Harrison Ford back for Blade Runner

27 February 2015 Last updated at 10:42

Harrison Ford will reprise his role as police officer Rick Deckard in the forthcoming Blade Runner sequel, it has been confirmed.

Denis Villeneuve, who directed Hugh Jackman and Jake Gyllenhaal in kidnap drama Prisoners, is in talks to direct.

The story takes place several decades after the conclusion of the 1982 film, which was based on Philip K Dick novel Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep?

The film is scheduled to start shooting in the summer of 2016.

The cult 1982 film, directed by Sir Ridley Scott, saw Deckard hunting down genetically engineered lifelike robots, known as replicants, in a futuristic Los Angeles, set in 2019.

The latest instalment - reportedly based on an idea from Scott, who will also produce the new film - has been written by Hampton Fancher, who co-wrote the original screenplay. He will be joined fellow screenwriter Michael Green.

"We are honoured that Harrison is joining us on this journey," said producers Andrew Kosove and Broderick Johnson in a joint statement.

"Hampton and Michael, with Sir Ridley Scott, have crafted a uniquely potent and faithful sequel to one of the most universally celebrated films of all time, and we couldn't be more thrilled with this amazing, creative team."

It marks the third time Ford has returned to an iconic role. In 2008, he returned to the role of Indiana Jones nearly 20 years after the franchise came to a halt in 1989.

Later this year, the 72-year-old will reprise the role of Han Solo in the latest addition to the Star Wars franchise, Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Last year he broke his leg on the set of the film.

23.52 | 0 komentar | Read More

Passport website sues its customers

27 February 2015 Last updated at 13:53 By Shari Vahl Reporter, You and Yours

An unofficial passport website has sued more than 150 of its own customers after they tried to cancel or refused to pay believing they had been misled.

Some who used Britishpassportservices.co.uk said they thought they were on the government's official website when trying to book appointments for urgent passports.

But the website told BBC Radio 4's You and Yours that there were disclaimers which the customers did not read.

Some of them have now been sued.

'Threatening'

Retired City of London Police officer Mark Dilliway paid Britishpassportservices.co.uk £117 for an appointment - which is free of charge from the government.

"There was a button there to arrange an urgent appointment," he said.

It was not until he rang the official Passport Office that he realised his mistake.

"They said you haven't made the appointment through any of our offices, you've made it through a third party. That was when I felt sick. I just could not believe I'd fallen for it," he said.

Martin Wyatt, from Bristol, did not realise what had happened until he got to the Passport Office for the appointment.

His credit card company agreed to stop the payment, but later the website owners warned they would take legal action.

"They left threatening messages and by that time the cost inflated to about £177 and they detailed various calls and various text messages charging you typically £5 or £10 for each contact," he said.

'Valuable service'

Chantelle Parker Mills said she worked out it was not the official site and pulled out before entering payment, and booked her own appointment with the official Passport Office.

She said the company had been extremely aggressive.

UK Services and Support Ltd which runs Britishpassportservcies.co.uk went on to sue her, and succeeded because when court documents arrived - giving Ms Mills 14 days to respond - she ignored them.

In cases like this, if one side does not turn up, the other side automatically wins. This is called a default judgement. The case has not been looked at by a judge at all.

UK Services and Support Ltd is 18 months old, and has sued 150 people - obtaining default judgements against them.

Richard Howard, the 28-year-old director of UK Services and Support Ltd, repeatedly denied his website misleads people into believing it is the government site.

He pointed out that at the top of his site it said "no government affiliation" and it also said "our fees can be avoided by visiting the Post or Passport Offices incurring just the passport fee still due if using our service as we are an unaccredited company without any government license" [sic].

Mr Howard also insisted he offered a valuable service.

He has also set up a political party, which runs what looks like a regulator website www.websitestandardsagency.eu and also what looks like a consumer advice website, consumer-rights.org.uk. Neither is official.

In September 2014, the Advertising Standards Authority ruled another of Mr Howard's passport sites www.Ukpassportoffices.co.uk was misleading consumers. Five years ago his company, Phonenumbers4u Ltd, was fined by the premium rate regulator Phonepayplus.

23.52 | 0 komentar | Read More

US-Bangladesh writer hacked to death

27 February 2015 Last updated at 15:16

Attackers in the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka have hacked to death a US-Bangladeshi blogger whose writings on religion angered Islamist hardliners.

Avijit Roy, an atheist who advocated secularism, was attacked as he walked back from a book fair with his wife, who was also hurt in the attack.

No-one has been arrested but police say they are investigating a local Islamist group that praised the killing.

Hundreds of people gathered in Dhaka to mourn the blogger's death.

Mr Roy's family say he received threats after publishing articles promoting secular views, science and social issues on his Bengali-language blog, Mukto-mona (Free Mind).

He defended atheism in a recent Facebook post, calling it a "rational concept to oppose any unscientific and irrational belief".

His Mukto-mona website on Friday bore the message in Bengali "we are grieving but we shall overcome" against a black background.

US State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki described it as an assault on Bangladesh's proud tradition of free intellectual and religious speech.

'Den of militants'

A group of men ambushed the couple, who live in the US and were visiting Dhaka only to attend the book festival, as they walked toward a roadside tea stall.

At least two of the attackers hit the couple with meat cleavers in the attack on Thursday evening, police chief Sirajul Islam told AP news agency.

Dropping their weapons, the attackers ran away, disappearing into the crowds.

Police told the BBC they were investigating a local hard-line religious group that had praised the killing in an online message.

Ajay Roy, father of the dead man, urged the authorities to find the killers and "ensure exemplary punishment".

"This Bangladesh which was built by the blood-sacrifice of the martyrs has now turned into a den of militants," he said.

Students, teachers and bloggers gathered at Dhaka University on Friday to protest against the killing.

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

Akbar Hossain reports from the scene where flowers have been laid

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

"Why does a person get killed just for the writing in his blogs?": Locals react

'Virus' of extremism

In a forthcoming article to be published in the Free Inquiry magazine of April-May 2015, Mr Roy likens religious extremism to a "highly contagious virus".

He says he received threats from Islamist hardliners in Bangladesh last year when his book, The Virus of Faith, was released at a book fair.

"The death threats started flowing to my e-mail inbox on a regular basis," he writes.

"I suddenly found myself a target of militant Islamists and terrorists. A well-known extremist... openly issued death threats to me through his numerous Facebook entries.

"In one widely circulated status, he writes, 'Avijit Roy lives in America and so, it is not possible to kill him right now. But he will be murdered when he comes back.'"

The killing in early 2013 of another secular blogger, Ahmed Rajib Haider, which was blamed on religious hardliners, sparked protests from free-speech supporters and counter-protests from Islamists.

The police say the attack on Mr Roy was similar to the 2013 murder.

Avijit Roy

• Founded Mukto-Mona ("Free Mind") blog site in 2000 to champion secular and humanist writing in Muslim-majority Bangladesh
• Bangladeshi-born US citizen on visit to Bangladesh
• Engineer by profession
• Received recent death threats from Islamist radicals for his writings, family say
• "He was a thinker, he was a man of great knowledge, he was a scientist, he was an engineer" - close friend and Dhaka University professor Anwar Hossain

Death threats against atheist writers and bloggers are nothing new in Bangladesh.

Prominent writer Taslima Nasreen had to leave Bangladesh after she received death threats from hard-line Islamists in the mid-1990s.

She wrote on her blog: "Avijit Roy has been killed the way other free thinker writers were killed in Bangladesh. No free thinker is safe in Bangladesh.

"Islamic terrorists can do whatever they like. They can kill people with no qualms whatsoever."

23.52 | 0 komentar | Read More

Cyber attacks top US threat list

27 February 2015 Last updated at 01:07

US intelligence agencies have placed cyber attacks from foreign governments and criminals at the top of their list of threats to the country.

Online assaults would increasingly undermine US economic competitiveness and national security, said Director of National Intelligence James Clapper.

A report issued by his office said Russia's military was setting up a cyber command to carry out attacks.

The report also describes China, Iran and North Korea as leading threats.

In testimony to a congressional committee on Thursday, Mr Clapper said he no longer believed the US faced "cyber Armageddon".

The idea that major infrastructure such as financial networks or power grids could be disabled by hackers now looked less probable, he said.

However he warned: "We foresee an ongoing series of low-to-moderate level cyber attacks from a variety of sources over time, which will impose cumulative costs on US economic competitiveness and national security."

Mr Clapper highlighted the case of Russia, which he said posed the greatest a cyber risk to US interests. He said that threat from the Russian government was "more severe" than previously realised.

He also said profit-minded criminals and ideologically driven hackers were also increasingly active.

Over the past year there have been a series of high-profile cyber attacks against US targets.

North Korea was accused of being behind the theft of a huge data cache from Sony Pictures in November.

Mr Clapper also mentioned the example of an alleged Iranian attack on the Las Vegas Sands Casino Corporation last year.

Meanwhile in January the Twitter and YouTube accounts of the US military command were hacked by a group claiming to back Islamic State (IS).

During the hearing, Mr Clapper acknowledged that the US had its own "offensive capabilities".

In 2010 Iran experienced a cyber attack on its nuclear program. Tehran accused Israel and the US of planting malware.

23.52 | 0 komentar | Read More

Apple faces iPhone patent lawsuit

27 February 2015 Last updated at 13:03

Apple is being sued by a company two days after it was told to pay the same firm $533m (£344m) for infringing patents.

Smartflash LLC first sued over patented technology used in Apple's iTunes.

On 25 February a jury found that Apple infringed the patents and awarded damages to Smartflash.

Now Smartflash has filed another lawsuit based around the same patents but for their use in products Apple launched after the first case started.

The same technology used in iTunes is also used in the Apple iPhone 6, 6 Plus and iPad Air 2, said Smartflash in legal documents supporting its lawsuit. The documents also mention several other patents it owns and which it claims Apple has infringed.

"Smartflash filed the complaint to address products that came out too far into the last proceedings to have been included," said Brad Caldwell, the lawyer representing the firm. The legal action is being taken in the same jurisdiction that awarded damages to Smartflash earlier this week.

After the ruling, Apple said it would appeal and called for more work to be done to reform the technology patent system. It has yet to comment on the filing of the latest lawsuit.

Legal action over infringements of the same patents has also been filed by Smartflash against Google, Samsung and Amazon.

Smartflash is based in the British Virgin Islands and owns and licenses tech-related patents but does not make products itself. Critics have denounced it and other firms like it as "patent trolls".

Earlier this month, firms that operate in a similar fashion to Smartflash also recorded court wins. Samsung has been ordered to pay Rembrandt IP $16m and Symantec has been told to pay Intellectual Ventures $17m.

23.52 | 0 komentar | Read More

Account data stolen in TalkTalk hack

27 February 2015 Last updated at 10:42

TalkTalk customers are being warned about scammers who managed to steal account numbers and names from the company's computers.

In an email sent to every customer, TalkTalk said scammers were using stolen information to trick people into handing over banking details.

TalkTalk said it had sent the email to every customer although only a few thousand account numbers went astray.

It has set up a dedicated phone line for customers targeted by the scammers.

The theft of data was unearthed when TalkTalk investigated a sudden rise in complaints from customers about scam calls between October and December 2014, said a spokeswoman.

Legal action

"We have now concluded a thorough investigation working with an external security company, and we have become aware that some limited non-sensitive information may have been illegally accessed in violation of our security procedure," she said.

The attackers got at some of TalkTalk's internal systems via a third-party that also had access to its network. Legal action is now being taken against this unnamed third party.

The information stolen included names, addresses, phone numbers and TalkTalk account numbers. The company was confident that no sensitive or payment data went astray in the hack.

"We are aware of a small, but nonetheless significant, number of customers who have been directly targeted by these criminals and we have been supporting them directly," said a statement from TalkTalk. It would not put an exact figure on the number affected but said it was in the "small thousands". The company currently has about four million customers.

The scammers appear to be using the stolen details to trick people into thinking calls are coming from legitimate TalkTalk customer service staff. People are then tricked into handing over bank details or into signing up and paying for security software and services they do not need.

Although TalkTalk said it became aware of the data loss late last year, the BBC has been contacted by one customer who said the scammers working to a similar pattern called in August. His wife's familiarity with computers helped her quickly spot that the call was fake.

"They said our computer was infected with a virus and used various social engineering techniques to try to get more info, but she's pretty clued up," said Richard Lee-Williams from Wales.

"Over the following few days she got several more calls but from a different person each time trying the same trick," he said.

At the time TalkTalk was "dismissive" of the complaint Mr Lee-Williams made about the scam.

A TalKTalk spokeswoman said without more details it was hard to know if the same conmen were involved in the August and December attacks. She invited Mr Lee-Williams to contact TalkTalk to resolve his complaint.

Customers who have been hit by the scammers can call a dedicated number, 0800 083 2710, to get help from the telecoms firm.

Some reports suggest customers have lost thousands to the scammers. Many TalkTalk customers have taken to the company's support forums to report that they have been contacted by the scammers.

Customers who have been caught out should contact their bank, said the firm. It added that it was working with the Information Commissioner's Office to identify the scammers and stop them targeting customers.

Security expert Graham Cluley described the breach as "very worrying".

"Rumours of a TalkTalk data breach have been bubbling up since December, but this is the first official confirmation that a serious incident has occurred," he said.

"Unfortunately, it's unlikely that scammers and fraudsters are only targeting TalkTalk - there is a good chance that other telecoms companies have also been on the receiving end of attacks from hackers eager to steal customer data," he added.

"Everyone needs to be on their guard for unsolicited emails and phone calls," said Mr Cluley. "If in doubt, go the extra mile to confirm that the person contacting you is legitimate."

23.52 | 0 komentar | Read More

Google buys .app web domain for $25m

27 February 2015 Last updated at 12:24

Google has purchased the website domain .app in an auction held by the organisation which oversees the running of the net.

The firm's winning bid for $25,001,000 (£16,234,000) is believed to be the highest so far.

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (Icann) is rolling out new customised web names and auctioning them off.

Other web address endings sold so far include .baby, .tech, .salon and .VIP.

The suffixes are known as generic Top Level Domains (gTLD).

In its bid application, Google-owned company Charleston Road Registry Inc says its plan is that the domain will be used by developers of apps.

"The proposed gTLD will provide application developers with the ability to customise domain and website name application offerings to signal to the general population of internet users that .app websites are indeed related to applications and application developers," the firm writes.

"This specialisation makes it clear to internet users that this is the authoritative and designated space where they can find applications and information about developers accessible via differentiated and streamlined web addresses."

The ending .baby was bought by pharmaceutical firm Johnson & Johnson, which makes a range of baby products, for just over $3m.

A firm called Dot Tech LLC bought .tech for $6,760,000.

All funds acquired through auction will be held by the Icann board and used "through consultation with the community", the organisation said.

Last year, the French wine industry expressed concern over the creation of gTLDs .wine and .vin which it argued could affect existing trade agreements for regional products like champagne.

23.52 | 0 komentar | Read More

Google backs down over Blogger porn

27 February 2015 Last updated at 13:33

Google has changed its mind about forcing sexually explicit blogs on its Blogger platform to become private.

Earlier this week, the firm warned bloggers that blogs containing sexually explicit images and videos would be made private on 23 March.

After "a ton of feedback" the firm has decided to continue with its current policy instead, it says.

Explicit blogs must continue to identify themselves as "adult".

This means a warning page is shown before readers are transferred to the site.

Google also reserves the right to add an "adult" tag to Blogger blogs if it feels the description is appropriate.

The "acceptable use" policy link currently redirects users to a posted message which reads:

"We've had a ton of feedback, in particular about the introduction of a retroactive change (some people have had accounts for 10+ years), but also about the negative impact on individuals who post sexually explicit content to express their identities.

"So rather than implement this change, we've decided to step up enforcement around our existing policy prohibiting commercial porn."

As long as bloggers have correctly identified their adult blogs they need take no further action, the message adds.

Google had originally proposed forcing existing explicit blogs to go private from next month, and said it would potentially take down blogs created after its 23 March deadline.

23.52 | 0 komentar | Read More

Cut music to 'an hour a day' - WHO

27 February 2015 Last updated at 14:27 By James Gallagher Health editor, BBC News website

People should listen to music for no more than one hour a day to protect their hearing, the World Health Organization suggests.

It says 1.1 billion teenagers and young adults are at risk of permanently damaging their hearing by listening to "too much, too loudly".

It said audio players, concerts and bars were posing a "serious threat".

WHO figures show 43 million people aged 12-35 have hearing loss and the prevalence is increasing.

In that age group, the WHO said, half of people in rich and middle-income countries were exposed to unsafe sound levels from personal audio devices.

Meanwhile 40% were exposed to damaging levels of sound from clubs and bars.

The proportion of US teenagers with hearing loss went from 3.5% in 1994 to 5.3% in 2006.

WHO v The Who

Dr Etienne Krug, the WHO's director for injury prevention, told the BBC: "What we're trying to do is raise awareness of an issue that is not talked about enough, but has the potential to do a lot of damage that can be easily prevented."

The full report argued: "While it is important to keep the volume down, limiting the use of personal audio devices to less than one hour a day would do much to reduce noise exposure."

Dr Krug said that a good ambition aim: "That's a rough recommendation, it is not by the minute, to give an idea to those spending 10 hours a day listening to an mp3-player.

"But even an hour can be too much if the volume is too loud."

Safe listening levels

The louder the noise (measured in decibels), the faster it damages the ear.

The WHO's safe listening times are:

• 85 dB - the level of noise inside a car - eight hours
• 90 dB - lawn mower - two hours 30 minutes
• 95 dB - an average motorcycle - 47 minutes
• 100 dB - car horn or underground train - 15 minutes
• 105 dB - mp3 player at maximum volume - four minutes
• 115 dB - loud rock concert - 28 seconds
• 120 dB - vuvuzela or sirens - nine seconds

The World Health Organization recommends keeping the volume to 60% of the maximum as a good rule of thumb.

For people trying to drown out the noise of flying or train journeys, it says noise-cancelling headphones allow music to be heard clearly at a lower volume.

And the WHO adds that ear plugs should be worn at noisy venues and advises taking "listening breaks" and standing far away from speakers at gigs.

But what is the point of a concert if you are going to avoid the music?

"We do realise this is a bit of a struggle, like alcohol consumption, so many risk factors linked to pleasure are not easy to change, but we have to make people aware," Dr Krug said.

But as well as calling for personal responsibility, the WHO says governments and manufacturers have a responsibility.

It says clubs should provide chill-out rooms and give out free ear plugs, headphone manufacturers should set limits on the volume, and governments need to adopt stricter laws.

Paul Breckell, the chief executive of the charity Action on Hearing Loss, said: 'When listening to loud music, for every three decibel increase in level, to stay safe you should halve your listening time.

"For example, at 88 dB, safe allowable exposure is cut to four hours, at 91 dB, two hours and so on.

"I urge music lovers to consider the long term risks of listening to loud music from their personal music players over the 85dB safe level, as over exposure can trigger tinnitus, and remember that a good pair of noise cancelling headphones can make all the difference."

23.52 | 0 komentar | Read More

BBC launches Richard III on WhatsApp

28 February 2015 Last updated at 08:00

The BBC is launching a Richard III WhatsApp alert service which will follow the king's story in the month of his reburial.

The discovery of the king's skeleton beneath a Leicester car park in August 2012 attracted worldwide interest.

His remains will be reinterred at Leicester Cathedral on 26 March, after his coffin is taken on a procession through Leicestershire and displayed in the city for three days.

The BBC will be covering the events leading up to the reburial.

To get text, photo and video updates direct to your phone from the BBC via WhatsApp:

1. Add 'BBC Richard III' to your phone contacts - 07935 237 178
2. Send 'King' via WhatsApp to that number

That's it.

If you don't have WhatsApp you can download it for free.

Sign up and you will be sent only the best news stories. Our aim is to keep you up-to-date in the most convenient way.

Your mobile number and details won't be shared with anyone else, they'll just be used to sign you up to the service.

And if at any time you want the alerts to stop just message STOP to the same number.

In addition to the WhatsApp service, the BBC is offering content on radio, online and TV, including live coverage of many events.

23.52 | 0 komentar | Read More