Tuesday, June 11, 2013

Primo Levi, Back to Auschwitz (Part 1 of 2)

                                         Primo Levi, survived Auschwitz to become an author and chemist. His autobiography "Is this a man?" was published in his native Italy and became a worldwide bestseller. In this clip from youtube switch on English captions from the icon under the video. Compare this face of Primo Levi with its humanity, with the scowl of Hitler, reflecting his cult of death and inhumanity. Some interesting points here on memory, the associations of the German and Polish languages with his time in the death camp and the impact on him of returning to Auschwitz 40 years after his liberation.

Sunday, June 2, 2013

BBC - How hackers penetrate your computer - Keep your programmes updated!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-22689158

Penetration testing: IT professionals demonstrate how hackers can access webcams

Many users of the internet think that by not replying to 'phishing scams' - false invitations encouraging you to hand over personal information - they are safe online.
But hackers use increasingly sophisticated techniques to trick more savvy we users, and gain control of their computers.
The BBC's LJ Rich visited the Swedish security firm Sentor in Stockholm, who carry out professional 'penetration tests' for companies, to see how strong their cyber defences are.
Analyst Bjorn Johansson demonstrated to her how internet users can give hackers control of their computer, including the webcam, just by visiting a vulnerable web page with an internet browser.