From amateurs to professionals, avid musicians have become increasingly aware of the usefulness of MIDI keyboard controllers. These devices, unlike other types of electronic keyboards, are used in all forms of digital music creation to synthesize instruments and beats. Electronic keyboards, on the other hand, replicate (or digitize) the sound of a piano.
MIDI controllers often resemble electronic keyboards to offer the full range of notes and also have a series of knobs and buttons that can be used to manipulate and alter the resulting sounds. With these controllers and specialized computer software digital musicians can add a wide variety of sound alterations on the fly.
While nearly any MIDI controller will be an improvement over other methods of music creation, there are certain features that are more beneficial than others.
Pressure Sensitivity
Like electronic keyboards, MIDI controllers have varying sensitivity to their keys. The more sensitive the key, the lighter the touch that is required to activate it. The less sensitive the key, the heavier touch required. This lends itself to triggering unintentional sounds or missing beats completely. Excellent keyboard style MIDI controllers should have keys with roughly the same sensitivity of a well tuned piano. This will allow for the most intuitive, accurate use.
Number of Octaves
The best MIDI controllers offer more versatility with the number of notes. Five octaves, or 61 keys, is the most common and flexible keyboard layout. While smaller controllers are more portable and convenient for on the spot performances, the wider range of notes in larger controllers allows for more extensive sound creation.
Simple Setup
A MIDI controller won't do you much good if you can't figure out how to map it to your virtual instrument. High quality models will include easy to use software that will help you set up your controller quickly and easily. Another important feature is built in settings that will allow easy integration with other software. Both these features will help amateurs and experts learn their new controller and put it to the best use possible.
Flexible controls
While the number and sensitivity of keys and the ease of use are key features, the ability to manipulate sound is equally important. The main benefit of MIDI keyboard controllers is the option to alter the sound as its synthesized. The availability of modulation and pitch control knobs and sliders, as well as their usability, should be a major deciding factor before purchase. The best control knobs (or sliders) will, like the keys, be just the right sensitivity – not too easy to spin but not too hard – and offer a wide range of levels for the specific feature.
When the time comes to make a purchase, your application will make the most difference in your choice. Other options, including USB power and built in sound reproduction, are available to fit the needs of any digital musician.
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Midi Keyboards and Controllers - Must Haves For The Avid Musician
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Garmin Navigation Systems
Sports and Fitness Units
The Garmin Forerunner 205 is the market entry fitness model of a range of wrist worn GPS and fitness monitors which extends to the Forerunner 405. All the units monitor, track and store data which can later be down loaded and analysed on the Garmin Fitness Center software, which will display in graphical format, data such as distance, time and, in some cases, heart rate.
Garmin nuvi Range
Specifically designed for use in covered vehicles (cars, vans and the like), the Garmin nuvi range is renowned for its ease of use and clarity of display. Features include touch sensitive screens, spoken directions, Bluetooth connectivity and Traffic reports (model dependant). Garmin have also announced the new nuvi 1200 and nuvi 1300 families, which are designed for both car and pedestrian use. Both will include a new system called CityXplorer which will help you to find your way around specific cities by public transport, although the cities to be covered by this system have yet to be announced.
Garmin Zumo
The requirements for a motorbike sat nav are quite different from those of other vehicles. Weather proofing is an obvious requirement, but so is a secure mount, and the ability to use Bluetooth to provide directions and telephone hands-free facilities to helmet mounted earphones and microphones are another. Just importantly, the screen must be able to easily handle touch screen instructions for riders wearing thick gloves. Obviously the Zumo range handle these requirements with ease.
Garmin Marine Range
Garmin’s range of marine instruments are even more extensive. Hand held GPS and navigation systems like the Garmin GP SMAP range are designed for small boat use, while the larger Garmin fishfinders require transducers to be placed over the side or permanently installed. And then you get into the really fancy kit; the combined GPS, Fishfinder Plotter, which will give you all the advantages of a marine sat nav system, showing you a chart of your location, the depth under your keel and even if there are fish there. The Garmin GP SMAP 555 is just such a unit, waterproof, naturally, as well as having integral tide tables and bright, sharp screen, to make it easier to see in sunlight.
The Advantages Of LCD TV
So you've decided to take the plunge and pick up a high-end television for your home. But you're hearing a lot of about LCD vs. Plasma and the discussion tends to be over your head. Fear not! The following information provides a look at LCD's side of the story, and gives you some of the advantages of choosing LCD over Plasma.
How does LCD TV work?
LCD TVs are made using two transparent panels that polarized and glued together. One of the two panels is coated with a special polymer that contains the Liquid Crystals from which LCD TV gets its name. A current of light is then passed through these crystals which creates the images we see on our LCD TV screen.
What are the Advantages of LCD TV?
OK, enough with the technical stuff B let's get to the real benefits of owning an LCD-TV and why they represent a better purchase decision than Plasma televisions.
Advantages of LCD include:
- Higher brightness levels. LCD TVs are generally easier to watch than their plasma counterparts because they have a higher brightness capability. That means colors are sharper and the picture quality bolder and brighter than other technologies.
- It's plug-and-play all the way. Unlike some high-end plasma TVs and other devices, LCD TVs come equipped with tuners inside the unit. So all you need to do is plug it in and enjoy the show.
- Multi-functionality. One of the coolest things about LCD TVs is that they can be used for a variety of different purposes, including:
o Home video player B Plug in your digital camcorder and your LCD TV will deliver a cinematic experience unmatched on rival product types.
o Computer monitor B Because of the sharp quality of the LCD TV's graphics, text and web-based images look super-sharp.
o HDTV player B Most LCD TVs are now HDTV ready right out of the box. And boy, do they deliver, especially when using a BluRay DVD player.
Why choose LCD TV over Plasma?
There are several advantages to choosing an LCD TV over a plasma TV, including:
- With an LCD TV you won't have to worry about static images getting Aburned into the screen.
- LCD TVs are generally lighter than Plasma TVs, making them easier to hang on the wall
- The brightness of the LCD TVs gives them the power to produce a sharper image than many Plasma screens.
- Until recently, LCD TVs were more expensive that Plasma models. But in the past year, the price has dropped so much that is now possible to get much more A bang for your buck with an LCD model.
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Blackberry 9500 Storm Orange- Experience The Innovation
If you are looking for a Smartphone packed with various high performance features, then go for the BlackBerry 9500 Storm Vodafone and Orange. To enjoy hassle free and pocket soothing mobile communication you can team up this high-end phone with any of the Orange tariff plan. You can also get this handset at cost-effective price through Orange.
The BlackBerry 9500 comes equipped with media player that supports MP3, AAC+, AAC, eAA+, WMA, WMA Pro Plus file format. You can also record and stream video, create text, send e-mails and avail various other services on this cutting edge phone. It is a 3G mobile phone that will let you access to the world of information and knowledge through the Internet.
Other innovative features that this phone supports include video camera, Bluetooth, EDGE, USB and Quad band with GSM. The camera of the phone further comes with flash feature, so that the darker and dull environment can be illuminated. You can make use of the camera to capture still images as well as record video footage. For connectivity with other compatible devices, you can make use of the Bluetooth wireless and USB option. For high-speed connectivity, the phone supports EDGE technology, GPRS and 3G HSDPA.
Other fundamental features of the Blackberry Storm contract include various messaging services such as SMS, MMS, e-mail and instant message. These messaging services will let you send images, voice mails, videos along text messages to all your friends and family. For storage, the phone comes with internal memory of 1GB that you can expand up to 8GB with the help of microSD memory slot.
To find competitive deals of BlackBerry 9500 Storm Orange you can go through the various online mobile shops. Before choosing the deals make sure that you compare them so that you can get hold of the best deals of Storm available on Orange.
Microsoft's Xbox Will No Longer Be Supported
A veritable Murphy's Law of wrong can go wrong and probably will. Lurking just around the corner of continued use is the dreaded DRE, or disc reading errors, when you learn in a moment of panic that your "games are not reading." Other "issues" that your once coveted console might have include freezing or overheating, a sudden and inexplicable loss of sound, power, or video (how did that happen?), you keep getting a litany of error messages, you keep getting a "call customer service" message every few seconds (it's taunting you as if it KNOWS that its warranty has expired), your controller won't respond, you can't modify; or, if it's the Xbox360 you're pitifully holding in your hand, you're getting three red lights, also known as the "Three Rings of Death" and this is real, you're NOT standing in a Tolkein-like mythical land of Mordar.
When one or more of these symptoms of despair begin turning your Xbox into something diseased, a real poxbox, and your warranty has expired, it's time to start hunting – for an independent repair shop either in close proximity or else a shop with a reliable mailing address. You'll be pleasantly surprised that many of these shops have access to the parts they need and are staffed by expert technicians, so that maybe, just maybe, your treasured Xbox can be fixed. Goodbye dreaded DRE. Hey, now you've got sound -- power is back -- video has returned -- your controller is responding. Once again, all is right with your world, or at least your Xbox.
Cheap Sony Ericsson mobile phones: better handsets at lesser price
To suffice only your communication needs is not really tough but if you are also concerned about your entertainment needs then you may have to go little higher in range. A simple mobile phone allowing you to serve only your communication needs can be entailed at lower prices easily. But hang on! A good market research can help you to get the best in least prices easily.
The Sony Ericsson J120i, Sony Ericsson K200i, K608i Sony Ericsson T250i, Sony Ericsson P1i and Sony Ericsson W300i, W880i, K800i etc. are some of the best and most popular contract mobile phones in market. These cheap Sony Ericsson mobile phones come equipped with variety of sophisticated features like recorder, camera, radio, multi media player, strong battery back up, Internet and many more. The Sony Ericsson mobile phones are excellent options for those seeking to buy feature rich phones at affordable prices.
You can select any mobile phone according to your personal preference, style and most importantly budget. You can even search online as it is much convenient source to select a desirable set. Just select the range within which you want your cheap Sony Ericsson mobile phones and get the detail.
The increasing competition has lead forced manufacturers to offer better products at cost effective rates. You can get good cheap Sony Ericsson mobile phones and fulfill your needs as well.
Security for Windows Mobile and BlackBerry phone users
Mobile phone users often look for a solution to provide them security on their mobile device. Taking the right security measures at the right time can help save you a lot of trouble, especially in cases like lost, misplaced or stolen mobile phone, or damaged phones. Text Guard is a helpful cell phone application which can be used by businessmen, by corporate clients, professionals and also individuals to provide them with backup of all their mobile phone activities. The software does not only block spam text messages, but can also be used to monitor text messages activity on the specified cell phone. All you need to do is to download the software from http://www.TextGuard.com (their 30 day evaluation version can also be used) and install it on the cell phone. To keep track of their childrens activities, parents can install it on their kid’s cellular phones. This software is also helpful to protect children from spam text messages as it allows you to block spam text messages. The utility also allows SmartPhone users to archive their email and SMS text messages for retrieval later on.
Likewise, corporate and businesses clients can also install the software on multiple cell phones to monitor the activities of all those employees. Text Guard also archives texts and SMS message which means you can access the complete archive of your cell phone text messages all at one place by logging on to the website. Corporations use Text Guard to track the activities of their employees, and could use the archived messages for later retrieval and record; if necessary.
With Text Guard, you can efficiently block spam text messages on your cell phones. This can spare you the frustration and save you a lot of energy and time. You can even block certain phone numbers to stop receiving spam messages from those numbers. You can choose between the three different editions offered by Text Guard, which include the Enterprise Edition, Business Edition and Family Edition. You only pay a nominal monthly fee per account for the storage space you utilize to save the SMS text messages at one place. If at any time you feel that you are running out of space, you can always purchase more space, or delete old messages by browsing through them using the SMS text messages search option provided in the Text Guard user module.
The utility not only lets users get rid of spam text messages, but it also helps in monitoring SMS text messages on the mobile phone.
Currently, it works on Windows Mobile phone and BlackBerry phones, and will soon be available for Android and Symbian operation systems. Some other features offered by Text Guard include blocking calls and monitoring calls as well as archiving all sent and received text messages as well as email messages from the mobile phone. These text messages are saved on a remote server, and can be accessed from anywhere by accessing the Text Guard website.
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Design Your Own Website- It Is Simple
Before you embark upon the process involved when you design your own website, you must select and register a domain name. That is your site's brand name and contact name. In order to be given a domain name of your very own, you must make a yearly payment to the appropriate registering entity to obtain the exclusive right to it.
Obtaining a domain name doesn't mean you have a web site or anything close. All you have is a name. It is similar to getting yourself set up with a name for your business is the "real" world - just obtaining exclusive rights to a name doesn't mean you are totally in business. You just have a name.
A web host commonly implements numerous computers that are all linked to the Internet to allow a very large number of web pages to be broadcast all over the world. The first step in making your new web page visible is to use a reputable web host that will give your personalized website a virtual home.
Thinking of a domain name is very much like thinking of a name for your company in the physical world. Similarly, a web hosting account is the equivalent of renting an office for your company. After you have come up with a domain name and signed on with a web host, you will then need to design your own website (http://www.buildyoursite.com/) to attract visitors.
As a beginning web designer, you first need to design your own website in a attractive, and appealing manner. After you have got your basic web page posted you will be able to make any adjustments that you feel are needed. There are free web editors and commercial versions that are widely available.
When you choose to use free software, you can also learn more from a complete tutorial on the web. The step-by-step tutorial will guide you in the process of making your own web page, site map, and comment forms. It will also give you tips on the basic aspects of the software so you can continue to update and improve the site in the future.
A crucial aspect of web development is optimizing your site for search engines. This should be undertaken from the very start of the design process. In addition, there are a number of other concerns involved in developing web pages.
The Battle of the Browsers – The History and the Future of Internet Browsers
With Internet Explorer 8 now available, can Microsoft hope to retain market dominance over fierce open source rivals such as Mozilla's Firefox or the feature packed Opera web browser. Can history give us a clue to what the future of web browsers/browsing might hold? How did Netscape Navigator go from having a dominant 89.36% market share of all web browsers in 1996 and yet only 3.76% by mid 1999?
Let us take a journey that will begin long before even the intellectual conception of Internet Explorer, that will glance at its long defeated rivals, examine the current browsers available and will end with a prediction of what the future of browsing will offer us – and which browser(s) will still be around to offer it.
People often think that Internet Explorer has been the dominant web browser since the golden age of the internet began. Well for a very long time now it has indeed been the most popular browser and at times been almost totally unrivalled. This was mainly a result of it being packaged free with Microsoft Windows, in what some would later call a brutal monopolisation attempt by Microsoft. The last few years however have heralded the arrival of new, possibly superior browsers. Mozilla's Firefox has been particularly successful at chipping away at Explorers market dominance. So where did it all begin, and why were Microsoft ever allowed to have a hundred percent market dominance?
Origins
The truth is they never did have total dominance, but at times they have come very close. Microsoft actually entered the Browser Battle quite late on. Infact a man named Neil Lars
In 1988, Peter Scott and Earle Fogel created a simple, fast browser called Hytelnet, which by 1990 offered users instant logon and access to the online catalogues of over five thousand libraries around the world – an exhilarating taste of what the internet, and web browsers, would soon be able to offer.
In 1989 the original World Wide Web was born. Using a NeXTcube computer, Tim Berners-Lee created a web browser that would change how people used the internet forever. He called his browser the WorldWideWeb(http://www., which is still likely to sound familiar to internet users today. It was a windowed browser capable of displaying simple style sheet, capable of editing sites and able to download and open any file type supported by the NeXTcube.
In 1993 the first popular graphical browser was released. Its name was Mosaic and it was created by Marc Andreessen and Eric Bina. Mosaic could be run on both Unix, and very importantly, on the highly popular Microsoft Windows operating system (incidentally it could also be used on Amiga and Apple computers). It was the first browser on Windows that could display graphics/pictures on a page where there was also textual content. It is often cited as being responsible for triggering the internet boom due to it making the internet bearable for the masses. (It should be noted that the web browser Cello was the first browser to be used on Windows – but it was non graphical and made very little impact compared to Mosaic).
The Browser Wars - Netscape Navigator versus Internet Explorer
Mosaic's decline began almost as soon as Netscape Navigator was released (1994). Netscape Navigator was a browser created by Marc Andreessen, one of the men behind Mosaic and co-founder of Netscape Communications Corporation. Netscape was unrivalled in terms of features and usability at the time. For example, one major change from previous browsers was that it allowed surfers to see parts of a website before the whole site was downloaded. This meant that people did not have to wait for minutes simply to see if the site they were loading was the actual one the were after, whilst also allowing them to read information on the site as the rest of it downloaded. By 1996 Netscape had almost 90% market dominance, as shown below.
Market Share Comparisons of Netscape Navigator and Internet Explorer from 1996 to 1998
....................Netscape.......IE
October 1998..........64%.........32.2%
April 1998............70%.........22.7%
October 1997..........59.67%......15.13%
April 1997............81.13%......12.13%
October 1996..........80.45%......12.18%
April 1996............89.36%.......3.76%
In these two years Netscape clearly dominated the internet browser market, but a new browser named Internet Explorer was quickly gaining ground on it.
Microsoft released their own browser (ironically based on the earlier Mosaic browser which was created by one of the men now running Netscape), clearly worried about Netscape's dominance. It was not so much the worry that it would have a 100% market share of internet browsers on their Windows operating system, but more the worry that browsers would soon be capable of running all types programs on them. That would mean foregoing the need for an actual operating system, or at the most only a very basic one would be needed. This in turn would mean Netscape would soon be able to dictate terms to Microsoft, and Microsoft were not going to let that happen easily. Thus in August 1995, Internet Explorer was released.
By 1999 Internet explorer had captured an 89.03% market share, whilst Netscape was down to 10.47%. How could Internet Explorer make this much ground in just two years? Well this was down to two things really. The first, and by far the most important was that Microsoft bundled Internet Explorer in with every new copy of Windows, and as Windows was used by about 90% of the computer using population it clearly gave them a huge advantage. Internet Explorer had one other ace it held over Netscape – it was much better. Netscape Navigator was stagnant and had been for some time. The only new features it ever seemed to introduce were often perceived by the public as beneficial for Netscape's parent company rather than Netscape's user base. (i.e., features that would help it monopolise the market). Explorer, on the other hand, was given much attention by Microsoft. Regular updates and excellent usability plus a hundred million dollar investment would prove too much for Netscape Explorer.
2000 – 2005
These years were fairly quiet in the Battle of the Browsers. It seemed as if Internet Explorer had won the war and that nobody could even hope to compete with it. In 2002/2003 it had attained about 95% of the market share – about the time of IE 5/6. With over 1000 people working on it and millions of dollars being poured in, few people had the resources to compete. Then again, who wanted to compete? It was clearly a volatile market, and besides that everybody was content with Internet Explorer. Or were they? Some people saw faults with IE – security issues, incompatibility issues or simply bad programming. Not only that, it was being shoved down peoples throats. There was almost no competition to keep it in line or to turn to as an alternative. Something had to change. The only people with the ability and the power to compete with Microsoft took matters into their own hands.
Netscape was now supported by AOL. A few years prior, just after they had lost the Browser Wars to Microsoft, they had released the coding for Netscape into the public domain. This meant anybody could develop their own browser using the Netscape skeleton. And people did. Epiphany, Galeon and Camino, amongst others, were born out of Netscape's ashes. However the two most popular newcomers were called Mozilla and Firefox.
Mozilla was originally an open sourced project aimed to improve the Netscape browser. Eventually it was released as Netscape Navigator 7 and then 8. Later it was released as Mozilla 1.0.
Mozilla was almost an early version on another open source browser, Firefox. With it being an open source the public were able to contribute to it - adding in what features it needed, the programming it required and the support it deserved. The problems people saw in Internet Explorer were being fixed by members of the open sourced browser community via Firefox. For instance, the many security issues IE 6 had were almost entirely fixed in the very first release of Firefox. Microsoft had another fight on their hands.
2005 – Present
Firefox was the browser that grew and grew in these years. Every year capturing an even larger market share percentage than before. More user friendly than most of its rivals along with high security levels and arguably more intelligent programming helped its popularity. With such a large programming community behind it, updates have always been regular and add on programs/features are often released. It prides itself on being the peoples browser. It currently has a 28.38% market share.
Apple computers have had their own browser since the mid 1990's – Safari - complete with its own problems, such as (until recently) the inability to run Java scripts. However most Apple users seemed happy with it and a version capable of running on Windows has been released. It has had no major competitor on Apple Macs, and as such has largely been out of the Browser Wars. It currently holds a 2.54% market share and is slowly increasing.
Internet Explorer's market share has dropped from over 90% to around 75%, and is falling. It will be interesting to see what Microsoft will attempt to regain such a high market share.
Opera currently holds 1.07%.
Mozilla itself only has a 0.6% market share these days.
The Future of Web Browsing
Web browsers come and go. It is the nature of technology (if such a term can be used), to supplant inferior software in very short periods of time. It is almost impossible for a single company to stay ahead of the competition for long. Microsoft have the advantage of being able to release IE with any Windows using PC. That covers over 90% of the market. They also have the advantage of unprecedented resources. They can compete how they wish for as long as they wish. So there is no counting IE out of the future of web browsing.
Safari is in a similar position, being easily the most popular Mac web browser. Its long term survival is dependant upon Apple and the sale of their computers.
These are the only two browsers that are almost guaranteed another five years of life, at least. Firefox may seem like another candidate, but the public is fickle, and one bad release, or if it seriously lags behind the new Internet Explorer 8 for long, could easily see its popularity quickly descend into virtual oblivion.
However, it seems likely community driven browsers, such as Mozilla and Firefox, will be the only types of browser capable of competing with the wealthy internet arm of Microsoft in the near future.
As for web browsing itself, will it change any time soon? Well it already has for some online communities. For example, if you want to buy clothes you could try entering an online 'world' creating an online virtual You to go from 'shop to shop' with, looking at products and trying/buying what you see. Some 'worlds' allow you to recreate yourself accurately including weight and height and then try on things apparel such as jeans to give you an idea of how you would look in that particular item.
Will 'worlds' like this destroy normal web browsers such as IE ? - It seems unlikely. Traditional web browsers provide such freedom and ease of access that it is hard to see any other alternative taking over. However they are part of the new, 'thinking out of the box' wave of alternatives that some people will find attractive, and really who knows what the future will bring.
Can Data Breaches Be Expected From Bankrupt Mortgage Lenders?
The stock market is in a tumult. Actually, it has been for about a year, ever since the subprime fiasco (anyone take a look at Moody's performance over the past year?) Now that that particular issue has been beaten to death, other mortgage related issues are cropping up. Most of the stuff covered in the media is financial in nature, but some of those mortgage related issues do concern information security.
It's no secret that there are plenty of companies in the US that discard sensitive documents by dumping them unceremoniously: leave it by the curb, drive it to a dumpster, heave it over the walls of abandoned property, and other assorted mind boggling insecure practices. In fact, MSNBC has an article on this issue, and names numerous bankrupt mortgage companies whose borrowers' records were found in dumpsters and recycling centers. The information on those documents include credit card numbers and SSNs, as well as addresses, names, and other information needed to secure a mortgage.
Since the companies have filed for bankruptcy and are no more, the potential victims involved have no legal recourse, and are left to fend for themselves. In a way, it makes sense that companies that have filed for bankruptcy are behaving this way. (Not that I'm saying this is proper procedure.) For starters, if a company does wrong, one goes after the company; however, the company has filed for bankruptcy, it is no more, so there's no one to "go after." In light of the company status, this means that the actual person remaining behind to dispose of things, be they desks or credit applications, can opt to do whatever he feels like. He could shred the applications. He could dump them nearby. He could walk away and let the building's owner take care of them. What does he care? It's not as if he's gonna get fired.
Also, proper disposal requires either time, money, or both. A bankrupt company doesn't have money. It may have time, assuming people are going to stick around, but chances are their shredder has been seized by creditors. People are not going to stick around to shred things by hand, literally.
Aren't there any laws regulating this? Apparently, such issues are covered by FACTA, the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act, and although its guidelines require that "businesses to dispose of sensitive financial documents in a way that protects against 'unauthorized access to or use of the information'" [msnbc.com], it stops short of requiring the physical destruction of data. I'm not a lawyer, but perhaps there's enough leeway in the language for one to go around dropping sensitive documents in dumpsters?
Like I mentioned before, inappropriate disposal of sensitive documents has been going on forever; I'm pretty sure this has been a problem since the very first mortgage was issued. My personal belief is that most companies would act responsibly and try to properly dispose of such information. But, this may prove to be a point of concern as well because of widespread misconceptions of what it means to protect data against unauthorized access.
What happens if a company that files for bankruptcy decides to sell their company computers to pay off creditors? Most people would delete the information found in the computer, and that's that-end of story. Except, it's not. When files are deleted, the actual data still resides in the hard disks; it's just that the computer's operating system doesn't have a way to find the information anymore. Indeed, this is how retail data restoration applications such as Norton are able to recover accidentally deleted files.
Some may be aware of this and decide to format the entire computer before sending it off to the new owners. The problem with this approach is the same as deleting files: data recovery is a cinch with the right software. Some of them retail for $30 or less-as in free. So, the sensitive data that's supposed to be deleted can be recovered, if not easily, at least cheaply-perhaps by people with criminal interests.
Am I being paranoid? I don't think so. I've been tracking fraud for years now, and I can't help but conclude that the criminal underworld has plenty of people looking to be niche operators, not to mention that there are infinitesimal ways of defrauding people (look up "salad oil" and "American Express," for an example). An identification theft ring looking to collect sensitive information from bankrupt mortgage dealers wouldn't surprise me, especially in an environment where such companies are dropping left and right.
The economics behind it make sense as well. A used computer will retail anywhere from $100 to $500. The information in it, if not wiped correctly, will average many times more even if you factor in the purchase of data recovery software. Criminals have different ways of capitalizing on personal data, ranging from selling the information outright to engaging in something with better returns.
Is there a better way to protect oneself? Whole disk encryption is a way to ensure that such problems do not occur: One can just reformat the encrypted drive itself to install a new OS; the original data remains encrypted, so there's no way to extract the data. Plus, the added benefit is that the data is protected in the event that a computer gets lost or stolen. However, commonsense dictates that encryption is something ongoing concerns sign up for, not businesses about to go bankrupt. My guess is that sooner or later we'll find instances of data breaches originating from equipment being traced back to bankrupt mortgage dealers.
The stock market is in a tumult. Actually, it has been for about a year, ever since the subprime fiasco (anyone take a look at Moody's performance over the past year?) Now that that particular issue has been beaten to death, other mortgagerelated issues are cropping up. Most of the stuff covered in the media is financial in nature, but some of those mortgagerelated issues do concern information security.
It's no secret that there are plenty of companies in the US that discard sensitive documents by dumping them unceremoniously: leave it by the curb, drive it to a dumpster, heave it over the walls of abandoned property, and other assorted mindboggling insecure practices. In fact, MSNBC has an article on this issue, and names numerous bankrupt mortgage companies whose borrowers' records were found in dumpsters and recycling centers. The information on those documents include credit card numbers and SSNs, as well as addresses, names, and other information needed to secure a mortgage.
Since the companies have filed for bankruptcy and are no more, the potential victims involved have no legal recourse, and are left to fend for themselves. In a way, it makes sense that companies that have filed for bankruptcy are behaving this way. (Not that I'm saying this is proper procedure.) For starters, if a company does wrong, one goes after the company; however, the company has filed for bankruptcy, it is no more, so there's no one to "go after." In light of the company status, this means that the actual person remaining behind to dispose of things, be they desks or credit applications, can opt to do whatever he feels like. He could shred the applications. He could dump them nearby. He could walk away and let the building's owner take care of them. What does he care? It's not as if he's gonna get fired.
Also, proper disposal requires either time, money, or both. A bankrupt company doesn't have money. It may have time, assuming people are going to stick around, but chances are their shredder has been seized by creditors. People are not going to stick around to shred things by hand, literally.
Aren't there any laws regulating this? Apparently, such issues are covered by FACTA, the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act, and although its guidelines require that "businesses to dispose of sensitive financial documents in a way that protects against 'unauthorized access to or use of the information'" [msnbc.com], it stops short of requiring the physical destruction of data. I'm not a lawyer, but perhaps there's enough leeway in the language for one to go around dropping sensitive documents in dumpsters?
Like I mentioned before, inappropriate disposal of sensitive documents has been going on forever; I'm pretty sure this has been a problem since the very first mortgage was issued. My personal belief is that most companies would act responsibly and try to properly dispose of such information. But, this may prove to be a point of concern as well because of widespread misconceptions of what it means to protect data against unauthorized access.
What happens if a company that files for bankruptcy decides to sell their company computers to pay off creditors? Most people would delete the information found in the computer, and that's that-end of story. Except, it's not. When files are deleted, the actual data still resides in the hard disks; it's just that the computer's operating system doesn't have a way to find the information anymore. Indeed, this is how retail data restoration applications such as Norton are able to recover accidentally deleted files.
Some may be aware of this and decide to format the entire computer before sending it off to the new owners. The problem with this approach is the same as deleting files: data recovery is a cinch with the right software. Some of them retail for $30 or less-as in free. So, the sensitive data that's supposed to be deleted can be recovered, if not easily, at least cheaply-perhaps by people with criminal interests.
Am I being paranoid? I don't think so. I've been tracking fraud for years now, and I can't help but conclude that the criminal underworld has plenty of people looking to be niche operators, not to mention that there are infinitesimal ways of defrauding people (look up "salad oil" and "American Express," for an example). An identification theft ring looking to collect sensitive information from bankrupt mortgage dealers wouldn't surprise me, especially in an environment where such companies are dropping left and right.
The economics behind it make sense as well. A used computer will retail anywhere from $100 to $500. The information in it, if not wiped correctly, will average many times more even if you factor in the purchase of data recovery software. Criminals have different ways of capitalizing on personal data, ranging from selling the information outright to engaging in something with better returns.
Is there a better way to protect oneself? Whole disk encryption is a way to ensure that such problems do not occur: One can just reformat the encrypted drive itself to install a new OS; the original data remains encrypted, so there's no way to extract the data. Plus, the added benefit is that the data is protected in the event that a computer gets lost or stolen. However, commonsense dictates that encryption is something ongoing concerns sign up for, not businesses about to go bankrupt. My guess is that sooner or later we'll find instances of data breaches originating from equipment being traced back to bankrupt mortgage dealers.
