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BetaNews.Com (5 non lus)

North Korea's Red Star OS leaves the government in control of computers

Publié: décembre 27, 2015, 9:04pm CET par Mark Wilson

Based on Fedora Linux, you might expect North Korea's Red Star OS to be a secure operating system. It's not -- at least not by most people's standards. Like China, the socialist state is keen to embrace the power of the internet, but wants to retain control over is citizens. This s exactly what Red Star OS enables the government to do.

Germany researchers from the security company ERNW have probed Red Star OS, examined the code and determined that it is a home grown operating system that leaves the government in control of many aspects of its use, including encryption. It has been suggested that North Korea is paranoid that the west will try to infiltrate through software, but it is North Korean citizens that should be more worried.

Speaking to Reuters, researchers Florian Grunow and Niklaus Schiess say that Red Star OS is the realization of Kim Jong Il's dream of building a North Korean operating system. So panicked is Pyongyang about Western influence and spying, that rather than embracing the internet as most of us know it, it instead relies on its own basic intranet to provide access to officially sanctioned websites.

Grunow says that Red Star OS is "a full blown operating system where they control most of the code". Drilling down into the code, the researchers were able to determine that the OS had basically been built from the ground up and includes feature that prevent the technically minded from bypassing any restrictions that have been put in place:

The Red Star operating system makes it very hard for anyone to tamper with it. If a user makes any changes to core functions -- like trying to disable its antivirus checker or firewall -- the computer will display an error message, or reboot itself.

One of the more invasive and concerning feature of the operating system is the way in which it watermarks every file found on a computer and the drives connected to it. This makes it possible to trace files back to individual users -- something which the government uses to crack down on legal file sharing. Grunow warns:

It's definitely privacy invading, it's not transparent to the user. It's done stealthily, and touches files you haven't even opened.

Grunow and Schiess are presenting their full findings to the Chaos Communication Congress in Hamburg today.

Photo credit: Anton Watman / Shutterstock
China passes law requiring tech firms to hand over encryption keys

Publié: décembre 27, 2015, 7:44pm CET par Mark Wilson

Apple may have said that it opposes the idea of weakening encryption and providing governments with backdoors into products, but things are rather different in China. The Chinese parliament has just passed a law that requires technology companies to comply with government requests for information, including handing over encryption keys.

Under the guise of counter-terrorism, the controversial law is the Chinese government's attempt to curtail the activities of militants and political activists. China already faces criticism from around the world not only for the infamous Great Firewall of China, but also the blatant online surveillance and censorship that takes place. This latest move is one that will be view very suspiciously by foreign companies operating within China, or looking to do so.

China's infringement of freedom of speech and the hard line it takes on those opposing the government is well-recorded. While the government insists that there will be no requirement for companies to install backdoors, the country has already earned itself a reputation that is going to be very difficult to shake off.

The deputy head of the Chinese parliament's criminal law division tried to play down the controversy surrounding the new law. Li Shouwei said:

This rule accords with the actual work need of fighting terrorism and is basically the same as what other major countries in the world do.

As well as granting new powers within China's borders, the new law also permits overseas action by the People's Liberation Army -- something which will be eyed with suspicion and likely opposed by for foreign nations. There is also a provision, as reported by Reuters, that "media and social media cannot report on details of terror activities that might lead to imitation, nor show scenes that are 'cruel and inhuman' "-- something else which will bring about accusation of standing in the way of free speech.

Photo credit: Kheng Guan Toh / Shutterstock
Sunday's super deal -- get Watchdog Anti-Malware for FREE at Downloadcrew Giveaway!

Publié: décembre 27, 2015, 6:31pm CET par Mike Williams

Antivirus protection can be expensive -- but not today. We’re giving away free licenses for Watchdog Anti-Malware, a cloud-based second-opinion scanner which uses multiple antivirus engines to catch the threats that other packages miss.

A 1-year, 1-PC license normally retails at $24.99, but for 24 hours only from 12pm EST Sunday (27th December) to 12pm EST Monday, you can get your system protected for FREE!

Watchdog Anti-Malware is supremely easy to use. If you think you’re infected, just launch the program, click Scan, and watch as the program crawls your hard drive looking for threats.

If anything suspicious is found, a fingerprint is passed to Watchdog Anti-Malware’s cloud scanning platform, where multiple antivirus engines check the file and return their verdict.

A detailed report lists any potential problems, and you can delete, quarantine, exclude or ignore them as required, before cleaning up your entire system with a click.

And although Watchdog Anti-Malware is intended as a second-opinion scanner (not your main antivirus engine), it also offers simple real-time protection to detect and block files before they’re executed.

Giveaway: we’ve a limited number of free Watchdog Anti-Malware licenses to give away, worth $24.99, on a first-come, first-served basis.

The giveaway starts midday Sunday December 27 and expires on December 28 at midday EST, so head on over to Downloadcrew Giveaway and get your free edition!
Electronics can be dangerous -- man falls to his death while staring at device

Publié: décembre 27, 2015, 4:44am CET par Alan Buckingham

Electronics have become a major distraction in modern society and there's no shortage of stories about accidents caused by cell phones and many people have a story of, at the very least, a near miss. We've likely all been there with distracted drivers.

No question modern devices can be hazardous to one's health and worse, the health of others who have loved ones at home waiting for them.

We've seen the amusing when a woman strolling through a mall fell into a fountain, but there's a darker side to this problem. San Diego, California police are reporting today that a man walked off of the edge at Sunset Cliffs while staring at an electronic device.

While the device isn't known, it can be guessed to be a cell phone, though a tablet is a possibility. According to what NBC News is reporting, "Witnesses stated seeing someone distracted by an electronic device and he just fell over the edge", says San Diego Lifeguard Bill Bender. "(He) wasn't watching where he was walking, he was looking down at the device in his hands".

People in the area tried to rescue him and administered CPR, but it seems it was too late to save the victim. And those who tried put themselves in jeopardy by climbing down the rocks to reach the man. "They acted quickly, they found a way to get down the cliff". Bender says.

There are lessons to be learned from this incident, and hopefully people will heed them, but that's a slim hope. Still, a person has passed away and our thoughts go out to his family and friends.

Photo Credit: Antonio Guillem/Shutterstock
Twitter says it is beating the trolls

Publié: décembre 27, 2015, 2:32am CET par Mark Wilson

Social networks were designed for people, and people mean problems. In particular, the likes of Facebook and Twitter have become havens for bullies and trolls, eager to prey on others online. Twitter has launched tools and education programs to combat trolling, and now the site says that it is winning the battle.

After making it easier to report abusive tweets and increasing the size of its anti-troll team, Twitter believes it is getting 'bad behavior' under control. As well as bullying of acquaintances and work colleagues, Twitter has also been used to attack celebrities, the gay community, religious groups, and more, with many people feeling driven from the site. It seems that the decision to take a very hands-on approach to troll tackling is starting to pay off.

The head of Twitter in Europe, Bruce Daisley, says that the tools that have been introduced have had a real impact on trolling. He goes further, saying that there is a direct correlation between the release of new safety tools and reporting mechanisms, and the drop in unacceptable behavior. One of the recent tools that has been employed is the use of telephone identification to target trolls.

Twitter users that are reported by others, or are observed misbehaving in some way, could receive calls from the anti-trolling team. Speaking to the Independent, Daisley says:

If someone is behaving in a way characteristic of a bad actor, we send them a phone verification. That allows us to tell the user that what they do here exists in the real world. It normally acts as a stark reminder. Secondly, it allows us to see whether that user has already got other accounts set up on their phone that have been suspended.

But as well as in-house work, Twitter is offloading the troll tackling to users. After introducing tools that make it easier to block troublesome users, people are being encouraged to share their block lists in the hope that this will help a greater number of people to avoid known offenders.

Groups such as Anonymous have also tried to clean up Twitter, but the approaches used have a very vigilante, gangster feel to them. It seems that, at long last, Twitter has reached the point where it is able to fight back on its own, as well as empowering users to look after themselves.

Photo credit: Marcos Mesa Sam Wordley / Shutterstock