sms

Control your TiVo via text message with Kwiry

We already knew text messaging service Kwiry could perform some cool tricks via text messaging--things like adding products to your Amazon.com wish list or adding movies to your Netflix queue. But now the service is adding rudimentary TiVo control to the list.

TiVo already offers more detailed DVR access via its Web site, as well as TiVo Mobile (for smartphones with Web browsers), but the Kwiry service should work with even the most rudimentary cell phones, so long as they have text messaging capability.

The TiVo beta should be available on Kwiry Wednesday. Here's how it's supposed … Read more

'Curse of silence' smartphone flaw disclosed

A denial-of-service attack that limits the number of SMS messages that can be received by Nokia smartphones has been disclosed and demonstrated.

Dubbed the "curse of silence" by German security researcher Tobias Engel, the attack occurs when Nokia Series 60 phones are sent a malformed e-mail message via SMS (Short Message Service). Engel demonstrated the attack on Tuesday at the Chaos Communication Congress in Berlin, according to a blog post by security vendor F-Secure.

An advisory made public by Engel on Tuesday gave details of the attack. After receiving a message from a sender with an e-mail address … Read more

iPhone SMS Messaging Error: "Requires 10-digit number"

Recently we reported on errors iPhone users receive when attempting to send SMS messages. Users experiencing this problem might also receive errors claiming the number used is invalid, and asks for a new number.

This problem has affected users off and on for some time, and seems to be a result of an improperly formatted number synchronized to the phone. When users synchronize their phones from various computers, if their personal contact vCard includes only a 7-digit number then it will sync to the phone and cause this problem. As such, users should be sure to enter a full 10-digit … Read more

"Error Sending" SMS Messages on the iPhone

A number of users have reported a sudden inability to send SMS text messages on the iPhone 3G, receiving the message "error sending" upon attempting to send. Among the user reports:

"When I try to send an SMS and i press "send", the iPhone returns "Error Sending Message". I've tried with another SIM card from another Italian operator (I use Vodafone), but the problem is the same." "I had the people at the store swap SIM cards with another iPhone they had there, and I they could send SMSes from … Read more

Google takes two with Gmail-SMS chat

Google hopes the second time will be a charm for a Gmail Labs feature that lets people send text messages to people's mobile phones with the company's Web-based e-mail service.

"A few weeks back, we ran into a few snags when we first started rolling this out, but starting today you can turn on text messaging for chat," said Leo Dirac, a Google product manager, in a blog post Wednesday.

After the feature's fleeting debut in October, Google removed it to fix a problem where turning the feature on didn't actually fully turn it … Read more

Twitter: No more outbound texts for Canada

This can't be good. Just a few months after restricting its U.K.-based text-messaging number due to cost issues, Twitter has done the same for Canada.

The microblogging service has cut outbound SMS messages for the folks up north, citing "unexpected changes in our billing." Costs had been doubling for a few months.

Basically, this means Canadian Twitter users will be able to send numbers to its short code, 21212, but not receive them that way. They can instead use the Twitter mobile site or one of many third-party mobile apps to see what their friends … Read more

PayPal offers SMS security key for mobile users

Online payment service PayPal announced Monday that it has added a new layer of security for mobile phone users. The PayPal SMS Security Key gives users the option of receiving a unique six-digit security code via text message prior to logging in to their accounts. According to the company, the SMS (Short Message Service) security key generates the code every 30 seconds. Members will be required to input the code along with their usernames and passwords to sign in to their accounts.

PayPal's chief information security officer, Michael Barrett, believes this form of two-factor authentication, in which you need … Read more

Geodesic takes aim at SMS with Mundu IM

Although text messaging is still one of the favorite pastimes for children and adults alike, software firm Geodesic believes that mobile instant messaging will cannibalize SMS and become the de facto form of communication through cell phones, going forward.

The company offers a tool called Mundu IM, which recently entered its fourth iteration. The software provides users with an IM service that works with AIM, Google Talk, ICQ, MSN, Yahoo, and Jabber accounts, with collaboration across the Web and wireless devices.

Mundu IM is currently supported on most mobile phones running Symbian, BlackBerry, Windows Mobile, Palm OS, and Java platforms. … Read more

Mobile messaging grows globally

Worldwide mobile messaging grew nearly 10 percent in the third quarter compared to the second quarter of the year, fueled by new trends in the messaging market, according to VeriSign, which provides Internet infrastructure services and delivers messages on behalf of carriers and content providers.

The company reported Tuesday that VeriSign enabled more than 58.3 billion messages per day during the third quarter of 2008. This was up from about 52 billion messages sent during the second quarter of 2008.

On average, this means that VeriSign facilitated the delivery of about 634 million messages per day during the third … Read more