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

Authorities say the calls, which threaten bombing or shooting attacks, and have been received at schools around the world, may be the work of hackersAuthorities believe a sophisticated and automated hacking system is behind a series of threatening hoax phone calls that have disrupted the start of the year for students at more than 30 schools throughout Australia, as well as students from hundreds of schools throughout France, Italy, the Netherlands, Japan, and the UK.

The lawsuit revolves around the company’s use of quarterly performance reviews, used to determine promotions, demotions and terminationsThere’s nothing particularly surprising about allegations of gender discrimination at a Silicon Valley tech firm. Over the past year, Twitter, Facebook and Microsoft have all been sued for discrimination against female employees.But in a lawsuit filed 1 February in US district court, Yahoo is accused of “actual and intentional gender-based discrimination” against male employees by Gregory Anderson, a former Yahoo employee who worked as an editorial director for the website for four years, until his firing in November 2014. Continue reading...

Search engine giant reveals plans for pilot scheme to home affairs committee hearing, with Facebook and Twitter also probed over extremism policiesUsers of Google who put extremist-related entries into the search engine are to be directed towards anti-radicalisation links under a pilot programme, MPs have been told by an executive for the company. The initiative, aimed at countering the online influence of groups such as Islamic State, is running alongside another pilot scheme designed to make videos posted by extremists easier to identify.The schemes were mentioned by Anthony House, senior manager for public policy and communications at Google, who was appearing alongside counterparts from Twitter and Facebook at a home affairs select committee hearing on countering extremism. “We should get the bad stuff down, but but it’s also extremely important that people are able to find good information, that when people are feeling isolated, that when they go online, they find a community of hope, not a community of harm,” he said. Continue reading...

CEO Marissa Mayer announces a ‘strategic plan’ that includes cutting 1,700 jobs and is expected to lead to the sale of parts of its businessYahoo chief executive Marissa Mayer has announced plans to cut the company’s workforce by 15% and close five foreign offices by the end of 2016.The struggling tech company reported a $4.4bn loss for the last three months of 2015 as it wrote down the value of assets including Tumblr, the blogging site it bought for $1bn in 2013. Continue reading...

Service almost fully restored after tens of thousands affected by broadband and phone network failure

EU-US Privacy Shield ‘safe harbour’ comes with assurances against US mass surveillance and the protection of EU citizens’ dataEurope and the US have reached a new “robust” deal over data sharing that will ensure the safety of EU citizens’ data when transferred across the Atlantic by firms such as Facebook, Apple and Google.The new EU-US privacy shield will allow companies to transfer and process EU citizens’ data in the US given certain privacy guarantees. It comes after the original data-sharing safe harbour agreement from 2000 used by 4,500 companies was struck down in October by the European court of justice, following legal action by an Austrian privacy campaigner following the Snowden revelations of mass US government surveillance. Continue reading...

The messaging app has passed the one-billion-monthly-active-user milestone. Whether you’re staying in touch with family or organising a night out, group chats have become an ever-present feature of the national conversation Continue reading...

Michel Sapin’s comments add pressure to European commission to launch investigation into settlementPressure is mounting on the European commission to launch a full state aid investigation into the UK’s £130m tax settlement with Google after France’s finance minister attacked the deal.Michel Sapin said HMRC’s settlement, which allows Google to continue booking £5bn of UK sales via Ireland, “seems more the product of a negotiation than the application of the law”. Continue reading...

Alphabet’s shares rose by 4.7% following better than expected results, amid concerns that Apple has yet to come up with another blockbuster productAlphabet, Google’s parent company, pipped Apple to become the world’s most valuable company on Tuesday, ending the iPhone company’s four-year reign.Alphabet’s shares rose by 4.7% by noon on Tuesday following the release of better than expected results. After the rise Alphabet was valued at $548bn to Apple’s $534bn. Continue reading...

Homophobic comments by BBC star and drug-smuggling porn actor among stories that gay news site uploaded saying article-removal laws are censorshipGay news site PinkNews has published a list of 19 stories it says have been removed from Google search results under Europe’s right to be forgotten rules, claiming the legislation is an “infringement of press freedom”.The stories include allegations of homophobic comments by a BBC star and a report about a gay porn actor attempting to smuggle crystal meth on a transatlantic flight to the UK. Continue reading...

Users who entered email addresses received offer to opt in to ‘match-making app’ Nine, launched January 2016

Hungarian website argued that holding it liable for messages on its forum – which it removed – would have serious repercussions for freedom of expressionNews websites are not responsible for “insulting and rude” comments by readers, the European Court of Human Rights ruled on Tuesday, after a Hungarian website was sued for messages on its forum.The case related to the Index.hu news website on which readers posted a series of angry comments about a real-estate company. Continue reading...

Security researchers have found a flaw in the Smart Toy internet-connected teddy bear that used a child’s name, birthday and genderIn September, Mattel’s Fisher-Price brand announced it had partnered with a tech company to make Smart Toy, a stuffed bear that can learn a three-year-old’s name.

Software update upgraded to ‘recommended’ status, meaning those with automatic updates set will see it downloaded in the background and a request to install Windows 10 over Windows 7 and 8Microsoft has followed through with its plans to push adoption of Windows 10 by downloading it in the background to user machines running Windows 7 and 8 set to accept automatic updates.

The company says search oddities are unrelated to its UK tax bill after accusations that search results have been censoredGoogle has categorically denied “conspiracy theories” accusing it of censoring its search results to please the Conservative party in exchange for an agreement to pay just £130m in back taxes.The accusations stem from Google’s autocomplete function, which suggests search terms based on user input. The suggested searches are created algorithmically from previous searches on the topic. Continue reading...

Gmail becomes the sixth Google service to cross the 1 billion barrier, while WhatsApp becomes Facebook’s second most-used appFacebook’s WhatsApp messenger and Google’s Gmail have both crossed the 1 billion monthly active user milestone, meaning that one-seventh of the world’s population now uses them both.The two apps join Facebook’s 1.59 billion monthly active users (MAU), as well as Google’s other 1 billion or more MAU services: Google search, Chrome (both mobile and desktop), Google Maps, YouTube, Google’s Android and therefore also Google Play. Continue reading...

Two of the team behind LittleBigPlanet have formed their own studio to create a co-op adventure title about childhood friendship – and pickled knights’ headsThere is so much warmth, beauty and nostalgia in video games at the moment. We’re seeing a whole generation of designers who may once have once worked on huge projects, but who have now taken leave of the mainstream industry to explore personal experiences and memories. We see it in Firewatch, influenced by the co-designer’s own knowledge of the Wyoming wilderness; we see it in Unravel, a game all about creator Martin Sahlin’s love of rural Northern Sweden; and we’ll soon see it in Knights and Bikes, a co-operative exploration game set on a fictitious Cornish island.In this case, the memories belong to hugely talented artist Rex Crowle, once of Media Molecule, where he worked on LittleBigPlanet and its follow-up Tearaway. As a child in Cornwall he grew up amid the county’s tiny fishing villages, enjoying their wonky, cluttered architecture. As he recalls: “There were little cottages with impossible perspectives, tumbling out of each other with doors in the roofs, and all kinds of details and history nailed to their exterior walls.” Continue reading...

Since Google restructured to become Alphabet it has almost doubled its total value – despite its products remaining the same as everSilicon Valley – and Wall Street – have a new king. Alphabet, the company formerly known as Google, looks set to become the world’s largest publicly traded company on Tuesday thanks to a spike in its share price, following exceptionally good results and a decision to come clean on how its makes and spends its money.Related: Google's Alphabet set to overtake Apple as world's most valuable company Continue reading...

Dutch police have joined forces with Guard From Above, a raptor-training security firm based in the Hague, to keep wayward drones from causing trouble. In a video posted to YouTube, an eagle can be seen during a training exercise snatching the drone out of the air Continue reading...

In a 2013 Tedx talk, media artist and University of NSW professor Sarah Kenderdine spoke about the threats faced by cultural heritage around the world, from politically motivated destruction to climate change and mass tourism. ‘We must find strategies not only to preserve our heritage but to let its stories be rediscovered and reinvented,’ she said. ‘This is both an artistic and technical challenge.’Kenderdine’s latest collaborative work, Look Up Mumbai, is an immersive, site-specific installation which opens at Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya museum on Wednesday, and celebrates the city’s spectacular architectural heterogeneity.The public is invited to lie down in the 3D DomeLab – the highest resolution touring full dome in the world – look up and experience 65 fish-eye images of some of the finest heritage buildings in Mumbai. Continue reading...

Revenue spike sees tech firm’s parent company, Alphabet, valued at $568bn – surpassing Apple’s valuation of $535bnGoogle has become the world’s most valuable listed company after announcing that its global revenues rose 13% to $75bn (£52bn) last year, and the group’s tax rate fell to just 17%.The group took a record $1.9bn of revenues from its UK customers for the last three months of 2015, up 16% on 2014 – and all routed through its controversial tax structure in Ireland. But for the impact of the pound weakening against the dollar, UK revenues would have been up 20%. Continue reading...

Labour calls for urgent review of rules after UK Airprox Board reveals plane came within 20 metres of drone above Houses of ParliamentThe near collision of a drone and a passenger plane over the Houses of Parliament should be a wake-up call for the government to speed up its review of unmanned aerial vehicles, Labour has said.Richard Burden, a shadow transport minister, said the near-miss over central London and other recent cases should be a “spur to action” after delays in the government’s promised consultation on regulating drones. Continue reading...

The rise of mobile computing and more vulnerable internet-connected devices could actually make surveillance easier for national security officials, report saysWhen Silicon Valley closes a door for spies, it opens a window.

Spanish telecoms group aims to cut debt by asking employees with 15 years’ service not to come to work, with chance to returnThe Spanish telecoms group Telefónica has come up with a novel way of reducing its wage bill by offering employees aged over 53 the chance to stay at home on 68% of their salary.Under a new deal negotiated with trade unions, any employee over 53 with 15 years of service will continue to receive slightly more than two thirds of their salary if they do not come in to work. They will remain under contract and the company will continue to pay their social security and private health contributions until they reach 65, thus saving the state the burden of further unemployment benefits. Continue reading...

Search group’s bosses will confirm about one in every 10 dollars came from British advertisers as debate over company’s tax arrangements continuesGoogle bosses in California are expected to reveal global revenues grew by more than 11% to about $72bn (£50bn) last year – with more than £5bn believed to have come from sales to UK customers.Alphabet Inc, the search group’s parent, is expected to confirm on Monday about one in 10 dollars earned last year by Google came from UK advertisers, despite the dollar strengthening against the pound. Continue reading...

British vlogger’s videos have been watched more than 1bn times so far on Google’s online video service across her two channelsShe may be a bestselling author and makeup mogul now, but Zoe “Zoella” Sugg is still attracting new fans on her original stomping ground: YouTube.The vlogger’s main YouTube channel has just reached the milestone of 10 million subscribers, making it the fourth British channel to reach that mark after One Direction, KSI and Adele. Continue reading...

YouTubers hit back at Fine Bros’ attempt to trademark word over fears that the pair are trying to seize entire concept of the reaction video format

World’s largest smartphone manufacturer releases update to its default web browser enabling users to block advertisingThe world’s largest smartphone maker, Samsung, has introduced adblocking on its devices, potentially introducing hundreds of millions more people to barring online ads.Samsung released an update on Sunday night that allows apps to stop ads appearing in its own web browser, which is installed as a default on its smartphones. Continue reading...

Facebook’s Android app negatively impacts performance and battery life, even when it’s only running in the background, users findFacebook does not have the greatest track record with its Android app. Users have long complained about performance issues and it sucking up battery and last year Facebook’s chief product officer, Chris Cox, took the unusual step of making his staff ditch their iPhones and move to Android until they sorted out the issues.

How a small team set out to tell an intimate personal drama within the vastness of the Yellowstone National ParkThe outdoors in Firewatch isn’t like the outdoors in most games. It feels somehow bigger. This is a game set in Wyoming’s Yellowstone national park, a vast wilderness of lakes, mountains and hiking trails. When the sun began to set on my first day in the park – as the lead protagonist Henry, the volunteer fire lookout – it reminded me of rushing home at dusk while playing out as a kid, of escaping the dark as a small person in a big world.This is all very deliberate. Firewatch is a relatively small and simple game, designed to engage players emotionally with a handful of basic, believable parts. It comes from a new studio, Campo Santo, though its dozen members have worked on lots of other games at various other studios. The lead artist, Jane Ng, worked on The Cave at Double Fine, while the writer/director pair, Sean Vanaman and Jake Rodkin, led the team behind the hugely acclaimed first season of The Walking Dead at Telltale Games. Continue reading...

The place to talk about games and others things that matterUh-oh, it’s Monday. Continue reading...

Google Translate helps us overcome the language barrier. But can it help our reporter with a Scouse accent? Hannah Jane Parkinson finds outI’m a big fan of travel. Travel is great – whether it is the Trans-Siberian railway or trekking in the Amazon. And from Citymapper to TripAdvisor, technology has made travel a lot easier.But perhaps my favourite travel aide is Google Translate. Continue reading...

Business secretary Sajid Javid says he shared Britons’ sense of injustice as criticism grows of agreement with tech firmA senior government minister has admitted the tax settlement between Google and the UK government “was not a glorious moment”.The admission by the business secretary, Sajid Javid, came as a senior executive from Google claimed he could not say how much UK profit has been generated by the technology firm in the past decade, or how many meetings had been held between the company’s executives and ministers. Continue reading...

The Google affair reveals gaping holes in our tax system – from the smoke and mirrors of royalty payments, to the charade of the tech giant’s Irish questionFirst, the case for the defence. It is not true that Google pays UK corporation tax at a rate of only 3%. That is not possible. Corporation tax, currently 20%, is the same for all companies.Nor is it true that Google paid no tax at all before the settlement earlier this month with HM Revenue & Customs. Google UK’s accounts show a £20m tax payment in 2013, for example. The bill for back taxes of £130m, covering the past 10 years, arises from an audit by HMRC that was started in 2009. And, finally, the company’s statement that it “complies with the law” is 100% accurate. It now has a stamp of approval from HMRC to demonstrate as much. Continue reading...

The team behind Siri have a new idea: a voice-controlled personal assistant – linked to all your devices – that will take care of your every needSo I’ve arrived late at the office of Viv, an artificial intelligence company based in San Jose, California. I missed my train from San Francisco after dawdling leaving my apartment and then finding the taxi service app on my phone wouldn’t work. Dag Kittlaus, who I’ve kept waiting, looks on the bright side. “Your trials of getting here are a perfect illustration of how Viv will be helpful,” he says. “Wouldn’t it be nice to say ‘I need to get to San Jose, give me my options’ and Viv would know how close you are to the train station, when the next train is coming, where the nearest cars, how much it was going to cost…”Kittlaus is the co-founder and CEO of Viv, a three-year-old AI startup backed by $30m, including funds from Iconiq Capital, which helps manage the fortunes of Mark Zuckerberg and other wealthy tech executives. In a blocky office building in San Jose’s downtown, the company is working on what Kittlaus describes as a “global brain” – a new form of voice-controlled virtual personal assistant. With the odd flashes of personality, Viv will be able to perform thousands of tasks, and it won’t just be stuck in a phone but integrated into everything from fridges to cars. “Tell Viv what you want and it will orchestrate this massive network of services that will take care of it,” he says. Continue reading...

It may be named after Picasso, but what would the artistic genius have made of Citroën’s big people carrier?Price: £19,970

Microsoft co-founder chooses the Beatles track Two of Us in memory of Apple boss and talks about his charity work and how he met his wifeBill Gates speaks about his relationship with the late Apple founder Steve Jobs and chooses a song in memory of their work together shaping the technology of the modern age, in an appearance on BBC Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs on Sunday.Describing Jobs, who died in 2011, as an “incredible genius”, Gates, 60, chooses as one of his allotted eight favourite tracks the Beatles’s Two of Us, for its apposite line: “You and I have memories longer than the road that stretches out ahead.”. Continue reading...

Opposition figures react angrily to news that government has objected to EU’s proposed blacklisting of Bermuda as ‘unhelpful’Britain has been privately lobbying the EU to remove the tax haven through which Google funnels billions of pounds of profits from an official blacklist, the Observer can reveal.Treasury ministers have told the European commission that they are “strongly opposed” to proposed sanctions against Bermuda, a favoured shelter for Google’s profits and one of 30 tax jurisdictions in Brussels’s sights. Continue reading...

It’s the kind of car you might buy if you had a drug-dealing empire and wanted to splash some cash without getting stopped by the police

Pulitzer prize-winning journalist and security researcher Ashkan Soltani says he has been denied security clearance for his new job with White HouseThe White House has denied a security clearance to a member of its technology team who previously helped report on documents leaked by Edward Snowden.

Licensed firearm retailers will still be able to advertise on the site, but updated policy will forbid individual users from coordinating peer-to-peer sales of gunsFacebook announced that it is banning the private sale of firearms on its social network, which can take place without background check.While licensed firearm retailers will still be able to advertise on the site, the updated policy will forbid individual users from coordinating peer-to-peer sales of guns. Facebook already prohibits the private sale of marijuana, pharmaceuticals, and illegal drugs.

Trials at New Mexico’s Spaceport Authority are using new millimetre wave technology to deliver data from drones – potentially 40 times faster than 4GGoogle is testing solar-powered drones at Spaceport America in New Mexico to explore ways to deliver high-speed internet from the air, the Guardian has learned.In a secretive project codenamed SkyBender, the technology giant built several prototype transceivers at the isolated spaceport last summer, and is testing them with multiple drones, according to documents obtained under public records laws. Continue reading...

As the Broncos and Panthers face off on the field, the titans of tech and the NFL compete to be the center of attention during biggest sports event of the yearSilicon Valley technologists may not be the most athletic bunch, but they do understand eyeballs.

The chancellor’s ‘huge success’ in securing £130m in back taxes from the technology company raises a number of issuesWhen Google reached a £130m settlement with the British taxman last week, George Osborne described the deal as a “major success”. But the chancellor and the search giant have been on the back foot ever since, accused of striking a “sweetheart deal” that might have short-changed taxpayers and has drawn the close attention of Brussels.Should Osborne have hailed Google’s tax deal? Did he misjudge how it would be received?

The 31-year-old also overtook the Koch brothers to become the fourth-richest in the US, as Facebook’s record fourth-quarter profits bring net worth to $47.5bnFacebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is now the sixth-richest person on Earth and the fourth-richest person in US, his net worth surpassing that of the politically influential Koch brothers, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.Facebook reported a quarter of record revenue, with sales up 52% and net income more than doubling since last year. Zuckerberg’s wealth rose by $6bn on Thursday, taking his net worth to $47.5bn. Continue reading...

British surveillance agency advises cryptography enthusiasts to join forces if they want to meet Sunday deadline

Social network has suffered from stagnating users, according to figures it publically reveals, but third-party data suggests that the real story is worse stillTwitter’s American userbase may have fallen by a third over the past two years, according to figures from third-party analytics firm 7Park Data.The figures contradict Twitter’s own numbers, which report a 25% growth over the same period. Continue reading...