Symantec said that folks running its pcAnywhere utility were at an “increased risk” when it revealed that the company had been hacked and its source codes pilfered, and advised customers to stop using pcAnywhere for the time being. Sage advice, as a hacker with the handle YamaTough — who’s affiliated with Anonymous — helped do the deed and has now published the code for all the world to see. Apparently, the hacker and hackee had attempted to broker a deal for $50,000 to keep the code private, but neither side negotiated in good faith — YamaTough always intended to release the code, and law enforcement was doing the talking for Symantec to catch him and his hacking cohorts. The good news is, Symantec has released several patches to protect pcAnywhere users going forward. As for the stolen code for Norton Antivirus, Internet Security and other Symantec software? Well, the company’s expecting it to be disclosed, too, but because the code is from 2006, customers with current versions can rest easy.

SOURCE via Reuters

The tenth iteration of Mozilla’s browser is rolling out from today and we’re sat here waiting for our own go signal. As the biggest UI tweaks will arrive in v12, the majority of changes are under the hood: except that the “forward” button now only appears once you’ve pressed “back.”

New APIs provide for full-screen viewing of web apps, Anti-aliased WebGL graphics and an “extended support release” that enables enterprise customers to only download security updates. CSS 3D Transitions are now supported alongside a new CSS inspector for those digging deep into the fabric of the universe internet. Java applet and moving bookmarks crashes should be a thing of the past, but it’s not all plain sailing: no new release ever is, after all.

On the “to be fixed” list includes herky-jerky scrolling in Gmail, Silverlight videos not working in OS X and vertical scrolling is broken on some touch-pads. Let’s hope they get the former fixed quickly, our inbox is already overflowing ’round these parts.

The Mozilla blog has posted a quick demo video of how the new tools can help developers, check it out after the break. Read more…

Skype rolled out its version 5.8 software update for Windows users today, and it brings with it a couple of fairly notable features. That includes full HD video calling (provided you have a suitable webcam and internet connection, of course), video calling to Facebook users (regardless of whether they have Skype installed or not), and group screen sharing, which will let folks share either their entire desktop or a single application with other participants on a conference call. That last feature is only available with Skype Premium, though. Other new features include a “push to talk” option that will let you set up a hotkey to trigger your microphone (for multiplayer gaming, for instance), the ability to hide offline Facebook contacts, and one possible fruit of the Microsoft acquisition: Bing toolbar integration.

SOURCE via Skype

Google clearly didn’t want to blow everyone’s mind right away with its Google Docs app for Android. That’s why it’s been slowly rolling out the updates, incrementally adding features and turning what began life (more or less) as a glorified web browser into a useful app. The latest upgrades deliver possibly the most requested feature — offline access. Now there’s an option to pin individual files for local storage and the app will automatically sync the latest version anytime you’re on WiFi. If that’s not often enough, you can manually update whenever you have a data connection. There’s also a new layout for viewing docs on tablets that allows you to swipe left and right to flip between pages and a scrubber at the bottom for quickly jumping from one part of the doc to another. Hit up the Android Market now to score the update for yourself.

SOURCE via Google

The X version of Final Cut Pro was supposed to be all things to all people — easier and more power for the serious amateurs and yet refreshing and comprehensive for the pros. In reality it seemed that neither camp quite saw it that way, but Apple has at least been listening. Today the company has announced version 10.0.3, which finally adds the one feature everyone’s been clamoring for: multicam support. But that’s not all. Join us after the break for a deeper look.

With this new version, Final Cut Pro X can now support footage from up to 64 separate cameras, each with different combinations of codecs, resolutions and frame rates. The app can obviously sync based on embedded timestamps, but it can also automatically take a shot at lining up footage by looking at the waveforms of associated audio from each cam, even if that audio isn’t used in the resulting production.

There’s also a new advanced chroma key feature, which enables better tweaking of green screen-like footage from directly within the app, and the ability to work with layered PSDs right there as well. There’s also beta support for broadcast monitoring hardware from the likes of Blackmagic, AJA and Matrox, all of whom are said to have or be working on Thunderbolt-equipped hardware.

Finally, three third-party add-ons are releasing today: Red Giant has a version of its Magic Bullet Suite, GenArts has is Sapphire Edge plugin and Intelligent Assistance has a $10 app called 7 to X that will convert legacy Final Cut Pro projects into the latest and greatest format.

The feature upgrades to Final Cut Pro X are nice, especially given this update is free to those who have already paid the $299 entry fee, but is it all enough to woo back those jilted pros who might have taken their multicam setups elsewhere over the past seven months? That we’ll have to wait and see.

SOURCE via Apple

Google recently released the latest version of its Google Earth – Google Earth 6.2 – that comes with a better imagery and a new search interface. On top of that, there are also new features that allow users to share images from within Google Earth and of course, integration with Google+.

Unlike previously whereby images appear to be patchy because they are taken on different dates and under different conditions, Google Earth can now give a smoother image thanks to a new way of rendering the images. Available on both desktop and mobile versions, this change can be seen on all versions of Google Earth though, 6.2 provides the best viewing experience. Other changes include the ability to share Google Earth via Google+, the company’s very own social network service.

Searching has also been improved on the new Google earth, apart from changes in the interface to make it look much more like Google Maps, the search option is also equipped with Autocomplete. There is also a new search layer which will show all relevant results; you can even get directions be it biking, transit and walking to the places.

More information on the new Google Earth available on Google Blog.

Summify is a beloved little news-curation platform that works out (based on your reading habits and those of your friends) what news is most relevant to you. Yesterday the Vancouver-based start-up announced that it had been snapped up by Twitter and will commence shutting down in the next week. Fortunately, the team is relocating down to the micro-blogging site’s San Francisco base, ostensibly to bake the service into forthcoming variations of the site — which might be enough to stop us complaining about losing our retweets panel.

SOURCE via Summify

Symantec spokesman Cris Paden said on Tuesday that unknown hackers breached its network back in 2006 and obtained the source code to Norton Antivirus Corporate Edition, Norton Internet Security, Norton Utilities, Norton GoBack and pcAnywhere. The news follows the release of Symantec’s Norton Utilities source code on Friday by a hacker associated with Anonymous and Lords of Dharmaraja.

Previously Symantec said that some of its code had been lifted from the server of a third party, but after a thorough investigation, the security firm has discovered that its network had indeed been compromised after all. The only real threat at this time resides with customers using pcAnywhere, Symantec’s software that facilitates remote access of PCs.

“Symantec is currently in the process of reaching out to our pcAnywhere customers to make them aware of the situation and to provide remediation steps to maintain the protection of their devices and information,” the company reports.

The story regarding Symantec’s leaked source code began just after the new year when hacker group Lords of Dharmaraja threatened to release the source code to Norton Antivirus. The group’s original threat posted on Pastebin is now gone, but a Google cached version claims that the source code was retrieved during a hack of India’s military and intelligence servers.

“As of now we start sharing with all our brothers and followers information from the Indian Military Intelligence servers, so far we have discovered within the Indian Spy Programme source codes of a dozen software companies which have signed agreements with Indian TANCS programme and CBI,” the group stated.

Later Symatec admitted that it previously offered up the source code of its products in compliance with the Indian government so that officials could make sure the software didn’t contain spyware or other malicious programs. Save for the firm’s current caution with pcAnywhere as revealed on Tuesday, Symantec wasn’t too worried about a possible code leak given the stolen software is six years old.

Yet that very factor may be why Lord of Dharmaraja and Yama Tough have resigned from releasing the Norton Antivirus source code on Tuesday. According to a Twitter post by Tough, they have decided not to go public with the 1.7 GB of source code “until we get full of it.”

“1st we’ll own evrthn we can by 0din’ the sym code & pour mayhem,” he said via Twitter.

There’s speculation that Tough is referring to “zero daying,” meaning that a surprise attack on the software could be in the works instead of an actual code release.

Last night Imperva sent along an email stating that hacker group Lords of Dharmaraja is threatening to release the source code of Symantec’s flagship product, Norton Antivirus. The group’s original threat posted on Pastebin is now gone, but a Google cached version claims that the source code was retrieved during a hack of India’s military and intelligence servers.

“As of now we start sharing with all our brothers and followers information from the Indian Military Intelligence servers, so far we have discovered within the Indian Spy Programme source codes of a dozen software companies which have signed agreements with Indian TANCS programme and CBI,” the group states.

“Now we release confidential documentation we encountered of Symantec corporation and it’s Norton AntiVirus source code which we are going to publish later on, we are working out mirrors as of now since we experience extreme pressure and censorship from US and India government agencies,” the group adds.

Security firm Imperva indicated that there’s a good chance the group actually did retrieve the source code from the Indian military, as many governments require source code from vendors to prove that the software isn’t really spyware. But the company also points out that the hackers could have easily retrieved the code by gaining access to a test server that was mistakenly exposed or a link to an FTP that was unintentionally made public.

“If the rumors turn out to be true, the implications of the anti-virus code leakage will not keep the Symantec folks awake too late at night, and certainly not their customers,” Imperva said. “After all, there isn’t much hackers can learn from the code which they hadn’t known before.”

That’s because most of the antivirus product is based on attack signatures. By basing defenses on signatures, malware authors continuously write malware to evade signature detection. Even more, malware versions continuously evolve, making it hard for firms like Symantec to stay one step ahead.

“The workings of most of the anti-virus’ algorithms have also been studied already by hackers in order to write the malware that defeats them,” the blog explained. “A key benefit of having the source code could be in the hands of the competitors. If the source code is recent and hackers find serious vulnerabilities, it could be possible to exploit the actual anti-virus program itself.  But that is a big if and no one but Symantec knows what types of weaknesses hackers could find.”

After word began to spread about the source code leak, Symantec released a statement, confirming that a segment of Norton’s source code used in two of the older enterprise products has been accessed, one of which has been discontinued.

“The code involved is four and five years old,” the company said. “This does not affect Symantec’s Norton products for our consumer customers. Symantec’s own network was not breached, but rather that of a third party entity. We are still gathering information on the details and are not in a position to provide specifics on the third party involved. Presently, we have no indication that the code disclosure impacts the functionality or security of Symantec’s solutions. Furthermore, there are no indications that customer information has been impacted or exposed at this time.”

Symantec said that it is working to develop a remediation process to ensure long-term protection for its customers’ information. “We will communicate that process once the steps have been finalized,” Symantec said. “Given the early stages of the investigation, we have no further details to disclose at this time but will provide updates as we confirm additional facts.”

SOURCE via Imperva

Want to send large files, without the whole world catching on? BitTorrent’s going the DropBox route, with the launch of the simply — and friendly — named Share, a desktop app that allows you to transfer HD movies, photo collections, et al. by dragging and dropping files. The service, which is built on top of BitTorrent’s much loved technology, doesn’t impose any size limits and stores the content in the cloud, so you can share with offline users. Share also lets you set groups for transfers, so the rest of the world doesn’t get a crack at your files. And, because you can’t launch a service without some manner of social functionality these days, the aforementioned recipients can comment on the transferred files, Facebook-style. No word yet on any plans for boy band tie-ins.

SOURCE via Share