DARPA funds research for electronics that disappear

R&D Magazine – What if these electronics simply disappeared when no longer needed? DARPA announces the Vanishing Programmable Resources (VAPR) program with the aim of revolutionizing the state of the art in transient electronics or electronics capable of dissolving into the environment around them. Transient electronics developed under VAPR should maintain the current functionality and ruggedness of conventional electronics, but, when triggered, be able to degrade partially or completely into their surroundings. Once triggered to dissolve, these electronics would be useless to any enemy who might come across them. more> http://tinyurl.com/a9awpvm

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• DARPA seeks researchers for new class of electronics that dissolve into their surroundings (nanowerk.com)
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Industry redesign necessary for the growth of Broadband networks

By George Mattathil – There are two fundamental network technologies:

• Circuit switching
• Packet switching

Each has its own unique advantages and limitations. Neither of them can replace the other without performance and/or service impairments.

Better (in terms of performance and cost) systems can be developed by using either or both, depending on requirements — rather than preselecting packet technology.

Packet-centric approach creates inertia with premature obsolescence of circuit infrastructure and products.

Transfer Network^tm is redesign of the access network — taking into account functionality, performance, cost, compatibility with existing infrastructure, minimizing interoperability and upgrade problems. more> StrategyGroup.net/redesign/

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Best practices to mitigate DDoS attacks

Denial of Service (DoS) Attack Resource Page (Photo credit: gellenburg)

By Linda Musthaler – Numerous banks have been attacked in recent weeks, including PNC Bank, Fifth Third, HSBC, JPMorgan Chase, Citibank and others. For the financial institutions, it’s déjà vu all over again, as they were similarly attacked last September and October. The banks have all suffered daylong slowdowns and, at times, complete outages.

How can you protect your company’s Web presence? Here are a few tips on what you can do now to head off a potential problem later.

• Don’t count on a firewall to prevent or stop a DDoS attack
• Bake DDoS into your business continuity and disaster recovery plan
• Know the signs of an active attack
• Know your customers and lock out unexpected transactions
• Measure the financial impact of being offline for a period of time
• If you are the victim of a DDoS attack, look for fraud, data breaches or other criminal activity
• Know who to call to stop an attack

more> http://tinyurl.com/acj2zly

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• Science & Technology – Re: Anonymous asks the White House to legalize DDoS attacks (disclose.tv)
• Anonymous petitions the White House to make DDoS attacks a legal form of protesting (theverge.com)
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Worst security snafus of 2012

By Ellen Messmer – The first half of 2012 was pretty bad — from the embarrassing hack of a conversation between the FBI and Scotland Yard to a plethora of data breaches — and the second half wasn’t much better, with events including Symantec‘s antivirus update mess and periodic attacks from hactivists at Anonymous. For a complete look at security snafus from the first half of the year, go here. more> http://tinyurl.com/d4xn2f4

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12 Scams of Christmas and How to Avoid Them

SLIDE SHOW (14)

By Thor Olavsrud – The holiday shopping season is in full swing and so is the season for online scams. According to 2012 Holiday Shopping Study (pdf) by McAfee and Harris Interactive, 70 percent of Americans will shop online this holiday season and 24 percent of Americans will shop online with a mobile device. That’s a target that has cyber criminals salivating. Here are 12 of the most dangerous scams you’re likely to see this holiday season. more> http://tinyurl.com/cwdyw2y

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