New law makes it illegal for employers in California and Illinois to demand Facebook passwords

New laws that took effect on January 1st, 2013 make it illegal for employers to demand access to their workers’ password-protected Facebook (FB) accounts. After some high-profile instances of companies requiring access to employees’ accounts, Congress was asked to consider a law making such demands illegal on the grounds that they constitute an invasion of privacy. Congress blocked the law, however...

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Fake John le Carré Twitter Account Fakes J.K. Rowling's Fake Twitter Death

We've seen "Cormac McCarthy" Tweet apocalyptic non sequiturs. "Philip Roth" promised us a bite-sized short story. Now a fake Twitter account for British spy novelist John le Carré is spreading bizarre death rumors about J.K. Rowling. After a few days of Tweeting harmless missives, the week-old handle @JLecarre dropped this would-be bombshell on its nearly 2,500 followers Wednesday morning: A terrible...

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Kicked Off Facebook, Kid Creates Own Social Network

If you can't join it, create your own.That's the attitude one Florida preteen ran with after his parents banned him from using Facebook. Instead of begging or slamming doors when his account was deactivated, the 11-year-old launched his own social network tailored specifically to children.Grom Social founder Zachary Marks had a Facebook account for roughly a week despite being two years too young...

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Israel sees new US poise, including military, to curb Iran

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - U.S.-led efforts to curb Iran's nuclear program have resumed since President Barack Obama's re-election and include preparation for possible military action, a senior Israeli official said on Tuesday.The remarks by Vice Prime Minister Moshe Yaalon suggested cautious optimism at prospects for an international resolution to the decade-old standoff with Tehran, though Israel says...

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Three burning questions loom as RIM gets ready to report

Some people say that the November quarter that Research In Motion (RIMM) will report this week is not important. They are wrong. Even though the new BlackBerry model range debuting in 2013 is the key for RIM’s long-term survival, there are three issues that are vitally important for the company right now. RIM must keep certain aspects of its performance from caving in before the new phones begin trickling...

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New Android botnet discovered across all major networks

A new Android spam botnet has been discovered across all major networks that sends thousands of text messages without a user’s permission, TheNextWeb reported. The threat, which is known at SpamSoldier, was detected on December 3rd by Lookout Security in cooperation with an unnamed carrier partner. The malware is said to spread through a collection of infected phones that send text messages, which...

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16 Things You Forgot Happened in 2012

1. GoDaddy Supported SOPA and Faced the ConsequencesTechnically this debacle took place in the last week of 2011, but the backlash lasted well into 2012. GoDaddy, the popular domain registrar and web hosting company, showed early support for the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), a hotly contested bill regarding copyright violations that was introduced by U.S. Representative Lamar S. Smith. Many Internet...

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LG’s woeful comeback attempt

Back in 2008, Samsung (005930) and LG (06657011) were battling head to head in North America and Europe. Now Samsung is heading for 29% global handset market share for 2012, while LG is tumbling to 4%. After a long and depressing spiral, LG has staged a fairly aggressive come-back attempt in the end of 2012. Sadly enough, the bid for relevance seems to be coming undone.[More from BGR: BlackBerry 10...

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Soccer: Real need rapid turnaround before United clash

Defeat at Malaga on Saturday has surely dashed any lingering hopes Real Madrid had of defending their La Liga title and they urgently need to find their form before Manchester United's Champions League visit on February 12.Jose Mourinho's decision to drop goalkeeper and captain Iker Casillas for the 3-2 reverse was still sending out shockwaves on Sunday and the defeat had left an "insurmountable"...

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Soccer-Norwich settle dispute with former manager Lambert

LONDON, Dec 23 (Reuters) - Norwich City have come to an agreement with their former manager Paul Lambert and his new side Aston Villa to settle the dispute over his departure, the Premier League club said on Sunday.Villa will pay Norwich the original amount agreed in Lambert's contract with the Norfolk club who will pay the former Scotland midfielder his bonus due after the 2011/12 season."This represents...

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UPDATE 2-Soccer-Ligue 1 top scorers

Dec 23 (Infostrada Sports) - Top scorers of the Ligue 1 on Sunday18 Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Paris St Germain)11 Bafetimbi Gomis (Olympique Lyon)10 Dario Cvitanich (Nice)9 Anthony Modeste (Bastia)Wissam Ben Yedder (Toulouse)8 Julien Feret (Stade Rennes)Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (St Etienne)7 Jeremie Aliadiere (FC Lorient)Yoan Gouffran (Girondins Bordeaux)Romain Alessandrini (Stade Rennes)Eden Ben Basat...

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UPDATE 2-Soccer-Ligue 1 results and standings

Dec 23 (Infostrada Sports) - Results and standings from the Ligue 1 matches on SundaySunday, December 23Olympique Marseille 1 St Etienne 0Toulouse 2 Sochaux 0Valenciennes 2 Evian Thonon Gaillard FC 1Saturday, December 22Ajaccio 2 Stade Rennes 4FC Lorient 2 Stade de Reims 2Girondins Bordeaux 0 ES Troyes AC 0Lille 4 Montpellier HSC 1Olympique Lyon 3 Nice 0Bastia 4 AS Nancy 2Friday, December 21Stade...

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Soccer-Marseille cling on with leaders after beating St Etienne

 Andre Ayew struck just before the break to give Olympique Marseille a 1-0 home win against St Etienne on Sunday and keep them level on points with leaders Paris St Germain.As Ligue 1 goes into a three-week break, OM are third with 38 points, behind pacesetters PSG and second-placed Olympique Lyon on goal difference.St Etienne, who last beat OM at the Velodrome in 1979, are 10th with 27 points...

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Police Find Clothing Tied to Missing Yacht School Friends

lothing items believed to belong to two missing yacht school friends were found on the rocks of a small island off the coast of Maine, Kennebunkport police said today.Zachary Wells, 21, and Prescott Wright, 23, were last seen hanging out at a home in the seaside community on Thursday, police chief Craig Sanford said.The disappearance of the two friends baffled authorities, who have searched by air,...

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Man set trap and then shot and killed firefighters responding to Webster, N.Y. fire

A man with a criminal history shot and killed two West Webster, N.Y. firefighters and seriously injured two others as they responded to a fire at his home, police say.William H. Spengler, Jr., 62, apparently started a 5:35 a.m. fire at his home on Lake Road  and then waited with an armament of weapons for first responders to arrive, Webster N.Y. Police Chief Gerald Pickering said at an afternoon...

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Newspaper Publishes Gun Owners' Names and Addresses

A newspaper in New York has received a wave of criticism from its readers after publishing the names and addresses of all of the individuals with handgun or pistol permits in its coverage area.Hundreds of residents in New York's Westchester and Rockland counties were surprised to find their names and addresses listed on a map posted by The Journal News on Sunday. Users can click any dot on the map...

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At Christmas Eve Mass, pope urges space for God

Pope Benedict XVI marked Christmas Eve with Mass in St. Peter's Basilica and a pressing question: Will people find room in their hectic, technology-driven lives for children, the poor and God?The pontiff also prayed that Israelis and Palestinians live in peace and freedom, and asked the faithful to pray for strife-torn Syria as well as Lebanon and Iraq.The ceremony began at 10 p.m. local time Monday...

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Windows already threatening iPhone in Southern Europe

Kantar Worldpanel’s report for November came out and much has been made of the iPhone market share surge in the United States. What I find interesting in the November numbers is just how ice cold the iPhone has gone in so many international markets, from Australia to Brazil to Southern Europe. The iOS market share showed hefty declines outside in many major markets: down 5.4 percentage points in Australia...

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The Way the World Could Have Ended

We realize there's only so much time one can spend in a day watching new trailers, viral video clips, and shaky cell phone footage of people arguing on live television. This is why every day The Atlantic Wire highlights the videos that truly earn your five minutes (or less) of attention. Today:RELATED: What Happens When You Sing 'All Night Long' All Night LongKnock, knock. You're still here, right?...

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RIM shares dive as fee changes catch market off guard

Shares of BlackBerry maker Research In Motion Ltd plunged more than 20 percent on Friday on fears that a new fee structure for its high-margin services segment could put pressure on the business that has set the company apart from its competitors.It was the stock's biggest, single-day, percentage price drop since September 2008. But shares were still nearly 80 percent above the year's low, which was...

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