Corporates riddled with spyware

Corporate computer systems are riddled with spyware, according to a study by anti-spyware firm, Webroot.

The Register reports that companies using Webroot`s Corporate SpyAudit tool had an average of 20 nasties per PC.

Most of the items found were harmless cookies, but an average 5% of the PCs scanned had system monitors and 5.5% had Trojan horse programs.

The audit is based on scans of more than 10 000 systems used by more than 4 100 companies and is touted by Webroot as the first comprehensive analysis of the presence of spyware within corporate networks.

Oracle is in merger talks with other technology companies as it awaits the outcome of its $9.2 billion hostile takeover bid for rival software maker PeopleSoft, reports ComputerWorld.

The report quotes Oracle co-president Charles Phillips as saying there are multiple acquisition possibilities for Oracle.

Scientists working to create human tissue say inkjets that are 10 years old are perfectly suited to create sheets of human skin, reports PC World.

Vladimir Mironov of the Medical University of South Carolina is one of the scientists who rigged Hewlett-Packard and Canon inkjet printers to shoot out proteins instead of ink, and to capture tissue on specialised gel instead of paper. Older printers work well because their spray nozzles have larger holes and are less likely to damage fragile cells.

Researchers say they hope to use the new "skin printing" technique to replace the current skin-graft method, which can lead to postoperative complications.

Apple Computer has published an update to its Mac OS X operating system, closing 17 security holes in open source and proprietary components.

CNet reports that the patch addresses five vulnerabilities in the Apache Web server included with the operating system, as well as two flaws in the mail servers used by Mac OS X. Apple also fixed two flaws in the company`s Safari Web browser and another problem with the QuickTime media server.