Author: BBC

The data watchdogs of the UK and Canada will investigate genetic testing company 23andMe over a data breach in October 2023.Hackers gained access to personal information of 6.9 million people, which in some cases included family trees, birth years and geographic locations, by using customers’ old passwords.One of the things the joint taskforce will investigate is whether adequate safeguards had been put in place to protect such data.”We intend to cooperate with these regulators’ reasonable requests,” 23andMe said in a statement.The data stolen in October did not include DNA records.23andMe is a giant of the growing ancestor-tracing industry, offering genetic…

19 hours agoBy Aurelia Foster, Health reporter, BBC NewsCancer Research UKA special light is shone on to the prostate, which makes the cancer cells show up A special type of fluorescent dye might help surgeons better locate and remove prostate cancer cells, UK scientists from University of Oxford believe.Getting rid of all of the cancer is vital to cut the risk of it coming back. The glowing dye attaches to a protein found only on the cancer cells.In a small, early trial on 23 men, surgeons say it helped them find areas of cancerous tissue not picked up by the naked eye…

The singer said that someone she had planned to meet simply stopped texting her. Source link

Real Madrid forward Vinicius Jr says he is a “tormentor of racists” after three Valencia fans were sentenced to eight months in prison for abusing him at a match.The racist chants were aimed at Vinicius during a La Liga game at Valencia’s Mestalla Stadium on 21 May 2023.The fans were found guilty of a “crime against moral integrity” with “aggravating circumstance of discrimination based on racist motives”.”I’m not a victim of racism. I am a tormentor of racists. This first criminal conviction in the history of Spain is not for me. It’s for all black people,” Vinicius posted on X.”May…

37 minutes agoBy Navtej Johal, Midlands correspondent • Faisal Islam, Economics editorBBCPeter and Rebecca say it is “almost impossible” to buy a house while renting at the same timePeter Felix paints and decorates other people’s homes for a living, but he says it is frustrating that he cannot afford one of his own.He and his partner, Rebecca Wilson, are in their early 40s. They have been renting together for nearly three years, and are losing hope of ever owning a house.Peter is among the many people who got in touch with the BBC via Your Voice, Your Vote to tell us that housing is the…

Holidaymakers are being warned about a rise in scams where fake social media accounts are used to impersonate airlines.Bogus accounts exist for every major UK airline on X, formerly known as Twitter, and are regularly used to trick customers into giving away their personal data, according to consumer association Which?. It added that X is too slow to take down offending accounts. The social media platform said accounts that impersonate organisations may be permanently suspended under its “misleading and deceptive identities policy”.It previously told Which? that it had taken down all of the fake accounts identified by the consumer group.The…

Drug company Moderna says its combined flu and Covid vaccine, which targets the two diseases in a single shot, has passed a vital part of final-stage scientific checks.The phase-three trial shows the vaccine arms the body with protective antibodies.And it does so as effectively as separate flu and Covid shots, results suggest.Fewer injections would be more convenient and simpler, Moderna says.Chief executive Stephane Bancel told BBC News he hoped the messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) vaccine could be made widely available in 2026 – or perhaps, 2025.”We are very delighted about the results, because it’s the first time in the world…

James Norton is to read a CBeebies Bedtime Story about type 1 diabetes.The Happy Valley actor, who has the condition, will read How to Manage a Mammoth, a story which aims to help families deal with a diagnosis.The story encourages children to think of diabetes as an animal, something which will not go away but which they can learn to manage. It focuses on eight-year-old Jake, who sees his diabetes as an imaginary mammoth called Mel. With the help of his mum and friends, they try to shrink the mammoth so it isn’t so big.Norton said that he also thinks…

ReutersEuropean and local ballot papers are separated before starting the count at a local election counting centre in DublinIrish government parties Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael are vying for the lead in the Republic of Ireland’s local elections, as counting continues.More than 800 councillors have been elected, with 949 seats to be filled across 31 local authorities.Fine Gael is in the lead with 216 councillors; Fianna Fáil has 205.The main opposition party, Sinn Féin, has won 91 seats so far, fewer than half of its government rivals and well below its own target of 200. Sinn Féin President Mary Lou…

4 hours agoBy Katie Hunter, BBC Scotland NewsBBCCaren Lorimer’s husband David said he was sorry she never lived long enough to see her name clearedThe family of a convicted sub-postmistress who died before her name was cleared say they have made her final wish come true.Caren Lorimer’s family took on her case after her death from cancer in April 2022.They were expecting to be back in court this week but her conviction was quashed sooner than expected.Caren’s husband David Lorimer said it “meant the world to him” but he was sad that his late wife had died before she was exonerated.Caren had…