BUTLINS SAYS 34,000 CUSTOMERS HACKED
Butlins has apologised for a data breach in which the details of up to 34,000 customers may have been stolen. Information taken included home addresses and holiday arrival dates, which criminals could use to work out when a family is not at home. No payment data was stolen, Butlins said. It planned to contact everyone affected by 13 August. For more details visit www. butlins.com/data.aspx.
Scientists have found evidence of how blue light from smartphones, tablets and laptops can speed up the onset of blindness.
Researchers at the University of Toledo in Ohio have revealed that prolonged exposure to screen light generates poisonous molecules in the eye’s light-sensitive cells, known as photoreceptors. When they die, they don’t regenerate.
Over time this can cause macular degeneration, which is an incurable condition reducing the middle part of vision. It affects around 2.4 per cent of over-50s in the UK’S adult population, rising to 4.8 per cent in over-65s, and 12.2 per cent in over-80s.
Using devices in the dark is particularly dangerous because it dilates the pupils, allowing more blue light to enter.
Dr Ajith Karunarathne from the university said: “We are being exposed to blue light continuously and the eye’s cornea and lens cannot block or reflect it”. He hopes the research will leads to new therapies.
Because blue light has a short wavelength, it produces a higher amount of energy, damaging the eyes. It’s so powerful that when researchers added poisoned retinal molecules to other cell types, such as cancer, heart cells and neurons, they also died when exposed to blue light.
Since the risks emerged, manufacturers have been adding tools to limit the harm caused. Microsoft introduced ‘Night light’ in 2017’s Windows 10 Spring Creators Update, which filters blue light at a time you decide, applying a ‘warmer’ orange-red colour.
To use it, open the Settings app, then click System, Display, ‘Night light’, ‘Night light settings’. You can then set your own hours, or make it come on from “sunset to sunrise” (see Microsoft’s site for more: www.snipca. com/28783).
Many Android devices have a Night Light option in the Display section of the menu, while iphones and ipads have Night Shift in the ‘Display & Brightness’ section in Settings.