General news

• Toymaker VTech hit by largest-ever hack targeting kids

  01-12-2015 23:44 via news.yahoo.com
  
  A cyber attack on digital toymaker VTech Holdings Ltd exposed the data of 6.4 million children, the company said on Tuesday, in what experts called the largest known hack targeting youngsters. Security experts said they expected the size of the breach would prompt governments to scrutinize VTech and other toymakers to review their security. "The disclosure of the scope of the breach is disturbing," said Jaclyn Falkowski, a spokeswoman for Connecticut's attorney general.
  
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• Coroner: Remains from Kansas are from a juvenile

  01-12-2015 23:37 via news.yahoo.com
  
  KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — Human remains found at a Kansas barn are those of a juvenile, but tests to determine if the remains belong to a missing 7-year-old boy could take weeks, a coroner said Tuesday.
  
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• IRS: Won't use phone-tracking technology without warrant

  01-12-2015 23:34 via news.yahoo.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — Internal Revenue Service criminal investigators will not continue to use cellphone-tracking technology without first seeking a warrant, the IRS commissioner told Congress in a letter made public Tuesday.
  
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• Facebook's Zuckerberg to give 99 percent of shares to charity

  01-12-2015 23:32 via news.yahoo.com
  
  SAN FRANCISCO/BENGALURU (Reuters) - Facebook Inc Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg and his wife said on Tuesday they will give away 99 percent of their Facebook shares, currently worth about $45 billion, to a new charity in a letter addressed to their daughter, Max, who was born last week. The plan mirrors a move by other high-profile billionaires like Warren Buffett and Bill and Melinda Gates, who have pledged and set up foundations to give away their fortunes to charity. On his Facebook
  
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• Soldier who lost 4 limbs aims to inspire others with book

  01-12-2015 23:28 via news.yahoo.com
  
  AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — A soldier who lost all four limbs during an explosion in Afghanistan aims to inspire others with the story of how he recovered from the wounds, picked up the pieces and began helping other amputees.
  
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• Armed 'panda bandits' raid store

  01-12-2015 23:27 via rss.cnn.com
  
  Police are hunting for two men who carried out an armed robbery on a convenience store -- while wearing panda onesies.
  
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• Trump tells rivals: Bring it on

  01-12-2015 23:26 via rss.cnn.com
  
  Donald Trump has stayed on top, in part, by attacking any rival who threatens him in the polls and now the race may be shifting, and Trump's got some new targets. CNN's Jeff Zeleny reports.
  
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• Why do politicians get away with lying?

  01-12-2015 23:24 via rss.cnn.com
  
  Editor's Note: In this election season, we've seen a lot of fibbing by politicians. Are presidential candidates who persist in saying untrue things enabled by the Internet or the 24/7 media? Or have lies always been a part of politics, even in the early days of the Republic? CNN invited historians, political scientists, technologists and authors to weigh in.
  
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• Corgi ends up in Honolulu instead of Mississippi

  01-12-2015 23:23 via news.yahoo.com
  
  HONOLULU (AP) — A dog bound for its new owner in Mississippi ended up in Honolulu instead.
  
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• Is this the U.S.'s most segregated city?

  01-12-2015 23:22 via rss.cnn.com
  
  Reginald Jackson drove along the desolate streets of a once-vibrant African-American neighborhood, laying out long-established racial and behavioral codes perfected in this Midwestern city.
  
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• Sixty years after Rosa Parks, Clinton urges racial justice

  01-12-2015 23:16 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Hillary Clinton celebrated a civil rights milestone with black leaders Tuesday but warned that the United States was still falling woefully short of providing equality and justice for African-Americans. The former secretary of state, who leads in the race for the 2016 Democratic presidential nomination, traveled to Alabama 60 years to the day after black seamstress Rosa Parks refused to give up her bus seat to a white passenger, an event which changed the course of American history. Clinton cite
  
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• Wall St. stocks rise while bond yields fall with dollar

  01-12-2015 23:11 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Sinead Carew NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks closed higher on Tuesday despite mixed U.S. economic data as treasury yields and the dollar declined while oil prices were choppy ahead of an OPEC meeting later this week. The euro bounced back from a multi-month low against the U.S. dollar on strong European data and as investors pared bets that the European Central Bank will soon ease policy further. After falling 0.5 percent on Monday, the S&P 500 benchmark index of stocks closed at its hig
  
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• U.S. deploying new force to Iraq to boost fight against Islamic State

  01-12-2015 23:08 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Phil Stewart and Yeganeh Torbati WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States said on Tuesday it was deploying a new force of special operations troops to Iraq to conduct raids against Islamic State there and in neighboring Syria, a ratcheting up of Washington's campaign against the group that was quickly rejected by Iraq's government. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said the deployment of such a force was not acceptable without Iraq's approval, raising questions over how closely Washington
  
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• PM Abadi says Iraq does not need foreign ground troops

  01-12-2015 23:08 via news.yahoo.com
  
  BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said on Tuesday his country did not need foreign ground troops, after the United States said it was sending an elite special unit to help combat Islamic State. "The Iraqi government stresses that any military operation or the deployment of any foreign forces - special or not - in any place in Iraq cannot happen without its approval and coordination and full respect of Iraqi sovereignty," Abadi said in a statement. (Reporting By Stephen Kal
  
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• Iraqi Shi'ite militias pledge to fight U.S. forces if deployed

  01-12-2015 23:08 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Powerful Iraqi Shi'ite Muslim armed groups on Tuesday pledged to fight any U.S. forces deployed in the country after the United States said it was sending an elite special unit to help combat Islamic State. Defense Secretary Ash Carter offered few details on the new "expeditionary" group, but said it would be larger than the roughly 50 U.S. special operations troops being sent to Syria to fight the ultra-hardline Sunni militants there. A U.S. defense official, speaking on condition of anonymity,
  
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• High court grants Texas a few more days in immigration case

  01-12-2015 23:07 via news.yahoo.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court has granted Texas some of the extra time the state sought to respond to the Obama administration's immigration appeal. The court could rule by late June on the administration's plan to shield millions of immigrants from deportation.
  
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• Bomb blast hits nervous Istanbul near metro station

  01-12-2015 23:04 via news.yahoo.com
  
  An explosion caused by a home-made bomb rocked an Istanbul metro station on Tuesday, triggering panic in the evening rush hour and wounding up to half a dozen people. The local mayor and the state-run Anatolia news agency confirmed a bomb caused the blast, which came at a time of growing jitters over security in Istanbul and the risk of a militant attack in Turkey's largest city. The blast, which was heard in several areas of the city, hit an overpass close to the metro station in the Bayrampasa
  
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• No goals in Ligue 1 as PSG are held by Angers

  01-12-2015 23:01 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Paris Saint-Germain's nine-match winning run in Ligue 1 was brought to a halt on Tuesday as they were held to a 0-0 draw away to promoted Angers. In other matches Lyon battled Nantes to a goalless stalemate in Brittany while there were no goals between Lorient and Nice on a barren night for celebrations in France. PSG, the reigning champions dropped points for just the third time this season after being unable to break down the division's tightest defence behind that of their own at the Stade Je
  
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• 'Love & Hip Hop' star sentenced to 8 years in prison

  01-12-2015 22:59 via news.yahoo.com
  
  ROCHESTER, N.Y. (AP) — A cast member of the VH1 reality show "Love & Hip Hop" was sentenced Tuesday to eight years in federal prison for drug trafficking.
  
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• US must investigate Bush, aides in CIA torture, rights group says

  01-12-2015 22:58 via news.yahoo.com
  
  US President Barack Obama must investigate his predecessor George W. Bush and allies over the CIA's torture of terror suspects, or stand complicit in a government "cover-up," Human Rights Watch said Tuesday. In a scathing report, the international rights group decried the lack of prosecutions of those involved in the Central Intelligence Agency's secret program to torture detainees in the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks. HRW cited Bush along with top officials including then CIA director
  
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• Mexico experts: passageway may lead to Aztec ruler's tomb

  01-12-2015 22:55 via news.yahoo.com
  
  MEXICO CITY (AP) — A Mexican archaeologist said his team has found a tunnel-like passageway that apparently leads to two sealed chambers, the latest chapter in the search for the as-yet undiscovered tomb of an Aztec ruler.
  
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• US auto sales accelerate in November

  01-12-2015 22:54 via news.yahoo.com
  
  US auto sales continued to accelerate in November, industry data showed Tuesday, but Volkswagen took a huge hit after suspending diesel sales amid an emissions-cheating scandal. The suspension affects about 20 percent of its typical sales but appears the emissions-fooling scandal also impacted non-diesel models.
  
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• Kylie Jenner wheelchair photos slammed

  01-12-2015 22:26 via rss.cnn.com
  
  Kylie Jenner. As a sex doll. In a wheelchair.
  
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• VIDEO: Guess how equal women are in the US?

  01-12-2015 22:16 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Americans guess how equal their society really is
  
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• Plane seat-kickers, this is about you ...

  01-12-2015 21:56 via rss.cnn.com
  
  According to travel site Expedia, the seat-kicker is the most hated airplane passenger. So what makes a bad traveler? A former flight attendant sits down with CNN.
  
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• Why delay in dashcam release?

  01-12-2015 21:43 via rss.cnn.com
  
  Why did Chicago hold the release of police dashcam video for 13 months? CNN's Kyung Lah reports.
  
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• US seeks info on Iranian-American sentenced to die in Iran

  01-12-2015 21:43 via news.yahoo.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — The State Department says it is seeking information about the fate of a dual Iranian-American citizen who was reportedly sentenced to death in Iran and executed last month.
  
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• Angers frustrate PSG in dour draw

  01-12-2015 21:43 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Paris Saint-Germain's nine-match winning run in Ligue 1 was brought to a halt on Tuesday as they were held to a 0-0 draw away to promoted Angers. The result left PSG on 42 points from 16 matches but still 14 points clear of nearest challengers Caen, who visit Monaco on Wednesday, with Angers one point further back in third. With six games in a 19-day stretch leading up to the winter break, PSG coach Laurent Blanc has made no secret of his desire to rotate his squad.
  
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• City where 'people are afraid of each other'

  01-12-2015 21:42 via rss.cnn.com
  
  Reginald Jackson drove along the desolate streets of a once-vibrant African-American neighborhood, laying out long-established racial and behavioral codes perfected in this Midwestern city.
  
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• Brent slips on OPEC worry; U.S. crude steady ahead of inventory data

  01-12-2015 21:33 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Barani Krishnan NEW YORK (Reuters) - Benchmark Brent crude settled down on Tuesday on bets OPEC will not cut output to stem a supply glut when the world's biggest oil producers meet later this week, while U.S. crude steadied on expectations of a stockpile drop. Expectations are high that Friday's meeting of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries in Vienna will choose to continue pumping crude at record levels to defend market share against non-member oil producers such as the U
  
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• Morrissey wins annual 'Literary Review Bad Sex' award

  01-12-2015 21:27 via news.yahoo.com
  
  LONDON (AP) — Maybe he should have stuck to writing songs — former Smiths frontman and lyricist Morrissey has won the annual award for the poorest quality writing about sex.
  
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• US appeals court reconsiders decision on ex-bin Laden aide

  01-12-2015 21:23 via news.yahoo.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal appeals court is reconsidering the legality of the only remaining conviction of a Guantanamo Bay detainee who once served as Osama bin Laden's personal assistant and media relations secretary.
  
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• Euro firms as ECB meeting looms; Wall St. rises

  01-12-2015 21:22 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Sinead Carew NEW YORK (Reuters) - The euro recovered from a multi-month low against the U.S. dollar on Tuesday as investors pared bets that the European Central Bank will soon ease policy further, while crude oil remained under pressure from oversupply concerns. U.S. Treasury debt prices rose with yields touching near one-month lows.
  
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• Climate change: What you don't know

  01-12-2015 21:20 via rss.cnn.com
  
  The answer, from the UN climate chief, may surprise you. Saving the planet is important, but she say's there's a much more powerful force at work.
  
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• NBR names 'Mad Max: Fury Road' best film of the year

  01-12-2015 21:16 via news.yahoo.com
  
  NEW YORK (AP) — The National Board of Review has named the rollicking apocalyptic adventure "Mad Max: Fury Road" the best film of 2015.
  
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• Trial for ranking French IS fighter in recruiting network

  01-12-2015 21:11 via news.yahoo.com
  
  PARIS (AP) — Accused of running a network to recruit French extremists to fight in Syria, designated a terrorist by the United States and a fugitive by his homeland, Salim Benghalem promised to only return to France to carry out an attack "with a maximum of damage."
  
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• Serbs to Steven Seagal: Don't bash us, train us

  01-12-2015 21:03 via news.yahoo.com
  
  BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Steven Seagal used to overwhelm Russian and Serbian bad guys in Hollywood movies with his martial arts techniques. Now Serbia wants him to share his secrets.
  
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• Chicago police chief out, force faces review over black teen's death

  01-12-2015 21:03 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Chicago's police chief was ousted on Tuesday after days of protest over a white officer's shooting of a black teenager 16 times and the department's refusal to release a video of the killing for more than a year. Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced during a news conference that he had asked Garry McCarthy, police superintendent since May 2011, to resign. The mayor also said he was creating a new police accountability task force.
  
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• Top sponsors urge FIFA to enact reforms

  01-12-2015 20:59 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Top sponsors of corruption-plagued FIFA urged the global football body on Tuesday to enact sweeping reforms with independent oversight, saying only a "cultural change" could give the organization a credible future. In a joint open letter addressed to FIFA, sponsors AB InBev, adidas, The Coca-Cola Company, McDonald's and Visa called on FIFA's executive committee to adopt reforms aimed at improving transparency and rooting out corruption when it meets in Zurich on Wednesday. "We know that you, the
  
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• Fed should be explicit in spelling out gradual pace of rate hikes: Evans

  01-12-2015 20:58 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The Federal Reserve should use the communication tools at its disposal at its December meeting to spell out a gradual pace of rate increases, Chicago Federal Reserve President Charles Evans said on Tuesday. The Fed has held interest rates near zero for seven years but is widely expected to begin tightening monetary policy at its next meeting on Dec. 15-16. Asked by reporters following remarks to a local business group in Michigan if the Fed should emphasize gradual rate increases in its December
  
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• Lawyer: Boy taken by dad in 2002 has visited mom in Alabama

  01-12-2015 20:55 via news.yahoo.com
  
  CLEVELAND (AP) — A boy who was taken from his Alabama home by his father in 2002 and raised in Ohio under a new identity recently reconnected with his mother in Alabama, the father's attorney said Tuesday after his client pleaded not guilty to kidnapping and other charges.
  
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• Canadian smuggler with turtles in pants pleads guilty in US

  01-12-2015 20:54 via news.yahoo.com
  
  ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — A Canadian man has pleaded guilty to smuggling or attempting to smuggle thousands of turtles from southeastern Michigan, more than a year after he was caught at a border crossing with 51 of the reptiles taped to his body.
  
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• National security experts back settling Syrian refugees

  01-12-2015 20:52 via news.yahoo.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — Former top national security officials in Republican and Democratic administrations on Tuesday urged Congress to continue allowing the resettlement of Syrian and Iraqi refugees in the United States.
  
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• Puerto Rico makes debt payment, warns of dwindling funds

  01-12-2015 20:47 via news.yahoo.com
  
  SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Puerto Rico narrowly avoided a multimillion-dollar default on Tuesday by announcing a last-minute bond payment while warning that a deepening financial crisis has forced the government to divert money slated for future debt payments to avoid a shutdown of basic services.
  
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• Voters wonder if Cruz can heal Washington's bitter divisions

  01-12-2015 20:46 via news.yahoo.com
  
  CLINTON, Iowa (AP) — It's a central question facing Ted Cruz's campaign as he gains momentum in the Republican presidential primary race: Can the uncompromising conservative unite a polarized nation and work with what he's derisively called Washington's "cartel" of career politicians, lobbyists and special interests?
  
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• Blast hits Istanbul metro, bomb suspected

  01-12-2015 20:45 via news.yahoo.com
  
  A station on the Istanbul metro was Tuesday rocked by a blast suspected to have been caused by a home-made bomb, causing panic in the evening rush hour and wounding up to half a dozen people. The huge blast hit an overpass close to the metro station in the Bayrampasa district of Istanbul. The metro system in Turkey's largest city was brought entirely to a halt after the blast, the municipality said, although reports said that normal service was now being restored.
  
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• Probe near end in 'suicide by cop' case that killed officer

  01-12-2015 20:41 via news.yahoo.com
  
  CINCINNATI (AP) — The investigation into whether there should be in any charges in the June fatal shootings of a Cincinnati police officer and an armed suspect police say was staging a "suicide by cop" is nearly complete, a southwest Ohio prosecutor said Tuesday.
  
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• House passes intelligence bill with policy guidelines

  01-12-2015 20:40 via news.yahoo.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — The House has passed a bill to authorize a 7 percent spending increase on intelligence agencies for the fiscal year that ends Sept. 30, 2016.
  
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• Toymaker VTech says data on 6.4 million kids taken in unprecedented hack

  01-12-2015 20:39 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Jim Finkle BOSTON (Reuters) - Digital toymaker VTech Holdings Ltd said on Tuesday that data on about 6.4 million children was exposed in a hack of information on customers in more than a dozen countries. The Hong Kong-based firm initially disclosed the attack on Friday, and said hackers took data of nearly 5 million adults, but it did not disclose how many children's profiles were accessed. In a statement posted on its website on Tuesday, it disclosed that the number of children affected exce
  
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• The Latest on Freddie Gray: Jury may be seated Wednesday

  01-12-2015 20:39 via news.yahoo.com
  
  BALTIMORE (AP) — The latest on the trial of a police officer accused in the death of Freddie Gray, a 25-year-old black man who suffered a spinal injury in the back of a transport van (all times local):
  
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