Briefly

UNITED STATES

Google pays $392m in landmark privacy case

Google on Monday agreed to pay $392 million to settle a landmark privacy case with 40 US states over accusations that the search engine giant misled users into believing location tracking on their devices had been switched off. A statement by Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum said it was the largest multistate privacy settlement by authorities in US history and included a binding commitment by Google for improved disclosures on targeting for customers. Google had been "crafty and deceptive", Rosenblum added as she announced the company's agreement to pay up to end the case.

UNITED KINGDOM

Unemployment edges up as pressures mount

Unemployment in the United Kingdom has edged up to 3.6 percent, but remains close to the lowest level in almost half a century, official data showed on Tuesday. The unemployment rate increased in the three months to the end of September from 3.5 percent in the three months to the end of August, the Office for National Statistics said in a statement. At 3.6 percent, it was around the lowest level since 1974. At the same time, sky-high inflation continues to squeeze wages, resulting in mass strike action across Britain. UK annual inflation stands at more than 10 percent — the highest level in four decades — and is forecast to keep rising along with unemployment as energy bills and food prices soar.

ISRAEL

1,000-yr-old doll made of bone discovered

Israeli archaeologists have discovered a bone-made doll dated to about a thousand years ago, the Israel Antiquities Authority said on Monday. The ancient doll was unearthed in excavations conducted at the Usha archaeological site in northern Israel, near the Mediterranean coastal city of Haifa. Such dolls were popular among all population strata in ancient Israel, beginning with the rule of the Umayyad Caliphate dynasty in the Early Muslim period in the 7th century until the end of the Crusader period in the 13th century. Most dolls of this type were made from the leg bones of cows, camels, goats or sheep. However, it has not been revealed yet which animal bone the recently found doll was made from.

Agencies - Xinhua