gHacks technology news » information http://www.ghacks.net A technology blog covering software, mobile phones, gadgets, security, the Internet and other relevant areas. Tue, 24 Nov 2009 23:31:44 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.6 en hourly 1 UK. Sensitive Information. Need We Say More? http://www.ghacks.net/2009/04/12/uk-sensitive-information-need-we-say-more/ http://www.ghacks.net/2009/04/12/uk-sensitive-information-need-we-say-more/#comments Sun, 12 Apr 2009 16:32:48 +0000 Martin http://www.ghacks.net/2009/04/12/uk-sensitive-information-need-we-say-more/ secretThe massive increase in data collection throughout the world has not led to responsible data storage laws. That is an imbalance that becomes obvious especially in one country these days. The UK is amassing heaps of data about their citizens for their fight against terrorism (and other causes) but is failing miserably over and over again when it comes to securing that data.

Think of past stories like top secret information in a digital camera that got sold for a few pounds on eBay or the discovery of an USB stick outside a pub containing information about 12 million British citizens.

This time it was mere paper that was responsible for a data leak. Most users would think that pre-computer age politicians would know how to handle at least secure information on paper properly. This is apparently not the case as police chief Bob Quick managed to carry a document marked secret in public which immediately caught the attention of bystanding photographers.

bob quick

The document, which can be viewed on the Guardian’s website contained information about an anti-terrorist raid. The details were extensive including names, addresses and command structures. The raid had to be conducted in bright daylight because of the security leak.

As Dante, who send me a link to the story points out: “It’s not just electronic security that
counts. It’’s also what happens when a user prints out the data.”

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]]> http://www.ghacks.net/2009/04/12/uk-sensitive-information-need-we-say-more/feed/ 2 Evaluate Document Information Leak Level http://www.ghacks.net/2008/09/18/evaluate-document-information-leak-level/ http://www.ghacks.net/2008/09/18/evaluate-document-information-leak-level/#comments Thu, 18 Sep 2008 16:53:22 +0000 Martin http://www.ghacks.net/?p=7068 SolFileFinder is a risk visualization tool for Microsoft Office and Adobe PDF documents as well as zip files. It searches Microsoft Office 2003 and Microsoft Office 2007 documents encrypted by IRM (Information Rights Managements) or PWD (password) and Adobe Acrobat PDF documents and Zip files encrypted by PWD.

The software can be used to scan multiple partitions at once. It displays a list of all found Microsoft Office, Adobe PDF and zip files on the selected partitions listing both the encrypted files and those that are not encrypted.

Additional information is displayed in the list like the path and name of the document, the size and the date the file was modified. The software program can be used even if the corresponding applications are not installed on the system.

evaluate documents

A Risk Evaluation Report On Information Leak is created at the end which provides detailed information about the discovered files and their information leak risk. SolFileFinder is compatible to Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows Server 2003 / 2008.

It states on the download page that the download is a trial version but there does not seem to be any restrictions.

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]]> http://www.ghacks.net/2008/09/18/evaluate-document-information-leak-level/feed/ 0 Organize yourself with Tobu http://www.ghacks.net/2008/06/18/organize-yourself-with-tobu/ http://www.ghacks.net/2008/06/18/organize-yourself-with-tobu/#comments Wed, 18 Jun 2008 12:05:02 +0000 Daniel Pataki http://www.ghacks.net/?p=5028 As you may know from my blog, I love information organizers. I think that sounds a bit sad looking back at that sentence, but nevertheless I do, and I cam across a cool little application today called Tobu. I think this is a great application for a number of reasons, but while getting into details would take ages, I can tell you right off the bat that Tobu isn’t for everyone.

It’s one of those applications that will be used by the geeky sort, those who don’t mind a stark exterior with a pretty complicated interface. Tobu is also different because as it describes itself, it is a “freeform information organizer”, and that pretty much holds up. You can use it for task lists, notes, thoughts, ideas, project planning, anything you like, but it will take some time to think it through and apply it.

The basics of it is that you create notes, with a name, a tag and a description. You can then simply list your notes by tag, or tag combination. That’s really all to it, but underneath this simple method lies a pretty complicated system. Tags are the main way of navigating, just enter one or more and items will pop out quickly. You can also see the relation each item has to other tags for cross reference.

Tobu information managerWhat I love about Tobu is that it really lets you do anything. Tag all your tasks with “task” (how original), and when you list items in that tag you will get your task list. You can also use “today”, “tomorrow” and other tags to designate time frames and schedules. Tag all your notes with “note” (I’m really something aren’t I?) and you can list all of them, seeing all the other tags applied, or list ones in the “notes” and “blog” section for notes about your blog.

The power of Tobu, and all other application like it is that they only provide the framework, while you provide the method. This makes these applications the most flexible out there, but you need the best possible composure to use them effectively. If consistency is your cup of tea however, you will love Tobu.

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]]> http://www.ghacks.net/2008/06/18/organize-yourself-with-tobu/feed/ 0 How to bypass Internet Censorship http://www.ghacks.net/2006/12/19/how-to-bypass-internet-censorship/ http://www.ghacks.net/2006/12/19/how-to-bypass-internet-censorship/#comments Tue, 19 Dec 2006 20:08:07 +0000 Martin http://www.ghacks.net/2006/12/19/how-to-bypass-internet-censorship/ If you are looking for a comprehensive, and I mean really really comprehensive, guide on bypassing internet censorship you might want to take a look at the excellent guide written by Freerk. The guide is divided into two parts; The first analyzes different methods to censor information on the internet and the second part describes different ways to bypass censorship.

It describes methods to censor websites like blocking url’s via the DNS server that for instance the German government likes to use which can be easily countered by using the IP or an DNS server that does not block the website. So, for every action (censorship) you find the corresponding reaction (bypass). Excellent read for everyone whose country, company or institution has decided to block certain information.

Kinds of censorship described:

  • Blocked URL’s via the DNS-server
  • Forced proxy server / transparent proxy
  • Keyword filter
  • Blocked ports
  • Software on the client (child protection e.t.c)
  • Censorware on the server (inside of networks)
  • Whitelist
  • IP blocking on the routers

Ways to bypass Censorship:

  • Using a different ISP
  • Using a not censoring DNS-server
  • Using a non censoring proxy server
  • Using a Web-2-phone service
  • Using a webproxy
  • Get Webpages via eMail
  • Using steganography
  • Using a special proxy like peer-2-peer program
  • Special Services

Everything is explained in detail and links are provided where necessary. I have decided to pick out some of the more common methods to censor and bypass information in the coming days – stay tuned.

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