Cybercrime
Over the past year, a number of computer servers in the Dutch city of Haarlem were used to infect millions of other computers with a Trojan horse virus. That virus gave the hackers access to personal information on more than 30 million computers around the world. This week, the Dutch High Tech Crime Team busted the criminal network allegedly responsible for the cybercrime spree.

Held hostage
A Dutch aid worker was kidnapped in Afghanistan this week. The abduction took place in the northern province of Takhar. The Dutchman and his Afghan driver were ambushed by men with rifles as they drove in a relatively safe part of the war-torn country. Very little information is known about the incident, but there are reports that the kidnappers have issued a ransom demand.

Gay Alert
Despite the Netherlands' reputation as a tolerant country, some gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people are still facing discrimination and in some cases violence based on their sexual orientation. In the city of Utrecht, several gay and lesbian couples have complained about  harassment in their own neighbourhoods. The situation has gotten so bad, that some people have decided to move. Authorities in Utrecht are keen to address the problem, so they set up a new alarm system called Gay Alert.

Robo-helper
Simple robots are being used here in the Netherlands to help care for people with mental disabilities like autism and dementia, who can be extremely difficult to communicate with. The robots help draw these mentally reclusive individuals out of their shells. The robots are unfortunately quite expensive. Nevertheless, there are plans to expand the use of these robots in public healthcare.