Infamous hacking group Anonymous has hacked into and defaced the cached version of the Greek Ministry of Justice’s website apparently in protest against the signing of the controversial ACTA (Anti-Counterfeiting Trademark Agreement) treaty by the Greek Government.

The website with both a written and video message warns authorities that it will take down over 300 media and ministry websites if it doesn’t reverse its course. The treaty has come under criticism due to the secretive way in which it was drafted and the effect it could have for users online.

Following the attack, the sight indicated that it was “Under Construction” but then was changed to display the warning message stating that its next target would be “all the media in Greece” which it would easily access with the correct usernames and passwords it has obtained.

The Greek police have since confirmed the incident and updated their Twitter account to say that its cybercrimes division’s investigation into the incident is already in progress.

In October 2011, Anonymous who is known mostly for their attacks on corporate and big business sites, targeted a web host that knowingly hosted child pornography.

Watch Anonymous’s video message after the jump.

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Skype is currently a video chat experience commonly used between two people across devices, be it a mobile phone or PC, that are low resolution encounters. The telyHD,  a new device developed by a mall Silicon Valley startup called Tely Labs is about to change the Skype experience as we know it.

The telyHD, a black, horizontal bar less than a foot long and under 3 inches high with a wide-angle lens and multiple built-in microphones is mounted on top of the TV screen using a built-in clamp and allows for a group of friends or family in one room to chat in high definition. The device, displayed at CES 2012, is easily installed and comes with a remote control that is used to answer and terminate calls, zoom in and pan you screen image. It can connect to any other Skype-enabled device including PCs, Macs, smartphones and tablets however, some of its more advanced features require a telyHD on both sides of the conversation for the device to be fully optimised.

TelyHD isn’t just a webcam but  a small computing device, powered by Google’s Android operating system. It contains software and Internet capabilities that most TVs lack, some of which go beyond simple video calls including the ability to send and receive video voice mails, retrieve pictures from a flash memory card and share with and copy pictures from another telyHD user.

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With all the time spent on the internet, emailing, shopping online, downloading applications or booking a flight it’s always worth knowing that there are risks out there and reminding yourself what to look out for and the steps to take to protect yourself against online scams and identity theft.

We know BandwidthBlog readers are savvy, well- informed and fully aware of the warning signs associated with internet scams, however, we thought we’d help out anyone just starting out online.

So,  here are 12 easy to remember tips to avoid being taken by internet scams:

1. Always be aware that today almost anyone can create a website that looks legitimate so before you engage in any communication or give away any personal information, take a few moments to do some research about the company, product or service.

2. Always update your anti-virus software. When a pop-up display indicates that updates are available, do it.

3. Do not respond to offers that demand you act immediately or won’t take “no” for an answer.

4. Never respond to an email claiming to be from the bank with which you have an account. Most banks will never send you an email requesting your information – they already have it. Many banks now send emails or smses warning their customers against ‘phishing scams’. This applies to any other requests for personal or financial information from unknown sources.

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Anyone who runs a tech startup will tell you that trying to hire developers is probably just as stressful as raising venture capital. Why? Firstly, South Africa has a short supply of the right kind of developers. Secondly, the right kind of developers cost a fortune and so they work for larger companies who can afford them.

Why is this an issue? Well in order for the local startup scene to flourish we need more than just sufficient venture capital. Startups need access to talent in order to execute. It took me months to find and hire the right people at Aduity and most startups still find that true. This shouldn’t be the case at all.

1. The Right Kind of Developers?
I am not out to insult the intelligence or skill set of any developers. However, for startups the right kind of developers are proficient in one or more open source languages (eg. PHP, Python, Ruby) and can work across the stack.

While we have a decent pool of ASP.net, C# and Java developers, it is cheaper and more efficient for startups to utilise open source technologies (in most cases). Unfortunately, many of these skilled developers don’t adopt open source languages simply because they don’t know any better, are stuck in their ways or earn enough not to care.

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LocalSort, an Umbono-funded company, wanted to change the informal way in which hotels and guesthouses recommend services to their guests.

As a result, the company offers a marketplace where service providers like shuttle and tour operators, restaurants and tourist attractions can bid on how much commission they are willing to pay for exposure and new business. The hotels and guesthouses can then use the interface to recommend these services to their guests. Non-accommodation providers can therefore add their businesses to LocalSort so hotels and guesthouses can refer guests to their service. LocalSort keeps a percentage of the commission as a fee for making the connection. With LocalSort, accommodation providers can easily print maps, directions and even email guests with a things-to-do checklist before their arrival.

LocalSort was founded by Marcel van de Ghinste, Jonathan Womersley, Justin Womersley and David McLennan, all four of whom were involved in a previous venture that is still in operation called TravelGround, founded in 2009. It was through the building of TravelGround, that the team saw a further opportunity in the online tourism industry. ”When we started TravelGround none of us had any experience in the tourism industry. In some ways our ignorance was a blessing. It turned out to be much harder than we thought, but in the end we’re really proud of what we’ve achieved,” says Marcel van de Ghinste.

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Recent emails that have begun to circulate have revealed that as of 00:01 GMT February 14th 2012 betfair.com and all its associated products will no longer be available in South Africa or for South African residents. The decision to pull out of the country was as a result of a ruling by the South African Supreme Court of Appeal.

At this time however,  we are unaware of the reasons for this development.

Registered account holders have begun to receive an email from the UK based online betting site to inform them of the developments.

Read the full email after the jump.

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Wikipedia will be going dark on Wednesday in protest against two Congressional bills – the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the Protect IP Act (PIPA). The announcement was made by Co-Founder Jimmy Wales in a number of tweets. The website has also uploaded a banner that displays the message: “Please note: In less than 21 hours, the English Wikipedia will be blacked out globally to protest SOPA and PIPA.”

The bills have attracted fierce opposition from many in the technology industry. The New York Times Blog reports that “opponents say several of the provisions in the legislation, including those that may force search engines and Internet service providers to block access to Web sites that offer or link to copyrighted material, would stifle innovation, enable censorship and tamper with the livelihood of businesses on the Internet.”

According to Wales, the English Wikipedia receives approximately 25 million visitors every day. Wikipedia’s decision means that rather than those millions of visitors seeing the volume of knowledge available, they will be met with a screen explaining the company’s stance on the bill and information on how to take action against SOPA. Wales has also said that if passed, the bills could censor what information and links various websites will be allowed to publish.

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ScaleConf is a two-day conference that will bring together local and international experts to talk about the challenges and future of building and running online sites and services. The conference is the first of its kind to be hosted in South Africa.

Presentations will cover the culture and methodologies used to architect and develop the strong foundations that enable large-scale web companies to function smoothly, and smaller ones to grow gracefully. The speaker line-up includes some big names like Coda Hale (Yammer Inc.), Simon de Haan (Praekelt), Zach Holman (Github) and Miles Ward (Amazon Web Services).

The conference is the brainchild of two operations engineers at Yola.com, Jonathan Hitchcock and Duncan Phillips. “We created the conference because there’s a growing startup focus in Cape Town, and with that comes the need to build web applications at an unprecedented scale. While in the US I had attended some great technical conferences, and I wanted to bring that level of quality to South Africa,” explains Jonathan. Duncan adds, “Ultimately, the aim is to promote the best practices and technologies that will help drive a world-class DevOps culture here in South Africa.”

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