends them to impostor websites even if they are hardened machines that are fully patched or run non-Windows operating systems. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/12/05/new_dnschanger_hijacks/ ********************** - DOMAIN DISPUTES ********************** Firm Objects to Online Parody A provision in the federal Communications Decency Act (CDA) protects domain name registrars and Web hosting providers from being held legally liable in most cases for the content that clients post on their Web sites. But that hasn't stopped some companies from trying to pressure Internet intermediaries into disabling Web sites that contain what they consider to be objectionable material. http://www.pcworld.com/article/155087/.html Interflora sues M&S over Google keywords The world's largest flower delivery firm has sued Marks and Spencer at the High Court in London for sponsoring the word 'Interflora' as a search engine keyword. The case could be an important test of how UK trade mark laws apply to keyword advertising. http://out-law.com/page-9638 ********************** - IPv4/IPv6 ********************** Transition to IPv6 a big challenge: experts Deployment of IPv6 (Internet Protocol version 6) in place of IPv4 (version 4) is likely to take a very long time, even though IPv4 might exhaust its capacity by 2011. Both versions of IP are likely to co-exist. Upgrading the hardware is a major challenge in deploying the IPv6. http://www.thehindu.com/2008/12/06/stories/2008120656791500.htm ********************** - MISCELLANEOUS ********************** What's in a Name? More and More, a Number We think of numbers as quantities. But they can be potent brands as well. Devised a quarter century ago, the Internet's domain-name system was meant to spare the general public from numbers. Easy-to-remember words or initializations such as toys.com and cbs.com were allowed to stand in as aliases for 11-digit computer addresses. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122844055171581735.html 174 Million Domain Names Worldwide, But Registration Growth Slows says VeriSign Verisign?s latest Domain Name Industry Brief shows there are now 174 million domain names registered worldwide ? a 19 per cent increase over the same time last year, but only a three per cent increase over the second quarter 2008. The slowdown in growth would appear to indicate the global financial crisis is having an impact on domain name registrations. http://technewsreview.com.au/article.php?article=6703 http://www.domainpulse.com/2008/12/05/174-million-domain-names-worldwide-but-registration-growth-slows/ http://www.domainnews.com/en/general/174-million-domain-names-worldwide-but-registration-growth-slows.html VeriSign Releases Third Quarter Domain Name Industry Brief [news release] VeriSign, Inc. released the Domain Name Industry Brief for the third quarter of 2008, highlighting the continued growth of the Internet globally. https://press.verisign.com/easyir/customrel.do?easyirid=AFC0FF0DB5C560D3&version=live&prid=457640&releasejsp=custom_97 http://www.verisign.com/static/044349.pdf VeriSign: Google Slowing Domain Name Registration Growth Latest VeriSign report blames Google Adsense weakness for slowing domain registration growth rates. http://domainnamewire.com/2008/12/04/verisign-google-slowing-domain-name-registration-growth/ VeriSign Releases Domain Name Industry Brief Company registrations for TLDs up 19 percent from last year. http://www.webhosting.info/news/1/verisign-releases-domain-name-industry-brief_1204087514.htm VeriSign Reports Q3 Domain Name Stats VeriSign has released its "Domain Name Industry Brief" for the third quarter of 2008, which analyses the makeup of the 174 million domain names registered in the third quarter of 2008. http://www.thewhir.com/marketwatch/120508_VeriSign_Reports_Q3_Domain_Name_Stats.cfm Domain Registrations on Decline, Google and Lower Ad Spendings Blamed According to recent reports, the total number of new domain name registrations in the third quarter of 2008 reached 11.5 million, pushing the total number of domain names registered in total across all TLDs to 174 million. While the growth continues, the newly released Domain Report by Verisign, indicates a "a decline of new registrations by 2%t from second quarter and 2% from third quarter 2007, driven by declines in both gTLD and ccTLD growth." http://www.circleid.com/posts/20081204_domain_registrations_on_decline/ Of China, Growth and TLDs In case you needed further proof of China's breakneck pace of growth, VeriSign is reporting that the .cn TLD has now become the second biggest TLD, surpassing Germany's .de. http://www.internetnews.com/stats/article.php/3789456/of+China+Growth+and+TLDs.htm GoDaddy Uses Standard Tactics To Warehouse Domains Having working in the domain name industry myself for a couple of years, I?ve always been intrigued by the fact that there?s such a big business formed around something as trivial as a bunch of letters and numbers used to ?translate? IP addresses. And when there?s a big business in something, you just know there will be a grey area as well where ethics are left at the door sometimes. http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/12/03/godaddy-uses-standard-tactics-to-warehouse-domains/ http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/04/AR2008120400170.html Re-Examining the Domain Name Registry-Registrar Split ICANN has released to the public a report they commissioned called "Revisiting Vertical Separation of Registries and Registrars," written by CRA International. It is being referred to as the "CRAI Report." Readers in the U.S. and the U.K. may not know it, but most TLD domains in the world don't have registrars?you go straight to the registry and buy your domains from the source. Only in among generic TLDs and selected country code TLDs are there registrars. http://www.circleid.com/posts/20081204_reexamining_domain_registry_registrar/ Exposing the dark side of subdomain registries It sounds like the title to a Star Wars parody made by a bunch of college kids but it's actually the Anti Phishing Working Group's latest report. http://stephanevangelder.com/archives/162-Exposing-the-dark-side-of-subdomain-registries.html Lots of Stolen Domains Over 1,000 high quality domains have been stolen by a thief in Iran. He has brazenly set up a website to sell the domains - LuxaryDomains.com. As well, he is sending out lots of emails to domainers informing them of the domains he has available. http://www.domainbits.com/lots-of-stolen-domains/ ********************** - DOMAINING & AFTERMARKET ********************** Country Codes, Led By the Highest ccTLD Sale of the Year, Dominate High End Domain Sales Over the Past Two Weeks We were away covering the T.R.A.F.F.I.C. Down Under conference in Australia last week so, in order to bring you fully back up to speed on what has been happening in the aftermarket, our regular weekly report covers two weeks worth of data this time out. Over that period Country Code domains turned in their best showing in the five-year history of the DN Journal domain sales report. The ccTLDs swept 12 of the 20 positions on our new all extension leader board, topping even the .coms. http://dnjournal.com/archive/domainsales/2008/domainsales12-02-08.htm Domainfest Global Agenda Features Industry Change, Moniker Live Auctions and Networking Oversee have announced the third DOMAINfest, DOMAINfest Global 2009, will take place from January 28-30, 2008 in Hollywood, California. According to the news release below, there will be educational sessions and networking activities designed to help all attendees understand the changes under way in the Internet advertising and domain name industry and provide strategies to stay a step ahead. Keynote speakers will include Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak. http://www.domainpulse.com/2008/12/05/domainfest-global-agenda-features-industry-change-moniker-live-auctions-and-networking/ http://www.domainnews.com/en/general/domainfest-global-agenda-features-industry-change-moniker-live-auctions-and-networking.html Wrapping up Aftermarket.com Down Under Auction The Aftermarket.com auction at T.R.A.F.F.I.C. Down Under wrapped up last week. When the final gavel came down, it was an impressive sales rate of 80% of the auction inventory. As expected, the .AU domains were a hot commodity with 25 of the 28 being sold. In reviewing the bidding activity on those lots, they were the movers in the auction averaging 3 minutes bidding activity per domain. Add to those the no and low reserves, it was a frenzied bidding experience, challenging the auctioneer to keep up with the live and online bids. http://blog.domaintools.com/2008/12/wrapping-up-aftermarketcom-down-under-auction/ What's a Web name worth? Vivian Risi was one of the lucky ones. The Toronto real estate agent discovered late last year that someone else was using her company name, Your Community Realty, as their Web site address. She found out because someone mistakenly entered yourcommunityrealty.ca (instead of dot-com, Ms. Risi's address) and was redirected to an ad-infested page headlined by a logo closely resembling Google's. http://www.canada.com/topics/technology/story.html?id=932434 ********************** RESEARCH PAPERS ********************** Artificial Companions as a New Kind of Interface to the Future Internet by Yorick Wilks [OII Working Paper] Abstract: This research report seeks to connect the future of the Internet to a new, even though relatively developed, technology; that of computer speech and language and its embodiment in a concept I shall call an Artificial Companion. I will argue here that such entities are coming into being and that they will change fairly rapidly from the rather primitive entities now available, largely in Japan, to being entities that will lead to profound social and psychological consequences; they will also constitute a new and much more personal way of dealing with information and its so-called 'overload' upon all of us. http://ssrn.com/abstract=1308528 ********************** INTERNET USE ********************** Is technology rewiring our brains? [AP] What does a teenage brain on Google look like? Do all those hours spent online rewire the circuitry? Could these kids even relate better to emoticons than to real people? These sound like concerns from worried parents. But they're coming from brain scientists. http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/is-technology-rewiring-our-brains-1051654.html uk: Net speed rules come into force Customers will be better informed about the speed of their net connection under new rules. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7764489.stm ISPs promise accurate broadband-speed advice All the major ISPs have signed up to an Ofcom code of practice requiring accurate advice to be given on attainable broadband speeds, but mobile broadband isn't covered http://news.zdnet.co.uk/communications/0,1000000085,39570768,00.htm YouTube and Ning Just Say No to Sex A quick Google search for ?sex? returns a whopping 67 million pages. A search for ?porn? turns up more than 18 million pages. http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/12/03/youtube-and-ning-just-say-no-to-sex/ Out of the Shadows: pro-anorexia groups on the web After meeting for years on anonymous and secret Web sites, pro-anorexia groups are now moving to more public forums like Facebook. http://www.newsweek.com/id/170528 President 2.0: How will Obama use the power of the web now? Obama harnessed the grass-roots power of the Web to get elected. How will he use that power now? http://www.newsweek.com/id/170347 Obama outlines plan to put every child online [IDG] U.S. President-elect Barack Obama has outlined an ambitious plan to give every child in the U.S. access to the Internet and to connect the nation's hospitals with "cutting edge technology." The items are part of his plan to generate or save 2.5 million jobs over to the next two years and boost the flagging economy. They were outlined in his weekly video address posted on the Change.gov Web site. http://www.networkworld.com/news/2008/120708-obama-outlines-plan-to-put.html http://computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9122778 S.Africa's Internet use rises, but still lags peers The number of South African Internet users increased by 12.5 percent this year, the fastest growth in seven years, but Africa's biggest economy still lags Egypt, Nigeria and Morocco, a report showed on Thursday. http://in.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idINIndia-36871120081204 cn: Users have key role in Net safe, clean Ever found pornographic photos or ads in your e-mail inbox? If so, you were a victim of one of the 10 "worrying trends" in the Chinese online community spelled out by Wang Chen, minister of the State Council Information Office, at an Internet media forum in Chongqing on Friday. http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-12/06/content_7278172.htm 99% Indian internet users prefer email in English A report says that 99% of the users prefer to use email in English, despite of the fact that rediff provides the service of email in 11 different languages. rediff-300x230 99% Indian internet users prefer email in English In wake of such a situation, if we talk about one language that all the people of India aspire to learn, English comes up as the most obvious answers. English is the language most Indians use while they are communicating over the internet. http://www.freshnews.in/99-indian-internet-users-prefer-email-in-english-102332 Seven in 10 parents spy on kids' web use Seven in 10 parents snoop on their children's online activities, a study by a search engine has found. http://www.computeractive.co.uk/computeractive/news/2232083/parents-snoop-children-online Modern sex: Catherine Townsend logs on to the new revolution In the 21st century, technology is allowing people to express their desires and fulfil their fantasies in ways never before possible ? and all at the touch of a button. Catherine Townsend logs on to the new sexual revolution http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/love-sex/sex-industry/modern-sex-catherine-townsend-logs-on-to-the-new-revolution-1050428.html Stars fight search engines over porn links Argentine actress Isabel Macedo heard on the grapevine that her name was appearing on internet porn sites, so she sat down at her computer to Google herself. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/23a3bc82-c488-11dd-8124-000077b07658.html ********************** SOCIAL NETWORKING ********************** Koobface virus targets Facebook members Computer hackers are targeting the 120 million users of the social networking site Facebook with the 'Koobface' virus, which takes control of a PC's internet searches and can steal sensitive personal information. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/3568900/Koobface-virus-targets-Facebook-members.html OMG, 'Koobface' worm gets up in the grill of Facebook and MySpace fans The "Koobface" software worm tormenting Facebook and MySpace users is still going strong, prompting them to download bogus software that infects their computers, sends spam out to their friends and allows hackers to redirect their Web searches. http://www.sciam.com/blog/60-second-science/post.cfm?id=omg-koobface-worm-gets-up-in-the-gr-2008-12-05 Socialising all over the web? Websites can now let visitors bring along their friends A new button is appearing on some websites. It says ?Facebook Connect? and saves visitors from having to fill out yet another tedious registration form, upload another profile picture and memorise another username and password. Instead, visitors can now sign into other sites using their existing identity on Facebook, the world?s biggest online social network. After a soft launch this summer, Facebook Connect was due to make its formal debut on December 4th. http://www.economist.com/business/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12725272 ********************** NEW TECHNOLOGIES ********************** Supercomputer is brought a step closer to your desk top The world?s first personal supercomputer - a machine 250 times faster than the average PC ? was unveiled yesterday. It will go on sale for more than ?4,000, beyond the reach of most consumers but a tiny fraction of what computers with similar capabilities usually cost. http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/personal_tech/article5289428.ece World's first personal supercomputer unveiled The world's first personal supercomputer, which is 250 times faster than the average PC, has been unveiled. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/scienceandtechnology/technology/3564435/Worlds-first-personal-supercomputer-unveiled.html As the mouse squeaks to a 40th year, its creator roars on For everyone who works in computers, this Tuesday, 9 December, is a significant date. It's the 40th anniversary of the day when Douglas Engelbart, one of the industry's great visionaries, gave an audience of geeks at the Fall Joint Computer Conference in San Francisco their first glimpse of the technological future that we all now inhabit. http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/dec/07/internet ********************** SPAM ********************** Analysis: is spam email dead? [IDG] In October this year spam kings across the globe felt the full force of the law, when two networks responsible for huge amounts of spam were shut down. http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/news/index.cfm?NewsID=108031 ********************** DIGITAL DIVIDE ********************** Poorer Nations Go Online on Cellphones Using cellphones to surf the Internet is booming in emerging markets, showing how countries with poor fixed-line telecommunications have become important drivers of growth for mobile-technology companies. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122844530354182063.html ************************** ONLINE CRIME, SECURITY & LEGAL ************************** Australian PM to beef up cybersecurity Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has promised to bolster Australia's cyberdefenses to fend off the threat posed by hackers. http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/security/soa/Hacker-threat-Rudd-promises-action/0,130061744,339293665,00.htm http://www.zdnetasia.com/news/security/0,39044215,62049094,00.htm Marching off to cyberwar: Estonian and Georgian attacks highlight "cyberwar" difficulties The internet: Attacks launched over the internet on Estonia and Georgia highlight the difficulty of defining and dealing with ?cyberwar? http://www.economist.com/science/tq/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12673385 Thieves Winning Online War, Maybe in Your PC Internet security is broken, and nobody seems to know quite how to fix it. Despite the efforts of the computer security industry and a half-decade struggle by Microsoft to protect its Windows operating system, malicious software is spreading faster than ever. The so-called malware surreptitiously takes over a PC and then uses that computer to spread more malware to other machines exponentially. Computer scientists and security researchers acknowledge they cannot get ahead of the onslaught. http://nytimes.com/2008/12/06/technology/internet/06security.html http://iht.com/articles/2008/12/05/technology/wbsecure.php The worm turns: A cyber-attack alarms the Pentagon Battlefield bandwidth is low at best, making networks sticky and e-mails tricky. American soldiers often rely on memory sticks to cart vital data between computers. Off-duty, they use the same devices to move around music and photos. The dangers of that have just become apparent with the news that the Pentagon has banned the use of all portable memory devices because of the spread of a bit of malicious software called agent.btz. http://www.economist.com/world/unitedstates/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12725712 Microsoft tackles auction pirates Microsoft has launched 63 separate lawsuits against people peddling counterfeit software on auction sites. The legal action targets sellers in 12 nations including the US, UK, Germany and France. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7766607.stm Microsoft targets auctions in counterfeit crackdown [IDG] Microsoft continues to crack down on people it believes are counterfeiting and selling its software. On Thursday the company will add another 63 legal filings in 12 countries against individuals who it says are selling counterfeit Microsoft products. http://pcworld.idg.com.au/article/269772/ FBI: Holiday Season Cyber Scammers Target Victims [news release] The FBI is reminding people this holiday season that cyber criminals continue to aggressively seek ways to steal money and personal information. Scammers are using several techniques to fool potential victims including sending unsolicited e-mails that contain attachments such as electronic greeting cards containing malware (malicious software), setting up spoofing websites that look like legitimate commercial sites, and unleashing phishing and vishing attacks where individuals receive e-mails asking for personal data. http://ic3.gov/media/2008/081201.aspx F-Secure: 12 million 'active' bots worldwide There are at least 12 million "active" bots or zombie computers, in the world, according to a new report from security company F-Secure. http://www.zdnetasia.com/news/security/0,39044215,62049067,00.htm Jihadist forum calls for 'YouTube Invasion' A jihadist forum has urged supporters to wage a "YouTube Invasion" by uploading propaganda videos to the popular video-sharing website, the SITE Intelligence Group has claimed. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/3547072/Jihadist-forum-calls-for-YouTube-Invasion.html Queen's Speech outlaws suicide web sites Web sites promoting suicide are to be subject to criminal prosecution in changes to UK law proposed in the Queen's Speech outlining the government's plans for the coming parliamentary year. http://www.vnunet.com/computing/news/2231965/queen-speech-outlaws-suicide us: Cyberbullying verdict turns rule-breakers into criminals They couldn't convict her of being a terrible person, so they had to nail her for impersonating one. That was the sorry end of a landmark cyberbullying trial heard in the United States. Lori Drew, the woman whose phony MySpace account may have driven a neighbour's teenaged daughter to suicide, was convicted in a Los Angeles court this week ? but not for cyberbullying. http://www.globeinvestor.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20081204.wgtweb05/GIStory/ Security attacks reach 2.5 billion per day IBM has announced a number of new initiatives which it claims will improve enterprise security and help clients save costs, in response to a massive rise in web-based threats. The company said that its Internet Security Systems (ISS) business had sprung into action after its X-Force division identified two "startling" developments: a 30 per cent increase in network and web-based security incidents over the past 120 days; and a 40 per cent increase in the number of its clients accessing IBM virtual security operations centres. http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2232104/ibm-boosts-security-services Brown urged to keep hacker in UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown has been urged to halt the extradition to the US of computer hacker Gary McKinnon. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7768394.stm FTC has a message for vishing victims [IDG] The e-mail looks important: "National 1st Credit Union temporarily suspended your account. Reason: Billing failure." Further down, it tells you to call this number to reactivate: 201-621-5813. http://computerworld.com.au/article/270012/ http://www.networkworld.com/news/2008/120608-ftc-has-a-message-for.html http://pcworld.idg.com.au/article/270012/ ************************** PRIVACY ************************** Google aims to set EU data protection agenda As EU privacy regulators maintain their focus on search engines, Internet giant Google pushed for harmonisation of EU and global rules on data protection during the first meeting of a new European Commission expert group designed to review current legislation. http://euractiv.com/en/infosociety/google-aims-set-eu-data-protection-agenda/article-177793 EU's unlikely partner for data privacy review: Google The EU is considering an update of its privacy guidelines, and the European Commission has formed an expert group to advise them that includes executives from Intel and Google. http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081207-eus-unlikely-partner-for-data-privacy-review-google.html ********************** ONLINE TV & MUSIC ********************** Internet overload: Surviving the exaflood The internet: Predictions that an ?exaflood? of traffic will overload the internet have been doing the rounds. But will it really happen? http://www.economist.com/science/tq/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12673221 au: Police bust major film and TV piracy operation Two Brisbane men who allegedly facilitated the illegal download of the equivalent of more than 14 million movies and television programs via a video sharing website overseas have been charged with piracy. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2008/12/04/1228257209775.html http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2008/12/04/1228257209775.html au: Cops arrest two in Brisbane on pirate film website raid TWO Brisbane men have been arrested over an illegal movie download site that distributed millions of films to punters all around the world. http://www.australianit.news.com.au/story/0,24897,24751066-15306,00.html Swedish gov't mulls new anti-file sharing law [AP] The Swedish government says it is drafting a law that will allow record and film companies to pursue Internet users sharing music and movies illegally. http://www.miamiherald.com/business/nation/story/798960.html http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2008468043_apeuswedenfilesharing.html ********************** CENSORSHIP ********************** Brit ISPs censor Wikipedia over 'child porn' album cover Six British ISPs are filtering access to Wikipedia after the site was added to an Internet Watch Foundation child-pornography blacklist, according to Wikipedia administrators. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/12/07/brit_isps_censor_wikipedia/ British ISPs filtering Wikipedia Internet service providers in the U.K. have begun filtering access to Wikipedia after the site was added to the Internet Watch Foundation's blacklist. http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-10116543-93.html IWF statement regarding Wikipedia URL ... A Wikipedia web page, was reported through the IWF?s online reporting mechanism in December 2008. As with all child sexual abuse reports received by our Hotline analysts, the image was assessed according to the UK Sentencing Guidelines Council (page 109). The content was considered to be a potentially illegal indecent image of a child under the age of 18, but hosted outside the UK. The IWF does not issue takedown notices to ISPs or hosting companies outside the UK, but we did advise one of our partner Hotlines abroad and our law enforcement partner agency of our assessment. The specific URL (individual webpage) was then added to the list provided to ISPs and other companies in the online sector to protect their customers from inadvertent exposure to a potentially illegal indecent image of a child. http://iwf.org.uk/media/news.249.htm Vietnam bloggers flirt with danger [AP] Last September, when police clashed with Catholic protesters over confiscated church land, the Vietnamese public did not need to rely on the sanitised accounts in the state-controlled media. They could read all about it on the blogs. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/technology/news/article.cfm?c_id=5&objectid=10546926 http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/06/AR2008120601285.html Vietnam court upholds blogger's jail term [AFP] An appeals court in communist Vietnam on Thursday upheld a blogger's two-and-a-half-year jail sentence for tax fraud in a case media watchdog groups have said was politically motivated. http://news.smh.com.au/technology/vietnam-court-upholds-bloggers-jail-term-20081205-6rsj.html http://news.theage.com.au/technology/vietnam-court-upholds-bloggers-jail-term-20081205-6rsj.html New fears over cyber-snooping in China [AP] Requirements that internet cafes in a southern Chinese city install Chinese-developed operating systems are raising new concerns over cyber-snooping by the authorities, a US government-funded radio station reported yesterday. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/dec/04/china-privacy-cyber-snooping Croatia web arrests spark furore Croatia's prime minister has ordered an inquiry following arrests of several opposition activists who made plans via the social networking website Facebook. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7762802.stm ISP filtering a pipe dream: Telstra Telstra chief operating officer Greg Winn says the federal Government's attempt to censor the internet is akin to trying to "boil the ocean". http://www.australianit.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24755150-15306,00.html Cash floods in for Australian anti-censorship protests Political activists GetUp have raised over $30,000 in less than a day to support their fight against the Government's plan to censor the internet, a response the group has described as "unprecedented". http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2008/12/05/1228257282965.html http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2008/12/05/1228257282965.html http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/articles/2008/12/05/1228257284512.html Govt's web censorship will hurt economy, group says Community advocacy group Get Up says the Federal Government's commitment to internet censorship will slow down speeds and hurt the economy. http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/12/05/2439048.htm ISP filter tests: ideally, someone will get a clue The government has released the spec documents for its proposed compulsory internet filtering system. The problem? They're a confusing mess of vague waffle. http://apcmag.com/Content.aspx?id=3283 Australia's Internet filtering too ambitious, doomed to fail It's tough being a government these days; who has the energy to clean up the Internet after a hard day's work bailing out the financial sector? Not the Australian government, it seems. Rather than actually doing something about illegal content, they just make a list of it and tell ISPs to filter everything that's on the list. Sidestepping the murky political details and?for the moment?the civil liberties problems inherent in this approach, let's take a closer look at the technical aspects of such a plan. http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081205-australias-internet-filtering-too-ambitious-doomed-to-fail.html ************************************************ CHILD PROTECTION, FILTERING & CONTENT REGULATION ************************************************ Online child protection moving up the global agenda - but is it understood? [news release] Failure to understand the real challenge of protecting children on the internet has reduced the impact of global internet discussions, according to European child rights NGOs. While welcoming a higher than ever profile for children's issues at the UN's 3rd Internet Governance Forum (3-6 December), the European NGO Alliance on Child Safety Online (eNACSO) has criticized a low level of understanding of children?s right to protection among some other key stakeholders. Speaking in the Forum plenary session, eNACSO representative John Carr emphasized the responsibility of industry in making the internet a safer place for children. Parents must not be left on their own to put in place complex technical solutions to keep their children safe. http://redbarnet.dk/Files//Billeder/Enacso/child_protection_on_the_IGF_agenda.doc in: 7-yr jail proposed for child pornography: IT Ministry [UNI] The Union government has proposed a seven-year jail term for a series of cyber crimes, particularly child pornography, in the Information Technology (IT) Amendment Bill, 2006, which is likely to be tabled in the next session of Parliament, according to a top IT Ministry official.http://www.deepikaglobal.com/ENG5_sub.asp?ccode=ENG5&newscode=29417 http://www.deepikaglobal.com/ENG5_sub.asp?ccode=ENG5&newscode=29417 Internet tapping part of IT Act amendment to curb cyber-crimes [PTI] Internet tapping and exemplary punsihment for child pornography will be part of the incorporating stringent provisions in the Centre's proposed amendment to Information Technology Act to deal with a variety of cyber-crimes. http://ptinews.com/pti%5Cptisite.nsf/0/F0AFAC4D466F89F3652575170047FA2E YouTube's crackdown on suggestive content "It's a bad week for Internet porn,"a Wired blogger reports. Indeed. Given the news from Ning and now with YouTube "cracking down on sexually suggestive content," as VentureBeat reports. http://www.netfamilynews.org/2008/12/youtubes-crackdown-on-suggestive.html ************************** GOVERNMENT & PUBLIC POLICY ************************** Berlusconi plans to use G8 presidency to 'regulate the internet' Italian president and media baron Silvio Berlusconi said today that he would use his country's imminent presidency of the G8 group to push for an international agreement to "regulate the internet". http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/12/03/berlusconi_g8_internet/ nz: Commission's Accounting Separation Requirements Top-notch InternetNZ has reiterated today its strong support for the Commerce Commission's Disclosure Requirements as released in late October for public comment. http://www.voxy.co.nz/business/commission039s-accounting-separation-requirements-top-notch/5/6228 Indian Govt to amend IT Act in winter session to deal cyber crimes The Union government will be incorporating stringent provisions in the proposed amendment to the Information Technology Act to deal with a variety of cyber crimes, including child pornography. http://www.zeenews.com/nation/2008-12-07/488941news.html http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Infotech/Govt_to_Amend_IT_Act_to_deal_crimes/articleshow/3802201.cms ********************************* COMMENT, MICROSOFT & DEVELOPMENTS ********************************* The week in politics: Retroactive immunity, a "call to action" on broadband, and courts on cyberbullying This week's top political tech story was the faceoff between lawyers for the Bush administration and Electronic Frontier Foundation attorneys who want a court to strike down a provision of the FISA Amendment Act granting retroactive immunity to telecoms that participated in the NSA's program of warrantless wiretapping. A judge will now have to decide whether the controversial statute gives the attorney general too much discretion to block claims that implicate the Fourth Amendment. http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081206-the-week-in-politics-retroactive-immunity-a-call-to-action-on-broadband-and-courts-on-cyberbullying.html Microsoft to Google: Get Off of My Cloud The world's top software maker plans to build about 20 state-of-the-art data centers as it tries to outpace cloud computing rival Google, BusinessWeek has learned http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/nov2008/tc20081121_382269.htm Steve Ballmer: A Deal for Yahoo Would be Better If Done Soon After a nearly five month search, Microsoft Corp. on Thursday said it has found a new executive to lead its charge against Google Inc. in the online search and advertising business: Qi Lu, a technologist who was previously a top executive at Yahoo Inc. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122849475068083011.html ********************** TELECOMMUNICATIONS ********************** AT&T Slashes 12,000 Jobs as Landline Accounts Dwindle AT&T, the largest phone company in the U.S., announced Thursday that it will cut about 12,000 jobs, or roughly 4 percent of its total workforce, starting this month and through next year. http://ecommercetimes.com/story/65380.html AT&T Layoffs: The Tip of a Telecom Downturn Cutbacks in consumer spending will force telecoms to trim staff and spending?likely spreading the pain to equipment makers as well http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/dec2008/tc2008124_185061.htm Commission?s Accounting Separation requirements top-notch ? InternetNZ [news release] InternetNZ has reiterated today its strong support for the Commerce Commission?s Disclosure Requirements as released in late October for public comment. http://www.internetnz.net.nz/media/2008/commission2019s-accounting-separation-requirements-top-notch-2013-internetnz InternetNZ supports Commerce Commission disclosure regime [sub req'd] New Zealand internet advocacy group InternetNZ reiterated its strong support for the Commerce Commission's disclosure requirements, as released in late... http://telecompaper.com/news/article.aspx?cid=648823 http://telecom.paper.nl/news/article.aspx?id=241485 nz/au: Southern Cross scoffs at billion-dollar cable savings The consortium that owns the Southern Cross Cable has laughed off a suggestion by state-owned enterprise Kordia that a competing trans-Tasman communications cable could save New Zealanders more than a billion dollars over the next 10 years. http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/4786044a28.html http://www.businessday.co.nz/industries/telco_it/4786062 ********************** MOBILE/WIRELESS ********************** Telstra readies 21M bps mobile broadband service [IDG] Telstra will boost data speeds in its Next G mobile network to 21M bps early next year, and will conduct tests of the faster service this month, equipment vendor Ericsson said Friday. However, customers may have to wait longer for the arrival of compatible phones, which haven't yet caught up with prevous improvements to network performance. http://www.networkworld.com/news/2008/120508-telstra-readies-21m-bps-mobile.html http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/155013/.html Nokia warns mobile phone sales falling Nokia, the biggest maker of mobile phones, cut its global handset market forecast for the second time in three weeks yesterday as sales continue to slow more quickly than it expected as consumer spending declines. http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/telecoms/article5289257.ece http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/business/story/0,28124,24754488-5018020,00.html FBI: Criminals auto-dialing with hacked VoIP systems [IDG] Criminals are taking advantage of a bug in the Asterisk Internet telephony system that lets them pump out thousands of scam phone calls in an hour, the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation warned Friday. http://www.networkworld.com/news/2008/120608-fbi-criminals-auto-dialing-with-hacked.html http://www.pcworld.com/article/155074/.html +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ (c) David Goldstein 2008 --------- David Goldstein address: 4/3 Abbott Street COOGEE NSW 2034 AUSTRALIA email: Goldstein_David §yahoo.com.au phone: +61 418 228 605 (mobile); +61 2 9665 5773 (home) "Every time you use fossil fuels, you're adding to the problem. Every time you forgo fossil fuels, you're being part of the solution" - Dr Tim Flannery Start your day with Yahoo!7 and win a Sony Bravia TV. Enter now http://au.docs.yahoo.com/homepageset/?p1=other&p2=au&p3=taglineReceived on Sun Dec 07 2008 - 19:30:48 UTC
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