MySpace seeks legal help to share predator emails

MySpace is exploring legal avenues to enable it to share data with local authorities regarding convicted sex offenders found using its service. It has now has filed a request in a Pennsylvania state court to seek guidance on how it can legally provide authorities with the private e-mails of known predators detected on MySpace. A federal law prevents Internet service providers such as MySpace from turning over a user's electronic communications without a search warrant. ...more

eBay loses battle over online auctions patent

Online auction company eBay has lost its long running battle against MercExchange over who owns the patent for running auctions online. The judgment strikes at the heart of eBay's business and the company was quick to announce it would appeal. The case was brought by an electrical engineer called Thomas Woolston. ...more

Nominet to streamline domain renewals

Nominet, the registry for the .uk domains is to change the way in which domain renewals are handled. The plan is to allow both the registrant and the registration agent a 'final chance' to renew before the domain name is released. ...more

Spotlight shines on increasing rootkit usage

Rootkit alerts may become more commonplace as the security industry gears up to add detection to its software. Right now, the word 'rootkit' is synonymous with the Sony DRM fiasco that resulted in possibly the worst PR activity the tech industry has known for quite some time. But Symantec, too, has also updated its software to expose a component that would otherwise have been hidden using this technology. ...more

History's 'yellow pages' go online

The University of Leicester is working to put a large slice of local history online. Researchers are digitising old local directories for England and Wales - the Yellow Pages of their day - that date back as far as 1750. Of interest to amateur local historians, the results will be put online, reports the BBC. ...more