FW: Newsbank: VMware buys TriCipher and Integrien

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寄件者: Roger Knott (MKT-US)
傳送日期: Wednesday, September 01, 2010 1:47:33 AM
收件者: Newsbank
主旨: Newsbank: VMware buys TriCipher and Integrien
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http://www.marketwatch.com/story/vmware-acquires-integrien-and-tricipher-2010-08-31?reflink=MW_news_stmp

VMware Acquires Integrien and TriCipher

Company Announces Acquisitions During VMworld 2010 Keynote Outlining IT as a Service Vision; New Technologies Expand vCenter Management Portfolio and Enable More Efficient Provisioning of SaaS Applications for End User Computing

SAN FRANCISCO, CA, Aug 31, 2010 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) -- Today at VMworld 2010, VMware, Inc. , the global leader in virtualization and cloud infrastructure, announced that it has entered into definitive agreements to acquire Integrien, a leader in real time application and infrastructure performance analytics software, and TriCipher, a leader in secure access management and enterprise identity federation for cloud hosted Software as a Service (SaaS) applications.

Integrien: Simplifying Performance Management and Improving Operational Efficiency "Today's IT organizations are under pressure to increase service levels and build the next-generation infrastructure and applications for the cloud -- all with the resources they have today," said Boaz Chalamish, vice president and general manager, management products, VMware. "The dynamic nature of modern infrastructures and cloud environments requires a new management paradigm, and VMware is uniquely positioned to build on the foundation of virtualization and fundamentally improve how organizations manage IT services."

Integrien's patented real-time performance analytics solution helps customers simplify the complexity of managing application and infrastructure performance by transforming data from existing management tools into actionable intelligence. Combined with VMware vCenter management products, Integrien's capabilities enable VMware customers to achieve the level of automation and control required for virtualized and cloud infrastructures.

"VMware has led the transformation of IT infrastructure, significantly reducing complexity through virtualization," said Dale Quayle, president and CEO, Integrien. "As such, VMware is the company that is best-equipped to redefine the IT management discipline for this new world. We are very excited to join VMware and align around a management vision that can deliver value for both our customers and employees."

TriCipher: Bridging Hybrid Cloud Security, Improving End User Provisioning and Security of SaaS Applications As customers evolve to a hybrid cloud composed of customer-owned and SaaS applications, internal and external infrastructure clouds, technologies for identity federation, SaaS authentication and access management are required to deliver convenient application access for end users and security controls for IT. TriCipher's capabilities will support multiple VMware initiatives, including identity-based security, integration of hybrid clouds and managed access to SaaS application from any device, where and when a user needs it.

"Customers are increasingly looking for ways to take advantage of the flexibility and new services in the public cloud and want to extend the security and control of their private clouds to this new environment," said Brian Byun, vice president and general manager, cloud services and applications, VMware. "TriCipher brings to VMware important authentication and identity technologies that will accelerate our delivery of new solutions for hybrid cloud integration and end user computing."

"TriCipher has been a pioneer in the field of identity and access management as a service, providing secure authentication and seamless single sign on access to over 3,000 public and private Web and SaaS applications," said John De Santis, chairman and CEO of TriCipher. "We are excited to join the VMware family and further build on our foundational technology to fulfill VMware's cloud and end user computing vision."

Both acquisitions are expected to close in the third calendar quarter of 2010. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed. VMware does not expect the transactions to have a material impact on its previous expectations for 2010.

About VMware VMware delivers virtualization and cloud infrastructure solutions that enable IT organizations to energize businesses of all sizes. With the industry leading virtualization platform -- VMware vSphere(TM) -- customers rely on VMware to reduce capital and operating expenses, improve agility, ensure business continuity, strengthen security and go green. With 2009 revenues of $2 billion, more than 190,000 customers and 25,000 partners, VMware is the leader in virtualization which consistently ranks as a top priority among CIOs. VMware is headquartered in Silicon Valley with offices throughout the world and can be found online at www.vmware.com

Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains forward-looking statements including, among other things, statements regarding the timing and consummation of the Integrien and TriCipher acquisition and the integration of Integrien's and TriCipher's technology into VMware's technology platforms, business and operations. Actual results could differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements in this press release as a result of numerous risk factors, including but not limited to: (i) failure to complete the Integrien and TriCipher acquisitions due to the failure to satisfy one or more closing conditions for the transaction; (ii) failure to successfully integrate Integrien's and TriCipher's technology, employees, business and operations into VMware's business and operations; and (iii) failure to successfully execute VMware's IT as a Service and cloud computing strategies;. These forward looking statements are based on current expectations and are subject to other risks detailed in documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our most recent reports on Form 10-K and Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K that we may file from time to time, which could cause actual results to vary from expectations. VMware assumes no obligation to, and does not currently intend to, update any such forward-looking statements after the date of this release.

VMware, VMware vCenter and VMworld are registered trademarks and/or trademarks of VMware, Inc. in the United States and/or other jurisdictions. All other marks and names mentioned herein may be trademarks of their respective companies. The use of the word "partner" or "partnership" does not imply a legal partnership relationship between VMware and any other company.

 

 

Roger Knott | Senior Manager, Analyst Relations 10101 N. De Anza Blvd., Cupertino, CA 95014 Office: 408.863.6339 | Mobile: 415.999.4015

 

FW: Malware Blog news pickups: Aug 21-27, 2010

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寄件者: All of PH AV Technical Marketing
傳送日期: Tuesday, August 31, 2010 11:21:07 AM
收件者: Newsbank; Marketing Writers
主旨: Malware Blog news pickups: Aug 21-27, 2010
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Daily Pageviews to blog posts picked up

 

	21-Aug	22-Aug	23-Aug	24-Aug	25-Aug	26-Aug	27-Aug
Malware Blog	1,799	1,856	3,672	3,220	3,679	3,357	2,616
Underground Credit Card Processor Compromised by Feike Hacquebord	13	6	21	9	16	12	7
ZeuS Variant Targets U.S. Military Personnel by Robert McArdle	-	150	254	172	54	49	18
Fake Celebrity Deaths Used in Malicious Spam Run by Ardin Maglalang	-	-	-	138	82	24	16

 

Celebrity Death Scam Floods Inboxes

TechNews Daily, US – Aug 24

A recent flood of emails announcing the deaths of Hollywood celebrities and international sports stars have hit the inboxes of Gmail users, all containing an attachment infected with a virus, according to security firm TrendMicro.

 

US military v Zeus, trolls explained, Android's worrying future and more

Guardian, UK -  Aug 23

This is not the first time that the users of the Military Bank have been targeted, with similar campaigns going back to 2007 and beyond. However, those attacks were in an era before incidents like the recent Windows shortcut vulnerability and the Aurora attack. Nowadays, we have to wonder if the motives behind this attack are purely financial, or if the attackers deliberately targeted American military personnel."

 

Hackers Attack Illegally Running Credit Card Processing Firm

SPAMfighter, DK

Moreover, Trend Micro stated that the data pertaining to the anonymous payment card processor checks out that though it's registered in Holland, it in reality operates from Latvia and Russia. The company serves lawful clients in Russia, but it also caters to the more dishonest customers so that it could maintain the continuity of its business ever-since a cyber-crime incident victimized it some years back.

 

.

 

FW: NEWSBANK: Steve Jobs Is Watching You: Apple Seeking to Patent Spyware

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From: Mayur Polepalli (HIE-TW)
Sent: Tuesday, August 31, 2010 9:26:22 AM
To: Newsbank
Subject: NEWSBANK: Steve Jobs Is Watching You: Apple Seeking to Patent Spyware
Auto forwarded by a Rule

Steve Jobs Is Watching You: Apple Seeking to Patent Spyware

Deeplink by Julie Samuels

It looks like Apple, Inc., is exploring a new business opportunity: spyware and what we're calling "traitorware." While users were celebrating the new jailbreaking and unlocking exemptions, Apple was quietly preparing to apply for a patent on technology that, among other things, would allow Apple to identify and punish users who take advantage of those exemptions or otherwise tinker with their devices. This patent application does nothing short of providing a roadmap for how Apple can — and presumably will — spy on its customers and control the way its customers use Apple products. As Sony-BMG learned, spying on your customers is bad for business. And the kind of spying enabled here is especially creepy — it's not just spyware, it's "traitorware," since it is designed to allow Apple to retaliate against you if you do something Apple doesn't like.

Essentially, Apple's patent provides for a device to investigate a user's identity, ostensibly to determine if and when that user is "unauthorized," or, in other words, stolen. More specifically, the technology would allow Apple to record the voice of the device's user, take a photo of the device's user's current location or even detect and record the heartbeat of the device's user. Once an unauthorized user is identified, Apple could wipe the device and remotely store the user's "sensitive data." Apple's patent application suggests it may use the technology not just to limit "unauthorized" uses of its phones but also shut down the phone if and when it has been stolen.

However, Apple's new technology would do much more. This patented device enables Apple to secretly collect, store and potentially use sensitive biometric information about you. This is dangerous in two ways: First, it is far more than what is needed just to protect you against a lost or stolen phone. It's extremely privacy-invasive and it puts you at great risk if Apple's data on you are compromised. But it's not only the biometric data that are a concern. Second, Apple's technology includes various types of usage monitoring — also very privacy-invasive. This patented process could be used to retaliate against you if you jailbreak or tinker with your device in ways that Apple views as "unauthorized" even if it is perfectly legal under copyright law.

Here's a sample of the kinds of information Apple plans to collect:

• The system can take a picture of the user's face, "without a flash, any noise, or any indication that a picture is being taken to prevent the current user from knowing he is being photographed";
• The system can record the user's voice, whether or not a phone call is even being made;
• The system can determine the user's unique individual heartbeat "signature";
• To determine if the device has been hacked, the device can watch for "a sudden increase in memory usage of the electronic device";
• The user's "Internet activity can be monitored or any communication packets that are served to the electronic device can be recorded"; and
• The device can take a photograph of the surrounding location to determine where it is being used.

In other words, Apple will know who you are, where you are, and what you are doing and saying and even how fast your heart is beating. In some embodiments of Apple's "invention," this information "can be gathered every time the electronic device is turned on, unlocked, or used." When an "unauthorized use" is detected, Apple can contact a "responsible party." A "responsible party" may be the device's owner, it may also be "proper authorities or the police."

Apple does not explain what it will do with all of this collected information on its users, how long it will maintain this information, how it will use this information, or if it will share this information with other third parties. We know based on long experience that if Apple collects this information, law enforcement will come for it, and may even order Apple to turn it on for reasons other than simply returning a lost phone to its owner.

This patent is downright creepy and invasive — certainly far more than would be needed to respond to the possible loss of a phone. Spyware, and its new cousin traitorware, will hurt customers and companies alike — Apple should shelve this idea before it backfires on both it and its customers.

 

 

--

Mayur Polepalli

HIE Manager

 

Trend Micro, Inc. "Securing Your Web World"

8F, 198, Sec. 2, Tun Hwa S. Rd., Taipei, Taiwan

Office: (+8862) 2378 9666 Ext. 1339

www.trendmicro.com

--

 

FW: Newsbank :: Google fans are the new Mac elite, the users who "get it"

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From: Susan Wilhite (MKT-US)
Sent: Tuesday, August 31, 2010 8:51:42 AM
To: Newsbank
Subject: Newsbank :: Google fans are the new Mac elite, the users who "get it"
Auto forwarded by a Rule

The forces of moving away from Exchange-based email toward Google’s cloud-based.  Unlike the adoption of mobile devices, non-executives are pushing Google’s ways first.  Adoption is a matter of attraction and repetitive use.

 

http://www.zdnet.com/blog/btl/google-fans-are-the-new-mac-elite-the-users-who-get-it/38560?tag=content;search-results-rivers

 

Google fans are the new Mac elite, the users who "get it"

By Sam Diaz | August 30, 2010, 2:10am PDT

There’s a certain amount of arrogance that emits from Mac owners, those of us whose smug attitudes toward Windows users seems to just scream “I think I’m better than you.” But I can honestly say that, as one of those obnoxious Mac guys, I don’t think that we’re better than Windows users. We just tend to “get it” a bit more.

OK, that sounds arrogant, too - but I’m not trying be that way about it. I’ve talked to many folks who’ve switched from Windows to the Mac and they all seem to say the same things - that the computing experience is superior and that they finally have come to the realization that many of us have known all along.

I don’t write this to spark some sort of Apple-Microsoft debate. Instead, I bring this up as a way of illustrating how the tide seems to be shifting - evolving to the next stage of the debate between those who “get it’ and those who don’t. Apple fans still get it - and increasingly Google fans are right there with them.

Specifically, I’m talking about e-mail.

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote a post about how Google was bent out of shape over a the e-mail contract for the state of California. The company didn’t actually submit a formal bid for the state’s business because it felt that the requirements of a new e-mail system was written specifically for Microsoft products. One of the highlighted examples was the state’s requirement to be able to “sort” for e-mails.

Google cried foul and explained that its user interface didn’t allow for sorting but instead used search technology to find messages - and then went into a rant about how search was a better way to find important messages within the inbox. In the end, the state refused to change the language for more than 100 different requirements and Google, feeling that it didn’t stand a fair chance at winning the state’s business, chose to not submit a formal bid.

You see, the state government of California doesn’t “get it.” It is stuck with a 1990s mindset, as it relates to e-mail. Sure, there are some legitimate reasons for California - or any local, state or federal government agency - to have concerns about security. We’ve been through that debate practically a million times already. But this particular argument has little to do with security concerns. This has more to do with people - in this case, state employees - resisting something new, an approach to email that might allow them to work more efficiently and increase productivity if they just gave it a chance.

Google Apps - the cloud-based e-mail and productivity software suite - has gained some ground with business customers. But it also has seen some potential customers - notably, the state of California - stay out of reach over the “get it” factor. Last week, I had a conversation with Michael Cohn, co-founder of Cloud Sherpas, one of the biggest Google Apps resellers in the country. The company finds itself on the front lines daily, helping business customers to understand and integrate Google Apps into their operations.

I talked to Cohn about the “get it” factor and he shared some of his own anecdotes about those who approach them with a strong understanding of the Google suite - largely because of their own personal experiences with Gmail and Google Docs - and potential customers who are still kicking the tires. Those folks have heard about the cost savings by going with Google but still have some concerns.

What about those who are hung up on the ability to sort versus the search functionality offered within Gmail? Cohn didn’t hesitate with his response: “We just say thank you… We don’t waste our time trying to win those guys over.”

Why not? Because they don’t “get it” yet.

Here at CBS Interactive, the parent company of ZDNet, we’ve recently switched to Google from Exchange, and I’ve encountered some resistance among colleagues on things such as threaded e-mails, no folders and, of course, the inability to sort messages.

Cohn explained that, with some companies, his team will survey a company’s employees before deployment on how many of them are existing Gmail users as a way of gauging their comfort with the Gmail user interface, In a lot of companies, it’s the executives and decision-makers, not the employees, who resist the change. The employees of some companies - especially those running older systems - are quick to welcome the change.

For some time now, I’ve been squawking about the inefficiency of e-mail and how products like Google Wave - a multi-faceted communications and collaboration platform that Google launched last year but killed earlier this month - are pushing us into a better way. Wave, which had a big learning curve, never got off the ground with user adoption. But Gmail, which has evolved as the company has rolled out small features one at a time, does have that user base.

Over time, Gmail users have come to appreciate the freedom of labels over the limited use of folders, archiving messages over deleting them and, of course, search over sort. It doesn’t happen overnight - but eventually, they “get it.”

 

 

Susan Wilhite | UX Researcher & Trend Community Manager 10101 North De Anza Blvd., Cupertino, CA USA 95014 Office: 408.863.6594

 

 

FW: NEWSBANK:: Crooks Steal $600,000 From Catholic Diocese

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From: Paul Ferguson (RD-US)
Sent: Tuesday, August 31, 2010 3:39:13 AM
To: Newsbank
Subject: NEWSBANK:: Crooks Steal $600,000 From Catholic Diocese
Auto forwarded by a Rule

Crooks Who Stole $600,000 From Catholic Diocese Said Money Was for Clergy Sex Abuse Victims

Organized cyber thieves stole more than $600,000 from the Catholic Diocese of Des Moines, Iowa earlier this month. The funds were spirited away with the help of dozens of unwitting co-conspirators hired through work-at-home job scams, at least one of whom was told the money was being distributed to victims of the Catholic Church sex abuse scandals, KrebsOnSecurity.com has learned.

In a statement released last week, the diocese said the fraud occurred between Aug. 13 and Aug. 16, apparently after criminals had stolen the diocese’s online banking credentials. The Diocese it was alerted to the fraud on Aug. 17 by its financial institution, Bankers Trust of Des Moines.

The diocese also said the FBI and U.S. Treasury Department were notified, and that the FBI had taken possession of several diocesan computers. To date, roughly $180,000 has been recovered.

The diocese added that law enforcement had advised them that the theft seems to have been the work of a highly sophisticated operation based overseas, which moved the stolen money out of the United States by recruiting people who unknowingly act as intermediaries.

“While the Diocese of Des Moines is protected by insurance and anticipates the restoration of the funds, we have been advised that such criminal activity is rampant,” Des Moines Bishop Richard Pates said. “Obviously, any entity that experiences such a crime should be significantly concerned.”

Once again, the theft involves so-called money mules willingly or unwittingly recruited by a specific money mule cash-out gang whose work I have written about several times already. Among the mules involved in this incident was a man in Newnan, Ga. who received almost $30,000 of the church’s cash. Daniel Huggins, the 29-year-old owner of Masonry Construction Group LLC, got mixed up with a company calling itself the Impeccable Group, claiming to be an international finance company operating out of New York.

Huggins said the Impeccable Group recruited him via e-mail, claiming it had found his resume on job search site Monster.com. The Impeccable Group told him he would be doing payment processing for the company, and on Aug. 16, Huggins’ erstwhile employers sent him two payments, one for almost $20,000 and another for slightly less than $10,000.

Huggins said he contacted the Impeccable Group shortly after the transfers because the amounts seemed quite high and the transfers appeared to be coming from the Catholic Church. The scammers apparently were ready for this question and were quick on their feet with a reply that was as plausible as it was diabolical: Huggins was told the money was going to be distributed as legal settlements to people who had been affected by the clergy sexual abuse scandals that have rocked the church in recent years.

“The told me it was going to be payouts to some of the settlements in the sex crimes cases against the Church,” Huggins said.

Huggins’ bank discovered the fraud and froze his account while there was still almost $10,000 left in it from the fraudulent transfers. Huggins said he was told to expect a call from lawyers for the Des Moines diocese, but he’s conflicted about whether he will return the money he made from his part in the scam: Minus the Western Union and Moneygram wire fees, Huggins earned commissions totaling nearly $800 for helping the thieves transfer the stolen money out of the country.

“I already sent the money to pay off my credit card balance,” Huggins said. “I guess I’m still up in the air on that one.”

The screen shots below were taken of Huggins’ “task manager,” an online communications panel that Impeccable Group used to communicate with money mules they had recruited.

 

 

 

 

 

http://krebsonsecurity.com/2010/08/crooks-who-stole-600000-from-catholic-diocese-said-money-was-for-clergy-sex-abuse-victims/

 

-ferg

 

--

"Fergie", a.k.a. Paul Ferguson

 Threat Research,

 CoreTech Engineering

 Trend Micro, Inc., Cupertino, California USA

 

 

FW: NEWSBANK: HP Unveils Cloudstart to Speed Private Cloud Deployment

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???: David Lau (MKT-US)
????: 2010?8?31? ?? 01:51:43
???: Newsbank
??: NEWSBANK: HP Unveils Cloudstart to Speed Private Cloud Deployment
????????

HP Unveils Cloudstart to Speed Private Cloud Deployment

 

Mikael Ricknäs Mikael Ricknäs – Mon Aug 30, 10:30 am ET

Hewlett-Packard has unveiled CloudStart, a package that includes hardware, software and consulting services, and aims to speed up the construction of private clouds, it said on Monday.

 

CloudStart is offered by HP Cloud Consulting Services and will use the company's Cloud Service Automation tools, which helps enterprises with their cloud installations and provides automation tools to manage cloud-based applications, according to HP. CloudStart will also use its storage and blade servers, HP said in a statement.

 

HP CloudStart should allow an enterprise to build a private cloud in 30 days, the company said.

 

Clouds can be rolled out in a number of different ways: using a cloud service provider like Amazon, building one internally or using a mixture of the two. The latter is usually called a hybrid cloud.

 

Last week, HP acquired Stratavia, a vendor of management tools that can help IT departments handle hybrid clouds in an effective manner, it said.

 

The most natural evolution from a traditional data center to the cloud is to first optimize applications for a private cloud, and then move to a hybrid environment in the future, according HP.

 

The CloudStart package is available in Asia-Pacific and Japan now, and is expected to be available in the rest of the world in December, according to HP, which didn't provide any pricing information.

 

FW: Intel buying Infineon wireless unit

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寄件者: Jen Burns (MKT-US-INTRN)
傳送日期: Tuesday, August 31, 2010 12:30:11 AM
收件者: Newsbank
主旨: Intel buying Infineon wireless unit
自動依照規則轉寄

http://money.cnn.com/2010/08/30/technology/intel_infineon/index.htm

Intel to buy Infineon's wireless unit for $1.4 billion

By Julianne Pepitone, staff reporterAugust 30, 2010: 10:35 AM ET

 

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Intel is buying Infineon Technologies' wireless unit for $1.4 billion in cash, the second acquisition in two weeks for the U.S. chipmaker.

Infineon chips are used in devices including laptops and smartphones, notably the iPad and iPhone 4.

Paul Otellini, Intel's chief executive, noted in a press release Monday that "wireless connectivity continues to grow at an extraordinary rate." Intel will operate the wireless unit as a standalone business, and the deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2011.

Infineon said its wireless unit earned about 917 million euros ($1.17 billion) in the last fiscal year. That accounted for 30% of the company's overall revenue.

Earlier this month, Intel said it will acquire security software maker McAfee (MFE) for $7.68 billion.

Intel's McAfee buy is a Buffett-like play

Under Otellini, Intel has moved to expand beyond PC chips as that market weakens. The company's attempt to build its own wireless chip business around its Atom core processors has met with lukewarm results.

Chip sales have dipped below expectations due to a sudden shift in demand for PCs. In July, Intel and AMD reported strong second quarters on the back of booming PC sales, with Intel reporting its "best quarter ever."

But that shifted late last month, as analysts said PC manufacturers have begun to scale back their orders from suppliers. Several analysts downgraded shares of Intel and AMD (AMD, Fortune 500) in early August, with analysts at JPMorgan saying PC order rates in Taiwan were "falling off a cliff."

0:00 /:53Intel's dealmaking spree

On Friday, Intel warned investors that slump in PC demand would cause the company's third-quarter revenue to fall below its forecasts.

Intel now expects sales in the current quarter will be in a range of $10.8 billion to $11.2 billion. That falls short of the company's previous prediction of $11.2 to $12 billion.

Earlier this month, Intel settled antitrust charges with the Federal Trade Commission. The FTC's complaint, which was filed December 2009, levied heavy charges. It accused Intel of systematically shutting out rivals by refusing to sell chips to some computer manufacturers that also bought chips from AMD. It also alleged Intel paid other manufacturers rebates in exchange for promises not to use microchips made by Intel's competitors.

But Intel got off with a wrist slap. The chipmaking giant did not acknowledge any wrongdoing or even admit that the facts alleged by the FTC were true, and it settled without paying a fine. The FTC does not have the authority to levy a financial penalty on a company abusing a monopoly position.

Intel (INTC, Fortune 500) shares were down 2% in morning trade Monday.