Worldwide cellphone sales recover

The worldwide mobile phone market is pulling clear of the recession, according to new figures from Gartner which show fourth quarter 2009 sales figures up 8.3% on the same period in 2008, writes Computing.co.uk.

Overall sales to end-users in 2009 reached 1.211 billion units, and sales in the fourth quarter surpassed 340 million units thanks to huge growth in demand for smartphones.

Sales of smartphones rose 41.1% compared to the same three-month period in 2008, reaching 53.8 million units. Figures for the entire year showed that smartphone sales reached 172.4 million units, a 23.8% increase on 2008.

Three Bulgarian men were charged on Wednesday with defrauding banks of more than $137 000 in a scheme that attached electronic skimming devices to numerous automatic teller machines in Massachusetts, reports The Register.

In the 44-day hacking spree, the men planted skimmers on ATMs maintained by Bank of America and Citizens Bank, and secretly recorded information stored on the magnetic strips of cards as they were being used. The men also allegedly used concealed cameras to record the corresponding personal identification numbers.

The men compromised "numerous" ATMs throughout eastern Massachusetts and court documents filed in the case said proceeds from the alleged crime were $137 724.

Scientists in the US are using an underwater vehicle that can "plan its own experiments" on the seafloor, says the BBC.

The Gulper AUV is programmed to look for the information that scientists want and plan its own route, avoiding hazardous currents and obstacles.

The research group explained it could "train" the robot to bring the best science back to the surface.

Three Google executives were convicted of violating Italian privacy laws on Wednesday, the first case to hold the company's executives criminally responsible for the content posted on its system, states The New York Times.

The verdict, though subject to appeal, could have sweeping implications worldwide for Internet freedom. It suggests Google is not simply a tool for its users, as it contends, but is effectively no different from any other media company, like newspapers or television, that provides content and could be regulated.

The ruling further complicates the business environment for Google in Europe, where it faces a wave of anti-trust complaints. It comes shortly after Google threatened to withdraw from China, citing sophisticated attacks by hackers there and Chinese demands that it restrict information available to local users.