Facebook deletes 20,000 underage profiles daily

Social networking site Facebook removes about 20,000 profiles from the site every day for various infractions, including spam, inappropriate content and underage use, as part of its efforts to boost cyber security.

Facebook chief privacy advisor Mozelle Thompson appeared before the Australian Parliament's cyber-safety committee on Monday to discuss Internet-related security issues.

Representatives from Microsoft and Yahoo were also on the panel. Thompson's appearance made headlines when he was quoted in the Daily Telegraph as saying that Facebook "removes 20,000 people a day, people who are underage."

In a statement, Facebook said those 20,000 removals cover a variety of policy violations, including spam, inappropriate content and underage use.

Facebook users must be at least 13 years old. "At Facebook, we take safety very seriously and we were pleased to participate in a hearing in Australia to talk about our safety policies, practices and systems," the company said.

"As we explained in the hearing, these efforts include removing numerous accounts everyday for activities including spamming, posting inappropriate content, and violating age restrictions."

The 20,000 number does "not include the proactive efforts that actually prevent fake or under age accounts from being created," Facebook said.

"There are people who lie. There are people who are under 13 [accessing Facebook]," Thompson told Federal Parliament's cyber-safety committee.

Although the company requires its users to be at least 13-years-old, the limit is easily circumvented, like on pretty much any website on the Internet.

"While the social network has mechanisms to detect liars," Thompson admitted that "It s not perfect".

May 13: Verdict date for four states

New Delhi: The Election Commission on Tuesday announced the election dates for four states - Assam, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Union Territory of Puducherry.

Assam will have election in two phases on April 4 and 11 while Kerala will vote in a single phase on April 13.

Tamil Nadu and Puducherry will also go to polls in a single phase on April 13.

However, West Bengal will vote in six phases. The first phase voting is on April 18, second phase on April 23, third phase on April 27, fourth phase on May 3, fifth phase on May 7 and sixth phase is on May 10.

Google doodle marks writer Jules Verne's birthday

Google on Tuesday plunged its users 20,000 leagues under the sea with its new innovative doodle to mark French science fiction writer Jules Gabriel Verne's 183rd birthday.

The Google logo on February 8 takes the form of the portholes of a submarine with an interactive lever on the side that can be flicked up, down or sideways to plunge the machine deeper into the sea. Through the portholes, users get a glimpse of the various forms of marine life.

A pioneer in his time, Verne is considered the father of the science fiction genre, who foresaw various inventions such as space, air, and underwater travel much before practical submarines, airplanes or spaceships were invented.

The doodle honours Verne's most famous fiction 'Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea' (1870), which tells the story of Captain Nemo and his submarine 'Nautilus' as seen from the perspective of Professor Pierre Aronnax.

Some of Verne's ideas about the not-yet-invented submarines which were laid out in this book turned out to be prophetic, such as the high speed and secret conduct of today's nuclear attack submarines, and the need to surface frequently for fresh air.

But Verne evidently had no idea of the problems of water pressure, depicting his submarine as capable of diving freely into even the deepest of ocean depths.

Verne is also the author of the classics 'A Journey to the Center of the Earth' (1864), and 'Around the World in Eighty Days' (1873). He is the third most translated individual author in the world. Some of his books have been made into films.

Google doodles have gained immense popularity over the past few years and the Google team has put out commemorative doodles on events ranging from news events, civic milestones, birthdays, death anniversaries and important dates in history.

Doodles have celebrated the Fourth of July, the Olympics, and John Lennon's 70th birthday. The Google team put up an elaborate holiday doodle for Christmas last year that took five artists about 250 hours to make.

Google estimates it has created more than 900 doodles since 1998, with 270 of them running in 2010. Some appear globally, and others are tailored for local markets outside the US, such as Kenya Independence Day.

Messi to mesmerise in Kolkata soon

Kolkata: In December 2008, legendary Diego Maradona had set foot in this football-crazy city. Come September 2, another Argentine stalwart Lionel Messi is set to arrive with his national team.

If everything goes as per the plan, it will be a double bonanza of sorts for football lovers here, as Argentina will play against either Spain or Portugal in the one-lakh capacity Yuba Bharati Krirangan.

The Barcelona star forward who won the Fifa Ballon d'Or award recently is likely to be part of the side that is scheduled to visit the city.

"We have signed an agreement for bringing the star-studded Argentine team to Kolkata," an official of a sports management company told PTI.

Confirming this, IFA general secretary Utpal Ganguli said, "The Argentina team are scheduled to play an exhibition match either against Spain or Portugal on September 2 here.

The IFA is organising the event, however another firm is bringing the Argentina national side".

In the recent past, a host of star footballers have come to Kolkata.

They include Diego Forlan, Romario, Branco, Lothar Matthaus, Karl Heinz Rumminege, Oliver Kahn, Gerd Mueller, Mark van Bommel and Ze Roberto.

PMO recommends Sachin for Bharat Ratna

New Delhi: Cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar's name has been recommended for Bharat Ratna by the Prime Minister's Office, sources have told CNN-IBN.

However, sources also add that there is some reservation on conferring Bharat Ratna on Tendulkar as he is considered too young for the highest civilian award of the country.

Those opposing his name also say that as the maestro received Padma Vibhushan just two years back and it may be too early for a Bharat Ratna

At a function in Mumbai the batting maestro stayed away from the issue, saying Bharat Ratna is the dream of every Indian.

"It is every Indians dream to make the country proud," he said.

Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni backed the chorus for awarding Bharat Ratna to Tendulkar.

"Every Indian wishes that a youth icon like Sachin should get Bharat Ratna. It's my personal wish also that Sachin should get Bharat Ratna," said Ambika.

Sources also say that VVS Laxman has been awarded the Padma Shree.

Aus Open: Nadal, Clijsters enter last eight

Melbourne: The "Rafa Slam" is still alive after Rafael Nadal beat Marin Cilic 6-2, 6-4, 6-3 at the Australian Open on Monday to maintain his chance of owning all four Grand Slam trophies at once.

That's a feat which hasn't been achieved since Rod Laver won four majors in 1969.

A favorite for the women's title here, US Open champion Kim Clijsters, also advanced to the quarterfinals Monday with a 7-6 (3), 6-2 win over Ekaterina Makarova of Russia.

Wikileaks gets Swiss bank account holders' data

London: A former Swiss private banker handed over data on hundreds of offshore bank account holders to WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on Monday, saying he wanted to draw attention to financial abuses.

Rudolf Elmer, 55, headed the office of Julius Baer in the Cayman Islands until he was fired by the bank in 2002. He is scheduled to go on trial in Switzerland on Wednesday for breaching bank secrecy.

Swiss national Elmer handed Assange the data at a news conference at a media club in London. The two yellow and blue discs contain information on around 2,000 banking clients, both individuals and companies, he said, declining to reveal further details on the data.

Vetting information

WikiLeaks will take at least "a couple of weeks" to vet the data before publishing it, Assange said. Vetting will be done by themselves, media organisations and other partners to protect sources.

"We have a four-year publishing history. We have never been wrong ... so far as we are aware in relation to anything we have published," said Assange

WikiLeaks may also hand over some of the material to Britain's Serious Fraud Office, he added.

In 2007 Elmer became one of the first whistleblowers to use WikiLeaks, which angered US authorities last year by publishing hundreds of secret diplomatic cables it had obtained.

Assange said the data Elmer had provided previously about the Cayman Islands revealed "corrupt practices" and "clear asset-hiding". He said he expected similar revelations from the new data.

Julius Baer denounced Elmer for waging a campaign to discredit the bank and its customers.

"After his demands (including financial compensation) in connection with the dismissal could not be satisfied, Mr Elmer embarked in 2004 on a personal intimidation campaign and vendetta against Julius Baer," the bank said in a statement.

"The aim of his activities was and is to discredit Julius Baer as well as clients in the eyes of the public."

'The Social Network' sweeps Golden Globe 2011'

The Facebook tale "The Social Network" won top honors Sunday at the Golden Globes with four prizes, including best drama and director, solidifying its prospects as an Academy Awards favorite.
Winning the dramatic lead-acting prizes were Colin Firth for the British monarchy saga "The King's Speech" and Natalie Portman for the psychosexual thriller "Black Swan."Lead-acting honors for the Globes' musical or comedy categories went to Annette Bening for the lesbian-family story "The Kids Are All Right" and Paul Giamatti for the curmudgeon tale "Barney's Version."

The boxing drama "The Fighter" earned both supporting acting Globes, for Christian Bale and Melissa Leo.

David Fincher, directing winner for "The Social Network," said he thought it was strange when "The Social Network" script came to him, since he usually makes dark character studies about misanthropes or films about serial killers. His films include the murder tales "Seven" and "Zodiac."

World Cup: Tendulkar's 6th, debut for 7 players

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Hackers celebrate North Korea heir's birthday

Seoul: Hackers have attacked North Korea's official Youtube and Twitter accounts, posting a cartoon showing Kim Jong-il's heir apparent driving a sports car into a crowd of starving countrymen.

The cyberattack on Saturday, believed to be leader-in-waiting Kim Jong-un's birthday, also called for an uprising against the communist nation's ruling dynasty.

The online embarrassment comes at a time when North Korea has called for dialogue with South Korea to defuse tensions aggravated by an exchange of artillery fire and the sinking of a South navy ship last year.

One of the messages posted on the North's official Twitter account said the ailing Kim Jong-il and his son were sworn enemies.

Another called for the removal of Kim Jong-il for hosting drinking parties at his lavish cottage while 3 million countrymen starved to death.

Several people on a South Korean internet forum, Dcinside, claimed responsibility for the attack.

A two-minute spoof posted on the North's official youtube account showed Kim Jong-un running over a group of starving people and a train, laden with birthday gifts for him, derailed after hitting children on the tracks.

The Youtube account is often used by the North to communicate with the outside world.

There was no immediate comment from the North on the cyberattack. The North Korea's official mouthpiece, KCNA news agency, also did not report any public events or festivals to mark Kim Jong-un's birthday.

Very little is known about Kim Jong-un outside North Korea, who is the youngest son of Kim Jong-il.