Strict safeguards will prevent the world's biggest biometric database from being abused, US authorities say.

Citizens in Taizhou are being asked to contribute to what could become the world's largest DNA databank.

Pension provider Legal & General is using peoples' postcodes to help price policies for retirement income.

As Tony Blair seeks his place in posterity, he should heed the example of the scientists who identified the structure of DNA and then tried to shape their own place in history, says Lisa Jardine.

A shoe shiner is among those recognised in the Queen's New Year Honours list.

Networks are taking over the world and penetrating our lives like never before, says Bill Thompson.

Little Britain narrator and former Doctor Who Tom Baker returns to read Christmas texts sent to landlines.

Ghana has clocked up economic expansion of about 6% a year, near the top of the African growth league.

One year since politicians promised more aid for Africa, Ghana has not seen its aid flows increase.

How DNA from a crime scene can identify relatives of the perpetrator, raising ethical concerns.

"Incredible advances" in DNA profiling leads to the conviction of a rapist 14 years after the crime.

A government watchdog says Tony Blair's plan for an ID card scheme is "excessive and disproportionate".

A deal between two UK firms sets in motion the world's first derivatives market for property exposure.

A police force sets up a special unit to target known football hooligans who may be travelling to the European Championships in Portugal.

Fewer Japanese companies are going bust, but a report says it is due to government help rather than the economy.

Fewer Japanese companies are going bust, says a report, as the government grows more optimistic about the economy.

Sri Lankans who apply for a visa to visit the UK are to be fingerprinted in a bid to cut down on fraudulent asylum claims.

The multi-trillion yen postal savings system could be tapped to stem the relentless slide in Japan's stock market, a government panel urges.

Police collect DNA samples from more than 1,000 men in their search the killer of an 87-year-old woman.

The Japanese central bank maintains its gloomy forecast for economic prospects in its latest monthly report.