NSA can hack WiFi devices from eight miles away

The NSA may have the ability to intercept data from around the world, but we now know that it has some impressive (and intimidating) equipment for snooping on nearby targets. Security guru Jacob Appelbaum told those at the Chaos Communications Congress this weekend that the NSA's big box of tools includes Nightstand, a custom device that can compromise WiFi networks for the sake of inserting spy software. The Linux-powered device can exploit Windows systems from up to eight miles away; it's unlikely that you'll catch agents wardriving in the parking lot. Nightstand may not see significant use today given that it dates back to 2008, but its existence suggests that the NSA also has newer, more advanced WiFi surveillance gear at its disposal.

http://www.engadget.com/2013/12/30/nsa-can-hack-wifi-devices-from-eight-miles-away/

How The NSA Hacks Your iPhone with DROPOUT JEEP

Following up on the latest stunning revelations released yesterday by German Spiegel which exposed the spy agency's 50 page catalog of "backdoor penetration techniques", today during a speech given by Jacob Applebaum (@ioerror) at the 30th Chaos Communication Congress, a new bombshell emerged: specifically the complete and detailed description of how the NSA bugs, remotely, your iPhone. 

The way the NSA accomplishes this is using software known as Dropout Jeep, which it describes as follows: "DROPOUT JEEP is a software implant for the Apple iPhone that utilizes modular mission applications to provide specific SIGINT functionality. 

This functionality includes the ability to remotely push/pull files from the device. SMS retrieval, contact list retrieval, voicemail, geolocation, hot mic, camera capture, cell tower location, etc. Command, control and data exfiltration can occur over SMS messaging or a GPRS data connection. All communications with the implant will be covert and encrypted."

The flowchart of how the NSA makes your iPhone its iPhone is presented below:

- NSA ROC operator
- Load specified module
- Send data request
- iPhone accepts request
- Retrieves required SIGINT data
- Encrypt and send exfil data
- Rinse repeat

Everyone knows that their iPhone is nothing but a gateway for the NSA to peruse everyone's "private" data at will. Which, incidentally, is not news, and was revealed when we showed how the "NSA Mocks Apple's "Zombie" Customers; Asks "Your Target Is Using A BlackBerry? Now What?"

How ironic would it be if Blackberry, left for dead by virtually everyone, began marketing its products as the only smartphone that does not allow the NSA access to one's data (and did so accordingly). Since pretty much everything else it has tried has failed, we don't see the downside to this hail mary attempt to strike back at Big Brother and maybe make some money, by doing the right thing for once.

Read more: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-12-30/how-nsa-hacks-your-iphone-presenting-dropout-jeep

Google 'heatmap' reveals New York, Rome and Barcelona as the most photographed places on Earth

From the Empire State Building to the Blue Mosque, plenty of people take photographs of iconic architecture when on holiday.

And now Google Maps’ Panoramio ‘heat map’ of the world allows people to see the most photographed travel destinations.

Three of the five most photographed places on the planet are in the EU, according to the popular service, which lets people tag photos of landmarks and scenery and upload them to Google maps.
According to the website’s heat map, New York City is the most photographed place in the world, or at least more images of New York landmarks and scenes have been uploaded via Panoramio than any other city.

Rome, Barcelona, Paris and Istanbul make up the rest of the top five most photographed destinations, suggesting the service is more popular in some areas of the world than others.

The map shows the most popular photographic locations in yellow, before fading to orange, pink and then purple for slightly less photographed places, making it easy to pick out popular holiday spots, cities and wonders of the world.

London was, unsurprisingly, the most snapped location in the UK and Ireland, followed by Dublin, Stonehenge, Brighton and Bath.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2530004/Google-heatmap-reveals-New-York-Rome-Barcelona-photographed-places-Earth.html#ixzz2ozJCvc1e 

Map that shows how tweets are shortest in the Deep South and getting shorter everywhere

Twitter is unique for its brevity - only 140 characters are allowed in any post. But even within those tight linguistic confined, conversation is becoming shorter and shorter.

Two researchers at the University of the Philippines have found that in just three years, tweets have gotten two words shorter - falling from 10 words, on average, to eight.

Interestingly, the length of tweets also varies state-to-state. Twitter users in the Deep South appear to tweet fewer words and characters than anywhere else in the U.S.

Shortening and streamlining language is a trend that has tracked with language through history - and it's been accelerated by Twitter, they say.

Controversially, the authors of the study theorize that race is a factor in this trend.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2502391/The-map-shows-tweets-shortest-Deep-South-getting-shorter-users-speaking-slang.html#ixzz2kRVMyHxH

Google: testing software to track you and record your purchases at stores (on the street)

Tracking people online and showing personalised adverts is already a controversial topic and now Google is set to ruffle feathers further by tracking people in the real world too.

According to reports from tech website Digiday, the search giant is testing a program that would follow users around the high street to see which shops they visit.

Each time a user enters a store of business, Google would be able check to see if that user looked at adverts for that company online beforehand to check the ad's conversion rate.

Recent reports found Google makes around $100 million a day by selling Google Ads to businesses online.

It tracks conversion rates online when either a user clicks directly on an advert, or the user visits the website featured in an advert during its browsing session.

Google can already access certain information about a user through its own apps, such as the mobile Chrome browser, Google Maps, Gmail and Google+.

If users have ‘Location services’ activated and then have one of these apps is open, or running in the background, as they shop on the high street, Google can pinpoint exactly where they are.

The location's accuracy is improved if a customer accesses a company's Wi-Fi, for example.

In a blogpost in October, Google hinted at plans to extend how it tracks people and said: ‘As consumers are increasingly on the go and switching between devices, marketers are telling us they want to see a more complete and accurate picture of how their online advertising drives conversions.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2492355/Google-test-tracker-knows-person-theyre-buying.html#ixzz2k4ZdeKmR

Social Media: a new study shows that a popular boy band is the most influential tweeter in UK

Every single member of the boyband One Direction are considered more influential in the UK than the Prime Minister, the Mayor of London and a number of other high-profile politicians and journalists, according to a new Twitter index.

Liam Payne, Harry Styles, Niall Horan and Louis Tomlinson each scored 98 out of a possible 100 in terms of influence, with Zayn Malik in fifth place on 97.

The scores are calculated based on how much other Twitter users retweet and engage with the tweeter and isn’t based purely on how many followers they have.

Prime Minister David Cameron, for example, scored the same amount of points as Zayn Malik but has fewer than 500k followers, compared to the 3 million or more of Piers Morgan behind him in eighth place.

The rest of the top 10 is made up of musician Ed Sheeran, columnist Caitlin Moran and comedian Ricky Gervais.

PeerIndex studied over 10 billion tweets from 150 million people to compile the Twitter 140.

For the ratings, Peerindex focused on whether other people in the UK were responding to, retweeting or engaging with a tweeter.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2483373/One-Direction-tops-Twitter-list-UKs-influential-users--David-Cameron-lagging-7th-place.html#ixzz2jbRH6Tr2

Video games can make your brain BIGGER

Video games can make your brain BIGGER: Playing for 30 minutes a day 'boosts memory, ability to plan and dexterity'

While some people might think getting engrossed in a video game is a waste of time, scientists have found they can increase the size of our brains.

German researchers found video gaming causes increases in the brain regions responsible for spatial orientation, memory formation and strategic planning as well as fine motor skills.

They believe the benefits of video gaming may also prove helpful in therapeutic interventions targeting psychiatric disorders.

In order to examine how video games affect the brain, scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Human Development and Charité University Medicine St. Hedwig-Krankenhaus, asked adults to play Super Mario 64 for 30 minutes a day over a period of two months.

A control group did not play the game and the researchers measured brain volume using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans.

They found that in comparison to the people who did not play video games, the regular gamers showed increases of grey matter, in which the cell bodies of the nerve cells of the brain are situated.

This growth was seen in the right hippocampus, right prefrontal cortex and the cerebellum.

These parts of the brain are involved in functions such as spatial navigation, memory formation, strategic planning and fine motor skills of the hands and the changes were most noticeable in participants who were eager to play the game.

'While previous studies have shown differences in brain structure of video gamers, the present study can demonstrate the direct causal link between video gaming and a volumetric brain increase,' said study leader Simone Kühn, senior scientist at the Centre for Lifespan Psychology at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development.

'This proves that specific brain regions can be trained by means of video games,' he added.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2483687/Playing-video-games-half-hour-day-make-brain-bigger.html#ixzz2jRBdw4iO

Online Streaming: new trend of attneding a funeral

Mourning through a monitor: Watching funerals streamed online grows in popularity

More and more undertakers are offering webcams at funeral services so friends and relatives can take part in the ceremony without being there in person.

The increasingly far-flung and global nature of modern society has seen demand for video-streamed services soar.

North East Lincolnshire Council has announced plans to allow funerals to be filmed on a webcam and then broadcast securely.

Council bosses say the services will be sensitively filmed from the rear of the chapel so as not to intrude on personal grief.

Councillor Ray Oxby said: 'We have installed this following feedback from local people about what they want from a modern funeral and in particular to cater for family members that live away and would find it difficult to attend.

'I am sure the improvements will... provide the extra choice and facilities for families and friends to make the final tribute a more fitting one.'

The service was pioneered by a Midcounties Co-operative Funeralcare home in Banbury, Oxfordshire, but undertakers throughout the country are now providing the service.

The first person to use the service was Claire Gledhill, who has relatives in Spain and the U.S. who wanted to pay their respects to her mother Jean McStocker.

Claire, from Banbury, said: 'Using the web link my family in the USA and Tenerife were able to join us at the funeral of our mother.

'It was a wonderful way to embrace our mother, be with each other in our time of mourning and rejoice in a wonderful woman’s life.  It was so important to us to share the ceremony, making it a true family experience.'

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2483147/Mourning-monitor-Watching-funerals-streamed-online-growing-popularity-families-global.html#ixzz2jPeXLJNV

New Study: Student digital habits interfer with learning

The typical college student plays with his or her digital device an average of 11 times a day while in class, according to a new study by a University of Nebraska-Lincoln associate professor.

More than 80 percent admit that their use of smart phones, tablets and laptops can interfere with their learning. More than a fourth say their grades suffer as a result.

Barney McCoy, an associate professor of broadcasting, embarked upon his study after launching his teaching career seven years ago and noticing the instructional challenges presented by students' digital devices.

From the front of his classroom on multimedia, he often saw the smart phones creeping out.

The view from the back of a classroom while a colleague taught Mass Media Principles was equally telling.

"They've got their laptops open, but they're not always taking notes," McCoy said. "Some might have two screens open -- Facebook and their notes."

Rather than rely on anecdotal evidence, McCoy decided to try to quantify how often college students tune out their instructors in favor of tweets and texts. During fall 2012, he surveyed 777 students at six universities in five states about their classroom use of digital devices for non-instructional purposes. He also asked the students how often they are distracted by others using digital devices and for their perspective on how digital devices should be policed.

"I don't think students necessarily think it's problematic," McCoy said. "They think it's part of their lives."

Read More: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/10/131023151612.htm

What? New milestone that mothers and fathers: when the cell phone is first used

Nearly two in five babies have used a mobile phone or tablet - before they can even speak full sentences, new research has found.

A survey has found that 38 per cent of children aged under two have used gadgets like iPhones or Kindles for playing games or watching films.

In 2011 the same figure was just 10 per cent.

The researchers said that the findings showed a ‘fundamental change in the way kids consume media’.

They should also serve as a wake-up call to parents who increasingly turn to gadgets to entertain their children - but could be doing them harm.

The current recommendation from the American Academy of Paediatrics is that the under-twos should have no screen time at all.

Jim Steyer, director of U.S. pressure group Common Sense Media, which commissioned the survey, said: ‘Kids that cannot even talk will walk up to a TV screen and try to swipe it like an iPad or an iPhone.’

The survey results showed the speed at which mobiles and other gadgets are becoming a fact of life, even for babies, when they were compared to a similar study that was carried out in 2011 by Common Sense Media.

Back then, 38 per cent of under-eights had used a phone or a Kindle. Now that same statistic applies to the under-twos.

In 2011 the amount of time the under-eights spent on their phones or tablets was just five minutes a day.

The figure for this year is 15 minutes, on average.

The study, called ‘Zero to Eight: Children’s Media Use in America, 2013’ was based on a national survey of 1,463 parents with children under eight.

Vicky Rideout, the author of the report and the similar one released in 2011, said: ‘I was blown away by the rapidity of the change.

‘iPhones and tablets are game changers, because they are so easy to use.

Among the other findings were that children now typically spend an hour a day in front of screens, though that covers everything from watching TV to using computers and watching films.

Children aged two to four average two hours a day, and those aged five to eight averaged two hours and 20 minutes.

But despite the rise in the use of gadgets, TV still is the dominant media that children consume.

Almost 100 per cent of children under eight have a TV and cable.

Thirty per cent have the Internet with their TVs meaning they can watch films on demand.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2478328/A-modern-milestone-40-babies-use-mobile-phone-tablet-speak-sentences.html#ixzz2j201mR3w

Online Privacy: Free Tool to See Who Is Looking Over Your Shoulder When You Surf The Web

Firefox released a security upgrade after it emerged that the NSA was exploiting vulnerabilities in the browser to gain access to computers using Tor, a sophisticated anonymity tool.

But Mozilla insisted that Lightbeam itself will not compromise the privacy of users who agree to upload and share data. Lightbeam will not log IP addresses, the information will be aggregated anonymously and the software can be uninstalled, Mr Surman promised.

Lightbeam initially will only be available for desktop browsers. Apple has reportedly rejected from its store apps by developers which incorporate “cookie tracking” technology. “The whole mobile environment is closed,” Mr Surman said. “You have to go through Google and Apple for apps.”

Just who is looking over your shoulder when you browse the Internet? Tomorrow, web users will be given a new tool to shine a light on the commercial organisations which track your every movement online.

Lightbeam, a download produced by Mozilla, the US free software community behind the popular Firefox browser, claims to be a “watershed” moment in the battle for web transparency.

Everyone who browses the Internet leaves a digital trail used by advertisers to discover what your interests are.

Users who activate Lightbeam will be able to see a real-time visualisation of every site they visit and every third-party that is active on those sites, including commercial organisations which might potentially be sharing your data.

Mozilla wants users who install the Lightbeam add-on to Firefox, to crowd-source their data, to produce the first “big picture” view of web tracking, revealing which third-parties are most active.

Lightbeam promises a “Wizard of Oz” moment for the web, “where users collectively provide a way to pull back the curtains to see its inner workings,” Mozilla claimed. 

Mark Surman, Mozilla’s executive director, said: “It’s a stake in the ground in terms of letting people know the ways they are being tracked. At Mozilla, we believe everyone should be in control of their user data and privacy and we want people to make informed decisions about their Web experience.”

Mozilla already offers users the ability to disable “cookies” - small files that download from websites onto a computer, allowing advertisers to target users based on their online activity – an option taken up by 18 per cent of UK Firefox users.

Lightbeam will reveal the source of the third-party adverts, scripts and images stored on a web page which are linked to servers in other domains. An expanding graph visualises the interactions between the sites a user intentionally visits and the third parties which may not be welcome.

Mozilla has come under “tremendous pressure” from trade bodies over its mission to bring transparency to the web, said Alex Fowler, the company’s Privacy Officer.

The software company said it was responding to increased privacy concerns following the revelation that the US National Security Agency (NSA) had tapped directly into the servers of Internet firms including Facebook, to track online communication in a surveillance programme.

Read More: http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/mozillas-lightbeam-tool-will-expose-who-is-looking-over-your-shoulder-on-the-web-8902269.html

Social Media: Train passenger live tweets former spy chief's conversation after hearing him bashing Obama

A former political reporter turned the tables on a former spy chief.

Tom Matzzie, who last wrote for Huffington Post, overheard former NSA director Michael Hayden Thursday afternoon bashing the Obama Administration ‘on background’ – and live-tweeted the whole conversation.

A source talking on background can be directly quoted, but cannot be cited by name and is usually referred to ambiguously – in this case as ‘a former senior administration official.’

‘Former NSA spy boss Michael Hayden on Acela behind me blabbing ‘on background as a former senior admin official’ Sounds defensive,’ Mr Matzzie tweeted just before 4:30pm.

Sitting directly  in front of Mr Hayden while riding an Acela train that left Washington, D.C. at 3pm, Mr Matzzie had a front row seat to listen in on multiple interviews being given by the former head spook.

Mr Hayden spoke critically of the Obama Administration on topics ranging from 'a famous blackberry' to rendition and black sites, Mr Matzzie detailed in multiple tweets.

‘Michael Hayden on Acela giving reporters disparaging quotes about admin. ‘Remember, just refer as former senior admin’ #exNSAneedsadayjob,’ Mr Matzzie tweeted.

Showing time away from the beat hasn’t softened his journalistic chops, Mr Matzzie also was able to identify at least one reporter speaking to Mr Hayden – Time’s Massimo Calabresi.

‘On Acela listening to former NSA spy boss Michael Hayden give ‘off record’ interviews. I feel like I’m in the NSA. Except I’m in public,’ Mr Matzzie tweeted.

It didn’t take long for the ex-spy to get to the bottom of who was spying on him, as Mr Matzzie’s phone began ringing after only 15 minutes.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2476171/Former-NSA-chief-Michael-Haydens-conversation-train-gets-live-tweeted-passenger.html#ixzz2ikhrDjA1

The power of social media: NSA uses fake Twitter to abuse rival

White House National Security official fired for criticising colleagues with anonymous Twitter account

Jofi Joseph is a director in the non-proliferation section of the National Security Staff at the White House

In one Twitter rant he called Obama adviser Valerie Jarrett a 'vacuous cipher'

In other posts he called Sarah Palin and her family 'white trash'

A White House national security adviser is out of the job after it was revealed he was behind a Twitter page popular amongst Washington D.C.'s foreign policy community that he often used to anonymously insult many of his bosses and other powerful D.C. insiders.

Additionally, Jofi Joseph, a director in the non-proliferation section of the National Security Staff at the White House, used the account - with the moniker @natsecwonk - to reveal internal information about the Obama White House for more than two years.

At times, Joseph even used the page to take shots at Jews.

'Is it just me, or with the Jews celebrating Rosh Hashanah tonight, is Twitter much quieter?' he posted on September 4.

Joseph started posting on the account in February 2011 and used it to insult powerful politicians until it was deleted last week, presumably after he'd been shown the door at the White House.

Two administration officials confirmed to the Daily Beast that Joseph was the man behind the account.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2472956/Jofi-Joseph-White-House-official-fired-anonymous-Twitter-account.html#ixzz2iZCwz800

Global Study: Young adults say technology can be dehumanizing

The survey, which was conducted in Brazil, China, France, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan and the United States from July 28 to August 15 found millennials are tech-savvy young adults who grew up with smartphones and iPads, but many think technology makes people less human, according to a poll released on Thursday.

Dr. Genevieve Bell, an anthropologist and research director at Intel Labs, said although the results of the survey that examined global attitudes towards technology innovation may indicate that young adults are rejecting technology, the findings could be more complicated.

"A different way to read this might be that millennials want technology to do more for them," she said in a statement.

Nearly 90 percent of young adults questioned in the poll admitted innovations in technology make life easier, but about 60 percent said people rely on it too much and that it can be dehumanizing.

Seventy percent said technology enhances their personal relationships and about half believe it will have a good impact on education, transportation and healthcare.

Women age 45 and older, and those living in emerging markets such as Brazil and India, are more enthusiastic about the impact technology could have on their lives.

The survey of 12,000 people aged 18 and older in eight countries, commissioned by Intel Corporation, also showed that 18- to 24-year-olds want technology to be more personal and know their habits. Older women and those living in emerging markets are the most enthusiastic about the role technology can play in their lives, the findings showed.

In China, more than 70 percent of women said technology is not used enough.

"Women historically have become avid users of technology when that technology solves a problem, helps us organize our live and that of our families, as well as aids us in saving time and time shifting," Bell said.

The findings showed that Italians and Japanese held the most negative attitudes toward technology.

The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 0.89 percentage points.

SOURCE: http://ca.news.yahoo.com/young-adults-technology-dehumanizing-poll-122045068.html

Yahoo Mail users furious over Marissa Mayer's redesign

Can't please all the people all the time - especially with technology.

Apparently, hundreds of thousands of Yahoo users are upset about the changes made to Yahoo Mail (TM). Most are complaining that the useful features have disappeared and now Yahoo is looking and feeling like a Gmail knock off.

I guess if you can't beat the #1 email service you just got to imitate 'em - right?

One writer on the tech site ZD Net has called the redesign a 'disaster' that has left many users questions whether they will keep using Yahoo or flee to other online email services.

The biggest complaint has been the elimination of a feature that allows users to open search pages and emails in individual tabs - something that distinguished Yahoo Mail from its biggest competitor, Gmail.

Another complaint is the the "print" button has been taken away or hidden very effectively.

Source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2460096/Yahoo-Mail-users-furious-Marissa-Mayer-led-redesign-wiped-away-features-left-interface-looking-like-Gmail-knockoff.html

Facebook Gets Rid of Privacy Option And Makes All Users Searchable

Any change to Facebook, whether it's a tweak in its site design or an overhaul of its privacy settings, generates a groan or two.

In another effort to improve its users' experience on the social network, Facebook is getting rid of an old and sometimes glitch-prone privacy option that will now render every Facebook user searchable to any other user.

The old privacy setting -- called "Who can look up your Timeline by name?" -- gave users the option to not appear in Facebook search results. If Mark Zuckerberg himself wanted to keep all Facebook users from looking up his Timeline and activity via the Facebook search bar, he could toggle the setting so that only friends, or friends of friends, could do so.

However, according to Facebook's Chief Privacy Officer Michael Richter, that led to some problems with the search function itself. "People told us that they found it confusing when they tried looking for someone who they knew personally and couldn't find them in search results," he said in a statement. Facebook is phasing out this privacy option and will make all users accessible via the search bar.

http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/facebook-makes-users-searchable/story?id=20543155

How to view your socal sharing stats - for free - on your web page or blog

Here is a simple and free method to view the social stats on your web site or blog.

In other words, find out exactly how many visitors to your web site or blog are sharing your pages to their network.

First you have to download the Chrome browser. Here is a ling to the English version....
https://www.google.com/intl/en/chrome/browser/

Once you have that installed on your computer or phone you have to download the Social Analytic Extension for Chrome .... (this is the link to English version)

https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/social-analytics/pgckigmaefoaemjpijdepakcghjkggmg?hl=en

Again, both of these are free.

Once that Extension is installed, visit your blog posts using Chrome or go to your web pages .... the cool part is that viewing that extension, you will see the number of times your pages have been shared.

Sometimes that extension takes a while to load depending on the speed of your internet connection. Give it a few minutes to have the number appear. That number shows you the total shares, click on the extension icon in Chrome to see the details of those shares.

Steu Mann, 541.210.4375, www.EzWebManifesting.com

SEO: simple nine step program

This is the nine step program that defines a five-star SEO program. We agree that it’s an oversimplification, so just know going in that there is much “doingness” underneath each of these steps.

1. Fine tune and tweak page content keywords with meta tags (title, descriptions, author, and description).

2. Produce and maintain all page content descriptions to include trending high search volume keywords

3. Build and establish organic link building, along with submitting site to high ranking directories, forums, blogs, and review sites.

4. Write and submit blog articles to various directories. Plus, using keywords in those articles.

5. Produce changes in page structure, heading tags, internal links, image alt tags as needed.

6. Manage YouTube video titles and descriptions to include keywords and appropriate links.

7. Analyze crawlability of site pages and take the lead on fixing errors and suggesting solutions to spider or analytic issues.

8. Integrate social media strategy, maintain it and provide measurements.

9.  Monitor performance of organic traffic and measure it. Implement methods to improve inbound links.

Steu Mann 541 210 4375

SEO Specialist

Google rules the West but Japan still prefers Yahoo

Google rules the West but Japan still prefers Yahoo: Map reveals how different internet giants dominate countries across the globe

Google has become so much a part of everyday life many people now use the brand name as a verb for searching, but a new map highlights exactly how far and wide the site spreads across the globe.  

The map, created by researchers at the Oxford Internet Institute, used data from millions of people's browsing history worldwide and shows Google as the most popular site, in 62 countries. 

Facebook was the second most visited site globally, in 50 countries, while the third place site - China's 

Baidu search engine, was popular in just two countries.

To work out the number of visitors, Dr Mark Graham and Stefano De Sabbata from the institute combined the number of estimated average daily unique visitors, with the estimated number of page views for that site from users in a particular country, for a particular month. 

The data shown in the map covers the period of July and August this year and uses information collected by website analytics firm Alexa.

Each colour represents that most visited website in that country and each three individual blocks represent around one million users. 

The countries are unusual sizes as the map effectively exaggerates countries that almost exclusively use one type of search engine.

Google is shown in red, Facebook is blue. Yahoo is shown in purple and has a stronghold over Japan, while China's favourite site is the search engine Baidu. 

Baidu is also popular in Korea, ahead of the country's own search engine Naver.

The majority of most-visited sites were search engines, but Facebook was also popular.

Although Facebook was predominantly popular in the west, it was also the most visited site in Nepal and Mongolia.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2443825/Google-rules-West-Japan-prefers-Yahoo-Map-reveals-different-internet-giants-dominate-countries-globe.html#ixzz2gmUiqmbw 

New research on cell phones that compares models and how do the iPhones measuring up against one another?

Apple has released a total of eight iPhone handsets since 2007 and each one has been released with the promise of faster speeds and improved performance. 

But how different is the original model to the current 5S? Fan site EverythingApplePro has created a video test of all eight handsets, from the original to the new model, plus the 3G, 3GS, 4, 4S, 5 and 5C. Each of the handsets were 'freshly restored and not jailbroken' meaning they each had the same default settings and all applications were force closed beforehand. 

 In the first test, all the phones were powered off simultaneously and the 3GS shut down fastest, followed by 3G, then the 4, then the original model. The newer handsets all took noticeably longer than the older models, but took exactly the same amount of time as each other, to the second. 

The voiceover explained during the video that iOS 6 had a much faster shut down time than iOS 7 and this was highlighted in the test. Each of the phones booted up at different times, but EverythingApplePro highlights that the models differ in the amount of processing power and RAM and software between the newest and oldest phones, meaning this was not unexpected. 

In a separate test, SquareTrade, a provider of protection plans for gadgets, compared five smartphones, including Apple's new iPhones, to see if they could withstand drops, dunks and other common hazards. 

It found that while the iPhone 5C and 5S scored similar on the 'Breakability' scale, the latest models aren't as durable as last year's iPhone 5.

The biggest loser, however, was Samsung's Galaxy S4, which failed to work after being submerged in water and being dropped 5 feet off the ground, according to San Francisco-based SquareTrade.

The phone that withstood SquareTrade's torture test best was Google's Moto X.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2438537/Is-really-worth-upgrading-iPhone-Video-pits-Apple-handset-discovers-older-models-perform-better-newer-ones.html#ixzz2gOJrgxIl

SEO: building your presence in search engines - the easy way

Knowing what you have to have is the easy part of throwing your web site into the world. 

The trick is to get the search engines to connect people looking for your stuff to your pages. From the SEO - search engines optimization -  work I have done over the last 9+ years, this involves a three phase process. 

1.  Get lift in the search engines Getting this lift means that you understand the importance what I put forth in Six Essential SEO Statistics. Having lift means that when you google a key phrase you have implemented, you are seeing your web page(s) in the seven search results. This takes time, give yourself six months before you start pulling your hair out. 

2. Maximize your blog strategy.  You should be bloggin' regularly by now. This is one of the most VALUABLE exercises you can do to create some presence on the web.  I'm going to devote a section to this.  Hey, it doesn't have to be all you. Have some guest bloggers. Put in articles that relate to your products and services.  If all else fails, hire someone to blog for you. Be sure to put a link to your web site at the bottom of every post you make. PLUS, you are making sure that your posts are distributed into your social networks. Use the free software to do this. Bloggin' as I am explaining it, is a proven traffic generator. I moved a blog to over 6,000 visitors a month in less than six months.  You can too. 

3.  Create reciprocal links from well traveled sites Find sites that have a page rank higher than yours that ALSO have content relevant to you ... or get listed in some of the high ranking service directories: http://technorati.com, http://www.dmoz.org, http://botw.org, or http://www.ipl.org.  Make sure you get listed in sections or categories that are relevant to your site content. 

Are you stuck or need an idea to juice your SEO work?  Give me a call at 541 210 4375.

The NSA has been creating maps of American citizens' social networks similar to how the FBI links organized crime families together

The NSA has been graphing American’s social networks and plotting them as they do organized crime since at least 2010, according to the latest published Edward Snowden leak.

The highly secretive intelligence agency has been mapping out American citizens’ social connections – identifying associates, determining locations, and logging who they talk to – by taking advantage of loosened rules previously meant to restrict surveillance actions.

As far back as November, 2010, the agency authorized spies to conduct ‘large-scale graph analysis on very large sets of communications metadata without having to check foreignness,’ the New York Times revealed Saturday.

The agency augmented that information with bank codes, insurance information, Facebook profiles, passenger manifests, voter registration rolls, property records and tax data, the Times further divulged.

There does not appear to be any restriction on the types of data culled, or who it is gather on, the Times noted.

First disclosed to the Times by NSA leaker Edward Snowden, the documents provided to the paper did not divulge how many Americans were surveilled, nor do the documents  detail who – if anyone – was snagged by the extensive spying.

Asked about the agency’s spying on Americans, an agency spokesperson told the Times that ‘all data queries must include a foreign intelligence justification, period.’

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2436937/The-NSA-creating-maps-American-citizens-social-networks-similar-FBI-links-organized-crime-families-together.html#ixzz2gFL8z84S 

Nine Points: Search Optimize Optimize (SEO) Your Web Page or Blog Post - Do it Yourself (DIY)

This is an article about search engine optimization (SEO).

As of this today, there are OVER EIGHT BILLION web pages. To get some attention to your page I have put together this list below to assist you with how to write content with search engine optimization (SEO) methods.

This is a web site showing a live chart of the number of web pages http://www.worldwidewebsize.com.

How to write Search Engine Optimization (SEO) in your web page or blog post

1. Make a list of your keyword(s) that you want to use in this material. Hopefully, you have also made a mental note or written down related words that reinforce your keywords.

2. Create your title that grabs the readers interest and use a keyword or two in it. Statistics show that search engine optimization (SEO) does gain you visibility in search engine results.

3. Write one or two subheadings that you will use throughout your article. Make sure they  contain your target keyword and your related keywords. 

4. The headings should be scattered through the article and you need at least one H1, H2, and H3 heading.

5. Your target keyword should be included in the first sentence of the article and bolding it can help too. Key word strategy is the foundation of SEO and Search Engine Marketing (SEM) which improves your traction in the search engines. 

6. Your target keyword should also be included in the last sentence and should be underlined or made Italic.

7. Use an image in your post, I have to do better with this one, and use your key words as the ALT tag. That means when a reader hovers their mouse over the image they will see your key word.

8. IMPORTANT: use your keywords a maximum of 1% in your article. Over using them means the search engine will know that you are “loading” your page and demote it. For example, if you have 400 words in your article then  each keyword can be used four times.

9. Link to other pages on your blog or web site using some of you key words - not all of them. These are called internal links. For example, if your article has a total of 10 keywords then make six of them internal links.

This article helps you search engine optimize (SEO) your content. SEO work helps you do search engine marketing (SEM). 

Steu

SEO & SEM: Six statistics every online business needs written on the marketing room wall in CAPITALS

Well, I am doing my best to help you get your arms and mind around the fact that social media, SEO - search engine optimization, and SEM - search engine marketing -  can help you grow your business.

I have the "web marketing system" I have used over and over again with clients and it works. Wanna know why? Because people, at home and at work, around the world use the internet and social media. If you plug into those streams, doing it correctly, you will increase your sphere of influence. I guarantee that to my clients.

Below are my statements, the statistics are in quotation marks. I didn't make up these stats either, they come from the sources where links are provided.


1. There is a lota connectivity to the internet.
"There are more devices connected to the Internet than there are people on Earth. AllTwitter"

2. The best way to create a buzz about your products and services is using a blog or social network.
"80% of active internet users visit social networks and blogs. AllTwitter"

3.  Google is the new yellow pages. You better make sure you are easily locatable there.

"61% of all online shoppers research products in search engines before making a purchase. Hubspot"

4. Location, Location, Location. Put your web presence where it will be seen by potential clients most often.
"in May, 2011 Google searches led the all search engine queries with 61% of the total. Hubspot"

5.  Building organic links with search engine marketing is no longer optional, it's critical to online success.
"70% of  the links clicked on in search engine results by web surfers are ORGANIC not paid links. Hubspot"

6.  Use social media that gives you the best bang for your buck.
"The top 10 social sites are facebook, youtube, twitter, yahoo answers, pininterest, linkedin, google+, tagged, myspace, yelp.  AllTwitter"

If you want some help with your expansion send me an email.

Blessings, Steu

Social media spreads the good and the hoax - are people being dumbed down or just bored?

Fake Apple ads touting the new operating system’s ability to make iPhones waterproof have made the social media rounds and gullible consumers are buying it.

The ads are designed to look uncannily like actual advertisements for the new iOS 7 that came out along with the new iPhone 5s and 5c.

The new update does many things, improved multitasking and camera function among them, but waterproofing your new $200 phone is definitely not one of them. Though, if the response on Twitter the new fake feature is any indication, Apple stores may soon be inundated by waterlogged handsets.

One key to the deception, which the Daily Dot reports originated on 4Chan and spread to other social media, is in its deception.

‘With the new features and groundbreaking innovation of iOS 7,’ reads one of the nine ads, this one titled Additional Protection, ‘your iPhone is able to instantly detect changes in thermo-distribution with the touch sensitive screen and home button.’

Water splashes on and below an iPhone in the ad and the suggestion is obvious: iOS 7 makes your phone waterproof.
One of the other ads is more direct, but no less realistic seeming.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2432831/Foolish-tweets-iPhone-owners-believe-fake-ads-claim-new-iOS-7-waterproofs-phones.html#ixzz2g0sJDGXq 

Study finds 15 per cent of Americans STILL don't use the internet

Despite some people feeling like they’re drowning in a sea of status updates, tweets and emails, one in seven American adults don’t use the internet.

A recent study found that 15 per cent of American adults say they don’t surf the internet. Among those who don’t go online, only eight per cent want to - the rest have no desire, according to the Pew Research Center's Internet and American Life Project.

Another nine per cent of respondents said they only use the internet outside of their homes – mostly lower income and less-educated minorities, according to Pew.

Among those avoiding internet use, 34 per cent feel ‘the internet is just not relevant to them, and a further 32 per cent feel going online is too difficult, Pew said.

A further 19 per cent said they could not afford the expense of owning a computer or paying for an internet connection, while the remaining seven per cent cited a physical lack of availability or access to the internet, according to Pew.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2432859/15-Americans-STILL-dont-use-internet-survey-finds.html#ixzz2g0qAyMCb 

Social Media - control the message of your brand on Bloomberg (video)

Tom Carroll, president & CEO at TBWA\\Worldwide, discusses the value of advertising on social media and the challenges companies face in controlling their message. He speaks on Bloomberg Television’s “Bloomberg Surveillance.”

http://www.bloomberg.com/video/the-challenges-of-social-media-advertising-tSvpm8JrSUyQS9Xs3rNO1w.html

Online Privacy Concerns Feed Increase In Facebook Identity Suicides

Concerns over online privacy are leading Facebook users to commit "virtual identity suicide" by deleting their Facebook accounts, according to new scientific research.

A survey of around 300 Facebook users and 300 quitters of the social networking site by Austrian psychologists at the University of Vienna assessing what motivated them to use or abandon Facebook revealed an emerging counter-movement against social networking.

Among those saying they were quitting Facebook, almost half were leaving because of privacy concerns. Others said that the shallow nature of online relationships and feelings that they were becoming addicted to Facebook were reasons for abandoning their virtual social lives, according to the research on users and quitters from 47 countries.

see article: http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/09/20/facebook-privacy-concerns-prompt-virtual-identity-suicides.html

SEO: a Google guide to doing your own SEO

Some of you are Do It Yourself (DIY) and this is a post for you. Google has a well done starter guide for building SEO into your content and therefore getting some lift in Goggle  search results.  Check out the link below to this very handy manual. It takes some time to digest it and apply it - but definitely worth your while. 

I guarantee that by the time you read this and apply it, you will be immersed in your web site design and building. So, if you are up to that level of immersion in your web site design this Google created SEO started guide is a DIY dream come true.

Here is the link....

http://static.googleusercontent.com/external_content/untrusted_dlcp/www.google.com/en/us/webmasters/docs/search-engine-optimization-starter-guide.pdf

Steu 

541.210.4375