John Lister

The first hands-on reviews of Amazon's debut tablet device, the Kindle Fire , are beginning to appear. Their general theme is that the price is great, but the device itself could use some improvement. The Fire costs $199, approximately 60 per cent ... lower than Apple's iPad, and right on the consumer electronics price point at which mass market purchasers become more willing to try out new technology. Kindle Fire: Silky Smooth But Not Ultra Fast Most of the reviews claim that Amazon's highly promoted web browser for the Kindle Fire, Silk, is too slow. The browser actually displays web pages ... (view more)

The creators of a recently-discovered form of malware (malicious software) have reportedly used stolen government ID to make the bogus software appear legitimate when presented on Windows PCs. Once the malware is installed, it can steal personal ... information, such as passwords or banking information, or download other malware programs to the PC. The malware is spread via infected PDF (portable document format) files that exploit a bug in the outdated Adobe Reader 8. (Source: computerworld.com ) The incident involves a code signing certificate, similar to the authentication systems for secure ... (view more)

Hi-tech thieves used low-tech means to steal a half a million dollars worth of video games last week. The way it was done almost sounds like a plot from a video game -- but this incident was no laughing matter. One truck was passing through Creteil, ... in the south of Paris; a car then crashed into the truck, stopping it. Two masked men then appeared, used tear gas on the truck drivers, and drove away with the truck containing about 6,000 copies of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. The estimated value of the heist is more than $500,000 US dollars. A second robbery took place on the same day in ... (view more)

Facebook is reportedly on the verge of agreeing to a settlement with the federal government over claims it misled users regarding its privacy policies. The settlement wouldn't involve a formal admission of guilt, but would have lengthy consequences ... for the social networking company. The case, brought by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), is based on allegations that Facebook does not always obtain a user's permission before changing the way it handles that user's personal data. Instead, Facebook simply applies the changes it wants on an opt-out basis, in effect asserting that it can apply ... (view more)

Samsung has confirmed it will sell touch-screen devices running Windows 8, beginning in the second half of 2012. For Microsoft, this is a positive sign its efforts to adapt the new operating system to ultra-portable devices will pay off. Samsung's ... sales and marketing chief says the new touch screen device will likely be a modified form of the company's existing Series 7 computer, a touch-screen "slate" (a name sometimes used for Windows-based devices known elsewhere as "tablets") that comes with a separate wireless keyboard. (Source: bloomberg.com ) Windows Slate: 'For Professionals ... (view more)

An Ohio firm has developed a new software system which promises to reduce the time and money people waste waiting for deliveries and repairmen to show up on call. According to TOA Technologies, US workers lose about $37 billion each year because of ... vague schedules that keep them pinned down, waiting for delivery and service personnel. Software Monitors Real Time Events, Not Schedule The problem of delivery and service call scheduling has long been a tough nut to crack. TOA's new system, however, tackles the problem by calculating both the amount of time that a given job might take, and the ... (view more)

Microsoft has published details of its next batch of security updates (known as Patch Tuesday), due to download to Windows machines automatically on Tuesday, November 8 via Windows Update. The only critical update in the batch affects newer rather ... than older editions of Windows. None of the security updates to be released next Tuesday are said to patch MS Word, which is currently being exploited by the Duqu virus (a major zero-day threat ). The entire update is a bit of a surprise, say critics, because it deals with just four groups of bugs -- a far cry from recent updates that have included ... (view more)

New reports are surfacing with details of the latest and what's considered to be one of the most dangerous Internet worms, dubbed "Duqu." It's said the worm can install and spread itself due to a security loophole in Microsoft Word. As reported last ... week, Duqu's programming code is very close to that of the Stuxnet worm that wreaked havoc back in 2010 . Stuxnet was a particularly sophisticated virus which infected Windows-based PCs, and in turn, attacked computers that controlled equipment in Iran's nuclear program to the point where it caused irreversible damage to equipment. So ... (view more)

A senior Microsoft lawyer says Google is simply "standing on the shoulder" of other companies. Horacio Gutierrez made the claims while defending Microsoft's involvement in the so-called "patent wars". Gutierrez is the deputy general counsel at ... Microsoft and has specific responsibility for intellectual property (IP) issues. He made the accusations in an interview with the San Francisco Chronicle. Smartphone, Mobile Tech Lawsuits Widespread The discussion centered on the widespread series of lawsuits and countersuits in the smartphone and mobile tech industry. The situation has ... (view more)

Dozens of chemical companies have been hit with a wave of online attacks. At least 48 companies are confirmed to have been hit, of which 29 were in the chemical sector. The remaining 19 companies were involved in the chemical defense sector. ... According to security researchers at Symantec, the assault ran from July until the middle of September, though the effects are still being felt. The true scale may be larger: at least 101 different locations are known to be housing computers infected by the attack, covering 20 different countries. (Source: symantec.com ) Cyber Attacks Use Low-Tech ... (view more)