Saturday, July 12, 2014

A government that grasps the obvious? What a concept! Makes me wish it was our government. (Sounds like they still haven't found the really intrusive stuff, so don't tell them, okay?)
Apple's iPhone branded a 'national security concern'
Apple's iPhone has been labeled a "national security concern" by Chinese state broadcasters as relations between the country and US over cybersecurity worsen.
The influential state-sponsored China Central Television broadcast declared the iPhone a "national security concern" as part of its national noon broadcast on Friday, according to the Wall Street Journal. CCT criticized the "frequent locations" function present on Apple's iOS 7 operating system, declaring that researchers believe data points recorded by the service could give those with access to this data knowledge of Chinese concerns and even "state secrets."


A challenge for my Computer Security students.
Banks Try to Tame Gadget-Flooded Workplace with Management Software
by Sabrina I. Pacifici on Jul 11, 2014
American Banker: “MDM [mobile device management] software has been available for awhile, but it is being slowly adopted by banks. Many of these banks once used only BlackBerry products, but the Ponemon study found that 23% of banks are migrating from BlackBerry to a multi-OS mobile environment and 18% plan to do so. And a recent Forrester survey found that 20% of “mobile decision-makers” at U.S. companies with more than 1,000 employees are so eager to use their own devices that they would be willing to help pay for the opportunity; 11% said they would be willing to pay the entire cost if they could get the smartphone of their choice. Another driver for MDM software in banking is the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council’s guidelines on cloud computing, which were issued in mid-2012 but are still being digested by many in the industry. The regulators say, among other things, that banks must know where their data is at all times. At the $1.4 billion-asset Needham Bank, MDM software from MobileIron has helped with regulatory compliance and automatic provisioning. “It gives auditors an increased level of comfort that we know exactly what’s going on with that fleet [of devices],” Gordon says. “We can also help users set up devices more rapidly than we would have otherwise.” A recent IT project proved the software’s worth, Gordon says. The bank redeployed a wireless network, setting up sub-networks to handle data security and software distribution separately for executives, IT and general users.”

(Ditto) Worth a read, Computer Security students. These are your future employers!
The Soft Underbelly of Enterprise Cybersecurity: Small Business Readiness
For the better part of the last two years, I’ve been on a bit of a personal campaign.
I’ve talked to more than 50 individual business owners - a set of folks that represents pretty much the entire spectrum of what I’d call the “everyday life” industries - about cybersecurity and the risks their businesses face. Sadly, not once have I encountered a small business owner who knew much more than my dad about network or computer security.


Perhaps an “Academic Search Engine” or one controlled by an organization like the Privacy Foundation ( http://www.law.du.edu/index.php/privacy-foundation ) might reduce the bias? OR we could leave it to my Ethical Hackers...
Why we need an underground Google
There has never been a search engine that accurately reflects the Internet.
In the 1990s and 2000s, the limitation was technical. The so-called "deep web" and "dark Internet" -- which sound shady and mysterious, but simply refer to web sites inaccessible by conventional means -- have always existed.
Many parts of the Internet are hard to index, or are blocked from being indexed by their owners.
Companies like Google have worked hard to surface and bring light to the "deep, dark" recesses of the global web on a technical level.
But in the past few years, a disturbing trend has emerged where governments -- either through law or technical means or by the control of the companies that provide access -- have forced inaccuracy, omissions and misleading results on the world's major search engines.


If Harvard says it, it must be true!
Millennials Are Entering a Changed Workplace. Not.
Sometimes the U.S. government’s exhaustively and exhaustingly dry reports yield startling results, as Fortune discovered. A Department of Education study of college graduates shows, for example, that the wage gap starts early: Four years out of college, male graduates were already making much more than their female counterparts, even if you control for field of study and other factors. A male engineer, for instance, earned $68,000, on average, while his female peer earned $65,817.
Another finding: The 65.2% of for-profit college graduates who were employed and not in school earned a full-time median salary of $54,000, compared with $47,500 and $45,000, respectively, for graduates of private nonprofit and public universities.

(On the other hand)
Majority of STEM College Graduates Do Not Work in STEM Occupations
Census news release: “The U.S. Census Bureau reported today that 74 percent of those who have a bachelor’s degree in science, technology, engineering and math — commonly referred to as STEM — are not employed in STEM occupations. In addition, men continue to be overrepresented in STEM, especially in computer and engineering occupations. About 86 percent of engineers and 74 percent of computer professionals are men. “STEM graduates have relatively low unemployment, however these graduates are not necessarily employed in STEM occupations,” said Liana Christin Landivar, a sociologist in the Census Bureau’s Industry and Occupation Statistics Branch. According to new statistics from the 2012 American Community Survey, engineering and computer, math and statistics majors had the largest share of graduates going into a STEM field with about half employed in a STEM occupation. Science majors had fewer of their graduates employed in STEM.


“You can fool some of the people all of the time” but you can't call them ignorant without being called names yourself.
Old 'Jurassic Park' Photo of Steven Spielberg With 'Dead' Triceratops Caused Controversy
Steven Spielberg meant no harm 20 years ago when he posed with a "dead" dinosaur on the set of "Jurassic Park". The old pic caused controversy this week when humorist Jay Branscomb posted it on Facebook in the wake of criticism against teen hunter Kendall Jones.
In a bizarre situation, Spielberg was accused of slaughtering an animal that has been dead million of years ago. Branscomb posted the 1993 snapshot and jokingly captioned it, "Disgraceful photo of recreational hunter happily posing next to a Triceratops he just slaughtered. Please share so the world can name and shame this despicable man."


I've been thinking about having my students make videos explaining Math concepts. Then I can show them to the next class. (Eventually, I'll have students do all the work.)
How To Make Whiteboard Videos For Your Website
One of the coolest tools for creating visual online content in recent years is the “whiteboard” video. You know the type—a hand, a pen, a whiteboard, and some fun drawings that help bolster your online brand and generate a lot of social shares. Have you ever wanted to make a whiteboard video for your company? I set out to see how it could be done, and found out that it’s actually really easy!


For my students.
7 Blogs You Should Really Read If You Are A Student Programmer


Another week, another series of belly laughs!
A class action lawsuit has been filed charging that the Los Angeles Unified School District does not provide students with enough PE.
… Sarah Houghton, “Librarian in Black,” discovered that Rosetta Stone “was setting ad tracking cookies (without disclosure or consent) on the personal computers of any library users who used the Library Edition that is offered through their libraries. This applied not only to the full product, but also to any library offering a temporary trial of the product.” Rosetta Stone say they’ve addressed the issue.
… “LG has announced a wrist-worn device designed to let parents keep track of where their child is and listen to what they are up to,” reports the BBC.
… The Gates Foundation is backing the development of a birth control chip that lasts up to 16 years and can be turned on and off via remote and omg what could possibly go wrong. [An Internet of Things thing... Bob]
… The US Department of Education is spending $3 million on research to gauge the effectiveness of Khan Academy.

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