COLD BOOT

Researchers release 'COLD BOOT' attack utilities, A way around disk encryption

The security researcher who demonstrated the 'cold boot' attack has released the source code for the hack. The attack, first demonstrated in February, uses a set of utilities to lift crypto keys from memory even after a reboot.

A boon for hackers and computer forensics experts alike, the approach created a means to circumvent disk encryption simply by powering off a target machine which has been left hibernating or screen-locked, and quickly re-booting it to an external hard drive loaded with customised software. The attack worked because DRAM chips used by modern computers retain data for seconds or even minutes after being powered down, contrary to popular opinion. Cooling the chips wasn't absolutely necessary but aided the process in some cases.

Once the data is recovered utilities are needed to make sense of the information and perform functions such as correcting errors caused by bit decay.

The approach was pioneered by researchers from the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Princeton University and Wind River. One of the researchers involved in the celebrated hack, Jacob Appelbaum, released source code for the utilities used for it at the Hackers on Planet Earth (HOPE) conference in New York last weekend. It's hoped the release of the utilities will spur the development of countermeasures as well as raising awareness about the risks posed by the original attack.

Japan handheld with Intel Atom chip debuts

The Japanese electronics maker Sharp along with Willcom announced the ultra-mobile Willcom D4 "communication device" based on Intel's Atom processor and Microsoft's Vista operating system.

Microsoft and Intel were also credited with development of the device, according to the Japanese-language release on the Sharp Web site.

The handheld-size device uses a 1.33GHz Z520 Intel Atom processor and runs Windows Vista Home Premium (with Service Pack 1). Other devices this size--which are also referred to as mobile Internet devices or MIDs--have also been shown running the Linux operating system.
With a separate headset, the device can also be used as a phone using Wilcom's Personal Handy-phone System (PHS) network, both Sharp and Willcom said.

The device weighs in at 470 grams (about one pound) and features a 5-inch sliding LCD (1024x600/262K colors) with an LED backlight, a 1.8-inch 40GB hard disk drive (Ultra ATA/100), 64-key QWERTY keyboard, a built-in camera, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, a mirco SD card slot, and a USB 2.0 slot.

The D4's inclusion of a 40GB hard disk drive is an indicator that the device is meant to run Windows--because of the operating system's typically larger footprint--not Linux.
Intel Atom technology includes a single-chip with integrated graphics called the Intel System Controller Hub.

Atom will find its way into fit-in-your-pocket MIDs from Gigabyte, Toshiba, LG Electronics, Lenovo, and BenQ, among others. Netbooks (inexpensive, Internet-centric ultra-small notebook PCs) such as Asus's popular Intel-based Eee PC, MSI's Wind PC, and Clevo will also use the chip.

Willcom D4 is slated for a June release and is expected to be priced at 128,600 yen ($1,272)

Nokia confirms 'iPhone killer' handset

Nokia has confirmed that it’s developing a touchscreen-equipped handset to take on the Apple iPhone, and has shown off pictures of the upcoming phone to drooling onlookers.

The Finnish giant’s handset is code named 'Tube', and Tom Libretto, VP of Forum Nokia, said the device will be the company’s “first touch device”. Given the codename, it's fair to suggest Nokia sees it as a mobile video platform. And with the DVB-H mobile digital TV standard now starting to gain momentum, Tube will probably be a handheld telly too.

The device looks like the iPhone’s long lost twin, except for a Nokia logo stuck underneath the handset’s earpiece. The Tube’s display doesn’t look as wide as the iPhone’s, but appearances can be deceptive. Nokia's design also lacks the iPhone's 'home' button. Unconfirmed reports suggest Nokia's would-be iPhone killer will run on the Symbian S60 platform.

Microsoft discloses 14,000 pages of coding secrets

Microsoft Publicly Posts Additional Protocol Documentation. Action is another step toward delivering on interoperability principle of ensuring open connections to high-volume products.

Microsoft Corp. today took another step toward fulfilling its interoperability principle of ensuring open connections to its high-volume products and driving greater interoperability, opportunity and choice across the IT community of developers, partners, customers and competitors.

Microsoft today posted on MSDN more than 14,000 pages of preliminary versions of technical documentation for Microsoft protocols built into Microsoft Office 2007, Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 and Microsoft Exchange Server 2007. With this action, Microsoft will have posted a cumulative total of more than 44,000 pages of protocol documentation that it committed in its interoperability principles. Anyone who wishes to do so can now access, for free, preliminary versions of the documentation for the “connection points” between these Microsoft products as follows:
• Protocols between Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 and Microsoft Office client applications;
• Protocols between Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 and other Microsoft server products;
• Protocols between Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 and Microsoft Office Outlook;
• Protocols between 2007 Microsoft Office system client applications and other Microsoft server products.

As a result of today’s posting, all types of developers — including independent software vendors, open source developers and developers in customer IT departments — will have consistent, open access to this protocol documentation that defines how these high-volume Microsoft products communicate with other Microsoft products. This consistent, open access to information will promote more interoperability options for developers of all types and will help foster improved real-world interoperability solutions in the marketplace.

“Microsoft is pleased to announce today another step toward putting our interoperability principles into action with the public availability of these protocol specifications for Microsoft Office, Office SharePoint Server and Microsoft Exchange Server,” said Tom Robertson, general manager of Interoperability and Standards at Microsoft. “We believe that providing open, consistent access to these protocols will further unleash the creativity of all developers to work on real-world interoperability solutions. The implementation of Microsoft’s interoperability principles is an important component of our overall efforts to promote interoperability in the marketplace.”

As an example, developers working with SharePoint protocols will have additional resources to develop products that work with Microsoft Office client applications and Microsoft Office SharePoint Server products. These specifications will help spark the energy and imagination of countless developers to create new products and improve existing solutions.
In another example, developers working with Exchange Server protocols will have additional resources to build applications that directly communicate and store information with either Exchange Server or Microsoft Office Outlook related to e-mail, calendars, contacts, voice mail and task tracking.

“Today we are posting preliminary versions of protocol documentation for Microsoft Office, Office SharePoint Server and Exchange Server,” said Jean Paoli, general manager of Interoperability and XML Architecture at Microsoft. “We are very eager to receive feedback from members of the developer community as they access this documentation over the next several weeks and months so we can use that feedback to improve our final documentation to be released in June.”

The preliminary versions of the material posted today represent the first of a three-phased approach Microsoft is taking to make the protocol information available and accessible to all developers. The second phase, which will run until June, will be the collection of input from the community as developers review the documentation and provide feedback. The third phase, which will occur by the end of June, will be the posting of the final versions of the documentation along with final patent licensing terms. Microsoft will also announce additional documentation and disclosure schedules in the future.

As described in Microsoft’s interoperability principles, everyone will have access to this protocol documentation without having to sign a license or pay a royalty or other fee. For those protocols that may be covered by a Microsoft patent, Microsoft will make available patent licenses on reasonable and nondiscriminatory terms, at low royalty rates. In addition, Microsoft will publish a list of the protocols that are covered by patents and will make available a list of the specific Microsoft patents and patent applications that cover each protocol. However, open source developers, whether commercial or noncommercial, will not need a patent license for the development of implementations of these protocols or for the noncommercial distribution of these implementations, according to a Microsoft patent pledge for open source developers, issued pursuant to the interoperability principles.

Today’s software users operate in an increasingly diverse IT environment that is rich with many products and services from many companies based on many business models. Microsoft’s interoperability principles are part of the company’s broader effort to deliver interoperable solutions to customers through product design, community participation, access to technologies, and engagement with standards organizations.

This is Microsoft's latest effort to satisfy anti-trust concerns of the European Union, which is possibly a tougher adversary for the company than Google. Press release Microsoft

AMD 780G integrated DirectX10.1 chipset

AMD’s 700-series chipsets covers all the motherboard options that a gamer could require for the quad-core Phenom processor. There’s the 790FX with support for CrossFireX to handle three or four graphics cards, the 790X that does CrossFire with two cards, and the 770 that combines Phenom with a single PCI Express (PCIe) 2.0 slot.

And now for those members of the buying public who don’t play games all the time there’s the new 780G. The G suffix indicates that this chipset includes an integrated graphics core, though it has a PCIe 2.0 slot too.