Tor users advised to ditch Windows

6 August 2013 Last updated at 08:18 ET

Legitimate users of the Tor anonymous browsing service are being advised to stop using Windows if they want to keep their identity hidden.

The advisory comes after an attack on Tor that targeted Windows users sought to gather data that could be used to identify people.

In addition, Tor warned, people should turn off a widely used web technology that was exploited in the attack.

It is still not clear who was behind the sophisticated attack.

Data grab

The code to exploit the bug was fed into the Tor network via servers owned by Freedom Hosting that ran sites accessible only via Tor. In 2011, Freedom Hosting sites on Tor came under attack by the Anonymous hacktivist collective, which claimed they hosted large amounts of images of child sexual abuse.

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Invented by the US Naval Research Laboratory to help people use the web without being traced, Tor (The Onion Router) aids anonymity in two ways.

First, it can be used to browse the world wide web anonymously. It does this by routing traffic through many separate encrypted layers to hide the data identifiers that prove useful in police investigations.

Second, there are hidden sites on Tor that use the .onion domain suffix. These are effectively websites but, as they sit on Tor, are almost impervious to investigation.

Although many media reports about Tor have focused on how it is used to spread pornography and images of child abuse as well as to sell drugs via sites such as the Silk Road, it is also used for many legitimate means.

Journalists and whistle-blowers use it to communicate with each other, with the New Yorker magazine's Strongbox being one example of a "dead drop" service based on the technology.

It is also used by military and law enforcement officers to gather intelligence.

The project's developers further suggest it be used as a way for people wishing to research Aids, birth control or religion anonymously in areas where information on such topics is restricted.

Tor has been funded by, among others, the Electronic Frontier Foundation digital rights group, Google, Human Rights Watch and the US National Science Foundation.

The most recent attack is widely believed to have been carried out in an attempt to identify people viewing or swapping images of abuse via Freedom Hosting.

The Tor Project's overseers have stressed that it has no connection or affiliation with whoever is in charge of Freedom Hosting.

Tor advised people to stop using Windows as it feared that the action against Freedom Hosting might compromise the identity of other people who put the anonymous browsing service to legitimate uses.

Firefox vulnerable

Tor, aka The Onion Router, attempts to hide a person's location and identity by sending data across the net via a very circuitous route. Encryption applied at each hop along this route makes it very hard to connect a person to any particular activity.

On 4 August warnings about the action against Freedom Hosting started to circulate and revealed how it exploited a vulnerability in some versions of the Firefox browser. Versions before release 17.0.7 were open to the attack, which sought to log unique details of machines using Tor.

While versions of Tor running on any operating system were potentially vulnerable, in practice only those using Windows were being hit, the Tor project said in its latest update about the attack.

"Really, switching away from Windows is probably a good security move for many reasons," said the security advisory from Tor overseers.

It added: "... this wasn't the first Firefox vulnerability, nor will it be the last."

Security agency suspected

The advisory urged people to upgrade to a newer version of the Tor software bundle, which includes Firefox, that is not vulnerable to the bug. It also suggested people turn off Javascript, the programming language many websites use to add interactive features.

However, it cautioned, turning off Javascript would change the way many websites worked.

As an alternative, Tor suggested the Linux open-source operating system, Apple's OSX or more esoteric systems such as Tails.

The warning comes as security researchers and computer forensics experts try to trace where the unique IDs grabbed by the attack code were being sent.

Early work showed it was going to a location in the American state of Virginia. Further sleuthing now suggests the web address it is being sent to is run by the US National Security Agency.

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Confused copiers rewriting documents

6 August 2013 Last updated at 08:28 ET

Photocopiers made by Xerox are changing numbers on documents, a German computer scientist has discovered.

David Kriesel found that copies he made of construction plans had altered room dimensions.

Other users have replicated the problem, which has been blamed on faults with compression software used by several Xerox models.

The company has not yet issued a fix for the problem, but it told the BBC it was preparing a statement.

Mr Kriesel said he worried that numbers could be altered on invoices and other important documents.

Shrinking room

He questioned whether incorrect figures could leave a company liable to legal action.

Niri Shan, a partner at London-based law firm Taylor Wessing, told the BBC it could raise interesting legal implications.

"The person who provided the figures would be liable [for any issues]. Then the question would be, could they turn round to the photocopying company and say, 'Hold on a minute, this is your fault'?

"Often in commercial contracts, the manufacturer may have limitations of liability on consequential loss."

In his tests, Mr Kriesel found that often the number "6" would be turned into an "8", and vice versa, with other numbers being affected too.

One room on his copied plans had its dimensions shrunk from 21.11m to 14.13m.

Substitute figures

He said the anomaly is caused by Jbig2, an image compression standard.

Image compression is typically used in scanners and copiers to make file sizes of scans smaller.

Jbig2 would substitute figures it thought were the same, meaning similar numbers were being wrongly swapped.

Mr Kriesel said the two models affected were the Xerox Workcentre 7535 and 7556.

However, since posting details of the fault online, several other users have come forward with problems on other machines.

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Samsung readies smartwatch range

6 August 2013 Last updated at 09:13 ET By Leo Kelion Technology reporter

Details of Samsung's smartwatch plans have been revealed in a series of unearthed patent and trademark filings.

Drawings show a device with a flexible screen that wraps round the wrist, with other parts made of metal and synthetic materials.

Other documents reveal the company has registered the names Samsung Gear in South Korea and Samsung Galaxy Gear in the US.

Analysts are divided about how much demand there might be.

Tech consultancy Canalys has predicted that sales of smartwatches will "explode" from 330,000 units shipped last year to more than five million in 2014.

"Smartwatches will be the most important new product category in consumer electronics since the iPad defined the market for tablets," said analyst Chris Jones.

"Software platforms tied to smartwatches will also be a tremendous opportunity for developers to write apps in categories such as health and wellness or sports and fitness."

Smartglasses preference

But market research company IDC is taking a more tempered view after it surveyed 1,513 consumers in the US.

It said only a minority of respondents showed strong interest in any of the suggested features.

The most popular application was seeing who is calling your phone from your wrist, with about 14% of those questioned saying they were very interested in it.

Reading Twitter or Facebook messages via a watch when a mobile was nearby only appealed to about 7%.

"The small screen size means many of the suggestions didn't seem relevant," said Francisco Jeronimo, a mobile device expert at the company.

"We also found there was much more interest in smartglasses, with features such as recording a video or taking pictures of what you are looking at proving most popular. The reason for that is that this offers a new feature that consumers can't get from any other existing device."

South Korean news site Moveplayer revealed that Samsung has filed patents for three slightly different smartwatch designs with the country's patent office since the start of the year.

They indicate it is looking at creating a curved bendable screen that covers about half of the device. At one end of the display is a small panel with a back arrow and home keys similar in design to those found on its original Galaxy S Android handset.

Range of competitors

The drawings also show a physical power button and speaker, and the accompanying descriptions note that the screen can be attached to different straps to accommodate customers' varying wrist sizes.

The documents add that the devices should provide access to the internet; be able to make and receive phone calls, emails and texts; and store personal information.

Samsung will compete with several other tech firms who have all released, or at least announced, smartwatches since the start of the year, with contrasting marketing campaigns:

• Sony is pitching its Smartwatch 2 as a rainproof "accessory" to its Xperia Android smartphones
• Omate says its Truesmart watch is designed to be a "standalone" device featuring a five megapixel camera on its side
• TomTom is targeting the fitness market with its Sport Watch range, offering a heart rate monitor and speed sensor as add-ons
• Pebble highlights its energy-efficient electronic paper display and customisable watch face designs
• Shanda talks of its Geak Watch's ability to play movies, record the user's blood pressure and track sleep patterns

Many of the predictions about the sector's expected growth are based on news from other companies: confirmation from Microsoft and Samsung that they are working on watch designs, and patent documents from Apple and Google suggesting they are at least considering the concept.

'Beat its rivals'

According to IDC's survey Samsung could find it hardest to crack the US market.

When IDC asked which of the brands they would most trust to develop a wearable device that embedded communication functions and internet features, 39% picked Apple, 27% Google, 21% Microsoft and just 17% Samsung.

This was even though the South Korean company shipped more than double the number of smartphones than its nearest competitor in the quarter to the end of June.

"A similar survey a few years ago would have shown Samsung far behind its rivals when it came to smartphones as well before the Galaxy range became established," Mr Jeronimo said.

"If it can beat its rivals over price, ease of use and the amount it spends on advertising, as well as offering unique features - perhaps acting as a TV control in a clever way - then it can still beat other smartwatch brands."

Samsung's next scheduled press event is at the IFA consumer tech show in Berlin on 4 September.

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'Web bully' death site helps inquiry

6 August 2013 Last updated at 13:53 ET

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The BBC's Sian Lloyd speaks to Hannah's "devastated" friends

A social networking site where comments were posted to a 14-year-old girl who later died after "web bullying" says it will help the police investigation.

Hannah Smith, from Leicestershire, was found hanged on Friday.

Ask.fm allows users to post anonymously and Hannah's father Dave Smith said he found posts on his daughter's page telling her to die.

In a statement, ask.fm said its moderators "ensure genuine concerns are acted upon immediately".

'In-site reporting button'

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Leo Kelion Technology reporter

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The question-and-answer site was set up by two Latvian brothers, Ilja and Mark Terebin, as a rival to Formspring in 2010 but has now eclipsed its predecessor.

Members can ask others questions and then get replies, which include text, photos and videos - via its website or apps.

Ask.fm had 13.2 million daily visitors worldwide in June with each one spending nearly six minutes on average on the site, according to internet research firm Comscore. It said that made the social network's web domain the 79th most popular in the world.

Ask.fm says users must be at least 13-years-old to join and requires them to provide a valid name and email address when they register, although reports suggest younger children sneak through using fake credentials.

One of its most controversial features is the ability for members to pose questions to others anonymously. Ask.fm's terms and conditions say members should never use the feature to ask things that are mean or hurtful, and it allows users to opt out of receiving anonymous questions via their privacy settings. However, safety campaigners have said many youths do not know how to do this.

The network also allows users to report abuse and says it may hand over identifying information to law enforcement if necessary.

But in June, Le Monde newspaper reported the service only had 50 external moderators which it contrasted with the 30 million questions and answers posted to Ask.fm every day.

Even so parents might wish to note that Ask.fm warns members they use the service "at your own risk" and that it says it bears no liability for content they might find to be objectionable or obscene.

The Latvian-based company said: "Hannah Smith's death is a tragedy; we would like to convey our deepest condolences to her family and friends.

"We have reached out to Leicestershire police and would be happy to co-operate with their investigation into the circumstances.

"Ask.fm actively encourages our users and their parents to report any incidences of bullying, either by using the in-site reporting button, or via our contact page.

"All reports are read by our team of moderators to ensure that genuine concerns are heard and acted upon immediately - and we always remove content reported to us that violates our terms of service."

The apology follows a message written on Facebook by Hannah's father, Dave, that he found bullying posts on his daughter's ask.fm page from people telling her to die.

Mr Smith wrote: "Just to let all my friends know my youngest daughter took her own life last night.

"My heart is broken in 2 and is gonna take a long time to repair i just hope that none of you have to go through the pain im goin through rite now [sic]."

Government petitioned

Mr Smith has called for tighter controls to be applied to social networking sites such as ask.fm.

He wrote: "I have just seen the abuse my daughter got from people on ask fm and the fact that these people can be annoymous is wrong [sic]."

On a Facebook page set up in memory of his daughter, he asked people to sign an e-petition to introduce safeguarding measures on sites used by children.

The page now has nearly 45,000 "likes".

The petition states: "Please sign if you would like the Government to step in and insist that Ask.fm and similar sites help us protect our young people. They are able to join from the age of 13 and can post anonymously."

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UK teen made world MS Word champ

7 August 2013 Last updated at 06:50 ET

A student at Sawtry Community College in Cambridgeshire has become world champion at using Microsoft Word 2007.

Kieran Youngman, 17, beat more than 344,000 competitors from 90 countries to win $5,000 (£3,000) and a trophy.

Exam-testing company Certiport set online challenges featuring the 2007 or 2010 versions of Microsoft Office programs Word, Excel and Powerpoint.

The best 100 contestants were invited to the final in Washington DC - next year's will be in Anaheim, California.

Mr Youngman said: "Career-wise I think it will show any employers I know how to use a Microsoft Office product

"There's no other way to prove you know exactly what you're talking about, without certification.

"Certification is validation you know what you're doing.

"With school, I'll be able to write reports and essays and stuff and make it a bit more fancy, to hopefully get a few extra marks."

Asked how his friends back in the UK would react, he said: "I'm going to be honest... a few might not be surprised."

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Vodafone announces 4G launch in UK

7 August 2013 Last updated at 07:10 ET

Vodafone has revealed that it will launch its 4G service on 29 August to customers in London after investing £900m in the network.

It will roll out to 12 other cities including Manchester, Leeds and Sheffield by the end of the year, the firm said.

Prices for customers will begin at £26 per month for a SIM only deal with a 12-month contract.

Last week O2 announced plans to launch its own 4G service on the same day.

O2's lowest tariff is also £26 per month. EE, the first network to offer the faster mobile internet service, has a base tariff of £21 per month.

Three has said it plans to launch a fourth 4G network before the end of the year.

Bundled content

Vodafone has partnered with the music service Spotify and TV channel Sky Sport for its launch, to offer additional content to its 4G customers.

It is also providing unlimited data-use within the UK for the first three months of contracts, but otherwise imposes the maximum of an eight gigabyte cap. Vodafone said this would help customers pick the right data plan.

Consumer groups have been critical about the fact that only Three has committed itself to offering unlimited data as a long-term option.

All the networks took part in an auction run by regulator Ofcom to buy parts of the 4G spectrum earlier this year.

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Consumer groups have been critical of the caps imposed on data use

At the time Ofcom's chief executive Ed Richards described the sale as "a positive outcome for competition" in the UK.

"4G coverage will extend far beyond that of existing 3G services, covering 98% of the UK population indoors - and even more when outdoors - which is good news for parts of the country currently underserved by mobile broadband," he said.

Both EE and Vodafone purchased bands in the 2.6GHz range as well as the 800MHz part of the radio spectrum. O2 only bought bands in the lower range.

The 2.6GHz bands delivers faster speeds but across smaller distances. The 800MHz bands - previously used by the TV signals - are best for providing long-distance 4G services and indoor coverage.

"It's not just about speed issue but also capacity," Matthew Howett, an analyst at the telecoms consultancy Ovum, told the BBC earlier.

"The higher frequency spectrum effectively has fatter pipes - you can get more data through them.

"When lots of people are using 4G to do things like streaming high definition video, it's important not just to have the availability of the signal but also that the pipe is wide enough to carry all that traffic."

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Man held in Twitter threats inquiry

7 August 2013 Last updated at 07:28 ET

A 32-year-old man has been arrested by police in Bristol in connection with threats made on Twitter.

He is suspected of offences against two women, who reported the allegations on 25 and 29 July.

The BBC understands it relates to threats made against Labour MP Stella Creasy and feminist campaigner Caroline Criado-Perez.

They are among a number of prominent women recently targeted online by anonymous abusers, so-called "trolls".

It is the third such arrest since allegations surfaced two weeks ago.

The man is being held under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 and is due to be taken to a Bristol police station, the Metropolitan Police said.

Extra staff

There have been calls for Twitter to do more to prevent abuse after anonymous users of the site sent messages to well-known women threatening bomb and rape attacks.

Female journalists, columnists and the historian Mary Beard were all targeted.

Last weekend some users boycotted the site to protest against trolling - the practice of insulting or intimidating others, usually under a pseudonym, to provoke a reaction.

Twitter attracted media and police attention after campaigner Ms Criado-Perez was targeted by trolls when she successfully lobbied for a woman's face to be pictured once more on UK banknotes.

A 21-year-old man was arrested in Manchester on 28 July after Ms Criado-Perez reported the abuse to police, while a 25-year-old man was held by Northumbria Police on 30 July in connection with the allegations as well as those against Ms Creasy.

Twitter has drafted in extra staff to deal with the levels of abuse and has moved to clarify its reporting procedures.

Last week the company apologised to the women affected, saying what had happened was "unacceptable".

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Whatsapp upgrade adds voice messages

7 August 2013 Last updated at 08:12 ET

Whatsapp is adding the ability to record and send voice messages to its smartphone chat software.

The move will help it compete against Facebook Messenger, WeChat, Voxer and BBM which already offer the function.

California-based Whatsapp has said 300 million people now use its app at least once a month.

One analyst said the addition of voice messages should help the firm boost its popularity in parts of the developing world.

"In south-east Asia, for example India and China, and parts of Africa voice messages are popular as an alternative to typing on phones' English-style keyboards," Neha Dharia, an analyst at telecoms consultancy Ovum told the BBC.

"Also in markets where literacy is low ,Whatsapp will do much better with this service."

Whatsapp is adding the new function to its apps for the iPhone, Android, Blackberry, Windows Phone and Nokia S40 platforms.

This is an unusual move as developers tend to prioritise Apple and Google's operating systems ahead of the others.

The firm makes money by charging users an annual 0.99 cent (64p) fee.

Voice calls

Whatsapp is not putting any duration limit on voice messages sent.

It has designed its software so that recordings automatically play through headphones if they are plugged in, or otherwise through the phone's earpiece when the device is placed next to a user's head and through the speakerphone if held away.

Message creators can also see when their recording has been listened to.

The app still lacks the ability to host interactive voice or video conversations, which is possible on Microsoft's Skype and Blackberry's BBM apps. However, Whatsapp works across more platforms.

"This can also be seen as Whatsapp testing the water for Voip [voice over internet protocol] calls at a later stage," added Ms Dharia.

"That is complicated as different countries have different regulations that it would need to follow. So, Whatsapp might decide its strategy based on the places where it can see voice messages prove most popular."

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Amazon launches online art site

7 August 2013 Last updated at 11:09 ET

Amazon has begun selling works by artists such as Andy Warhol and Salvador Dali in an online marketplace.

Amazon Art is showcasing more than 40,000 works from more than 150 galleries in the US.

Works range from a $44 (£29) cat portrait to Norman Rockwell's Willie Gillis: Package from Home, being offered for sale at $4.85m (£3.12m).

Peter Faircy of Amazon Marketplace said the group was "excited" about the company's latest venture.

"We're thrilled to bring the excitement and emotional connection of art to our customers," he added.

"Amazon Art gives galleries a way to bring their passion and expertise about the artists they represent to our millions of customers."

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The models for dealing in contemporary arts have evolved in this digital age"

End Quote Holden Luntz Gallery owner

Customers will have access to original and limited-edition art from US galleries including Paddle8 in New York, Holden Luntz in Miami, McLoughlin Gallery in San Francisco and Catherine Person Gallery in Seattle.

Featured artists on the site include Warhol, Dali, Marc Chagall and Damien Hirst.

'Demeaning'

Luntz said Amazon Art would help to add to his Florida gallery's existing customer base.

"We operate a wonderful fine art gallery, yet realise that the models for dealing in contemporary arts have evolved in this digital age," he said.

Jodie and Joshua Steen of LusterNYC in Brooklyn agreed. "I think we'll begin to see a whole new breed of art collector," they said.

"That's good for everyone - the galleries, artists and customers."

But one art critic does not concur with those sentiments, claiming Amazon Art would not change the way in which art is bought and sold, nor "broaden [its] reach".

"It's demeaning for a high end artist and also for those at the lower end," said Georgina Adam of the Financial Times and the Art Newspaper.

"A unique piece of art is more than just a product. It is a unique creation.

"I think the way it is sold in the Amazon way devalues it."

Garden furniture

Consumers can search the virtual site by subject, medium - a category that includes drawing, mixed media and prints - and artistic style.

Amazon said the it provides customers with "high quality" images and "detailed information" about each artwork.

There are currently 503 works available for less than $99 (£64) and 2,517 works valued at $10,000 (£6,500), though most of the works are priced somewhere in between.

Amazon started out as an online bookseller 19 years ago and now sells a host of goods, from toiletries to garden furniture.

It teamed up with Sotheby's in 1999 when it bought a £28m stake in the international art auction house. But their jointly operated site was short-lived, closing the following year.

Amazon Art will compete with such established retailers as Artsy and Artnet, capitalising on a market where increasing numbers of people are buying works they have only seen online.

On Monday Amazon founder Jeff Bezos announced a $250m (£163m) purchase of The Washington Post and other assets from the Washington Post Company.

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Road charges vehicles driving on it

7 August 2013 Last updated at 11:13 ET By Leo Kelion Technology reporter

South Korea has switched on a road which can recharge electric vehicles as they drive over it.

The project's developer says the 12km (7.5 miles) route is the first of its kind in the world.

It means vehicles fitted with compatible equipment do not need to stop to recharge and can also be fitted with smaller than normal batteries.

Two public buses are already using the technology and there are plans to add 10 more by 2015.

"It's quite remarkable that we succeeded with the OLEV [online electric vehicle] project so that buses are offering public transportation services to passengers," said Dong-Ho Cho, who led the team behind the scheme at Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST).

"This is certainly a turning point for OLEV to become more commercialised and widely accepted for mass transportation."

However, another transportation expert warned that the costs involved in installing the equipment meant it was less practical than other schemes which involved vehicles wirelessly charging at specific locations or using overhead cables.

"There is clearly a lot of potential for this technology for public transport applications, but for private electric vehicles the cost of fitting all roads with such systems may be prohibitive," said Dr Paul Nieuwenhuis from the Centre for Automotive Industry Research at Cardiff University.

Smaller batteries

The Korean project runs from the train station in the town of Gumi, in the south of the country, to the In-dong district.

A device fitted to the bottom of the buses receives power from the road using a technology called Shaped Magnetic Field In Resonance.

Electric cables installed under the road are used to generate electromagnetic fields which are picked up by a coil inside the device and converted into electricity. The receiving equipment can be up to 17cm (6.7in) above the road's surface.

The researchers say they can transfer 20 kHz and 100 kW (136 horsepower) electricity at up to an 85% maximum power transmission efficiency rate.

They say that the power strips involved only need to be placed under 5% to 15% of the road, meaning that only certain sections need to be dug up and replaced.

They add that because vehicles do not need to stock up on energy before making their journey, the batteries involved can be three times smaller than would otherwise be needed. This reduces the weight of the vehicles helping reduce the amount of carbon dioxide emitted when generating the power required.

'Showcase technology'

Although the OLEV project is the first working scheme to power vehicles on the move, there are other inductive charging projects elsewhere.

Torino, Italy and Utrecht, the Netherlands have also fitted wireless charging equipment to some of their bus stops to allow the vehicles to top up power while drivers take short breaks.

Engineering firms Arup and Mitsui have set up a joint venture to roll out a similar scheme in Milton Keynes this autumn.

Utah State University is also testing a prototype campus bus which it says can achieve greater than 90% power transmission efficiency with a distance of 6in (15cm) between the pick-up coil and road surface at certain stops.

There are also moves to transfer the concept to cars. In London, computer chip maker Qualcomm is testing a wireless charging tech it calls Halo which it has fitted to Citroen and Rolls Royce vehicles, but again the idea is only to install power transmission pads at certain spots.

One expert said it was likely to be a long time before South Korea's more ambitious design became commonplace.

"I think we are decades away from even thinking about a nationwide network of electrified roads," said Ashvin Chotai, managing director of the Intelligence Automotive Asia consultancy.

"For now, it appears to be more of a showcase technology than something which has the potential to be commercialised."

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