March 2010

Online presence of hate, terrorist groups up 20%

Hate groups have always been a presence on the Internet, but their presence is growing quicker lately thanks to social networking sites.

According to a report from the Simon Wiesenthal Center (SWC), groups that promote violence, terrorism, homophobia, antisemitism, and other forms of intolerance grew by 20 percent in the last year alone. The report is part of the Center's annual look at the spread of hate groups online, which noted that there are now more than 11,500 social networks, websites, forums, and blogs that focus on spreading intolerance, recruiting new members, and instructing people on how to hurt others. "The numbers are probably, at the end of the day, multiples of that," the SWC's associate dean Abraham Cooper said in a news conference Monday. "That should be taken as a low ball figure." The biggest growth is "where [it] is for everyone: in social networks," Cooper said. In particular, Facebook and YouTube were highlighted the most in the group's report as places for people to gather and spread ideas, such as how to create cell phone detonators, Light Anti-Armor Weapons (LAW) missiles, and more. There were even hate games floating around online, such as one that focused on bombing Haitian earthquake victims.

GAO: Federal government's online spending portal hampered by inconsistencies

A new report from the Government Accountability Office casts doubt on the effectiveness of the federal government's online spending portal, USAspending.gov.

The site -- commissioned in 2006 to track federal agencies' contracts, loans, grants and other financial awards -- remains hampered by reporting mistakes, data inconsistencies and a handful of other errors and missed benchmarks, the GAO found. Investigators praised the project and signaled its administrators were working to address some of the GAO's criticisms, including the website's yet-unfinished section on federal subcontracts and still-unwritten procedures to handle agencies that fail to share their spending figures. But the GAO still stressed the site's overall ability to promote transparency and openness "will be limited in providing the public with a view into the details of federal spending" for as long as the agency's concerns remain unaddressed.

Owe Someone Money? Just Bump Your Phones

PayPal's new iPhone application promises to let you quickly divide a restaurant bill and send a friend the portion you owe just by bumping your iPhones together.

The application is free to download from the App Store. Users log in with their PayPal credentials or with their cellphone number and a numeric PIN, and they can send or request money and manage their account on the phone. To send money, users choose a recipient from their cellphone contacts or bump two phones together. For that, the app uses technology from Bump Technologies, which developed it to swap contact information between two phones. The money is transferred immediately. The app includes a feature to help split a check, factoring in tax and tip and whether someone owes more than the others at the table. Payments are free from a bank or PayPal account, and there are varying fees if the payer uses a credit card.

New U.K. study suggests software innovation to blame for escalating e-waste problem

An essay/study has been released by the Nottingham University Business School in the United Kingdom that suggests "software bloat" is a big culprit for the escalating problem of electronic waste.

The timing of the report is particularly interesting, given the pent-up PC upgrade cycle associated with the Windows 7 release. Microsoft itself has said that something like 86 percent of businesses are running Windows XP or earlier versions of Windows. IDC has predicted 177 million shipments by the end of this year. The Nottingham researchers, led by Professor Peter Swan, who is an expert in innovation and sustainability, write that the pressure to upgrade and the new hardware necessary to do so force the needless junking of something like 2.5 billion PCs by 2013. The study, called "Software Marketing and e-Waste: Standards for Sustainability," suggests that software designers should get better about working within the memory and design constraints of existing hardware and avoiding "featuritis," the use of memory-sapping features.

Report Examines Net Porn's Impact On Kids

A new report released Tuesday, which examined the effects of Internet pornography, warns that Internet pornography can have many damaging effects on children and women in particular.

The report, conduced for the Witherspoon Institute, a research group focused on ethical and moral issues, found that Internet pornography is much more ubiquitous and easily accessible to children than other forms of pornography. The report notes that about 75 percent of pornographic Web sites display visual teasers on the homepages before asking if the viewers are of legal age. And only 3 percent of these Web sites require proof-of-age before granting access to sexually explicit material. The report also said that "today's pornography is both qualitatively and quantitatively different from any that has come before--and that qualitative difference includes for at least some consumers a slippery slope into ever more hard-core, sexually fetishistic, and formerly shocking imagery."

Digital access, collaboration a must for students

In a national survey that reveals K-12 students' use of technology at home and at school, students overwhelmingly agreed that access to digital media tools and the ability to collaborate with peers both inside and outside of school can greatly enhance education.

"Speak Up 2009: Creating Our Future: Students Speak Up about their Vision for 21st Century Schools," the latest education technology survey from the nonprofit group Project Tomorrow, identifies the emergence of "free agent learners"—students who increasingly take learning into their own hands and use technology to create personalized learning experiences. "For these students, the schoolhouse, the teacher, and the textbook no longer have an exclusive monopoly on knowledge, content, or even the education process, and therefore it should not be surprising that students are leveraging a wide range of learning resources, tools, applications, outside experts, and each other to create a personalized learning experience that may or may not include what is happening in the classroom," the report says. The survey indicates that students increasingly are seeking out and obtaining technology-based learning experiences outside of school—experiences that are not directed by a teacher or associated with class assignments or homework.

Consumer groups rally for patient focus in meaningful use

The government should not water down the patient and consumer provisions of its proposed health IT meaningful use rule to focus narrowly on simple adoption of HIT, a group of consumer organizations warned.

"Many (health) organizations have warned that these (patient-centered) criteria are too difficult to achieve," said Christine Bechtel, vice president of the National Partnership for Women & Families. "We disagree". There are many ways that the draft rule supports the right balance between accelerating the use of HIT and helping providers make meaningful change, she said. Other organizations in the group include AARP, Center for Democracy and Technology, Consumers Union and the Pacific Business Group on Health, which represents employers. Bechtel said that patient engagement in meaningful use would have real benefits.

More agencies use cookies to track Web activity

Some federal departments have obtained waivers to sidestep a long-standing policy that bars government Web sites from tracking visitor activity on the Internet.

In 2000, the Office of Management and Budget issued a federal policy banning the use of persistent cookies, files that a Web site deposits on a user's computer to collect information about how the visitor navigates the site to provide more personal interaction. The policy was established to protect personal privacy, but it hinders the government's ability to provide richer online experiences for the public, say critics of the ban. They add the ban is outdated and stymies efforts to solicit and respond to what the public wants, noting commercial sites routinely employ cookies to enhance their public outreach. Even civil liberties advocates favor the use of agency cookies as long as they allow visitors to opt-out and do not collect personally identifiable information. White House officials began considering a new cookie framework last summer, but they have not instituted changes yet.

Google Partners Say Its China Stance Is Putting Them at Risk

Google's partners in China said they have received no information from the company since it announced it may exit the country, putting their businesses at risk.

A letter from 27 partners was sent yesterday to John Liu, vice president of sales for greater China, according to Chinese news service CCTV, which posted the letter on the Internet. In it, the partners say they could face bankruptcy or closure and need compensation from Google. Google has received the letter and is reviewing it, spokeswoman Jill Hazelbaker said. "We understand that Google has its own values, but we do not understand why until today Google has not talked to us and offered any plans or solutions, especially when our investors, workers and clients are at stake," the partners said in the letter, according to a translation by Bloomberg News.

Egypt regulator enforces Internet voice call ban

Egypt has begun enforcing a ban on international calls made through mobile Internet connections, the head of the telcoms regulator told Reuters on Tuesday, potentially boosting voice revenues at landline monopoly Telecom Egypt. The ban will apply to the three mobile operators in Egypt -- Mobinil, Etisalat Egypt and Vodafone Egypt -- who offer internet access for computers via USB and other mobile modems, as well as via mobile phone. "The ban is on Skype on mobile internet, not on fixed, and this is due to the fact it is against the law since it bypasses the legal gateway," said Amr Badawy, the executive president of the National Telecommunication Regulatory Authority (NTRA).

Benton

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