Owners with tax calculations,

Miva Merchant’s online shopping cart software has some exciting new features and upgrades upcoming soon!
The new wombat for Miva Merchant 5.5 is now in Beta Testing
A new partnership with AccurateTax has been created in order to aid store owners with tax calculations.
The exciting new features included in the Wombat and the AccurateTax partnership are designed to help online merchants that utilize Miva Merchant Web Hosting take their business to the next level by increasing functionality and saving time and hassle.
Anyone with a fully up to date Miva Merchant 5.5 store can test the new Wombat beta and make suggestions to the Miva team on how to better these new components. Since the Wombat is only in the beta stages, Miva does recommend that you initially install and test the Wombat on a developmental copy of your store to make sure everything runs and functions properly. You can simply install the Wombat from the Streaming Update menu in your global settings.
Key features included in the Wombat beta are:
Order Management with Advanced Credit Card Features
Label Printing For UPS, USPS (Fed Ex will be included in the final version)
Address Line 2 for Billing, Shipping and Databases
Order Status and History Fields
Remember that the features included in this Wombat will be available as a streaming update with the production release (after the beta and developmental process). You do not have to be involved in the beta testing and pre-development stages in order to enjoy the new features – you simply need to wait until the wombat is released as an official update to your store.
In addition to the Wombat beta release, there is some more exciting news in the Miva Host world! As a result of the often complicated and confusing sales tax rules that face online merchants, Miva Merchant has joined forces with AccurateTax – a leading provider of sales tax software. The goal of this partnership is to make tax computations within the shopping cart. This tax plug-in ensures that stores are calculating the correct taxes for the right state(s) and are up to date with the ever-changing rules and laws concerning the calculation of sales tax. Furthermore, online storeowners need not worry that this module will slow down their sites because most of the work is completed on AccurateTax’s servers.
For more details and instructions regarding the Wombat and AccurateTax, please visit the Miva Merchant forums.

The customer protection company for online businesses,

The customer protection company for online businesses, Trusteer, today issued a security advisory that warns the customers of website hosting companies, including yahoo.com, against a new phishing attack aimed at stealing their content management system log-in credentials. The e-mails discovered by Trusteer appear to be from Yahoo.com (and other website hosting firms) and ask website owners to confirm their cPanel/FTP account information. Using this information, criminals are uploading look-a-like bank website pages to steal funds.
cPanel is a very popular CMS (Content Management System), used by many leading hosting providers, including Yahoo. It is used to perform website operations, including FTP account control and setup, which can be used to upload content to the cPanel-managed web site. Over the past few days, Trusteer’s security monitoring service has detected a phishing email campaign targeting owners of cPanel-based sites at various hosting providers. The attack is designed to harvest the FTP credentials of site owners, using cPanel-oriented messaging. The full report is available at: http://www.trusteer.com/files/cPanel-FTP-Phishing-advisory.pdf
“The ability to upload arbitrary content into relatively small and less popular sites may seem un-interesting fraud-wise,” said Amit Klein CTO of Trusteer and head of the company’s research organization. “However, evidence we have collected over the past few months connects cPanel-driven sites to online banking fraud. By stealing cPanel login credentials, criminals do not need to use hacking tools to upload content to a website, and therefore can avoid detection until after they have siphoned funds from consumer and business banking accounts.”
About Rapport
Rapport from Trusteer is a lightweight browser plug-in plus security service that acts like a vault inside the browser and prevents redirection of user information to fraudulent websites. It protects personally identifiable information (PII) and Web pages from unauthorized access and theft while users are accessing sensitive Web sites. Trusteer also offers in-the-cloud reporting services where unauthorized access attempts detected by Rapport are analyzed by fraud experts who provide actionable intelligence to financial institutions.
About Trusteer
Trusteer enables online businesses to secure communications with their customers over the Internet and protect PII from a user’s keyboard into the company’s Web site. Trusteer’s flagship product, Rapport, allows online banks, brokerages, healthcare providers, and retailers to protect their customers from identity theft and financial fraud. For more information visit www.dhanprasadgurung.blogspot.com,

Verizon Business security ,

The latest in the Data Breach Investigations Report series by Verizon Business security experts provides enterprises with an unprecedented look at the 15 most common security attacks and how they typically unfold.
In the "2009 Supplemental Data Breach Investigations Report: An Anatomy of a Data Breach," Verizon Business security experts tap the company's detailed investigative records to identify, rank and profile the most common attacks. For each type of attack, the report provides real-world scenarios, the warning signs, how the attack is orchestrated, how attackers got in, what information they took, what assets the attackers targeted, what industries are commonly affected, and what countermeasures are effective. In total, the report details nearly 150 ways to detect and combat security threats.
This latest installment in Verizon's data breach study series is based on the "2009 Verizon Business Data Breach Investigations Report," issued in April. That landmark study analyzed more than 90 forensic investigations involving 285 million compromised records.
This supplemental report seeks to address the thousands of inquiries we've received from companies around the world wanting a more detailed explanation of attacks, as well as requests for additional recommendations for deterring, preventing and detecting breaches," said Dr. Peter Tippett, vice president of technology and innovation, Verizon Business. "This follow-up analysis is aimed at helping organizations better safeguard their organizations by understanding the anatomy of a data breach and how cybercriminals workThe 2009 Verizon Business Supplemental Data Breach Report identified and ranked by frequency the following top 15 types of attacks:
1. Keylogging and spyware: Malware specifically designed to covertly
collect, monitor and log the actions of a system user.
2. Backdoor or command/control: Tools that provide remote access to or
control of infected systems, or both, and are designed to run covertly.
3. SQL injection: An attack technique used to exploit how Web pages
communicate with back-end databases.
4. Abuse of system access/privileges: Deliberate and malicious abuse of
resources, access or privileges granted to an individual by an
organization.
5. Unauthorized access via default credentials: Instances in which an
attacker gains access to a system or device protected by standard preset
(widely known) user names and passwords.
6. Violation of acceptable use and other policies: Accidental or purposeful
disregard of acceptable use policies.
7. Unauthorized access via weak or misconfigured access control lists When ACLs are weak or misconfigured, attackers can access
resources and perform actions not intended by the victim.
8. Packet Sniffer: Monitors and captures data traversing a network.
9. Unauthorized access via stolen credentials: Instances in which an
attacker gains access to a protected system or device using valid but
stolen credentials.
10. Pretexting or social engineering: A social engineering technique in
which the attacker invents a scenario to persuade, manipulate, or trick
the target into performing an action or divulging information.
11. Authentication bypass: Circumvention of normal authentication mechanisms
to gain unauthorized access to a system
12. Physical theft of asset: Physically stealing an asset.
13. Brute-force attack: An automated process of iterating through possible
username/password combinations until one is successful.
14. RAM scraper: A fairly new form of malware designed to capture data from
volatile memory (RAM) within a system.
15. Phishing (and endless "ishing" variations): A social engineeringIn addition to the extensive threat catalogue, the supplemental report includes an appendix that compares Verizon's caseload with DataLossDB, a public database of reported incidents worldwideAbout Verizon Business
Verizon Business, a unit of Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ), is a global leader in communications and IT solutions. We combine professional expertise with one of the world's most connected IP networks to deliver award-winning communications, IT, information security and network solutions. We securely connect today's extended enterprises of widespread and mobile customers, partners, suppliers and employees - enabling them to increase productivity and efficiency and help preserve the environment. Many of the world's largest businesses and governments - including 96 percent of the Fortune 1000 and thousands of government agencies and educational institutions - rely on our professional and managed services and network technologies to accelerate their business. Find out more at www.dhanprasadgurung.blogspot.com.
VERIZON'S ONLINE NEWS CENTER: Verizon news releases, executive speeches and biographies, media contacts, high-quality video and images, and other information are available at Verizon's News Center on the World Wide Web at www.verizon.com/news. To receive news releases by e-mail, visit the News Center and register for customized automatic delivery of Verizon news releases.

Dubai's threat to U.S. banks,

The news that the sovereign wealth fund of Dubai requested a postponement of billions of dollars of debt this week could pose a big problem for U.S. banks.
The state-run investment company, Dubai World, owes about $60 billion. It rang up much of that in a building boom that included the world's tallest skyscraper and the Palm Islands in the Persian Gulf, settlements shaped like palm trees.
According to CMA DataVision, which tracks credit markets, there's a 35.82% probability that Dubai will default on that debt.
New York-based Citigroup (C, Fortune 500) has the most exposure to default risk at Dubai World, which a J.P. Morgan (JPM, Fortune 500) equity research note estimated at $1.9 billion. Citigroup declined to comment.
While other major banks in the United States are believed to have little direct exposure, the ripple effect could be more crippling, according to Richard Bove, a bank analyst with Rochdale Securities.There could be huge indirect exposure," he said. "One has to assume that U.S. banks will be hurt."
J.P. Morgan declined to comment, while Goldman Sachs (GS, Fortune 500) and Bank of America (BAC, Fortune 500) were unavailable for immediate comment. Morgan Stanley (MS, Fortune 500) said a Dubai World default "would have have no material impact on its earnings."
Bove said the underlying problem is that there is a lot of uncertainty floating around. For example, there's little information available about counterparty derivatives, guarantees that transfer default risk from lenders to other financial institutions. And it's unknown how much of Dubai World's debt guarantee is held by U.S. banks.
And while UK banks, such as Standard Chartered, HSBC (HBC), Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and Barclays (BCS) are much more exposed to Dubai World, with a total of more than $30 billion in default risk according to J.P. Morgan's note, U.S. banks have extensive dealings with UK institutions. Those include trading and guaranteeing debt, which could translate into losses for U.S. banks.
There's also U.S. banks' interactions with their German counterparts. Dubai has loaned a lot of money to Eastern European nations, as has Germany. Any losses from defaults there could expose U.S. banks to some risk.Finally, there's the impact of already reeling commercial real estate markets worldwide.
"Dubai may have to unload some very prestigious properties at distressed prices, and this will drive the price of all commercial real estate lower," said Bove. "That would clearly be a problem for American banks."
Bove also posited that the problems at Dubai World could add weight to the growing sentiment that is already strong in the U.S. Congress about beefing up regulation.
"Congress is demanding that anyone connected to the U.S. financial system has to be regulated," he said.
Rattling bank stocks
Bank stocks are particularly vulnerable to a market turndown triggered by the Dubai crisis, said Peter Sorrentino, senior portfolio manager at Huntington Asset Advisors. He said the run-up this year has led to an overvalued stock market.
"We had been looking for something to trigger a correction," he said. "This could be that catalyst."
It would add to a market already made volatile, especially with the approach of the end of the tax season for mutual funds, which has put a lot of money in motion. The impact could fall heaviest on the financial sector.
Sorrentino added that the risk of default will put a damper on all commercial credit markets. Institutions may have to set aside more reserve funds to cover default risk, leaving less cash to lend out, and, in general, take a more cautious underwriting approach.

Black Friday Video Game Deals,

Rock legend Ronnie James Dio has been diagnosed with the early stages of stomach cancer, according to a statement posted on his official site by his wife Wendy Dio.
It was announced last week that the singer, who’s fronted classic hard rock bands, Rainbow and Black Sabbath, as well as his solo band Dio, had canceled his European tour after he was hospitalized.
According to the singer’s wife, who is also his longtime manager, Dio will be starting treatment immediately at the Mayo Clinic.
See below for the official statement regarding Dio’s health.

Very early this morning, we posted the Black Friday DVD & TV deals over at Amazon today, which includes “lightning” deals all day today (meaning, drastically reduced prices for a limited time only selling out very quickly, so jump on these sales while you can.
There’s also lightning deals on Video Games, which include Assassin’s Creed for Xbox 360 and Fallout 3 for Xbox 360 and PS3. Check the page for upcoming deals and times for when they’ll be available.
Some all-day sales in video games include Video Game Gold Box deal of the day, a Sony PlayStation 3, a 120 GB “Black Friday Bundle” with Infamous and Killzone 2 (Includes a $10 Amazon.com Promotional Credit on Black Friday) for only $299.99. Also, today ONLY, if you buy a Nintendo Wii along with New Super Mario Bros. Wii, you’ll get Mario & Sonic at the Winter Olympic Games for free. See full details HERE.
Here are some more video games sales happening today only (all qualify for $10 off if you pay with a Discover Card)For PS3 Gold Box deal, order the PS3 120 GB Bundle with Infamous and Killzone 2 and get $10 off a future purchase at Amazon.com, which will be credited to your account within two business days after product ships. Promotion only valid for orders placed between 12:01 AM and 11:59 PM, Pacific time, November 27, 2009 and is limit to one per household. Also, if you’ll get $10 off when you pay with your Discover Card.
Note, the same Discover Card deal applies if you take advantage of today’s main Gold Box deal of the day, which is a Garmin GPS for $129.99 [it's a Garmin nüvi 285W/285WT 4.3-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator with Traffic]. That’s 48% off the list price.

The launch of Wikipedia,

The launch of Wikipedia, emergence of the iPhone and the election of U.S. President Barack Obama were among the 10 most influential moments on the Internet in the past decade, according to the annual Webby awards.
Other events singled out by the New York-based International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, which has presented the annual Webby awards since 1996, were the Iranian election in 2009 when protests demonstrated the power of Twitter and other social network in reshaping democracy.
"The Internet is the story of the decade because it was the catalyst for change in not just every aspect of our everyday lives, but in everything from commerce and communication to politics and pop culture," said David-Michel Davies, the executive director of The Webby Awards, in a statement.
"The recurring theme among all of the milestones on our list is the Internet's capacity to circumvent old systems and put more power into the hands of ordinary people."
Here is the Webby's list of the 10 most influential Internet moments of the decade:
Craigslist, the free classifieds site, expands outside San Francisco in 2000, impacting newspaper publishers everywhere
Google AdWords launched in 2000 allowing advertisers to target their customers with laser-sharp precision
Wikipedia, the free open-source encyclopaedia, launches in 2001 and today boasts more than 14 million articles in 271 different languages and bringing strangers together on projects
Napster shutdown in 2001, opening the file-sharing floodgates
Google's IPO in 2004 put the search engine on the path to powering countless aspects of our everyday lives
Online video revolution in 2006 that led to a boom in homemade and professional content on the Internet and helped reshape everything from pop culture to politics
Facebook opens to non-college students and Twitter takes off in 2006
The iPhone debuts in 2007 and smartphones go from a luxury item to a necessity with an app for just about every aspect of modern life
U.S. presidential campaign in 2008 in which the Internet changed every facet of the way campaigns are run
Iranian election protests in 2009 when Twitter proved vital in organising demonstrations and as a protest too.

Tiger Woods Hurt In Car Crash,

The world's top golfer Tiger Woods has been treated in hospital after being hurt in a car accident outside his home in FloridaThe superstar crashed his 2009 Cadillac sport utility vehicle in Isleworth near Orlando in the early hours.
It happened after he pulled out of his driveway at 2:25am (local time), authorities said.
The Florida Highway Patrol said Woods started driving along the road when his car struck a fire hydrant and then hit a tree.
A local police chief said Woods' wife used a golf club to smash out the back window and help get the world's No 1 golfer out of the vehicle.
Daniel Saylor said officers found the 33-year-old PGA star lying in the street with his wife, Elin, hovering over him.
She told officers she was in the house when she heard the accident and "came out and broke the back window with a golf club."
Woods had lacerations to his upper and lower lips, and he had blood in his mouth, Saylor saidWoods was taken to Health Central Hospital in Ocoee following the incident.
Early reports said the star had been seriously injured in the crash.
But later it emerged he had only suffered cuts to his face and was released from hospital after treatment.
A joint statement from the hospital and Woods' office said: "He was admitted, treated and released in good condition" after being in a "minor" car crash.
The highway patrol said the crash was still under investigation, and charges were pending. But it added that the crash was not alcohol-related.
The airbags in the car did not deploy during the accident because he was travelling so slowly, police said.
Airbags typically do not open if a vehicle is travelling at less than 33mph.
Woods, who is married with two children, is is one of the world's richest sportsmen and by far the biggest draw on the PGA tour.He made a triumphant comeback on the tour this year after missing much of the 2008 season following reconstructive knee surgery.
He was operated on shortly after clinching his 14th major title, the 2008 US Open.
He did not win a major title this year but had a successful year capped by winning the season-long FedEx Cup.
Woods' website said he is due to start the campaign for his fifth Chevron World Challenge title on Tuesday.
The tournament's host, he won the event in 2001, 2004, 2006 and 2007 but missed last year's competition while recovering from his knee op.