[APPLe list] general internet news - 20 October

[David Goldstein <goldstein_david@yahoo.com.au>]

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Sponsored by the Singapore Internet Research Centre
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
http://www.ntu.edu.sg/sci/sirc/

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Don't forget to check out www.auda.org.au/domain-news/ for today's edition of the complete domain news, already online!


And see my website - http://technewsreview.com.au/ - for daily updates in between postings.


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The domain name news is supported by auDA

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Queen visits Google - and is amused by YouTube video of laughing baby boy
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/theroyalfamily/3210566/Queen-visits-Google---and-is-amused-by-YouTube-video-of-laughing-baby-boy.html

Google reverses policy to allow gambling adverts
http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/article4956603.ece

Technology Keeps American Families Close, Study Says
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/10/19/AR2008101901346.html

Did the HerbalKing Takedown Decrease Spam?
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/10/17/did-the-herbalking-takedown-decrease-spam/

Link between child porn and Muslim terrorists discovered in police raids
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/crime/article4959002.ece

Terrorists 'use child porn' to exchange information
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/3215115/Terrorists-use-child-porn-to-exchange-information.html

Cybersecurity: Users, Other Groups Must Work Together [IDG]
http://www.pcworld.com/article/152358/.html

Georgian cyberattacks suggest Russian involvement, say researchers
http://computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9117439

UK government faces fight from within for spy database
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article4969361.ece

Legal music downloads gain in popularity
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/connected/main.jhtml?xml=/connected/2008/10/16/dldownload11.xml

Spy software to combat online paedophiles
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/lawandorder/3222257/Spy-software-to-combat-online-paedophiles.html

Mobile phones increase risk of cancer, study says
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/health/3208416/Mobile-phones-increase-risk-of-cancer-study-says.html

Doctors warn of rash from mobile phone use
http://uk.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUKTRE49F6TS20081016

Worldwide mobile penetration to hit 95% by 2013, firm claims
http://computerworld.co.nz/news.nsf/mgmt/FBC69286AC4FE940CC2574E400758A35


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RESEARCH PAPERS
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Broadband Growth and Policies in OECD Countries [146p]
Broadband plays a critical role in the workings of the economy and society. It connects consumers, businesses, and governments and facilitates social interaction. Hence, broadband policies are now a vital instrument to ensure the competitiveness of OECD countries and to address pressing societal concerns.
http://www.oecd.org/document/1/0,3343,en_2649_34223_40931201_1_1_1_1,00.html
http://browse.oecdbookshop.org/oecd/pdfs/browseit/9308021E.PDF

Public Strategies for Internet Co-Regulation in the United States, Europe and China by B. Frydman, L. Hennebel & Gregory Lewkowicz [GOVERNANCE, REGULATIONS AND POWERS ON THE INTERNET]
Abstract: This paper studies the framework for Internet regulation in the United States, Europe and China. Focusing on co-regulatory mechanisms, it analyses the legal tools used by governments in order to entrust private 'points of control' to monitor Internet. It focuses more specifically on the impact of co-regulation on the rule of law and on the emergence of a transnational struggle for law between global players.
http://ssrn.com/abstract=1282826

Internet Kiosks in Rural India: What Influences Success? by Jake Kendall & Nirvikar Singh
Abstract: In this paper we investigate an example of a very widely applied model for the delivery of IT services to rural and poor populations. The model is one where limited intervention to support infrastructure and coordinate resources is combined with market-based delivery of IT services to the end user (what we call here the "sustainable franchise model"). Though this model has been deployed world-wide by governments, NGOs, and development institutions in the past few years, there has been little research into the determinants of success in such a model. In this paper we examine the example of n-Logue, a franchise of over 1000 locally-owned, Internet kiosks in rural villages in India. We seek to assess how this new sustainable franchise model has worked in practice by analyzing data from 74 of n-Logue's kiosks. Among other things, we find that gender and education do not affect success, while location and other measures of social standing (age and
 caste) do. We also find that the uses that villagers have for IT services are not so different from those which first world users have. The lessons we draw from this example are that while local customs and practices must be taken into account (e.g. the caste system), it is not a foregone conclusion that social biases (e.g. against women) cannot be mitigated by good program design.
http://ssrn.com/abstract=1282266

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INTERNET USE
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Google searches high and low for answer to Prince Philip's query during royal visit
The bright young things at Google no doubt thought that they had got everything covered when the Queen visited their London HQ yesterday. The exciting new products were all up and running, and the staff had all rehearsed their presentations until they were word-perfect.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article4956260.ece

Queen visits Google - and is amused by YouTube video of laughing baby boy
The Queen and Duke of Edinburgh were reduced to a fit of giggles when they toured the London headquarters of Google and were shown a YouTube video of a laughing baby boy.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/theroyalfamily/3210566/Queen-visits-Google---and-is-amused-by-YouTube-video-of-laughing-baby-boy.html

Queen Elizabeth II Visits Google's British HQ
She sent her first e-mail in 1976. She has her own Web site. And on Thursday, Queen Elizabeth II uploaded video to YouTube during a visit to Google's British headquarters.
http://nytimes.com/aponline/world/AP-EU-Britain-Queen-Google.html

Google uses Britain as gambling guinea pig
Bookmakers and online casinos will be able to advertise on Google in Britain, the world's most popular internet search engine, from today.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/google-uses-britain-as-gambling-guinea-pig-964291.html

Google reverses policy to allow gambling adverts
Google will allow gambling advertising to appear on its search pages in mainlaind Britain, reversing its decision last year to ban such adverts out of ethical considerations.
http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/article4956603.ece

Google relies on "old" media for content
Google says it wants "old" media to remain robust so it can continue generating searchable content. Karim Temsamani, the Australian and NZ general manager of the world's largest internet search engine, told a Trans-Tasman Business Circle lunch yesterday there was a symbiotic relationship between the online and offline media.
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,,24512589-7582,00.html

Technology Keeps American Families Close, Study Says
Parents and children may rush through their days in different directions, but the American family is as tight-knit as in the last generation -- or more so -- because of the widespread use of cellphones and the Internet, according to a new poll.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/10/19/AR2008101901346.html

The Internet is no 21st-century boob tube
... "We were surprised to see that lots of families treat the Internet as a place for shared experiences," Tracy Kennedy, author of a new report about the survey called "Networked Families," said in a statement. "They don't just withdraw from the family to their own computer for private screen time. They pretty regularly say, 'Hey--look at this!' to others in the household."
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-10067378-93.html

In Targeting Online Ads, Campaigns Ask: Who's Searching for What?
A day after Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin winked playfully during the recent vice presidential debate, the number of people typing "palin wink" into the Google search engine surged, rising to No. 3 on the service's list of newly popular queries.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/10/15/AR2008101503574.html

Wealthy Asians use phones to blog, take photos - study
For wealthy Asians, mobile phones and Blackberrys are much more than a way to stay in touch, with a survey finding portable communication devices increasingly being used to watch videos, take pictures and surf the Web.
http://in.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idINIndia-35996920081016
http://uk.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUKTRE49F2AY20081016

Australian Tax Office eyes eBay traders
The Australian Tax Office is conducting a sting on unscrupulous eBay users who attempt to avoid paying tax on income earned through the site.
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2008/10/17/1223750288543.html
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2008/10/17/1223750288543.html

Man killed wife in Facebook row
A man has been jailed for life for stabbing his wife to death over a posting she made on the social networking site Facebook.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/london/7676285.stm

Counting Clicks: Now A Mainstay - Visitor Data May Be Key To Surviving Downturn
In 1999, eyeballs were all the rage. It was the height of the frothy dot-com days, when start-up business models hinged on luring enough people to a free Web site to someday sell advertising on it. Measuring those eyeballs, no matter how much they were worth, looked like an obvious gold mine. "A 10 percent jump in traffic would cause stock prices to skyrocket," said Magid Abraham, who took that cue and started Web-measurement firm ComScore.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/10/19/AR2008101901390.html

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SOCIAL NETWORKING
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Social networking sites told to warn users of weak privacy controls [AFP]
Social networking websites were urged Friday to warn users about the low level of protection given to their profiles at a Council of Europe-organised conference on the issue.
http://news.smh.com.au/technology/social-networking-sites-told-to-warn-users-of-weak-privacy-controls-20081018-53dz.html
http://news.theage.com.au/technology/social-networking-sites-told-to-warn-users-of-weak-privacy-controls-20081018-53dz.html

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NEW TECHNOLOGIES
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EU may cut maximum volume on MP3 players
Volumes on personal stereos are likely to be restricted by regulators because of fears that MP3 players and “in-ear” phones are damaging hearing.
http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/personal_tech/article4958503.ece

EU warns of permanent hearing damage from iPods
"Listening to personal music players at a high volume over a sustained period can lead to permanent hearing damage," according to an opinion delivered by the EU Scientific Committee on Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks (SCENIHR).
http://euractiv.com/en/infosociety/eu-warns-permanent-hearing-damage-ipods/article-176379

Was software responsible for the financial crisis?
Amid all the fallout from the financial turmoil, one group has yet to feel the accusing finger of blame: the analysts who built the computer software that drove the derivatives markets that, in turn, drove the financial collapse. Since the Big Bang of the 1980s, large amounts of stocks and shares - and derivatives of them - have been traded automatically by computers rather than by humans. These so-called "algotrades" accounted for as much as 40% of all trades on the London Stock Exchange in 2006; on some American equity markets the figure can be as high as 80%.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/oct/16/computing-software-financial-crisis

How Microsoft will compete with 'free'
Guest post: Jean-Louis Gassée explains how Microsoft's future business model will borrow from both Apple and Google to compete with the free world of software. The essay was originally posted on Monday Note.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13953_3-10069777-80.html

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SPAM
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Did the HerbalKing Takedown Decrease Spam?
It’s been four days since the Federal Trade Commission got an Illinois court to shut down the infamous HerbalKing spam network. The agency, and the anti-spam research organizations that aided it in the investigation, predicted that spam levels would drop as a result. So today we wondered: have they?
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/10/17/did-the-herbalking-takedown-decrease-spam/

Trio facing first anti-spam civil court action
Spam has been the bane of computer users throughout the world, and international authorities are pointing the finger at New Zealanders for playing a large part in it.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/technology/news/article.cfm?c_id=5&objectid=10538067

Spammer in Australia could be fined millions
A Sunshine Coast man could face multi-million-dollar fines if he is found to have contravened Australia's internet spamming laws.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/10/17/2393722.htm

Woman is first to plead guilty in notorious spam case
A woman accused of helping spam kingpin Alan Ralsky send out tens of millions of unwanted email messages each day has pleaded guilty to spam charges.
http://computerworld.co.nz/news.nsf/scrt/204628BEB101BFFBCC2574E4000D0591

China Still A Top Email Spam Location
A new mail spam report from Commtouch says China is a top location for zombie IP addresses.
http://www.chinatechnews.com/2008/10/17/7758-china-still-a-top-email-spam-location/

Spam business is booming despite legislation
Ferris Research recently predicted that there would be 40 trillion spam messages sent this year. It would seem then, that we have a continuing problem on our hands, especially since spam has morphed from simple, but annoying, advertisements to Trojan horses and links to malware-infected web sites. The focus of spam has changed. Five years ago, spam was designed to sell us something; today, it is designed to steal something from us. Spam is no longer just a cheap tool used by a two-bit marketer to peddle get-rich-quick schemes; it is now used by organized criminals in pump-and-dump stock schemes, to sell illegal goods, or to steal passwords and account numbers.
http://www.itworld.com/security/56208/spam-business-booming-despite-legislation

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DIGITAL DIVIDE
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Broadband for all homes considered by ministers
The possibility of connecting every home in Britain to a broadband fast internet service is to be examined by ministers, amid concerns that offline families are missing out on financial and educational benefits.
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/article4965272.ece

Uganda's rural poor get internet
The spread of the Internet to Uganda’s rural areas has sparked off excitement among residents giving them hope for future flourishing businesses through communication with the outside world.
http://www.itnewsafrica.com/?p=1475
http://allafrica.com/stories/200810150274.html

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ONLINE CRIME, SECURITY & LEGAL
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Link between child porn and Muslim terrorists discovered in police raids
A link between terrorism plots and hardcore child pornography is becoming clear after a string of police raids in Britain and across the Continent, an investigation by The Times has discovered. Images of child abuse have been found during Scotland Yard antiterrorism swoops and in big inquiries in Italy and Spain.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/crime/article4959002.ece

Dangerous and depraved: paedophiles unite with terrorists online
For some, the internet is merely a hiding place — a web of secret corridors where all manner of shameful deeds unfold. But the police never expected that it might become a strategic platform where two groups of society's outcasts, terrorists and child sex abusers, could meet to exchange operational secrets.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/crime/article4958674.ece

Terrorists 'use child porn' to exchange information
It is thought Islamist extremists are concealing messages in digital images and audio, video or other files.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/3215115/Terrorists-use-child-porn-to-exchange-information.html

Al-Qaeda Web Forums Abruptly Taken Offline
Four of the five main online forums that al-Qaeda's media wing uses to distribute statements by Osama bin Laden and other extremists have been disabled since mid-September, monitors of the Web sites say. ... However, "the downside of knocking jihadist Web sites offline is that you lose the ability to monitor jihadist activities," eliminating opportunities for Western monitors to search for ideological weaknesses or clues to future operations, Marquardt said. "When these Web sites are taken offline, it closes an important window." 
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/10/17/AR2008101703367.html

Internet police catching up with outlaws
One of the great claims about the internet has always been that it doesn't respect borders. John Perry Barlow, in his "declaration of cyberspace independence" – written way back in 1996 – claimed that national governments couldn't hold sway against the determined electrons of cyberspace: "Governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed. You have neither solicited nor received ours," he wrote.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/oct/17/spam-internet

Internet phone calls are crippling fight against terrorism
The huge growth in internet telephone traffic is jeopardising the capability of police to investigate almost every type of crime, senior sources have told The Times.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/crime/article4951864.ece

Cybersecurity: Users, Other Groups Must Work Together [IDG]
Individual Internet users, businesses, the government and tech vendors all need to focus more on cybersecurity and be aware of the dangers, a group of cybersecurity experts said Thursday.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/152358/.html
http://www.infoworld.com/article/08/10/16/Cybersecurity_Users_other_groups_must_work_together_1.html
http://www.arnnet.com.au/index.php/id;1237344190
http://computerworld.com.au/index.php/id;1237344190

FBI warns of rising cybercrime threat
The threat of cybersecurity attacks from organised criminals, terrorists and foreign governments is increasing, an FBI official warned on Wednesday.
http://news.zdnet.co.uk/security/0,1000000189,39518856,00.htm

Georgian cyberattacks suggest Russian involvement, say researchers
The hackers who launched cyberattacks against the former Soviet republic of Georgia two months ago probably had links to the Russian government, even though no hard evidence has been uncovered of official involvement, a report by an all-volunteer group of experts said today.
http://computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9117439
http://computerworld.com.au/index.php/id;446005914
http://pcworld.idg.com.au/index.php/id;446005914

DDoS Attack Graphs from Russia vs. Georgia's Cyberattacks by Dancho Danchev
Part of Georgia's information warfare campaign was aiming to minimize the bandwidth impact on its de-facto media platforms such as the website of their Ministry of Foreign Affairs. I've just received a report on "Russian Invasion of Georgia," titled "Russian Cyberwar on Georgia" which is quoting me on page 4 regarding "too good to be courtesy of Russia's cyber militia" creative that appeared on the defaced Georgian President's website.
http://www.circleid.com/posts/20081016_graphs_russia_georgias_cyberattacks/

Internet-scale 'man in the middle' attack disclosed
In Black Hat's October Webinar on Thursday, Anton Kapela, datacenter manager at 5Nines Data, spoke about Internet-scale "man in the middle" attacks.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1009_3-10068327-83.html

Election Deception: The Web's 12 Dirtiest Tricks
If scammers have things their way--with the help of a dozen sneaky ploys--plenty of ballots will never make it to the boxes. ... 2. Web Site Wiles: Some scammers have adopted the strategy of orchestrating Web site-based attacks. These may take the form of actual hacks--remember the Obama-Clinton redirect exploit back in April?--but more commonly they involve creating an independent site whose URL suggests affiliation with a candidate or organization but whose content dishonestly promotes a hostile agenda.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/152290/election_deception_the_webs_12_dirtiest_tricks.html

FBI says Dark Market sting netted 56 arrests [IDG]
A two-year undercover FBI sting operation targeting online fraudsters has netted 56 arrests and prevented millions of dollars in economic losses, the FBI said Thursday.
http://www.networkworld.com/news/2008/101608-fbi-says-dark-market-sting.html
http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/152389/fbi_says_dark_market_sting_netted_56_arrests.html

FBI wipes out online credit card ring
The FBI has announced that it has concluded a two year investigation into an online market for stolen credit card data behind millions of dollars of fraud.
http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2228489/fbi-wipes-online-credit-card

Fraudsters' website shut in swoop
A website used by criminals to buy and sell credit card details and bank log-ins has been shut down after a police operation, the BBC has learned.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7675191.stm

Handsets to become crime targets
The risk of spam and viruses that attack mobile devices is set to rise, says a report. Security experts suggest current risks are small, and that attacks will take the same form as PC spam and scams. End-user protection like anti-virus software is not yet mature in the mobile market, so the issue is being addressed by the network operators.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7675882.stm

nz: Woman conned out of $258 warns TradeMe users to be wary
An Auckland woman is warning TradeMe users to be wary of online scammers, after being conned in an online auction. When the TradeMe user, who asked not to be named, bought a brand new 3G cellphone for $258 last week, she thought she was getting a bargain.
http://www.3news.co.nz/ScienceTech/Story/tabid/412/articleID/76348/cat/73/Default.aspx

Bank hackers steal from French President bank account
The French government was forced to admit that no one was safe from internet fraud yesterday after it emerged that thieves had managed to hack into President Nicolas Sarkozy's personal bank account and siphon off cash.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/oct/20/nicolassarkozy-hacking

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PRIVACY
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New powers for UK state snoopers on the net
The government is drawing up plans to give sweeping new powers to the security and intelligence agencies, and other public bodies, allowing them to access personal data using a wide range of internet sites, including social and gaming networks, Jacqui Smith, the home secretary, signalled yesterday.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/oct/16/internet-uksecurity

UK government faces fight from within for spy database
Jacqui Smith, the home secretary, faces a revolt from her senior officials over plans to build a central database holding information on every telephone call, e-mail and internet visit made in the UK.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article4969361.ece

Social networking sites to be snooped on by security services
Social networking websites will be snooped on by the security services under new powers which campaigners fear will lead to an expansion of the "Big Brother" state.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/3203583/Social-networking-sites-to-be-snooped-on-by-security-services.html

Telecom Spying Amnesty Unconstitutional, EFF Tells Court
The government's attempt to give retroactive immunity to the companies that helped the Bush administration's warrantless spying program violates the Constitution by ripping from the courts the power to hear citizens' grievances against the government, a rights group told a federal court Thursday.
http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2008/10/telecom-spying.html

EFF, ACLU slam carrier immunity law [IDG]
A U.S. law that allows telecom carriers to receive immunity in some suits alleging illegal government surveillance is unconstitutional, two civil rights groups argued late Thursday.
http://computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9117444
http://www.networkworld.com/news/2008/101708-eff-aclu-slam-carrier-immunity.html
http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/152432/eff_aclu_slam_carrier_immunity_law.html

Watchdog Group Takes On Telecom Immunity Law
A digital-rights advocacy group is challenging a controversial law that granted immunity to telecom providers that participated in the government's domestic surveillance program.
http://www.internetnews.com/government/article.php/3779006

EFF Challenges Constitutionality of Telecom Immunity in Federal Court [news release]
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) Thursday challenged the constitutionality of a law aimed at granting retroactive immunity to telecommunications companies that participated in the president's illegal domestic wiretapping program.
http://www.eff.org/press/archives/2008/10/17

British government gives more detail on communications surveillance plan
The Government has postponed planned legislation which could create a giant central database containing records of every email, web session and phone call made in the UK.
http://out-law.com/page-9515

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ONLINE TV & MUSIC
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Facebook eyes digital-music business
Social networking site Facebook's founder and Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg plans to enter the digital-music business in the wake of the launch of News Corp's MySpace Music last month, the New York Post said.
http://in.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idINIndia-36021120081017
http://uk.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUKTRE49G2EJ20081017
http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/facebook-eyes-digitalmusic-business-965126.html

Legal music downloads gain in popularity
Fewer people are downloading music from the internet illegally than ever before, according to a report this week from Entertainment Media Research.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/connected/main.jhtml?xml=/connected/2008/10/16/dldownload11.xml

Internet Congestion: ISPs Don Traffic Cop Uniforms
Anyone who's used popular P2P applications such as BitTorrent, Gnutella or Limewire has probably been plagued by network slowdowns that make sharing heavy media files a time-consuming endeavor. However, a consortium of technologists at the Distributed Computing Industry Association has found a way to alleviate Internet network congestion created by P2P applications. In fact, this new technology will soon exit the testing phase. There's just one problem: Broadband providers such as Comcast, Verizon and AT&T may be shy about actually implementing it.
http://ecommercetimes.com/story/64861.html

RIAA appeals mistrial in file-sharing case
The Recording Industry Association of America is appealing a judge's decision last month to declare a mistrial in the case of Jammie Thomas, who was ordered to pay the recording industry $222,000 for allegedly sharing music online.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13578_3-10068547-38.html

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CENSORSHIP
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Creationist gets Turkish newspaper website blocked
The website of Turkey's third largest-selling newspaper has been blocked after a complaint by an Islamic creationist. Turkish internet users are now denied access to the Vatan newspaper's website, gazetevatan.com, after a court decided it had insulted Adnan Oktar, a prolific Turkish writer who disputes the theory of evolution. It is believed to be the first major newspaper site to be blocked. About 850 sites are already filtered.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/oct/17/turkey-religion

China watches over internet café customers in web crackdown
All visitors to internet cafés in Beijing are to be required to have their photographs taken in a stringent new control on the public use of cyberspace.
http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/the_web/article4958778.ece

China press freedoms due to end
Rules that gave foreign reporters greater freedom during the Beijing Olympics are due to expire. China has not yet said whether they will be extended, scrapped or replaced by a new set of regulations.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7675306.stm

Say Cheese: Photos Now Mandatory When Entering All Beijing Internet Cafes
The Beijing government has launched an enhanced Internet cafe monitoring rule which states that people who visit Internet cafes for the first time need to have their picture taken and have their identification cards scanned.
http://www.chinatechnews.com/2008/10/17/7767-say-cheese-photos-now-mandatory-when-entering-all-beijing-internet-cafes/

China urged to extend media freedoms domestically
China should extend media freedoms it now offers foreign reporters to domestic journalists too, rights groups said, but added that the signs were not encouraging this would happen.
http://uk.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUKTRE49G26V20081019

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CHILD PROTECTION, FILTERING & CONTENT REGULATION
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Spy software to combat online paedophiles
Scientists are developing a computer program that can identify paedophiles who pretend to be children on the internet. The technology analyses language and syntax used online, and can tell if an adult is masquerading as a child as part of the victim "grooming" process.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/lawandorder/3222257/Spy-software-to-combat-online-paedophiles.html

'Net filters "required" for all Australians, no opt-out
Australians may not be able to opt out of the government's Internet filtering initiative like they were originally led to believe. Details have begun to come out about Australia's Cyber-Safety Plan, which aims to block "illegal" content from being accessed within the country, as well as pornographic material inappropriate for children. Right now, the system is in the testing stages, but network engineers are now saying that there's no way to opt out entirely from content filtering.
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081016-net-filters-required-for-all-australians-no-opt-out.html

Oz watchdogs howl over 'Cyber-Safety' net filter
Aussie civil liberties watchdogs are warning the country's "Cyber-Safety" internet filter plan won't actually let adults choose to opt-out from web censorship.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/10/17/australia_cyber_safety_no_opt_out/

And the Wankley Award goes to ... Conroy's net filtering scheme
Won't someone think of the adults? Australia’s march to a Chinese censorship regime took a interesting turn this week when new details emerged on the Rudd Government’s Great Firewall of Australia internet filtering scheme.
http://www.crikey.com.au/Media-Arts-and-Sports/20081017-And-the-Wankley-Award-goes-to-Conroys-net-filtering-scheme.html

Watch for online bullying, but don't overreact, expert advises: Internet safety
It's an understandable reaction for parents who didn't grow up in a wired generation -- they find out a bully is targeting their child over the Internet, so they yank out the computer, Clemson University psychology professor Robin Kowalski said. But Dr. Kowalski, an expert on cyber bullying, urged against that during a lecture Friday at Augusta State University. Don't punish the victim, she said.
http://psycport.com/showArticle.cfm?xmlFile=knightridder_2008_10_18__0000-0410-AG-Watch-for-online-bullying-but-don-t-overreact-expert-advises-1018.xml

What's Next In Online Safety
As part of Cyber Security Awareness Month, I spoke at a panel at the National Press Club to discuss "what's next" in online safety, looking at emerging threats and challenges we may experience down the road. I was joined by the chair of our FOSI board - Brent Olson, AT&T assistant vice president of Regulatory Policy, who discussed some of the industry initiatives AT&T is leading to protect kids online and by Internet and privacy lawyer Christopher Wolf who spoke about the privacy concerns tied to online safety.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/stephen-balkam/whats-next-in-online-safe_b_135416.html

Web content 'disturbing children'
Three out of four children have seen images on the internet that disturbed them, an NSPCC poll suggests.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7679119.stm

us: ISPs are pressed to become child porn cops
New technologies and changes in U.S. law are adding to pressures to turn Internet service providers into cops examining all Internet traffic for child pornography. One new tool, being marketed in the U.S. by an Australian company, offers to check every file passing through an Internet provider's network — every image, every movie, every document attached to an e-mail or found in a Web search — to see if it matches a list of illegal images.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27198621/

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GOVERNMENT & PUBLIC POLICY
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uk: Ofcom to have wider remit with more online powers, says David Currie
Outgoing Ofcom chairman David Currie has said that his successor should expect the communications regulator to have an expanded remit with responsibility for stricter control over internet content.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/oct/15/ofcom-digitalmedia

Faster broadband the goal of all parties in NZ election
Fast, affordable broadband-for-all is a common goal of all political parties in this election. All also recognise that Telecom is not going to deliver such a service anytime soon.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/technology/news/article.cfm?c_id=5&objectid=10537950

Credit crunch makes digital strategy more critical, says Carter
The new government minister in charge of a string of vital decisions about Britain's media and technology industries has claimed that the importance of securing their future has increased due to the global financial crisis.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/oct/20/digitalmedia-digitaltvradio-ofcom-creditcrunch

Stephen Carter to prepare UK digital action plan
The new minister for communications, technology and broadcasting, Stephen Carter, is to create a wide-ranging "action plan" for the digital media economy that could include greater regulation for the internet.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/oct/17/digital-media-stephen-carter

us: New law regulates Internet drug sales
A new law that regulates online pharmacies promises to give federal regulators, Internet companies and the medical profession a new weapon to stop the illicit flow of addictive drugs.
http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/business/stories/2008/10/17/Internet_pharmacy_law.ART_ART_10-17-08_C12_SUBKEQK.html

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COMMENT, MICROSOFT & DEVELOPMENTS
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Google's profit rose 26 percent despite slower growth
Third-quarter profit increased 26 percent to $1.35 billion, a strong showing that might be enough to reassure jittery investors.
http://iht.com/articles/2008/10/16/technology/17google.php

Google’s Net (and Stock) Rise Sharply
For months, Google has promised investors that the company’s online advertising system would do relatively well in an economic downturn. On Thursday, it showed evidence that it may be able to deliver on that promise.
http://nytimes.com/2008/10/17/technology/companies/17google.html

Google defies the crunch as profits soar
Google, the world's biggest internet company, offered a glimmer of hope amid global financial gloom, after revealing that profits during the third quarter of the year had soared 26 per cent.
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/technology/article4959323.ece

Yahoo! Boo hoo! More bad news for the struggling internet giant, this time from Japan
Ever since Yahoo! rejected Microsoft’s offer of $31 a share in February, its fortunes have only worsened. Growth in internet advertising, Yahoo!’s main source of revenue, is slowing as the economy sours. An alliance with its main rival, Google, has been put on hold while antitrust regulators study the deal. Its share price has lately fallen below $13. The brightest treasure in Yahoo!’s empire has long been its Japanese arm, in which it has a 34% stake. It dominates its lucrative local market and reported increased revenue and profit on September 30th for the year to March. But even this jewel is losing its sparkle.
http://www.economist.com/business/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12432448

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TELECOMMUNICATIONS
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InternetNZ publishes stage 1 of broadband strategy report [sub req'd]
New Zealand internet advocacy group InternetNZ has published stage 1 of a commissioned broadband strategy report.
http://telecompaper.com/news/article.aspx?cid=640969
http://telecom.paper.nl/news/article.aspx?id=234413

NZ Government pushes on with Tasman cable plans
The government is pushing ahead with its broadband plans even as the election looms, with expressions of interest being sought to build new trans-Tasman cable and announcements about a well-supported Broadband Investment Fund first round.
http://computerworld.co.nz/news.nsf/netw/EE4BBE464F007C27CC2574E7000A61EA

Satellites? Are they nuts? A new satellite-broadband system hopes to succeed where others failed
Making a big, risky investment in these turbulent times might seem a bit daft. And investing in a satellite-broadband project sounds dafter still: billions were lost on similar projects during the 1990s. So why would investors in O3b Networks, a start-up based on the island of Jersey, put €500m ($680m) into another such system—and one which depends on finding customers in the world’s poorest regions?
http://www.economist.com/business/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12437783

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MOBILE/WIRELESS
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Mobile phones increase risk of cancer, study says
Mobile phones do increase the risk of brain cancer, an international team of scientists have warned. The finding is the result of the biggest ever study by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, part of the World Health Organisation.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/health/3208416/Mobile-phones-increase-risk-of-cancer-study-says.html

Mobile phones may cause rashes
People who use their mobile phones for long periods could develop an allergic skin rash, health experts said yesterday.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/oct/17/mobilephones-health

Doctors warn of rash from mobile phone use
Doctors baffled by an unexplained rash on people's ears or cheeks should be on alert for a skin allergy caused by too much mobile phone use, the British Association of Dermatologists said on Thursday.
http://uk.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUKTRE49F6TS20081016
http://in.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idINIndia-36004520081016

British will need passports to buy mobile phones
Everyone who buys a mobile telephone will be forced to register their identity on a national database under government plans to extend massively the powers of state surveillance.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article4969312.ece

Worldwide mobile penetration to hit 95% by 2013, firm claims
Mobile penetration rates will increase to 95% by 2013 from 46% in 2008, according to a new survey of 34 emerging markets by pricing and tariffs research firm Tariff Consultancy.
http://computerworld.co.nz/news.nsf/mgmt/FBC69286AC4FE940CC2574E400758A35

AT&T Wants More Web-Enabled Devices
Want to track Fido using GPS? Frame a new photo for grandma in real time? AT&T has created a new division within the company to help devise new consumer devices – digital cameras, devices for cars, even dog collars – which they hope will make it easy to access the Web using AT&T’s network.
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/10/17/att-wants-more-web-enabled-devices/

Nokia suffers 30% profits fall
Nokia, the world's largest mobile phone manufacturer, missed market expectations this morning as it reported a 30% fall in profits.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2008/oct/16/nokia-telecoms

Next-gen mobile tools arrive as more smart phones hit the market
Applications and tools for mobile workers such as sales personnel and technicians continue to grow in number and complexity as the number of new smart phones and other handhelds grows.
http://computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9117318

A Look at Google's First Phone
The Google phone is real, and it’s finally here. Stand clear of popping corks. Actually, to be completely accurate, there isn’t anything called “the Google phone.” You can’t buy “the Google phone,” any more than you can buy “the Windows PC.” Google makes the software (called Android), and it’s up to the phone manufacturers to build cellphones around it.
http://nytimes.com/2008/10/16/technology/personaltech/16pogue.html
http://iht.com/articles/2008/10/16/business/ptpogue16.php

Android: An upsell attempt for Google services
Android may be a freely available open-source operating system, but Google hasn't shied away from the idea that it hopes to profit by subsidizing its development. And with Google's first Android phone, the T-Mobile G1 built by HTC, nigh upon us, it's becoming clearer exactly how.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-10068042-93.html

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ARRESTS/COURT CASES FOR CHILD PORN
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nz: Ex-ambulance boss admits child porn charges
A former Rotorua St John Ambulance area manager admitted possessing thousands of child pornographic images.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10538307


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David Goldstein
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