You are here: Home / Archives for Computing

Researcher cracks Wi-Fi passwords with Amazon cloud • The Register

January 12, 2011 By Leave a Comment

A security researcher has tapped Amazon’s cloud computing service to crack Wi-Fi passwords in a fraction of the time and for a fraction of the cost of using his own gear.

Thomas Roth of Cologne, Germany told Reuters he used custom software running on Amazon’s Elastic Compute Cloud service to break into a WPA-PSK protected network in about 20 minutes. With refinements to his program, he said he could shave the time to about six minutes. With EC2 computers available for 28 cents per minute, the cost of the crack came to just $1.68.

“People tell me there is no possible way to break WPA, or, if it were possible, it would cost you a ton of money to do so,” Roth told the news service. “But it is easy to brute force them.”

Roth is the same researcher who in November used Amazon’s cloud to brute force SHA-1 hashes. Roth said he cracked 14 hashes from a 160-bit SHA-1 hash with a password of between one and six characters in about 49 minutes. He told The Register at the time he’d be able to significantly reduce that time with minor tweaks to his software, which made use of “Cluster GPU Instances” of the EC2 service.

via Researcher cracks Wi-Fi passwords with Amazon cloud • The Register.

LinkedInPinterestEvernoteWordPressBlogger PostEmailShare
Filed Under: Tech Bytes Tagged With: , , , , ,

Microsoft: virus-infected computers should be quarantined | Technology | guardian.co.uk

October 7, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Virus-infected computers should be blocked from the internet and kept in quarantine until they are given a “health certificate”, a top Microsoft security researcher suggested on Thursday.

Under the proposed security regime, put forward by the technology giant’s trustworthy computing team, an individual’s internet connection would be “throttled” to prevent the virus spreading to other computers. But security experts today warned that cutting people off from the internet could be a drastic step too far – and that the question of who would issue and verify the “health certificate” was troubling.

Millions of computers around the world running versions of Microsoft’s Windows operating system are infected by viruses without their user’s knowledge and used to generate billions of spam emails and attacks against websites, such as that used against a British law company earlier this month.

The infected computers are often marshalled by virus writers into “botnets” which are hired out for criminal use. Microsoft, internet service providers, banks and web companies have fought long but so far unsuccessful battles against botnets. Earlier this year Microsoft took its fight to the US courts after a group of infected computers sent more than 650m spam emails to its Hotmail accounts. The spread of computer viruses has, however, continued unabated.

The new proposal, Microsoft claimed, is built on the lessons of public health. Scott Charney, corporate vice president of Microsoft’s trustworthy computing team, wrote on the company’s blog: “Just as when an individual who is not vaccinated puts others’ health at risk, computers that are not protected or have been compromised with a bot put others at risk and pose a greater threat to society.”

via Microsoft: virus-infected computers should be quarantined | Technology | guardian.co.uk.

LinkedInPinterestEvernoteWordPressBlogger PostEmailShare
Filed Under: Tech Bytes Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

TDual screen Acer Laptop Prototype Images Leaked

September 13, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Seems like dual-screen laptops would be the next major thing in mobile computing. Acer has been quietly developing dual-screen laptop and images of the prototype were tipped by TechReviewSource. From the images, the laptop looks like a laptop integrating a tablet to get touchscreen keyboard and trackpad. The source who passed on the images to TRS noted that the dual screen laptop was merely a prototype and was sluggish. At this moment, details about the distinct functions of both screens haven’t been divulged or leaked.

Back in June, Toshiba announced limited edition Libretto W100 dual screen laptop with multi-touch support on both screens. Acer might be working on this dual screen laptop that houses 2.66GHz Intel Core i5 microprocessor. This dual-screen laptop would run Windows 7 operating system but there’s no word on whether both screen would support multi-touch or not. Let’s hope that the laptop makes the best of touted touchscreen capabilities of the Windows 7 operating system.

via Techtree.com India > News > Consumer Electronics > Dual screen Acer Laptop Prototype Images Leaked.

LinkedInPinterestEvernoteWordPressBlogger PostEmailShare
Filed Under: Tech Bytes Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Google Apps Fitted With Government Controls — InformationWeek

July 27, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Catering to a growing need among cost-constrained government agencies for cloud computing that’s both affordable and secure, Google on Monday introduced a new version of Google Apps for federal, state, and local government agencies in the U.S.

Google Apps for Government offers the same suite of online applications as Google Apps Premiere Edition, with Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) certification and support for government-mandated policy and security measures.

Google claims that Google Apps for Government is the first multi-tenant cloud computing suite to receive certification under FISMA, which sets guidelines for responsible information security management in U.S. government information systems.

via Google Apps Fitted With Government Controls — InformationWeek.

LinkedInPinterestEvernoteWordPressBlogger PostEmailShare
Filed Under: Tech Bytes Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Cloud Service Users Face Confusing Legal Landscape – PCWorld Business Center

May 18, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Cloud computing has great benefits for businesses but legal uncertainties threaten to hamper adoption, said a group of lawyers speaking during a seminar in Seattle this week.

“We will have to create a robust legal system and we will have to do it sooner rather than later and before we have the cloud computing equivalent of an offshore oil rig blowout,” said Barry J. Reingold, a partner at Perkins Coie in Washington, D.C.

Lawyers speaking at the Law Seminars International event on Monday offered advice about the types of research companies should do before signing up for cloud services to make sure they can protect themselves from potential legal fallout.

One of the most important issues facing companies that wish to store or process data in the cloud is determining which legal systems have jurisdiction over the data. “It’s a can of worms,” said Andy James, a lawyer with Osborne Clarke.

A company using a cloud service could have users all over the world and those users’ information could be shifted to facilities around the globe. “So there are four possible legal locations for the information at any moment,” James said. Laws applicable to the location of the company’s headquarters, the location of the servers, the location of the consumer and the location of the communications equipment transmitting the information between the user and the provider could all potentially apply.

Unfortunately, he said, different jurisdictions have made different choices on which of those locations to base their cloud rules on.

via Cloud Service Users Face Confusing Legal Landscape – PCWorld Business Center.

LinkedInPinterestEvernoteWordPressBlogger PostEmailShare
Filed Under: From The News Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Moving to the Cloud | The White House

May 13, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Today, the Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board announced that it is moving Recovery.gov to the cloud. As the world’s largest consumer of information technology and as stewards of taxpayer dollars, the Federal Government has a duty to be a leader in pioneering the use of new technologies that are more efficient and economical.

For those of you not familiar with cloud computing, here is a brief explanation. There was a time when every household, town, or village had its own water well. Today, shared public utilities give us access to clean water by simply turning on the tap. Cloud computing works a lot like our shared public utilities. However, instead of water coming from a tap, users access computing power from a pool of shared resources. Just like the tap in your kitchen, cloud computing services can be turned on or off as needed, and, when the tap isn’t on, not only can the water be used by someone else, but you aren’t paying for resources that you don’t use.  Cloud computing is a new model for delivering computing resources – such as networks, servers, storage, or software applications.

Recovery.gov is the first government-wide system to move to the cloud. The move is part of the Administration’s overall efforts to cut waste and fix or end government programs that don’t work. By migrating to the public cloud, the Recovery Board is in position to leverage many advantages including the ability keep the site up as millions of Americans help report potential fraud, waste, and abuse. The Board expects savings of about $750,000 during its current budget cycle and significantly more savings in the long-term.

In April, HHS leveraged cloud computing to support implementation of Electronic Health Records (EHR) systems. To coordinate healthcare providers’ implementation of new Electronic Health Record (EHR) systems, HHS is deploying a cloud-based customer relationship and project management solution provided by Salesforce.com. The solutions will support HHS’s Regional Extension Centers in assisting doctors and rural hospitals in the selection, implementation and meaningful use of EHRs. Various implementation approaches can be analyzed to quickly identify best practices for EHR implementation as they emerge.

By using cloud services, the Federal Government will gain access to powerful technology resources faster and at lower costs. This frees us to focus on mission-critical tasks instead of purchasing, configuring, and maintaining redundant infrastructure.

via Moving to the Cloud | The White House.

LinkedInPinterestEvernoteWordPressBlogger PostEmailShare
Filed Under: Tech Bytes Tagged With: , , ,

Get Your Head in the Cloud – Magazine – ABA Journal

March 25, 2010 By

Interest in “cloud computing” is picking up steam among lawyers for several good reasons. Proponents say its advantages center on economy, simplicity and accessibility.

Cloud computing—also known as software as a service, or SaaS—is, in essence, a sophisticated form of remote electronic data storage on the Internet. Unlike traditional methods that maintain data on a computer or server at a law office or other place of business, data stored “in the cloud” is kept on large servers located elsewhere and maintained by a vendor.

That means the vendor—not the firm—purchases, maintains and updates hardware and software, and the firm generally pays a monthly fee to the vendor for its services. More over, data stored in the cloud can be accessed more easily than information maintained on a local network, as long as there is a handy Internet connection.

But some of the advantages of cloud computing also are reasons for lawyers to be cautious about its use. In particular, the fact that client data and work product are stored somewhere outside the direct control of the law firm raises potential ethics concerns about whether the confidentiality and security of the information is adequately protected within the mandates of professional conduct rules for lawyers.

Confidentiality issues center on where the data is being stored, how and to where it’s moved, and where it might be moving in the future, says Roland Trope, a partner at Trope and Schramm in New York City who is writing a book on cloud computing.

“Remember in the Watergate scandal, there was the famous quote: ‘Follow the money,’ ” Trope says. “It’s a much more subtle analysis when you say, ‘Follow the data.’ The difference is, when money moves you don’t leave copies of it.

via Get Your Head in the Cloud – Magazine – ABA Journal.

LinkedInPinterestEvernoteWordPressBlogger PostEmailShare
Filed Under: Tech Bytes Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Negotiating Cloud Computing Agreements | Law.com

March 11, 2010 By

Cloud computing has been characterized as a paradigm-shifting phenomenon that will change how we purchase IT resources. Though given different names, cloud computing has been around for some time, and the legal lessons learned from experience with traditional software licensing and outsourcing agreements can and should be applied to cloud agreements, but there are new issues which will need new solutions.

Cloud computing is a loose term that describes a variety of data storage, processing, and application services, normally provided by a third party using equipment not located on the customer's site. These services include providing raw processing power on demand, special purpose applications on a subscription basis, and remote data storage. An early form of cloud computing was Application Service Provider or ASP services, and another is currently known as software as a service or SaaS. Cloud services are normally provided using internet technology, where the customer uses inexpensive hardware and an internet browser to access the service and/or remotely stored data.

The ease of access and simplicity of using cloud applications are part of its attraction. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the legal issues related to cloud computing. While traditional software licensing and IT outsourcing agreements can be used as a model for cloud computing, there are new risks and business practices not addressed in those older agreements that must be considered.

via Law.com – Negotiating Cloud Computing Agreements.

LinkedInPinterestEvernoteWordPressBlogger PostEmailShare
Filed Under: From The News Tagged With: , , , ,

FTC set to examine cloud computing – The Hill’s Hillicon Valley

January 4, 2010 By Leave a Comment

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is investigating the privacy and security implications of cloud computing, according to a recent filing with the Federal Communications Commission.

The FTC, which shares jurisdiction over broadband issues, says it recognizes the potential cost-savings cloud computing can provide. “However, the storage of data on remote computers may also raise privacy and security concerns for consumers,” wrote David Vladeck, who helms the FTC’s Consumer Protection Bureau.

“For example, the ability of cloud computing services to collect and centrally store increasing amounts of consumer data, combined with the ease with which such centrally stored data may be shared with others, create a risk that larger amounts of data may be used by entities not originally intended or understood by consumers,” the filing says.

The FTC is also looking at identity management systems — i.e., how people authenticate their identities when logging into websites — and how they can better protect citizens’ privacy.

via FTC set to examine cloud computing – The Hill’s Hillicon Valley.

LinkedInPinterestEvernoteWordPressBlogger PostEmailShare
Filed Under: Tech Bytes Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

In-House Legal Departments and the Use of Cloud Computing

December 29, 2009 By Leave a Comment

In-House Legal Departments and the Use of Cloud Computing

International Law May Confound Benefits

By Greg Freemyer and Hope Haslam

Cloud computing, the process of storing and processing data on remote, outsourced third-party-owned servers, is growing in popularity, largely because it provides users with access to state-of-the-art and constantly updated software and fast infrastructure — without the overwhelming costs. As technology advances at exponential speeds, companies must find ways to remain competitive. Buying the latest and greatest, only to find it obsolete before it is paid for, is a progressively unsustainable option.

For international companies, however, there are tremendous legal hurdles to accomplishing an effective conversion. Two of the most troubling are:

  1. U.S. preservation requirements; and
  2. International privacy laws.

As companies begin to set up, or more likely expand, a cloud computing system, they must understand the legal issues that need to be addressed in order to avoid subjecting the company to sanctions, fines, penalties and enormous e-discovery costs when litigation arises.

[continued] In-House Legal Departments and the Use of Cloud Computing.

LinkedInPinterestEvernoteWordPressBlogger PostEmailShare
Filed Under: From The News Tagged With: , , , , , ,
« Older Posts
Newer Posts »