arstechnica.com has posted an article about a Computer Security Institute report that finds the biggest security threats to employees may be the employees themselves. The decade long report is a yearly survey by CSI that asks network and security admins what threats they face and how much each threat cost they’re companies bottom line. While fraud and viruses had the greatest financial impact, issues caused by both witting an unwitting employees were the most numerous. Such employee created issues include downloading pornography, email abuse, and illegal software. For more information about the report click here.

Microsoft recently made two announcements sure to disappoint both corporate and home users. First, Microsoft pushed back the ship date for the upcoming Windows Server 2008. Originally, Sever 2008 was scheduled to ship to CD and DVD production at the end of this year. Now Microsoft says that won’t happen until some time during Q1 2008.

On the home front, Vista users now have a rough date to expect their first service pack. Also scheduled for a Q1 release next year, the service pack promises to fix several performance and reliability issues that many Vista users have complained about. Microsoft hopes the lukewarm, and sometimes negative, response Vista has received will change once SP1 is released. Considering that many feel the issues resolved in this first service pack shouldn’t have appeared in the original release to begin with it seems doubtful that many will finally let go of their relatively stable XP SP2 installations. For the foreseeable future, Vista will remain an upgrade that’s adopted with the purchase of a new computer.

Amp’d Mobile, the MVNO (mobile virtual network operator) that targeted its services towards twenty-somethings, filed for Chapter 11 protection on June 1^st. The company launched voice, 3G data, text, and picture services in 2005 with backing from investors such as MTV Networks and Universal Music Group. Amp’d doesn’t plan to close shop, however, and will undergo a massive restructuring while it continues to offer service to its 175,000 customers. According to moconews.net, Amp’d filed for bankruptcy after a long fight between board members over the future of the company. It’s also believed the company has secured enough future funding to pull themselves out of bankruptcy pretty quickly. Given past issues with Amp’d and this latest stumble, its future is in doubt unless investor’s patience and deep pockets can get the company through this period.

Yesterday, Google made ‘Google Gears’ available for open beta testing. An open source browser extension, Google Gears lets users access online applications even when they’re not connected to the net. Currently, Google Gears works with Google Reader, Google’s RSS feed aggregator, and will presumably soon work with Google Docs & Spreadsheets and Gmail. Google Gears tackles the biggest stumbling block to convincing users to give online apps a serious look. If all you need to create and use office documents and email, whether online or offline, is a free Google account, Microsoft may find its Office monopoly in jeopardy. If you can’t wait to try Google Gears click here.

For the first time in it’s twenty three years, Dell is trying to find sales through avenues other than the direct-to-customer model. Dell and Wal-Mart have agreed to offer two Dimension desktop models through Wal-Mart’s 3,000 North American stores. Rather than a one-time limited experiment, Dell says it plans expand further into the retail market in the future. Given Dell’s decreasing shipments over the past couple of years, the push into retail seems almost inevitable. However, the question is whether Dell can succeed where other direct-to-customer companies who explored retail failed. Remember Apple and Gateway’s retail experience? Dell’s strength has always been the customization options it offers customers. By going retail with fixed spec computers Dell has to compete on the price point. That may prove a tough task, though, since Wal-Mart sells several low price computer brands through it’s outlets and Dell will have to find its place among them. Don’t be surprised if in a couple of years Dell retreats from retail with its tail between its legs.

Facebook held a developer event today to announce the ‘Facebook Platform’. The new API gives developers access to Facebook’s inner workings to create innovative applications users can add to their Facebook pages. Over 70 companies such as Microsoft, Amazon, Washington Post, Digg, and Snapvine have announced they’ll develop third-party applications for Facebook. This announcement is further proof that Facebook is trying top differentiate itself from the crowded social networking scene. Facebook has over 20 million users and continues to grow by 100,000 users a week. The fastest group of users are 25 or over, changing Facebook’s reputation as a digital hang out mainly made up of teenagers. The third-party plug-ins developed using the new API should further attract older Internet users and diversify Facebook’s base. Read more about Facebook’s API announcement.