According to Sam Diaz from ZDNet.com, USB 3.0 will soon be upon us, as the specification "that allows the technology to start being built" is now available. USB is expected to have a data transfer rate of 4.8 gigabits per second, which is ten times the current rate, it is also expected to allow for more efficient power use. It is hoped that USB 3.0 will be standard in computers, flash drives, mp3 players and digital cameras by 2010.
Jeff Ravencraft, president of the USB Implementers Forum, says, "SuperSpeed USB is the next advancement in ubiquitous technology. Today's consumers are using rich media and large digital files that need to be easily and quickly transferred from PCs to devices and vice versa. SuperSpeed USB meets the needs of everyone, from the tech-savvy executive to the average home user."
One group that is not all that keen to see USB capabilities improve exponentially, at least not just yet, is the US Army. Noah Shachtman from Wired, reports that the US Army has been under sustained attack by a network worm that travels via USB. The threat has led to the US Army banning the use of all removable storage devices, including USB sticks, CDs, flash media cards and even ye olde floppy disks.
After thorough inspection certain 'mission critical' drives will be allowed back into service, but personally owned or unauthorised devices are strictly prohibited. Any transgressions will be dealt with severely; a security incident report will be opened and the incident referred to security officers. Ryan Olson, director of rapid response for computer security firm iDefense, says that the USB ban should stop the worm, but added that he didn't know if the measures taken by the Army were "a bit of overkill".
The ban is expected to play havoc with Army IT systems as it is relies heavily on removable storage devices in lieu of high-speed bandwidth and network accessibility. This dependence means that the Army is ripe for attack by viruses, such as "Agent.btz", which spreads by copying itself to thumb drives. In an effort to keep their system safe, the US Army is going to conduct scans on a daily basis to ensure that no malware has been introduced.
References:
[http://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?p=10893&tag=nl.e539]
http://blog.wired.com/defense/2008/11/army-bans-usb-d.html
Jeff Ravencraft, president of the USB Implementers Forum, says, "SuperSpeed USB is the next advancement in ubiquitous technology. Today's consumers are using rich media and large digital files that need to be easily and quickly transferred from PCs to devices and vice versa. SuperSpeed USB meets the needs of everyone, from the tech-savvy executive to the average home user."
One group that is not all that keen to see USB capabilities improve exponentially, at least not just yet, is the US Army. Noah Shachtman from Wired, reports that the US Army has been under sustained attack by a network worm that travels via USB. The threat has led to the US Army banning the use of all removable storage devices, including USB sticks, CDs, flash media cards and even ye olde floppy disks.
After thorough inspection certain 'mission critical' drives will be allowed back into service, but personally owned or unauthorised devices are strictly prohibited. Any transgressions will be dealt with severely; a security incident report will be opened and the incident referred to security officers. Ryan Olson, director of rapid response for computer security firm iDefense, says that the USB ban should stop the worm, but added that he didn't know if the measures taken by the Army were "a bit of overkill".
The ban is expected to play havoc with Army IT systems as it is relies heavily on removable storage devices in lieu of high-speed bandwidth and network accessibility. This dependence means that the Army is ripe for attack by viruses, such as "Agent.btz", which spreads by copying itself to thumb drives. In an effort to keep their system safe, the US Army is going to conduct scans on a daily basis to ensure that no malware has been introduced.
References:
[http://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?p=10893&tag=nl.e539]
http://blog.wired.com/defense/2008/11/army-bans-usb-d.html
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