Days of the 'bank job' are numbered

27 December 2013 Last updated at 07:34 ET By Dave Lee Technology reporter, BBC News

The number of robberies on British bank branches has dropped by 90% in the past decade, figures from the British Bankers Association suggest.

The BBA said there were 66 robberies in 2011, compared to 847 in 1992.

The drop has been attributed to a raft of innovative technologies making it extremely difficult for "traditional" robbery tactics to work.

"Banks are working hard to confine armed robberies to the world of TV dramas," BBA chief Anthony Browne said.

"Being caught up in a bank job is a terrifying ordeal for staff and customers that can scar lives for decades.

"It's great to see that the number of these crimes have fallen sharply in recent years. Anyone trying to rob a bank now faces much better CCTV, protective screens that can rise in less than a second and even special fog designed to disperse criminals.

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Fancy a bank account with $300,000 (£184,000) in it? If you know where to look and you don't mind dealing with cybercriminals then the going rate is just $300, a study of the hacking underworld suggests.

"Banks will continue to work closely with each other, post offices and the police to make such raids a thing of the past."

Disorientating fog

A similar trend has been noted in the US, where FBI figures for 2012 put the number of bank robberies nationwide at 3,870 - the lowest in decades.

In an effort to deter criminals and make branch workers safer, banks have made significant investments in security technology.

These range from simple barriers - which drop down when a panic button is pressed - to special "fog" that disorientates criminals.

"DNA" spray is another common deterrent - robbers are coated with a unique, traceable material that is extremely difficult to wash off skin and can prove that a suspect was at the premises of a robbery.

Combined, the measures mean the risks outweigh any potential gains - particularly as bank branches typically store less cash on the premises than in previous years.

Shift to online

However, while brute-force bank robberies are dropping, banks - and their customers - are still under threat from crime.

Official statistics from the Met Police confirm that business robberies were down 31% in London over the past decade, reports the BBC's business correspondent Joe Lynam, but some thieves have switched their focus to the vehicles that transport money between banks.

More significant is the growing rate of cyber-crime relating to banks and other financial transactions.

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Loretta Lynch, US attorney: "Instead of guns and masks, they used laptops and malware"

Recently, 40 million credit card details held by major US retail chain Target were compromised and are now being sold online. The attack, according to one security researcher, originated in Ukraine.

In a separate attack, criminals based in New York obtained $45m (£29m) by accessing a database of information used by cash machines. Seven men were charged in May.

Beyond bank details, hackers - the new generation of robbers - are also scooping up personal details and packaging them up to be sold on.

Full dossiers of information about an individual, including bank details, are routinely sold on the online black market for around $30, a recent study suggested.

Follow Dave Lee on Twitter @DaveLeeBBC

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Cash machines raided with USB sticks

30 December 2013 Last updated at 08:48 ET By Chris Vallance BBC Radio 4

Researchers have revealed how cyber-thieves sliced into cash machines in order to infect them with malware earlier this year.

The criminals cut the holes in order to plug in USB drives that installed their code onto the ATMs.

Details of the attacks on an unnamed European bank's cash dispensers were presented at the hacker-themed Chaos Computing Congress in Hamburg, Germany.

The crimes also appear to indicate the thieves mistrusted each other.

The two researchers who detailed the attacks have asked for their names not to be published

Access code

The thefts came to light in July after the lender involved noticed several its ATMs were being emptied despite their use of safes to protect the cash inside.

After surveillance was increased, the bank discovered the criminals were vandalising the machines to use the infected USB sticks.

Once the malware had been transferred they patched the holes up. This allowed the same machines to be targeted several times without the hack being discovered.

To activate the code at the time of their choosing the thieves typed in a 12-digit code that launched a special interface.

Analysis of software installed onto four of the affected machines demonstrated that it displayed the amount of money available in each denomination of note and presented a series of menu options on the ATM's screen to release each kind.

The researchers said this allowed the attackers to focus on the highest value banknotes in order to minimise the amount of time they were exposed.

But the crimes' masterminds appeared to be concerned that some of their gang might take the drives and go solo.

To counter this risk the software required the thief to enter a second code in response to numbers shown on the ATM's screen before they could release the money.

The correct response varied each time and the thief could only obtain the right code by phoning another gang member and telling them the numbers displayed.

If they did nothing the machine would return to its normal state after three minutes.

The researchers added the organisers displayed "profound knowledge of the target ATMs" and had gone to great lengths to make their malware code hard to analyse.

However, they added that the approach did not extend to the software's filenames - the key one was called hack.bat.

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Moshi Monsters boss honoured

30 December 2013 Last updated at 17:59 ET By Leo Kelion Technology reporter

The founder of Mind Candy, the creators of Moshi Monsters, has been awarded an OBE in the New Year Honours list.

Michael Acton Smith created the firm nearly a decade ago, but it was not until 2008 that he released the adopt-a-pet-monster online game.

The title - which targets six-to-12-year-olds - now has more than 80 million registered users worldwide.

ARM Holdings' Warren East was among the other tech leaders honoured.

The 52-year-old retired as the Cambridge-based computer chip designer's chief executive in July. He received a CBE.

Slow start

Mr Acton Smith was born in Marlow in Buckinghamshire. His first business was Firebox - an online retailer whose first product was a chess set that used shot glasses for pieces.

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• 1974: Born in Marlow, Buckinghamshire
• 1993: Studies geography at Birmingham University
• 1998: Starts first business, the online gadget retailer Firebox.com
• 2004: Forms entertainment company Mind Candy. Its first major project was Perplex City, an alternate reality treasure hunt game that launched the following year
• 2007: Second season of Perplex City is indefinitely put on put on hold after firm's finances come under strain
• 2008: Moshi Monsters is released to the public
• 2011: Voted 12th in Wired Magazine's Top 100 of Britain's Digital Power List
• 2011: Moshi Monsters announces it has 50 million users worldwide
• 2013: Moshi Monsters wins Interactive Prize at the Children's Baftas

Its success helped convince investor Spark Ventures to back a second start-up, Mind Candy.

But the entertainment firm's first project, Perplex City, proved a harder sell. The alternate reality game used the internet, puzzle cards sold in shops, text messages and live events to lead players on a 15-month long global treasure hunt whose winner eventually netted a £100,000 prize.

The contest won awards of its own, but nearly bankrupted the firm, leading Mr Acton Smith to cancel a planned "second season".

Mind Candy then switched focus to create a simpler game for a younger audience.

Moshi Monsters launched in April 2008 allowing children to adopt, name and look after a virtual monster in Monstro City, an online world where kids can play games and communicate with other members. The basic version is free, but for a monthly fee members get access to extra features.

Disney's rival product - Club Penguin - had already proved popular, but initially it looked like the British game might become Mind Candy's second flop.

"We were getting hardly any sign-ups," Mr Acton Smith later recalled in a BBC interview.

"So, we created new characters, we created new features, new ways for kids to communicate.

"And it took about a year-and-a-half until the summer of 2009 when we hit our tipping point and things just exploded. It went viral and we started adding one new sign-up every second."

The brand now has its own magazine, spin-off smartphone app, music albums and toys. Earlier this month released its first animated movie.

Moshi Monsters also recently won the Interactive Prize in the Children's Bafta (British Academy of Film and Television Arts) Awards, which were announced in November.

Mr Acton Smith recently revealed Mind Candy was working on three non-Moshi projects, all of which were designed to be used on smartphones and tablets.

'Gadget luddite'

ARM's Warren East helped build the British chip designer into one of the world's most successful tech companies.

The firm's chip architectures power the vast majority of smartphones and tablets on the market, with clients including Samsung, Apple, Sony and LG.

Mr Smith also helped expand the firm into the computer server market, with Dell, AMD and HP among companies to begin using ARM-based processors to run data centre products.

Despite repeated rumours of the firm becoming a takeover target, Mr East has long defended its business model of staying independent and licensing its intellectual property to a broad range of customers.

"A partnership business model enables us to always work with the winners," he told the BBC last year.

"Somebody who might be the leading mobile phone supplier of the day is using our technology, but we're also working with other players who perhaps are more aspirant leaders."

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Warren East said 12 years was long enough to be in charge of ARM when he spoke to the BBC's Ben Thompson in March

Despite this, he once described himself to the Daily Telegraph as a "Luddite when it comes to gadgets".

Since stepping down from ARM, Mr East has joined the board of other tech firms including Dyson, Rolls-Royce and BT.

Netmums

Other tech-related names included in the honours list include:

• Cathy Court, Siobhan Freegard and Sally Russell, co-founders of the parental support website Netmums (OBEs)
• Joanna Shields, chief executive of Tech City UK, a government investment group for London-based start-ups (OBE)
• Michael Bracken, executive director of the Government Digital Service, which brought public services together at the gov.uk website (CBE)
• Dr Hamid Mughal, director of global manufacturing at engine maker Rolls-Royce (OBE)
• Penny Power, founder of Ecademy, a business-focussed social network (OBE)
• Dr Jenifer Tennison, technical director at the Open Data Institute, which advises the government and other organisations on how best to make data available to the public (OBE)
• Margaret McKenna, co-founder of the online training provider Learning Pool (OBE)
• Colette Bowe, chair of telecoms and media regulator Ofcom (CBE)
• Richard Eyre, chairman of the Internet Advertising Bureau trade association (CBE)

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Royal pardon for codebreaker Turing

24 December 2013 Last updated at 07:48 ET

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Computer pioneer and codebreaker Alan Turing has been given a posthumous royal pardon, as Danny Shaw reports

Computer pioneer and codebreaker Alan Turing has been given a posthumous royal pardon.

It addresses his 1952 conviction for homosexuality for which he was punished by being chemically castrated.

The conviction meant he lost his security clearance and had to stop the code-cracking work that had proved vital to the Allies in World War Two.

The pardon was granted under the Royal Prerogative of Mercy after a request by Justice Minister Chris Grayling.

'Appalling' treatment

"Dr Alan Turing was an exceptional man with a brilliant mind," said Mr Grayling.

He said the research Turing carried out during the war at Bletchley Park undoubtedly shortened the conflict and saved thousands of lives.

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Turing centenary

2012 saw a series of events that celebrated the life and work of Alan Turing. The events were held to mark the 100th anniversary of his birth

Turing's work helped accelerate Allied efforts to read German Naval messages enciphered with the Enigma machine. He also contributed some more fundamental work on codebreaking that was only released to public scrutiny in April 2012.

"His later life was overshadowed by his conviction for homosexual activity, a sentence we would now consider unjust and discriminatory and which has now been repealed," said Mr Grayling.

"Turing deserves to be remembered and recognised for his fantastic contribution to the war effort and his legacy to science. A pardon from the Queen is a fitting tribute to an exceptional man."

The pardon comes into effect on 24 December.

Turing died in June 1954 from cyanide poisoning and an inquest decided that he had committed suicide. However, biographers, friends and other students of his life dispute the finding and suggest his death was an accident.

Many people have campaigned for years to win a pardon for Turing.

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Dr Sue Black, a computer scientist, was one of the key figures in the campaign.

She told the BBC that she hoped all the men convicted under the anti-homosexuality law would now be pardoned.

"This is one small step on the way to making some real positive change happen to all the people that were convicted," she said.

"It's a disgrace that so many people were treated so disrespectfully."

Some have criticised the action for not going far enough and, 59 years after Turing's death, little more than a token gesture.

"I just think it's ridiculous, frankly," British home computing pioneer Sir Clive Sinclair told the BBC.

"He's been dead these many years so what's the point? It's a silly nonsense.

"He was such a fine, great man, and what was done was appalling of course. It makes no sense to me, because what's done is done."

'It's very wrong'

Lord Sharkey, a Liberal Democrat peer who wrote a private member's bill calling for a royal pardon in July 2012, said the decision was "wonderful news".

"This has demonstrated wisdom and compassion," he said. "It has recognised a very great British hero and made some amends for the cruelty and injustice with which Turing was treated."

Vint Cerf, the computer scientist known as one of the founding fathers of the internet, also welcomed the development.

"The royal pardon for Alan Turing rights a long-standing wrong and properly honours a man whose imagination and intellect made him legendary in our field," he told the BBC.

Technology entrepreneur Mike Lynch added: "Society didn't understand Alan Turing or his ideas on many levels but that was a reflection on us, not on him - and it has taken us 60 years to catch up."

Human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell said: "I pay tribute to the government for ensuring Alan Turing has a royal pardon at last but I do think it's very wrong that other men convicted of exactly the same offence are not even being given an apology, let alone a royal pardon.

"We're talking about at least 50,000 other men who were convicted of the same offence, of so-called gross indecency, which is simply a sexual act between men with consent."

Mr Tatchell said he would like to see Turing's death fully investigated.

"While I have no evidence that he was murdered, I do think we need to explore the possibility that he may have been killed by the security services. He was regarded as a high security risk," he said.

'Not entirely comfortable'

Glyn Hughes, the sculptor of the Alan Turing Memorial in Manchester, said it was "very gratifying" that he had finally been pardoned.

"When we set out to try and make him famous - get him recognised - it was really difficult to collect money," he said.

Continue reading the main story

Big screen

Turing's life is the subject of upcoming Hollywood movie The Imitation Game, which focuses on the cracking of the Enigma code. Starring Sherlock actor Benedict Cumberbatch as Turing, the film is due for release next year.

Channel 4's TV film Codebreaker, about the highs and lows of Turing's life, was aired in 2011.

And during the 2012 celebrations of the centenary of Turing's birth, a Welsh digital arts festival - the Abandon Normal Devices (AND) Festival - featured a laser image of Turing projected from Conwy Castle into the sky.

Although Turing was born in London, he had strong connections with north Wales.

The Italianate village of Portmeirion in Gwynedd was one of Turing's favourite places.

But it was in northern England where Turing spent the last six years of his life, working at Manchester University in various specialist fields including mathematical logic and philosophy.

"None of the big computer companies would stump up a penny for a memorial. They perhaps would now - we've come a very long way."

But he said he was "not entirely comfortable" that Turing had been pardoned while thousands of other gay men had not.

"The problem is, of course, if there was a general pardon for men who had been prosecuted for homosexuality, many of them are still alive and they could get compensation."

In December 2011, an e-petition was created on the Direct Gov site that asked for Turing to be pardoned. It received more than 34,000 signatures but its request was denied by the then justice secretary, Lord McNally, who said Turing was "properly convicted" for what was at the time a criminal offence.

Prior to that in August 2009, a petition was started to request a pardon. It won an official apology from the prime minister at the time, Gordon Brown, who said the way Turing was persecuted over his homosexuality was "appalling".

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Cryptolocker 'infects 250,000 PCs'

24 December 2013 Last updated at 08:38 ET By Leo Kelion Technology reporter

A virulent form of ransomware has now infected about quarter of a million Windows computers, according to a report by security researchers.

Cryptolocker scrambles users' data and then demands a fee to unencrypt it alongside a countdown clock.

Dell Secureworks said that the US and UK had been worst affected.

It added that the cyber-criminals responsible were now targeting home internet users after initially focusing on professionals.

The firm has provided a list of net domains that it suspects have been used to spread the code, but warned that more are being generated every day.

Ransomware has existed since at least 1989, but this latest example is particularly problematic because of the way it makes files inaccessible.

"Instead of using a custom cryptographic implementation like many other malware families, Cryptolocker uses strong third-party certified cryptography offered by Microsoft's CryptoAPI," said the report.

"By using a sound implementation and following best practices, the malware authors have created a robust program that is difficult to circumvent."

Ransom dilemma

The first versions of Crytpolocker appear to have been posted to the net on 5 September.

Early examples were spread via spam emails that asked the user to click on a Zip-archived extension identified as being a customer complaint about the recipient's organisation.

Later it was distributed via malware attached to emails claiming there had been a problem clearing a cheque. Clicking the associated link downloaded a Trojan horse called Gameover Zeus, which in turn installed Cryptolocker onto the victim's PC.

By mid-December, Dell Secureworks said between 200,000 to 250,000 computers had been infected.

It said of those affected, "a minimum of 0.4%, and very likely many times that" had agreed to the ransom demand, which can currently only be paid in the virtual currencies Bitcoin and MoneyPak.

Top 10 infected countries	Number of infected systems identified using test "sinkhole" servers between 9-16 December	Percentage of total
Source: Dell SecureWorks
US	1,540	23.8%
Great Britain	1,228	19.0%
Australia	836	12.9%
France	372	5.8%
Brazil	309	4.8%
Italy	204	3.2%
Turkey	182	2.8%
Spain	145	2.2%
China	138	2.1%
Canada	135	2.1%

"Anecdotal reports from victims who elected to pay the ransom indicate that the Cryptolocker threat actors honour payments by instructing infected computers to decrypt files and uninstall the malware," added the security firm.

"According to reports from victims, payments may be accepted within minutes or may take several weeks to process."

However, Trend Micro, another security firm, has warned that giving into the blackmail request only encouraged the further spread of Cryptolocker and other copycat schemes, and said that there was no guarantee of getting the data back.

Safety steps

Dell suggested PCs be blocked from communicating with the hundreds of domains names it had flagged as being linked to the spread of Cryptolocker, and it suggested five further steps the public and businesses could take to protect themselves:

• Install software that blocks executable fields and compressed archives before they reach email inboxes
• Check permissions assigned to shared network drives to limit the number of people who can make modifications
• Regularly back-up data to offline storage such as Blu-ray and DVD-Rom disks. Network-attached drives and cloud storage does not count as Cryptolocker can access and encrypt files stored there
• Set each PC's software management tools to prevent Cryptolocker and other suspect programs from accessing certain critical directories
• Set the computer's Group Policy Objects to restrict registry keys - databases containing settings - used by Cryptolocker so that the malware is unable to begin the encryption process

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Classic 70s and 80s games go online

27 December 2013 Last updated at 09:21 ET

Classic video games from the 1970s and 1980s have been put online by the Internet Archive and can be played within a web browser for nothing.

The collection has launched with games from five early home consoles, including the Atari 2600 and Colecovision.

The games do not have sound, but will soon, the Internet Archive said.

"In coming months, the playable software collection will expand greatly," archivist Jason Scott wrote.

"Making these vintage games available to the world, instantly, allows for commentary, education, enjoyment and memory for the history they are a part of."

The other machines included are the Atari 7800, the Magnavox Odyssey (known as the Philips Videopac G7000 in Europe) and the Astrocade.

Well-recognised titles such as Pacman, Space Invaders and Frogger are all in the archive - with more consoles and games expected soon.

Nostalgic urges

Unlike today's titles, which are stored on disks or even simply downloaded directly to a console, many older machines would use bespoke cartridges to store games.

As the consoles fell into disrepair and became ever more scarce, playing these games has become difficult.

For many years, communities of gamers have created ROMs - read-only memory - images of games. These files can be played on a normal PC by using an emulator.

However, in many cases, gaming in this way can be illegal - particularly when the games involved are made by the likes of Nintendo and Sega, which clamp down on such activity, deeming it a form of counterfeiting.

But older games such as the ones found on the Internet Archive fall into something of a legal grey area.

Publishers and developers often turn a blind eye as, with the games no longer available to buy, the ROMs mean the titles are still able to be played by many.

Yet with smartphone gaming on the rise, publishers are now in a position where these old titles can be revived, cashing in on the timeless quality of the games, as well as fans' nostalgic urges.

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BBC computer server 'was hacked'

30 December 2013 Last updated at 07:28 ET

A Russian hacker took control of a BBC computer server and attempted to sell access to it to other cybercriminals, according to reports.

US firm Hold Security told Reuters and the Financial Times that it had spotted the hacker advertising the exploit on a black market forum last week.

It said it was not clear whether the attacker secured a sale before the broadcaster reacted.

A BBC spokesman said: "We do not comment on security issues."

The server was allegedly compromised via the file-transfer site ftp.bbc.co.uk.

The corporation had previously listed a log-on and password for the service on its news website in 2002 to allow the public to upload video and audio messages marking the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.

BBC reporters had also historically used the server as a way to send in their own material.

More recently the facility has been used to allow advertisers to send in media files for use on the BBC Worldwide Channels.

'Jumping off point'

According to Milwaukee-based Hold Security, the hacker used the pseudonyms "Hash" and "Rev0lver", and publicised the vulnerability on 25 December.

The firm said the attacker provided copies of files that supposedly could only be accessed by someone controlling the site as "proof" that the exploit worked.

"The only other information that I can offer is that the hacker was offering a screenshot proving that he had administrative access to the BBC server," said Alex Holden, chief information security officer at Hold Security.

"It was solid technically convincing evidence."

One expert said cyber-criminals have been known to use such breaches as a way to compromise wider systems.

"If a security hole has been identified in the underlying server and it has not been patched then the FTP [file transfer protocol] facilities can be exposed," said Prof Alan Woodward from the University of Surrey's Department of Computing.

"This could mean, for example, that files containing sensitive information could be downloaded.

"However, the bigger worry is that FTP servers are connected to the remainder of the network and often have easy access to other servers to facilitate internal file transfers, which is how a hacker can then use this as a jumping off point to explore other servers on the network."

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US announces six drone test sites

30 December 2013 Last updated at 15:20 ET

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DIY drones: Enthusiasts making their own aircraft

The US aviation regulator has announced the six states that will host sites for testing commercial use of drones.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) picked Alaska, Nevada, New York, North Dakota, Texas and Virginia.

The sites are part of a programme to develop safety and operational rules for drones by the end of 2015.

Hitherto mainly used by the military, the potential of drones is now being explored by everyone from real estate agents to farmers or delivery services.

The head of the FAA, Michael Huerta, said safety would be the priority as it considers approval for unleashing the unmanned aircraft into US skies.

Continue reading the main story

Five surprising uses for drones

1. Help reporters cover stories (the BBC is currently trying them out)
2. Allow real-estate agents to sell luxury homes by showing off that stunning aerial view
3. Deliver beer to music festival-goers
4. Make movies (Part of The Smurfs 2 was filmed with a drone)
5. Track the Sumatran orangutan and other endangered species

Pilots will be notified through routine announcements about where drones are being flown.

The FAA said in a statement that its decision followed a 10-month process involving proposals from 24 states.

The agency said it had considered geography, climate, location of ground infrastructure, research needs, airspace use, aviation experience and risk.

The sites chosen are:

• A set of locations proposed by the University of Alaska in seven zones with varying climates, from Hawaii to Oregon
• Griffiss International Airport in central New York state will test how to integrate drones into the congested north-east airspace
• North Dakota Department of Commerce will test the human impact of drones and also how the aircraft cope in temperate climates
• The state of Nevada will concentrate on standards for air traffic and drone operators
• Texas A&M University plans to develop safety requirements for drones and testing for airworthiness
• Virginia Tech university will research operational and technical areas of risk for drones

The biggest chunk of the growth in the commercial drone industry is currently expected to be for agriculture and law enforcement.

Continue reading the main story

Analysis

Tara McKelvey BBC News

---

For years, people thought drones would never be allowed to fly in the US. Then Jeff Bezos got involved. The Amazon chief executive said his company would start using drones to deliver packages - and even cynics began to think something might happen.

Matt Scassero, a retired US Navy captain who has worked on efforts to expand the use of drones, said he thinks Amazon moved things along. "It adds a lot of interest," he said.

The FAA announcement are signs of progress for Scassero and other drone enthusiasts. It means officials are taking their requests seriously - and things are on track for the drones to fly.

Police and other emergency services could use them for crowd control, taking crime scene photos or for search and rescue missions.

It can cost a police department hundreds of dollars an hour to deploy a helicopter, while an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) can be sent into the skies for as little as $25.

Farmers, meanwhile, might find it easier to spray crops or survey livestock with the pilotless aircraft.

The FAA estimates as many as 7,500 aircraft could be in the air five years after widespread airspace access is made legal.

However, the commercial use of drones has drawn criticism from both conservatives and liberals.

In a report last December, the American Civil Liberties Union said that giving drones access to US skies would only ensure "our every move is monitored, tracked, recorded and scrutinised by the authorities".

But lawmakers from winning states were delighted with the selections.

"This is wonderful news for Nevada that creates a huge opportunity for our economy," said Senator Harry Reid, a Democrat from Nevada.

An industry-commissioned study predicted more than 70,000 jobs - including drone operators - would develop in the first three years after Congress loosens drone restrictions on US skies.

The same study, conducted by the Teal Group research firm, found that the worldwide commercial drone market could top $89bn in the next decade.

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Hackers hit League of Legends game

31 December 2013 Last updated at 06:56 ET

Hugely popular online game League of Legends (LoL) was knocked offline for a few hours on 30 December by hackers.

It was one of several games and social media sites targeted by the Derp hacking group.

Reports suggest the attack was more mischievous than malicious and was partly aimed at US pro-gamer James Varga.

The attack ended with police calling at Mr Varga's house in response to a fake call saying hostages were held there.

Armed response

The Derp hacking group claimed responsibility for the attack on League of Legends and Mr Varga, aka PhantomL0rd via its Twitter account.

The attack began early on Monday with the group bombarding US and European servers with huge amounts of data to knock them offline. Later in the day the game's Asian servers were knocked offline with the same tactic.

The group switched its focus to Mr Varga who had been documenting LoL's ongoing problems and the Derp group's claim of responsibility via his daily Twitch TV video stream.

Twitch TV is a streaming service that lets people share their live gaming experiences with others. LoL is by far the most popular game watched via Twitch.

Mr Varga's interaction with Derp led it to pursue him through every game he tried to play. By the time the attack was done, the Derp group had caused intermittent problems for people using EA.com. Blizzard's Battlenet, Dota 2, Quake Live, Club Penguin, Reddit and other sites.

The hacking group said it carried out the series of attacks for "the lulz" in a text chat with Mr Varga that took place while he was being pursued through different games.

During the attack Mr Varga's personal details, including his home address, were posted online. This led someone to place a prank call to his local police department claiming hostages were being held at Mr Varga's home.

More than a dozen armed police responded to the call, which resulted in Mr Varga being arrested and handcuffed. Police then searched his house, but he was released once it became clear that the call was fake.

"I'm still quite shaken up, but I'm good. I'm okay," he said in a YouTube video posted after he was released by police.

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ACLU sues US over NSA spying

31 December 2013 Last updated at 09:43 ET

The US government is being sued by civil liberties groups for details about the National Security Agency (NSA) overseas surveillance programme.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) wants to find out what happens to data on Americans the NSA scoops up.

The lawsuit comes three days after a US judge ruled that a separate NSA spying programme was lawful.

More details of the NSA's access to phones and networking hardware have been released by privacy campaigners.

Hardware hit

The lawsuit was filed by the ACLU and Yale University's Media Freedom and Information Access Clinic, and seeks information about the "vast quantities" of data that the NSA has been found to be collecting.

It was "inevitable" that data sent by Americans would be gathered as part of this surveillance system that targets overseas communication, said ACLU staff attorney Alex Abdo in a blog post.

The ACLU wants the courts to make the US government provide details of the executive order that established the overseas spying programme. It said that there being little or no oversight of the programme was cause for concern.

"We now know too well that unchecked surveillance authority can lead to dangerous overreach," wrote Mr Abdo.

In a separate development, New York District Judge William Pauley dismissed on 27 December a lawsuit filed by the ACLU in June, which claimed that the way the NSA tracked million of calls contravened the US constitution.

In his ruling, Judge Pauley said there was no evidence that the "bulk telephony data" collected by the NSA was used for anything other than "investigating and disrupting terrorist attacks". The ACLU said it would appeal against the ruling.

The legal wrangles come as privacy campaigner Jacob Applebaum released details of other NSA spying programmes that targeted hardware.

In a speech given to the Chaos Communications Congress in Hamburg, Mr Applebaum said the NSA had managed to put back doors into products made by Cisco, Dell, Apple, HP, Huawei and Juniper Networks.

"Basically their goal is to have total surveillance of everything that they are interested in," Mr Applebaum told the conference.

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Royal pardon for codebreaker Turing

24 December 2013 Last updated at 07:48 ET

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Computer pioneer and codebreaker Alan Turing has been given a posthumous royal pardon, as Danny Shaw reports

Computer pioneer and codebreaker Alan Turing has been given a posthumous royal pardon.

It addresses his 1952 conviction for homosexuality for which he was punished by being chemically castrated.

The conviction meant he lost his security clearance and had to stop the code-cracking work that had proved vital to the Allies in World War Two.

The pardon was granted under the Royal Prerogative of Mercy after a request by Justice Minister Chris Grayling.

'Appalling' treatment

"Dr Alan Turing was an exceptional man with a brilliant mind," said Mr Grayling.

He said the research Turing carried out during the war at Bletchley Park undoubtedly shortened the conflict and saved thousands of lives.

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Turing centenary

2012 saw a series of events that celebrated the life and work of Alan Turing. The events were held to mark the 100th anniversary of his birth

Turing's work helped accelerate Allied efforts to read German Naval messages enciphered with the Enigma machine. He also contributed some more fundamental work on codebreaking that was only released to public scrutiny in April 2012.

"His later life was overshadowed by his conviction for homosexual activity, a sentence we would now consider unjust and discriminatory and which has now been repealed," said Mr Grayling.

"Turing deserves to be remembered and recognised for his fantastic contribution to the war effort and his legacy to science. A pardon from the Queen is a fitting tribute to an exceptional man."

The pardon comes into effect on 24 December.

Turing died in June 1954 from cyanide poisoning and an inquest decided that he had committed suicide. However, biographers, friends and other students of his life dispute the finding and suggest his death was an accident.

Many people have campaigned for years to win a pardon for Turing.

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Dr Sue Black, a computer scientist, was one of the key figures in the campaign.

She told the BBC that she hoped all the men convicted under the anti-homosexuality law would now be pardoned.

"This is one small step on the way to making some real positive change happen to all the people that were convicted," she said.

"It's a disgrace that so many people were treated so disrespectfully."

Some have criticised the action for not going far enough and, 59 years after Turing's death, little more than a token gesture.

"I just think it's ridiculous, frankly," British home computing pioneer Sir Clive Sinclair told the BBC.

"He's been dead these many years so what's the point? It's a silly nonsense.

"He was such a fine, great man, and what was done was appalling of course. It makes no sense to me, because what's done is done."

'It's very wrong'

Lord Sharkey, a Liberal Democrat peer who wrote a private member's bill calling for a royal pardon in July 2012, said the decision was "wonderful news".

"This has demonstrated wisdom and compassion," he said. "It has recognised a very great British hero and made some amends for the cruelty and injustice with which Turing was treated."

Vint Cerf, the computer scientist known as one of the founding fathers of the internet, also welcomed the development.

"The royal pardon for Alan Turing rights a long-standing wrong and properly honours a man whose imagination and intellect made him legendary in our field," he told the BBC.

Technology entrepreneur Mike Lynch added: "Society didn't understand Alan Turing or his ideas on many levels but that was a reflection on us, not on him - and it has taken us 60 years to catch up."

Human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell said: "I pay tribute to the government for ensuring Alan Turing has a royal pardon at last but I do think it's very wrong that other men convicted of exactly the same offence are not even being given an apology, let alone a royal pardon.

"We're talking about at least 50,000 other men who were convicted of the same offence, of so-called gross indecency, which is simply a sexual act between men with consent."

Mr Tatchell said he would like to see Turing's death fully investigated.

"While I have no evidence that he was murdered, I do think we need to explore the possibility that he may have been killed by the security services. He was regarded as a high security risk," he said.

'Not entirely comfortable'

Glyn Hughes, the sculptor of the Alan Turing Memorial in Manchester, said it was "very gratifying" that he had finally been pardoned.

"When we set out to try and make him famous - get him recognised - it was really difficult to collect money," he said.

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Big screen

Turing's life is the subject of upcoming Hollywood movie The Imitation Game, which focuses on the cracking of the Enigma code. Starring Sherlock actor Benedict Cumberbatch as Turing, the film is due for release next year.

Channel 4's TV film Codebreaker, about the highs and lows of Turing's life, was aired in 2011.

And during the 2012 celebrations of the centenary of Turing's birth, a Welsh digital arts festival - the Abandon Normal Devices (AND) Festival - featured a laser image of Turing projected from Conwy Castle into the sky.

Although Turing was born in London, he had strong connections with north Wales.

The Italianate village of Portmeirion in Gwynedd was one of Turing's favourite places.

But it was in northern England where Turing spent the last six years of his life, working at Manchester University in various specialist fields including mathematical logic and philosophy.

"None of the big computer companies would stump up a penny for a memorial. They perhaps would now - we've come a very long way."

But he said he was "not entirely comfortable" that Turing had been pardoned while thousands of other gay men had not.

"The problem is, of course, if there was a general pardon for men who had been prosecuted for homosexuality, many of them are still alive and they could get compensation."

In December 2011, an e-petition was created on the Direct Gov site that asked for Turing to be pardoned. It received more than 34,000 signatures but its request was denied by the then justice secretary, Lord McNally, who said Turing was "properly convicted" for what was at the time a criminal offence.

Prior to that in August 2009, a petition was started to request a pardon. It won an official apology from the prime minister at the time, Gordon Brown, who said the way Turing was persecuted over his homosexuality was "appalling".

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Apple shares rise on Chinese deal

23 December 2013 Last updated at 11:00 ET

Shares in US technology giant Apple have jumped 3% after it signed a deal to supply its iPhone to China Mobile.

The Chinese firm is the world's largest carrier and was one of three networks to be awarded China's first 4G licences earlier this month.

Apple has been looking to boost its sales in China, the world's largest smartphone market, but has struggled amid growing competition from rivals.

The latest deal is expected to help it increase its market share.

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"China is an extremely important market for Apple," Tim Cook, Apple chief executive, said in a statement.

"Our partnership with China Mobile presents us the opportunity to bring iPhone to the customers of the world's largest network."

Earlier this year, Mr Cook said he expected China to replace North America as Apple's largest source of revenue. The iPhone is the firm's most important product in terms of earnings power.

China Mobile has more than 760 million subscribers.

The country's two other major phone carriers, China Unicom and China Telecom, already offer iPhones to their subscribers.

Cheaper rivals

China is the world's biggest smartphone-using country, with 1.2 billion users.

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Apple's "imminent" deal with China Mobile has been a long running soap opera. Back in September when a separate launch event for the iPhone 5C and 5S was held in Beijing, it was assumed that an agreement had already been reached.

But fixing terms between the world's biggest mobile operator and a company which has always played hardball when it comes to pricing, was never going to be simple.

Apple has long been a highly prized brand in China, with fake Apple stores springing up all over the country. But even with access to China Mobile's 700 million customers, don't expect it to grab a big share of the market.

Samsung is the biggest overseas brand - the Chinese market was quick to see the attractions of the oversized Galaxy Note "phablet" - and home-grown brands like Xiaomi are giving consumers the smartphone experience at a much keener price than Apple can offer.

Nevertheless, China has a big appetite for luxury brands - for Rolls Royce it vies with the USA as its biggest market.

Apple does not have to be number one in China to make huge amounts of money there, so don't expect the company to follow the advice of some analysts and launch cut price models. It will settle for being the Rolls Royce of the mobile market.

But Chinese sales of previous iPhone models have slumped recently, as consumers have turned to cheaper rival handsets from Samsung, and domestic Chinese developers.

China's three bestselling smartphone makers are Samsung, Lenovo and Coolpad, according to a recent report by the consultants IDC.

Apple's sales have also been impacted by the fact that unlike in developed markets, many phone carriers in emerging markets do not subsidise smartphones.

That means that subscribers have to pay the full amount for the phone upfront, making Apple's products relatively expensive for some buyers.

In an attempt to take on the low-cost rivals Apple unveiled a relatively cheaper version of the iPhone, the 5c, earlier this year.

Analysts said the firm was hoping that a cheaper handset combined with a deal with the biggest mobile carrier in the world may help it take on rivals.

However, Apple is yet to announce how much Chinese customers will have to pay for the iphone 5s and 5c models sold via China Mobile.

'Biggest partnership'

Nevertheless, analysts say the deal has huge potential. Cantor Fitzgerald Research estimates that Apple could sell 24 million iPhones next year to China Mobile customers alone.

Apple sold 102.4 million iPhones globally in the nine months to September this year.

Previously, China Mobile subscribers have not been able to use Apple's iPhone, because the firm's 3G technology was not compatible with Apple handsets.

However, its 4G network will work with the iPhone 5s and 5c.

Manufacturer	Marketshare
Source: IDC
Samsung	18.3%
Lenovo	12.6%
Coolpad	11%
ZTE	8.8%
Huawei	8.7%
Others	41%

"This is one of the biggest partnership announcements Apple has made in the past several years," Manoj Menon, managing director of consulting firm Frost & Sullivan, told the BBC.

"It gives them access to more than 10% of the global mobile phone users. It is an incredible growth opportunity for Apple."

However, he added that in order to fully realise the potential of the deal, Apple may need to introduce even more affordable phone models.

The iPhone 5s and 5c will be available to China Mobile subscribers from 17 January.

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RSA denies 'secret deal' with NSA

23 December 2013 Last updated at 06:16 ET

Security firm RSA has strongly denied reports it signed a "secret contract" with the NSA spying agency.

On December 21, a Reuters report said the NSA paid RSA to use a random number generator now known to be flawed.

In a blogpost RSA "categorically" denied the allegation that this opened a backdoor into any product in which it was used.

In September 2013, RSA told users to avoid using the code when its flaws were confirmed.

Bad numbers

The Reuters report said the NSA paid RSA $10m (£6.1m) to use a random number generator that has since been discovered to open a backdoor into any software in which it was used.

Documents released by whistleblower Edward Snowden have confirmed the existence of backdoors in some technologies RSA, and other firms, used in their products.

The random number generator, known as the "Dual Elliptic Curve Deterministic Random Bit Generator" (Dual EC DRBG), became a standard part of some RSA products in 2004.

In 2007 academic research revealed that the number generator had serious weaknesses that, if exploited, could let eavesdroppers get at data it was supposed to help protect. In its blogpost, RSA explained that it continued to rely on the system in 2007 following advice from the US standards body that oversaw development of such systems.

It also followed the advice of this body when it told users to stop using the module earlier this year.

In addition, RSA added, the Dual EC DRBG was one of several different random number generators available and customers were "free to choose whichever one best suited their needs".

It concluded: "We also categorically state that we have never entered into any contract or engaged in any project with the intention of weakening RSA's products, or introducing potential 'backdoors' into our products for anyone's use."

In response, Reuters reporter Joseph Menn who broke the story said in a tweet: "We stand by our RSA story."

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German 'streamed porn' case reviewed

23 December 2013 Last updated at 07:29 ET

A German court that told an ISP to hand over details of users who had allegedly been illegally streaming porn online is reviewing its decision.

The names and addresses of those identified were used by a law firm to send letters asking for a one-off fee.

The firm, Urmann, acting on behalf of Swiss copyright company Archive, targeted users it said had viewed content on porn-streaming site Redtube.

More than 10,000 people are thought to have been affected.

It was one of the first cases to target people accused of streaming rather than downloading pornography.

Now, the court in Cologne says it has examined complaints from dozens of people who received the copyright infringement warning letters, which demanded a 250 euro (£210) payment.

'Victory for users'

In a statement the court said the complaints had raised "considerable" doubts about the legal procedure.

It also said the laws on "streaming" were not clear enough.

Urmann issued a strongly worded statement defending itself against claims it had issued a false affidavit to the court. The firm called on the court to withdraw the allegation.

A final decision on the case is not expected until January.

In a separate court in Hamburg, a temporary injunction has been issued against Urmann and Archive preventing them from sending warning letters to Redtube users alleging copyright infringement.

In a statement Redtube said that the allegations that its site broke copyright laws were "a thinly disguised attempt to extort money from its users".

Commenting on the injunction Alex Taylor, vice president of Redtube, said: "This ruling is a victory not just for Redtube users, but for anyone who accesses a streaming website.

"It sends a clear message that the exploitation of personal information and the violation of privacy for financial gain will not be tolerated," he said.

Redtube also stressed that it had not passed on users information to third parties.

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Google robot wins Pentagon contest

23 December 2013 Last updated at 08:26 ET

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Schaft won this round of Darpa's competition by a wide margin

A robot developed by a Japanese start-up recently acquired by Google is the winner of a two-day competition hosted by the Pentagon's research unit Darpa.

Team Schaft's machine carried out all eight rescue-themed tasks to outscore its rivals by a wide margin.

Three of the other 15 teams that took part failed to secure any points at the event near Miami, Florida.

Schaft and seven of the other top-scorers can now apply for more Darpa funds to compete in 2014's finals.

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1. Schaft (27 points)

2. IHMC Robotics (20 points)

3. Tartan Rescue (18 points)

4. MIT (16 points)

5. Robosimian (14 points)

6. Traclabs / Wrecs (11 points)

8. Trooper (9 points)

9. Thor / Vigir / Kaist (8 points).

12. HKU / DRC-Hubo (3 points)

14. Chiron / Nasa-JSC / Mojavaton (0 points)

Darpa said it had been inspired to organise the challenge after it became clear robots were only capable of playing a very limited role in efforts to contain 2011's Fukushima nuclear reactor meltdown in Japan.

"What we realised was ... these robots couldn't do anything other than observe," said Gill Pratt, programme manager for the Darpa Robotics Challenge.

"What they needed was a robot to go into that reactor building and shut off the valves."

In order to spur on development of more adept robots the agency challenged contestants to complete a series of tasks, with a time-limit of 30 minutes for each:

• Drive a utility vehicle along a course
• Climb an 8ft-high (2.4m) ladder
• Remove debris blocking a doorway
• Pull open a lever-handled door
• Cross a course that featured ramps, steps and unfastened blocks
• Cut a triangular shape in a wall using a cordless drill
• Close three air valves, each controlled by a different-sized wheel or lever
• Unreel a hose and then screw its nozzle into a wall connector

More than 100 teams originally applied to take part, and the number was whittled down to 17 by Darpa ahead of Friday and Saturday's event.

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Humanoid robots drove cars, climbed ladders - and often fell - in the competition sponsored by the US Department of Defense

Some entered their own machines, while others made use of Atlas - a robot manufactured by another Google-owned business, Boston Dynamics - controlling it with their own software.

One self-funded team from China - Intelligent Pioneer - dropped out at the last moment, bringing the number of contestants who took part at the Homestead-Miami Speedway racetrack to 16.

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Schaft's 1.48m (4ft 11in) tall, two-legged robot entered the contest the favourite and lived up to its reputation.

It makes use of a new high-voltage liquid-cooled motor technology that uses a capacitor, rather a battery, for power. Its engineers say this lets its arms move and pivot at higher speeds than would otherwise be possible, in effect giving it stronger "muscles".

The machine was developed by a spin-off from the University of Tokyo's Jouhou System Kougaku lab, which Google recently revealed it had acquired.

The team scored 27 points out of a possible 32, putting it seven points ahead of second-placed IHMC Robotics, which used Atlas.

Scores were based on a system that awarded three points for completing a task's primary objectives, and then a bonus point for doing so without any human intervention.

Schaft's robot behaved nearly perfectly, but lost points because "the wind blew a door out of their robot's hold and because their robotic creation was not able to climb out of a vehicle after it successfully navigated an obstacle course," reported the Japan Daily Press.

'Reality check'

Videos posted online by Darpa illustrate that the robots remain much slower than humans, often pausing for a minute or more between actions while they carried out the calculations needed to make each movement.

Several proved unsteady on their feet and were only saved from falls by attached harnesses.

Three of the teams which entered self-designed machines - including Nasa's Johnson Space Center and its robot Valkyrie - failed to complete any of the challenges.

The event was described as a "reality check" by Jyuji Hewitt, who attended on behalf of the US Army's Research, Development and Engineering Command.

But Darpa's Mr Pratt added that the competition, and the finals that will be held in December, would help bring forward a time the machines could be used in real-world situations.

"Today's modest progress will be a good next step to help save mankind from disasters," he said.

The top eight teams can now apply for up to $1m (£611,000) of Darpa investment before the finals to improve their robots' skills. The winner will get a $2m prize.

Lower scorers in last weekend's round can stay in the contest but will have to fund their own efforts,

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Cash limits follow Target data theft

23 December 2013 Last updated at 11:28 ET

Debit card limits are being cut for two million Americans following a hack attack on US retailer Target.

Details of more than 40 million cards were stolen by thieves who compromised card swipe systems at Target's tills.

Bank JP Morgan Chase said it was reducing limits on all cards used at Target while thieves had been scooping up data.

Security researchers said the stolen card numbers had been seen on underground markets.

Card losses

The thieves managed to grab the key details for so many cards by getting malware onto the computer systems at the checkout desks in almost 1,800 Target stores in the US. It is still not clear how the thieves managed to get their malware onto the systems.

The thieves had access to card data read at the tills for almost three weeks, said Target in a statement released after it realised it had been under attack.

JP Morgan Chase said it had lowered daily spending limits to $300 (£183) and daily cash withdrawal limits to $100 on potentially vulnerable cards as a "precaution".

Reuters reported that other US banks are also believed to be putting stringent precautions in place that would help to spot if cards were being used fraudulently. In addition, Target said it would offer free credit monitoring for customers affected by fraud.

On 20 December, security researcher Brian Krebs said there was evidence that card numbers stolen in the Target attack had shown up on underground markets where such details are traded.

Writing on his blog, Mr Krebs said security investigators had first confirmed card details had been stolen from Target by buying a "dump" of credit card numbers and matching them to those known to have been used at stores during the breach.

A huge batch of numbers had shown up on one site that traded in good quality dumps, he said, adding that cards from non-US banks used at Target stores were now fetching premium prices.

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Twitter's Dorsey to join Disney

24 December 2013 Last updated at 05:38 ET

Twitter founder, Jack Dorsey, has been nominated as an independent board director at Walt Disney.

Shareholders will be able to vote on his selection at the company's annual meeting on 18 March.

Aged 37, Mr Dorsey would become the youngest member of Disney's board, the majority of whom are in their 50s.

Over the last few years he has been running Square, a company which offers credit card payments service for small businesses.

"Jack Dorsey is a talented entrepreneur who has helped create groundbreaking new businesses in the social media and commerce spaces," said Robert Iger, Disney's chairman and chief executive.

"The perspective he brings to Disney and its board is extremely valuable."

Twitter sold shares on the stock market for the first time in November and Mr Dorsey's near 5% stake in Twitter is worth around $1bn.

He founded Twitter along with Ev Williams, Biz Stone and Noah Glass.

Mr Dorsey sent Twitter's first tweet in 2006: "just setting up my twttr".

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Butterfly botnet 'mastermind' jailed

24 December 2013 Last updated at 06:25 ET

A hacker accused of masterminding one of the biggest ever botnets has been sentenced to just under 5 years in jail.

Matjaz Skorjanc was arrested in 2010 after a two-year investigation into malware that had hijacked about 12.7 million computers around the world.

The 27-year-old was found guilty of creating the Mariposa botnet software, assisting others in "wrongdoings" and money laundering.

His lawyer said he would appeal.

In addition to the 58-month jail term, Skorjanc was also ordered to pay a 4,000 euro ($4,100; £2,510) fine and give up a flat and car he was alleged to have bought with money he had received from a Spanish criminal syndicate.

The prosecutors in the case have said they also intended to challenge the Slovenian court's ruling because they had wanted a tougher jail sentence of seven-and-a-half-years.

The former medical student's ex-girlfriend Nusa Coh was also sentenced to eight months probation for money laundering.

Identity revealed

Mariposa is the Spanish for butterfly.

The botnet got its name because it was created with software called ButterFly Flooder that was alleged to have been written by Skorjanc and advertised on the net as a way to "stress test" computer networks and remotely control Windows and Linux PCs.

Computers in more than 190 countries were infected by Mariposa, which spread by a variety of methods including via instant messages, peer-to-peer file-sharing systems and removable storage devices.

Once installed its operators could command the compromised machines to carry out their instructions including sending back copies of data they stored.

The scale of the problem led the FBI to team up with European law enforcement agencies, the Georgia Tech Information Security Center and other security experts to track down the perpetrators.

This proved difficult to do because the hackers only connected to the net via a virtual private network (VPN), which hid their locations.

On 23 December 2009 the authorities managed to gain control of the botnet; which they believe rattled one of its operators, who went by the nickname Netkairo.

The operator subsequently managed to take back control of the infected computers and then used them to attack Defence Intelligence, a Canadian security firm helping the FBI.

However, in doing so Netkairo appeared to have revealed his identity by accidentally connecting to the botnet directly from his home computer rather than the VPN.

On 3 February 2010 the Spanish Civil Guard arrested Florencio Carro Ruiz, who they identified as Netkairo, and two other Spaniards.

Five months later the Slovenian police arrested Skorjanc, who they said had used the alias Iserdo and had written the code.

Officials said the botnet had been used to send spam emails, stage distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks to overwhelm targets' servers with traffic, and harvest information including credit card details and log-ins.

"I think the sentence is significant and will be remembered as a milestone in the prosecution of cybercrimes," Keith Murphy, chief executive of Defence Intelligence told the BBC.

"It reflects that authorities have realised the damage that can be wrought by a piece of code, and are now starting to equate it to physical theft. The 'wild west' days of cybercrime are over, even in smaller countries."

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Cryptolocker 'infects 250,000 PCs'

24 December 2013 Last updated at 08:38 ET By Leo Kelion Technology reporter

A virulent form of ransomware has now infected about quarter of a million Windows computers, according to a report by security researchers.

Cryptolocker scrambles users' data and then demands a fee to unencrypt it alongside a countdown clock.

Dell Secureworks said that the US and UK had been worst affected.

It added that the cyber-criminals responsible were now targeting home internet users after initially focusing on professionals.

The firm has provided a list of net domains that it suspects have been used to spread the code, but warned that more are being generated every day.

Ransomware has existed since at least 1989, but this latest example is particularly problematic because of the way it makes files inaccessible.

"Instead of using a custom cryptographic implementation like many other malware families, Cryptolocker uses strong third-party certified cryptography offered by Microsoft's CryptoAPI," said the report.

"By using a sound implementation and following best practices, the malware authors have created a robust program that is difficult to circumvent."

Ransom dilemma

The first versions of Crytpolocker appear to have been posted to the net on 5 September.

Early examples were spread via spam emails that asked the user to click on a Zip-archived extension identified as being a customer complaint about the recipient's organisation.

Later it was distributed via malware attached to emails claiming there had been a problem clearing a cheque. Clicking the associated link downloaded a Trojan horse called Gameover Zeus, which in turn installed Cryptolocker onto the victim's PC.

By mid-December, Dell Secureworks said between 200,000 to 250,000 computers had been infected.

It said of those affected, "a minimum of 0.4%, and very likely many times that" had agreed to the ransom demand, which can currently only be paid in the virtual currencies Bitcoin and MoneyPak.

Top 10 infected countries	Number of infected systems identified using test "sinkhole" servers between 9-16 December	Percentage of total
Source: Dell SecureWorks
US	1,540	23.8%
Great Britain	1,228	19.0%
Australia	836	12.9%
France	372	5.8%
Brazil	309	4.8%
Italy	204	3.2%
Turkey	182	2.8%
Spain	145	2.2%
China	138	2.1%
Canada	135	2.1%

"Anecdotal reports from victims who elected to pay the ransom indicate that the Cryptolocker threat actors honour payments by instructing infected computers to decrypt files and uninstall the malware," added the security firm.

"According to reports from victims, payments may be accepted within minutes or may take several weeks to process."

However, Trend Micro, another security firm, has warned that giving into the blackmail request only encouraged the further spread of Cryptolocker and other copycat schemes, and said that there was no guarantee of getting the data back.

Safety steps

Dell suggested PCs be blocked from communicating with the hundreds of domains names it had flagged as being linked to the spread of Cryptolocker, and it suggested five further steps the public and businesses could take to protect themselves:

• Install software that blocks executable fields and compressed archives before they reach email inboxes
• Check permissions assigned to shared network drives to limit the number of people who can make modifications
• Regularly back-up data to offline storage such as Blu-ray and DVD-Rom disks. Network-attached drives and cloud storage does not count as Cryptolocker can access and encrypt files stored there
• Set each PC's software management tools to prevent Cryptolocker and other suspect programs from accessing certain critical directories
• Set the computer's Group Policy Objects to restrict registry keys - databases containing settings - used by Cryptolocker so that the malware is unable to begin the encryption process

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Snowden says 'mission accomplished'

24 December 2013 Last updated at 11:34 ET

Former National Security Agency (NSA) contractor Edward Snowden, who leaked details of US electronic surveillance programmes, says he's achieved his aim.

"In terms of personal satisfaction, the mission's already accomplished," he told the Washington Post.

"I already won," said Mr Snowden, whose extensive leaks have caused a reassessment of US surveillance policy.

The 30-year-old was interviewed in Russia, where he was granted temporary asylum on 1 August.

Mr Snowden fled the US in late May, taking a huge cache of secret documents with him. He faces espionage charges in the US.

Continue reading the main story

How intelligence is gathered

• Accessing internet company data
• Tapping fibre optic cables
• Eavesdropping on phones
• Targeted spying

"As soon as the journalists were able to work, everything that I had been trying to do was validated. Because, remember, I didn't want to change society. I wanted to give society a chance to determine if it should change itself," he told the newspaper.

"All I wanted was for the public to be able to have a say in how they are governed," Mr Snowden said.

Last week, a federal judge declared the mass collection of telephone data unconstitutional and a presidential advisory panel suggested reforms.

Both the judge and the panel said there was little evidence that any terrorist plot had been thwarted by the programme.

A few days later, in his end-of-year news conference, US President Barack Obama suggested there might be a review of surveillance by the NSA.

In light of "disclosures that have taken place" and public concerns about the programmes, there might be "another way of skinning the cat", he said.

However, he accused Mr Snowden of causing "unnecessary damage" by leaking documents.

President Obama said he would make a "definitive statement" in January about recommendations by the White House panel.

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

A child born today will... never know what it means to have a private moment to themselves, an unrecorded, unanalysed thought"

End Quote Edward Snowden

'Going in blind'

The NSA, accustomed to watching without being watched, faces scrutiny it has not endured since the 1970s, or perhaps ever, the Washington Post reports.

Mr Snowden told the newspaper he had no way of knowing whether the public would share his views.

"You recognise that you're going in blind... But when you weigh that against the alternative, which is not to act, you realise that some analysis is better than no analysis."

Later, the UK's Channel 4 revealed that Mr Snowden would deliver its "Alternative Christmas Message" on Wednesday - the broadcaster's answer to Queen Elizabeth II's message to the nation.

In his first TV interview since arriving in Moscow, Mr Snowden would talk about "why privacy matters", it said.

"A child born today will grow up with no conception of privacy at all. They'll never know what it means to have a private moment to themselves, an unrecorded, unanalysed thought," he was quoted as saying.

"The conversation occurring today will determine the amount of trust we can place both in the technology that surrounds us and the government that regulates it. Together we can find a better balance, end mass surveillance and remind the government that if it really wants to know how we feel, asking is always cheaper than spying."

More details of people and institutions targeted by UK and US surveillance were published last week by The Guardian, The New York Times and Der Spiegel.

The papers said the list of about 1,000 targets included an EU commissioner, humanitarian organisations and Israeli officials including a prime minister.

US technology giants including Google, Microsoft and Yahoo are taking steps to block the collection of data by their government.

In October, news that the NSA had monitored the phone of German Chancellor Angela Merkel triggered a diplomatic row between Berlin and Washington.

Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff was also angered by revelations that the NSA had hacked the computer network of Brazil's state-run oil company Petrobras to collect data on emails and telephone calls.

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Beyonce album smashes iTunes record

16 December 2013 Last updated at 13:20 ET

Beyonce's "surprise" fifth album has broken iTunes sales records, with 828,773 copies sold in just three days.

The majority of those sales came in the US, where it has racked up 617,213 sales since its release on Friday.

The tally broke Beyonce's own first-week sales record, set by her second album B'day in 2006, which sold 541,000 copies across a full seven days.

In the UK, the self-titled album cracked the top five in just 48 hours, after shifting 68,000 copies.

Beyonce stealth-released the record exclusively on iTunes last Friday, surprising fans by unveiling 14 new songs and 17 videos without the usual build-up of radio play, marketing and magazine interviews.

Its success has been fuelled by a number of factors: By keeping the project secret, the star avoided leaks; while the inability to purchase individual tracks online meant fans had no choice but to pay for the whole album.

The 31-year-old said the "visual album" was inspired by her memories of watching Michael Jackson's Thriller video premiere in 1983.

"I miss that immersive experience," she said. "Now people only listen to a few seconds of a song on their iPods and they don't really invest in the whole experience.

"It's all about the single, and the hype. I felt like, I don't want anybody to get the message when my record is coming out.

"I just want this to come out when it's ready and from me to my fans."

The album was codenamed "Lily" by staff at her record label, Columbia, to avoid rumours spreading, and even key creative staff were kept in the dark about the release plans.

Video director Ricky Saiz, who shot the clip for a slow, sleazy track called Yonce, told Buzzfeed he had "no idea" of the scale of the project until it was released.

"It was a complete surprise even to the people involved," he said. "To be honest, I was actually in bed when I got an email just kind of saying [the album] was live."

Reviews for the album were largely positive, with Billboard magazine praising the star's "creative audacity".

"Beyonce signifies where the future of R&B is heading," said the magazine, "with less focus on beats and more emphasis on emotive falsetto, stream-of-consciousness ideas and the occasional burst of braggadocio."

In The Telegraph, Neil McCormick wrote: "The album has a focus and intensity unusual in multi-writer ensemble productions, a sense of purposefulness that holds the attention even when the songs sometimes drift off in search of a chorus."

Apple, which runs the iTunes store, said the album had broken its previous first-week sales record, set by Justin Timberlake's 20/20 Experience when it sold 580,000 in March.

Beyonce also went to number one in 104 countries, it reported.

The company has exclusive access to the album for a short period - thought to be a week. Physical copies of the record are expected in shops before Christmas.

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