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Ransomware Aimed to Shake Down Mac Users

The bane of "ransomware" used by hackers to hold data hostage was expected to begin striking a small number of Mac computers on Monday.

Researchers at U.S. computer security firm Palo Alto Networks said that they alerted Apple over the weekend to the discovery of malicious code they named "KeRanger" crafted to infect Mac computers and deny people access to their own pictures, documents and other digital data until money is paid.

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Email Inventor Ray Tomlinson Dies at 74

Ray Tomlinson, the U.S. programmer credited with inventing email in the 1970s and choosing the "@" symbol for the messaging system, died at the age of 74, his employer said Sunday. 

Tomlinson invented direct electronic messages in 1971. Before his invention, users could only write messages to others on a limited network.

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Electric Supercar Wins Young Croatian Global Fame

He's the name behind the world's first electric supercar, winning international plaudits for his ingenuity. But for Croatia's 28-year-old Mate Rimac, it all started as a hobby in his garage.

A keen techie since high school, Rimac was racing an old BMW when he blew the engine and decided to turn the car into an electric one starting with pieces he bought on the Internet.

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In Apple vs. FBI Case, Compromise Appears Elusive

As Apple's legal battle with the FBI over encryption heads toward a showdown, there appears little hope for a compromise that would placate both sides and avert a divisive court decision.

The FBI is pressing Apple to develop a system that would allow the law enforcement agency to break into a locked iPhone used by one of the San Bernardino attackers, a demand the tech company claims would make all its devices vulnerable.

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China Looks to Ramp up Internet Growth, and its Controls

China's government has highlighted big data, encryption technology and "core technologies" such as semiconductors as the key elements of its push to grow into a tech powerhouse, according to a new five-year plan released Saturday that envisages the Internet as a major source of growth as well as a potential risk.

Even as it highlighted the need to improve Internet infrastructure to rural areas and unlock the digital economy's potential, Chinese economic planners called for a more secure and better managed Web, with enhanced Internet control systems, Internet security laws and real-name registration policies.

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Facebook to Pay More Taxes in Britain

Facebook on Friday said it would declare advertising revenue from its top British clients in Britain instead of Ireland, where it has its European headquarters, meaning it will have to pay more tax.

"On Monday we will start notifying large UK customers that from the start of April they will receive invoices from Facebook UK and not Facebook Ireland," the company said in a statement.

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Uber and Ola Race to Offer Motorbike Taxis in India

Uber and its Indian rival Ola on Thursday launched pilot taxi motorbike services within hours of each other, as competition between the two taxi apps ramps up.

Both start-ups are trialing the motorbike taxis in the traffic-clogged southern city of Bangalore, seeking to grab a greater share of India's ultra-competitive ride-hailing market.

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UK Man Guilty of Raping Five Women from match.com

A British man was on Wednesday found guilty of raping five women he met through the U.S. Internet dating service match.com, which he was allowed to use despite complaints to the website from his victims.

Derby Crown Court in central England heard that father-of-three Jason Lawrance, 50, contacted thousands of women on match.com using the profile names KeepItStraightToday and StraightMan_Looking.

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Facebook Executive Released in Brazil after WhatsApp Data Access Row

Facebook's vice president for Latin America was released Wednesday, a day after being arrested for refusing to hand over WhatsApp messages to the police investigating a drugs case.

Judge Ruy Pinheiro, in Sergipe state, ruled overnight that the detention of Diego Dzodan in Sao Paulo on Tuesday had amounted to "unlawful coercion."

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German Watchdog Probes Facebook on Privacy Rules

Facebook may be abusing its dominant market position and violating data protection rules, Germany's competition watchdog said Wednesday, announcing it had opened a probe into the social network.

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