US takes on worst spammers
The state of Texas has filed a lawsuit against two men believed to be among the world`s top five spammers, BBC reports.
The Texas attorney general`s office started the legal action as messages sent by the alleged spammers broke three laws governing e-mail marketing. It is seeking millions of dollars in damages in a civil lawsuit.
The company named in the lawsuit denied any wrongdoing and said it complied with all relevant laws. The Texas lawsuit was filed against Ryan Samuel Pitylak, a University of Texas student, and Mark Stephen Trotter of California.
Lawyers for the alleged spammers said the lawsuit was groundless and the two men would defend themselves strongly against the accusations.
Spray-on solar power
Scientists have invented a spray-on plastic solar cell that can turn the sun`s power into electrical energy, even on a cloudy day, National Geographic reports.
The composite can be sprayed onto other materials and used as portable electricity. A sweater coated in the material could power a cellphone or other wireless device, while a hydrogen-powered car painted with the film could potentially convert enough energy into electricity to continually recharge the car`s battery.
According to electrical and computer engineering professor Ted Sargent, the sun that reaches the Earth`s surface delivers 10 000 times more energy than we consume.
"If we could cover 0.1% of the Earth`s surface with [very efficient] large-area solar cells, we could in principle replace all of our energy habits with a source of power which is clean and renewable."
Tsunami scammer arrested
The FBI has arrested a 24-year-old American for running a tsunami disaster-related scam, InformationWeek reports.
Matthew Schmieder admitted to sending out 800 000 fake e-mails designed to look like messages from humanitarian organisation Mercy Corps, which has been soliciting donations on its Web site.
The FBI said Schmieder lifted the Mercy Corps logos to make his messages appear legitimate, and created a PayPal account to receive donations. However, Schmieder only managed to net $150 (R900) from a single donor before he was arrested.
When Schmieder was arrested, he reportedly told FBI agents that he "thought it would be OK to keep the funds for his own use if he gave some of the contributions to charity", the court documents disclosed.
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