FBI launches phone app to help find missing children

The New Application by ABI for kids

A customer looks at the Apple iPhone 4. The FBI joined the booming mobile phone app market with the launch of a tool to help parents find missing kids.

The FBI joined the booming mobile phone app market on Friday with the launch of a tool to help parents find missing kids.

"You're shopping at the mall with your children when one of them suddenly disappears. A quick search of the nearby area is unsuccessful. What do you do?" the promotional blurb for the application says.
The answer? If you have the free FBI app -- which is only available for iPhones at the moment -- and stored photos and vital information about your children on it, the data you need to be reunited with your missing child would be "literally right at hand."
Parents using the app "can show the pictures and provide physical identifiers such as height and weight to security or police officers on the spot" or email the key information to the authorities using a special tab on the app in the event their child goes missing.
According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, a child goes missing in the United States every 40 seconds, and "many never return home."
The FBI has plans to expand the app for use on other mobile devices, and to add more features.

One Million Robotes used by Foxconn in Taiwan

Taiwan's Foxconn to use one million robots by 2014

Taiwan IT giant Foxconn -- hit by a spate of suicides at its Chinese plants -- plans to replace 500,000 workers with robots in the next three years, state media reported.

Taiwan IT giant Foxconn -- hit by a spate of suicides at its Chinese plants -- plans to replace 500,000 workers with robots in the next three years, state media reported Monday.

Foxconn -- the world's largest maker of computer components, which assembles products for Apple, Sony and Nokia -- plans to use one million robots to do "simple" work, China Business News quoted chairman Terry Gou saying.
Gou announced the plan to 10,000 staff at a company event in Shenzhen on Friday, various media reports said.
Foxconn currently has 10,000 robots doing painting, welding and assembly tasks. It will increase that number to 300,000 next year and to one million in 2014, the report said.
A Foxconn spokesman could not be immediately reached by AFP for comment.
The Taiwan-based company employs more than one million workers at its Chinese plants, about half of them based in its main facility in the southern city of Shenzhen.
At least 14 workers have died in apparent suicides since last year, most of them in Shenzhen. Activists blamed the deaths on tough working conditions and have called for better treatment of staff.
Foxconn has been expanding its workforce in other parts of China as it seeks to scale back the size of its Shenzhen plant.
The firm opened a $2 billion Chengdu plant in October, according to China's state-run Xinhua news agency.

Today is the 20th Birthday of Internet

Internet is Twenty years old
It was twenty years ago today/ Tim Berners-Lee taught the world to play/ Although 20 years ago he would have sworn/ That there wouldn’t have been so much porn. That’s right – the world’s first website, a placeholder page written by Sir Berners-Lee way back on August 6, 1991 in the then-nascent Hypertext Mark-Up Language, is celebrating its 20th birthday today. And, on this important anniversary, we ask what hath the web wrought?
On March 13th, 2009 the World Wide Web will turn 20 years old. Sir Tim Berners-Lee invented this world-changing layer on top of the Internet on this day in 1989. It's hard to overstate the impact this young technology has had already and it's even more exciting to think about where it's going in the future.
Berners-Lee has some great ideas about where the web should go next. His vision is of a major advance that could serve as the foundation for innovations that we can't even imagine today.
In the past two decades we’ve been given ecommerce and spam, we’ve torn down the music, news, and publishing industries, and we’ve LOLed at more CATS than we can count. We’ve seen empires rise and fall, the dissolution of the line between public and private, and the end of enforceable copyright. We’ve seen new modes of communication drive out unwanted regimes at home and abroad and we’ve heard the endless howl of a million voices calling out at once, most of them in comments on this site.
We’ve also seen lots of the aforementioned porn.
The original (can there be an original?) page is mirrored here and it’s a fascinating look at the seed crystal that catalyzed change to the world as we knew it in those heady pre-Internet days. Also porn.
Happy birthday, Internet. Here’s to another 20 happy, healthy years.
Twenty years ago, in a research establishment in the Swiss Alps, a British-born computer scientist dreamt up a new way for academics to share information around the globe.
Little did he realise that his invention would break out from the confines of academia and give birth to the world wide web.
Two decades on, there are over 200 million websites and over one trillion unique URLs. An astounding 1.6 billion people use the web worldwide, and here in the UK the figure stands at over 70 per cent of the population.

Now Toyota will used Linux in Cars only

Will Toyota's membership in The Linux Foundation spur it to contribute to FOSS? Thoughts on Technology blogger Jeff Hoogland hopes so. "At the very least I think it is a sign that Meego will be appearing at some point as an in-car operating system," he said. "Here is to hoping Meego can eventually give the pseudo-Linux Android a run for its money."

It's hard to keep up with all the companies joining The Linux Foundation these days, but recently one jumped on board whose name threw a collective hush over the Linux blogosphere.

Toyota, that is -- none other than the planet's largest automobile manufacturer in terms of both sales and production.
Is there really anything else to say? Linux, you're on top of the world.
'The Flexibility We Require'
"Linux gives us the flexibility and technology maturity we require to evolve our In-Vehicle-Infotainment and communications systems to address the expectations of our customers," said Kenichi Murata, a project general manager with Toyota. "The Linux Foundation provides us with a neutral forum in which we can collaborate with the world's leading technology companies on open innovation that accelerates that evolution."
Toyota joined the foundation as a full-fledged gold member, in fact, making it clear that it's betting big on the open source operating system.
Did Linux bloggers take note? You bet your favorite dashboard computing device they did.
'It Means There's No Stopping Linux'
Embedded entertainment systems have actually been "a strong area for Linux for quite some time," Travers pointed out. "This is hardly a new frontier, but rather a logical expansion of where Linux has been going for quite a while."
At the same time, of course, "this is a win for Linux," he added. "It demonstrates continued strong performance in this market and continued viability for Linux here."
Hyperlogos blogger Martin Espinoza took a similar view.
"This one is almost too easy, but I'll go there anyway," Espinoza said. "Obviously it means there's no stopping Linux."
'A Great Tool for Embedded Systems'
Blogger Robert Pogson's first car was a Toyota, he told Linux Girl.
"It used analogue computers and I could pry a module apart, make some measurement and replace parts with a soldering iron," he recounted. "Times have changed and Toyota has long ago seen the benefit of digital computers and control systems."
Linux is "a great tool for embedded systems, communication, documentation, navigation, control, logging, monitoring and entertainment," Pogson explained. "Toyota is wise to rely on such well-tested and open standard software to improve the bottom line, increase performance and to make their vehicles more attractive to consumers."

Virgin alerts infected customers (The spread of the SpyEye virus )

Virgin alerts customers that are infected with Spyeye Trojan

ISP gets tip-off from Soca that malicious computer software has been unwittingly downloaded by Virgin Media customers and perhaps many more

The spread of the SpyEye virus has been monitored by law enforcement agencies

Continue reading the main story

About 1,500 customers of internet service provider Virgin Media have been warned that their PCs are infected with a malicious virus.

The targeted computers had fallen victim to the SpyEye trojan that steals log-ins for online bank accounts.
Virgin was alerted to the infections by the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA).
Letters were sent to those affected, giving them advice on how to clean up their machines.
Virgin is understood to be the first UK ISP to give specific warnings about viruses based on SOCA's advice.
However, the UK Internet Service Providers Association said that it was not unusual for companies to contact customers as a result of information from other law enforcement bodies.
It is impossible, at this stage, to know how many other ISPs' customers are affected by SpyEye.
Early warning
Virgin company stressed that it had not been monitoring user activity, rather some of their customers' IP addresses were found by law enforcement while investigating criminal botnets.
"It's a small number compared to the four million customers we have," said a spokesman, "but regardless of that, because of the seriousness it's still important to communicate with our customers."
The letters stress the seriousness of the situation and urge customers to update their security software and scan their machine to find and remove the malicious program. Alternatively, customers can sign up for a help service that allows Virgin to remotely find and fix problems.
The spokesman added that the Virgin campaign started in August 2010 and since then it had sent letters to "several thousand" customers about a serious infection on their home computer.
"The category we are looking at are the ones that put our customers at most risk or the ones that will steal from them," he said.
SpyEye first appeared in early 2010 and has steadily gathered victims ever since. Some machines are infected via booby-trapped webpages or by tricking people into clicking on links that lead to the trojan being installed.
The SpyEye trojan and its many variants are being produced with a software kit that allows novices to put together their own versions of the malware. The kit, which costs $500 (£310), also comes with a tool to help control all the PCs that are infected.

Virgin Mobile Help

Virgin Mobile Help: If you've just got a new cellular phone account with Virgin Mobile, or if you've got a new phone and you want to learn about features, downloading, text messaging, or how to set up your voice mail, we've got the information you need right here. Learn technical information, like how to browse the Web, how to top up your account, set up alerts, or learn about the newest ringtones, graphics, and exclusive content available from Virgin Mobile.

Social Network for Sale at $100m ( MySpace)

MySpace 'will sell for at least $100m'

News Corporation is turning the MySpace sale process into a drawn out “dog race”, in an attempt to get as much money as possible for the ailing social network, according to sources close to the deal.

MySpace has not managed to compete with Facebook. Photo: AFP

Contrary to earlier reports that the media giant was unable to achieve its asking price of $100m, a source close to the acquisition process told The Telegraph, that News Corporation would definitely get $100m for MySpace, if not more and has deliberately dragged its feet and revealed very few company financials in order to achieve the highest figure.

“News Corporation has been biding its time in order to get as much money as possible for the asset. It will easily achieve the $100m price tag if not more.

“The interested parties, of which there are more than have been reported, are at the due diligence stage and have only in the last week been allowed to see under the hood of MySpace’s figures and business activities. Until now, News Corporation has deliberately restricted information in order to get the price and interest up as high as possible. It’s turned into a dog race between the front runners,” the source said.

News Corporation is expected to sell the asset by or on June 30, 2011, in time for the end of its financial year. However, sources familiar with the deal process expect the procedure to run until “the very last minute”.

Front runners are believed to include: an investor group led by Bobby Kotick, the chief executive of games company Activision Blizzard, Criterion Capital Partners – the private equity company which bought Bebo from AOL last year and social networking site myYearbook.

News Corporation is understood to want to retain a small percentage of the company, while handing over operational control and majority ownership to the successful buyer.
A second source, also close to the purchase process, told The Telegraph, that there was still money to be made from advertising via the struggling social network.
“The site still has 40 million active users worldwide. There is definitely still money to be made from better advertising around an improved product. News Corporation just stopped investing in MySpace at a crucial time,” they said.
“Lots of companies spend millions trying to attract one million users which they can monetise through adverts. MySpace still has a good audience compared to other sites online – just not compared to Facebook.”
MySpace declined to comment.
News Corporation bought MySpace for $580m (£373m) in 2008. The asset was briefly valued at $12bn when News Corp attempted to merge it with Yahoo in 2007.
However, it users and value have dropped significantly in the last three years, having failed to compete successfully with Facebook.
MySpace now attracts fewer than three million monthly users in the UK, while 30 million UK web users have a Facebook profile which they regularly check.
Earlier this year, MySpace shut down the majority of its international operation, sacking 500 people.
At the end of last year, Chase Carey’s, News Corporation’s chief operating officer, made disparaging comments about the former darling of the social networking space.
He described the site as a “problem” and said that a sale or partnership with internet giants such as Yahoo or AOL were two or a number of options under consideration.
Mr Carey, who has previously described MySpace’s losses as “neither acceptable or sustainable”, refused to set a deadline for the social networking site to return to profitability before it push ahead with a sale. “I’m not going to break down [the number of] quarters,” he said. “It’s not years ... we need to deal with this with urgency.”
According to a digital executive close to the company: “MySpace lost $100 million in the first quarter last year. To get it back on track is going to require a massive investment – one which News Corporation it not prepared to make. It has many other priorities to put its money into. So instead, it has been taking costs out of the business while it's still in its hands.”

Sega Company Japan was Hacked (Credir Cards)

1.29 million customers' data stolen from Sega

Hackers have stolen the personal data of some 1.29 million customers of the Japanese game maker Sega, the company said Sunday, in a theft via a website of its European unit

Hackers have stolen the personal data of some 1.29 million customers of the Japanese game maker Sega, the company said Sunday, in a theft via a website of its

European unit.

The Sega Pass website, operated by London-based Sega Europe, did not contain credit card information, the Japanese firm said.

But names, dates of birth, email addresses and encrypted passwords were stolen by intruders to the site, Sega said in a Japanese-language statement, adding the theft had been confirmed on Friday.

"We sincerely apologise for troubles this incident has caused to our customers," it said.
The service, which has been suspended, was mainly to announce new product information to registered customers, Sega said.
"An investigation has been launched to find the cause and channels used for the leakage," it said.
No other websites managed by Sega have come under attack, it said.
Sega pledged to strengthen its network security and to release information about the case as it becomes available.
The incident follows a series of hacker attacks on Japanese electronics and entertainment giant Sony in April which forced it suspend online services for weeks.
Sony suffered one of the biggest data breaches since the advent of the Internet, with personal data from 100 million accounts compromised.
The attacks forced the company to halt its Qriocity online music and video distribution services and PlayStation Network online gaming for more than a month.
Sony also suffered attacks on websites including in Greece, Thailand and Indonesia, and on the Canadian site of mobile phone company Sony Ericsson.
This month, a group of hackers known as Lulz Security claimed to have attacked the Sony Computer Entertainment Developer Network and stolen technical information, after stealing customer data from SonyPictures.com.
Websites of major media, game makers, banks and the US government have been constant targets of international hackers.
Nintendo, Citigroup, the CIA and the Malaysian government have recently come under hacker attacks.
Sega, known for "Sonic the Hedgehog", produces games for a range of consoles, including the PlayStation 3, Nintendo DS, Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's motion-control Wii.
It became a household name with popular arcade games such as "UFO Catchers" and in 1998 won a fan base with its Dreamcast machine. But it stopped producing the Dreamcast in 2001 under fierce competition from Sony and Nintendo.
The company has since focused on arcade machines and software. It saw a new lease on life after merging in 2004 with Sammy Corp., Japan's top maker of pinball slot machines.
(c) 2011 AFP