Soccer fans at risk online

Research by security firm McAfee shows many Web sites associated with teams playing in the soccer World Cup are infested with spyware and adware, reports BBC News.

McAfee researchers looked at almost four million Web sites and found the Angolan team has the largest number of risky sites associated with it, and top footballers, such as Portugal`s Cristiano Ronaldo, have the most unsafe sites connected with them.

The research found 24% of the sites hosting screensavers for Angola were home to a variety of malicious programs. Some installed software that made unwanted ads pop-up and others led to people receiving a lot of e-mail spam. Second on the list of most dangerous teams to follow was Brazil with 17% of sites hosting potentially risky software.

HP has unveiled its next-generation blade server architecture with new features designed to tackle data centre challenges such as systems management, power consumption and cooling.

CIO.Com says the new HP BladeSystem c-Class box replaces the existing BladeSystem p-Class, which HP has undertaken to support until 2012. The new 17-inch box, which supports server, storage and client blades, is the foundation of HP`s new strategy to "blade everything".

HP claims the new architecture enables savings of up to 46% when compared with the company`s rack-mounted systems.

Software from Parallels that enables Apple Macs to run Microsoft Windows and the Mac OS at the same time is ready for a final version release, reports News.Com.

Apple`s much publicised Boot Camp software for loading Windows onto Macs is still in beta and permits users to run only one operating system at a time, but not both at once. However, the Parallels Desktop program uses virtualisation technology to have Windows programs operate alongside Mac applications.

The report says that according to analysts, being able to run Windows programs is a potentially significant catalyst for Mac sales.

New Zealand is to start converting to digital television next year, allowing companies to offer more channels, interactive TV and broadcasts via the Internet and mobile phones, reports Bloomberg.

According to the report, state-owned broadcasters Television New Zealand and Radio New Zealand expect to start digital broadcasts next year alongside TVWorks of CanWest Mediaworks. This follows a commitment by the government to invest $16 million in the necessary infrastructure over the next five years.

The government says all of the country`s telecommunications companies have backed the project because they want access to the content.