by Lou Collinsin NewsComments Off on The crime-fighting coffee cup: James Bond-style plastic lid that can film and record sound is latest weapon in fight against criminals, spies and benefits cheats
It resembles nothing more innocuous than an ordinary coffee cup.
But it is actually a disguised hi-tech gadget which could become a potent new weapon in the fight against criminals, enemy spies and benefits cheats.
For the plastic lid, which is almost identical to millions handed out by coffee chains such as Starbucks and Caffe Nero, contains James Bond-style filming and listening equipment.
It is fitted out with a high-definition pinhole camera and an eavesdropping device that can listen into and record a room full of people.
Investigators will be able to gather vital evidence using the device, which is turned on by pressing the letter ‘H’ – which stands for ‘Hot’ – on the innovative lid.
The lid, which is 9cm in diameter, has been created by Cornwall-based company LawMate UK to fit any takeaway coffee cup.
Britain’s police and security services are said to be ‘very interested’ in the CC10 device and store detectives and private investigators have placed orders to use it in undercover work, say the company.
Britain’s cyber intelligence agency, the GCHQ, has released new guidance suggesting people should avoid complex passwords for their online accounts.
In a departure from the conventional belief passwords should be complex, the snooping agency said such passwords fail to protect against cyber hackers.
The GCHQ intelligence agency, which is based in Cheltenham, specialises in cyber communications for the British army and government.
Only today (12th Sept) was it revealed British GCHQ spies have discovered ISIS cyber criminals have hacked into senior government ministers’ emails.
MICROSOFT HAS CONFIRMED that Windows 10 is being downloaded to computers whether or not users have opted in.
Microsoft told us: “For individuals who have chosen to receive automatic updates through Windows Update, we help upgradable devices get ready for Windows 10 by downloading the files they’ll need if they decide to upgrade.
“When the upgrade is ready, the customer will be prompted to install Windows 10 on the device.”
In other words, if you are patching via Patch Tuesday, as you should of course be, then you are going to get a big hefty folder on your hard drive ready so you can update to Windows 10 on demand.
Whether you believe it’s to avoid fragmentation or to spy on you depends on how much pot you smoked in college, but it now appears to have gone from ‘over keen’ to ‘needy’ and you have to wonder why and whether it’s going to blow up in the company’s face.
by Lou Collinsin UncategorizedComments Off on IDs to be linked to bank accounts from 2018 – (Turning Japanese?)
Under changes to the so-called My Number system, personal ID numbers can be linked to people’s bank account numbers from 2018. Although such links will be made initially on a voluntary basis, the government is considering making it mandatory from 2021.
The revision will also expand the use of ID numbers to track records of vaccinations and health checks.
Under the My Number system, all residents, including non-Japanese, will be assigned a 12-digit identification number starting in October.
The government is set to start using the ID from January next year for administrative purposes such as taxation and social welfare benefits.
The change will allow companies to use massive amounts of personal information, dubbed “big data,” for commercial purposes.
by Lou Collinsin NewsComments Off on New Boss on Construction Sites Is a Drone
The site of a lavish new downtown stadium for the Sacramento Kings in California are being monitored by drones and software that can automatically flag slow progress.
Once per day, several drones automatically patrol the Sacramento work site, collecting video footage. That footage is then converted into a three-dimensional picture of the site, which is fed into software that compares it to computerized architectural plans as well as a the construction work plan showing when each element should be finished. The software can show managers how the project is progressing, and can automatically highlight parts that may be falling behind schedule.
At the Sacramento project, video is being captured by a drone-operating company called ImageInFlight. The software developed by the University of Illinois team can show how different subcontracting teams are working together.
The University of Illinois team is currently testing a system that will allow drones to attach cameras to locations across a building site, so that activity can be monitored continually. In experiments, they are also using a crowdsourcing platform to categorize workers’ activities in video footage. A manager can then see how different tasks are being performed overall, and how much time each individual is spending on a job.
by Lou Collinsin NewsComments Off on Windows 10 might get BANNED in Switzerland for abusing peoples privacy!
By Jennifer Baker
Switzerland’s top data cop says Microsoft has “gone too far” in abusing people’s privacy.
The Federal Commissioner for Data Protection, Jean-Philippe Walter, told Le Temps on Sunday that he was prepared to take Microsoft to court if it does not alter its privacy policy for Windows 10.
According to Walter, the installation procedure does not properly inform users about the scope of the default settings. In France, the data protection authority CNIL issued public advice on how to set up privacy controls for Windows 10 earlier this month, but CNIL’s Swiss counterpart is feeling more combative.
“If necessary, we will issue a recommendation,” he warned – a recommendation which could be for the authorities to ban the sale of Windows 10 in Switzerland.
Every detail of people’s finances could be collated and stored in a digital “vault” under plans being developed by the Government, financial firms, Google and Microsoft.
A prototype for the new scheme, which is being called a “digital passport”, should be ready by the end of the year, industry sources say.
If an agreement can be reached, the data service could eventually include: people’s address, phone numbers, tax details, where they are registered to vote, driving records and benefit claims, as well as information about their mortgages, pensions and bank accounts.
The plans are understood to have been driven by the Tax Incentivised Savings Association, a not-for-profit membership association operating within the financial services industry, and a subsidiary arm called The Savings and Investment Policy Project.
These trade bodies for the financial services industry are funded by 145 banks, insurance companies and other financial service providers.
Migration Watch UK said “radical action” was needed and also called for a full search of all trucks as they arrive at Dover.
The think tank, which campaigns for tighter immigration restrictions, said the crisis in Calais is the culmination of “long-standing and growing weaknesses in the immigration system”.
The report said: “In the longer-term we must return to the introduction of ID cards.
French officials have repeatedly claimed the absence of ID cards in the UK and access to the unofficial jobs market are major factors in drawing migrants to Calais.
“I’m calling on the prime minister to agree with President [François] Hollande for the UNHCR to be brought in to register those people camping out at Calais, and go through a proper process of managing asylum applicants.”
