Technology | The Guardian

In the first half of 2015, £2.5bn was spent in the UK using contactless cards. I’ve lost mine, and I’m now living life in the slow laneHere is my problem. I have lost my debit card. This might seem like a minor hindrance. I haven’t, say, lost a limb. But I have lost the means to go about my everyday life as I usually would.I rely on my contactless debit card as if it were a chip in my wrist. (And I don’t have a credit card, because I was always taught never to have credit cards.) Continue reading...

Nearly 20 years ago, Monica Lewinsky found herself at the heart of a political storm. Now she’s turned that dark time into a force for goodOne night in London in 2005, a woman said a surprisingly eerie thing to Monica Lewinsky. Lewinsky had moved from New York a few days earlier to take a master’s in social psychology at the London School of Economics. On her first weekend, she went drinking with a woman she thought might become a friend. “But she suddenly said she knew really high-powered people,” Lewinsky says, “and I shouldn’t have come to London because I wasn’t wanted there.”Lewinsky is telling me this story at a table in a quiet corner of a West Hollywood hotel. We had to pay extra for the table to be curtained off. It was my idea. If we hadn’t done it, passersby would probably have stared. Lewinsky would have noticed the stares and would have clammed up a little. “I’m hyper-aware of how other people may be perceiving me,” she says. Continue reading...

Educating children fleeing conflict is all but impossible – but non-profit Aliim thinks the answer may be just an app away

Another algorithm change has been announced by the social network, focused on enhancing reading timeFacebook is changing its algorithm yet again, and this time it wants to show you more things that you’ll actually spend time reading or watching.The social network looks at a wealth of data when deciding which posts you actually see on News Feed, but until now it hasn’t cared too much about what you actually do when you click away from Facebook. It says that’s going to change. Continue reading...

This reimagining of the first game in the classic action adventure series is a fond, respectful and visually beautiful exercise in nostalgiaReleased to coincide with the forthcoming movie, Ratchet & Clank could have been a cash grab – a cynical HD reskin of Insomniac Games’s classic action adventure. It could have been churned out fast to capitalise on all the goodwill and publicity surrounding the film. But it isn’t and it wasn’t. It’s great.

A year on from reporting accounts being hacked, Londoners receive shock bills for ‘phantom rides’ in Mexico and New YorkEarlier this month Angie Bird woke up at her home in London to discover she had been billed for a series of minicab journeys she had allegedly made the previous evening … in the Mexican cities of Guadalajara and Aguascalientes, more than 5,500 miles away.While she was having dinner with friends, someone – or more than one person – in Mexico had apparently hacked into her Uber account and “went a bit crazy” ordering cabs at her expense. They made five journeys that were all charged to Bird’s credit card, and ordered a further 11 cabs that evening which, for whatever reason, they didn’t take. Continue reading...

Apple confirms services have been taken offline and says it hopes to make them available again as soon as possibleApple has confirmed its iTunes Movies and iBooks services have become unavailable in China, after reports that authorities had ordered them to be taken offline.

The place to talk about games and other things that matterIt’s Friday. Continue reading...

One of tech giant’s founders says company under investigation by EU over its tax arrangements should pay the same 50% tax rate as he doesApple should pay more tax, according to Steve Wozniak, the company’s co-founder.Speaking to the BBC, Wozniak expressed discomfort with reports that Apple avoids tax, saying that paying taxes was just “part of life” – something that “every company in the world” should do. Continue reading...

Ride-hailing service will settle a class-action suit with drivers in California and Massachusetts, avoiding a trial that could have reclassified them as employeesUber has agreed to settle a class-action lawsuit with its California and Massachusetts drivers for up to $100m, avoiding a jury trial that could have reclassified contractors as employees and was expected to determine the fate of the so-called gig economy.The proposed settlement – which must be approved by a judge – would allow the ride-hail app to continue classifying drivers as independent contractors though it will make some changes to their working conditions. Continue reading...

The hefty price paid for the software that hacked Syed Farook’s iPhone, which Apple refused to help the FBI break into, signals a growing ‘exploit market’The Federal Bureau of Investigation paid about $1.3m for software to hack into the iPhone of San Bernardino gunman Syed Farook, FBI director James Comey told a London audience on Thursday.The staggering price illustrates the growth of the so-called “exploit market” for digital spy tools and cyber weapons as governments increasingly use hacker tricks for law enforcement and war. Prices for such software are rarely disclosed, although anything in the seven-figure range is extremely expensive. Continue reading...

Home-sharing company had been in advanced negotiations with the SEIU over a deal that would have promoted unionized housekeepers in short-term rentalsA controversial deal between Airbnb and one of the most powerful unions in the US has fallen apart following an intense backlash from labor and housing activists across the country.The home-sharing company had been in advanced negotiations with the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), which represents 2 million US workers, over a deal in which Airbnb would promote unionized housekeepers in its short-term rentals – a move that would have marked the first-ever formal collaboration between a major firm in the “gig economy” and a labor union. Continue reading...

Plaintiffs suing site for failing to adequately secure data, marketing ‘full delete removal’ service that didn’t work, and using fake accounts to lure customersPlaintiffs leading a lawsuit against online dating website Ashley Madison over a security breach that exposed the personal data of customers must publicly identify themselves to proceed with the case, a US judge has ruled.Forty-two plaintiffs, seeking to represent users of the website who had their information compromised, had proceeded anonymously against Ashley Madison’s Toronto-based parent company Avid Life Media, the ruling released on 6 April showed. Continue reading...

Twitter was scrabbling to defend the appointment of a Chinese head with government ties, yet US tech has a busy revolving door with its own governmentWhat’s worse for a Silicon Valley executive: ties to the Chinese military or friends in the US Defense Department?Twitter found itself confronting that question this week after it hired Kathy Chen, a former engineer for the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), to head up ad sales and business development in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Internet freedom activists and Chinese dissidents, who have to skirt Beijing’s digital censors to use Twitter, said it was a betrayal. Continue reading...

The dark underbelly of the internet exploredDespite the fact that it’s just a couple of clicks away, most internet users have no knowledge of the existence of the darknet, the murky world beneath the familiar surface web of Google, Facebook and Twitter.The encrypted cyber-realm is home to drug markets, child sexual abuse networks and professional hit men, as well as libertarians fighting for anonymity and personal liberty on the internet. Continue reading...

Chariot for Women could confront two big concerns for drivers and passengers: safety and harassment – and also offer potential for great conversationIt’s Halloween 2014 and I’m parked outside of bars at Boston’s Faneuil Hall, fifteen minutes after last call waiting for my passenger to find me. A man in a tie-dyed shirt and a curly wig hops into the front passenger seat of my black Honda Fit. He’s dressed as a hippy, he tells me. His friend is still outside, yelling at someone I’m not sure he knows, wearing a white tank top with the word “lifeguard” on the front in black block letters. He’s a lifeguard, I’m told.The hippy is pleased I am neither male nor old. He tells me that his friend’s yelling is OK, nothing I need to be upset about, they are both on the men’s lacrosse team at a local college. The lifeguard is the star player, he says reassuringly. The hippy will remind me of his team-mate’s “number one” status again when, three minutes into the ride, the lifeguard proceeds to scream at a group of women who this time I am sure he does not know. And once more when the lifeguard jumps out of the car to pee outside the door of One Financial Center. “Number one,” the hippy says again, calmly, when I voice my disgust. Continue reading...

Early adopters facing teething issues with doors, sensors, screens, brakes and quality control, as electric SUV continues to roll off the production lineEarly models of Tesla’s electric SUV, the Model X, are facing teething issues, plaguing users with glitches that lock them out of their cars and bang their falcon-wing doors into things.

While social media is a fun place to meet friends, the threat of abuse seems ever present. Miitomo removes it from the equation entirelySocial media has changed the way that we think about friends. It has elasticated the whole notion of relationships. Imagine if an old boss you haven’t seen for six months (and barely ever talked to) asks you out for a drink to catch up: you’d scoff at the thought. But if they wanted to be Facebook friends, a lot of us may feel it would rude to turn them down. Facebook friends, Twitter friends, internet friends, friend friends – all of these signal distinct and varying levels of social engagement. The result is, we have a lot more ‘friends’ than we ever did before, and this has become tricky to manage – especially on Twitter.Perhaps more than any other social media platform, Twitter allows users to build and cultivate social circles with very little delineation between friends, strangers, casual acquaintances and celebrities. Communities interlock and overlap in a very ad-hoc, seamless way. Continue reading...

Significant part of 1,000-strong fleet will have combustion engines removed and be refitted with an electric motor, battery pack and gas turbine generatorNew Zealand’s biggest urban bus company will soon be running its vehicles on electric engines after signing a deal with Wrightspeed, a company founded by Ian Wright, a Kiwi and co-founder of Tesla.

Russian developer known online as ‘Gribodemon’ and ‘Harderman’ gets nine years in US jail, while malware vendor ‘Bx1’ receives 15 years in billion-dollar caseThe Russian creator of a computer program that enabled cybercriminals to infect millions of computers and drain bank accounts in multiple countries has been sentenced to serve nine and half years in a US federal prison.Aleksandr Andreevich Panin, 27, the inventor of SpyEye who went by aliases “Gribodemon” and “Harderman” online, pleaded guilty to a count of conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud in January 2014 after reaching a deal with prosecutors. Continue reading...

Viewers of adult material at risk of prosecution as commercial sites are increasingly being used to conceal paedophile contentPeople viewing or searching for adult pornography online face the risk of being arrested for accessing child abuse images because paedophiles are increasingly hiding criminal content on legal commercial websites, the Internet Watch Foundation has warned.The past 18 months have seen a significant rise in the use of disguised websites that provide a secret route to child sexual abuse content, said Fred Langford, chief executive of the UK charity. Continue reading...

The campaign to leave the EU has fallen prey to a prankster who snapped up the voteleave.com website name. It’s something all politicians have to contend withDespite its name, there is one thing the Vote Leave campaign should not have left for so long: registering a domain name. The delay by the anti-EU organisation meant that up to 100,000 people who tried to access voteleave.com, co.uk or .net were rickrolled – redirected to a YouTube clip of Rick Astley’s 1987 hit Never Gonna Give You Up. So far, so internet. But this time, the rickrolling is political. Mario Van Poppel, who snapped up the domain name, is a pro-EU campaigner. He says he will only hand it back if he gets 10 minutes with Boris Johnson and a donation made to a charity of his choice.Carly Fiorina, a former Republican presidential candidate, might sympathise. Despite also being the former CEO of Hewlett-Packard, she wasn’t tech-savvy enough to avoid a similar mistake. According to news reports, potential supporters who clicked on carlyfiorina.org saw a message reading: “Carly Fiorina failed to register this domain. So, I’m using it to tell you how many people she laid off at Hewlett-Packard. It was this many ...” Following the message were approximately 30,000 frowny emoticons. The post referred to a merger Fiorina had overseen as CEO of HP, which led to redundancies. The site is now a holding page. Continue reading...

Specialist officers in the federal police and Australian Crime Commission and 50 security experts spearheadA $230m cyber security strategy, which includes cash for more specialist cybercrime officers in the Australian Crime Commission and the Australian federal police, has been announced by the government.The crackdown is designed to tackle cyber crimes including malware which attempts to force users to pay a ransom, “hacktivism”, denial of service attacks and theft of data or intellectual property through cyber espionage. Continue reading...

The European Commission has accused Google of abusing its dominance of the smartphone market. Why has it done this? And what exactly is Android?The European Commission has accused Google of abusing its dominance of the smartphone market through Android, blocking competition and innovation. But what is Android, what does Google offer and what are others doing with Android?

Join a panel of experts on this page on Monday, 25 April, 12-1pm BST to discuss the opportunities and challenges technology presents for healthcare

Hotels on the Las Vegas strip are rumored to be rolling out virtual reality porn – but the experts say it won’t hit the same spotThe brothels outside Las Vegas have had to deal with a lot over the years – and now they have to worry about virtual reality porn taking their business.The porn studio VR Bangers and headset maker AuraVisor are rumored to be rolling out a room service option at various hotels around Las Vegas for $19.99 a night. Continue reading...

Visitors warned about malware and cybercriminal links on search engine by the company’s own Safe Browsing Site Status reportGoogle.com is a “partially dangerous” website that has some pages that may install malware on your computer or try to steal your personal information – says, er, Google.Embarrassing gaffe or commendable honesty? Google’s “Safe Browsing” section of its online transparency report delivers a less-than-impressed verdict on the company’s main search engine. Continue reading...

Opportunity to pay small amounts to favoured pages is being mooted along with other options. But would tipping really catch on on the social network?Facebook is considering the introduction of a virtual “tip jar”, so users can tip small amounts of money to the pages and people they like most.The proposal is one of several the company is consulting with users on, according to the Verge’s Casey Newton, who received a survey detailing the options. Continue reading...

As self-driving vehicles edge closer to our roads, what does the new technology mean for services and businesses in cities?The idea of self-driving cars is plastered across the media. But a lot of the talk is about a futuristic, Jetson-style approach at a fairly superficial level. Some pieces go deeper, but there’s a dearth of investigation on the subject. And it’s becoming reality faster than anyone thinks.

Report suggests nearly 30% of British web users will have installed software to strip advertising from web pages by end of next yearAlmost 30% of British web users will use adblocking software by the end of next year, according to a report that warns of a potential “epidemic”.

The place to talk about games and other things that matterIt’s Wednesday! Continue reading...

Television industry reacts angrily to report suggesting that in 80% of cases adverts on video website are better in driving salesGoogle has attacked the effectiveness of TV ads and called on advertisers to massively increase the amount they spend on YouTube.Matt Brittin, Google’s top-ranking European executive, is set to unveil a report analysing ad campaigns across eight countries that show in 80% of cases YouTube ads were far more effective than TV ads in driving sales. Continue reading...

Senior Labour MP says police and prosecutors should do more to unmask extent of online misogyny, racism and homophobic abuseOnline harassment and abuse is “stifling debate and ruining lives”, according to Yvette Cooper, who is calling on police and prosecutors to follow the Guardian’s lead in unmasking the true extent of the problem.The senior Labour MP warned that misogyny, racism and homophobic abuse were all growing online, as was revenge pornography, in which people distributed sexual photos or videos of former partners without permission. Continue reading...

Senior Labour MP says police and prosecutors should do more to unmask extent of online misogyny, racism and homophobic abuseOnline harassment and abuse is “stifling debate and ruining lives”, according to Yvette Cooper, who is calling on police and prosecutors to follow the Guardian’s lead in unmasking the true extent of the problem.The senior Labour MP warned that misogyny, racism and homophobic abuse were all growing online, as was revenge pornography, in which people distributed sexual photos or videos of former partners without permission. Continue reading...

Decline of open debate was of particular concern in Latin America during 2015, says advocacy group, warning of increasing violence against journalistsWorld press freedom deteriorated in 2015, especially in the Americas, advocacy group Reporters Without Borders said on Wednesday as it released its annual rankings and warned of “a new era of propaganda”.

Digital media firm reports significant quarterly losses that cost investors 10 cents a share but still manage to beat analysts’ revenue expectationsYahoo announced falling revenues and a quarterly loss of $99.2m on Tuesday as the ailing internet business looks for a buyer.The company reported revenue of $1.09bn, down 11% from the same time last year. The fall shows continuing deterioration in Yahoo’s business but was better than analysts had expected.

Margrethe Vestager, European competition commissioner, is concerned the firm unfairly promotes its apps on Android phonesEurope’s antitrust chief is expected to hit Google with anti-competitive charges concerning its Android mobile phone operating system.

A vulnerability means hackers can read texts, listen to calls and track mobile phone users. What are the implications and how can you protect yourself from snooping?

The US Authors Guild’s appeal against the earlier ruling that allows the tech giant to scan millions of books under ‘fair use’ has been rejected by the Supreme CourtA long-running face-off between the US Authors Guild and Google over the search engine’s scanning of millions of books was brought to an end yesterday when the US Supreme Court denied the writers the right to appeal.Backed by authors including Nobel laureate JM Coetzee and the Booker winners Richard Flanagan and Margaret Atwood, the Authors Guild appealed to the Supreme Court in February over the ruling that Google’s scanning of millions of books constituted “fair use”, and that “Google Books provide significant public benefits”. Once scanned, the books, both in and out of copyright, are included in Google Books, which enables users to read extracts from books and search their texts. Continue reading...

Its business model relies on users sharing personal data instead of cat videos, but that is happening less and less – and it’s a devil of Facebook’s own making

Bids are coming in for the ailing tech company – and no matter who gets ownership of it, the CEO is set to be one of the biggest winners in the saleWhat’s the price of failure? For Yahoo’s boss, Marissa Mayer, it could be about $137m. Bids are now in for the ailing tech company – and no matter who gets it, Mayer is set to be one of the biggest winners.Mayer has taken home $78m since she was installed as CEO in 2012, according to stock analytics firm MSCI; if she’s dismissed from the company after a buyout she’s set for another $59m, based on the terms of the company’s most recent proxy statement. Continue reading...

This is how you can get Amazon’s Alexa talking to Google’s Now to activate Apple’s Siri, in a voice-assistant Rube Goldberg machineWhy just use one voice assistant when you can get Amazon’s Alexa to command Google’s Now to activate Apple’s Siri?

Stay safer on the internet with these tips on shoring up your digital security, and join our live Q&A on the issue at 2pm todaySensible people are vigilant about online security as a matter of course, ever alert to the possibility that someone might breach their passwords for the purposes of stealing. Like the ones who drink the recommended number of units and make sure their dogs never have chocolate, I don’t know people like this, but I’ve heard they exist. Continue reading...

Vulnerabilities within SS7 mobile phone network brokerage system allow attackers to listen to calls, read messages and track location using just a phone numberA US congressman hacked as part of a demonstration showing that all you need is someone’s phone number to record their calls, texts and location, has called for an oversight committee investigation into the “significant vulnerability”.

The place to talk about games and other things that matterIt’s Tuesday! Continue reading...

National Gallery of Victoria to survey British artist’s past decade of work, including portraits and landscapes created on the iPhone, iPad and videoMore than 700 works by David Hockney, many of which have never have been seen in Australia before, are to be shown by the National Gallery of Victoria in a major exhibition in November.Related: An even Bigger Splash: why David Hockney's pop-art poem lives on Continue reading...

Digital video company, which revealed expansion into more than 130 countries earlier this year, also faces monthly subscription challenge from AmazonNetflix shares took a nosedive in after-hours trading on Monday afternoon when the company reported negative profits in its international streaming business after announcing a vast expansion into more than 130 countries earlier this year.The digital video firm expects to remain in the red into the second quarter, with a subsequent loss of $80m. Continue reading...

Potential partnership with SEIU sparks outcry from labor activists and New York politicians over controversial collaboration with tech startupAirbnb’s attempt to negotiate a deal with one of the most powerful unions in the US is being undermined after intense backlash in the labor movement, the Guardian has learned.The home-sharing startup has been in discussions with the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) to reach a deal under which the home-sharing service would promote unionized housekeepers. Continue reading...

It was always unlikely that Iran, newly back in the market, would be able to secure a deal with its big rival Saudi Arabia and others including RussiaOpec struggles to speak with a single voice these days, so it was always a wobbly assumption that the cartel of oil producers would be able to agree a deal with non-members, such as Russia, to curb output.So it has proved. The weekend talks in Doha fell apart over a single issue. Saudi Arabia wanted Iran, its big regional rival, to be included in a deal to freeze production at January levels. Iran, freshly returned to international markets after the lifting of sanctions, wasn’t interested. Its priority is revenues, at almost any oil price, and recovery of lost market share. Continue reading...