Beware Post-Holiday Phishing

1. Beware Post-Holiday Phishing

Fraudsters will be busy in the post-holiday weeks, a security firm warned Thursday, and consumers should be especially watchful for bogus "get out of debt" phishing pitches.

For more on this:
- read full story from messagingpipeline.com, Dec 29 2005


2. Microsoft, Softbank BB, Japan Telecom Team on VoIP

Microsoft is making another move in VoIP, this time in Japan in a partnership with Softbank BB and Japan Telecom that will offer a combination VoIP with e-mail, groupware, and desktop services, the company said Wednesday.

For more on this:
- read full story from messagingpipeline.com, Dec 28 2005


3. Claim back £300 per spam

Net expert Nigel Roberts has won a landmark legal victory by chasing down a UK spammer and winning £300 in costs. Roberts, who runs his own Internet business as well as the Jersey and Guernsey country code domains, used his legal know-how to apply EU legislation to a UK company, Media Logistics.

For more on this:
- read full story from messagingpipeline.com, Dec 29 2005


4. Rivals Protest: Google Base Diverts Clicks

My word! Internet giant Google Inc. stands accused of an etiquette breach. The hubbub this week is over recent changes to Google Base, Google's free feature for searching content contributed by its registered users.

For more on this:
- read full story from eweek.com, Dec 29 2005


5. Trump and free iPods top AOL's 2005 list of spam lures

Donald Trump was a frequent visitor to the inboxes of America Online (AOL) subscribers this year, as were pitches for free iPods, discount Rolex watches and pleasure-enhancing "patches" for delicate anatomical bits, according to AOL's annual spam report.

For more on this:
- read full story from infoworld, Dec 29 2005

6. AOL: Spam Down, Sophisticated Methods Up

Spam purveyors are using increasingly sophisticated methods to prey on e-mail users, according to AOL's third annual Top 10 Spam messages list.

For more on this:
- read full story from internetnews.com, Dec 29 2005


7. Review: Skype 2.0 beta

We're still not sure why eBay acquired Skype, the popular PC-based voice-over-IP telephony service.

For more on this:
- read full review from pcmag.com, Dec 29 2005


8. Opera Software chooses Google as search partner

Norwegian Opera Software has agreed that Google will be the default partner for its mobile Internet browsers, Opera said on Thursday.

For more on this:
- read full story from Cnet news, Dec 29 2005

Microsoft, Softbank in Japanese VoIP deal

1. Microsoft, Softbank in Japanese VoIP deal

Microsoft, Softbank BB and Japan Telecom announced a partnership Wednesday to develop communication services that combine Internet telephony, e-mail, Internet access, instant messaging and other services.

For more on this:
- read full story from Cnet News.com, Dec 28 2005


2. Microsoft to offer VOIP services with Japanese partners

Microsoft Corp. has struck a deal with Softbank BB Corp. and Japan Telecom Co. Ltd. to deliver more secure, integrated voice, e-mail, instant messaging and groupware services for the companies' customers in Japan, the three announced Wednesday.

For more on this:
- read full story from infoworld.com, Dec 28 2005


3. Google Talk faces patent lawsuit

A New York company is suing Google for patent infringement over the voice-over-Internet portion of its Google Talk instant messaging and voice chat program.

For more on this:
- read full story from Cnet News.com, Dec 28 2005


4. Virus poses as MSN Messenger 8

Malware authors have produced a virus which poses as a test version the latest, as yet unreleased, version of MSN Messenger. The Virkel-F masquerades as "MSN Messenger 8 Working BETA" and is available from a bogus site as a supposedly leaked early version of the software.

For more on this:
- read full story from theregister.co.uk, Dec 28 2005


5. Virus Tempers MSN Messenger Buzz

The next version of MSN Messenger is still some months away, so if you happen to get a message or visit a Web site that promises otherwise, beware. Finnish security firm F-Secure is reporting a new scam that is masquerading as the MSN Messenger 8 Beta, which will be called Windows Live Messenger.

For more on this:
- read full story from internetnews.com, Dec 28 2005


6. Google Clamps Down on Its Classifieds Feature

Sometime last week, search giant Google Inc. did something that seems rather innocuous to Google Base, its free feature for searching classified ads, event notices and other content contributed by Google's registered users.

For more on this:
- read full story from eweek.com, Dec 28 2005


7. AOL Unveils 2005's Top Spam Subject Lines

Remember this scam? In the 1990s, e-mail hoaxers commonly claimed to be passing along a method for getting easy money from Bill Gates.

For more on this:
- read full story from Yahoo! News, Dec 28 2005


8. MSN Dial-Up Secured With McAfee

Microsoft is adding McAfee's virus scan and firewall software to its MSN dial-up service package. McAfee (Quote, Chart) already provides the software for Microsoft's broadband customers.

For more on this:
- read full story from theinternetnews.com, Dec 28 2005

IMs Challenge E-mail's Dominance

1. IMs Challenge E-mail's Dominance

While email remains the dominant form of electronic communications, its status is under attack by the use of instant messaging and the emergence of new communications technology, a research firm said Thursday.

For more on this:
- read full story from messagingpipeline.com, Dec 22 2005


2. 2006 full of broadband promise

In the Chinese calendar the symbol changes every year. 2006 will be the year of the dog but in the world of technology, broadband has remained top dog for the last five years.

For more on this:
- read full story from messagingpipeline.com, Dec 26 2005


3. Google Assured Liquid Shot at AOL

On December 20, AOL announced that Google would take a tiny stake for big bucks. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) documents filed on Friday show the search goliath's exit strategy.

For more on this:
- read full story from internetnews.com, Dec 27 2005


4. Google Base: Froogle Local +

In November, Froogle quietly went local.

At that time, searchers using Google's product search and comparison tool, launched in December 2002, were encouraged to put in a location as well as a keyword by text under the query bar saying, "E.g. 'digital camera' or 'car near San Francisco.'"

For more on this:
- read full story from internetnews.com, Dec 23 2005


5. Microsoft, Google Reach Deal Over Employee

Microsoft Corp. said late Thursday that it had reached a settlement with rival Google Inc. and former employee Kai-Fu Lee, ending a legal battle that had exposed behind-the-scenes rancor between the companies.

For more on this:
- read full story from washingtonpost.com, Dec 23 2005


6. China to get tough on cellphone fraud, spam

China will require all mobile phone subscribers to register using their real names next year, in a bid to curb rampant spam and growing fraud conducted over mobile services, the official Xinhua news agency said.

For more on this:
- read full story from Yahoo! News, Dec 29 2005


7. Update: Virkel virus hits MSN Messenger beta

MSN Messenger users who may think they're getting a sneak peak at the latest version of Microsoft (Profile, Products, Articles) Corp.'s instant messaging client are in for a nasty surprise, a Finnish security firm warned Tuesday. A variation of the Virkel instant messaging virus has been circulating amongst MSN users, posing as a leaked beta version of MSN Messenger 8, according to F-Secure (Profile, Products, Articles) Corp.

For more on this:
- read full story from infoworld, Dec 27 2005


8. Windows Vista: Beware of Metadata Slips

A feature expected in the next version of Windows that will allow users to tag documents and other files with "metadata" could lead to embarrassing information disclosures if companies are not careful, according to research from Gartner Inc.

For more on this:
- read full story from eweek.com, Dec 23 2005


9. Nortel buys Tasman to boost VoIP line

Toronto-based Nortel Networks said Tuesday it plans to acquire Tasman Networks for $99.5 million in cash.

For more on this:
- read full story from CNET news.com, Dec 27 2005


10. Stronger Sense of Identity

Opinion: Forces external to enterprises combined to renew focus on identity management this year. These included an increase in phishing e-mail scams and government regulation, combined with maturing identity management products and refinement of industry technology standards.

For more on this:
- read full story from eweek.com, Dec 19 2005