Bitcoin exchanges shut down after threat from India's central bank

Bitcoin is quickly beginning to attract the attention of regulators in a number of countries. After a flat-out ban in Thailand and restrictions on banks in China, now several Indian Bitcoin exchanges have suspended operations following a warning from the Reserve Bank of India concerning digital currencies. Issued December 24th, the statement outlines the risks of a purely electronic wallet, unregulated transactions and value fluctuations. It also contains what could be considered a threat, however, stating that virtual currency users could be breaking money laundering and terrorism financing laws -- one report from the subcontinent suggests the government has carried out the first raid on a Bitcoin exchange, too. Thus, some sites have decided to close for the time-being, leaving notes on their homepages expressing the need for clear legal guidelines before trading can resume. Undoubtedly we'll see more countries take steps towards regulation, especially as the price of currencies rise. Nothing decreases something's worth like outlawing it, after all.

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Via: The Next Web

Source: Economic Times, dna, buysellbitco.in, IRNBTC

Tags: bitcoin, currency, DigitalCurrency, india, ReserveBankOfIndia, VirtualCurrency Next: Nokia Lumia 1320 lands in China first .fyre .fyre-comment-divider

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Judge rejects ACLU challenge, says NSA telephone data collection is legal (update)

We don't expect this back and forth to flame out any time soon, of course, but a US District judge in Manhattan certainly issued a blow to an American Civil Liberties Union challenge of the National Security Agency's massive telephone data collection. The judge acknowledged that the agency has, indeed, been "vacuum

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Rdio shutters Vdio movie streaming service, offers Amazon gift cards as compensation

Rdio was a bit late to the game when it announced its movie streaming service, Vdio, earlier this year. The spinoff site was available in beta form in the US, the UK and Canada, offering blockbuster flick rentals for $6 and movie purchases for up to 20 bucks. Rdio took Vdio offline today, however, citing an inability to differentiate its offering in a very crowded market. Customers who purchased movies and TV shows or have unwatched rentals will receive compensation in the form of Amazon gift cards, while promotional credit will expire. Click through for a surprisingly succinct FAQ.

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Via: TechCrunch

Source: Vdio

Tags: hdpostcross, movie, movies, rdio, streaming, vdio, video, videostreaming Next: Judge rejects ACLU challenge, says NSA telephone data collection is legal (update) .fyre .fyre-comment-divider

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Engadget Podcast 374 - 12.26.13

This week's podcast ditches the studio and delivers the mellifluous voices of Brian, Terrence and Billy without all that video nonsense, leaving much to the imagination. The news tidbits are real, however, and the discussion launches into tasty gadget gifts, spearheaded by Apple's shiny new Mac Pro. Avegant has a new immersive display arriving soon and Canonical is giving the gift of dual-booting this season, so that Android users can get in on the Ubuntu experience, too. It's a festive bit of banter this week, so heat up those leftovers, grab a tasty beverage and settle in for another edition of the Engadget Podcast.

Hosts: Brian Heater, Terrence O'Brien, Billy Steele

Producer: Jon Turi

Hear the podcast:

04:30 - Apple Mac Pro review (2013): small, fast and in a league of its own
04:43 - UK pardons computing pioneer Alan Turing
12:15 - Avegant tests Glyph wearable display prototype, on track for CES debut
16:18 - BlackBerry's latest casualty: Two unreleased phones
29:24 - Swiss researchers created a cube that can sit, jump and walk (video)
38:01 - HP's new tablets may be its way back into the smartphone world
41:19 - Canonical gives developers a preview of a dual-booting Ubuntu and Android future

Subscribe to the podcast:

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UPS and FedEx buckle under holiday load, leaving retailers and families in the lurch

Didn't get your Christmas presents in time? You're far from alone. Seems that both FedEx and UPS greatly underestimated the number of packages that would be passing through their systems this holiday season. More consumers are doing their gift shopping from the comfort and safety of their computers, bombarding our already stretched parcel services -- it's not surprising that something had to give. According to a spokesperson, FedEx handled roughly 275 million packages between Thanksgiving and December 22nd, while the US Postal Service said it saw a 19 percent increase in volume over last year (UPS declined to say exactly how much its expectations were exceeded). While these companies insist that the vast majority of packages were delivered by their promised December 24th deadline, a small portion did not make it in time to be placed under the tree on Christmas morning. Both the delivery companies and retailers are working to repair the damage, but the writing may be on the wall for 2014. The deadline for Christmas orders will undoubtedly be earlier next year, but the more immediate problem will be making things right with consumers this year.

A number of companies, including Amazon and Kohl's, have been proactive in addressing the situation. The former is refunding associated shipping fees and even offering $20 gift cards to those who didn't receive their packages by the 24th. Kohl's is contacting customers whose deliveries were delayed and offering to fully cover the cost of items delivered late. Walmart also appears to have suffered at the hands of over-extended delivery companies and is offering customers gift cards (usually $25) as an apology. Additionally, 1-800-Flowers also saw a small percentage of its orders delayed and is offering $20 refunds, while Groupon is handing out $25 toward a future purchase.

Next holiday may see scaled-back promises from both retailers and shipping companies, as well as increased investment in infrastructure, but this year's issues do not appear to be due to a lack of effort or preparation. UPS workers put in plenty of overtime and even made deliveries on Sunday, but it simply seems that its network was not capable of keeping up with the flood of last-minute orders. Amazon also did its best to avoid complications by hiring 70,000 seasonal workers, only to be thwarted by overwhelmed delivery companies. If your packages didn't arrive on time, you can contact the retailer's customer service to see what sort of compensation they're offering. Though, your best bet is to get your Christmas shopping done before December 23rd next year.

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Bloomberg, Wall Street Journal, New York Times Tags: amazon, delays, fedex, groupon, kohls, shipping, ups, walmart Next: Engadget Podcast 374 - 12.26.13 .fyre .fyre-comment-divider

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Daily Roundup: Snapchat security exploit, judge okays NSA spying and more!

You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.

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Hackers get encrypted PINs in Target data breach

Holiday shoppers have already been reeling from a breach of Target's database, and their situation isn't improving now that Christmas is over. The store chain has confirmed that the perpetrators took encrypted PIN codes, theoretically scoring access to legions of accounts. There is some consolation for affected customers, though. Target notes that the encryption key rests with an outside payment processor; unless the hackers attacked both companies, they won't have an easy time cracking into the financial data. The reassurances won't help those who've had to replace bank cards in light of the breach, but they do suggest that Target avoided the worst possible outcome.

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Source: Target

The Columbus Dispatch Tags: breach, e-commerce, ecommerce, hack, internet, pin, retail, security, shopping, target Next: Daily Roundup: Snapchat security exploit, judge okays NSA spying and more! .fyre .fyre-comment-divider

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