LiteOn debuts dual format, double-layer DVD burning

Dual format, double-layer DVD burning has arrived in the UK with LiteOn's SOHW-832S internal drive. The burner writes double-layer discs, which hold 8.5GB per disc, at 2. ...more

Cambridge team reveals PIN vulnerability

The special 'tamper-proof' envelopes that banks use to send out new PIN numbers to customers are not as foolproof as may appear. According to researchers at the University of Cambridge, PIN numbers can be read using a bright light and some common software. Millions of PIN Mailers are used by banks and other financial institutions to send new security codes linked to credit and debit cards to customers. ...more

New UK database immobilises stolen mobile phones

Scheme to counter mobile theft will render stolen handsets useless A new database of EMEI numbers - the unique identifying number for each phone - will allow victims of mobile theft to cancel their phone as easily as cancelling a stolen credit card. The database is shared across all UK mobile operators and lists all the EMEI numbers of handsets reported to have been stolen. Additionally, the Mobile Telephones (Re-programming) Act, which came into force 4 October, criminalises the reprogramming of EMEI numbers with penalties of up to five years in prison. ...more

US movie industry seeks cinema ban on recording equipment

The US movie industry is pushing for legislation that would make it illegal to take recording equipment into a cinema. A bill is currently being considered that would set a maximum $1,000 fine and a year in prison. Currently anyone caught videotaping a movie can be fined no more than $250. ...more

UK games chart: Super Mario falls prey to Prey

There's a new number one in this week's ELSPA games chart. Prey, is the first-person shooter from 2K Games(PC, Xb360) that aims to stretch the traditional FPS format, with gameplay elements such as wall-walking, portals, spirit-walking and gravity flipping. It has done enough to push Nintendo's New Super Mario Bros (DS) into second place, with Buena Vista's Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (DS, GBA, PSP) up from five to three. ...more