John Lister

Google's top executive in Brazil has been released pending a court date. Fabio Jose Silva Coelhoto was arrested because the company defied a court order to take down YouTube videos some say slander a mayoral candidate. The video clips reportedly ... suggest that a candidate in the city of Campo Grande has committed crimes. It's not clear at this point whether there is any truth to the allegations. However, local court actions suggests there is not. Judge Flavio Peren ruled last week that the videos breached Brazilian election law and must be removed. Peren also ruled that YouTube access should be ... (view more)

The Iranian government has blocked its citizens' access to Gmail and a secure version of Google. The move appears to be the first part of a larger plan to control exactly what Internet sites Iranians can access. An Iranian official who is part of a ... government group in charge of controlling Internet content says that "due to the repeated demands of the people, Google and Gmail will be filtered nationwide. They will remain filtered until further notice." (Source: com.au ) The official did not make clear exactly who made these demands. Insiders, however, note that many Iranian businesses use ... (view more)

Facebook has flatly denied that private messages sent between 'Friends' on that social network have appeared on users' public profile pages. Despite widespread reports of this problem in France, Facebook says the claims are a technical impossibility ... and may be the result of confusion. The claims were first reported by the French newspaper Metro, which wrote that "private messages dating from 2007, 2008 and 2009 now appear directly in user's timelines." However, Metro noted the "problem is not systematic." (Source: metrofrance.com ) Cheaters Exposed by Facebook Problem Following the reports, ... (view more)

Apple iPhone, iPod, and iPad users are complaining loudly that the combined software upgrade and elimination of Google Maps has resulted in Apple's new mapping service yielding some odd location-based search results. The problem affects anyone who ... has upgraded to iOS 6, the latest version of Apple's operating system (OS). The new OS for later editions of the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad was released just before the debut of the company's iPhone 5. Apple Cuts Google Maps with Software Upgrade Until recently, Apple used Google's mapping services on its devices. Now it has decided to drop that ... (view more)

Software developer Kevin Burke claims Virgin Mobile customers face an unacceptable risk of falling prey to hackers. Unlike many security issues, this isn't an unexpected bug that's produced by an oversight during the coding process. Burke says weak ... security within that system might allow hackers to hijack a user's phone number. According to Burke, he reported the problem a month ago but has not yet seen any sign that the firm is taking steps to fix it. He is now publicizing the issue in the hope of forcing Virgin Mobile into action. Six Digit Pin Insufficient The weakness stems from Virgin ... (view more)

Microsoft has admitted hackers are carrying out targeted attacks to exploit a newly-discovered bug in its popular Internet Explorer web browser. The company is working on a fix, but suggests users consider technical workarounds in the meantime. The ... bug affects all versions of Internet Explorer from version 6 (which shipped with Vista) to version 9 (the current edition). It won't affect Internet Explorer 10, which will first become available with Windows 8 in late October, 2012. Eric Romang, a security researcher, discovered the bug while examining a web server used by hackers. Romang found ... (view more)

The company that conned cellphone owners into signing up for expensive data plans will now pay a $500,000 fine to the New York Attorney General's office. Game Theory LLC has also been told it must stop sending unsolicited texts. Game Theory is said ... to have sent more than 150,000 misleading texts in less than two months last summer. The texts told people that an unnamed person had a romantic crush on them and they could find out who it was by replying with the word 'yes.' It's not clear how many people replied affirmatively. While it's likely most people ignored the texts, an operation of this ... (view more)

A U.S. senator wants to close a legal loophole that allows law enforcement officials to read private emails without first obtaining a warrant. If successful, the change would mean users of webmail services, such as Gmail and Hotmail, will receive ... extra protection against prying eyes. Private email content is currently protected by the Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986. However, email usage is far greater today than it was then, and new procedures leave open the opportunity for officials to read private emails in secret. Years ago most email users downloaded their messages, which ... (view more)

US-based Internet firms will begin an anti-piracy partnership with major copyright holders by the end of 2012. However, it's a purely voluntary operation and customers thought to be pirating will get warnings before suffering any consequences. ... Several countries around the world, most notably France, have introduced "three strikes" legislation, under which customers suspected of illegally sharing copyrighted material get two warnings before having their Internet suspended or cut off altogether. These controversial laws have faced legal challenges. Critics argue it's unfair to punish people ... (view more)