Author: ttcsadmin

  • “Latin American and Caribbean Cybersecurity Trends and Government Responses” Report published

    “Latin American and Caribbean Cybersecurity Trends and Government Responses” Report published

    From the Organization of American States’ (OAS) press release dated May 3rd 2013 :

    The Organization of American States (OAS) through the Secretariat of Multidimensional Security (SMS) and the Inter-American Committee against Terrorism (CICITE) released today the report “Latin American and Caribbean Cybersecurity Trends and Government Responses.”

    Prepared in collaboration with the company Trend Micro, the report illustrates and analyzes cybersecurity and cybercrime trends in the region. The document contains detailed information on cyberthreats in the Americas, and for the first time incorporates the perspectives and experiences of OAS Member State governments.

    The Secretary General of the OAS, Jose Miguel Insulza, affirmed that “this research responds to the needs of regional governments to confront cybercrime, which is increasingly frequent and threatening, due to the accelerating evolution of technology.” He added that “to evaluate and effectively combat cyber threats, countries need detailed and reliable threat information, which this report provides. It represents a significant advance, considering that a study like this has not yet been carried out in our region. Organized crime now utilizes modern technology and in certain cases these criminals have more resources at their disposal than countries can dedicate to scientific development. We need to change this.”

    The report found an overall increase in cyber attacks; an increase in “hacktivism,” or politically motivated hacking; internet-assisted money laundering; and attacks against critical infrastructure. Other trends discussed include levels of malware, spam, and wire fraud.

    You can read the rest of the OAS press release at
    http://www.oas.org/en/media_center/press_release.asp?sCodigo=E-173/13

    Trend Micro has also blogged about the publication of the “Latin American and Caribbean Cybersecurity Trends and Government responses”

    http://blog.trendmicro.com/trendlabs-security-intelligence/the-state-of-cybersecurity-in-latin-america/

    PDF of the report can be downloaded at
    Latin American and Caribbean Cybersecurity Trends and Government Responses (PDF ; 2.3MB)

  • All Purpose Windows troubleshooting and upgrading USB or DVD drive

    All Purpose Windows troubleshooting and upgrading USB or DVD drive

    Here is a collection of software I always store on a USB drive or burn on a CD before going to troubleshoot a home user’s Windows PC which is typically running Windows XP/Vista/7/8.

    Usually, the problem is due to spyware and/or virus infection and rarely problems with the hardware.  On the flash drive are folders for each step I take (Step 1, Step 2, Step 3, etc) ; each folder contains the software I need to accomplish the step.

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  • 20 years of the Free and Open World Wide Web

    20 years of the Free and Open World Wide Web

    Twenty years ago on April 30, 1993, the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) published a statement making available the World Wide Web (WWW) technology it invented on a royalty-free basis for anyone to use.

    To mark the 20th anniversary of the publication of that document,  CERN (the acronym stands for “Conseil Européen pour la Recherche Nucléaire”) has restored the first website (which documented the WWW project) at its original URL at http://info.cern.ch/hypertext/WWW/TheProject.html.

    Screenshot of the first website at http://info.cern.ch/hypertext/WWW/TheProject.html

    CERN has also announced a project to “preserve the digital assets that are associated with the birth of the web at http://info.cern.ch/.  

    Visit  http://info.cern.ch/ to learn more about the history and work by Tim Berners-Lee at CERN in 1989 to create the World Wide Web.

    Vinton Cerf  (co-designer of the TCP/IP protocols that allows devices on the Internet to communicate to each other) and Robert Cailliau  (who collaborated with Tim Berners Lee on the WWW project at CERN)  have also written articles on the 20th anniversary of CERN’s publication of the WWW technology.

  • History of Bulletin Board Systems (BBSes) in Trinidad and Tobago

    History of Bulletin Board Systems (BBSes) in Trinidad and Tobago

    This is a historical record of the Bulletin Board Systems (BBSes) which were in operation in Trinidad and Tobago between 1986 and 2000.

    A BBS was a computer system that allowed users to connect to the system (typically via dial up modems). Users logged in could chat, email, download files, post messages in forums for other users to read and respond to. BBSes were a precursor to what many persons do on the Internet today, social networking, downloading files, chat, reading and posting in forums or on email lists.

    Bulletin Board Systems (BBSs) in Trinidad and Tobago were a popular means of communications beginning in the late 1980s even though personal computers were expensive and few persons actually had one at home. That scenario began to change by the early 1990s as prices on computer hardware began to decrease and modem speeds increased.

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  • “Google Now” application available for iPhone and iPad ; video ad features Port of Spain, #Trinidad

    “Google Now” application available for iPhone and iPad ; video ad features Port of Spain, #Trinidad

    The “Google Now” application that Google promises to deliver “the right information at just the right time” is now available on the Apple iPhone and iPad.

    Previously, “Google Now” was only available on phones/tablets running Android last year (2012).

    You can read more about what Google Now does on Techcrunch or on Google Now’s website.

    However, when the ad for Google Now for the iPhone and iPad focuses on live flight updates as the time approaches and/or as you approach the airport, the illustrated ticket in the video shows a flight from Houston to Port of Spain, #Trinidad (17 seconds into the ad). Although there is no Gate C26 at the Piarco Airport in Trinidad and Tobago.

     

  • Updated Java 7 and Java 6 plugins available April 13 2013  – upgrade if you have Java installed.

    Updated Java 7 and Java 6 plugins available April 13 2013 – upgrade if you have Java installed.

    Oracle released Java 7 Update 21 and Java 6 Update 45 on April 13 2013. Oracle has defined this as a Critical Patch Update, because it patches dozens of security vulnerabilities that could allow for unwanted code or malware to be installed just by visiting a website with such malware.

    If you have older versions of Java, you should remove them as soon as possible. The http://www.java.com/en/download/faq/remove_olderversions.xml page has more information and tools on how to remove older versions of Java.

    As a additional security precaution, you can disable the execution of Java content in your browser

     

     

     

  • Security updates available for Adobe Flash Player April 9 2013

    Security updates available for Adobe Flash Player April 9 2013

    According to the latest Adobe Security Bulletin dated April 9 2013, Adobe has released an updated version of its Adobe Flash Player on various platforms, specifically:

    • Adobe Flash Player 11.6.602.180 and earlier versions for Windows and Macintosh
    • Adobe Flash Player 11.2.202.275  and earlier versions for Linux

    The vulnerabilities in versions of Adobe Flash before April 9 2013 could allow for execution of unwanted code (typically malware), without your consent just by visiting a website with malicious Flash applications or video (SWF). Therefore, you should update your Adobe Flash Player to the latest version to close this loophole.

    To determine what version of the Adobe Flash player you have on your system, visit http://www.adobe.com/software/flash/about/

    To download the latest version of Adobe Flash Player, visit
    http://www.adobe.com/products/flashplayer/distribution3.html.

    Windows users should note that the Flash Player in their Microsoft Internet Explorer browser and the one in web browsers like Opera, Mozilla Firefox and Safari are separate installs. You should install and update both versions of Adobe Flash.

    Google Chrome browser users has Adobe Flash Player built-in and users should update the Google Chrome browser to the latest version. See http://www.google.com/support/chrome/bin/answer.py?answer=95414 on how to do so.

     

  • Draft ICANN Latin American and Caribbean Regional Strategic Plan 2013-2016 available for comment

    Draft ICANN Latin American and Caribbean Regional Strategic Plan 2013-2016 available for comment

    Dear All,

    ICANN, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers is a private sector, non-profit corporation with technical management responsibilities for the Internet’s domain name and address system. It consists on a number of groups representing various interests.
    See http://www.icann.org/sites/default/files/assets/ecosystem-2500×1622-21mar13-en.png for an illustrated overview.

    A Latin American and Caribbean Steering Committee (LAC Steering Committee) comprised of regional stakeholders in various ICANN groups (https://community.icann.org/x/g4REAg) was created after the ICANN Toronto meeting (http://blog.icann.org/2012/10/latin-america-and-the-caribbean-a-regional-strategy/) to discuss a possible ICANN strategy for the LAC region.

    A draft of this Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) Regional Strategic Plan is available for review and comment in English (PDF ; 2MB) and in Spanish (PDF ; 2MB).

    The Draft LAC Regional Strategic Plan identifies

    • a vision for the LAC Regional Strategic Plan (“What are we looking for as a region”)
    • 4 Key Areas of Interest (KAI) : Political Issues, Capacity Building and Outreach, Operations and Economic Issues
    • Strategic Objectives under each KAI. There are

      – 5 Strategic Objectives under “Political Issues”,

      – 9 Strategic Objectives under “Capacity Building and Outreach”,

      – 4 Strategic Objectives under “Operations”,

      – 6 Strategic Objectives under “Economic Issues”

    • some possible indicators to measure progress (or lack thereof) of projects undertaken to support the Strategic Plan.
    • how these LAC Regional Strategic Objectives align with ICANN’s Strategic Plan 2012-2015 

    Your comments are welcomed. The LAC Steering Committee will be meeting during the ICANN meeting in Beijing from April 6-11 2013 and collecting such comments for further work on the LAC Strategic Plan. Comments can be sent to lacralo@ttcsweb.org

    Kind Regards,

    Dev Anand Teelucksingh
    LAC Steering Committee member,
    ALAC (At-Large Advisory Committee) member

  • TTCS / UWI FOE meeting on Raspberry Pi, Saturday March 23 2013

    TTCS / UWI FOE meeting on Raspberry Pi, Saturday March 23 2013

    The Trinidad and Tobago Computer Society, in collaboration with the University of the West Indies, St Augustine (UWI) Faculty of Engineering will be having a meeting on Saturday March 23 2013 at Room 106, Faculty of Engineering (“Circles” building), UWI from 2pm to 4pm.

    At this meeting, Anil Ramnanan will demonstrate the Raspberry Pi , a credit-card sized computer that plugs into your TV and a keyboard.

    Attendance to this event is free, however, space is limited so please RSVP to programmes@ttcsweb.org by Wednesday March 20 2013.