World Issue highlights

Issue highlights 1. Ouster of Kubuntu founder leaves its future in doubt 2. ‘Dancing baby’ DMCA case is taking a lifetime 3. EMC sells Syncplicity to focus on core storage business 4. Cloud to consume almost half of IT infrastructure sales by 2019 5. Verisign introduces new cloud-based DNS firewall 6. Ex-attorney general Holder hints at possible DOJ plea deal with Snowden 7. Microsoft security tool fails malware detection test 8. 8 penetration testing tools that will do the job 9. Cisco buys cloud-based contract administrator 10. Hacking Team hack reveals why you shouldn't jailbreak your iPhone 11. How Office 365 balances IT control with user satisfaction 12. How analytics and the Internet of Things raise the stakes for IT 13. IDG Contributor Network: Don't be mad at ransomware attackers, be grateful 14. INSIDER Hiring recent college grads: 5 strategies that work

White Paper: Silver Peak Systems Inc 5 Reasons why Enterprises are Moving to Broadband Their WAN The WAN has always been about connecting users to applications and moving data, but the playing field has now changed with datacenters migrating to the cloud along with missioncritical applications. Ultimately the way that enterprises and their users do business has changed - and so must their approach to connectivity. Learn more >>

Ouster of Kubuntu founder leaves its future in doubt A disagreement between the founder of Kubuntu and the Ubuntu Community Council has roiled the Linux community and left the project rudderless, as Jonathan Riddell left Kubuntu’s governing body late last month.A month before, Riddell was forced out of his post as the de facto head of the governance committee of Kubuntu, the Linux distribution he helped to found in... READ MORE

‘Dancing baby’ DMCA case is taking a lifetime A toddler when his star turn in a homemade YouTube video incurred the legal wrath of Universal Studios and Prince, the “Dancing Baby” at the heart of an important copyright case is likely nine years old today.Which means the wheels of justice have been grinding on this one for eight years.  And they may grind on for who knows how... READ MORE

EMC sells Syncplicity to focus on core storage business EMC is selling its Syncplicity file-sharing and collaboration business to private investment company Skyview Capital for an undisclosed sum.EMC bought Syncplicity in May 2012 in response to the growth of mobile computing and bring-your-own-device policies in enterprises. Syncplicity is one of a host of cloud-based file services, including Box, Dropbox and Google Drive, that have emerged in the past few... READ MORE

Cloud to consume almost half of IT infrastructure sales by 2019 Yesterday, I wrote that "Nearly one-third of all IT infrastructure spending is now devoted to cloud." That sounded like a lot, but IDC, the source for those numbers, is now saying that's only the beginning.According to the research firm's latest announcement, cloud IT infrastructure spending is expected to grow 15.6% a year and represent 46.5% of the total IT infrastructure... READ MORE

White Paper: IBM How to Develop & Maintain Fast and Always-On Apps with Ease People expect instantaneous response and 24x7 uptime from today’s digital applications. But the complexity, velocity, and volume of data in these applications often bring traditional database servers to their knees or send costs through the roof. Read this whitepaper to learn how to develop and maintain your apps with ease. Learn More

Verisign introduces new cloud-based DNS firewall Protecting an enterprise from cyberattacks is a task that is becoming increasingly tough. Just when one thinks the problem is solved, new attack surfaces are created that open the door to new threats. When there was but a single ingress/egress point into the network, a firewall could protect the organization. However, hackers have become more sophisticated and have been circumventing... READ MORE

Ex-attorney general Holder hints at possible DOJ plea deal with Snowden The “possibility exists” for Edward Snowden to strike a plea deal with the US Justice Department and return to the USA. At least it does according what former Attorney General Eric Holder told Yahoo News; but he’s the same guy who previously filed a criminal complaint against Snowden for three felony violations of the Espionage Act. Notice the “former” in... READ MORE

Microsoft security tool fails malware detection test There are many great choices out there for malware protection and detection. Unfortunately, Microsoft's offering isn't one of them. In recent tests by AV Test, the German lab that is pretty much the de facto standard in malware testing, Microsoft came in a distant last place.AV Test's most recent experiment pitted 30,000 known samples of malware against Windows 7 AV... READ MORE

8 penetration testing tools that will do the job If the probability of your assets being prodded by attackers foreign and domestic doesn’t scare the bejesus out of you, don’t read this article. If you’re operating in the same realm of reality as the rest of us, here’s your shot at redemption via some solid preventive pen testing advice from a genuine pro.CSO speaks with pen test tool designer/programmer/aficionado,... READ MORE

White Paper: IBM WebSphere Portal Version 8.0 Reviewer's Guide Read an in-depth view of new WebSphere Portal features and product capabilities. Learn More

Cisco buys cloud-based contract administrator Cisco this week announced intentions to acquire privately held MaintenanceNet, a provider of cloud-based software to manage recurring customer contracts.Cisco will pay $139 million in cash and retention based incentives to acquire MaintenanceNet.+MORE ON NETWORK WORLD: Cisco to buy OpenDNS to boost Security Everywhere initiative+Cisco says the acquisition will help it simplify contract renewal processes and help sales partners capture... READ MORE

Hacking Team hack reveals why you shouldn't jailbreak your iPhone An Italian firm with the appropriate name Hacking Team suffered a massive breach in its company data Sunday, and 400GB of internal documents so far have been released and are being analyzed by reporters and security researchers. Hacking Team’s customers are government agencies, including both law enforcement and national security, and the ostensibly legal software it sells to help them... READ MORE

How Office 365 balances IT control with user satisfaction At the end of 2014, Microsoft bought Acompli, creators of a popular email app that it quickly rebranded as Outlook. The familiar name doubtless drew in more users, but it also gave IT teams a set of expectations about the security and management options a product called Outlook would have.Given that Acompli's slogan was “Loved by users, and trusted by... READ MORE

How analytics and the Internet of Things raise the stakes for IT This in-depth story, available for download as a PDF, examines the impact of IoT-generated big data and analytics on organizations and illustrates some of the major business implications of IoT data.(computerworld.com)To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here READ MORE

IDG Contributor Network: Don't be mad at ransomware attackers, be grateful You're minding your own business, sitting at your office computer. Suddenly, a pop-up appears – with the logo of the FBI – warning that you're under investigation for trafficking in child pornography. Your computer locks up. The message also instructs you to pay a fine with a gift card or money order, or risk being arrested. In return for the... READ MORE

INSIDER Hiring recent college grads: 5 strategies that work This year’s STEM grads know what they want and are more prepared for the workforce than ever. According to a new report from Accenture, the class of 2015 is skilled, motivated and loyal — and anxious to join the ranks of IT.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here(Insider Story) READ MORE

: Red Hat How to Use DevOps For Competitive Advantage DevOps is showing promise as the way to achieve faster delivery of applications and services. Learn how DevOps can help transform your organization into one that can stay relevant in today's disruptive business environment. Learn more >>

SLIDESHOWS 12 fun, free summer classes for techies MOOCs from EdX, Coursera and newcomer Kadenze tackle superheroes, science of cooking, alien worlds and more. JOIN THE NETWORK WORLD COMMUNITIES As network pros you understand that the value of connections increase as the number of connections increase, the so called network effect, and no where is this more evident than in professional relationships. Join Network World’s LinkedIn and Facebook communities to share ideas, post questions, see what your peers are working on and scout out job applicants (or maybe find your next opportunity). Network World on Facebook Network World on LinkedIn MOST-READ STORIES 1. Why the open source business model is a failure 2. iPhone 7 rumor rollup: Apple revving up production, you can take it to the iBank 3. Prototype wave energy device passes grid-connected pilot test 4. 5 free Wi-Fi tools that help maximize your home network 5. What is Second Wave Wi-Fi? 6. Apple's entry level iPhone 6s will likely be 16GB. Here's why. 7. OpenSSL tells users to prepare for a high severity flaw 8. Cisco invests in virtual networker 9. Kicking Google out of my life, Part 4: Goodbye, Gmail 10. Cybersecurity is a 'con,' malware entrepreneur says Join the IDG Contributor Network The IDG Contributor Network is a collection of blogs written by leading IT practitioners about the technology, business opportunities and challenges you face everyday. We invite you to participate by applying to be a contributor today.

NASA's Antares rocket explodes shortly after launch - Headlines Live

An unmanned commercial supply rocket bound for the International Space Station exploded moments after liftoff Tuesday evening, with debris falling in flames over the launch site in Virginia. No injuries were reported following the first catastrophic launch in NASA's commercial spaceflight effort.
The accident at Orbital Sciences Corp.'s launch complex at Wallops Island was sure to draw criticism over the space agency's growing reliance on private U.S. companies in this post-shuttle effort.

• Kamloops students lose science experiment in explosion
• Anatomy of the International Space Station
• Is private industry ready for space?

NASA is paying billions of dollars to Orbital Sciences and the SpaceX company to make station deliveries, and it's counting on SpaceX and Boeing to start flying U.S. astronauts to the orbiting lab as early as 2017. NASA spokesman Rob Navias said there was nothing on the lost flight that was urgently needed by the six people living on the space station.

Orbital Sciences' Antares rocket blew up over the launch complex, just six seconds after the liftoff. The company said everyone at the site had been accounted for, and the damage appeared to be limited to the facilities. read more at http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/nasa-s-antares-rocket-explodes-shortly-after-launch-1.2816259

Apple Pay saw 1 million activations in first three days

Network World Daily News AM

October 28, 2014

Apple Pay saw 1 million activations in first three days Apple’s new contactless payment system on the iPhone 6 saw 1 million activations in its first three days of use, pointing to an initially enthusiastic response from Apple users.The number was revealed by Apple CEO Tim Cook during an on-stage interview late Monday at The Wall Street Journal’s technology conference in Laguna Beach, California, and was reported by WSJ writers on a live blog.Cook said he uses it himself at his local Whole Foods supermarket.Apple Pay was released on October 20 and allows users to make tap-and-go payments from their smartphones at retailer terminals equipped with wireless NFC (near-field communication) readers, of which there are over 200,000 in the U.S.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here READ MORE

Issue highlights 1. EFF rates companies on willingness to fight ‘copyright and trademark bullies’ 2. Retain private data for police use or face $685,000 fine, Swedish authority tells ISP 3. Microsoft opens Office 365 to programmers 4. Apple responds to recent Apple Pay controversy involving Rite Aid and CVS 5. Clues point to Russia in long-running spying campaign 6. Bing lets you dig behind the smiley face with emoji search 7. Cyber insurance: Only fools rush in 8. Feds set to destroy H-1B records 9. Lowe's ranked the best, Home Depot the worst in SECTF contest 10. 20 great productivity apps for Android, iOS, and the Web WEBCAST: BMC Software Increase Your Data Center IQ Discover how to improve network efficiency, lower IT costs and more proactively manage your physical, virtual and cloud environments. Join BMC Software and partners, Entuity and Sentry Software, to learn how to build data center success with a comprehensive performance monitoring solution. Learn More EFF rates companies on willingness to fight ‘copyright and trademark bullies’ Copyright and trademark law are often the weapon of choice when corporate content producers become unhappy with how their works of used, even in cases where such uses are legal.The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) yesterday issued a report and scorecard revealing its assessment of how major service providers and social media platforms respond when copyright and trademark holders use those weapons indiscriminately.From an EFF press release. EFF examined 13 companies and issued stars if they met the baseline standards for what a service can do to defend its users' speech against copyright and trademark bullies.  The services could receive a maximum of five stars, based on criteria including publicly documented procedures for responses to DMCA takedown notices and counter-notices, how the services handle trademark disputes, and if the company issued detailed transparency reports.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here READ MORE Retain private data for police use or face $685,000 fine, Swedish authority tells ISP Swedish ISP Bahnhof must resume retaining customer communications metadata for police use by the end of November or pay a fine of 5 million Swedish Kronor (US$685,000), the Swedish telecom authority has ruled.Bahnhof should comply with Swedish law requiring ISPs to retain customers’ location and traffic metadata for six months for law enforcement purposes, the Swedish Post and Telecom Authority (PTS) said Monday.Bahnhof will fight the order, CEO Jon Karlung said Tuesday.The ISP stopped retaining the communications metadata and deleted all records with the permission of the authority after a May ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) invalidated the EU’s Data Retention Directive because it seriously interfered with fundamental privacy rights.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here READ MORE Microsoft opens Office 365 to programmers Extending Office 365 functionality to third-party developers, Microsoft has exposed a set of application programming interfaces (APIs) so other companies can add features and capabilities to the online productivity service.The company announced the new functionality at the TechEd Europe conference, held this week in Barcelona.The APIs are a way for third-party programs to access the information and capabilities of the online office suite, including those for user mail, files, calendar and contacts.Microsoft is “clearly trying to keep Office front and center in the new world of mobile devices,” wrote Al Hilwa, program director for software development research at IDC. “The approach of moving to APIs is the right strategy for providing extensibility to services like Office 365 in the era of cloud. I would expect that they will keep building on these APIs over time, but they are handling the most important areas in this wave, which relate to email integration.”To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here READ MORE WHITE PAPER: Brother International Corp. How Secure are your Web Meetings? OmniJoin offers a full suite of security features to give you the peace of mind that your web meetings are as secure as you need them to be. Learn More>> Apple responds to recent Apple Pay controversy involving Rite Aid and CVS Since going operational last week, Apple Pay has been greeted enthusiastically by iPhone 6 users, participating retailers, and banks. Highlighting this fact, Wells Fargo yesterday began a new promotion offering customers a $20 credit the first time they try out Apple Pay.But not everyone out there is feeling the Apple Pay love. Over the past few days, both Rite Aid and CVS have taken pro-active steps to disable support or Apple Pay at all of their nationwide store locations. The reason is because both nationwide pharmacy chains belong to a consortium of retailers who belong to Merchant Customer Exchange (MCX). MCX in early 2015 will be releasing a competing mobile payment platform called CurrentC. The rub here is that retailers who support CurrentC are not allowed to support any other type of mobile payment platform. In short, this is nothing more than anti-competitive behavior that does nothing to benefit consumers and only serves to benefit retail companies.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here READ MORE Clues point to Russia in long-running spying campaign Russia is likely behind a long-running computer spying campaign, although the stealthy attacks leave fewer clues than other state-sponsored attacks, according to a new report from FireEye.FireEye calls the group APT28, which is short for “advanced persistent threat,” a nomenclature the company’s Mandiant division has used to classify attacks its analysts believe come from a distinct group.APT has been active for at least six years. It tends to focus on targets that would be of interest to Russia, such as the Caucasus region with a focus on Georgia and European governments, militaries and security organizations.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here READ MORE Bing lets you dig behind the smiley face with emoji search Bing now supports searches with emoji, meaning you can insert or paste a range of emoji icons like hearts, smiley faces, food graphics, or any combination thereof, for some interesting, though not always useful, results.It’s a novelty feature, yes, but still fun. And one that could help Bing draw at least some attention away from Google. Google at the moment does not give results for emoji searches, though its auto-complete technology does recognize them. Yahoo, meanwhile, does support emoji searches.Bing’s tool is available in all English markets, the search engine said, offered as an homage to the shorthand’s popularity.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here READ MORE WEBCAST: IBM Accelerate Your Innovation With IBM Bluemix™ Join us for a webcast introducing the new IBM BluemixTM. IBM Bluemix (www.bluemix.net) is a developer oriented Platform as a Service (PaaS) environment that is based on the Cloud Foundry open source project. It provides you easy access to a rich library of IBM, 3rd party and open source runtimes, services and APIs. Learn More Cyber insurance: Only fools rush in With prominent corporations from across the economy bleeding customer data and paying through the nose for it, "cyber insurance" has become a hot topic in corporate boardrooms and the media. Companies – from the Fortune 10 on down – are looking to hedge their online risks with various kinds of business insurance. That demand, in turn, is fueling a rapid expansion of the cyber insurance industry that was little more than a niche offering five years ago. But insurance industry experts and corporate security professionals offer words of caution for companies that think they may want to insure their cyber risks. The cyber insurance market, they say, is still new. Companies that want to buy such a product would do well to understand their needs and the limitations of cyber coverage before they put their money on the table.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here READ MORE Feds set to destroy H-1B records WASHINGTON -- The U.S. has changed its H-1B record retention policy to the concern of people who study the visa's impact on the workforce and economy.In a notice posted last week, the U.S. Department of Labor said that records used for labor certification, whether in paper or electronic, "are temporary records and subject to destruction" after five years, under a new policy.There was no explanation for the change, and it is perplexing to researchers. The records under threat are called Labor Condition Applications (LCA), which identify the H-1B employer, worksite, the prevailing wage, and the wage paid to the worker.+ ALSO ON NETWORK WORLD H-1B whistleblower files new federal lawsuit +To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here READ MORE Lowe's ranked the best, Home Depot the worst in SECTF contest The results are out from the fifth annual Social-Engineer Capture the Flag (SECTF) contest, which was held during Def Con 22. This year, social engineers worked in tag teams to trick companies into giving up “flags,” or key pieces of information that could be used to penetrate the target company. Unlike bad guys in real life, the contestants did not victimize any companies.The SECTF report (pdf) includes the results of how well the target companies did; higher scores do not mean the company did better as it indicates the targets gave up more flags. Lowe’s ranked the best and Home Depot ranked the worst. The full SECTF target company rankings from this year are posted at the top of this article.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here READ MORE 20 great productivity apps for Android, iOS, and the Web These 20 essential apps work on all three platforms, helping you stay productive no matter what device you or your co-workers use READ MORE WHITE PAPER: Upsite Technologies Cooling Capacity Factor Reveals Data Center Cost Savings The average computer room today has cooling capacity that is nearly four times the IT heat load. Using data from 45 sites reviewed by Upsite Technologies, this white paper will show how you can calculate, benchmark, interpret, and benefit from a simple and practical metric called the Cooling Capacity Factor (CCF). Learn More SLIDESHOWS Ubuntu turns 10: A look back at the desktop Linux standard bearer A brief history of Ubuntu, as alliterative as all-get-out. JOIN THE NETWORK WORLD COMMUNITIES As network pros you understand that the value of connections increase as the number of connections increase, the so called network effect, and no where is this more evident than in professional relationships. Join Network World’s LinkedIn and Facebook communities to share ideas, post questions, see what your peers are working on and scout out job applicants (or maybe find your next opportunity). Network World on Facebook Network World on LinkedIn MOST-READ STORIES of 2014 1. 15 of the scariest things hacked 2. Disaster as CryptoWall encrypts US firm's entire server installation 3. How much bigger is Amazon’s cloud vs. Microsoft and Google? 4. Why EMC acquired VCE from Cisco 5. Top 25 most commonly used and worst passwords 6. Ebola crisis brings out another sickness: Vile scammer 7. Big data wars: How technology could tip the mid-term elections 8. Cisco patches 3 year old security hole 9. Discover where the value lies 10. Google's fully driverless car looking less realistic by the day