24 hours after the devastating earthquake in Haiti, scammers were churning out spam emails to take advantage of the relief efforts. Whenever a global disaster happens, scam artists respond almost as quickly as international relief workers. When tsunami hit the Samoan islands on 29 Sept 2009, scammers and hackers popped up immediately on the web to exploit people who wanted to offer financial assistance. Such is the case with the Haiti quake.

Just hours after Haiti was hit by the massive earthquake, con artists were booking domain names related to the quake in order to set up authentic- looking sites. Oftentimes these sites claim to be associated with charity organizations and ask the users to give their credit card number and other important personal information.

Security experts are also noticing that the scammers are using search engine techniques to rank higher for searches related to the Haiti quake. People when clicked on such sites are presented with a fake warning about viruses in an effort to trick them into downloading malware so that their computer is infected.

To protect oneself from such scams it is advisable to use the most recent available version of your web browser, up-to-date anti-virus software and make sure that all security patches and updates are installed for the web browser and other web-based programs.

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Google preparing itself for the next paradigm shift with Nexus One

Google has launched its sleek, touch screen Android phone called Nexus One on 5 Jan 2010. Nexus One comes after nearly three years of immense speculation over whether Google would manufacture its own phone. The handset has been manufactured by Taiwan-based HTC however all the specifications were ordered by Google.

The online search and advertising giant has always been innovative in attracting consumers and this time it has done it again. Google has decided to sell the new phone and future models directly to consumers, unlocked, via their website. Thus, it is not tied to any particular wireless carrier. Well some think going direct to consumers is a smart move taken by Google. However, other analysts are of the opinion that bypassing a carrier and directly selling the Nexus One is a risky choice that Google is opting for.
The Phone will cost $529 unlocked or $179 from T-Mobile online with a 2-year US service plan. An unlocked Nexus One would be able to work on AT&T’s network as well.

It has a 3.7-inch AMOLED and runs a 1 GHz Snapdragon processor. In addition it has a 5 MP camera which includes an LED flash and takes MPEG 4 videos, light and proximity sensors, a compass and accelerometer, 3.5mm headphone jack and two microphones for noise reduction.
Many believe that launching Nexus One is a big step that Google has taken in the mobile arena. The company had previously designed mobile software like Google maps and released its Android operating system in 2008. We all must have heard the buzz going around about mobile computing becoming the new paradigm shift. As more people are depending less on their laptops and are relying more on their mobile phones to access internet it is obvious that their surfing habits will change. It has the potential to transform the economics of internet business. This means in the future Google’s position as the leading search engine and advertising giant could be put into question.

According to many analysts Google saw it coming many years ago and was preparing itself for the shift. Vic Gundotra, vice president of engineering at Google who oversees mobile applications said in an interview that they were incredibly excited about the opportunities in the mobile arena. Google has invested a considerable amount, and with Nexus One it aims to provide a compelling mobile experience, Gundotra added.
Well does Nexus One succeed in providing a rewarding mobile experience or not, time will say!

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