UTM spent RM500,000 to fight virus attacks

Sunday June 4, 2006

BY MEERA VIJAYAN

JOHOR BARU: The war against computer viruses does not come cheap. Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) has spent close to RM500,000 on cyber security protection.

The university also conducted a month long campaign on anti-virus awareness among its administration staff in April.

UTM Centre for ICT director Prof Zamri Mohamad said the campaign included the installation of hardware and software protection as well as updating the operating systems (OS).

“We also arranged for talks on healthy ICT lifestyle for our staff so that they realise it may not be safe to visit sites that are not secure,” he said, adding that the university currently had 10 servers alone for anti-virus protection which were updated daily.

The Star had reported on Thursday that the university had been facing a spate of virus attacks that targeted around 6,000 computers belonging to both the university and students.

Prof Zamri said the university also conducted demonstrations on how computers should be maintained and created a website,www.antivirus.utm.my, through the intranet system.

Students with their own personal computers have also been encouraged to obtain the anti-virus protection from the university free of charge.

UTM was also looking towards moving its entire software system from Windows to Open Source as there were fewer viruses created for it.

Prof Zamri said that with viruses and hackers getting increasingly sophisticated, the idea of owning a computer was not the same as owning a radio.

“It is more like owning a car as you need to learn how to operate it. You also need to constantly service and upgrade it,” he said.

According to him, UTM was considering the possibility of making its students and staff obtain a “licence” before they are allowed to use the computers on campus.

The company is suing Apple and HTC

Wednesday January 11, 2012

ROCHESTER (New York): The struggling Eastman Kodak Co is suing Apple Inc, whose market value is more than 2,400 times greater, accusing it of infringing four patents related to digital camera images.Kodak also suing Taiwan's HTC Corp, alleging violations of the four patents as well as a fifth. It said it filed a related complaint against both companies with the US International Trade Commission.Apple did not immediately respond to requests for comment. An HTC spokesman said it is premature to comment until that company can review Kodak's complaints.Kodak is trying to preserve value as the money-losing company, which had been left behind by rivals that embraced digital camera technology faster, tries to raise cash by selling a large patent portfolio.It also has patent litigation against Research in Motion Ltd, which makes the BlackBerry.The Wall Street Journal has said Kodak may file for bankruptcy, a prospect the company has declined to discuss. Kodak on Tuesday unveiled a revamped business structure, and its shares, which trade below US$1 (RM3), rose 50%.In its lawsuits, Kodak said it obtained its patents after concluding it would be desirable for people to easily share pictures from their digital cameras without first transferring them to personal computers.It said Apple and HTC are infringing the patents by selling and importing mobile camera phones, Tablets and other devices, among them Apple's iPad 2, the iPod touch and various iPhones.Kodak wants to stop Apple and HTC from selling these products, and seeks compensatory and triple damages. It filed the federal lawsuits in its hometown of Rochester, New York. - Reuters

Internet leader defends coming changes in URLs

Wednesday January 11, 2012

UP FOR GRABS: The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers begins accepting applications on Thursday for a hugely expanded number of web domains. - Relaxnews

WASHINGTON: Companies and law enforcement agencies nervous about a huge expansion in Internet domains - adding to .com, .net and others - will have many ways to protect trademarks and identify website owners, the head of the organisation that organises the Internet said.

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) begins accepting applications on Thursday for a hugely expanded number of web domains. Verisign, which runs the .com registry, has estimated there will be up to 1,500 applications, which cost US$185,000 (RM555,000).

Many corporations view the proliferation of top level domains as a giant problem. Companies already hire lawyers to defend their trademarks online and most were forced to spend money recently to ensure trademarks were not on the sexually oriented .xxx domain when it was introduced.

Following complaints from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and others that registries of website owners were sometimes poorly maintained, making it difficult to shut down scams, ICANN chief executive Rod Beckstrom pledged that the top executives of all new registrars would undergo criminal background checks.

But Beckstrom argued that privacy groups and others pushed back against calls for detailed registries of website owners, called the WHOIS database.

"WHOIS is a really tough problem," he said.

Warren Adelman, CEO of Go Daddy which sells website names, said he had supported the go-slow approach urged by law enforcement and some members of Congress.

"We strongly recommended that there be a small pilot programme and then expand that as sort of a measured way," he said.

In general, those who work with ICANN closely say privately the organisation does a fairly good job of the very tough task of organising the Internet internationally. The main criticism is that it sometimes fails to explain the reasoning behind its decisions, making it look high-handed.

In response to companies' concerns about trademarks, Beckstrom said that, in early May, ICANN would publish who had applied for what top level domain and allow protests.

Trademark violators would be shut down quickly, he said in a presentation at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies think tank.

Sixty-one domain registrars have been stripped of their registrations or not renewed since 2003 because of violations such as failing to maintain proper documentation of who ran websites, failure to pay fees, or other problems, says Stacy Burnette, director for contractual compliance at ICANN.

To market, to market

Beckstrom argued the expansion gave new opportunities for companies. "Not everybody has the domain name they want today," he said. He also argued the expansion would create a more international Internet by allowing top level domains in Chinese, Hindi and other languages that do not use the Latin alphabet.

Just in English, there could well be hundreds of applications for city names such as .Berlin or .Paris and many others for generic words such as .music or .food.

Theo Hnarakis, CEO of Melbourne IT Group which counts 3,500 companies among its clients, said about 100 of his clients were registering top level domains, some to prevent cybersquatting and others as a branding opportunity.

"We are seeing some companies with a sense that this is a wonderful marketing opportunity," he said. "Overstock applied for O.CO (following the last round of expansions). Why? Because ... the shorter the name, the more memorable it is."

If customers do not use search engines to find businesses but URLs instead, companies could save millions on paid click advertising, Hnarakis added. - Reuters

HTC says US ruling on dispute vs Apple delayed again

Sources from : http://techcentral.my/news/story.aspx?file=/2011/12/14/it_news/20111214155722&sec=IT_News

IMPORTANT DECISION: A man cycles past a HTC advertisement in Taipei. The final ruling by the International Trade Commission is crucial for HTC as it could result in a ban on the sale of the company's handsets in the United States, a market that accounts for 50% of the HTC's revenue. - Reuters

TAIPEI: HTC Corp, the world's No 4 smartphone maker, said a US court has further postponed a final ruling on its lawsuit against Apple Inc, which is seeking a ban on sales of HTC devices in the US market.
An HTC official said the International Trade Commission, a US trade panel that investigates patent infringement involving imported goods, would deliver its ruling on Dec 19.
She added that the ITC did not disclose a reason for the delay.
The International Trade Commission had earlier scheduled a ruling for Wednesday, postponed from the original date of Dec 6.
"It's hard to say whether the delay is good or bad because we don't know the true reason behind," said Yuanta Securities analyst Bonnie Chang.
"We hope the ruling will come as soon as possible so we can predict where the bottom is and whether there will be a settlement, and then we can have a better view of HTC's fundamentals in the coming one year."
The ruling is crucial for HTC, which has struggled with legal battles and stiff competition with Apple and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, since it could result in a ban on the sale of HTC handsets in the United States, a market that accounts for 50% of the company revenue.
The suit is seen by some as a proxy for the larger fight for market share between Google Inc's Android cellphones and tablets, many of which HTC manufactures, and Apple's product line.
South Korea's Samsung Electronics, which also makes Android products, is locked in similar court fights with Apple. - Reuters

Gadgets that won't make it for 2012

Sources from :  http://techcentral.my/news/story.aspx?file=/2011/12/21/it_news/20111221110203&sec=IT_News

SHOCK RESISTANT: The flexible screen technology used in smartphones such as the Nokia Kinetic, a prototype which was previewed at Nokia World 2011, may help to make future smartphones 'smashproof.' - Relaxnews

Looking forward to seeing smashproof smartphones, indoor location mapping, the launch of the Sony PlayStation4, and 3D taking over the world in 2012? It's not going to happen says market analyst ABI Research.
The technology industry may have high hopes for the arrival of cutting-edge technologies in 2012 but ABI believes that many of these innovations will take much longer to reach mass market penetration than others are predicting.
Years ago mobile phones used to be robust and could withstand falls from over two meters but that was before smartphones and their large glass displays replaced the polycarbonate plastics found in feature phones.
While there have been significant improvements in glass technology since the first range of smartphones arrived on the market, ABI believes consumers won't find smashproof phones on the market in 2012 - mobile manufacturers beg to differ.
There are a number of "life proof" shock-resistant smartphones available on the market today including the Motorola Defy+, the Motorola Titanium, the Samsung Galaxy Xcover, the Casio G'zOne Commando and the Sony Experia
Active and smartphone makers are experimenting with new technology too that will make these handheld devices even more indestructible.
Consumer electronics companies such as Nokia, Samsung, Sony and Toshiba have already shown off early prototypes of smartphones with flexible displays that can be twisted and bent without breaking.
Samsung is bullish on the technology and says it will have Tablets and smartphones with flexible screens ready by 2012.
Smartphones and Tablets have been a closely watched point of interest throughout 2011 with many high-profile launches (and a number of high-profile failures).
Many people around the world have grown to love their Tablet devices but despite their increased importance within the computing market, Tablets are still not capable enough to become a mass-media solution, insists ABI.
"With WiFi being the predominant form of Internet connectivity, media Tablets tend to stay at home during work and school hours along with the family pet. As an incremental device being used alongside laptops and smartphones, the use case to replace these existing devices has yet to materialise," comments Jeff Orr, group director, mobile devices, ABI.
Likewise, people will not rely on their mobile phones for Internet access in 2012 - or ever, predicts Aapo Markkanen, senior analyst, consumer mobility at ABI. He believes an influx of cheaper laptops and Tablets will keep consumers connected to the Internet into the future.
In November Google opened the front door to indoor maps, taking searchers inside shops, airports and malls.
Nokia, CSR, Ericsson, Mexens Technology and NextNav have also provided solutions for indoor mapping, but these technologies - along with relevant indoor location-based marketing - will not reach critical mass for a few more years.
"What we will likely see in 2012 are isolated mobile applications and services around individual high-traffic public areas like airports and malls.
The benefits are two-fold, with a new way to engage with the end user and improve their experience, while also providing key analytics on user behavior within these buildings," forecasts Patrick Connolly, senior analyst, telematics and navigation at ABI.
Next year is building up to be a big year for the gaming market with a number of long-awaited game releases on the horizon but consumers who are hoping to get their hands on next-generation game consoles such as the Microsoft Kinect 2 or the Sony PS4 will probably have to hold on until at least 2013.
There was a big push to make 2011 the year of 3D but even with a notable list of 3D film releases, the arrival of 3D-only TV stations and lots of new 3D TVs making their way into the market, consumers were not overly enthusiastic about the trend.
ABI says consumer attitudes towards 3D technology will be much the same in 2012. So what will be on the cards in 2012? A study by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) predicts that wireless and mobile devices will be the feature of this year's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January.
According to the study Tablets are hot and cloud computing is still popular. Chipmaker Intel says super-thin, ultra-light, high performance laptops called ultrabooks will be the star of 2012.
The company has said it will focus on bringing a new range of touchscreen, Windows 8-based ultrabooks to market. - Relaxnews 2011

Samsung files new claims against Apple in German

Sources from : http://techcentral.my/news/story.aspx?file=/2011/12/21/it_news/20111221112058&sec=IT_News

CONTINUING BATTLE: A Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Tablet on display in Seoul. Samsung has filed a new legal claims against US rival Apple in Germany as the two technology giants engage in a legal battle worldwide for leadership in the hugely lucrative smartphone and Tablet computer market. - Reuters

SAMSUNG Electronics said it has filed new legal claims against US rival Apple in Germany, claiming that the iPhone maker infringed four of its patents.
Samsung said the claims, filed on December 16 with the Mannheim regional court, relate to alleged infringement of patents including those for Samsung's telecommunications standard technology and user interface.
The two technology giants are engaged in a legal battle involving dozens of cases worldwide as they struggle for leadership in the hugely lucrative smartphone and Tablet computer market.
Apple began the process in April, accusing Samsung of "slavishly" copying its iPhone and iPad designs. Samsung has focused its own lawsuits on technology patents rather than design.
The South Korean giant has received two legal boosts this month.
On December 9 Australia's High Court cleared the way for Samsung to sell its Galaxy 10.1 Tablet in the country in time for Christmas, dismissing Apple's bid to have a ban extended.
Earlier in the month a federal court judge in San Jose, California, denied Apple's request for a preliminary injunction that would have banned the sale of three Samsung smartphones and a Tablet computer in the US. - Relaxnews 2011

ICT now a teaching tool

By ALYCIA LIM

educate@thestar.com.my

Audio aid: Muhyiddin trying the Audiocity software at the launching of the Policy on Information Technology and Communication in Education in Putrajaya yesterday. Looking on is Education Ministry Director- General Tan Sri Alimuddin Md Dom (right).

PUTRAJAYA: The education policy in the country has taken a new leap forward and it is set to embrace Information and Communications Technology (ICT) as the main tool for teaching, said Education Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
The policy aims to use ICT as a vehicle to encourage creativity, collaborative learning, critical thinking and problem solving skills.
“The teaching and learning process is no longer a teacher centric or one-way process. A teacher is now a classroom facilitator, who is equipped with ICT knowledge,’’ Muhyiddin said, adding that the new approach would uplift the quality of education in the country.
“Through this policy, all ICT programmes in the ministry will work towards the same goal, which is to increase student achievements and to ensure that every student has access to quality education.”

At the launch of the new ICT policy in education yesterday, Muhyiddin, who is also the Deputy Prime Minister, said that education ICT practices in developed countries would be used as a benchmark to ensure that the ICT component in Malaysian schools are of international standards.
The policy, which was developed by the ministry in collaboration with Multimedia Development Corporation (MDeC), was a continuous effort from the Smart School initiative launched in July 1997.
The policy will focus on eight main fields, which include a structural realignment of ICT management, education administration and management, technology infrastructure, teaching and learning, and community involvement, amongst others.
He added that there would be four supporting components – third party outsourcing, collaboration with the community of practice, public and private partnership, and involvement of the extended community to ensure the policy’s effectiveness.
“The ICT policy in education will also go through a Central Management Programme which will be responsible in organising all the ICT initiatives in education, in order to increase administrative efficiency and to save resources.”
Muhyiddin hoped the policy would align the quality of Malaysian education to the vision of making Malaysia an excellent education hub, in line with the status of an advanced nation by the year 2020.