LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jul 5, 2023--

EU ministers agreed stronger rules Tuesday to crack down on the use of cryptocurrencies in tax fraud, as Brussels bolsters its efforts...

KATY, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jun 15, 2023--

Twitch controversies have been major topic of discussion on social media

(Reuters) -Business software maker SAP on Wednesday reaffirmed its full-year outlook for its key cloud business revenue after slightly missing

A teenager has been found responsible for a hacking spree in which victims’ savings were stolen and major companies, including the maker of the best-selling Grand Theft Auto video games, were blackmailed. Arion Kurtaj, 18, and a 17-year-old who cannot be named for legal reasons, were described by the prosecution as the “key players” in the LapsusS hacking group. Psychiatrists had assessed Kurtaj as unfit to stand trial so the role of the jury in his case was to decide whether he had committed the acts alleged against him. On Wednesday, following a two-month trial at London’s Southwark Crown Court plus nine hours and 19 minutes of deliberations, a jury unanimously found Kurtaj had carried out 12 offences in his spree of innovative hacks. These offences included six counts of carrying out an unauthorised act to impair the operation of a computer, three counts of blackmail, two fraud offences, and of failing to comply with a section 49 notice to disclose a key when he did not give up the password to his mobile phone when asked to by police. He tried to blackmail Rockstar Games by threatening to “leak the stolen source code for the Grand Theft Auto sequel onto internet forums”, the indictment stated. Kurtaj and the youth were also accused of hacking software company Nvidia in February 2022 before threatening to “release Nvidia Corporation’s intellectual property on to the web” if it did not pay them. The 17 year-old showed no emotion as he was found guilty of one count of fraud, a charge of blackmail and also of having carried out an unauthorised act to impair the operation of a computer. His mother wept uncontrollably after the verdicts were read out. Keep in mind Arion Kurtaj's psychological make-up, and in particular his psychological condition, his education or lack thereof - could he be the highly intelligent, competent genius that the prosecution set out at the beginning? Arion Kurtaj's defence counsel David Miller Prosecutors alleged Kurtaj and the 17-year-old, aided by unknown associates, hacked the servers and data files of broadband provider BT and mobile operator EE before demanding a four million US dollar ransom on August 1 2021. But the 17-year-old was found not guilty of a charge of have carried out an unauthorised act to impair the operation of a computer and a further charge of blackmail in relation to BT. He previously pleaded guilty to one offence under the Computer Misuse Act and one count of fraud. Neither defendant gave evidence during the jury trial. Sentencing dates at the same court have yet to be fixed for either defendant. This has been a complex and sensitive investigation involving a multi-agency response and there have been a number of challenges throughout the police investigation and judicial process Detective Superintendent Richard Waight A case management hearing has been set for Kurtaj on September 21, while it is hoped that a sentencing date may be fixed for the 17 year-old on November 9. During the trial, the court was told that Kurtaj had been living in care since the age of 14 and had been housed for a period in a Travelodge “for his own protection”. Kurtaj’s defence counsel David Miller described the youngster as “the most vulnerable of adolescents” who was now pitted against huge companies and corporations worth billions, who had unlimited funds and unlimited resources including the FBI, National Crime Agency, Interpol and City of London Police. During closing speeches, he told the jury: “Keep in mind Arion Kurtaj’s psychological make-up, and in particular his psychological condition, his education or lack thereof – could he be the highly intelligent, competent genius that the prosecution set out at the beginning?” After the verdicts, Detective Superintendent Richard Waight, of the City of London Police, said: “This has been a complex and sensitive investigation involving a multi-agency response and there have been a number of challenges throughout the police investigation and judicial process. “We thank the judge and jury for being patient throughout the trial, during deliberations and for the subsequent verdicts.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Social media firms should reimburse online purchase scam victims – Barclays Hozier would consider striking over AI threat to music industry Snapchat experiences ‘temporary outage’ as My AI chatbot posts own Story

A never-before-seen ore containing vast quantities of an element widely used in semiconductors has been found in China in a discovery that could propel new advances in battery technology. Geologists found rare earth metal niobium inside the new ore named niobobaotite from north China’s Inner Mongolia. The rare earth metal is widely used in alloys for jet engines and rockets and has also been shown to have exceptional current conducting properties in low temperatures. Some researchers have said batteries made from niobium have several advantages over traditional lithium-ion batteries. The main source of niobium until now has been from the ore mineral columbite that is extracted widely in Canada, Brazil, Australia and Nigeria, with China obtaining nearly 95 per cent of the element for its steel industry via imports. If geologists can prove that sufficient volume and quality of niobium can be extracted from niobobaotite, experts said it could help make China “self-sufficient”, reported the South China Morning Post newspaper. The niobobaotite ore has received official approval from the International Mineralogical Association’s classification committee, according to the China National Nuclear Corporation, a state-run enterprise responsible for overseeing China’s civilian and military nuclear programmes. The Brazilian Metallurgy and Mining Company (CBMM) has been working on new projects towards the use of niobium to make advanced lithium-ion batteries. China’s state news agency Xinhua reported earlier this year that CBMM is partnering with universities, research centres and battery makers to improve the use of the rare earth element in lithium batteries. Niobium batteries are expected to bring several advantages over traditional lithium-ion batteries that tend to pose challenges like safety risks, short life cycles and long charging times, Antonio Castro Neto, director of the National University of Singapore’s Centre for Advanced 2D Materials, said earlier this year. “We have made significant progress in our development of niobium-graphene batteries which are proving to be a game changer in safety, efficiency, and sustainability,” Dr Neto said. Researchers said the performance duration of niobium-graphene batteries can be 10 times longer than traditional lithium-ion batteries, thus making them last for an estimated 30 years and make them more durable and reliable as well. These batteries, currently in development, can also be fully charged in less than 10 minutes, they said. “As they have a longer lifespan, the new graphene-niobium batteries significantly reduce total cost of ownership compared to existing lithium-ion batteries and have ultrafast charging capabilities. In addition, they offer higher safety as they do not risk explosion even in high temperatures,” Rogerio Ribas, CBMM’s global head of batteries, said in a statement. Read More China’s ‘government-approved’ AI chatbot says Taiwan invasion is likely Australian-Chinese journalist detained for 3 years in China returns to Australia Driver killed after crashing into Chinese consulate in San Francisco had knives and crossbow EU asks Elon Musk to ‘walk the talk’ on X/Twitter disinformation over Hamas attack Earth hit by a huge solar storm that would devastate civilisation, trees show Viral WhatsApp warning of cyberattack targeting Jewish people is fake

The Gulf of Mexico has been a hub for US oil production for decades. A government auction Tuesday

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CUPERTINO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 30, 2023--

The UK Competition & Markets Authority (CMA) has given Microsoft its consent to acquire Activision

By Sarah Wu TAIPEI Taiwanese chipmaker TSMC said on Thursday that while war in Ukraine has impacted the