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Computer science researchers have demonstrated for the first time how a digital virus can go airborne and spread via WiFi networks in populated areas at the same pace as a human diseases. The “Chameleon” virus, designed by a University of Liverpool team, showed a remarkable amount of intelligence by avoiding detection and breaking into personal and business WiFi networks at their weakest points — spreading at an alarming rate. Network Security Professor Alan Marshall said the virus doesn’t try to damage or disrupt established networks — instead, the virus slips in unnoticed to collect the data and log-in information of...

Title Forget the Internet - soon there will be the OUTERNET: Company plans to beam free Wi-fi to every person on Earth from space An ambitious project known as Outernet is aiming to launch hundreds of miniature satellites into low Earth orbit by June 2015 Each satellite will broadcast the Internet to phones and computers giving billions of people across the globe free online access Citizens of countries like China and North Korea that have censored online activity could be given free and unrestricted cyberspace 'There's really nothing that is technically impossible to this' Known as Outernet, MDIF plans to...

As home networks have increased in popularity, so has the wireless router. The rise of Wi-Fi has also caused the downfall of wired networks (in homes, at least), and many consumers now see Ethernet cords as being rather old-fashioned – that is, if they see them at all. Some newer computer models, like Apple’s MacBook Air, don’t even have ports for Ethernet connections anymore. The blistering connection speeds offered by today’s Wi-Fi standards do make wired networks appear a bit of a relic, but appearances can sometimes be deceiving. Though Wi-Fi has improved significantly over the last five years, it...

This is in the "If the subject should ever come up" category... One of the biggest problems which comes up for people trying to get a look at one of the newer Linux distributions is what to do about WIFI. Particularly in the case of laptops and particularly in the case of laptops with Broadcom wifi radios, those radios act as if they'd gone dead. LINUX does not come with drivers for such (the drivers are Windows only and proprietary) ; information exists on websites for setting up wrappers to allow the Windows drivers to think they're running under Windows...

Using inexpensive materials configured and tuned to capture microwave signals, researchers at Duke University's Pratt School of Engineering have designed a power-harvesting device with efficiency similar to that of modern solar panels. The device wirelessly converts the microwave signal to direct current voltage capable of recharging a cell phone battery or other small electronic device, according to a report appearing in the journal Applied Physics Letters in December 2013. (It is now available online.) It operates on a similar principle to solar panels, which convert light energy into electrical current. But this versatile energy harvester could be tuned to harvest...

It may only take a minute or two to boil a kettle, but the agonizing wait for that reassuring click is now over, with the launch of the world’s first WiFi version. The ultimate in mod cons for the consumer too busy—or lazy—to enter the kitchen and do the job manually, the iKettle can be switched on from your smartphone from anywhere in the home. The technology promises to cater for any “urgent hot drink scenario”, enabling the user to remain on the sofa, or in bed in the morning, until the water is ready to pour. …

"John McCain can't see or won't acknowledge what's obvious to all of us here today -- that lobbyists aren't just part of the system in Washington, they're part of the problem."-- Then-Sen. Barack Obama campaigning in Montana, May 19, 2008.President Obama wants to place a new tax on your monthly cell phone bill to pay for his plan to put WiFi in more classrooms. And all he needs to do it is one more lobbyist in his administration. Getting American consumers to cough up the billions needed for Obama's "ConnectEd" initiative doesn't depend on Congress or anything so tedious as...

With a handful of plastic boxes and over-the-counter sensors, including Wi-Fi adapters and a USB hub, Brendan O’Connor, a security researcher, was able to monitor all the wireless traffic emitted by nearby wireless devices.Brendan O’Connor With a handful of plastic boxes and over-the-counter sensors, including Wi-Fi adapters and a USB hub, Brendan O’Connor, a security researcher, was able to monitor all the wireless traffic emitted by nearby wireless devices. Brendan O’Connor is a security researcher. How easy would it be, he recently wondered, to monitor the movement of everyone on the street – not by a government intelligence agency, but...

The number of digitally-connected schools has increased 83 percent during the past 15 years, thanks in part to E-Rate, a $2.3 billion federal program centered on providing schools and libraries with high-speed broadband and wireless Internet. The program has helped to revolutionize learning by facilitating schools’ access to modern telecommunications services and equipment. Today, 97 percent of American classrooms are connected to the Internet. But the needs of schools and libraries have shifted with the ever-evolving technological landscape since Congress established the program in 1996. Bipartisan reports dating back to 2005 called the E-Rate program “a well-intentioned program that nonetheless...

Wi-Fi signals enable gesture recognition throughout entire home By Michelle Ma News and Information Posted under: Engineering, News Releases, Research, Technology Forget to turn off the lights before leaving the apartment? No problem. Just raise your hand, finger-swipe the air, and your lights will power down. Want to change the song playing on your music system in the other room? Move your hand to the right and flip through the songs. A hand gesture changes the TV channel. U of Washington A hand gesture changes the TV channel using WiSee technology. University of Washington computer scientists have developed gesture-recognition technology...

About a year ago, Miller was convinced that the Internet was making him unproductive, and even corrupting his soul. So at 11:59 p.m. on April 30, 2012, Miller unplugged his Ethernet cable, turned off his Wi-Fi, and replaced his smartphone with a "dumb phone."

INDEPENDENCE, Mo. - Authorities have taken four computers from a Catholic parish office in Independence after determining child pornography had been downloaded on the parish's unsecured Wi-Fi address. A spokeswoman with the Catholic Diocese of Kansas City – St. Joseph said an investigation began when authorities discovered two child pornography downloads from peer-to-peer websites on Feb. 5 with an IP address from the church’s rectory. Carrie Cooper, the Director of the Office of Child Protection with the Diocese, said all the computers and electronic storage devices have been taken from the building. Independence police referred questions about the investigation to...

HANOVER, VA –The FBI raided a Hanover County home in search of child porn, only to discover they'd raided the wrong house. Federal investigators targeted the Mechanicsville home after discovering child porn was being downloaded to computers using the homeowner's internet service, according to federal court documents. But after raiding the home in November and subsequently launching a full investigation, court documents show agents discovered the computers with the downloaded child porn didn't belong to the couple, but a neighbor. David Edward Sleezer, of J David Lane, was arrested and charged with five counts of receiving and distributing child porn....

Metro-North commuters may be able to browse the Internet from their laptops, tablets and other devices using wi-fi as they travel to and from their destinations if state Rep. Gail Lavielle gets her way. Lavielle, R-143rd District—which includes parts of Westport, Wilton and Norwalk—proposed a bill that would require Metro-North to provide wi-fi access to passengers. The proposed legislation would also allow a private contractor to provide the service. “Our hardworking commuters travel for hours every day on Metro-North, and they want to spend their time productively,” Lavielle said in a statement. “Commuters have seen a steep spike in their...

Stepping aboard a school bus will soon be the same as taking a seat in class for some students in the North Kansas City schools. In January, the district will begin wiring four school buses that are used for longer trips with Wi-Fi access. It’s believed to be the first such effort locally. The innovative move is just one more example of how local districts are adapting to keep up with technology and use it for the benefit of students. “We are living in a digital age,” said Eric Sipes, information technology executive director for the district. “We are at...

I have been using a Motorola 3360 ADSL modem for over a year. Well, not the same one. Last Thursday, the third one in the last year crapped out on me. (I needed one right away because my wife is job hunting and we can't wait for delivery. ) I decided not to go with another Motorola. I went to Staples and found that they have two available in the store. One is a Netgear 600N single channel and the other, which I purchased, is a Netgear Model: DGND3700-100NAS, which is a dual channel modem. It has both the 2.4GHz...

SNIPPET: "New York City is the center of a public uproar as Internet blogger Pamela Gellar rises with an “anti-jihad” ad campaign." SNIPPET: "Gellar and her group are protesting the Jihad, which in definition is the religious duty of Muslims. According to the Dictionary of Islam, jihad is defined as “A religious war with those who are unbelievers in the mission of Muhammad . . . enjoined especially for the purpose of advancing Islam and repelling evil from Muslims.” The literal meaning of jihad, according to the British Broadcasting Network, “is struggle or effort, and it means much more than...

Clark Kent  may have to find another place to change into his Superman getup because phone booths are about to get used again. Payphones in major cities like New York have become less and less a public resource as mobile communications continue to grow. This New Yorker can’t remember the last time she used a payphone terminal, other than to duck out of the rain. Looking to once again make these kiosks valuable, the Big Apple’s Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications (DoITT) this week made available the city’s first payphones-turned-Wi-Fi hotspots. The pilot program began on Wednesday and...

Well, I'm clearly approaching desperation, or I wouldn't be posting something like this. OTOH, if help doesn't appear on FR, it might not be had anywhere. So here's the situation: I installed a brandy-new Cisco router (E1200) for a client who uses an ancient Macbook. Many pages load fine but Google -- the one that matters for her because she uses Gmail -- times out or takes many minutes to load. It's not unheard of -- I've found it brought up on different help forums but there seems to be no consensus on the fix and, disappointingly, no accountability whatsoever...

An Ontario teachers' union is calling for an end to new Wi-Fi setups in the province's 1,400-plus Catholic schools. The Ontario English Catholic Teacher's Association says computers in all new schools should be hardwired instead of setting up wireless networks. It also says Wi-Fi should not be installed in any more classrooms. In a position paper released on Monday, the union — which represents 45,000 teachers — cites research by the World Health Organization. Last year the global health agency warned about a possible link between radiation from wireless devices such as cellphones and cancer. Some believe wireless access to...