The Guardian recently decided to see what happens to mail during a postal strike using covert satellite tracking. Whenever there is a strike by Royal Mail, nobody really knows the fate of the post which may be lying in post boxes, in sorting offices or even get delivered on time or late. (more…)

Many people use BlackBerries because the phones offer so many features and are easy to use. The phone is often used by high end users and many confidential conversations take place with most people unaware how easy it is to eavesdrop on these conversations.

A new software, PhoneSnoop, which was developed by Sheran Gunasekera who is director of security for Hermis Consulting in Jakarta, Indonesia, can be installed with or without the knowledge of the user and used to eavesdrop on conversations. Sheran says that the software which is available free is supposed to highlight the fact that BlackBerries are not secure. (more…)

All kinds of sensitive and personal data are stored by various organisations in the private and public sectors. Off and on the public hear about how sites were hacked or information lost or there has been breach of confidential data. What makes news, however, is only the tip of the iceberg – there are many more instances where cases are not reported and never come to light. (more…)

With all kinds of crime on the increase, including white collar crime, and criminals using sophisticated technology to their advantage, new security systems are also put in use. There are already systems which use biometric fingerprints and even retina reading systems so that unauthorized personnel cannot break in any way.

Aditech has launched high security biometric face recognition systems which can be used as a business solution for small and large businesses. For instance it has the JustLook Time Attendance system which actually captures and matches the faces of employees and tracks the times they are in and out and also calculates the payrolls on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. Using this eliminates the possibility of other employees punching in for those who goof off. (more…)

The HitchSafe Key Vault is a great place to keep keys, credit cards or even some extra cash, particularly when you take part in outdoor sports. If you like jogging, hiking, surfing or other water sports, you can use this and know that your valuables are safe. (more…)

Okay we know that smoking is not cool and is banned in many places, but die hard smokers still smoke even if they are only at designated places and the number of smokers keeps on increasing. Here is a product which doubles as a cufflink, but in reality works as a lighter. (more…)

There are many government web sites which citizens can access but currently they have to use separate and different keys for each site. The government is looking at technology which will make accessing the sites more secure and easy for an individual.

Directgov chief technology officer David Matthewman, while talking about various authentication methods, said, ‘It could be biometric fingerprints in the long term… In the short term, it could be an applet on an iPhone, it could be a smartcard,’ putting forward the idea that citizen could perhaps use their iPhones to identify themselves. (more…)

A new scanner is in use at Manchester airport, working much like Superman’s X-ray vision to see through clothes and all outerwear. It actually reveals whether a person has breast augmentation, any piercings in any part of the body and even an extremely clear outline of the person’s genitals.

Even though this kind of scanner was in use at Heathrow airport on a trial basis, people in the main are aghast at this kind of invasion of privacy. The ‘naked’ pictures are supposed to be destroyed immediately, will be viewed by only one person somewhere far away, so both parties are not embarrassed and people can refuse to be scanned and will be patted down as usual. (more…)