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Atari Online News, Etc. Volume 17 Issue 08
Volume 17, Issue 08 Atari Online News, Etc. February 20, 2015
Published and Copyright (c) 1999 - 2015
All Rights Reserved
Atari Online News, Etc.
A-ONE Online Magazine
Dana P. Jacobson, Publisher/Managing Editor
Joseph Mirando, Managing Editor
Rob Mahlert, Associate Editor
Atari Online News, Etc. Staff
Dana P. Jacobson -- Editor
Joe Mirando -- "People Are Talking"
Michael Burkley -- "Unabashed Atariophile"
Albert Dayes -- "CC: Classic Chips"
Rob Mahlert -- Web site
Thomas J. Andrews -- "Keeper of the Flame"
With Contributions by:
Fred Horvat
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=~=~=~=
A-ONE #1708 02/20/15
~ Cyberattacks Hit Banks ~ People Are Talking! ~ HTTP 2.0 Approval
~ Lizard Squad Returns! ~ Obama: EU Can't Compete ~ Email Search Curb?
~ Twitter Under Pressure ~ Net Neutrality "Holes" ~ Onion City Search!
~ Spyware Embedded by US ~ Mark Cuban Weighs In! ~ Photoshop Hits 25!
-* Sony Banking on PlayStation! *-
-* Peter Banks on Asteroid's Direction *-
-* Hackers Still Inside U.S. State Dept Email *-
=~=~=~=
->From the Editor's Keyboard "Saying it like it is!"
""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Another week, another issue out late! Sorry about another delay this
week, but Mother Nature continues to pound us here in the Northeast (and
lots of other areas throughtout the U.S.!). We've been spending a lot
of time to continue cleaning up after all of these recent snow storms,
including clearing snow and ice from our roofs. What we couldn't get
off of the roof, we had some contractor come in and finish it up. They
weren't as successful as I would have liked removing the ice, but I'm
hoping that they did enough to prevent any problems with the impending
ice storm that's on its way this weekend.
So, after another week of dealing with snow, ice, and the frigid cold
weather - we're tired. Didn't make it a late night last night trying to
finish up here, so here we are, late.
Let's get right to this week's issue - a lot of interesting stuff for
you this week!
Until next time...
=~=~=~=
->In This Week's Gaming Section - Sony Looking to PlayStation For Profitable Future
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" Lizard Squad Returns, Claims Attack!
Peter Banks on Asteroids New Direction
And more!
=~=~=~=
->A-ONE's Game Console Industry News - The Latest Gaming News!
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Sony Looking to PlayStation For Profitable Future
Sony has revealed its plans for increased profitability in the coming
years center on PlayStation and cameras, while it may depart the TV and
smartphone business.
According to Reuters, CEO Kaz Hirai made the announcement explaining that
the dominance of Apple and Samsung meant it was becoming increasingly
nonsensical to pursue sales growth in the smartphone sector. When asked
whether the TV and phone businesses could go the way of its PC arm,
which was recently sold off, Hirai said he wouldn't rule it out.
As a result, the company plans to focus on entertainment, camera sensors,
and the increasingly successful PlayStation business to see it return to
profit. One of the key aims Hirai outlined was expanding the PlayStation
Network userbase while also focusing on its music-streaming service.
Currently, Sony is forecasting its sixth net loss in seven years at the
end of this financial year, though things seem to be on the turn. This
aggressive restructuring coupled with the PS4's success has been
applauded by investors, with shares rising 80 percent over the past year
alone.
Once all this is said and done, Hirai said, he hopes to see Sony post an
operating profit of at least 500 billion yen ($4.2 billion) for 2017/18,
compared with the 20 billion yen forecast for the year ending March 31.
If the company does manage to focus in on the success PlayStation has
achieved recently while continuing to sell off less-successful
investments like SOE, it could very well manage it.
Lizard Squad Returns, Claims Attack on Xbox Live and Daybreak Games
Hacking group Lizard Squad returned over the weekend with alleged fresh
attacks against Microsoft's Xbox Live service and the studio formerly
known as Sony Entertainment Online.
The group first targeted Sony in August when it launched a DDoS attack
against the PlayStation Network (PSN).
Then, over the Christmas period, it launched similar attacks against
Microsoft's Xbox Live, as well as PSN again.
In January, the tables were then turned on Lizard Squad after the hacking
of its own DDoS-for-hire service LizardStresser.
And in the last two months two alleged Lizard Squad members have been
arrested.
But on Saturday the group reappeared, apparently turning its attention
to Daybreak Games - previously known as Sony Online Entertainment - who
reported that its servers were being attacked.
The company said many of its online games, including the newly released
zombie survival MMO H1Z1, were experiencing connection issues.
Daybreak Games president John Smedley explained that the game was being
targeted by a DDoS attack which prompted a reply from someone using the
Squad's hatted-lizard image, and the account handle @LizardPhoenix:
What's up, long time no see :).@j_smedley
The group and Smedley already have some history of course - in August
2014, a bomb threat was sent to a plane on which Smedley - then the Sony
Online Entertainment president - was travelling.
Since then, Sony sold Sony Online Entertainment to Columbus Nova which
renamed the studio Daybreak Games.
Not content, it seems, with just disrupting Daybreak Games, the same
Twitter account announced an attack against Microsoft's gaming network on
Sunday.
The group claimed responsibility for the Xbox Live outage, saying that the
attack was orchestrated in association with another group called Like No
Other (LNO):
XBL attack was done with the help of our associates from LNO: @LNOuNiTy
@LNOVenom @Guidelines @we_are_lno
By way of celebration, Lizard Squad followed that tweet up with another
which read:
Haha "Xbox" is trending Worldwide. We're back :)
=~=~=~=
->A-ONE Gaming Online - Online Users Growl & Purr!
"""""""""""""""""""
Museum Establishes World Video Game Hall of Fame
The Strong, a collections-based museum in Rochester, New York, has
established the World Video Game Hall of Fame.
The Hall of Fame will recognize games from all platforms, including
arcade, console, computer, handheld, and mobile. In order to be considered
for induction, a game must meet the following criteria: icon-status,
longevity, geographical reach, and influence. The museum notes that if a
game's influence is strong enough, it doesn't have to meet the first three
criteria.
The Strong is currently home to the National Toy Hall of Fame, as well as
the International Center for the History of Electronic Games, which
contains over 55,000 video games and related artifacts.
To nominate a game, head over to The Strong's website. Nominations will be
accepted through March 31, with finalists being selected by a committee of
journalists, scholars, and others familiar with video game history. The
first batch of inductees will be revealed in June during a ceremony at the
museum.
Atari Producer Peter Banks on Asteroids New Direction
As I listlessly skimmed my emails inbox, I was suddenly slapped awake by
an interesting subject line, Atari reviving Asteroids.
I loved the sound of that idea. The original Asteroids concept of
destroying space boulders, while fighting inertia, would be a great
starting point for a modern shoot-em-up title.
As I dug into the email, however, it became clear that my assumptions
were off
by, like, a lot. Atari is rebooting the series with
Asteroids: Outpost, but as an, open-world, sandbox-style survival
experience.
That doesnt sound like the Asteroids I know. It probably doesnt sound
like the Asteroids you know, either.
To help me wrap my head around developer Salty Games concept, Atari
producer and Asteroids: Outposts executive producer Peter Banks came to
my aid.
GamesBeat: I was a bit shocked by the Asteroids: Outpost announcement
earlier this week. When someone mentioned an Asteroids reboot, I did not
expect it to be described as an open-world, sandbox-style survival
experience. What prompted taking the gameplay in this direction?
Peter Banks: Like many of Ataris great [intellectual properties],
Asteroids has a long and storied history. Since 1981, weve seen the
title appear across a number of different platforms. With the legacy of
official versions and clones out in the world, you could almost call
Asteroids a genre unto itself.
That said, our goal with Asteroids: Outpost is really to expand the world
of Asteroids beyond a single gameplay mechanic and explore the wider
context of the game. While we certainly intend to appeal to longtime fans
of the franchise, we also want to open up the game to newcomers and those
used to more modern gameplay conventions.
GamesBeat: Is the original Asteroids concept somewhere in Asteroids:
Outposts gameplay?
Banks: Absolutely. The game is set on a massive asteroid, in our solar
systems asteroid belt, and part of the game is defending yourself and
your base against deadly asteroid showers.
Tied to this, a core gameplay mechanic is the construction and control
of anti-asteroid defense systems to protect your outpost. This mechanic
evokes classic gameplay without specifically reproducing it and fits
comfortably within the larger context of the overall gameplay.
GamesBeat: Most of the classic Atari franchises we know and love come
from a time when video games were extremely young. Games like Asteroids
were groundbreaking for their time, but man, they were also extremely
basic and bare bones. They are to video games what the silent era is to
film. How do you approach the challenge of creating a modern take on
these simple game concepts?
Banks: A very good point, and this is something thats an essential
component of our greenlight process.
Some of these titles have really compelling gameplay mechanics we want to
focus on. Others present rich or well-loved settings we feel can be
explored. In the case of Asteroids the core concepts are a satisfying
destruction of asteroids and an evocative, deep space setting. We love
the challenge this kind of process presents us it gives us a blank
canvas to create something really compelling while at the same time
providing us with this rich vein of history in which to inspire us.
GamesBeat: Why is Atari going Early Access with Asteroids: Outpost?
Banks: Early Access is an important part of a strategy that focuses on a
long-term engagement with our players.
As a multiplayer-focused game, much of the core gameplay [in Outpost]
will center on emergent user behaviors. While we do extensive
concepting, design, and testing before even reaching Early Access, weve
really found with our own games, as well as in the games we love to play,
[that] the gameplay elements that players really end up enjoying are
often ones that they themselves have a hand in crafting. Early Access
gives players and our developers a great way to tinker and improve on the
core gameplay weve created for Asteroids: Outpost.
GamesBeat: Do you see Early Access, and even some forms of crowdfunding,
as potentially risky from a development standpoint? It seems like the
incentive for finishing a game as in gaining a player base and selling
a product is gained before reaching completion under these systems.
Doesnt that kill some of the drive to see a project through to the end?
Banks: Developing and publishing games is an inherently risky endeavor
its a volatile market with high stakes. That said, the expectation for
multiplayer today is that games will be supported over time with regular
updates, new content, [and so on].
In the case of Asteroids, we are extremely excited to have a wealth of
data from Early Access to further enhance and refine the gameplay for
Asteroids: Outpost and continue rolling out content. Basically, its the
first step in a long-term commitment to a player-focused development
strategy.
GamesBeat: There is something strange going on with recent Atari
releases. I thought it was just Alone in the Dark: Illumination, but I
noticed Haunted House: Cryptic Graves, Minimum, and Asteroids: Outpost
are doing the same thing: They are all PC-only releases. Whats going on
here? These all seem like they should be major cross-platform,
cross-console projects for Atari.
Banks: Atari has a long history of success in the PC market. Digital
distribution has been a huge part of our strategy for years, so this in
itself is nothing new. Were still relatively early in this console
cycle, and the current install base only supports a fairly finite number
of titles. For now, PC really fits our strategy, it allows us to be a
bit more experimental and reactive.
GamesBeat: Is there anything else you can tell us about Asteroids:
Outpost beyond this weeks announcement?
Banks: Were just getting started! Well have tons more to share in the
coming weeks and months as we head into Early Access and beyond!
=~=~=~=
A-ONE's Headline News
The Latest in Computer Technology News
Compiled by: Dana P. Jacobson
Spyware Embedded by U.S. in Foreign Networks, Security Firm Says
The United States has found a way to permanently embed surveillance and
sabotage tools in computers and networks it has targeted in Iran, Russia,
Pakistan, China, Afghanistan and other countries closely watched by
American intelligence agencies, according to a Russian cybersecurity
firm.
In a presentation of its findings at a conference in Mexico on Monday,
Kaspersky Lab, the Russian firm, said that the implants had been placed
by what it called the Equation Group, which appears to be a veiled
reference to the National Security Agency and its military counterpart,
United States Cyber Command.
It linked the techniques to those used in Stuxnet, the computer worm that
disabled about 1,000 centrifuges in Irans nuclear enrichment program. It
was later revealed that Stuxnet was part of a program code-named Olympic
Games and run jointly by Israel and the United States.
Kasperskys report said that Olympic Games had similarities to a much
broader effort to infect computers well beyond those in Iran. It detected
particularly high infection rates in computers in Iran, Pakistan and
Russia, three countries whose nuclear programs the United States
routinely monitors.
Some of the implants burrow so deep into the computer systems, Kaspersky
said, that they infect the firmware, the embedded software that preps
the computers hardware before the operating system starts. It is beyond
the reach of existing antivirus products and most security controls,
Kaspersky reported, making it virtually impossible to wipe out.
In many cases, it also allows the American intelligence agencies to grab
the encryption keys off a machine, unnoticed, and unlock scrambled
contents.
Moreover, many of the tools are designed to run on computers that are
disconnected from the Internet, which was the case in the computers
controlling Irans nuclear enrichment plants.
Kaspersky noted that of the more than 60 attack groups it was tracking in
cyberspace, the so-called Equation Group surpasses anything known in
terms of complexity and sophistication of techniques, and that has been
active for almost two decades.
Kaspersky Lab was founded by Eugene Kaspersky, who studied cryptography at
a high school co-sponsored by the K.G.B. and once worked for the Russian
military. Its studies, including one describing a cyberattack of more than
100 banks and other financial institutions in 30 countries, are considered
credible by Western experts.
The fact that security software made by Kaspersky Lab is not used by many
American government agencies has made it more trusted by other
governments, like those of Iran and Russia, whose systems are closely
watched by United States intelligence agencies. That gives Kaspersky a
front-row seat to America's digital espionage operations.
The firms researchers say that what makes these attacks particularly
remarkable is their way of attacking the actual firmware of the
computers. Only in rare cases are cybercriminals able to get into the
actual guts of a machine.
Recovering from a cyberattack typically involves wiping the computers
operating system and reinstalling software, or replacing a computers
hard drive. But if the firmware gets infected, security experts say, it
can turn even the most sophisticated computer into a useless piece of
metal.
In the past, security experts have warned about the race to the bare
metal of a machine. As security around software has increased, criminals
have looked for ways to infect the actual hardware of the machine.
Firmware is about the closest to the bare metal you can get a coveted
position that allows the attacker not only to hide from antivirus
products but also to reinfect a machine even if its hard drive is wiped.
If the malware gets into the firmware, it is able to resurrect itself
forever, Costin Raiu, a Kaspersky threat researcher, said in the report.
It means that we are practically blind and cannot detect hard drives that
have been infected with this malware.
The possibility of such an attack is one that math researchers at the
National Institute of Standards and Technology, a branch of the Commerce
Department, have long cautioned about but have very rarely seen. In an
interview last year, Andrew Regenscheid, a math researcher at the
institute, warned that such attacks were extremely powerful. If the
firmware gets corrupted, Mr. Regenscheid said, your computer wont boot
up and you cant use it. You have to replace the computer to recover from
that attack.
That kind of attack also makes for a powerful encryption-cracking tool,
Mr. Raiu noted, because it gives attackers the ability to capture a
machines encryption password, store it in an invisible area inside the
computers hard drive and unscramble a machines contents.
Kasperskys report also detailed the groups efforts to map out so-called
air-gapped systems that are not connected to the Internet, including
Irans nuclear enrichment facilities, and infect them using a USB stick.
To get those devices onto the machines, the report said, the attackers
have in some cases intercepted them in transit.
Documents revealed by the former National Security Agency contractor
Edward J. Snowden detailed the agencys plans to leap the air gaps that
separate computers from the outside world, including efforts to install
specialized hardware on computers being shipped to a target country. That
hardware can then receive low-frequency radio waves broadcast from a
suitcase-size device that the N.S.A. has deployed around the world. At
other times the air gaps have been leapt by having a spy physically
install use a USB stick to infect the adversary's computer.
Basing its estimate on the time stamps in code, the Kaspersky presentation
said, the Equation Group had been infecting computers since 2001, but
aggressively began ramping up their capabilities in 2008, the year that
President Obama was elected, and began doubling down on digital tools to
spy on adversaries of America.
While the United States has never acknowledged conducting any offensive
cyberoperations, President Obama discussed the issue in general in an
interview on Friday with Re/code, an online computer industry publication,
describing offensive cyberweapons as being unlike traditional weapons.
This is more like basketball than football, in the sense that theres no
clear line between offense and defense, said Mr. Obama, himself a
basketball player. Things are going back and forth all the time.
Did NSA Plant Spyware in Computers Around World?
Did the National Security Agency plant spyware deep in the hard drives of
thousands of computers used by foreign governments, banks and other
surveillance targets around the world?
A new report from Russian cybersecurity firm Kaspersky Lab said its
researchers identified a new family of malicious programs or worms that
infected computers in multiple countries, primarily overseas. Targets
appeared to be specifically selected and included military, Islamic
activists, energy companies and other businesses, as well as government
personnel.
Without naming the United States as the source of the malware, the report
said one of the programs has elements in common with the so-called Stuxnet
worm, which the New York Times and Washington Post have said was developed
by the U.S. and Israeli governments to disrupt Iranian nuclear facilities.
Based on their similarities, the creators of both programs "are either the
same or working closely together," Kaspersky's report said.
The malware was not designed for financial gain but to collect
information through "pure cyberespionage," added Kaspersky researcher
Vitaly Kamluk. In its report, the firm said the malware was extremely
sophisticated and "expensive to develop."
NSA spokeswoman Vanee Vines declined comment Tuesday, but cited a 2014
presidential directive that instructed U.S. intelligence agencies to
respect Americans' privacy while continuing to conduct overseas
operations necessary to guard against terrorism or other threats.
Kaspersky researchers said some of the spyware was designed to burrow
into the essential software that comes pre-installed on a computer's disk
drive, known as firmware. Once there, it was difficult to detect and
virtually impossible to remove, and it could gain access to vital codes,
such as the keys to deciphering encrypted files. Kamluk said compromising
firmware is a difficult technical challenge that likely requires
knowledge of the manufacturer's source code normally a closely guarded
secret.
The report named several disk drive manufacturers whose products were
compromised, including Seagate Technology, Western Digital Corp., Toshiba
and IBM Corp. While some did not immediately respond to requests for
comment, three companies said the report came as news to them.
"We take such threats very seriously," Western Digital spokesman Steve
Shattuck said Tuesday, adding in a statement that the company is "in the
process of reviewing the report from Kaspersky Labs."
Seagate Technology said it "has no specific knowledge of any allegations
regarding third parties accessing our drives." The company said in a
statement it's committed to security and takes steps to prevent tampering
or "reverse engineering" of its products. Toshiba said it had no knowledge
of the malware and declined further comment.
While some of the malware was transmitted over the Internet, Kaspersky
said one worm spread through infected USB thumb drives, allowing it to
collect information from computers that are "air-gapped" or disconnected
from the Internet. Air-gapping is a security practice used at nuclear
plants and other sensitive facilities.
Kaspersky also said it uncovered "classic spying methods" in which
scientists who attended an international conference in Houston were later
sent a CD of conference materials from the event's sponsor. The sponsor
apparently didn't know that the disc also contained malware which spread
into certain attendees' computers, the researchers said.
Kaspersky said it found signs the malware infected computers in more than
30 countries, with the heaviest concentrations in Iran, Russia, Pakistan,
Afghanistan and China. There were relatively few targets in the U.S. and
Britain, said Kamluk, who characterized them as individuals living or
visiting in those countries rather than companies or institutions based
there.
Though it's less well-known in the United States, Kaspersky is respected
in the cybersecurity industry and its reports are generally viewed as
reputable. While some critics have suggested the firm has close ties to
Russian authorities, several experts said Tuesday that it's plausible the
United States is behind the malware identified in the report.
"A lot of nation-states are involved in these activities. Russia, China
and the U.S. are in a great cyberarms race," said David DeWalt, chief
executive of the Silicon Valley cybersecurity firm FireEye. He noted that
China has been implicated in attempts to steal source code and other
information from U.S. companies, for example, while Russian authorities
have been linked to some hacking efforts.
Some warned that U.S. efforts could have unintended consequences: Foreign
customers could become more leery of U.S. tech products if they're
suspected of being used for spying. And other hackers may be able to
exploit the same vulnerabilities, said cybersecurity expert and author
Bruce Schneier.
Over 100 Banks Hit by Sophisticated Cyberattack
A sophisticated global cyberattack struck more than 100 banks in 30
countries stealing hundreds of millions of dollars, The New York Times
reported Saturday.
Citing a soon to be released report from computer security company
Kaspersky Lab, the newspaper said the attack involved malicious software
that gave hackers long-term access to banking systems.
A group of Russians, Chinese and Europeans was able to siphon off around
$300 million in one of the world's largest bank robberies, the report
said.
The money was transferred to bank accounts around the world in
small-value amounts to avoid detection.
Hackers largely focused on banks in Russia, but millions of dollars were
also taken from banks in Japan, the Netherlands, Switzerland and the
United States as well, the Times said.
Hackers had such advanced access to the banks' systems that they could
force ATM machines to dispense cash at specific times and locations where
hackers could pick it up.
Hackers Still Inside U.S. State Department Emails
Both government and private security specialists are still struggling to
end the hackers presence inside an unclassified section of the State
Departments email system.
According to two official sources, security teams have not been able stop
the hackers from accessing the email system, despite first discovering
the hack around 3 months ago. The intruders are using a wide variety of
changing techniques to outwit the security teams, although no classified
State Department material seems to have been compromised, writes John
Walcott of Bloomberg.
Despite the lack of a serious breach, officials are still worried because
the presence of the hackers enables them to write false emails, delete
genuine messages and continue searching for a way into classified
communications systems.
One of the officials, who requested anonymity, said that a number of
factors appear to suggest that the attack may be linked with Russia. One
former U.S. intelligence official claims that Russias cyber-espionage
capabilities are almost on par with the U.S. National Security Agency.
The cyber intrusions come at a time of deteriorating relations between
the U.S. and Russia, with the ongoing conflict in Ukraine a major source
of tension.
Hackers linked to the Russian government have been known to use similar
phishing techniques in the past, where victims are incited to open
e-mail attachments infected with malware which then allows hackers to
access email systems.
This time around the investigation has not reached any definitive
conclusion on the origins of the intruders, according to the officials.
We have robust security to protect our systems and our information, and
we deal successfully with thousands of attacks every day, said Marie
Harf, a State Department spokeswoman. We take any possible cyber
intrusion very seriously.
The persistent attacks followed a report from Moscow-based cyber security
company Kaspersky Lab which claimed that tens of thousands of computers
across the globe had been infected with surveillance software following
a highly sophisticated spying campaign.
The Russian company stopped short of alleging that the hackers were
associated with the NSA, but Costin Raiu, director of Kasperskys global
research and analysis team, did say that the sophistication of the attack
would point to the involvement of government spy agencies in the U.S.,
Britain, Russia or China.
U.S. security teams need to get the hackers out of the State Department
email system before they work out a way of causing damage or accessing
classified information.
Net Neutrality Advocates Identify Holes in FCCs Net Neutrality Plan
Net neutrality advocates are generally pleased by the Federal
Communications Commission's latest plan to regulate Internet service
providers, but some are pointing out potential problems.
Attorney Matt Wood, the policy director for advocacy group Free Press,
told the FCC last week that it faces "legal obstacles" in how it intends
to regulate Internet service providers. FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler
proposes to reclassify Internet service providers as common carriers in
two parts. ISPs will be common carriers in their relationships with home
Internet consumers. They will also be common carriers in their business
relationships with "edge providers," companies that offer services,
applications, and content over the Internet.
"[B]oth the service to the end user and to the edge provider are
classified under Title II [of the Communications Act]," the proposal
states.
This could get the FCC in trouble, Wood argues:
On the statutory definition question, as we noted in our earlier letter,
services purportedly offered to a remote edge providerwhen there is no
physical connection between that edge provider and the carrier in
question are not services offered directly to the edge provider
according to any precedent we could find. If there is no physical
connection, and thus no obvious direct relationship between the carrier
and the remote edge provider, it is hard to imagine how the service can
qualify as a telecom service under Section 153(53) of the Act. That
subsection stipulates that a telecom service must be offered directly
to the recipient.
Likewise, as we also noted in our letter, even in the rare case where
there is a direct interconnection with an edge provider this is likely
private carriage. Such arrangements are negotiated on an individual
basis with the broadband provider, not offered indiscriminately on a
common carrier basis to the public under the same definition in
subsection (53).
Even if the Commission could surmount these statutory barriers, the
policy question remains: why would it want to? Our November 5 letter
described the seemingly absurd results that could flow from recognizing
such a relationship between edge providers and end-users broadband
providers. Would such an approach suggest or even mandate that every
single end point on the Internet is a customer of each and every ISP that
provides service to any other single end point on the Internet? Put more
colloquially, would every website in the world become a customer of any
broadband Internet access service provider whose end-users visit that
website?
The FCC could establish jurisdiction over interconnection disputes
without claiming that ISPs are offering a service to edge providers,
Wood argued. Money disputes between ISPs and content providers can result
in poor performance for consumers, he notedthis happened with Netflix on
multiple ISPs for months. Net neutrality rules designed to protect
Internet users should thus allow the FCC to intervene in interconnection
battles that harm traffic to end users, Wood wrote.
"Broadband users deserve access to the content, services and applications
of their choosing, and they deserve access to such data at the speeds for
which those end-users are paying," Wood wrote. "If the Commissions rules
in this proceeding are intended to prevent broadband Internet access
service providers blocking, degrading or impairing the delivery of such
traffic as sent and received by Internet users, then the rules should
clearly prevent the imposition of such access chargeseven in the guise
of 'interconnection fees'along with other harmful conduct at the
interconnection point with a broadband Internet access service providers
last-mile network."
The FCC's previous net neutrality rules were thrown out in court when
judges ruled that the commission imposed per se common carrier
regulations without first reclassifying broadband as a common carrier
service. That, plus prodding from President Obama and public support for
stronger net neutrality rules, helped convince Wheeler to use Title II.
Another concern was raised in a filing by the National Association of
Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC).
NARUC said it supports "whatever legal rationale the Commission adopts to
support imposition of net neutrality principles," meaning that the group
does not object to reclassifying broadband providers as common carriers.
But NARUC wants to make sure the FCC doesn't rule out the possibility of
reclassifying Voice over Internet Protocol phone systems offered by
Internet providers. The FCC has never firmly classified VoIP as either a
common carrier service or not, and the FCC's net neutrality proposal has
a carve-out for VoIP.
"Some data services do not go over the public Internet, and therefore are
not 'broadband Internet access' services subject to Title II oversight
(VoIP from a cable system is an example, as is a dedicated
heart-monitoring service)," the proposal states.
NARUC worries that industry groups will point to this in their argument
that VoIP is a lightly regulated "information service" instead of a more
heavily regulated telecommunications service.
"It is true... that, however classified, both VoIP and a dedicated heart
monitoring service, are not in any sense 'broadband internet access,'"
NARUC wrote. "Unfortunately, an opposite inference can be drawn from the
cited text."
VoIP's classification isn't directly related to net neutrality but will
become important over the next few years as telephone companies like AT&T
and Verizon shift customers from circuit switched landlines to IP voice
systems. The old phones are regulated as telecommunications services
under Title II, while VoIP so far has escaped strict regulation.
NARUC asked the FCC to clarify that a telecommunications service such as
voice should be regulated as telecommunications regardless of what
underlying technology powers it. "Failing that, the FCC should clarify
the cited text to make clear that the Agency is not attempting to change
the classification of VoIP services to information services," NARUC
wrote.
Essentially, NARUC wants the FCC to impose common carrier rules on VoIP
providers right now, or at least not prevent itself from doing so in the
future.
Mark Cuban: FCCs Net Neutrality Plan Will F Everything Up
Billionaire investor and star of ABCs Shark Tank Mark Cuban thinks the
Federal Communications Commissions plan to regulate the Internet as a
public utility will do damage of profane proportions to the industry.
That will fuck everything up, Cuban said at the Code/Media conference
on Wednesday in California, according to re/code. Net neutrality is just
a demonization of big companies.
According to Cuban, theres little evidence to support the claims that
Internet service providers like Verizon, AT&T, Comcast, Time Warner Cable
or others ever slowed service speeds to content creators like Netflix,
Google YouTube, Amazon or others in order to force the companies into
paying higher prices for acceptable service.
Such paid prioritization along with all-out content blocking would be
banned under the new FCC proposal, which will classify ISPs as public
utility common carriers, and regulate them in the fashion used to break
up telephone monopolies at the dawn of the communication age.
Cuban along with Republican regulators, lawmakers and industry lobbyists
argue the plan will destroy the market competitiveness that drives
innovation and expansion to faster and larger networks, with greater
choices for Internet consumers.
Having [the FCC] overseeing the Internet scares the shit out of me,
Cuban said.
Obama Accuses EU of Attacking American Tech Companies Because It 'Can't Compete'
Barack Obama has angered officials in Europe after suggesting that
investigations by the European Union into companies like Google and
Facebook were "commercially driven." In an interview with Recode, the
president claimed that European "service providers who
cant compete
with ours, are essentially trying to set up some roadblocks for our
companies to operate effectively there." The truth, however, is more
nuanced than this.
Obama says: "We have owned the internet. Our companies have created it,
expanded it, perfected it in ways that they cant compete. And
oftentimes what is portrayed as high-minded positions on issues sometimes
is just designed to carve out some of their commercial interests."
Over the past few years, it's true that EU regulators have attempted to
crack down on what they perceive as the unfettered power of American
companies in Europe. The targets for these officials haven't just been
limited to commercial power and have included issues such as tax
avoidance and privacy rights including the so-called right to be
forgotten which gives EU citizens the right to petition Google to remove
links from certain search results.
In response to questions concerning Silicon Valley's intrusion into
people's personal data, Obama singled out Germany as a country that was
"very sensitive to these issues." The president suggested that this was
due to the country's "history with the Stasi" the communist secret
police that terrorized East Germany following World War II. Germany's
chancellor Angela Merkel has previously compared the NSA to the Stasi.
A spokesperson for the European Commission called Obamas comments "out
of line," saying that "regulation should make it easier for non-EU
companies to access the single market," according to a report in the
Financial Times. The unnamed official said that "it is in [US companies]
interest that things are enforced in a uniform manner." (The "single
market" mentioned here is an ongoing plan to boost the EUs faltering
economy with initiatives promoting the digital industry.)
Last year, the European Parliament voted in favor of breaking up Google
There's undoubtedly a desire in Europe to curb the commercial power of US
companies. Last year, the European Parliament voted in favor of breaking
up Google to ensure "competitive conditions," while other firms that are
leveraging technology to beat established industries have faced a
backlash. Uber, for example, triggered protests across the continent last
year with taxi drivers arguing that the company was taking advantage of
legislative loopholes to avoid costly regulations.
What Obama failed to mention, however, is that both European and US
companies have taken advantage of the EU's readiness to regulate internet
firms. In 2007 Norway-based Opera filed antitrust complaints against
Microsoft, with Google later tipping off EU investigators in a follow-up
case that was concluded in 2013. In the same year, Microsoft and Oracle
banded together with a number of companies from both Europe and the US to
launch "Fairsearch" a body that lobbied extensively against Google's
dominance. The complaints still continue, with a Portuguese app store
named Aptoide filing antitrust claims against Google in July last year.
On Twitter, some individuals also took offense at Obama's comments for his
perceived arrogance. Martha Lane Fox, an internet entrepreneur and member
of the UK House of Lords, called Obama's comments "bad bad bad" before
noting that the "invention of the internet [was the responsibility of] no
one country."
Obama's comments were more balanced than this, however, with his claim
that American companies "have owned the internet" reflecting the fact that
it is US firms that have overwhelmingly shaped how we use the internet
today. But regardless of who built the internet, no one can deny the right
of those who use it to question how it works.
Twitter Under Pressure To Act More Aggressively Against Terrorists
Twitter, the social media giant, is facing mounting questions from
members of Congress and outside groups over the abuse of its network by
Islamic State terrorists to spread propaganda and recruit foreign
fighters.
An upcoming report has identified as many as 46,000 Twitter accounts that
were being used by IS sympathizers during a three-month period last fall
making it by far the most popular social media service for the terror
group, according to J.M. Berger, who conducted the study, to be published
next month by the Brookings Institution.
But in recent weeks, how Twitter as well as other social media
companies such as YouTube and Facebook polices this content is emerging
as a central issue in a vexing debate that pits the limits of free speech
against the governments need to confront the aggressive messaging of IS
and related terror groups. It is expected to be a prime topic of a social
media panel scheduled today at a White House summit on countering
violent extremism.
This is the way [IS] is recruiting they are getting people to leave
their homelands and become fighters, said Rep. Ted Poe, R-Texas, the
chair of a House foreign affairs subcommittee on terrorism, who held a
recent hearing on the issue.
While acknowledging that IS propagandists use all social media platforms,
Poe said there is frustration with Twitter specifically over what he
views as its insufficient response to pleas to shut down clear
incitements to violence.
Poe told Yahoo News that he and other members of Congress will be sending
a letter to Twitter CEO Dick Costolo this week demanding that the firm
take more active measures to shut down IS tweeters. We want them to
treat this the same as child pornography, said Poe, noting that the firm
has been far more vigilant in shutting down obscene images than it has
with those containing extremist and violent content.
But Twitter officials say the criticisms are misplaced and that its
policies are no different from those of other social media companies,
which rely on the public to report abuses. Officials also say the
critics ignore behind-the-scenes cooperation the firm has been providing
to the FBI, which at times seeks to use Twitter to track and, with luck,
identify IS tweeters.
Like our peer companies, we do not proactively monitor content, a
Twitter spokesman said in an email. We review all reported content
against our rules, which prohibit unlawful use and direct, specific
threats of violence against others. Users report potential rules
violations to us, we review their reports and take action if the content
violates our rules.
In part, several sources said, Twitters problems are of its own making.
Twitter is notoriously close-mouthed in how they handle suspensions and
what goes on in the company, said Berger, an expert on the use of social
media. We dont know who they suspend, and why. Of all the social media
companies, they have been very reluctant to be involved in discussions
with the government a stance he attributes to the libertarian views
of the companys founders and executives.
That attitude led to tensions with White House officials when they sought
to engage the company in discussions about the policing of its network,
according to two sources familiar with internal deliberations on the
issue.
Lisa Monaco, President Barack Obamas chief counterterrorism adviser, has
privately complained that Twitter wouldnt even return [White House
officials] phone calls, said one former U.S. official. They were
really pissed off.
(A Twitter official declined to comment on the record. A White House
official said Twitter will be sending representatives to this weeks
White House summit, but none of its executives are slated to speak,
either on the social media panel or at any other summit-related event.
They didnt see this as a good fit, said one administration official
when asked about Twitters role in the summit.)
The use and abuse of social media platforms by IS and other terror
groups has been a growing issue for U.S. and other Western law
enforcement and intelligence agencies. IS has developed what Matt Olsen,
the former director of the National Counterterrorism Center, has
described as the most sophisticated propaganda machine of any
terrorist organization. The group employs a network of cyberwarriors,
based in Raqqa, Syria, whose members target young people for recruitment
(leveraging popular hashtags like #World Cup and #Ebola to extend its
reach) and repeatedly post vile and threatening messages, including
graphic images of beheadings and other executions, such as the recent
burning of a Jordanian pilot.
These efforts are believed to be spearheaded in part by a notorious
British hacker, Junaid Hussain, who has previously been imprisoned for
hacking into former British Prime Minister Tony Blairs address book and
posting personal details online.
The congressional concerns about Twitters policies were amplified by the
recent disclosure of an internal memo written by Twitter CEO Costolo
taking his own firm to task for its failure to shut down tweeters who
engage in cyberbullying and sexual harassment on its network. We suck at
dealing with abuse and trolls on the platform, Costolo wrote in the
memo. Were going to start kicking these people off right and left and
making sure that when they issue their ridiculous attacks, nobody hears
them.
Poe said in an interview that he wants to see Twitter take the same
attitude toward IS tweeters. But even he acknowledges that the issue is
complicated. In recent meetings, Poe said Twitter representatives have
argued that they have taken their primary guidance from the FBI: The law
enforcement agency has indicated that it often wants Twitter to leave
IS-linked accounts up, so the bureau can track them.
Well take them down when the FBI tells us to take them down, Poe said
Twitter officials have argued in the meetings he has had with them. (A
senior FBI official confirmed that the bureau has at times asked Twitter
not to suspend accounts to help identify IS members and who they might
be in communication with inside the United States.)
But former George W. Bush White House counterterrorism adviser Fran
Townsend, who heads a private group called the Counter Extremism Project,
which has been sharply critical of Twitter, said the FBI and U.S.
intelligence agencies have plenty of other ways to track IS tweeters.
The risk of recruitment and incitement to violence outweighs the
benefits from surveilling them and finding out who they are, she said in
an interview.
Townsends concerns about IS tweeters are personally felt. Last fall, she
reported to the FBI about menacing tweets threatening to behead her, made
by one prominent IS tweeter who has used the name Mujahid Miski. (Miski
has been identified in federal court papers as Mohammed Abdullah Hassan,
a Somali-American who is under federal indictment on terror charges in
Minneapolis and is now a fugitive. Among his recent tweets: Allahu
Akbar, 5 Jews were sent to hell by two brave Muslims. Allahu Akbar, If
only every Muslims could kill 1 Jew, everything would change.)
But Miskis case also shows the difficulties that Twitter and other
social media firms have in cracking down on such content. Miski has
boasted on Twitter that his account has been suspended 20 times; after
each suspension, he slightly changes the name on his account and pops
back up.
My view is that we can kick them off, but its not going to solve the
issue, said Quintan Wiktorowicz, a former White House national security
adviser under Obama who specialized in countering-violent-extremism
issues. It really is playing whack-a-mole.
The only long-term solution is a sustained partnership between U.S.
government officials and social media companies to amplify and spread
messages countering IS propaganda a major goal, administration
officials say, of this weeks summit.
HTTP 2.0 Wins Approval: Road to Better Encryption?
The HTTP standard is getting an overhaul and while faster Web pages are a
big win for the first major revision since 1999 better encryption may
have a more lasting impact.
As big data, the IoT, and social media spread their wings, they bring new
challenges to information security and user privacy.
In a blog post, Mark Nottingham, chairman of the IETF working group
behind creating the standards, said the HTTP 2.0 specifications have been
formally approved. From here, the specs go through a request for comment
phase and then published.
HTTP, or Hyptertext Transfer Protocol, is one of the standards that makes
the Web tick. In a nutshell, HTTP allows a browser to connect with a Web
server to load a page. HTTP 2.0 is promising faster loading speed.
As CNET noted, the HTTP 2.0 standard is based on SPDY, which was
introduced by Google and adopted by other browsers. That HTTP 2.0
originated from a Google protocol has caused some consternation.
In the long run, speed is likely to be the No. 2 advance from HTTP 2.0.
Encryption in HTTP 2.0 will mean fewer attacks and overall snooping.
Technically, HTTP 2.0 doesn't require better encryption, but Mozilla and
Google won't support the standard without it. Add it up and HTTP 2.0
will bring encryption. Anyone adopting HTTP 2.0 will need to support
Transport Layer Security to interoperate with a wide range of browsers.
Nottingham noted in a blog post last year:
HTTP/2 doesn't require you to use TLS (the standard form of SSL, the
Web's encryption layer), but its higher performance makes using
encryption easier, since it reduces the impact on how fast your site
seems.
In fact, many people believe that the only safe way to deploy the new
protocol on the "open" Internet is to use encryption; Firefox and Chrome
have said that they'll only support HTTP/2 using TLS.
They have two reasons for this. One is that deploying a new version of
HTTP across the Internet is hard, because a lot of "middleboxes" like
proxies and firewalls assume that HTTP/1 won't ever change, and they can
introduce interoperability and even security problems if they try to
interpret a HTTP/2 connection.
The other is that the Web is an increasingly dangerous place, and using
more encryption is one way to mitigate a number of threats. By using
HTTP/2 as a carrot for sites to use TLS, they're hoping that the overall
security of the Web will improve.
Congress Unites To Back Law That Would Curb Warrantless Email Searches
More than half of the US House of Representatives have backed a proposed
law that aims to end warrantless searches of email inboxes.
The proposed law, titled the Email Privacy Act 2015, aims to close a
loophole introduced in law three decades ago, which allows the government
to access and read emails that were opened more than six months earlier
without a court's approval.
Rep. James Sensenbrenner (R-WI, 5th), who authored the controversial
Patriot Act, and Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY, 4th), whose election was won
on supporting privacy matters, are among the 240 members of the House who
co-sponsored the bill.
A corresponding bill, co-sponsored by Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), was
introduced in the Senate last week.
Overwhelming bipartisan support for any bill is rare. But in the wake of
the National Security Agency surveillance leaks there has been a greater
effort to reform the laws that allow the US government unfettered access
data on US citizens, despite search and seizure protections laid out by
the Fourth Amendment.
Both bills were originally introduced in 2013, but stalled in a fractious
and bureaucratic session despite passing the various congressional
committees. The reintroduced bills will remain in committee stage until
they are voted on later this month or early next.
The proposed law aims to fix the outdated Electronic Communications
Privacy Act, which is still in effect despite falling behind the curve
of the digital age.
"In the nearly three decades since ECPA became law, technology has
advanced rapidly and beyond the imagination of anyone living in 1986,"
Leahy said in a statement last week.
In this day and age when most web-based email inboxes offer free and
almost unlimited storage, most historical and archived email is not
deleted. That means emails that were opened and left on the server - most
Gmail, Outlook, and Yahoo emails are never deleted - for more than six
months can be accessed without a court order or a warrant, the Electronic
Frontier Foundation says.
Email less than six-months-old still requires a warrant to be accessed.
Technology titans, including Apple, Google, and Yahoo have come forward
in favor of the proposed law.
A number of privacy groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union
and the Center for Democracy & Technology, also support the reform
effort.
Onion.city - A Search Engine Bringing The Dark Web Into The Light
The Dark Web is reflecting a little more light these days.
On Monday I wrote about Memex, DARPA's Deep Web search engine. Memex is
a sophisticated tool set that has been in the hands of a few select law
enforcement agencies for a year now, but it isn't available to regular
users like you and me.
There is another search engine that is though.
Just a few days before I wrote that article, on 11 February, user Virgil
Griffith went onto the Tor-talk mailing list and announced Onion City, a
Dark Web search engine for the rest of us.
The search engine delves into the anonymous Tor network, finds .onion
sites and makes them available to regular users on the ordinary World
Wide Web.
Up to now the best way to search for .onion sites has been to get on the
Tor network using something like the Tor browser, but Onion City
effectively does that bit for you so you can search from the comfort of
your favourite, insecure web browser.
The site can do this because it's a Tor2web proxy - a bit of software
that acts as a go-between for the regular web and the Tor network.
It acts as a Tor client inside the Tor network and presents the sites it
finds as regular web pages using subdomains of .onion.city.
One of the consequences of working this way is that Onion City search
results are just regular web pages like any other, which makes them
visible to you, me, the Onion City search engine and also, for the first
time, Google.
In fact, Onion City's search functionality is a Google Custom Search, so
if you can find something on Onion City you should be able to find it on
Google too.
At the time of writing, there are about 650,000 Dark Web pages that have
found their way into the regular Google index via Onion City.
Of course - as any small business owner can tell you - just because Google
knows a website exists doesn't mean the site's pages will rank well. But
those pages are at least in the mix now, enjoying their first rays of
sunshine.
I took a quick look around and, because this is the Dark Web, I searched
for amphetamines, 9mm ammunition and hackers for hire, and yes, it's all
in there.?If you're tempted to do the same, I encourage you to read the
rest of the article before you start.
Onion City isn't doing anything wrong and it's not 'outing' anyone on the
Dark Web, it's just providing a means for regular web users to search
things they would otherwise have to work a little harder to find.
It reduces the barriers between people who want to find or consume
something and people who want to provide it in a way that's untraceable.
Any sites that don't want to be indexed by Onion City can exclude
themselves from the index in the same way that regular sites exclude
themselves from regular search engines, using a humble robots.txt file
(although that does mean they appear in a public list of sites that
don't want to be indexed).
Onion City users would be foolish to use it for anything illegal though
because users get no protection whatsoever.
If you want to browse the Dark Web without leaving a trail, Onion City
can't help - you still need to be on the Tor network using a Tor
browser.
This is a Tor2Web proxy so the Tor part where the .onion sites reside is
as secure as Tor and the web part where you and I reside is as insecure
as the web (it isn't even available over HTTPS yet.)
What we users get is convenience, nothing more.
If you're wondering why that would be useful, just think about sites like
Wikileaks.
Wikileaks is a clearing house for materials provided by whistleblowers.
Up to now it has had to choose between being vulnerable and public or
safe and difficult to find (a situation that's resulted in it taking out
some bizarre protection.)
With Onion City, Wikileaks would have the option to retreat into the
safety of the Tor network without sacrificing visibility.
Like all frontiers the Dark Web is lawless, exciting, disorganised and
potentially dangerous. Frontiers don't last though; people move in, the
law moves in and basic utilities are established.
Thanks to Onion City, the cyber-frontier now has it's first set of street
lights.
Over 5 Million Raspberry Pis Have Been Sold
How big of a phenomenon is the Raspberry Pi? The charity organization
behind the tiny, low-cost computer announced this morning that over
5 million Pis have now been sold. The original Pi went on sale about
three years ago next week, so 5 million is a pretty huge milestone to hit
in that short period of time. The organization boasts that this figure
appears to make it "the biggest selling UK computer manufacturer ever,"
though you wouldn't be wrong to take issue with its comparison: Pi is
selling $20 to $35 computers not machines that you're going to use for
serious productivity for a few years.
Still, that's not a knock on any of the Pis. They're surprisingly capable
machines at just $35, especially following the introduction of a faster
new model and the addition of powerful software to run on it. The Pi is a
great tool for small experiments, coding, and introducing computers to
classrooms that otherwise couldn't afford them. The Raspberry Pi
Foundation tells us that it estimates there's been an even split between
the computers ending up in educational, hobbyist, and industrial
settings. Those are encouraging figures, as the hope has always been that
Pis will be used to get kids interested in computers and coding and not
just end up on the shelves of existing hobbyists.
The original Raspberry Pi, known as the Model B, accounts for most of the
5 million total sales, with the foundation estimating that there are now
about 3 million out there. There are about 1.5 million of the Model B+,
which is an incremental successor that debuted last July, and about
100,000 to 150,000 of the Model A and Model A+ units, which are the
lower-end Pi units. Finally, the foundation says there have been about
500,000 sales of the Pi 2 so far. That's a pretty good start for a
computer that was announced two weeks ago.
How 25 Years of Photoshop Changed The Way We See Reality
There could be no better commemoration of Photoshop's 25th anniversary
than the trove of unretouched Beyoncé photos that leaked online Wednesday.
The photos appeared on a fan site called Beyoncé World on Wednesday
morning. Within an hour, Beyoncé World had pulled them down, apparently
alarmed at fans' genuine outrage. These fans were angry not that Beyoncé
had been Photoshopped so dramatically as is often the case with these
things but that someone had dared expose her for who she actually is.
Laugh lines. Blemishes. Bits of friz. All the makings of a real, human
person.
The problem is that 25 years after Photoshop launched, we'd much prefer
manipulations of reality to reality itself.
This isn't entirely the fault of Photoshop, of course. While the name of
the program has become synonymous with photo editing of any sort, photos
were edited long, long before Adobe went to market and arguably, people
have "edited" their appearance, via cosmetics and corsets and other
means, since even earlier than that.
But Photoshop made such editing easy. Mainstream, even. (A review of
the
"idiotproof" consumer version, from 1995: "if you own a digital camera or
a scanner, you can now do your own photo retouching!")
The first version of the software, released in 1990, allowed basic edits
like stretching and skewing and smudging and blurring. The second version
improved on things like color handling. By the sixth version, Photoshop
could "heal" blemishes, layer pieces of different images on top of each
other, and "liquify" the whole thing, the better to smooth out bulky
forearms or too-wide waists.
Before long, "Photoshop" referred not only to a piece of software, but to
a constellation of social evils, most of them visited on women: the
pressure to be beautiful and unblemished and thin, the media's complicity
in this campaign, the plummeting self-esteems of girls and young women
who grew up believing they should look that fake, Photoshopped way.
Faith Hill whittled to nothing on the cover of Redbook. Kate Winslet with
yards-long legs in the British version of GQ. Julia Roberts's Lancome
campaign banned in Britain, over concerns that it didn't "reflect
reality."
Just last month, a high school student made waves when she published
copies of her yearbook pictures, which were edited by the photographer to
make her appear thinner.
"I was outraged!" The girl wrote on Reddit. "When we go and have our
photos taken we are flat out told that our skin will be retouched to hide
blemishes. We are not told, however, that more drastic changes are (also)
made."
It seems appropriate, in hindsight, that the first photo ever
Photoshopped was a picture of a faceless, topless woman, sunning herself
at the beach. She was "the last woman," Gordon Comstock wrote, "to
inhabit a world where the camera never lied."
Now the question is: Do cameras ever tell the truth?
After all, photo-editing has evolved far beyond Photoshop; Adobe, at this
point, is for magazines and advertisers and other professionals, the
people charged with giving Beyoncé's face that otherworldly, poreless
glow. For your average smartphone-carrier, there are lower-budget tools:
Instagram filters, selfie-enhancing apps, any number of free online
tools. Every major social network has built photo-editing features into
its app, the better to let users "touch up" the look of their lives.
"It is (so easy) to believe in a distorted reality," explains Zilla
van der Born, the artist who faked a trip through Asia with
photo-editing. "I wanted to make people more aware that the images we see
are manipulated, and that it's not only the models in the magazines, but
also our friends on social media who contribute to this fake reality ...
Together we create some sort of ideal world online which reality can no
longer meet."
It's worth remembering however, despite appearances, that perfection and
reality are not the same thing. No matter how much it galls the Beyhive,
Beyoncé's still human, and only human complete with bumps and pores
and tired eyes.
Get Ready For The Internet-enabled, Speech Recognizing, Joke-telling Barbie
Oh, boy, an internet-enabled Barbie doll that uses speech recognition to
talk to little kids!
Sounds interesting! What could possibly go wrong!
The BBC reports that a prototype of this joke-telling, story-swapping,
interactive game-playing toy was introduced at the New York Toy Fair on
Saturday.
Valentine's Day, of course!
I, like what Barbie maker Mattel says are "girls around the world",
desperately want to talk to a plastic doll, in a far more meaningful and
bi-directional way than ever.
So I immediately hopped online to do a search for a video that would give
me a preview.
What popped up first was, well, not the "Hello Barbie" doll herself, but
the "Come On Barbie, Let's Go Party" song. If you've never heard it, it
features really nice lyrics about partying with Barbie, and touching her
everywhere, and... hang on one minute...
Kiss me here, touch me there, hanky panky!
...wait just one minute.... hanky panky?! Touching? Touching WHERE!?
Oh dear no, we don't want any talk of touching or hanky panky with a
Wi-Fi-enabled toy, yikes!
That gives me flashbacks to the horrific stalker child predator lurking
behind that demon feline Talking Angela, the smartphone app with the
talking cat, behind whose eyes you could see a guy in a room! Snapping
pictures of kids!!
The lurking paedophile who supposedly defied the laws of physics to show
up in an animated cat's eyeballs over the internet was, of course, just
an extremely widespread, notably spittle-flecked hoax.
Will Hello Barbie likewise spark FULL CAP DIRE MISPELT WARNINGS TO STAY
AWAY FROM CREEPS TALKING 2 YR KIDS THRU HIR DOLL?!
Could be. Wouldn't be terribly surprising.
But beyond baseless hoax mongering that could scare people away from a
perfectly innocent doll - one with software that's upgraded over Wi-Fi
and will at some point be giving your kids career advice, learning as
it interacts, much like Apple's digital helper Siri or Microsoft's
virtual assistant Cortana - there does, in fact, lie the potential for
actual hacking.
The thing is, internet-enabled toys are just about as safe from hacking
as internet anything.
We've already seen proof that such toys are vulnerable. As the BBC
reports, the Vivid Toy group released Cayla, a doll that uses
speech-recognition and Google's translation tools, in November.
By January, security researcher Ken Munro had discovered a vulnerability
in the doll's software that allowed for it to be compromised and
programmed to say anything, including things that you certainly wouldn't
want your children to hear.
In fact, The Mirror got Munro to make Cayla quote Hannibal Lecter and
lines from "50 Shades Of Grey."
Munro warned that if a Cayla owner's phone is off or out of range, any
device could effectively connect with the doll via Bluetooth and
therefore communicate with your child.
We don't want to hear Hello Barbie giggling about fava beans and a nice
Chianti. Let's hope Mattel locks her down with better security than
Cayla got.
=~=~=~=
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