It’s time to rein in social media services

If you run a social networking service then the one thing you don’t want to be considered to be is a publisher. As a publisher, you become responsible for whatever your users care to post which means when they post something that’s illegal in any way, you are as liable as the poster to be prosecuted. On the other hand, as a “platform”, where no editorial control is exercised, a social media service is only obliged to act on content when they received a court order or a DMCA takedown notice. Pixabay This distinction between being a publisher and a platform is crucial to the major social media services because the cost of vetting and policing user-generated content would be prohibitively expensive even if it were possible (every minute, Twitter generates 350,000 tweets while in the same window 510 comments are posted, 293,000 statuses are updated, and 136,000 photos are uploaded to Facebook).To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Hacking forum cuts section allegedly linked to DDoS attacks

An online hackers' forum has deleted a section that allegedly offered paid distributed denial-of-service attacks, following last Friday's massive internet disruption. HackForums.net will be shutting down the "Server Stress Testing" section, the site's admin Jesse "Omniscient" LaBrocca said in a Friday posting. "I do need to make sure that we continue to exist and given the recent events I think it's more important that the section be permanently shut down," he wrote. The section was designed to let members offer so-called stress testing services for websites as a way to check their resiliency. However, security firms claim Hack Forums was actually promoting DDoS-for-hire services that anyone can use to launch cyber attacks.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Hacking forum cuts section allegedly linked to DDoS attacks

An online hackers' forum has deleted a section that allegedly offered paid distributed denial-of-service attacks, following last Friday's massive internet disruption. HackForums.net will be shutting down the "Server Stress Testing" section, the site's admin Jesse "Omniscient" LaBrocca said in a Friday posting. "I do need to make sure that we continue to exist and given the recent events I think it's more important that the section be permanently shut down," he wrote. The section was designed to let members offer so-called stress testing services for websites as a way to check their resiliency. However, security firms claim Hack Forums was actually promoting DDoS-for-hire services that anyone can use to launch cyber attacks.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Docker Weekly Roundup | October 23, 2016

 

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The last week of October 2016 is over and you know what that means; another Docker news roundup. Highlights include Windows workloads with Image2Docker, part four of the SwarmKit series, and a Docker InfraKit test-drive! As we begin a new week, let’s recap our five top stories:

  • Windows Workloads with Image2Docker – a community supported and designed project to demonstrate the ease of creating Windows Containers from existing servers. Interested parties are encouraged to fork it, play with it and contribute pull requests back to the community.
  • SwarmKit – Part 4 –  a tutorial series on Docker SwarmKit led by Gabriel Schenker. Part four of the series explains how to create a swarm in the cloud and run a sample application on it.
  • Docker Volumes  – user instructions on how to make sure posts and images stay permanent via Docker volumes, even with an upgrade to a container image, as showcased by Alex Ellis.
  • InfraKit Test-Drive – a detailed illustration of a sample Docker image created to demonstrate InfraKit’s self-healing operation via Ajeet Raina.  

Lost thumb drives bedevil US banking agency

A U.S. banking regulator says an employee downloaded a large amount of data from its computer system a week before he retired and is now unable to locate the thumb drives he stored it on.The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, which is a part of the Department of the Treasury, said the loss represented "a major information security incident" as it reported the case to Congress on Friday.The data was taken in November 2015, but its loss was only discovered in September this year as the agency reviewed downloads to removable media devices in the last two years.The employee in question used two thumb drives to store the information, both of which he is unable to locate, the agency said.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Lost thumb drives bedevil US banking agency

A U.S. banking regulator says an employee downloaded a large amount of data from its computer system a week before he retired and is now unable to locate the thumb drives he stored it on.The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, which is a part of the Department of the Treasury, said the loss represented "a major information security incident" as it reported the case to Congress on Friday.The data was taken in November 2015, but its loss was only discovered in September this year as the agency reviewed downloads to removable media devices in the last two years.The employee in question used two thumb drives to store the information, both of which he is unable to locate, the agency said.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Best Deals of the Week, October 24th – October 28th – Deal Alert

Best Deals of the Week, October 24th - October 28th - Deal AlertCheck out this roundup of the best deals on gadgets, gear and other cool stuff we have found this week, the week of October 17th. All items are highly rated, and dramatically discounted.66% off KMASHI 15000mAh External Battery Power BankKMASHI's 15,000mAh power bank can charge any 2 smartphones, tablets or USB devices simultaneously at high speed, and several times over without needing to be recharged. It currently averages 4 out of 5 stars on Amazon from over 7,700 customers (read reviews). With the current 66% discount you can buy it on Amazon for just $17. See it now on Amazon.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Microsoft to launch low-end VR headset in December

Apparently Microsoft is not done with hardware introductions. The company plans to bring new low-cost mixed-reality headsets to market through its Windows Holographic platform for as little as $299. The details came out at the big Surface launch event in New York earlier this week, but the news site Polygon got more details from Microsoft Technical Fellow and head of the HoloLens program Alex Kipman.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Companies complacent about data breach preparedness

The likelihood that companies will experience a security incident continue to rise every year. While most organizations have put a data breach preparedness plan in place to combat such incidents, most executives aren't updating or practicing the plan regularly, according to study released earlier this month."When it comes to managing a data breach, having a response plan is simply not the same as being prepared," Michael Bruemmer, vice president at Experian Data Breach Resolution (which sponsored the study) said in a statement. "Unfortunately many companies are simply checking the box on this security tactic. Developing a plan is the first step, but preparedness must be considered an ongoing process, with regular reviews of the plan and practice drills."To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Companies complacent about data breach preparedness

The likelihood that companies will experience a security incident continue to rise every year. While most organizations have put a data breach preparedness plan in place to combat such incidents, most executives aren't updating or practicing the plan regularly, according to study released earlier this month."When it comes to managing a data breach, having a response plan is simply not the same as being prepared," Michael Bruemmer, vice president at Experian Data Breach Resolution (which sponsored the study) said in a statement. "Unfortunately many companies are simply checking the box on this security tactic. Developing a plan is the first step, but preparedness must be considered an ongoing process, with regular reviews of the plan and practice drills."To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

After DDOS attack, senator seeks industry-led security standards for IoT devices

Last week’s massive distributed denial-of-service attack has prompted an urgent focus on the need for industry-led cybersecurity standards for internet of things devices.U.S. Sen. Mark Warner, (D-Va.) said Thursday that he favors an industry-based approach before seeking some form of government regulation of IoT security.“Last week’s attack does reveal a new level of vulnerability, and I’m trying to make it clear ... that this is not a problem that the government ought to be the first actor in solving,” he said in a telephone interview.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

After DDOS attack, senator seeks industry-led security standards for IoT devices

Last week’s massive distributed denial-of-service attack has prompted an urgent focus on the need for industry-led cybersecurity standards for internet of things devices.U.S. Sen. Mark Warner, (D-Va.) said Thursday that he favors an industry-based approach before seeking some form of government regulation of IoT security.“Last week’s attack does reveal a new level of vulnerability, and I’m trying to make it clear ... that this is not a problem that the government ought to be the first actor in solving,” he said in a telephone interview.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

FBI to probe new emails related to Clinton’s private server

The FBI has uncovered new emails related to Hillary Clinton's use of a private email server, prompting federal authorities to investigate them. The FBI discovered the emails as part of an "unrelated case," FBI Director James Comey said in a letter to a congressional committee that was later tweeted on Friday. These emails "appear to be pertinent" to the FBI's original investigation into Clinton's private server use, which the agency wrapped up back in July, Comey said. Clinton, now the Democratic nominee for U.S. president, used the privacy server while she served as secretary of state.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

FBI to probe new emails related to Clinton’s private server

The FBI has uncovered new emails related to Hillary Clinton's use of a private email server, prompting federal authorities to investigate them. The FBI discovered the emails as part of an "unrelated case," FBI Director James Comey said in a letter to a congressional committee that was later tweeted on Friday. These emails "appear to be pertinent" to the FBI's original investigation into Clinton's private server use, which the agency wrapped up back in July, Comey said. Clinton, now the Democratic nominee for U.S. president, used the privacy server while she served as secretary of state.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Coca-Cola headlines a fast-turning CIO carousel

The Coca-Cola Company yesterday said that it has promoted Barry Simpson to CIO. Simpson, who will oversee the company’s global IT strategy, services and operations, had served as interim CIO since July, when he replaced the late Ed Steinike. Coca-Cola CompanyCIO Barry Simpson. “Given the significant amount of change under way as we transform our business for the future, it’s important that we have an IT function positioned to protect our information technology and accelerate our growth around the world,” said Coca-Cola President and COO James Quincey in a statement.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Microsoft’s $300 Windows VR headsets: 6 things we know (and 1 big question)

Everybody expected mixed-reality technology to play a part in Microsoft’s big Windows 10 event on Wednesday—but nobody expected what we got. Rather than showing yet another HoloLens demonstration, Microsoft instead announced a small army of virtual reality headsets unlike anything available today, and they’re all powered by the forthcoming Windows 10 Creators Update.The demo raised more questions than it supplied answers, but there was still plenty of info to glean if you were paying attention. Here’s everything we know about Microsoft’s Windows 10 VR headsets—and one massive question spurred by their mere existence.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here