May 2014

Iran-Based Cyberspies Targeting US Officials, Report Alleges

Hackers apparently based in Iran have mounted a three-year campaign of cyberespionage against high-ranking US and international officials, including a four-star admiral, to gather intelligence on economic sanctions, antinuclear proliferation efforts and other issues, according to cybersecurity investigators.

Using an elaborate ruse involving more than a dozen personas working for a fake US news organization, the hackers developed connections to their targets through websites like Facebook and LinkedIn to trick them into giving up personal data and logon information, the investigators say. The alleged campaign, which dates back at least to 2011 and is still under way, principally has focused on US and Israeli targets in public and private sectors, but also has included similar officials in countries such as the UK, Saudi Arabia, Syria and Iraq, according to the investigators.

Google Releases Employee Data, Illustrating Tech’s Diversity Challenge

Google released statistics on the make-up of its workforce, providing numbers that offer a stark glance at how Silicon Valley remains a white man’s world.

Thirty percent of Google’s 46,170 employees worldwide are women, the company said, and 17 percent of its technical employees are women. Comparatively, 47 percent of the total workforce in the United States is women and 20 percent of software developers are women, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Of its United States employees, 61 percent are white, 2 percent are black and 3 percent are Hispanic. About one-third are Asian -- well above the national average -- and 4 percent are of two or more races.

Of Google’s technical staff, 60 percent are white, 1 percent are black, 2 percent are Hispanic, 34 percent are Asian and 3 percent are of two or more races. In the United States workforce over all, 80 percent of employees are white, 12 percent are black and 5 percent are Asian, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Google’s disclosures come amid an escalating debate over the lack of diversity in the tech industry. Although tech is a key driver of the economy and makes products that many Americans use everyday, it does not come close to reflecting the demographics of the country -- in terms of sex, age or race. The lopsided numbers persist among engineers, founders and boards of directors.

Mayor de Blasio Details Tech Investments in City Schools To Close Achievement Gap and Better Prepare all Students for The Workforce

As Internet Week continues, Mayor Bill de Blasio detailed key investments in this year’s budget that will support technology in city schools, helping close the achievement gap and lift up students in every neighborhood.

Joined by Schools Chancellor Carmen Fariña and venture capitalist Fred Wilson at the Bronx Academy for Software Engineering (BASE), the Mayor will announce a $20-million investment in new devices and software to increase classroom connectivity, and a $650 million capital investment in wiring City schools and securing new hardware that keeps pace with the emerging ‘tech ecosystem.’

BASE is one of two new unscreened high schools that offer computer science to all students as part of standard Regents-prep high school experience. BASE has connections to major tech firms and groups like Google, New York Tech Meetup, General Assembly, Girls Who Code and StartUp Box: South Bronx. In addition, the school’s partnerships with the Museum of the Moving Image and NPower, facilitated by the Digital Ready program funded by the Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment, build teacher capacity to use technology in the classroom.

As part of this year’s executive budget, the City is making significant new investments to increase the availability of technology in the classroom, and boost programs that allow students to pursue computer science-related academic tracks. Those initiatives include:

Increasing Enrollment in Comprehensive Computer Science Education:
Increasing Teachers’ Technology Expertise
Increasing Use of Technology in the Classroom
Increasing School Connectivity
Increasing Higher Education STEM Programs

Lawmakers to unveil bill for pre-1972 recordings

Reps George Holding (R-NC) and John Conyers (D-MI) are set to introduce a bill that would require Internet radio services like Pandora and Sirius XM to pay to play songs that were recorded before 1972.

The bill from Reps Holding and Conyers -- the Respecting Senior Performers as Essential Cultural Treasures, or RESPECT, Act -- would require Internet radio services to pay federal performance royalty fees for the older recordings.

The call for performance royalty fees for pre-1972 recordings is supported by industry groups and musicians, some of whom -- including Martha Reeves, Dickey Betts and Al Jardine -- are set to appear at the bill’s unveiling.

House lawmakers want answers from eBay

A bipartisan duo of House lawmakers has questions for eBay about its recent data breach. Reps Joe Barton (R-TX) and Bobby Rush (D-IL) told eBay chief John Donahoe that they share “some concerns regarding the data security practices of personal information at eBay.”

The lawmakers, who are both members of the Bipartisan Privacy Caucus, want to know if the company is still gathering details about the full scope of the hack and how users have been affected. They also asked whether or not eBay is looking to overhaul its security standards in light of the hack and if it had noticed a decrease in security breaches in recent years.

How Better Tech Education Can Unlock a Half-Trillion Dollar Opportunity

At the Code Conference, Code.org co-founder Hadi Partovi and Harvey Mudd College President Maria Klawe highlighted the grand challenge of getting more students into coding, particularly females and minorities.

The nonprofit Code.org aims to boost computer science skills by making classes available in more schools. Specifically, they want to make coding part of the core curriculum in education, alongside reading, writing and arithmetic. A growing amount of attention has been paid to getting more students interested in STEM subjects -- science, technology, engineering and math -- but both Partovi and Klawe said the effort is too broadly defined. There are more graduates than jobs in fields like biology and chemistry, but a yawning gap between graduating computer science students and open positions. “It drives me crazy when Obama says we need more STEM graduates,” Klawe said. “Because we overproduce in biology and chemistry in particular, and then they don’t get jobs that use any of that education.” She added that programming skills help students or professionals in any field they choose. “From my perspective, computer science is something that everyone needs,” she said.

Attorney General Holder: Journalists Won't Be Jailed For Doing Their Jobs

Attorney General Eric Holder told journalists that as long as he is on the job, no journalist will go to jail for doing his or her job.

That came in a meeting between Attorney General Holder, deputy attorney general James Cole, and other DOJ officials, and members of the news media and the representatives to talk about recent revisions to Justice's guidelines on government information-gathering from journalists.

During the meeting, according to Justice, journalists asked DOJ to reconsider some of the language announced in February, with a focus on the scope of newsgathering activities covered by the guidelines.

In essence, the change makes the default setting having to give notice to news media of data collection unless there is an affirmative showing that to do so would threaten the integrity of the investigation, risk grave harm to national security or pose an imminent risk to life and limb. DOJ also modified search warrant policies so that journalist work product cannot be sought under the "suspect" exception unless the journalist is the focus of the criminal investigation. Attorney General Holder has to approve any search warrants and court orders directed to members of the news media.

Norquist: Don’t tax the Net

Americans for Tax Reform head Grover Norquist wants House lawmakers to permanently ban any tax on companies providing Internet service. In a letter to leaders of the House Judiciary Committee, Norquist said that a current bill in Congress would prevent “punitive and discriminatory” taxes from limiting the power of the Web.

“Excessive taxes will hinder continued growth in the digital space,” he wrote. “Allowing the Internet access tax moratorium to lapse would certainly lead to higher tax rates on consumers and reduce the rate of adoption and innovation. The Internet is our greatest gateway to innovation and education, higher taxes on Internet access undermines American economic competiveness and growth.”

The Permanent Internet Tax Freedom Act would ban state and local governments from enacting taxes on Internet service. Unless it is passed this year, a 1998 law temporarily prohibiting the taxes would lapse, clearing the way for governments who might be eyeing taxes on Internet service companies as a way to fill their coffers.

Nielsen Increases Local Sample Sizes

Nielsen announced what it calls “a significant and broad expansion” to its ongoing sample improvement plan for local television markets.

Starting this year, Nielsen will increase the sample size in 15 Local People Meter markets. Five previously announced markets -- Dallas, Washington, Houston, Miami and Denver -- will see an increase of 200 homes this year.

The two largest markets, New York and Los Angeles, will have their sample sizes increased by 300 homes next year. In addition, the following eight markets will each have their sample size increased by 200 homes in 2015: Charlotte, St. Louis, Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Boston, Atlanta and Phoenix.

These sample increases represent on average a 30% increase in sample size. In the 31 set meter markets, Nielsen will expand the sample by 200 homes in each market over the next two years. The addition of these 6,200 homes represents an almost 50% increase in sample size across the set meter market footprint, Nielsen says.

SoftBank’s Son on US: “Regulation in This Country Is Wrong”

SoftBank CEO and Sprint Chairman Masayoshi Son continued his unusual campaign to convince regulators to let him buy T-Mobile but criticizing the US wireless market, broadband speeds and regulation at the Code Conference.

“Regulation in this country is wrong,” Son said, saying that telecommunications and anti-trust regulators have allowed an environment in which “the monopolist can become even more stronger.” Americans are satisfied with their Internet speeds because they don’t know any better, Son said, comparing it to Chinese people who have grown used to living under gray, smoggy skies. While the US dominated the 20th century because of its robust infrastructure -- both highway and electricity -- it’s falling behind now, he said.

Although Son wouldn’t say the word T-Mobile -- he just referred to his desire to buy an American wireless carrier -- he said that regulators haven’t been very excited about talking to him about his possible deal.

“They don’t want to see me,” he said. “They don’t want to talk about things like this.” One thing they might want to talk about is Son’s comment that he “provide network neutrality” on his network if he’s allowed to buy T-Mobile.

Benton

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