International security issues put business technology on the front page this week, while a few of the private sector's biggest names hinted at plans for 2011.
The Egyptian government shunned major technology services to dispel civilian unrest in the country, attracting attention across the globe. It started with the ban of Twitter, Facebook and the BlackBerry Internet Service, which the government saw as threats providing social avenues to organize protests and spread opposition propaganda.
Ignoring global criticism for the move, the Egyptian government went further and unplugged the country from the internet, cutting its citizens off from the rest of the world, according to a blog post by James Cowie, CTO at internet monitoring firm Renesys.
Google Realtime results for “Egypt censorship” show the rest of the world has taken advantage of their existing internet connections to discuss the issue.
Later in the week, law enforcement officials claimed a small victory in internet security. Five people between the ages of 15 and 26 connected to the infamous hacking group known as “Anonymous” were arrested in the UK, according to the BBC. Anonymous is allegedly responsible for widespread distributed denial-of-service attacks aimed at businesses that condemned WikiLeaks, including MasterCard, Visa and PayPal.
While the young British hackers have since been released on bail, U.S. authorities are making a more aggressive advance against the Anonymous group. The FBI reportedly issued more than 40 search warrants related to the group on Thursday. According to multiple reports, federal penalties for the Anonymous group's distributed denial-of-service attacks may include up to 10 years in prison.
The Anonymous group has already responded, publishing an open letter to the UK government that called the arrests “a serious declaration of war from … the UK government, to us, Anonymous, the people.”
Hacktivism was not limited to the Anonymous group this week, with hackers breaching Mark Zuckerberg's Facebook fan page and posting a message criticizing the company's private funding. The statement encouraged others to “let the hacking begin,” called for “social business” and criticized the company for raising private funding rather than going public. According to TechCrunch's screenshot of the post, which was quickly removed from Zuckerberg's page, 1,803 people Liked the message and 438 commented on it within three minutes of its postmark.
One day later, Facebook responded with a blog post titled “A Continued Commitment to Security,” emphasizing the company's new security measures in time for international Data Privacy Day, which is today.
Others in the private sector generated positive news this week. Google attracted attention from both media outlets and job seekers by announcing on Tuesday that 2011 will be its largest hiring year in company history. The announcement comes one week after Google shuffled its executives, with co-founder Larry Page replacing 10-year CEO Eric Schmidt in a move to remain dynamic and competitive.
Intel, however, waited one week after Google to make its major executive announcement. On Tuesday, Intel announced it hired will.i.am, rapper and producer for the Black Eyed Peas, as its director of creative innovation. The addition comes complete with a company ID badge for will.i.am, as well as a new spotlight on Intel. Today, three days after the announcement, searches for “Intel will.i.am” are still frequent.
German software maker SAP also generated a significant amount of online conversation this week, according to Google Realtime. The chatter coincided with the release of its fourth quarter financial numbers. The company saw a 35 percent increase in software revenues, as well as profit growth.
However, fourth quarter results are bittersweet for SAP. Earnings per share were 27 cents lower compared to the same time last year – the result of the fees and taxes incurred from its lawsuit with its main competitor, Oracle. In November, SAP was ordered to pay $1.3 billion to Oracle for license violations stemming from SAP's use of Oracle software at its TomorrowNow software maintenance unit.
These issues carry implications for both the public and private sectors and are likely to draw more attention as they develop. Keep listening, as the online conversation will only get louder.
