Sony Announces Arrival to Tablet Market

Better late than never, Sony has announced its much anticipated arrival to the tablet market.  The devices, codenamed S1 and S2, will go on sale towards the end of the year and will run on Google's Android operating system.

The Apple iOS system that runs on the iPad is expected to remain the dominant operating system for several years to come but Android is undoubtedly the fastest growing mobile platform of the moment and is expected to claim a 38% market share by 2015.

Sony said that its first tablets would come in two form factors: one will have a conventional 9.4 inch touchscreen, while the other will feature dual 5.5 inch displays that fold closed.

In addition to the base Android Honeycomb operating system, Sony will add several of its own features, including the ability to transmit video and music to TVs and stereos using the DLNA wireless streaming standard, and an inbuilt infrared so that it can be used as a remote control on all Sony gear.

The company suggested that there would also be some form of integration with its PlayStation network and the possibility of gaming functions.

There are no confirmed announcements on pricing but with their arrival to the Tablet party, the market is likely to hot up this autumn.

Nokia to Cut 7,000 Worldwide

From 2012, Nokia’s refocus on the smartphone market will result in 7,000 jobs being cut worldwide. 

4,000 jobs will be cut completely, including 700 from across the UK, whereas 3,000 staff will find themselves reshuffled into outsourcing and consultancy group Accenture.  From next year, Accenture will take over Nokia's Symbian software product, so that the mobile giants can concentrate on their relationship with Microsoft.

Nokia has been slow to respond to the smartphone threat from competitors such as Apple's iPhone and phones using Google's Android system, and has long been a key investor concern.

The firm is hoping that their recent deal with Microsoft to jointly develop smartphone technology, and their impending shake-up will increase their capacity for smartphone development.

Quote for the Week!

"Marriage is indeed a manoeuvring business."  Jane Austen

Cyber Attacks on the Rise

Around the world, internet based attacks are increasing on critical systems according to a McAfee report.

The latest report from the Internet Security company took a survey of 200 IT executives working for utility companies in 14 countries, and 8 out of 10 said their networks had been targeted by hackers during the past year.

Since October 2010 in the UK, potential cyber attack has been recognized as one of the top four national security threats facing the country, but are we doing enough?

Quote for the Week!

"A successful man is one who can lay a firm foundation with the bricks others have thrown at him."

David Brinkley

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Derailed Mobile Plans on the Underground

Talks between Chinese telecoms provider Huawei and UK's operators about improving mobile phone coverage on the London Underground have broken down. 

The intention was to have better coverage on the tube in time for the London 2012 Olympics.  Huawei had even offered to donate some of the necessary equipment, and several UK providers are believed to have already contributed several million pounds, but despite everyone’s efforts, the project has been derailed. 

But putting antennas throughout the Tube's antiquated network have proved far too costly at this time.  Other avenues are being explored and plans to expand wi-fi coverage on Tube stations will continue, but it seems coverage will not be in place in time for next years games.

Is Your smartphone Ready for the Criminals?

Just like any computer, smartphones are vulnerable to hackers and their malicious code.  With the rise of mobile viruses, are you or your operators taking them seriously enough?

If you are in business or not, the chances are that you spend a large part of your day using a computer.  Therefore, you are probably aware of constant threat that looms in the form computer viruses, and we would hope that you take precautions to protect yourself against them.   

Are you aware though, that the threat of viruses and the ability of someone to worm their way into the centre of your life has taken on a new form?

Last year alone, according to IDC, approximately 302 million smartphones were shipped globally with sales up 67.6 % from 2009.  In an article published earlier this month, Gartner Inc. estimated that in 2011 approximately 468 million smartphones will be sold worldwide.  

Smartphones are becoming more and more popular, and as a result there is growing threat of mobile viruses, spam and smartphone theft.  Despite this, 86% of mobile phone users do not have any security software installed. 

If you use your smartphone for personal and business use, you are doubly at risk of criminal attacks.  If you keep personally identifiable data on your mobile phone, such as email addresses, contact lists, personal dates etc, imagine what you could make available to criminals if you do not protect yourself.  

The threat is real, and it’s now, call us to find out how to protect your smartphone.

Could you be Overpaying on your Mobile Bills?

3 of 4 people overpay by £200 per year because their mobile contract is not right for them: according to Billmonitor.

Billmonitor consists of information gathered and analysed by Oxford mathematicians that has been approved by Ofcom. 

The most fundamental problem highlighted by the research is that people over-estimate how many minutes they would spend on the phone, with most using just a quarter of their monthly allowance.

Of the 28,000 bills analysed as a part of the study, researchers concluded that the UK's mobile phone users were wasting nearly £5bn a year on misjudged contracts.

The growing popularity of smartphones is also causing confusion as more customers are now adding on data plans, but are struggling to estimate their usage requirements. 

According to the research, the average usage was 133MB per month, with around 5% of users exceeding 500MB.  However, consumers were again preparing themselves for “bill shock” and overestimating their usage.  

Have you got a business mobile contract?  Let us help you to find the right contract for your business…Call us now 0115 970 1471

Nearly 7,000 Mobiles Hacked

7,000 mobiles have been hacked in Britain, a lawyer has claimed, and there’s a chance that number will rise. 

The focus in this case has been on high profile targets including the mobile phones of actress Sienna Miller and former culture secretary Tessa Jowell.  Lawyer Charlotte Harris, who is representing several of the celebrities involved, said up to 7,000 people may have had their mobile phone voicemail messages intercepted.   

Whilst The News of the World has not accepted the numbers being claimed, they have issued an apology, saying: "We publicly and un-reservedly apologise to all such individuals. What happened to them should not have happened. It was and remains unacceptable."

This story has emphasised the growing need for tighter security on mobile phones particularly smartphones.  The high susceptibility of smartphones, their advanced data connections and the fact that we are increasingly using these devices for storing personal and commercial data makes them attractive to criminals.  Make sure you are protected! 

Find out more about smartphone defence by calling us today on 0115 9701471

Quote of the Week!

"Growth means change and change involves risk, stepping from the known to the unknown"

Anon

Let Adodo help you with the transition...0115 970 1471

Contactless Technology Roll-Out - Cash or Mobile Phones?

Across the UK, thousands of shops are preparing for the roll-out of new contactless technology, which could see us leaving our wallets at home as we use our mobile phones to pay. 

The expectation of many large retailers is that Near Field Communication (NFC) technology will take off this summer.  One estimate suggests 40,000 businesses could be using it by the end of 2011.

However, like most new technologies, the success of NFC requires consumers to buy into the concept, and it remains to be seen whether the technology really has the public support it requires.  

In terms of security there are certainly issues that need to be resolved within the industry, users are certainly going to have to enter a pin when you make a transaction.  With all the concerns surrounding mobile technology security at the moment, customers are right to err on the side of caution.  

Mobile phone operators and manufacturers, banks and retailers are all investing millions of pounds to make the technology a success. Orange and MasterCard are jointly launching a NFC-ready handset between April and June while competitors Visa and O2 are doing the same later this summer.

There are concerns about the affect this may have on smaller retailers as it is the bigger chains that are preparing for the changes now.   

But what do you think? Are you excited by the freedom of NFC or are you concerned with prospective security breaches?

It’s Official – SmartPhone’s Are Easy Targets

According to the latest Security Industry Report, SmartPhones and Social Networking sites are likely to be the next big target for cyber criminals.

According to Symantec, known vulnerabilities in mobile operating systems rose from 115 in 2009 to 163 in 2010.  Those who are particularly vulnerable include users of Facebook, Twitter and Google’s Operating System, Android.

Whilst Symantec's annual threat analysis warns that the technologies are increasingly being used to spread malicious code, the number of attacks remains small compared to other online crimes such as e-mail phishing.

Android systems has been hit hard recently with the suggestion being that criminals now view SmartPhone hacking as a potentially lucrative area.

The widespread availability of "attack toolkits" is being blamed for the dramatic rise in attacks.  These are the software packages that allow users with relatively little skill to design their own malicious software, and are available to buy online for just a few pounds.

Globally, the well respected internet Security company recorded a 93% increase in the volume of web-based attacks between 2009 and 2010.

Call us NOW to organize mobile security protection against Viruses and e-mail phishing: 0115 9701471

Top 10 Slowest 3G Towns

Birmingham, Leicester and Cardiff are all among the top 10 slowest towns for 3G mobile broadband speeds according to the latest research.

Understandably, mobile speeds are increasingly crucial to users as smartphones become more widely used.  In research compiled by Top10.com, Peterborough was deemed to be the town with the fastest speeds at 3.6 Mbps (megabits per second), compared to 1.73Mbps in Milton Keynes which was tipped as the slowest town.

Towns offering speeds above 3Mbps included York, Derby and Reading but the research highlights that there is still a long way to go until speeds are up to scratch.

UK regulator Ofcom is conducting its own research into mobile broadband speeds. The results are due later this month.  Meanwhile, the government continues to try and tackle the issue and is auctioning off spectrum next year, which will allow mobile operators to introduce faster, 4G services.

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Quote for the Week!

“For everything you have missed, you have gained something else, and for everything you gain, you lose something else.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Malvertising - Is No April Fool

On Monday, the government launched StartUp Britain with a website designed to champion the UK's start-up businesses, unfortunately it has also inadvertently linked users to malware.

The government-backed website has been linked to a page hosting fake anti-virus programs according to security firm Sophos.  Whilst it has caused some embarrassment to the widely promoted government scheme, the link was removed shortly after launch, according to StartUp Britain.

However, the glitch has highlighted a growing problem for businesses called “malvertising”. 

In this case users were taken to a third party website, redirected to a fake anti-virus page and were given a prompt saying their computer had been infected and thus encouraged them to download a fix.  The fix, in fact contained malware.

Last month, the London Stock Exchange hosted booby-trapped adverts that asked visitors to download similar fake security software.   This week, music streaming service Spotify was forced to apologise after 'malverts' were served to some of its users.