Skyway West Recommended March 12th to March 24th

Each Monday we’ll pass on links to articles we thought were well worth reading from the previous week, kind of a Digg-lite for those who live where we do (British Columbia, Canada), work like we do (high speed business internet), and think like we do (internet trends, internet privacy, cutting-edge technology, etc.). If you don’t want to wait ’til Monday, we usually tweet and link to these as we come across them…

Offshore Gaming Association: US Department of Homeland Security security seizes domain names conducting legal business outside US

In 2008 the state of Kentucky tried to seize 141 domain names in an attempt to prevent its residents from wagering offshore. The state realized it had no way of getting to offshore operators and wasn’t prepared to pass a law which made wagering by its citizens illegal so they decided the best way to stop Kentucky residents from wagering was simply to make the websites inaccessible. Read More…

EChannelLine: Small businesses ignore risks of data protection on mobile devices

A new data protection survey, produced by Mozy and independent market research firm Compass Partners, LLC, has found what the surveyors consider to be surprising results. The survey found that an increasing number of professionals (80%) work remotely and rely on personal devices such as smartphones (63%), iPads (30%) and laptops (80%) to access company data. Read More…

IT Business Canada: What the cloud really means for your IT job

Depending on which survey or story you read, the cloud can be either a good thing for IT workers and their job security, or it can be terrifying. For example, a study by Microsoft and IDC recently predicted that cloud computing will create 14 million jobs internationally by 2015. But those aren’t just IT jobs, they are jobs spread around the entire world, across all industries. For IT shops, the news may not be as bright: A study by IT service provider CSC concluded that 14 per cent of companies reduced their IT staff headcount after deploying a cloud strategy. Read More…

CBC: Ottawa lifts foreign ownership limits on small players with less than 10% share or telecom market

Industry Minister Christian Paradis moved Wednesday to increase competition in Canada’s wireless sector, placing limits on the coming wireless spectrum auction and lifting foreign-investment limits on small telecom firms. Paradis made the announcement at the same time as he said the next auction of radio waves in the 700 and 2,500 MHz frequency bands will be held in the first half of 2013. Read More…

New York Times: Apple’s iTunes Store and App Store open to consumer and seller fraud

Hundreds of online complaints suggest that Apple’s iTunes Store, and in particular its App Store, which the company portrays as the safest of shopping environments, is not so secure. Read More…

IT World Canada: New iPad high resolution could bog down corporate networks

The new Apple iPad , which sports a higher-resolution screen, a 1080p HD camera and LTE network capability, will likely entice millions of buyers — but it could bog down corporate networks and give IT managers headaches. Read More…

IT World Canada: Toronto conference considers limiting dissent on the Internet and whether the military should manage cyberspace

International security and Internet experts debate whether cyberspace needs to be policed in an era of increasing online criminal and military use. Read More…

USA Today: 5 ways to control your privacy on Google

Like it or not, your relationship with Google is becoming a lot more intimate. The company recently expanded its ability to combine data from its various services to create a highly detailed profile on you. Read More…

Computer Dealer News: Which Smartphone Apps are the Biggest Data Hogs?

Are you aware of how much data your smartphone’s apps are using up? Android phones are averaging about 583 megabytes (MB) of data usage monthly, according to 2011 stats from Nielson. Read More…

Michael Geist: Police propose “Public Safety” Tax on your Internet bill

One of the major unanswered questions about Bill C-30, the lawful access/online surveillance bill, is who will pay for the costs associated with responding to law enforcement demands for subscriber information (“look ups”) and installation of surveillance equipment (“hook ups”). Read More…

Bonnier: Closer to One: Buddhism and The Internet of Things

This blog post is based on the March 13th SXSW Interactive session in Austin, with Matt Rolandson (Ammunition Group), Vincent Horn (BuddhistGeeks.com), and Sara Öhrvall (Bonnier R&D). Read More…