ApiAp - Compliance

Identifying Genuine Microsoft Windows

admin — Fri, 13 Oct 2006 00:00:00 -0700

Tips to identify a Genuine Microsoft Windows operating System License:

Genuine Microsoft Windows is signified by the certificate of authenticity (COA) ( affixed on the PC) & CD with edge-to-edge hologram.

In case of an Original equipment manufacturer ( OEM ) the CD will be a recovery CD from that OEM which has MS Win XP along with other software
- so it will not be a Microsoft edge to edge hologram CD. Also the COA will clearly state OEM by name.

Now the recovery CD from OEM will be bios locked to OEM PCs and will not recover on any other PC. So for an end user this CD is clearly a waste -
because he can never use it. This software is not meant to be activated on the net.

Also, the COA is for OEM PC and does not signify a genuine copy of Windows when affixed on a non OEM PC.

Windows at low prices and older versions of Windows will be - in most cases - counterfeits.

Take note MS windows 98 is no more sold nor supported by Microsoft.

It is advisable to pick their copies from genuine sources in the market.

For more details visit : http://www.howtotell.com

This information is based on conversation from Miscrosoft India Officials as on 10th Oct 2006.

Mumbai cops to invade cyberspace

web-admin — Fri, 22 Sep 2006 07:16:46 -0700

K YATISH RAJAWAT AND RITWIK DONDE in Ecomomic Times report

TIMES NEWS NETWORK[ FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2006 03:24:28 AM]

MUMBAI: This time round, they don’t want to be left limping in the chase. The 7/11 blasts have spooked the Mumbai police into tightening the noose around cyber crime. With terrorists using internet-based communication to manage their sleeper cells and plan operations, the Mumbai police wants to monitor the city’s cyber cafes.

The police wants to licence all internet cafes in the city, classifying them under the public amusement category. Each internet cafe owner will have to shell out a licensing fee of Rs 500 per computer for registration.

The state government has published a notification to seek public feedback on the proposed rules, which give the police the discretion to reject a licence. According to the draft rules, a “no objection submission” from the landlord/society where the cyber cafes conduct their business, along with NOCs from the civic body’s health and other departments, will also be needed.

The rules do not, however, cover STD/ISD booths which also have computing terminals for VOIP calls and email communications. The rules seek to identify internet cafes on the basis of whether online gaming is being carried out there.

The city police has wanted to regulate internet cafés for the past three years but the urgency appears to have increased after the investigations in the 7/11 blasts. A top Mumbai police official told ET that anti-nationals are increasingly becoming tech-savvy and hence, the need to police such places. The police had also planned to impose a 11 pm deadline on cyber cafes, he added.

“The move is to get these commercial outlets to be more responsible... The gazette has sought public opinion and if people feel there is a need to address certain points, they’re welcome,” he said.

Intelligence agencies in the US and the UK track Internet Protocol (IP)-based communications like emails and VOIP calls using technology tools. Unlike voice calls which can be tapped easily, IP communication is difficult to tap as the end-user device changes. Users can communicate from different computers, change email IDs, or communicate even through postings on blogs or websites.

Cyber cafes, though, are just one access point for terrorists. GPRS-enabled mobile phones, and access to the net through other personal computing devices are equally common.

Cyber cafe owners, on their part, feel the fees are too high, and bad for business.

On whether cyber cafes are often portrayed as “shady joints”, Ashish Saboo, president, Association of Public ICT Tools Access Providers, which has internet cafe owners as members says, “We are service providers and shouldn’t be penalised for users’ actions. Cyber cafes are not public entertainment places.” This fee would mean that half of the monthly earnings of an internet cafe owner would go towards acquiring the licence, and will effectively render small and medium-sized internet cafes unviable, he adds.

Earlier, the cyber crime cell of the Mumbai police had initiated a move under Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code, which made cyber cafe users show documents such as college or school IDs or driving licences as proof of identity and had the cyber cafes maintain a log book for users.

The Tamil Nadu police has also insisted on registration of all internet cafes in Chennai. This was done in an attempt to monitor Tamil militants using these cafes for communication. The registration fee, though, is Rs 75 per terminal.

Mumbai Cyber cafe owners comply with police orders despite loss of business

web-admin — Fri, 15 Sep 2006 22:05:00 -0700

Afternoon Daily, Mumbai STAFF REPORTER made a survey of various Mumbai city cyber cafes & is happy to note a wide compliance of the recent Mumbai police order on maintaining the registers although not everybody visiting a cyber café wants to share personal information to use the facility.

Read full story:

Cyber cafes in the city have started keeping logbooks and recording all the details of the visitors who visit them. The Mumbai police had issued a notification on August 15, for a 15-day trail, asking cyber cafes to maintain such a logbook in addition to asking for photo identity cards of visitors before allowing them to use the cyber cafe. Another similar notification was issued on August 31, and cyber café owners put these up at their cafes. In it, Police Commissioner A. N. Roy had said that anti-social elements may take advantage of cyber cafes in Mumbai and there are chances of breach of peace and disturbance of public tranquillity, and there was grave danger to human lives as well as loss to the public property. On the condition of anonymity, a cyber café owner at Churchgate said, “Many of our visitors have understood the issue and are cooperating with us. In the initial stage some hesitated, but later they also started cooperating. As far as identifying any person who is involved in criminal activity, it should be very simple for us as their population in society is only one per cent and they should be able to be identified by their face only!” He added, “This order has brought our businesses down by about 15-20 per cent as some visitors argue and then go in search of other cafes where they might be allowed to use the facilities without identity cards. The police’s notification has become unaffordable for us as we have to keep one employee just to fill up the logbook. But this order is not followed by all cyber cafes in Mumbai as they do not want to lose their customers by inconveniencing them with personal details.” Khalique Batliwala of Cyberzone in Flora Fountain said, “After implementation of this rule you can be sure that terrorists will opt for something else, they will never use the same method for their plans. But as far as the checking is concerned, we have been doing this from earlier also, and in the initial stages visitors were not happy. But now that they understand why we have to do this, they started cooperating with us.” He further said, “As the Internet has become an important part of our lives, we get a lot of regular visitors and are familiar with them, but whenever we find anyone suspicious then we ask for identity cards or deny them entry.” Deputy Commissioner of Police R. N. Tadvi (Operations), said, “After the order most cyber café owners have started maintaining logbooks and are also allowing only those to enter who have valid identity cards. We are getting a good response from the cyber café owners as they understand our situation. As far as continuation of this order is concerned, until or unless the dust of security threats doesn’t settle down, this order will continue.”

Source cybernoon.com

Message From Mumbai Police Commissioner

mumbai — Wed, 16 Aug 2006 00:04:11 -0700

The Mumbai Police commissioner has informed all cyber cafes to be extra alert for the next 15 days from 18th Aug, 2006 to 1st September 2006 & has sent a circular addressing all Mumbai cyber cafes to maintain the register.

In these difficult times, where Mumbai police has several challenges, it is our duty to help as a responsible citizen.

Please maintain the register as per the guidelines forwarded. It will be in our interest to maintain the register even beyond the above mentioned period.

For your convenience, we have created a format. Save as Template & create a fresh page.

How to maintain register, some suggestion:

We have to be extra careful to ensure that the name & address details does not fall in wrong hands hence printout a fresh page every time.

See to it there are limited entries in a single page.

As the page finishes, preserve it in a file & store it carefully so that no one can access the files.

Do not handover the files to anyone from any department except from the Police department after verifying the identity of the Police.

It is your right to demand an identity card of the police & it is their duty to furnish one. In case of doubt, you can dial 100 or the local police station & verify the police officers identity.

Lets make our city safe.

Attachment	Size
Cyber Cafe visitor register.xls	16 KB
Circular From Police Commissioner.jpg	172.74 KB

Bangalore Police & Cyber Cafe Owners meet

bangalorean — Tue, 25 Jul 2006 06:38:18 -0700

Details of the Meeting held between Bangalore Police & Cyber Cafe Owners held on 25th July 2006 @ 11:45am

The official intimation about the meeting was send to all the cyber cafes in Bangalore just a day in advance stating the venue and timing and purpose "Cyber Crime & Laws".

The meeting started around 11:45am and was addressed by the Commissioner of Police - Mr. Achuta Rao, Dy. Commissioner of Police - Mr. Gopal Hosur and many other Dy. Commissioners related to the field of Information Technology and Cyber Crime Cell.

Mr. Achuta Rao, COP, requested all the cyber cafe owners to follow the guidelines being set by the government and to strictly adhere to the rules and regulations for Cyber Cafe owner's benefit.

Stressed that now a days Bangalore has been susceptible to Terrorist Attacks and one such incident had already taken place at Indian Institute of

Science, Bangalore last year. The recent incidents being taken stock of and the possible grave situation arising out of these kind of attacks.

With possible help from the cyber cafe's to maintain proper records of the browsers there could be a better control as well as after damage management to nail the culprits causing problems in the country.

Mr. Gopal Hosur, DyCOP, gave the brief guidelines as to how the cyber cafe could safe guard themselves from being the scapegoat, by maintaining the said record information in the specified format being already provided to the cyber cafe and the same being made available at all the Police Station for the proforma.

He urged the cafe owners that if they come across any such sneaky characters whom they are suspicious of to let know them to the nearest police station for advance damage control.

He insisted that with the ID proof it would avoid such bad elements coming to misuse the facilities available as well as to track their roots in case of any such events happening which are beyond human control causing huge damage to the public and to the economy.

They made it clear that with cyber cafe owner’s co-operation it was only way possible to track and to bring them to books of law. Now days the Terrorist have taken computers and internet as the latest means of tools of communication equipments to receive and transmit the operation they wish to execute to spoil the peace and harmony in the country.

He insisted that some kind to watch should be kept on the people who are using internet in the cafe as now a days the terrorist are using different methods which are cryptic in nature to exchange code of action of their plans. Any such incidents coming to their notice should immediately bring it to the notice of the nearest police station.

They stated that any cyber cafe failing to comply with the law would face severe punishment like fine of Rs.25,000/= and cancellation of license and possible imprisonment under the suitable laws available in the better interest of the common public of this country.

They insisted any photo ID proof be taken into consideration as ID proof and the details being noted into the specified format being made available along with the signature of the person using the facilities provided in the cyber cafe.

The ID Proofs can be like School ID, College ID, Driving License, Passport, PAN Card, Photo Debit / Credit Card, Voter's ID, Employee ID or any such Photo ID that may give details of the person who is willing to use Internet Access at the cyber cafe.

Those customers who do not have such ID, may be allowed after the details are taken and a snap shot through web cam need to be necessarily stored on the computer for any further requirement without specifying the duration or period of the records to be mentioned.

For regular customer one should get the details filled every time they visit along with the signature as proof of access during the time specifying login and logout time.

They said there is a need for such records for better management and to track the culprits from causing the damage before or after.

They said lots of news about cyber cafe encouraging pornography is coming to their views and lots of complaint on the same has been received that people of younger age are becoming the prey of pornography. Therefore, the cyber cafe should discourage pornography and should not allow users from having an access to such website by installing suitable filters

that would restrict the users from accessing.

They also insisted that any closed cabins should be dismantled and cubicles of suitable visibility be set to prevent from the misuse of the facilities being provided to the customers.

After this there was a Question & Answer Session where they wanted to hear the problems that cyber café owners would like to address.

They identified only 8 people whom they would allow to raise question in this meeting.

Some of the question raised

Q1. Appreciating the rules & regulation of collecting the ID Proof, questioning the authenticity of the ID proof was raised.

Ans. Please follow the rule and collect the ID proof and do not bother the genuineness of the proof as that would be the work of the Police Department.

Q2. The department should ask the big gaints like Infosys & Wipro to develop a suitable software for better management of such issues and provide it to the cyber cafe.

Ans. Probabilities would be worked out and feasibility study would be made and then suitable decision regarding would be taken.

Q3. Collecting ID Proof from the Female Customer would lead to lots of misuse and generally Female Customers refuse to give details forget taking their snap through web cam.

Ans. Make them understand the requirements of law and their commitmennt to abide by the rules and regulations being set to follow in the interest of the nation and the common people.

Q4. The Cyber Cafe's have been given Static IP Address and any hackers can get to know and these bad elements could use IP Address Mapping and scapegoat the cyber cafe.

Ans. Noted and know that there are tools available with the department to track such kind of doings by any such elements and not to bother about but to collect the ID proof and to safe guard their self and their business.

Q5. Let all the cyber cafe have a camera at the entrance like the surveillance camera that would record every person coming and going out the cafe.

Ans. Would be thought upon and the aspects of its implementation.

Q6. When the ISP's can put filters at the Gateway to block access pornography why are the Police asking us to block the access to the pornography and pressuring us to do so.

Ans. could look into the matter and worked out.

Taking the opportunity, I made all the cyber café owners and the Bangalore Police aware that there is already an Association existing since 2003 and one

could become member by going to they http://www.apiap.org/bangalore.

Becoming one not only at the Bangalore level but at the national front would enable the association to address the problem united to the government and its bodies, the problems being faced and any harassment meted.

As the Association already being there on the National Front where it has an experience of these kinds of issues it would be easier to know and understand the things happening in the industry for better control, management and smooth running of the business.

Q8. We are here to do the business and not to do the policing job and moreover policing job is yours while doing business is our concern as already worried about the returns and survival on the investment being made.

Ans. Co-operation and Co-ordination is needed at the hour when we are facing the problem from the bad elements and to exist one needs to help each other to tackle the anti-social and anti-national elements.

The COP insisted that it is a compulsion to maintain the records of the people coming to access Internet and there is no go but to follow as these are the

Guidelines being set by the Cyber Laws and need at this hour to help tackle any problems in a better way. Even if there is a problem or pain in implementing the rule it has to be done and there is no exception.

Cyber Cafe should allow Police for inspection on such records and to access to information as and when required by the respective police authority in their jurisdiction.

Those not complying with the guidelines set by the law would be tackled suitably with a hefty fine of Rs.25,000/= and Cancellation of License and necessary action as laid in the books of law as found suitable in the interest of the common public.

They insisted that the Cyber Cafe obtain License from the City Corporation Office under the Shops & Establishment Act and make available for inspection.

Any guidance and help in regard to can be obtained from the relevant police station coming under their jurisdiction.

Mr. Gopal Hosur, warned the Cyber Cafe owners that now a days there are news coming that theft computers are sold to cyber cafes and the owner should be cautious while buying computers from unknown persons would

complicate the issue and the owners of the cyber café would be booked under suitable law for encouraging such act.

The meeting was concluded with thanks for the positive response shown with such a large number of 800 participants coming sincerely to the meeting and

Joining hands with the Police department in strengthens the vision of curbing the terrorist / anti-social / anti-national elements from causing any further sleepless nights to the common person.

The COP requested that a small tea and snacks being arrange for this meeting being accepted by the participants and take leave from the meeting and thus concluded.

They said these kind of meeting should be arrange in the future where there is a need for the cyber cafe to have an association and to address or voice theirs views and thoughts every now and then in better co-ordination and co-operation.

Suggested Public notice for cyber cafe visitors

web-admin — Thu, 15 Jun 2006 00:00:00 -0700

Based on feedbacks form various groups we have made a guidlines for visiotrs accessing the Cyber Cafe.

Cyber Cafe operators are requested to display notice prominently in the cafe.

Download the pdf document

Public Notice for cyber cafe visitors.pdf ( ver 2.03 )

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Public Notice for cyber cafe visitors.pdf	36.48 KB