New FRAUD strategies - Keyboard‏

PLEASE BE CAREFUL WHENEVER YOU'RE USING A PC AT A PUBLIC PLACE (Like INTERNET CAFES..ETC).
CHECK THE BACK OF THE PC AND SEE IF THE BELOW DEVICE IS THERE..IF SO..DO NOT USE IT!!!!

New storing device fits at the end of the keyboard cable connecting to the PC specialized to save all typed keys in it…
Mostly could be used in net cafes, exhibitions, hotels and airports therefore be careful especially the people who use the internet in these places to enter their bank accounts online or any other important sites.
After you enter the bank account and leave the PC it will be easy to open your account again as all what you have typed has been saved in the Black device.
Therefore, you should check the PC for any suspicious piece behind it before using the net in public places for important sites.
Please send it to all who you know to educate them against this fraud.

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News: Log in to Facebook, Orkut offline

WASHINGTON: You may soon be able to chat with your Facebook and Orkut friends even without an Internet connection, for scientists have developed an application that may make it possible to network, chat, or share files without Internet access.

Researchers at the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology have come up with an application that may make it possible to chat and even play collaborative games with friends who also have installed the application.

There are two components to the application, dubbed “Peersonalizer,” a Facebook application and a module inside the free, downloadable WiPeer software.

WiPeer makes direct wireless (WiFi) communication between computers possible -- without intermediary devices such as Internet routers -- at distances of up to 900 ft. Peersonalizer uses technology that can also be applied to other social networking sites such as Orkut, MySpace, Friendster and LinkedIn.

Lead researcher Professor Roy Friedman said that the technology could also be eventually used with WiFi-enabled mobile phones, such as the iPhone.

“This application takes social networking to another level,” said Friedman.

“Peersonalizer demonstrates that Internet-based social networks can serve as complementary mechanisms -- rather than replacements -- to social and business life,” he added.

The application has been developed by two Technion Faculty of Computer Science students, Lior Biran and Tomer Einav, under the supervision of Friedman and PhD students Vadim Drabkin and Gabi Kliot.

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News: Children flock to social networks

Almost half of children online use social network sites

More than a quarter of eight to 11-year-olds in the UK have a profile on a social network, research shows.

Most sites, such as Bebo, MySpace and Facebook, set a minimum age of between 13 and 14 to create a profile but none actively enforce the age limit.

Ofcom's survey of 5,000 adults and 3,000 children found 49% of those aged between eight and 17 have a profile.

Ofcom says parents could put their children at risk if they do not keep an eye on what they do online.

Wide usage

The Ofcom report looks into the impact of social networks on people's lives in the UK as part of a wider media literacy campaign and surveyed 5,000 adults and more than 3,000 children.

"Social networks are clearly a very important part of people's lives and are having an impact on how people live their lives," said James Thickett, director of market research at Ofcom.

SOCIAL NETWORKING SURVEY 49% of children 8-17 have an online profile 22% of 16+ have an online profile On average adults have profiles on 1.6 sites 63% of 8 to 17-year-olds with a profile use Bebo 37% of 8 to 17-year-olds with profile use MySpace 18% of 8 to 17-year-olds with a profile use Facebook 59% of 8 to 17-year-olds use social networks to make new friends 16% of parents do not know if their child's profile is visible to all 33% of parents say they set no rules for their children's use of social networks 43% of children say their parents set no rules for use of social networks Source: Ofcom

He added: "Children's lives are very different from what they were 20 years ago. Social networks are a way of creating a social bond."

The Home Office has been working with social networking firms and is expected to publish a set of guidelines for the sites around best practice, security and privacy on Friday.

The report is expected to recommend that profiles created by children are set to private by default, or are only viewable by friends nominated by the user.

It also suggests that social sites maintain a distinct contact page listing contact numbers, such as 999, children can use to get help.

The three leading social networks, MySpace, Bebo and Facebook, all say they remove profiles of users that are found to be too young on their sites.

But at present no technology is used to actively verify the age of users.

The Home Office guidelines are set to encourage social networking sites to investigate age verification technologies and to give better signposting to users about privacy settings, and warnings about the implications of posting personal details.

A spokesman for MySpace said the firm "proactively ensures that profiles of 14 and 15-year-olds are automatically made private so that users are protected from adults they don't already know in the offline world".

The company said in the future all of its users under 18 would have profiles set automatically to private.

Risk perception

More than a fifth of people in the UK aged 16 and over have an online profile, the Ofcom survey showed.

But the report revealed a "significant difference" between the perception of the risks and use of social networks between parents and children.

Parents who are allowing their children to go online without supervision and support... need to recognise that their children are potentially at risk Robin Blake, Ofcom

"While people are aware of the status of their profile there is a general lack of awareness of the issues attached to them around privacy and safety," said Mr Thickett.

He added: "People put aside concerns about privacy and safety believing they have been taken care of by someone else."

Forty-one per cent of children had set their profile so that it was visible to anyone, according to the report.

But 16% of parents admitted they did not know if their child's profile could be seen or not by strangers.

"There is an issue about parenting," said Robin Blake, head of media literacy at Ofcom.

New friends

He added: "Parents who are allowing their children to go online without supervision and support... need to recognise that their children are potentially at risk."

According to the Ofcom report, almost 60% of children use social networking sites to make new friends, compared to 17% of adults who use the sites for the same purpose.

READ THE REPORT Social Networking [260KB] Most computers will open this document automatically, but you may need Adobe Reader Download the reader here

While two-thirds of parents said they set rules for their children when using social networking sites, only 53% of children said that their parents had set such rules.

"Children are using these sites with a far lower awareness of some of the issues and rules that these sites entail," said Mr Thickett.

Ofcom called on social networks to improve the visibility of privacy settings.

Monitor guidelines

"The settings are not obvious to some people when using these sites," said Mr Blake.

He said Ofcom would be "monitoring and reviewing" the guidelines that social networks had drawn up in conjunction with the Home Office.

ADVICE FOR PARENTS If your child is 14 or under, check whether you feel the site is appropriate Set rules Check your child's profile Source: Ofcom

However, Ofcom admitted it had no legal authority over social networks and was not "regulating them".

Mr Blake said: "Ofcom's approach is very much to encourage industry to do the right thing."

Dr Rachel O'Connell, chief safety officer at Bebo, told BBC News: "We're working with the regulatory bodies. It's critical to our business that we adhere to these guidelines."

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News: Mobiles linked to disturbed sleep

The evidence on mobile phone safety has been contradictory

Using a mobile phone before going to bed could stop you getting a decent night's sleep, research suggests.

The study, funded by mobile phone companies, suggests radiation from the handset can cause insomnia, headaches and confusion.

It may also cut our amount of deep sleep - interfering with the body's ability to refresh itself.

The study was carried out by Sweden's Karolinska Institute and Wayne State University in the US.

Funded by the Mobile Manufacturers Forum, the scientists studied 35 men and 36 women aged between 18 and 45.

Some were exposed to radiation equivalent to that received when using a mobile phone, others were placed in the same conditions, but given only "sham" exposure.

Those exposed to radiation took longer to enter the first of the deeper stages of sleep, and spent less time in the deepest one.

The scientists concluded: "The study indicates that during laboratory exposure to 884 MHz wireless signals components of sleep believed to be important for recovery from daily wear and tear are adversely affected."

Researcher Professor Bengt Arnetz said: "The study strongly suggests that mobile phone use is associated with specific changes in the areas of the brain responsible for activating and coordinating the stress system."

Another theory is that radiation may disrupt production of the hormone melatonin, which controls the body's internal rhythms.

Electrosensitivity

About half the people in the study believed themselves to be "electrosensitive", reporting symptoms such as headaches and impaired cognitive function from mobile phone use.

But they proved to be unable to tell if they had been exposed to the radiation in the test.

Alasdair Philips is director of Powerwatch, which researches the effects of electromagnetic fields on health.

He said: "The evidence is getting stronger that we should treat these things in a precautionary way.

"This research suggests that if you need to make a phone call in the evening it is much better to use a land line, and don't have your mobile by your bedside table."

Mike Dolan, executive director of the Mobile Operators Association, said the study was inconsistent with other research.

He said: "It is really one small piece in a very large scientific jigsaw. It is a very small effect, one researcher likened it to less than the effect you would see from a cup of coffee."

Last September a major six-year study by the UK Mobile Telecommunications and Health Research Programme (MTHRP) concluded that mobile phone use posed no short-term risk to the brain.

However, the researchers said they could not rule out the possibility that long-term use may raise the risk of cancer.

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News: Gates hails age of digital senses

Touch will become an important interface for PCs, Mr Gates said

The way people interact with computers is going to dramatically change in the next five years, Microsoft chief Bill Gates has told BBC News.

He predicted that the keyboard and mouse would gradually give way to more intuitive and natural technologies.

In particular, he said, touch, vision and speech interfaces would become increasingly important.

Mr Gates made his comments whilst answering questions from BBC News website readers.

"This whole idea of what I call natural user interface is really redefining the experience," he said.

FROM DOT.LIFE BLOG I've just emerged from the Microsoft machine, shaken but unscathed Rory Cellan-Jones, BBC technology correspondent Read Rory's thoughts in full

"We're adding the ability to touch and directly manipulate, we're adding vision so the computer can see what you're doing, we're adding the pen, we're adding speech," he told BBC News.

During the interview Mr Gates showed off the Microsoft Surface computer, a large table like machine with a multi-touch interface.

"I'll be brave, in five years we'll have many tens of million of people sitting browsing their photos, browsing their music, organising their lives using this type of touch interface," he said.

Vista versions

Although Microsoft Windows has become the most widely used operating system in the world, Mr Gates admitted that he had not always got things right.

"People thought we were late with the [web] browser," he admitted.

In addition, he said, search was an area where people thought that Microsoft had not fulfilled expectations.

"Google has done a good job," he said. "We expect to surprise people that we can match and even do better there - people should wait and see."

Mr Gates also answered questions about Windows Vista, the firm's often-criticised operating system, launched last year.

There are no Macs in my house Bill Gates

"I'm very proud of Vista," he said. "Like all of the products we ship, we hear how we could do this differently or that differently."

He said the firm had received "lots of feedback" on the software.

"We do downloads and improvements all of the time and of course there'll be a major new version coming along," he said.

Microsoft has just announced that it has sold 100 million licences for the operating system.

During the questions and answer session he also revealed his own computer habits.

"There are a lot of PCs in my house - over 10," he said.

In particular, he said, he used a tablet PC, a notebook computer that is operated with a digital stylus.

However, he said, he does not use his competitor's products.

"There are no Macs in my house," he admitted.

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News: Manhunt 2 to face court challenge

Manhunt 2 was banned in the UK in June

British censors have won the right to fight the UK release of video game Manhunt 2 in the High Court.

A judge accepted the British Board of Film Classification's argument that the game had been approved for release on a misinterpretation of the law.

The game was banned in June but the Video Appeals Committee said the game could be classified and released.

The BBFC said that the VAC had been guilty of "a very serious misdirection of law" on the question of harm.

The judge said: "I have taken into account the high public interest in the possibility of harm to children."

Mr Justice Wyn Williams ruled the Board had an arguable case that should go to a full hearing.

Both sides agreed that the game was not suitable for children, but the BBFC argued that if given a certificate for release, it could still end up in the hands of minors.

The judge also suspended the VAC's decision that the game should be classified, halting any possibility of it going on sale until after the High Court challenge, due to take place before 31 January next year.

The BBFC said it would pay any damages that developer Rockstar might suffer as a result of the stay, if the Board loses its legal challenge.

The Board had warned that if the VAC decision had stood, it would have fundamental implications for all of its decisions, including those about unacceptable levels of violence.

Rockstar Games said that Manhunt 2 was "well within the bounds established by other 18+ rated entertainment".

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News: Action urged on broadband speeds

Customers should be informed of actual speeds, the panel said

Action should be taken over consumers' concerns about broadband connection speeds, a watchdog has said.

The Ofcom Consumer Panel said speeds advertised as "up to" a certain level end up being much slower in reality.

The panel said there needed to be a code of practice so broadband customers get proper information about speeds.

The Advertising Standards Authority should look at how companies advertise broadband speeds and encourage them to explain why they can vary, it added.

Clear information

Research earlier this year found that customers who had signed up for speeds advertised as up to eight megabits a second were often getting something only as third as fast.

The panel said customers should be allowed out of their contract if the actual speed is a lot less than they were promised.

Internet service providers should provide clear information on what can affect speeds, and inform customers of the actual speed after installation, the panel said.

Panel chairman Colette Bowe said: "This code would establish agreed processes to give the customer the best information during and after the sales process, and to give them flexibility to move freely to different packages that reflect the actual speeds with which their ISPs are able to provide them."

The panel was set up to advise the communications watchdog about issues affecting consumers.

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News: How next billion will shape net

Internet law professor Michael Geist looks at what doubling the number of users will mean to the net.

China will add another 250 million users over the next decade

Last month hundreds of people descended on Rio de Janiero, Brazil, for the second annual Internet Governance Forum.

Sponsored by the United Nations, the IGF attracted politicians, business leaders, technologists, and others interested in the global issues facing the internet.

While media coverage of the forum focused primarily on domain name issues, those concerns were overshadowed by a far more important and challenging question - what will the next billion users mean to the internet itself?

With more than a billion internet users worldwide, doubling that number, which should happen within the next decade, will obviously have a profound effect on the network, technology, the computer software industry, access to knowledge, and our environment.

Understanding the effect of another billion internet users starts with considering the origin of those users. Although some will reside in North America, Europe, and other developed countries that close their domestic digital divides, the majority of the growth will undoubtedly come from the developing world.

China is already the second largest internet-using country the world and it will likely surpass the United States, the current leader, within the next year or two, adding 250 million internet users over the next decade.

Countries such as India and Brazil should add another 200 million internet users, while the fastest rate of growth is likely to come from Africa, which is starting from a much smaller base.

The next billion will differ in more ways than just geography. Most new internet users will not speak English as their first language, which should lead to increased pressure to accommodate different languages within the domain name system.

Moreover, many new internet users will have different cultural and societal views on hot-button issues such as online free speech, privacy, and copyright. As they demand a voice in global policy making, those users will help shift the policy debate.

The $100 laptop - new users will use different technology

The next billion may also use different technology to access the internet. The recent introduction of the XO laptop - previously known as the $100 laptop - demonstrates how the developing world has different requirements and how the technology industry will have to adapt to those changing environments.

Indeed, flashy, high-end laptops with large screens, fast DVD players, and enormous hard drivers may give way to devices that are energy efficient, sturdier, and better suited to users with varying levels of literacy.

The operating systems and software installed on those machines may also be different. Microsoft and Apple may have been the preferred choice for most of the first billion, but the next billion is far more likely to use open source software alternatives that are free and offer the chance for local customisation.

Not only will the devices be different, but the next billion will employ alternate modes to access the internet. Widespread broadband may be too expensive to install in some developing communities, leading to greater reliance on wireless and satellite-based connectivity.

Users may use mobile devices as their primary way to connect to the internet, experiencing slower speeds of access and forcing e-commerce companies to adapt to a changing marketplace.

The message of the Internet Governance Forum was that the next billion is an enormously positive story. A tale of improving economic condition that will allow for much broader participation in the communication, culture, and commercial opportunities most Canadians now take for granted.

As we welcome the next billion, we must recognise that they will do more than just use the internet. They will help reshape it in their own image and with their own values, languages, and cultures.

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Michael Geist holds the Canada Research Chair in Internet and E-commerce Law at the University of Ottawa, Faculty of Law. He can be reached at mgeist@uottawa.ca or online at www.michaelgeist.ca.

As we welcome the next billion, we must recognise that they will do more than just use the internet. They will help reshape it in their own image and with their own values, languages, and cultures.

Michael Geist

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News: UK 'keener on online networking'

The UK benefits from cheap broadband deals

More adults in the UK use social networking sites such as Facebook than in other European countries, a report by communications watchdog Ofcom says.

Four out of 10 UK adults with internet access use social networking sites compared to 17% in France, 12% in Germany and 22% in Italy.

The UK is eclipsed only by Canada where 53% of internet users go on social networking sites.

In Japan and the US the percentage is 32% and 34% respectively.

International comparisons

The Ofcom report into the £873bn telecoms, radio and television sectors compared the UK with 11 other countries, including Canada and the US.

It also looked at emerging giants Brazil, Russia, India and China, where mobile phone growth is particularly strong.

The report found that the US and UK are the only places where men do not use the internet more than women.

In the UK, the split is equal, while in the US 52% of internet users are women.

Cheap deals

The watchdog also said that the UK enjoys some of the cheapest deals for telephone, pay-TV and broadband.

In the UK, about 40% of households already take a bundled service, where they pay a monthly fee for a telephone landline, pay-TV and the internet.

This can be as low as £25 in the UK for a typical family household including two parents and two children.

This compares with £27.22 in France, £39.77 in Germany and £69.54 in the US.

COST OF PHONE, INTERNET & TV UK: £25 France: £27.22 Germany: £39.77 US: £69.54 Price for triple play deals Source: Ofcom

Price may be one of the reasons the UK has the highest take-up of digital television in the 12 countries surveyed.

At the end of 2006, about 76% of UK households were digital.

But it is still Japanese and US consumers who spend the most time watching television, averaging 4.5 hours a day.

This is one hour more than people spend in front of television in the UK.

Revenue boost

Internet advertising revenues are also on the rise, particularly in the UK.

At £33, advertisers in the UK spend more money per person on internet advertising than any other country, twice as much as that spent in France, Germany and Italy combined.

Overall, the money to be made from telecom services is increasing, reflecting the growing importance of the sector.

Telecom services revenue per head increased by 20% - from £288m in 2001 to £345m in 2006 - across the countries surveyed, the report found.

Global take up

Globally, mobiles are driving growth in the communications sector, now accounting for 53% of total telecoms revenues.

By the end of 2006, there were 402 million landlines and 634 million mobile connections in the 12 countries surveyed.

Brazil, Russia, China and India are driving much of this growth.

Since 2001, more than 660 million subscriptions were added in these four countries, accounting for 40% of total new mobile subscriptions globally.

Last year, mobile phone users in China sent 429 billion text messages, or 967 text messages per user, compared with 621 per mobile user in the UK.

New subscriptions in India doubled to 150 million, more than twice the number of UK subscribers.

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News: Greenpeace takes on gaming giants

Greenpeace is hoping to speak to manufacturers via gamers

Greenpeace has called on gamers to persuade Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo to make their consoles greener.

According to the environmental campaign group, game console makers have so far "failed to reduce the toxic burden of their products".

It accuses Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony of lagging behind mobile phone and PC manufacturers.

The initiative is part of Greenpeace's campaign to persuade the electronics industry to be greener.

"Game console manufacturers are lagging way behind the makers of mobile phones and PCs who have been reducing the toxic load of the products over the past year," said Zenia Al Hajj, Greenpeace International's toxics campaigner.

"Game consoles contain many of the same components as PCs so manufacturers can do a lot more," she added.

Workers "at risk"

As part of its campaign, Greenpeace has launched a 90-second video featuring some of the iconic games console characters - Microsoft's Master Chief, Nintendo's Mario and Sony's Kratos - competing for the prize of a greener games console.

Gamers can compare how each console meaures up on toxic materials, recycling and energy efficiency, as well as logging their support for the campaign.

The campaign is aimed at the big three game console manufacturers - Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft.

Nintendo said that it is looking to establish a dialogue with Greenpeace but that it adhered to all European standards.

It is signed up to the European WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) directive - which makes manufacturers responsible for recycling their goods.

"We make sure that all of our products comply with European standards which we understand are the highest in the world," said a spokesman.

Greenpeace is engaged in a wider campaign to persuade the whole electronics industry to eliminate hazardous chemicals across the board.

It does not believe that current legislation goes far enough and on its hazard hit list are brominated fire retardants and PVC, the use of which it claims can lead to dangerous chemicals building up in the environment and in human and animal tissue.

It said that Chinese and Indian workers in production facilities and scrap yards where goods are dismantled could be at risk.

Nintendo's spokesman said that no PVC was used in the production of its consoles, although he couldn't confirm whether brominated fire retardants were banned.

Leading mobile phone makers, including Motorola, LG, Sony Ericsson and Philips, have all implemented eco-design aspects into their production lines, including reducing the amount of hazardous substances used in their products.

Global warming

Global warming campaign launched in the virtual world

Nokia, the world's largest mobile phone manufacturer, produces a handset every nine seconds. It has decided to implement requirements set out in the EU Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) Directive in all 10 of its factories around the globe.

The RoHS Directive bans six substances (lead, cadmium, mercury, hexavalent chromium, PBB and PDBE) from products that are either made or sold in the EU.

Greenpeace has been busy garnering support for its various initiatives from the web community. Earlier this month it teamed up with teenage social networking site Habbo to find out more about youngsters attitudes to global warming.

50,000 teenagers responded to the survey, with 74% rating global warming over drugs, violence and war as the issue they were most concerned about.

It has launched a 90 second video, aimed at gamers, in which iconic characters from each of the major manufacturers compete for a greener games console.

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News: Emergency rules for net telephony

Ofcom fears delay could make an emergency worse

Watchdog Ofcom has ruled that firms which route phone calls across the net must connect to 999 and 112.

Before now net phone firms have not been required to connect to emergency numbers. This ruling applies to those firms which let customers call normal national phone numbers.

Ofcom says the stipulation is needed to ensure that during an emergency people can summon help as quickly as possible.

Phone firms have until September 2008 to comply with the ruling.

Research carried out by Ofcom suggests few people know that net phone services, aka voice over IP, do not connect to 999 or 112, the European Union's universal emergency number for mobiles and fixed lines.

In an Ofcom survey 78% of those using net phone services which cannot connect to the emergency services thought that such a call was already possible on that network or were unaware that there might be a problem.

Ofcom fears that having to find a phone that can call the emergency services during a crisis might make a serious situation much worse.

The ruling does not apply to all net phone firms. Only those that let customers call out to normal national numbers but not receive them or let customers make and take calls from normal phone numbers are affected.

Ofcom started a consultation process on the emergency number issue in July 2007.

Excluded are services that only let their customers call other people on the same voip network or that only let customers receive calls from normal phone numbers.

In March Ofcom issued guidelines for net phone firms which stipulated that they must be upfront about the limitations on their services and tell customers what numbers and services they can and cannot call when they sign up.

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News: 'Digital locks' future questioned

Does DRM protect content or restrict consumers?

One of the world's largest hard disk manufacturers has blocked its customers from sharing online their media files that are stored on networked drives.

Western Digital says the decision to block sharing of music and audio files is an anti-piracy effort.

The ban operates regardless of whether the files are copy-protected, or a user's own home-produced content.

Digital activists say it is the latest step in a so-called war on copyright theft that is damaging consumer rights.

The shift to a digital world in which all forms of content, from books, music, and TV programmes to films, can be shared effortlessly around the world between people with an internet connection has produced an unprecedented upheaval in attitudes to media, copyright and consumer rights.

Professional content producers have struggled to adapt to this changing world and deal with rampant copyright infringement that threatens to undermine their businesses.

Digital restrictions management... is a restriction of our rights Peter Brown, Free Software Foundation

The most popular method of copyright control in the digital age, Digital Rights Management (DRM), is a software - and sometimes hardware - solution designed to prevent copying and to control how different forms of media are used.

Peter Brown of the Free Software Foundation, a leading anti-DRM campaigner, said: "DRM and filtering attempts by firms like Western Digital are an attempt to take control of our computers.

"DRM is bad for society because it attempts to monitor what we do and how we live our digital lives. It is asking us to give up control of something which gives us some degree of democracy, freedom and the ability to communicate with a large group of people."

Western Digital has blocked users from sharing more than 30 different file types, if they are using the company's software, called Anywhere Access.

Mr Brown added: "DRM is never right because it takes away our rights as citizens."

He said all DRM solutions had been bypassed, rendering the technology useless.

Apple and EMI announced DRM-free tracks earlier this year

"You can't stop the copying of ones and zeroes - its impossible," he said.

Paul Garland, head of intellectual property litigation at law firm Kemp Little, said it was not possible to say DRM was not working.

"Content creators are struggling to find a way to prevent mass distribution of their creations."

Alexander Ross, a partner at law firm Wiggin, said: "There is fundamentally two types of operation for DRM - to restrict usage, and track usage.

"That second element is essential and will remain essential - particularly for subscription services, which are beginning to take off.

"If we go down the subscription route, there must be control."

The common problem with DRM for many users is one of a lack of interoperability. Many of the world's leading content producers use DRM systems which are incompatible with one another.

The popular example is the majority of music bought and downloaded from iTunes, the world's most popular online music retailer, which can only be played in its original form on iPods, machines running iTunes and Apple's own wireless TV system.

However, iTunes does now sell a selection of music from EMI without DRM.

The biggest problem is that it is actually quite difficult as a consumer when downloading content to know what you are able to do with it Paul Garland, Kemp Little

The BBC has been criticised for using a form of DRM for its TV downloads that means the programmes cannot be played on Apple Macs and PCs running Linux.

"The reason for a lack of standards across the industry is that there's no such thing as the industry," said Mr Ross.

"There is Steve Jobs and Microsoft and the two titans are at odds with one another. Between them they rule the market."

Mr Garland said: "The biggest problem is that it is actually quite difficult as a consumer when downloading content to know what you are able to do with it.

There is Steve Jobs and Microsoft and the two titans are at odds with one another. Between them they rule the market. Alexander Ross, Wiggin

"If DRM is going to survive, there needs to be much greater effort to tell purchasers what they can or can't do with it."

Mr Ross said people had to understand they did not have the rights to do whatever they wanted with digital content.

One solution could be to develop information standards to inform people about the rights and restrictions around DRM, said Mr Garland.

He said: "Content owners are entitled to give you what rights they decide to give you; when you are downloading a piece of music, for example. They are also entitled to restrict you from circumventing the DRM.

"Trying to circumvent the DRM is an offence in itself. DRM is part of the law and a legitimate method of trying to protect your copyright content."

For the music industry the future looks less and less likely to involve DRM, said Mr Garland.

He said: "There is a backlash, people are concerned. The music industry is now talking a lot more about DRM-free products. DRM hasn't been the way to overcome the copyright infringement problem."

Mr Ross said that DRM as a copy protection tool might not last much longer.

"However, DRM as a track and rights management system is here to stay - as long as the music industry exists on a royalty model," he said.

Mr Brown said the industry did not need to use DRM, nor employ laws which prohibit the bypassing of DRM, in order to protect their financial interests.

"Media companies are trying to force people to think about copyright infringement almost in line with murder on the high seas.

"Copyright law is about copying and reproduction of work; that is on the statue books for everyone and is sufficient to tackle the problem.

"Digital restrictions management...is a restriction of our rights and the use we make of media files, that historically and legitimately we have been used to.

"The idea this is somehow protecting someone is untrue - it is an attack on us as citizens."

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