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Widespread Internet Outages For Twitter, Netflix, And More

October 29, 2016 By Kevin Kopas Leave a Comment

Widespread Internet Outages For Twitter, Netflix, And MoreThe FBI and Department of Homeland Security are currently investigating why the world’s favorite sites went down. This massive cyber attack downed or slowed access to sites like Twitter, Amazon, and Spotify, reports the LA Times.

It took 11 hours after the cyber attack for the company to restore its service to the websites that were affected. The company that was affected, Dyn, is a New Hampshire company that monitors and helps route traffic to major sites in the United States. They were the victim of a massive attack that began at 7:00 am EST, and many users on the East Coast were unable to access sites including PayPal, Reddit, Twitter, and Amazon, reports USA Today.

Dyn reported later that same day that they had resolved the issue, says USA Today.

This incident is not a shock to some. In fact, The Daily Beast highlights how in September 2016, it was reported that hackers would probe the internet for soft spots and eventually, find ways to take down the entire internet. Many ignored these warnings and considered them unrealistic, until the cyber attack of October 2016.

The Irony Of The Situation

Dyn is a company that is designed to help mitigate DNS (Denial of Service) attacks on major websites. Therefore, it was ironic that the firm was the target of a cyber attack, reports The Daily Beast. The company received more than 1,000 GBs of DNS traffic per second, which is more bandwidth than most countries in the world have.

The amount of traffic sent to the company is what eventually brought it down and overwhelmed their servers. How it works is the DDoS attacks will flood the servers of the target website, which then makes it impossible for the company to respond to real traffic requests; thus, slowing or stopping sites altogether, reports USA Today.

DNS attacks are nothing new to the United States or the world. It is a popular way for hackers to bring down websites. It is a costly and difficult thing to protect companies from too, and there are only a handful on the internet that can defend themselves from DNS attacks, reports The Daily Beast.

Hackers Using Novice Technology

What is upsetting is the fact that these hackers accessed Dyn through Mirai, a very easy-to-use program that allows even novice-level hackers to take over devices, reports USA Today.

Worse, the hackers used internet-connected devices to bring down Dyn’s servers, reports The LA Times. They gained access through devices such as DVRs and CCTV cameras that have poor internet security, says The Daily Beast. By using these vulnerable devices, it was easier for hackers to gain access and send their attacks.

The LA Times reports that investigators do know who was behind the assault, but they are not releasing this information yet. Many of these DNS attacks are used to bribe websites into paying a large sum of money before the hackers will release the site.

Filed Under: Technology Tagged With: Amazon, cyber attack, denial of service, dns, dns attack, dyn, FBI, hackers, homeland security, spotify, Twitter

Doctors Recommend Restricted Screen Time For Children

October 28, 2016 By Kevin Kopas Leave a Comment

Screen time for childrenIn today’s technological world, humans have become dependent on smartphones and tablets for a multitude of purposes. Parents even use these devices to keep their children preoccupied or to entertain them. Researchers agree there are pros and cons to children using technology, but the American Academy of Pediatrics has set new limitations on how much screen time children should be getting.

In the AAP national conference that was held earlier this month, the 10,000 pediatricians in attendance discussed how much screen time should be allotted for different age groups. Previously, the AAP recommended no more than two hours of screen time for children older than two, but have decided that this is too broad.

“It doesn’t make sense to make a blanket statement of screen time anymore,” said Dr. Yolanda Reid Chasiakos.

Part of the reason for redefining and assessing how much screen time children should be exposed to is because of the variety of technology there is. In the past, it was just television, but now there’s computers, smartphones, and tablets that all need to be considered when discussing how much time children should be allowed to look at the screens.

The AAP now recommends that children ages two to five should receive no more than one hour a day of screen time. As for children over the age of six, pediatricians have recommended that parents partake in a Family Media Use Plan to determine how much time their children should interact with screens. It’s also important to note that children younger than 18 months should receive no screen time other than video chatting.

For the two to five year old range, the AAP also recommends that parents watch whatever program their children is viewing with them. This way, parents can explain the content and apply it to their children’s lives.

For all ages, it’s recommended that only “high-quality” programming be viewed. A few examples the AAP gives as high-quality programming is PBS and Sesame Workshop. The AAP also states that media use should be used to enhance creativity, and be used as a tool of learning.

Jenny Radesky MD, the lead author of the policy statement, “Media and Young Minds,” reminded parents that too much media use can in fact be harmful. According to Radesky, excessive screen time can cut into the crucial time that children need for play, rest, learning, and interacting with other people.

As for toddlers and infants, the AAP recommends only video chatting, because this can help increase language in children.

One of the biggest teaching points being stressed is that parents monitor what their children are viewing and interacting with, and to also have open communication about why it’s important to set time boundaries on these technological devices.

For the most part, it’s not screen time in itself that is negative; it’s what’s on the screen. Studies have been conducted to figure out what causes positive outcomes and what causes negative outcomes of different programs, but such research is still in early stages. However, three new academic documents will be released in November that explore the topic of media use in children.

Resources: http://whnt.com/2016/10/23/new-screen-time-rules-for-kids-by-doctors/

http://www.wsj.com/articles/banning-tablets-is-best-for-children-1477245370

https://www.aap.org/en-us/about-the-aap/aap-press-room/Pages/American-Academy-of-Pediatrics-Announces-New-Recommendations-for-Childrens-Media-Use.aspx?nfstatus=401&nftoken=00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000&nfstatusdescription=ERROR:%20No%20local%20token

Filed Under: Health & Lifestyle, Technology Tagged With: aap, american academy of pediatrics, screen time for children, smartphone for kids, smartphone use limit, technology for children

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