Verizon

Privacy alert: Verizon is now monitoring your mobile Web habits – Computerworld Blogs

October 13, 2011 By Global EDD Group Leave a Comment

Verizon Wireless users, listen up:

Verizon is making a significant change to its privacy policy for mobile users this week. By default, the company will now use a bunch of your info for “certain business and marketing reports” and for “making mobile ads you see more relevant.”

This info includes the URLs of websites you visit over Verizon’s network and also your device’s location data. Some of those details may be shared with outside companies as well. Verizon says none of it will personally identify you.

via Privacy alert: Verizon is now monitoring your mobile Web habits – Computerworld Blogs.

Filed Under: From The News Tagged With: Blogs, Business, change, location data, marketing, mobile ads, Verizon, verizon wireless, web habits, wireless users

Which Telecoms Store Your Data the Longest? Secret Memo Tells All | Wired.com

September 28, 2011 By Global EDD Group Leave a Comment

The nation’s major mobile-phone providers are keeping a treasure trove of sensitive data on their customers, according to newly-released Justice Department internal memo that for the first time reveals the data retention policies of America’s largest telecoms.

The single-page Department of Justice document, “Retention Periods of Major Cellular Service Providers,” (.pdf) is a guide for law enforcement agencies looking to get information — like customer IP addresses, call logs, text messages and web surfing habits – out of U.S. telecom companies, including AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile and Verizon.

The document, marked “Law Enforcement Use Only” and dated August 2010, illustrates there are some significant differences in how long carriers retain your data.

Verizon, for example, keeps a list of everyone you’ve exchanged text messages with for the past year, according to the document. But T-Mobile stores the same data up to five years. It’s 18 months for Sprint, and seven years for AT&T.

That makes Verizon appear to have the most privacy-friendly policy. Except that Verizon is alone in retaining the actual contents of text messages. It allegedly stores the messages for five days, while T-Mobile, AT&T, and Sprint don’t store them at all.

via Which Telecoms Store Your Data the Longest? Secret Memo Tells All | Threat Level | Wired.com.

Filed Under: From The News, Tech Bytes Tagged With: cellular service providers, com, document retention periods, mobile phone providers, Tells, text, treasure trove, Verizon, web surfing habits, Wired

Motorola, Verizon Target Enterprise With $299 Droid Bionic – Mobility – Smartphones – Informationweek

September 7, 2011 By Global EDD Group Leave a Comment

First announced at CES back in January, the Motorola Droid Bionic will finally go on sale September 8 for $299. It is Motorola’s first Long Term Evolution 4G smartphone and runs Google’s Android 2.3.4 Gingerbread operating system. Standout features include a dual-core TI OMAP 1-GHz processor, 8-megapixel camera with 1080p HD video capture, a 4.3-inch qHD display, and 1 GB of RAM. But the phone is only half the story.

Equipping mobile professionals can be a tricky task. They need to have just the right amount of technology to perform the functions essential to their job. Finding the right balance between hardware and connectivity options has probably caused more than one IT professional to pull out his or her hair.

via Motorola, Verizon Target Enterprise With $299 Droid Bionic – Mobility – Smartphones – Informationweek.

Filed Under: Tech Bytes Tagged With: connectivity options, Long, Mobility, Motorola, Smartphones, standout features, target enterprise, term evolution, tricky task, Verizon

Is your IT support making you vulnerable to hackers? – Computerworld

July 22, 2011 By Global EDD Group Leave a Comment

Network World – Data breaches are more prevalent and more costly than ever. Smarter technologies seem to breed smarter hackers, making it difficult for IT to keep up. But sometimes IT unwittingly helps the bad guys by improperly using core tools, such as remote support mechanisms.

According to a Verizon report which examined more than 700 data breaches from 2010, a whopping 71% of all attacks were conducted through remote access and desktop services pathways.

IN THE NEWS: House panel approves data breach notification bill

Given the cost and efficiency benefits of fixing a system remotely versus dispatching a tech, remote support isn’t likely to lose favor anytime soon. So how can companies take advantage of remote support while maintaining security and keeping data safe?

via Is your IT support making you vulnerable to hackers? – Computerworld.

Filed Under: Tech Bytes Tagged With: access, core tools, desktop, desktop services, efficiency benefits, maintaining security, panel, Support, support mechanisms, Verizon

AT&T Vs. Verizon: Which Data Plan Is Better? – mobility Blog

June 23, 2011 By Global EDD Group Leave a Comment

Last September, Verizon CEO Ivan Seidenberg said that Big Red would move to tiered data plans, in favor of the current all-you-can-eat plans they now offer, within six months. While a few months late, he is holding to his word. The changes are expected to take place on July 7.

Droid Life says that the 2-GB plan will be $30. That is just a bit more than AT&T’s $25 2-GB DataPro plan for the iPhone. T-Mobile is a bit harder to compare to, no doubt by design. It doesn’t offer pure data plans but sells most of its services in an Even More bundle. If you pick it apart, you can estimate T-Mobile’s 2-GB plan is $20 per month. That puts Verizon at the high end of the scale.

Verizon also has a 5-GB plan for $50 and 10 GB for $80. If you want to tether another device to your phone, it will cost you an extra $20 per month, but Verizon will throw in an extra 2 GB. Overages are charged at the rate of $10 per GB. If you need a lot of data, your choice is Verizon. Tethering on a 10-GB plan will cost you $100 per month but give you 12 GB. AT&T’s biggest plan is 4 GB, which includes tethering, for $45. With overage fees, 12 GB on AT&T’s network would cost $125. For reasonable monthly data consumption, AT&T is a bit cheaper, but if you chew through data, Verizon has the better rates.

via AT&T Vs. Verizon: Which Data Plan Is Better? – mobility Blog.

Filed Under: Tech Bytes Tagged With: better, Data, iphone, ivan seidenberg, last september, no doubt, Red, T-Mobile, Verizon

Limited stock of Galaxy Tab 10.1 with Wi-Fi on sale June 8 – Computerworld

June 2, 2011 By Global EDD Group Leave a Comment

Limited quantities of Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 10.1 Wi-Fi edition will be sold in a single New York store on June 8, the same day that Verizon Wireless begins taking online orders for a more expensive model that runs on its LTE cellular network.

On Verizon, the LTE version will come in two models– a 16GB device for $529.99 and a 32GB version for $629.99. Both require a two-year data agreement with Verizon. Both will also come in either metallic gray or glossy white.

The Wi-Fi-only, 16 GB version will sell for $499, while the 32 GB version will sell for $599, as Samsung announced (see video) in March.

Some analysts view the 10.1 model of the Galaxy Tab as the most likely to take on the iPad and iPad 2, which have a huge lead in the tablet market. The reason is that the 10.1 runs the latest Android OS, 3.1, also called Honeycomb, which is described as offering faster transitions between applications and has more support for USB accessories. Also, Galaxy Tab 10.1 has a 10.1-inch display that approximates the size of the iPad displ

via Limited stock of Galaxy Tab 10.1 with Wi-Fi on sale June 8 – Computerworld.

Filed Under: Tech Bytes Tagged With: edition, gb version, iPad, limited quantities, model, store, tablet market, Verizon, verizon wireless

U.S. Carriers Begin Blocking Android Tethering Apps

May 4, 2011 By Global EDD Group Leave a Comment

Some Google Android users are reporting that they can no longer download Internet tethering apps from the Android Marketplace, especially those with AT&T, Verizon or T-Mobile service.

The mobile applications in question give Android devices owners the ability to access the Internet on their laptops using the wireless connections on their phones. These apps, most of which are free, include PDAnet, Wireless Tether and MyWi. Most of the big American carriers offer Internet tethering, but it typically costs $15-$25 per month, depending on data usage and carrier.

Reports say that Internet tethering apps have disappeared for AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile customers. Sprint seems to be the lone exception in the U.S. Our own testing shows that many Internet tethering apps have simply disappeared, at least on the Verizon and AT&T networks. This doesn’t mean users can’t run them, though — they simply can’t download them from the Android Marketplace. Anyone can still download the apps directly from the web or install them on a rooted phone.

Google told ZDNet that it isn’t officially blocking tethering apps. However, Google does say that Android users on specific carriers may not be able to find the app in the Android Marketplace. In other words, Google isn’t denying that certain apps are being blocked by the carriers.

via U.S. Carriers Begin Blocking Android Tethering Apps.

Filed Under: Tech Bytes Tagged With: american carriers, Apps, carrier reports, Carriers, Google, isn, lone exception, Marketplace, mobile customers, Verizon

Verizon To Put Warning Stickers On All Smartphones With Location Awareness | Touch Reviews

May 1, 2011 By Global EDD Group Leave a Comment

As part of the fallout of the current iPhone 4 location data fiasco it appears Verizon will now put warning stickers on its location-aware smartphones, reports Electronista.

In a letter in response to Massachusetts Congressman Ed Markey’s call for information on the affair, Verizon SVP of Federal Government Relations Peter B. Davidson explains that Verizon will continue to try to educate its customers and to try to protect them from any potential pitfalls of smartphone ownership when it comes to their location.

In order to warn its customers, Verizon will soon begin attaching stickers to smartphone screens, warning that the handset has the ability to detect its (and thus the owner’s) location and transmit it to a receiving party. Whether this information will ever be read, let alone headed remains to be seen but Verizon is at least taking steps to protect its customers, as well as itself!

via Verizon To Put Warning Stickers On All Smartphones With Location Awareness | Touch Reviews.

Filed Under: Tech Bytes Tagged With: congressman ed markey, federal government relations, fiasco, information, iphone 4, location, location awareness, massachusetts congressman, Smartphones, Verizon

Apple Confirms Verizon iPad 2 3G Snafu | ITProPortal.com

April 9, 2011 By Global EDD Group Leave a Comment

Apple has confirmed yesterday to a US-based online website that it is aware that some iPad 2 owners that are on Verizon have been hit by a problem that requires them to reboot their devices to re-enable 3G after turning it off.

Ina Fried of All Things Digital has been told that “We are aware that a small number of iPad 2 customers have experienced connectivity issues with the Verizon 3G network and we are investigating it”.

Apple is apparently working on an update that will be available in the next update to the iOS platform. Interestingly, neither Wi-Fi only models nor those on AT&T have been affected by the issue.

The only difference between AT&T and Verizon’s iPad is the presence of different baseband modules inside each tablet. AT&T’s iPad 2 uses Intel’s Infineon GSM solution while Verizon’s iPad 2 runs on Qualcomm’s solution.

via Apple Confirms Verizon iPad 2 3G Snafu | ITProPortal.com.

Filed Under: Tech Bytes Tagged With: com, iPad, ITProPortal, Qualcomm, snafu, Update, Verizon, verizon 3g, Wi-Fi

Verizon LTE Worth a Look as Possible DSL Replacement – NYTimes.com

April 5, 2011 By Global EDD Group Leave a Comment

As we’ve noted, the rise of LTE opens up the potential for wireless carriers to court DSL subscribers, something Stacey reported on last week with Verizon actively looking to win over wireline customers. Well, even with the limitations of wireless, the comparison is valid, at least for now, according to Deutsche Bank, which studied the latest 4G offerings.

Deutsche Bank’s 4G comparison, reported in a research note today, arrives at some of the same conclusions that Kevin reported on from a RootMetrics user study: that Verizon LTE blows away the other “4G” labeled competition in terms of speed and performance. In a test of 4G broadband laptop cards at eight locations in the Bay Area, Deutsche Bank found average Verizon LTE download speeds were 13.3 megabits per second compared to 2.13 Mbps for Sprint and 0.87 Mbps for T-Mobile. Uploads speeds were 7.37 Mbps for Verizon, 0.49 Mbps for Sprint and 0.58 Mbps for T-Mobile. It didn’t bother testing AT&T, because it didn’t believe the network merited comparison yet.

The numbers underscore the idea that at this moment in time, LTE could be worth a look for existing DSL subscribers. In a comparison of price and speed, Deutsche Bank found Verizon’s LTE service competes well with current wireline broadband offerings from Verizon, AT&T and Comcast.

via Verizon LTE Worth a Look as Possible DSL Replacement – NYTimes.com.

Filed Under: Tech Bytes Tagged With: DSL, dsl subscribers, look, lte, Mbps, mobile uploads, speed, speed and performance, T-Mobile, Verizon