Leaking Capacitors

We had a machine in the workshop last week that was exhibiting a series of symptoms that were hard to pin down to any specific cause - blue screens, boot hangs, extremely slow disc access, etc. After doing the standard diagnostics, including switching out the hard drive and optical drives, the problem seemed to be associated with the motherboard.

A close physical examination of the motherboard revealed that many of the capacitors were leaking their contents, either through the top of the capacitor, or at the base plug. I took a few pictures of these capacitors to show what this leaking looks like. The first picture shows a couple of capacitors that have leaked through the base plug and their contents have spilled onto the motherboard. As the motherboard is in a vertical orientation in the PC case the contents of the capacitor in the left of the picture ran downwards and the track of dried-out material can be clearly seen. A bulge in the top of the two leaking capacitors, due to pressure build-up, can also be seen - a tell-tale sign of a potential leaker.

The second picture shows three capacitors that have leaked through the top where the contents have burst through the cap. The rear-most capacitor in this shot is a different brand of capacitor and is not a leaker. In total, ten capacitors on the motherboard were found to be leaking and all were from the same manufacturer and the same capacitance value.

As capacitors are used to regulate voltage in various sections of the motherboard, failure of capacitors can cause many problems that could be interpreted as power supply, memory or hard drive issues.

This was only the second time in the past twelve months that we came across this problem. The cause of the problem has an interesting background, involving a case of industrial espionage that went wrong. Essentially, the faulty capacitors have an incorrect electrolyte formulation, which leads to hydrogen gas being produced. The build-up of gas causes the pressure increase which eventually ruptures the capacitor.

See further pictures at PCStats and more info at Geeks.com.

Pre-n Wireless Networks

Wireless networks have undergone a few changes in recent years with a least three existing standards now available, these being 802.11a, 802.11b and 802.11g. Unless you are operating in a business environment you are unlikely to come across 802.11a, which operates at a frequency of 5.0GHz and has a maximum data transmission rate of 11.0 mbps (megabits per second). If you are using a wireless network in your home it is likely to be either the 802.11b standard (2.4GHz frequency and 11.0 mbps transmission rate) or 802.11g if you've purchased it in the last 2-3 years (2.4GHz frequency and 54 mbps transmission rate). While a "g" standard network in the home serves most needs, it has difficulty streaming high-quality video, a multimedia application that is likely to become standard within the next five years. To address this (and for many other reasons) a new standard, 802.11n, is being formulated that will allow data streaming at up to 270 mbps, or 5-times the current "g" standard.

This new standard is currently at draft 2.0 and a vote on the draft is expected in January 2007. However, it is widely believed that a third draft will appear later in 2007 and that the standard will not be ratified until early 2008. However, in the meantime, a number of wireless network equipment manufacturers have released what are known as "Pre-n" devices - both routers and adapters - that conform to the current standard draft, but which will most probably not conform to the final ratified standard. While the manufacturers may make claims that these will give you greater performance to existing ratified standards, you should purchase such units with caution. It is possible that these units will not conform with the final standard (though most manufacturers claim they will release firmware updates to address this, there are no guarantees that they will) and that they will most probably not be compatible with equipment from other manufacturers (only Wi-Fi Alliance certified equipment is guaranteed to work with other certified equipment from other manufacturers). A recent review of pre-n equipment by PC World magazine found that many of the pre-n routers and network cards did not offer the benefits of the marketing hype and they suggested that you should look to MIMO-based "g" standard units for best performance and leave the pre-n kit until the standard is ratified.

Cybercrime Update

From USA Today

Criminals covet your identity data like never before. What's more, they've perfected more ways to access your bank accounts, grab your Social Security number and manipulate your identity than you can imagine.

Want proof? Just visit any of a dozen or so thriving cybercrime forums, websites that mirror the services of Amazon.com and the efficiencies of eBay. Criminal buyers and sellers convene at these virtual emporiums to wheel and deal in all things related to cyberattacks — and in the fruit of cyberintrusions: pilfered credit and debit card numbers, hijacked bank accounts and stolen personal data.

The cybercrime forums gird a criminal economy that robs U.S. businesses of $67.2 billion a year, according to an FBI projection. Over the past two years, U.S. consumers lost more than $8 billion to viruses, spyware and online fraud schemes, Consumer Reports says.

In 2004, a crackdown by the FBI and U.S. Secret Service briefly disrupted growth of the forums. But they soon regrouped, more robust than ever. Today, they are maturing — and consolidating — just like any other fast-rising business sector, security experts and law enforcement officials say. In fact, this summer a prominent forum leader who calls himself Iceman staged a hostile takeover of four top-tier rivals, creating a megaforum.

Security firms CardCops, of Malibu, Calif., and RSA Security, a division of Hopkinton, Mass.-based EMC, and volunteer watchdog group Shadowserver observed the forced mergers, as well, and compiled dozens of takeover-related screen shots. "It's like he created the Wal-Mart of the underground," says Dan Clements, CEO of CardCops, an identity-theft-prevention company. "Anything you need to commit your crimes, you can get in his forum."

The Secret Service and FBI declined to comment on Iceman or the takeovers. Even so, the activities of this mystery figure illustrate the rising threat that cybercrime's relentless expansion — enabled in large part by the existence of forums — poses for us all. In the spy vs. spy world of cybercrime, where trust is ephemeral and credibility hard won, CardersMarket's expansion represents the latest advance of a criminal business segment that began to take shape with the formation of the pioneering Shadowcrew forum.

Shadowcrew, which peaked at about 4,000 members in 2004, arose in 2002. It established the standard for cybercrime forums — set up on well-designed, interactive Web pages and run much like a well-organized co-op. Communication took place methodically, via the exchange of messages posted in topic areas. Members could also exchange private messages. Shadowcrew gave hackers and online scammers a place to congregate, collaborate and build their reputations, says Scott Christie, a former assistant U.S. Attorney in New Jersey who helped prosecute some of its members.

In the October 2004 dragnet, called Operation Firewall, federal agents arrested 22 forum members in several states, including co-founder Andrew Mantovani, 24, aka ThnkYouPleaseDie. At the time, Mantovani was a community college student in Scottsdale, Ariz. In August, he began serving a 32-month federal sentence for credit card fraud and identification theft.

CYBERCRIME BY THE NUMBERS
$67.2 billion: FBI estimate of what U.S. businesses lose annually because of computer-related crimes.
$8 billion: Consumer Reports estimate of what U.S. consumers lost the past two years because of viruses, spyware and Internet scams.
93.8 million: Privacy Rights Clearinghouse's count of personal records reported lost or stolen since February 2005.
26,150: The Anti-Phishing Working Group's count of unique variations of phishing scams reported in August 2006.

Typical costs of goods and services in cybercrime forums:
$1,000 to $5,000: Trojan program that can transfer funds between online accounts.
$500: Credit card number with PIN.
$80 to $300: Change of billing data, including account number, billing address, Social Security number, home address and birth date.
$150: Driver's license.
$150: Birth certificate.
$100: Social Security card.
$7 to $25: Credit card number with security code and expiration date.
$7: PayPal account log-on and password.
4% to 8% of the deal price: Fee to have an escrow agent close a complex transaction.
Free: Access to a service that gives details of the issuing bank for any credit card number.

Bundling Blues

Why oh why do Dell insist in bundling trial software with their new PCs? The problem with this practice is that it can cause downright confusion for many inexperienced (and some experienced!) computer users when they begin their out-of-box-experience. The out-of-box-experience, or OOBE, is what manufacturers refer to the user's first moments with a new product after it is first turned on. This is meant to be a good experience for the user, where he/she feels in control and understands what is happening.

Unfortunately, bundled software can often throw a spanner in the works of the OOBE, particularly with a new Dell. On a recent set-up of a customer's PC we were confronted by trial versions of Dell Network Assistant, McAfee Security Centre, Norton Ghost, and Adobe Paint Shop and Photo Album. While Network Assistant may have some utility for managing a Network, when the screen pops up for the first time the average user is left scratching their head as to what this software does (after all, the customer didn't order it and therefore doesn't expect it to be on his/her new machine). And while Norton Ghost is a good disk imaging program in its own right, most customers have no inkling of what the program does when they encounter a splash screen inviting them to complete the install of it during their first 10 minutes using their new PC.

If Dell are going to continue bundling trial software with their PCs they should take the time to communicate this fact to their customers at time of purchase, explain to them what the bundled software does, how it might benefit them (if at all) and offer them the option of not having it bundled on their new PC if they so choose. Remember, this software is not bundled for the benefit of you, the customer, though Dell may represent it in that manner. No folks, the ugly truth of the matter is that software is bundled because of deals between companies like Norton and McAfee with Dell in order to make more money for all the parties involved - simple as that.

By the way, Dell are not the only offenders in this regard. Most PC manufacturers bundle trial software and in many cases that software has much less utility than that bundled by Dell.