University Will Reveal Value of Personal Details

Special Android application will intrude on privacy on a daily basis. London’s Queen Mary University decided to carry out a research into how people value their own personal information. Within the frames of this research, the volunteers agreed to install a free Android application on their mobiles.


At first, this application will ask the volunteers some basic information about their background. Later, it will ask for more details every day over the next 2 weeks. The university claims that this will emulate the kind of data Internet companies are collecting from their users daily. The questions that the app will ask are intrusively private, but the kind of answers apps can take from user behaviour which is taken for granted – for example, what the user is doing, how he feels about what he is doing, where he is, who he is with, and how much the data would be worth to him. Everyone knows that this kind of data is given away for free, on the Internet, on a daily basis.


As for volunteers, they will get the chance to win £10-100 in Amazon vouchers via a prize draw for their participation. The leader of the research, Dr. Bernadette Kamleitner from the School of Business and Management, claimed that personal data is a huge but poorly regulated business. Despite the fact that the consumers are able to benefit from the use of their data through receiving customized offers that may be interesting for them, others can also use their private details to make money.


Queen Mary University hopes that that the research will help them understand which information people believe is more or less valuable to them. In addition, the results would show whether people really believe that personal data has no price or not.

Three Threats to Online Freedom

According to Google head Sergey Brin, there were 3 biggest threats to online freedom, and they were Facebook, Apple, and the authorities that censored their citizens.

While Facebook, Apple, and the government would have a similar list featuring Google high on it, Sergey Brin continues to claim that the multinational corporation he listed and the government that try to filter their citizens are the largest threats to the Internet freedom.

During the interview to the local media, Sergey Brin explained that the rise of “restrictive” walled gardens like Apple and Facebook became a major threat as the companies tightly control the kind of software that can be released on their platforms. In fact, it was just as bad as the efforts of countries like China, Saudi Arabia or Iran to filter and restrict use of the worldwide web. Brin claimed that Facebook and Apple could both stifle innovation and balkanise the Internet, with a lot being lost, since that information is not crawlable by Internet crawlers and you can’t search it.

In the event that Facebook existed before Google, the search engine would have had no chance to survive, added Brin, because search engines require an open Internet, and too many rules not just close it down, but they stifle innovation. Meanwhile, Sergey Brin didn’t mention anything about Google’s Search plus Your World (SPYW) feature that mainly prioritizes Google+ over other social networks. In addition, the industry observers point out that Google has already banned Facebook from accessing Gmail contact information by changing the terms of service for its Google Contacts Data API in such a way that the sites which access Google Contacts had to offer access to their information in response. 

How To Make VPNs Even More Secure

From being a niche product used by the few, in the past few years VPN services have hit the big time. These days more and more Internet users see running a privacy enhancing service as a requirement rather than just a luxury. Today we take a look at a few tips and tricks that can enhance the security of any VPN.

While simple to set up and use out of the box, it may comes as a surprise that the security of VPN anonymity services can be improved. Of course, when things run absolutely to plan there’s little to worry about, but there are occasions where there may be a hiccup or where an extra level of security is needed.

Securing your privacy when your VPN fails

Ok, so you’ve purchased your VPN subscription, enabled the service, and you’re enjoying your new found levels of privacy. Then – disaster strikes. While you were away from your machine somehow and for some unknown reason your VPN disconnected and now snoopers have a clear view of your IP address.

Fortunately, there are solutions.

“To protect against the event of VPN failure/disconnection, disable any internet access that does not tunnel through your VPN service provider,” Andrew from PrivateInternetAccesstold TorrentFreak. “This can be achieved using specific Firewall rules (Ubuntu) or bychanging TCP/IP routes.

But of course, not everyone wants to spend time with these manual configurations that could potentially cause problems if they’re not done properly. So, TorrentFreak spoke with the creators of two free pieces of software that do the job more easily.

VPNetMon

“VPNetMon continuously watches the IP addresses of your PC. If the IP address of your VPN is not detected anymore, VPNetMon closes specified programs instantly. The program reacts so quickly that a new connection through your real IP will not be established by these applications,” creator Felix told TorrentFreak.

VPNetMon (Windows) can be downloaded here.

VPNCheck

“VPNCheck helps you to feel safe if your VPN connection breaks, this is done by shutting down your main network connection or programs of your choice and showing a notification box,” Jonathan from Guavi.com told TorrentFreak. “Basically it constantly looks for a change in your VPN network adapter. You can connect to either PPTP or L2TP with VPNCheck.”

VPNCheck (Windows/Linux) can be downloaded here.

Stop DNS Leaks

When using a VPN service one might expect that all of the user’s traffic will go through the privacy network, but on rare occasions a phenomenon known as “DNS leakage” might occur. This means that rather than using the DNS servers provided by the VPN operator, it’s possible that the user’s default DNS servers will be used instead or otherwise become visible.

“A DNS leak may happen whenever a DNS query ‘bypasses’ the routing table and gateway pushed by the OpenVPN server. The trigger on Windows systems may be as simple as a slight delay in the answer from the VPN DNS, or the VPN DNS unable to resolve some name,” explains Paolo from AirVPN.

A tool for checking for leaks can be found at DNSLeakTest.com and a solution for fixing any problems can be found here. Alternatively, anyone using the pro version of VPNCheck will have this feature built in.

Double up your security for extra sensitive data transfers

What if you don’t have 100% trust in your VPN provider and worry that even they might snoop on your communications? Admittedly it’s a very unusual hypothetical situation, but one with an interesting solution.

“If you don’t trust your VPN provider 100%, use two VPNs,” explains Felix from VPNetMon. “This way you are tunneling your already encrypted connection through another tunnel.”

In Windows this is easily achieved. First, simply set up at least two VPN accounts as normal (if you’d like an extra one for testing purposes you can get a free limited account fromVPNReactor). Then connect to one VPN, and when complete connect to another without disconnecting the first. Like magic, a tunnel through a tunnel.

Its also possible to VPN over TOR, but please please don’t use TOR for file-sharing traffic, it’s not designed for it.

“VPN over TOR gives several security advantages, for a performance price, above all partition of trust,” explains Paolo from AirVPN. “In case of betrayal of trust by one party, the anonymity layer is not compromised in any way.

A VPN over TOR tutorial can be found here, further discussion here.

Fix the PPTP / IPv6 security flaw

As revealed here on TorrentFreak in 2010, people using a PPTP VPN and IPv6 are vulnerable to a nasty security flaw which means that Windows and Ubuntu users could leak their real IP addresses. The following fix comes from Jonathan at VPNCheck.

For Windows Vista and above:
Open cmd prompt and type:
netsh interface teredo set state disabled.

For Ubuntu 10+:
Copy and paste all four lines into a terminal:
echo “#disable ipv6″ | sudo tee -a /etc/sysctl.conf
echo “net.ipv6.conf.all.disable_ipv6 = 1″ | sudo tee -a /etc/sysctl.conf
echo “net.ipv6.conf.default.disable_ipv6 = 1″ | sudo tee -a /etc/sysctl.conf
echo “net.ipv6.conf.lo.disable_ipv6 = 1″ | sudo tee -a /etc/sysctl.conf

Pay for your VPN with untrackable currency.

“When anonymity is a factor, pay with an un-trackable currency,” explains Andrew from PrivateInternetAccess.

“For example, signup for an anonymous e-mail account using Tor and use a Bitcoin Mixer to send Bitcoins to a newly generated address in your local wallet. Alternatively, use theBitcoin-OTC to purchase Bitcoins ‘over the counter’ from a person, rather than an exchange.

“Then, use a patched Bitcoin client, such as coderrr’s anonymity patch to avoid linking the newly generated address to any of your pre-existing Bitcoin addresses.”

Only use VPN providers that take your privacy seriously

We’ve said this before but it’s worth repeating. VPN providers who heavily log are useful if all you’re concerned about is securely communicating with the Internet through an open public WiFi connection, but not beyond that. For a run down of providers who do not log any data which would enable a 3rd party to identify a user, see our previous article here.

Do you have a helpful security tip for VPN users? If so, feel free to add it to the comments below.

Homeless People Became Wireless Hotspots

An unusual marketing stunt has totally backfired,when advertising agency called BBH came up with a splendid idea to turn homeless people at SXSW into wireless access points. The company is sure that it isn’t demeaning.

Now the homeless people are equipped with technology that literally turns them into human routers, thus making otherwise charity-givers into Homeless Hotspot users. If you make a small donation, you would be allowed to log on and use the Internet.

Advertising company BBH, which remains behind the scheme, claims that it set out with the best of intentions. The company does realize the concern which has since erupted over social networks. The advertising outfit’s initiative describes itself on its Twitter page as aiding “bring Street Newspapers into the digital age” introducing itself as a modern take on such initiatives as the Big Issue.

The company’s official blog first announced that people will notice “strategically positioned individuals” wearing T-shirts saying “Homeless Hotspot”. Later, an updated entry tried to soothe the furious Twitter backlash.

Despite the fact that it could be argued that turning homeless people into a way for others to check their email is thoroughly dehumanizing and demeaning, the advertising company keeps insisting that such activity becomes the business of the individuals involved, because they can keep all the income they received from providing access to the web. Meanwhile, the company itself has virtually nothing to gain from this except from, probably, exposure. And the expectations are that it will certainly get that.

Although the SXSW trial is regarded as a “beta test”, BBH still hopes that the platform could later be adopted “on a broader scale”.

পার্সোনাল ক্লাউড স্টোরেজ আনছে গুগল

সম্প্রতি জানা গেছে, ব্যবহারকারীদের পার্সোনাল ক্লাউড স্টোরেজ দিতে গুগলের যে সেবা আসার কথা শোনা গেছে, তা আগামী সপ্তাহেই চালু হতে পারে। গুগল ড্রাইভ নামে এ সেবা চালুর খবর জানিয়েছে দি নেক্সট ওয়েব।

সূত্র মতে, প্রাথমিকভাবে পাঁচ গিগাবাইট জায়গা দেয়া হবে, যেখানে ব্যবহারকারীরা বিভিন্ন প্রকার ফাইল ও মিডিয়া আপলোড করে রাখতে পারবেন। এছাড়াও এই সেবার মাধ্যমে কম্পিউটারে একটি আলাদা ফোল্ডার তৈরি করা হবে, যা সবসময় ইন্টারনেটে রাখা ফাইলের সঙ্গে আপডেটেড থাকবে। এই ফোল্ডারে রাখা ফাইলও তাৎক্ষণিকভাবে ক্লাউডে আপলোড হয়ে যাবে।

দি নেক্সট ওয়েব জানিয়েছে, আগামী সপ্তাহে চালু হওয়ার ঘটনা সত্যি হওয়ার সম্ভাবনাই বেশি। কেননা, গত ফেব্রুয়ারিতে এক প্রতিবেদনে দেখা গেছে, সেবাটি ইতোমধ্যেই কিছু কিছু ব্যবহারকারী পরীক্ষা করে দেখছেন। সবকিছু ঠিক থাকলে শিগগিরই চালু হতে পারে গুগল ড্রাইভ।

উল্লেখ্য, ক্লাউড স্টোরেজের ক্ষেত্রে গুগল ড্রাইভ চালু হলে তাদের সবচেয়ে বড় প্রতিদ্বন্দ্বী হবে ড্রপবক্স। সব অপারেটিং সিস্টেমের পাশাপাশি স্মার্টফোন ও ট্যাবলেট ডিভাইসেও ড্রপবক্স ঝামেলা ছাড়া ফাইল সিংক্রোনাইজ করে রাখার সুবিধা দেয়। তবে গুগল ড্রাইভের যে বাড়তি সুবিধা থাকবে তা হলো, আলাদা করে রেজিস্ট্রেশন ছাড়া কেবল জিমেইল অ্যাকাউন্ট ব্যবহার করেই গুগল ড্রাইভের সেবা পাওয়া যাবে।

Cyberlockers & VPNs Will Profit from Copyright Laws

In cooperation with all major American Internet service providers, the Motion Picture Association of America and Recording Industry Association of America will begin rolling out their new program aimed at warning and incriminating copyright infringers. However, no cause is without effect; and therefore file-hosting services and VPNs will experience a considerable increase in revenues.

In a few months, rights owners, in cooperation with broadband providers, will begin tracing down online pirates. There’s nothing new here, as the industry was already doing this, except for the name the process is bearing now: “copyright alerts”. Basically, it is the same “graduated response” system that is meant to notify people that their Internet accounts are used for unauthorized downloading. However, this formalized process has more than 3 strikes: it features 6 steps. According to the new system, after 6 warnings Internet service providers have to apply a number of measures, which include the disconnection from the Internet for a certain period of time.

Most of the today’s file-sharers are aware of this danger and download through a proxy server or VPN, but some don’t bother to take precautions. As a result, the effectiveness of the system isn’t guaranteed.

For instance, the latest survey in France, which has implemented HADOPI a while ago, revealed that just 4% of the file-sharers stopped downloading infringing content. Instead, majority of the Internet users are now using proxy servers and VPNs to stay anonymous.

VPN owners confirmed that their user-base saw a huge increase in numbers in recent years, and they link this increase to news about copyright enforcement efforts. When the country enforces the new “six-strikes” regime, there will be no surprise if VPN and proxy services get their pockets filled by Internet users.

However, these companies won’t be the only ones to profit from the copyright law. Data hosting services will also see an increase in revenues. In fact, some of them have already outgrown the largest torrent websites. The matter is that anti-piracy law usually targets only P2P file-sharing. For instance, everyone knows that such cyberlockers as RapidShare or Hotfile are widely used to share copyrighted content.

Even though “six-strikes” will most probably take its toll, the experts predict that the percentage of users who will completely stop downloading unauthorized content is insignificant.

উইন্ডোজ ৮-এর বিস্তারিত জানালো মাইক্রোসফট

সম্প্রতি মাইক্রোসফট প্রথমবারের মতো তাদের পরবর্তী অপারেটিং সিস্টেম উইন্ডোজ ৮ নিয়ে বিস্তারিত তথ্য জানিয়েছে। আনুষ্ঠানিকভাবে এই সংস্করণকে ‘উইন্ডোজ ৮’ বলেই ডাকা হবে বলেও জানিয়েছে মাইক্রোসফট। খবর ম্যাশএবল-এর।

সূত্রমতে, উইন্ডোজ ৮ অপারেটিং সিস্টেমটি ৩২ ও ৬৪ বিট দু’ধরনের হার্ডওয়ারেই চলবে। তবে প্রধানত চার ধরনের উইন্ডোজ ৮ বাজারজাত করা হবে বলে জানিয়েছে মাইক্রোসফট।

‘রেগুলার উইন্ডোজ ৮’ থাকছে একেবারেই সাধারণ কম্পিউটার ব্যবহারকারীদের জন্য। এতে কম্পিউটিংয়ের দৈনন্দিন যাবতীয় কাজ করা যাবে।

‘উইন্ডোজ ৮ প্রো’ থাকছে ব্যবসা প্রতিষ্ঠান, ডেভেলপার এবং প্রযুক্তিমনস্ক মানুষের জন্য। এতে অ্যাডভান্সড কিছু সুবিধা যেমন ফাইল এনক্রিপ্ট করা, ভার্চুয়াল হার্ড ড্রাইভ থেকে বুট করা ইত্যাদি থাকছে। এছাড়াও মিডিয়া সেন্টার পিসিতে ব্যবহারের জন্য উইন্ডোজ ৮ প্রো এবং মিডিয়া প্যাক অ্যাড-অনের প্রয়োজন পড়বে যা সাধারণ উইন্ডোজ ৮-এ দেয়া থাকবে না বলে জানিয়েছে মাইক্রোসফট।

‘উইন্ডোজ ৮ আরটি’ ট্যাবলেট ডিভাইসে চালানোর উপযোগী করে তৈরি করা হয়েছে। আরটি বলতে কী বোঝানো হচ্ছে সে ব্যাপারে মাইক্রোসফট পরিষ্কার কিছু না জানালেও ম্যাশএবল ধারণা করছে ‘রান-টাইম’ বোঝাতেই আরটি যোগ করা হয়েছে। তবে এআরএম চিপের জন্য তৈরি এই উইন্ডোজের সংস্করণ আলাদা কিনতে পাওয়া যাবে না। সংশ্লিষ্ট ট্যাবলেট ডিভাইসেই জুড়ে দেয়া থাকবে উইন্ডোজ ৮ আরটি। সেই সঙ্গে মাইক্রোসফট ওয়ার্ড, এক্সেল, পাওয়ারপয়েন্ট এবং ওয়াননোটের বিনামূল্যের একটি সংস্করণও প্রি-ইনস্টলড থাকবে উইন্ডোজ ৮ আরটি-চালিত ট্যাবলেট ডিভাইসে।

এই তিনটি ছাড়াও আরও বড় কাজের জন্য ‘উইন্ডোজ ৮ এন্টারপ্রাইজ’ সংস্করণ রয়েছে বলেও জানিয়েছে মাইক্রোসফট। এতে উইন্ডোজ ৮ প্রো-এর সব সুবিধার পাশাপাশি আইটি প্রফেশনালদের জন্য বাড়তি কিছু সুবিধাও যোগ করা থাকবে; যেন একাধিক কম্পিউটার বা নেটওয়ার্কিং আরও সহজে করা যায়। এছাড়াও চীনসহ বেশ কিছু দেশের জন্য স্থানীয় ভাষাতেও একটি লোকাল-ল্যাঙ্গুয়েজ সমৃদ্ধ উইন্ডোজ ৮ বাজারে ছাড়বে বলে জানিয়েছে মাইক্রোসফট।

বিশেষজ্ঞরা বলছেন, উইন্ডোজ ৮-এর নতুন এই পরিকল্পনার মাধ্যমে বাজারকে আরও বড় করে তুলছে মাইক্রোসফট। একইসঙ্গে যার যে কাজে কম্পিউটার প্রয়োজন, তাকে অপারেটিং সিস্টেমের ঠিক সেই সংস্করণ (রেগুলার, প্রো, আরটি অথবা এন্টারপ্রাইজ) ব্যবহার করতে বাধ্য করাও মাইক্রোসফটের পরিকল্পনার অংশবিশেষ বলে অনেকে মন্তব্য করেছেন।

তবে কবে নাগাদ সার্বিকভাবে প্রস্তুত উইন্ডোজ ৮ অপারেটিং সিস্টেম বাজারে আসবে, সে সম্পর্কে এখনো কিছু জানায়নি মাইক্রোসফট।

Iran Might Switch off the Web

The information below wasn’t confirmed by any official entity, i.e. thus far it is just a rumor, but still…
Iran is said to take a decision to completely disconnect the worldwide web from the country in favor of its own “clean” alternative.

Some of the media reports claim that the current plan is that the country will institute a nationwide intranet which will be isolated from the regular web, and, of course, strictly regulated by the Iran authorities. This wasn’t the first time such reports hit the web: the plan was reported before, because it was said to be first proposed last year and aimed at the great unwashed.

However, according to the plan, elite users will keep access to the regular Internet. Among those users would be institutions like banks, ministries, and major companies. In addition, the country’s government is also said to be developing its own custom e-mail service along with new national search engine dubbed Ya Haq.

Those users who want an e-mail account with Ya Haq will be required to register their identity with the government. In order words, the Iran authorities will be able to monitor all the letters the citizens send and receive. Before, the country promised to launch its alternative service in August, but Iranian officials later denied this promise.

In fact, the country is officially claiming that it isn’t going to cut access to the worldwide web inside the country at all, and is calling the media report absolutely baseless. But industry experts for some reason don’t believe Iranian representatives, pointing out that they might hope to get away without telling anyone. The only thing the authorities confirmed was that the country was developing a national information network.

Five myths about autism

As knowledge and awareness of autism grows in the community, so do the myths.

Autism is currently diagnosed according to behaviours which fit into three broad areas: social difficulties, communication impairments, and patterns of restrictive, repetitive behaviours and interests. A minimum number of behavioural symptoms must be present in each area of impairment for a diagnosis.

The difficulties associated with autism can be obvious, such as language delays or stereotypical motor movements like hand flapping. But some deficits can be much more subtle and only become apparent in social situations, such as problems with play or initiating conversation.

Although all three areas of difficulty are required for a diagnosis of autistic disorder, autism can present differently and each child will have a unique pattern of symptoms. This can sometimes create confusion – and from this, myths about autism emerge. Here are the five most common myths we encounter.

1. Children with autism don’t look at you

Unusual eye gaze is common among many, but not all, individuals with autism.

Typically developing children tend to instinctively look other people in the eye when talking with them. This can help them understand the other person’s feelings and gain meaning during a social interaction.

Some children with autism may not intuitively look a person in the eye when talking to them and will focus, instead, on other parts of the face or body to try to gain meaning. Studies suggestthat people with autism lack this social instinct because their underlying brain circuitry – which processes social information – may be different.

2. Children with autism are not interested in social interaction

Most children with autism are very keen to have friends and interact socially, but often have difficulties knowing how to make, and keep, friends. Social graces don’t come naturally to people with autism, so they often need to be explicitly taught the hidden social rules. This can be done through role playing activities with peers, parents or carers, or through structured learning programs such as social stories™.

Because of their social awkwardness, children with autism can become socially anxious and withdrawn, despite wanting friendships and social contact. This is a life-long problem for people with autism.

3. Children with autism are not affectionate

This isn’t true – children with autism can and do show affection. But this expression may differ from other children because of unusual responses to sensory stimuli. Children with autism may be oversensitive to touch or hugs, for instance, but may have a high threshold for pain.

Children with autism can appear to be detached, but this doesn’t mean a lack of interest in being affectionate – it may be underpinned by a desire to engage in a pursuit they’re more interested in. Likewise, some children don’t understand the purposes of hugging and need to be taught this social convention.

4. Girls have different core autistic symptoms to boys

There is no consistent evidence that the core autistic symptoms are different in boys and girls, but there is a trend for girls to have fewer restricted and stereotyped behavioural patterns than boys. Boys, for instance, may line up toys according to size and colour more than girls.

Any differences could have a biological base, but they might also be due to the socialisation of boys and girls. Gender stereotypes dictate that girls are better at communicating and socialising. And expectations that boys will be louder and more aggressive may affect the way the two sexes develop.

Research in this area is yet to tease apart the contribution of nature versus nurture. But any differences are likely to be small. Most studies find boys and girls have similar symptoms, of similar severity.

5. Autism and Asperger’s are the same

Autism and Asperger’s disorder are currently defined as separate conditions which fit under the umbrella term of Pervasive Developmental Disorders.

Asperger’s disorder differs from autistic disorder in that language development must have been within normal milestones (single words by two years of age, phrase speech by three) and intellectual ability must be within the normal range.

In the clinic, children with Asperger’s present as verbally precocious “little professors”. Often, they are not referred for assessment until they enter a social environment such as primary school, where their social difficulties are noted.

In contrast, children with autistic disorder are likely to be diagnosed earlier because of language delays and more typical autistic behaviours.

But under the new mental health classification system – the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, which is due for release in 2013 – the distinction between Asperger’s disorder and autistic disorder will be dissolved and both will be replaced by Autism Spectrum Disorder. This presents a number of challenges for treatment and diagnosis to ensure that children get specialised care, tailored to their needs.

When a child is diagnosed with autism, the whole family is undoubtedly affected. But the more the broader community can learn about the condition, the better they can understand and support these families through the difficult journey of diagnosis, intervention and management of autism.

Android Can Be Hacked through SMS

Security experts from NQ Mobile have recently detected new Android malware which is controlled through SMS messages. The malware, dubbed TigerBot, is able to record calls and surrounding noise.

TigerBot was detected while circulating in the wild through non-official Android channels.

The malware is wise: it can hide itself on a targeted device. TigerBot refuses to install an icon on the home screen, and masks itself with an ordinary application name like Flash or System.

Once active, TigerBot registers a receiver marked as a high priority in order to listen to the intent with action “android.provider.Telephony.SMS_RECEIVED”.

NQ Mobile explained that when a user receives a new SMS message, the malware would run a check to find out whether the message is a specific bot command. In the event it is TigerBot will prevent it from being seen by the user, after which it will execute the command.

The malware is able to record sounds in the immediate area of the device, along with the calls themselves. It is also able to alter network settings and report the current GPS coordinates of the device. TigerBot was proved to manage capturing and uploading pictures, killing other processes and rebooting the infected device.

However, the malware isn’t written perfectly enough. For instance, some of its commands aren’t routinely supported: the command to kill other processes can only be performed on early Android versions. Still, the mobile security company points out that the fact that this piece of malware and any of its variants might be controlled without your knowledge does mean that it is a serious threat. The insecurity specialists added that users are recommended to always reject unknown application requests and attentively monitor permissions requested by any program.