Surfing the skies

There's nothing worse that being stuck on a long flight with only a selection of terrible in-flight movies and a novel purchased in a hurry from the airport bookshop for company. Now Virgin Atlantic Airways plan to change the way we fly with the aid of the World Wide Web. In a partnership with Tenzing Communications, Virgin plans to offer its passengers access to the Internet and e-mail from every seat. ...more

Internet Explorer to block pop-ups by default

Microsoft has outlined its security strategy over the next year and confirmed that Windows XP Service Pack 2 will block pop-ups by default. Service Pack 2 will be out in beta before the end of the year, with a final release in the first half of 2004. It will also contain an improved Firewall, which will be turned on by default and will boast an improved user interface to allow finer tweaking. ...more

Credit card scam Nets 10,000 users

An audacious online credit card scam succeeded in stealing the card numbers of 10,000 Brazilian surfers. The Associated Press reports that clients of a Brazilian Internet portal, Universal OnLine (UOL), received a fake e-mail from the company asking them to fill out a form to re-register. The form, on a bogus Web page, included credit-card details. ...more

Anti-theft phone shuts itself down

Japan's leading mobile telecoms company has launched a new phone that automatically disables itself when it becomes separated from its owner in a bid to cut theft. NTT DoCoMo's P903i handset comes with an Ashin Key, a Bluetooth wireless ID card that is placed in a wallet or bag. Once the phone is more than a few metres away from the card and can no longer detect it, it shuts down and locks. ...more

EU begins iTunes pricing probe

The European Commission has begun its enquiry into Apple's iTunes Music Store pricing in the UK. The question of whether UK customers are being overcharged was referred to the Commission by the Office of Fair Trading, responding to a complaint by the Consumers' Association, publishers of Which?. Apple charges ?0. ...more