The Senate has confirmed David Kappos as director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, filling the top position in an agency that's been under pressure to reform. Kappos, IBM's assistant general counsel, has been an advocate of intellectual property reform efforts such as the Peer-to-Patent collaborative patent review program.
Blogger in Twitter Attack Wants Russian Probe
A pro-Georgian blogger at the centre of a co-ordinated attack that hit Facebook and Twitter has asked Russian President Dmitry Medvedev to hold an inquiry. The blogger, known online as Cyxymu, said he was targeted for "telling the truth about the Russian-Georgian war."
ACLU Warns of Changes to Cookie Limits on U.S. Sites
A proposal to loosen restrictions on the use of tracking cookies by federal government websites should be carefully scrutinized so they don't jeopardize the privacy of people who visit them, groups advocating civil liberties warned. The American Civil Liberties Union said the proposal, floated July 24 by the White House OMB, or Office of Management and Budget, was a "sea change" that could erode protections that for the past nine years have safeguarded the personal information of millions of people who visit federal websites.
Twitter Woes Blamed on Attack on Georgia Supporter
The meltdown that left 45 million Twitter users unable to access the service came in two waves and was directed at a single blogger who has voiced his support for the Republic of Georgia in that country's continuing conflict with Russia. Facebook's chief security officer, Max Kelly, told CNet that the attack was aimed at a user known as Cyxymu, who had accounts on Facebook, Twitter, LiveJournal and other sites affected by the cyberassault.
Telecom Companies Won't Have to Disclose Data
Telecommunications providers will not have to give the government sensitive revenue and Internet speed data for a program to map broadband use in U.S. homes and bring high-speed Internet service to more people. The U.S. Commerce Department said that companies such as Verizon Communications, Comcast and AT&T do not have to share how much money they make from each Internet subscriber.
EU's Ombudsman Cites "Maladministration" in Intel Case
The European Union's ombudsman issued a rare rebuke of the bloc's antitrust regulator, saying it failed to record "potentially exculpatory" evidence from a witness in its investigation of chip giant IntelCorp.
Apple, Google Agree Not to Purse Other's Workers
Apple and Google are said to have had an unofficial agreement not to poach each other's employees -- or at least they did while Google CEO Eric Schmidt served on Apple's board, according to TechCrunch. Unnamed sources told TechCrunch that no formal, written agreement exists, and that employees of one company were welcome to apply for jobs at the other, but that the two companies said they would not actively pursue hiring away each other's workers.
Two Environmental Groups Plan Fight for .eco Domain
Rival environmental groups are lining up supporters to try to take control of a new net domain aimed at green groups. At least two consortiums are known to be preparing bids to control .eco.
Twitter, Facebook Hit by Denial-of-Service Attacks
Social networks Twitter, Facebook and LiveJournal were overwhelmed by denial-of-service attacks disrupting access to more than 300 million users. Botnets -- thousands of infected home and workplace PCs -- flooded the websites with nuisance requests, thus cutting off access to anyone else.
Phishing Attacks Up 52% in July, Symantec Reports
Phishing attacks rose 52 percent in July while spam as a percentage of all e-mail stayed about the same compared with the previous month, according to the latest reports from Symantec that tracked spam and phishing activity for the month.
Chinese Police Probe Death at Internet Addict Camp
Chinese police are investigating a bootcamp for Internet addicts after a teenage boy died, apparently following a severe beating, just hours after checking in, the official Xinhua news agency said. Four trainers from the camp were detained in connection with 15 year-old Deng Senshan's death, after injuries were found all over his body, Chinese media quoted local government officials as saying.
Apple Rejects iPhone App Over "Urban Slang"
Apple insists it didn't reject a dictionary app for including common swear words. It rejected the app for "providing access" to offensive "urban slang."
Pentagon Considers Rules for Social Networking Sites
The Pentagon has launched a study of social networking websites and tools, part of an effort to craft policies on how the military should utilize services such as Twitter, MySpace and Facebook. Officials said they needed to develop rules that would allow the military to take advantage of the speedy communications that social networking sites offer without exposing sensitive information or computer networks to risks.
ESPN Limits Employees' Use of Twitter, Facebook
ESPN has apparently banned its workforce from posting any sports-related content on social-networking tools such as Twitter and Facebook without its permission. In a memo, ESPN tells employees that it is "currently building and testing modules designed to publish Twitter and Facebook entries simultaneously" on ESPN Web sites and mobile platforms, and it plans to roll out the modules this fall.
Company Sues Twitter for Patent Infringement
Twitter is being sued for alleged patent infringement by a Texas company that makes mass notification systems for public safety organizations, the military and utilities. Sugar Land, Texas-based TechRadium claims it has three patents, one issued in 2006 the other two this year, protecting the idea for mass notifications, according to the federal suit, which was filed in Houston.
ICANN Study Finds No Evidence of Domain "Front-Running"
ICANN's study of front running -- when "insider information" is gathered by a party from monitoring attempts by an Internet user to check the availability of a domain name, and then that info is used to by that party to register that domain name -- has found no evidence of this actually happening.
Online Scammers Targeting Job Seekers
With unemployment high and rising, more people are streaming onto the Web in search of jobs -- but running into costly scams. Like job seekers, criminals are after moneymaking opportunities online.
Chinese Clinics Treat "Internet Addiction"
So-called "Internet addiction" among Chinese youths has led to a proliferation of clinics around the country that claim to be able to treat the recently defined disorder. China's netizens have played a key role in drawing nationwide attention to recent cases of deaths in prisons and detention centers, so it should be no surprise that they are up in arms over the fate of one of their own.
Harvard Website Tracks Censorship Issues Online
A new Harvard-based website that tracks online censorship. Herdict users report their website problems anonymously -- numeric Internet addresses are recorded but only general location is displayed -- so people can post more freely, encouraging reports about sensitive topics like HIV and AIDS-related sites, and from people in countries with possible government repercussions.
Amazon's Patents Indicate Advertising in E-Books
Amazon is taking steps toward integrating ads into its Kindle e-books with two patents filed that outline the process of incorporating targeted advertising in on-demand generated content. The plan is to serve ads throughout Amazon's Kindle e-books, possibly between chapters or after every 10 pages, and in margins, according to the document.
