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New York Times says Chinese hackers broke into its computers
The New York Times says that Chinese hackers have carried out sustained attacks on its computer systems, breaking in and stealing the passwords of high-profile reporters and other staff members.
According to The Times, one of the biggest and most respected U.S. newspapers, the attacks took place over the past four months, beginning during an investigation by the newspaper into the wealth reportedly accumulated by relatives of the Chinese premier, Wen Jiabao.
FULL STORYNorth Korea on Google Maps: Monuments, nuclear complex, gulags
Ever wondered how to drive from the center of Pyongyang, the showcase capital of North Korea, to Yongbyon, the location of the secretive regime's main nuclear complex?
Well, a recent update to Google Maps has the answer for you.
It has filled in the big, largely blank space that previously lay north of the well-mapped South Korea with streets, towns and landmarks.
Users curious to virtually explore one of the world's most reclusive states can zoom into the heart of Pyongyang and pull up photographs of the Kumsusan Memorial Palace, which houses the bodies of the revered former leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il.
FULL STORY
Apple stock plunges 12%
The world's most valuable publicly traded company took a hit on the stock market Thursday.
Shares of Apple plunged more than 12% Thursday, to $450.50, as investors grew skeptical about the iPhone maker's growth prospects, CNNMoney reports.
Apple's stock has been on a steady decline for months, with shares falling more than 35% from their all-time intraday high of $705, which was reached Sept. 21, 2012.
The Buzz: Fiasco performance ends in ... fiasco
Twitter is still buzzing about rapper Lupe Fiasco’s removal from the stage during a Sunday inauguration concert in Washington.
Concert promoter @hypervocal released a statement saying Fiasco was asked to move on after a “bizarrely repetitive performance that left the crowd vocally dissatisfied.”
Fans are saying anti-Obama rhetoric contained in a song he was performing prompted his removal. We may never know for sure why Fiasco got the hook - but the lyrics to his "Words I Never Said," as posted by Reddit, might provide a clue (contains strong language).
Self-described hip-hop historian and journalist @mrdaveyd blogged about the incident, but admits he wasn’t there.
U.S. attorney: We acted reasonably in Swartz case
A federal prosecutor is pushing back against a claim by the grieving family of Internet activist Aaron Swartz that "prosecutorial overreach" was a factor in his suicide, saying her office acted "fairly and responsibly."
News of the death of Swartz, 26, last Friday sent shock waves through the hacker community and the larger online world. His family and partner issued a statement saying that federal charges filed over allegations that he stole millions of online documents - mostly scholarly papers - from MIT through the university's computer network contributed to Swartz's decision to take his own life.
But the U.S. attorney for Massachusetts, Carmen M. Ortiz, disputed their account of events in a statement released Thursday, while expressing her sympathy "as a parent and a sister" for their loss.
FULL STORY
The Buzz: When Lance Armstrong and Manti Te'o collide
What will your co-workers be talking about this morning? Here's a roundup of some of this morning's big social conversations.
Just hours before Lance Armstrong's interview with Oprah is scheduled to air, the International Olympics Committee has asked Armstrong to return the bronze medal he won at the 2000 Olympic Games. Lance has not publicly tweeted since January 8 and so far has not issued a response. But that isn't keeping everyone from talking about him.
And speaking of sports stars and possible untruths...
Even if you're not a college football fan, there are many things to consider about the Manti Te'o hoax. In short, the Notre Dame football star claims he was the victim of an elaborate online hoax in which a woman he formed an emotional attachment to turned out not to exist. But there is speculation he was in on it and may have used it to increase his brand value.
The Buzz: Your morning cup of social
Each day we're going to try to highlight the conversations bubbling across your social circles. As we find stories that are trending, issues that are being hotly debated, and interesting tidbits that are spreading like wildfires on Twitter, Facebook, Reddit or other social media, we want to tell you about them.
So, what will your co-workers be talking about this morning? Here's a roundup of some of this morning's big social conversations.
Instagram backtracks after user privacy revolt
Faced with a loud and angry backlash from some of its most active users, photo-sharing app Instagram backtracked Tuesday on new language that appeared to give the company ownership of their images.
"The language we proposed ... raised question about whether your photos can be part of an advertisement," Instagram co-founder Kevin Systrom wrote in a blog post. "We do not have plans for anything like this and because of that we're going to remove the language that raised the question."
FULL STORYInternet pioneer John McAfee moves to Guatemala, hires attorney
John McAfee, the Internet security pioneer wanted for questioning in the killing of a neighbor in Belize, is now in Guatemala City, said Telesforo Guerra, the former attorney general of Guatemala.
McAfee has hired Guerra as his attorney, Guerra told CNN en Espanol on Tuesday.
Belize authorities want to talk to McAfee about the November 11 shooting death of American businessman Gregory Faull, 52, who was found dead in his home near San Pedro, on the Caribbean island of Ambergris Caye.
On his website, McAfee commented about his relocation: "I apologize for all of the misdirections over the past few days. It was not easy to exit Belize and required many supporters in many countries.
FULL STORYSyria caused Internet blackout, security firm says
Despite claims to the contrary, the Syrian government is almost certainly responsible for a blackout Thursday that shut down virtually all Internet service in the country, according to a leading Web security firm.
"The Syrian Minister of Information is being reported as saying that the government did not disable the Internet, but instead the outage was caused by a cable being cut," writes Matthew Prince, CEO of CloudFlare. "From our investigation, that appears unlikely to be the case."
Fighting again between rebels and forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad disrupted much of Damascus on Friday, and there was no Internet service throughout much of Syria for a second straight day. The airport was closed to flights, and fighting killed another 31 people across the country on Friday, according to an opposition group that counts casualties.
New York cop's act of kindness goes viral
[Updated at 8:45 a.m. ET Friday] Here's how a simple act of kindness can become a worldwide inspiration and a public relations bonanza for the New York Police Department.
In a case of being in the right place at the right time, a tourist from Arizona, who happens to work in law enforcement herself, was visiting New York City earlier this month when she noticed a man without shoes asking for change near Times Square.
South Carolina taxpayer server hacked, 3.6 million Social Security numbers compromised
The Social Security numbers of millions of South Carolinians, as well as credit and debit card information for hundreds of thousands, have been hacked in what the state's governor described Friday as an international cyberattack.
"This is not a good day for South Carolina," Gov. Nikki Haley told reporters.
Facebook earns $1.2 billion in third quarter
There was a whole lot of talk about a Facebook face plant when the company's stock first went public.
And then there were massive concerns about how the company was raising money and moving into the future. We just got a little bit of information that may show whether critics were right or not. The company's third quarter sales were reported to be $1.2 billion, a number that is in line with analyst expectations, according to CNNMoney.com.
Their stock began rising, showing perhaps, that better things are on the horizon for the social media giant.
Apple unveils iPad Mini
Editor's note: Apple on Tuesday unveiled the "iPad Mini" - a smaller version of its iPad - at a press conference in San Jose, California. Follow our live tweets from the @CNNtech team, and read the full story here. Here's information from the press conference as it came in:
[Updated at 1:53 p.m. ET] From our CNN tech reporters Doug Gross and Heather Kelly: The device is 7.2mm thick, or the thickness of a pencil. Its screen dimensions are the same as the larger iPad, so all apps will work the same on the new, smaller tablet.
Rocket for supersonic 'hybrid car' passes first test
The rocket that will help power a 1,000-mph car passed its first test Wednesday, British engineers say.
The project is dubbed Bloodhound SSC. Its organizers plan for the pencil-shaped car to be zooming along the South African desert next year and break the world land speed record of 763 mph.
"The initial indications are that it went very well indeed," the rocket's designer, self-taught engineer Daniel Jubb, 28, told the Western Morning News in Cornwall, England, where the rocket was tested inside a hangar at a Royal Air Force base.
Engineers were looking over reams of data from the test to determine their next steps.
Comments: Royals, citizens alike juggle division between public, private spheres
Editor's note: We're listening to you. Every day, we spot thought-provoking comments from readers. Below, you'll see highlighted posts that we noticed.
Heading into the weekend, readers are thinking about the lines between public and private life, and between work and play. There are different stories that give different takes.
The publication of photos showing Kate Middleton, Duchess of Cambridge, topless has got readers wondering how much is too much intrusion into a person's life. The following reader drew a line between this incident and the recent images of Prince Harry in his birthday suit.
Scott Bennett: "The publication of the photos of Katherine while on her holiday with William was not only despicable, but also shows the idiocy of the editorial staff of the 'publication' Closer. When Mlle Pieau described the reaction to the pictures' publication as "disproportionate" and slammed the British press as "complete hypocrites," since photos of Harry naked were published by The Sun, she shows her lack of basic human understanding. The two incidents are not even remotely comparable. 1) Harry was cavorting about in his hotel suite, having invited loads of strangers, thus opening the doors for such potential exposure; William and Katherine were vacationing alone in a private residence (or so they thought); 2) Harry is a single, 20-something man; Katherine is a married woman in her early 30s who will at some point be someone's mother. THEY NEED TO GET A GRIP ON HUMAN DIGNITY and get over their self-centered approach to life and their 'job' already! Disgusting, just disgusting!"
But then, is being naked worth the risk when you're a well-known figure?
Other99Pct: "Um, don't go outside with your shirt off if you don't want people to see you?"
Many people were disturbed by the idea that people are interested in such images. FULL POST
Apple announces likely iPhone 5 event on Sept. 12
Apple announced Tuesday that it has scheduled an event for Sept. 12, at which it is widely expected to introduce a new iPhone.
The highly anticipated event will likely feature the long-awaited unveiling of the iPhone 5. The invitation sent to the press features a prominent "5" as the shadow cast by the "12," signifying the event's date.
The new iPhone is expected to have an elongated screen, 4G network speeds, a faster processor and some other structural and internal changes. Still, it's worth noting that even the most widely circulated iPhone-related rumors often turn out to becompletely unfounded. Apple notoriously holds its secrets very close to its chest.
Last year at this time, rumors circulated that Apple was working on an "iPhone 5" with a larger screen, 4G capabilities and no home button. Instead, it delivered the iPhone 4S, an incrementally updated smartphone cut from the same mold as its predecessor, the iPhone 4. The biggest change was the addition of the voice-activated assistant Siri.
READ FULL CNNMONEY.COM STORY
Comments: 'Thank you Apple for confirming that you invented the rectangle'
Editor's note: We're listening to you. Every day, we spot thought-provoking comments from readers. Here's some comments we noticed today.
Apple and Samsung have been involved in a long battle over the design of Samsung devices that Apple says were "ripped off" from iPads and iPhones. Samsung also countersued Apple for infringing on some of its patents. After a federal jury in California recommended Friday that Apple be awarded more than $1 billion in damages, readers are talking about patents and the ways people define product designs.
Jury: Samsung should pay Apple more than $1 billion
Many readers were outraged, saying Apple's suit appeared malicious.
Jerad Howell: "What a ridiculous verdict. There are only so many ways you can design a touchscreen device. Apparently, this jury believes that Apple should be allowed to have a monopoly on touchscreen tablets and phones."
ogive17: "Apple's new motto 'litigate, not innovate.' Yes, I wanted Apple to lose."
Stnley Kubrick: "This sucks. Sanity once again defeated."
But some said there were some obvious design similarities.
TheH0LYT0AST: "For the life of me I don't understand how anyone can look at the picture at the top of this article and say, 'What? I don't see anything wrong with that.' "
Clint4CNN: "GOOD! Samsung is a thief, and they got caught!"
Nicholas Bloom: "Like Apple needs the money. They charge an arm and a leg for their products. Fair is fair, though."
Some made jabs at the U.S. patenting system. FULL POST
Monday's Internet blackout: Justifiable hysterics or just hype?
An Internet blackout that will happen Monday has the webisphere scrambling.
Hundreds of thousands will be without Internet when the FBI shuts down selected servers supporting computers infected with the notorious virus, DNSChanger.
But are Internet hysterics warranted - or just hype?
The FBI is set to shut down servers that it initially created to support infected computers after the authors of the pesky malware were caught in November. Some reports put the number of U.S. Internet users who will go dark at less than 70,000 - a relatively small number of U.S. users.
Not sure if you're among the unlucky? The agency has offered a step-by-step plan on how to check to see if your computer has the virus.
The virus affected more than 4 million computers internationally. When infected users typed a domain name into their browser, DNSChanger rerouted them to fake ad sites, ultimately garnering millions of dollars for the six Estonian malware authors. The FBI opted to set up servers that would allow infected users to stay on the Web without the fake ads.
Even though the number of those who will be without the Internet might not be worthy of all the hype, the World Wide Web is a staple for getting through everyday life. And, whether reports are overblown will probably mean little to those who are going without on Monday. We want to know what the Internet means to you, so log in and tell uswhile you still can.
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Comments: 'Holding the phone wrong' or 'iMiss Steve Jobs'? Seeds of Apple discontent
Editor's note: We're listening to you. Every day, we spot thought-provoking comments from readers. We're featuring a few of our favorites here. Be sure to participate in the mobile photo challenge on Saturday, September 22, part of Our Mobile Society.
If you're Apple, there's good news, and there's bad news.
iPhone 5: The wait is over
First, the good news: You sold a bunch of iPhone 5s, and people lined up or ordered online. We received more than 20 iReports from excited customers showing us overnight campouts and people who queued for several days. Veenu Aishwarya of Philadelphia went to an Apple store just to experience the scene.
Some CNN.com readers said they are happy with their Apple products.
And now, the bad news. We saw quite a bit of backlash among our commenters.
What would animals, or aliens, say about us as a species?
A debate took place about other companies' products. FULL POST
Filed under: Apple • Comments • Our Mobile Society • Technology • U.S.