Stephen Lawson
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Stephen Lawson
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EFF says Cisco shouldn’t get off the hook for torture in China
Cisco Systems built a security system for the Chinese government knowing it would be used to track and persecute members of the Falun Gong religious minority, according to the Electronic Frontier Foundation technology rights group.Falun Gong practitioners alleged the same thing in a lawsuit that a federal judge in Northern California dismissed in 2014. That case is being appealed, and on Monday the EFF, Privacy International and free-speech group Article 19 filed a brief that supports the appeal.The case highlights the risks technology companies take by selling software and hardware to customers around the world. Some of those customers may use the technology in ways that raise objections in other countries, creating legal problems or just tarnishing a vendor's reputation.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
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ZigBee and Thread act to make their IoT smarts stack up
Two pieces in the complicated puzzle of smart-home options will snap together later this year when the ZigBee Alliance starts certifying devices that use the Thread protocol for networking. The industry groups behind these two systems have agreed to work out how they can both be integrated into the same product: Thread for exchanging data packets with other devices and ZigBee for defining how applications work on the device. This should lead to ZigBee products that can talk to many more devices in the Internet of Things. As the latest edition of the International CES trade show begins on Tuesday, consumers are faced with a slew of new standards, protocols and frameworks to tie home IoT products together as an easily managed system. On Monday, the Wi-Fi Alliance announced it's finished a new specification it calls Wi-Fi HaLow, which uses less power so it can work in small battery-powered devices.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
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Lowe’s to add emergency dispatch service for Iris DIY smart-home systems
Smart-home gadgets look cool, but the services connected to them may be more valuable to many owners in the long run. Home-improvement chain Lowe's plans to make more of those services available to do-it-yourselfers.By the middle of this year, owners of Lowe's Iris home gadgets will be able to buy professional monitoring, including dispatching of first responders in case of emergency. It will cost US$19.99 per month and will become available in select markets as licensing allows.Security and life safety are two of the big reasons consumers are buying into the Internet of Things. Broadband providers like AT&T and Comcast install smart-home systems built around things like connected burglar alarms. For example, AT&T's website advertises professionally monitored home security and automation systems starting at $39.99 per month with a two-year contract.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
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Battle over LTE in Wi-Fi bands may soon be resolved
The fight over LTE networks using the same frequencies as Wi-Fi may be headed toward a peaceful resolution at last.Powerhouses of the wireless world that have clashed over LTE in unlicensed spectrum are now committed to creating tests for whether these new types of networks can coexist with Wi-Fi. Those tests may be ready to go in February.Powerful mobile vendors including Qualcomm and Ericsson are pushing gear that would let carriers put LTE signals on unlicensed channels now used by Wi-Fi. Carriers including Verizon Wireless, T-Mobile USA and SK Telecom want to use those technologies, which would give already licensed operators a way to boost network speed without buying more frequencies.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
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Cyberattack prediction: Hackers will target a US election next year
A major cyberattack next year will target a U.S. election, security expert Bruce Schneier predicts.The attack won't hit the voting system and may not involve the presidential election, but the temptation for hackers is too great, even in state and local races, said Schneier, a computer security pioneer and longtime commentator."There are going to be hacks that affect politics in the United States," Schneier said. Attackers may break into candidates' websites, e-mail or social media accounts to uncover material the campaigns don't want public, he said.Schneier gave the prediction Thursday on a webcast from incident response company Resilient Systems, where he is chief technology officer.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
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IoT startup Afero goes end to end for security
Internet of Things startup Afero says it can secure small and large IoT devices with a Bluetooth radio module and a cloud service.Afero's platform is just the latest approach to building an infrastructure that ties together a variety of connected devices. The company says its system can be applied to both the home and enterprise realms of IoT and encrypts data all the way from devices to the cloud.The Internet of Things is widely expected to blossom into billions of devices for consumers, cities and businesses in the next few years. Along with those connected objects in the field, software, networks and analytics will be critical components of IoT. Bringing all those components together may pose a steep challenge for consumer electronics makers, as well as for enterprises that want to reap benefits in efficiency, savings and profits.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
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Anonymous says it took down Trump Tower website
The online activist group Anonymous said it took down the Trump Tower website on Friday after it warned presidential candidate Donald Trump about his statements on banning Muslims from entering the U.S.The site was unavailable during early afternoon, New York time, and according to media reports had been down for about an hour earlier in the day. Around 9 a.m. Friday there, the Anonymous Twitter account @YourAnonNews posted tweets saying the group had taken down the site. Trump Towers NY site taken down as statement against racism and hatred. https://t.co/n5ftLrOs1P (what you see is cloudflare offline backup)To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
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The latest IoT network builds on a power-grid foundation
New networks being built with far less fanfare than cell towers will connect objects that in some cases have never been linked before, like street lights and traffic signals. The latest, called Starfish, is now debuting in Silicon Valley.The many new dedicated networks for the Internet of Things aren't as fast as LTE or Wi-Fi, but they're designed to reach devices across an entire region with lower cost and power consumption. That's part of the equation that's supposed to make IoT work.But as a new kind of network, these LPWA (low-power wide area) technologies are still a Wild West of competing vendors and approaches. Take your pick: Ingenu, SigFox, LoRaWAN, NB-LTE and more. To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
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Net neutrality could be on the line in Washington court battle
The FCC's net neutrality rules go on trial Friday as oral arguments begin in 10 lawsuits that could dramatically change the way Internet service providers are regulated.In February, the Federal Communications Commission voted to ban service providers from giving some content preferential treatment. It also reclassified broadband as a communications service, similar to old-fashioned telecommunications except with exemptions from pricing and other regulations.The rules went into effect in April but soon faced a barrage of lawsuits by carriers and industry groups that want to see them gutted. The suits were combined into one proceeding in the federal appeals court in Washington, where opening arguments will start Friday.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
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Home IoT security could come from a glowing rock next year
An Internet of Things security startup thinks it can reduce the complexity of a home full of connected devices to three colors: red, orange, and green. Those colors will glow from a wireless orb that looks like a smooth river rock and is small enough to fit in your hand. But it's what is behind this friendly bit of decor that will make the colors meaningful. The San Francisco startup, Dojo-Labs, makes a network security device that plugs into your home Internet gateway and talks to a cloud-based service. It's all managed through a smartphone app. Dojo aims for nothing less than protecting a consumer's entire collection of home IoT gear against cyber attacks. It plans to do that by monitoring all devices around the clock for odd behaviors and then either alerting the user and fixing the problem (orange light) or telling the user there's something they need to do (red light). When everything's fine, it will show a green light. The orb is wireless, battery-powered and controlled by Dojo's client device via Bluetooth.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
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Five things you should know about unlicensed LTE
1. It's the spectrum that's unlicensed, not the LTE.The acronyms are flying: LTE-U, LAA, MuLTEfire. They're all forms of LTE tweaked to send signals over unlicensed frequencies, which are open to Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and any other technology that plays fair. Carriers could use it as soon as 2016 to add frequencies without spending billions to license them. At first, unlicensed LTE will only be used to supplement a carrier's own bands to make downloads faster. Later, it might send traffic both directions and even be used by enterprises that have no licensed spectrum.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
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Five things you should know about unlicensed LTE
Here are five things you should know about unlicensed LTE, the concept of sending 4G cell traffic over channels also used by Wi-Fi and other networks.1. It's the spectrum that's unlicensed, not the LTE.The acronyms are flying: LTE-U, LAA, MuLTEfire. They're all forms of LTE tweaked to send signals over unlicensed frequencies, which are open to Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and any other technology that plays fair. Carriers could use it as soon as 2016 to add frequencies without spending billions to license them. At first, unlicensed LTE will only be used to supplement a carrier's own bands to make downloads faster. Later, it might send traffic both directions and even be used by enterprises that have no licensed spectrum.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
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Power-sipping San Francisco network could have IoT devices buzzing
A wireless network planned for San Francisco could once again make the local library the best place to go for information.The data collected there won’t be much fun to read, but it may help consumers, businesses and local agencies take advantage of connected objects. The city agreed to install antennas at its libraries as part of a pilot project by French vendor SigFox to build a network for the Internet of Things. Each antenna will cover a broad swath of the city, and it could allow San Francisco to expand the IoT services it offers today.The city is no stranger to IoT. It already uses connected sensors and meters to determine the demand for parking on certain streets and periodically adjust hourly rates so drivers are more likely to find a space when they arrive. Rates go up on more crowded blocks and down on less crowded ones, but no more than once per month. The program is active in seven pilot areas around the city and uses an app to show drivers the current rates.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
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Someone just bought your smart home. Did they get your data, too?
It's move-in day, and you finally have the papers and the keys for your new home. But do you have the passwords?That's one of the questions homebuyers and renters should be asking themselves now that connected devices like locks, lights and thermostats are growing more common, according to the Online Trust Alliance. The industry group joined up with the U.S. National Association of Realtors to compile a checklist for anyone moving in or out of a connected home.Built-in Internet of Things gear can make a new residence like a gadget you'd buy from an electronics store, with the added complication that someone else configured and used it before you did. Access to connected-home devices can mean a view into intimate information about how someone lives, or how they lived before they moved out: Door locks and thermostats might record when you're home, lights note what rooms you spend your time in, and security cameras keep an eye on you.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
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Cyber insurers could help drive IoT standards
Cyber insurance premiums could prove a big driver of Internet of Things standards. Machine-to-machine communication has grown up in separate silos for every industry, but as it expands in the coming years as part of the broader Internet of Things wave, standards could save a lot of cost and effort, speakers at a networking conference said Monday. Having a common approach that works can save IoT vendors from having to reinvent the wheel, said Jim Zerbe, head of IoT product at Neustar, a real-time information services and analytics company. Security is one place that's needed, he said. For a long time, machine-to-machine security has relied on industry-specific technologies and "security through obscurity," resulting in easily hackable systems. Standard, open technologies across industries can attract armies of developers to build strong defenses.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
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Wi-Fi Alliance reaches for peace over unlicensed LTE
A Wi-Fi Alliance workshop next month could start to lay the groundwork for peace between Wi-Fi and LTE promoters who have been arguing over potential interference.If LTE and Wi-Fi can operate peacefully in unlicensed spectrum, mobile users should be able to get a better experience in in crowded areas whether they are using their carrier's service or a Wi-Fi hotspot.The group will bring together representatives of both sides and lay out proposed guidelines for coexistence between Wi-Fi and LTE on unlicensed frequencies. The workshop, on Nov. 4 in Palo Alto, California, will be the first of several such meetings, the Alliance says.The goal is to have every unlicensed LTE product tested on its ability to coexist with Wi-Fi. Those tests might be administered by the Wi-Fi Alliance or by another body, said Edgar Figueroa, president and CEO of the Alliance. To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
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Dell said to be talking with EMC about possible blockbuster merger
Dell is reportedly in talks to buy all or part of enterprise storage powerhouse EMC, which would mark a bold and unexpected new chapter in the PC maker's history.A total merger would be one of the biggest deals ever in the technology industry, with EMC holding a market value of about US$50 billion. It would also bring together two of the most important vendors to enterprise IT departments. MORE ON MERGERS: 2015 Networking & IT M&A Tracker The report about the deal Wednesday in the Wall Street Journal cited unnamed sources, and cautioned that the the companies might not finalize any agreement. To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
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Hackers who targeted Samsung Pay may be looking to track individuals
The security breach at Samsung subsidiary LoopPay was probably more about spying than about gathering consumer data for profit, and the worst could be yet to come, a security analyst said Wednesday. Samsung acknowledged the attack on LoopPay, which it acquired in February for technology that it uses in its Samsung Pay service. It said hackers only breached LoopPay's office network, not systems used by Samsung Pay. The affected servers have been isolated and no personal payment information was put at risk, according to Samsung.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
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Breach at Experian may have exposed data on 15 million consumers linked to T-Mobile
A data breach at credit bureau Experian may have exposed data from T-Mobile USA on about 15 million U.S. consumers.The data includes names, birth dates, addresses and Social Security numbers or other forms of identification like drivers' license numbers, the companies said Thursday. The people affected may not be current T-Mobile subscribers but applied for T-Mobile postpaid services or device financing from Sept. 1, 2013 to Sept. 16, 2015.There's no evidence so far that the data has been used inappropriately, Experian said in a press release. And the company said its consumer credit database was not affected. But the breach is the latest embarrassing security event concerning Experian, a widely used credit-information provider whose services are sometimes offered free after breaches at other companies make consumers nervous about their credit records.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
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Breach at Experian may have exposed data on 15 million consumers linked to T-Mobile
A data breach at credit bureau Experian may have exposed data from T-Mobile USA on about 15 million U.S. consumers.The data includes names, birth dates, addresses and Social Security numbers or other forms of identification like drivers' license numbers, the companies said Thursday. The people affected may not be current T-Mobile subscribers but applied for T-Mobile postpaid services or device financing from Sept. 1, 2013 to Sept. 16, 2015.There's no evidence so far that the data has been used inappropriately, Experian said in a press release. And the company said its consumer credit database was not affected. But the breach is the latest embarrassing security event concerning Experian, a widely used credit-information provider whose services are sometimes offered free after breaches at other companies make consumers nervous about their credit records.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here