Web attack knows where you live

One visit to a booby-trapped website could direct attackers to a person's home, a security expert has shown.The attack, thought up by hacker Samy Kamkar, exploits shortcomings in many routers to find out a key identification number.It uses this number and widely available net tools to find out where a router is located.Demonstrating the attack,...

Private browsing modes leak data

The private browsing modes on modern browsers leak information about where people have visited, suggests a study.Available in many browsers, the private modes are not supposed to log information about sites visited.However, the study found that in many cases the privacy mode was compromised by additions to the browser or extra security on...

Saudi Blackberry services Resumes

Blackberry services have been restored in Saudi Arabia, reports say.A ban on the use of the device for sending and receiving messages was due to have come into force.And locals said the handsets had stopped working for four hours.But there is no sign yet that the ban has been lifted. Earlier reports that Blackberry manufacturers RIM (Research...

Net neutrality talks stall in US

US regulators have halted closed-door meetings intended to find a way to make sure all web data is treated equally.The Federal Communications Commission began the meetings after a court limited its net regulation powers.The FCC faced criticism over the meetings by groups that supported the principle known as net neutrality.The FCC decision...

UK to open Earth observation hub

Science minister David Willetts has announced a new UK centre for monitoring the Earth from space.The Earth observation hub will focus on acquiring environmental data, such as information on deforestation and the impact of climate change.The hub will be based at the International Space Innovation Centre (ISIC) at Harwell in Oxfordshire, which...

Ancient climate change 'link' to CO2

A "global pattern" of change in the Earth's climate began 2.7 million years ago, say scientists.Researchers found that, at this point, temperature patterns in the tropics slipped into step with patterns of Ice Ages in the Northern Hemisphere.They report in the journal Science that atmospheric CO2 could be the "missing link" to explain this...

Birds with the brightest feathers may pay a cost for their showmanship

Males with the brightest plumage are thought to be more sexually attractive to female birds.But a study of American goldfinches is the first to show that high levels of brightly coloured chemicals in feathers leads to a breakdown in flight muscles, which affects flight performance.Details are published in the journal Naturwissenschaften. The discovery does not necessarily mean that...

Microsoft slims down Xbox console

The new console - to be launched this week - will have the same price as the old system, but comes with Wi-Fi and a 250 GB HD.It follows a similar move by Sony, which released its own slimmer edition in August 2009.The announcement was made ahead of the E3 games convention in Los Angeles, at which the firm showcased its range of forthcoming...

Wikipedia unlocks divisive pages for editing

The online encyclopaedia Wikipedia says it has taken an "important step" towards making it easier to edit some of its most controversial articles.Up to 2,000 articles, including a page about former US President George W Bush, will have their strict editing restrictions relaxed.Users will now be able to submit changes to the selected ...