Check Thiz for Technology News
Hacker builds $1,500 cell-phone tapping device (AP) (Sun, 01 Aug 2010 06:09:01 GMT) New!

In this July 30, 2010 photo, hacker Chris Paget sets up a long range RFID reading devise at the DefCon hacker conference in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Isaac Brekken)AP - A computer security researcher has built a device for just $1,500 that can intercept some kinds of cell phone calls and record everything that's said.


Attacking the edges of secure Internet traffic (AP) (Fri, 30 Jul 2010 04:51:08 GMT) 

A man passes a logo of the Black Hat technology conference in Las Vegas on Wednesday, July 28, 2010. (AP Photo/Isaac Brekken)AP - Researchers have uncovered new ways that criminals can spy on Internet users even if they're using secure connections to banks, online retailers or other sensitive Web sites.


FBI access to e-mail, Web data raises privacy fear (AP) (Fri, 30 Jul 2010 17:19:29 GMT) 

FILE - In this June 28, 2010, file photo, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., gestures on Capitol Hill in Washington. Invasion of privacy in the Internet age. The administration's proposal to change the Electronic Communications Privacy Act 'raises serious privacy and civil liberties concerns,' Leahy said Thursday, July 29, 2010, in a statement. Expanding the reach of law enforcement to snoop on e-mail traffic or on Web surfing. Those are among the criticisms being aimed at the FBI as it tries to update a key surveillance law. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)AP - Invasion of privacy in the Internet age. Expanding the reach of law enforcement to snoop on e-mail traffic or on Web surfing. Those are among the criticisms being aimed at the FBI as it tries to update a key surveillance law.


Microsoft takes aim at tablet market (Christopher Null) (Fri, 30 Jul 2010 21:40:58 GMT) 
Christopher Null - Microsoft wants your money.
RIM’s rumored 'BlackPad' tablet due in November? (Ben Patterson) (Fri, 30 Jul 2010 19:54:46 GMT) 
Ben Patterson - Rumors of a BlackBerry tablet are heating up by the day, with Bloomberg now claiming that the BlackPad — yes, the BlackPad — will arrive in November, complete with an iPad-size screen and the ability to connect to the Internet via either Wi-Fi or your Bluetooth-connected BlackBerry.
LucyPhone iPhone app eliminates your time on hold (Appolicious) (Sun, 01 Aug 2010 05:50:00 GMT) New!
Appolicious - If you hate waiting on hold when you’re trying to reach a company, you’ll want to download the free iPhone app LucyPhone as fast as your Wi-Fi will let you.
False alarm: Google search still working in China (AP) (Fri, 30 Jul 2010 02:28:08 GMT) 

A Chinese flag flies next to the Google company logo outside the Google China headquarters in Beijing on March 2010. Google does not know if the Chinese authorities were behind a disruption in the company's services on Thursday, chief executive Eric Schmidt said in an interview with The Wall Street Journal.(AFP/File/Liu Jin)AP - Google Inc. triggered a false alarm Thursday by posting a notice that its search engine and several other services had been cut off from mainland China - a key market where the company has been locked in a high-profile battle over online censorship.


Japan mobile phone makers to roll out 'augmented reality' (AFP) (Sun, 01 Aug 2010 04:00:44 GMT) New!

An employee of Japan's second largest mobile communicator KDDI displays the prototype model of an AFP - The "Terminator" had it, US fighter pilots use it and it's the next hot feature on Japanese smartphones -- "augmented reality" which peppers the world around you with useful bits of information.


Hacker Snoops on GSM Cell Phones in Demo (PC World) (Sat, 31 Jul 2010 22:00:11 GMT) 
PC World - Despite concerns that federal authorities might fine or arrest him, hacker Chris Paget went ahead with a live demonstration of mobile phone interception at the Defcon hacking conference Saturday.
Hackers pick up where Facebook privacy leaves off (AFP) (Sat, 31 Jul 2010 18:13:58 GMT) 

The logo of social networking website 'Facebook' is displayed on a computer screen in London. Hackers are weighing in on the Facebook privacy controversy with creations that help people strengthen privacy or empty profile pages at the world's leading social networking service.(AFP/File/Leon Neal)AFP - Hackers are weighing in on the Facebook privacy controversy with creations that help people strengthen privacy or empty profile pages at the world's leading social networking service.


YouTube Videos Now Give Users 15 Minutes of Fame (NewsFactor) (Fri, 30 Jul 2010 17:11:41 GMT) 
NewsFactor - In what appears to be a competitive move against emerging video sites, YouTube on Thursday announced an unexpected improvement to its video platform. The Google-owned company is increasing the upload limit from 10 minutes to 15 minutes.
Top 10 Twitter Trends This Week [CHART] (Mashable) (Sat, 31 Jul 2010 14:01:26 GMT) 
Mashable - Christopher Nolan's sci-fi thriller Inception (staring the palpably handsome Leonardo DiCaprio) nabs the top of the Twitter talk chart for the second week in a row.
Meet the Makers: Q&A with Graham Carter of Toddler Teasers (Appolicious) (Sun, 01 Aug 2010 05:45:00 GMT) New!
Appolicious - Location: Boise, ID
Smooth-talking hackers test hi-tech titans' skills (AFP) (Sat, 31 Jul 2010 06:38:56 GMT) 

Hackers at the infamous DefCon gathering held in Las Vegas are proving that old-fashioned telephone smooth talk is an effective rival to slick software skills when it comes to pulling off attacks on computer networks.(AFP/File/Joel Saget)AFP - Hackers at an infamous DefCon gathering are proving that old-fashioned smooth talk rivals slick software skills when it comes to pulling off attacks on computer networks.


Conn. casino bartenders, others vote to unionize (AP) (Sun, 01 Aug 2010 03:18:12 GMT) New!
AP - Bartenders, beverage servers, and other workers at the Foxwoods Resort Casino voted Saturday in favor of having union representation.
Hack attack hits ATM jackpots (AFP) (Sat, 31 Jul 2010 22:19:39 GMT) 

People take cash at an ATM machine in Bangkok. Banks use AFP - Computer security researcher Barnaby Jack jokes that he has resorted to hiding cash under his bed since figuring out how to crack automated teller machines remotely using the Internet.


SAP Warms to Open Source (PC World) (Fri, 30 Jul 2010 20:00:21 GMT) 
PC World - Although not traditionally known for its contributions to the open-source community, the German-based SAP is adopting more open-source software, as well as contributing more of its own code back into the community, company officials said in an interview.
Soaring e-book sales speak volumes (AFP) (Sun, 01 Aug 2010 05:54:43 GMT) New!

File photo shows online retail giant Amazon.com CEO Jeff Bezos unveiling the Kindle DX in New York. Amazon, by slashing the price of the Kindle at the end of July 2010, is hoping to turn the electronic book reader into a device with mass market appeal, one for AFP - After years of lurking in the literary wilderness, the e-book market has exploded with online retailer Amazon.com's digital volumes recently overtaking sales of their hardcover counterparts.