Banks 'shift liability' over fraud prevention

UK High Street banks stand accused of over-complicating systems and alienating customers in their attempt to clamp down on card-not-present fraud. Currently, the UK payment association APACS is trialling a new scheme where online shoppers put their credit or debit card into a special card reader that would generate a one-time passcode to authenticate the card and transaction. But the CEO of fraud screening company the 3rd man, Paul Simms, said many retailers deal with fraud and manage the threat with 'little or no impact on their genuine and honest customers. ...more

Disney in moody media player patent bid

Disney has applied for a patent for a media player that responds to the user's mood. The patent describes a device which has wrist sensors to measure body temperature, perspiration and pulse rate. These measurements are then used to create a profile that matches the physical readings to the music that the user is playing or the video they are watching. ...more

European Parliament backs criminal laws for commercial copyright infringement

The European Parliament has approved new EU-wide laws that impose criminal sanctions for the infringement of intellectual property rights for commercial gain. The deterrent measures proposed by the European Commission range from fines to imprisonment, according to the gravity of the crime. In cases of serious crimes committed by a criminal organisation, the maximum penalty must be at least €300,000 and/or four years' imprisonment. ...more

EFF warns over harshness of EU content copyright directive

An imminent EU Directive could give intellectual property holders tough new tools and punishments to exact on individuals that infringe copyright accidentally, unintentionally and without profit motives, warns the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF). 'EFF is urging its members to ask their MEPs to seek an amendment to the proposed European Intellectual Property Enforcement directive because it does not distinguish large-scale commercial infringement and counterfeiting enterprises from unintentional, non-commercial infringement by individuals,' said EFF Staff Attorney Gwen Hinze. 'If the European Parliament adopts this directive, a person who unwittingly infringes copyright - even if it has no effect on the market - could potentially have her assets seized, bank accounts frozen, and home invaded. ...more

Adobe denies legal action against Microsoft

Adobe has issued a statement denying that it has decided on legal action against Microsoft. Earlier this month a Microsoft employee claimed that Adobe was threatening to sue Microsoft if the company went ahead and included a 'Save as PDF' function in the new Office 2007 productivity suite. Clearly irritated by Microsoft's revelations of what are supposed to be private negotiations, Adobe has reaffirmed that it is 'committed to open standards' and the published specification and is seeking to protect the PDF from fragmentation. ...more