Category: Internet
Privacy fears risk widening digital divide, study suggests
Heightened privacy fears are putting more non-internet users off and risk worsening the digital divide, new research has warned. Most people who are not online do so because they are not interested, according to the University of Oxford. But a growing number have cited anxiety about widely-reported privacy issues, as well as a lack of…
Yahoo email outage hits thousands of users
Yahoo is currently “working diligently” to resolve technical issues stopping users from accessing their emails. Problems with the service were first flagged at 7am on Thursday as users reported they were unable to log in to their accounts, or that emails were slow and unresponsive. Customers with TalkTalk, Sky and BT were also affected by…
More than half of over-65s now shop online, figures show
More than half of British adults aged 65 and over now shop online, according to figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The data showed 82% of all British adults bought goods or services online this year, an increase of 5% on 2018. The figures, detailing household and individual internet use in Great…
Mozilla Firefox boss warns that public turning on tech firms over privacy
Public opinion is turning against big technology firms over their mishandling of user data, the head of non-profit tech firm Mozilla has warned. Mitchell Baker said the public realisation of how much data was being gathered by tech giants such as Facebook and Google and how that data could have an impact on democracy was…
Can Firefox entice users with greater privacy protections?
Mozilla has released an update to its Firefox web browser largely focused on improving privacy and further preventing Facebook from tracking users online. The not for profit organisation is making its third party tracker blocking feature available by default rather than requiring people to switch it on, which stops thousands of companies that are known…
Police may shut down illegal streams at critical point of European finals
Police will consider pulling the plug on illegal streams of sporting events at crucial points to put people off using illegal sites. Sports fans are being warned about streaming ahead of the Europa and Champions League finals. The City of London Police said illegal streams were more popular during high-profile sporting events and said people…
Nearly half of over 75s now on the internet, ONS study shows
The number of older people regularly using the internet is on the rise, closing the age gap with younger users, new figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show. Since 2011, the 65- to 74-year-old age range has seen the largest increase in recent internet use, climbing from 53% in 2011 to 83% now,…
Mozilla launches European Elections toolkit to fight fake news
Mozilla, the firm behind the popular Firefox web browser, has released a guide to spotting potential online interference ahead of the European Parliament elections. The guide includes tools to identify bot accounts on social media, as well as information on the EU, fact-checking resources and tips on how to spot misinformation online. European elections are…
New rules could require security labels for connected devices
Smart TVs and other connected devices could be made to carry labels telling people how secure they are from cyber attacks, under plans announced by the Government. The labels would be initially introduced on a voluntary basis to help consumers identify which products are secure, before eventually becoming mandatory. Under the plans, announced by digital…
NewsGuard ‘fake news’ detection tool officially launches in UK
An online misinformation tool which rates news websites on their trustworthiness has launched in the UK. NewsGuard, which can be downloaded to a web browser or used on mobile phones through Microsoft’s Edge browser, uses human teams of journalists and analysts to assess and rate the credibility of news sites. It then awards them a…
