The latest technology news in WRALTechWire’s Bulldog Bulletin roundup:

  • RTI names new editors for RTI press

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK – RTI International has named a new two new top editors for RTI Press, the publications outlet that communicates discoveries, innovations and research findings from the research institute.

Dorota Temple, a senior fellow at RTI, is now RTI Press editor in chief, where she will serve a three-year term. Gary Bland. a fellow and senior advisor in democratic governance at RTI, will be deputy editor in chief.

Temple replaces Diane Wagener, who is stepping down after leading RTI Press for more than three years.

Temple has created and led research and development programs in the field of semiconductor devices, most recently focusing on the use of advanced microcircuit integration technologies for “smart” sensors. She has authored or co-authored more than 130 papers and served as an editor and reviewer for several technical journals. She was also a co-author and co-editor of a book, Viewing America’s Energy Future in Three Dimensions, which RTI Press published in 2011.

Bland has been a member of the RTI Press editorial board since 2010, and he has been an RTI Press author, associate editor and reviewer for press publications.

  • Boeing, Etihad to develop aviation biofuels

ABU DHABI, United Emirates – Aircraft maker Boeing Co., Etihad Airways, the oil company Total and others say they will work together on a program to develop an aviation biofuel industry in the United Arab Emirates.

The program will involve research and development and investments in production of fuels derived from plants that can power aircraft, Boeing said in a news release.

Etihad is based in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates. The other participants are Takreer, a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi National Oil Co., and the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology, located in Abu Dhabi. Boeing says Etihad ran a 45-minute demonstration flight Saturday in a Boeing 777 partially powered by aviation biofuel produced in the UAE.

Boeing also has aviation biofuels programs with U.S. and other airlines.

  • South Korea data theft highlights lapses

SEOUL, South Korea – A massive theft of customer data from three major credit card firms in South Korea has shown security lapses in the financial industry.

First revealed by prosecutors, the theft of information linked to 80 million credit cards such as salaries, monthly card usage, credit rating and card numbers has sparked widespread public concern. Cardholders are flocking to bank branches and overloading call centers and service websites to find out if their information was stolen.

Local media said the theft may have affected most credit card holders in a country of 50 million people. Prosecutors and the financial regulator said no financial losses have been reported.

Financial Services Commission Chairman Shin Je-yoon said in a statement Monday that the credit card companies had failed to ensure adequate security.

 

  • Shoppers fret about authenticity of Target e-mails

NEW YORK – An email sent to the roughly 70 million Target customers who may have been affected by a pre-Christmas data breach is causing panic among those who fear it could be an attempt to victimize them again.

Target says the email, which offers free credit monitoring services to potential victims of the breach, is legitimate. But the company has identified a handful of scammers who are trying to take advantage of the public’s fear and confusion.

Shawn Blakeman, 42, of Raleigh, N.C., received Target’s email Friday morning, but he didn’t click on the link it contained “just in case it was some kind of a website that I couldn’t get out of or had a hidden virus,” he says.

Consumers have been on edge since news of the data breach broke last month. And they’ve been warned to be on alert for possible follow-up attacks that could come in the form of phishing emails, electronic messages designed to implant malicious software on their computers or draw them to websites that prompt them to enter personal information.

So when Target’s email began circulating earlier this week, many recipients questioned its authenticity. The email was especially suspicious to people who say they haven’t set foot in a Target store in years.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.