Anonymous supports Greenpeace, hacks oil companies
In what the loosely-tied hacker group Anonymous calls #OpSaveTheArctic, over 1,000 email credentials and Hash checks of email passwords from five major international oil giants were released. The companies targeted included Exxon Mobil Corporation, Shell Petrochemical Corp., and BP Global; as well as the Russian based Gazprom Corporation and Rosneft Petroleum Corp.
The data dumped on anonymous text post website Pastebin includes 317 emails and their unsalted MD5 hashed passwords from a hack on Exxon mobil from June. Added July 13th: a further 724 emails and hashed passwords from BP, Gazprom, and Rosneft, and 26 emails with clear-text passwords from Shell Petroleum. Also listed: all of the internal mail system information, detailing routers, operating system type, database details and server hardware vendor. Further detailing of the type of data gained is available at the DC/Nova/Maryland network security blog site NovaInfoSeco.com.
Panda Cloud Antivirus 2.0: Security gain, without PC resource pain
Virus protection is a must for all computer users and in addition to the level of security that such software provides, it is also important to bear in mind the impact that such protection programs can have on your system. It is all well and good having a program that protects you from every known virus, but there is little point in it if running the software causes your computer to slow to a crawl. Panda Cloud Antivirus Free 2.0 takes the strain off your computer by ensuring that all of the hard work is done for you in the cloud.
This in itself is nothing new, but version 2.0 of the program, available in both free and paid for varieties, brings a number of changes, additions and enhancements that make this worth a second look if you have previously dismissed it. Probably the biggest change in this particular release sees the inclusion of the behavioral analysis engine that was previously only available to Pro users in the free edition of the software as well.
Who will buy Windows 8?
Quite likely you, or somebody you know -- and as soon as possible.
Early results are in for our Windows 8 buying poll, and many of you are ready to upgrade. More than 46 percent of you will buy the new operating system as soon as it's available to you. Volume-licensing subscribers get the software in August and everyone else in October. Twenty-one percent and 25 percent of respondents will jump in immediately, respectively. Nearly 55 percent will go Windows 8 within 3 months of release. The remainder either will wait much longer or not buy at all.
Ape Windows 8
Customization website Windows X Live has released both Windows 8 UX Pack 5.0 and Windows 8 Transformation Pack 5.0. Both tools are designed to provide a Windows 8-like user interface in older versions of Windows.
Headline features for both version 5 builds are new themes and updates designed to ape the user interface found in the recently released Windows 8 Release Preview.
Lighten your website's load with HTML Cleaner
When creating a website you’ll almost certainly want to keep file sizes to a minimum, reducing load times and bandwidth usage. So it’s a shame that some WYWIWYG editors don’t understand this at all, routinely producing bloated code that will inevitably slow you down. Still, don’t worry -- help is at hand from the free HTML Cleaner.
Initially, at least, the program works more or less as you might expect. You can open a single HTML file, or an entire folder; click a button and everything you’ve chosen will be optimised (we typically saved 9-10% immediately); and you can then view the results to confirm that the code works exactly as it did.
Nokia Lumia 900 is twice as nice for half the price
In a very bold move, AT&T slashed the price of the Nokia Lumia 900 in half. That means that if you’re into discounts, the flagship Windows Phone device is the right device for you today. With a two-year contract, Lumia 900, currently one of the best WP 7.5 offerings, is available for just $49.99. The price cut makes Lumia 900 considerably more attractive compared with fellow Windows Phones.
But there's a hidden price to pay, and it's not about money. Let’s assume you’re interested in getting the Lumia 900. So what’s the future hold for your new shiny piece of tech? Microsoft announced that current Windows Phone 7.5 devices will get some features of Windows Phone 8, but not all of them so to make it sound like a big improvement over its predecessor they’ve named the new operating system Windows Phone 7.8. That’s a great marketing strategy to throw current owners and buyers a bone, a slight taste of what’s to come, but to also force them into getting a new device if they want the full blown experience that Microsoft has in mind.
Comic-Con 2012: Red vs Blue [video]
On Day 3 of the Con, I spoke with two voice actors behind popular animated series "Red vs Blue", which is based on Microsoft's Halo series games. You know them as Agent Carolina and Agent Washington.
The story Xbox gamers experience isn't enough, if 10 seasons of "Red vs Blue" is any indication. Episode 6 is live now. Uh-oh, Jen Brown suggests big trouble awaits Agent Carolina.
Comic-Con 2012: Android Collectibles artist Andrew Bell [video]
Android has one of the cutest and most-easily recognized mascots/brand figures around. But there's more to it than just being green. Dead Zebra produces a series of popular Android figure collectibles. Artist Andrew Bell started the company a dozen years ago and, sanctioned by Google, released the first Android designs in 2010. Bell and Co. created a special Comic-Con set, just 1,000 of them, for the event.
Dumbrella is one of my favorite Comic-Con booths. I stopped by on Day 1 to look at Android collectibles only to find myself behind four people each holding the Comic-Con set purchased at the other end of the hall. Bell worked the booth, and they wanted autographs. What luck, I bought the $25 two-Android set earlier in the afternoon. He signed mine, too, and agreed to an interview.
Comic-Con 2012: Kingdom of Loathing [video]
Today, Comic-Con ends here in San Diego. I'm headed downtown for my fourth day in a couple of hours. I've chronicled the show on Google+ and really should have posted here, too. To rectify this terrible oversight, I picked three video interviews most likely to appeal to BetaNews readers. First up: Zach Johnson, creator of online multiplayer game Kingdom of Loathing.
Johnson can't quite finish KoL, which has been in beta for nine years. He signed autographs for an hour on Day 2 of the Con, and I could barely approach the booth. The fan base is hugely devoted, such that KoL is, as I understand, profitable based just on donations. There's more to come. A new game launched, coincidently, as the event opened. Johnson promises this one won't stay in beta as long.
Grab 34 exciting software downloads released this week
The second week of releases for July is a little different from other weeks in that there has been a greater number of Mac releases than usual. TRIM Enabler 2.2 is a great free tool that helps to improve the life of SSDs, and the latest version of the app includes support for a wider range of drives. Lion is proving to be the most popular version of OS X yet, and Lion Tweaks 2.0.1 is a free tweaking tool that can be used to customize the operating system and eliminate irritations, while CrystalClear Interface 2.7.4 enables you to completely change the appearance of OS X through the use of skins. If you want to be sure of a secure web connection whether you are at home or out and about with a laptop, Hotspot Shield 2.61 is a free proxy tool that protects your privacy and enables access to blocked web sites.
No week would be complete without its fair share of browser updates, and this week is no different in that respect. Chrome 21.1.1180.41 Beta is an interesting peak into the future of Google’s browser, and there is also a portable version of the software available in the form of Google Chrome Portable 21.1.1180.15 Beta. If you're keen to see what the future holds for Chrome, there is also Chrome 22.0.1201.0 Dev and again there is a portable version available -- Chrome Portable 22.0.1201.0 Dev.
Apple threatens retailers: Stop selling Samsung Galaxy devices now or else
It's bad enough that Apple uses patents to bully competitors. Now the company threatens retail partners, demanding they remove two Samsung devices from store shelves. Apparently, court orders aren't good enough for Apple, which also ignores one of them.
Apple, through its army of lawyers, has sent a letter to an unknown number of retailers and carriers selling the Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet and Galaxy Nexus smartphone. Last month a US court issued temporary injunctions against both devices, but temporarily lifted the one against Galaxy Nexus.
Android tops the smartphone market once again
If you’re a U.S. resident and want to buy a phone today, there’s a one-in-two chance you’ll get a smartphone.
According to a recent report from Nielsen, 54.9 percent of U.S. phone subscribers owned a smartphone as of June 2012. By comparison, in February 2012, smartphone adoption was at 49.7 percent, which can only mean one thing: feature phones are slowly going away and smartphones are here to stay.
Microsoft should follow Apple's lead and ditch the disc in Windows 8
Microsoft plans to simplify Windows 8 sales by eliminating the full version of the operating system and focusing on upgrade and "system builder" editions. The change likely means that Windows 8 will be cheaper by and large to obtain the most consumers.
Pundits Paul Thurrott and Mary Jo Foley spoke of the move, citing sources on their weekly Internet radio show "Windows Weekly". The move follows another from April where the company announced Windows 8 would only be available in standard and Pro editions, aimed at making the purchasing process much easier.
Apple flip-flops on EPEAT, says it will work hard to meet new IEEE green standards
Earlier this week, consumer electronics superstar Apple announced none of its products would be included in the EPEAT federal registry of green computer products.
Friday, Apple reversed its decision and instead said it would work to meet the soon-to-be-changed IEEE 1680.1 standard that is the basis for EPEAT's ratings.
Lion Tweaks 2.01 reclaims Snow Leopard features you love but miss
Fredrik Wiker has updated his Mac freeware utility, Lion Tweaks to version 2.01. Version 2 added support for Mountain Lion and Gatekeeper, while version 2.01 makes some more minor changes, including marking system default settings in bold for easier identification.
Lion Tweaks allows Lion (and now Mountain Lion) users to “correct” certain features changed from older builds, providing them with a way to restore favourite settings from Snow Leopard. It also includes several additional tools, including a TRIM-support enabler for SSD drives. This offers an alternative method of switching on TRIM to standalone tool TRIM Enabler 2.2, recently updated to include SMART support for a wider range of SSDs.
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