Technology, Europe | featured news

An airport in France is experimenting with "virtual" boarding agents in a bid to jazz up its terminals with 21st century avatars who always smile, don't need breaks and never go on strike.

One by one, the lulz are coming to an end. Scotland Yard announced Wednesday that it had arrested a 19-year-old it claims is a core member of the hacker group LulzSec who goes by the name “Topiary.” The young hacktivist was captured in a home in the Shetland Islands off the northeast coast of Great Britain, and taken to London for questioning.

The CSA's press office told The Associated Press on Monday it has advised broadcasters to instead use the generic term "social media" when promoting their online offerings, and refer to Facebook or Twitter only when a report or program merits a specific reference.

France's online privacy watchdog has fined Google €100,000 for unfair data collection from wireless networks through the company's Street View mapping service and localization program Latitude.

British police arrested five young men on Thursday as they and U.S. authorities conducted searches as part of a probe into Internet activists who carried out cyber attacks against groups they viewed as enemies of the WikiLeaks website.

While three other firms disputed the finding, StatCounter of Dublin said Firefox surpassed Internet Explorer as the top European browser in December.

Across Eastern Europe, Russia, Kazakhstan and the Gobi Desert - it certainly was a long way to go without getting lost... The vehicles, equipped with four solar-powered laser scanners and seven video cameras that work together to detect and avoid obstacles, are part of an experiment aimed at improving road safety and advancing automotive technology.

Tablet computers to rival Apple's iPad are creating a stir as one of Europe's largest technology shows, the IFA, gets under way in Berlin.

Apple said the iPad will become available in nine European countries May 28, after an earlier delay.

Web browser Opera says its downloads in Europe have doubled since Microsoft began offering a choice.