Tag: digest

Apple supercharges R&D with extra $500 million spent in last six months

Apple product sales are flattening out a bit compared to last year, save for iPads. Casey Johnston Apple boosted its research and development spending by 33 percent in the second quarter of 2013 compared to the same period last year, according to a quarterly report filed with the Securities Exchange Commission. If the rate of spending continues, Apple could drop over $4 billion on R&D this fiscal year. During the quarter ending March 30, 2013, Apple spent $1.119 billion on R&D, compared to $841 million from a year ago. In the first six months of its fiscal year, Apple has spent $2.129 billion total on R&D, while it spent only $1.599 billion last year. Apple stated that the spending for the quarter was up 33 percent due to “an increase in headcount” and “expanded R&D activities.” The statement went on to say that the “focused investments” in R&D are “directly related to timely development of new and enhanced products that are central to the Company’s core business strategy. As such, the Company expects to make further investments in R&D to remain competitive.” Read 1 remaining paragraphs | Comments

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Apple supercharges R&D with extra $500 million spent in last six months

Java users beware: Exploit circulating for just-patched critical flaw

If you haven’t installed last week’s patch from Oracle that plugs dozens of critical holes in its Java software framework, now would be a good time. As in immediately. As in, really, right now . In the past few days, attack code targeting one of the many remote-code-execution vulnerabilities fixed in Java 7 Update 21 was folded into either the folded into the RedKit or CrimeBoss exploit kit. By Sunday, that attack code was being actively unleashed on unsuspecting end users, according to a short blog post published by a researcher from antivirus provider F-Secure. The post doesn’t say where the attacks were being hosted or precisely how attackers are using them. Still, Oracle describes the vulnerability as allowing remote code execution without authentication. And that means you should install the patch before you do anything else today. The track record of malware purveyors of abusing advertising networks, compromised Apache servers , and other legitimate enterprises means readers could encounter attacks even when they’re browsing a site they know and trust. Read 3 remaining paragraphs | Comments

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Java users beware: Exploit circulating for just-patched critical flaw

IBM’s solar tech is 80% efficient thanks to supercomputer know-how

IBM Research’s prototype HCPVT system in Zurich. By borrowing cooling systems used in its supercomputers, IBM Research claims it can dramatically increase the overall efficiency of concentrated photovoltaic solar power from 30 to 80 percent. Like other concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) collectors, IBM’s system at its Zurich laboratory uses a mirrored parabolic dish to concentrate incoming solar radiation onto PV cells. The dish uses a tracking system to move with the sun, concentrating the collected radiation by a factor of 2,000 onto a sensor containing triple-junction PV cells. During daylight hours, each 1-sq cm PV chip generates on average between 200 and 250 watts of electrical power, harnessing up to 30 percent of the incoming solar energy. Ordinarily, the remaining 70 percent of energy would be lost as heat. But by capturing most of that heat with water, IBM Research says it is able to reduce system heat losses to around 20 percent of the total incoming energy. This results in a bottom-line efficiency of 80 percent for its CPV collector, dubbed HCPVT for High Concentration Photovoltaic Thermal. Unlike a regular CPV system, HCPVT delivers its energy in two forms: electricity and hot water. Read 7 remaining paragraphs | Comments

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IBM’s solar tech is 80% efficient thanks to supercomputer know-how

Senate advances “online sales tax” by 74-20 vote

Your tax-free days of online shopping are numbered. If S743 , also known as the Marketplace Fairness Act, becomes law, the millions of Americans who have been able to avoid sales tax online will have to start paying it. Given the broad support shown by today’s US Senate vote, some version of it is likely to come to fruition. The bill will compel companies having annual online sales of more than $1 million to collect sales tax on those purchases. Interstate sales have long been exempted from sales tax, but brick-and-mortar businesses have just as long complained about the edge that online businesses have since they avoid collecting taxes. A key opponent of online taxation, retail giant Amazon, recently switched sides after losing some key legal and political battles over taxation. Amazon already collects taxes on sales in nine states , including California, New York, and Texas. Technically this wouldn’t be a new tax, since California residents who make purchases from an online company are responsible for paying those taxes. But there’s never been an efficient way to collect such taxes so it rarely happens. Read 5 remaining paragraphs | Comments

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Senate advances “online sales tax” by 74-20 vote

Bitfloor, number four Bitcoin-based exchange, shuts down for good

On Wednesday evening, Bitfloor , the number four Bitcoin-based exchange (behind Mt. Gox, BTC-E, and Bitstamp) announced that it is closing its doors “indefinitely.” “Unfortunately, our US bank account is scheduled to be closed and we can no longer provide the same level of [US dollar] deposits and withdrawals as we have in the past,” wrote Roman Shtylman , the exchange’s founder. “As such, I have made the decision to halt operations and return all funds. Over the next days we will be working with all clients to ensure that everyone receives their funds. Please be patient as we process your request.” Ars reached out to Shtylman to find out more details, but he did not immediately respond. Read 2 remaining paragraphs | Comments

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Bitfloor, number four Bitcoin-based exchange, shuts down for good

Google to acquire Provo, Utah’s fiber, transform it into Google Fiber

Less than 10 days after announcing that Austin will be Google Fiber’s second city (Kansas City, KS and MO, and surrounding small towns  qualified as Google’s first), the company announced suddenly that Provo, Utah will become the “third Google Fiber City.” Interestingly, Google isn’t laying its own fiber this time, but rather purchasing an existing network. “In order to bring Fiber to Provo, we’ve signed an agreement to purchase iProvo, an existing fiber-optic network owned by the city,” the company wrote in a blog post . “As a part of the acquisition, we would commit to upgrade the network to gigabit technology and finish network construction so that every home along the existing iProvo network would have the opportunity to connect to Google Fiber. Our agreement with Provo isn’t approved yet—it’s pending a vote by the City Council scheduled for next Tuesday, April 23. We intend to begin the network upgrades as soon as the closing conditions are satisfied and the deal is closed.” Read 2 remaining paragraphs | Comments

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Google to acquire Provo, Utah’s fiber, transform it into Google Fiber

“Syrian Electronic Army” hacks NPR publishing system, edits articles

NPR’s Web publishing system and several of the news agency’s Twitter accounts were hacked yesterday by a group supportive of the Syrian government that calls itself the “Syrian Electronic Army.” “Late Monday evening, several stories on the NPR website were defaced with headlines and text that said ‘Syrian Electronic Army Was Here,'” an NPR statement published in a NPR.org news story on the incident said. “Some of these stories were distributed to and appeared on NPR Member Station websites. We have made the necessary corrections to those stories on NPR.org and are continuing to work with our Member Stations. Similar statements were posted on several NPR Twitter accounts. Those Twitter accounts have been addressed. We are closely monitoring the situation.” Sophos’s Naked Security blog published a summary of the hack , including a screenshot of a Google search showing some of the headlines edited by the Syrian Electronic Army: Read 3 remaining paragraphs | Comments

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“Syrian Electronic Army” hacks NPR publishing system, edits articles

Microsoft tells Windows 7 users to uninstall faulty security update (Updated)

Microsoft has pulled a Windows 7 security update released as part of this month’s Patch Tuesday after discovering it caused some machines to become unbootable. Update 2823324 , which was included in the MS13-036 bulletin , fixed a “moderate-level vulnerability” that requires an attacker to have physical computer access to be able to exploit a targeted computer, Dustin Childs, a group manager in the Microsoft Trustworthy Computing group, wrote in a blog post published Thursday evening. The company has now pulled it from the bulletin and is advising at least some Windows users who have installed it to uninstall the update following the guidance here . MS130-26 was one of nine bulletins released on Monday to fix 13 separate vulnerabilities. “We’ve determined that the update, when paired with certain third-party software, can cause system errors,” Childs wrote. “As a precaution, we stopped pushing 2823324 as an update when we began investigating the error reports, and have since removed it from the download center.” Read 3 remaining paragraphs | Comments

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Microsoft tells Windows 7 users to uninstall faulty security update (Updated)

BlackBerry wants SEC to investigate “false reports” of Z10 returns

Yesterday, brokerage firm Detwiler Fenton claimed that more people were returning BlackBerry Z10s than had bought them at retail in the first place. Today, BlackBerry responded , saying not only that the Detwiler report was incorrect, but that it was going to ask the Securities and Exchange Commission in the US and the Ontario Securities Commission in Canada to review the report. Of the reports, BlackBerry CEO Thorsten Heins said, “Return rate statistics show that we are at or below our forecasts and right in line with the industry. To suggest otherwise is either a gross misreading of the data or a willful manipulation. Such a conclusion is absolutely without basis and BlackBerry will not leave it unchallenged.” The smartphone company also noted that Detwiler refused to make its report or methodology available. How more phones could be returned than were sold isn’t clear. Detwiler Fenton is the same firm that predicted that Microsoft would sell 2-3 million Surface Pro units in the fourth quarter of 2012, despite the fact that Microsoft explicitly said the device wouldn’t ship until three months after the Surface RT’s October launch. Read 2 remaining paragraphs | Comments

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BlackBerry wants SEC to investigate “false reports” of Z10 returns

A beginner’s guide to building botnets—with little assembly required

Original photo by Michael Kappel / Remixed by Aurich Lawson Have a plan to steal millions from banks and their customers but can’t write a line of code? Want to get rich quick off advertising click fraud but “quick” doesn’t include time to learn how to do it? No problem. Everything you need to start a life of cybercrime is just a few clicks (and many more dollars) away. Building successful malware is an expensive business. It involves putting together teams of developers, coordinating an army of fraudsters to convert ill-gotten gains to hard currency without pointing a digital arrow right back to you. So the biggest names in financial botnets—Zeus, Carberp, Citadel, and SpyEye, to name a few—have all at one point or another decided to shift gears from fraud rings to crimeware vendors, selling their wares to whoever can afford them. In the process, these big botnet platforms have created a whole ecosystem of software and services in an underground market catering to criminals without the skills to build it themselves. As a result, the tools and techniques used by last years’ big professional bank fraud operations, such as the ” Operation High Roller ” botnet that netted over $70 million last summer, are available off-the-shelf on the Internet. They even come with full technical support to help you get up and running. Read 63 remaining paragraphs | Comments

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A beginner’s guide to building botnets—with little assembly required