Over 30,000 email addresses have been compromised, with their login info posted online, in the past few days. The BBC has apparently seen the list, and it includes Hotmail, AOL, Yahoo and Gmail users. None of those companies are to blame, though, because the owners of the email addresses got caught in a phishing scam. In case you're not already in the habit of making sure you're not giving your login info to fake websites that are made to look real ones, this is a good reminder to start.

Gmail is dealing with its share of the stolen accounts by forcing password resets, and a spokesperson at Google said there was no breach in Gmail security. This comes right on the heels of a possibly-related Hotmail-only phishing attack that hit 10,000 accounts earlier this week. To be safe, make sure you use a different password for each service you sign up for (the BBC says 40% of Internet users have the same password for everything), and if you click on a link in your email, make sure you're on a legitimate website before you sign in.

[via Mashable]

We've long been keeping track of AIM for iPhone (iTunes link) here at Download Squad: and today an all-new version has hit the App Store that adds the Lifestream features that are available via the Lifestream website. If you haven't tried the new features, Lifestream lets you add accounts from the likes of Twitter, Flickr, Facebook, Digg and YouTube - and any activity from those services appears for your perusal within the Lifestream.

This all-new 4.0.1 update allows you to view activity within the AIM application, leave comments on all updates as well as 'Like' AIM status updates. The application also lets you browse Flickr 'shares' directly within the application with options to save the image or open the Flickr page in Safari. Whilst not a deal-breaker, it'd also be nice to have the option to email links to Flickr photos.

AIM 4.0.1 is available on the App Store for $2.99, and the free version (which is advertising supported) with the same feature set is currently in review with Apple - we'll update this post when it goes live.

Disclosure: AIM is a service from AOL, this blog's parent company.

AOL has been experimenting with Twitter and Facebook integration in AOL Instant Messenger for a while now, letting you read your updates from those services, along with other feeds, from the AIM client. In the latest beta version, integration is going a step further, allowing posting from AIM to Facebook or Twitter. The big jump from read-only to read/write is just the latest in a bunch update to AIM's social networking features. It's all part of AIM Lifestream, and you can add your accounts at AOL's Lifestream page.

A long time ago, Twitter used to support updates via IM, but that's fallen by the wayside and is no longer a priority, so it's good to see the idea being picked back up from AIM's end. AIM Lifestream has quietly added a bunch of other features this summer, too: you can now see whose buddy lists you're on, share your Diggs and Flickr photos, and sign up to receive Lifestream updates via SMS.

[via TechCrunch]

Now that version 3.0 of the iPhone operating system allows third-party apps to take advantage of push notifications, we're starting to see some of the first major push apps popping up. AIM for iPhone, available as a free ad-supported app or a $2.99 ad-free version, now offers push notifications. Now AIM doesn't have to be open for you to see when you've got a new IM coming in.

New push notifications pop up just like SMS messages, but you can also set AIM to badge its icon with the number of new messages you have, or play a sound when a new one comes in. Since third-party apps aren't allowed to run in the background on the iPhone, push makes AIM a lot more practical than it was when you had to have it open and active to see your new messages.

[via Lifehacker]

For a while now the top contender in iPhone finance apps was Bloomberg Mobile. Enter DailyFinance's iPhone app [iTunes link], featuring real-time quotes, portfolios and watchlists and some rather impressive charting tools. Mike Rose has a nice write-up over on TUAW, and the DailyFinance site has a good summary of features and a demo video. It's a free download, so try it and let us know what you think in the comments.

Editor's Note: DownloadSquad's parent company Weblogs, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of AOL.

AIM Blast is a new AOL Instant Messenger feature that makes me feel old, because I just realized that it's been a decade since I first wondered why there was no way to IM multiple buddies without opening a chatroom. Well, it's finally here, and it works pretty well. You can't make a Blast Group from within AIM, but if you go to blast.aim.com, you can set up and edit a group from there. Blast seems to work with third-party AIM clients, although AOL says that Meebo may have some problems with it.

The Blast Group will then show up on your buddy list, and any IM you send to it will go to everyone in the group. The group acts like a normal AIM account, it just puts people's individual screennames in front of their messages, so you know who's talking. When you invite people (using your group admin page), they'll get a message in AIM asking them to accept or decline. Once they're in, they can IM the group, unless you make it admin-only. That makes your group more like a notification system than a chat, but that may work better for some people.

Download Squad isn't alone when it comes to awesome redesigns -- today, Weblogs Inc.'s parent company, AOL, launched a totally redesigned AOL.com. It looks pretty great, especially when you compare it to the other portal offerings from Microsoft, Yahoo and Google. The biggest change comes in the form of allowing direct access to outside content -- including e-mail providers like Yahoo and Gmail, social networks like Facebook and MySpace and links to non AOL sites via a new RSS reader built into the site.

I had the opportunity to talk to James Clark, the VP of the AOL.com portal, about the redesign process, both from a business and web development level, as well as ways AOL is hoping to use the newly designed page to help transform the AOL brand.

Redesigning a site of any scale can be a challenge, but redesigning a site that receives over a billion PVs a month opens up an entirely new set of both business and user challenges. Starting in 2007, the AOL team started doing research on how its competitors display the web and more importantly, how end users (not necessarily AOL users, just Internet users) use the Internet. James told me that what they found was that the "one size fits all portal was outdated and outmoded." In this day and age, even traditional AOL users get content from multiple services and expect a level of control that traditional portals just don't give them.

Last month, AOL addressed those needs by implementing the ability to check and view e-mail from other providers -- like Yahoo, Hotmail and Gmail -- directly from the AOL.com page, the same way AOL users can access AOL mail. Today's redesign continues with that trend, offering access to MySpace, Facebook, and AIM (Twitter and Bebo support will be complete very soon) all from AOL.com. You can even update all profiles simultaneously directly from the toolbar.

Additionally, users can add their own links to pages right at the top of the screen (and you don't even have to register or login to access any of this stuff -- not even Google will let you customize stuff without logging in with a Google account). Probably the coolest feature is at the bottom of the home page. AOL has integrated an RSS reader into the page. It comes preloaded with categories and websites, but you can add your own categories and your own sites. Even more interesting, the sites aren't just AOL properties. In the Tech section, for instance, CNET, TechCrunch, Slashdot and Wired are all listed -- and none of those sites are affiliated with AOL.

On Monday, AOL (Weblogs Inc.'s parent company) announced that they are shutting down the AOL Hometown and AOL Journals services. AOL Journals members will be able to migrate to a new service, but AOL Hometown users have been instructed to back-up their files and prepare to go somewhere else.

There have also been reports (but Wikipedia is the source, so keep that in mind) that Yahoo! GeoCties has removed or shut-down some of its UK web servers. With Google killing its Page Creator tool and migrating everyone to Google Sites, the free static web host is a dying breed.

So what can you do if you are an AOL Hometown user (or you use another older service that might be on its last legs)? Read on for tips on backing up your content and publishing options for the future.

Earlier this week, a Homer Simpson impersonator began instant messaging fans with a link to an "internet-only exclusive Simpsons episode." This -- like many things spawned in the dark corners of 'net -- turned out to be a PC virus. But how did this impostor gain Homer's identity?

It turns out Mr. Simpson has a legitimate, real-world e-mail address: chunkylover53@aol.com, which appeared in the episode, "The Dad Who Knew Too Little." Before airing the episode back in 2002 for the first time, Simpsons writer-producer Matt Selman registered the address with AOL. As soon as the episode finished airing, Selman's inbox filled-up instantly. Selman began replying to emails under the guise of Homer, and fans got to enjoy a short conversation with the cartoon star

Six years later, the email account is no longer active, but fans begin receiving AIM messages from Chunkylover53. Fans forgot that an AIM screen-name can be tied to an email other than its AOL email counterpart, and Selman never registered it or abandoned it at a later time -- leaving it open for hijack.

[via TECH.BLORGE.com]

It's been a while since AOL launched an updated version if its instant messenger for Windows Mobile. The new version is still in beta, but it has some nifty features that make it worth checking out. The first thing you'll notice is that the interface is much more attractive. But it's also more useful.

When you first login you're greeted with a buddy list. You can double tap on any contact to enter a chat window. After you've initiated a chat you can flip back to your buddy list knowing that you'll be able to see all open chats and any new messages in the sidebar that now pops up.

You can also manage your buddy list from the client. And the settings menu has a nice array of options letting you customize your notification, conversation, and privacy settings.

This beta supports devices running Windows Mobile 5.0 and 6.

[via The Boy Genius Report]

Flock, the "Social Web Browser" built on the same Mozilla engine as Firefox, has launched the latest stable version, 1.2. The beta has been available for a while now.

In this version, Digg, Pownce, and AOL Mail integration. Digg and Pownce makes sense, but the AOL mail one didn't really excite us all that much.

It seems like Flock is stockpiling partners and features though and are putting together a very nice user experience "out of the box" that other browsers can't offer.

Firefox is perfect for the ubergeek that wants to install his or her own extensions, but for someone like our mothers or aunts who just want to try out this new fangled web thing, Flock is the answer.

Plus, the browser's blog editor is still the killerest app out there for any browser.

The knock on Flock has been stability which we haven't seen issues with on Windows or Mac, but the loadtime for first startup is a known issue that they're working on.

They recently won a Webby award for "Best in Social Networking" which is actually quite impressive considering that they were up against Facebook.

Go give Flock a shot and let us know what you think.

Do you want your web browsing experience to be social?

AOL completed its acquisition of social networking site Bebo today. You may remember that AOL announced it would buy Bebo for $850 million back in March. According to InformationWeek Bebo will be the center of AOL's new People Network business unit. Heading up this business unit is Joanna Shields who will serve as president. This "People Network" will consist of three AOL services: AIM, ICQ, and now Bebo.

While Bebo is most popular in the UK, Ireland, and New Zealand, AOL is hoping grow this upcoming social network in the US. Silicon Alley Insider seems to think AOL will layoff employees working in the AIM/ICQ division due to the restructuring process.

What do you think? Did AOL make a good decision? Do you think this acquisition puts AIM at risk? Be sure to voice your opinion in the comments!

Disclaimer: AOL is the parent company of Weblogs, Inc. which owns DownloadSquad.

[via InformationWeek]

Several companies that broadcast internet radio streams, including RealNetworks, Yahoo!, and this blog's parent company, AOL owe ASCAP millions of dollars. That's according to a federal court in New York. While the court did not determine the exact amount of money owed, ASCAP estimates that the fees could climb as high as $100 million.

ASCAP stands for the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers, and the group represents over 300,000 songwriters who are currently receiving no compensation when their music is streamed by the three media companies. This despite the fact that the radio streams are supported by advertising, which means AOL, RealNetworks and Yahoo! are making at least some money through their streaming music operations.

This whole issue is separate from the dispute between the RIAA and online radio stations last year. The RIAA represents recording artists, while ASCAP covers songwriters.

[via CNet]

This blog's parent company, AOL is continuing to snatch up smaller companies like there's no tomorrow just in case there actually is no tomorrow. The latest acquisition is blog search tool Sphere, which we've covered several times in the past. While Sphere started out as a blog search engine, the company has since become a tool for bloggers and web publishers who want to show related information from other blogs on their web sites.

Sphere CEO Tony Conrad says the company's approach will remain "start up style," even after joining the AOL team, which basically means the management team will remain in place but now Sphere will have access to AOL's resources and take some marching orders from the top.

As AOL continues to make the transition from an ISP to an internet-based business, the company has been buying up properties like Bebo, Sphere, and a little company called Weblogs Inc. It's too soon to tell whether the move will be enough to save AOL. But if there's any truth to the rumors of an AOL/Yahoo! merger, that could do the trick.

[via WebWare]

Yahoo! seems to have come up with the ultimate response to Microsoft's heavy-handed attempts to purchase the internet portal. The Wall Street Journal reports that Yahoo! is in talks with Download Squad's parent company AOL over plans to merge the two companies' internet operations.

If the deal goes through, the two companies would combine their web and internet based services. AOL's old school ISP services would not be part of the deal, which would value AOL at $10 billion. Yahoo! would reportedly use some of the revenue from a merger with Time Warner/AOL to buy back a whole bunch of stock which woudl help the company fend off any further unwanted advances from Microsoft.

The upshot of a possible partnership or merger is that people will stop picking on AOL for copying Yahoo!'s homepage design. The downside is that a merged company could conceivably be called AOwho? OK, probably not. We for one welcome our new Yahoo! overlords anyway.