LaNUBlog™

California has passed a law that will enable under-18s to make websites delete their personal information. The law, which will take effect in 2015, only covers content, including photos, generated by the individual. Companies will not have to remove content posted, or reposted, by others. Nor will they have to remove the information from their servers. The legislation has been welcomed by Common Sense Media, a charity that promotes children's digital privacy. "Teens often self-reveal before they self-reflect and may post sensitive personal information about themselves - and about others - without realising the consequences," said chief executive James Steyer in a blog post. A Pew survey indicated 59% of US youngsters with a social-media profile had deleted or edited something they had posted, and 19% had posted comments, photos or updates they later regretted sharing. Right to be forgotten Back in May, Google chairman Eric Schmidt said the internet needed a "d...

Peru has become the world's main grower of coca leaves- the raw ingredient for cocaine - despite a small drop in the area under cultivation. According to a report by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, coca plantations in Peru covered 60,400 hectares last year. The previous top producer was Colombia, where crop eradication programmes have been successful. It's not clear how much of the leaf output is used for the legal production of teas and medicaments. But Peru remains one the world's top three producers of cocaine, alongside Colombia and Bolivia. The area cultivated with coca is now 20% larger than that of Colombia. In a report released last month, UNDOC said that the area of land planted with coca in Colombia was down by 25% from the previous year. There was a decrease in the area cultivated also in Bolivia. Shining Path Peru has its own eradication programme, and the efforts of the government of Ollanta Humala to deal with the problem have been praised by the UN...

Peru has become the world's main grower of coca leaves- the raw ingredient for cocaine - despite a small drop in the area under cultivation. According to a report by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, coca plantations in Peru covered 60,400 hectares last year. The previous top producer was Colombia, where crop eradication programmes have been successful. It's not clear how much of the leaf output is used for the legal production of teas and medicaments. But Peru remains one the world's top three producers of cocaine, alongside Colombia and Bolivia. The area cultivated with coca is now 20% larger than that of Colombia. In a report released last month, UNDOC said that the area of land planted with coca in Colombia was down by 25% from the previous year. There was a decrease in the area cultivated also in Bolivia. Shining Path Peru has its own eradication programme, and the efforts of the government of Ollanta Humala to deal with the problem have been praised by the UN...

Two women from the UK have pleaded guilty to attempting to smuggle 11kg (24lbs) of cocaine out of Peru. Michaella McCollum, of Dungannon, Co Tyrone, and Melissa Reid, of Lenzie, near Glasgow, appeared before a judge at a closed hearing in Lima. The women, both 20, were caught with the drugs - said to be worth £1.5m - at Lima airport in August, and had said they were forced into carrying them. They will be jailed for six years and eight months, the court said. On Tuesday, the pair were transported by van under armed guard from the prison where they are being held to Callao prison where the hearing took place. They were then returned to the women's prison where they are being held to await their sentencing hearing on 1 October. A spokesman for the Peruvian court confirmed they had admitted the offences. It is understood the pleas were made in exchange for a shorter sentence. A court spokesman said: "They will automatically have a sixth off the minimum jail sentence of ei...

The former president of Peru, Alberto Fujimori, has said he will publish excerpts from his memoirs on the social media websites Twitter and Facebook. Fujimori said in a letterhe intended to share thoughts and memories, happy and sad, while serving a 25-year prison sentence for human rights violations. The social media accounts would be managed by a group of supporters. The 75-year-old governed Peru for a decade before being impeached and fleeing the country in 2000. Peru's Justice minister, Daniel Figallo, reacted angrily to Fujimori's announcement. 'Prison, not hotels' "People who commit violations and have their liberty taken from them have their rights limited. Otherwise, we turn prisons into hotels," he told reporters. Mr Figallo reportedly asked the prison director to limit Fujimori's access to social media. The former leader still has supporters in Peru and vowed to reveal his thoughts online. "In this way, I'll be able to share my ...