Technology Briefs - April 6 - April 12
The Latest Headlines:
- New Report Urges CEOs to Strengthen Cybersecurity
- Ford Says U.S. Should Offer Hybrid Tax Breaks
- Tango, General Services Creating Wireless Data System
- Tele Atlas, ProMiles Form Partnership
- Ford Says U.S. Should Offer Hybrid Tax Breaks
New Report Urges CEOs to Strengthen Cybersecurity
Chief executive officers of corporations and their boards of directors should assume responsibility for securing their computer networks from viruses and other attacks, according to a report released Monday.However, the report, conducted by an industry task force in partnership with the Homeland Security Department, stopped short of urging legislation to require chief executives to certify their companies' cybersecurity measures, the Washington Post reported.
The report recommended requiring chief executives to order annual security evaluations and to report the results to their boards of directors.
Ford Says U.S. Should Offer Hybrid Tax Breaks
Bill Ford Jr., chairman and chief executive officer of Ford Motor Co., said the U.S. government should offer $3,000 tax breaks or boost taxes on gasoline to spur interest in gasoline-electric hybrid vehicles, news services reported.Ford said an additional tax on gasoline would motivate customers to look into hybrids, although he was not prepared to say how big a tax hike might be appropriate, the Associated Press reported. He also acknowledged such a tax increase "doesn't have legs" in the political arena.
Hybrids draw power from two different energy sources, typically a gas or diesel engine combined with an electric motor. The only versions available in the United States are small cars made by Honda Motor Co. and Toyota Motor Corp., but nearly every automaker is investing in the technology, AP said. Transport Topics
Tango, General Services Creating Wireless Data System
Software firm Tango Enterprises Inc. said Wednesday it and General Services Inc. were developing a wireless, point-of-sale system to capture data and print invoices at remote locations.GSI provides freight loading and unloading services at 30 locations for commercial clients including Giant Food Inc.
The companies said in a release the system would eliminate GSI’s existing paper method requiring freight handlers to mail or carry work records back to a central office for manually processing.
"This will give us a full and accurate picture of our role in freight handling and provide us with a competitive advantage over other loaders and unloaders," GSI President George Barlow said.
The system is expected to be in place in a few months, the release said. Transport Topics
Tele Atlas, ProMiles Form Partnership
Tele Atlas and ProMiles Software Development Corp. announced a new partnership in which the two companies will offer fuel price data, wireless applications and Internet services.ProMiles will provide Tele Atlas daily pump prices for four grades of fuel, including diesel, for more than 72,000 stations in North America.
Those daily prices will be sent to Tele Atlas for integration into computer servers so customers can access them. The companies said that more sophisticated services would be able to optimize stops on longer trips to lower overall fuel costs. Transport Topics
