Malware uses MS shortcut flaw

Hackers have developed malware that spreads via USB sticks using a previously unknown security weakness involving Windows' handling of shortcut files, reveals The Register.

The malware uses rootkit-style functionality to mask its presence on infected systems. These rootlet drivers come digitally signed by legitimate software developer Realtek Semiconductor, a further mark of the sophistication of the attack.

In an advisory, VirusBlokAda says it has seen numerous incidents of the Trojan spy payloads dropped by the malware since adding detection for the malign code last month.

Berlin is among the European cities using the new software to improve rail services, reports the BBC.

Germany, the Netherlands and Switzerland are enhancing their reputation for punctual trains with new software to manage schedules, the European Commission says.

An EU-backed project called Arrival has cut delays by managing rail traffic more efficiently, the commission says. Arrival algorithms were used to draw up a new rail timetable in the Netherlands and cut waiting times on Berlin's U-Bahn underground to just two minutes.

According to the industry, the UK's commitment to providing both universal broadband by 2015 and next-generation access by 2017 must surmount a number of obstacles before it can succeed, writes Computing.co.uk.

There are three universal service commitment pilot schemes due this autumn, with the purpose of establishing a workable business model. The government has about £200 million to run them.

However, there is some doubt as to whether this will be enough to carry out adequate pilots.

Two services that enable users to blog or create online forums have disappeared from the Internet under mysterious circumstances, says CNet.

Blogetery.com, a blogging platform, went dark on 9 July, less than a week before Ipbfree.com, a service that helped users create Web message boards, went offline.

No one has said these situations are linked, but they nonetheless possess intriguing similarities.