Author Archives: mike
Zombie Cookies From Hell
You're pertty savvy when it comes to internet privacy, right? You have cookies turned off by default, and you run NoScript, AdAware, and FlashBlock. You think you're taking reasonable measures to protect your privacy, but you might as well not bother. Zombie cookies are here, and they're nearly impossible to get rid of. It's every [...]
Twitter Exploit Soils The Internet
A security flaw is curently being exploited on Twitter, AKA The Confetti Of The Internet. Reportedly it's just blocking access to accessing user's Twitter home pages and also auto-retweeting the exploit code whenever you move your mouse over parts of the page. However, there have also been reports (not surprisingly) of the exploit being used [...]
Oracle’s New ‘Private Cloud’ Appliance
Things are heating up in the appliance world. Oracle's CEO Larry Ellison took the lead at the keynote of Oracle OpenWorld to announce the launch of 'Exalogic Elastic Compute Cloud' (EECC), which is a slick new box that contains both a full server and storage hardware.
A Vulnerability In IE8? I’m So Shocked!
A serious data-stealing vulnerability in IE8 has come to light, but it's not new- it's been quietly stealing data (possibly yours) since at least December 2009 (and perhaps much longer than that, too. Now, get ready to put on your "shocked face", because it turns out that Microsoft has known about it for at least [...]
Lazy Programmer Creates QuickTime Vulnerability
Ruben Santamarta, a Spanish security researcher from Wintercore, published an article detailing a new vulnerability he's uncovered in Apple's QuickTime software. The beauty of this flaw is two-fold: it can bypass both ASLR and DEP in XP, Windows 7, and Vista so as to give an attacker complete control of a PC, and the bug [...]
Oracle’s Suit Against Google: Unlikely To Prevail
Oracle recently filed suit against Google claiming some not-too-well defined claims of misuse of the Java patents or usage (the exact nature of the suit still hasn't been made completely clear). But wiser heads than mine have been looking into it, like the savvy folks at Groklaw, and the initial take is that this just [...]
Facebook Launches Location Based Stalking Tool
Facebook announced that it will shortly launche a "Location Based Stalking Tool", err, I mean, "Product". This service will let everyone spy on your current location. In other words your stalkers will know where you are, and your local burglars and bad guys will know where you aren't. What could possibly go wrong?
Free Malware, Courtesy of Network Solutions
Sometimes you have to wonder if key people at large companies just are asleep at the switch, or if anyone is even at the switch. Or if there's even a switch to begin with. Word comes from Net-Security.org that Network Solutions, one of the largest registrars in the world, has been serving up heapin' helpings [...]
Facebook Hack #641,287: The “Dislike” Button
Facebook users by and large have the inherent gullibility of a 2-year old. They'll fall for anything, which makes them the proverbial low-hanging fruit of the internet. The latest shiny thing they can be tricked into clicking on is the "Dislike Button", which of course is just another way to trick them into displaying their [...]
Oracle Sues Google Over Use Of Java
Oracle has filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Google and the bone of contention is Google's use of Java in the Android smartphone. In theory Java is free to use without royalties, so the tech community is abuzz wondering specifically what this is all about. Has Google run afoul of the patent grant that governs [...]
