The International Monetary Fund, still struggling to find a new leader after the arrest of its managing director last month in New York, was hit recently by what computer experts describe as a large and sophisticated cyberattack whose dimensions are still unknown.
The fund, which manages financial crises around the world and is the repository of highly confidential information about the fiscal condition of many nations, told its staff and its board of directors about the attack on Wednesday. But it did not make a public announcement.
Several senior officials with knowledge of the attack said it was both sophisticated and serious. “This was a very major breach,” said one official, who said that it had occurred over the last several months, even before Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the French politician who ran the fund, was arrested on charges of sexually assaulting a chamber maid in a New York hotel.
Asked about the reports of the computer attack late Friday, a spokesman for the fund, David Hawley, declined to provide details or talk about the scope or nature of the intrusion. “We are investigating an incident, and the fund is fully functional,” he said.
Because the fund has been at the center of economic bailout programs for Portugal, Greece and Ireland — and possesses sensitive data on other countries that may be on the brink of crisis — its database contains potentially market-moving information. It also includes communications with national leaders as they negotiate, often behind the scenes, on the terms of international bailouts. Those agreements are, in the words of one fund official, “political dynamite in many countries.” It was unclear what information the attackers were able to access.
The concern about the attack was so significant that the World Bank, an international agency focused on economic development, whose headquarters is across the street from the I.M.F. in downtown Washington, cut the computer link that allows the two institutions to share information.
A World Bank spokesman said the step had been taken out of “an abundance of caution” until the severity and nature of the cyberattack on the I.M.F. is understood. That link enables the two institutions to share nonpublic data and conduct meetings, but users of the system say that it does not permit access to confidential financial data.
Companies and public institutions are often hesitant to describe publicly the nature or success of attacks on their computer systems, partly for fear of providing information that would be useful to the individuals or countries mounting the efforts. Even so, Google [GOOG 509.505 -7.225 (-1.4%) ] has recently been aggressive in announcing attacks and, in one recent case, of declaring that its origin was China, an accusation the Chinese government quickly denied.
But in the case of the I.M.F., officials declined to say where they believe the attack originated — a delicate subject because most nations are members of the fund.
The attacks were likely to have been made possible by a technique known as “spear phishing,” in which an individual is fooled into clicking on a malicious Web link or running a program that allows open access to the recipient’s network. It is also possible that the attack was less specific, a case in which an intruder was testing the system merely to see what was available.
The fund said that it did not believe that the intrusion into its systems was related to a sophisticated digital break-in at RSA Security that took place in March, which compromised some information that companies and governments use to control access to their most sensitive computer systems. RSA notified its clients of the loss of its data, and last month hackers attempted to use the information stolen from RSA to gain access to computers and networks at the Lockheed Martin Corporation, the nation’s largest military contractor.
After that attack, the World Bank briefly shut down external access to its most sensitive systems, for fear that the stolen information could make it a target. But it quickly resumed its normal operations and says it has seen no evidence of any attacks.
David E. Sanger reported from Washington, and John Markoff from San Francisco.
This story originally appeared in The New York Times
A rare Sicilian stamp has been sold for €1.8 million ($2.6 million) at an auction in Switzerland.
Auctioneers Galerie Dreyfus say the well-preserved misprint from the year 1859 was sold Thursday to an unnamed online bidder in the United States.
A spokesman for the Basel-based auction house, Jean-Paul Bach, declined Friday to identify the seller but said he or she was based in France.
The stamp depicting King Ferdinand II is known as the "Error of Color," because it was mistakenly printed in blue instead of orange.
It is now the second most expensive stamp in the world after the Swedish "Treskilling Yellow," which previously sold for over 2.8 million Swiss francs ($3.3 million).
Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Funny Business App of the Week!
I was stuck at O'Hare airport for five hours yesterday. So was everyone else. I pondered the question: where are there more people today, China or O'Hare? And I promised never, ever ever to complain about LAX again.
At one point, someone sat down next to me, Bluetooth in full display, and began a heated business conversation about some "deal." He was loud. He revealed too much. He wouldn't shut up. He clearly wasn't letting the person on the other end of the conversation get in a word edgewise.
I moved.
Near my second location, a woman was laughing hysterically with a friend. They were trying to make the best of a long day. But her friend couldn't get two words out before the woman would start up again with the guffawing, which sounded a bit like someone goosing a giraffe. Not that I know what that sounds like.
I wanted to hit her.
That's when I began seriously considering paying a whopping $4.99 for an iPhone app called the Talk-o-Meter. The app appears to be from Germany, as Germans are the only people on Earth who talk louder than Americans.
"Some people don't realize when they dominate others in a discussion," says the product description. The Talk-o-Meter helps by detecting different voices and then measuring who talks the most. The results are displayed on screen.
Oh wait, what's this? "For best results, this App should be used in a low noise environment."
That would not be O'Hare.
Speaking of people who won't be quiet: No one seems to want to be around Newt Gingrich. How bad is it? A Craigslist entry in Washington, DC reads:
"Veteran politician seeking campaign manager and staff for presidential bid."
The listing says candidates must possess:
- Narcissism: Extreme indifference to ideology and core beliefs. Must be willing to throw other candidates and party allies under the bus at any given moment.
- Insouciance: Hardened indifference to eyebrow-raising moments of debased behavior, especially if involving extramarital dalliances at times of spousal illness.
- Patience: Expect candidate to frequently go on vacation, put very little effort into campaign and blame staff for shortcomings.
- Exceptional writing skills, preferably in dramatic interpretation.
- Washington, D.C. residents preferred.
The listing was pulled down once the joke was discovered. I guess it was a joke. Given the oddball nature of Gingrich's campaign, perhaps this was part of his "outside the box" thinking for 2012.
Swindling rings busted around Asia had duped tens of thousands of mostly Chinese and Taiwanese victims through a variety of money scams, Taiwanese police said Friday after 598 suspects were arrested.
Police in Taiwan and China had investigated the rings for three months and the coordinated raids against them Thursday in 160 locations was the largest crime crackdown across Asia, Taiwanese police chief Wang Cho-chun said.
In one scam method, the suspects placed phone calls over the Internet and lured victims to make purchases that were never delivered, he said.
Thai authorities described a scam in which the swindlers called victims in the guise of being from their bank and fooled them into transferring funds. And Malaysian police said the suspects fooled victims into believing they had to send money to pay traffic or court summones that did not exist.
Among those arrested, there were 411 Taiwanese, 180 mainland Chinese, three Thais, two South Koreans, and one citizen each from Cambodia and Vietnam, according to Taiwan's Criminal Investigation Bureau.
Indonesia said 170 people were arrested there, and Malaysian federal police told the New Straits Times that 37 people were arrested there.
The 186 suspects arrested in Cambodia were expected to be deported by air to China and Taiwan on Friday night, according to police in Cambodia and Taiwan.
The ring leaders, mostly Taiwanese, first recruited Chinese to help conduct phone frauds from the mainland. Following tough crackdowns in both Taiwan and China, they then moved their equipment to Southeast Asia from where they continued to conduct the frauds, Wang said.
It was not clear what charges would be pressed in any of the countries. Cross-border crime is difficult to prosecute, and laws are hazy concerning crimes conducted over the Internet.
Authorities in Taiwan and China have agreed to repatriate the suspects to their own provinces for prosecution, according to a 2009 crime-busting agreement, Wang said.
Indonesian authorities have also agreed to repatriate the suspects, but Thailand and Malaysia may prefer to handle them according to their own laws, he added.
Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Police in Taiwan and China had investigated the rings for three months and the coordinated raids against them Thursday in 160 locations was the largest crime crackdown across Asia, Taiwanese police chief Wang Cho-chun said.
In one scam method, the suspects placed phone calls over the Internet and lured victims to make purchases that were never delivered, he said.
Thai authorities described a scam in which the swindlers called victims in the guise of being from their bank and fooled them into transferring funds. And Malaysian police said the suspects fooled victims into believing they had to send money to pay traffic or court summones that did not exist.
Among those arrested, there were 411 Taiwanese, 180 mainland Chinese, three Thais, two South Koreans, and one citizen each from Cambodia and Vietnam, according to Taiwan's Criminal Investigation Bureau.
Indonesia said 170 people were arrested there, and Malaysian federal police told the New Straits Times that 37 people were arrested there.
The 186 suspects arrested in Cambodia were expected to be deported by air to China and Taiwan on Friday night, according to police in Cambodia and Taiwan.
The ring leaders, mostly Taiwanese, first recruited Chinese to help conduct phone frauds from the mainland. Following tough crackdowns in both Taiwan and China, they then moved their equipment to Southeast Asia from where they continued to conduct the frauds, Wang said.
It was not clear what charges would be pressed in any of the countries. Cross-border crime is difficult to prosecute, and laws are hazy concerning crimes conducted over the Internet.
Authorities in Taiwan and China have agreed to repatriate the suspects to their own provinces for prosecution, according to a 2009 crime-busting agreement, Wang said.
Indonesian authorities have also agreed to repatriate the suspects, but Thailand and Malaysia may prefer to handle them according to their own laws, he added.
Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Apple is recalling some of its iPad2 tablets that is designed to run on Verizon's network for connectivity issues.
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| Apple Inc |
"Duplicate MEID codes were flashed onto an extremely small number of iPad units for the Verizon 3G network," an Apple spokeswoman said.
The company declined to say how many units were impacted by the issue.
Verizon declined to comment.
MEID, which stands for mobile equipment identifier, is a unique number that is used to identify a mobile device when it connects to the network. Two devices cannot have the same MEIDcode.
Apple is replacing the affected units that were already sold with new ones.
LinedIn's listing on US stock market gave a big boost in confidence to the online tech companies to go public. As other small firms gears up to list on the stock market before the risk appetite of the investors vanished away due to slow recovery in US economy. Latest news in the IPO buzz was Online radio company Pandora Media increased the proposed value of its initial public offering by almost 50 percent, hoping to catch investor fever that has taken Internet companies such as LinkedIn to new heights.
The Oakland, California-based company is seeking to raise $161.5 million, representing 14,684,000 shares priced at $10 to $12 each.
Last week, Pandora said in a filing that it planned to raise $109.5 million with the sale of 13,684,000 shares, offered at $7 to $9 each.
Pandora runs an online service that allows users to stream free music based on feedback from the listener. It is the latest hot Internet company to file for its public debut, after a string of other high-profile peers that include online daily deal site Groupon.
Tech Five: Technology Headlines for June 10 2011 ( Friday ) !!
1. Google has just spent around $400 million to buy Admeld--a service to keep "premium publishers on the cutting edge of advertising tech," which has a client list including Fox News and Answers.com. Admeld has just raised $30 million in venture funding, but will now find its future interwoven with Google's existing, extensive and market-dominating Net ad service.
2. The arrival of Apple's iMessage system this week has caused much discussion about the death of traditional SMS and rival with BlackBerry's popular BBM system (one big draw for younger RIM clients). But it's now said Google has already developed a similar messaging system for Android--one that's far different from existing gtalk IM systems, and which also uses the data backchannel from Android phones to circumvent SMS charges.
3. Apple has taken big steps to intervene in the lawsuit against several of its developers, coming from patent law firm Lodsys, by filing papers to step in to the existing suit--it's already filed its answer to the plaintiff's complaint and a counterclaim. There may be a precedent for the court to let Apple intervene, and the computer firm states it's trying to do so to protect "individuals or small entities with far fewer resources than Apple." Developers are important.
4. Security firm viaForensics sniffed through a number of popular iOS and Android apps and found that Netflix, LinkedIn and Foursquare all stored user account passwords in a plain-readable unencrypted format--an inexcusable security slip-up. Square's iOS app also keeps user's signatures, transaction amounts and the final four figures of a credit card number unencrypted--not enough to be a problem, unless thieves were really enterprising, but still inexcusable.
5. Behold the Weiner effect: In the period after Rep. Anthony Weiner was embroiled in his lewd photo Twitter disaster, members of Congress have, en masse, slowed their tweet rate. In fact tweets from both parties reduced their tweet rate by around 30% this week. Another sign of the sheer power that Twitter now wields.
( Source: Fast Company )
Penny Stock Recon Technology Ltd ( NASDAQ: RCON ), stock jumped more than 60 % without any specific news. Volumes are picking up as more intraday traders participating i the trade. One might consider small trading opportunity for intraday gains.
Our Call: Small trade positions might be initiated at current levels.
Chelsea Therapeutics ( NASDAQ: CHTP ), stock jumped more than 18 % in the morning trade after company reported that its patented Northera Treatment provide durable beneficial effects. As far as hte impact of the news is concerned, stock might see big upside from here. Also One analyst Roth Capital's David Moskowitz has raised a price target from $6 to $18. He is expecting possible FDA approval as early as Q1. He believes the drug could generate $250 million of annual sales by 2015.
Our Call: Traders and Investors might take a buy positions.
Below is the News Release about Chelsea's Northera Treatment.
Northera Treatment Provides Durable Beneficial Effects on both Systolic Blood Pressure and the Symptoms of NOH in Patients with Multiple System Atrophy
Robust Symptomatic Benefit of Northera Associated with Fewer Falls in Patients with NOH and Parkinson's Disease Prone to Falling
Improvements in MDS-UPDRS and Hoehn & Yahr Scores Seen with Northera Treatment May Indicate Benefit in Non-Motor and Motor Features of Parkinson's Disease
Chelsea Therapeutics International, Ltd. (Nasdaq: CHTP) announced that new data from Phase III trials in symptomatic neurogenic orthostatic hypotension (NOH) demonstrating the activity and tolerability of NORTHERA™ (droxidopa), an orally active synthetic precursor of norepinephrine, were presented at the Movement Disorder Society's 15th International Congress of Parkinson's Disease and Movement Disorders in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
In addition to the two posters presentations, Chelsea sponsored a symposium detailing the clinical results of Northera for the treatment of neurogenic orthostatic hypotension and reviewing the role of norepinephrine depletion in the pathophysiology of Parkinson's disease (PD) and autonomic failure. Copies of both posters and the presentations from the symposium are available on the Chelsea website at www.chelseatherapeutics.com.
In a poster, "Safety and efficacy of Northera (droxidopa) in Multiple System Atrophy," (Abstract Number: 778), Gregor K. Wenning, MD, PhD MSc, Medical University, Innsbruck, Austria, highlighted the results of a meta-analysis of Northera Studies 301 and 302 showing the mean Orthostatic Hypotension Questionnaire (OHQ) composite score of Northera-treated patients improved significantly (2.9 units; P<0.05) from baseline to study completion when compared to placebo-treated patients (1.7 units). Greater improvement in standing systolic blood pressure, mean composite Orthostatic Hypotension Symptom Assessment (OHSA), and Orthostatic Hypotension Daily Activity Scale (OHDAS) scores of the Northera- vs. placebo-treated patients was also observed. These findings were consistent with the results of the full study population in Study 301, presented by Dr. Wenning during the symposium, in which Northera-treated patients demonstrated improvements in multiple signs and symptoms of NOH including a statistically significant (p=0.003) improvement in OHQ Composite score, statistically significant benefit in 8 out of 10 individual OHQ items and a significant improvement (p ≤ 0.001) in standing SBP compared to placebo.
Detailing the results from Northera Study 306A, in a poster "Efficacy of Northera (droxidopa) in Patients with Neurogenic Orthostatic Hypotension associated with Parkinson's disease (PD)," (Abstract Number: LB21) and during his symposium presentation, Robert A. Hauser, MD, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, described the symptomatic benefit of Northera treatment in this population and the associated reduction in falls reported during the study. Of note, Dr. Hauser reported that data from the study suggests that a majority of patients with symptomatic NOH and PD fall, and many of these fall more than once, in a 10-week period. In Study 306A, approximately 43% of patients fell more than once during the course of the study. Among these repeat fallers, the robust benefit of Northera treatment in reducing dizziness and improving Hoehn & Yahr (HY) and the Movement Disorder Society-sponsored revision of the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (MDS-UPDRS) scores was associated with a 60% reduction in falls and 52% reduction in falls-related injuries.
The pronounced improvement in MDS-UPDRS and HY scores among Northera-treated patients in Study 306A further suggests that Northera may provide therapeutic benefit in the non-motor and motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease beyond the symptomatic improvement of NOH. In addition to a mean improvement of 1.37 units on Part I of the MDS-UPDRS (non-motor experiences of daily living), Northera treatment showed a mean improvement of 2.1 units on Part II of the MDS-UPDRS (motor experiences of daily living) and a 0.4 unit improvement in HY scores over the course of the treatment period.
"The results from our clinical trials in neurogenic orthostatic hypotension have consistently highlighted the broad symptomatic benefits of Northera in patients with autonomic failure and we are delighted to have had these findings showcased at the Movement Disorder Society's annual meeting," commented Dr. Art Hewitt, Chelsea's Chief Scientific Officer. "These most recent data from Study 306A, though preliminary, suggests that in addition to chronic symptoms such as dizziness, weakness and fatigue, patients with NOH associated with Parkinson's disease are at a high risk for falls and associated injuries. If our on-going trial, Study 306B, replicates these early findings, it could not only have significant implications for the future treatment of neurogenic orthostatic hypotension but could also have important implications for subsequent studies in Parkinson's disease and other movement disorders associated with norepinephrine depletion. "
About Neurogenic Orthostatic Hypotension
NOH is a neurogenic disorder resulting from deficient release of norepinephrine, the neurotransmitter used by sympathetic autonomic nerves to send signals to the blood vessels and the heart to regulate blood pressure. This deficiency results in lightheadedness, dizziness, blurred vision and fainting episodes when a person assumes a standing position. Symptoms of chronic NOH can be incapacitating, not only putting patients at high risk for falls and associated injuries, but also severely affecting the quality of life of patients and their loved ones. The only FDA-approved treatment for orthostatic hypotension has a black box warning indicating that the drug has not been shown to be effective in alleviating the symptoms of the condition and is associated with a pronounced side-effect profile including significant supine hypertension.
About Northera
NORTHERA™ (droxidopa), the lead investigational agent in Chelsea Therapeutics' broad pipeline, is currently in Phase III clinical trials for the treatment of symptomatic neurogenic orthostatic hypotension (NOH) in patients with primary autonomic failure – a group of diseases that includes Parkinson's disease, multiple system atrophy (MSA [FREE Stock Trend Analysis]) and pure autonomic failure (PAF). Droxidopa is a synthetic catecholamine that is directly converted to norepinephrine (NE) via decarboxylation, resulting in increased levels of NE in the nervous system, both centrally and peripherally. Droxidopa is also being studied for the treatment of fibromyalgia in an ongoing Phase II trial and completed a Phase II trial in intradialytic hypotension (IDH) study with positive results.
About Chelsea Therapeutics
Chelsea Therapeutics is a biopharmaceutical development company that acquires and develops innovative products for the treatment of a variety of human diseases. Chelsea's most advanced drug candidate, NORTHERA™ (droxidopa), is an orally active synthetic precursor of norepinephrine initially being developed for the treatment of neurogenic orthostatic hypotension. In addition to Droxidopa, Chelsea is also developing a portfolio of metabolically inert oral antifolate molecules engineered to have potent anti-inflammatory and anti-tumor activity to treat a range of immunological disorders, including two clinical stage product candidates: CH-1504 and CH-4051. Preclinical and clinical data suggest superior safety and tolerability, as well as increased potency versus methotrexate.
This press release contains forward-looking statements regarding future events. These statements are just predictions and are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause the actual events or results to differ materially. These risks and uncertainties include risk of regulatory approvals, including our planned NDA for Northera; risks and costs of drug development, including the uncertainty of cost, timing and outcome of clinical trials; our reliance on our lead drug candidates Droxidopa and CH-4051; our need to raise operating capital; our history of losses; reliance on collaborations and licenses; intellectual property risks; competition; market acceptance for our products, if any are approved for marketing; and reliance on key personnel including specifically Dr. Pedder.
A 54-year-old Chicago-area man who found and returned more than $17,000 in cash credits his deceased parents for teaching him right from wrong.
Robert Adams of Arlington Heights says he was waiting to use an ATM in Rolling Meadows,
when he noticed a clear plastic bag containing mostly $20 and $100 bills.
when he noticed a clear plastic bag containing mostly $20 and $100 bills.
Adams tried to return the bag with "Chase" written on it to a nearby bank branch but employees said it didn't belong to them.
Police determined it was under the care of Loomis, an armored truck company.
Police determined it was under the care of Loomis, an armored truck company.
Loomis says they are investigating, but have not said whether Adams will get a reward.
Adams told the Daily Herald (Arlington Heights): "I don't care if you put another zero on there, I wasn't raised to take money that isn't mine."
Information from: Daily Herald, http://www.dailyherald.com
Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
