Security researchers from Trend Micro have uncovered an active cyberespionage operation that so far has compromised computers belonging to government ministries, technology companies, media outlets, academic research institutions and nongovernmental organizations from over 100 countries.
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Tag Archives: Researchers
Researchers uncover ‘SafeNet,’ a new global cyberespionage operation
Posted by Gsurface
on May 17, 2013
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Researchers Create “Hate Map” of the U.S. With Twitter Data
Posted by Gsurface
on May 16, 2013
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Researchers Fake Mini Volcanic Eruptions
Posted by Gsurface
on May 13, 2013
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ananyo writes “Volcanologists detonated explosive charges buried in a meadow in Ashford, New York, blowing 12 small craters in the ground and throwing debris 80 meters in the air. The aim was to recreate, in true-to-life detail, what happens when a volcanic eruption punches through Earth’s crust. The work could guide the way that active volcanoes are monitored, and could help safety officials to decide where to restrict public access at volcanoes such as Italy’s Stromboli, where dozens of tourists arrive every night to watch spectacular fire fountain displays.”
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Virginia Tech researchers create underwater spy robot
Posted by Gsurface
on May 11, 2013
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Researchers at Virginia Tech have built an autonomous, robotic jellyfish that could someday work as an underwater military spy.
Computerworld News
Researchers find possible traces of continent off coast of Brazil
Posted by Gsurface
on May 9, 2013
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Riding A New Transparency Wave In Science, Academia.Edu Lets Researchers Share Their Raw Data
Posted by Gsurface
on May 7, 2013
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It wasn’t until widely respected economists Carmen Reinhart and Kenneth Rogoff shared the Excel files behind their influential paper on the relationship between government debt and economic growth, that a very basic and consequential spreadsheet error was discovered.
Suddenly, a conclusion that policy makers around the world had seized on for years to justify steep spending cuts was thrown in doubt.
TechCrunch
Researchers uncover new dinosaur species in China
Posted by Gsurface
on May 4, 2013
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First paragraph Second paragraph Third paragraph Fourth paragraph [via Researchers uncover new dinosaur species in China is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear. © 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
SlashGear
Researchers help give the kilogram a fundamental equivalent
Posted by Gsurface
on May 3, 2013
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Much to the consternation of scientists, the cylindrical platinum-iridium artifacts that represent the kilogram (see image above) have been gradually packing on extra weight due to surface contamination. Since that unit of measure is the last to be based on an artifact and not a physical constant of nature — for instance, a meter is the distance light travels in a vacuum during 1/299,792,458 of a second — it means that scientists no longer know exactly how much a kilogram is. That makes experiments requiring extreme precision more difficult, so researchers from Mettler Toledo, CERN and the EPFL have been working for the last 15 years on a so-called Watt balance, which works on the principle of electromagnetic force restoration. The team managed to created a “load cell” that’s accurate to a 0.3 µg resolution for a 2kg weight, well below the desired level of 1 µg — meaning the goal of replacing a hunk of metal from 1878 with something more, ahem, solid is within reach by the 2015 target date.
Source: Mettler Toledo
Researchers Hack Over a Dozen Home Routers
Posted by Gsurface
on April 18, 2013
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An anonymous reader writes “Security researchers at Independent Security Evaluators have published a report demonstrating that a slew of home and small office (SOHO) routers are vulnerable to previously undisclosed vulnerabilities. The report asserts that at least thirteen popular routers can be compromised by a remote attacker, and a number of them do not require knowledge of credentials or active management sessions. Some of the routers are not listed as they work with vendors to fix them, but there are 17 vulnerabilities disclosed, with another 21 pending release. An article on CNET includes an interview with some of the researchers.”
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Rare long gamma ray bursts caused by supergiant star’s death, says researchers
Posted by Gsurface
on April 17, 2013
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There are two types of gamma-ray bursts: short and long. The short GRBs last a very short duration, a maximum of two seconds but sometimes even less. The longer ones are still relatively short, coming in at more than two seconds and sometimes several minutes, with the longest ones typically clocking in between 20 seconds
Hackers Could Abuse Electric Car Chargers To Cripple the Grid, Researchers Say
Posted by Gsurface
on April 12, 2013
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alphadogg writes “Hackers could use vulnerable charging stations to prevent the charging of electric vehicles in a certain area, or possibly even use the vulnerabilities to cripple parts of the electricity grid, a security researcher said during the Hack in the Box conference in Amsterdam on Thursday. While electric cars and EV charging systems are still in their infancy, they could become a more common way to travel within the next 10 years. If that happens, it is important that the charging systems popping up in cities around the world are secure in order to prevent attackers from accessing and tempering with them, said Ofer Shezaf, of HP ArcSight. At the moment, they are not secure at all, he said.”
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Wireless IP cameras open to hijacking over the Internet, researchers say
Posted by Gsurface
on April 11, 2013
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Thousands of wireless IP cameras connected to the Internet have serious security weaknesses that allow attackers to hijack them and alter their firmware, according to two researchers from security firm Qualys.
Computerworld News
Researchers use brainwave device to replace passwords with passthoughts
Posted by Gsurface
on April 11, 2013
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Many techies have dreamed of the day when they can control things by simply thinking about them, and that reality is yet a step closer thanks to researchers at the University of California Berkeley’s School of Information and a $ 99 brainwave device. Using NeuroSky’s Mindset wearable EEG headset and custom software, users have successfully replaced
AT&T Researchers Set a Long-Haul Data Record
Posted by Gsurface
on April 10, 2013
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New optical technology paves the way for more efficient ocean-spanning transmissions.
Researchers at AT&T have devised a way to increase the distance that large amounts of data can travel through a fiber-optic connection. The technique should allow 400-gigabit-per-second signals to travel for a distance of 12,000 kilometers—four times the previous distance possible—and it promises faster ocean-crossing transmission without adding more equipment. The feat is like sending 170 HD movies 12,000 kilometers—half-again as far as the distance from San Francisco to Tokyo.
Why Do Pathogen Researchers Face Less Scrutiny Than Nuclear Scientists?
Posted by Gsurface
on April 7, 2013
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Lasrick writes “Derrin Culp of the National Center for Disease Preparedness explores the different levels of scrutiny that scientists in microbiology undergo, when compared to those who work in the nuclear weapons field. His complaint is that, even though America’s most notorious biosecurity breach — the 2001 anthrax mailings — was the work of an insider, expert panels have concluded that there is no need for intrusive monitoring of microbiologists engaged in unclassified research.”
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Researchers develop tiny robots that mimic ant behavior
Posted by Gsurface
on March 30, 2013
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New Jersey Institute of Technology’s Simon Garnier and other researchers have used tiny robots called “Alices” to mimic the behavior of ants, something they say could help improve modern transportation. Ants are notorious for their colony-wide behavior, acting as one when assembled in groups and using the shortest paths to navigate to their food, forming
Researchers measure the magnetic charge of antimatter
Posted by Gsurface
on March 26, 2013
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A Harvard team of scientists led by physicist Gerald Gabrielse have announced that they’ve successfully performed the most exact magnetic charge measurement of matter and antimatter particles ever. Such a precise measurement not only helps scientist answer important questions, but also paves the way for even more accurate measurements in the future. Presently, this latest
Researchers publish full Neanderthal genome
Posted by Gsurface
on March 19, 2013
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Reining in Geoengineering Researchers
Posted by Gsurface
on March 15, 2013
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A Science article suggests a framework for monitoring research on how to cool the earth.
Efforts to reduce carbon dioxide emissions worldwide aren’t working, so some researchers think we may need to resort to spraying reflective aerosols into the upper atmosphere to shade the earth and cool it off a little. The problem is we don’t know much about what that might do to the ozone layer or precipitation, among other things. And we don’t have laws to regulate geoengineering research to make sure someone doesn’t do something stupid, like doing a large scale test before we understand the impact of the aerosols, at least on a small scale, on atmospheric chemistry..
A mouse click burns 1.42 calories, according to researchers
Posted by Gsurface
on March 11, 2013
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Sitting at your desk all day surfing the internet with a pile of unfinished TPS reports sitting in front of you probably isn’t a good sign, and even worse, you’re probably not doing yourself a favor and getting enough exercise, or aren’t you? According to a recent study, one mouse click burns approximately 1.42 calories.
Stonehenge started as huge graveyard, researchers propose
Posted by Gsurface
on March 10, 2013
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Android malware problem should not be ignored, researchers say
Posted by Gsurface
on March 9, 2013
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Recent reports from antivirus companies seem to suggest that the number of Android malware threats is growing. However, there are still many skeptics who think that the extent of the problem is exaggerated.
Computerworld News
Researchers Peek at the Structure of the Viral Internet
Posted by Gsurface
on March 8, 2013
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Researchers publish world’s most detailed brain scans
Posted by Gsurface
on March 6, 2013
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Researchers have published the most detailed brain scans in the world as part of the Human Connectome Project. The scans were taken of 68 adults who are part of the study, with the aim being to determine how an individual’s brain makes up the various parts of them – their personality, talents, behaviors. This is
Researchers Identify States of Unconsciousness with EEG Data
Posted by Gsurface
on March 5, 2013
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Brain wave patterns show a clear transition to a coma-like state in patients under general anesthesia.
Researchers have identified patterns of brain activity that correlate to the loss and recovery of consciousness while a patient undergoes general anesthesia. Their findings, reported yesterday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences online, could one day help anesthesiologists better monitor consciousness in their patients.
Stanford Researchers Build Complex Circuits Made of Carbon Nanotubes
Posted by Gsurface
on February 27, 2013
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A simple sensor circuit made of hard-to-handle but promising carbon nanotubes is a first step in making the materials practical for computing.
As the silicon transistors inside today’s computers reach their physical limits, the semiconductor industry is eyeing alternatives, and one of the most promising is carbon nanotubes. Tiny transistors made from these nanomaterials are faster and more energy efficient than silicon ones, and computer models predict that carbon nanotube processors could be an order of magnitude less power hungry. But it’s proved difficult to turn individual transistors into complex working circuits.
Researchers create foldable, stretchable lithium-ion battery
Posted by Gsurface
on February 27, 2013
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John Rogers, a physical chemist and materials engineer, and Yonggang Huang, a mechanical engineer, teamed up to develop something that sounds like it is straight out of a science fiction novel – a lithium-ion battery that can be stretched and folded. Because of its (pardon the pun) flexibility, this battery could be used in devices
Researchers testing frugal autonomous car system, aim for $150 price tag (video)
Posted by Gsurface
on February 16, 2013
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Google certainly has pockets deep enough to trick out self-driving cars with any kind of pricey gear, but researchers at the University of Oxford have begun testing a solution that aims to keep things affordable. Currently, the system leverages an array of low-profile stereo cameras and lasers that rings up at about £5,000 (approximately $ 7,750), but the next goal is to knock the price down to £500, and eventually to a cool £100 (roughly $ 150). “Really, we do need to solve the engineering challenges of not relying on expensive sensors, but relying on cheap sensors,” Professor Paul Newman told the Telegraph. “But doing some really smart things with those cheap sensor feeds.”
Rather than a vehicle that acts as a chauffeur at all times, Newman’s vision for the modified Nissan Leaf, dubbed RobotCar, is for it to take control on select occasions. While drivers go about their commute, the system composes a 3D map of the car’s environs and commits it to memory. When the auto identifies a familiar setting and feels confident about its ability to take the reigns, it could let the driver know it’s ready to assume control. Right now, the automobile’s been tested on private roads, but the team behind it is working with the UK’s Department of Transportation to roll it onto public streets. Head past the jump for a glimpse of RobotCar in action.
Filed under: Transportation, Alt
Source: Telegraph, RobotCar UK
Researchers say they have identified genetic mutation linked to East Asian physical traits
Posted by Gsurface
on February 15, 2013
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A group of genetic researchers has announced that they have identified a mutation in a human gene as the source of some of the distinctive traits that differentiate East Asians from other races. According to the scientists, the genetic discovery accounts for traits such as thicker hair shafts, more sweat glands, characteristically identified teeth, and
Researchers develop a more accurate car navigation system
Posted by Gsurface
on February 14, 2013
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System combines conventional GPS signals with car-mounted sensors to pinpoint a vehicle’s within six feet of its location, researchers say. [Read more]
CNET News
Zero-day PDF exploit affects Adobe Reader 11 and earlier versions, researchers say
Posted by Gsurface
on February 13, 2013
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Researchers from security firm FireEye claim that attackers are actively using a remote code execution exploit that works against the latest versions of Adobe Reader 9, 10 and 11.
Computerworld News
Researchers Control Animals’ Movements with Light
Posted by Gsurface
on February 10, 2013
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The team screened 10,000 compounds before finding one that did the job.
A drug-like molecule has been found to let researchers control movements in mice and fish with flashes of light. Unlike similar experiments using a light-based technique known as optogenetics, the new method doesn’t require researchers to genetically engineer animals in order to achieve the neural control.
Banking malware returns to basics, researchers say
Posted by Gsurface
on February 8, 2013
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Financial malware authors are trying to evade new online banking security systems by returning to more traditional phishing-like credential stealing techniques, according to researchers from security firm Trusteer.
Computerworld News
British researchers say their new Antarctic base can slide across ice on hydraulic skis
Posted by Gsurface
on February 7, 2013
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Researchers devise new attack techniques against SSL
Posted by Gsurface
on February 6, 2013
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The developers of many SSL libraries are releasing patches for a vulnerability that could potentially be exploited to recover plaintext information, such as browser authentication cookies, from encrypted communications.
Computerworld News
UPnP flaws expose tens of millions of networked devices to remote attacks, researchers say
Posted by Gsurface
on January 29, 2013
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Tens of millions of network-enabled devices including routers, printers, media servers, IP cameras, smart TVs and more can be attacked over the Internet because of dangerous flaws in their implementation of the UPnP (Universal Plug and Play) protocol standard, security researchers from Rapid7 said Tuesday in a research paper.
Computerworld News
Researchers build a working tractor beam, on a very small scale
Posted by Gsurface
on January 26, 2013
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We recently saw research that suggested negative radiation pressure in light could lead to a practical tractor beam. A partnership between the Czech Republic’s Institute of Scientific Instruments and Scotland’s University of St. Andrews can show that it’s more than just theory: the two have successfully created an optical field that flipped the usual pressure and started pulling objects toward the light. Their demo only tugged at the particle level — sorry, no spaceships just yet — but it exhibited unique properties that could be useful here on Earth. Scientists discovered that the pull is specific to the size and substance of a given object, and that targets would sometimes reorganize themselves in a way that improved the results. On the current scale, that pickiness could lead to at least medicinal uses, such as sorting cells based on their material. While there’s more experiments and development to go before we ever see a tractor beam at the hospital, the achievement brings us one step closer to the sci-fi future we were always told we’d get, right alongside the personal communicators and jetpacks.
Via: BBC
Source: University of St. Andrews, Nature
Researchers Use Lasers For Cooling
Posted by Gsurface
on January 24, 2013
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MatthewVD writes “Infrared cameras on satellites and night vision goggles could soon use lasers to cool their components. According to the study published in Nature, researchers in Singapore were able to cool the semiconductor cadmium sulfide from 62 degrees fahrenheit to -9 degrees by focusing a green laser on it and making it fluoresce and lose energy as light. Since they require neither gas nor moving parts, they can be more compact, free from vibration and not prone to mechanical failure.”
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
With Shakespeare’s help, researchers show potential of DNA for storing digital information
Posted by Gsurface
on January 23, 2013
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It can store the information from a million CDs in a space no bigger than your little finger, and could keep it safe for centuries.
FOX News
Security researchers cripple Virut botnet
Posted by Gsurface
on January 21, 2013
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Many of the domain names used by a cybercriminal gang to control computers infected with the Virut malware were disabled last week in a coordinated takedown effort, Spamhaus, an organization dedicated to fighting spam, announced Saturday.
Computerworld News
Researchers Explain Why Flu Comes In the Winter
Posted by Gsurface
on January 20, 2013
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First time accepted submitter ggrocca writes “Using human mucus as a testbed for how well influenza virus thrives in different humidity conditions, researchers at Virginia Tech found that the virus survived best if humidity is below 50%, a typical indoor situation during the winter in temperate climates due to artificial heating. The virus begins to find itself at home again only when humidity reaches almost 100%. Unsurprisingly, the latter finding explains flu spikes during rainy season in tropical climates. Full paper on PLOS ONE.”
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Researchers find critical vulnerabilities in Java 7 Update 11
Posted by Gsurface
on January 18, 2013
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Researchers from Security Explorations, a Poland-based vulnerability research firm, claim to have found two new vulnerabilities in Java 7 Update 11 that can be exploited to bypass the software's security sandbox and execute arbitrary code on computers.
Computerworld News
Shylock home banking malware now spreads via Skype, researchers say
Posted by Gsurface
on January 17, 2013
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The Shylock home banking malware has been updated with new functionality that allows it to spread automatically using the popular Skype Voice-over-IP (VoIP) and instant messaging client.
Computerworld News
Java exploit used in Red October cyberespionage attacks, researchers say
Posted by Gsurface
on January 15, 2013
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The hundreds of government, military and research organizations targeted in a large-scale cyberespionage operation dubbed Red October were not only attacked using malicious Excel and Word documents, but also with Web-based Java exploits, according to Seculert researchers.
Computerworld News
Researchers end quest to drill through 3km of ice after fuel runs low
Posted by Gsurface
on January 15, 2013
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Sad to say, but British researchers have called off their quest to drill through the 3km-thick sheet of ice over Lake Ellsworth in Antarctica. The mission to find organisms that have evolved in isolation for at least 100,000 years was called off after the team realized it didn’t have enough fuel to power its water jet drill all the way to the lake. Complications arose trying to connect the drill’s main hose to a cavity of water created in the ice by a short pilot hose. The team burned through so much fuel trying to get the hose connected properly that they no longer had enough left to reach the lake below the glacier’s surface. The plan has not been scrapped entirely, however. The scientists are heading back to the UK, along with all their kit, to revise their plan and modify their equipment for the next attempt. Still, it appears breaking through to Lake Ellsworth is at least three years out. For more from geoscientist and expedition member Martin Siegert, check out the source link.
Source: New Scientist
Researchers honor Swartz’s memory with PDF protest
Posted by Gsurface
on January 13, 2013
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Links to hundreds of articles appear on Twitter in tribute to the Internet activist who committed suicide Friday. [Read more]
CNET News
Canadian Researchers Debut PaperTab, the Paper-Thin Tablet
Posted by Gsurface
on January 10, 2013
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redletterdave writes “The PaperTab, which looks and feels just like a sheet of paper, may one today overtake today’s tablet. Developed by researchers at the Human Media Lab at Queen’s University in Ontario, Canada, the PaperTab features a flexible, high-resolution 10.7-inch plastic touchscreen display built by Plastic Logic, the company borne from Cambridge University’s Cavendish Laboratory, and relies on a second-generation Intel Core i5 processor to turn what looks like a sheet of white paper into a living, interactive display. Unlike typical tablets akin to Apple’s iPad, the idea of PaperTab is to use one app at a time, per Papertab. To make tasks easier, users would own 10 or more PaperTabs at once and lay them out to their liking; with multiple tablets to separate your applications, PaperTab relies on an interface that allows you to combine and merge elements from disparate applications with intuitive dragging, dropping, pointing, and folding.”
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Researchers Seek to Use Drones For Brushfire Forecasting
Posted by Gsurface
on January 8, 2013
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schliz writes “Australian researchers expect to use unmanned aircraft in bushfire surveillance and search and rescue scenarios within two years. The news comes as New South Wales faces ‘catastrophic’ fire danger ratings and what firefighters say could be the worst conditions in the state’s history.”
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Researchers Create Vomiting Robot To Analyze Contagions
Posted by Gsurface
on January 4, 2013
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iComp points out an interesting project in Derbyshire, northern England. “Bioboffins at the Health and Safety Laboratory in Derbyshire, UK, have developed a robot that can projectile vomit on command as a tool for studying the spread of the highly infectious norovirus. Reuters reports that the hyperemetic droid has been dubbed ‘Vomiting Larry’ by its creator, researcher Catherine Makison, who describes it as a ‘humanoid simulated vomiting system.’ The goal of said vomiting system is to study the reach and dispersion of human vomitus, which is one of the primary ways that diseases such as norovirus can spread. Norovirus is a fairly common viral infection that is sometimes known as the ‘winter vomiting bug’ due to its increased prevalence in the colder months. Outbreaks are generally triggered when humans ingest contaminated food or water, but can continue when subsequent people come in contact with surfaces that have been contaminated by the initial patient’s effluvium.”
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
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