Worms exploit Microsoft MS06-040 flaws

A new threat has emerged which exploits the vulnerability that was revealed during Microsoft's mega patch Tuesday last week. Security firm Sophos warns in a security alert that two worms - W32/Cuebot-L and W32/Cuebot-M - spread via AOL instant messenger, exploiting the vulnerability described in Microsoft's MS06-040 security bulletin. Sophos rates the threats as 'critical'. ...more

Zafi-B still most prevalent virus says Sophos

Zafi-B, which first surfaced in June, has been the most prevalent virus in the month of September, according to security specialists Sophos. Accounting for 30.5 per cent of incidents detected by the company, Zafi-B sits above Netsky-P (which accounts for 26. ...more

Internet boosts British music - BPI

The Internet has helped to make 2006 the best year in a decade for new British music, according to the BPI. New acts are selling more albums, more quickly, than ever before, according to the UK music industry body. It attributes the success to a rise in the quality in new acts and the 'creative impetus of digital media', with record companies taking advantage of digital distribution in order to promote new talent. ...more

ICANN to trial international characters in domain names

Internet domain names containing non-English characters such as ?, ? and ? may be commonplace within a year after the body that oversees the domain name system (DNS) announced that it will begin trials in July. ICANN, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, accepts that current restrictions on character usage are no longer acceptable. It notes that the geographic extent of the Internet is constantly expanding, with a corresponding increase in linguistic diversity. ...more

AMD boosts outlook

AMD has raises predictions for fourth quarter. AMD's processors and high-density flash memory products are seeling faster than expected, says AMD. Accordingly it is raising it predicted sales growth for Q4 to 25 per cent, up from its originally stated 20 per cent. ...more