Cybercrime is becoming more professional. Data theft is a lucrative and low-risk business, according to a report by the Swiss Federal Reporting and Analysis Center for Information Assurance (Melani).  
According to the report office at the Federal Office of Police, criminals are becoming increasingly sophisticated when it comes to data theft. As computer systems have become more secure, individuals are now being targeted by attackers. The insecurity, helpfulness or good faith of individuals is exploited to gain access to confidential data, usually through e-mails with infected file attachments or by clicking on links.
Information about potential victims is a prerequisite for the success of this social engineering. Cyber criminals obtain this information by stealing identities and data. Malware is used specifically for this purpose: software that executes harmful functions on a computer and can hardly be detected by conventional anti-virus software. Attackers also use emails and websites to find victims, who they use as helpers to transport criminally stolen money.
Overall, the cybercriminal market has established itself, according to MROS. A lot of money can be earned by sending spam, developing malware hidden in PDF files and searching for security vulnerabilities. The market with stolen data is lucrative. There has been a further sharp increase in mass advertising with spam emails, which, according to Melani, account for 80 to 90 percent of all email traffic. Due to the more frequent images sent with them, they are placing an increasing burden on the Internet infrastructure.
As long as the exchange of information between law enforcement authorities and the international legal situation are not improved, it will remain difficult to identify and arrest cyber criminals. The cybercrime scene will continue to grow. The threat of cyber terrorism, on the other hand, is overestimated, but terrorists use the internet for propaganda, ideologization, fundraising and communication.

 Bern Tourism is modernizing its city tour: from now on, an iPod will guide visitors through the medieval streets of Bern. The digital city guide speaks five languages. 
Equipped with text, images and sound, city walkers are guided along two different routes to the sights of the city. Interesting and amusing facts are conveyed which, according to Bern Tourism, are also of interest to locals. The Bernese company Texetera, which developed the city walk on behalf of Bern Tourism, promises that it is almost impossible to get lost on the "globally unique" multimedia tour. The iPods can be rented at the Tourist Centers in Bern's train station and at the Bärengraben, as reported by SDA. Anyone who wants to see for themselves can test an iPod city guide free of charge throughout the month of May.

 This year's Swiss-German Journalism Prize goes to ZHW lecturer Marius Born. The committee honored him for his reportage on "The Coldest Village in the World". Born receives the 15,000 dollar prize for an original and sensitive reportage, as the news agency SDA quotes jury member Erich Gysling in a report. In his reportage, Born shows everyday life in the farming village of Oimjakon in north-eastern Siberia. The village cannot be reached by bus or train. The thermometer drops to -50 degrees on average in January.  

 There are millions of blogs on the Internet covering every conceivable topic, the blogger community is growing rapidly and successful blogs have changed hands for millions. Now the technology analysts at the US consulting firm Gartner are predicting the end of the blogging trend for mid-2007.  
At the very least, growth rates should come to a standstill at a high level, as was reported in the Tages-Anzeiger. According to the Gartner analysts, the number of blogs will level off at an estimated 100 million pages. Gartner came to this conclusion because 200 million people have already discontinued their blogs. Gartner analyst Daryl Plummer sees the reason for the large number of orphaned blogs in the overconfidence of many: "Everyone thinks they have something to say - until you get people on stage and ask them to actually say something." Moreover, according to Plummer, most people who wanted to start a blog had already put this idea into practice. There is therefore a lack of newcomers for the growth rates to date. At the moment, however, there is not much sign of a decline in blogs. According to the company Technorati, which indexes blogs, around 100,000 new blogs and 1.3 million blog entries are still being created every day.

 From May 1, the "Rendez-vous" and "Info 3" programs on Swiss Radio DRS will be broadcast in High German. In this way, the station also wants to reach people who do not understand Swiss dialect. Until now, only the news block of "Rendez-vous" was read out in High German, while the correspondents' reports were broadcast in dialect. The subsequent "Tagesgespräch" will also be held in dialect in future. This means that almost all information programs on Swiss radio will now be broadcast in High German. Only in the regional journals will dialect continue to set the tone, as the SDA writes in a report on Monday. With these changes, the radio station wants to appeal more to French-speaking Swiss and Ticino residents who live in German-speaking Switzerland or who occasionally listen to Swiss-German radio. On the other hand, there are many foreigners who speak High German but have difficulty understanding the dialect.

 On behalf of Swissbrick, Heads is promoting the advantages of one of the oldest and most modern building materials. On a new website and with an image brochure, the company communicates the advantages and possibilities of brick in a way that is both informative for architects and building contractors and appealing to building owners. The Zurich agency Heads was responsible for the campaign and communicated the sustainability of the Swissbrick company and its brick; the brick wall - the eternal beauty.

 
From May 1, Moreno Cavaliere will take over the management of the Aarau/Mittelland branch. Jürg Räber will become the new director of the Basel branch on the same date.  
Moreno Cavaliere has worked for Publicitas since 1982. Since July 2005, he has been Director of the Basel branch, Regional Director Central and a member of the PubliPresse Management Board. Jürg Räber has been head of the Chur branch and Südostschweiz Publicitas for many years. Since June 2006, Räber has also been responsible for a complex organizational project at PubliPresse, which he has been instrumental in driving forward. According to the company's press release, these new appointments mean that the headquarters of the Publicitas Regional Head Office Central will move to Aarau. In addition, Publicitas Basel will now report directly to the General Management.

 3+ brings 007 back into active service and shows all Bond films for six months. From June, James Bond will be saving the world every Saturday evening on 3+ for six months. With the exception of the latest film, the Swiss private channel will show all Bond films, from the very first "James Bond hunts Dr. No" from 1962 to the second-to-last "Die Another Day". 3+ broadcasts the hero every Saturday at 8 p.m. and thus provides a more exciting Saturday evening program than many other channels. 

 The Government Council wants to entrust a specialist with external and internal communication. This step is intended to professionalize communication, which was previously carried out by the individual directorates.  
Public relations work has become increasingly important for authorities and administrations, the Zug State Chancellery explained the decision on Monday, according to SDA. The most important tasks of the new position include planning and preparing media events and releases as well as raising awareness within the administration. Among other things, the aim is to create trust in the administration's performance.

 
Match Communications has developed a concept for new ways of communication for the fashion company Chicorée. Chicorée communicates today primarily via POS. Match Communications' concept shows the fashion company ways in which they can reach the predominantly young and female target group with alternative forms of advertising. In order to better tailor the proposed communication measures to the target groups, the agency is currently conducting interviews with female customers at seven Chicorée locations.

 
Word magazine has found a new media partner. Mediabox is now marketing the street art magazine. The makers of Word are convinced that they have found the right partner in Mediabox to represent the magazine optimally for advertisers, the magazine writes in a press release. The magazine has had a new look since November 2006. The new magazine in newspaper format has been extremely well received by advertisers, the media and especially the readership. Since the repositioning, the magazine has offered many innovative forms of advertising, which have recently been marketed by Mediabox. 

 Reto Philipp will take over the position of General Manager of Universal Pictures Switzerland on May 1, having already worked successfully in the company's marketing department for three years. He succeeds Urs Wäckerlin, who is handing over his responsibilities at the Swiss DVD provider at his own request after seven years.  
In a press release on Monday, Universal Pictures described it as a stroke of luck that the position could be filled internally. Business in Switzerland has become increasingly important for the overall result in recent years. Reto Philipp, an expert who is very familiar with both the Swiss DVD market and the company itself, will take over the management. He is the successor to Urs Wäckerlin, who has played a decisive role in shaping the face of Universal Pictures Switzerland since its creation in 1999 and is now moving on to other tasks at his own request.