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** A team of web developers found numerous security issues in California's digital license plate carrier, Reviver. ** With access through the plate's SIM card, hackers were able to see the real-time location and registration address, delete or alter the tag, and even mislabeled the vehicle as stolen. ** Reviver has patched the issues since, but privacy advocates say the digital plate program poses security and data challenges that outweigh the supposed convenience.

More than 2,000 Los Angeles County voters got mail-in ballots with a very egregious flaw: no way to vote for U.S. president. The Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk’s office confirmed late Monday that about 2,100 “faulty ballots” were mailed earlier that day to residents in the Woodland Hills area.

A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge on Friday refused to overturn Gov. Jerry Brown’s decision denying parole to former Charles Manson follower and convicted killer Leslie Van Houten. In his ruling, Judge William C. Ryan said there was “some evidence” to support Brown’s decision in refusing to release Leslie Van Houten, 68, who in 1971 was found guilty of taking part in the brutal killings of Leno and Rosemary LaBianca in Los Angeles. If released, Ryan found that Van Houten “would pose an unreasonable risk of danger to society.” Ryan said the brutal and terrorizing manner in which Van...

"Not in my backyard" protests helped block homeless housing in Temple City, delayed it in Boyle Heights and, last month, killed Orange County's plan to relocate homeless people to shelters. Now, Los Angeles officials want to turn NIMBYism on its head — by paying property owners to put houses for homeless people in their backyards. In August, the county Board of Supervisors approved a $550,000 pilot program to build a handful of small backyard houses, or upgrade illegally converted garages, for homeowners who agree to host a homeless person or family. Then in February, Bloomberg Philanthropies awarded L.A. a $100,000...

All eyes in the crowd fell on the supreme commander of the Korean People's Army. He emerged from the subway in one of this city's busiest nightlife areas with his trademark black suit and closely cropped hair. He hadn't lost any weight. "That's Kim Jong Un!" somebody shouted. Not quite. The reviled North Korean dictator, it turns out, has a doppelganger. He was soon surrounded by Friday night revelers holding up their smartphones and giggling in disbelief. Several rubbed his belly as they posed for their friends.

In a new clinical trial to observe a new method of injecting islet cells into a patient with Type 1 diabetes, doctors from the University of Miami’s Diabetes Research Institute have confirmed that their first trial patient no longer needs insulin therapy. Wendy Peacock, their first patient, has been giving herself insulin injections and following a strict daily schedule to take care of her diabetes since she was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at 17. Now 43, Peacock has undergone the surgery in this new trial and no longer needs injections because her body is producing insulin naturally. Since the...

San Francisco will close borders to talented and artistic teens looking for a free and prestigious arts education at the city’s Ruth Asawa School of the Arts, a decision derided by many students, parents and teachers, yet unanimously approved by the school board Tuesday. The decision ends the long-standing practice of allowing transfer students from other school districts to audition and gain admission to the high school, considered among the region’s most elite public art schools. The new policy will apply to admission for fall 2016. Current out-of-town students would be allowed to complete high school there, as well as...

FDA approves first drug treatment for Peyronie’s disease The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved a new use for Xiaflex (collagenase clostridium histolyticum) as the first FDA-approved medicine to treat men with bothersome curvature of the penis, a condition known as Peyronie’s disease. Xiaflex is the first FDA-approved non-surgical treatment option for men with this condition, who have a plaque (lump) in the penis that results in a curvature deformity of at least 30 degrees upon erection. Peyronie’s disease is caused by scar tissue that develops under the skin of the penis. This scar tissue causes an abnormal bend...

Valentine's Day is coming up and I'd love to get Freepers' opinions of the best gift idea they've ever heard of for a man .... something that will completely melt him like butter and make him feel like a million bucks. I know there are plenty of creative and imaginative people on this forum so please help me here .....

A three-time U.S. Olympic track star made the leap from running to hooking. Blonde and buff All-American mom Suzy Favor Hamilton confessed Thursday to leading a sordid double-life as a high-flying $600-an-hour call girl after she was outed by TheSmokingGun.com. “I realize I have made highly irrational choices and I take full responsibility for them,” said Hamilton, 44, via her Twitter account. “I am not a victim here and knew what I was doing.” Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/olympian-worked-call-girl-article-1.1224594#ixzz2FdzSqhEQ

Law enforcement officers have names for the girls offering them sex on the beat: Badge Bunny. Holster Sniffer. Uniform Jumper. Handcuff Hugger. In Paso Robles, brethren in blue have one more: The Chief. A flurry of complaints and mounting formal grievances alleging sexual misconduct, illegal management practices and retaliation have been lodged against Paso Robles’ first female chief of police, Lisa Solomon. Those known to have made accusations against the chief include five current and former police officers, as well as a growing record of non-sworn police department personnel. The criticisms against Solomon include allegations of sexual assaults, many committed...

WEST HOLLYWOOD, California – Mark Landon, an actor and eldest son of "Little House on the Prairie" star Michael Landon, was found dead Monday at his home. He was 60. The cause of death was not immediately clear but there was no evidence of foul play, said Sgt. David Infante of the Los Angeles County sheriff's office.

I'll start it off.... Hopie changie dork Married to Aunt Esther clone With boob belt and arms.

In agony from abdominal cramps, the California Men’s Colony (CMC) inmate was bent over groaning when correctional officers discovered him, and though initially reticent, the man finally confessed to smuggling. He had a contraband cell phone and its charging unit in his rectum. Surgery was required, but that kind of solution won’t help state officials now wrestling with an exploding surge in cell phone possession by inmates of California’s state prisons. Last year alone, more than 2,800 cell phones were confiscated from inmates in the system, recipients of ever more clever methods developed to bootleg the devices into the hands...

The Annual Christmas Letter: What They're Not Telling You For the past few Decembers, I've tried my hand at composing and mass-mailing perky letters full of my year's highlights, but I've grown tired of the "brag letter" and "best-of" letter format. So this year, I decided not to write one. Christmas letters have escalated into a competition sport to see who's children are enrolled in the most lessons, who went on the most exotic vacation, or which mother has managed to develop the most impressive talent in her spare time. For example, I received a Christmas letter from an over-achieving...

A contentious reverse discrimination claim that has embroiled the Atascadero Police Department in controversy heads for mediation Tuesday. Earlier this year, city officials launched an internal probe into complaints of reverse discrimination made by male officers against female officers in the city's police department. The complaints allege preferential treatment for an alleged lesbian officer, provided by an upper level officer with whom she was romantically involved, sources said. A half dozen sources have confirmed the allegations. City officials and attorneys involved in the case have declined comment. Following the investigation, Police Chief Jim Mulhall ordered one of the alleged lesbian...

It's true. I've denied it all these months but today's election has proven me wrong. An election in which The Chosen One was a participant has miraculously been an election in which there has been NO disenfranchised voters, NO broken machines, NO ballots that confused people, NO hostile poll workers, NO polling places that told anyone they were not in that district, NO poll workers who informed anyone they were not on the voter list, NO poll workers who informed voters they were in the wrong precinct, NO intimidation by ICE officials, NO unconstitutional requirements for an ID, NO hanging...

'Blue Collar Comedy Tour's' Ron White arrested in Vero Beach VERO BEACH — Comedian Ron White has one more arrest story to use in his skits. The Vero Beach Police Department arrested the “Blue Collar Comedy Tour” star on Wednesday on charges of possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia. An anonymous tipster told Vero Beach Police detectives an airplane would be landing at 5 p.m. at the city’s airport with a passenger carrying illegal drugs, said Officer John Morrison, spokesman for the Vero Beach Police Department. White, on the Treasure Coast to perform at the Sunrise Theatre in Fort...