US and Israel blamed for Stuxnet

4 March 2011 Last updated at 11:55 ET

Israel and the United States created the Stuxnet worm to sabotage Iran's nuclear programme, a leading security expert has claimed.

Ralph Langner told a conference in California that the malicious software was designed to cripple systems that could help build an Iranian bomb.

Mr Langner was one of the first researchers to show how Stuxnet could take control of industrial equipment.

It is widely believed that its target was machinery used to enrich uranium.

Speaking at the TED conference in Long Beach, California, Mr Langner said: "My opinion is that Mossad [Israel's intelligence agency] is involved."

However he speculated that Israel was not the main driver behind the creation of Stuxnet.

"There is only one leading source, and that is the United States," said Mr Langner.

In a recent report on Stuxnet, the security firm Symantec said that it would have taken a team of between five and 10 developers, six months to create the worm.

Mr Langner said that the project would have required "inside information", so detailed that "they probably knew the shoe size of the operator."

Stuxnet first came to light in July 2010. Nearly 60% of reported infections were inside Iran.

Damaging centrifuges

The worm targets industrial control systems, known as programmable logic controllers (PLCs), made by Siemens.

While PLCs are used to control a wide variety of automated systems, it is believed that it was those inside Iran's nuclear facilities that were the intended target.

Analysts who have examined the Stuxnet code say it could have been used to damage centrifuges which play a crucial role in the process of enriching uranium for both nuclear power and weapons.

The United States and Israel have led an international campaign to halt Iran's nuclear programme, however there is no hard evidence to link either country to the creation of Stuxnet.

Earlier in the week Iran's Interior Ministry denied that Stuxnet had been responsible for a shutdown at the country's Bushehr nuclear reactor.

A report by the International Atomic Energy Agency showed that Russian engineers working at the plant had removed 163 fuel rods.

Iranian sources said that the action was taken as a result of problems with the rods, rather than Stuxnet.

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UK pushes on with broadband plans

4 March 2011 Last updated at 11:51 ET

The government is pushing ahead with the second wave of funding for super-fast broadband across the UK.

It comes despite the fact that no firms or technologies have yet been chosen for original pilot areas earmarked to test how to roll out next-generation broadband to remote areas.

New bids are now being invited for a further �50m.

The government has pledged to make the UK the best place for super-fast broadband in Europe by 2015.

The �50m will be made available to local authorities around the UK.

"This is very much a locally-driven process and we encourage bids from all local people with plans for improving broadband in their local area," said Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne.

Local councils wanting to take advantage of the latest tranche of funding will need to apply via the Broadband Delivery UK.

The government estimated that the funding would help a further 800,000 homes to benefit from next-generation broadband.

Slow progress

Some have questioned the timing of the new scheme, given that pilots intended to be testbeds for best practice in connecting the so-called 'final third' have yet to begin.

This is the third of UK homes that are not economically attractive to firms such as BT and Virgin Media because offering next-generation services there would cost too much money.

At the time they were announced Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport Jeremy Hunt said: "Our aim is to use these rural market testing pilots to discover exactly what needs to be done to make super-fast broadband commercially viable in rural communities".

Despite announcing the four areas in October - North Yorkshire, Cumbria, Herefordshire and the Highlands and Islands - no firm or technologies have yet been chosen for the areas.

Each trial was allocated a fund of between �5m and �10m.

Lack of progress led Labour MP Ian Lucas to ask the government to "pull its finger out" last month.

A spokesman for the Department for Culture, Media and Sport conceded that it has been a long process.

"Councils are having to get everything ready. They have to know what work needs to be done."

He said that announcements would be made soon.

In total the government has earmarked �530m of public money to be spent on bringing super-fast broadband to rural areas.

This money is drawn from the BBC license fee and was originally earmarked to help people with the switch over to digital TV.

Any funds to speed up broadband roll-out should be applauded said Sebastien Lahtinen of broadband news site ThinkBroadband.

"This crucial step will be welcomed by those living in the 'final third', the most remote areas of the UK which currently suffer from a lack of decent broadband services.

However, many in those areas will continue to be frustrated that it's going to take years to roll out across the entire country," he said.

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Blogspot banned in football row

4 March 2011 Last updated at 00:17 ET

A row over who can broadcast football matches in Turkey has led to Google's Blogger site being blocked.

A court in Turkey issued the ban in response to a copyright complaint by satellite TV firm Digiturk.

It brought the complaint when it discovered that some of the matches it was broadcasting were showing up on Blogspot pages.

About 600,000 Turkish bloggers are thought to use the Google tool to publish their personal journals.

The ban has been imposed because Turkey's copyright protection laws allow for entire services to be shut down.

In October, 2010 Turkey lifted a ban on YouTube that had been in place for two years.

Google confirmed the Blogger/Blogspot ban in a statement and said those with worries about piracy should turn to its easy to use takedown systems rather than seek a wholesale shutdown.

"The process for making a copyright claim for content uploaded to Blogger is straightforward and efficient, and we encourage all content owners to use it rather than seek a broad ban on access to the service," said a spokesperson.

"That way, people in Turkey can continue to enjoy Blogger whilst we respond to the specific complaint."

Digiturk said it went to court to protect its right to broadcast Turkey's Spor Toto Super League games on its Lig channel. Digiturk said the ban had not curbed all piracy as other sites beyond Blogger were still showing pirated streams of football matches.

Cyber-rights activist Yaman Akdeniz told the Hurriyet news site that the ban was a "disproportionate response" that would inconvenience millions of people.

"I understand there is a legitimate concern regarding Digiturk's commercial rights but banning all these websites will not solve the issue," he told the site.

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Android hit by rogue app viruses

3 March 2011 Last updated at 06:14 ET

More than 50 applications available via the official Android Marketplace have been found to contain a virus.

Analysis suggests that the booby-trapped apps may have been downloaded up to 200,000 times.

The malicious apps were copies of existing applications, such as games, that had been repackaged to include the virus code.

All the apps found to contain the malicious code have now been removed from the Android Marketplace.

Remove and recall

The virus-laden apps were discovered by a Reddit user called Lompolo who realised that one program was listed under the name of a publisher he knew had not written it.

He found that the app, which let people play guitar on their handset, was the same as the original but for a name change and some virus code buried within it.

Lompolo said the rogue apps had been downloaded between 50,000 and 200,000 times since they were placed on the Marketplace.

Lompolo initially found 21 apps bearing the viral code but, according to an investigation by mobile security site Android Police, the final tally is believed to involve more than 50. The apps are also known to be available on unofficial Android stores too.

Once a booby-trapped application is installed and run, the virus lurking within, known as DroidDream, sends sensitive data, such as a phone's unique ID number, to a remote server.

It also checks to see if a phone has already been infected and, if not, uses known exploits to bypass security controls and give its creator access to the handset. This bestows the ability to install any code on a phone or steal any information from it.

The latest version of the Android operating system, known as Gingerbread, is not vulnerable to the exploits DroidDream uses.

Open access

As well as removing the applications from the Android Marketplace, Google has also suspended the three accounts being used by the developer behind the apps.

It also has the option to use a security tool that can recall and uninstall rogue applications from phones. It is not thought to have yet done this as its investigation continues. Google has yet to issue a formal statement about the rogue applications while it completes the investigation.

Writing on the Trend Micro security blog, Rik Ferguson, pointed out that remote removal of the booby-trapped apps may not solve all the security problems they pose.

"...this remote kill switch will not remove any other code that may have been dropped onto the device as a result of the initial infection," he wrote.

He advised anyone who believed they had installed one of the malicious apps to find out whether they need to get a new handset or re-install the operating system on the one they have.

The open nature of the Android platform was a boon and a danger, he warned.

"This greater openness of the developer environment has been argued to foster an atmosphere of creativity," he wrote, "but as Facebook have already discovered it is also a very attractive criminal playground."

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Apple launches second iPad tablet

2 March 2011 Last updated at 13:24 ET

Apple has launched the second generation of its iPad tablet computer at an event in California.

The company said the machine featured a faster processor, improved graphics, and front and rear cameras.

Apple has led the industry in sales of tablet devices since the launch of the first iPad in April 2010.

However, it has been losing market share to a raft of rival devices from manufacturers such as HP and Samsung.

The event was hosted by Apple chief executive Steve Jobs, who has been on medical leave from the company since January.

It had been widely speculated that he would not appear owing to his ill health.

Mr Jobs was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2004.

Speaking on stage, he said: "We have been working on this product for a while and I just didn't want to miss today."

Ovum analyst Adam Leach predicted a two-horse race in the tablet market over the coming year, between the iPad and Google's Android operating system.

"The platform dominance of Apple and Google will continue through 2011 and beyond," said Mr Leach.

"However, devices based on Google's platforms will only overtake those based on Apple's platform by 2015, when we forecast 36% and 35% market shares respectively," he added.

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Concern at broadband speed claims

1 March 2011 Last updated at 20:48 ET

Ofcom is seeking to stop internet service providers from advertising unrealistic broadband speeds.

Currently most ISPs advertise services as 'up to' a certain speed - for instance, 20Mbps (megabits per second).

But Ofcom's latest research finds that very few consumers actually get these headline speeds.

"There is a substantial gap between advertised speeds and the actual speeds people get in their homes," Ofcom chief executive Ed Richards told the BBC.

"The chances of someone receiving the advertised headline speed are fairly remote," he said.

"We would like to see clearer information provided to consumers which more accurately reflects the likely speeds they will actually receive," he added.

Ofcom's latest research into broadband speeds found that just 14% of customers on 'up to' 20Mbps services received speeds of over 12Mbps, while 58% averaged speeds of 6Mbps or less.

Consumer confusion

Cable and fibre services fared better, with 92% of Virgin Media customers on an 'up to' 50Mbps service averaging 45.6Mbps.

Its lower 10Mbps service saw average speeds of 9.6Mbps.

BT's Fibre-to-the-Cabinet technology, which is currently available to 15% of UK homes, has an average of 31.8Mbps on the 40Mbps service.

Unrealistic broadband speeds has long been an issue for consumer groups, who say such advertising is adding to consumer confusion over net services.

"Broadband speeds are a major source of dissatisfaction for UK broadband customers," says Michael Phillips, product director at comparison site Broadbandchoices.

"We have been pushing for 'typical speeds' to be made the gold standard for speed measurement since 2007 - in the same way that banks use 'typical' APR percentages."

The Advertising Standards Authority is looking into the issue.

Ofcom is recommending that ISPs use Typical Speed Rates (TSR) to avoid confusing consumers.

It has set guidelines for these speeds. It recommends that ADSL services currently advertised as 'up to' 20Mbps (megabits per second) be changed to a TSR of between 3 and 9Mbps.

Digital exclusion

BT is not impressed with Ofcom's idea.

"We have real concerns with their approach. Broadband speeds vary from line to line and so it is meaningless to use one speed for advertising. That is why we use the term 'up to'," said John Petter, managing director of BT Retail.

He said he thought such a policy "would encourage digital exclusion rather than tackle it".

"Enforcing typical speed ranges is also dangerous as it could encourage more ISPs to cherry pick customers who will increase their average, leaving customers in rural and suburban areas under-served," he said.

PlusNet defended its current advertising.

"We offer customers a personalised speed range.

"This is confirmed at application and then again once a customer has had their broadband service fully installed - we are completely honest with customers about the speeds they will receive," said chief executive Jamie Ford.

Virgin Media, which fared the best in the speed tests, welcomed the news: "Ofcom's latest report is yet another damning indictment that consumers continue to be treated like mugs and misled by ISPs that simply cannot deliver on their advertised speed claims," said Jon James, executive director of broadband at Virgin Media.

Andrew Ferguson, editor of broadband website ThinkBroadband, said using average speeds could encourage mediocrity.

"Providers who now go all out to get the best speeds could give up and make do with the average," he said.

He added that there was "no such thing as an average" because the speed of a connection depends on so many factors, including home wiring, the applications being used and where in the UK people live.

Are you a broadband customer? What is your reaction to this story? Send us your comments using the form below:

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PS3 imports banned in patent row

1 March 2011 Last updated at 08:36 ET

European customs officers have been told to seize all shipments of PlayStation 3s (PS3), following a patent row between Sony and LG.

LG has won a 10-day import ban on the games consoles from the civil court of justice in the Hague.

The long-running dispute between the two tech firms centres around the playback facility for Blu-Ray discs.

Custom officials in Holland have already seized tens of thousands of PS3s, according to reports.

Experts say that the ban, if extended, could affect the stock available in shops within three weeks.

LG claims that Sony PS3s infringe a number of patents relating to the playback of Blu-Ray discs.

It is also seeking a ban in the US and has filed a complaint with the US International Trade Commission (ITC).

The stakes are very high for LG, said patent solicitor Michael Coyle, of law firm Lawdit.

"It will have to pay an astonishing amount of money if a judge rules that its patent is invalid. When a firm seeks to have goods seized they make an undertaking to pay for storage and compensation," he said.

Patent rows between technology firms are nothing new but tend only to be played out among big firms with deep pockets.

"Patents are very subjective so a patent claim is very risky," said Mr Coyle.

The LG Sony row has a strong element of tit-for-tat.

In December, Sony filed a complaint against LG, seeking its own import ban on a list of mobile phones, saying they breached Sony phone patents.

Neither firm wanted to comment on the dispute.

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Google to restore missing Gmails

1 March 2011 Last updated at 05:04 ET

Google has apologised to customers who found their Gmail inboxes empty after accounts were accidentally wiped clean.

It said that the e-mails were "never lost" and that "things should be back to normal for everyone soon".

Many of the missing e-mails are backed up on tape, hence the delay in restoring them, the search giant said.

It blamed a software bug for the incident and said just 0.02% of Gmail customers were affected.

Initially it had said that less than 0.08% of its 170 million users had been affected.

"I know what some of you are thinking: how could this happen if we have multiple copies of your data, in multiple data centres?" asked Ben Treynor, Google's site reliability czar, in the firm's official Gmail blog.

"Well, in some rare instances software bugs can affect several copies of the data. That's what happened here," he added.

He said that Google backs up data on offline tapes, which are protected from software bugs.

"But restoring data from them takes longer than transferring your requests to another data centre, which is why it's taken us hours to get the e-mail back instead of milliseconds," he said.

"Thanks for bearing with us as we fix this, and sorry again for the scare," he signed off.

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Ad watchdog to monitor web words

28 February 2011 Last updated at 19:01 ET

How companies talk about themselves on Twitter feeds or Facebook profiles is to be policed like adverts.

From 1 March, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) gets powers to police the claims companies make on websites and social networks.

The rules cover statements on sites that can be interpreted as marketing, even if they are not in an advert.

Until now, the ASA has only been able to oversee paid-for ads online.

Since 2008, the watchdog has received more than 4,500 complaints concerning text on websites that it could do nothing about.

"These are claims that are very similar to the claims that [the public] are used to seeing in adverts that appear in media like TV, radio, posters and print," ASA chief executive Guy Parker told the BBC.

The ASA said that the new powers would help it tackle a growing number of complaints about the way companies sell themselves on the web.

Misleading words

Extending the UK advertising code to non paid-for statements means that these, like paid-for adverts, must not harm, mislead or offend.

While aimed primarily at sites using the .co.uk domain suffix, the ASA said its powers could also cover .com sites, such as Facebook, if the online space being used was under the control of a UK firm.

However, the transient nature of online content may make the rules difficult to police, according to Vincent-Wayne Mitchell, professor of consumer marketing at London's Cass Business School.

"I could have an advert up on the internet for a week or for an hour, cause widespread confusion, get sales from that, and then withdraw it," he said.

"The only punishment that the ASA has is withdrawal, but I can have that as part of my own marketing strategy," said Professor Mitchell.

Name and shame

User-generated content, such as comments left by customers on a website, will not be covered by the extended powers.

But the ASA said that such content could be examined if a company adopted it and used positive endorsements to advertise.

To encourage firms to comply, the ASA said it would extend a name-and-shame policy which will expose firms that make unsupportable claims.

Further sanctions for offenders could see non-compliant material removed from search engines. The ASA said it might also take out adverts to warn people about companies that do not comply with the code.

In anticipation of the extra work it will have to do, the ASA has expanded the number of staff in its complaints and investigations unit by 10%.

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Gmail users find accounts wiped

28 February 2011 Last updated at 11:21 ET

Thousands of Gmail users have been left with empty inboxes after their accounts were accidentally wiped clean.

As well as missing e-mails, many reported that their contacts had also disappeared.

Google, which operates Gmail, said that a small percentage of its users had been affected.

Some accounts have already been restored, suggesting the data was not permanently deleted.

In a statement, Google said: "This is affecting less than .08% of our Gmail user base, and we've already fixed the problem for some individuals."

The company said that engineers were working to restore service.

Google does not release official figures for the number of Gmail accounts, however it is believed to be between 150 million and 200 million.

That would mean that around 150,000 users were affected by the problem.

Gmail outages on this scale are rare, according to Alex Chitu, whose blog Google Operating System, charts the company's cloud computing initiatives.

He told BBC News that although service was being restored, many users were angry about the way the outage had been handled.

"Today's issue shows that Gmail is far from perfect and Google should do a better job at communicating with users.

"When you can't access your message and your Google account is disabled, it's nice to know why," he said.

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