While You Were Sleeping: 5 stories you might have missed, March 29

Police officers are seen at the scene of a hit-and-run incident in San Francisco. PHOTO: REUTERS

Driver ploughs into people in San Francisco, critically wounding four

A driver ploughed a vehicle into several people in San Francisco on Wednesday, critically wounding four, before fleeing the scene and triggering a manhunt, police said.

"Driver of vehicle in a physical altercation with five subjects and struck five subjects with his vehicle," San Francisco police said in a statement.

Police were searching for the driver and the five victims were transported to the hospital, police said, adding that four had life-threatening injuries.

Police declined to release further details, including whether the driver was a man or a woman or what vehicle the person was driving.

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Facebook tweaks privacy tools to ease discontent over data leak

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Facebook has adjusted privacy settings to give users more control over their information in a few taps, it said on Wednesday, after an outcry over a whistleblower's allegations that members' data was used to sway the 2016 US election.

It put all the settings on one page and made it easier to change and more straightforward to stop apps using data. Until now changing settings had been complex, spread over at least 20 screens, which had frustrated users.

The world's largest social network said in a blog post it had been working on the updates for some time but sped things up to appease users' anger over how the company uses their data and as lawmakers around the globe called for strong regulation.

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Skripals' first contact with nerve agent was at home: British police

Former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter first came into contact with a nerve agent at their home address in Britain, police said on Wednesday (March 28) as the high-profile probe into the attack continues.

"At this point in our investigation, we believe the Skripals first came into contact with the nerve agent from their front door," said Dean Haydon from London's Metropolitan Police.

The March 4 attack on the Skripals in the English city of Salisbury has been met with a major response that has seen more than 150 Russian diplomats expelled from countries around the world.

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Amazon shares fall after report Trump wants to curb its power

Amazon.com shares fell as much as 7.4 per cent on Wednesday (March 28), briefly wiping about US$53.6 billion (S$70.1 billion) from its market value, after news website Axios reported that US President Donald Trump is obsessed with the world's largest online retailer and wants to rein in its growing power.

Trump has talked about using antitrust law to "go after" the company because he is worried about mom-and-pop retailers being put out of business by Amazon, Axios reported, citing five sources it said had discussed the issue with him.

Trump also wants to change Amazon's tax treatment, the report said, an issue the president raised publicly last year when he called for an internet tax for online retailers, even though Amazon already collects sales tax on items it sells direct to customers.

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Football: Salah sold on cheap to Liverpool before 'Neymar effect', says Roma chief

As Roma sporting director Monchi conceded that Egyptian striker Mohamed Salah had been sold on the cheap to Liverpool for €40 million (S$65 million) before "the Neymar effect" transformed the market.

"To understand this sale you have to understand two things. Firstly, it was made before the Neymar effect which revolutionised the transfer market," Monchi said during a meeting with the foreign press in Rome on Wednesday.

Brazilian striker Neymar's world record €222 million move from Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain last August started a chain reaction.

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