Fine threatened over mobile spam deluge - BBC News

1 October 2012 Last updated at 18:00

Fines of more than £250,000 look set to be handed out to two people who sent millions of spam text messages.

The pair topped a list of mobile spam senders compiled by the Information Commissioner (ICO) with the help of the public.

The ICO got more than 30,000 responses to its plea for help identifying the most incorrigible spammers.

If the spammers cannot prove they had permission to send millions of texts they must pay the fines.

The ICO issued its appeal in March and asked the public to report when they received junk text messages or cold calls on their phone.

The information received helped the ICO identify those companies abusing UK regulations on commercial contact.

Cash call

"All of this work has led us to where we are today with the ICO poised to issue our first monetary penalty notices," said Simon Entwistle, director of operations at the ICO, in a blog entry about the fines.

"This is an important step that shows those who blatantly break the law will be in line for a sizeable six-figure penalty from the ICO," he said.

While companies can contact consumers about goods and services, he said, they cannot send unsolicited texts or use automated calls if they do not have permission to get in touch.

Some of the calls and texts were about compensation for accidents that a person had not suffered or to lodge a claim for being mis-sold PPI that they were not entitled to make.

"The public have told us that they are increasingly concerned about illegal marketing texts and calls," said Mr Entwistle.

The ICO has written to the two people who topped the complaints list and told them they have 28 days to demonstrate that they did have permission to send the junk texts or make the automated calls.

The fines will have to be paid if they fail to convince the ICO that they had permission.

The ICO has not named the alleged spammers but said more details would be released in 28 days' time.

World T20: The semi-final scenarios - Cricketnext.com

The fight for the second semi-final slot from this group is intriguingly poised as both India and Pakistan have a fair chance of making the cut, with Australia enjoying a healthy run-rate of +1.712 with one match to go. South Africa lost both their Super Eights matches in contrasting manner - a close defeat against Pakistan and a comprehensive one against Australia. Even if they beat India on Tuesday, it would be an unlikely proposition for AB de Villiers' side to seal the semi-final berth as their inferior net run rate (-0.605) at this stage of the tournament makes their case weak.

India's eight-wicket win over Pakistan has kept them in contention for two semi-final slots, but two defeats in a row in the Super Eights mean South Africa are facing elimination from the tournament. Victory for India will take them to the semi-finals, and if they lose they will have to ensure it is not by a big margin. For South Africa to progress, they must beat India and hope that Pakistan lose to Australia in the match before them, and then look to see how healthy their net run-rate is.

In case Pakistan (-0.426), who are a shade ahead of India (-0.452) in terms of net run-rate happen to win against Australia, MS Dhoni and his men will then have to win comprehensively against South Africa in order to make it to the last four. If Pakistan lose on Tuesday, then everything will boil down to the final match of the Super Eights. A win against South Africa will be good enough for India to march into the last-four stage. Even in case of a defeat, India should ensure that they don't lose by a big margin.

Group 1

West Indies' exhilarating Super Over win over New Zealand at Pallekele on Monday kept them in contention for the ICC World Twenty20 semi-finals, and Sri Lanka's 19-run victory over England later in the day took Darren Sammy's team into the final four.

The result of the first match of the day knocked New Zealand out and ensured that Sri Lanka – who lead the group with four points and have the best net-run rate of 1.029 - became the first team to qualify for the semi-finals. The result of their final match against England at this same venue will have no consequence to them, but victory over England ensured that they progressed without having to bring the run rate into the equation.

West Indies' win over New Zealand meant that England had no option but to beat Sri Lanka by a significant margin to go past West Indies' net run-rate. Defeat has knocked them out.

Man who stabbed children is ex-soldier Michael Pedersen who survived IRA bomb - Times Online

A man found dead with his two young children at a secluded rural spot was a former soldier who survived an IRA bomb attack on mounted cavalry 30 years ago, it emerged today.

The bodies of Michael Pedersen, 51, his son Ben, seven, and Freya, aged six were found in a rural hamlet near Andover, Hampshire, on Sunday evening after a walker came across an empty car and found the bodies nearby.

The two children had died from stab wounds and their father then took his own life.

Detective Superintendent Tony Harris said it was "one of the most tragic cases" he had ever dealt with, and that the force was providing support to the children's mother, who was estranged from Mr Pedersen.

Police believe that the incident happened after a visit to the children's grandfather, and have said they are not looking for anyone else in relation to their deaths.

Surrey Police have referred the case to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) because of some previous contact with Mr Pedersen.

Mr Pedersen survived the infamous 1982 Hyde Park terrorist attack on Sefton, a black gelding, when nail bombs went off just yards away from him.

Four soldiers and seven horses of the Household Cavalry died in the IRA attack as they made their way from Knightsbridge Barracks to Horseguards Parade for the changing of the guard ceremony.

Hampshire Police said members of the force's major crime team are working on the investigation and family liaison officers are working with her and other members of the family.

The alarm was raised by the children's mother, Erica, when she alerted police at 7pm on Sunday evening after Mr Pedersen had failed to come home with them at the arranged time.

The children's grandather, William Clifford, was with his daughter at the family home. He said that what had happened had been "extremely distressing" and that the family are "obviously devastated".

Both children attended the same school, Ashford Church of England Primary, where staff were said to be "deeply shocked" by what had happened.

The children lived in Ashford, Middlesex, a short distance from Staines. Mr Pedersen, who ran a small logistics firm, lived in Chertsey, Surrey, a short distance from the children's home. One neighbour said he had moved away from the family only recently.

Police were called to the scene at 6.15pm on Sunday by a member of the public who found the bodies in Newton Stacey, a small hamlet in a rural area between Andover and Winchester.

The area, which is made up of only a handful of cottages and country homes, is just over an hours drive from both the family homes. A navy blue Saab convertible was taken away from the scene yesterday [Mon].

Detective Superintendent Harris said: "We are currently investigating the circumstances surrounding this terrible incident and are working to establish what has led to these tragic deaths.

"We are treating this as an isolated incident and we do not believe anyone else was involved.

"The families of Michael, Ben and Freya have been informed and specialist family liaison officers from Hampshire Constabulary, and officers from Surrey Police, are working with them to provide support and keep them updated as the investigation progresses.

"Our thoughts are with the family and friends of those involved at this extremely difficult time," he said.

Mr Pedersen was the registered director of a company called High Road Logistics, which also lists Erica Pedersen as a company secretary.

Both Ben and Freya were students at the Ashford Church of England Primary School in Middlesex, where staff said the two were "lovely children".

A member of staff at the school said: "We are deeply shocked, the relevant authorities are working with the school.

"We will be keep their mother, family and frineds in our thoughts and prayers."

The police said that the coroner has been informed and post-mortem examinations are due to take place shortly.

Tory MP asks watchdog to investigate Keith Vaz - Channel 4 News

"It appears Mr Vaz has a number of questions to answer," Mr Bridgen said.

In a letter to the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards obtained by Channel 4 News the Tory MP requests an investigation into whether Mr Vaz lied or broke any parliamentary rules by failing to declare outside interests "given that the reported police investigation found that outside payments were indeed made".

Mr Bridgen, citing a report in today's Telegraph newspaper, also asked for the commissioner to re-open a decade-old investigation to determine whether Mr Vaz received improper payments from the billionaire Hinduja brothers, who pushed the then-Blair government to give Mr Vaz a ministerial role and lobbied for UK passports in the late 1990s. The scandal eventually led to the sacking of Peter Mandelson.

Mr Vaz was cleared of the earlier allegations of receiving illicit funds, but was forced to resign and was suspended from parliament for refusing to provide financial information to the parliamentary commissioner.

Finally, Mr Bridgen asked for an explanation as to what the commissioner knew about the police findings at the time of the earlier probe and whether it was now appropriate for Mr Vaz to resign given the sensitive nature of his current role in government. Mr Vaz chairs the home affairs select committee which holds the police to account.

Position untenable

Should the commissioner agree to investigate, Mr Bridgen said Mr Vaz's position as head of the committee is untenable.

"I feel that he cannot continue to hold his role with the Home Affairs Select Committee during an investigation and call on him to stand down," Mr Bridgen told reporters.

Scotland Yard declined to comment. According to the Telegraph, police detectives allegedly found almost £500,000 in "suspicious" funds were deposited into multiple accounts linked to Labour MP Keith Vaz in addition to his salary between 1997 and 2001,

The money was paid into a series of accounts over a period of time. The newspaper also reported that in an internal briefing document circulated within Scotland yard, detectives expressed their belief that "the level of funds received ... are of a suspicious nature."

'Nothing suspicious'

Mr Vaz denied there was anything suspicious about his banking transactions, noting the money in question related to buying and selling a family home in London and a drawdown of equity from his bank.

In a statement posted on his web site today, the Labour MP said:

"The Telegraph contacted me on Sunday about an investigation which may or may not have occurred 10 years ago. I asked them to supply me with a copy of the report but they did not have one.

"These matters relate to two parliamentary inquires which began in 1999 and concluded in 2003. My finances were discussed by every newspaper in the country for a period of three years and were the subject of extensive examination. I have had no outside interests," Mr Vaz said.

"When you sell a house and you buy a new house it is normal practice for the money to be paid into your account and the money then paid out," Mr Vaz added.

Parliamentary standards

A spokesman for Mr Vaz, contacted by Channel 4 News today, declined to comment on Mr Bridgen's intention to contact the commissioner for information.

The Telegraph report alleged that police evidence may contradict assurances Mr Vaz gave during an investigation into his finances between 2000 and 2001, which was carried out by parliament.

Scotland Yard were facing calls to hand evidence to the parliamentary commissioner for standards, which can reopen an inquiry into allegations first made a decade ago, the Telegraph said.

Furthermore, the Telegraph claimed it has seen a police document in which detectives claim to have established that £28,959 in cash was paid into an HSBC account held by Mr Vaz during a single year. The MP and his wife also held a series of other accounts at different banks that were also examined by police.

In an internal briefing document circulated within Scotland Yard, detectives expressed their belief that "the level of funds received ... are of a suspicious nature", the Telegraph reported.

African troops enter Somali port of Kismayo - Business Recorder (blog)

 

 

MOGADISHU: Kenyan troops from the African Union force in Somalia entered the southern port of Kismayo for the first time Monday, witnesses said, three days after launching a beach assault that led Islamist insurgents to withdraw.

 

Somali militia who have been fighting alongside the Kenyans also moved in, raising fears that the second city in southern and central Somalia which the Shebab had run for four years could descend into chaos.

 

The Kenyans "arrived from the west of the city and are taking up positions," Aden Ismail, a local trader said.

 

At least two other witnesses confirmed to AFP by phone that Kenyan soldiers from the 17,000-strong African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) had entered the city, after remaining on the outskirts for more than two days.

 

It was not clear if the Kenyans remained in the city at nightfall. Yet other witnesses said they had seen only Somali militia in town.

 

"The ones I saw were maybe around 120 armed militants in dark green khaki uniform. but the Kenyan troops are not with those I have seen so far," Abdirahman Said, a Kismayo resident said.

 

He said some of the fighters carried a flag reading "Ras Kamboni", the name of a militia group with whom the Kenyans have been working.

 

Mohamed Yare, another resident, said some of the militia "were walking in the streets but without allowing the population to approach them."

 

Dhuhulow Abdirahman, another resident, expressed concern about the presence of Ras Kamboni in the city.

 

"They are from one clan and other clans will protest if they take control of the port and the airport," he said.

 

Residents have reported the presence of clan militia opposed to Ras Kamboni on the streets of the port city even since the Shebab pulled out early Saturday.

 

Kismayo was the main target of an operation launched by the Kenyan military almost a year ago. Its troops have since been integrated into AMISOM, whose bid to stamp out the insurgency is also supported by Ethiopia in western regions.

 

Observers have said that reclaiming Kismayo would cut off the Shebab's supply lines, strip them of vital funding and spell the end of their ability to control large swathes of land in southern Somalia.

 

The power vacuum created by what the Islamists called their "tactical retreat" after initially vowing the Indian Ocean would turn red with AMISOM blood had left Kismayo exposed to chaos and looming shortages.

 

"The town is very quiet this morning and there is no fighting but we have concerns about the clan militia roaming the streets," Ali Mumin, a resident, said before the Kenyan troops moved in.

 

It was not immediately clear how many AMISOM troops were taking up position in Kismayo but residents had mixed feelings about the change.

 

Asha Mohamed Aden, a seller of second-hand clothing, said she had seen "heavily armed Kenyans" entering the city along with Somali officers.

 

"They are carrying a lot of weapons," she said.

 

"Some people are happy to welcome them because they were fed up with the misrule" of the Shebab Islamists," another resident Abdullahi Farey Hassan told AFP by telephone, adding that he himself had "reservations."

 

Since the retreat of the Shebab, who ruled Kismayo with an iron fist, unidentified gunmen have killed at least three civilians, including a traditional leader, according to residents interviewed by phone.

 

The group's pullouts from its other key bastions elsewhere in Somalia have heralded a return to guerrilla tactics, including suicide bomb attacks.

Newly elected Somali president Hassan Sheikh Mohamud praised AMISOM Monday for forcing the Shebab to vacate the city.

 

Somali government sources said the administration is working on plans to mediate between the clans who are arguing over the control of the town in order to facilitate an "all inclusive administration" and avoid further violence.

 

The Shebab used Kismayo as an export hub for the illegal charcoal trade and the port had been their de facto capital since they abandoned fixed positions in Mogadishu last year, also under increased military pressure from AMISOM.

 

The Shebab still control the town of Jowhar, some 500 kilometres (300 miles) north east of Kismayo and one small port town, Barawe, lying some 230 kilometres (140 miles) up the coast from Kismayo.

 

Kismayo had also been a symbol of the extreme form of sharia or Islamic law the Shebab want to impose across the country since 2008, when they stoned a teenage girl in public on charges of adultery.

Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2012

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Castles in the Cloud - Huffington Post

Have you been lost more than usual the past week or so?

Have you turned right when you should have gone left, found yourself on the wrong side of the road or in general wondered where the hell you were?

If so, chances are you have the new Apple iPhone 5 and have used its iO6-launched Maps app, originally described as "the most powerful mapping service ever."

Read the letter that follows from Tim Cook -- Apple's CEO -- and you will understand why you found yourself at the local garbage landfill and not at the new restaurant you had waited weeks to get reservations for:

To our customers,

At Apple, we strive to make world-class products that deliver the best experience possible to our customers. With the launch of our new Maps last week, we fell short on this commitment. We are extremely sorry for the frustration this has caused our customers and we are doing everything we can to make Maps better.

We launched Maps initially with the first version of iOS. As time progressed, we wanted to provide our customers with even better Maps including features such as turn-by-turn directions, voice integration, Flyover and vector-based maps. In order to do this, we had to create a new version of Maps from the ground up.

There are already more than 100 million iOS devices using the new Apple Maps, with more and more joining us every day. In just over a week, iOS users with the new Maps have already searched for nearly half a billion locations. The more our customers use our Maps the better it will get and we greatly appreciate all of the feedback we have received from you.

While we're improving Maps, you can try alternatives by downloading map apps from the App Store like Bing, MapQuest and Waze, or use Google or Nokia maps by going to their websites and creating an icon on your home screen to their web app.

Everything we do at Apple is aimed at making our products the best in the world. We know that you expect that from us, and we will keep working non-stop until Maps lives up to the same incredibly high standard.

Tim Cook
Apple's CEO

And follow this link to see why I said "originally described as 'the most powerful mapping service ever."

Bottom line, you have to give Apple enormous credit for quickly owning up to their massive mistake and even more credit for connecting all the dots -- including the product description -- while at the same time providing what I think is ballsy customer service (ballsy to some -- to me this should be standard: give up the pawn to own the king) by sending you to competitors who actually have great mapping apps.

But here is the thing: Apple gets it, RIGHT? Of course they reacted as they did, or why else would they be the most valuable company on the face of the earth?

To me that is not the question nor is their exemplary reaction the only lesson to take from this debacle -- although many should -- business, politics, personal, be quick and honest!!!!

To me the real question is around the world of beta and the unadulterated hype that we live in.

You see, we have become so used to decimal-notated releases that we blindly accept whatever we are told and put up with inferior products and services that we would never accept in our off-line real world.

Imagine buying clothing and having the sleeves fall off or the zippers not work, or going to a new restaurant and getting food poisoning, or getting on a plane and having the engines not work....

And yes, by the way, all of those things do happen, but our reactions are different and our immediate feedback as a means of input into the next version is usually harsher, with far greater consequences.

The graveyards of poorly executed and produced products, bad tasting foods, out-of-control fashion and harmful services are chock full of the things we as consumers/users/buyers have sent to perdition.

Apple is lucky. At the end of the day this was only an app, and it seems that the majority of product reviews are positive. I have one and its form factor alone is a step up, although the charger... come on guys!!!!! Oh well.

But the notion that anything they do or anything any of the tech community does in the "cloud," is a step up for humanity is nonsense.

So here is a lesson from two centuries ago. It is almost as if Thoreau had prescient vision into our world... listen:

"If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them." - Henry David Thoreau

So Apple -- and all -- even today, even in our beta -accepting world, we still need the foundations and my bet is we always will....

What do you think?

Follow David Sable on Twitter: www.twitter.com/@DavidSable

Theroux: Thoughts are 'with the victims' following Savile claims - Irish Examiner

  

Theroux: Thoughts are 'with the victims' following Savile claims

Monday, October 01, 2012 - 06:23 PM

Film-maker Louis Theroux, who tried to unravel Jimmy Savile's private life on-screen, said today his thoughts were "with the victims" following claims the Jim'll Fix It star had sexually abused schoolgirls.

The broadcaster spoke out to say the rumours which had been circulating appeared to have been "validated" by the women who have come forward to speak about their alleged treatment by the late Sir Jimmy in a TV documentary.

Exposure: The Other Side Of Jimmy Savile, is due to be screened on Wednesday and details claims from women dating to the 1970s that he had abused girls in his Rolls-Royce and at BBC Television Centre.

One woman tells the programme how she met Sir Jimmy at a school in Surrey in 1974 when she was 14 and he assaulted her in his caravan which was parked in the school grounds.

A former colleague of the late Top Of The Pops host alleged today that Sir Jimmy had used his charity fundraising work as a way of preventing his private life being exposed.

Radio host Paul Gambaccini, who said he had waited 30 years for these stories to come out, suggested the veteran presenter had threatened newspapers that his charity cash would dry up if they published the allegations.

He told ITV1's Daybreak programme: "On (one) occasion, and this cuts to the chase of the whole matter, he was called and he said 'well you could run that story, but if you do there goes the funds that come in to Stoke Mandeville – do you want to be responsible for the drying up of the charity donations?'. And they backed down."

Flamboyant bachelor Savile – known to millions for his TV and radio appearances over many years – died last year at the age of 84.

Theroux, who featured him in one of his When Louis Met … BBC programmes, said today: "So the rumours seem to have been in some degree validated. I haven't seen ITV's expose on Jimmy Savile yet, but from what I understand there are a number of credible accounts from underaged teenage girls of Jimmy abusing his position of trust and celebrity to procure sexual favours.

"What is especially disturbing is the nature of the alleged abuse – the fact that it apparently took place repeatedly, in the workplace and at a school he was visiting, and that it may have been known to his bosses and co-workers. My thoughts are with the victims. I hope they find peace."

Members of the Jim'll Fix It star's family and friends have expressed their upset that the allegations are being made when the presenter is no longer around to defend himself.

Roger Foster, Sir Jimmy's nephew, said his family was "disgusted and disappointed" by the programme.
Mr Foster, from Goole, East Yorkshire, said he was not only concerned for Sir Jimmy's reputation, but also for the damage the allegations could do to his charities.

"The guy hasn't been dead for a year yet and they're bringing these stories out. It could affect his legacy, his charity work, everything. I'm very sad and disgusted," he said.

"I just don't understand the motives behind this. I just think it's very, very sad you can say these things after someone's died and the law says you can't defend yourself when you're dead."

A spokesman for ITV defended its programme, saying: "This documentary is the result of an in-depth investigation into long-standing allegations of serious and widespread sexual misconduct by Sir Jimmy Savile. Because of the very serious nature of the claims made by several interviewees in relation to this, particular care and consideration was of course given to the decision to produce and broadcast this programme.

"The programme takes full account of the fact that Sir Jimmy is not here to defend himself against these claims."

ITV said the programme, presented by former detective Mark Williams-Thomas, features contributions from several women who claim that Sir Jimmy was a sexual predator who sexually assaulted them while they were under-age.

One woman alleges that she was raped by the DJ and another says she was asked to perform a sex act on him. ITV said one of the contributors explained how she was too frightened to speak out while Sir Jimmy was alive.

They said the programme will allege the broadcaster preyed on teenagers whom he invited to appear on his TV shows.

Sir Jimmy had raised millions of pounds over the years for his pet cause, Stoke Mandeville Hospital.
Trustees of his charity said they feared the programme's allegations would have an adverse effect on their work.

In a statement, they said: "As the trustees of the Jimmy Savile Charitable Trust, we are saddened by any proposed television documentary which alleges that the late Sir Jimmy Savile committed acts of underage sexual abuse. The publication of such grave allegations may affect the charitable trust, which supports so many good causes."

The Trust pointed out that Surrey Police investigated allegations against him in 2007. The matter was passed to the Crown Prosecution Service which took no further action.

The Trust continued: "We are conscious of the dedication and effort that Sir Jimmy made throughout his lifetime to charity. He raised more than £40m (€50m) for good causes, giving away 90% of his income.

"The broadcast of such serious allegations, which by their very nature will be one-sided, may impact on the charitable trust and its endeavours."

ChildLine founder Esther Rantzen, who worked for the BBC during the 1970s, told the programme that she now believes Sir Jimmy sexually abused underage girls, after seeing the fresh evidence from the interviews in ITV1's Exposure programme.

"We all blocked our ears to the gossip," she said.

"We made him into the Jimmy Savile who was untouchable, who nobody could criticise. Jim'll Fix It was for children. He was a sort of God-like figure. Everybody knew of the good that Jimmy did and what he did for children. And these children were powerless," she said.

The programme feature a 2009 recording of Sir Jimmy talking in support of Gary Glitter, who was jailed in the UK for child porn offences and in Vietnam for child sex offences.

In the recording he says: "Now Gary, all he did was to take his computer into PC World to get it repaired. They went into the hard drive, saw all these dodgy pictures and told the police and the police then 'Oh we've got a famous person … Oh my goodness, yeah we'll have them'."

The BBC said it had found no evidence of any misconduct by Sir Jimmy during his time the broadcaster.
"The BBC has conducted extensive searches of its files to establish whether there is any record of misconduct or allegations of misconduct by Sir Jimmy Savile during his time at the BBC. No such evidence has been found," it said in a statement.