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The once mighty technology giant Hewlett Packard will report its results on Wednesday.

The company has seen quite a few changes at the top over the last few years and shareholders are keen to see if the current chief executive Meg Whitman has turned the business around.

She has only been at the helm for five months.

Jill Martin reports.

Article source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/business-17125763

A research unit to test the vulnerability of computer security systems at small businesses has been set up in Worcestershire.

The so-called “dirty lab’” in Malvern has been part-funded by the government.

It is operated by ethical hackers, simulating attacks.

Cath Mackie reports.

Clip from Sherlock Holmes, BBC One.

Article source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/technology-17123857

22 February 2012
Last updated at 09:13 GMT

Solar flares can affect satellite navigation systems and other communications

The government must take more seriously the threat of a nuclear weapon being exploded in space by a rogue state, MPs have warned.

The Defence Select Committee said the resulting radiation pulse could disrupt power and water supplies, UK defence and satellite navigation systems.

Its chairman, Tory MP James Arbuthnot, said an attack was “quite likely”.

The committee is urging ministers to invest in more “hardened” technology to cope with such an event.

It looked at the threat to the UK’s technological infrastructure from “electromagnetic pulse” (EMP) events in space, which could also include the eruption of solar flares.

‘Quite likely’

The committee found the government was “somewhat complacent” about the risks to technology, such as the destruction of computer chips, which could put defence systems out of action.

Mr Arbuthnot told BBC Radio 4′s Today programme: “The defence really is to build up the resilience of the electronic infrastructure by, over a period of time, replacing the incredibly delicate and vulnerable systems and chips and connections that we now have with the more hardened chips and connections and systems that are available at a not very expensive price, as you’re doing your routine maintenance.”

On the possibility of a nuclear missile being fired into space and exploded, he said: “I personally believe that it’s quite likely to happen. It’s a comparatively easy way of using a small number of nuclear weapons to cause devastating damage.

“The consequences if it did happen would be so devastating that we really ought to start protecting against it now, and our vulnerabilities are huge.”

Mr Arbuthnot added: “it would actually have a far more devastating effect to use a nuclear weapon in this way than to explode a bomb in or on a city. The reason for that is it would, over a much wider area, take out things like the National Grid, on which we all rely for almost everything, take out the water system, the sewage system.

“And rapidly it would become very difficult to live in cities. I mean within a matter of a couple of days.

“I wish the government would address this with rather more energy and cohesion and focus. I think sooner rather than later.”

Currently a severe “space weather” event would most likely be considered an “emergency” under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 and require help from the armed forces.

But the committee called for a clearer picture of who has responsibility in such an event.

‘Global threat’

The report insisted such threats should be considered by the National Security Council and civil contingency planners, with standards of protection developed for industries most in danger.

Conventional defence alone could not protect against the threat, it said.

In February last year a large solar flare erupted, disrupting flights over Pacific, but the bulk of the material emitted by the Sun passed by Earth.

The committee said sudden fluctuations in the magnetic field caused by weather in space or nuclear attack, could wipe out electricity and GPS, used by the military and financial markets.

It added: “Space weather is a global threat and may affect many regions and countries simultaneously.”

This, the report said, meant countries should work together, but also that there was no guaranteed safe place from where help could come.

The report also urged the Ministry of Defence to plan for the loss or degradation of satellite-based communications systems in case they are damaged by severe space weather.

Article source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/uk-politics-17117836

22 February 2012
Last updated at 13:02 GMT

The Pirate Bay plans new evasion tactics

File-sharing site The Pirate Bay has said that it will adapt rather than die as it faces legal blocks in the UK.

On Monday the High Court ruled that the site facilitates copyright infringement.

It will decide in June whether ISPs must block UK customers from accessing the site.

In response, The Pirate Bay said it would use other methods for distributing content which would make it harder for its “enemies” to track.

The content industries, both film and music, have been taking a noticeably tougher line on pirates in recent months as they continue to lose profits because of those determined to get content free.

In November, the creative industries wrote to the UK’s major ISPs asking them to block access to The Pirate Bay, following the successful closure of movie distribution site Newzbin 2.

Magnets

In response, The Pirate Bay said it would be moving to new methods of file distribution from the end of the month.

“The 29th February is the last day we offer torrents in its current form. Then it will be all magnets, which works pretty much the same,” it said on its official Facebook page.

“Please understand that it’s a necessary move in the saga known as The Pirate Bay. Not having torrents will be a bit cheaper for us but it will also make it hard for our common enemies to stop us.”

Independent analyst Mark Mulligan explained the new method. “This means nothing in terms in legality, it is all about evasion and a more secure way of encrypting the sources of the file. Magnets send information about the file rather than its location,” he said.

The Pirate Bay does not host illegal files but allows users to search and access copyrighted content including movies, games and TV shows.

Set up in 2003, the site has been subject to many legal actions. In 2009 the Swedish courts found the founders guilty of helping people circumvent copyright controls although the site continued to function.

Search engines

New distribution technologies will have little effect if the court decides that ISPs must block access to the site, although that in turn will not mean an end to piracy.

“The Pirate Bay may have outlived its piracy lifespan but is a small task to mirror the site or to copy the indices. Even if The Pirate Bay is closed down people will just have to type ‘torrent’ into Google to find page after page of links,” said Mr Mulligan.

He believes that the content industries are likely to turn their attention to search engines in their ongoing battle to cut down on pirated content online. UK rights holders have already called for illegal content to be “forcibly demoted” in web searches.

“If the content industries get Google on board the problem disappears from the mainstream overnight,” he said.

The UK government has signalled its intention to look again at how it can stop search engines linking to pirated content in its new Communications Act. The US is also planning similar legislation in its controversial Stop Online Piracy Act.

Political point

Blocks, even at search engine level, are unlikely to deter the hardcore users of sites such as The Pirate Bay, which is becoming more politicised.

The site has already spawned political parties in Sweden and the UK and maintains a loyal fanbase who seem more than prepared to go the extra mile in order to carry on getting content for free.

For many, doing so is seen as an act of defiance against what they regard as state-led attempts to censor free content.

Meanwhile the authorities continue to tighten the net on piracy.

Last week the UK’s Serious Organised Crime Agency shut down music site RnBXclusive while officials in the US recently closed down Megaupload, one of the net’s largest file-sharing sites.

Article source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/technology-17125905

22 February 2012
Last updated at 13:03 GMT

By Dave Lee
Technology Reporter

Protesters assembled across Europe in opposition to the agreement

The European Union’s highest court has been asked to rule on the legality of a controversial anti-piracy agreement.

The Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (Acta) has been criticised by rights campaigners who argue it could stifle free expression on the internet.

EU trade head Karel De Gucht said the court will be asked to clarify whether the treaty complied with “the EU’s fundamental rights and freedoms”.

The agreement has so far been signed by 22 EU member states.

The European Commission said it “decided today to ask the European Court of Justice for a legal opinion to clarify that the Acta agreement and its implementation must be fully compatible with freedom of expression and freedom of the internet”.

Several key countries, including Germany and Denmark, have backed away from the treaty amid protests in several European cities.

Acta is set to be debated by the European Parliament in June.

While countries can individually ratify the terms of the agreement, EU backing is considered vital if the proposal’s aim of implementing consistent standards for copyright enforcement measures is met.

As well as the 22 European backers, which include the UK, the agreement has been signed by the United States, Japan and Canada.

‘Misinformation and rumour’

Mr De Gucht told a news conference on Wednesday: “Let me be very clear: I share people’s concern for these fundamental freedoms… especially over the freedom of the internet.

“This debate must be based upon facts, and not upon the misinformation and rumour that has dominated social media sites and blogs in recent weeks.”

However, he went on to say that the agreement’s purpose was to protect the creative economy.

“[Acta] aims to raise global standards for intellectual property rights,” he said, adding that the treaty “will help protect jobs currently lost because counterfeited, pirated goods worth 200bn euros are currently floating around”.

Acta’s backers face strong opposition within the EU. Viviane Reding, the commissioner for justice, fundamental rights and citizenship, took to Twitter to outline her worries on the treaty.

“For me, blocking the Internet is never an option,” she wrote in a statement.

“We need to find new, more modern and more effective ways in Europe to protect artistic creations that take account of technological developments and the freedoms of the internet.”

Article source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/technology-17125469