Xbox Security Flaw Discovered By Boy, Five

A five-year-old boy has been praised by Microsoft after he found a flaw in the Xbox security system.

Kristoffer Von Hassel, from San Diego, managed to hack into his father's Xbox Live account without having to put in the correct password.

When the login screen appeared, all Kristoffer had to do was press the space button several times.

By doing so, he managed to get in by the back door without needing to use the password.

The child's father, Robert Davies, who works in computer security, was so proud he recorded a video of the process which he sent to Microsoft.

Xbox has listed the child on its website as a "security researcher"

The security team at Microsoft quickly fixed the bug and put Kristoffer's name on the Xbox website, listing him as a "security researcher".

When he saw his name online, Kristoffer said: "I'm gonna be famous!"

It is not the first time he has outwitted technology.

When he was a one-year-old, he figured out how to unlock his father's phone by holding down the 'Home' button.

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Goose Crashes Through Driver's Windscreen

A motorist had a lucky escape after a goose crashed through her windscreen while she was driving at around 50mph.

Shannon Jergenson "could barely see" in the "freak accident" as the screen was left shattered and mangled and her hair was covered in glass.

She said she was travelling along Highway 76 in Golden, Colorado, when she saw some birds in the distance.

The next thing she knew, one went right into the screen.

"The bird came up and just went 'bam', right into my windshield," she said.

"I turned my head and when I opened my eyes the bird was like ... its head just kind of fell over."

After the goose smashed the windshield, she turned her head to stop glass from hitting her face.

The windscreen was shattered in the freak accident

"I could barely see because the windshield was mangled," she said.

There were no drivers directly behind her and she was able to safely pull over.

Thankfully, she only suffered a small scratch despite her hair being covered by a fine dusting of glass that took her several hours to remove.

She said: "I didn't know how much glass was on me until I got home and (saw) all (my hair) was just full of glass. I took my hair down and could just hear the glass falling."

She even managed to get to work, albeit a few hours late.

Ms Jergenson added: "Freak accident, you know, complete freak accident, and I'm still (shaken) up by it. I have to now talk myself into starting my car now."

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'Rock-Throwing' Baby Accused Of Murder Bid

A baby has appeared in court in Pakistan charged with attempted murder after allegedly throwing rocks at gas workers.

Nine-month-old Mohammad Musa cried as he sat on his grandfather's shoulder in the dock in Lahore.

He could also be seen screaming as he was forced to give his fingerprints.

Police accuse the youngster and other members of his family of attacking officers, bailiffs and gas company staff when they arrived to disconnect supplies of households who had not paid their bills.

One of the team sent to complete the work in the Ahata Thanedaran neighbourhood complained the family beat him up and gave him a head injury.

However, the boy's grandfather, Muhammad Yassen, said: "He does not even know how to pick up his milk bottle properly. How can he stone the police?"

The judge in the case, Rafaqat Ali Qamar, granted Mohammad bail until April 12 and ordered Inspector Kashif Muhammad, who attended the scene and reported it as a case of attempted murder, be suspended.

However, he did not heed calls from the family's legal team to refer the case to the High Court for charges to be dropped.

Defence lawyer Chaudhry Irfan Sadi said: "This case exposes the incompetence of our police force and the way they are operating."

Feisal Naqvi, a supreme court lawyer, said it was common for criminal cases in Pakistan to feature several family members, although it was rare for the very young to be accused.

"What happens is that vendettas are going on, so everyone gets picked up and chucked in jail," he added.

The charge against Mohammad is in contradiction with Pakistan's minimum age of criminal responsibility, which is 12 except for terrorism cases.

Mr Yassen, who fed his grandson milk as he fielded questions from reporters outside court, accused police of fabricating charges in collusion with a rival party who wanted to see them evicted.

"The police and gas company officials came without any notice and started removing gas meters from houses," the 50-year-old labourer said.

"Residents started protesting and blocked the road but ended the protest when senior police officers arrived in the area and assured them that no injustice would be done.

"But later we found out cases have been filed against us."

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Briton Shot Dead In Rio De Janeiro Carjacking

A British man has been shot and killed in an attempted carjacking in Brazil, where he was working as an oil worker.

Peter Campsie, from Montrose, in the Scottish county of Angus, was shot dead after his Lexus was intercepted by two gunmen in Rio de Janeiro.

The 48-year-old was on his way home to the city of Macae, north of Rio, after a business meeting when the attack happened on Wednesday.

Gunmen shot Mr Campsie twice as he attempted to flee from the scene in his vehicle, Aberdeen's Press And Journal newspaper reported.

It is understood the operations manager died at the scene of the attack, which took place in Rio's Niteroi municipality in the late afternoon. The gunmen fled empty-handed.

Mr Campsie had been working for Diamond Offshore Drilling International and had lived in Brazil for 16 years.

He shared his home in Brazil with his wife and 10-year-old daughter. He also had two sons, siblings and family in Scotland. 

A statement to the Press and Journal issued by his family said: "He was a man who loved life and and brought so much joy and laughter to those around him.

"Wherever Pete went, the good times followed. A darkness has fallen on us all as we try and make sense of why Pete had to die in the prime of his life.

"He was a loyal friend and father, brother and son who cared deeply about making sure everyone got the best out of their lives. Our anchor has been pulled away so cruelly."

A spokeswoman for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office said: "We were made aware of the death of a British national in Brazil on April 2.

"We stand ready to provide consular assistance to the family at this difficult time."

News of the carjacking came as federal troops were sent on to the streets of Rio de Janeiro by Brazil's government to tackle crime.

The city is one of the main hosts for this summer's World Cup Finals and is also set to hold the Olympic Games in 2016.

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Afghanistan Goes To The Polls In Historic Vote

The Front Runners In Afghanistan's Elections

Updated: 1:29pm UK, Saturday 05 April 2014

Here is a guide to the leading contenders in the Afghan elections.

Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai

Known in Afghanistan as Doctor Ashraf Ghani, the American-trained anthropologist returned to his home country after the Taliban were ousted.

He had previously spent more than 25 years abroad during the turbulent years when Afghanistan came under Soviet control, descended into civil war and then was taken over by the Taliban.

During that period he worked for the United Nations and World Bank in the US, Denmark and in south and east Asia.

On his return he held various government posts, including finance minister.

He went on to take part in the disputed 2009 presidential election campaign when he won 4% of the vote, but was beaten by Hamid Karzai.

Mr Ghani is among the strongest backers of a disputed security deal which will keep US troops in Afghanistan beyond 2014.

But he has provoked controversy by picking ethnic Uzbek former warlord Abdul Rashid Dostum as a running mate.

Zalmai Rassoul

A relative of Afghanistan's former royal family, Zalmai Rassoul is seen as an establishment figure.

Although originally a doctor, he became involved in politics when representing the deposed king in 1998 on a body that played a key role in the future transition of the country after the end of the Soviet period.

He held roles in national security before being made Hamid Karzai's foreign minister, often accompanying the president on trips abroad.

Critics say that, if elected, Mr Rassoul would lack the strength and independence to make a break from the old administration, which many have accused of corruption.

But a number of foreign correspondents have said that despite serving for more than a decade in government, he remains untainted by the allegations that have dogged Mr Karzai's tenure in power.

He is comfortable dealing with those at home and abroad, speaking Dari, Pashto, English, French and Italian, among other languages.

He is also the only leading candidate with a woman as one of his vice-presidential running mates. 

Abdullah Abdullah

A former ophthalmologist-turned-fighter against Soviet forces in the 1980s, Mr Abdullah dropped out of a run-off against Mr Karzai in the 2009 election, saying he was concerned about electoral fraud.

He rose to take roles in government in the post-Taliban period having previously been an adviser to Ahmad Shah Masood, a leader in the Northern Alliance.

But he was abruptly dismissed from his role as Afghanistan's foreign minister in 2006 - a role he had previously held in the Northern Alliance when it fought alongside the American-led invasion of the country following the 9/11 attacks.

Mr Abdullah's base of support is the ethnic Tajik community whose rights and cause, although he is half-Pashtun, he has championed.

He spent some of the period during the Soviet-backed regime in Pakistan.

He took part in the 2009 election after registering as an independent candidate.

Other candidates are:

Abdul Rasul Sayyaf: A former warlord with ties to al Qaeda. An MP in the new parliament.

Mohammad Daud Sultanzoy: A former pilot and talk show host who is known for encouraging women to vote.

Qutbuddin Hilal: Former deputy prime minister with links to controversial mujahideen figure Gulbuddin Hekmatyar.

Gul Agha Sherzai: Another former mujahideen member but later governor of two Afghan provinces during Mr Karzai's time.

Hedayat Amin Arsala: A prominent economist and politician who has held several high-ranking government posts.

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MH370: Has China Cracked 'Mission Impossible'?

Experts say Chinese search crews will have overcome an "impossible situation" if they recover the black box from the missing Malaysia Airlines plane.

Chinese state media claims a signal has been discovered by the country's Haixun 01 vessel 1,000 miles northwest of Perth.

The signal is said to have a frequency of 37.5kHz per second - the same as that emitted by black-box devices.

Oceanographer Dr Simon Boxall, from Southampton University, told Sky News it would be a remarkable achievement.

"If it proves this is potentially from the pinger on the black box then we've gone from pretty much an impossible situation to locate this flight and the wreckage on the seabed to a situation where it's very feasible," he said.

"It would mean we've gone from an area of 85,000 square miles down to an area of 10 square miles.

"Because the signal is so weak on this locator, it can't be more than two or three miles away.

A black box recorder similar to that on MH370

"Even if the seabed is fairly mountainous or there are issues on the sea floor, it's within the capability of 21st century technology to recover this black box if the signal proves to be from the aircraft.

"The search area would be doable but it could take months."

Dr Boxall says the next step is to confirm the signal is from MH370.

This would be done using a combination of side scan sonar and camera equipment attached to an ROV (remotely operated underwater vehicle).

If they confirm the presence of a black box, the operation will enter its recovery phase.

This could be hampered by weather, with relatively calm seas required for a whole day to allow the ROV to reach the seabed.

"You shouldn't underestimate the size of this task - it's not easy," said Dr Boxall.

"But you go to something that will happen, rather than something that may never happen.

The location of objects spotted in the southern corridor

"Possibly when they do that some of the mysteries of what happened to MH370 might be answered."

Another question is which country will lead any verification and recovery, as the signal has been found in international waters.

But Dr Boxall warns there is a long way to go before this becomes an issue.

"Without showing scepticism, it's interesting that this has happened four weeks after the event and it's happened at the point when people are saying, incorrectly, that the black box is going to run out in two hours," he said.

"The black box has a design transition of about 30 days. It could go on for longer, it could have been damaged in the crash itself.

"The ocean is full of noise. Both equipment we use as scientists or natural noises.

"The argument is that there's nothing else out there that will transit at 37.5kHz but we also know the signal was very intermittent, which we would sort of expect - but how intermittent?

"Because this is all second-hand information, then until this data has been looked at by the Australians, I'm afraid to say my scepticism will remain."

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Do Not Get Sick, Top Doctor Warns Patients

One of Britain's most senior doctors has warned people not to get ill because the situation in the NHS is so bad.

Sir Richard Thompson, President of the Royal College of Physicians, told Sky News a funding crisis is putting doctors under so much pressure it is putting patients at risk.

When asked where things were headed, Sir Richard said: "I'd rather not think about it. It's already (a) tremendous strain. When people ask me what's going to happen I say don't get ill."

He also warned the health service is "underfunded by billions".

Sir Richard told Sunrise the NHS is "between a rock and a hard place", having to cope with an increasing population at the same time there is a shortage of doctors and nurses.

"The workload is going up at the same time money is being taken out of the NHS," he said, adding some smaller hospitals were already under "tremendous strain" to try and keep going.

"Because nurses and doctors are rushed they know that they can't produce good care."

Sir Richard claims doctors are missing patients' vital signs

Sir Richard added: "If you're not able to give an optimum time to looking after patients, the right number of staff looking after them, there must be some damage."

In an earlier interview with the Guardian, he claimed some doctors are facing caseloads during one shift of up to 70 patients - far more than the maximum 20 regarded as necessary for proper care.

Sir Richard said: "You try standing on your feet for seven hours trying to be on the ball, thinking of the various complications, being nice to patients, for seven hours. It's absolutely destructive.

"Not everyone has 70, but most people are looking after well over 20.

"If you've got over 20 it becomes impossible. The care gets thinner and thinner. It means the consultant can't see the patient as much or indeed as early as they should do, so obviously the standard of care is going to fall."

Sir Richard accused the coalition of cutting the NHS budget despite repeated pledges, including from Prime Minister David Cameron, to protect it from the austerity programme.

"In spite of what weasly words people at the top say, money's been taken out of the NHS," he said, citing the £2.8bn that has been given to social care in the past three years.

As a result, he claimed: "The NHS is under-doctored, under-nursed, under-bedded and under-funded. There are too few doctors to do the increasingly large job to a high standard, and safely, and compassionately."

A Department of Health spokesman responded by saying: "Patient safety and care is a priority for the Government and it is right that we have high expectations for our NHS.

"While the NHS is one of the safest, most efficient healthcare systems in the world we should never shy away from trying to improve standards for patients."

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Mafia Boss 'The Professor' In Custody In UK

An alleged Italian mafia boss has been remanded in custody following his arrest on a fresh international warrant over his connections to a criminal gang.

During an appearance at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London, Domenico Rancadore, 65, was told he would remain in custody until a hearing next week.

Last month he was told by a judge he could remain in his home in Uxbridge, west London, after prosecutors withdrew their appeal against a ruling that blocked his extradition to Italy.

But he was arrested in Uxbridge on Friday night on a European arrest warrant by officers from Scotland Yard's extradition unit.

Adam Harbinson, representing the Italian authorities, told the court he was "one of the heads of one of the most powerful mafia associations in Italy."

He said the latest arrest warrant is identical to the previous one, except that it provided assurances about the prison conditions he would be faced with in Italy.

Scotland Yard had earlier said in a statement: "(The warrant) alleges that he has an outstanding sentence of seven years' imprisonment to serve for participation in Mafia association between December 17, 1987 and April 13, 1995 in Palermo, Italy."

The house in Uxbridge where Rancadore was arrested

The warrant was issued in Italy and certified by the UK's National Crime Agency.

Rancadore wore a beige sweater, blue shirt and black trousers and waved to his wife, Anne, in the public gallery.

Known as "The Professor", Rancadore was arrested in Britain last August after 20 years on the run.

He had won his legal fight against extradition on March 17 on the basis that returning to Italy's overcrowded prisons would breach his human rights.

At a hearing last week, the Crown Prosecution Service confirmed they had lodged an appeal, but said it was not served within the statutory time limit and was therefore being withdrawn.

Rancadore fled to England in 1994 with his wife and two children, and lived under the false name of Marc Skinner.

Italian authorities claim he was a leading figure in the Cosa Nostra, a Sicilian mafia group controlling Trabia near Palermo.

He is one of Italy's most wanted criminals and was sentenced to seven years in prison in his absence.

Italian police claim he was involved in extortion, racketeering and drug trafficking.

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Mum Killed Baby 'With Morphine Breast Milk'

A mother has been jailed for 20 years for killing her six-week-old daughter allegedly with a morphine overdose delivered through her breast milk.

Stephanie Greene, 39, was found guilty of homicide by child abuse, involuntary manslaughter and unlawful conduct toward a child after a trial in Spartanburg, South Carolina.

Greene will have to serve 16 years before she is eligible for parole. She said nothing in court and quietly shuffled out of the courtroom, her hands and feet shackled, after she was sentenced.

Prosecutors said Greene, a nurse, knew the dangers of taking painkillers while pregnant and breast feeding.

But she chose to hide her pregnancy from doctors so she could keep getting her prescriptions, they claimed.

Greene's lawyer Rauch Wise said she was trying to stop a pain she suffered from a car crash years before and relied on her own judgment and internet medical research instead of medics' advice.

Greene, who lost her nursing licence in 2004 for trying to get drugs illegally, is still overwhelmed with grief from the loss of her child, he added.

A toxicology report from the baby's post-mortem examination found a level of morphine in the child's body that a pathologist testified could have been lethal for an adult, prosecutor Barry Barnette said.

Mr Wise said she will appeal and the case is likely to continue for several years.

Greene was accused of killing her daughter, Alexis, with a morphine overdose from breast milk after the child was found dead in her parents' bed in 2010.

Mr Wise said both he and the prosecutor agree no mother has ever been prosecuted in the US for killing her child through a substance transmitted in breast milk.

Also, prosecutors did not prove how the baby got the morphine and there is little scientific evidence that enough morphine can gather in breast milk to kill an infant, Mr Wise went on.

"The court can't punish her any more than she already has been by losing a child," Mr Wise said.

Mr Barnette said he does not want his prosecution to stop women from breastfeeding.

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Missing Plane: Ship Detects Signal In Ocean

A patrol ship searching for the missing Malaysian passenger jet has detected a pulse signal in the Indian Ocean, Chinese state media has reported.

Xinhua news agency said the signal discovered by Chinese vessel Haixun 01 had a frequency of 37.5kHz - the same as that emitted by black-box devices.

A Chinese air force plane has also spotted a number of white floating objects in the search area, according to Xinhua.

The Joint Agency Coordination Centre in Australia, where the search is being overseen, confirmed a signal had been reported, but said its origin remained unknown.

Chinese patrol ship Haixun 01

Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston said: "The characteristics reported are consistent with the aircraft black box. A number of white objects were also sighted on the surface about 90 kilometres from the detection area.

"However, there is no confirmation at this stage that the signals and the objects are related to the missing aircraft."

Australian authorities are now considering sending air force crews to the area the signal was reported.

The signal was detected approximately 1,000 miles (1,600 kilometres) northwest of Perth 10 hours after news channels in China reported that the three Chinese vessels looking for MH370 had relocated to a new search area north of that designated by Australian authorities.

Even if the signal is from the black box, it could take weeks to recover it according to Australian defence minister David Johnston.

Sky News understands the Malaysians were informed of the development by the Chinese government a few hours before the news emerged.

The suspected location of the black box

Radar expert Professor David Stupples told Sky News: "If there has been a signal received, it could be the black box or it could be something extraneous.

"I don't know anything (else) that puts out the 37.5kHz signal."

Prof Stupples said he would remain "sceptical" until further evidence emerged.

He added: "My worry is the range. If this is in 2,000-3,000 metres of water, the range of the pinger is one to two kilometres at best.

"My recommendation would be to move the ships with the pinger locators very much closer to this, first of all to confirm this is the signal, and then two or three ships around it to do triangulation to fix the location."

Search teams are facing a race against time to find the black box, which a month after the plane went missing is likely to be running out of battery.

It comes after Malaysia's transport minister denied "extraordinary" claims the country was complicit in the disappearance of flight MH370.

In an interview with Sky News on Friday, Mayalsia's main opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim said the investigation had been "clearly suspect" and alleged "complicity by authorities on the ground".

But speaking at a news conference, acting transport minister Hishammuddin Hussein said: "Let me touch on some unfounded allegations made against Malaysia.

"These allegations include the extraordinary assertion that Malaysian authorities were somehow complicit in what happened to MH370.

"I would like to state for the record that these allegations are completely untrue.

"As I've said before, the search for MH370 should be above politics, and so I call on all Malaysians to unite, to stand by our armed forces as they work in difficult conditions thousands of miles from home, and to support all those who are working tirelessly in the search for MH370."

It was also revealed at the news conference that British nuclear submarine HMS Tireless had entered the search area.

HMS Tireless submarine has arrived in the search area

The vessel was expected to play a crucial role in the quest to find the plane's black box, which could hold the key to solving the mystery of what happened.

"I spoke via telephone to the British Secretary of State for Defence, Philip Hammond, regarding the nuclear submarine HMS Tireless," said Mr Hussein.

"I hereby confirm the submarine is now in the search area and helping in the search operation."

Up to 10 military planes, three civilian jets and 11 ships have been scouring more than 1,000 square miles of sea off the west coast of Australia.

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