U.S., Israel fired up Flame cyberattack, report says

The U.S. and Israel developed and carried out the Flame virus attacks on Iran, according to a new report.
The Washington Post reports, citing sources, that Flame was the brainchild of the U.S. National Security Agency, the Central Intelligence Agency, and Israel's military. The focus of the malware was to surreptitiously map and monitor Iran's networks to deliver sustained intelligence to the government organizations. That information could then be used for other attacks.
"This is about preparing the battlefield for another type of covert action," an intelligence official told the Washington Post. "Cyber-collection against the Iranian program is way further down the road than this."
The source went on to tell the Post that Israel and the U.S. are still conducting a cyberassault on Iran.
Flame was discovered last month, but had been in operation since 2010. Kaspersky, which first noted the virus, said that it appeared to be "state-sponsored," but at the time stopped short of saying it came from the U.S. and Israel. Flame's main charge, according to security experts, was to steal information about targeted systems and stored files, as well as information on the computer display and audio conversations. Iran was the central target for the virus, but it also impacted machines in the West Bank, Syria, and other Middle East countries, as well as Sudan.

How to browse sensitive subjects without being tracked

A reader commenting on a Q&A about the rise in behavioral tracking for targeted advertising asked a great question: How does one browse sensitive subjects without being tracked via cookies?
For most Web activities, many people won't be bothered that they are served up ads for cars or even acne cream if they have been reading news about the newest Tesla or visiting dermatology Web sites. But what about when someone is researching a hereditary or embarrassing medical condition that one would not want revealed to advertisers, shoulder surfers or, worse yet, insurance companies?
Private Mode
You might want to start by perusing the Web in Private Mode. Private browsing, affectionately dubbed "porn mode," allows you flip a switch in the browser so it stops saving a record of the sites you have visited and content you have downloaded until you flip the switch off.

• In Firefox it's called "Private Browsing."
• There's an Incognito mode extension for Chrome. This article tells you how to switch any tab to Incognito with one click and here's information for using Incognito for specific sites.
• Internet Explorer has an InPrivate browsing feature, as well as offers a way for people to selectively block sites from tracking.
• Apple has had private browsing since OS X Lion.

Do Not Track
Not only have researchers figured out ways to defeat some of the private browsing features, but private browsing offers limited protection. For example, private browsing tools don't stop social sharing buttons and ads from following you as you bounce from site to site.
As a result, we have software like Abine's Do Not Track Plus browser add-on, which blocks Web sites and ad networks from following you around the Web and lets you see who is trying to track you.
And there is AVG's Do Not Track, which lets you fine-tune the blocking of ad networks and Web analytics.

Nokia to launch Windows 8 tablet later this year, says report

Nokia could hit the Windows 8 tablet market later this year with its own 10-inch device.
Citing "sources at upstream component suppliers," DigiTimes says that Nokia will likely debut a dual-core Windows 8 tablet in this year's fourth quarter at the earliest. Microsoft hasn't yet revealed a launch date for Windows 8. But the new OS is expected to appear before year's end, either just before or early in the fourth quarter, according to most predictions.
Nokia will outsource the manufacturing of its Windows 8 tablet to Taiwan-based Compal Electronics with initial orders totaling at least 200,000 units, the sources said.
This isn't the first sign that the Finnish mobile phone maker plans to enter the Windows 8 tablet market. A Nokia executive said last November that the company is looking to add a Windows 8 tablet to its product line this coming June.
Nokia officials refused to confirm or deny the information at the time. The company had nothing to add in response to CNET's request for comment today. But given Nokia's partnership with Microsoft and its slowly growing fleet of Windows Phone Lumia handsets, a Nokia Windows 8 tablet would be a natural evolution.
Other tablet vendors have revealed plans to jump on the Windows 8 bandwagon.
Dell CEO Michael Dell told Bloomberg last week that the company aims to unveil a business-based tablet on the same day that Windows 8 debuts. HP is reportedly working on its own Windows 8 tablets for both Intel and ARM-based devices, sources recently told CNET.

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Microsoft to take on Apple with own Windows 8 tablet?

Microsoft will announce its own tablet next week at an event in Los Angeles, according to reports, taking a page from Apple's playbook.
If true, this is not the typical Microsoft business model; usually it leaves device announcements to device makers. The PC industry is the classic example of this.
And, so far, that has been the case for Windows 8 and Windows RT tablets. Companies like Acer and Asus demonstrated Windows 8 tablets and hybrids at Computex last week, for instance.
But a report at The Wrap and another at AllThingsD say Microsoft has other plans.
Microsoft reportedly concluded that it must have its own tablet and is involved in the hardware design too. The Wrap reported it is a "Microsoft-manufactured tablet," that would "put the company in direct competition with giant rival Apple."

FBI, DEA warn IPv6 could shield criminals from police

U.S. and Canadian law enforcement agencies are warning that a historic switch to the next-generation Internet protocol called IPv6 may imperil investigations by making it more difficult to trace who's using which electronic address.
FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration, and Royal Canadian Mounted Police officials have told industry representatives that IPv6 traceability is necessary to identify people suspected of crimes. The FBI has even suggested that a new law may be necessary if the private sector doesn't do enough voluntarily.
Investigations stemming from kidnappings, the September 11 terrorist attacks, and the Mytob worm have involved tracing previous-generation IPv4 addresses back to an Internet provider's customer, the FBI says. The bureau says it needs the same level of traceability for IPv6, which got a boost in popularity last week thanks to World IPv6 Day.
"We're looking at a problem that's about to occur," John Curran, president of the American Registry for Internet Numbers (ARIN), a nonprofit group that allocates blocks of IPv4 and IPv6 addresses in North America and the Caribbean, told CNET. "It occurs as service providers start to roll out V6."
This IPv6-related effort comes as the FBI is redoubling its efforts to combat what it calls the "Going Dark" problem, meaning that its surveillance capabilities may diminish as technology advances. CNET was the first to report last month that the bureau had formed a Domestic Communications Assistance Center to keep abreast of technological changes that may otherwise imperil government surveillance.
Blame people, not machines
Law enforcement's difficulty with IPv6 traceability has little to do with the underlying technology -- and a lot to do with the foibles of human bookkeeping.

Reliance to release Namco's Madagascar 3: The Video Game in India

Reliance Home Video and Games has announced it will be distributing Dreamworks-based Namco games in India, starting with Madagascar 3: The Video Game, which will be launched around June 8, for Xbox 360 and PS3, for Rs. 2,799. The game is based on the movie, Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted, which will release on June 8.

All of Namco Bandai’s other games will continue to be distributed by E-Xpress Interactive in India. The Dreamworks deal that Reliance has secured with Namco is a result of the Reliance-Dreamworks partnership, where Reliance ADAG has invested roughly $325 million. The three Dreamworks games due in 2012, including Madagascar 3, were developed by D3, which is owned by Namco.

Madagascar 3: The Video Game will be available from various Indian online retailers, as well as shops such as Landmark and Crossword. In the game, players will visit various locations across Europe, as one of the Madagascar characters, with action and adventure gameplay elements.

In related news, Reliance Home Video is also the exclusive India licensee for the films of Warner Bros, Paramount Studios, and Universal Studios.

Google to unveil 'next dimension' of Maps

Apple is reportedly planning to incorporate its own 3D-mapping technology into iOS 6. Will rival Google beat it to the punch?

Google on Friday sent out invites for a press event next week in San Francisco where it promises to unveil "the next dimension of Google Maps," hinting it may also have some new 3D features on tap. The invite-only event is set for Wednesday, June 6 at 9:30 a.m. Pacific.

Google said it will give attendees a "behind-the-scenes look at Google Maps." The Web giant will also "demo some of the newest technology and provide a sneak peek at upcoming features that will help people get where they want to go – both physically and virtually."

The timing of Google's press event is significant because it's less than a week before Apple is set to kick off its annual Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC). At the conference, Apple is expected to unveil the next major version of itsiOS operating system, featuring a redesigned Maps application that no longer relies on Google's mapping services.

The most impressive new feature of Apple's new Maps app is said to be 3D mode, which could be added as an optional mapping layer, like the existing traffic, satellite, hybrid, and list layers.

Could Google also be getting ready to give its maps a 3D makeover? Signs point to yes, but we'll have to wait until June 6 to find out. PCMag will be on hand at Google's event to check out the new offering, so stay tuned for more info.

Google has already begun incorporating 3D technology into Maps. The Web giant last month added a new feature to Google Maps that lets users see 3D photo tours of more than 15,000 popular sites around the world.