Amazon to launch streaming video service today

Amazon is expected to launch a streaming video service today that will either compliment or replace the company’s Amazon Unbox download store. The New York Times reports that Amazon Video on Demand will let users begin watching movies the instant they click they place an order. It’s not clear from the article, but it sounds like the new service is browser-based, whereas Amazon Unbox requires users to download and install Windows-only software.

About 40,000 films and movies from all the major studios will be available for rental or purchase. If you’ve purchased a title, it will be stored in your Amazon account, allowing you to watch the movie or TV show from any computer.

Amazon is also working with hardware makers including Sony to provide access to the video store on television sets and set top boxes.

The service will only be available to a limited number of users today, with a wider rollout scheduled soon. If you visit the Amazon Unbox landing page, you’ll notice a little button on the right side of the screen asking you to sign up for a beta. We’re betting that this is how you get early access.

Source:
http://www.downloadsquad.com/2008/07/17/amazon-to-launch-streaming-video-service-today/

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Live Mesh Connects Folders and Desktops Across Windows PCs

Windows only (for the moment): Microsoft has thrown open the doors to a “tech preview” of its Live Mesh service, a kind of web-boosted version of Lifehacker favorite folder-syncing tool FolderShare, with a bit of remote desktop connection thrown in. Signing up with a Windows Live ID gets you 5 GB of space to store folders you want to keep in sync, either from computer to computer, or with the Live Mesh desktop itself. I explored the Live Mesh space this morning and took a few screenshots, so let’s take a look at what you can do.

Once you’ve signed up at Mesh.com, you’ll arrive at the orbiting-devices-type screen seen above. If you’re not just using Live Mesh as a Windows-only webtop, you’ll want to set up synchronization with your computer. Click over to the big “+” symbol, choose between 32- and 64-bit downloads, then hit “Install” to download the small installation file.

Source:
http://lifehacker.com/398716/live-mesh-connects-folders-and-desktops-across-windows-pcs

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Vista, Word and Google Desktop circumvent TrueCrypt function

Cryptography expert Bruce Schneier, in conjunction with a research group, has studied the security of TrueCrypt, to see whether it meets the specifications for a ‘Deniable File System’ (DFS) – implemented in TrueCrypt as hidden volumes – and is really able to conceal the existence of a volume within a standard system environment.

Hidden volumes are intended to conceal even the existence of encrypted files. It allows a PC owner to deny having specific encrypted data on his PC. Even where a suspect in a police investigation reveals the key to an outer container in order to avoid a jail term, he or she can still deny the existence of a concealed inner container. This is known as deniable encryption. For the authorities, the only solution to this would be to make the private use of encryption itself illegal.

Whilst TrueCrypt 5.1a itself appears to offer few points of attack, Windows Vista, Word and Google Desktop all undermine the principle of deniability. As soon as a user opens a hidden volume, traces, such as a unique volume ID, are left in the Windows registry. In addition, an edited file may subsequently appear in the list of recently opened documents.

According to Schneier, Word can torpedo both encryption and deniability if auto-save is activated. Using simple Word auto-recovery tools, he succeeded in recovering a Word file edited in a hidden folder. Google Desktop, which indexes many data types as soon as a volume is opened, can have similarly fatal consequences.

Source:
http://www.heise-online.co.uk/news/Vista-Word-and-Google-Desktop-circumvent-TrueCrypt-function–/111118

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Facebook bug leaks members’ birthday data

A glitch in a test version of Facebook’s Web site inadvertently exposed the birthdays of Facebook’s 80 million members this week.

The bug was discovered over the weekend by Graham Cluley, a senior technology consultant at Sophos. While checking out Facebook’s new design, Cluley noticed that the birth dates of some of his privacy-obsessed acquaintances were popping up when they should have been hidden.

Facebook allows users to control who sees private information such as their birth date, which can be a valuable nugget of data for identity thieves. But Cluley discovered that the new site was making this information public to other members. “Their new profile page essentially ignored the privacy setting to withhold the data of birth,” he said.

“For a brief period of time, a small number of users were able to access a private beta of Facebook’s new site design meant only for developers. During that time, some of those users had their birthdays revealed due to a bug,” Facebook said Wednesday in a statement. The company could not say exactly how long this data was exposed or how many people viewed the beta site, but the bug was patched within hours of Cluley’s discovery.

Source:
http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9110241&source=rss_news50

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BlackBerry PDF flaw exposes corporate networks

A “high” severity flaw affecting how BlackBerry Enterprise Server (BES) opens PDF attachments could be used to compromise a corporate network. Research in Motion quietly disclosed the flaw last week but is yet to issue a patch.

“This issue has been escalated internally to our development team. No resolution time frame is currently available,” RIM states in its advisory.

Until it can issue a patch, RIM has warned customers to disable the BlackBerry Attachment Service, which allows BES to process PDF attachments for users to view on their BlackBerry devices. The flaw concerns how the BlackBerry Attachment Service processes PDF files, which can be exploited via a maliciously crafted PDF.

Vulnerable systems include BES software version 4.1 Service Pack 3 (4.1.3) through to 4.1 Service Pack 5 (4.1.5). RIM has given the advisory a “high” severity rating.

“If a BlackBerry smartphone user on a BlackBerry Enterprise Server opens and views the specially crafted PDF file attachment on the BlackBerry smartphone, the arbitrary code execution could compromise the computer,” RIM states on its advisory.

Source:
http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/security/soa/BlackBerry-PDF-flaw-exposes-corporate-networks/0,130061744,339290636,00.htm

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