Downtime

Cut-price internet scam proves a costly venture

An IT professional was fined £500 and ordered to pay £300 compensation after a scam to change the advertised prices on an online computer retailer backfired. Douglas Hall, who worked in IT telephone support, noticed that the website www.dme.co.uk was built around osCommerce, a software package he was familiar with. He accessed the admin account and changed the price of DVD duplicators from £199.00 to £15.00 before attempting to buy the items. Hall, who was arrested by Scotland Yard's computer crime unit, initially claimed he had been conducting a penetration test on behalf on an internet service provider.

Virtual robbery as gamers get the worm

Players of online role-playing game Priston Tale are being targeted by a worm with a difference. The PrsKey-A worm is a keystroke-logging application that transfer data back to its writers. Hackers are hoping slack security will enable them to nick virtual goods, such as magic items and weapons, that they can then sell back to the geeks on eBay.

Resource sharing - all part of the cycle of life

Peer-to-peer networks were once thought the future of computing, evangelised by wide-eye geeks who rarely saw daylight. Now the concept has been catapulted from the virtual world into the sunshine. Peer-to-peer bicycles are being rolled out in Lyon, France. Anyone with a credit card can grab one of the scheme's bikes from a bike rack and pedal it to another rack for free, providing the journey takes less than half an hour. Advocates of many-to-many resource-sharing can marvel at the beauty of the concept while actually getting some exercise.

Dumb and dumber for dodgy data security boss

The head of data security at GE Money, a bank in Finland, was caught stealing £136,000 because he used his own company laptop to hack into his employer's network. Accomplices accessed bank accounts from a laptop via a nearby Wi-Fi network, hoping to be anonymous. But the bank's network logs revealed the laptop address belonging to GE Money, and the police made their swoop.

Hurry down to Bracknell for Dell's free takeaway

Dell Computers is holding a public computer recycling event at its European headquarters in Bracknell, Berkshire. On Saturday 17 September, Dell will happily relieve you of your old PC. Households are invited to bring their unwanted computer equipment to the event, where it will be collected, packed and recycled, at no charge. Workers will be on hand to help unload.

Stylish - but can you see the wood for the servers?

How can you improve on your latest server? Downtime came across one possible answer this week from Kell Systems, a company building 19in rack furniture. Their "technical furniture" is "as excellent in its functionality as it is beautiful to behold", according to the company spiel. Server cabinets can be supplied in exotic wood finishes such as African paduk, santos rosewood and zebrano. Clients include Nasa, National Air Traffic Services and NHS hospitals. Reassuring to know public money is being well spent.