Hasta La Gadget!

Kaspersky Labs discovered a new computer virus recently dubbed Gauss that targeted banking systems and financial information. According to Kaspersky Labs, the virus has infected over 2,500 computers, primarily located in Lebanon, and targets specific banks and financial institutions such as BlomBank and Credit Libanais. Now, web-based tools have been released that allows anyone to check if they’ve been infected by Gauss.

Kaspersky detects the virus by checking systems for a font that’s included when the virus infects a computer. The font, Palida Narrow, could be a play on words of Paladin Arrow, according to one Kaspersky Labs researcher. While the virus is primarily used for gathering financial information, there are parts of the code that obfuscate other abilities.

The information that the virus gathers isn’t limited to sensitive banking details, however, with the malicious software also targeting web browsing histories and passwords. The virus also creates a detailed snapshot of the targeted computer’s hardware, designed to help aid any future attacks. The origins of Gauss aren’t known, but experts believe it could be a state-designed virus due to the specific banking institutions it’s targeting. It could be an attempt to gather the financial activity of a group like Hezbollah or the Iranian government.

Even stranger, after the virus was first discovered by Kaspersky Lab back in July, the remote systems used to control it were abruptly shut down. The makeup of the virus also shares features with other espionage related viruses, further backing up the belief that it’s a state-designed effort. Other security experts, however, believe it could simply be the work of coders and criminals that have copied state designs.

[via The Washington Post]

Researchers develop Gauss detection tools is written by Ben Kersey & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

I think many people would agree that trying on clothes is no fun. There are major differences between how a man shops for clothes and how woman shops for clothes. My wife will go in, try on everything in the store, and then leave with nothing while I go in and walk out with exactly what I needed without bothering with the fitting room.

Department store Bloomingdale’s and a company called Bodymetrics have teamed up to put high-tech fitting room into a Bloomingdale’s store in Palo Alto California. The store is located at Bloomingdale’s Stanford Shopping Center. To use the open body sizing pod, the shopper steps into the private booth and technology carefully maps their body using hundreds of measurements and contours.

After the body mapping is complete, the idea is that the shopper will know exactly what pair of jeans to purchase to best fit their body. The body sizing pod uses a Microsoft Kinect for Windows sensor and is apparently accurate enough for the user to know what genes will fit without having to try them on.

A similar body sizing pod been used for the last three years in a UK store called Selfridges. The pod in that particular store, located in London, delivers one of the highest retail yields in the world. The body sizing pod in that store accounts for 20% of all premium denim sales according to Bodymetrics. I think this is a great idea if you’re not sure what size you need for some reason, simply stepping into this pod is a much better option than having to try out about clothes.

Bloomingdale’s and Bodymetrics team up for open body sizing pod is written by Shane McGlaun & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

The retinoic acid receptor-related orphan receptor alpha, RORA for
short, is a gene that ordinarily protects our fragile cells from stress,
but scientific findings in the last few years have shown that the RORA
gene often shuts down when certain other cells destabilize them.  This
study, conducted by Boston University School of Medicine and the VA
Boston Healthcare System, finds yet another psychiatric disorder, post
traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), linked to a breakdown or ‘risk variant’
of the RORA gene.

It appears that the quad-core ASUS Transformer Pad TF300TL tablet will be hitting Germany and Austria later this month, complete with support for 4G LTE. German site TechFokus reports that a press release gives the TF300TL a middle of August release for both countries, so it won’t be much longer before it launches in at least some parts of the world. At the moment, it’s still unknown when it will arrive in the United States, or any other countries for that matter.

The TF300TL is expected to cost around €629 ($772) if you want the optional keyboard dock, and €529 ($649) if you don’t. ASUS has been building this up as the first quad-core 4G LTE tablet, and it comes complete with a NVIDIA Tegra 3 processor. You’re packing some power under the hood, and you’ve got 4G LTE to boot. What more could you want?

According the ASUS announcement, the tablet also comes with 32GB of storage, 1GB of RAM, a 10.1-inch display capable of 1280 x 800, and Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich installed. The TF300TL will come in the same colors as the currently-available Wi-Fi only version (red, white, and blue), and German carrier O2 will be offering a special white tablet. It all sounds great, but as stated above, we’re still waiting for ASUS to announce it for other countries.

If this this tablet is indeed landing in Germany and Austria later this month, then it may not be long before ASUS starts talking about launch in additional countries. That, of course, depends on how quickly the company wants to release the tablet worldwide, but we’re hoping for a speedy announcement. Stay tuned, as we’ll update you if ASUS makes any announcements for the availability of the TF300TL in other countries.

[via The Verge]

Transformer Pad TF300TL LTE tablet revealed with Tegra 3 is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Nikon has announced a new interchangeable lens digital mirrorless camera as a follow-up to last year’s popular, but less-than-perfect J1. The new Nikon 1 J2 camera is available in six colors and uses an all-metal body along with several updated features.

The camera is capable of recording full HD video and has an image resolution of 8.3 megapixels – which is actually lower than the 10.1MP J1, so it’s not clear if the J2 is a replacement for the J1 or if it’s an additional model in the line. The camera has an ISO range of 100-3200 and can shoot with fixed focus at 60 FPS. The shutter promises to be very fast thanks to what Nikon claims to be the one of the fastest autofocus systems around. The camera has a three-inch rear LCD with a resolution of 921,000 dots.

The camera is fitted with the Nikon EXPEED 3 image processor and has a number of automatic and artistic modes. The camera can also shoot still photos while recording full HD video. Pricing and availability on the camera are unknown at this time.