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SEC investigating MOVEit hack that exposed data of at least 64 million people
Progress Software received a subpoena from the SEC to share information relating to the vulnerability in its file transfer software, MOVEit, which became the subject of a massive exploit beginning last May.
NY Attorney General tells TWC its broadband is 'abysmal'
Late last year, the New York Attorney General's office called on internet customers to submit broadband speeds as a part of its probe into service providers keeping their promises. After the stats were tallied, the AG found one company to be the worse than the others. In a letter from senior enforcement counsel Tim Wu, the office informed Time Warner Cable that speeds customers has submitted were "abysmal."
NY Attorney General targets Yahoo's daily fantasy sports next
Yahoo is no stranger to fantasy sports, and its foray into daily fantasy games grabbed the attention of regulators in New York. The internet company is being included in the inquiry into daily fantasy sports by the New York Attorney General's office. Yahoo was subpoenaed alongside DraftKings and FanDuel as Attorney General Eric Schneiderman looks to ban the games in his state. A distant third in the world of daily fantasy, Yahoo launched its version in July and continues to accept payments in the state of New York. However, the company shut down its daily fantasy option in Florida last month after an investigation of the industry began by a federal grand jury. With Schneiderman looking into other operators besides the two top names, it seems his goal is to rid New York of daily fantasy sports entirely and classify the games as gambling. And if he's successful, it'll be interesting to see if other states follow suit. [Image credit: Getty Images]
DraftKings and FanDuel sue to stop New York Attorney General's ban
Following New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman's request for daily fantasy sports sites DraftKings and FanDuel to stop operating in his state, the two sites filed a lawsuit against the AG. Filing a petition with the New York Supreme Court, both sites allege that Schneiderman's office illegally interfered with their business operations by threatening payment processing vendors if they didn't stop handling transactions for players in New York. The Attorney General also declared the two illegal gambling sites earlier this week, threatening to ban them if they didn't stop operations. The companies maintain that their version of fantasy sports do indeed require skill rather than luck, which separates them from regular ol' gambling.
Net neutrality expert Tim Wu joins New York attorney general's office
After running for lieutenant governor and serving as a special adviser to the Federal Trade Commission, the man who coined the term "net neutrality" has a new gig. Tim Wu, a professor at Columbia Law School, will take a sabbatical to join the New York attorney general's office as senior lawyer and special adviser to Attorney General Eric Schneiderman. Wu will work on matters of consumer protection and fair competition when it comes to technology. More specifically, issues facing companies that do business over the internet. "If I have a life mission, it is to fight bullies," Wu said in an interview. During his tenure, Schneiderman has dealt with issues concerning internet-based companies like Airbnb and Lyft in addition to advocating for stronger anti-theft features on smartphones. [Image credit: AP Photo/Seth Wenig]
Lyft gets the green light to operate in New York City
Nearly two weeks after New York's Attorney General, Eric T. Schneiderman, made a push to bar Lyft from offering its ridesharing service in New York City, both parties have finally come to an agreement. As a result, Lyft is now free to operate in all five boroughs of The Big Apple, after the company "agreed to operate in New York State in full compliance with existing laws and regulations." In addition, Lyft has also assured state officials it will operate with commercial drivers only. But it wasn't a complete win for the pink mustache company, as this agreement stipulates that Lyft must cease services in Buffalo and Rochester by next week, on August 1st.
NY medical marijuana law could mean big bucks for vaporizer makers
New York is against second-hand smoke of any kind; even beneficiaries of the state's new medical marijuana law will need to avoid lighting up. Government restrictions do allow vaporizers, however, which got their (legal) start with tobacco and are about to become big business in NY. The handheld devices will play a key role in the treatment of medical marijuana recipients, who will be permitted to inhale the drug through vaporizers, but not by using cigarette paper and a lighter. You'll also be able to consume marijuana in food or through a concentrated liquid called a tincture, but there's no question that vaporizers will become more prolific as more New Yorkers get their hands on closely regulated prescriptions in the days and months to come.
Sprint forced to defend $300 million New York State tax fraud case
Sprint's bid to dismiss a $300 million tax suit filed by New York's attorney general has been denied by the state's supreme court, according to Bloomberg. The judge in the case decided the claims "satisfactorily allege that Sprint knowingly submitted false monthly tax statements," and that a hearing will take place later this month. The so-called whistle-blower lawsuit arose in 2011 after Sprint believed it could withhold up to 25 percent of the taxes it was supposed to collect on fixed-rate wireless contracts. For its part, the state claimed it illegally treated them as nontaxable, adding that operators like AT&T and Verizon "correctly paid" them. The carrier said it intended to file an appeal, adding that New Yorkers, "who already pay some of the highest wireless taxes in the country," are being forced to "pay even more." Of course, given the recent merger approval by shareholders, Sprint's headache could soon become Softbank's, too.
Jersey Shore getting Verizon LTE on May 17th...
...just in time for photos of Snooki's kid to be whisked around the world at 4G speeds. (P.S. - Northern Vermont, Long Island, Cape Cod, Delaware beach communities and the gorgeous Outer Banks of North Carolina are going live soon as well, sans drama.) [Photo credit: Craig Barritt, Getty Images]
NYC phone booths to get second lives as slate stalls
Believe it or not, but there are still hundreds, nay, thousands of phone booths out there on the streets of New York City. Obviously, in the age of the ubiquitous smartphone, most of them go untouched -- though, usually that has more to do with some mysterious substance covering the handset. The city is preparing to update this urban staple by replacing the touch tone quarter eaters with 32-inch touchscreens. The giant slates will offer a quick connection to 311 for requesting info and filing complaints, as well as interactive guides to the neighborhood. Instead of being a place to prank call 1-800 numbers, the phone booth will now become your one stop shop for restaurant suggestions and local landmark locations. 250 of the devices are being provided free of charge by City24x7 for a pilot program and, if all goes well, the company and the city will split revenue generate from ad sales following an expanded roll out. You can bet we'll be some of the first people on the street to put these through their paces when they make their expected debut in May.
Inhabitat's Week in Green: 9/11 Memorial designs, an electric helicopter and laser headlights
Each week our friends at Inhabitat recap the week's most interesting green developments and clean tech news for us -- it's the Week in Green. Today a day of reflection dawns in New York as the city recognizes the ten-year anniversary of the September 11th attacks with the official unveiling of the National 9/11 Memorial at Ground Zero. Tranquil though the memorial may be, it has had a tumultuous past - this week we showcased seven unrealized designs for the WTC site that will never see the light of day, and we took a look at what happened to Daniel Libeskind's original plans for the WTC Freedom Tower. We also saw green buildings soar as Sydney unveiled Australia's greenest office tower, we learned that the new Batman movie may be filmed in a salt mine in Transylvania, and we spotted an amazing replica of the Trump Tower built from 65,000 LEGO bricks. It was also a record-breaking week for green transportation as the world's first manned electric helicopter took flight and scientists developed the world's tiniest electric motor. Meanwhile, pedal-powered transportation got a major boost as Hertz launched an electric bike rental program in London and Silverback unveiled a series of bikes with built-in USB chargers for your gadgets. We also brought you the latest news from the Frankfurt Auto Show as Rimac teased the unveiling of its 1,000 horsepower electric supercar and Audi and BMW both unveiled vehicles endowed with ultra bright next-gen laser headlights. Speaking of shining examples of green design, this week we brought you a first look at the Samsung Galaxy Skin concept phone, which features a flexible AMOLED display that can fold to fit inside your pocket. We also saw several inspiring ways to reduce waste as scientists worked on a fuel cell that generates power while cleaning up nuclear fallout, Think Geek brought us a clever set of Fridgeezoo icebox pets that encourage kids to save energy, and we looked at Sloan's innovative AQUS grey water toilet system that recycles your sink water. Finally, we brought you the state of the art in wearable tech as we reported that scientists developed a Terahertz "Invisibility Cloak" and researchers discovered a coral reef secret that could lead to sunscreen in a pill in five years.
Vitamin Water bus-stop ad lets devices juice-up before the commute
Battery running low during the rush-hour commute? Glacéau's Vitamin Water Energy Bus Shelter by Crispin Porter & Bogusky wants to help you get charged while you're waiting to board. The new billboards feature a bottle of the vitamin / caffeine-packing drink, sporting a triple-USB port, which you can plug your devices into for some extra juice. Apparently, you'll be seeing these if your daily public-transit hustle takes you through the fine cities of Boston, New York, Chicago or Los Angeles -- we'd imagine owners of HTC's Thunderbolt will find them very useful.
Clearwire boosts NYC WiMAX coverage by 21 percent, 91,363 people rejoice uncontrollably
Consider yourself a New Yorker? If so, you could find yourself underneath Sprint / TWC / Clearwire's 4G umbrella, as the trio has announced a 21 percent coverage expansion in the greater New York City area. Folks in Alpine, Bayonne, Elizabeth, Fair Lawn, Newark, Paramus, Secaucus, Union, NJ; and Hartsdale, New Rochelle, New York, Rockville Centre, Yonkers, NY will now be covered in the regional Clear network, and as of last count, that amounts to an extra 91,363 people. 'Course, a few newcomers will be born every minute, so maybe we've breached 91,369 by now. Or maybe more. Talk about confusing.
New York City turns to sewers for energy solutions
Listen up New Yorkers, those hot nuts you just swallowed could be used to light the signs on Broadway. Okay, so that's a stretch, but the city's Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) just issued a plan to turn the stuff you flush, along with rest of its wastewater, into renewable energy. New York City produces about 1.3 billion gallons of wastewater daily, yielding 1,200 tons of biosolids that can be harvested to procure methane -- already accounting for 20 percent of the city's energy -- and butanol, a clean gasoline alternative. The plan, which also includes wind and solar projects, aims to use gas, converted by large digesters, to "power wastewater operations, meet on-site heat and electricity needs, and, where feasible, sell excess energy to the market." As the DEP points out, the plan isn't far fetched -- we've seen a couple of solutions for turning human excrement into usable energy, and a project already under way in Greenpoint is estimated to procure enough methane over the next year to heat 2,500 homes. Now, if that doesn't give you a newfound respect for the porcelain throne, we don't know what will.
Proposal would put a solar garden on the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway
If you've ever spent any time on New York City's finest roadway, the Brooklyn Queens Expressway, garden is not one of the first words that comes to mind. That could change on one particular strip in Brooklyn if a concept -- which you see above -- gets approved and built. The concept is part of a project calling for solutions to a trench that runs from Carroll Gardens to the Columbia Street Waterfront in Brooklyn. Starr Whitehouse Landscape architects floated three possible solutions for improving the stretch, which would cost between about $10 and $18 million, very cheap in comparison to other projects of this type. The Green Canopy proposal calls for a massive plant covered canopy with solar panels to stretch over top of the entire area making it self-sustaining and reducing noise in the area. Hit up the source to check out the other proposed projects.
Visa rolling out payWave mobile phone payments in NY subway and taxis
DeviceFidelity's mobile twist on Visa's payWave system is a nice little solution to the fact that nobody's bothered to build contactless payment chips into US mobile phones just yet -- DeviceFidelity just stuffs the Visa smart chip circuitry into a microSD card and lets you on your way. Of course, this supplants the much needed additional storage on an Android handset, and requires a chunky add-on case for the iPhone, but at least it's a start. Visa will now start allowing those payWave-enabled devices to make contactless payments at subway turnstiles and taxi backseats in New York City as part of a new trial for the tech. Of course you've been able to do this with all sorts of chipped credit cards already, but there's something very future-ey about swiping your phone to make a payment -- now how about ditching the clunky add-ons and building some of this circuitry in by default?
iPhone coming to The Shack: Dallas and NYC this month, nationwide in 2010?
So we knew a select number of authorized resellers would start stocking iPhones soon, and thanks to a tipster, it looks like we might be getting a glimpse at a none-too-surprising recipient of the new order. As these pics from an anonymous tipster show, "big hug for your mobile life" retailer The Shack will be getting AT&T's flagship device soon, with a letter supposedly from EVP of store operations Bryan Bevin (found after the break) adding that the 3G and 3GS rollout will begin this month at some company-owned locations in the Dallas Forth Worth and New York City areas, with a nationwide rollout in 2010. Not that you necessarily needed more places to tempt you with the device, but it's always fun to have options.
Dell finally fined $4 million in NY fraud case
Remember back in May 2008 when Dell was found guilty of "engaging in deceptive business practices related to financing promotions for its computers and technical support?" Yeah, those were the days, and now just 15 and a half months after the verdict, the computer maker is now paying up to the tune of $4 million -- not as paltry as its $30,000 Taiwan fine, but still less than one percent of its quarterly profits. We know, it's the thought the counts.
Beware cheap Nikons on eBay: 22 stolen from NYC red light cameras
Hopefully you're not the sort to risk things by gunning it when the light turns yellow, pushing your (and our) luck, saving yourself a few seconds on the race to the next intersection, and sneering red light cameras. Maybe if you knew the kind of hardware in there you'd have more respect: Nikon's D2X digital SLR. We had no idea there were pro-level shooters in there, but a New York City couple certainly did, running around the city with a cherry picker and pilfering 22 of the things, all sold at pawn shops for a total of $88,000 $6,600 -- money that was promptly spent to further their heroin habit. These two channel swimmers, 45-year-old Anthony Cintorrino and 29-year-old Tara LaBurt, got away with this for a full month before the authorities finally caught up with them. When they were approached they said they were with the DoT... then promptly started running. They didn't get far. Crime doesn't pay, folks, even if it's for a sweet body like that. Update: The cameras were worth $88,000, but the couple pawned them off for a measly $300 apiece, netting a total of under seven grand. That's a crying shame.[Via Gizmodo]
Verizon's FiOS TV expansions: March 7, 2009
Apparently Verizon has rid itself of the obsessive need to add Golf Channel HD to every area it serves, but in doing so, it also rid itself of the desire to do just about anything else FiOS TV-related. This week, we're seeing the fiber-based service spread to three new JPI apartment buildings in Washington, D.C.'s Capitol Riverfront neighborhood along with the opening of a FiOS Services store in Yonkers, New York. Outside of that, all's quiet on the FiOS TV front. 'Til next week, stay classy, planet Earth.Read - Store in YonkersRead - Washington, D.C. expansion
