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SAN FRANCISCO -- An employer has no right to read an employee's text messages without the worker's knowledge and consent, and federal law bars service providers from turning over the contents of the messages to the employer who pays for the service, the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled today. The court's unanimous ruling by a three-judge panel stemmed from a lawsuit by Ontario Police Sgt. Jeff Quon and three others against the city's service provider and the city and Police Department for violating his constitutional right to be free of unreasonable searches. Although the city had informed employees...

S.F. using text messages to get sex advice to teens SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Call it shorthand sex ed for the text message generation. San Francisco health officials have started using text messaging this week to direct safe sex advice to teenagers. Teens text the phrase "sexinfo" to one of two health department phone numbers. Within seconds, they get a reply asking them to desribe their question. The automated responses include how to handle a condom breaking and responding to peer pressure about sex. Messages are written in the shorthand style teens prefer for texting, and most end with the...

A text message is leading to charges for a former Slaton teacher. 32-year-old Abelardo Tomas Mata was arrested yesterday and charged with "online solicitation of a minor." He is now free on a $30,000 bond. Now, something as simple as a cell phone could be used in an online crime because of text messaging. In this case, Slaton police detective tells us Mata is accused of showing a 13 year old female student an explicit text message. On February 17th, a Slaton junior high school student walked into the principal's office and showed him a text message she says was...

"Ur dumped" -- research shows text a popular way of ending romances Fri Oct 14, 1:11 PM ET SYDNEY (AFP) - Breaking up is supposed to be hard to do, but young Australian couples have found an easy solution - send a text message and move on. Research shows young romantics are increasingly using SMS text messages to manage, and even end, their relationships. Macquarie University researcher Natalie Robinson studied the texting habits of 100 young people aged 18-35 and found SMS messaging increased when relationships were beginning or going through a rocky period. Robinson said couples, fearing rejection, wanted...

Key points • Texting makes you less intelligent, it is revealed • Brains suffer from information overload, apparently • Solution is: switch off! Key quote"The impairment only lasts for as long as the distraction. But you have to ask whether our current obsession with constant communication is causing long-term damage to concentration and mental ability." - Dr Glenn Wilson, psychologist at the University of London Story in fullCONSTANT text messaging and e-mailing causes a reduction in mental capability equivalent to the loss of ten IQ points, according to research. Tapping away on a mobile phone or computer keypad or checking...

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) - An Italian tourist aboard a flight from Sydney to Vienna caused an international security alert after he sent a joke text message from his cell phone to his wife claiming his plane had been hijacked by terrorists, the Australian government confirmed Sunday. The man, Antonio Casale, 35, sent the message to his wife from Kuala Lumpur during a refueling stop on a Lauda Air flight from Sydney last Sunday night, Sydney's Sunday Telegraph newspaper reported. Transport Minister John Anderson's spokesman confirmed the newspaper report. Casale claimed terrorists were in control of the plane and were taking...