Technology | The Guardian

Consultation calls for maximum sentence to be vastly increased so penalties for online offences tally with those for copyright infringement of physical goodsCommercial infringement of copyright online should in future be punishable by up to 10 years in prison, ministers are proposing.A consultation launched by the Intellectual Property Office and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills is calling for the present maximum sentence of two years to be significantly increased.

Driverless car hit while stationary in traffic by human driver travelling at 17mph in another vehicle, resulting in the first self-driving car injuriesThree Google employees have been injured in a crash involving one of the company’s self-driving cars.Google revealed the accident happened on 1 July when its car was rear-ended while stationary on a public road in Mountain View, California. Continue reading...

It’s brought chaos to kitchen tables for over 30 years. With new update Age of Sigmar on the way, here’s what you need to know about the fantasy wargame

Consumer users of Windows 10 will have no choice but to accept the installation of automatic updates, even if they break software for themMicrosoft’s Windows 10 will force automatic updates on to home users with systems that that cannot be disabled.

Revenues rise by 7% in last quarter as online auction site prepares to separate from e-payments processerOnline auction site eBay has beaten analysts’ expectations in its last set of results before spinning off its PayPal payments division.Net revenue rose 7% to $4.4bn (£2.8bn) for the three months to 30 June, while adjusted profits were 5% higher at $931m. That figure excludes a $786m charge related to the sale of eBay’s Enterprise unit for $925m, which was also announced on Thursday. Continue reading...

Waste company BigBelly applies for mayoral grant in New York City to provide free 75Mbps internet – via its litter baskets

After a week of turmoil at Reddit we ask whether the site can continue in its current formReddit hasn't had great press. It's hit the headlines in the past for its groups dedicated to fat-shaming and misogyny. But for its users it represents what the internet should be – an uncensored community where the best of humanity jostles along with the worst.After a week of scandals and high-profile resignations, we take stock on where the site is headed. Is it sustainable in its current form? How can a network that's built on the free labour of its community transform itself into a successful business? Continue reading...

Home-made quadcopter capable of firing pistol at least four times while airborne posted on YouTube

Commuters who run out of battery, have more than one device, or receive a call as they try to pay could get stuck at gates and face penalty faresTransport for London has warned tube, train and bus passengers paying with Apple Pay on iPhones and Apple Watches not to let their batteries run flat or they could get stuck at gates and face penalty fares.TfL advises users that, as with other smartphone payment systems including EE’s Cash on Tap, Apple Pay only works if a device has power. It warns that, if the battery runs out in the middle of a journey, a user will not be able to tap out, which means they could be charged a maximum fare. Continue reading...

Suggestions for revamping the 1980s-style first-person shooter include making its lead character work at a checkout, go on dates, cook – and become a womanDespite years of creative neglect, Duke Nukem remains a popular character among veteran gamers. As an unreconstructed 1980s-style action hero, he’s famed as much for his deadpan quips and visits to strip clubs as he is for fighting alien invasions.On Wednesday, Randy Pitchford, chief executive of Gearbox Software, took to the stage at the Develop conference in Brighton and said he hoped there would be another Duke Nukem game. His company bought the classic first-person shooter brand in 2010 and then finished the long-stalled title Duke Nukem Forever – but it was savaged by the critics.

Rovio is teasing the release of a fully fledged sequel to its bird-slinging game, but the franchise faces a battle to stay relevant in 2015It may be five years, and countless follow-ups, since the original Angry Birds catapulted the casual gaming market into the mainstream, but there’s never been a fully fledged sequel: until now.The game’s developer Rovio has tweeted a teaser image for the game, the aptly titled Angry Birds 2, including a date – 30 July – and the promise that it will be “Bigger. Badder. Birdier”. Continue reading...

Police investigate and China’s internet watchdog condemns ‘unsocialist’ behaviour after millions watch x-rated film onlineA viral sex video that set the Chinese internet alight this week struck a severe blow to the country’s “core socialist values”, Beijing’s online watchdog has said.

A judge in California has fined the ride-sharing company US$7.3 million for not filing reports that were a condition of its approval to operate in the stateUber picked up a substantial fare in California on Wednesday when a judge fined the taxi-alternative company US$7.3 million ($9.9 million) for refusing to give state regulators information about its business practices, including accident details and how accessible vehicles are to disabled riders.The fine was part of a ruling by an administrative law judge at the California Public Utilities Commission, the regulatory agency that allowed Uber and its competitors such as Lyft to operate in the state as long as the companies reported aspects of their activities. Continue reading...

Riley is a six-year-old from Melbourne but, according to her YouTube channel, when she made most of these trick shots she was still five. She and her father say: 'We promise this is for real. No special or visual effects. Trick shot kid = persistence.' They also list the number of attempts each shot took, eg short tube: 12 (several successes); long tube: first go; spoon in cup: 12 Continue reading...

ConnectHome will launch in 27 cities and the Choctaw Nation, from where the president announced the initiative: ‘The internet is not a luxury – it’s a necessity’Barack Obama on Wednesday paid a visit to one of the largest Native American tribes in the United States to emphasize the importance of expanding economic opportunity.

Freedom of information requests show rise in allegations for six months to April, when sharing sexual images without consent was made a crimeReported cases of “revenge porn”, the sharing of explicit or sexual images without consent, have risen markedly, with alleged victims ranging from 11-year-olds to pensioners, an investigation has found.Two-thirds of incidents involved women under 30, with suspects mainly former partners. There were eight female complainants to every male. Continue reading...

Police delete picture tweeted by helicopter surveillance team of comedian in a London street after outraged reaction on social media over privacy implicationsPolice have defended a picture tweeted by a helicopter team that shows the comedian Michael McIntyre standing in a London street.The photo, posted on the National Police Air Service’s London twitter account (@NPASLondon), was captioned: “Whilst on tasking [sic] in central London this morning we spotted a certain energetic funny man ... Can you guess who?” Continue reading...

Over 70 hackers arrested including six in UK in joint operation between FBI, NCA, Europol and others in global crackdown on cybercrime black marketNotorious cybercrime forum Darkode, frequented by Lizard Squad and other hacking groups, has been taken offline in a coordinated international law enforcement clampdown across 20 countries.

Finnish game studio Colossal Order’s urban simulator enables players to build, control and destroy cities. Its users have taken the opportunity to mimic some actual cities, down to the bus routes and bike paths. Here are some of the best Continue reading...

Pew Research Center study finds that 63% of each social network’s American users are getting their news from these servicesFacebook and Twitter are increasingly influential sources of news for their users, according to a survey conducted by the US-based Pew Research Center.Its study of more than 2,000 Americans found that for both social networks, 63% of users surveyed said they were getting news there – up from 52% for Twitter and 47% for Facebook in 2013. Continue reading...

Concern over personal data interception did not start with GCHQ and the NSA – hacking can be traced all the way back to the 19th century

Scott Borchetta explain stance during free-trial payments row: ‘I can’t support this: you need to pay us from the first stream’Taylor Swift wrote her famous To Apple, Love Taylor blog post protesting at the company’s music-streaming royalties plans without the knowledge of her record label, its boss has revealed.Big Machine Label Group CEO Scott Borchetta had no complaints about Swift’s decision to criticise Apple, however. Continue reading...

‘When I heard Donald Trump’s remarks about Mexicans and latinos from South America I was extremely angry’ explains Fernando SosaArtist Fernando Sosa has found a novel way to protest at Donald Trump’s recent comments about Mexican immigrants: he’s turned the Republican presidential candidate into a butt plug.Sosa used 3D printing technology to create the decidedly-unofficial merchandise, which he is selling from his store on the Shapeways website for £21.34. The plug is made from full-colour sandstone, promising “a coarse finish and a delicate feel”. Continue reading...

The treasurer also offers support to digitally disruptive companies such as Uber, saying governments should not ‘try to tax or legislate them out of existence’Joe Hockey is calling for a “sensible, mature debate” about tax reform options, including an increase to the rate or base of Australia’s goods and services tax (GST).In a speech in Melbourne on Wednesday, the federal treasurer will also offer qualified support to digitally disruptive companies such as Uber, saying governments should not “try to tax or legislate them out of existence”. Continue reading...

Girls creator will team up with show’s executive producer, Jenni Konner, to launch lifestyle mailout in which ‘there is no such thing as too much information’Lena Dunham is following in the footsteps of lifestyle gurus Gwyneth Paltrow and Blake Lively to launch Lenny, an email newsletter for young women.The creator, director and star of HBO’s Girls has teamed up with the show’s executive producer, Jenni Konner, to launch the mailout, which promises those who sign up a mix of “feminism, style, health, politics, friendship and everything else” and that in Lenny land, “there is no such thing as too much information”. Continue reading...

Firm releases temporary fix to Impero Education Pro after researcher says fault could leave pupils’ information exposed to hackers

Rethink Music study claims cryptocurrency system could help to ensure musicians get paid fairly and quickly for their workThe music industry should explore blockchain technology used in cryptocurrencies to ensure musicians are paid fairly for streams and sales of their work, according to a report published by the US-based Rethink Music initiative.The report, which is being widely circulated within the industry, suggests that embracing cryptocurrency technology could bring more transparency to the debate about musicians’ income from streaming services like Spotify. Continue reading...

Adobe’s Flash blocked by mainstream browser over critical security bugs actively exploited by hackers, as calls for its decommissioning riseThe mob is turning against Flash. Mozilla has blocked every version of Adobe’s Flash plugin from running within its Firefox browser, while Facebook’s head of security has called for Adobe to kill it off.

Move bolsters instant messaging and photo-sharing app’s ambitions to be a major media organisation, and potentially boost its advertising revenuesSnapchat has tweaked its design to give more priority to its Discover section, sparking anger from some users.Discover offers videos and news stories from media partners, including Sky News, Mail Online and Vice, but some users find the service at odds with instant messaging and photo sharing with friends. Continue reading...

Apple’s new contactless iPhone payment system hits UK stores as an alternative to credit card – but is it worth signing up?A new contactless payment system that lets people use their iPhones to tap-and-pay in high street shops has been launched in the UK. Apple Pay will let iPhone 6, 6 Plus and Apple Watch owners pay for items costing up to £20 by just touching their gadgets to a payment terminal, much like contactless credit cards.The UK launch marks the first expansion of Apple’s contactless payment system beyond the US, where it rolled out last October. Contactless payments have become increasingly popular in the UK with major banks offering cards that can just be tapped to pay, eliminating the need to type in a pin. Continue reading...

A murder mystery with a difference, Sam Barlow’s new game is as much about who’s playing it as it is whodunnitThere’s a mechanism for finding out about the world that we’ve all become experts in, perhaps without realising it. Maybe we learned at school how to use libraries, maybe our parents or the Girl Guides taught us how to listen for birdsong. But no one ever taught us how to Google – yet we’re all so good at it. We decide precisely which words to type to get the information we need. Defining search terms is how we touch the world.“Defining search terms” is the mechanism used to fascinating effect by the excellent game Her Story, released this month for PC, Mac and iOS. The setup is simple. For reasons that become (somewhat) clear, you’re sitting at a mid-1990s computer with a database of police interviews to search through. The interviews are all with the same woman – played by Viva Seifert. Someone’s already typed the first term in for you and there are five results. The search term is “MURDER”. Her husband’s been murdered, and if you search long enough, and watch enough of the clips, you’ll learn who murdered him, and how, and why, and what hall-of-mirrors events led to the killing. Continue reading...

Annie Mac’s weekday evening show among majority of programmes on air each year available for 30 days after broadcast through Apple and Android appsBBC radio shows are being made available to download on smartphones and tablets for the first time.The vast majority of programming from across the BBC’s stations will be available for 30 days after broadcast, including regular slots such as Annie Mac’s weekday evening show on Radio 1 and almost every show from the BBC Proms on Radio 3, which start on Friday. Continue reading...

Hip Hop Hen: Phonics 1 CVC, YoVivo!, Deliveroo, Streaks, Don’t Starve: Pocket Edition, Alphabear, Magic Duels and moreWelcome to this week’s roundup of the latest, greatest new iPhone and iPad apps and games. All prices are correct at the time of writing, with “IAP” indicating use of in-app purchases.You can read the previous Best iPhone and iPad Apps roundups for more recommendations, but if Android is your platform of choice, check the Best Android Apps roundups. On with this week’s selection. Continue reading...

Steve Huffman tells Redditors that subreddits like ‘FatPeopleHate’ will stay banned, in his first AMA since taking over as CEOReddit’s new chief executive Steve Huffman has promised to reconsider the online communities policies “from first principles” but defended many recent changes as he tries to rebuild its reputation.Huffman returned to the company he co-founded last week, taking over the role from outgoing boss Ellen Pao. Continue reading...

Wordsmack, a speculative fiction publisher dedicated to digital platforms, is the latest project to join the African SF boomA few years ago, I got very excited about Afrocyberpunk, a blog by Jonathan Dotse out of Accra, Ghana. The stories he posted suggested a strange and an exciting future for science fiction, proposing “not the science fiction of your grandfather or the Foundation of your Asimov” but “the dystopian gloom of failed states, the iron rule of corruption, cartels snaking cold fingers into the upper echelons of government, and hi-tech gangs of disillusioned youth”. While Dotse’s own novel has yet to see the light of day, he and others have been active in a number of ventures, online and off, to make this vision a reality.One of these is Jungle Jim, an African pulp fiction magazine, which, despite only being available as a beautifully designed print edition, provides a great jumping-off point for exploring multiple genres. Jungle Jim’s writers include Nnedi Okorafor, whose story “The Go-Slow”, published at Tor.com, blends magical fantasy into downtown Lagos traffic jams; Diriye Osman, who chronicles the lives of African LGBT kids in Somalia and London in stories such as “Earthling”; and Dzekashu MacViban, editor of Cameroon’s Bakwa magazine. Another is Something Wicked, South Africa’s first SF and horror magazine turned anthology series whose archives include short works by Sarah Lotz and Lauren Beukes, two South African authors who have found fame with dystopian future-fiction works in The Three and Moxyland respectively. Continue reading...

The number of women in tech hasn’t increased in decades. But the tide is starting to turn when it comes to attitudes to the sector’s gender inequalityWhen I left school at 16, in March 1979, my first job interview was for an admin position at a garage in Chelmsford. I was extremely nervous as I walked into a yard of men in greasy overalls, and as I was being interviewed I blushed as my eyes skipped around the office to the calendars of topless women on the walls.I loved Top of the Pops on a Thursday evening all those years ago, but wondered why there were so few women singing or presenting. “Women are no good at singing – if they were any good they would be on there,” said one. “Women don’t like singing in public or on TV because it’s not natural or feminine,” said another. I thought at the time those opinions were wrong, but kept my opinions to myself unless I was talking to one of those rare people who seemed to feel the way I did. Continue reading...

Decent performance for its low price, but the real draw is its eat-all-you-want catalogue of apps, games, ebooks and videosWhen Apple launched its first iPad in 2010, the thought of handing a £429 device over to a child seemed like crazy talk. Yet that’s exactly what happened with that and subsequent tablets.Fast forward to May 2015, when the UK’s communications regulator Ofcom reported that 71% of British 5-15 year-olds had access to a tablet at home, including 34% who had their own one. Continue reading...

The first ‘science oven’, launched in 1967, was simple to use but then digital interfaces came along and made things worse. The real problem, however, is that microwave ovens live too longVisited anyone recently and tried to use their microwave oven? Of all the familiar devices in a house, the microwave has long been the laggard in usability. The “science oven”, as it is so wonderfully described in the 1970s-set film American Hustle, pre-dates the digital era (the first came out in 1967); and the advent of programmes and digital buttons hasn’t helped much since. So when you buy one, or go to someone’s house and use theirs, you will almost certainly be confronted by an unfamiliar interface. How powerful is it? Do I have to set the heat or time first? If I have to press digital buttons to set the heating time, will it interpret them as hours? If I need to set a heating time of more than an hour, do I enter the minutes, or is there an “hour” setting?Meanwhile, since the “science oven” came along, we’ve got used to smartphones and tablets whose interfaces have undergone a flurry of interbreeding. Even in rival mobile interfaces, you expect to find apps offered as an array of icons; to have notifications about events in a sliding layer at the top; and get easy access to key functions such as Wi-Fi and Bluetooth from any screen. If microwave interfaces had standardised to the same extent, we’d be able to operate almost any on sight. Instead, they still can’t tell when you’ve put metal in them. Continue reading...

Ellen Pao, who resigned as Reddit chief executive on Saturday, speaks to Katie Couric for Yahoo News in April about gender discrimination in the workplace. Pao is interviewed shortly after losing a landmark sex discrimination lawsuit against a former employer. Pao tells Couric that sexism in the workplace is a hard issue for people to confront, and says women are often undermined in countless small ways Continue reading...

One device applies electric currents to your head to help you meditate while another encourages you to breathe more deeply – Silicon Valley is abuzz with entrepreneurs offering gadgets to help you ‘upgrade your mind’

The recent dump of the company’s private documents revealed the blurred moral lines of ‘digital mercenaries’ providing software that could violate human rights

Our favourite tech innovations this week include a refreshing new way to share party snaps, and a carry-on briefcase that carries youThis summer ditch the wicker basket and embrace picnic 2.0. Updating alfresco dining for an urban setting, Atelier Teratoma have created the technopicnic, kitting out this portable case (actually a foldable table) with solar panels, bluetooth-connected screen, speakers, silver pillows, lights and even USB ports so you can plug in your phone for a power boost. Commercial versions are in the pipeline, but until they’re available adventurous readers can embark on their own exploratory mission to the Sala Amadis Youth Institute in Madrid, where the technopicnic prototype is on display this month. Continue reading...

Due to popular demand, climbers can now shamelessly selfie and check work emails atop Japan’s spectacular peaks. The days of living in the moment are overWi-Fi is available everywhere these days. You can use Wi-Fi at some New York City subway stations. You can use Wi-Fi at some Subway restaurants. Some people even have Wi-Fi in their homes.Now, thanks to Japanese government officials, Wi-Fi is also available at the summit of the country’s highest mountain. Continue reading...

Katherine Archuleta steps down after sensitive information of an estimated 21.5 million federal employees stolen in cyber-attack by suspected Chinese hackersA government hacking scandal that compromised the personal information of an estimated 21.5 million Americans claimed its first big political casualty, in the shape of Katherine Archuleta, the director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM).

Social media company forced to remove two flashing vines for its #DiscoverMusic campaign after charity raises concerns

DVLA makes ‘share your licence’ passcodes valid for 21 days rather than 72 hours, allowing holidaymakers more flexibility in booking car rentalsHiring a car on holiday should be less stressful after the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency made a significant change to the new system that allows vehicle hire companies to check an individual’s driving history.The DVLA came under fire after abolishing the paper part of the driving licence and introducing an online system that allows car hire companies to access people’s driving records. Predictions the new regime would provoke chaos at car hire desks appeared to be borne out, with the launch being dogged by technical hitches and website crashes.

A surprisingly high proportion of male youths think female game characters are too often treated as sex objectsMany teenage boys are tired of the sexualised depiction of women in video games, according to the findings of a new survey.In the study of about 1,400 US youths, 47% of middle-school boys and 61% of high school boys agreed that women are treated as sex objects too often in games. Continue reading...

Video games haven’t been sent to destroy society – but parents do need to get informedWhen it come to choosing video games for the kids, 40% of parents are not confident about what they are buying, according to recent research by the Game chain store.Certainly, identifying best-value and most appropriate games for the family is more complex than it first appears. In-app purchases sell players additional content during the course of play. They can change the total price of a title substantially and fly under the radar of parents who assume games are a one-off cost. Continue reading...

Interactive stories carve out one of the gaming medium’s most diverse landscapesTwine is many thingsFirst and foremost, though, Twine is a writing tool, specifically for making interactive stories. It can be used to pen digital text adventures that function much like the old Choose Your Own Adventure or Fighting Fantasy books, from short stories to playable poems. It’s also free and remarkably easy to use. If you can handle a word processor, Twine should be no problem. In fact, you won’t need to hammer out a single line of code. Continue reading...

Language is what makes us human. So what does it mean when algorithms start to put words in our mouths?This week on Tech Weekly, we look at how new apps are transforming language. From new start-up Crystal, which promises to make your emails more empathetic, to the global rise of emoji, do these apps short-cut meaningful communication or are they just innocuous tools helping make life quicker?To help us decide is Evan Selinger, a professor of philosophy who thinks the divide between the human and the algorithm is getting dangerously blurred; and Professor Vyv Evans, a linguist championing the use of emojis to help us express our emotions more clearly. Continue reading...